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Title: History of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Volume 6
Author: Roberts, B. H. (Brigham Henry), Smith, Joseph, Jr.
Language: English
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*** Start of this LibraryBlog Digital Book "History of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Volume 6" ***
HISTORY
OF THE
CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST
OF
LATTER-DAY SAINTS
PERIOD I.
History of Joseph Smith, the Prophet.
BY HIMSELF
VOLUME VI.
AN INTRODUCTION AND NOTES BY B. H. ROBERTS
PUBLISHED BY THE CHURCH.
SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH.
1912.
{III}
TABLE OF CONTENTS.
VOLUME VI.
INTRODUCTION.
The Time Period.
Why the Latter-day Saints were Welcomed to Illinois.
Nauvoo as a Possible Manufacturing Center.
Educational Measures at Nauvoo.
Jealousy of Nauvoo's Promising Greatness.
The Character of the People of Western Illinois.
Educational Status of the People of Western Illinois.
The Political Phase.
Mischief Arising from False Legal and Political Counsel.
Subserviency of Politicians and Lawyers.
The Fate of a Balance of Power Factor in Politics.
Joseph Smith's Candidacy for the Presidency.
Missouri as a Factor in the Affairs of Nauvoo.
Apostate Conspirators at Nauvoo.
The _Expositor_ Affair.
The Appeal to the Mob Spirit.
The Prophet's Nobility in the Hour of Trial.
Teacher.
Prophet and Patriarch.
CHAPTER I.
AN ESTIMATE OF THE PROPHET JOSEPH AS A RELIGIOUS LEADER--ANTI-MORMON
MEETING AT CARTHAGE--HISTORICAL SKETCH--IMPORTANT CONFERENCE OF THE
TWELVE HELD IN BOSTON.
Minutes of the Manchester Conference.
"Joe Smith, the Mormon Prophet."
Preamble and Resolutions.
Historical Sketch of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Important Conference of the Twelve held at Boylston Hall, Boston.
CHAPTER II.
MOVEMENTS OF APOSTLES IN THE EAST--THE NAUVOO MANSION--ROCKWELL
ACQUITTED--SPECIAL CONFERENCE AT NAUVOO--DISCOURSE OF THE PROPHET ON
THE DEMISE OF JAMES ADAMS.
The Drought of 1843.
Woodruff in a Train Wreck.
Nauvoo and Joseph Smith.
The Prophet on Socialism.
"Nauvoo Mansion."
"Nauvoo Mansion" made a Hotel.
Legion Parade and Inspection.
Letter of Governor Ford to the Prophet.
Conference in Nova Scotia.
Porter Rockwell.
Pacific Island Mission.
Report from the Pinery.
Stewardship _vs_. Common Stock.
Concerning Horse Thieves.
Meeting of a Special Council.
Who shall be our next President?.
The Appointment of a Mission to Russia.
{IV} Movements of Apostles in the East.
Pleasure Party and Dinner at the Nauvoo Mansion.
Anti-Mormonism.
Elder Reuben Hedlock to the First Presidency.
The Prophet's Visit with Justin Butterfield.
Instructions Respecting Plurality of Wives.
The Prophet's Dissatisfaction with Sidney Rigdon.
Minutes of a Special Conference.
The Prophet's Remarks on the Demise of James Adams.
Pacific Island Mission Embarks.
CHAPTER III.
ANCIENT RUINS IN AMERICA, BOOK OF MORMON EVIDENCES--THE PROPHET ON THE
U. S. CONSTITUTION AND THE BIBLE--MISREPRESENTATIONS CORRECTED--LETTER
TO THE U. S. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES--THE PROPHET'S ADDRESS TO THE
SAINTS.
Ancient Ruins--Introduction.
Letter--H. R. Hotchkiss to Joseph Smith.
Letter--Joseph Smith to H. R. Hotchkiss.
Location of the Mind.
The Prophet on the Constitution of the United States and the
Bible--Temporal Economies.
The Prophet's Visit to Macedonia.
Misrepresentations Corrected.
Labors of the Apostles in the East.
Hyrum Smith Appointed on Temple Committee.
Letter--Joseph L. Heywood to Joseph Smith.
Letters to Candidates for Presidency of the U. S. Decided upon.
An Epistle of the Twelve to the Elders and Churches Abroad.
President Smith's Letter to John C. Calhoun, and other Presidential
Candidates.
Post Script to Van Buren.
Work in the British Mission.
The Prophet's Anxiety Concerning the History of the Church.
Preliminary Steps to Publishing Nauvoo Edition of Doctrine and
Covenants.
Communication of President Joseph Smith to the Saints.
CHAPTER IV.
CORRESPONDENCE BETWEEN JAMES ARLINGTON BENNETT AND PRESIDENT JOSEPH
SMITH--RENEWAL OF PETITIONS TO CONGRESS FOR REDRESS OF MISSOURI
GRIEVANCES--PRESIDENT JOSEPH SMITH'S APPEAL TO THE GREEN MOUNTAIN BOYS,
VERMONT--STATUS OF THE NAUVOO LEGION IN ILLINOIS MILITIA.
Prosperity of the Work in England.
Letter--James Arlington Bennett to President Joseph Smith.
Letter--President Joseph {V} Smith to James Arlington Bennett.
Grammar for the Egyptian Language Suggested.
Meeting at the Prophet's Home.
Canal Around the Des Moines Rapids.
The Prophet's Stand on Chastity and General Morality.
Letter--Brigham Young in Behalf of the Twelve to Elder John E. Page,
Appointing him to go to Washington.
Renewal of Petitions to Congress.
"Memorial."
Activities in Renewal of Appeals to Congress.
President Smith's Appeals to his Native State--Vermont.
Letter: W. L. D. Ewing, State Auditor, to Major John Bills--Legion
Affairs.
Letter: J. Lamborn, Attorney General of Illinois, on Above.
Letter: J. N. McDougal to State Auditor.
CHAPTER V.
THE AVERY KIDNAPPING--DEFENSIVE PREPARATIONS AGAINST MISSOURI
MOBS--APPEALS TO THE GENERAL GOVERNMENT FOR PROTECTION--NAUVOO LEGION
OFFERED AS UNITED STATES TROOPS.
Progress of the Work.
Hyrum Smith meets with an Accident.
Number of the Prophet's Vexations Lawsuits.
Chapman's Affidavit in the Avery Case.
Letter: President Joseph Smith to Governor Ford.
Public Meeting at Nauvoo.
Resolutions.
Provisions for German Meetings.
Precautionary Steps Against Missouri Invasions.
Richards and Lewis Affidavit.
An Order to the City Marshal.
The City Marshal's Reply.
Mayor's Order to the Commander of the Nauvoo Legion.
Special Ordinance in the Prophet's Case, vs. Missouri.
Petition for Nauvoo to be Placed Under the General Government.
Public Meeting at Nauvoo.
Letter of Wilson Law to Joseph Smith.
Avery Case--a Reminiscence of Missouri Days.
Affidavit of Sissiou Chase.
Letter: Joseph Smith to Governor Ford.
Nauvoo's Police Force Enlarged.
Letter: Joseph Smith to John Smith.
Ordinance Enlarging Police Force.
Ordinance on the Personal Sale of Liquors.
Public Meeting at Nauvoo--the Aggressions of Missouri.
Letter: Governor Ford to President Smith.
Comment of the Prophet on Gov. Ford's attitude.
A Sudden Illness of the Prophet.
Comment on Appeal to the General Government for Protection.
The Trial of John Elliott.
Legion Aid Applied for.
Detachment of the Legion Ordered into Service.
{VI} Affidavit of Willard Richards that Nauvoo was in Danger.
Legion Ordered into Service--Moves and Counter Moves of Forces.
Strange Celestial Phenomena of 1860.
Affidavit of Amos Chase.
Affidavit of Philander Avery.
Affidavit of the Hamiltons.
CHAPTER VI.
MEMORIAL OF CITY COUNCIL TO CONGRESS ANENT MISSOURI AFFAIRS--ROCKWELL
RETURNS TO NAUVOO--RECITAL OF HIS ADVENTURES--AVERY'S ACQUITTAL BY
MISSOURI'S COURTS--NAUVOO'S POLICE FORCE INCREASED PUBLICATION ON
MORMONISM, PRO ET CON--1843.
The Prophet for a Clean, Orderly City.
Memorial of the City Council to Congress.
An Ordinance.
Letter: W. W. Phelps to J. White.
Attitude of Prophet on Mobocracy and Politics.
A Christmas Serenade.
Rockwell's Return to Nauvoo.
Rockwell's Experience in Missouri.
Release of Daniel Avery.
A Plan for Women's Subscription to the Temple.
Prophet's Joy at the Return of Rockwell and Avery.
Mr. Rockwell--Editorial.
Affidavit of Orson Hyde.
Affidavit of Daniel Avery.
Joseph H. Jackson--Prophet's Interview with.
Police Force of Nauvoo Increased.
Address of the Mayor to the Nauvoo Public.
The Mayor Blesses the Police.
Letter to Governor Ford.
_Pro et con_ Mormonism, Publications.
CHAPTER VII.
PRESIDENT SMITH'S CORRESPONDENCE WITH JOHN C. CALHOUN--CARTWRIGHT
DROWNING CASE, ENGLAND--CITY GUARDS INCREASED--FEARS OF LAW AND
MARKS--INVESTIGATION BY THE CITY COUNCIL--RESISTANCE OF OFFICERS AT
CARTHAGE--ANTI-MORMON OBJECTIONS TO CITY ORDINANCES--THE PROPHET'S
DIFFICULTIES WITH FRANCIS M. HIGBEE--REGULATIONS FOR THE SALE OF
SPIRITUOUS LIQUORS.
New Years at Mansion.
Letter: John C. Calhoun to Joseph Smith.
Letter: Joseph Smith to John C. Calhoun.
Release of Pugmire and Cartwright from Prison, England.
{VII} Cartwright--Drowning.
Difficulty of William Law _et al._ with the Police.
Reconciliation of the Prophet and William Law.
Repartee of Joseph and Emma Smith.
Alarm of William Marks.
Special Sessions of the City Council.
Reflections of the Prophet as to Traitors in High Places.
Disgraceful Affair at Carthage.
John Smith, Uncle of the Prophet, Ordained a Patriarch.
Special Sessions of City Council--Complaints of Carthage Citizens
Considered.
Complaints of F. M. Higbee Against the Prophet.
Conference in Michigan.
Threats of Francis M. Higbee.
Letter: the Twelve Apostles to the Saints at Morley
Settlement--Material Help Asked for.
Appeal to the State of Maine.
Francis M. Higbee on Trial--Reconciliation with the Prophet.
An Ordinance Concerning the Sale of Spirituous Liquors.
An Ordinance Concerning Witnesses and Jurors' Fees.
Assault upon Nelson Judd.
CHAPTER VIII.
PRESENTATION OF THE BOOK OF MORMON TO QUEEN VICTORIA--THE SEALING
POWERS OF THE PRIESTHOOD--GOVERNOR FORD'S WARNING TO THE PEOPLE OF
HANCOCK COUNTY--APOSTROPHE TO MISSOURI--JOSEPH SMITH NOMINATED FOR
PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES--HIS VIEWS ON THE POWERS AND POLICY OF
THE GOVERNMENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
"Stanzas."
Discourse: The Sealing Power in the Priesthood.
Nauvoo Mansion Leased.
Sale of the Printing Establishment to John Taylor.
Importance of Elders Keeping Journals.
The Presidential Election Considered.
The Prophet on the Campaign.
Commencement of Prophet's Views on Powers and Policy of U.S.
Governor Ford's Warning to the People.
Winchester's Mission to Warsaw.
Preparation of Rigdon's Appeal to Pennsylvania.
"Missouri."
An Appeal to Massachusetts--Phinehas Richards.
The Prophet's Dream--Troubled Waters Overcome.
Mormon Improvement.
The 144,000 Selection Begun.
Architecture of the Nauvoo Temple.
Originality of The Prophet's Bank Views.
Views of the Powers on the Government of the United States--Joseph
Smith.
{VIII}
CHAPTER IX
COMMENTS ON CANDIDACY OF JOSEPH SMITH FOR PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED
STATES--TENDERS OF PEACE TO MISSOURI--PRELIMINARY STEPS TO WESTERN
MOVEMENT OF THE CHURCH--JAMES A. BENNETT AND VICE-PRESIDENCY.
Views of the Prophet on his Candidacy for President of United States.
Public Meeting.
Letter: Joseph Smith to Joseph L. Heywood.
Who shall be our Next President?.
Pacific Inuendo.
Anti-Mormon Convention at Carthage.
Delegation from Lyman Wight on Indian Affairs.
Western Movement for the Church Contemplated.
The Prophet on the Necessity of Complete Obedience to God.
Minutes of a Council of the Twelve.
The Western Exploring Equipment.
A Prophecy of the Deliverance of the Saints.
The Case of Botswick's Slander of Hyrum Smith.
For President, Joseph Smith.
A Reply Sketched to Cassius M. Clay.
The High Council to the Saints in Nauvoo.
Minutes of a Council Meeting.
Letter: Willard Richards to James Arlington Bennett.
CHAPTER X.
URGING THE BUILDING OF THE TEMPLE--TENDERS OF PEACE TO
MISSOURI--PROPHET'S DISCOURSE ON ELIAS, ELIJAH, MESSIAH--LYMAN WIGHT'S
PROPOSAL OF A SOUTHWEST MOVEMENT FOR THE CHURCH.
Special Session of the City Council.
Packard's Memorial to Legislature of Massachusetts.
Minutes of a General Meeting in the Interest of the Temple.
Arrival of William Kay and Company of English Saints.
James A. Bennett Ineligible for Vice-President U. S.
A Friendly Hint to Missouri.
St. Louis' Comment on the Prophet's Candidacy.
Copeland, Tennessee, Considered as Candidate for Vice-President.
Matter of Wharfage.
Death of King Follett.
King Follett's Biography.
Discourse of the Prophet on.
Letter: Lyman Wight to the First Presidency.
Letter: Lyman Wight to President Joseph Smith Suggesting a Southwest
Movement for the Church.
Special Council Meeting on Wight and Miller Letters.
{IX}
CHAPTER XI.
ORSON PRATT SENT TO WASHINGTON AS AGENT OF NAUVOO--AMOS FIELDING TO
ENGLAND, DITTO--COMMENT ON THE CANDIDACY OF JOSEPH SMITH FOR PRESIDENT
OF THE U.S.--CONSPIRACY OF THE LAWS, HIGBEES, FOSTERS ET AL AGAINST
JOSEPH SMITH--THE PROPHET'S MEMORIAL TO CONGRESS--OCCUPATION OF THE
WEST CONTEMPLATED.
Credentials of Orson Pratt as Agent for the City of Nauvoo.
Co-operative Store Planned.
Credentials of Elder Amos Fielding on Departing for England.
John Wilkie, the Blessing upon him.
Status of Nauvoo in the Spring of 1844.
Wind Storm at Nauvoo.
General Joseph Smith a Candidate for President.
New Candidate in the Field.
Origin of Memorial to Congress.
The Seventies' Hall, Instruction on Rebuilding.
President Smith's Interview with Mrs. Foster.
Discourse of President Smith--Conspiracies in Nauvoo.
Progress on Memorial to Congress.
The Prophet's Memorial to Congress.
Ordinance.
Affidavit of Abiathar B. Williams.
Affidavit of M. G. Eaton.
The Robbery at Rollasson's Store in Nauvoo.
Memorial to the President of the United States.
Credentials of Orson Hyde.
CHAPTER XII.
THE AUTHORITIES OF NAUVOO _vs._ THE HIGBEES ET AL.--DEDICATION OF
THE MASONIC HALL--THE CHURCH CONFERENCE IN APRIL, 1844--ADDRESS OF
PRESIDENT DISNEY RIGDON.
Comments on the Negro Chism's Case.
The Higbee Brothers in Trouble.
Counter Move of the Higbees.
Conference in New York.
General Conference Minutes of the Church.
Opening Address of President Joseph Smith.
Elder Sidney Rigdon.
{X}
CHAPTER XIII.
CONFERENCE OF THE CHURCH, APRIL, 1844, CONTINUED--ADDRESS OF PATRIARCH
HYRUM SMITH--THE BUILDING OF THE TEMPLE.
Address of Elder Hyrum Smith, Patriarch of the Church--Plans suggested
to secure Means for Completing the Nauvoo Temple.
CHAPTER XIV.
GENERAL CONFERENCE FOR APRIL, 1844, (CONCLUDED)--THE ANNOUNCEMENT THAT
THE WHOLE LAND OF AMERICA IS ZION--INSTRUCTIONS TO ELDERS SET APART FOR
MISSIONS--A GENERAL CONFERENCE IN ENGLAND.
President Joseph Smith's Remarks--the whole of America Zion.
Special Meeting of Elders.
Address of Brigham Young.
North and South America Zion.
Address of Hyrum Smith, the Patriarch.
Address of Heber C. Kimball.
Brigham Young's Instruction to the Elders.
Comment of President Smith on the Conference.
A General Conference in England.
CHAPTER XV.
DIFFICULTIES WITH THE HIGBEES AND FOSTERS, CONFERENCES APPOINTED BY THE
TWELVE THROUGHOUT THE UNITED STATES--INSTRUCTIONS TO REUBEN HEDLOCK,
PRESIDENT OF THE BRITISH MISSION--PREPARATIONS FOR ENLARGEMENT OF THE
WORK--FRANCIS M. HIGBEE'S SUIT AGAINST PRESIDENT SMITH--THE PROPHET
RELEASED.
Excommunication of the Laws Fosters, _et al_.
Violence of the Fosters and Higbees.
The Foster-Higbee Embroilment.
Letter: Brigham Young and Willard Richards to Reuben Hedlock.
Letter: Parley P. Pratt to Joseph Smith, _et al_.
The Prophet's Petition for Writ of _habeas corpus_.
Order of the Municipal Court.
The People of the State of Illinois to the Sheriff of Hancock County.
{XI}
CHAPTER XVI.
ADDRESS OF THE PROPHET--HIS PROPHETIC CALLING AND THE
RESURRECTION--STATUS OF AFFAIRS AT NAUVOO--HYDE'S REPORT FROM
WASHINGTON OF THE WESTERN MOVEMENT--OREGON.
Theatricals in Nauvoo.
President Joseph Smith's Address--Defense of his Prophetic Calling.
Nauvoo and President Smith--_Neighbor_ Editorial.
Letter: Elder Orson Hyde's Report of Labors in Washington.
Letter: Orson Hyde's Second Letter from Washington Anent the Western
Movement of the Church.
Letter: Henry Clay to the Prophet.
The Prophet's Answer to Clay's Letter.
Status of Affairs at Nauvoo.
Withdrawal of William Smith as Candidate from the Legislature.
Session of Municipal Court--Case of Jeremiah Smith.
Letter: William Clayton, Describing the Farcical Proceedings of the
Court at Dixon in the Case of Joseph Smith.
Steamboat Election.
CHAPTER XVII.
THE STATE PRESIDENTIAL CONVENTION AT NAUVOO--THE STATES
REPRESENTED--SPEECH OF JOHN S. REID, ESQ.--EARLY DAYS WITH THE PROPHET.
State Convention at Nauvoo.
Resolutions.
Synopsis of the Remarks of Hon. John S. Reid.
CHAPTER XVIII.
CHARGES AGAINST PRESIDENT SMITH BEFORE THE CIRCUIT COURT--HIS VOLUNTARY
APPEARANCE AT COURT--TREATMENT--RETURN TO NAUVOO.
Court Session at Carthage.
Letter: George A. Smith to _Times and Seasons_.
Visit of Sac and Fox Indians to Nauvoo.
Address of the Prophet to the Indians.
Hyrum's Caution to the Prophet on the Freedom of Speaking.
Letter: Central Campaign Committee to Hugh Clark, Esq.
Reported Indictment of the Prophet.
Letter: Willard Richards to Orson Hyde.
Editorial Comment.
Conference in Jefferson Co., N. Y.
Conference, Dresden, Tenn.
Threat to Kidnap Jeremiah Smith.
{XII} President Smith Voluntarily Goes to Carthage to Meet Indictments.
The Return to Nauvoo.
CHAPTER XIX.
CASE OF JEREMIAH SMITH BEFORE MUNICIPAL COURT AT NAUVOO--AFFIDAVITS OF
CRIMES OF CHAUNCEY L. HIGBEE--APPEARANCE OF THE "EXPOSITOR."
Arrest of Jeremiah Smith by U. S. Authority.
Letter: D. S. Hollister to Joseph Smith.
Municipal Court--Case of Jeremiah Smith.
Municipal Court Minutes in the Case of Jeremiah Smith.
Letter: Joseph Sith to Judge Pope, Introducing Jeremiah Smith.
Affidavit: H. T. Hugins Anent Threat to Bring Dragoons Against Nauvoo.
Joel H. Walker to Joseph Smith--Proposes to Join Prophet in Western
Volunteer Movement.
Letter: Joseph Smith to Joel H. Walker.
Conference at Kalamazoo, Michigan.
Conference at Glasgow, Scotland.
Letter: "Horace" to President Joseph Smith--Threatened Invasion of
Nauvoo.
Letter: Joseph and Hyrum Smith to Mr. Tewkesbury--Seeking to Restore
Latter to Fellowship.
Prosecution of the Laws and Fosters Discussed.
Letter: Joseph Smith to I. Daniel Rupp--Book on Religious Sects.
Prophet's Conversation with Dr. Foster.
First Number of the _Expositor_.
Conference at Pleasant Valley Michigan.
CHAPTER XX.
THE DESTRUCTION OF THE "NAUVOO EXPOSITOR"--PROCEEDINGS OF THE NAUVOO
CITY COUNCIL AND MAYOR.
_Nauvoo Expositor_ Before Nauvoo City Council.
Ordinance on Libels.
Ordinance Concerning Libels and for Other Purposes.
Synopsis of Proceedings in the City Council Against the _Nauvoo
Expositor_.
Prospectus of the _Nauvoo Expositor_.
Proclamation.
Letter: L. W. Hickock to Joseph Smith--Probability of Indictment of the
Prophet _et al._ at Springfield.
Letter: H. T. Hugins to Joseph Smith--Warning the Prophet of Probable
Indictment.
{XIII}
CHAPTER XXI.
PRESIDENT SMITH ARRESTED FOR RIOT IN RELATION TO "EXPOSITOR"
AFFAIR--HABEAS CORPUS PROCEEDINGS BEFORE MUNICIPAL COURT--A CALL FROM
ARKANSAS--THE PROPHET'S DREAMS--MASS MEETING AT WARSAW--LETTERS TO
GOVERNOR FORD ON "EXPOSITOR" AFFAIR.
The People of the State of Illinois to all Constables, Sheriffs and
Coroners of the State.
The Prophet Asserts his Rights Under the Law.
The Prophet's Petition for Writ of _habeas corpus_.
Petition of the Prophet Granted.
Hearing on the _Expositor_ Affairs Before the Municipal Court at Nauvoo.
Letter: Washington Tucker to President Smith--Asking that Elders be
Sent to Arkansas.
Letter: Joseph Smith to Washington Tucker, Promising that an Elder
should be Sent.
Retributive Justice.
Further Action of Municipal Court on _Expositor_ Case.
The Prophet's Dreams on Condition of Apostates at Nauvoo.
Threats of Carthage Mob Against Nauvoo.
Mass Meeting at Warsaw.
Letter: Joseph Smith to Governor Ford--Explaining Action of City
Council in Proceedings in _Expositor_ Affairs.
Letter: John M. Bernhisel to Governor Ford--Confirming Correctness of
the Prophet's Report of _Expositor_ Affairs.
Letter: Wakefield to Governor Ford--Anent the _Expositor_ Affair.
The Prophet's Advice on Giving up Arms.
Letter: A. Ladd to Joseph Smith.
CHAPTER XXII.
DISCOURSE OF THE PROPHET--THE GODHEAD--THE MOB UPRISING--ARREST OF
PRESIDENT SMITH ET AL. OVER THE "EXPOSITOR" AFFAIR BEFORE ESQUIRE WELLS.
Conference in Michigan.
Sermon by the Prophet--the Christian Godhead--Plurality of Gods.
Advice of Judge Thomas on _Expositor_ Affair.
Inquiry of Delegation from Madison.
Letter: Joseph Smith to Governor Ford--Inviting the Governor to Nauvoo.
Affidavit: Mob Movements.
Letter: Isaac Morley to Joseph Smith--Mob Threats.
Letter: Joseph Smith to Isaac Morley--Instructions on Resisting Mob.
Minutes of a Public Meeting at Nauvoo.
Proclamation.
Letter: John Smith to Joseph Smith, Accompanying Delegation {XIV} to
the Prophet.
Letter: Joseph Smith to John Smith--Instructions in Case of Mob
Violence.
Letter: Hyrum Smith to Brigham Young--Calling Home the Twelve.
Arrest of the Prophet _et al._ for Destroying the _Expositor_ Press.
Minutes of the Trial of Joseph Smith _et al._ Before Esquire
Wells--_Expositor_ Affair.
CHAPTER XXIII.
RUMORS OF INVASION FROM MISSOURI--THE LEGION ORDERED TO ASSIST THE CITY
MARSHAL--NAUVOO PLACED UNDER MARTIAL LAW--THE MAYOR'S ADDRESS TO THE
LEGION.
Affidavit of Stephen Markham--Nauvoo to be Attacked.
Proclamation.
Order to the Legion.
Legion Placed at Command of City Marshal.
Letter: H. T. Hugins to Joseph Smith--Probable Indictment of the
Prophet at Springfield.
Charge of Threats Against Foster's Life.
Declaration of Martial Law.
Proclamation.
Affidavit: Truman Gillett--the Treachery of William Law.
Letter: Joseph Smith to H. T. Hugins--Congratulating Jeremiah Smith on
his Release.
Governor Ford's Treatment of the Mob.
Threats Against the Prophet's Life.
Affidavit, Canfield and Belknap--Concerning Threats of Invasion from
Missouri.
CHAPTER XXIV.
ATTEMPTS TO DRAFT SAINTS INTO MOB SERVICE AGAINST NAUVOO--THREATENED
INVASION FROM MISSOURI--JAMES A. BENNETT URGED TO COME TO NAUVOO.
Effort to Draft Chester Loveland into Mob Service.
Roads Leading into Nauvoo Picketed.
Affidavit: Call, Evans, and Horner--Treatment of Nauvoo Committee by
Levi Williams _et al_.
Preparations for an Attack.
Report of Dr Southwick.
Affidavit: Carlos W. Lyon.
An Appeal to President Tyler.
Affidavit: Mont and Cuningham--Attempt to Draft them into Mob Service.
Affidavit: Allen T. Wait--Attempt to Draft him into Mob Service.
Affidavit: Isaac Morley _et al_.--Attempt to Draft into Mob Service.
Affidavit: Hancock, Garner, Lofton--Attempt to Draft them into Mob
Service.
Affidavit: James Guyman--Threats of Invasion from {XV} Missouri.
Affidavit: Obediah Bowen--Attempt to Draft him into Service of Mob.
Affidavit: Alvah Tippetts--Violence of John Williams Upon.
Reinforcement for Nauvoo from Ramus.
Letter: Joseph Smith to Ballantyne and Slater--Advice on Moving into
Nauvoo.
Affidavit: Greene and Bernhisel--Threatened Invasion from Missouri.
Letter: Willard Richards to James Arlington Bennett--Affairs in
Nauvoo--Western Movement.
CHAPTER XXV.
THE TWELVE CALLED FROM EASTERN MISSION--GOVERNOR FORD AT
CARTHAGE--NAUVOO DELEGATION TO GOVERNOR--THREATS AND CONSPIRACY AGAINST
THE PROPHET'S LIFE--GOVERNOR FORD INVITED TO NAUVOO TO INVESTIGATE
CONDITIONS.
The Apostles Called Home.
A Prophecy--No Gun Fired on Part of Saints.
Letter: Robert D. Foster to John Proctor--Fragment--Instruction as to
Property.
Hyrum Smith's Fidelity to the Prophet.
Letter: Governor Ford to Mayor and Council of Nauvoo, Asking
Representatives to Meet him at Carthage.
Joseph H. Jackson at Nauvoo.
Letter: Joseph Smith to Governor Ford--Submitting Documents.
Affidavit: John P. Greene--Joseph H. Jackson Threatens Prophet's Life.
Affidavit: Joseph Smith--Conspiracy Against Affiant's Life.
Affidavit: Joseph Jackson--Francis M. Higbee's Threat to Kill the
Prophet.
Affidavit: Joseph Jackson--Reporting Mob at Pilot Grove.
Letter: Joseph Smith to Governor Ford--Inviting the Governor to come to
Nauvoo and investigate Conditions.
CHAPTER XXVI.
PREPARATIONS TO DEFEND NAUVOO--MOB MOVEMENTS ON CARTHAGE ROAD--GOVERNOR
FORD'S REVIEW OF HANCOCK COUNTY DIFFICULTIES--JOSEPH SMITH'S ACCOUNT OF
THE SAME DIFFICULTIES--DEFENSE OF HIS OWN AND ASSOCIATES' COURSE.
Orders from Nauvoo's Entrenchment.
Affidavit: Edward Robinson--Threats Against Nauvoo.
Affidavit: James Olive--Mob Movements on the Carthage Road.
Affidavit: George G. Johnston--Militia Under Governor to Move on Nauvoo.
Affidavit: Gideon Gibbs--Mob on La Harpe Road.
Affidavit: Luman H. Calkins--Nauvoo {XVI} Conspiracy Against The
Prophet's Life.
The Prophet's Life.
General Orders.
A Petition to hear the Prophet Speak.
Letter: Governor Ford to Mayor and City Council of the City of Nauvoo.
Letter: Joseph Smith to Governor Ford--Defending the Action of the City
Council in the _Expositor_ Affair.
CHAPTER XXVII.
GOVERNOR FORD'S WRONG VIEWPOINT--ELDER TAYLOR'S ACCOUNT OF THE
INTERVIEW WITH THE GOVERNOR AT CARTHAGE--CLOSE OF THE PROPHET'S JOURNAL
NARRATIVE OF HIS LIFE.
Governor Ford's Biased Judgment.
Elder John Taylor's Account of Interview with Governor Ford at Carthage.
CHAPTER XXVIII.
THE PROPHET STARTS FOR THE ROCKY MOUNTAINS--THE COUNSEL OF FALSE
BRETHREN--THE RETURN TO NAUVOO--THE SURRENDER AND ARRIVAL AT CARTHAGE.
The Warning to Flee to the Rocky Mountains.
Preparations for the Western Movement.
Arrival of the Constable's _Posse_.
Emma's Message to the Prophet.
Consultation with Rockwell.
Letter: Joseph and Hyrum Smith to Governor Ford--Consenting to go to
Carthage.
Letter: Joseph Smith to H. T. Hugins--Engaging Counsel.
Letter: Joseph Smith to J. R. Wakefield--Soliciting Latter's Attendance
as Witness.
The Prophet Returns to Nauvoo.
Vacillation of Governor Ford.
Certificate: Captain Anderson--on Retention of People in Nauvoo.
Letter: Ed. Johnston to Joseph Smith--About Counsel.
Preparations for Going to Carthage.
Defendants in the _Expositor_ case.
Incidents _en route_ for Carthage.
Meeting with Captain Dunn.
A Pathetic Prophecy.
Dunn's Request that the Prophet Return to Nauvoo.
Letter: Joseph Smith to Governor Ford--Explaining his Return to Nauvoo.
Order: Joseph Smith to General Dunham--Complying with Governor Ford's
Demand for State Arms.
Messengers sent to Carthage.
Surrender of State Arms.
The Prophet's Farewell to his Family.
Looking Back--Sadness.
Letter: Messrs. Reid and {XVII} Woods to Joseph Smith--Documents for
Defense.
The Prophet's Arrival at Carthage.
The Governor Pacifies the Mob.
The Apostates at Carthage.
CHAPTER XXIX.
ARREST OF JOSEPH AND HYRUM SMITH ON A CHARGE OF TREASON--FALSE
IMPRISONMENT--ELDER TAYLOR'S PROTEST--FALSE IMPRISONMENT.
The Governor's Pledge of Protections.
The Arrest for Treason.
Writ of Arrest for Treason.
Governor Ford's Speech to the Prophet.
The Prophet's Request for an Interview with Governor Ford.
The Prophet Presented to the Troops.
Revolt of the Carthage Greys.
Threats of Apostates to Plunder Nauvoo.
Letter: the Prophet to Emma Smith--Governor Ford Going to Nauvoo.
The Prophet's Warning to Rockwell.
The Prophet's Interview with Militia Officers.
Law Cannot Reach Them, Powder and Ball must.
Arraigned on the _Expositor_ Affair.
Prophet _et al._ Bound Over to Circuit Court.
The Sureties for the Prophet.
Another Warrant Sought--Daniel's Kingdom and Treason.
Illegal Imprisonment of the Smith Brothers.
Gov. Ford Refuses to Interfere with Illegal Proceedings.
Elder Taylor's Remonstrance with Gov. Ford.
Elder Taylor Takes Independent Action.
In Carthage Jail.
CHAPTER XXX.
INTERVIEW IN CARTHAGE PRISON BETWEEN GOVERNOR FORD AND THE
PROPHET--TAYLOR'S REPORT OF THE INTERVIEW--TESTIMONY TO THE EXISTENCE
OF A CARTHAGE CONSPIRACY AGAINST THE PROPHET'S LIFE.
Messages to the Governor.
Letter: Joseph Smith to Governor Ford--Soliciting an Interview.
Word from Governor Ford.
Consultation with Counsel.
Interview with Governor Ford.
Elder John Taylor's Account of Governor Ford's and President Smith's
Interview.
Affidavit: Alfred Randall--Threats Against the Prophet's Life in
Carthage.
Affidavit: Jonathan C. Wright--Conspiracy Against the Prophet's Life at
Carthage.
Affidavit: Orrin P. Rockwell--Governor Ford in Nauvoo.
Affidavit: William G. Sterrett--Conduct of Governor Ford {XVIII} and
_posse_ while in Nauvoo.
Letter: Joseph Smith to Judge Thomas--Engaging Thomas as Legal Counsel.
CHAPTER XXXI.
THE PROPHET IN CARTHAGE PRISON--THE UNION OF JUDICIAL, EXECUTIVE, AND
MILITARY AUTHORITY IN DEALING WITH THE PRISONERS--THE LAST NIGHT IN
PRISON.
The Prophet's Anxiety for his own Safety.
Hyrum as Comforter.
Status of Prisoners Under the Law.
Letter: General Miner R. Deming to Joseph Smith--Protection and
Admission to Presence of the Prophet.
Effect of a False Commitment.
Threats in the Governor's Presence.
Conference of Governor Ford and Justice Smith.
Letter: Joseph Smith to Messrs. Woods and Reid--Anent Excitement in
Carthage.
Joseph and Hyrum Smith Forced from Prison.
Prisoners before the Court.
Examination Postponed.
Brave Patriarch John Smith.
Pathetic Interview Between the Prophet and "Uncle John."
Letter: William Clayton to Joseph Smith--Conditions in Nauvoo.
Militia Council Meeting at Carthage.
The Last Night in Carthage Prison.
Conversation with John S. Fullmer.
Prophecy on the Head of Dan Jones.
CHAPTER XXXII.
THE DAY OF THE MARTYRDOM--THREATS--REPEATED WARNINGS OF THE PRISONERS'
DANGER GIVEN TO GOVERNOR FORD--THE CARTHAGE GREYS AS GUARDS.
Threats of Frank Worrell.
Governor Ford Warned of Worrell's Threats.
Jones' Warning to Governor Ford.
Boasts of the Mob.
Chauncey L. Higbee to Kill the Prophet.
Letter: Joseph Smith to Emma Smith--Prophet's Instructions as to
Reception of the Governor.
Dr. Southwick's Report of the Carthage Meeting.
Appointment of the Carthage Greys to Guard the Prisoners.
Wheelock's Remonstrance to Governor Ford.
Arms Given to the Prisoners.
Reflections of the Prophet on Exposing Wickedness.
The Prisoners' Message to Friends in Nauvoo.
The Prophet's Dream of his Kirtland Farm.
Testimony of Joseph and Hyrum to the Book of Mormon.
Letter: Postscript.
Governor Ford Warned of the Conspiracy Against Prisoners' Lives.
{XIX}
CHAPTER XXXIII.
DEPARTURE OF GOVERNOR FORD FOR NAUVOO--THE AFTERNOON IN CARTHAGE
PRISON--THE ASSAULT ON THE PRISON--THE MARTYRDOM OF JOSEPH AND HYRUM
SMITH.
Pass for Willard Richards.
Letter: Joseph Smith to O. H. Browning--Engaging Browning as Legal
Counsel.
The Guard's False Alarm over the Nauvoo Legion.
Markham Forced out of Carthage.
Anxiety of the Jailor.
Wine for the Guard.
The Assault on the Jail.
The Prisoners' Defense.
Death of Hyrum Smith.
The "Handsome Fight" of Joseph Smith and John Taylor.
Taylor Wounded and Helpless.
Two Minutes in Jail.
First Message to Nauvoo.
CHAPTER XXXIV.
GOVERNOR FORD IN NAUVOO--NEWS OF THE MARTYRDOM MESSAGE TO
NAUVOO--ARRIVAL OF THE BODIES--SORROWFUL SCENES--THE BURIAL.
Governor Ford in Nauvoo.
Military Display.
Departure of the Governor from the Danger Zone.
The Start from Nauvoo with the Bodies of the Martyrs.
The Address of Dr. Richards _et al._.
Preparation of the Bodies for Burial.
Lying in State.
The Real Burial.
Official Statement of the Martyrdom of the Prophet and Patriarch.
{XXI}
INTRODUCTION.
_I. The Time Period._
The time-period covered in this sixth volume of the HISTORY OF THE
CHURCH is less than one year. Nine months and twenty-eight days, to be
exact; or from the 1st of September, 1843, to the 29th of June, 1844.
Events within this period are therefore given in elaborate detail. The
general reader and the student of our history will find in this volume
a larger collection of documents, official and otherwise, covering this
period, than will be found elsewhere.
This volume also closes the first Period of our Church History,
the period marked off by two events: (1) the birth of the Prophet
Joseph Smith; and (2) his martyrdom and that of his brother Hyrum, at
Carthage, Illinois.
The Journal History of the Prophet, that great source of historical
knowledge concerning the development of the New Dispensation, closes
with his entry of the 22nd of June, 1844. After that, for our knowledge
of the remaining events of the Prophet's life, we are dependent upon
collections of _data_ by the Church historians from public and private
sources, of which collections there are two: the first extends from
the 22nd of June to the 29th of that month, and forms the concluding
chapters of this volume; the second begins also with the 22nd of June,
and extends to the 8th of August, 1844; at which time the Twelve
Apostles were sustained for the time being as the presiding council of
the Church. This second collection of _data_ by the Church historians
will open Volume VII of this History.
In the present volume we see the Prophet's brave struggle against the
overwhelming odds of his foes--foes within the Church, false brethren;
and foes without the Church--the combination of political and sectarian
enemies fixed in their determination to kill him, destroy Nauvoo, and
expel the Saints from Illinois: for all these things were included in
the program of the anti-Mormons of Illinois, even before the death
of the Prophet was encompassed. Three score and seven years now give
perspective to the stirring events in which the really great drama was
enacted; and from that vantage ground of perspective said events may
be reviewed to the enlightenment of those who seek to know the truth,
{XXII} and the injustice of the things enacted in Illinois during the
closing months of the Prophet Joseph's earthly career.
_II. Why the Latter-day Saints were Welcomed to Illinois._
On the one hand, in the above mentioned struggle, was a people who but
a few years before had been welcomed into Illinois as exiles from a
neighboring state, the victims of a cruel and ignorant intolerance.
They were welcomed, in part, because of the injustice to which they
had been subjected in a neighboring state, and because their physical
sufferings, arising from want of shelter and food in an inclement
season of the year to which they were exposed, was such as to move
adamantine hearts to pity. Also they were welcomed because, as pointed
out in the Introduction to Volume IV of this HISTORY, the state of
Illinois needed augmentation of her population by just such a people
as the Latter-day Saints were--industrious, frugal, skilled mechanics,
successful farmers, experienced men of affairs, men capable of trade
and commerce, enterprising and with a larger proportion of educated
men and women among them than was to be found among the people of
western Illinois in those days. I do not here employ the language of
adulation on the one hand, nor seek to make invidious distinctions upon
the other. Either would be vain, since the well-known and accepted
facts of history would disprove the declarations made if not founded
in truth. The fact is, however, that all that is claimed above for
the Missouri exiled Latter-day Saints is true and well-attested by
their achievements in settling Nauvoo, which in four years rose from
a ware-house or two and a few half tumbledown shacks on the banks of
the river, and called "Commerce," to the dignity of being the first
city in Illinois in population and commercial enterprise, and also gave
promise of developing into a manufacturing center of great importance.
This last item was evidenced in the fact that the founder of Nauvoo,
President Joseph Smith, and the Nauvoo city council appreciated the
possibilities in the water power of the Lower Des Moines Rapids in
the Mississippi, at the head of which the city was located. Reference
to his journal entry for the 23rd of September (this volume, p. 80)
will witness that he suggested that a petition be sent to the national
Congress for the construction of a canal around the rapids to overcome
the obstruction for the free passage of river craft, which the rapids
prevented during the low water period of each year, and thus enhance
the value of the great stream to the inland commerce of the west. [1]
Reference again to President Smith's journal {XXIII} entry for the 8th
of December, 1843 (this volume, p. 103) will disclose the fact that he
gave instruction in the forenoon to his clerk to draw a plan for a dam
in the Mississippi; and that in the afternoon of the same day the city
council met and passed an ordinance authorizing Joseph Smith to "erect
a dam of suitable height to propel mills and machinery from any point
within the limits of said city, and below the Nauvoo House;" also in
connection with this dam to construct a "harbor or basin for steamboats
and other craft;" and to construct docks, wharfs and landings," the
wharfage fees to be "regulated by ordinance of said city (this volume
p. 106).
_III. Nauvoo as a Possible Manufacturing Center._
What further contributed to the promise that Nauvoo would be a great
manufacturing center as well as the center of an immense agricultural
region with a splendid commercial outlet, was the fact that artisans
and tradesmen of the very first order in skill, were rapidly gathering
into the city, not only from the New England and other Eastern states
of our own country, but also from the British Isles. It was inevitable
if let alone that Nauvoo would become the greatest manufacturing
center of Illinois, and among the first of such cities in the United
States. The Prophet did not live to see even a commencement made upon
these large enterprises he had conceived, but subsequently his zealous
followers organized a company to carry them to a successful conclusion
under the title of "The Nauvoo Water Power Company," [2] which began
the construction of the dam on the 29th of April, 1845; but which had
to be abandoned because of the hostilities that soon after increased
and continued until they culminated in the expulsion of the Latter-day
Saints from Illinois. [3]
{XXIV} In addition to these measures, manufacturing and agricultural
associations were incorporated; also the "Nauvoo House Associations"
for the erection of a hotel, ambitious to be known as the finest
hostelry in the Upper Mississippi country. One of the agricultural
associations, known as the "Big Field Corporation," held six sections,
or three thousand eight hundred and forty acres of land east of Nauvoo;
and the year following the Prophet's death the company harvested about
thirty thousand bushels of corn, nearly the same amount of wheat,
besides an "abundance of oats, barley, buckwheat, potatoes and other
vegetables." [4]
_IV. Educational Measures at Nauvoo._
And not only in material things was the superior character of
Nauvoo's founders and builders proclaimed; but equally broad and
comprehensive were their preparations for an educational system. By
their city charter they were empowered to establish an institution of
learning within the limits of the city for the teaching of the arts
and sciences and learned professions, to be called the "University
of the City of Nauvoo;" also a common school system for the city,
all of which was in course of development even in the early years
of Nauvoo's existence. And in addition to these direct educational
institutions of common schools and projected university, literary
and dramatic associations were organized, as also choral and band
organizations for the cultivation of musical talents and to promote the
pleasure and refinement of society; while the religious zeal of the
community expressed itself in the rapidly rising walls of the splendid
temple--soon to be the most solid and pretentious building in the
state; and in the tireless missionary enterprise of the dominant Church.
{XXV} _V. Jealousy of Nauvoo's Promising Greatness._
Nothing was lacking, then, in the promises of constant and rapid
growth, of prosperity and future greatness of Nauvoo. Small wonder
if the narrow bigotry and jealousy of small-souled men of the time
and vicinity--especially those who were inhabitants of rival towns,
particularly those of Warsaw and Carthage--were envious of Nauvoo's
prosperity and promise of future greatness. Hitherto this element of
jealousy of Nauvoo's prosperity and promise of future greatness has
not been accorded the importance due to it as a contributing cause to
the warfare made upon that city and the Saints. Little doubt, however,
can be entertained, now attention has been called to it, but what as a
contributing cause jealousy of Nauvoo stood next to religious prejudice
and political distrust and hatred.
A correspondent from Fair Haven, Connecticut, to a gentleman in Nauvoo,
set forth this matter most convincingly. An excerpt of the letter was
published in the _Nauvoo Neighbor_ of August 7th, 1844. It is proper to
say that the writer was not a member of the Mormon Church; "but," as
the editor of the _Neighbor_ describes him, "a citizen of Connecticut,
loving law and liberty and life;" and now the paragraph dealing with
the point under discussion:
"It is now known here that the lazy speculators of Warsaw, and the
still lazier office drones at Carthage, cared nothing for Joseph
Smith personally, or for his tenets either; but the prosperity
of Nauvoo increasing as it did, beyond any former parallel, even
in the western world, excited in their bosoms envy, hatred and
all ungodliness. This is the true secret of all their barbarous
movements against Mormonism--and they supposed by destroying
the Smiths they should extinguish their religion, disperse the
Mormons--depopulating and desolating Nauvoo."
Also a correspondent to the _State Register_ published at Springfield,
Illinois, speaking of Thomas C. Sharp, editor of the _Warsaw Signal_
and the anti-Mormon disturbances in Hancock county said:
"He [Sharp] is also described as having made himself the 'organ
of a gang of town lot speculators at Warsaw,' who are afraid that
Nauvoo is about to kill off their town and render speculation
abortive." [5]
Mr. Backenstos in January, 1845, when the repeal of the Nauvoo Charter
was under discussion in the Illinois legislature, referred to this same
subject in a speech on the floor of the house of representatives, in
the course of which he said:
"Town rivalry had also something to do with this opposition to
Nauvoo. While Warsaw was on the decline, Nauvoo was rapidly
increasing {XXVI} in wealth and population; a plan to bring about
a re-action was soon concocted by the leading men of Warsaw,
who made one pilgrimage after another to Nauvoo, imploring the
Mormon Prophet to aid them in building up a city adjoining the
town of Warsaw, by settling a portion of the Mormon population in
and about Warsaw, and commence the building of a new city. The
bubble soon exploded, and the speculation failed. This gave rise
to dissatisfaction with some who had heretofore been exceedingly
polite to '_Lieutenant General Joseph Smith!_'" [6]
Thus in every way, to refer back to the point of starting the
discussion of this subdivision, the Latter-day Saints are proven
by their achievements and the foundations they laid for the future
greatness of their city, to be a superior people, and hence a desirable
addition to the population of the then young commonwealth of Illinois.
_VI. The Character of the People of Western Illinois._
On the other hand there was a population in western Illinois, and
perhaps more especially in Hancock county, which had more than its
full share of lawless and desperate men; who, as by a law of social
gravitation, seek the frontiers of civilization. Moreover it is
notorious that the whole upper Mississippi was a rendezvous for
gamblers, counterfeiters, horse thieves, murderers and other criminals
that infested the great river, which gave easy ingress and egress to a
frontier wilderness on the one hand, and to such centers of population
and activity, on the other, as New Orleans, St. Louis, and many minor
places, besides. "I must give some account of the anti-Mormons,"
says Governor Ford in his History of Illinois, when referring to the
inhabitants of Hancock county. "I had a good opportunity to know the
settlers of Hancock county," he continues. "I had attended the circuit
courts there as state's attorney, from 1830, when the county was first
organized, up to 1834: and to my certain knowledge the early settlers,
with some honorable exceptions, were in popular languages hard cases"
(page 406). Then for a period of several years to the advent of the
"Mormons" he had no means of knowing the character of the people who
drifted into the country: "But," he adds, "having passed my whole
life on the frontier, on the outer edge of the settlements, I have
frequently seen that a few first settlers would fix the character of a
settlement for good or for bad, for many years after its commencement.
If bad men began the settlement, bad men would be attracted to them,
upon the well known principle that birds of a feather will flock
together. Rogues will find each other out, and so will honest men.
From all which it appears extremely probable, that the later {XXVII}
immigrants were many of them attracted to Hancock by a secret sympathy
between them and the early settlers."
Indeed the governor suggests that it may have been "the promptings of
a secret instinct," which led the "Mormons" to "discern their fellows"
and induced them to settle in Hancock in preference to other localities
open to them. All which may be regarded as an ingenious thrust at the
Latter-day Saints, but which fails of reaching its mark from the fact
that it was the criminal element chiefly in Hancock county's population
which arrayed itself in antagonism against the Saints, and against
whom they were arrayed in all their conflicts in that county. Whereas,
under the governor's theory, this criminal element among the "old
citizens" and the Saints should have been as hand in glove in their
cooperation of encompassing evil things. But to the contrary; from the
time the "Mormons" appeared on the scenes at Commerce, in 1839, until
they were expelled, they steadfastly and emphatically set their faces
against the evils that cursed that community, and denounced all manner
of evil both as manifested in a few of their own delinquent members,
apostates and camp followers who trailed after the main body of the
Church from Missouri, as well as in others: such as dram-drinking,
swearing, Sabbath-breaking, contracting debts under pretense of poverty
and distress without any prospects or intention of paying, [7] and
especially did they denounce stealing, under any and all pretexts
whatsoever. [8]
And as it was largely the criminal element among the "old citizens"
that was arrayed against the Saints (with unprincipled politicians
and a few bigoted and jealous religious leaders added), so was it the
conservative and law-abiding portion of the community among whom they
had many friends; and nearly all of whom were at least so far friendly
with the Saints that they could not be induced to oppose them, much
less join in acts of mob violence to the injury of their persons or
property; for which reason this portion of the non-Mormon population
were called by the contemptuous name of "Jack-Mormons," which epithet
was invented by the editor of the Warsaw _Signal,_ Thomas C. Sharp,
who also originated the term "Jack-Mason" when editing an anti-Masonic
paper in western New York. In all probability it was this second name
which suggested the first.
{XXVIII} _VII. Educational Status of the People of Western Illinois._
Education among the masses of Hancock's non-Mormon population was of
the meagrest kind. Even Mr. Gregg, the historian of the county, who
always gives the best report possible of conditions, remarks, when
treating of the county's educational status, that "a new country
and among pioneers, is not the place where prosperous colleges and
seminaries, or even high schools, are actually found. Hence common
schools and, in many instances, very 'common' ones at that, were the
best means of education in Hancock county in early days," But this is
said of the schools of Hancock county; the greater number of the adult
population, 1839-1846, which represent the years when the Saints lived
in the county, had migrated from states where educational opportunities
were even fewer and less advanced than in western Illinois. Even
some of the men prominent in political life in the state were men
of extremely limited education. "Joseph Duncan, elected governor of
Illinois in 1834, and who had served four terms in Congress previous
to his election as governor, had but a limited education," says Gregg.
[9] And of Thomas Carlin, who was the governor of Illinois when the
exiled Saints moved into the state--he had previously held many minor
offices--the same authority says: "He had but a meager education." [10]
But while the above represents the educational conditions both among
the masses of Hancock county and western Illinois in general, and of
some of the men in public life, it is also true that there were here
and there men in Hancock and surrounding counties of good education and
enlightened culture, such as Stephen A. Douglas, O. H. Browning, Major
Warren, John J. Hardin, General Minor R. Deming, Samuel Marshal, Judge
Jesse B. Thomas, Josiah Lamborn, Governor Ford and others.
_VIII. The Political Phase._
It has already been observed in these volumes (Vol. IV, Introduction)
that in addition to the Latter-day Saints being welcomed into Illinois
on account of their economic value in a newly and sparsely settled
country, as wealth creators through their industry, frugality and skill
in mechanics and husbandry, political parties of Illinois both Whigs
and Democrats vied with each other in heartiness of welcome, each
hoping the profit by the influx of the new population in both state
{XXIX} and national elections. Hence it was possible to obtain for
Nauvoo the exceptional powers that constituted her, under the letter
of her charter, an autonomy within the limits of her boundaries more
akin to a sovereign state than to a municipality within a state and a
county. And such were the powers claimed for her by her founders. [11]
Hence also that catering to the misconception and wrong interpretations
of the chartered powers of Nauvoo by lawyers and politicians seeking
professional and political favors of the people, which encouraged the
belief that the city government was the omnipotent political power
within the city limits; and that her municipal court was not only equal
to, but even superior to the state courts--"for all other courts were
restricted," it was contended, while the municipal court of Nauvoo
was not restricted! Similar claims of absolutism were made respecting
Nauvoo misled by their legal and political advisers, who gave false
counsel instead of true, and who encouraged people in their prejudices
and flattered their vanity rather than corrected their errors by an
appeal to sound judgment and to the law.
_IX. Mischief Arising from False Legal and Political Counsel._
Much mischief arose from this source. It was because of these
misconceptions in respect of the character of their city government
that led to the enactment of those ill advised and unwarranted city
ordinances--
That made gold and silver alone legal tender within the city;
That declared Joseph Smith exempt from arrest on requisitions from
Missouri founded upon the old difficulties in that state, and providing
that persons making an attempt to arrest him might be taken with or
without process, imprisoned for life, and might not be pardoned by the
governor without consent of the mayor; [12]
That authorized the city council, marshal, constables and city watch
to require all strangers entering the city or already tarrying there
to give their names, former residence and for what intent they were
tarrying in the city, and answer such other questions as the officers
respectively deemed proper to ask; refusal to give the desired
information, or giving false names or information subjected them to the
same penalties as "vagrants and disorderly persons;"
That further authorized and required the above named officers to {XXX}
"hail and take all persons found strolling about the city at night
after nine o'clock and before sunrise, and to confine them in ward for
trial under the ordinances concerning vagrants and disorderly persons,
unless they could give a good account of themselves for being out
after nine o'clock;"
That further authorized and required the aforesaid officers to
enter all hotels or houses of public entertainment, and such other
habitations as they may judge proper, and require the inmates to
give immediate information of all persons residing in said hotel or
habitation, and their business, occupation or movements, under penalty
of forfeiture of license, if a public house, and they and the transient
persons subject to the penalties visited upon vagrants for failure
to give the information required, or giving false information; while
the officer who should "refuse or neglect to perform the above duties
should be fined $100, and be broke of his office;"
That forbade the search and seizure of person or property by foreign
process [_i. e._ other process than that issuing from the city's
authority] within the city of Nauvoo, leading to the widespread belief
that the design of said ordinance was "to hinder the execution of the
statutes of Illinois" within said city; [13]
That asked the general government to ratify the Nauvoo Charter, and
in addition constitute the city a territorial government, by granting
"all rights, powers, privileges and immunities belonging to territories
and not repugnant to the constitution of the United States," with
power granted to the mayor to call to his aid a sufficient number
of the United States troops, in connection with the Nauvoo Legion,
to repel the invasion of mobs, keep the public peace, protect the
innocent from lawless banditti; the United States officers to obey the
requisition of this ordinance; and the Nauvoo Legion, when in service
quelling mobs and preserving the public peace, to be under the same
regulations, rules and laws of pay as the troops of the United States;
the territorial privileges to continue until the "state of Missouri
restores to those exiled citizens [the Latter-day Saints] the lands,
rights, privileges, property, and damages for all losses" they had
sustained by being banished from that commonwealth; [14]
And, finally, that asserted the right of the municipal court to arrest
{XXXI} process issued by the state's circuit courts, and even by the
United States courts, by _habeas corpus_ proceedings; and insisted,
not only upon the right to pass judgment upon the sufficiency of writs
under which arrests were made, but upon the right also to go behind the
writs and try the cases upon their merits.
_X. Subserviency of Politicians and Lawyers._
Blame for this political subserviency and misleading political and
legal advice, may not be charged on one party more than another. If
Cyrus Walker, a Whig candidate for congress, assented to the doctrine
as understood by Nauvoo's leading men, that the municipal court of
Nauvoo held the power under _habeas corpus_ procedure to arrest
execution of process of the state courts, as he did, [15] so, too,
did Joseph P. Hoge, Democratic nominee; and even Governor Ford, when
requested to call out the militia to rearrest Joseph Smith after he had
been liberated from the custody of Sheriff Reynolds, agent of Missouri,
under _habeas corpus_ proceedings, took refuge behind the _habeas
corpus_ proceedings of the Municipal Court at Nauvoo. In that case the
court not only inquired into the sufficiency of the writ of requisition
from Missouri, and granted by Governor Ford himself, but also went back
of the writ and tried the case _exparte_ on its merits, and finally
discharged the prisoner, both "for want of substance in the warrant, *
* * as well as upon the merits of the case." [16] When answering the
request of Missouri to rearrest Joseph Smith, Governor Ford, I say, at
least took refuge behind the aforesaid proceedings of the Municipal
Court to the extent of saying, in the face of that procedure, that
"no process, officer or authority of Illinois had been resisted or
interfered with," [17] and therefore refused to call out the militia to
rearrest President Smith.
It is but fair to Governor Ford, however, to say that in his inaugural
speech of December 8th, 1842, he pointed out what he regarded as
objectionable features in the Nauvoo charter, and recommended its
modification, [18] and later censured the lawyers for misleading the
Nauvoo city authorities in this matter, in the following passage from
a letter to the Mayor and City Council of Nauvoo, under date of June
22nd, 1844.
You have also assumed to yourselves more power than you are
entitled to in relation to_ habeas corpus_ under your charter. I
know that you have been told by lawyers, for the purpose of gaining
your favor, {XXXII} that you have this power to any extent. In this
they have deceived you for their own base purposes. Your charter
supposes that you may pass ordinances, a breach of which will
result in the imprisonment of the offender.
For the purpose of giving more speedy relief to such persons
authority was given to the Municipal Court to issue writs of
_habeas corpus_ in all cases arising under the ordinances of the
city.
It was never supposed by the Legislature, nor can the language of
your charter be tortured to mean that a jurisdiction was intended
to be conferred which would apply to all cases of imprisonment
under the general laws of the state or of the United States, as
well as the city ordinances.
To which President Smith replied:
Whatever power we have exercised in the _habeas corpus_ has been
done in accordance with the letter of the Charter and Constitution
as we confidently understood them; and that, too, with the ablest
counsel; but if it be so that we have erred in this thing, let the
Supreme Court correct the evil. We have never gone contrary to
constitutional law, so far as we have been able to learn it. If
lawyers have belied their profession to abuse us the evil be on
their heads. [19]
_XI. The Fate of a Balance of Power Factor in Politics._
Being misled by false legal and political advice was not the only
misfortune of the kind perpetrated upon the Saints, first by the
subserviency of, and then the betrayal by, politicians and lawyers.
The hope of both parties to secure political advantage by the influx
of the now Latter-day Saint population into the state has been already
referred to; as also the efforts of both parties to gain their favor by
granting exceptional favors to them in founding Nauvoo. When, however,
the time for voting came, and the Saints voted according to their
convictions of duty, or as their inclinations prompted, the defeated
party or candidates blamed them for the defeat, and straightway favored
the adoption of an anti-Mormon policy, which found support not only in
the defeated party, but also among those who felt a grievance against
the Saints on other accounts; some because Nauvoo's prosperity and
constantly increasing importance as a center of population and trade
and commerce was rapidly eclipsing all other towns of the state; and
others, over-anxious to retard, if not destroy, a rival system on
account of religious prejudice. When an anti-Mormon party took the
field, pledged itself to repeal the Nauvoo charter, and to drive the
Mormons from the state--as was the pledge of Joseph Duncan, Whig
candidate for Governor of Illinois in 1841, [20] there was really no
other course for the Saints to pursue but to combine solidly for the
defeat of the candidate and {XXXIII} party making such pledges; the
instinct of self-preservation impelled such a course, rather than the
prompting of inclination.
For a time, as in all such cases, the party receiving the support of
this practically solid Mormon vote could be relied upon to protect
and defend those who had made success possible for them; but at the
first indication that the hold of the favored party upon such vote is
precarious, that there is a possibility that it might go to the other
side, [21] naturally the ardor of their friendship, seldom or never
sincere, cools; and they are as ready to combine for the destruction
of their former allies as others have been. And when in addition to
precariousness of hold upon those who possess the balance of power
there stands up in the back ground of things the possibility that
the balance of power party may become strong enough in the political
subdivision in which they are located to run affairs on their own
account, the likelihood of all parties combining against them becomes
all the more assured. In Illinois the Latter-day Saints ran the entire
political gamut of experience as a "balance of power" factor in the
politics of western Illinois. The final phase of that experience had
been reached when at a mass meeting held at Carthage on the sixth of
September, 1843, it was--
_Resolved,_ That as it has been too common for several years past
for politicians of both political parties, not only of this county,
but likewise of the state, to go to Nauvoo and truckle to the heads
of the Mormon clan for their influence, we pledge ourselves that we
will not support any man of either party in the future who shall
thus debase himself. [22]
Politicians still sought Mormon aid to encompass their own political
ends, but, as Governor Ford later remarked, "they were willing and
anxious for Mormon voters at elections, but they were unwilling to risk
their popularity with the people, by taking part in their favor even
when law and justice, and the Constitution, were all on their side;"
[23] and {XXXIV} so finally all parties turned against them, and they
were at the last, as we shall see in the future volume of this history,
expelled without mercy from the state.
_XII. Joseph Smith's Candidacy for the Presidency._
The mischief that threatened during the Prophet's life time, and
which finally befell the Saints, was clearly foreseen by the Church
leaders; and the desire to escape from the threatening portents of it
prompted the nomination of Joseph Smith for the office of President of
the United States, in the general election of 1844. Of course there
could be no hope seriously entertained that he would be elected; but,
as explained by an editorial in the _Times and Seasons,_ [24] if the
Saints could not succeed in electing their candidate, they would have
the satisfaction of knowing that they had acted conscientiously; they
had used their best judgment, under the circumstances, and if they
had to throw away their votes, it was better to do so upon a worthy
than upon an unworthy individual who might use the weapon they put
into his hand to destroy them. The Prophet himself evidently regarded
his nomination humorously rather than seriously, except that it might
result in withdrawing the Saints from the position of shuttle-cock
between the battle doors of the two old political parties. "I care but
little about the presidential chair," he said on one occasion. "I would
not give half as much for the office of President of the United States
as I would for the one I now hold as Lieutenant General of the Nauvoo
Legion." Again he said: "When I get hold of eastern papers, and see
how popular I am; I am afraid myself that I shall be elected; but if
I should be, I would not say [_i. e._ to the Latter-day Saints] your
cause is just but I can do nothing for you."
As a further evidence that Joseph Smith did not regard his candidacy
as likely to be successful, he was, at the time of his nomination and
afterwards, pushing vigorously his project of a western movement for
the Church. He had drawn up a memorial and ordinance to the national
congress asking to be authorized by the general government to raise
one hundred thousand armed volunteers to police the intermountain and
Pacific coast west from Oregon to Texas, for the purpose of assuring
Texas her independence, and maintaining the claims of the United
States to Oregon, and affording the whole western population of our
country protection from Indian depredations; and thus contribute to
the rapid settlement and development of that noble extent of country
lying between the Mississippi and the Pacific Ocean. His agents, Orson
Hyde and Orson Pratt, presented the matter to senators {XXXV} and
representatives at Washington, and a number favored the project of the
removal of the Mormons to the west, but generally urged that Joseph
Smith go without seeking special authorization from the government.
Reference to Orson Hyde's report of the procedure among congressmen
and their views upon the subject will be found in his two important
communications to the Prophet from Washington, in chapter XVI of this
volume. Mr. John Wentworth, representative to Congress from northern
Illinois, introduced President Smith's Memorial and Ordinance into
the House on the 25th of May, to be read for the information of the
House; but before the reading was concluded, objection was made, and
as it required unanimous consent to have it read, further reading was
prevented. A vote to suspend the rules in order that Mr. Wentworth
might secure the reading of the memorial stood 79 yeas, and 86 nays,
which vote gives evidence at least of a widespread desire to have the
matter presented to the House. [25]
_XIII. Missouri as a Factor in the Affairs of Nauvoo._
In addition to all the Illinois factors that entered into the complex
situation confronting the Saints at Nauvoo, at the time of the
Prophet's death, and some time previous to his arrest, was the attitude
and course pursued by Missouri with reference to Nauvoo and the Saints.
Disgraced as a state by her own conduct towards the Latter-day Saints,
when they were inhabitants within her borders, her people were all too
willing to co-operate with any party or agency that would continue to
make war upon them. If the state of Illinois which with open arms had
received the people that Missouri exiled from her borders, under such
circumstances of cruelty, could also be brought to drive them from that
state, it would be regarded, in a way, as a vindication of Missouri
and the course she had taken in her treatment of the Saints, since in
effect it would say, that the people of Illinois, no less than the
people of Missouri, found it impossible to tolerate the "Mormons;"
and therefore there must be something fundamentally wrong with them,
rather than with the people of these states. Hence the anti-Mormons of
Hancock and adjoining counties in Illinois, always found support in
whatever of violence or wrong they planned against the Saints. Hence
the constant threats of invasion of mobs from Missouri, emphasized by
occasional kidnapping expeditions into Hancock county, together with
frequent requisitions upon the Illinois authorities for the arrest and
extradition of Joseph Smith on the old charges against him in Missouri.
And these {XXXVI} Missouri threats and outrages were not among the
least of the annoyances and anxieties of the Saints; and they make
clear the necessity that was felt for an efficient militia force at
Nauvoo. Hence the Nauvoo Legion and the lively interest manifested in
its frequent musters and drills, and its thorough equipment; all of
which, but for the constant danger of invasion from Missouri mobs,
and the co-operation with them of like forces in Illinois, would have
been inconsistent with the deportment of a religious community whose
mission was one of peace and good will towards men; and who had been
especially commanded to "renounce war and proclaim peace" (Doc and Cov.
Sec. 98:16); and commanded also to "sue for peace," both to those who
had "smitten" them--the revelation was given after the expulsion from
Jackson county, Missouri--and "to all people;" and "lift up an ensign
of peace, and make a proclamation of peace unto the ends of the earth"
(Doc. and Cov. sec 105: 38-40). But invasions from Missouri constantly
menacing them, and the danger of mob violence breaking out in Illinois,
justified the organization of the Legion, and the maintenance of its
efficiency by full equipment of arms and frequent drills and musters;
for the right of self-preservation is not abrogated by any divine law
given to the Saints; and duty to protect home and family against the
assaults of the evil-disposed, presses as firmly upon the Saints, as
upon those who have not definitely pledged themselves to a program of
righteousness.
_XIV. Apostate Conspirators at Nauvoo._
One other factor only remains to be mentioned of those that enter into
that combination of forces that resulted in the death of the Prophet
and the Patriarch. That is the conspiracy of apostates within Nauvoo
itself.
The apostates and their sympathizers were headed by a coterie of
prominent young men: The two Law brothers, William and Wilson; Robert
D. and Charles A. Foster, brothers; Francis M. and Chauncey L. Higbee,
brothers, and unworthy sons of that most faithful man and the Prophet's
devoted friend, Judge Elias Higbee (See Vol. IV pp. 81-100 _passim_);
Sylvester Emmons and Joseph H. Jackson. Of these, William Law was
counselor in the First Presidency, and Wilson Law was a major general,
and commander of one of the cohorts of the Nauvoo Legion, and all were
or had been more or less prominent in the public life of Nauvoo.
The cause of their apostasy seems to have been the baneful influence
of John C. Bennett's immoralities; for these men were quite generally
associates of his before his flight from Nauvoo. They evidently lost
{XXXVII} the spirit of the gospel, wandered through sin into spiritual
darkness, and seemingly were obsessed by a murderous spirit against the
Prophet who boldly revealed their wickedness and publicly denounced
their conduct; and in retaliation this coterie of apostates entered
into conspiracies to encompass President Smith's death, and that of his
brother Hyrum. They were in communication with the Prophet's enemies in
Missouri, and sought to betray him into their hands. They were among
the chief actors in all schemes of opposition and conspiracies against
him in the closing year of his life, including those plots which
eventuated in the martyrdom of both Prophet and Patriarch at Carthage.
_XV. The "Expositor" Affair._
Such are the chief factors that enter into the combination of events
detailed in this volume of HISTORY and which have a direct relationship
to the martyrdom of the Smith brothers. They existed as combustible
materials awaiting only the spark that would set them aflame to work
death and destruction.
The spark came. It came in the destruction of the _Nauvoo Expositor,_
published by the above mentioned coterie of apostates. It was the
intention of the _Expositor,_ as its name would indicate, to make
an _expose_ of alleged conditions in Nauvoo, in the moral, social,
religious and political phase of them. Also to agitate for the
_"unconditional repeal of the Nauvoo Charter."_ This was a challenge
to mortal combat, the issue being the life of the city of Nauvoo; and
after that the question of the existence of the Church in Illinois,
or even within the confines of the United States; for undoubtedly the
city charter once repealed, carrying with it the disorganization of the
Legion, protection for the Saints, as matters stood in 1844, both civil
and military, would be gone. It was a life and death struggle then
that the advent of the _Expositor_ inaugurated. The Saints stood at
such disadvantage in the proposed contest that if the _Expositor_ was
allowed to run its course it would inevitably have won its case against
the city; and against the Church, so far as the latter continuing in
Illinois, and perhaps as far as its continuance in the United States
was concerned.
The new marriage system, involving the practice, within certain
limitations and under very special conditions, of a plurality of wives,
constituted a ground of appeal to popular prejudices and passions that
would have been absolutely resistless if the paper had been allowed
to proceed. The charter would have been repealed; the city government
destroyed, or at the least modified and placed in the hands of an
apostate or anti-Mormon minority whose administration would have been
intolerable to the large majority of Nauvoo's citizens; and finally the
{XXXVIII} scenes of Missouri would have been re-enacted in an Illinois
setting.
In the presence of such difficulties, what was to be done? In addition
to declaring the existence of the practice of plural marriage, not yet
announced or publicly taught as a doctrine of the Church, and agitating
for the unqualified repeal of the Nauvoo charter, gross immoralities
were charged against leading citizens which doubtless rendered the
paper grossly libelous. In other cities such an avowed enemy as the
_Expositor_ was, would have been destroyed by a mob. For the people
of Nauvoo to have so proceeded would have been a departure from their
principles of upholding law and order, and would have brought upon
them the people of the surrounding counties, and from Missouri in
overwhelming numbers. Mob violence could not be thought of; and yet the
safety of the community imperatively demanded the suppression of the
_Expositor_ at any cost.
Under these circumstances the city council met and took under
consideration the _Expositor_ and the necessity of destroying it. As
their charter conferred upon the city the right to remove nuisances,
the city council declared the _Expositor_ press a nuisance and directed
the Mayor to have it destroyed, which he did by giving an order to that
effect, and it was destroyed without riot or tumult.
The legality of the action of the Mayor and City Council was, of
course, questionable, though some sought to defend it on legal grounds;
but it must be conceded that neither proof nor argument for legality
are convincing. On the grounds of expediency or necessity the action
is more defensible. The existence of the city, the preservation of
the Latter-day Saints until provision could be made for a retreat
from Illinois--which retreat was even then being provided for by the
Prophet in the projected movement of the Church to the west--demanded
the cessation of the publication of the _Expositor_. By proceeding at
least under the forms of law, the city council, though they might be
conscious of the illegality of their action, avoided the necessity of
the people resorting to mob action for self-preservation, and made
it possible for the legality of their course to be determined in the
courts, and the parties injured to recover compensation for the press
and damages by civil process. Meantime the libelous press with its
mission of destruction of the Saints at Nauvoo was silenced; and had
events taken the course which the action of the city council provided,
a respite would have been gained from impending violence, during which
arrangements for the retreat of the Saints from Illinois could have
been completed and a goal of safety won for them. Under a plea, then,
of absolute necessity to self-preservation of a community, and to
achieve the retreat here alluded to, and with the certainty that those
injured in property by the _Expositor's_ destruction would be fully
compensated {XXXIX} in civil action before the courts--the action of
the mayor and city council of Nauvoo is defensible, even if not on the
ground of the legality of their procedure. [26]
_XVI. The Appeal to the Mob Spirit._
Events did not take the course planned for them. The uproar that
followed the destruction of the _Expositor_ press, put all reason at
defiance. At Warsaw a mass meeting was held which issued a statement,
in connection with the resolutions it passed, that "A mob at Nauvoo,
under a city ordinance, has violated the highest privilege in
government; and to seek redress in the ordinary way would be utterly
ineffectual. * * * _Resolved,_ that we hold ourselves at all times
in readiness to co-operate with our fellow citizens in this state,
Missouri, and Iowa, to exterminate, _utterly exterminate_ the wicked
and abominable Mormon leaders, the authors of our troubles. * * * The
time, in our opinion, has arrived when the adherents of Smith as a body
should be driven from the surrounding settlements into Nauvoo. That the
Prophet and his miscreant adherents should then be demanded at their
hands; and, if not surrendered, a war of extermination should be waged
to the entire destruction, if necessary for our protection, of his
adherents. And we hereby recommend this resolution to the consideration
of the several townships, to the mass convention to be held at
Carthage."
The Carthage meeting held a few days later embodied the above in their
resolutions, as did other mass meetings held at various places. The
_Warsaw Signal_ in its impression of June 12th, passionately said: [27]
"We have only to state that this [i. e. The destruction of the
_Expositor_ press] is sufficient! War and extermination is
inevitable! CITIZENS ARISE, ONE and ALL!!! Can you stand by, and
suffer such INFERNAL DEVILS! to ROB men of their property rights,
without avenging them? We have no time to comment: every man will
make his own. LET IT BE MADE WITH POWDER and BALL!!!"
All the combustible material to which attention is called in this
Introduction was instantly aflame at the destruction of the _Expositor_
press. Every passion was appealed to, jealousy, envy, cupidity, hatred.
All the lawless elements of the community were practically invited to
{XL} assemble and run riot in lawless violence, and excess of carnage
and destruction of property and life. Nothing but the wholesome fear of
the strength and effectiveness of the Nauvoo Legion at that time held
this lawless element in check.
It was all in vain that hearings were had before the municipal court of
Nauvoo, on the _Expositor_ matter; in vain that a subsequent hearing
was had before Esquire Wells, then not a Mormon and living outside of
Nauvoo limits; in vain that the _Nauvoo Neighbor_ sought to conciliate
the awakening wrath that was aroused in the community, by pleading
that if the city council had "exceeded the law of the land, a higher
court could regulate the proceedings;" in vain that President Smith
urged Governor Ford to come to Nauvoo to make personal investigation of
conditions and take the necessary steps to prevent riot and war--all
was in vain; preparations were in the making on all sides for an
uprising against Nauvoo and the Saints, and there was nothing left but
to defend the city by placing it under martial law and calling upon the
Legion to resist the threatened assault, which act was made the basis
for the subsequent charge of "treason."
Then followed in quick succession the demand of the governor for the
Mayor and members of the City Council to come to Carthage and submit to
trial under circumstances that inevitably meant death; the inspiration
of the Prophet to go to the West and all would be well; the crossing
of the Mississippi by the Prophet and a few trusted friends to make
preparations for that journey; the accusation by false friends of
cowardice on the Prophet's part, the flight as of a false shepherd
leaving the flock to be devoured by wolves; the lightning-like retort
of the Prophet--"_If my life is of no value to my friends, it is
of none to myself;"_ the return to Nauvoo; the subsequent going to
Carthage to submit to the demands of the governor of Illinois in every
particular, and the well-known story of Carthage jail--the martyrdom.
_XVII. The Prophet's Nobility in the hour of Trial._
The bearing of the Prophet throughout the closing months with which
this volume deals is admirable. There is no faltering or evidence of
weakness at any point of his conduct. If criticized at all it would be
for over-daring, for over self-confidence, that approached sublimity.
Strong men through wickedness fell away from their discipleship, and
conspired against him; the Prophet reproved them in the gate, and
proclaimed their iniquities in public when hope of reforming them
was gone. He saw mobs forming for the destruction of himself and
Nauvoo and his people; he calmly prepared to meet force with force,
and drilled and prepared his legion for the conflict, entrenched
some of the approaches to the city, and picketed them with guards;
as mayor of the {XLI} city he placed the city under martial law; and
as lieutenant-general he took personal command of the Nauvoo Legion
and stood ready to defend the rights of himself and his people, for
which his revolutionary ancestry had fought in the war for American
independence. He believed gloriously in the right of self-defense, and
resistance to oppression by physical force if necessary. To his uncle
John Smith at Ramus who had asked for counsel in the disturbed state of
things, he wrote ten days before his death:
"I write these few lines to inform you that we feel determined in
this place not to be dismayed if hell boils over all at once. We
feel to hope for the best, and determined to prepare for the worst,
and we want this to be your motto in common with us: _We will never
ground our arms until we give them up by death._"
And from Carthage prison, on the morning of the day of his martyrdom,
he wrote to his wife for transmission to his people:
"There is one principle which is eternal: It is the duty of all men
to protect their lives and the lives of their household, whenever
necessity requires, and no power has a right to forbid it, should
the last extreme arrive; but I anticipate no such extreme; _but
caution is the parent of safety._"
When the jail in Carthage was assailed, and the mob was pouring
murderous volleys into the room occupied by himself and friends, the
Prophet turned prom the prostrate form of his murdered brother to face
death-dealing guns and bravely returned the fire of his assailants,
"bringing his man down every time," and compelling even John Hay, who
but reluctantly accords the Prophet any quality of virtue, to confess
that he "made a handsome fight" in the jail. [28]
_XVIII. Always the Prophet-Teacher._
But what was more wonderful than the manifestation of moral and
physical courage and good generalship during these turbulent months of
his career, was the pursuance of his duties as a teacher of religious
truth--his calling as a Prophet of God. Notwithstanding he was troubled
on every side, he could compose his mind to instruct the {XLII} Church
on such doctrines as the complete salvation of their dead; how to
proceed with the administration of all ordinances given for and in
behalf of the dead; the doctrine of the resurrection and the reality
of spiritual existences; the plurality of Divine Intelligences, or
Gods; the nature of man's spirit; the doctrine of eternal progress for
intelligences who keep the estates through which they are appointed to
pass; the nature and character of the Godhead, and the relationship
of man to God. All these themes and many more he dwelt upon in
public discourse and private interview and written communications.
He lived his life, as I have said elsewhere, _in crescendo,_ it grew
in intensity and volume as he approached its close. Higher and still
higher the inspiration of God directed his thoughts; bolder were
his conceptions, and clearer his expositions of them. So far was he
from being a "fallen prophet" in the closing months of his career,
as apostates charged, that he grew stronger with each passing day;
more impressive in weight of personal character, and charm of manner;
for he preserved amid all the conflicts and trials through which he
passed--until the shadows of impending death began to fall upon him
in Carthage prison--the natural sweetness of his nature, and the
intellectual playfulness characteristic of him from boyhood--_so do not
fallen prophets._
* * * * * * *
Side by side on the banks of the majestic river that half encircles
Nauvoo, the "beautiful," carrying with it also the idea of "rest,"
peacefully sleep the brothers, Joseph and Hyrum Smith, the Prophet and
the Patriarch of the Church in the New Dispensation of the Gospel.
Their lives were interlaced by almost daily associations from childhood
to the last awful scene of martyrdom. It was therefore most fitting
that they should be buried beside each other, on the banks of the
"Father of Waters" in the city they had founded, where they had toiled
and suffered and achieved; where their joys rose to greater heights
and their sorrows sounded greater depths than falls to the lot of but
few men in this world. Undisturbed may their death slumber be until it
shall be ended by the trump of God, calling them forth to a glorious
resurrection.
* * * * * * *
_Prophet and Patriarch_
In the Temple square at Salt Lake City, where tens of thousands, made
up of people of nearly every nation in the world view them, stand two
bronze statues, life size, on granite bases. They are the statues
of the Brothers Smith, the Prophet and the Patriarch of the New
Dispensation of the Gospel. On the granite basements, respectively, are
bronze tablets on {XLIII} which is engraved the Life Record of these
men, and what is characteristic of each.
The text of the bronze plate of Hyrum Smith's statue is as follows:
HYRUM SMITH.
The Patriarch and a witness of the Book of Mormon.
An elder brother, and the steadfast friend and counselor of Joseph
Smith, the Prophet.
Born at Tunbridge, Vermont, February 9th, 1800; suffered martyrdom
with the Prophet at Carthage, Illinois, on the 27th of June, 1844.
The friendship of the brothers Hyrum and Joseph Smith is foremost
among the few great friendships of the world's history. Their names
will be classed among the martyrs for religion.
The Book of Mormon--the plates of which Hyrum Smith both saw and
handled; the revelations in the Book of Doctrine and Covenants; the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints--these, to bring them
forth for the salvation of the world, cost the best blood of the
19th century.
"I could pray in my heart that all men were like my brother Hyrum,
who possesses the mildness of a lamb and the integrity of Job, and,
in short, the meekness and humility of Christ. I love him with that
love that is stronger than death."--_Joseph Smith_.
"If ever there was an exemplary, honest and virtuous man, the
embodiment of all that is noble in the human form, Hyrum Smith was
the representative."--_President John Taylor_.
As he shared in the labors, so does he share in the honor and glory
of the New Dispensation with his Prophet Brother.
In life they were not divided; in death they were not separated; in
glory they are one.
The text on the west side of the base of Joseph Smith's tablet is:
JOSEPH SMITH.
The Prophet of the New Dispensation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ
our Lord. He was born at Sharon, Vermont, on the 23rd of December,
1805; and suffered Martyrdom for the word of God and the testimony
of Jesus at Carthage, Illinois, on the 27th of June, 1844.
HIS VISION OF GOD.
I saw two Personages whose glory and brightness defy all
description. One of them spake unto me and said:
"_This is my Beloved Son: hear Him._"
I asked which of all the sects was right, and which I should join.
I {XLIV} was answered I must join none of them; they were all
wrong; they teach for doctrine the commandments of men; I received
a promise that the fullness of the Gospel would at some future time
be made known to me.
THE BOOK OF MORMON.
This book was revealed to him, and he translated it by the gift and
power of God. It is an inspired history of ancient America, and
contains the fullness of the Gospel. It is the American Testament
of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
THE ORGANIZATION OF THE CHURCH.
Joseph Smith received divine authority through the ministration of
angels to teach the Gospel and administer the ordinances thereof.
He established again in the earth the Church of Jesus Christ,
organizing it by the will and commandment of God on the 6th day of
April, 1830.
He also received commission to gather Israel and establish Zion on
this land of America; to erect temples and perform all ordinances
therein both for the living and the dead; and prepare the way for
the glorious coming of the Lord Jesus Christ to reign on earth.
The contents of the tablet on the east side of the base of the
Prophet's statue are these gems from his teachings:
TRUTH GEMS.
The glory of God is intelligence.
It is impossible for a man to be saved in ignorance.
Whatever principles of intelligence we attain unto in this life
will rise with us in the resurrection.
There is a law irrevocably decreed in heaven before the foundations
of this world upon which all blessings are predicated; and when
we obtain any blessing from God it is by obedience to that law on
which it is predicated.
This is the work and glory of God: to bring to pass the immortality
and eternal life of man.
Adam fell that man might be; and men are that they might have joy.
The intelligence of spirits had no beginning, neither will it have
an end. Jesus was in the beginning with the Father: man was also in
the beginning with God. Intelligence, or the light of truth, was
not created or made, neither indeed can be.
The spirit and body is the soul of man; and the resurrection from
the dead is the redemption of the soul.
It is the first principle of the Gospel to know for a certainty the
character of God; and to know that man, (as Moses) may converse
with Him as one man converses with another.
{XLV} This message of the Prophet, and these doctrines of the east
bronze tablet, together with other doctrines taught by him in this
PERIOD I of our CHURCH HISTORY, and to be found scattered through the
six volumes now published of that history, await only the mind of
some God-inspired Spencer to cast them into synthetical form--to be
adequately presented and witnessed--to constitute Mormonism both the
Religion and the Philosophy of modern times--to bring to pass and to
glorify the Golden Age of the long-promised Millennium of Christian
hope.
Footnotes:
1. That the general government of the United states has since
constructed such a canal from Keokuk to Montrose, directly opposite
Nauvoo on the west, and at a cost of more than four and a half million
dollars, completing it in 1877 is noted in this volume, p. 80 and
footnote.
2. See _Nauvoo Neighbor_ for March 5th and March 12th. John E. Page
was president of the company; and in a communication to the _Neighbor_
(March 12, 1845) urging a vigorous prosecution of the enterprise, he
said:
"We have commenced active operations for the building of a dam in the
river, as noticed in the _Neighbor_ of last week. * * *
"Here is the proud and gallant Mississippi, with her rapid current,
tumbling to the broad Atlantic, seeming to say (as she quickens her
pace over the rugged rocks of the lower rapids just opposite to our
beautiful Nauvoo) only improve my shores and banks, ye Saints, as ye
improve my neighboring soil; and I will propel your mills, cotton and
woollen manufactories, by which your laborers can find employ, and your
poor can be clothed and fed."
3. As the suggestion of Joseph Smith for building the canal around the
Des Moines Rapids by the general government of the United states was
carried out; so also is the water power of the Des Moines Rapids being
utilized for manufacturing and other purposes, first suggested by the
Prophet, but now, of course, in a way and on a larger scale than it
was possible even for men to dream of when the city council of Nauvoo,
in 1843, authorized the construction of a dam to harness this power in
the Mississippi for the service of man. This, however, is now nearly
an accomplished fact through the enterprise of the Keokuk and Hamilton
Water Power Company, which, between Hamilton on the Illinois side,
and Keokuk on the Iowa side of the Mississippi (eight or nine miles
below Nauvoo), has in course of construction a dam which, including
abutments, will be 4,700 feet in length, will stand 32 feet above the
river bed, and be 42 feet wide at its base, built of solid concrete.
In connection with the dam, and incident to it will be wharfage and
a large drydock for the construction and repair of floating craft.
There will be developed and for sale as the result of this enterprise,
200,000 horsepower for the service of St. Louis and other towns of
Missouri, Illinois and Iowa. The dam and power house will be built at a
cost of $22,000,000.
4. See "History of the Mormon Church," _Americana_ magazine, number for
January, 1911, Ch. LIX; also Elder John Taylor's Journal entry for 5th
of September, 1844.
5. The _Register_ article is copied into the_ Nauvoo Neighbor_ for
November 13th, 1844.
6. _Nauvoo Neighbor_, March 12th, 1845.
7. See John Taylor's communication to the Quincy _Argus_, May 1st,
1839. HISTORY OF THE CHURCH, Vol. III, Chapter XXIII.
8. See Denunciation of Thieves, 1844, by Hyrum Smith; by President
Smith and the formal action of the Apostles quorum, this HISTORY Vol.
IV, Chapter XVII. Also the minutes of the conference held at Nauvoo
April, 1843, this HISTORY, Vol. V, Chapter XVII.
9. History of Hancock County, p. 158.
10. Ibid.
11. See this HISTORY Vol. V, Ch. XXIV and Vol. IV. Introduction pp, 22
_et seq_.
12. This ordinance about a month after its enactment was repealed at
the suggestion of President Smith. See this volume pp. 55-6.
13. This alleged "design" of the ordinance President Smith specifically
denied in the open session of the city council, and to a committee of
lawyers from Carthage, who waited upon the city council to protest
against this ordinance; and the ordinance was amended by a third
section disclaiming such alleged intention, but still retaining the
feature that forced state process to be served through the agency
Nauvoo's city officers. See this vol. pp. 173-4.
14. This volume pp. 130-132.
15. This HISTORY Vol. V, pp. 467-8, 472.
16. This HISTORY, Vol. V. pp. 473-4.
17. See Ford's letter to Thomas Reynolds, Governor of Missouri, under
date of August 14, 1843. This HISTORY, Vol. V, pp. 553-6.
18. Ibid p. 200.
19. This HISTORY, Vol. VI. Ch. XXVI, where both letters will be found
at length.
20. See Ford's_ History of Illinois_. p. 269; also this HISTORY, Vol
IV, pp. 479-481 and footnotes; Vol. V, p. 490.
21. Such appeared to be the very great probability in the election of
1843. As will be remembered by the readers of Vol. IV of this HISTORY,
Cyrus Walker, Esq., Whig candidate for Congress, rendered valuable
service in delivering the Prophet from the hands of those bent upon
running him into Missouri for trial on the old complaint against him
in that state. That service could only be obtained in that crisis by
Joseph Smith pledging himself to vote for Walker, which was interpreted
to mean, of course, the Mormon vote; and it was generally conceded that
the Whigs receiving the Mormon vote would be successful. Before the day
of election, however, there had arisen strong reasons for believing
that the arrest of Prophet and the effort to take him to Missouri, as
also Walker's appearance upon the scene to effect his liberation, was
itself a political trick to secure the Mormon vote for the Whig party,
which was thwarted by the Mormons voting, at the last moment, the
Democratic ticket. (See Vol. V, Chapter XXVI).
22. Ford's History of Illinois, p. 364.
23. See this volume, pp. 214-217, where the editorial is given _in
extenso_.
24. See Chapter XI, this volume, where the memorial itself, Hyde's two
letters and the action in the House of Representatives will be found in
full.
25. See Chapter XXX, _passim_ this volume for a discussion of the
_Expositor_; also Taylor-Colfax Discussion on the "Mormon" Question,
p. 20. Also an editorial from the Nauvoo _Neighbor_, see p. 496, this
volume.
26. I follow the typing and punctuation from the _Signal_ as given by
the late John Hay, secretary of state, _Atlantic Monthly_ of December,
1869.
27. This is the late Secretary of State John Hay, in the _Atlantic
Monthly_ for December, 1869; "Joe Smith died bravely, he stood by the
jam of the door and fired four shots, bringing his man down every
time. He shot an Irishman named Wills, who was in the affair from his
congenital love of a brawl, in the arm; Gallaghor, a Southerner from
the Mississippi bottom, in the face; Voorhees, a half-grown hobbledehoy
from Bear Creek, in the shoulder; and another gentleman, whose name I
will not mention, as he in prepared to prove an _alibi_, and besides
stands six feet two in his moccasins." In a later paragraph he refers
to "the handsome fight in the jail."
HISTORY OF THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS.
PERIOD I.
HISTORY OF JOSEPH SMITH, THE PROPHET.
CHAPTER I.
AN ESTIMATE OF THE PROPHET JOSEPH AS A RELIGIOUS LEADER--ANTI-MORMON
MEETING AT CARTHAGE--HISTORICAL SKETCH--IMPORTANT CONFERENCE OF THE
TWELVE HELD IN BOSTON.
_Friday, September 1, 1843._--A conference was held in Buffalo, New
York, Elder John P. Greene presiding; Wm. H. Folsom, [1] clerk: 13
branches, 1 High Priest, 58 {2} Elders, 2 Teachers, 1 Deacon, and 247
members were represented.
I attended the meeting of the High Council as a witness in the case of
Cowles [2] vs. George J. Adams. Charges not sustained.
_Saturday, 2._--I was not well, and therefore adjourned Mayor's Court.
_Sunday, 3._--I attended council with my brother Hyrum, Newel B.
Whitney, Willard Richards, William Law and William Marks, and gave
instructions to the brethren in relation to things in futurity.
A tremendous storm at Chester, Penn. The creek rose twenty-three feet
in two hours, and swept away all the bridges, many factories and
houses, and upwards of twenty persons drowned.
A conference was held at Hayward's Hotel, Manchester, England.
_Minutes of the Manchester Conference, held 3rd of September, 1843._
Charles Miller, President; William Walker, Clerk. Present: 1
Patriarch, 1 High Priest, 25 Elders, 40 Priests, 21 Teachers, and 4
Deacons.
Total number of members represented was as follows: 1,549 members,
including 44 Elders, 99 Priests, 56 Teachers, 22 Deacons. Baptized
since last general conference, 80; cut off, 29; emigrated, 18;
removed, 26; died, 4.
_Monday, 4._--Attended mayor's court and tried three cases--viz.,
City _versus_ A. Dodge, S. Dodge, and Luther Purtelow.
The two first I fined five dollars, and the last one dollar and costs.
One, p.m., called and gave licence for {3} a circus performance, which
I attended with my family until five, p.m.
I copy from the_ New York Sun_ as follows:--
"JOE SMITH, THE MORMON PROPHET." [3]
This Joe Smith must be set down as an extraordinary character, a
prophet-hero, as Carlyle might call him. He is one of the great men
of this age, and in future history will rank with those who, in one
way or another, have stamped their impress strongly on society.
Nothing can be more plebeian, in seeming, than this Joe Smith.
Little of dignity is there in his cognomen; but few in this age
have done such deeds, and performed such apparent miracles. It
is no small thing, in the blaze of this nineteenth century, to
give to men a new revelation, found a new religion, establish new
forms of worship, to build a city, with new laws, institutions,
and orders of architecture,--to establish ecclesiastic, civil and
military jurisdiction, found colleges, send out missionaries, and
make proselytes in two hemispheres: yet all this has been done by
Joe Smith, and that against every sort of opposition, ridicule
and persecution. This sect has its martyrs also; and the spirit
in which they were imprisoned and murdered in Missouri, does not
appear to have differed much from that which has attended religious
persecutions in all ages of the world.
That Joe Smith, the founder of the Mormons, is a man of great
talent, a deep thinker, and eloquent speaker, an able writer, and
a man of great mental power, no one can doubt who has watched his
career. That his followers are deceived, we all believe; but,
should the inherent corruptions of Mormonism fail to develop
themselves sufficiently to convince its followers of their error,
where will the thing end? A great military despotism is growing
up in the fertile West, increasing faster in proportion, than
the surrounding population, spreading its influence around, and
marshalling multitudes under its banners, causing serious alarm to
every patriot.
What is the reason that men are so blind that they cannot or will not
see the hand of the Lord in His work of the last days!
_Tuesday, 5._--Went to the office at nine, a.m., with Mr. Hamilton, of
Carthage, who had obtained a deed from {4} the sheriff of the county
for lot 2, block 103, in the city of Nauvoo, for taxes, although I had
previously paid them; which is another specimen of the oppression,
injustice, and rascality of Mr. Collector Bagby, who by such foul means
robs me and other Saints, and abuses all who come unfortunately in his
power.
I requested my clerk to make out a bill of fare for the "Mansion."
The ship _Metoka_ sailed from Liverpool with a company of Saints on
board.
_Wednesday, 6.--_I went to the recorder's about half past six, a.m.,
and found him in bed.
Held mayor's court in the case, "City _versus_ Joseph Owen."
_Anti-Mormon Meeting at Carthage, Seat of Hancock, County Illinois._ [4]
Meeting convened pursuant to adjournment. The former chairman [5] not
being present.
Edson Whitney, Esq., was called to the chair, and the meeting being
organized, the following preamble and resolutions were submitted by the
committee, and unanimously adopted:--
PREAMBLE AND RESOLUTIONS.
This meeting having convened for the purpose of taking under
advisement a subject of vital importance not only to this county,
but to all the surrounding counties, regret that we are necessarily
and irresistibly forced to the conclusion that a certain class
of people have obtruded themselves upon us, calling themselves
Mormons, or Latter-day Saints, and under the sacred garb of
Christianity, assumed, as we honestly believe, that they may the
more easily, under such a cloak, perpetrate the most lawless and
diabolical deeds that have ever, in any age of the world, disgraced
the human species.
In evidence of the above charge, we find them yielding implicit
obedience to the ostensible head and founder of this sect, who
is a pretended prophet of the Lord, and under this Heaven-daring
assumption {5} claiming to set aside, by his vile and blasphemous
lies, all those moral and religious institutions which have been
established by the Bible, and which have in all ages been cherished
by men as the only means of maintaining those social blessings
which are so indispensably necessary for our happiness.
We believe that such an individual, regardless as he must be of
his obligations to God, and at the same time entertaining the most
absolute contempt for the laws of man, cannot fail to become a
most dangerous character, especially when he shall have been able
to place himself at the head of a numerous horde, either equally
reckless and unprincipled as himself, or else made his pliant tools
by the most absurd credulity that has astonished the world since
its foundation.
In the opinion of this meeting, a crisis has arrived, when many
of the evils to be expected from a state of things so threatening
have transpired. We feel convinced that circumstances have even now
occurred which prove to us most conclusively that Joseph Smith, the
false Prophet before alluded to, has evinced, in many instances,
a most shameless disregard for all the forms and restraints of
law, by boldly and presumptuously calling in question the acts
of certain officers, who had fearlessly discharged the duties
absolutely imposed upon them by the laws, particularly when they
have come in contact with his own sordid and selfish interests.
He has been heard to threaten--nay, he _has_ committed violence
upon the person of an officer, because that officer dared honestly
to do his duties according to law.
He has caused his city council to pass laws contrary to the laws of
the state, and subversive of the rights of citizens of this state.
Citizens have been arrested, tried and punished for breaches of
those mock laws, from time to time, in such manner, that they have
been compelled to the humiliating necessity of seeking an asylum
elsewhere, in order to escape the tyranny and oppression of this
modern Caligula.
He has caused the writ of _habeas corpus_ to be issued by the
municipal court of the city of Nauvoo, in a case not provided for
in the charter of this city, and indeed contrary to the letter of
that instrument; and, himself a prisoner, arrested under grave
charges made by a neighboring state, brought before said court,
tried, and acquitted; thereby securing his own rescue from the
custody of the law.
Citizens from the adjoining counties have been denied the right to
regain property stolen and taken to Nauvoo, even after they have
discovered both the thief and the property; and themselves, under
the most frivolous pretenses, arrested, fined, and other property
rifled from them, to satisfy the mock judgments and costs of his
cormorant officers.
{6} Persons upon whom stolen property has been found in the city of
Nauvoo, have been brought before this religio-political chief; and
he, in the capacity of mayor of the city, has refused to convict,
where the cases have been most clear and palpable.
We have had men of the most vicious and abominable habits
imposed upon us to fill our most important county offices, by
his dictum, in order, as we verily believe, that he may the more
certainly control our destinies, and render himself, through the
instrumentality of these base creatures of his ill-directed power,
as absolutely a despot over the citizens of this county as he now
is over the serfs of his own servile clan.
And, to crown all, he claims to merge all religion, all law, and
both moral and political justice, in the knavish pretension that
he receives fresh from heaven divine instructions in all matters
pertaining to these things; thereby making his own depraved will
the rule by which he would have all men governed.
He has caused large bodies of his ragamuffin soldiery to arm
themselves, and turn out in pursuit of officers legally authorized
to arrest himself; he being charged with high crimes and
misdemeanors committed in the state of Missouri, and these officers
arrested by the vilest hypocrisy, and placed in duress, that he
might enable himself to march triumphantly into Nauvoo, and bid
defiance to the laws of the land.
In view of the above grievances, this meeting feel that it is
their bounden duty to resist, by every laudable means, all such
unwarrantable attacks upon their liberties. Therefore--
_Resolved,_ 1st. That inasmuch as we honestly believe that the
combination of people calling themselves Mormons, or Latter-day
Saints, have given strong indications, in their recent movements,
that they are unwilling to submit to the ordinary restraints of
law, we are therefore forced to the conclusion that the time is not
far distant when the citizens of this country will be compelled to
assert their rights in some way.
_Resolved,_ 2nd. That while we would deprecate anything like
lawless violence, without justifiable cause, yet we pledge
ourselves in the most solemn manner to resist all the wrongs which
may be hereafter attempted to be imposed on this community by the
Mormons, to the utmost of our ability,--peaceably, if we can, but
forcibly, if we must.
_Resolved,_ 3rd. That in the event of our being forced into a
collision with that people, we pledge ourselves that we will stand
by and support each other in every emergency up to the death.
_Resolved,_ 4th. That we believe that it is also the interest
of our friends in the neighboring counties and also neighboring
states to begin to take a firm and decided stand against the high
pretension and base designs of this latter-day would-be Mahomet.
{7} _Resolved,_ 5th. That provided we must necessarily, for the
well-being of this community, the protection of our dearest rights,
and the preservation of our excellent institutions, adopt measures
to humble the pride and arrogance of that audacious despot; we
therefore call upon all good and honest men, without distinction of
party or place, to come to the rescue.
_Resolved,_ 6th. That we pledge ourselves in the most determined
manner that if the authorities of the State of Missouri shall make
another demand for the body of Joseph Smith, and our Governor
shall issue another warrant to stand ready at all times to serve
the officer into whose hands such warrant may come, as a _posse_,
in order that it may not be said of us, in future, that the most
outrageous culprits have been suffered "to go unwhipped of justice."
_Resolved,_ 7th. That a corresponding committee be appointed to
communicate with the different parts of this county, and also with
other counties; and we would also recommend to all surrounding
counties to appoint like committees for the purpose of a mutual
interchange of views in regard to the subjects embraced in these
proceedings.
_Resolved,_ 8th. That as it has been too common for several years
past for politicians of both political parties, not only of this
county, but likewise of the state, to go to Nauvoo and truckle
to the heads of the Mormon clan for their influence, we pledge
ourselves that we will not support any man of either party in
future who shall thus debase himself.
_Resolved,_ 9th. That if the Mormons carry out the threats they
have made in regards to the lives of several of our citizens, we
will, if failing to obtain speedy redress from the laws of the
land, take summary and signal vengeance upon them as a people.
_Resolved,_ 10th. That when the Government ceases to afford
protection, the citizens of course fall back upon their original
inherent right of self-defense.
In pursuance of the 7th resolution, the following gentlemen
were appointed to act as a central corresponding committee at
Carthage--namely, Captain Robert F. Smith, Major T. J. Bartlet,
Harmon T. Wilson, Frank A. Worrel, and Walter Bagby.
On motion of Henry Stevens, it was ordered that committees,
consisting of two persons, be appointed in each election precinct
of this county, for the purpose of communicating with the central
committee at Carthage; and that those two may add to their number
at discretion.
On motion of Daniel Beaver, it was made the duty of the person
whose name stands first on the list of each committee to act as
chairman; and that all communications from the other committees, or
from any other sources shall be added.
{8} The following gentlemen were then appointed by the chair as
committees in the several precincts, to wit:--
_Green Plains_--Edson Whitney and Levi Williams.
_Bear Creek_--William White and Andrew Moore.
_Chili_--Stephen Owen and Arthur Morgan.
_Augusta_--William D. Abernethy and Alexander Oliver.
_Saint Mary's_--William Darnell and Daniel Beaver.
_Fountain Green_--Thomas Geddis and S. H. Tyler.
_La Harpe_--Jesse Gilmer and Charles Comstock.
_Camp Creek_--James Graham and Thomas Harris.
_Appanooce_--John McCanley and John R. Atherton.
_Montebello_--Samuel Steel and Benjamin B. Gates.
_Warsaw_--Thomas C. Sharp and Mark Aldrich.
On motion of Levi Williams, Colonel Root, of McDonough county, was
added to the central corresponding committee of Carthage.
On motion of Henry Newton, Esq.,
_Resolved,_ That the central committee of correspondence act as a
general committee of supervision; and, in case of a contingency
occurring requiring aid, that they immediately call on the precinct
committees and upon all others favorable to our cause to furnish
such aid as the exigency of the case may require.
On the motion of Charles C. Stevens, the following supplementary
resolutions were unanimously adopted:--
_Resolved,_ That the president of this meeting be requested to
communicate with the Governor of Missouri, and respectfully request
him to make another demand upon the authorities of this state for
the body of Joseph Smith, commonly called the Mormon Prophet;
and in the event of a requisition and an order for his arrest
and delivery to the proper officers of the state of Missouri, we
offer our services to enforce said order, and pledge ourselves to
sustain the supremacy of the laws at all hazards and under all
circumstances.
_Resolved,_ That a copy of the proceedings of this meeting be
forwarded to the publisher of the _Warsaw Message, Quincy Whig,_
and _Quincy Herald,_ for publication, with a request to them to add
a note, soliciting all editors friendly to our cause in this state,
Missouri, and Iowa Territory, to copy.
It was then moved and seconded, That this meeting adjourn, subject
to the call of the central corresponding committee.
Edson Whitney, Chairman.
W. D. Abernethy, Secretary.
Editors throughout Illinois, Missouri, Iowa Territory, friendly to
the Anti-Mormon cause, are requested to publish the proceedings, in
today's paper, of a meeting held at Carthage on the 6th instant.
{9} _Thursday, 7.--_I took home the letter written to Harrisburg
[6] for the Church History, a small fragment of which only has been
preserved, and is as follows:--
_Historical Sketch of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints._
Messrs. Editors,--The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
was founded upon direct revelation, as the true Church of God
has ever been, according to the Scriptures (Amos 3:7, and Acts
1:2); and through the will and blessings of God, I have been an
instrument in his hands, thus far, to move forward the cause of
Zion: therefore, in order to fulfill the solicitations of your
letter of July last, I shall commence with my life.
[Then follows a brief historical sketch of the Church from the
birth of the Prophet to the settlement of the Saints at Nauvoo,
much in the strain of the _"Wentworth Letter"_ already published in
this HISTORY, (Vol. IV, Ch. XXXI); and for the reason that all the
historical data in this I. Daniel Rupp sketch is contained in the
_Wentworth Letter,_ it is thought unnecessary to reproduce it here,
excepting the closing paragraphs which deal with conditions and
prospects at Nauvoo, on the date at which we have arrived in our
HISTORY, viz. September, 1843.--Editor.]
Nauvoo, upon every point connected with increase and prosperity
has exceeded the most sanguine expectations of thousands. It now
contains near 3,500 houses, and more than 15,000 inhabitants.
The charter contains, among its important powers, privileges or
immunities, a grant for "The University of Nauvoo," with the same
liberal powers of the city, where all the arts and sciences will
grow with the growth and strengthen the strength of this beloved
city of the Saints of the last days.
Another very commendatory provision of the charter is that that
portion of the citizens subject to military duty are organized
into a body of independent military men, styled the "Nauvoo
Legion," whose highest officer holds the rank and is commissioned
lieutenant-general. This Legion, like other independent bodies of
troops in this Republican Government, is at the disposal of the
Governor of the state, and President of the United States. There is
also an act of incorporation for an Agricultural and Manufacturing
Association, as well as the Nauvoo House Association.
Since the organization of this Church, its progress has been rapid,
and its gain in numbers regular. Besides these United States, where
{10} nearly every place of notoriety has heard the glad tidings
of the Gospel of the Son of God, England, Ireland and Scotland
have shared largely in the fullness of the everlasting Gospel, and
thousands have already gathered with their kindred Saints to this
the corner stone of Zion. Missionaries of this Church have gone
to the East Indies, to Australia, Germany, Constantinople, Egypt,
Palestine, the islands of the Pacific, and are now preparing to
open the door in the extensive dominions of Russia.
There is no correct data by which the exact number of members
composing this now extensive and still extending Church of Jesus
Christ of Latter-day Saints can be known. Should it be supposed at
150,000, it might still be short of the truth.
Believing the Bible to say what it means and mean what it says,
and guided by revelation, according to the ancient order of the
fathers, to whom came what little light we enjoy, and circumscribed
only by the eternal limits of truth, this Church must continue the
even tenor of its way.
Called at the office, and administered the laying on of hands to Sister
Partington and her two children.
Dreadful conflagration at Stuhlweissenburg, in Hungary. About six
hundred houses destroyed.
_Friday, 8.--_My wife being sick, I was at home all day.
Stephen Markham started for Dixon with the court papers in relation to
the writ of habeas corpus, and as a witness.
I directed William Clayton to go to Augusta, Iowa, to get a deed signed
by Mr. Moffit for the steamer _Maid of Iowa_.
Muster day of the first cohort.
The Twelve held a meeting in Boylston Hall, Boston. Present--Elders
Heber C. Kimball, Orson Pratt, George A. Smith, Wilford Woodruff, John
E. Page.
_Saturday, 9.--_My wife a little more comfortable. William Clayton
went to Augusta, got the deed signed by Mr. Moffit and his wife, and
returned in the evening.
General training of the Nauvoo Legion.
The quorum of the Twelve met the church in Boston, at Boylston Hall, in
conference. Sixteen branches were represented, containing 878 members.
A great deal of {11} valuable instruction was given by the Twelve, and
the hall, a very large one, was crowded. A number were baptized during
conference, which lasted three days. The minutes of conference I here
insert:--
_Important Conference of the Twelve, Held at Boylston Hall, Boston,
September 9, 1843._
Present of the Quorum of the Twelve--Elders Brigham Young, Heber C.
Kimball, Parley P. Pratt, Orson Pratt, Orson Hyde, John E. Page,
Wilford Woodruff, George A. Smith.
[_Reported by Wilford Woodruff._]
Conference opened with prayer by Elder George A. Smith.
After the various branches in the New England States were
represented, Elder P. P. Pratt made a few remarks, of which the
following is a synopsis:
Some Elders tell us that they have taught the gathering according
to the Scriptures. But it is not sufficient to teach the principle
from the Scriptures alone; for if there was no other guide, the
people would be left in doubt as to whether they should gather to
Jerusalem, Africa, America, or elsewhere. It is right to teach the
gathering according to the Scriptures, although some predictions
of the Prophets are obscure; but we are not left to them alone.
We know and all the Saints ought to know that God has appointed a
place and time of gathering and has raised up a Prophet to bring
it about, of which we are witnesses. Our message is that we are
witnesses of the fulfillment of the predictions of the Prophets.
We have not to lay down a long, round-about [system] of arguments
and calculations. The specific time and place are pointed out, the
stakes are driven, the foundations of the city and temple are laid,
and a people already gathered. We therefore know where to go; and
to reject the revelations of God, which have pointed out these
things to us, only brings condemnation. If this is not the case,
then our faith is vain, and our works and hopes are vain also.
We worship a God who can inspire His servants to tell the people
what to do. We have already got the opinions of men enough
concerning the coming of Jesus Christ; but we need the voice of a
Prophet in such a case and we have it. I am willing to risk my all
upon it: and if the Elders understand the principle of gathering,
and teach it correctly, the people will have the correct spirit of
the gathering.
It is time we come out and declared boldly and definitely what God
had for the people. We want more than opinions--we want your works.
He has said he would send a Prophet to prepare the way. And {12}
let me ask these profound sectarians, why He has not done it? If
the angels found a God in heaven able to give instructions, shield
them from sword and famine, &c., why have we not found Him? Let
the teachers bear the message they are entrusted with; and if the
people wish then for Scripture, tell them that their message is in
fulfillment of prophecy; but let them have the whole message.
Elder E. P. Maginn said he for one had taught the gathering
according to the Scriptures; but he considered all modern
revelations Scripture as well as those given anciently.
Elder Brigham Young addressed the meeting on the subject of our
faith. We hear the Elders represent the feeling of the brethren
concerning the gathering. This is right. The Spirit of the Lord
Jesus Christ is a gathering spirit. Its tendency is to gather the
virtuous and good, the honest and meek of the earth, and, in fine,
the Saints of God. The time has come when the Lord is determined
to fulfill his purposes. The people are apt to say that if they
had lived in the days of Jesus Christ they would have received His
work. But judge ye if the people are better now than then. They are
not. When the full, set time was come, the Lord came in the flesh
to do His work, whether the people were prepared or not; and He
would not have come at all, if He had waited till the people were
prepared to receive Him. It was decreed from all eternity that He
should come, and He came. The people were not prepared then, nor
are they any more prepared now. And now the full set time has come
for the Lord God Almighty to set His hand to redeem Israel. We are
not bound to make the people believe, but we are bound to preach
the Gospel; and having done this, our garments are clear.
The Lord does not require every soul to leave his home as soon as
He believes. Some may be wanted to go to the isles of the sea, and
some to go north, and some south. But He _does_ require them to
hearken to counsel, and follow that course which He points out,
whether to gather or stay to do some other work.
The Spirit of the Lord and His work are on the alert, and those who
keep up with the work must be on the alert also. The Spirit of the
Lord will leave them who sit down and refuse to obey. When the Lord
says, "Gather yourselves together," why do you ask Him what for?
Had you not rather enjoy the society of Saints than sinners whom
you cannot love? Is it not the principle of the Saints to mingle
together and promote the great cause in which they are engaged?
Perhaps some of you are ready to ask, "Cannot the Lord save us as
well where we are as to gather together?" Yes, if the Lord says
so. But if He commands us to come out and gather together, He will
not save us by staying at home. Have you not received the Gospel?
Yes. {13} Then do you believe what we say? Have you not received
the Holy Ghost, by receiving the Gospel which we have brought unto
you? Yes, thousands have; and it stands as a testimony that God has
got a Prophet on the earth. You might have been baptized seventy
times seven in any way except the way God had ordained and pointed
out, and you would not have received the Holy Ghost. This also is a
testimony to you.
Are you engaged with us in this great work? "Yes, certainly," you
answer, "heart and hand." "Can we do any good?" Yes, you can. The
sectarian world send the Bible to the nations of the earth. The
poor among them put sixpence, fifty cents or a dollar into the box
to carry out that object; and can the Latter-day Saints do nothing?
Let them do what God requires. He has required that we should build
a house unto His name, that the ordinances and blessings of His
kingdom may be revealed, and that the Elders may be endowed, go
forth and gather together the blood of Ephraim--the people of God,
from the ends of the earth.
Can you get an endowment in Boston or anywhere, except where God
appoints? No, only in that place which God has pointed out. Now,
query--Could Moses have obtained the law if he had stayed in
the midst of the children of Israel, instead of going up on to
the mountain? The Lord said, "Go and do so and so; stand before
Pharaoh; pull off thy shoes, for the place is holy." Moses obeyed,
and obtained blessings which he would not have received if he had
been disobedient.
Has the Lord spoken in these last days, and required us to build
Him a house? Then why query about it? If He has spoken, it is
enough. I do not care whether the people gather or not, if they
don't want to do so. I do not wish to save the people against their
will. I want them to choose whether they will gather and be saved
with the righteous, or remain with the wicked and be damned. I
would like to have all people bow down to the Lord Jesus Christ;
but it is one of the decrees of the Lord that all persons shall act
upon their agency, which was the case even with the angels who fell
from heaven.
Now, will you help us to build the Nauvoo House and Temple? If so,
you will be blessed: if not, we will build it without you. And if
you don't hearken, you will not have the Spirit of the Lord; for
the Spirit of the Lord is on the move.
The Apostles tried to gather the people together in their day.
Christ said He would gather the Jews oft as a hen gathereth her
chickens under her wings, but they would not. Neither God nor
angels care whether men hear or forbear: they will carry on their
work; for the full, set time is come for God to set up His kingdom,
and we go about it. We must build a house, and get an endowment,
preach the gospel, {14} warn the people, gather the Saints, build
up Zion, finish our work, and be prepared for the coming of Christ.
Now, we want to send four missionaries to the Pacific Islands,
and we want a little clothing, and beds, and money to pay their
passage. Can you do something for them? This is not all. We want
you to give all you have to spare towards building the Temple.
We shall be able to build it, if we have to work with a sword in
one hand. But perhaps you are afraid you will not have enough for
yourself, when you get there; yet how easy it is for the Lord to
take it away from you by fire or otherwise!
Elder Maginn had an ivory cane. I asked him for it, but he declined
making me a present of it. Not long after, he had it stolen from
him in a crowd, and it now does neither of us any good. Perhaps
your purse may slip through your pocket, or you may lose your
property; for the Lord can give and take away. Jacob, with his
faith, obtained all the best cattle his father-in-law had.
If I had a wife and ten children, I would give all my money to
build the Temple and Nauvoo House, and I would trust in God for
their support. Yet I will be richer for it; for God would prosper
me in business. Men are apt to serve God on Sunday, and neglect Him
all the week. Who blesses you and all the people? God. But do the
people acknowledge the hand of God in all these things? No; they
turn away from Him, and do not acknowledge Him, or realize from
whom their blessings flow. They know not who blesses them. It never
comes into their hearts. So with the farmer. The blessings are
constantly flowing to him, and he considers not whence they come.
Let me tell you a secret. When the Lord shakes the earth, and every
valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made
low, He will bring gold for brass, silver for iron, brass for wood,
and iron for stones. Then you will have no use for gold, for money
and gods as you now have. You will not care so much about it; but
the Lord will think as much of it then as now.
But now we want some of the gods of the Gentiles--some of the
gold and silver to build the Temple and Nauvoo House for the
accommodation of the kings, princes and nobles of the earth, when
they come to inquire after the wisdom of Zion, that they may have
a place for their entertainment, and for the weary traveler to be
refreshed. Let us have your gold to take to Nauvoo for this purpose.
Is there wisdom in Zion? We think so, and the world begins to think
so. Let the world come forward and translate the plates that have
of late come forth, [7] if they have wisdom to do it. The Lord {15}
intends to take away the gods of the Gentiles: He pulleth down and
He buildeth up at His own pleasure.
Sacrifice your gods for the building up of Zion. Administer of your
substance. Send our missionaries to the islands of the seas. Don't
be afraid of a dollar, or a hundred dollars, or even a thousand
dollars. I would not. I have made a sacrifice of all I possessed
a good many times. I am richer the more I give; for the Lord has
promised and does reward me a hundredfold; and if I sacrifice all
for the cause of God, no good thing will be withheld from me. I
have taken this course to get rich. I have given all I had, and
God has given many blessings in consequence. If I am too bold in
asking, be too bold in giving. I ask, expecting to receive. Put
your shoulders to the wheel with all your might. Give your all, and
become rich by receiving a hundredfold.
Adjourned until half-past two o'clock, when the meeting was opened
by singing.
Prayer by Elder Parley P. Pratt. Singing.
Elder Parley P. Pratt said: I have a few remarks to make concerning
the subject spoken of in the forenoon by Elder Brigham Young, who
said we wanted all your gold, silver, and precious things. We not
only want your all as pertaining to gold, silver, &c., but we want
you, your wives and children, and all you have to be engaged in the
work of the Lord.
I don't know that I can give you a better pattern of what we want
than the case of Joseph in Egypt. Israelites will get all they
can. They are very great to go ahead. The Egyptians believed in
dreams; and by the peculiar gift of interpretation of dreams,
Joseph entered into a great scheme of speculation. He used the gift
of interpretation to become great in the eyes of the Egyptians. He
obtained great political influence, came out with gold ornaments,
and rode in the king's chariot in great splendor. He laid up corn
in great abundance during the seven years of plenty; and when the
famine came, he got all their gold, silver, cattle, land, property,
and, finally their persons. * * *
God is the origin of power--the Sovereign. He made the people and
the earth, and He has the right to reign. There will be good times
and good government, when the world will acknowledge the God of
heaven as the Lawgiver, and not till then; and if I could live
under His government, I should be thankful, although I am a real
Republican in principle, and would rather live under the voice of
the people than the voice of one man. But it will be for the good
and happiness of man when that government is established, which we
pray for when we say, "Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth
as it is in heaven;" and until that time arrives we must pray for
it.
{16} This Joseph in Egypt--the speculator--what a great and good
man he was! I love him, I admire his course, and I believe a little
of his blood is in my veins. But had Joseph been like the religious
world at the present day--had he said he had got religion and done
with the world, he would not have rode the king's horse, worn his
robe, or had to do with gold and silver; and he would have done
no good, built no storehouses, and saved no corn, for fear of
speculation.
But he acted differently. And there is an ancient prediction
respecting our modern prophet, Joseph--namely, that a prophet and
seer should be raised up, and those who seek to destroy him shall
be confounded. This has proved true. Upwards of thirty law suits
have been brought against the Lord's anointed, and his persecutors
have as often been confounded. He has been raised and supported
according to the prophecy, to do a work on the earth, and the Lord
has been with him. Every weapon formed against him has been broken.
He has overcome all the lawsuits which have been brought against
him, and no accusation has been sustained against him; yet he will
lay a plan to speculate as large as ancient Joseph did; he will
have power to buy up all the rest of the world.
What Elder Young said is good. We want all he spoke of, and a great
deal more, We do not want it for ourselves, but for you. We want
you to use it; and we have a Prophet who tells how, when and where
to use it. Take your means and unite your exertions in this work.
We want you to take that course which will save you. Build up a
city and temples, and enjoy them, and do as the Lord tells you, and
hearken to counsel.
We have prophets to tell us what to do, and we should get as much
wisdom as the world. If they want a railroad built, all they have
to do is to open books. The people subscribe stock, a railroad is
soon built, and an income is realized. The Saints ought to be as
well united as the world, and do the things that God has required,
that a great nation may be saved from all nations.
The old gentleman [Satan] that rules the nations has ruled long
enough; and if I were an infidel, I would like to have the Lord
raise up a Joseph, or a Daniel, or a Mordecai, or an Esther, to
obtain political, temporal, and spiritual power, and cause a change
for the good of the world. Thank heaven, he has begun to raise them
up. He has raised up another Joseph to do the great work of God,
and it will continue on until the saying goes forth that the Lord
has built up Zion.
The kingdom of God must be established, and it will be. I read that
gold, silver, power, thrones, and dominions will be connected with
the great work of God in the last days. Then let us wake up {17} to
see what God says shall come to pass, and let us enlarge our hearts
and prepare for the great and glorious work.
Do the Saints here in Boston know that they are identified with
the laying of the foundation, and establishing of a great and
mighty kingdom, which is to include all the great and glorious work
to be fulfilled in the last dispensation and fullness of times?
And I prophesy, in the name of the Lord, that whether the Saints
of Boston or any other place, stand for it or rise against it,
numberless millions will celebrate that day when the foundation of
this work was laid.
Elder George A. Smith said: I am pleased with the many remarks
which have been made this day. You can easily see a similarity
between the two Josephs, and the revelations that are given for the
salvation of the present generation. Joseph in Egypt, a savior of
his father's house and the Egyptians: Joseph [Smith] at this day
holds the keys of salvation not only to the Gentiles, but also to
the house of Israel.
I do not know but some may have reflections different from my own.
I will, however, show how the Lord deals with mankind. Some may
say, "Who can believe that God who dwells in heaven will condescend
to speak to the people about building Him a house in this day of
religion and science?"
This may be considered simple in the eyes of many; but the day
was when the salvation or damnation of the whole world hung upon
as small a circumstance. "Noah, by faith, being warned of God of
things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the
saving of his house, by which he condemned the world, and became
heir of the righteous which is by faith."
Had the editors of this day lived then, I think they would have
said and written more against it than they have against Joseph
Smith and the revelations he has received and published.
We find God was in the habit of telling men to do many simple
things, even to the giving of a law concerning the protection of
birds' nests. You talk about God condescending to speak of small
things in the last days, but it is only as it was in the days of
Moses; for we read in the Bible how God commanded the children of
Israel, when they found a bird's nest, (Deut. XXII:7) not to take
the dam with the young: "But thou shalt in any wise let the dam go,
and take the young to thee." Why? "That it may be well with thee,
and that thou mayst prolong thy days."
We see from this, that however small and simple the commandments of
God appear to be, they are great in their results. Connecting this
with the law of God to Israel concerning the eating of locusts,
beetles and grasshoppers (Leviticus XI:22). "Even these of them ye
may {18} eat; the locust after his kind, and the bald locust after
his kind, and the beetle after his kind, and the grasshopper after
his kind."
Is this as small business for the Lord to talk about as it is for
Him to command the Saints to build a tavern or boarding house for
visitors who constantly go to Nauvoo, which, when done, will do
much good for the spreading of the work to all nations. What good
could arise from a law of God permitting the eating of beetles and
grasshoppers, I cannot say.
All the prophecies have aimed at the gathering of the people, and
saving them in the last days. But it is better never to have known
the Master's will than to know it and not perform it; and my advice
is, If you cannot take hold of the work and go through the whole
course, stop and go no further. If you have not courage to go on at
the expense of all things, it is better to turn back.
We do not want to deceive you. Our traditions have taught us to be
very religious, to wear long faces, never to tell an amusing story,
nor to laugh, &c. This was the case with the long-faced Christians
in Missouri, and they were the first to strike a dagger to our
hearts. It is better for a man to act out what he is than to be a
hypocrite. "Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father,
is this," says James, "to visit the fatherless and widows in their
affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world."
I do not like that religion which lies in a man's long face, or his
coat or his hat. If I wear a strange hat, it is not because of my
religion: for where the religion of a man is in the shape of a hat
or coat, it is not very extensive anywhere else.
Some of the Elders want to appear very big, and to be called great
preachers; but whenever I have seen them trying to preach something
large and mysterious, to get a name, I have concluded they have yet
much to learn. I have been eleven years a member of this Church,
and was a believer two years before I entered it; and during
that time I have seen many Elders who like to preach large and
mysterious sermons.
As many are desirous of hearing mysteries, I will rehearse a short
sermon of mysteries for their edification. Elder Kimball has had a
long standing in the Church. He has preached much, done much good,
brought many souls into the kingdom, had great influence, and is
considered the most successful minister among us.
Elder Amasa Lyman and myself went into Pike county, Illinois,
to preach where the Elders had preached all the mysteries about
beasts, heads and horns. They wanted us to preach mysteries. We
told them we were not qualified to preach mysteries; but if they
would send for Elder Kimball he would preach them. So they sent
about forty miles {19} for Elder Kimball, and brought him down, they
were so anxious to hear mysteries.
When he came, he had a large congregation assembled. He arose and
remarked that he understood they had sent for him to come and
preach the mysteries to them. "I am well qualified, and fully
competent to do it, and am happy to have the privilege. I want
the attention of all." When every mind was stretched and eager to
learn these great mysteries he said, "The first mystery I shall
present before you is this, 'Look at Elder Amasa Lyman; he needs
a pair of pantaloons and a new hat. But it appears you do not see
it; consequently I want to open your eyes and reveal to you a
great mystery; for an Elder in the Church has need of a hat and a
pair of breeches as well as yourselves, and _especially_ when the
Saints _know_ he is so much in need of them!'" He preached a few
more mysteries of the same nature, and the result of this sermon
was that Elder Lyman got a pair of pants and a new hat, and Elder
Kimball and myself each a barrel of flour for our families.
Elder Brigham Young arose and said: I will make an apology for my
remarks in the former part of the day. Some may think I spoke very
plainly; but the object I had in view was to teach you your duty,
as I am aware the people are not made to feel it; and the apology I
have to make is this: I will turn Thomsonian doctor, and give the
composition without cream and sugar,--it matters not whether I get
friends or foes. If this work does not live, I do not want to live;
for it is my life, my joy, my all; and if it sinks, God knows I do
not want to swim.
I wish you to understand this--that he that gathereth not with
us scattereth, and they have not the Spirit of God. We live in
anticipation of the day when mobs cannot harm us, and they who have
tasted the bitter cup feel to realize this hope. Wake up, ye Elders
of Israel who have sought to build yourselves up, and not the
kingdom of God, and put on your sword. Wake up, ye that have daubed
with untempered mortar! Hearken and hear me; for I say unto you, in
the name of Jesus Christ, that if you do not help us to build the
Temple and the Nauvoo House, you shall not inherit the land of Zion.
If you do not help to build up Zion and the cause of God, and help
me and my brethren on our way when we want to go on the Lord's
business, you shall not partake of the blessings which are laid
up in store for the Saints. Many Elders seek to build themselves
up, and not the work of the Lord. They will say "Put gold rings on
my fingers; give me what I want;" and they care nothing about the
Temple. This they should not do. I will not allow myself to do so;
and when any one does this, no matter who he may be, even though
he was one {20} of the Twelve, he will not prosper. Those of the
Twelve and others of the Elders who have apostatized, I have known
their hearts and their breathings. I have known their movements
although they thought I did not know much. But I knew all about
them; and when I see men preaching to build themselves up, and not
Zion, I know what it will end in. But you may say you are young.
I don't care if you are. Are you old enough to know what you are
about? If so, preach and labor for the building up of the city of
Zion; concentrate your means and influence there, and not scatter
abroad. Instead of which, some of the Elders appear to be dumb and
lazy, and care for nothing but themselves.
Now, ye Elders, will you be faithful? If not, you will not be
chosen, for the day of choosing is at the door. Why be afraid of
a sacrifice? I have given my all many times, and am willing to do
it again. I would be glad to hear the Lord say through His servant
Joseph, "Let my servant Brigham give again all that he has," I
would obey it in a moment, if it took the last coat off my back.
A hymn was sung.
Elder Kimball arose and said: I get up of necessity to say a few
words. I am unwell, but I feel the importance of this work. I
have been a member of this Church twelve years. I came out of the
Baptist church and joined this with all my heart, as I was seeking
after truth. I have passed through everything but death; in fact
I have been brought into situations even worse than death. It has
been my lot and privilege to sacrifice all I possessed from time to
time; and we have come here to call for help to build the Temple
and Nauvoo House. I have spent thirty dollars to get here, and have
collected fifteen and that with much difficulty.
We were commanded of the Lord to come: but it seems as though
but few felt interested in it. Here I see four brethren going as
missionaries to the Sandwich Islands, and destitute of means to
help themselves. I could weep for them. I feel interested in this
great work. We are seeking to bring about a work that could never
before be performed.
When the time is brought about that we are to receive our
inheritances, the more faithful we are, the larger will be our
reward. We have come out to reap, but do we have time to reap new
grain? No; for it takes all our time to try to save that which is
already reaped.
We have reapers in the field, and we are trying to save the wheat.
We want to get it on the barn floor, so that we may thrash it.
We have come after it to warn you. You think Elder Young put the
flail on rather heavy; but it is nothing to be compared with the
thrashing you will get in Zion, and those who have the hardest
heads will, of {21} course, have to be thrashed the hardest. But
don't be troubled about the chaff when it comes to the barn, for
God will prepare a great winnowing mill which will blow all the
chaff away, and the wheat will be found before the mill: then it
has to go through the smut machine, then ground, then put through
the bolting machine, and many will bolt in going through. I speak
in parables. I compare the Saints to a good cow. When you milk
her clean, she will always have an abundance of milk to give; but
if you only milk her a little, and don't strip her, she will soon
dry up. So with the Saints: if they do but little in building up
Zion, they soon have but little to do with. This was the case in
Cincinnati.
The night before arriving at Cincinnati, I had a dream while on the
steamboat. I dreamt that I had a wagon with a rack on it, and an
individual with me. We were going to a field of wheat of mine that
had been cut, bound and shocked up, in order to haul into the barn.
When we came to the field, I jumped off the wagon, and got over the
fence to examine it, pulled off the cap sheaf, and behold it was
oats. Pulling the bundles apart, I found there were clusters of
rats. On further examination I found clusters of mice, and the oats
were all eaten up.
In my dream I was going to haul in wheat, but to my astonishment it
was oats, and they were all eaten up by the rats and mice.
I thought these rats and mice were the Elders and official members
who had been in and lain on the Church at Cincinnati--lived on the
wheat--eaten it up instead of building up new branches; so that
when the Twelve came along, they could not get anything for the
Temple or Nauvoo House, or hardly a place to stay. The rats had
eaten up the wheat, so we had to go to the world for a home to stay
while we were there.
We do not profess to be polished stones like Elders Almon W.
Babbitt, George J. Adams, James Blakeslee, and Eli P. Maginn, &c.,
&c.; but we are rough stones out of the mountain; and when we roll
through the forest, and knock the bark from the trees, it does not
hurt us, even if we should get a corner knocked off occasionally;
for the more we roll about, and knock the corners off, the better
we are; but if we were polished and smooth when we get the corners
knocked off, it would deface us.
Joseph Smith never professed to be a dressed, smooth, polished
stone, but to have come rough out of the mountain; and he has
been rolling among the rocks and trees, yet it has not hurt him
at all: but he will be as smooth and polished in the end as any
other stone, while many who were so very polished and smooth in
the beginning get badly defaced and spoiled while they are rolling
about.
Elder Parley P. Pratt said--Some are going to Zion, and the rest
{22} want to know what they shall do. The Lord, through Jeremiah
(III, 14,15) says, "I will take you one of a city, and two of a
family, and I will bring you to Zion; and I will give you pastors
according to mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and
understanding." Inasmuch as you hearken to counsel, you will know
what the will of the Lord is concerning you in all things. Meet
often together to worship God and to speak to each other of the
things of God. Gather as soon as you can. Come up to the mountain
of the Lord's house, and there learn of these things, that the
Scriptures may be fulfilled.
Elder Orson Pratt said--I do not know that I can say anything to
impress the subjects which have been spoken upon more fully upon
your minds than has been done. There are some things, however, I
wish to mention. We have learned from what we have heard this day
that great blessings will be given to the faithful when the Temple
is finished. I will speak of some of the consequences that will
follow, if we do not obey.
When the Temple is reared, God will manifest Himself in a peculiar
manner. If we are obedient, He has told us He will make manifest
to us things we are ignorant of. He has said He will reveal things
which pertain to this dispensation that have been hidden and kept
secret from the foundation of the world.
No former age or generation of the world have had the same things
revealed: all other dispensations will be swallowed up in this. He
declares, in His revelations, the consequences of not building the
house unto His name within such a time. The Lord says, If you build
the house in that time, you shall be blessed; but if not, you shall
be rejected as a church with your dead, saith the Lord. So, if that
house is not built, then in vain are all our cares; our faith and
works, our meetings and hopes are vain also; our performances and
acts will be void.
The servants of God who are faithful and do their duty will get
the blessing; and we are determined to do our duty, and lay these
principles before the Saints, so that they may have the privilege
of contributing. We will turn this responsibility upon the heads of
the Saints; then our garments will be clear, and the Lord is able
and will be willing to endow all the faithful in some other place.
This Church, in its infancy, was directed to do a certain work, and
the consequences pointed out. The Lord gave a revelation several
years since to the Church to appoint our wise men, and send up
our moneys by them to buy land; if not, we should not have an
inheritance, but our enemies should be upon us. We went through
and told the Saints these things; but did the churches do as God
commanded? No, they did not. But the revelation was fulfilled, and
the enemies of the Saints came upon them, and drove them from their
houses and homes, {23} and finally from the State of Missouri. This was
in consequence of their disobeying the commandments of God through
His servant Joseph.
Many suppose they must get direct revelation from God for
themselves. Not so. He has a prophet, and he says the Church shall
give heed to the words of the Prophet, as he is to hold the keys of
the kingdom of God in this life and in the world to come. Then it
is of much consequence that you give heed to his word.
Says one, Suppose we are not satisfied that this is the work of
God? You can ask God if the work is true, and He will give you a
testimony. You can put every confidence in the Book of Mormon and
in Joseph, the Prophet; and if you are not satisfied, go to God. I
doubt in my own mind if men can stand what they will have to pass
through, unless they do get a witness for themselves; and I pray
you to give heed to the words which the Twelve have taught you, and
ask God to help you.
The conference was adjourned until ten o'clock tomorrow morning.
_Sunday,_ 10th. Conference met according to adjournment.
Meeting was opened by singing, and prayer by Elder Maginn; after
which Elder Wilford Woodruff addressed the assembly from Amos
III:7--"Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his
secret unto his servants the prophets?" According to the testimony
of the Scriptures in all ages of the world, whenever God was about
to bring a judgment upon the world or accomplish any great work,
the first thing he did was to raise up a Prophet, and reveal unto
him the secret, and send him to warn the people, so that they may
be left without excuse. This was the case in the days of Noah and
Lot. God was about to bring judgments upon the people, and he
raised up those Prophets who warned the people of it; yet they gave
no heed to them, but rejected their testimony; and the judgments
came upon the people, so that they were destroyed, while the
Prophets were saved by pursuing the course marked out by the Lord.
Jesus Christ testified to the Jews of the things that awaited them
as a nation, the fall of Jerusalem, and their dispersion among
the Gentile world; but they did not believe it. Yet the secret of
all these things was revealed to the Prophets and Apostles. They
believed it, and looked for its fulfillment; and it came to pass as
it was predicted, though contrary to the expectation of the Jewish
nation.
In like manner do we look for the certain fulfillment of those
tremendous events upon the heads of the Gentile world which have
been spoken of and pointed out by all the holy Prophets and
Apostles since the world began, they having spoken as they were
moved upon by the power of God and the gift of the Holy Ghost,
events which more deeply {24} concern the Gentile world than the
overthrow of Jerusalem and the dispersion of the Jews did the
Jewish nation; for while they stumbled at the stone they were
broken; but when it falls upon the heads of the Gentile world, it
will grind them to powder.
The full set time is come for the Lord to set His hand to
accomplish these mighty events; and as He has done in other ages,
so has He done now--He has raised up a Prophet, and is revealing
unto him His secrets. Through that Prophet He has brought to light
the fullness of the everlasting Gospel to the present generation,
and is again once more for the last time establishing His Church
upon the foundation of the ancient Apostles and Prophets, which is
revelation, Jesus Christ being the chief corner stone.
In the Church is now found judges as at the first, and counselors
as at the beginning; also Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists, Pastors,
and Teachers, with gifts and graces, for the perfecting of the
Saints, the work of the ministry, and the edifying of the body of
Christ.
The Lord has raised up His servants, and sent them into the
vineyard to prune it once more for the last time, to preach the
Gospel of Jesus Christ, and to warn the nations, that they may be
left without excuse in the day of their visitation; also to gather
the honest in heart and the meek of the earth, that Zion may be
built up, and the sayings of the Prophets fulfilled.
One of the secrets that God has revealed unto his Prophet in these
days is the Book of Mormon; and it was a secret to the whole world
until it was revealed unto Joseph Smith, whom God has raised up
as a Prophet, Seer, and Revelator unto His people. This record
contains an account of the ancient inhabitants of this continent
and of the cities with which they overspread this land from sea
to sea, the ruins of which still remain as standing monuments of
the arts, science, power, and greatness of their founders. It
also points out the establishing of this our own nation, with the
conditions for its progress, and those predictions contained in
the Book of Mormon--the stick of Joseph in the hand of Ephraim,
will as truly be fulfilled as those contained in the Bible--the
stick and record of Judah; and both these sticks or records contain
prophecies of great import concerning the Gentile nations, and
especially this land and nation, which are not yet fulfilled, but
must shortly come to pass: yea, their fulfillment is nigh, even at
the doors.
Though the secrets which God is revealing through His servant the
Prophet in these last days may be unpopular and unbelieved in by
the world, yet their unbelief will not make the truth of God of
none effect, any more than it did in the days of Lot and Noah, or
at the fall of Jerusalem.
When Jesus Christ said there should not be left one stone upon
{25} another in the temple that should not be thrown down, the
Jewish nation did not believe it, neither would they receive such
testimony; but they looked at outward circumstances, and were
ready to say, "Who can prevail against us? What nation like unto
our nation? We have held the giving of the law, the oracles, and
the Urim and Thummim; the lawgiver has never departed from between
our feet; we have held the power of government from generation to
generation; and what nation hath power now to prevail against us?"
Through this order of reasoning they were blinded, and knew not
the day of their visitation: they understood not the things that
belonged to their peace; they rejected their Lord and King,
contended against the word and testimony, and finally put Him to
death on the cross, with many who followed Him. But this did not
hinder the fulfillment of His predictions concerning that nation.
The words of the Lord had gone forth out of His mouth, and could
not return unto Him void. The things that belonged to their peace
were hid from their eyes, and they were counted unworthy as a
nation. The kingdom was to be rent out of their hands and given to
another; the die was cast, and judgment must come.
Jerusalem was soon surrounded by the Roman army, led on by the
inspired Titus; and a scene of calamity, judgment, and woe
immediately overspread the inhabitants of that city, which was
devoted to destruction,--such a calamity as never before rested
upon the nation of Israel. Blood flowed through their streets;
tens of thousands fell by the edge of the sword, and thousands by
famine. Women were evil towards the children of their own bosoms
in the straitness of the siege, the spectacle of which shocked the
Roman soldiers as they entered the city. The Jews were crucified in
such numbers by their enemies that they could find no more wood for
crosses, or room for their bodies; and while despair was in every
face, and every heart sinking while suffering under the chastening
hand of God, their enemies rushed upon them in the city to strike
the last fatal blow; and, as their last resort, they rushed for
safety into the temple, which was soon on fire, and they sank in
the midst of the flames with the cry of their sufferings ascending
up on high, accompanied by the smoke of the crackling spires and
towers.
The remaining population were sold as slaves, and driven like the
dumb ass under his burthen, and scattered, as corn is sifted in
a sieve, throughout the Gentile world. Jerusalem was razed from
its foundations, the ruins of the temple thrown down, and the
foundation thereof ploughed up, that not one stone was left upon
another. Christ said that Jerusalem should be trodden down of the
Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled, which has
been the case to the very letter until the present generation.
{26} Will not God in like manner as truly and faithfully bring to
pass those great, important and tremendous events upon the heads
of the Gentile world which have been proclaimed by the Prophets
Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, and many other holy Prophets;
also by Christ and the Apostles on the continent of Asia, as well
as by Lehi, Nephi, Alma, Moroni, and others on this continent--all
of whom have proclaimed these things as they were moved upon by the
Spirit of inspiration, the power of God, and the gift of the Holy
Ghost?
The Apostle says that "No prophecy of the Scripture is of any
private interpretation, for the prophecy came not of old time by
the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by
the Holy Ghost."
Isaiah's soul seemed to be on fire, and his mind wrapt in the
visions of the Almighty, while he declared, in the name of the
Lord, that it should come to pass in the last days that God should
set His hand again the second time to recover the remnant of His
people, assemble the outcasts of Israel, gather together the
dispersed of Judah, destroy the tongue of the Egyptian sea and make
men go over dry-shod, gather them to Jerusalem on horses, mules,
swift beasts, and in chariots, and rebuild Jerusalem upon her own
heaps; while, at the same time, the destroyer of the Gentiles will
be on his way; and while God was turning the captivity of Israel,
he would put all their curses and afflictions upon the heads of
the Gentiles, their enemies, who had not sought to recover, but to
destroy them, and had trodden them under foot from generation to
generation.
At the same time the standard should be lifted up, that the honest
in heart, the meek of the earth among the Gentiles, should seek
unto it; and that Zion should be redeemed and be built up a holy
city, that the glory and power of God should rest upon her, and
be seen upon her; that the watchman upon Mount Ephraim might
cry--"Arise ye, and let us go up unto Zion, the city of the Lord
our God;" that the Gentiles might come to her light, and kings
to the brightness of her rising; that the Saints of God may have
a place to flee to and stand in holy places while judgment works
in the earth; that when the sword of God that is bathed in heaven
falls upon Idumea, or the world,--when the Lord pleads with all
flesh by sword and by fire, and the slain of the Lord are many,
the Saints may escape these calamities by fleeing to the places of
refuge, like Lot and Noah.
Isaiah, in his 24th chapter, gives something of an account of the
calamities and judgments which shall come upon the heads of the
Gentile nations, and this because they have transgressed the laws,
changed the ordinance, and broken the everlasting covenant. The
Apostle Paul says to his Roman brethren, that if the Gentiles do
not continue in the {27} goodness of God, they, like the house of
Israel, should be cut off. Though Babylon says, "I sit as a queen,
and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow," the Revelator says,
"Therefore shall her plagues come in one day, death and mourning
and famine; and she shall be utterly burned with fire, for strong
is the Lord God who judgeth her."
Jesus communicated the parable of the fig-tree, which in putting
forth its leaves betokens the approach of summer; and so likewise,
when we see the signs in the sun, moon, and stars, and in the
heavens and the earth of which He spoke, we might know that His
coming is near--that the generation in which those signs appeared
should not pass away till all should be fulfilled.
These things are about to come to pass upon the heads of the
present generation, notwithstanding they are not looking for it,
neither do they believe it. Yet their unbelief will not make the
truth of God of none effect. The signs are appearing in the heavens
and on the earth, and all things indicate the fulfillment of the
Prophets. The fig-tree is leafing, summer is nigh, and the Lord has
sent his angels to lay the foundation of this great and important
work.
Then why should not God reveal His secrets unto His servants the
Prophets, that the Saints might be led in paths of safety, and
escape those evils which are about to engulf a whole generation in
ruin?
_Monday,_ 11. Conference met at Boylston Hall at nine o'clock, a.m.
Present of the quorum of the Twelve, Elders Brigham Young, Parley
P. Pratt, Orson Pratt, John E. Page, Wilford Woodruff, George A.
Smith, Heber C. Kimball, and Orson Hyde.
Opened with prayer by Elder Page.
Elder Brigham Young stated the object of the meeting. The first
item of business is the spread of the Gospel of salvation. I want
to state what devolves upon the Twelve. Nine years ago a revelation
was given which was fulfilled in 1835; and when fulfilled,
the Prophet lifted up his head and rejoiced before the Lord.
Previously, the responsibility of spreading the Gospel rested on
him; now it is on the Twelve. This is the relation we hold between
the living and the dead--to direct how you may escape.
Last winter we were directed to send men to the nations of the
earth. Elder Addison Pratt had been to the Sandwich Islands, and
proffered his services. We have power to ordain them, and call upon
the Church to assist in sending them. Here are four men willing to
go, and we do not wish them to cease trying, unless it be to die
trying. One of them is ill. If he stays, he will die. I would go,
or die trying.
We call on the churches to fit out these men with necessaries.
Elder Eli P. Maginn and Elder Philip B. Lewis we call on to fit
them out. If {28} Elder Lewis does not, Maginn will do it himself.
This takes the responsibility from us.
If the Saints will not help, the curse of God will rest upon
them. If the Temple at Nauvoo is not built, we will receive our
endowments, if we have to go into the wilderness and build an altar
of stone. If a man gives his all, it is all God requires. Brother
Kimball has received one dollar since he came to Boston, and
seventeen dollars and a half before, towards building the Temple. A
book is kept of all sums given. This book will also be opened. All
is recorded. I have received twenty-three dollars, and I have spent
about forty-five or fifty dollars. I am rich, and expect to be so
throughout all eternity, with the help of God and my brethren.
I can get home, if I can sell land. Some of the Twelve are more
destitute; but they are the best set of boys you ever saw.
During the persecution in Missouri, when the mob came against Far
West, Elder Kimball stood near me in one of the companies; and
every time they formed, he rammed down another ball into his old
musket, until he got five balls in. We are a good-feeling set of
men, because of the Spirit which is in us. What produces it? The
impulse of the heart. We should feel the same on the desert of
Arabia, or on the islands of the sea; we feel happy wherever we
are. When we ask for victuals, and get turned away, as we often
have been, we feel just as well.
The Spirit which is in me prompts me to look forward to something
better. We have a prospect of selling shares of the Nauvoo House,
and of obtaining subscriptions for the Temple, and we feel better.
Here are twelve men, and I defy all creation to bring a charge of
dishonesty against them. We had to give security for the faithful
performance of our duty as agents for the Nauvoo House and Temple.
This has been heretofore unheard of in the Church. I glory in it.
The financial affairs of the Church rest on our shoulders, and
God is going to whip us into it. When men are in future called to
do like Brigham, I will be one to bind them; this is a precedent.
We are the only legally authorized agents of the Church to manage
affairs, give counsel to emigrants how to dispose of goods, &c.
Some men come into this Church through designing purposes. Mr.
Cowen, who lives about 30 miles above Nauvoo, wanted Brother
Joseph to make a settlement at Shoquokon. Several of the brethren
went there and preached, and some families moved up with the
intention of settling. Mr. Cowen was all love--a charming fellow,
and calculated to magnetize. He is now in the Eastern country, and
going amongst the brethren. He gives one a kiss, and says he, "I
am not a Mormon, but expect to be: Brother Joseph and myself are
confidential friends. Can't you lend me five hundred dollars? I
have got land, and I will give you {29} a mortgage." At the same
time, he knew quite well that his land was in a perfect swamp, and
that the place was not fit for a settlement. Even the captains of
steamers could with difficulty be persuaded upon to call there,
either on account of goods or passengers. His name is John F.
Cowen, and he stands five feet six inches high. There are others.
I would ask the Latter-day Saints, Do you know your benefactors?
Do you know the source from whence you derive your knowledge? Take
in the publications and periodicals of the Church. They give you
intelligence of all matters pertaining to this dispensation with
revelations for the guidance of the Church.
I know that men who go through the world with the truth have
not much influence; but let them come with silk velvet lips and
sophistry, and they will have an influence. It is your privilege
to be discerners of spirits. If you don't know me or the Twelve,
walk with us fifty years, and perhaps you will know us then; and if
such a man as Cowen comes along, will you trust him or me? No power
can hide the heart from the discerning eye. If we are ignorant,
what knowledge have the rest of the people? I sit down with all my
ignorance, and read people's hearts as I see their faces, and they
can't help themselves.
No one has ever stepped aside but I have known it. I know the
result of their actions, and they cannot help themselves. If you
find out my heart, you are welcome to it. If any of the Twelve take
a wrong path, or a course by themselves, I know the path, and know
the end of it. They are soon in the ditch, crying for help. I sit
down and let others run. I strike with a crooked stick to hit the
whole.
Now, the Twelve must be helped home, and there must be something
for the Temple and the Nauvoo House. We have got a plot of the city
of Nauvoo for lithographing. If any wish to advance the money to
lithograph, and have a few thousands struck off, they shall be paid
till they are satisfied. There was not wealth enough in New York
and the regions round about. [He here exhibited the map of Nauvoo.]
He concluded with a few remarks relative to the circumstances of
Elder Hyde, who had just returned from his mission to Jerusalem.
Elder Parley P. Pratt spoke as follows:--In the middle of last
April I arrived at Nauvoo houseless and with a large family.
Brother Joseph said to me, "Brother Parley, stay at home and
build a house." I was behindhand in instructions and information,
while others had been at home learning the great things of God. I
have now come East principally on business, though I always have
a mission, wherever I am. I speak for my brethren: they have an
absolute claim; it belongs to them, and they want it. It is justly
theirs. I ask for nothing for myself.
Elder Heber C. Kimball said, I suppose you all understand what {30}
Elder Young has said, and I consider his counsel good. He is my
superior and my head in the council of the Twelve. If I go astray,
it will be through ignorance. We must be subject to the powers
that be; and there are no powers but what are ordained of God;
and if we reject their counsel, we shall be damned. Some of our
finest-looking and smartest men have fallen.
I consider those trees in the forest which have the largest and
highest tops are in the greatest danger: they are blown down;
and there is no way of restoring them but to cut them off. Let
the stump go back, and new sprouts come out. Those who have most
responsibility are in most danger. We must be careful how we treat
God's officers.
No man ever fell, unless it was through rejecting counsel. I as
well as my brethren see this. My superior knows more than I,
because he is nearer the fountain. To get knowledge, begin at the
foot of the stream, and drink all up till you get to the fountain,
and then you get all the knowledge.
It is necessary for the people here to obey counsel. God has sent
me forth, through his servants, to take my part in this great work,
and the work is true. I know there are but few in this Church
who will be able to walk in this narrow path. We must keep the
celestial law in the flesh. The more simple we teach, the better
for us.
It is a wrong idea of Elders whipping sects. Try and win the
people; salt both sheep and shepherd too; get them up so that they
will lick the salt out of your hands. [An infidel here handed money
to Brother Kimball, who prophesied that he would be a Saint and an
Elder, and all his family should be Saints.] Give them good salt,
gain the affections of the shepherd, and the whole flock will come.
Now, we get sheep up to lick; and when the old shepherd of the
sheep comes up to lick salt, the Elders will hit him over the head
with a cane. Their religion is as dear to them as ours to us. Don't
feed too much salt at once, but give a little at a time, or they
are cloyed.
Elders of Israel, be wise! Give short discourses, as long ones cloy
your hearers, who will say, "A good discourse, but I got tired."
Never infringe on the right of other people, and never tear down
other people's houses until you have built a better. We are sent
to preach repentance, and let people alone. How do you like to go
into other Churches and hear them abuse us? Do as you would be done
by. Persuade men, and not compel them, unless the time spoken of by
the Savior comes, when the Lord shall say unto His servants "Go out
into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my
house may be filled." (Luke 14 ch., 23-25.) Let men be humble, kind
and affectionate.
Footnotes:
1. William H. Folsom named above afterward became prominent as an
architect in Utah. He was born in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, in March,
1815, and died in Salt Lake City, 1901, at the advanced age of 86
years. When a boy he moved to Buffalo N.Y. with his parents. When in
his twenty fifth year he heard a Mormon Elder preach and was converted
to the gospel and joined the Church. As a consequence of this act he
was ostracized by his people. He took his family and moved to Nauvoo
and established himself as an architect and builder, and assisted in
the construction of the Nauvoo Temple.
Brother Folsom was expelled from Nauvoo at the time of the general
exodus of the Saints and settled for a time at Keokuk. He subsequently
moved to Council Bluffs, and in 1860 went on to Salt Lake valley. His
ability as an architect and builder was soon required by President
Brigham Young. President Young conceived the general plan of the now
celebrated "Mormon Tabernacle" at Salt Lake City, but William Folsom
took President Young's suggestions and worked out the plans. While
others scouted the idea of the structure, Folsom had faith in it,
and as a consequence he has associated his name inseparably with the
building, that stands as one of the world's centers of interest and
curiosity. He was the architect and superintendent of construction of
the Manti Temple, and was an able assistant in the construction of all
the Temples in Utah. He was the designer of the Salt Lake Theater,
and of many other buildings that are this day admired for their
architectural grace and durability.
2. This was Austin Cowles, for some time counselor in the Nauvoo stake
of Zion (HISTORY OF THE CHURCH, Vol. IV, p. 323) and subsequently a
member of the High Council. The nature of the charges made against
George J. Adams at this time is not known.
3. This article is much of the complexion of one published many years
later--1882--by Josiah Quincy of Boston, who visited the Prophet about
eight or nine month later, and published an account of his visit, and
his impression of the Prophet his "Figures of the Past," under the
title "Joseph Smith at Nauvoo."
4. This was an adjourned meeting from one of the same character which
had met at the same place of the 19th of August previous, which after
hearing Anti-Mormon addresses and appointing committees to draft
resolutions against the Mormons, adjourned to meet again on the above
date, 6th of September. (See HISTORY OF THE CHURCH, Vol. IV pp. 537-8).
5. The former chairman was Major Reuben Groves. (See minutes of the
19th of August, above note.)
6. This was a Brief Historical Account of the Rise and Progress of the
Church prepared for one I. Daniel Rupp, of Harrisburg, Penn. It was
published in 1844, a "History of Religious Denominations," p. 409.
7. Having reference to certain plates known as the "Kinderhook Plates,"
found at Kinderhook, Illinois, April, 1843. See this HISTORY, Vol. V.,
pp. 372-378.
{31}
CHAPTER II.
MOVEMENTS OF APOSTLES IN THE EAST--THE NAUVOO MANSION--ROCKWELL
ACQUITTED--SPECIAL CONFERENCE AT NAUVOO--DISCOURSE OF THE PROPHET ON
THE DEMISE OF JAMES ADAMS.
[Sidenote: The Drought of 1843]
_Sunday, September 10, 1843_.--Cold, and considerable rain. Kindled
a fire in the office for the first time this fall. This is the first
rain of any consequence since the first of June. There have been
occasional--say three or four slight showers, but not enough to wet
the potato hills, and the vegetables in the gardens have generally
stopped growing, on account of the drought. Even corn is seriously
injured,--much of it by a worm in the ear. Early potatoes are scarcely
worth digging.
_Monday, 11_.--Early in the morning a petition was presented to me, as
Lieut.-General, to devise means to get the public arms of the State for
the Legion; whereupon I appointed William W. Phelps, Henry Miller, and
Hosea Stout a committee to wait on Governor Ford on the subject.
Election for probate justice; weather cold; people cold. Greenleaf
received most of the votes in Nauvoo--say seven hundred votes.
Six, p.m., I met with my Brother Hyrum, William Law, Newel K. Whitney,
and Willard Richards in my private room, where we had a season of
prayer for Brother Law's little daughter, who was sick, and Emma, who
was somewhat better.
_Tuesday, 12.--_Rainy day.
[Sidenote: Woodruff in a Train Wreck.]
{32} Elder Woodruff left Boston for Portland by railroad and while
passing through Chester woods, the engine was thrown off the tracks,
and with the baggage cars smashed to pieces. Several of the passenger
cars mounted the ruins, but none of the passengers were injured, except
two very slightly. The engineer, however, was killed instantaneously.
Elder Woodruff, with most of the passengers, remained all night in the
woods, and found it very cold.
_Wednesday, 13_.--I attended a lecture at the Grove, by Mr. John Finch,
a Socialist, from England, and said a few words in reply.
The following article appears [this day] in the _Neighbor_, copied from
The New Haven, Conn., _Herald_.--
NAUVOO AND JOSEPH SMITH.
A gentleman of this town, (New Haven, Conn.) of undoubted veracity,
who has lately spent several weeks at Nauvoo and among the Mormons,
informs us that the general impression abroad in regard to that
place and people is very erroneous. During his residence there he
became quite familiar with their manners, principles, and habits,
and says there is not a more industrious, moral, and well-ordered
town in the country. Society is as much diversified there as it is
here, the Mormons constituting about two-thirds of the population,
while all religious sects are as freely tolerated as in any other
part of the State. He was at the late trial and acquittal of
Joseph Smith, and says that the charges against him were of the
most frivolous and unsubstantial nature. He [Joseph Smith] is an
agreeable man in conversation, is respected by those who know
him, and is 'as much sinned against as sinning.' He only claims
the privilege of exercising and enjoying his own religion,--a
privilege which he and his followers cheerfully award to others.
They invite immigrants to come among them, and receive those who
design to enter into the Mormon community with great attention
and kindness. Houses are prepared for their reception, to which
they are conducted on their arrival by a committee appointed for
that purpose, whose next business is to attend to their immediate
wants and see them comfortably situated. Education is by no
means neglected, proper schools and teachers being provided, and
temperance reigns throughout. It has now about 15,000 to 18,000
inhabitants, and promises to become a place of extensive business,
four or five steamboats stopping there every day. {33} The
gentleman remarked to us that he wished he could speak as well of
his own native town as he could of Nauvoo. This is news to us, as
no doubt it will be to many; but no one who knows him can doubt the
integrity of our informant.
[Sidenote: The Prophet on Socialism.]
_Thursday, 14.--_I attended a second lecture on Socialism, by Mr.
Finch; and after he got through, I made a few remarks, alluding
to Sidney Rigdon and Alexander Campbell getting up a community at
Kirtland, and of the big fish there eating up all the little fish. _I
said I did not believe the doctrine._
Mr. Finch replied in a few minutes, and said--"I am the voice of one
crying in the wilderness. I am the spiritual Prophet--Mr. Smith the
temporal."
Elder John Taylor replied to the lecture at some length.
_Friday, 15._--I put up a sign,
"Nauvoo Mansion."
[Sidenote: "Nauvoo Mansion" Made a Hotel.]
In consequence of my house being constantly crowded with strangers and
other persons wishing to see me, of who had business in the city, I
found myself unable to support as much company free of charge, which I
have done from the foundation of the Church. My house has been a home
and resting-place for thousands, and my family many times obliged to do
without food, after having fed all they had to visitors; and I could
have continued the same liberal course, had it not been for the cruel
and untiring persecution of my relentless enemies. I have been reduced
to the necessity of opening "The Mansion" as a hotel. I have provided
the best table accommodations in the city; and the Mansion, being large
and convenient, renders travelers more comfortable than any other place
on the Upper Mississippi. I have erected a large and commodious brick
stable, and it is capable of accommodating seventy-five horses at one
time, and storing the requisite amount of forage, and is unsurpassed by
any similar establishment in the State.
There was an officers' drill in Nauvoo.
{34} Rhoda Ann, daughter of Willard and Jenetta Richards, was born at
fifteen minutes to three, p.m., in Nauvoo.
[Sidenote: Legion Parade and Inspection.]
_Saturday, 16.--_General parade of the Nauvoo Legion near my farm.
Went in company with my staff to the muster, was met by an escort, and
arrived before the Legion about noon. I was received and saluted with
military honors. The Legion was dismissed at about one, p.m., for two
hours, and I rode home to dinner. I returned about twenty minutes after
three, attended the review, and with my staff inspected the Legion;
after which, I took my post and gave orders.
After the inspection, I made a speech to the Legion on their increasing
prosperity, and requested the officers to increase the Legion in
numbers.
I was highly gratified with the officers and soldiers, and I felt
extremely well myself.
About sundown the Legion was dismissed. I rode home with my staff,
highly delighted with the day's performance, and well paid for my
services.
_Sunday, 17.--_I was at meeting; and while Elder Almon W. Babbitt was
preaching, I took my post as Mayor outside the assembly to keep order
and set an example to the other officers.
After preaching, I gave some instructions about order in the
congregation, men among women, and women among men, horses in the
assembly, and men and boys on the stand who do not belong there, &c.
In the evening Mr. Blodgett, a Unitarian minister, preached. I
was gratified with his sermon in general, but differed in opinion
on some points, on which I freely expressed myself to his great
satisfaction,--_viz._, on persecution making the work spread, like
rooting up a flower garden or kicking back the sun!
_Monday, 18.--_I received a letter from Governor Ford as follows:--
{35} _Letter of Governor Ford to the Prophet._
SPRINGFIELD, September 13, 1843.
DEAR SIR,--In answer to your letter, I have the honor to reply,
that I will consider it my duty to prevent the invasion of this
State, if in my power, by any persons elsewhere for any hostile
purposes whatever.
From information in my possession, I am of opinion that there is
but little danger of any such invasion. It is altogether more
likely that some other mode of annoyance will be adopted. My
enemies here, I think, are endeavoring to put something of the kind
on foot.
I am, most respectfully,
Your obedient servant,
THOMAS FORD.
I attended a council at my old house.
[Sidenote: Conference in Nova Scotia.]
A conference was held at Preston, Halifax County, Nova Scotia. 1 Elder,
1 Teacher, 1 Deacon, and 14 members were represented. Robert Dixon,
president; J. Jermen, clerk.
David Greenleaf was elected probate judge for the county of Hancock, by
a majority of 598 votes.
_Tuesday, 19.--_I directed Brother Phelps to answer the letter recently
received from the Governor, and to enclose a copy of the resolutions
passed at the meeting of the mobocracy at Carthage; which he did.
Wrote a letter to J. B. Backenstos.
A portion of the Twelve were present at a general muster of the
independent companies of Boston. Saw a sham battle, in which
thirty-five brass cannon were discharged seven times. One party was
commanded by the Governor of Mass., and the other by the officer next
in rank.
_Wednesday, 20.--_Visited my farm, accompanied by my Brother Hyrum.
The _Neighbor_ has the following:--
PORTER ROCKWELL.
A few short months ago, it was heralded through this State that
Porter Rockwell was the individual who attempted to murder
ex-Governor Boggs, of Missouri. It was confidently stated that
Joseph Smith {36} was accessory before the fact. The thing was
swallowed as a precious morsel by the enemies of Mormonism. It was
iterated and reiterated by the public journals, and the general
expression of a certain class was that Mr. Smith ought to be hung;
there was no doubt of his guilt; he was one of the most inhuman,
diabolical, dangerous, and malignant persons in the universe; and
when a requisition was made for him by the Governor of Missouri,
it was considered worse than "arson" or "treason" that he should
be acquitted by the legal authorities of this State, under _habeas
corpus;_ and afterwards, when Porter Rockwell was taken, it was
exultingly stated that they had got the scoundrel, and that he
would now receive the due demerit of his crime. How stands the
matter when it is investigated--investigated by a Missouri court?
The following will show:--
The last _Independence Expositor_ says:--"Orin Porter Rockwell,
the Mormon confined in our county jail, some time since, for the
attempted assassination of ex-Governor Boggs, was indicted by
our last grand jury for escaping from our county jail some time
since, and sent to Clay county for trial. Owing, however, to some
informality in the proceedings, he was remanded to this county
again for trial. There was not sufficient proof adduced against him
to predicate an indictment for shooting ex-Governor Boggs, and the
grand jury therefore did not indict him for that offense."--[_St.
Louis New Era_.]
It appears, then, after all the bluster, the hue-and-cry about
Mormon outrages, Mormon intrigue, "blood," "arson," and "murder,"
that "there was not sufficient proof adduced against him to
predicate an indictment for shooting ex-Governor Boggs, and the
grand jury therefore did not indict him for that offense." This
speaks for itself: it needs no comment. We are glad, for the sake
of suffering innocence, that Mr. Rockwell stands clear in the eyes
of the law. Thus it seems that after exerting all their malice and
hellish rage to implicate the innocent, they can find no proof
against him. But yet he must be again incarcerated, without proof,
for another hearing. This is Missouri justice. If he was guilty
of breaking jail, why not try and punish him for that before that
court? Where is the necessity of remanding him to another county
for another hearing? It is evident that they wish to immolate him,
and, by offering him as a sacrifice, glut their thirst for innocent
blood.
[Sidenote: Pacific Island Mission.]
I answered Governor Ford's letter received on the 18th. Elder Brigham
Young instructed Elder Addison Pratt to go and engage a passage for
himself and Elders Noah Rogers, Knowlton F. Hanks, and B. F. Grouard,
as missionaries to the Pacific Islands, {37} although they had not
one-tenth of the means on hand to pay their passage.
In the evening, Elders Brigham Young, Heber C. Kimball, Orson Pratt,
Wilford Woodruff, George A. Smith, and John E. Page visited Mr. O.
S. Fowler, the phrenologist, who examined their heads and gave their
phrenological charts.
_Thursday, 21.--_Made affidavit with Willard Richards and William
Clayton to Auditor of State _v._ Walter Bagby.
About eleven, a.m., called with my Brother Samuel H. to see about
getting a copy of his blessing, and wished Doctor Richards much joy in
his new daughter.
About noon, went on board the _Maid of Iowa,_ with William Clayton,
clerk of the boat.
One, p.m., the thermometer stood at 100 deg. in the shade.
_Friday, 22.--_The Twelve visited the Navy Yard and Harbor of Boston,
the _Mississippi_ steamship, the ropewalk, the Bunker-hill monument,
the State-house, and the State's prison. In the evening they addressed
the Saints in Boylston Hall.
Elder Addison Pratt, accompanied by Elder Philip B. Lewis engaged a
passage to the Society Islands at $100 each for himself, Noah Rogers,
Knowlton F. Hanks, and B. F. Grouard.
_Saturday, 23.--_Elder Stephen Markham returned from Dixon, the trial
of Reynolds and Wilson being postponed till May next.
[Sidenote: Report from the Pinery.]
Bishop George Miller returned from the Pinery. He reports the water
in Black River so low that they could not get their raft into the
Mississippi.
I had an interview with Elder Orson Spencer, from whom I borrowed $75
for the Temple.
[Sidenote: Stewardship vs. Common Stock.]
_Sunday, 24.--_I preached on the stand about one hour on the 2nd
chapter of Acts, designing to show the folly of common stock. In Nauvoo
every {38} one is steward over his own. After preaching, I called
upon the brethren to draw stone for the Temple, and gave notice for a
special conference for the 6th of October next. Adjourned the meeting
about one, p.m., on account of the prospect of rain. Judge McBride and
a lawyer from Missouri were present at the meeting.
_Monday, 25.--_Wet day. At home. Held a conversation with the Missouri
lawyer.
_Tuesday, 26--_Held Mayor's Court, and tried the case of "Dana _v._
Leeches." No cause of action. Called at the store about six, p.m., and
directed the clerk to issue papers in the case of "Medagh _v._ Hovey."
_Wednesday, 27.--_The _Neighbor_ of this date has the following
editorial:--
CONCERNING HORSE THIEVES.
We find that the _Quincy Whig_ has some very righteous remarks to
make concerning the Mormons, emanating from the purest principles
of patriotism. (?) The editor has had some "_private_ conversation"
with some individual or individuals about certain charges brought
against the Mormons, particularly that of screening horse thieves.
We think that the _Whig_ has not done itself much credit in
advocating the principles contained in those resolutions. We leave
that, however, for a discerning public to judge.
Concerning the horse thieves, however, the informant of the _Whig_
would have shown himself a better friend to society to have given
information to the proper authorities, and had these pests of
society brought to condign punishment. And the editor of that paper
would have proved himself more patriotic by telling us who these
people are that are screened in our midst, than dealing thus in
generals and stabbing in the dark.
Come, Mr. _Whig_, out with it, and let us know who it is that is
found transgressing. Who knows but that, far fallen as we are,
there yet may be virtue enough left to prosecute a horse thief!
We have tried this more than once, and prosecuted them as far as
Carthage; but no sooner do they arrive in the jail there than we
lose all track of them. The lock of the door is so slippery, that
it lets them all out. We presume, however, that it is on account
of the honesty of the people. (?) We are pleased to find that the
_Whig_ is in the secret!
Mr. Ivins, of this city, had a horse stolen last week, and we
frequently have occurrences of the kind. Will the editor of that
paper be {39} so kind as to ask his informant who the thieves are,
and where they live, and give us the desired information? and we
shall esteem it a peculiar favor.
I was at home all day, and gave Brother Phelps the privilege of
occupying the small house near the store.
[Sidenote: Meeting of a Special Council.]
_Thursday, 28.--_At half-past eleven, a.m., a council convened over
the store, consisting of myself, my brother Hyrum, Uncle John Smith,
Newel K. Whitney, George Miller, Willard Richards, John Taylor, Amasa
Lyman, John M. Bernhisel, and Lucien Woodworth; and at seven in the
evening we met in the front upper room of the Mansion, with William Law
and William Marks. By the common consent and unanimous voice of the
council, I was chosen president of the special council.
The president led in prayer that his days might be prolonged until his
mission on the earth is accomplished, have dominion over his enemies,
all their households be blessed, and all the Church and the world.
_Friday, 29.--_Elder Brigham Young started from Boston for Nauvoo. The
Twelve were now scattered among the branches in the Eastern States.
_Saturday, 30.--_Rainy, and strong west wind.
Elders Young and Woodruff stayed at Elder Forster's, in New York.
_Sunday, October 1, 1843_.--I copy the following from the _Times and
Seasons_ of this date:--
WHO SHALL BE OUR NEXT PRESIDENT?
This question we frequently hear asked, and it is a question of no
small importance to the Latter-day Saints.
We, as a people, have labored and are still laboring under great
injustice from the hands of a neighboring state. The Latter-day
Saints have had their property destroyed, and their houses made
desolate by the hands of the Missourians; murders have been
committed with impunity, and many, in consequence of oppression,
barbarism, and cruelty, have slept the sleep of death. They [the
Saints] have been obliged to flee from their possessions into a
distant land, in the chilling frosts of winter, robbed, spoiled,
desolate, houseless, and homeless, without any just pretext {40} or
shadow of law, without having violated the laws of that state, or
the United States; and have had to wander as exiles in a strange
land, without as yet being able to obtain any redress for their
grievances.
We have hitherto adopted every legal measure. First, we petitioned
the State of Missouri, but in vain. We have memorialized Congress,
but they have turned a deaf ear to our supplication, and referred
us again to the State and _justice_ of Missouri. Doubtless many of
the members of that honorable body were not sufficiently informed
of the enormity and extent of the crimes of our persecutors, nor
of the indelible stain which our national escutcheon has received
through their inhuman daring. They have been allowed to revel in
blood and luxuriate in the miseries of the oppressed, and no man
has laid it to heart.
The fact is that gentlemen of respectability and refinement, who
live in a civilized society, find it difficult to believe that
such enormities could be practiced in a Republican government.
But our wrong cannot slumber. Such tyranny and oppression must
not be passed over in silence. Our injuries, though past, are
not forgotten by us; they still rankle in our bosoms, and the
blood of the innocent yet cries for justice; and as American
citizens we have appealed and shall still continue to appeal to
the legally-constituted authorities of the land for redress, in
the hopes that justice, which has long slumbered, may be aroused
in our defense; that the spirit which burned in the bosoms of the
patriots of '76 may fire the souls of their descendants; and though
slow, that their indignation may yet be aroused at the injustice
of the oppressor; and that they may yet mete out justice to our
adversaries, and step forward in the defense of the innocent.
We shall ask no one to commit themselves on our account. We want no
steps taken but what are legal, constitutional and honorable. But
we are_ American citizens;_ and as American citizens we have rights
in common with all that live under the folds of the "star-spangled
banner." Our rights have been trampled upon by lawless miscreants.
We have been robbed of our liberties by mobocratic influence, and
all those honorable ties that ought to govern and characterize
Columbia's sons have been trampled in the dust. Still we are
_American Citizens;_ and as American citizens we claim the
privilege of being heard in the councils of our nation. We have
been wronged, abused, robbed, and banished; and we seek redress.
Such crimes can not slumber in Republican America. The cause of
common humanity would revolt at it, and Republicanism would hide
its head in disgust.
We make these remarks for the purpose of drawing the attention
of our brethren to this subject, both at home and abroad, that
we may fix upon the man who will be the most likely to render us
assistance in obtaining redress for our grievances; and not only
give our own votes, but use our influence to obtain others; and if
the voice of suffering innocence {41} will not sufficiently arouse
the rulers of our nation to investigate our case, perhaps a vote
of from fifty to one hundred thousand may rouse them from their
lethargy.
We shall fix upon the man of our choice, and notify our friends
duly.
I published the following in the same number of the _Times and
Seasons:_--
THE APPOINTMENT OF A MISSION TO RUSSIA.
To all the Saints and honourable men of the earth to whom the Lord
has given liberally of this world's goods, _greeting_:
Our worthy Brother, Elder George J. Adams, has been appointed by
the First Presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints at Nauvoo to present to them the importance, as well as
the things connected with his mission to Russia, to introduce the
fullness of the Gospel to the people of that vast empire, and also
to which is attached some of the most important things concerning
the advancement and building up of the kingdom of God in the last
days, which cannot be explained at this time. But as the mission is
attended with much expense, all those who feel disposed to bestow
according as God has blessed them shall receive the blessings of
Israel's God, and tenfold shall be added unto them, as well as the
prayers of the Saints of God.
With sentiments of high esteem, we subscribe ourselves your friends
and brethren in the now and everlasting covenant,
JOSEPH SMITH,
HYRUM SMITH.
Presidents of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. [1]
I attended meeting this morning, and adjourned it in consequence of the
cold and rain. The afternoon being more pleasant, the people assembled,
and were addressed by Elders Marks, Charles C. Rich and Bishop Jacob
Foutz.
Council met in the evening same as on Thursday previous.
_Monday, 2.--_At home.
[Sidenote: Movement of Apostles in the East.]
_Tuesday, 3.--_Elders Brigham Young, Heber C. Kimball, Orson Hyde,
George A. Smith, Wilford Woodruff, and Jedediah M. Grant spent the day
in visiting the Saints in Philadelphia. In the evening they partook of
an oyster supper, on the invitation of Mr. Jeffreys.
{42} The brethren assembled with their wives, to the number of about
one hundred couple, and dined at the Mansion as an opening to the
house. A very pleasant day, and all things passed off well.
The following is extracted from the _Neighbor_ of this date.
PLEASURE PARTY AND DINNER AT THE NAUVOO MANSION.
General Joseph Smith, the proprietor of said house, provided a
luxurious feast for a pleasure party; and all having partaken of
the luxuries of a well-spread board, the cloth was removed, and a
committee appointed to draft resolutions suitable to the occasion.
They adjourned for a few moments and returned, when Robert D.
Foster was appointed chairman.
The object of the meeting was then briefly stated by the chairman;
after which a hymn was sung, and prayer by Elder Taylor. The
chairman then arose and made some appropriate remarks for the
occasion, touching upon the rise and progress of the city,
the varied scenes through which the Saints had to pass, the
persecutions and abuses the Prophets had to undergo, &c., &c. After
which he read the following resolutions and toast, which were
unanimously adopted:--
Resolved, 1st. That a vote of thanks be presented to General Joseph
Smith and lady, through the medium of the _Nauvoo Neighbor,_ for
the very bountiful feast by them provided, for the accommodation of
this party of more than one hundred couple at their Mansion.
Resolved, 2nd. General Joseph Smith, whether we view him as a
Prophet at the head of the Church, a General at the head of the
Legion, a Mayor at the head of the City Council, or as a landlord
at the head of his table, if he has equals, he has no superiors.
Resolved, 3rd. Nauvoo, the great emporium of the West, the center
of all centers, a city of three years' growth, a population of
15,000 souls congregated from the four quarters of the globe,
embracing the intelligence of all nations, with industry,
frugality, economy, virtue, and brotherly love, unsurpassed by any
age in the world,--a suitable home for the Saints.
Resolved, 4th. Nauvoo Legion, a well disciplined and faithful band
of invincibles, ready at all times to defend their country with
this motto, "Vive la Republique."
Resolved, 5th. Nauvoo Charter, like the laws of the Medes and
Persians, an unalterable decree by a patriotic band of wise
legislators for the protection of the innocent.
Resolved, 6th. Thomas Ford, Governor of Illinois, fearless and {43}
faithful in the discharge of all official duties,--long may he
live, and blessings attend his administration.
Colonel Francis M. Higbee was then called to the stand, who
addressed the audience in a very spirited and appropriate manner
for the day.
Professor Orson Spencer was then called, who arose, and in his
usual easy and eloquent manner highly entertained the company for
nearly half-an-hour.
The next called was Elder John Taylor, who alone was capable of
putting on the top stone of the entertainment. His address was
highly interesting, combining, like a Lacoon, a volume in every
gesture.
General Smith then arose, and, in a very touching and suitable
manner, tendered his thanks to the company for the encomiums and
honors conferred on him. He recited the many woes through which
he had passed, the persecutions which he had suffered, and the
love he had for the brethren and citizens of Nauvoo. He tendered
his gratitude for the pleasing prospects that surrounded him to
the great Giver of all good. He said he thought that his case was
similar to that of old Job's--that after he had suffered and drank
the very dregs of affliction, the Lord had remembered him in mercy,
and was about to bless him abundantly.
After he had done, Mrs. Emma Smith presented her thanks, through
the chair, to the company present; after which, a motion was made
and carried, to adjourn, whereupon the company were called to their
feet. Benediction by Elder Taylor, and the party retired with the
most perfect satisfaction and good humor as was ever witnessed on
such occasions.
ROBERT D. FOSTER, Chairman.
In the evening Mr. William Backenstos and Clara M. Wasson were married
at the Mansion. I solemnized the marriage in presence of a select party.
_Wednesday, 4.--_I extract the following from the _Neighbor_ of this
date:--
ANTI-MORMONISM.
With respect to the Carthage meeting, I take upon myself to deny
the charges _in toto,_ and challenge them to the proof. If we
harbor horse-thieves among us, as is basely asserted, let the
man that has lost his horse publish his name and the name of the
villain, or how he knows him to be a Mormon, and where he is
harbored, that we may have something more than vague assertions.
They well know that no such proof can be produced, but that the
charges had their birth in the minds of one or two heartless
scoundrels thirsting for revenge for their late disappointments.
The whole of the charges are a tissue of falsehoods {44} got up
with the idea of intimidating a peaceable body of citizens. But,
sir, we set such designing knaves at defiance and laugh at their
threats, treating them with utter contempt, but ever ready to abide
by the truth.
JOHN GREENHOW.
Elder Reuben Hedlock wrote the following letter:--
_Elder Reuben Hedlock to the First Presidency._
LIVERPOOL, October 4, 1843.
_To the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles,
greeting:--_
DEAR AND MUCH ESTEEMED BRETHREN,--I hasten to inform you of my
arrival in Liverpool on the 30th day of September, in company
with Elders John Cairns, James Sloan and wife, James Houston, and
William G. Jermon. We left six of the Twelve in the city of New
York, the 2nd day of September, and came on board of the ship
_Columbus_. Our passage money was five dollars. We had a very hard
passage. We were very much crowded in the steerage. There were 236
persons--Dutch, Irish, English and Scotch, and as dirty as any I
ever saw. We were not much sick; the weather was cold. Had it been
otherwise, we should have suffered more. A steamer leaves for New
York today, and I thought I would announce to you my arrival by
this opportunity, and such information as I was in possession of up
to this date. There is a ship to sail on the 14th instant, by which
I shall write you again.
I found Elders Hyrum Clark, Thomas Ward, and Amos Fielding in
Liverpool, and they were well; and as far as I was informed by
them, the Church is in a good state and on the increase; it numbers
somewhere between eight and nine thousand members. There is a great
want of laborers in the vineyard. Many of the first Elders have
left this for Nauvoo, leaving their places vacant. I presented
to the Presidency here your decision relative to the printing.
Elders Ward and Fielding received it, and manifested a desire to
abide by it. Elder Fielding wept when I showed him your decision
concerning him and his coming to Nauvoo by the first ship to see
you face to face. The brethren say here that he has been too hasty
in some things, and has given some an offense; but I do not as yet
know anything derogatory to his character that I could say aught
against him. I shall write you all the particulars as fast as I
come in possession of them. As regards the printing in this land,
we shall stop it after the next number is published. In it we wish
to publish the news from Nauvoo for the benefit of the Saints, and
to announce our arrival in this country.
Permit me here to give you my opinion as regards the printing in
this land, and I will cheerfully abide your advice notwithstanding.
After we stop the _Star_, we shall have during the shipping season
to advertise {45} and give general information in the emigration
business to the Saints scattered abroad. I think it would be
best to republish the _Times and Seasons_ for the benefit of the
Church. The duties on books are £2-10s. per hundredweight; and
there are now 1,600 _Stars_ circulated here at the present, and
the demands of our publications are on the increase. The duties
would almost reprint the _Times and Seasons,_ and then we could do
our advertising on the last page, if thought advisable. We could
afford it as cheap as the present _Star_, and pay you something for
the privilege of publishing, as well as to pay it to the crown. I
have not yet learned the amount of funds remaining here subject to
your order. I have not had much time as yet to inquire into those
matters, in consequence of the multitude of business in unloading
our freight from shipboard.
The brethren that came with me wish to say to those whom it may
concern, that they are well, and will in a few days leave for their
fields of labor.
I shall write to you once a month, no preventing Providence, and
should be glad to have you write to me as often, and give me your
advice and counsel relating to those things you, in your wisdom,
may think beneficial to the Saints and emigration in this land.
I wish Elder Taylor would forward to me the amount of the number
that will make the volume of the _Times and Seasons_ complete by
the first opportunity. By so doing I can sell the 200 volumes to
advantage. I will try to forward to him what I can obtain for the
_Times and Seasons_ already here. If it should be thought wisdom to
reprint the _Times and Seasons_ here, I wish Brother Taylor would
be particular to send, so that we could obtain them, if possible.
I am informed by Elder Ward that they have not received any
intelligence from you since last February.
I wish you would write me your mind concerning the printing
immediately on the receipt of this sheet, so that our communication
with the Saints in England may not be stopped long.
I am, as ever, your humble servant in the bonds of the new and
everlasting covenant,
REUBEN HEDLOCK.
[Sidenote: The Prophet's visit with Justin Butterfield.]
I was at the mansion preparing some legal papers.--Justin Butterfield,
Esq., U. S. Attorney for Illinois, arrived this afternoon; and I spent
the rest of the day in riding and chatting with him.
Council of the quorum [special council, see p. 39] met and adjourned to
Sunday evening; my Brother Hyrum's child being sick.
{46} The quorum of the Twelve started from Philadelphia for Pittsburgh.
_Thursday, 5.--_This morning I rode out with Esquire Butterfield to the
farm.
[Sidenote: Instructions Respecting Plurality of Wives.]
In the afternoon, rode to the prairie to show some of the brethren
some land. Evening, at home, and walked up and down the streets with
my scribe. Gave instructions to try those persons who were preaching,
teaching, or practicing the doctrine of plurality of wives: for,
according to the law, I hold the keys of this power in the last days;
for there is never but one on earth at a time on whom the power and its
keys are conferred; _and I have constantly said no man shall have but
one wife at a time, unless the Lord directs otherwise._
_Friday, 6.--_I attended special conference; but as few people
were out, in consequence of the weather proving unfavorable, the
organization of the conference was adjourned until to morrow, or the
first pleasant day.
[Sidenote: The Prophet's Dissatisfaction with Sidney Rigdon.]
After giving notice that President Rigdon's case would be considered,
&c., I walked towards home, and gave instructions to my scribe to cause
all the papers relating to my land-claims in the Half Breed Tract in
Iowa, to be placed in the hands of Esquire Butterfield.
_Saturday, 7.--_I attended conference.
_Sunday, 8.--_Slight frost last night. Conference convened in the
morning; but, as it rained, adjourned till Monday at ten, a.m.
Prayer-meeting at my house in the evening. Quorum present; also, in
addition, Sisters Adams, Elizabeth Ann Whitney, my aunt Clarissa Smith,
and my mother.
My brother Hyrum and his wife were blessed, ordained and anointed.
The Twelve arrived at Pittsburgh at ten, a.m., and again left by the
steamer _Raritan,_ at eleven, a.m., _en route_ for Nauvoo.
{47} _Monday, 9.--_Attended conference, and preached a funeral sermon
on the death of General James Adams; a brief synopsis of which, as
reported by Dr. Willard Richards, will be found in the minutes below.
I here insert the conference minutes.
MINUTES OF A SPECIAL CONFERENCE.
_The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in Special
Conference, held in the City of Nauvoo, commencing on the 6th of
October, 1843._
Friday, October 6, ten o'clock, a.m.
The weather proving unfavorable, the organization of the Conference
was postponed until the next day at ten o'clock, a.m.
Saturday, ten o'clock, a.m.
Conference assembled and proceeded to business.
President Joseph Smith was called to the chair, and Gustavus Hills
was chosen clerk.
Singing by the choir, and prayer by Elder Almon W. Babbitt.
The president stated the items of business to be brought before the
conference to be--
1st. The case and standing of Elder Sidney Rigdon, Counselor in the
First Presidency.
2nd. The further progress of the Temple; after which, any
miscellaneous business.
Elder Sidney Rigdon addressed the conference on the subject of his
situation and circumstances among the Saints.
President Joseph Smith addressed the conference, inviting an
expression of any charges or complaints which the conference had to
make. He stated his dissatisfaction with Elder Sidney Rigdon as a
Counselor, not having received any material benefit from his labors
of counsels since their escape from Missouri. Several complaints
were then brought forward in reference to his management in the
post office; a supposed correspondence and connection with John C.
Bennett, with Ex-Governor Carlin, and with the Missourians, of a
treacherous character; also his leaguing with dishonest persons in
endeavoring to defraud the innocent.
President Joseph Smith related to the conference the detention of
a document from Justin Butterfield, Esq., which was designed for
the benefit of himself, (President Smith,) but was not handed over
for some three or four weeks, greatly to his disadvantage; also,
an indirect testimony from Missouri, through the mother of Orrin
P. Rockwell, that said Rigdon and others had given information,
by letter, of President Smith's visit to Dixon, advising them to
proceed to that place {48} and arrest him there. He stated that, in
consequence of these and other circumstances, and Elder Rigdon's
unprofitableness to him as a Counselor, he did not wish to retain
him in that station, unless those difficulties could be removed;
but desired his salvation, and expressed his willingness that he
should retain a place among the Saints.
Elder Almon W. Babbitt suggested the propriety of limiting the
complaints and proofs to circumstances that had transpired since
the last conference.
President Joseph Smith replied, and showed the legality and
propriety of a thorough investigation, without such limitation.
Elder Sidney Rigdon pleaded, concerning the document from Justin
Butterfield, Esq., that he received it in answer to some inquiries
which he [Rigdon] had transmitted to him [Butterfield]; that he
[Rigdon] received it at a time when he was sick, and unable to
examine it; did not know that it was designed for the perusal and
benefit of President Joseph Smith; that he had, consequently,
ordered it to be laid aside, where it remained until inquired for
by Joseph Smith. He had never written to Missouri concerning the
visit of Joseph Smith to Dixon, and knew of no other person having
done so. That, concerning certain rumors of belligerent operations
under Governor Carlin's administration, he had related them, not
to alarm or disturb any one; but that he had the rumors from good
authorities, and supposed them well founded. That he had never
received but one communication from John C. Bennett, and that of
a business character, except one addressed to him conjointly with
Elder Orson Pratt, which he handed over to President Smith. That he
had never written any letters to John C. Bennett.
The weather becoming inclement, conference adjourned until Sunday,
ten o'clock, a.m.
Sunday, 8th, ten o'clock, A.M.
Conference assembled agreeably to adjournment.
Singing by the choir, and prayer by Elder William W. Phelps.
Elder Sidney Rigdon resumed his plea of defense. He related the
circumstances of his reception in the city of Quincy, after his
escape from Missouri,--the cause of his delay in not going to the
city of Washington, on an express to which he had been appointed:
and closed with a moving appeal to President Joseph Smith,
concerning their former friendship, associations, and sufferings;
and expressed his willingness to resign his place, though with
sorrowful and indescribable feelings. During this address, the
sympathies of the congregation were highly excited.
Elder Almon W. Babbitt related a conversation he had had with
Esquire Johnson, in which he exonerated Elder Sidney Rigdon
from the {49} charge or suspicion of having had a treacherous
correspondence with ex-Governor Carlin.
President Joseph Smith arose and explained to the congregation
the supposed treacherous correspondence with ex-Governor Carlin,
and expressed entire lack of confidence in his integrity and
steadfastness, judging from their past intercourse.
Patriarch Hyrum Smith followed with appropriate and impressive
remarks on the attributes of mercy in God, as that by which He
influences, controls and conquers; and the propriety and importance
of the Saints exercising the same attribute towards their fellows,
and especially towards their aged companion and fellow-servant in
the cause of truth and righteousness.
Elder Almon W. Babbitt and President William Law followed with
remarks in defense of Elder Sidney Rigdon.
On motion by President William Marks, and seconded by Patriarch
Hyrum Smith, conference voted that Elder Sidney Rigdon be permitted
to retain his station as Counselor in the First Presidency.
_President Joseph Smith arose and said, "I have thrown him off my
shoulders, and you have again put him on me. You may carry him, but
I will not_." [2]
Singing. Prayer by Elder William Law.
Conference adjourned for one hour.
Three, p.m.
Conference assembled; but in consequence of the inclemency of the
weather, business was postponed until Monday, ten o'clock, A.M.
Monday, ten o'clock, a.m.
Conference assembled, and resumed business.
Singing by the choir. Prayer by Elder Alpheus Cutler.
The business pertaining to the Temple was then announced by the
President as next in order.
Elder Alpheus Cutler, on the part of the Temple Committee,
represented the work of the Temple to be retarded for want of team
work and provisions--also of iron, steel, blasting powder, and
clothing,--giving as his opinion that the walls could easily be
completed next season, if these embarrassments were removed, and
the brethren would come forward to sustain them in the work with
the means that were in their hands.
Elder Reynolds Cahoon followed, seconding the remarks of Elder
Cutler, and setting forth the importance of the Saints using their
utmost exertions to fulfill the revelation concerning the Temple,
earnestly exhorting the Saints here and abroad to roll in the
necessary means into the hands of the Trustee, that the work may
advance with rapidity.
{50} President Hyrum Smith followed with pertinent remarks on the
importance of the work--the ease with which it might be advanced
to its completion,--that it had already become a monument for the
people abroad to gaze on with astonishment. He concluded with some
advice to parents to restrain their children from vice and folly,
and employ them in some business of profit to themselves, to the
Temple, or elsewhere.
On motion by Elder William Law, and seconded by President Hyrum
Smith, conference voted that we, as a conference and individuals,
will use all the means, exertions, and influence in our power to
sustain the Temple Committee in advancing the work of the Temple.
Conference adjourned for one hour.
Two o'clock, p.m.
Conference re-assembled, and listened with profound attention to
an impressive discourse from President Joseph Smith, commemorative
of the decease of James Adams, Esq., late of this city, and an
honorable, worthy, useful and esteemed member of the Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
THE PROPHET'S REMARKS ON THE DEMISE OF JAMES ADAMS.
All men know that they must die. And it is important that we
should understand the reasons and causes of our exposure to the
vicissitudes of life and of death, and the designs and purposes
of God in our coming into the world, our sufferings here, and our
departure hence. What is the object of our coming into existence,
then dying and falling away, to be here no more? It is but
reasonable to suppose that God would reveal something in reference
to the matter, and it is a subject we ought to study more than
any other. We ought to study it day and night, for the world is
ignorant in reference to their true condition and relation. If
we have any claim on our Heavenly Father for anything, it is for
knowledge on this important subject. Could we read and comprehend
all that has been written from the days of Adam, on the relation of
man to God and angels in a future state, we should know very little
about it. Reading the experience of others, or the revelation
given to _them,_ can never give _us_ a comprehensive view of our
condition and true relation to God. Knowledge of these things can
only be obtained by experience through the ordinances of God set
forth for that purpose. Could you gaze into heaven five minutes,
you would know more than you would by reading all that ever was
written on the subject.
We are only capable of comprehending that certain things exist,
which we may acquire by certain fixed principles. If men would
acquire salvation, they have got to be subject, before they leave
this {51} world, to certain rules and principles, which were fixed
by an unalterable decree before the world was.
The disappointment of hopes and expectations at the resurrection
would be indescribably dreadful.
The organization of the spiritual and heavenly worlds, and of
spiritual and heavenly beings, was agreeable to the most perfect
order and harmony: their limits and bounds were fixed irrevocably,
and voluntarily subscribed to in their heavenly estate by
themselves, and were by our first parents subscribed to upon
the earth. Hence the importance of embracing and subscribing to
principles of eternal truth by all men upon the earth that expect
eternal life.
I assure the Saints that truth, in reference to these matters,
can and may be known through the revelations of God in the way of
His ordinances, and in answer to prayer. The Hebrew Church "came
unto the spirits of just men made perfect, and unto an innumerable
company of angels, unto God the Father of all, and to Jesus Christ,
the Mediator of the new covenant." What did they learn by coming of
the spirits of just men made perfect? Is it written? No. What they
learned has not been and could not have been written. What object
was gained by this communication with the spirits of the just? It
was the established order of the kingdom of God: the keys of power
and knowledge were with them to communicate to the Saints. Hence
the importance of understanding the distinction between the spirits
of the just and angels.
Spirits can only be revealed in flaming fire or glory. Angels have
advanced further, their light and glory being tabernacled; and
hence they appear in bodily shape. The spirits of just men are made
ministering servants to those who are sealed unto life eternal, and
it is through them that the sealing power comes down.
Patriarch Adams is now one of the spirits of the just men made
perfect; and, if revealed now, must be revealed in fire; and the
glory could not be endured. Jesus showed Himself to His disciples,
and they thought it was His spirit, and they were afraid to
approach His spirit. Angels have advanced higher in knowledge and
power than spirits.
Concerning Brother James Adams, it should appear strange that so
good and so great a man was hated. The deceased ought never to
have had an enemy. But so it was. Wherever light shone, it stirred
up darkness. Truth and error, good and evil cannot be reconciled.
Judge Adams had some enemies, but such a man ought not to have had
one. I saw him first at Springfield, when on my way from Missouri
to Washington. He sought me out when a stranger, took me to his
home, encouraged and cheered me, and gave me money. He has been a
most intimate friend. I anointed him to the patriarchal power--to
receive {52} the keys of knowledge and power, by revelation to
himself. He has had revelations concerning his departure, and has
gone to a more important work. When men are prepared, they are
better off to go hence. Brother Adams has gone to open up a more
effectual door for the dead. The spirits of the just are exalted
to a greater and more glorious work; hence they are blessed in
their departure to the world of spirits. Enveloped in flaming fire,
they are not far from us, and know and understand our thoughts,
feelings, and motions, and are often pained therewith.
Flesh and blood cannot go there; but flesh and bones, quickened by
the Spirit of God, can.
If we would be sober and watch in fasting and prayer, God would
turn away sickness from our midst.
Hasten the work in the Temple, renew your exertions to forward
all the work of the last days, and walk before the Lord in
soberness and righteousness. Let the Elders and Saints do away with
lightmindedness, and be sober.
Such is a faint outline of the discourse of President Joseph
Smith, which was delivered with his usual feeling and pathos, and
was listened to with the most profound and eager attention by the
multitude, who hung upon his instructions, anxious to learn and
pursue the path of eternal life.
After singing by the choir, and prayer by the President, Conference
adjourned _sine die,_ with the benediction of the President.
JOSEPH SMITH, President.
GUSTAVUS HILLS, Clerk.
[Sidenote: Pacific Island Mission Embarks.]
The missionaries to the Society Islands went on board the ship
_Timoleon_, Captain Plasket, at New Bedford, and got under way. Elder
Philip B. Lewis donated $300 towards their passage and fitout. Elder
Knowlton F. Hanks' health was very poor.
Footnotes:
1. The fact that Sidney Rigdon and Wm. Law did not sign this document
as in the First Presidency, should be noted.
2. This paragraph in Italics appears as footnote in the Ms. History.
{53}
CHAPTER III.
ANCIENT RUINS IN AMERICA, BOOK OF MORMON EVIDENCE--THE PROPHET ON THE
U. S. CONSTITUTION AND THE BIBLE--MISREPRESENTATIONS CORRECTED--LETTER
TO THE U. S. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES--THE PROPHET'S ADDRESS TO THE
SAINTS.
_Tuesday, October 10, 1843.--_My brother Hyrum was appointed, by the
voice of the Spirit, one of the Temple Committee, in place of Judge
Elias Higbee, deceased.
I spent the day in council with J. and O. C. Skinner and the Rhodes'
about the sale of land, and appointed William Clayton to buy the
property.
_Wednesday, 11--_I was at home this morning. In the afternoon I went
with my brother Hyrum, William Law, and our wives, to Brother John
Benbow's.
The following is from the _Times and Seasons_:--
ANCIENT RUINS--INTRODUCTORY.
Every day adds fresh testimony to the already accumulated evidence
on the authenticity of the Book of Mormon. At the time that book
was translated, there was very little known about ruined cities
and dilapidated buildings. The general presumption was that no
people possessing more intelligence than our present race of
Indians had ever inhabited this continent; and the accounts given
in the Book of Mormon concerning large cities and civilized
people having inhabited this land were generally disbelieved and
pronounced a humbug. Priest, since then, has thrown some light on
this interesting subject. [Stephens, in his "Incidents of Travels
in Central America," has thrown in a flood of testimony, and from
the following statements it is evident that the Book of Mormon does
not give a more extensive account of large and populous cities than
those discovered demonstrate to be even now in existence.--Ed.]
_(Article from the Texas Telegraph, October 11.)_
We have been informed by a gentleman who has traversed a large
portion of the Indian country of Northern Texas, and the country
{54} lying between Santa Fe and the Pacific, that there are
vestiges of ancient cities and ruined castles or temples on the Rio
Puerco, and on the Colorado of the West.
He says that on one of the branches of the Rio Puerco, a few days'
travel from Santa Fe, there is an immense pile of ruins that
appear to belong to an ancient temple. Portions of the walls are
still standing, consisting of huge blocks of limestone regularly
hewn and laid in cement. The building occupies an extent of more
than an acre. It is two or three stories high, has no roof, but
contains many rooms, generally of a square form, without windows;
and the lower rooms are so dark and gloomy that they resemble
caverns rather than the apartments of an edifice built for a human
habitation.
Our informant did not give the style of architecture, but he
believes it could not be erected by Spaniards or Europeans, as the
stones are much worn by the rains, and indicate that the building
has stood many hundred years. From his description, we are induced
to believe that it resembles the ruins of Palenque or Otulum.
He says there are many similar ruins on the Colorado of the West,
which empties in the Californian sea. In one of the valleys of
the Cordilleras traversed by this river, and about four hundred
miles from its mouth, there is a large temple still standing, its
walls and spires presenting scarcely any traces of dilapidation;
and were it not for the want of a roof, it might still be rendered
habitable. Near it, scattered along the declivity of a mountain,
are the ruins of what must have been once a large city.
The traces of a large aqueduct, part of which is, however, in the
solid rock, are still visible. Neither the Indians residing in the
vicinity nor the oldest Spanish settlers of the nearest settlements
can give any account of the origin of these buildings. They merely
know that they have stood there from the earliest periods to which
their traditions extend.
The antiquarian who is desirous to trace the Aztec or the Toltec
races in their migrations from the northern regions of America may
find in their ancient edifices many subjects of curious speculation.
_Thursday, 12.--_Prayer-meeting in my room. We prayed for William
Marks, who was sick.
I sent William Clayton to Lathrop, to borrow $50, that I might be able
to redeem $5000 worth of property, which was published to be sold today
at Rhodes'; but Lathrop refused. He also went to Eli Chase's, but was
refused by him. I was grieved that the brethren felt so penurious
in their spirit, although they professed to be guided by the {55}
revelations which the Lord gives through me. On my afterwards giving a
pledge that I would repay the $50 in forty-eight hours, Lathrop lent
the money and enabled me to redeem the land.
I received the following from H. R. Hotchkiss:
_Letter--H. R. Hotchkiss to Joseph Smith._
NEW YORK, 27th September, 1843.
_Rev. Joseph Smith._
DEAR SIR,--I see by the newspapers that there has been a meeting
of citizens at Carthage relative to the Mormons, and that several
severe resolutions have been passed condemning the conduct of the
Mormons. Knowing how little I can rely upon public rumor upon such
subjects, I have taken the liberty of applying directly to you for
correct information, and solicit as a particular favor that you
will communicate at your earliest convenience the facts in the case.
Of course I feel an interest in the prosperity of Nauvoo, and
an interest also in the success of the Mormon enterprise, and a
deep interest in the welfare of your people; and the more so,
certainly, as their pecuniary interest is identified with my own. I
make this frank acknowledgment, because it is always best for men
of sense to talk as they mean. I should, however, be solicitous
for a successful termination of your great enterprise, had I not
one dollar invested in Nauvoo, because the complete triumph of
energetic exertions is always gratifying to all business men.
Your obedient servant,
HORACE R. HOTCHKISS.
I wrote this reply:--
_Letter--Joseph Smith to H. R. Hotchkiss._
NAUVOO, Ill., Oct. 12, 1843.
DEAR SIR,--Your letter of the 27th ult. is at hand, soliciting
information concerning the "Carthage resolutions." In answer to
your very candid inquiry and interest relative to our welfare,
brevity will suffice. Unprincipled men and disappointed demagogues,
with here and there an "untamed sucker," composed that disgraceful
and disgracing as well as mobocratic assemblage; and I feel proud
to say that patriots and honest men generally frown upon such
audacious proceedings as beneath the dignity of freemen. It is to
be hoped that public opinion will continue to spurn at such doings,
and leave the actors to fester in their own shame.
With the smiling prospects around us at present, success seems {56}
certain; and, with the blessings of Jehovah, we shall reap the
reward of virtue and goodness. I go for the good of the world; and
if all honest men would do so, mean men would be scarce. You are at
liberty to use this to counteract falsehoods as you may deem proper.
Respectfully, I am your obedient servant,
JOSEPH SMITH.
_Friday, 13.--_First severe frost at Nauvoo this season. Ice on the
water.
At home; made arrangements to prepare provisions for the workmen in the
pinery. From ten, a.m. to three, p.m., presided in municipal court, on
_habeas corpus_ in favor of Charles Drown, to be delivered from the
custody of Samuel Waterman. The prisoner being sick, adjourned the case
to the 16th.
In the afternoon, trying a span of grey horses in the carriage.
Dr. Turner, a phrenologist, came in. I gratified his curiosity for
about an hour by allowing him to examine my head.
I was engaged settling accounts with D. S. Hollister.
_Saturday, 14.--_In the morning, at home, having a long [Location of
the mind.] conversation with a physiologist and mesmerizer. I asked
them to prove that the mind of man was seated in one part of the brain
more than another.
Sat in City Council till one, p.m., which passed "An Ordinance
concerning the inspection of flour," and appointed William E. Horner
inspector of flour for the city of Nauvoo.
_Sunday, 15.--_Cool, calm, and cloudy. At eleven, a.m., I preached at
the stand east of the Temple. The following synopsis was reported by
Dr. Willard Richards:--
_The Prophet on the Constitution of the United States and the
Bible--Temporal Economies._
It is one of the first principles of my life, and one that I have
cultivated from my childhood, having been taught it by my father,
to allow every one the liberty of conscience. I am the greatest
advocate of the {57} Constitution of the United States there is
on the earth. In my feelings I am always ready to die for the
protection of the weak and oppressed in their just rights. The only
fault I find with the Constitution is, it is not broad enough to
cover the whole ground.
Although it provides that all men shall enjoy religious freedom,
yet it does not provide the manner by which that freedom can be
preserved, nor for the punishment of Government officers who refuse
to protect the people in their religious rights, or punish those
mobs, states, or communities who interfere with the rights of the
people on account of their religion. Its sentiments are good, but
it provides no means of enforcing them. It has but this one fault.
Under its provision, a man or a people who are able to protect
themselves can get along well enough; but those who have the
misfortune to be weak or unpopular are left to the merciless rage
of popular fury.
The Constitution should contain a provision that every officer
of the Government who should neglect or refuse to extend the
protection guaranteed in the Constitution should be subject to
capital punishment; and then the president of the United States
would not say, _"Your cause is just, but I can do nothing for
you,"_ a governor issue exterminating orders, or judges say, "The
men ought to have the protection of law, but it won't please
the mob; the men must die, anyhow, to satisfy the clamor of the
rabble; they must be hung, or Missouri be damned to all eternity."
Executive writs could be issued when they ought to be, and not be
made instruments of cruelty to oppress the innocent, and persecute
men whose religion is unpopular.
I cannot believe in any of the creeds of the different
denominations, because they all have some things in them I cannot
subscribe to, though all of them have some truth. I want to come
up into the presence of God, and learn all things; but the creeds
set up stakes, and say, "Hitherto shalt thou come, and no further;"
which I cannot subscribe to.
I believe the Bible as it read when it came from the pen of the
original writers. Ignorant translators, careless transcribers, or
designing and corrupt priests have committed many errors. As it
read, Gen. VI:6, "It repented the Lord that he had made man on the
earth;" also, Num. XXIII:19, "God is not a man, that he should lie,
neither the Son of man, that he should repent;" which I do not
believe. But it ought to read, "It repented _Noah_ that God made
man." This I believe, and then the other quotation stands fair. If
any man will prove to me, by one passage of Holy Writ, one item I
believe to be false, I will renounce and disclaim it as far as I
promulged it.
The first principles of the Gospel, as I believe, are, faith,
repentance, baptism for the remission of sins, with the promise of
the Holy Ghost.
{58} Look at Heb. VI:1 for contradictions--"Therefore leaving
the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto
perfection." If a man leaves the principles of the doctrine
of Christ, how can he be saved in the principles? This is a
contradiction. I don't believe it. I will render it as it should
be--"Therefore _not_ leaving the principles of the doctrine
of Christ, let us go on unto perfection, not laying again the
foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God,
of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of
resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment."
It is one thing to see the kingdom of God, and another thing to
enter into it. We must have a change of heart to see the kingdom of
God, and subscribe the articles of adoption to enter therein.
No man can receive the Holy Ghost without receiving revelations.
The Holy Ghost is a revelator.
I prophesy, in the name of the Lord God of Israel, anguish and
wrath and tribulation and the withdrawing of the Spirit of God from
the earth await this generation, until they are visited with utter
desolation. This generation is as corrupt as the generation of the
Jews that crucified Christ; and if He were here to-day, and should
preach the same doctrine He did then, they would put Him to death.
I defy all the world to destroy the work of God; and I prophesy
they never will have power to kill me till my work is accomplished,
and I am ready to die.
I will now speak a little on the economy of this city. I think
there are too many merchants among you. I would like to see more
wool and raw materials instead of manufactured goods, and the money
be brought here to pay the poor for manufacturing goods. Set our
women to work, and stop their spinning street yarns and talking
about spiritual wives.
Instead of going abroad to buy goods, lay your money out in
the country, and buy grain, cattle, flax, wool, and work it up
yourselves.
I proclaim, in the name of the Lord God Almighty, that I will
fellowship nothing in the Church but virtue, integrity, and
uprightness.
We cannot build up a city on merchandise. I would not run after the
merchants. I would sow a little flax, if I had but a garden spot,
and make clothing of it.
The temporal economy of this people should be to establish and
encourage manufactures, and not to take usury for their money. I do
not want to bind the poor here to starve. Go out into the country
and into the neighbouring cities, and get food, and gird up your
loins, and be sober. When you get food, return, if you have a mind
to.
Some say it is better to give to the poor than build the Temple.
The building of the Temple has sustained the poor who were driven
from Missouri, and kept them from starving; and it has been the
best means for this object which could be devised.
{59} Oh, all ye rich men of the Latter-day Saints from abroad, I
would invite you to bring up some of your money--your gold, your
silver, and your precious things, and give to the Temple. We want
iron, steel, spades, and quarrying and mechanical tools.
It would be a good plan to get up a forge to manufacture iron, and
bring in raw materials of every variety, and erect manufacturing
establishments of all kinds, and surround the rapids with mills and
machinery.
I never stole the value of a pin's head, or a picayune in my life;
and when you are hungry don't steal. Come to me, and I will feed
you.
The secret of masonry is to keep a secret. It is good economy to
entertain strangers--to entertain sectarians. Come up to Nauvoo, ye
sectarian priests of the everlasting Gospel, as they call it, and
you shall have my pulpit all day.
Woe to ye rich men, who refuse to give to the poor, and then come
and ask me for bread. Away with all your meanness, and be liberal.
We need purging, purifying and cleansing. You that have little
faith in your Elders when you are sick, get some little simple
remedy in the first stages. If you send for a doctor at all, send
in the first stages.
All ye doctors who are fools, not well read, and do not understand
the human constitution, stop your practice. And all ye lawyers who
have no business, only as you hatch it up, would to God you would
go to work or run away!"
_Monday, 16.--_At home nearly all day, attending to family concerns.
Went to municipal court, and adjourned hearing of the case [1] to the
17th.
_Tuesday, 17.--_Went to municipal court. The prosecutor not appearing,
court ordered that the prisoner be discharged.
_Wednesday, 18.--_Pleasant and comfortable day.
Fifteen deaths have occurred during the past week in the city.
[Sidenote: The Prophet's Visit to Macedonia.]
_Thursday, 19.--_Warm and pleasant day. The water has risen about two
feet in the Mississippi, and is still rising.
About noon, started for Macedonia, in company with Brother William
Clayton. Arrived there about {60} sundown, and I stayed at Brother
Benjamin F. Johnson's for the night.
_Friday, 20.--_In the evening I gave instructions to Benjamin F.
Johnson and others in relation to the blessings of the everlasting
covenant and the sealings of the Priesthood.
Elder John P. Greene returned from a Mission to the State of New York,
with about 100 emigrants, some of them from Pennsylvania, who joined
his company on the way.
Warm, smoky day, with strong wind, very dark evening.
_Saturday, 21.--_We left Macedonia, and arrived home about two p.m.
Pleasant cool day.
_Sunday, 22.--_Meeting at the stand. Elder Rigdon preached half-an hour
on "Poor Rich Folks."
I remained at home all day, and held a prayer-meeting at my house at
two, p.m.; twenty-four persons present.
[Sidenote: Labors of Apostles in the East.]
Elders Young, Kimball, and George A. Smith returned from their mission
to the Eastern States, having, in connection with Elders Orson
Pratt and Wilford Woodruff, visited the branches in Kentucky, Ohio,
Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode
Island, New Hampshire, and Maine; held conferences, set in order the
churches collected tithings for the Temple and subscriptions for
the Nauvoo House, baptized many, and stirred up a general system of
gathering among the Saints in the Eastern countries. They have been
absent nearly four months, and have accomplished a good work. I was
very glad to see them, and blessed them in the name of the Lord. Elders
Daniel Spencer and Bradford Elliot also returned from their missions,
and quite a respectable number of Saints came in their company.
Pleasant, cool day.
_Monday, 23.--_Those of the Twelve who returned from the East yesterday
visited me through the day, and paid over the means they had received
for the Temple and the {61} Nauvoo House. I immediately gave directions
to send to St. Louis for groceries and different articles necessary for
the Temple and the workmen thereon.
[Sidenote: Hyrum Smith Appointed on Temple Committee.]
This morning President Hyrum Smith entered upon the duties of his
office, having previously been appointed by the voice of the Spirit
to supply the place of the late Elias Higbee, deceased, as one of
the Temple Committee. On his arrival at the Temple he was greeted by
a hearty welcome from those engaged on the works, and the universal
feeling is that great good will result from this appointment.
The day cloudy, with strong east wind.
_Tuesday, 24.--_William W. Phelps and Colonel Dunham started for
Springfield to see the Governor, and endeavor to obtain from him the
quota of State arms which belong to the Legion.
Morning warm and pleasant; afternoon wind west by north. At four, a
little rain, accompanied by snow, for the first time this fall.
_Wednesday, 25.--_Ice one-third of an inch thick on small bodies of
water. Cloudy and cold day.
In the evening settled the taxes for the Temple and Nauvoo House.
Eleven deaths in the city reported this week.
_Friday, 27.--_I was at home and received a visit from Bishop George
Miller and Elder Peter Haws, who have just returned from their trip to
Mississippi and Alabama.
Many emigrants have arrived in Nauvoo the last few weeks.
Prayer-meeting at my house in the evening.
_Saturday, 28.--_Cold east wind. At home all day.
_Sunday, 29.--_Meeting at the stand, south side of the Temple, from
eleven, a.m. to two, p.m. Elders Brigham Young and John Taylor
preached. Dr. Willard Richards called for a collection of $8, to buy a
new book in which to record history, which sum was made up.
At nine, a.m., Elders Richards, Miller and Haws {62} ordained William
C. Steffey (who was going to Texas on business,) an Elder.
Two, p.m., prayer-meeting in my house; twenty-five present. I gave
instructions on the priesthood.
_Monday, 30.--_At nine, a.m., went to mayor's court, and adjourned it
for one week.
Twelve, noon, attended a court in the office, when the parties agreed
to leave their difficulty to be settled by the arbitration of Brother
Flagg.
I received $300 from Brother Spencer, and immediately paid it to Dr.
Robert D. Foster.
On account of the cold weather, most of the masons have discontinued
the work on the Temple.
_Tuesday, 31.--_At nine, a.m., Mr. Moore was brought before me for a
breach of city ordinance, which was proved, and I fined him $5.
I rode out with Hyrum in the carriage to the prairie, returning about
three, p.m. Snow on the ground this morning; cold east wind, and rain
all day.
_Wednesday, November 1, 1843.--_In the evening there was a
prayer-meeting in the mansion; twenty-nine present.
_Thursday, 2.--_Sitting in council with Hyrum, Brigham Young, Heber
C. Kimball, Willard Richards, John Taylor, William Law, and William
Clayton, at ten, a.m., on the subject of the following letter from
Joseph L. Heywood:--
_Letter: Joseph L. Heywood to Joseph Smith._
Quincy, October 23, 1843.
_Gen. Joseph Smith._
DEAR SIR,--In a conversation with Colonel Frierson, of this place,
a short time since, he expressed, in very warm terms, feelings of
sympathy for the wrongs yourself and brethren suffered in Missouri,
as well as his sense of the vindictive feelings the authorities of
that State still manifest towards you personally.
Mr. F. has not yet had the pleasure of a personal acquaintance
with yourself, although he says he had the pleasure of meeting
your lady at her sister's residence on Rock River. Mr. F. has been
written by the Hon. B. Rhett, of S. Carolina, upon the subject of
the _Persecution_: and {63} Mr. F. thinks, of all men, he would
be the best qualified to present a petition in our behalf; and
says, should such an arrangement meet your approbation, he will
use his influence in favor of a petition; and says he knows of
some honorable men in Missouri who, he has no doubt, are anxious
to wipe off the stain that rests upon them, by [making] some just
reparation.
I submit, by permission of Mr. F., a copy of a letter he has
written to a distinguished citizen of South Carolina, together with
a circular put out confidentially by the friends of Mr. Calhoun,
of S. C., whom with my present feelings I should cheerfully
support for our next President, and who, I have no doubt would be
preferred, by the brethren to Mr. Van Buren.
If the plan suggested of memorializing Congress should meet your
approbation, please inform me. Colonel Frierson promises his
aid in such an event, and says he would go to Nauvoo and assist
in arranging papers relative to such a step. Please accept my
assurances of love and esteem for yourself and family, and a prayer
that wisdom from on high may direct you in your deliberations.
I remain your brother in Christ,
JOS. L. HEYWOOD.
[Sidenote: Letters to Candidates for Presidency of the U.S. Decided
upon]
We agreed to write a letter to the five candidates for the Presidency
of the United States, to inquire what their feelings were towards us
as a people, and what their course of action would be in relation to
the cruelty and oppression that we have suffered from the State of
Missouri, if they were elected.
The Twelve Apostles published the following in the_ Times and
Seasons_:--
_An Epistle of the Twelve, to the Elders and Churches Abroad._
On our late mission to the Eastern States, we discovered that
the publications at Nauvoo were very little patronised by the
Saints and branches in the various sections of the country where
we passed, while the common newspapers of the day received a
liberal support by those who pretend to "hunger and thirst after
righteousness." We feel justified, therefore, in reprobating such a
course as detrimental to the general good of the whole Church, that
shows a lack of charity in the Elders.
"Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?"
Nauvoo at present is the seat of the First Presidency, the place
of the {64} gathering for all Saints, and the great center of the
world for pure religion, revelation, truth, virtue, knowledge, and
everything else preparatory to the coming of the Son of Man. The
best news, the best people, and the best plan of salvation must be
there. Wherefore,
Resolved unanimously that the traveling Elders are hereby
instructed to use due diligence in obtaining subscribers for the
_Times and Seasons_ and _Nauvoo Neighbor,_ and forward the pay
by safe hands to the publishers at Nauvoo, that the Saints and
the world may receive "line upon line and precept upon precept,
here a little and there a little," together with such extracts of
translations and revelations as the Presidency of the Church may
direct, for the edification of the whole body of the Church in
righteousness.
Done in council at Nauvoo, Nov. 2nd, 1843.
BRIGHAM YOUNG,
President of the Twelve.
WILLARD RICHARDS, Clerk.
_Friday, 3rd.--_I continued in council all day.
Died at sea, Elder Knowlton F. Hanks. The following extract is from a
letter of Addison Pratt, one of the Pacific Islands missionaries:--
[Under this date there is inserted in the Prophet's History a long
letter from Elder Addison Pratt of the Pacific Island mission,
describing in great detail the last illness, death and burial at sea
of Elder Knowlton F. Hanks. Elder Hanks died of consumption; and of
the death the Prophet remarks: "Elder Hanks is the first Elder who has
died at sea while on a foreign mission. He was a faithful Elder, cut
off by consumption in the flower of his days."]
_Saturday, 4.--_Elders Richards and Taylor were with me at the Mansion,
assisting writing letters.
Wrote to John C. Calhoun as follows:--
_President Smith's Letter to John C. Calhoun, and other
Presidential Candidates._
_Hon. John C. Calhoun._
DEAR SIR,--As we understand you are a candidate for the Presidency
at the next election; and as the Latter-day Saints (sometimes
called "Mormons," who now constitute a numerous class in the school
politic of this vast republic,) have been robbed of an immense
amount of property, and endured nameless sufferings by the State of
Missouri, and from her borders have been driven by force of arms,
contrary to our national covenants; and as in vain we have sought
redress by all constitutional, legal, and honorable means, in her
courts, her executive {65} councils, and her legislative halls; and
as we have petitioned Congress to take cognizance of our sufferings
without effect, we have judged it wisdom to address you this
communication, and solicit an immediate, specific, and candid reply
to _"What will be your rule of action relative to us as a people,"_
should fortune favor your ascension to the chief magistracy?
Most respectfully, sir, your friend,
and the friend of peace, good order,
and constitutional rights,
JOSEPH SMITH.
In behalf of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Similar letters were written to Gen. Lewis Cass, Hon. Richard M.
Johnson, Hon. Henry Clay, and President Martin Van Buren. To Mr. Van
Buren's letter I added the following:--
_Post Script to Van Buren._
Also whether your views or feelings have changed since the subject
matter of this communication was presented you in your then
official capacity at Washington, in the year 1841, and by you
treated with a coldness, indifference, and neglect, bordering on
contempt.
Elder Wilford Woodruff arrived at Nauvoo with paper for the use of the
printing office.
_Sunday, 5.--_Rode out with mother and others for her health.
[Sidenote: The Prophet poisoned.]
At dinner I was taken suddenly sick; went to the door and vomited all
my dinner, dislocated my jaw, and raised fresh blood, and had many
symptoms of being poisoned.
In the evening a prayer-meeting in the hall over the store.
Mr. Cole having kept a school in the hall for some time, the noise
proved a nuisance for the clerks in the history office, and I gave Dr.
W. Richards orders to tell Mr. Cole he must find some other room in
which to teach school, as the room is needed for councils.
Meeting at the stand. Elder Rigdon preached.
[Sidenote: Work in the British Mission.]
Received a letter from Reuben Hedlock, dated Liverpool, October 16. He
informs me there is a great call for {66} preaching, and many Elders
are wanted throughout the British Isles. Much opposition. The Saints
are anxious to have the _Star_ continue its publication, as 1,600
copies are circulated.
Also received a letter from Hyrum Clark, giving a partial account of
the business affairs of the emigration and publishing offices.
_Monday, 6.--_Domestic affairs kept me busy in the morning, and in the
afternoon listened to William W. Phelps giving a relation of his visit
to the governor, which amused me.
It has been very cool for some days past.
Elder Erastus Snow arrived with a company from Massachusetts.
[Sidenote: The Prophet's Anxiety concerning the History of the Church.]
_Tuesday, 7.--_Mr. Cole moved the tables back into the hall, when
Richards and Phelps called to report that the noise in the school
disturbed them in the progress of writing the History. I gave orders
that Cole must look out for another place, as the history must continue
and not be disturbed, as there are but few subjects that I have felt a
greater anxiety about than my history, which has been a very difficult
task, on account of the death of my best clerks and the apostasy of
others, and the stealing of records by John Whitmer, Cyrus Smalling and
others.
[Sidenote: Preliminary Steps to Publish in Nauvoo Edition of Doctrine
and Covenants.]
The quorum of the Twelve--viz., President Brigham Young, Parley P.
Pratt, Orson Pratt, Wilford Woodruff, John Taylor, George A. Smith,
and Willard Richards, assembled in the mayor's office, and voted to
raise $500 to get paper, &c., to print the _Doctrine and Covenants._
Also voted that Parley P. Pratt, Wilford Woodruff, and John Taylor be a
committee to borrow or get the money, and that President Young go along
with them.
_Wednesday, 8.--_From nine to eleven, a.m., had an interview with
Richards and Phelps, read and heard read part of my history, then
attended to settling some accounts {67} with several individuals. In
the afternoon, I examined a sample of fringe designed for the pulpits
of the Temple; and from two to three, conversed with Phelps, Lewis,
John Butler and others.
The _Neighbor_ has the following:--
_Misrepresentations Corrected._
We know that statements made by the Carthage mob in their
resolutions, as published in the late _Warsaw Message,_ were false.
We also felt convinced that the parties themselves were apprized
of that fact, and that it was a thing generally understood by
the public; and therefore we did not trouble ourselves about it.
But having the following testimonies and affidavits sent us for
publication, we insert them for the information of those who may
not have had opportunities of informing themselves relative to this
subject.
STATE OF ILLINOIS
LEE COUNTY. ss.
We the undersigned citizens of the town of Dixon, county of Lee,
State of Illinois, being duly sworn according to law, depose and
say that we have seen the article entitled "Statement of facts
connected with the arrest of Joseph Smith and his discharge
therefrom," published in the _Warsaw Message_ of the date of 15th
of July, A.D. 1843; and have also seen an editorial article in
the same number of said paper, in which it is stated that said
statement of facts was furnished by E. Southwick, one of Mr.
Smith's attorneys in said case; and that we know the fact stated in
that statement--to wit, that Reynolds, for a considerable length
of time immediately after his arrival at Dixon, did peremptorily
refuse to allow Smith a private interview with his counsel; and
that said Reynolds did expressly state that no conversation could
be had with Smith by his attorneys, unless he, Reynolds, was
present at such conversation.
The length of time which such refusal to allow said private
conversation continued, was, in the belief of these deponents,
at least one hour; and that such private conversation was not
permitted by Reynolds, until after being informed by at least two
of these deponents (Messrs. Dixon and Sanger) that such private
interview must be allowed Mr. Smith, as that was a right he had
guaranteed to him by law.
JOHN DIXON, J. D. McCOMSAY,
ISAAC ROBINSON, J. ALBERT HELFENSTEIN,
L. P. SANGER, S. G. PATRICK,
E. SOUTHWICK.
{68} Sworn and subscribed to before me at Dixon, this 29th day of
July, 1843.
FREDERICK R. DUTCHER,
Justice of the Peace for Lee County, Ill.
We, the undersigned, state under oath that we traveled in company
with Joseph H. Reynolds, the agent of the State of Missouri, from
Dixon to Nauvoo, at the time he had Joseph Smith in custody with
the intention of taking him to Missouri, between the 26th of June
last and the 1st instant; and that the Mormons, friends of Mr.
Smith, who met us on said journey, before we arrived at Nauvoo,
conducted themselves, so far as we could perceive and were able
to judge, with the strictest propriety; and to our knowledge made
use of no means of intimidation towards either H. T. Wilson or
said Reynolds; but, on the contrary, several of them, and said
Smith among that number, pledged themselves that said Wilson and
Reynolds should be personally safe; and that said Mormons, none of
them as we could perceive, were armed, so far as was discernible;
and further, that the statement made in the _Old School Democrat_
of the 12th instant, over the signature of T. H. Reynolds, that
he and said Wilson were disarmed soon after they were arrested on
the trespass suit commenced against them by said Smith, and that
their arms were not returned to them until after the said Smith's
discharge at Nauvoo, was incorrect. And in relation to this, these
deponents say that said Wilson and Reynolds were arrested on said
action of trespass at Dixon, on Saturday morning, the 24th of June
last. That they were not disarmed by the sheriff of Lee county, who
had them in custody, nor by any other person, until the following
day, at Paw-paw Grove, thirty-two miles distant from Dixon; and
that the arms of said Wilson and Reynolds were restored to them by
the said sheriff of Lee county, who had them in custody for default
of bail, at their (Wilson and Reynolds') own request, while on the
journey from Dixon to Nauvoo, before the company had arrived within
at least eighty miles of Nauvoo.
J. D. McCOMSAY,
L. P. SANGER,
E. SOUTHWICK,
S. G. PATRICK.
Sworn and subscribed to before me, at Dixon, this 29th day of July,
A.D. 1843.
FREDERICK R. DUTCHER,
Justice of the Peace.
_To the Editor of the Warsaw Message_:
GENTLEMEN:--It appears from an article in your paper of the 15th of
July under the editorial head, that there is a question of veracity
therein {69} raised, between Mr. H. T Wilson and myself, relative
to the proceedings had after the late arrest by him of Joseph
Smith. Now, in order that the public may no longer be deceived in
the premises, be pleased to publish, together with this note, the
above affidavits, that the charge of falsehood may attach where it
properly belongs.
Very respectfully yours,
E. SOUTHWICK.
Dixon July 29, 1843.
I wrote to the _Times and Seasons_:--
_Communication of President Joseph Smith to the Saints._
_Messrs. Taylor and Woodruff_:
It has been so long since I addressed the Saints through the medium
of the _Times and Seasons,_ that I feel confident that a few words
from my pen, by way of advice, will be well received, as well as a
"waymark" to guide the "faithful" in future. I was sorry to learn,
by your remarks upon the resolutions of the "Twelve" concerning
your papers, which appeared not long since, that many of the Saints
abroad were more apt to patronize the common newspapers of the
day than yours, for the important reason that the Church of Jesus
Christ of Latter-day Saints has the words of eternal life, and
your paper, as it has hitherto done, must continue to publish such
portions of them for the benefit of the Saints and the salvation of
mankind as wisdom shall from time to time direct.
Freedom is a sweet blessing. Men have a right to take and read what
papers they please; "but do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs
of thistles?" It certainly is no more than just to suppose that
_charity begins at home;_ and if so, what must such as profess to
be Saints think, when they patronize the splendor of Babylon and
leave the virtue of Zion to linger for want of bread?
Beside which, if virtue is justified rather than vanity, the
best of everything calculated to happify man and dignify society
will--yea, must be in Nauvoo. And as the new commandment given
anciently was _to love one another,_ even so the works of the
Saints at home and abroad will bear its own testimony _whether they
love the brethren_.
In all the world the _Times and Seasons_ is the only paper that
virtually sustains, according to the forms of Scripture and
prophecy, "Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists," and revelations. And
what shall be said of him that, like the "Levite," passes on the
other side of the way, when we behold men who "have borne the heat
and the burden of the day" struggling against the popular opinions
of a vain world, the burlesque of a giddy throng, the vulgarity of
a self-wise multitude, and the falsehoods of what may justly be
termed the "civilized meanness of the {70} age," and not lending
a helping hand? The 25th chapter of Matthew contains the simple
answer.
Now, let me say once for all, like the Psalmist of old, "How good
and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity."
"As the precious ointment upon the head that ran down upon Aaron's
beard, that went down to the skirts of his garments, as the dew
of Hermon that descended upon the mountains of Zion," is such
unity; for there the Lord commanded the blessing, even life for
evermore!" Unity is power; and when the brethren as one man sustain
the _Times and Seasons,_ they sustain me, by giving a spread to
the revelations, faith, works, history and progress of the Church.
The brethren who conduct the paper have been appointed to that
important station, because they are worthy and well qualified; and
what a blessed sign of a faithful friend to God and man is it to
see the charity of a brother support his brethren, as an evidence
that he means to pass from death into life?
Many of the articles which appear in the _Times and Seasons_ are
extracts of revelations, translations, or are the united voice of
conferences, which, like "apples of gold in pictures of silver,"
are treasures more than meat for the called, chosen and faithful
among the Saints, and should be more than _drink_ to those that
hunger and thirst after righteousness. As Nauvoo is rising in glory
and greatness, so shall I expect to see the _Times and Seasons_
increase in circulation by the vigilance of the Elders and Saints,
so as to be a herald of truth and a standard of pure and undefiled
religion. Finally, men and brethren, when you support my friends,
you support me. In the bonds of the new and everlasting covenant,
I am your humble servant,
JOSEPH SMITH.
Footnotes:
1. This was the case of Chas. Drown on _habeas corpus_ referred to
under date of 13th of October.
{71}
CHAPTER IV.
CORRESPONDENCE BETWEEN JAMES ARLINGTON BENNETT AND PRESIDENT JOSEPH
SMITH--RENEWAL OF PETITIONS TO CONGRESS FOR REDRESS OF MISSOURI
GRIEVANCES--PRESIDENT JOSEPH SMITH'S APPEAL TO THE "GREEN MOUNTAIN
BOYS"--VERMONT--STATUS OF THE NAUVOO LEGION IN ILLINOIS MILITIA.
_Thursday, November, 9, 1843.--_At the office, dictating letters and
signing deeds.
The missionaries to the Pacific Islands touched at Cape de Verde
Islands, and laid in a supply of fruits of various kinds.
[Sidenote: Properity of the Work in England.]
_Saturday, 11.--_A company of Saints arrived from England. The work is
still prospering in that country, poverty and distress are making rapid
strides, and the situation of the laboring classes is getting every day
more deplorable.
City Council met. Hyrum Smith, president _pro tem._ Albert P. Rockwood
assessor and collector for 1st ward; Daniel Hendricks for 2nd ward;
Jonathan H. Hale, 3rd ward; and Henry G. Sherwood for 4th ward.
_Sunday, 12.--_Prayer-meeting in the evening, in the south-east room of
my old house.
Clear, cold.
_Monday 13.--_Having received a letter from James Arlington Bennett,
Esq., I copy it:--
_Letter: James Arlington Bennett to President Joseph Smith._
ARLINGTON HOUSE, Oct. 43, 1843.
DEAR GENERAL:--I am happy to know that you have taken possession
of your new establishment, and presume you will be eminently
successful and happy in it, together with your good lady and family.
You are no doubt already aware that I have had a most interesting
visit from your most excellent and worthy friend, President B.
Young with whom I have had a glorious frolic in the clear blue
ocean; for {72} most assuredly a frolic it was, without a moment's
reflection or consideration.
Nothing of this kind would in the least attach me to your person or
cause. I am capable of being a most _undeviating friend_, without
being governed by the smallest religious influence.
As you have proved yourself to be a philosophical divine, you will
excuse me when I say that we must leave their influence to the
mass. The boldness of your plans and measures, together with their
unparalleled success so far, are calculated to throw a charm over
your whole being, and to point you out as the most extraordinary
man of the present age.
But my mind is of so mathematical and philosophical a cast, that
the divinity of Moses makes no impression on me, and you will not
be offended when I say that I rate you higher as a legislator than
I do Moses, because we have you present with us for examination,
whereas Moses derives his chief authority from prescription and the
lapse of time.
I cannot, however, say but you are both right, it being out of the
power of man to prove you wrong. It is no mathematical problem, and
can therefore get no mathematical solution. I say, therefore, Go
a-head: you have my good wishes. You know Mahomet had his "_right
hand man_."
The celebrated Thomas Brown, at New York, is now engaged in cutting
your head on a beautiful cornelian stone, as your _private seal,_
which will be set in gold to your order, and sent to you. It will
be a gem, and just what you want. His sister is a member of your
Church. The expense of this seal, set in gold, will be about $40;
and Mr. Brown assures me that if he were not so poor a man, he
would present it to you free.
You can, however, accept it or not, as he can apply to it another
use. I am myself short for cash; for although I had sometime since
$2,000 paid me by the Harpers, publishers, as the first instalment
on the purchase of my copyright, yet I had got so much behind
during the hard times, that it all went to clear up old scores. I
expect $38,000 more however, in semi-annual payments, from those
gentlemen, within the limits of ten years; a large portion of
which I intend to use in the State of Illinois, in the purchase
and conduct of a large tract of land; and therefore should I be
compelled to announce in this quarter that I have no connection
with the Nauvoo Legion, you will of course remain silent, as I
shall do it in such a way as will make all things right.
I may yet run for a high office in your state, when you would
be sure of my best services in your behalf; therefore, a known
connection with you would be against our mutual interest. It can be
shown that a commission in the Legion was a _Herald_ hoax, coined
for the fun of it {73} by me, as it is not believed even now by
the public. In short, I expect to be yet, through your influence,
governor of the State of Illinois.
My respects to Brothers Young, Richards, Mrs. Emma, and all friends.
Yours most respectfully,
JAMES ARLINGTON BENNETT.
P.S.--As the office of inspector-general confers no command on me,
being a mere honorary title,--if, therefore, there is any gentleman
in Nauvoo who would like to fill it in a practical way, I shall
with great pleasure and good-will resign it to him, by receiving
advice from you to that effect. It is an office that should be
filled by some scientific officer.
J. A. B.
I insert my reply:--
_Letter: President Joseph Smith to James Arlington Bennett._
NAUVOO, ILLINOIS, Nov. 13, 1843.
DEAR SIR:--Your letter of the 24th ult. has been regularly
received, its contents duly appreciated, and its whole tenor
candidly considered; and, according to my manner of judging all
things in righteousness, I proceed to answer you, and shall leave
you to meditate whether "mathematical problems," founded upon the
truth of revelation, or religion as promulgated by me, or by Moses,
can be solved by rules and principles existing in the systems of
common knowledge.
How far you are capable of being "a most undeviating friend,
without being governed by the smallest religious influence," will
best be decided by your survivors, as all past experience most
assuredly proves. Without controversy, that friendship which
intelligent beings would accept as sincere must arise from love,
and that love grow out of virtue, which is as much a part of
religion as light is a part of Jehovah. Hence the saying of Jesus,
"Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life
for his friends."
You observed, "as I have proven myself to be a philosophical
divine" I must excuse you when you say that we must leave these
_influences_ to the mass. The meaning of "philosophical divine" may
be taken in various ways. If, as the learned world apply the term,
you infer that I have achieved a victory, and been strengthened by
a scientific religion, as practiced by the popular sects of the
age, through the aid of colleges, seminaries, Bible societies,
missionary boards, financial organizations, and gospel money
schemes, then you are wrong. Such a combination of men and means
shows a form of godliness without the power; for is it not written,
"I will destroy the wisdom of the wise." "Beware lest any man spoil
you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the rudiments of the
world, and not after the doctrines of Christ." But if the inference
is that by more love, more light, more virtue, and more truth
{74} from the Lord, I have succeeded as a man of God, then you
reason truly, though the weight of the sentiment is lost, when the
_"influence is left to the mass."_ "Do men gather grapes of thorns,
or figs of thistles?"
Of course you follow out the figure, and say, the boldness of my
plans and measures, together with their unparalleled success, so
far, are calculated to throw a charm over my whole being, and
to point me out as the most extraordinary man of the present
age! The _boldness of my plans and measures_ can readily be
tested by the touchstone of all schemes, systems, projects, and
adventures--_truth;_ for truth is a matter of fact; and the fact
is, that by the power of God I translated the Book of Mormon from
hieroglyphics, the knowledge of which was lost to the world, in
which wonderful event I stood alone, an unlearned youth, to combat
the worldly wisdom and multiplied ignorance of eighteen centuries,
with a new revelation, which (if they would receive the everlasting
Gospel,) would open the eyes of more than eight hundred millions of
people, and make "plain the old paths," wherein if a man walk in
all the ordinances of God blameless, he shall inherit eternal life;
and Jesus Christ, who was, and is, and is to come, has borne me
safely over every snare and plan laid in secret or openly, through
priestly hypocrisy, sectarian prejudice, popular philosophy,
executive power, or law-defying mobocracy, to destroy me.
If, then, the hand of God in all these things that I have
accomplished towards the salvation of a priest-ridden generation,
in the short space of twelve years, through the boldness of the
plan of preaching the Gospel, and the boldness of the means of
declaring repentance and baptism for the remission of sins, and a
reception of the Holy Ghost by laying on of the hands, agreeably to
the authority of the Priesthood, and the still more bold measures
of receiving direct revelation from God, through the Comforter,
as promised, and by which means all holy men from ancient times
till now have spoken and revealed the will of God to men, with
the consequent "success" of the gathering of the Saints, throws
any "charm" around my being, and "points me out as the most
extraordinary man of the age," it demonstrates the fact that truth
is mighty and must prevail, and that one man empowered from Jehovah
has more influence with the children of the kingdom than eight
hundred millions led by the precepts of men. God exalts the humble,
and debases the haughty.
But let me assure you in the name of Jesus, "who spake as never
man spake," that the "boldness of the plans and measures," as you
term them, but which should be denominated the righteousness of
the cause, the truth of the system, and power of God, which "so
far" has borne me and the Church, (in which I glory in having the
privilege of being a member,) successfully through the storm of
reproach, folly, ignorance, {75} malice, persecution, falsehood,
sacerdotal wrath, newspaper satire, pamphlet libels, and the
combined influence of the powers of earth and hell,--I say these
powers of righteousness and truth are not the decrees or rules
of an ambitious and aspiring Nimrod, Pharaoh, Nebuchadnezzar,
Alexander, Mahomet, Bonaparte, or other great sounding heroes that
dazzled forth with a trail of pomp and circumstances for a little
season, like a comet, and then disappeared, leaving a wide waste
where such an existence once was, with only a name; nor where the
glorious results of what you term "boldness of plans and measures,"
with the attendant "success," matured by the self-aggrandizing
wisdom of the priests of Baal, the scribes and Pharisees of the
Jews, popes and bishops of Christendom, or pagans of Juggernaut:
nor were they extended by the divisions and subdivisions of a
Luther or Calvin, a Wesley, or even a Campbell, supported by a
galaxy of clergymen and churchmen, of whatever name or nature,
bound apart by cast-iron creeds, and fastened to set stakes by
chain-cable opinions, without revelation. Nor are they the lions of
the land, or the leviathans of the sea, moving among the elements,
as distant chimeras to fatten the fancy of the infidel; but they
are as the stone cut out of the mountain without hands, and will
become a great mountain, and fill the whole earth. [1] * * * * *
It seems that your mind is of such "a mathematical and
philosophical cast," that the divinity of Moses makes no impression
upon you, and that I will not be offended when you say that you
rate me higher as a legislator than you do Moses, because you have
me present with you for examination; that "Moses derives his chief
authority from prescription and the lapse of time." You cannot,
however, say but we are both right, it being out of the power of
man to prove us wrong. "It is no mathematical problem, and can
therefore get no mathematical solution."
{76} Now, sir, to cut the matter short, and not dally with your
learned ideas, for fashion's sake you have here given your opinion,
without reserve, that revelation, the knowledge of God, prophetic
vision, the truth of eternity, cannot be solved as a mathematical
problem. The first question then is, What is a mathematical
problem? and the natural answer is, A statement, proposition or
question that can be solved, ascertained, unfolded or demonstrated
by knowledge, facts or figures; for "mathematical" is an adjective
derived from _mathesis_ (Gr.), meaning, in English, learning or
knowledge. "Problem" is derived from _probleme_ (French), or
_problema_ (Italian, or Spanish), and in each language means a
question or proposition, whether true or false. "Solve" is derived
from the Latin verb "_solvo,_" to explain or answer.
One thing more in order to prove the work as we proceed. It is
necessary to have witnesses, two or three of whose testimonies,
according to the laws or rules of God and man, are sufficient to
establish any one point.
Now for the question. How much are one and one? Two. How much is
one from two? One. Very well; one question or problem is solved by
figures. Now, let me ask one for facts; Was there ever such a place
on the earth as Egypt? Geography says yes; ancient history says
yes; and the Bible says yes: so three witnesses have solved that
question. Again: Lived there ever such a man as Moses in Egypt?
The same witnesses reply, _Certainly._ And was he a Prophet? The
same witnesses, or a part, have left on record that Moses predicted
in Leviticus that if Israel broke the covenant they had made, the
Lord would scatter them among the nations, till the land enjoyed
her Sabbaths: and, subsequently, these witnesses have testified of
their captivity in Babylon and other places, in fulfillment. But
to make assurance doubly sure, Moses prays that the ground might
open and swallow up Korah and his company for transgression, and
it was so: and he endorses the prophecy of Balaam, which said, Out
of Jacob shall come he that shall have dominion, and shall destroy
him that remaineth of the city: and Jesus Christ, as Him that "had
dominion," about fifteen hundred years after, in accordance with
this and the prediction of Moses, David, Isaiah, and many others,
came, saying, Moses wrote of me, declaring the dispersion of the
Jews, and the utter destruction of the city; and the Apostles were
his witnesses, unimpeached, especially Jude, who not only endorses
the facts of Moses "divinity," but also the events of Balaam and
Korah, with many others, _as true_.
Besides these tangible facts, so easily proven and demonstrated
by simple rules and testimony unimpeached, the art (now lost,) of
embalming human bodies, and preserving them in the catacombs of
Egypt, whereby men, women and children, _as mummies,_ after a lapse
of near {77} three thousand five hundred years, come forth among
the living; and although _dead,_ the papyrus which has lived in
their bosoms, unharmed, speaks for them in language like the sound
of an earthquake. _Ecce veritas! Ecce cadaveros!_ Behold the truth!
Behold the mummies!
Oh, my dear sir, the sunken Tyre and Sidon, the melancholy dust
where the city of Jerusalem once was, and the mourning of the Jews
among the nations, together with such a cloud of witnesses, if you
had been as well acquainted with your God and Bible as with your
purse and pence table, the divinity of Moses would have dispelled
the fog of five thousand years and filled you with light; for
facts, like diamonds, not only cut glass, but they are the most
precious jewels on earth. The spirit of prophecy is the testimony
of Jesus.
The world at large is ever ready to credit the writings of Homer,
Hesiod, Plutarch, Socrates, Pythagoras, Virgil, Josephus, Mahomet,
and an hundred others; but where, tell me, where, have they left a
line--a simple method of solving the truth of the plan of eternal
life? Says the Savior, "If any man will do his [the Father's] will,
he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I
speak of myself." Here, then, is a method of solving the divinity
of men by the divinity within yourself, that as far exceeds the
calculations of numbers as the sun exceeds a candle. Would to God
that all men understood it and were willing to be governed by it,
that when one had filled the measure of his days, he could exclaim
like Jesus, _Veni mori, et reviviscere_!'
Your good wishes to go ahead, coupled with Mahomet and a right hand
man, are rather more vain than virtuous. Why, sir, Caesar had his
right hand Brutus, who was his left hand assassin,--not, however,
applying the allusion to you.
As to the private seal you mention, if sent to me, I shall receive
it with the gratitude of a servant of God, and pray that the donor
may receive a reward in the resurrection of the just.
The summit of your future fame seems to be hid in the political
policy of a "mathematical problem" for the chief magistracy of this
state, which I suppose might be solved by "double position," where
the _errors_ of the _supposition_ are used to produce a true answer.
But, sir, when I leave the dignity and honor I received from
heaven, to boost a man into power, through the aid of my
friends, where the evil and designing, after the object has been
accomplished, can lock up the clemency intended as a reciprocation
for such favors, and where the wicked and unprincipled, as a
matter of course, would seize the opportunity to flintify the
hearts of the nation against me for dabbling at a sly game in
politics,--verily I say, when I leave the dignity and honor of
heaven, to gratify the ambition and vanity of man or men, {78} may
my power cease, like the strength of Samson, when he was shorn
of his locks, while asleep in the lap of Delilah. Truly said the
Savior, "Cast not your pearls before swine, lest they trample them
under their feet, and turn again and rend you."
Shall I, who have witnessed the visions of eternity, and beheld
the glorious mansions of bliss, and the regions and the misery of
the damned,--shall I turn to be a Judas? Shall I, who have heard
the voice of God, and communed with angels, and spake as moved
by the Holy Ghost for the renewal of the everlasting covenant,
and for the gathering of Israel in the last days,--shall I worm
myself into a political hypocrite? Shall I, who hold the keys of
the last kingdom, in which is the dispensation of the fullness of
all things spoken by the mouths of all the holy Prophets since
the world began, under the sealing power of the Melchizedec
Priesthood,--shall I stoop from the sublime authority of Almighty
God, to be handled as a monkey's cat-paw, and pettify myself into
a clown to act the farce of political demagoguery? No--verily no!
The whole earth shall bear me witness that I, like the towering
rock in the midst of the ocean, which has withstood the mighty
surges of the warring waves for centuries, _am impregnable,_ and am
a faithful friend to virtue, and a fearless foe to vice,--no odds
whether the former was sold as a pearl in Asia or hid as a gem in
America, and the latter dazzles in palaces or glimmers among the
tombs.
I combat the errors of ages; I meet the violence of mobs; I cope
with illegal proceedings from executive authority; I cut the
guardian knot of powers, and I solve mathematical problems of
universities, _with truth--diamond truth; and God is my "right hand
man_." [2]
And to close, let me say in the name of Jesus Christ to you, and to
presidents, emperors, kings, queens, governors, rulers, nobles, and
men in authority everywhere, Do the works of righteousness, execute
justice and judgment in the earth, that God may bless you and her
inhabitants; and
The laurel that grows on the top of the mountain
Shall green for your fame while the sun sheds a ray;
And the lily that blows by the side of the fountain
Will bloom for your virtue till earth melt away.
With due consideration and respect, I have the honor to be
Your most obedient servant,
JOSEPH SMITH.
P.S. The court-martial will attend to your case in the Nauvoo
Legion.
J. S.
{79}_Tuesday, 14.--_In the evening called at the office with Mr.
Southwick, of Dixon, and had my letter to James Arlington Bennett read.
_Wednesday, 15.--_Mayor's court in the office. "Erskine _versus_
Pullen." Nonsuit.
P.M. At the office. Suggested the idea of preparing a grammar of the
Egyptian language.
[Sidenote: Grammar for the Egyptian Language Suggested.]
Prayer-meeting at the old house. I spoke of a petition to Congress, my
letter to Bennett, and intention to write a proclamation to the kings
of the earth.
_Thursday, 16.--_Held a court--"Averett _versus_ Bostwick."
At home the remainder of the day. Chilly east wind and foggy.
_Friday, 17.--_Deeded lot 4, block 135, to Sally Phelps, wife of W. W.
Phelps.
About ten, a.m., called in the office with Esquire Southwick, of Dixon.
Thunder, lightning and rain last night. Warm and foggy morning.
_Saturday, 18.--_Rode out on horseback to the prairie, accompanied by
Mr. Southwick.
Conference of the church held at Halifax, Nova Scotia. Robert Dixon,
president; Edward Cook, secretary. Two branches were represented,
containing 2 Elders, 1 Teacher, 2 Deacons, and 34 members.
_Sunday, 19.--_Eleven a.m. to two p.m., prayer-meeting at the old
house, and fasting.
In the evening, prayer-meeting and breaking of bread, &c.
[Sidenote: Meeting at the Prophet's Home.]
_Monday, 20.--_Two gentlemen from Vermont put up at the Mansion. I rode
round with them in the afternoon to show them the improvements in the
city. In the evening, several of the Twelve and others called to visit
me. My family sang hymns, {80} and Elder John Taylor prayed and gave
an address, to which they paid great attention, and seemed very much
interested.
_Tuesday, 21.--_Council of the Twelve and others at my old house all
day. Dictated to my clerk an appeal to the Green Mountain boys of
Vermont, my native State.
Also instructed Elders Richards, Hyde, Taylor and Phelps to write a
"Proclamation to the Kings of the Earth."
_Wednesday, 22.--_Rode out to the prairie with W. Clayton and Lorenzo
D. Wasson, and found Arthur Smith cutting timber on my land without my
consent, which I objected to.
Prayer-meeting in the evening at the old house.
Five deaths in the city during the past week.
[Sidenote: Canal Around the Rapids.]
_Thursday, 23.--_Met in council in the old house; then walked down to
the river to look at the stream, rocks, &c., about half-past eleven,
a.m. Suggested the idea of petitioning Congress for a grant to make a
canal over the falls, or a dam to turn the water to the city, so that
we might erect mills and other machinery. [3]
Issued a writ of habeas corpus, on application of John M. Finch.
_Friday, 24.--_Attended Municipal Court "on habeas corpus, John M.
Finch at suit of Amos Davis." Finch discharged, Davis to pay costs, it
being a vexatious and malicious suit.
The young men have established a debating society in Nauvoo, to discuss
topics of various descriptions.
{81} [Sidenote: The Prophet's Stand on Chastity and General Morality.]
_Saturday, 25.--_Colonel Frierson, United States Surveyor from Quincy,
arrived in Nauvoo. In the evening the High Council sat on the case of
Harrison Sagers, charged with seduction, and having stated that I had
taught it was right. Charge not sustained. I was present with several
of the Twelve, and gave an address tending to do away with every evil,
and exhorting them to practice virtue and holiness before the Lord;
told them that the Church had not received any permission from me to
commit fornication, adultery, or any corrupt action; but my every word
and action has been to the contrary. If a man commit adultery, he
cannot receive the celestial kingdom of God. Even if he is saved in any
kingdom, it cannot be the celestial kingdom. I did think that the many
examples that have been made manifest, such as John C. Bennett's and
others, were sufficient to show the fallacy of such a course of conduct.
I condemned such actions _in toto,_ and warned the people present
against committing such evils; for it will surely bring a curse upon
any person who commits such deeds.
After adjournment, held a council, and agreed to meet Mr. Frierson [4]
at the Mansion to morrow morning.
I received a letter signed by George B. Wallace and six other Elders,
requesting permission for Elder John E. Page to remain in Boston the
ensuing winter. Also a letter from John E. Page, giving his assent to
the petition, to which the Twelve Apostles wrote the following reply:--
_Letter: Brigham Young in Behalf of the Twelve to Elder John E.
Page, Appointing him to go to Washington._
_Elder John E. Page_:
BELOVED BROTHER:--Your letter dated at Boston, in connection with
{82} some one hundred and fifty of the brethren, is received, and
we proceed to reply. Your letter is not before us this moment;
consequently you must excuse a reference to dates and names which
have escaped our recollection. But the subject is fresh, and the
letter was read in a council of Presidents Joseph, Hyrum, and the
Twelve, when the word of the Lord came through Joseph the Seer
thus:--"Let my servant John E. Page take his departure _speedily_
from the city of Boston, and go directly to the city of Washington,
and there labor diligently in proclaiming my Gospel to the
inhabitants thereof: and if he is humble and faithful, lo! I will
be with him, and will give him the hearts of the people, that he
may do them good and build up a church unto my name in that city."
Now, Brother Page, if you wish to follow counsel and do the will of
the Lord, as we believe you desire to do, call the church at Boston
together, _without delay,_ and read this letter to them, calling
upon them to assist you on your mission, and go thy way speedily
unto the place which is appointed unto you by the voice of the
Lord, and build up a church in the city of Washington; for it is
expedient and absolutely necessary that we have a foothold in that
popular city. Let your words be soft unto the people, but full of
the spirit and power of the Holy Ghost. _Do not challenge the sects
for debate,_ but treat them as brethren and friends; and the God
of heaven will bless you, and we will bless you in the name of the
Lord Jesus, and the people will rise up and bless you, and call you
a sweet messenger of peace. You will pardon us for giving you such
counsel, for we feel to do it in the name of the Lord.
When you have built a church at Washington so as to warrant the
expense. It will be wisdom for you to send or take your wife to
Washington; so says President Joseph.
All things go on smoothly here. As to the reports circulated while
we were in Boston, there is nothing of them. Brother Joseph has
commenced living in his new house, and enjoys himself well. He
has raised a sign, entitled "Nauvoo Mansion," and has all the
best company in the city. Many strangers from abroad call on him,
feeling perfect liberty so to do, since he has made his house
public; and it is exerting a blessed influence on the public mind.
The Temple has been progressing rapidly until the recent frosts.
The walls are now above the windows of the first story, and some of
the circular windows are partly laid. The brethren of the Twelve
have all arrived home, are tolerably well, and their families,
except Sister Hyde, who has been very sick, and is yet, though at
last report rather better. No prospect of any of the Twelve leaving
home this winter {83} that we know of. Elder Snow has arrived with
his company from Boston, generally in good spirits.
The devil howls some: may be you will hear him as far as Boston,
for there cannot a blackleg be guilty of any crime in Nauvoo, but
somebody will lay it to the servants of God. We shall give the
substance of this communication to your wife same mail.
We remain your brother in the new and everlasting covenant, in
behalf of the quorum,
BRIGHAM YOUNG, President.
W. RICHARDS, Clerk.
[Sidenote: Renewal of Petitions to Congress.]
_Sunday, 26.--_I met with Hyrum, the Twelve and others, in council
with Colonel Frierson, at the Mansion, concerning petitioning Congress
for redress of grievances. Read to him the affidavits of Hyrum Smith,
Brigham Young, Parley P. Pratt, Lyman Wight, George W. Pitkin and
Sidney Rigdon, taken before the municipal court on _habeas corpus,_ and
conversed with him thereon.
At eleven, a.m., Elder Orson Pratt preached in the Assembly Room.
In the evening, Elder Parley P. Pratt lectured in the Mansion. Rainy,
muddy day.
_Monday, 27.--_Wet day. Being quite unwell, I stayed at home.
_Tuesday, 28.--_At home. Colonel Frierson wrote a Memorial to Congress.
[5]
_Wednesday, 29.--_At home. Clear and cold. Colonel Frierson left for
home, taking with him a copy of the Memorial, to get signers in Quincy.
I here insert a copy of the--
{84} MEMORIAL.
_To the Honorable the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States, in Congress Assembled_.
The memorial of the undersigned inhabitants of Hancock county, in
the State of Illinois, respectfully showeth--
That they belong to the society of Latter-day Saints, commonly
called "Mormons;" that a portion of our people commenced settling
in Jackson county, Missouri, in the summer of 1831, where they
purchased lands and settled upon them with the intention and
expectation of becoming permanent citizens in common with others.
From a very early period after the settlement began, a very
unfriendly feeling was manifested by the neighboring people; and as
the society increased, this unfriendly spirit also increased, until
it degenerated into a cruel and unrelenting persecution, and the
society was at last compelled to leave the county. An account of
these unprovoked persecutions has been published to the world; yet
we deem it not improper to embody a few of the most prominent items
in the memorial, and lay them before your honorable body.
On the 20th July, 1833, a mob collected at Independence, a
deputation or committee from which called upon a few members of our
Church there, and stated to them that the store, printing office,
and all mechanic shops belonging to our people must be closed
forthwith, and the society leave the county immediately.
These conditions were so unexpected and so hard, that a short time
was asked for to consider on the subject before an answer could be
given, which was refused; and when some of our men answered that
they could not consent to comply with such propositions, the work
of destruction commenced.
The printing office--a valuable two-story brick building, was
destroyed by the mob, and with it much valuable property. They
next went to the store for the same purpose; but one of the owners
thereof agreeing to close it, they abandoned their design.
A series of outrages was then commenced by the mob upon individual
members of our society. Bishop Partridge was dragged from his house
and family, where he was first partially stripped of his clothes,
and then tarred and feathered from head to foot. Mr. Charles Allen
was also tarred at the same time.
Three days afterwards the mob assembled in great numbers, bearing a
red flag, and proclaiming that unless the society would leave _en
masse,_ every man of them should be killed. Being in a defenseless
situation, to avoid a general massacre, a treaty was entered into
and ratified, by which it was agreed that one-half of the society
should leave the county by the 1st of January, and the remainder by
the 1st of April following.
{85} In October, while our people were gathering their crops and
otherwise preparing to fulfill their part of the treaty, the mob
again collected without any provocation, shot at some of our
people, whipped others, threw down their houses, and committed many
other depredations. The members of the society were for some time
harassed both day and night, their houses assailed and broken open,
and their women and children insulted and abused.
The store-house of A. S. Gilbert and Company was broken open,
ransacked, and some of the goods strewed in the streets. These
repeated assaults so aroused the indignant feelings of our people,
that a small party thereof, on one occasion, when wantonly abused,
resisted the mob. A conflict ensued, in which one of our people and
some two or three of their assailants were killed.
This unfortunate event raised the whole county in arms, and we were
required forthwith to surrender our arms and leave the county.
Fifty-one guns were given up, which have never been returned or
paid for to this day.
Parties of the mob, from thirty to seventy in number, then scoured
the county in every direction, threatening and abusing women and
children, until they were forced first to take shelter in the woods
and prairies at a very inclement season of the year, and finally to
make their escape to Clay county, where the people permitted them
to take refuge for a time.
After the society had left Jackson county, their buildings,
amounting to about two hundred, were either burned or otherwise
destroyed, with a great portion of their crops, as well as
furniture, stock, &c.; for which they have not as yet received any
remuneration.
The society remained in Clay county nearly three years, when,
in compliance with the demands of the citizens there, it was
determined to remove to that section of country known afterwards as
Caldwell county.
In order to secure our people from molestation, the members of
the society bought out most of the former inhabitants of what is
now Caldwell county, and also entered much of the wild land then
belonging to the United States in that section of country, fondly
hoping that as we were American citizens, obeying the laws and
assisting to support the government, we would be protected in the
use of homes which we had honestly purchased from the General
Government and fully paid for.
Here we were permitted to enjoy peace for a season; but as our
society increased in numbers and settlements were made in Daviess
and Carrol counties, unfounded jealousies sprang up among our
neighbors, and the spirit of the mob was soon manifested again. The
people of our Church who had located themselves at De Witt were
compelled by {86} the mob to leave the place, notwithstanding the
militia were called out for their protection.
From De Witt the mob went to Daviess county, and, while on their
way, took some of our people prisoners, and greatly abused and
mistreated them. Our people had been driven by force from Jackson
county; they had been compelled to leave Clay county, and sell
their lands there, for which they have never been paid: they had
finally settled in Caldwell county, where they had purchased and
paid for nearly all the Government land within its limits, in order
to secure homes where they could live and worship in peace; but
even here they were soon followed by the mob.
The society remained in Caldwell from 1836 until the fall of 1838,
and during that time had acquired by purchase from the Government,
the settlers, and preemptioners, almost all the lands in the county
of Caldwell, and a portion of those in Daviess and Carrol counties.
Those counties, when our people first commenced their settlements,
were for the most part wild and uncultivated, and they had
converted them into large and well improved farms, well stocked.
Lands had risen in value, from 10 to 25 dollars per acre, and those
counties were rapidly advancing in cultivation and wealth.
In August, 1838, a riot commenced, growing out of the attempt of
a member of the society to vote, which resulted in creating great
excitement and many scenes of lawless outrage. A large mob, under
the conduct of Cornelius Gilliam, came into the vicinity of Far
West, drove off our stock, and abused our people. Another party
came into Caldwell county, took away our horses and cattle, burnt
our houses, and ordered the inhabitants to leave their homes
immediately.
By order of Brigadier-General Doniphan and Colonel Hinkle, a
company of about sixty men, under the command of David W. Patten
went to disperse this mob. A conflict ensued, in which Captain
Patten and two of his men were killed, and others wounded. [6] A
mob party, from two to three hundred in number, many of whom are
supposed to have come from Chariton county, fell on our people,
and, notwithstanding they begged for quarters, shot down and killed
eighteen, as they would so many wild beasts.
They were finally compelled to flee from those counties; and on the
11th October, 1838, they sought safety by that means, with their
families, {87} leaving many of their effects behind. That they had
previously applied to the constituted authorities of Missouri for
protection, but in vain.
The society were pursued by the mob, conflicts ensued, deaths
occurred on each side, and finally a force was organized under the
authority of the Governor of the state of Missouri, with orders to
drive us from the State, _or exterminate us_.
Abandoned and attacked by those to whom we had looked for
_protection,_ we determined to make no further resistance, but
submit to the authorities of the State and yield to our fate,
however hard it might be. Several members of the society were
arrested and imprisoned on a charge of treason against the State:
and the rest, amounting to above 14,000 souls, fled into the other
States, principally into Illinois, where they now reside.
Your memorialists would further state that they have heretofore
petitioned your honorable body, praying redress for the injuries
set forth in this memorial; but the committee to whom our petition
was referred reported, in substance, that the General Government
had no power in the case, and that we must look for relief to the
courts and the legislature of Missouri.
In reply, your memorialists would beg leave to state that they
have repeatedly appealed to the authorities of Missouri in vain;
that though they are American citizens, at all times ready to obey
the laws and support the institutions of the country, none of us
would dare enter Missouri for any such purpose, or for any purposes
whatever.
Our property was seized by the mob or lawlessly confiscated by the
State; and we were forced, at the point of the bayonet, to sign
deeds of trust relinquishing our property. But the exterminating
order of the Governor of Missouri is still in force, and we dare
not return to claim out just rights. The widows and orphans of
those slain, who could legally sign no deeds of trust, dare not
return to claim the inheritance left them by their murdered parents.
It is true the Constitution of the United States gives to us, in
common with all other native or adopted citizens, the right to
enter and settle in Missouri; but an executive order has been
issued to exterminate us if we enter the State, and a part of the
Constitution becomes a nullity, so far as we are concerned.
Had any foreign state or power committed a similar outrage upon us
we cannot for a moment doubt that the strong arm of the General
Government would have been stretched out to redress our wrongs; and
we flatter ourselves that the same power will either redress our
grievances or shield us from harm in our efforts to regain our lost
property, which we fairly purchased from the General Government.
Finally, your memorialists pray your honorable body to take their
{88} wrongs into consideration, receive testimony in the case, and
grant such relief as by the Constitution and laws you may have
power to give.
And your memorialists will ever pray.
[Sidenote: Activities in Renewal of Appeals to Congress.]
Eleven copies were also made for circulation and signatures by Thomas
Bullock, one of my clerks.
Four, p.m. A meeting of the citizens in the assembly room, [over
President Smith's store] when Brigham Young was chosen chairman of the
meeting, and Willard Richards, clerk.
The object of the meeting was briefly explained by the clerk, followed
by Judge Phelps, which was to petition Congress for redress of
grievances in relation to the Missouri persecutions.
Voted that the chairman appoint a committee to get the names of
memorialists in this city.
The chairman appointed the assessors and collectors in their several
wards.
Voted that the same committee collect means to purchase paper.
President Sidney Rigdon to go to La Harpe, and Elder Heber C. Kimball
to Ramus, to procure signers.
The chairman appointed committees to visit other places.
Joseph Smith, the Mayor, made some remarks, and his Appeal to the Green
Mountain Boys was read by William W. Phelps, as follows:--
_President Smith's Appeal to his Native State--Vermont._
I was born in Sharon, Vermont, in 1805, where the first quarter of
my life grew with the growth and strengthened with the strength
of that "first-born" State of the "United Thirteen." From the old
"French War" to the final consummation of American Independence, my
fathers, heart to heart, and shoulder to shoulder, with the noble
fathers of our liberty, fought and bled; and with the most of that
venerable band of patriots, they have gone to rest, bequeathing
a glorious country, with all her inherent rights, to millions of
posterity. Like other honest citizens, I not only (when manhood
came,) sought my own peace, prosperity, and happiness, but also
the peace, prosperity, and happiness of my friends; and, with all
the rights and realm before me, {89} and the revelations of Jesus
Christ to guide me into all truth, I had good reasons to enter into
the blessings and privileges of an American citizen, the rights
of a Green Mountain Boy, unmolested, and enjoy life and religion
according to the most virtuous and enlightened customs, rules, and
etiquette of the nineteenth century. But, to the disgrace of the
United States, it is not so. These rights and privileges, together
with a large amount of property, have been wrested from me, and
thousands of my friends, by lawless mobs in Missouri, supported by
executive authority; and the crime of plundering our property, and
the unconstitutional and barbarous act of our expulsion, and even
the inhumanity of murdering men, women, and children, have received
the_ pass-word of "justifiable"_ by legislative enactments; and the
horrid deeds, doleful and disgraceful as they are, have been paid
for by Government.
In vain have we sought for redress of grievances and a restoration
to our rights in the courts and legislature of Missouri. In vain
have we sought for our rights and the remuneration for our property
in the halls of Congress and at the hands of the President. The
only consolation yet experienced from these highest tribunals and
_mercy-seats_ of our bleeding country _is that our cause is just,
but the Government has no power to redress us_.
Our arms were forcibly taken from us by those Missouri marauders;
and, in spite of every effort to have them returned, the State of
Missouri still retains them: and the United States militia law,
with this fact before the Government, still compels us to military
duty; and, for a lack of said arms, the law _forces us to pay
fines._ As Shakespeare would say "_thereby hangs a tale._"
Several hundred thousand dollars' worth of land in Missouri was
purchased at the United States Land Offices in that district of
country and the money, without doubt, has been appropriated to
strengthen the army and navy, or increase the power and glory
of the nation in some other way. And notwithstanding Missouri
has robbed and mobbed me and twelve or fifteen thousand innocent
inhabitants, murdered hundreds, and expelled the residue, at
the point of the bayonet, without law, contrary to the express
language of the Constitution of the United States and every State
in the Union, and contrary to the custom and usage of civilized
nations, and especially one holding up the motto, "_The asylum of
the oppressed._" yet the comfort we receive to raise our wounded
bodies and invigorate our troubled spirits, on account of such
immense sacrifices of life, property, patience, and right, and as
an equivalent for the enormous taxes we are compelled to pay to
support these functionaries in a dignified manner, after we have
petitioned and pleaded with tears, and been showed like a caravan
of foreign animals, for the peculiar gratification of connoiseurs
in humanity, that flare {90} along in public life like lamps upon
lamp-posts, because they are better calculated for the schemes of
the night than for the scenes of the day, is, as President Van
Buren said, _Your cause is just, but Government has no power to
redress you_!
No wonder, after the Pharisee's prayer, the publican smote his
breast and said, "_Lord be merciful to me a sinner!"_ What must the
manacled nations think of freemen's rights in the land of liberty?
[7] * * *
Now, therefore, having failed in every attempt to obtain
satisfaction at the tribunals, where all men seek for it, according
to the rules of right, I am compelled to appeal to the honor
and patriotism of my native State--to the clemency and valor
of "Green Mountain Boys;" for throughout the various periods
of the world, whenever a nation, kingdom, state, family, or
individual has received an insult or an injury from a superior
force, (unless satisfaction was made,) it has been the custom
to call in the aid of friends to assist in obtaining redress.
For proof we have only to refer to the recovery of Lot and his
effects by Abraham in the days of Sodom and Gomorrah, or to turn
to the relief afforded by France and Holland for the achievement
of the Independence of these United States, without bringing up
the great bulk of historical facts, rules, laws, decrees, and
treaties, and Bible records, by which nations have been governed,
to show that mutual alliance for the general benefit of mankind
to retaliate and repel foreign aggressions. To punish and prevent
home wrongs, when the conservators of justice and the laws have
failed to afford a remedy, are not only common and in the highest
sense justifiable and wise, but they are also poorer expedients to
promote the enjoyment of equal rights, the pursuit of happiness,
the preservation of life, and the benefit of posterity.
With all these facts before me, and a pure desire to ameliorate the
condition of the poor and unfortunate among men, and, if possible,
to entice all men from evil to good, and with firm reliance that
God will reward the just, I have been stimulated to call upon my
native State for a "union of all honest men," and to appeal to the
valor of the "Green Mountain Boys" by all honorable methods and
means to assist me in obtaining justice from Missouri, not only for
the property she has stolen and confiscated, the murders she has
committed among my friends, and for our expulsion from the State,
but also to humble and chastise or abase her for the disgrace she
has brought upon constitutional liberty until she atones for her
sins.
I appeal also to the fraternity of brethren who are bound by
kindred ties to assist a brother in distress in all cases where it
can be done according {91} to the rules of order, to extend the
boon of benevolence and protection in avenging the Lord of His
enemies, as if a Solomon, a Hiram, a St. John, or a Washington
raised his hands before a wondering world, and exclaimed, "My life
for his!" Light, liberty, and virtue forever!
I bring this appeal before my native State, for the solemn reason
that an injury has been done, and crimes have been committed,
which a sovereign State, of the Federal compact, one of the great
family of _"E pluribus unum,"_ refuses to compensate, by consent
of parties, rules of law, customs of nations, or in any other way.
I bring it also because the National Government has fallen short
of affording the necessary relief, as before stated, _for want of
power,_ leaving a large body of her own free citizens, whose wealth
went freely into her treasury for lands, and whose gold and silver
for taxes still fills the pockets of her dignitaries "in ermine and
lace," defrauded, robbed, plundered, ravished, driven, exiled, and
banished from the "Independent Republic of Missouri!"
And in the appeal let me say, Raise your towers, pile your
monuments to the skies, build your steam frigates, spread
yourselves far and wide, and open the iron eyes of your bulwarks
by sea and land; and let the towering church steeples marshal
the country like the dreadful splendor of an army with bayonets.
But remember the flood of Noah; remember the fate of Sodom and
Gomorrah; remember the dispersion and confusion at the tower of
Babel; remember the destruction of Pharaoh and his hosts; remember
the handwriting upon the wall, _"Mene, mene, tekel upharsin;"_
remember the angel's visit to Sennacherib, and the one hundred and
eighty-five thousand Assyrians; remember the end of the Jews and
Jerusalem, and remember the Lord Almighty will avenge the blood of
His Saints that now crimsons the skirts of Missouri! Shall wisdom
cry aloud, and her speech not be heard?
Has the majesty of American liberty sunk into such vile servitude
and oppression, that justice has fled? Have the glory and influence
of a Washington, an Adams, a Jefferson, a Lafayette, and a host
of others, forever departed; and the wrath of a Cain, a Judas,
and a Nero whirled forth in the heraldry of hell, to sprinkle our
garments with blood, and lighten the darkness of midnight with the
blaze of our dwellings? Where is the patriotism of '76? Where is
the virtue of our forefathers? and where is the sacred honor of
freemen!
Must we, because we believe in the fullness of the Gospel of Jesus
Christ, the administration of angels, and the communion of the Holy
Ghost, like the Prophets and Apostles of old,--must we be mobbed
with impunity, be exiled from our habitations and property without
{92} remedy, murdered without mercy, and Government find the
weapons and pay the vagabonds for doing the jobs, and give them the
plunder into the bargain? Must we, because we believe in enjoying
the constitutional privilege and right of worshiping Almighty God
according to the dictates of our own consciences, and because we
believe in repentance, and baptism for the remission of sins, the
gift of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands, the resurrection
of the dead, the millennium, the day of judgment, and the Book of
Mormon as the history of the aborigines of this continent,--must
we be expelled from the institutions of our country, the rights of
citizenship and the graves of our friends and brethren, and the
Government lock the gate of humanity and shut the door of redress
against us? If so, farewell freedom! adieu to personal safety! and
let the red hot wrath of an offended God purify the nation of such
sinks of corruption; for that realm is hurrying to ruin where vice
has the power to expel virtue.
My father, who stood several times in the battles of the American
Revolution, till his companions in arms had been shot dead at
his feet, was forced from his home in Far West, Missouri, by
those civilized--or satanized--savages, in the dreary season of
winter, to seek a shelter in another State; and the vicissitudes
and sufferings consequent to his flight brought his honored grey
head to the grave a few months after. And my youngest brother
also, in the vigor and bloom of youth, from his great exposure and
fatigue in endeavoring to assist his parents on their journey, (I
and my brother Hyrum being in chains, in dungeons, in Missouri,
_where they tried to feed us with--human flesh_) was likewise
so debilitated that he found a premature grave shortly after
my father; and my mother, too, though she yet lingers among
us, from her extreme exposure in that dreadful tragedy, was
filled with rheumatic affections and other diseases, which leave
her no enjoyment of health. She is sinking in grief and pain,
broken-hearted, from Missouri persecution.
O death! wilt thou not give to every honest man a heated dart to
sting those wretches while they pollute the land? And O Grave! wilt
thou not _open the trap door_ to the pit of ungodly men, that they
may stumble in?
I appeal to the "Green Mountain Boys" of my native State to rise in
the majesty of virtuous freemen, and by all honorable means help
to bring Missouri to the bar of justice. If there is one whisper
from the spirit of Ethan Allen, or a gleam from the shade of a
General Stark, let it mingle with our sense of honor and fire our
bosoms for the cause of suffering innocence, for the reputation of
our disgraced country, and for the glory of God; and may all the
earth bear me witness, if Missouri--blood-stained Missouri, escapes
the due merit of her {93} crimes--the vengeance she so justly
deserves--that Vermont is a hypocrite, a _coward_ and this nation
the hotbed of political demagogues!
I make this appeal to the sons of liberty of my native State for
help to frustrate the wicked designs of sinful men. I make it to
hush the violence of mobs. I make it to cope with the unhallowed
influence of wicked men in high places. I make it to resent the
insult and injury made to an innocent, unoffending people, by a
lawless ruffian State. I make it to obtain justice where law is
put at defiance. I make it to wipe off the stain of blood from our
nation's escutcheon. I make it to show presidents, governors, and
rulers prudence. I make it to fill honorable men with discretion.
I make it to teach senators wisdom. I make it to teach judges
justice. I make it to point clergymen to the path of virtue. And
I make it to turn the hearts of this nation to the truth and
realities of pure and undefiled religion, that they may escape the
perdition of ungodly men; and Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is my
Great Counselor.
Wherefore let the rich and the learned, the wise and the noble, the
poor and the needy, the bond and the free, both black and white,
take heed to their ways, and a leave to the knowledge of God, and
execute justice and judgment upon the earth in righteousness, and
prepare to meet the judge of the quick and the dead, for the hour
of His coming is nigh.
And I must go on as the herald of grace,
Till the wide-spreading conflict is over.
And burst through the curtains of tyrannic night;
Yes, I must go on to gather our race,
Till the high blazing flame of Jehovah
Illumines the globe as a triumph of right.
As a friend of equal rights to all men, and a messenger of the
everlasting Gospel of Jesus Christ, I have the honor to be,
Your devoted servant,
JOSEPH SMITH.
Sidney Rigdon spoke.
Parley P. Pratt confessed he was wrong in one thing in Missouri; that
is, he left alive, and left them alive; and asked forgiveness, and
promised never to do so again.
Parley P. Pratt offered to deliver the President's "Appeal to the Green
Mountain Boys" to all the large towns in New York, if he could have a
copy.
The President offered a copy and it was voted that {94} Elder Pratt
shall have this mission granted him, and voted in addition that he go
to all the towns in Vermont.
The Chairman [Brigham Young] spoke.
The Mayor [President Smith] spoke. Said he rose to make a confession,
that he used all his influence to prevent the brethren from fighting
when mobbed in Missouri. If I did wrong, I will not do so any more. It
was a suggestion of the head. He would never do so again; but when the
mobs come upon you, kill them. I never will restrain you again, but
will go and help you.
The Chairman [Brigham Young] spoke again; acknowledged his wrong; said
he would never put his hand on Brother Hosea Stout's shoulder again to
hold him back when he was abused.
John Taylor spoke of Missouri; said he would never submit to such
treatment again.
Mayor [President Smith] spoke again. If I do not stand with those who
will stand by me in the hour of trouble and danger, without faltering,
I give you leave to shoot me. [8]
Mayor read a letter in reply to one he wrote to Henry Clay.
Parley P. Pratt stated that the history of the persecution was put into
the hand of Henry Clay.
{95} Moved by Joseph Smith, That every man in the meeting who could
wield a pen write an address to his mother country. Carried.
Mayor read the Memorial to Congress. The State rights doctrines are
what feed mobs. They are a dead carcass--a stink, and they shall ascend
up as a stink offering in the nose of the Almighty.
They shall be oppressed as they have oppressed us, not by "Mormons,"
but by others in power. They shall drink a drink offering, the
bitterest dregs, not from the "Mormons," but from a meaner source than
themselves. God shall curse them.
Adjourned till next Monday evening, early candle-light.
At ten, a.m., rode out with Mr. Jackson. At home most all day.
The "Appeal to the Green Mountain Boys" sent to press.
Severe frost, so that the ice is on the water in the house.
W. L. D. Ewing writes to Major John Bills--
_Letter: W. L. D. Ewing, State Auditor, Illinois, to Major John
Bills--Legion Affairs._
The foregoing opinions constitute my reason for refusing to issue
the warrants in your favor. I am not satisfied myself entirely
of the correctness of the opinions of the Attorney-General. If
you should be dissatisfied with the decision, I would advise you
to raise the question before the Supreme Court, which will be in
session on the 2nd Monday of December. I am the more anxious that
this should be done because I wish to be satisfied whether I was
correct or not in issuing warrants to you in the spring. Be pleased
to advise me on the subject.
Respectfully,
W. L. D. EWING, Auditor.
Enclosing the opinion of the Attorney-General, Josiah Lamborn, as
follows:--
_Letter: J. Lamborn, Attorney General of Illinois--Legal Opinion of
Above._
SPRINGFIELD, ILLINOIS, Nov. 30, 1843.
I have examined the claim of J. C. Bennett as brigade-inspector of
the Nauvoo Legion, and it is my opinion that the claim should be
disallowed.
{96} The Legislature, in giving authority for the organization of a
body of "independent military men" at Nauvoo, intended, no doubt,
that all expenses, &c., except "their proportion of public arms,"
should be defrayed by the city and its privileged Legion.
They occupy a novel position, disconnected from the military
communities of the whole State, and in no way subject to the
regular military officers, possessing an exemption even from
subjection to the general military laws, with a law-making power
invested in their own Legion. It is not reasonable to suppose that
the Legislature would confer so many exclusive favors, and yet pay
those who profit by this condition of things as much as is paid to
regular militia officers.
In the absence of any express provision by law to authorize the
payment of the claim, I can see nothing from which an authority of
the kind could be derived, and therefore advise accordingly.
J. LAMBORN, Attorney-General.
And copy of letter from J. N. McDougall to General W. L. D. Ewing:--
_Letter: J. N. McDougall to State Auditor._
SPRINGFIELD, ILLINOIS, Nov. 30, 1843.
_General W. L. D. Ewing, Auditor, &.c._--
I have examined the claim of John Bills, brigade-major of the
Nauvoo Legion, for services under the 53rd section of the militia
law, and have arrived at the conclusion that the Nauvoo Legion
are not to be considered as a part of the regular militia of this
State, and that the general law has no further application to
them than is expressly provided for in the law authorizing their
organization. The law providing for the organization of the Legion
making no provision for the payment of its officers by the State,
it is my opinion that the above claim ought not to be audited.
The Legion was organized by the City Council, is subject to
their control for the purpose of enforcing their ordinances. It
is entirely independent of the general military law, may have a
different organization, make laws for its own government, and seems
evidently designed to sustain the municipal authorities of Nauvoo.
If there are expenses to be paid, the municipality of which they
form a very important element, must meet them. I am, with great
respect,
Your obedient servant,
J. N. McDOUGALL.
Mr. Ewing reported to Major Bills that the returns made {97} out [for
Mr. Bills], and sent to the State Department, were the best reports by
any brigade-major in the State, and did him great credit: the refusal
to pay him for his services is a mere pretext, as the Nauvoo Charter
requires that the Nauvoo Legion shall perform the same amount of duty
as is now or may hereafter be required of the regular militia of the
State, and shall be at the disposal of the Governor for the public
defense and the execution of the laws of the State, and be entitled to
their proportion of the State arms; and were it not for the prejudice
against us on account of our religion, his claim would have been paid
without a word of complaint.
Footnotes:
1. The omitted part of the letter is a paragraph in which are quoted
a number of foreign phrases from Egyptian, Hebrew, Greek, German,
Portuguese and other tongues; which are in no way germane to the
subject discussed, but are a mere pedantic display, doubtless admitted,
in this instance, in a spirit of humor by President Smith, as an
offset to Bennett's assumption of so lofty an intellect--a mind of "so
mathematical and philosophical a cast--that the divinity of Moses,"
etc., made no "impression" on him. The display of foreign phrases was
doubtless the work of W. W. Phelps, who had some smattering knowledge
of languages, which he was ever fond of displaying. Unfortunately
similar displays were injected into President Smith's appeal to his
native state--Vermont; and his paper, "Views of the Powers and Policy
of the Government of the United States." These injections were also
doubtless the work of Elder Phelps, who was one of the Prophet's clerks
and amanuenses when the documents named above were prepared. Because
these displays of pedantry mar these documents, and are in no way
germane to the subjects of which they treat, and are not really the
work of President Smith, they are omitted from the papers referred to
as published in this HISTORY, the omission being indicated by ellipses
signs.
2. Not in the blasphemous sense attributed to him by some anti-Mormon
writers; namely, that God was subordinate to him--his right hand
man (See Riley's "Founder of Mormonism" Ch. X); but in the sense of
the passage near the close of his address to "The Green Mountain
Boys" (this chapter)--"And Jesus Christ, the son of God, is my Great
Counselor"--reverently said.
3. The General Government finally constructed a canal around the rapids
at a cost of $4,582,000, completing the work in 1877. The canal is
seven and a half miles in length and has in it three locks, overcoming
the obstruction in river navigation which the Des Moines rapids in
early days presented. It is called the Des Moines Rapids Canal.
4. This Col. Frierson resided at Quincy, was a political representative
of John C. Calhoun, then an active aspirant for the presidency of the
United States. See letter of Joseph L. Heywood, pp. 62, 63.
5. The reason Col. John Frierson interested himself in this matter
was that Hon. R. B. Rhett a representative in the National Congress
from South Carolina, and a political friend of John C. Calhoun, had
expressed a willingness to present to Congress a memorial for a redress
of grievances suffered by the Saints in Missouri; and of course all
this in the interest of Calhoun as candidate for President. See pp.
62-63; also _Nauvoo Neighbor_ for the 5th June, 1844.
6. This is an error. Col. Frierson has confounded two incidents--the
"Battle" at Crooked River, and a movement in Daviess county. General
Doniphan gave no orders in respect of the skirmish in which David
Patten lost his life, usually called the "Battle of Crooked River;" but
he and also General Park gave some orders to Col. Wight d Col. Hinkle
in relation to movements of militia in Daviess County against Millport
and Gallatin. (See Vol. III, Ch. XII.)
7. The omission here indicated is the paragraph of foreign phrases not
germane to the matter as explained in the footnote at page 75.
8. Relative to the spirit of this meeting in Nauvoo on the 29th
of November, 1843; and also of many of the articles published as
Editorials, and letters that were written about this time to public
men, the reader should be reminded that these leading brethren of the
Church were speaking and writing under a great stress of feeling--under
a sense of outraged justice. Their minds had been refreshed and
their feelings again wrought up by the detailed recital of the acts
of injustice endured in Missouri by the Memorial to congress drawn
up by Colonel Frierson; and under such circumstances it is scarcely
to be expected that strong men will not give expression to the
vehemence they feel. Edmund Burke once said in defense of the rashness
expressed in both speech and action of some of the patriots of the
American Revolution, that "_It is not fair to judge the temper or the
disposition of any man or set of men when they are composed and at
rest from their conduct or there expressions in a state of disturbance
and irritation."_ The justice of Burke's assertion has never been
questioned, and without any wresting whatsoever it may be applied to
the prominent Church leaders on the occasion of this meeting at Nauvoo;
and, moreover, they saw again forming those mobocratic tendencies in
Illinois from which they had suffered in Missouri.
{98}
CHAPTER V.
THE AVERY KIDNAPPING--DEFENSIVE PREPARATIONS AGAINST MISSOURI
MOBS--APPEALS TO THE GENERAL GOVERNMENT FOR PROTECTION--NAUVOO LEGION
OFFERED AS UNITED STATES TROOPS.
_Friday, December 1, 1843.--_At home. In the evening, walking out and
administering to the sick.
At noon, Dr. Willard Richards called on me to get a petition to
Congress for an appropriation to improve the Rapids.
[Sidenote: Progress of the Work.]
I continue to receive letters from Elders in the different States,
giving news of the progress of the work.
Clear and cold day. Some ice floating in the river.
_Saturday 2.--_Prayer-meeting from one to six p.m., in the assembly
room over the store. Orson Hyde, Parley P. Pratt, Wilford Woodruff,
George A. Smith, and Orson Spencer received their endowments and
further instructions in the Priesthood. About thirty-five persons
present.
A conference was held at Alexander in Genesee county, New York. Ten
branches, containing 44 Elders and 206 members, were represented. Two
High Priests, one Seventy, 21 Elders and one Deacon present.
[Sidenote: Hyrum Smith Meets with an Accident.]
_Sunday, 3.--_I arrived at the assembly room [1] about noon: found
all present, except Hyrum and his wife. He had slipped and turned his
knee-joint backward, and sprained the large muscle of his leg, and I
had been ministering unto him. Emma had been unwell during the night.
After the meeting was organized, William W. Phelps {99} read my "Appeal
to the Green Mountain Boys," which was dedicated by prayer after all
had spoken upon it. We also prayed for Nathan Pratt, who was very sick,
Hyrum, and others. I afterwards instructed them in the things of the
Priesthood.
_Monday, 4.--_At six in the evening, I attended the adjourned meeting
of citizens in the assembly room, which was crowded with a select
congregation. Many could not get admission. There were two Missourians
present. I made some observations at the opening of the meeting,
requested them to be calm and cool, but let the spirit of '76 burn in
their bosoms, and when occasion requires, say little, but act; and when
the mob comes, mow a hole through them.
My "Appeal to the Green Mountain Boys" was read by W. W. Phelps.
Elder Parley P. Pratt read his "Appeal to the State of New York."
[Sidenote: Number of the Prophet's Vexatious Lawsuits]
My clerk, Willard Richards, read the memorial to Congress, when the
assembly unanimously voted their approbation of the memorial, when
I spoke two-and-a-half hours, relating many circumstances which
transpired in Missouri, not mentioned in the memorial. I have already
had thirty-eight vexatious lawsuits, and have paid Missouri $150,000
for land. I borrowed $500 of Judge Young in Washington, to pay the
expenses of the party that accompanied me, and had to borrow of others.
Daniel Avery and his son were kidnapped from the neighborhood of Warsaw
by a company of Missourians, assisted by some anti-Mormons of this
county, and carried into Missouri. [2]
_Tuesday, 5.--_Six p.m., met the Twelve, also Phelps, Clayton, and
Turley, in council, in the office, on important business.
{100} Advised the Twelve to raise money to send to Elder Hyde, who is
east, for him to get paper to print the Doctrine and Covenants, and get
new type and metal for stereotyping the same.
_Wednesday, 6.--_At home and took the following affidavit:--
_Chapman's Affidavit in the Avery Case._
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
CITY OF NAUVOO. ss.
On the sixth day of December, in the year of our Lord one thousand
eight hundred and forty-three, came Delmore Chapman before me,
Joseph Smith, mayor of said city; and after being duly sworn,
deposeth and saith that on the nineteenth day of November, 1843, a
man named Richardson came to one of his neighbors living in Bear
Creek precinct, in the county of Hancock, named Philander Avery,
and enticed him to the Mississippi at Warsaw, by false pretenses;
and from thence by a company he was forced over the river and
taken to Monticello jail; and that on the second day of December,
some of the same party and others came to the aforesaid Bear Creek
and kidnapped Daniel Avery, the father of the aforesaid Philander
Avery, and by force of arms hurried him across the said Mississippi
river into the State of Missouri, to aforesaid jail at Monticello,
Lewis county, where your said affiant verily believes they are both
now incarcerated illegally and inhumanly in prison; and further
report says that some of them are to come to Nauvoo next, to kidnap
Nelson Turner; and further your affiant saith not.
DELMORE CHAPMAN.
Subscribed and sworn to before me, this sixth day of December, 1843.
JOSEPH SMITH, Mayor.
Upon which I wrote to his Excellency Thomas Ford:--
LETTER--PRESIDENT JOSEPH SMITH TO GOVERNOR FORD.
NAUVOO, December 6, 1843.
SIR:--The enclosed affidavit is forwarded to your Excellency for
instructions to know what shall be done in the premises. I shall
act according to the best of my judgment, constitutionally, till I
receive your instructions, and in the meantime shall forward, as
soon as they can be had, all the facts relative to the case as a
suitable person will go {101} immediately to the place and get the
necessary affidavits. Send your instructions by the bearer.
Respectfully, I have the honor to be,
Your obedient servant,
JOSEPH SMITH,
Lieutenant-General of N. L.
P. S. Shall any portion of the Legion be called out?
N. B. An express has just reached me that Governor Reynolds will
make another demand for me. I rely on the honor of Illinois, for
no writ can legally issue against me. I have suffered from their
insatiable thirst for my blood long enough, and want the peace of
my family to remain undisturbed.
_Wednesday, 6_.--Esquire Goodwin and others, not members of the Church,
petitioned the Governor not to help Missouri to persecute the Saints.
_Thursday, 7.--_At eleven a.m. a meeting of the citizens of Nauvoo was
held. The minutes of which I extract from the _Neighbor_ as follows:--
PUBLIC MEETING AT NAUVOO.
At a meeting of the citizens of Nauvoo, held near the Temple, on
the 7th day of December, 1843, Alpheus Cutler was called to the
chair, and Willard Richards appointed secretary; whereupon, after
the object of the meeting was stated, a committee of three--namely,
W. W. Phelps, Reynolds Cahoon, and Hosea Stout, were appointed to
draft a preamble and resolutions expressive of the sentiments of
the people of the city of Nauvoo relative to the repeated unlawful
demands by the State of Missouri for the body of General Joseph
Smith, as well as the common, cruel practice of kidnapping citizens
of Illinois, and forcing them across the Mississippi river, and
then incarcerating them in the dungeons or prisons of Missouri. And
after a few minutes' absence they returned with the following:--
RESOLUTIONS.
Whereas, the State of Missouri, with the Governor at the head,
continues to make demands upon the executive of Illinois for the
body of General Joseph Smith, as we verily believe, to keep up a
system of persecution against the Church of Latter-day Saints,
for the purpose of justifying the said State of Missouri in her
diabolical, unheard of, cruel and unconstitutional warfare against
said Church of Latter-day Saints, and which she has practiced
during the last twelve years, whereby {102} many have been
murdered, mobbed and ravished, and the whole community expelled
from the State:
And also to heave dust in the eyes of the nation and the world,
while she, as a State, with the Government to back her, continues
to slip over the river to steal the property of the Latter-day
Saints, and kidnap the members of said Church to glut her
vengeance, malice, revenge, and avarice, and to make slaves of the
said captives or murder them: Therefore,
Resolved unanimously: As we do know that Joseph Smith is not guilty
of any charge made against him by the said State of Missouri,
but is a good, industrious, well-meaning, and worthy citizen of
Illinois, and an officer that does faithfully and impartially
administer the laws of the State, that we as citizens of Illinois,
crave the protection of the Constitution and laws of the country
as an _aegis_ to shield him, the said General Joseph Smith, from
such cruel persecutions, beseeching the Governor of Illinois not
to issue any more writs against the said General Joseph Smith, or
other Latter-day Saints (unless they are guilty), but to let the
Latter-day Saints "breathe awhile like other men," and enjoy the
liberty guaranteed to every honest citizen by the Magna Charta of
our common country.
Resolved, That as citizens of the State of Illinois, we solicit
the attention of the Governor and officers generally of the State
to take some lawful means and measures to regain the citizens that
have been kidnapped by the Missourians, and to prevent the said
Missourians and government from committing further violence upon
the citizens of Illinois.
Resolved, as the sense of this meeting, That, according to the true
meaning of the law, those citizens of any section of country who do
not rise up as virtuous freemen (when any portion of inhabitants
congregate or combine to injure, slander, or deprive another
portion of their rights,) and magnify the law, to clear themselves
from such unhallowed attempts to subvert order and law, that they
by their silence make themselves accessories of the crime of such
unlawful assemblage or outrageous individuals.
Resolved, unanimously, That we solicit the Governor by all
honorable means to grant us peace, for we will have it.
ALPHEUS CUTLER, Chairman.
WILLARD RICHARDS, Secretary.
In the afternoon, Lucien Woodworth started with the papers to the
Governor, and the petition from Goodwin and others, and Delmore
Chapman's affidavit.
[Sidenote: Provision for German Meetings.]
{103} The German brethren met at the assembly room at six p.m., and
choose Bishop Daniel Garn as their Presiding Elder, and organized to
have preaching in their native language.
Directed copies of my Appeal to the various authorities of Vermont and
the United States.
[Sidenote: Precautionary Steps against Missouri Invasion]
_Friday, 8.--_At eleven a.m. I went to my office and gave instructions
to my clerk for the drawing of a draft of a dam on the Mississippi
river, an directed that the city council be called at four this
afternoon to make preparations for any invasion from Missouri.
Willard Richards and Philip B. Lewis made an affidavit, which I
insert:--
_Richards' and Lewis' Affidavit_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
CITY OF NAUVOO. ss.
On the 8th day of December, 1843, came Willard Richards and Philip
B. Lewis before me, Joseph Smith, Mayor of said city, and after
being duly sworn, depose and say that they have been informed
that two men have been kidnapped recently by the Missourians, in
connection with some of the lawless inhabitants of the county of
Hancock, and that rumors are now afloat that it is the intention of
said lawless persons, in connection with the aforesaid Missourians,
to kidnap some of the citizens of this city; and further your
affiants would state that they are of opinion, to prevent
difficulties of such a vexatious nature, that something should be
done to secure the peace of this city from being disturbed. And
further your affiants say not.
WILLARD RICHARDS,
PHILIP B. LEWIS.
Subscribed and sworn to before me, this 8th day of December, 1843.
W. W. PHELPS, Clerk.
Whereupon I issued the following notification;--
_An Order to the City Marshal_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
CITY OF NAUVOO. ss.
_To the Marshal of said City, Greeting_:--
Whereas complaint has been made to me upon oath, that some persons
have been kidnapped by the Missourians, in connection with {104}
some of the lawless inhabitants of Hancock county, and that
threats have been made that some of the citizens of Nauvoo will be
kidnapped or arrested, and forcibly carried away from said city
without being allowed the benefit of the writ of _habeas corpus_,
according to the ordinance in such case made and provided, you
will therefore take the necessary measures to have the rights of
the citizens of this city held sacred, and the ordinances of said
city duly carried into full force and effect. To which end, should
you judge that the peace and safety of the city require it, you
are further notified to call for a suitable portion of the Nauvoo
Legion to be in complete readiness to compel obedience to the
ordinances of the said city.
Given under my hand and seal this 8th day of December, 1843.
JOSEPH SMITH, Mayor,
W. W. PHELPS, Clerk, M. C.
In consequence thereof, I received from the City Marshal;--
_The City Marshal's Reply_.
CITY OF NAUVOO, December 8, 1843.
SIR:--Your order to have the ordinances of this city fully carried
into effect will be duly attended to; but in order to so do, it
will be necessary for you as Mayor of the city, to issue orders
to Major General Wilson Law for a suitable portion of the Nauvoo
Legion to be in readiness to _compel obedience_ to said ordinances,
if necessary.
Respectfully, &c.,
HENRY G. SHERWOOD, City Marshal.
_To Joseph Smith, Mayor_.
And I issued:--
_Mayor's Order to the Commander of the Nauvoo Legion_.
"HEADQUARTERS NAUVOO LEGION,
CITY OF NAUVOO, Dec. 8, 1843.
The Marshal of this city having made a demand of me for a suitable
portion of the Nauvoo Legion to protect the rights of the citizens
and carry the ordinances of said city into full effect, you are
hereby directed and required to hold in readiness such portions of
the said Nauvoo Legion, which you have the honor to command, as may
be necessary to compel obedience to the ordinances of said city and
secure the peace of the citizens, and call them out, if occasion
require, without further notice.
With due regard, I have the honor to be
Your obedient servant,
JOSEPH SMITH,
Lieutenant-General. N. L.
_Major-General Wilson Law,_
Commanding Nauvoo Legion.
{105} Four p.m., attended City Council, which passed "An extra
ordinance for the extra case of Joseph Smith and others."
_Special Ordinance in the Prophet's Case, vs. Missouri_.
Whereas, Joseph Smith has been three times arrested and three
times acquitted upon writs founded upon supposed crimes or charges
preferred by the State of Missouri, which acquittals were made
from investigations upon writs of _habeas corpus_--namely one in
the United States Court for the district of Illinois, one in the
Circuit Court of the State of Illinois, and one in the Municipal
Court of Nauvoo:
And whereas, a _nolle prosequi_ has once been entered in the courts
of Missouri upon all the cases of Missouri against Joseph Smith and
others:
And whereas, there appears to be a determined resolution by the
State of Missouri to continue these unjust, illegal, and murderous
demands for the body of General Joseph Smith:
And whereas, it has become intolerable to be thus continually
harassed and robbed of our money to defray the expenses of these
prosecutions:
And whereas, according to the Constitution of Illinois, "all men
are born equally free and independent, and have certain inherent
and indefeasible rights, among which are those of enjoying and
defending life and liberty, and of acquiring, possessing, and
protecting property and reputation, and pursuing their own
happiness:"
And whereas, it is our bounden duty, by all common means, if
possible, to put a stop to such vexatious lawsuits and save
expense: Therefore--
Section 1. Be it ordained by the City Council of the City of
Nauvoo, according to the intent and meaning of the Charter for the
"benefit and convenience" of Nauvoo, that hereafter, if any person
or persons shall come with process, demand, or requisition, founded
upon the aforesaid Missouri difficulties, to arrest said Joseph
Smith, he or they so offending shall be subject to be arrested by
any officer of the city, with or without process, and tried by the
Municipal Court, upon testimony, and, if found guilty, sentenced to
imprisonment in the city prison for life; which convict or convicts
can only be pardoned by the Governor, with the consent of the Mayor
of said city.
Section 2. And be it further ordained that the preceding section
shall apply to the case of every and all persons that may be
arrested, demanded, or required upon any charge founded in the
aforesaid Missouri difficulties.
Section 3. And be it further ordained that the jury that makes the
presentment, in any case above specified, shall not, nor either of
them, {106} act as jurors on the final trial; but the trial shall
be conducted according to the fifth and sixth articles of the
amendment to the Constitution of the United States.
Passed December 8, 1843.
JOSEPH SMITH, Mayor.
WILLARD RICHARDS, Recorder. [3]
The City Council also passed "An ordinance to erect a dam in the
Mississippi river, and for other purposes."
_Ordinance Providing for the Erection of a Dam in the Mississippi_.
Section 1. Be it ordained by the City Council of the City of
Nauvoo, that Joseph Smith and his successors for the term of
perpetual succession are hereby authorized and empowered to erect
a dam, of suitable height to propel mills and machinery, from
any point within the limits of said city and below the Nauvoo
House, and in a proper direction to reach the island this side
of Montrose; but not to interfere with the main channel of the
Mississippi river.
Section 2. And be it further ordained that the said Joseph Smith
and his successors are further authorized to erect north of the
aforesaid island, a dam, pier, or breakwater to intersect the
sandbar above.
Section 3. Be it further ordained that said Joseph Smith and
his successors are also authorized and have full liberty to use
the said dam and water for the purpose of propelling mills and
machinery, and shall be governed in their rates of toll and rules
of manufactory by ordinance of said city.
Section 4. And be it further ordained that the said Joseph Smith
and his successors are further authorized and empowered to use the
space within the limits of the said dam as a harbor or basin for
steamboats and other water craft; and for which purpose they may
construct docks, wharfs, and landings, and receive such fees for
wharfage as may be regulated by ordinance of said city.
Section 5. And be it further ordained that said Joseph Smith and
his successors are further authorized to build an embankment on the
east side of the aforesaid island, to connect the said dam with the
pier on the north, and to use the top of said dam for a public road
or highway, receiving for compensation from those who cross upon it
such rates as may be allowed by ordinance of said city.
Passed December 8, 1843.
JOSEPH SMITH, Mayor.
WILLARD RICHARDS, Recorder.
[Sidenote: Petition for Nauvoo to Be Placed under the General
Government]
{107} I suggested to the Council the idea of petitioning Congress to
receive the City of Nauvoo under the protection of the United States
Government, to acknowledge the Nauvoo Legion as U. S. troops, and to
assist in fortifications and other purposes, and that a messenger be
sent to Congress for this purpose at the expense of the city.
Messrs. John Taylor, Orson Spencer, and Orson Pratt were appointed a
committee to draft a memorial according to my suggestions.
_Saturday, 9_.--At home.
Prayer-meeting in the assembly room.
I copy from the _Neighbor_.
PUBLIC MEETING AT NAUVOO MAKING AN APPEAL TO THE GENERAL GOVERNMENT
ON SUNDRY LOCAL AFFAIRS.
At a very large meeting of the citizens of Nauvoo, held at the
corner of Main and Water streets, Mr. Heber C. Kimball was elected
chairman, and John M. Bernhisel appointed secretary. Mr. George
A. Smith having made a few observations, Mr. John Taylor read the
preamble and resolutions of a meeting held at the temple, on the
7th instant; also an ordinance entitled "An extra ordinance for
the extra case of Joseph Smith and others," recently passed by
the City Council of the City of Nauvoo; likewise the fifth and
sixth articles of the amendments of the Constitution of the United
States, and the opinion of the Attorney-General of the State of
Illinois on the subject of the organization of the Nauvoo Legion,
he being of the opinion that said Legion was disconnected from the
military communities of the whole State, and in no way subject to
the regular military officers, possessing an exemption even from
subjection to the general military laws, with a law-making power
vested in their own Legion.
After some pertinent remarks by Mr. Taylor, General Joseph Smith
briefly addressed the meeting. He dissented entirely from the
opinion of the Attorney-General, and observed that it was stated in
the Charter that the Legion was a part of the Militia of Illinois,
and that his commission declared that he (General Smith) was the
Lieutenant-General of the Nauvoo Legion and of the Militia of the
State of Illinois; and as such, it was not only his duty to enforce
the city ordinance, but the laws of the State, when called on by
the Governor. He also stated that he had been informed that the
Chief Magistrate of Missouri had it in {108} contemplation to make
another requisition on the Governor of Illinois for him (Joseph
Smith).
The meeting then adjourned _sine die_.
H. C. KIMBALL, Chairman.
J. M. BERNHISEL, Secretary.
Received the following;--
_Letter of Wilson Law to Joseph Smith Anent the Legion_.
NAUVOO LEGION, NAUVOO CITY,
December 9, 1843.
_Lieutenant-General Joseph Smith_.
In consequence of the orders I received from you "to hold in
readiness a sufficient portion of the legion, &c.,--to make said
forces efficient," it will be necessary to supply them with
munitions of war, which of course must be done at the expense
of the city. You will therefore please to give orders to the
commandants of cohorts on their application to you on the city
treasury for whatever amount you may think proper on the present
occasion.
Most respectfully your obedient servant,
WILSON LAW,
Major-General, N. L.
_Sunday, 10.--_Rainy day. I stayed at home.
A prayer-meeting held this evening in the assembly room. I was not
present. Brigham Young presided. Several sick persons were prayed for.
[Sidenote: Avery Case--a Reminiscence of Missouri Days.]
By letter from J. White, deputy sheriff of Clark county, Missouri,
I learn that Mr. Daniel Avery is in Marion county prison, without
trial. The sheriff requests several men to go there as witnesses. It
is evidently a trap to get some more of our people into their power.
When I was in prison in Missouri, my witnesses were arrested before
they got into court to testify, except one, who was kicked out of the
court by an officer, Lieutenant Cook, who damned him, and ordered some
of his company to shoot him. After which, the State's attorney, Birch,
turned to me tauntingly, saying, "Why the hell don't you bring on your
witnesses?" and Judge King laughed at my discomfiture. The Saints have
had enough of Missouri mob justice.
{109} _Monday, 11._ The following affidavit will show that some of
the citizens of Illinois are so far fallen and so much governed by
mobocratic influence as to assist the Missouri wretches in their
hellish designs:--
_Affidavit of Sission Chase--The Avery Case_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
HANCOCK COUNTY. ss.
On the 11th day of December, 1843, came Sission A. Chase before me
Aaron Johnson, a Justice of the Peace of said county; and, after
being duly sworn, deposeth and saith that the crime of kidnapping
has been committed in Hancock County; and on the 2nd day of this
present December, 1843, at the house of Schrench Freeman, about
four miles and a half south of Warsaw, in said county, your said
affiant heard a man by the name of John Elliot say that he was
going a shooting turkeys. When asked what he was going to shoot
them with, he showed a brace of pistols and a large hickory cane.
Your affiant observed that he thought he could not kill turkeys
with such weapons; and the said Elliot said that there was a
certain cock he meant to take before night, and they would do for
that. He, the said Elliot, went off, and your affiant did not see
him till Sunday evening the 3rd, when your affiant asked the said
Elliot if he had caught his turkey; and he replied, yes, the one
he was after--a Mormon Elder. Your affiant then asked him who he
was; and he said, Daniel Avery. Your affiant then asked the said
Elliot what had been done with said Avery; and he said we put him
on to a horse, tied his legs, and guarded him to the river, from
whence, about ten o'clock at night, we took him into Clark county,
Missouri, for stealing a horse four years ago, where they would try
him; and if found guilty, they would then take him into another
county, where there was a jail, as there was none in Clark county.
On the 4th day of December, I asked him if they had writs or
authority to take Mr. Avery. He replied, we all had writs. On the
5th, said Elliot said he expected to get into difficulty on account
of this scrape; but if any Mormon makes any business with me, I
will shoot him. And further your affiant says not.
SISSION A. CHASE.
Subscribed and sworn to this 11th day of December, 1843, before me
AARON JOHNSON, J. P.
Which I sent to the Governor, with this letter:--
_Letter--Joseph Smith to Governor Ford_.
NAUVOO, December 11, 1843.
SIR:--I herewith forward your Excellency another affidavit on the
subject of the late kidnapping, and shall continue [to do] the same
as they {110} come to hand, expecting your cordial co-operation in
the premises that the laws may be magnified and made honorable, and
our lives held precious, our friends saved from jeopardy, and the
captives freed.
Respectfully, I have the honor to be
Your obedient servant,
JOSEPH SMITH.
[Sidenote: Nauvoo's Police Force Enlarged.]
Meetings were held and resolutions passed in all the wards of the city,
requesting the city council to raise a company of forty men to act as
police.
Last night, two ruffians, whose names are unknown, went to the house
of Brother Richard Badham--a farmer living on the prairie, robbed the
house of $4.50, threatened his life, stabbed him in the abdomen, when
part of his caul gushed out. Dr. John M. Bernhisel dressed his wounds
today, and he thinks there is a prospect of his recovering.
_Tuesday, 12.--_In office at nine a.m., and wrote a letter to my
uncle:--
_Letter--Joseph Smith to John Smith--The Latter Appointed a
Patriarch_.
_President John Smith:--_The petition of a special conference at
Macedonia of last November for your appointment as Patriarch in
the Church has been received, duly considered, and is granted. You
have my best wishes in your behalf, as well as my prayers, that
you may fill so honorable and exalted a station with the dignity,
sobriety, and grace which has hitherto characterized your conduct
and communion with men, as a man of God.
Respectfully yours,
JOSEPH SMITH.
At ten, a.m., attended City Council, which passed an ordinance
exempting all church property from city tax.
In accordance with the petitions from the several wards, the council
passed the following:--"An ordinance for selecting forty policemen and
for other purposes.
_Ordinance Enlarging Police Force_.
"Section 1. Be it ordained by the City Council of the City of
Nauvoo that the Mayor of said city be, and is hereby authorized to
select and have in readiness for every emergency forty policemen,
to be at his {111} disposal in maintaining the peace and dignity of
the citizens, and enforcing the ordinances of the said city, for
ferreting out thieves and bringing them to justice, and to act as
daily and nightly watchmen, and be under the pay of said city."
Passed December 12, 1843.
JOSEPH SMITH, Mayor.
W. RICHARDS, Recorder.
The Council also passed "An ordinance for the health and convenience of
travelers and other persons."
_Ordinance on the Personal Sale of Liquors_.
Section 1. Be it ordained by the City Council of Nauvoo, that the
Mayor of the city be and is hereby authorized to sell or give
spirits of any quantity as he in his wisdom shall judge to be for
the health and comfort, or convenience of such travelers or other
persons as shall visit his house from time to time.
Passed December 12, 1843.
JOSEPH SMITH, Mayor.
WILLARD RICHARDS, Recorder.
_Wednesday, 13.--_At home.
I insert an editorial from the _Neighbor_:--
PUBLIC MEETING AT NAUVOO--THE AGGRESSIONS OF MISSOURI.
It will be seen in another column that a public meeting was held
in this place for the purpose of providing some remedy for the
repeated aggressions of the State of Missouri; since which time an
ordinance has been passed by the City Council to carry into effect
that object, and to prevent the citizens of this place from being
any longer imposed upon by the continued illegal proceedings of the
state and citizens of Missouri.
We think that it is high time that something should be done to
screen ourselves from the continued aggressions of the meddling,
troublesome, bloodthirsty herd; and we know of no means that will
be more efficient and lawful than the one adopted.
We have done good for evil long enough, in all conscience. We think
that we have fulfilled the Scriptures every whit. They have smitten
us on the one cheek, and we have turned the other, and they have
smitten that also.
We have also fulfilled the law, and more than fulfilled it. And
for sake of peace, when we knew that we had violated no law, nor
in anywise subjected ourselves to persecutions, we have endured
the wrong patiently, without offering violence or in anywise
injuring the heartless wretches who could be trusted with such a
dishonorable document. {112} Those vagabonds have been suffered to
prowl at large, and boast of their inglorious deeds in our midst;
and no man has injured them, or said, Why do you so?
The time, however, is now gone by for this mode of proceeding,
and those vagabonds must keep within their own borders and let
peaceable citizens alone, or receive the due merit of their crimes.
We think that this ordinance passed by the City Council is wise,
judicious, and well-timed, and is well calculated to protect
peaceable citizens in their rights, and to prevent those lawless
vagabonds from interfering with the rights of peaceable citizens.
To those unacquainted with our relationship to Missouri, and the
accumulated wrongs and repeated aggressions that we have received
from the hands of that State, our language may appear harsh and
ill timed; but those who are in possession of those facts know
better. Their merciless, unrelenting, inhuman prosecutions and
persecutions, from the time of our first settlement in that state
until the present, have been wholly and entirely unprovoked and
without the shadow of law.
Joseph Smith has been suffered to be taken time and again by
them; we say suffered, because he could not be legally and
constitutionally taken, Joseph Smith never committed the crimes of
which he is charged. He is an innocent man.
But allowing their false, diabolical accusations to be true, what
then? Does it follow that he is continually to be followed for the
same offense? Verily no. The Constitution of the United States
expressly says--"Nor shall any person be subject for the same
offense to be _twice_ put in jeopardy of life or limb." And yet we
find that the State of Missouri has put Joseph Smith in jeopardy
no less than four or five times. He was tried once by a military
tribunal in Missouri, and sentenced to be shot. He was afterwards
tried by a pretended civil (mobocratic) court; and since then he
has been several times apprehended, tried, and acquitted for the
same offense, in this State, by Missouri requisitions.
Is he still illegally and unconstitutionally to be held in abeyance
by these miscreants? or shall we as freeborn American citizens,
assert our rights, put the law in force upon those lawless,
prowling vagabonds and say that he shall be free?
Shall we suffer our pockets to be picked through the influence
of these scoundrels eternally, by defending ourselves against
vexatious lawsuits? or shall we take a more summary way, and by
a legal course punish the aggressors, proclaim our freedom, and
shield ourselves under the broad folds of the Constitution? The
latter is the course for us to pursue.
The ordinance passed by the City Council will secure this object;
{113} and we are glad to find that the opinion of J. Lamborn,
attorney general, and J. N. McDougall, correspond so much with
our own--"That the Nauvoo Legion is an independent military
organization, and is by law expressly required to sustain the
municipal laws of Nauvoo.
What are we to say about these kidnappers who infest our borders
and carry away our citizens--those infernals in human shape?
The whole European world has been engaged in a warfare against
those who traffic in human blood. Negotiations have been made,
treaties entered into, and fleets have been sent out, through the
combined efforts of the nations, to put a stop to this inhuman
traffic. But what would those nations think, if they were told the
fact that in America--Republican America, the boasted cradle of
liberty and land of freedom,--that those dealers in human flesh
and blood, negro dealers and drivers, are allowed with impunity to
steal white men, and those sons of liberty can obtain no redress.
Great God! has it come to this, that freeborn American citizens
must be kidnapped by negro drivers? What are our authorities doing!
Why are not these wretches brought to justice? We have heard
that one or two of the citizens of Illinois have been engaged in
assisting these wretches. We shall try to find out who they are and
their whereabouts and make them known; and then, if they are not
brought to condign punishment, we shall say that justice has fled
from Illinois."
_Thursday, 14.--_At home.
Philander Avery arrived in Nauvoo, having made his escape from his
kidnappers in Missouri.
I received the following milk-and-water letter from Governor Ford:--
_Letter--Governor Ford to President Smith_.
SPRINGFIELD, December 12, 1843.
_General Joseph Smith_.
SIR:--I have received your favor of the 6th instant, together with
the proceedings of a public meeting of the citizens of Nauvoo, on
the subject of the late kidnapping, by the people of Missouri and
others, of two citizens of this State.
You request to know if any portion of the Legion shall be called
out. My answer is, No. The Militia cannot be called out, except in
the cases specified by me in my letter to Governor Reynolds, dated
in the month of August last, in which I took the ground that the
Militia can only be called out to repel an invasion, suppress an
insurrection, or on some extreme emergency; and not to suppress,
prevent, or punish individual crimes. I still am of the opinion
that the ground assumed by {114} me on that occasion is the true
one. The prevention and punishment of individual offenses has been
confided by the constitution and laws of this State to the judicial
power, and not to the executive.
If a citizen of the State has been kidnapped, or if property has
been stolen from this State, and carried to the State of Missouri,
those who have done either are guilty of an indictable offense. But
the constitution and the laws have provided no means whereby either
the person or property taken away can be returned, except by an
appeal to the laws of Missouri. The Governor has no legal right to
demand the return of either. The only power I would have would be
simply this: If any of the guilty persons should be charged with
larceny or kidnapping, by indictment or affidavit, duly certified,
and with having fled to Missouri, then I would have the power,
and it would become my duty to make a demand upon the Governor of
Missouri for the surrender of the fugitives, to be tried by the
courts of this State. I am fully satisfied that in ordinary cases
this is all the power I would possess. It would be simply a power
to be exercised in aid of the judicial power. Any other powers to
be exercised by the Governor would be to make him a dictator and a
despot. It is true that an extraordinary case might arise, in which
the inhabitants of one State might arise in warlike and hostile
array against those of another; in which case a state of war would
exist, and then only could I interfere.
I would advise your citizens to be strictly peaceable towards the
people of Missouri. You ought to be aware that in every country
individuals are liable to be visited with wrong, which the law
is slow to redress, and _some of which are never redressed in
this world._ This fact, however, has never been held to be a
justification for violence, not warranted by law.
If any of the people of Nauvoo should invade Missouri for the
purpose of rescuing persons there in jail, the consequence would be
that indictments would be presented against them, and demands made
upon me for their arrest and surrender; which demands I would be
compelled to obey, and thus they would be harassed by interminable
demands and prosecutions; and very likely it would lead to a
species of border warfare, which would be exceedingly annoying to
a peaceable city, and, if you could be placed in the wrong, might
lead to exceedingly unpleasant consequences with reference both to
law and public opinion.
You inform me that you are informed that Governor Reynolds is about
to make a new demand for you; and you implore my protection from
what you term this renewed persecution. In the month of August
last, I was furnished by your friends with a very large amount of
affidavits and evidence, said to be intended to show cause why
no further writs should be issued against you. As they are very
voluminous, {115} I have not yet read them, and probably never
will, unless a new demand should be made; in which case they will
receive a careful perusal; and you may rest assured that no steps
will be taken by me but such as the constitution and laws may
require.
I am, very respectfully, &c.,
THOMAS FORD.
[Sidenote: Comment of the Prophet on Governor Ford's attitude.]
It appears from this letter, that Governor Ford has never taken pains
to examine the evidences placed in his hands, "and probably never
will," in relation to the Missouri writs; and evidently as little
pains to examine the Constitution of the United States or even reflect
upon the ordinary principles of human rights, to suppose that a State,
after having, by a union of executive, judicial and military powers,
exterminated 15,000 of its innocent inhabitants, who were not even
charged with any crime, robbing them of all they possessed on earth,
murdering scores of men, women and children, and expelling all the
others from the State, among strangers, in mid-winter, destitute of
everything upon the face of the earth that could possibly have a
tendency to make life desirable, should be constitutionally entitled to
demand back from banishment persons who have thus suffered its absolute
decrees of exile, to satiate a yet unsatiated thirst for human blood
and torture. O reason, where art thou fled! O humanity, where hast thou
hidden thyself? Patriots of '76, has your blood been spilt in vain,
that in 1843 the Executive of a great Republican State can coolly say,
"I have not yet read them, and probably never will?" Is liberty only a
name? Is protection of person and property fled from free America? _Let
those answer who can_.
[Sidenote: A Sudden Illness of the Prophet.]
_Friday, 15.--_I awoke this morning in good health, but was soon
suddenly seized with a great dryness of the mouth and throat, sickness
of the stomach, and vomited freely. My wife waited on me, assisted by
my scribe, Dr. Willard Richards, and his brother Levi, who administered
to me herbs and mild {116} drinks. I was never prostrated so low, in so
short a time, before; but by evening was considerably revived.
Very warm for the season.
_Saturday, 16.--_This morning I felt considerably better; arose at 10,
and sat all day in the City Council, which was held in my house for my
accommodation.
[Sidenote: Comment on Appeal to the General Government for Protection.]
The Mayor, Aldermen, and Councilors signed officially the Memorial
to Congress for redress of losses and grievances in Missouri. While
discussing the petition to Congress, I prophesied, by virtue of the
holy Priesthood vested in me, and in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ,
that, if Congress will not hear our petition and grant us protection,
they shall be broken up as a government. [4] * * *
I informed the Council that it was my wish they should ask the
privilege of calling on Government for the United States troops to
protect us in our privileges, which is not unconstitutional, but lies
in the breast of Congress.
Heber C. Kimball was duly elected city auctioneer, in place of Charles
Warner, removed.
The Council passed "An ordinance regulating merchants and grocers;"
also "An ordinance concerning the landing of steamers;" and Jonathan
Dunham was appointed wharf-master for one year.
{117} Heber C. Kimball and George A. Smith were appointed a committee
to wait on Mr. Davidson Hibbard, and solicit from him a block of land,
whereon to erect a city prison.
After Council, conversed with some of the Twelve, brother Turley and
others, till 8 p.m. Prayer meeting in the evening.
Warm, foggy, and muddy day.
_Sunday, 17.--_At home till 4 p.m.; attended prayer meeting at the
assembly room. Samuel Harrison Smith admitted. Returned home at 7.
River clear of ice as far up as the Stone Tavern.
Mr. King Follet, one of the constables of Hancock County, started with
ten men this afternoon to arrest John Elliott for kidnapping Daniel
Avery, upon a warrant granted by Aaron Johnson, Esq., J. P.
_Monday, 18.--_After dinner, Constable Follet returned with John
Elliott, a schoolmaster, when an examination was had before Esq.
Johnson, in the assembly room. Elliott was found guilty of kidnapping
Avery, and bound over in the sum of $3,000 to the Circuit court of
Carthage for trial. I endeavored to have the court reduce those bonds,
as Mr. Elliott was comparatively a stranger in Nauvoo; but did not
succeed.
During the investigation, testimony appeared to show that Elliott had
threatened my life; and for this I made affidavit and brought him to
trial before Robert D. Foster, J. P., immediately after he had been
bound over by Esq. Johnson. I extract from the proceedings, in part,
from the _Neighbor_:--
THE TRIAL OF JOHN ELLIOTT.
The prisoner was brought forward, and the court said it was his
privilege to plead for a change of venue, by paying the costs; but
as the costs were not forthcoming, the court proceeded.
Mr. Styles then read the "Act to regulate the apprehension of
offenders and for other purposes," p 219, r. s. The act sets forth
that the use of threatening language is sufficient to criminate
individuals. This we are prepared to prove.
{118} Sisson Chase sworn.
The testimony was similar to that before delivered, [in Chase
affidavit see p. 109] with the following additional items:--
I did ask him if he had authority. In the morning he said that he
would not care about shooting some of the Mormons. In conversation
with him, he carried the idea that a conspiracy was formed against
Joseph Smith and others, and that some of them would be shot. These
conversations were had at different times. He thought Mr. Smith was
a bad character. He thought they ought to be taken. Question: Who?
Joseph Smith and some others.
I told him he had been taken, but had been acquitted. He did not
thank the Governor for that. He carried the idea that there was a
conspiracy against his life, and said we have a plan in operation
that will pop him over.
Mr. Elliott sworn.
By the Court: Is your residence, Mr. Elliott, in this county? Yes.
Messrs. Marr and Styles, attorneys, resident in Nauvoo, made some
thrilling remarks pertaining to the outrageous proceedings of
Missouri. The diabolical conduct of those wretches who could be
engaged in destroying and kidnapping their fellowmen was portrayed
in glowing colors.
Judge Phelps and General Smith then followed on the same subject:
their language was thrillingly eloquent and powerful. If ever
inhumanity and deeds of blood were depicted in their true colors,
it was on that occasion: their thoughts flashed as fire, and they
spake in "words that burned." We never saw the character of General
Smith so clearly developed; for while he abhorred and depicted the
fiendish crime that the culprit stood charged with in its true
colors, he pitied the poor wretch that then stood before him, and
with feelings of commiseration, benevolence, and philanthropy,
withdrew his charge--wished, if it was within the power of the
court, that the culprit might be forgiven,--promised to pay all the
charges, and invited him and those of his friends who came along
with him, to come to his house, and they should be taken care of.
It would be superfluous for us to attempt to give even a faint
outline of the remarks made by the above-named gentlemen. We hope
to have at least a synopsis of their speeches for publication,
which we are sure would be highly interesting to our readers. Upon
the whole, although a painful, yet it was an interesting occasion
and will long be remembered; and unless Mr. Elliott's heart and
those of his friends were made of adamant, it must have made an
indelible impression on their minds, and almost made them hate
themselves.
I received from Aaron Johnson, Esq., the following demand:--
{119} _Legion Aid Applied For_.
CITY OF NAUVOO, December 18, 1843.
SIR:--I have been informed that a writ issued by me for the body of
Levi Williams, for kidnapping Daniel Avery, will be resisted by an
armed force: Therefore, according to the provision of the Charter,
I wish you to order me a detachment of the Nauvoo Legion--say 100
men, to enforce the law of the State, and bring the said Williams
to justice.
AARON JOHNSON, J. P.
Which demand I complied with by writing to Major-General Wilson Law.
_Detachment of the Legion Ordered into Service_.
CITY OF NAUVOO, Dec. 18, 1843.
SIR:--You will detach 100 men, under the direction of Aaron
Johnson, a Justice of the Peace, for the purpose of assisting
the constable in executing the law of the State in taking Levi
Williams, who is charged with kidnapping Daniel Avery.
Yours,
JOSEPH SMITH, Lieut-Gen., N. L.
To MAJOR-GEN. WILSON LAW,
Commanding Nauvoo Legion.
Gen. Wilson detached Colonel Stephen Markham with 100 men for that
purpose.
[Sidenote: Rumors of Mob Risings.]
About 10 p.m., two young men arrived as express, stating that a mob
was collecting at Warsaw, also at Colonel Levi Williams' house; and
messengers had gone to the mob in Missouri to reinforce their number
there.
Dr. Richards made the following affidavit:--
_Affidavit of Willard Richards that Nauvoo was in Danger_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS, CITY OF NAUVOO,
December 18, 1843.
Personally appeared Willard Richards before me, Joseph Smith,
Mayor of said city, and upon his oath deposeth and saith that from
information he has received, he verily believes that the peace of
said city is in danger from a mobocratic assemblage at Warsaw, and
a force collected under the command of Colonel Levi Williams in the
lower part of the county, and runners having been sent to Missouri
to excite the Missourians to join the mobbers in this county, for
the purpose of making {120} a descent on said city, or disturbing
its peaceable inhabitants; and further your deponent saith not.
WILLARD RICHARDS.
Subscribed and sworn to before me this 18th December, 1843.
W. W. PHELPS,
Clerk of the Mayor's Court.
Whereupon I wrote to Major-General Wilson Law:--
_Legion Ordered into Service_.
CITY OF NAUVOO, Dec. 18, 1843.
SIR:--I am credibly informed that a warlike force is collecting at
or near Warsaw, for the purpose of some violent move towards this
city or some of the inhabitants thereof. You will therefore order
out such a portion of the Nauvoo Legion as may be necessary to
repel any such mobocratic or hostile design of the same unlawful
force, and also as may be sufficient to secure the peace of the
citizens, according to law.
Yours,
JOSEPH SMITH, Lieut-Gen. N. L.
MAJOR-GEN. WILSON LAW,
Commanding Nauvoo Legion.
I returned home to rest about one o'clock in the morning of the 19th.
[Sidenote: Moves and Counter Moves of Forces.]
_Tuesday, 19.--_At home. About 9 a.m., a part of the company who went
with Hosea Stout returned, and stated that they went within two miles
of Colonel Williams', when they were informed that a body of men, armed
with rifles, &c., were collected at his house, and he judged it prudent
to return for weapons and help; also that Brother Chester Loveland told
them that he had seen thirty armed men following Constable King Follett
some miles on his way, when he had Elliott in custody.
Esq. Johnson immediately wrote to Loveland to have him come to Nauvoo
and make affidavit of the warlike movements of the mob, that he might
send to the Governor.
I directed my clerks to make copies of the affidavits respecting the
kidnapping of the Averys to send to Governor Ford, that he might be
left without excuse, although he may probably not read them.
{121} Elder William Martindale writes from Washington, Wayne county,
Iowa:--
STRANGE CELESTIAL PHENOMENON--1860.
A singular phenomenon was seen in this neighborhood. Jesse
Fox, William and Lorenzo Fox, David Bale, James Wilson, and
William Cole, with some others, retired to the house of Solomon
Mendenhall, at which place they stayed a short time. While there
they discovered a ball rising from the east in an oblique line;
and as it ascended it moved towards the west with great rapidity
until it was high in the heavens, leaving a streak of light behind
it, which to the natural eye, had the appearance of being thirty
or forty feet in length. This light remained stationary for about
one minute. Both ends then coming round, formed a figure 8, which
figure also retained its position for the same space of time. It
then was transformed into a figure 6, which also remained for about
a minute. It then was formed into a cipher or 0, which remained for
about three minutes. The figures put together made 1860 in large
figures in the heavens. The phenomenon was indeed singular, and has
been a matter of great speculation with us.
[Sidenote: Legion Parade]
At one p.m. I was present when the Legion paraded near the Temple, were
inspected by the officers, and instructed to prepare themselves with
arms and ammunition and to hold themselves in readiness, for a moment's
notice. Brother Henry Boley was shot severely under the arm by the
accidental discharge of his gun.
Amos S. Chase made the following affidavit:--
_Affidavit of Amos Chase_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
CITY OF NAUVOO. ss.
On the 19th day of December, 1843, came Amos S. Chase before me
Joseph Smith, Mayor of said city; and after being duly sworn,
deposeth and saith that on the 18th day of December, 1843, he was
about four miles below Warsaw, in Hancock County, shortly after the
constable arrested John Elliott for being concerned in kidnapping
Daniel Avery, not long since, and saw the men of the neighborhood
gathering with arms to retake the said John Elliott; and when
asked what they would do, if the Governor did not sanction such an
unlawful course, several of them replied, "Damn the Governor! If he
opens his head, we will punch a hole through him! He dare not open
his head! We will serve him the same sauce we will the Mormons."
The said {122} mob then went to Warsaw, where your affiant saw them
with their arms; and further your affiant saith not.
AMOS S. CHASE,
Subscribed and sworn to before me this 19th day of December, 1843.
W. W. PHELPS, Clerk, M. C.
_Wednesday, 20.--_At home, in good health and spirits, counseling and
attending to business in general.
The Clerk of the Municipal Court took the following affidavits:--
AFFIDAVITS OF PHILANDER AVERY--MISSOURI KIDNAPPING.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
CITY OF NAUVOO. ss.
On the 20th day of December, 1843, personally appeared before
me, Willard Richards, clerk of the Municipal Court of said city
Philander Avery, of Bear Creek precinct, in said county, and after
being duly sworn, deposeth and saith that on the 19th day of
November, 1843, at his house, in the precinct aforesaid, Ebenezer
Richardson, of Lee county, Territory of Iowa, by false pretenses,
persuaded your affiant to accompany said Richardson to the
Mississippi river at Warsaw, where your affiant was seized by one
Joseph C. McCoy, of Clark county, Missouri, in connection with the
said Richardson, and about one dozen of other individuals, whose
names are unknown to your affiant, and by them forced across said
Mississippi River, where they bound your affiant; and Mark Childs
swore that your affiant had stolen said McCoy's horse and colt, and
that his father Daniel Avery had secreted said horse and colt, and
said Richardson threatened your affiant with death or seven years'
imprisonment, in order to persuade him to make false statements,
and testify that his father, Daniel Avery, had stolen said McCoy's
horse and colt, which statements your affiant made, and swore
to the same, while in duress, with a bowie-knife presented to
intimidate. And your affiant further saith that the testimony he
gave concerning his father's guilt, was extorted from him through
fear, while in duress, and said testimony was absolutely false,
and your affiant fully believed that his father is innocent of the
crime of stealing said McCoy's horse and colt; and further your
deponent saith not.
PHILANDER AVERY.
[Sidenote: [L. S.]]
Subscribed and sworn to before me; in testimony whereof I have set
my hand and affixed the seal of said court at Nauvoo aforesaid,
this 20th day of December, A. D. 1843.
WILLARD RICHARDS,
Clerk of the Municipal Court of the City of Nauvoo,
{123} _Affidavit of the Hamiltons_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
COUNTY OF HANCOCK, ss.
On the 20th day of December, 1843, personally appeared before me
Aaron Johnson, a Justice of the Peace in and for said county,
Andrew H. Hamilton, and James B. Hamilton, of Bear Creek precinct,
in said county, and, after being duly sworn, depose and say that
on the evening of the 2nd day of December, 1843, at Vernon Doty's
mill, in said precinct, Colonel Levi Williams, of said Hancock
county, as principal, and his son, John Williams, with William
Middleton, of the county of Clark and State of Missouri, Captain
McCoy, of the said county of Clark and State of Missouri, John Fox
of Green Plains precinct, and about a dozen other men, armed with
pistols, dirks and bowie knives came forcibly upon Daniel Avery at
said Doty's mill, and seized and bound him. The said Avery told
them to stand off. They said they had a writ. He observed, he would
not resist legal authority. They said they would take said Avery to
Warsaw, and there to try him. The said Avery replied, "I understand
you: you will take me to Warsaw, and there pass me over the river
to Missouri." Some of said gang then shouted, "Lay hold of him;
G--d d--n him, lay hold of him: there's no use of parleying;" at
which Colonel Levi Williams, with a large bowie-knife in his hand,
and others, then forced the said Daniel Avery to submit, telling
him (without a writ,) that his life would be taken if he did not
submit. They then tied him with silk handkerchiefs. Colonel Levi
Williams and another person then led the said Daniel Avery away;
and as they passed your affiants within the distance of about four
rods, the said Daniel Avery cried out to one of your said affiants,
"tell my friends where I am gone." Colonel Williams told said Avery
to hold his peace, for it was of no use. William Middleton then got
a horse; and after tying him upon said horse, as sworn to before by
another witness, they then conveyed him to Missouri without an by
another witness, they then conveyed him to Missouri without a writ
or trial, as your affiants verily believe; and further they say not.
ANDREW M. HAMILTON.
JAMES B. HAMILTON.
Subscribed and sworn to this 20th day of December, 1843, before me.
AARON JOHNSON, J.P.
Footnotes:
1. This was the upper room of President Smith's brick store.
2. This occurred on the 2nd of December. See Avery's Affidavit, Chapter
VI, this volume.
3. The Ordinance was about a month later repealed at the suggestion of
President Smith.
4. This prediction doubtless has reference to the party in power;
to the "government" considered as the administration; not to the
"government" considered as the country; but the administration party,
the Democratic Party, which had controlled the destiny of the country
for forty years. It is matter of history that few years later the party
then in power lost control of the national government, followed by the
terrible conflict of the Civil War. The Party against which the above
prediction was made so far lost its influence that it did not again
return to power for a quarter of a century; and when it did return to
power it was with such modified views as to many great questions of
government, that it could scarcely be regarded as the same party except
in name.
Lest it should be urged that the Whig party was in control of the
government in 1843, I call attention to the fact that while General
Harrison, a Whig, was elected in 1840, he was President only one month,
as he died on the 4th of April, 1841. His whole cabinet, excepting Mr.
Webster, Secretary of State, resigned, and the Vice President became
President. Though elected by the Whigs Mr. Tyler was a Democrat "and
the Whig administration had but a month's actual existence." (See
History of the United States, Morris, pp. 311, 312).
{124}
CHAPTER VI.
MEMORIAL OF CITY COUNCIL TO CONGRESS ANENT MISSOURI AFFAIRS--ROCKWELL'S
RETURN TO NAUVOO--RECITAL OF HIS ADVENTURES--AVERY'S ACQUITTAL BY
MISSOURI'S COURTS--NAUVOO'S POLICE FORCE INCREASED--PUBLICATIONS ON
MORMONISM, PRO ET CON--1843.
_Thursday, December 21, 1843.--_About one o'clock in the morning I was
alarmed by the firing of a gun, got up, and went down to the river
bank to see the guard, and inquire the cause of it. To my surprise,
they had not heard it, although I felt sure it was fired in Montrose.
The morning proved it to be correct, some rowdies in Montrose had been
firing in the night.
At noon met with the City Council which voted that Councilor Orson
Pratt present the Memorial and Ordinance to Congress.
Passed "An ordinance to prevent unlawful search or seizure of person or
property by foreign [i.e. outside] process in the city of Nauvoo."
Heber C. Kimball resigned his office as city auctioneer and Charles
Warner was re-elected.
John P. Greene was duly elected city marshal, in the room of Henry G.
Sherwood, who expects to leave soon.
[Sidenote: The Prophet for a Clean, Orderly City.]
I gave instructions to the marshal and policemen to see that all
carrion is removed out of the city, and all houses kept in order,--to
stop the boys when fighting in the streets, and prevent children from
floating off on the ice, and correct anything out of order, like
fathers; and I offered to build the city jail, if it was left to my
dictation, which the Council authorized me to do.
{125} I insert the Memorial from the City Council to the Congress of
the United States for redress of grievances and protection from further
persecution, which was signed by them:--
MEMORIAL OF THE CITY COUNCIL TO CONGRESS.
_"To the Honorable Senators and Representatives of the United
States of America in Congress assembled_,
We, the undersigned members of the City Council of the City of
Nauvoo, citizens of Hancock County, Illinois, and exiles from
the State of Missouri, being in council assembled, unanimously
and respectfully, for ourselves, and in behalf of many thousands
of other exiles, memorialize the honorable Senators and
Representatives of our nation upon the subject of the unparalleled
persecutions and cruelties inflicted upon us and upon our
constituents by the constituted authorities of the State of
Missouri, and likewise upon the subject of the present unfortunate
circumstances in which we are placed in the land of our exile. As
a history of the Missouri outrages has been extensively published,
both in this country and in Europe, it is deemed unnecessary to
particularize all of the wrongs and grievances inflicted upon us in
this memorial. As there is an abundance of well-attested documents
to which your honorable body can at any time refer, hence we only
embody the following important items for your consideration.
First:--Your memorialists, as freeborn citizens of this great
republic, relying with the utmost confidence upon the sacred
"articles of the Constitution," by which the several States are
bound together, and considering ourselves entitled to all the
privileges and immunities of free citizens in what State soever we
desired to locate ourselves, commenced a settlement in the county
of Jackson, on the western frontiers of the State of Missouri, in
the summer of 1831.
There we purchased lands from the Government, erected several
hundred houses, made extensive improvements, and shortly the wild
and lonely prairies and stately forests were converted into well
cultivated and fruitful fields. There we expected to spend our days
in the enjoyment of all the rights and liberties bequeathed to us
by the sufferings and blood of our noble ancestors. But alas! our
expectations were vain.
Two years had scarcely elapsed before we were unlawfully and
unconstitutionally assaulted by an organized mob, consisting of the
highest officers in the county, both civil and military, who openly
and boldly avowed their determination in a written circular to
drive us from said county.
As a specimen of their treasonable and cruel designs, your
honorable {126} body are referred to said circular, of which the
following is but a short extract,--namely: "We the undersigned
citizens of Jackson county, believing that an important crisis
is at hand, as regards our civil society, in consequence of a
pretended religious sect of people that have settled and are still
settling in our county, styling themselves Mormons, and intending
as we do to rid our society, 'peaceably if we can, forcibly if
we must;' and believing as we do that the arm of the civil law
does not afford us a guarantee, or at least a sufficient one,
against the evils which are now inflicted upon us, and seem to be
increasing by the said religious sect, deem it expedient and of the
highest importance to form ourselves into a company for the better
and easier accomplishment of our purpose."
This document was closed in the following words--"We therefore
agree that, after timely warning, and receiving an adequate
compensation for what little property they cannot take with them,
they refuse to leave us in peace, as they found us, we agree to use
such means as may be sufficient to remove them; and to that end we
each pledge to each other our bodily powers, our lives, fortunes,
and sacred honors."
To this unconstitutional document were attached the names of nearly
every officer in the county, together with the names of hundreds of
others.
It was by this band of murderers that your memorialists, in the
year 1833, were plundered of their property and robbed of their
peaceable homes. It was by them that their fields were laid waste,
their houses burned, and their men, women, and children, to the
number of about twelve hundred persons, banished as exiles from the
county, while others were cruelly murdered by their hands.
Second: After our expulsion from Jackson county, we settled in
Clay county, on the opposite side of the Missouri river, where we
purchased lands both from the old settlers and from the [U. S.]
Land Office: but soon we were again violently threatened by mobs,
and obliged to leave our homes, and seek out a new location.
Third: Our next settlement was in Caldwell county, where we
purchased the most of the land in said county, beside a part of the
lands in Daviess and Carroll counties. These counties were almost
entirely in a wild and uncultivated state; but, by the persevering
industry of our citizens, large and extensive farms were opened in
every direction, well stocked with numerous flocks and herds. We
also commenced settlements in several other counties of the state,
and once more confidently hoped to enjoy the hard-earned fruits of
our labor unmolested.
But our hopes were soon blasted. The cruel and murderous spirit
which first began to manifest itself in the constituted authorities
and inhabitants of Jackson county, and afterwards in Clay and the
surrounding {127} counties, receiving no check either from the
civil or military power of the state, had in the meantime taken
courage, and boldly and fearlessly spread its contaminating and
treasonable influence into every department of the government
of said state. Lieutenant-Governor Boggs, a resident of Jackson
county, who acted a conspicuous part in our expulsion from said
county, instead of being tried for treason and rebellion against
the Constitution, and suffering the just penalty of his crimes, was
actually elected governor; and placed in the executive chair.
Thus the inhabitants of the State were greatly encouraged to renew
with redoubled fury, their unlawful attacks upon our defenseless
settlements. Men, women, and children were driven away in every
direction before their merciless persecutors, robbed of their
possessions, their property, their provisions, and their all, cast
forth upon the bleak, snowy prairies, houseless and unprotected.
Many sank down and expired under their accumulated sufferings,
while others, after enduring hunger and the severities of the
season, suffering all but death, arrived in Caldwell county, to
which place they were driven from all the surrounding counties,
only to witness a still more heart-rending scene.
In vain had we appealed to the constituted authorities of Missouri
for protection and redress of our former grievances. In vain we
now stretched out our hands and appealed as the citizens of this
great republic to the sympathies, to the justice, and magnanimity
of those in power. In vain we implored again and again at the feet
of Governor Boggs, our former persecutor, for aid and protection
against the ravages and murders now inflicted upon our defenseless
and unoffending citizens. The cry of American citizens, already
twice driven and deprived of liberty, could not penetrate their
adamantine hearts.
The Governor, instead of sending us aid, issued a proclamation for
our extermination and banishment, ordered out the forces of the
State, placed them under the command of General Clark, who, to
execute these exterminating orders, marched several thousand troops
into our settlements in Caldwell county, where, unrestrained by
fear of law or justice, and urged on by the highest authority of
the state, they laid waste our fields of corn, shot down our cattle
and hogs for sport, burned our dwellings, inhumanly butchered
some eighteen or twenty defenseless citizens, dragged from their
hiding-places little children, and placing the muzzles of their
guns to their heads, shot them [such acts being accompanied] with
the most horrid oaths and imprecations.
An aged hero and patriot of the Revolution, who served under
General Washington, while in the act of pleading for quarter, was
cruelly murdered and hewed in pieces with an old corn cutter;
and in addition to all these savage acts of barbarity, they
forcibly dragged virtuous and {128} inoffensive females from their
dwellings, bound them upon benches used for public worship, where
they in great numbers ravished them in the most brutal manner.
Some fifty or sixty of the citizens were thrust into prisons and
dungeons, where, bound in chains, they were fed on human flesh,
while their families and some fifteen thousand others were at the
point of the bayonet, forcibly expelled from the State.
In the meantime, to pay the expenses of these horrid outrages, they
confiscated our property, and robbed us of all our possessions.
Before our final expulsion, with a faint and lingering hope we
petitioned the State legislature then in session, unwilling to
believe that the virtue and patriotism of the venerable fathers
of the Revolution had fled from the bosoms of their illustrious
descendants--unwilling to believe that American citizens could
appeal in vain for a restoration of liberty cruelly wrested from
them by cruel tyrants. But in the language of our noble ancestors,
"our repeated petitions were only answered by repeated injuries."
The legislature, instead of hearing the cries of 15,000
suffering, bleeding, unoffending citizens, sanctioned and sealed
the unconstitutional acts of the governor and his troops,
by appropriating 200,000 dollars to defray the expenses of
exterminating us from the State. No friendly arm was stretched out
to protect us. The last ray of hope for redress in that State was
now entirely extinguished. We saw no other alternative but to bow
down our necks and wear the cruel yoke of oppression, and quietly
and submissively suffer ourselves to be banished as exiles from our
possessions, our property, and our sacred homes, or otherwise see
our wives and children coldly butchered and murdered by tyrants in
power.
Fourth. Our next permanent settlement was in the land of our
exile, the State of Illinois, in the spring of 1839; but even here
we are not secure from our relentless persecutor, the State of
Missouri. Not satisfied in having drenched her soil in the blood
of innocence, and expelling us from her borders, she pursues her
unfortunate victims into banishment, seizing upon and kidnapping
them in their defenseless moments, dragging them across the
Mississippi river, upon their inhospitable shores, there they are
tortured, whipped, immured in dungeons, and finally hung [as a
means of torture, but not unto death] by the neck without any legal
process what ever.
We have memorialized the former Executive of this State, Governor
Carlin, upon these lawless outrages committed upon our citizens;
but he rendered us no protection. Missouri, receiving no check in
her murderous career, continues her depredations, again and again
kidnapping {129} our citizens and robbing us of our property;
while others, who fortunately survived the execution of her bloody
edicts, are again and again demanded by the Executive of that
State, on pretense of some crime said to have been committed by
them during the exterminating expedition against our people.
As an instance, General Joseph Smith, one of your memorialists,
has been three times demanded, tried, and acquitted by the courts
of this State, upon investigation under writs of _habeas corpus_,
once by the United States Court for the District of Illinois, again
by the Circuit Court of the State of Illinois, and lastly by the
Municipal Court of the City of Nauvoo, when at the same time a
_nolle prosequi_ had been entered by the courts of Missouri upon
all the cases of that State against Joseph Smith and others.
Thus the said Joseph Smith has been several times tried for the
same alleged offense, put in jeopardy of life and limb, contrary
to the fifth article of the amendments to the Constitution of the
United States; and thus we have been continually harassed and
robbed of our money to defray the expenses of these vexatious
prosecutions. And what at the present time seems to be still more
alarming, is the hostility manifested by some of the authorities
and citizens of this State [Illinois.] Conventions have been
called, inflammatory speeches made, and many unlawful and
unconstitutional resolutions adopted to deprive us of our rights,
our liberties, and the peaceable enjoyment of our possessions.
From the present hostile aspect, and from bitter experience in
the State of Missouri, it is greatly feared lest the barbarous
scenes acted in that State will be re-acted in this. If Missouri
goes unpunished, others will be greatly encouraged to follow her
murderous examples.
The afflictions of your memorialists have already been
overwhelming--too much for humanity, too much for American citizens
to endure without complaint. We have groaned under the iron hand
of tyranny and oppression these many years. We have been robbed of
our property to the amount of two millions of dollars. We have been
hunted as wild beasts of the forest. We have seen our aged fathers
who fought in the Revolution and our innocent children alike
slaughtered by our persecutors; we have seen the fair daughters
of American citizens insulted and abused in the most inhuman
manner; and finally we have seen fifteen thousand souls--men, women
and children, driven by force of arms during the severities of
the winter from their sacred homes and firesides, penniless and
unprotected, to a land of strangers.
Under all these afflicting circumstances, we imploringly stretch
forth {130} our hands towards the highest councils of our nation,
and humbly appeal to the illustrious Senators and Representatives
of a great and free people for redress and protection.
Hear, O hear the petitioning voice of many thousands of American
citizens, who now groan in exile on Columbia's free soil! Hear, O
hear the weeping and bitter lamentations of widows and orphans,
whose husbands and fathers have been cruelly martyred in the land
where the proud eagle exulting soars! Let it not be recorded in the
archives of the nations that Columbia's exiles sought protection
and redress at your hands, but sought it in vain. It is in your
power to save us, our wives, and our children from a repetition
of the bloodthirsty scenes of Missouri, and greatly relieve the
fears of a persecuted and injured people, by ordaining for their
protection the following ordinance, namely--
AN ORDINANCE
_For the protection of the people styled the Church of Jesus Christ
of Latter-day Saints, residing on the western borders of the State
of Illinois._
PREAMBLE.
Whereas the State of Missouri at sundry times has
unconstitutionally deprived a certain portion of her citizens
(called "Mormons,") of their rights, property, lands, and even of
their lives:
And whereas, in the years 1838 and 1839 the said State of Missouri
with impunity did illegally and inhumanly exile and banish for ever
from her limits and jurisdiction all the said citizens (called
"Mormons,") that remained alive.
And whereas, after being hospitably received by the citizens of
Illinois, the said State of Illinois did grant, enact, and charter
for the benefit and convenience of the said exiled "Mormons" as
follows:--
[Here in the original document is inserted the city charter of Nauvoo
already published, Vol. IV, pp 239-249.]
And whereas, by the 10th article of the Constitution of the
United States as amended--"Art. 10. The powers not delegated to
the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to
the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the
people;" and whereas, according to the fourth article and section
second, "The citizens of each state shall be entitled to all
privileges and immunities of citizens in the several States:" and
whereas, according to the second paragraph of the {131} third
section of said Constitution, "The Congress shall have power to
dispose of and make the needful rules and regulations respecting
territory;" and whereas the said Congress has the power to protect
each state against invasion and insurrection: and whereas most of
the inhabitants of the city of Nauvoo are exiles from the State
of Missouri: and whereas most of the lands owned in the State of
Missouri were purchased from the United States, and patented by
the United States to the amount of more than $200,000 worth: and
whereas the United States are bound to clear the title and protect
it: and whereas the said exiles or expelled "Mormons" have lost in
property and damages about two millions of dollars: and whereas the
said State of Missouri continues her ravages, persecutions, and
plunderings, by kidnapping said exiles from Illinois, and by other
depredations:
Now, therefore, to show the fatherly care of the United States,
to ratify the said charter, to protect the said exiles from mob
violence, and shield them in their rights:--
Section 1. Be it ordained by the Senate and House of
Representatives of the United States of America in Congress
assembled, that all the rights, powers, privileges, and immunities
belonging to Territories, and not repugnant to the Constitution
of the United States, are hereby granted and secured to the
inhabitants of the city of Nauvoo, in addition to the spirit,
letter, meaning, and provisions of the afore-mentioned charter, or
act of incorporation from the State of Illinois, until the State
of Missouri restores to those exiled citizens the lands, rights,
privileges, property, and damage for all losses.
Section 2. And be it further ordained, in order to effect the
object and further intention of this ordinance, and for the peace,
security, happiness, convenience, benefit, and prosperity of the
said city of Nauvoo, and for the common weal and honor of our
country, that the mayor of Nauvoo be, and he is hereby empowered by
this consent of the President of the United States; whenever the
actual necessity of the case and the public safety shall require
it, to call to his aid a sufficient number of United States forces,
in connection with the Nauvoo Legion, to repel the invasion of
mobs, keep the public peace, and protect the innocent from the
unhallowed ravages of lawless banditti that escape justice on the
western frontier; and also to preserve the power and dignity of the
Union.
Section 3. And be it further ordained that the officers of the
United States army are hereby required to obey the requisitions of
this ordinance.
Section 4. And be it further ordained that, for all services
rendered in quelling mobs and preserving the public peace the said
Nauvoo {132} Legion shall be under the same regulations, rules, and
laws of pay as the troops of the United States.
City of Nauvoo, Illinois, December 21st, 1843.
Hyrum Smith, Benjamin Warrington,
John Taylor, Daniel Spencer,
Orson Pratt, Brigham Young,
W. W. Phelps, Orson Hyde,
Heber C. Kimball,
Councilors;
Orson Spencer,
Daniel H. Wells,
Samuel Bennett,
Geo. A. Smith,
Geo. W. Harris,
Aldermen;
Joseph Smith, Mayor;
Willard Richards, Recorder;
John P. Greene, Marshal. [1]
Two letters came into the post-office from the sheriff of Clark County,
Missouri. From them it appears that that State wishes to continue the
old game of seizing witnesses and making prisoners of them, to cover up
her mobocracy and kidnapping under a legal form. The following answer
was written:--
_Letter: W. W. Phelps to J. White, Esq., Anent Avery Affair_.
CITY OF NAUVOO, ILL., Dec. 21, 1843.
SIR,--Two letters were put into my hands this morning relative
to the witnesses of Mr. Avery's innocence as to being accessory
to horse stealing some four years since. In the first place, Mr.
Avery was abducted from this State without process, contrary to
law. In the second place, the principal for felony by the law of
Missouri should be indicted within three years, &c. Again, the
revised statutes of Missouri have a wise provision in such cases
as Mr. Avery's. If Mr. Avery, therefore, will sue out a commission
according to the law concerning {133} depositions, (R. S., page 219
to 222,) directed to Alderman Geo. W. Harris, an acting justice
of the peace for the city of Nauvoo, and county of Hancock, the
necessary testimony to establish Mr. Avery's innocence will be
taken according to law, and forwarded to the proper officer in due
time.
Respectfully, &c..
W. W. PHELPS.
J. WHITE, ESQ., Dep. Sheriff,
Clark Co., Waterloo, Mo.
P.S. You will have the politeness to show this to Mr. Avery.
In the evening I was visited by several strangers, and had considerable
conversation with them.
_Friday, 22.--_At home at nine o'clock, a.m., reading a magazine to my
children.
[Sidenote: Attitude of Prophet on Mobocracy and Politics.]
A little after twelve went into the store-room occupied by Butler
and Lewis, and commenced a conversation with Dr. John F. Charles, to
convince him that mobocracy is not justifiable, and that I did not deal
in politics.
David Holman, living about two miles from Ramus, went out in the
evening with his family visiting. About ten o'clock he discovered his
house on fire. The neighbors had inquired how long he would be gone.
A man rode to Carthage. A company went up, secured the provisions to
themselves, and fired the house.
Warm and pleasant weather.
_Saturday, 23.--_At home, counseling the brethren who called on me, and
attending to my domestic duties, making preparations for a Christmas
dinner party.
Prayer meeting in the Assembly Room.
_Sunday, 24.--_At home. Received a visit from Mr. Richardson, one of
the men who assisted in kidnapping Avery. He manifested some repentance
and sorrow for his part in that transaction, and promised to use what
influence he had with the Missourians to have Avery set at liberty.
[Sidenote: A Christmas Serenade.]
{134} _Monday, 25.--_This morning, about one o'clock, I was aroused by
an English sister, Lettice Rushton, widow of Richard Rushton, Senior,
(who, ten years ago, lost her sight,) accompanied by three of her sons,
with their wives, and her two daughters, with their husbands, and
several of her neighbors, singing, "Mortals, awake! with angels join,"
&c., which caused a thrill of pleasure to run through my soul. All of
my family and boarders arose to hear the serenade, and I felt to thank
my Heavenly Father for their visit, and blessed them in the name of the
Lord. They also visited my brother Hyrum, who was awakened from his
sleep. He arose and went out of doors. He shook hands with and blessed
each one of them in the name of the Lord, and said that he thought
at first that a cohort of angels had come to visit him, it was such
heavenly music to him.
At home all day. About noon, gave counsel to some brethren who called
on me from Morley Settlement, and told them to keep law on their side,
and they would come out well enough.
At two o'clock, about fifty couples sat down at my table to dine. While
I was eating, my scribe called, requesting me to solemnize the marriage
of his brother, Dr. Levi Richards, and Sara Griffiths; but as I could
not leave, I referred him to President Brigham Young, who married them.
[Sidenote: Rockwell's Return to Nauvoo.]
A large party supped at my house, and spent the evening in music,
dancing, &c., in a most cheerful and friendly manner. During the
festivities, a man with his hair long and falling over his shoulders,
and apparently drunk, came in and acted like a Missourian. I requested
the captain of the police to put him out of doors. A scuffle ensued,
and I had an opportunity to look him full in the face, when, to my
great surprise and joy untold, I discovered it was my long-tried,
warm, but cruelly persecuted friend, Orrin {135} Porter Rockwell, just
arrived from nearly a year's imprisonment, without conviction, in
Missouri.
The following is his statement of his experience and sufferings by that
people:--
_Rockwell's Experience in Missouri_.
I, Orrin Porter Rockwell, was on my way from New Jersey to Nauvoo;
and while at St. Louis, on the 4th March, 1843, was arrested
by a Mr. Fox, on oath of Elias Parker, who swore I was the O.
P. Rockwell advertised in the papers as having attempted to
assassinate Lilburn W. Boggs, and was taken before a magistrate in
St. Louis.
I was then put into the St. Louis county jail, and kept two days
with a pair of iron hobbles on my ankles. About midnight, was taken
into the stage coach in charge of Fox, and started for Jefferson
City. There were nine passengers, two of them women. I sat on the
middle seat. One of the men behind me commenced gouging me in the
back. I spoke to him, and told him that it was dark, and I could
not see him, but that he was no gentleman. One of the ladies
whispered to him, and he ceased the operation.
The next night, the driver, being drunk, ran against a tree, and
broke the king bolt; and not knowing what to do, ironed as I was,
I crawled into the boot, and found an extra bolt, and in the dark
fixed the coach, got it off the tree, and we started on. Soon
after, ran against a bank, and could not move. I was asleep at the
time, but the bustle awake me, when I told them, if they would
take off my irons, I would get off and drive, as the driver was
too drunk to manage the horses. They refused. I, however, got hold
of the lines, and, by the help of other passengers lifting at the
wheels, got it righted, and I drove to the next stand, near the
Osage river. The roads were very bad, and the load heavy; so we got
along slowly.
There was an officer of the U. S. army in the coach. We were two
days and two nights from St. Louis in reaching Jefferson City,
where I was lodged in the jail two days and two nights. The U. S.
officer went on.
Started on for Independence, still in charge of Fox. At Boonville,
overtook the U.S. officer. We three were all that were in the coach
all the way from Boonville to Independence. Sheriff Reynolds told
me afterwards that when he looked into the stage he took me for the
guard, and the officer for the prisoner, for he looked like the
guilty one.
Was about four days going to Independence: arrived there just at
night. A large crowd gathered around, making many remarks. Some
{136} were for hanging me at once. I was then placed in the jail.
In two or three days, underwent a sham trial before a justice of
the peace. The courthouse was crowded, and the men were armed with
hickory clubs. They set on boys from ten to twelve years of age to
kick and punch me, which they did repeatedly. While in court, Fox
was the main witness introduced, and he swore falsely.
Fox swore that I had stated to him that I had not been in the
county for five years. I informed the court that Fox swore falsely,
in proof thereof that the people of Independence knew that I had
traveled through Independence several times during that time, for
the people were all well aware of my having visited this place,
which fact alone should satisfy them that Fox was swearing for
money, which I afterwards learned that he obtained and divided with
Parker.
The magistrate committed me to prison for my safe preservation,
as he was afraid the people would kill me; but he could find no
crime against me. This I was told by the officer who conveyed me to
prison.
I was re-committed to jail, still wearing the iron hobbles, and
was kept in the upper part in the day-time, and in the dungeon at
night, with a little dirty straw for a bed, without any bedding, no
fire, and very cold weather. For eighteen days I was not free from
shaking with cold. I then got permission to buy 1 1/2 bushels of
charcoal, which I put into an old kettle, and kept a little fire.
When that was gone, I could not obtain any more.
After I was arrested at St. Louis, I was visited by Joseph Wood, an
apostate "Mormon," who professed to be a lawyer. He was accompanied
by Mr. Blanerhasset, who told me that everything I had would be
taken from me, and proposed to take charge, keep, and return to
me any property I might have with me. I let him have a pair of
pistols, a bowie knife, and watch, which he never returned to me.
After the weather got a little warmer, they furnished me with a few
old newspapers to read. A family lived at the corner of the jail.
The women once in a while used to send out a little negro girl
with a small basket of victuals. She handed up to the grate a big
Missouri whip-stock, with a piece of twine, which I tied to the
pole and drew up the basket, and let it down again.
I made a pin-hook and tied to the twine, and baited with a chunk of
corn-dodger hard enough to knock a negro down with, and stuck it
out of the grated window and fished for pukes. When passers-by came
along, they would stop and gawk at me awhile, and pass on.
A preacher who had a family of girls lived on the opposite side of
the street. The girls would watch and laugh at them, and call out
and ask me if I got any bites. I replied, No, but some glorious
nibbles.
{137} Numbers were put into the jail with me at different
times, and taken out again. One of them, who was charged with a
fraudulent issue of U. S. Treasury notes, was allowed to have his
saddle-bags with him They contained some fire-steels, gun-flints,
and articles of Indian trade. I sawed the irons nearly off with
one of the fire-steels. He got the negro girl to get him a knife,
and I finished cutting the fetters with it. He would frequently
call for a good supper and pay for it, which was allowed him, but
not allowed me. He was very anxious to escape, and urged me to
undertake it with him. He ordered a good supper, and he ate very
heartily. I would not eat, telling him that he could not run if he
ate so much. Nearly dusk, as the jailer came in to get the dishes,
we sprang to the door, and I locked him in, and threw the key into
the garden. In coming down stairs, we met the jailer's wife. I told
her that her husband was unharmed; I had only locked him up. We had
a board fence to climb over, which was about twelve feet high. I
climbed it and ran about twenty rods, when he called me to come and
help him over, which I did. If I had not, I should have escaped.
The pure air had so great an effect upon me, that I gave out and
slacked my pace, The populace of the place came up, and I told them
to run; they would soon catch him; and that I had given out and
could not run. They soon returned with him. I fell into the crowd
and walked back to the jail yard.
Sheriff J. H. Reynolds laid his hand upon my shoulder, he being the
first to approach me. Asked where the key was. I told him, In the
garden.
Smallwood Nowlin was the first who proposed to hang me on the spot,
when Reynolds gave me a push towards the crowd, and said, "There he
is, G--d--n him! Do what you damn please with him." Nowlin's son
in-law (by marrying one of his mulatto wenches), a Mexican, stepped
up to me to lay hold of me, when I told him to stand off, or I
would mash his face. He stepped back.
I then walked up stairs into the jail. Was followed by Reynolds and
others, until the room and stairs were full. Reynolds asked me what
I had cut my irons off with. I went to the saddle-bags and handed
him the knife and fire-steel. While feeling for them, I got hold of
a piece of buckskin that had some three or four pounds of bullets
tied up in it which I intended to use in mashing in the head of any
one that should attempt to put a rope on my neck. A rope was passed
along over the heads of the people into the room to a bald-headed
man. About this time pistols could be heard cocking in every part
of the room, and bowie-knives were produced as if for fight. In a
few minutes the room was clear of all but three or four persons.
{138} I was then put into the dungeon, my feet ironed together,
my right hand to my left foot, so close that I could not half
straighten myself. The irons, when put on my wrists, were so small
that they would hardly go on, and swelled them; but in eighteen
days I could slip them up and turn them around my arm at the elbow.
I was fed on cold corndodger and meat of the poorest description;
and if I did not eat it all up, it was returned the next time.
About a month after the court sat, my irons were taken off, and I
was so weak that I had to be led to the court-room by the officer.
I was notified that a bill was found against me for breaking jail,
and that the grand jury had failed to find a bill against me on the
charge of shooting Boggs, as charged in the advertisement offering
a reward for my apprehension.
I was taken into court, and was asked by the judge if I had any
counsel. I told him I had not. He asked if I had any means to
employ a counsel. I answered that I had none with me that I could
control. He then said, Here are a number of counselors: if I was
acquainted with any of them, I could take my choice. I told him I
would make choice of Mr. Doniphan, who arose and made a speech,
saying he was crowded with business, but that here are plenty of
young lawyers who could plead for me as well as he could. The
judge heard his plea, and then told me he did not consider that a
sufficient excuse, and I could consider Mr. Doniphan my counsel.
I was then ordered back to jail, and ironed again in the same way.
Mr. Doniphan asked for and obtained a change of venue to Clay
County, which is in another district.
When the officers came to Independence jail for me, they requested
me to get ready in a hurry, as they feared the mob would kill me. I
told them I wanted to put on a clean shirt, if it cost me my life,
as I had not been permitted to enjoy the luxury of a change of
linen since I had boarded at the expense of Jackson County. While I
was changing my shirt, the officers several times told me to hurry,
or the mob would be on me and kill me.
When I got ready to start, the officers furnished me a very
hard-trotting horse, with a miserable poor saddle, tied my feet
under the horse with ropes, and my hands behind my back, and
started off at a good round trot, in charge of two officers. In a
short time a strange gentleman fell into our company, who was also
on horseback. It was six miles to the ferry, where we could cross
the Missouri river. When we got there, we saw the boat land on
the opposite side, when several men got off the boat, and took a
course to the woods, through which the road ran. The boat returned.
This stranger asked--"Where are {139} those men going?" and was
answered--"They are going to the woods to hew timber."
We then crossed, and took our way for Liberty. When we left the
boat, we saw no signs of people, nor heard any sound of axes.
After traveling some two or three miles, the woods became dense
and brushy: we heard the crackling of brush, and the noise of
men traveling through it. The officers and stranger appeared
frightened, and urged speed, keeping close watch. We came to an
opening in the woods, when the noise of crackling of brush ceased.
We traveled safely to Liberty, where this stranger told his friends
that he overheard several men in Independence planning to waylay
me in the thick timber on the Missouri bottom, at the place where
we heard the noises; but his being in company counteracted their
plot. I was then lodged in Liberty jail. In a few days afterwards
I learned that the men who went into the brush told it, that they
went into the woods according to agreement to waylay me; but when
they saw this stranger, it frustrated their plans.
In about ten days, on pretext of informality in the papers, I was
remanded back to Independence jail. It was rumored that I was again
going to be waylaid, when the two officers from Clay county took me
by a different road, and so I escaped the second time.
When I was put in Independence jail, I was again ironed hand and
foot, and put in the dungeon, in which condition I remained about
two months. During this time, Joseph H. Reynolds, the sheriff,
told me he was going to arrest Joseph Smith, and they had received
letters from Nauvoo which satisfied them that Joseph Smith had
unlimited confidence in me, that I was capable of toting him in a
carriage or on horseback anywhere that I pleased; and if I would
only tote him out by riding or any other way, so that they could
apprehend him, I might please myself whether I stayed in Illinois
or came back to Missouri; they would protect me, and any pile
that I would name the citizens of Jackson county would donate,
club together, and raise, and that I should never suffer for want
afterwards: "you only deliver Joe Smith into our hands, and name
your pile." I replied--"I will see you all damned first, and then I
won't."
About the time that Joseph was arrested by Reynolds at Dixon, I
knew that they were after him, and [yet had] no means under heaven
of giving him any information. My anxiety became so intense upon
the subject, knowing their determination to kill him, that my flesh
twitched on my bones. I could not help it; twitch it would. While
undergoing this sensation, I heard a dove alight on the window in
the upper room of the jail, and commence cooing, and then went
off. In a short time, he came back to the window, where a pane was
broken: he crept through between the bars of iron, which were about
two and-a-half inches apart. {140} I saw it fly round the trap-door
several times: it did not alight, but continued cooing until it
crept through the bars again, and flew out through the broken
window.
I relate this, as it was the only occurrence of the kind that
happened during my long and weary imprisonment; but it proved a
comfort to me: the twitching of my flesh ceased, and I was fully
satisfied from that moment that they would not get Joseph into
Missouri, and that I should regain my freedom. From the best
estimates that can be made, this incident occurred about the time
when Joseph was in the custody of Reynolds.
In a few days afterwards, Sheriff Reynolds came into the jail and
told me that he had made a failure in the arrest of Joseph.
After the lawyers had been about two months making out fresh
papers, I was again conveyed to Liberty jail on a miserable horse,
with feet and hands tied as before, but [by] a different road.
In a few days afterwards, my mother found where I was, and she came
to see me and brought me $100, whereby I was enabled to fee Mr.
Doniphan for his services as counsel.
The time of trial being continually delayed, I began to be uneasy.
I was handcuffed in the dungeon, which is the basement story of the
prison, and is about nine feet high. I took down the stove-pipe,
pushed my clothes up through the stove-pipe hole, and then crawled
through the hole in the floor, which was made of logs about
fourteen inches thick, into the upper room. The hole was so small
that it scratched my flesh, and made me bleed from many wounds. I
then examined the inside door, and with the bail of the water pail
I unbolted it; but finding I could not get through the outside
door, I returned to my dungeon through the same narrow pass.
The following night I made another attempt through the same way;
but, failing to get through the outside door, I lay down on the
upper floor, where the boys who were bringing my food next morning
found me. They made an alarm, when five or six men came and again
conveyed me down into the dungeon. It caused quite an excitement.
My mother, learning that Mr. Doniphan had returned home, went to
him, and prevailed on him to come and speak to me at the dungeon
grate. While he was talking to me, a little boy, the son of a poor
widow, about five or six years old, who had previously been to
see me, finding I had no fire, had run home and brought some fire
and chips to the grate. Mr. Doniphan said--"You little devil you,
what are you doing here with this fire?" He replied, "I am going
to give it to Mr. Rockwell, so that he can warm him." Doniphan
then said--"You little devil you, take this fire and leave;" when
the little urchin replied {141} (looking him in the face)--"Mr.
Doniphan, you go to hell: I am going to give Mr. Rockwell this
fire, so that he can warm him;" and he pushed it through the grate,
gave me the chips, and continued to supply my daily wants of chips
and fire while I continued in the dungeon.
From Mr. Doniphan I learned that a special term of court was
called, and my trial would come on in about fifteen days. The night
following this visit, some men came to the grates of my dungeon,
and asked if I wanted to get out. I told them, No, as I had been
informed that day that I should have a trial in a fortnight. They
replied--"Honor bright: if you wish to get out, we'll let you out
in a few minutes." I replied that I would rather remain, as my
trial would come on so soon. Next morning one of the men came, put
some money in the cleft of a stick, and put it through the hole to
me. He refused to tell his name; but I knew by his voice that he
was one of the men who came to me in the night.
The trial came on according to my last notification. I was tried
for breaking Independence jail; and although the law of Missouri
reads that, in order to break jail, a man must break a lock, a
door, or a wall, still Judge King ruled that it was breaking jail
to walk out when the door is open; and under this ruling the jury
brought in a verdict of "five minutes' imprisonment in the county
jail;" but I was kept there four or five hours, during which time
several attempts were made to get up some other charge against me.
About 8 p.m. on December 13th, General Doniphan took me out and
told me I must take across the country on foot, and not walk on any
traveled road, unless it was during the night, as they would be apt
to follow and again take me, as they did not care on what grounds,
so they could make me trouble.
I accordingly started, accompanied by my mother, and went to the
house of a widow, where I obtained my first supper in freedom for
more than nine months. We then traveled two miles and obtained $4.
I then took through the woods to the road, where I heard two men
riding on horseback. I hid behind a shady tree, and overheard one
of them say, "He has not been gone many minutes: we shall soon
overtake him."
I went round the houses and traveled in the fields by the side of
the road. The moon was in its first quarter, and I traveled during
the night about twenty-five miles. I carried a little food with me,
and next day traveled on the road, and walked past Crooked River to
a Mr. Taylor's, with all the skin off my feet.
A neighbor offered to take me in for the night, if I would go back
{142} two miles. I did so, found his wife very cross with her
husband, who said, "Stranger, you see my wife is very cross. I have
got some whisky; let's drink: my wife will soon have something to
eat." When supper was eaten, she became good tempered. I stayed in
peace through the night. Next morning I ate breakfast with them,
and gave them fifty cents, when the man brought out a horse, and
sent a little boy with me fourteen miles, which was a very great
relief to my weary feet.
The next night I stopped near where the Haun's Mill massacre took
place.
The third day I walked till noon, and then hired a man to carry
me the remainder of the day for seventy-five cents. Stayed at a
house where I was well acquainted; but the people did not recognize
me, and I did not make myself known. Paid fifty cents for supper,
lodging, breakfast, and being sent twelve miles on horseback the
next morning.
I then continued my journey about thirty miles, where I rested
three days to recruit my feet. I was then carried twenty-five miles
on horseback, and walked the same day twenty-five miles. The day
following I walked forty miles, and then waited another day and
engaged a man to carry me to Montrose, to which place I was three
days in going. I immediately crossed the river to Nauvoo in a small
boat, and came straight to the Mansion.
[Sidenote: Release of Daniel Avery.]
Daniel Avery was liberated from his imprisonment in Missouri by
_habeas corpus._ This was, no doubt, on account of our vigilance in
communicating with the Governor, and endeavoring to prosecute the
kidnappers, and continually making public the conduct of Missouri.
Warm day; rain in the evening.
A PLAN FOR WOMEN'S SUBSCRIPTIONS TO THE TEMPLE.
_(From the Millennial Star.)_
We have much pleasure in publishing and recommending the following
plan to be adopted amongst the sisters of the Church of Jesus
Christ of Latter-day Saints in England. We believe that the
completion of the Temple is as near the hearts of the sisters as
to the hearts of the brethren, and that the following proposed
[plan] will be responded to on the part of the English sisters in a
manner that shall reflect honor upon themselves, and be materially
instrumental in forwarding the great work.
{143} NAUVOO, Dec. 25, 1843.
_To the Sisters of the Church of Jesus Christ in England,
Greeting_:--
DEAR SISTERS:--This is to inform you that we have here entered into
a small weekly subscription for the benefit of the Temple funds.
One thousand have already joined it, while many more are expected,
by which we trust to help forward the great work very much. The
amount is only one cent or a halfpenny per week.
As Brother Amos Fielding is waiting for this, I cannot enlarge
more than to say that myself and Sister Thompson are engaged in
collecting the same.
We remain,
Your affectionate sisters in Christ,
MARY SMITH,
M. R. THOMPSON.
NAUVOO, Dec. 25, 1843.
The ladies' subscription for the Temple, of one cent per week, is
fully sanctioned by the First Presidency.
HYRUM SMITH.
We feel much to encourage this plan, and trust that the sisters in
England will manifest that they will not be behind the sisters in
Nauvoo in this laudable work. One thing in connection with this
work we would mention, and request that it be attended to with the
strictest accuracy; that is, that the name of each individual be
recorded, and the amount which they subscribe, in order that such
names may be transmitted to Nauvoo, where they will have to be
entered in the books of the Lord's House. The sisters or others who
may collect the subscriptions will please to be very particular on
this point.
[Sidenote: Prophet's Joy at the Return of Rockwell and Avery.]
_Tuesday, 26.--_At home. I rejoiced that Rockwell had returned from
the clutches of Missouri, and that God had delivered him out of their
hands. Brother Daniel Avery also arrived about dusk this evening; and
the Missourians have no longer the pleasure of exulting over any Mormon
victims for the present; but their blood-thirstiness will not long be
satisfied unless they seek out another victim on whom to glut their
malice and vengeance.
_Wednesday, 27:--_Cold: a little ice in the river, which has been clear
for some time past.
{144} I received letters from General Lewis Cass, of Michigan, and Hon.
John C. Calhoun, of South Carolina, in answer to mine of Nov. 4.
Mr. Keith gave a lecture and concert of music in the assembly room this
evening.
MR. ROCKWELL.
_(Editorial from the Neighbor.)_
The name of this individual is, no doubt, familiar to most of our
readers. He has obtained some celebrity in the world also, not for
his reputed virtue, but for his supposed crimes.
It will be recollected that he is the person who was basely and
falsely implicated, along with Joseph Smith, as the reputed [would
be] murderer of ex-Governor Boggs, while Mr. Smith was charged with
being accessory before the fact. A vexatious lawsuit was instituted
against Joseph Smith, wherein he was charged with the above-named
crime; and finally, after many attempts of the governor of Missouri
to get him into his power, was acquitted by the United States Court
for the district of Illinois,
Stories of murder and blood were circulated from Maine to Missouri;
they were iterated and reiterated by the newspapers of the whole
Union, and painted in the most glowing colors that human ingenuity
could invent. Mr. Rockwell was branded as a murderer, and Joseph
Smith as accessory before the fact, without any other evidence
than a story fabricated by some of our generous politicians,
engendered in falsehood by hearts as dark as Erebus for religious
and political effect.
This demagoguery and political corruption has caused an innocent
man to be immolated in a Missouri dungeon for upwards of eight
months, without the slightest evidence of his guilt, or even the
most remote evidence of crime leading to his committal. He was
taken without process, and committed to jail upon mere supposition,
and finally acquitted without any shadow of proof having been
adduced from beginning to end. This is the way that Missouri treats
free-born American citizens, and they can obtain no redress.
Mr. Rockwell arrived here on Monday night, and has given us some
of the details of his history since he was first taken in Missouri
to the present time; and we can assure our readers that it will "a
tale unfold" relative to that state, which even many of those who
have been driven therefrom will find it difficult to believe that
there did exist such monsters in human shape.
_Thursday, 28.--_At home. Elder Orson Hyde returned {145} from Adams
county, having obtained quite a number of signatures to the Memorial to
Congress, and made an affidavit of what he learned in Warsaw concerning
the mob.
_Affidavit of Orson Hyde--Disclosing Plan to Drive the Saints_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
CITY OF NAUVOO. ss.
On the 28th day of December, 1843, came Orson Hyde before me,
Joseph Smith, mayor of said city; and after being duly sworn,
deposeth and saith that on the 26th instant, as he was passing from
Lima to Nauvoo, through that part of Hancock county where Colonel
Levi Williams resides, he was credibly informed that on Saturday
previous the anti-Mormons held a meeting, drew up an article, and
passed several resolutions, among which were these:--"We will
revere and hold sacred and inviolate the Constitution of the United
States, and also the Constitution of this State. We will visit the
Mormons residing in our vicinity and require them to give up their
guns; and such as do it shall dwell here in peace; but those who
will not do it may have thirteen days to leave in; and if they
are not off in that time, we will drive them." The above is the
substance, but perhaps not the very words. They also swear that the
Mormons shall never raise another crop in that region, &c.; &c.,
and further this deponent saith not.
ORSON HYDE.
Subscribed and sworn to before me this 28th of December, 1843.
W. W. PHELPS, Clerk, M. C.
Daniel Avery having made affidavit of the cruel treatment he had
recently received at the hands of Missourians, I here insert it:--
_Affidavit of Daniel Avery--His Treatment in Missouri_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
CITY OF NAUVOO. ss.
On the 28th day of December, 1843, came Daniel Avery before me,
Joseph Smith, mayor of the city aforesaid, and after being duly
sworn, deposeth and saith that on the second day of December,
1843, he was unlawfully arrested by force and arms, and kidnapped
at Doty's Mill in Bear Creek precinct, Hancock county, and State
aforesaid, by Colonel Levi Williams, his son John Williams, of
Hancock county; John Elliott, a schoolmaster, from four-and-a-half
miles below Warsaw; William Middleton and Joseph McCoy, of Clark
county, Missouri, and four {146} others. Colonel Williams held
his bowie-knife to his breast. Six of the others stood with their
pistols cocked and their fingers upon the triggers, muzzles
presented at his body, ready to fire; and two stood with clubs, and
amidst the most horrid oaths and imprecations, took and bound with
silk handkerchiefs your said affiant, and led him away between two
men, one holding a savage bowie-knife on one side, and the other
a cocked pistol on the other side, (having taken away your said
affiant's weapons while binding him in the mill,) and led your
affiant about a mile. Your affiant refused to walk any further, and
they put him upon a horse, and tied his legs under the horse; and
John Elliott, the aforesaid schoolmaster, led the horse as fast as
he could make his way, through a thicket and by-way to the house of
the aforesaid Colonel Williams. Here the kidnappers ate and drank;
and after they had unbound me, (for they had bound me so tight that
I was in great pain,) I was also suffered to partake.
They then put me upon the horse again, and bound me, and started
for the river, the said schoolmaster Elliott leading the horse.
When we came near a schoolhouse where there was a meeting, they
came to a halt, sent messengers to the meeting, and in the course
of half an hour they returned with an armed mob, with rifles and
other weapons, sufficient to make the whole company number about
twenty. Being all on horseback, they formed a circle, with your
affiant in the center, who up to that time had acquainted every
man he saw that _they were kidnapping him_, and marched in that
order to a house on a point below Warsaw; and as I was very cold
from being bound, they took me into the house to warm. I now called
for a trial, as I had told them all the way that I never resisted
legal authority. They said they were hunting a magistrate. Said
I, "I understand you; you mean to force me into Missouri." McCoy
returned, and said, "We are ready." It was about midnight. We went
about three hundred yards up the river to a skiff. I refused to
cross as they had promised me a trial. They forced me into a skiff
and bound me, and five men put me across. Their names, so far as
I could ascertain, are William Middleton, William Clark, Joseph
McCoy, John Elliott, and Charles Coolidge. They landed at the
tavern on the south side of the Des Moines, and took me into a back
room, threw down a buffalo robe for my bed; but as my arms were
bound so tight that I could not rest, I complained; told Middleton
that was not the way he was used at my house. They felt at my arms
and exclaimed, "By God, they are not too tight!" I begged to have
one arm liberated, and finally they untied both, and I slept (under
guard) on the buffalo robe before the fire.
About noon they got ready and started with me, guarded upon a
horse, for McCoy's in Clark county, Missouri, about twelve miles
distant. {147} It being night when we arrived, and I unwell
through fatigue and confinement and the abuses before received, I
went to bed. They had sent runners ahead; and after I had been in
bed awhile, the sheriff came up from Waterloo, the county seat,
a distance of about two miles, to arrest me and take me before
a magistrate that night; but Middleton and McCoy objected, as I
was sick. The sheriff, however, executed his writ, and left me in
their care till morning. It being late before we breakfasted, he
came in the morning and made the second scope of his authority and
took me. He quizzed me the night before, to draw something out for
testimony; but as innocence cannot be affected by truth, he was as
wise at one end of the story as the other.
At Waterloo I was examined by a magistrate, who committed me upon
the substance of an affidavit made by my son in duress with a
bowie-knife at his breast, and upon a promise that he should be
liberated from Monticello jail, where he was confined after being
kidnapped some three or four weeks previous. My bonds were fixed at
$1000; and as I had no bail in such a strange place, I was started
for Palmyra jail, in Marion county. The deputy sheriff took me to
Musgrove, the sheriff, a distance of ten miles. Here I sued out a
writ of habeas corpus, but the judge remanded me to prison.
At Monticello my chains were taken off, and I was at liberty in the
midst of a strong guard to view the town. Here a lawyer agreed to
take me and my son through court (as the Missourians say,) for a
horse. Saw my son in the prison; said he was forced at the point of
a bowie-knife to make an affidavit against me; but he knew I was
innocent.
I tried to be left with him in jail; but no, I was compelled to go
to Palmyra, where I arrived the next evening. The sheriff thrust me
into the dungeon without waiting to eat, warm, or anything else.
The next morning the blacksmith came into the jail and ironed me
to the middle of a great chain that was fast to the floor, where I
remained in the horrid gloom of a Missouri prison two weeks.
From thence the deputy sheriff started, with me chained upon the
horse in this wise. He then chained my right leg, and then passed
the chain up to my left hand. In this way I traveled nine miles,
when we stopped, and he changed the chain from my hand to the
horse's neck. We arrived at Monticello, and I was chained all night.
The next day I was conveyed to Waterloo, and delivered into the
custody of the sheriff of Clark county. I was kept under a strong
guard by day, and at night chained to one of the guards or to the
bedpost.
{148} I was informed that Middleton and McCoy procured an
indictment against me, by giving bonds to the amount of some two
or three hundred dollars, that they would hunt up testimony to
the point for next court, there being nothing against me but the
affidavit of my son before alluded to; and so the grand jury found
a bill.
Ellison, my lawyer, deceived me, and put over my case for six
months, because, as I suppose, I, being kidnapped, had no fees for
him. I objected to having my trial put off for six months. I did
not fancy the dungeon of Palmyra prison. The court concluded to
let me to bail under bonds of $1000, but this I could not obtain.
Subsequently it was reduced to $500, but all in vain, for I was
unacquainted with the people.
This was on Saturday, and I was thus left to meditate on the
mischief that may be made out of a little matter by meddlesome men.
On Monday I sued out a writ of habeas corpus; and after a fair
hearing of the matter, I received the following order:--
STATE OF MISSOURI,
COUNTY OF CLARK. ss.
December, 25, 1843.
Ordered by the Clark County Court that Samuel Musgrove, sheriff
of Clark county, discharge Daniel Avery from imprisonment, on an
indictment found against him for the alleged crime of stealing a
mare of Joseph McCoy.
By order of Court.
[Sidenote: [L. S.]]
Witness--Willis Curd, Clerk of said court, and seal of office this
25th of December, 1843.
Done at office in Waterloo, date above.
WILLIS CURD, Clerk.
HONS. JOHN W. DEWELLIN,
HENRY SNIVELY, Judges.
Very early on Tuesday morning your affiant started for Nauvoo and
arrived the same evening about sundown, a distance of nearly twenty
miles so crippled from the iron bondage and hard usage of Missouri,
that he is hardly able to walk. To those who assisted your said
affiant to obtain his release from bondage, he tenders his grateful
acknowledgements; and further your affiant saith not.
Subscribed and sworn to before me, this 28th day of December, 1843.
DANIEL AVERY.
W. W. PHELPS, Clerk, M. C.
[Sidenote: Joseph H. Jackson--Prophet's Interview with.]
{149} _Friday, 29.--_At home. In the forenoon, W. W. Phelps called and
gave us a lesson on eloquence, and read my Appeal to the Green Mountain
Boys, and also a New Year's hymn without rhyme. Three p.m., I related
to Dr. Bernhisel and Joseph H. Jackson [2] my commencement in receiving
revelations. Mr. Jackson said he was almost persuaded to be one with
me. I replied, I would that he were not only almost, but altogether.
At four p.m., I met with the City Council.
[Sidenote: Police Force of Nauvoo Increased.]
Having selected forty men to act as city policemen, they met with the
Council, and were sworn into office to support the Constitution of the
United States and the State of Illinois, and obey the ordinances of
this city and the instructions of the Mayor, according to the best of
their ability.
Names of police called by Captain Jonathan Dunham:
Jonathan Dunham, High Policeman, Charles C. Rich, 1st Lieutenant,
Hosea Stout, 2nd Lieutenant, Shadrack Roundy, 3rd Lieut., John Pack,
Ensign, Jesse P. Harmon, Orderly Sergt., John D. Lee, 2nd Sergeant,
Daniel Carn, 3rd Sergeant, Josiah Arnold, 4th Sergeant, James Emmett,
1st Corporal, Alexander Mills, 2nd Corporal, Steven H. Goddard, 3rd
Corporal, William Pace, 4th Corporal, Abraham C. Hodge, Pioneer, Levi
W. Hancock, Fifer, Daniel M. Repsher, Fifer, Richard D. Sprague,
Drummer, Samuel Billings, Drummer, {150} Abraham O. Smoot, Dwight
Harding, John Lytle, Simeon A. Dunn, Andrew Lytle, Appleton M. Harmon,
Howard Egan, James Pace, Benjamin Boyce, Francis M. Edwards, Lorenzo
Clark, William H. Edwards, Davies McOlney, Moses M. Sanders, Abram
Palmer, Warren A. Smith, Isaac C. Haight, George W. Clyde, John L.
Butler, Vernon H. Bruce, Elbridge Tufts, Armsted Moffet, Truman R.
Barlow, Azra Adams.
The Mayor said--
_Address of the Mayor to the Nauvoo Police_.
It is expected that a part will be on duty while others rest. It
might be expected that thieves had crept into the Church for the
purpose of concealing their wickedness under the garb of sanctity.
It is an abominable thing to set a thief to catch a thief; and I
would look with the utmost contempt upon men who do this as guilty
of a mean or cowardly act.
Some city councils have taken thieves out of their prisons, and
employed them as policemen, under the old and foolish adage--"Set a
rogue to catch a rogue," which is decidedly wrong, and is corrupt
in policy.
You will act under the direction of Jonathan Dunham--we will call
him High Policeman. In reality he is the captain of the police: but
as men are apt to be frightened at a military title, we will use s
civil title, as these policemen are all civil officers of the city.
Captain Dunham is the man to send after a thief. He will not come
back, after following him a mile, to ask if he may shoot him, if
he resists. Some men have strange ears and changeable hearts: they
become transformed from their original purity and integrity, and
become altogether different from what they were.
If the bloodthirsty hell-hounds of Missouri continue their
persecution, we will be forbearing, until we are compelled to
strike; then do it decently and in good order, and break the yoke
effectually, so that it cannot be mended. The mob have been so
repulsed in their last attempt at kidnapping, they may stand in
fear, at least for a short time.
We will be in peace with all men, so long as they will mind their
own business and let us alone. Even "Peace with Missouri" shall
be the motto of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,
from this {151} time forth, if they will stop their persecution
and oppressive warfare against us. Let them alone, for they stink
in the nostrils of the Almighty: let them alone. Porter Rockwell
has come home clear. A Missouri grand jury could not find a bill
against him even in Jackson county; and that proves me clear of the
charge of being accessory of shooting Lilburn W. Boggs. Many of our
difficulties from the State of Missouri are hurled upon us through
the influence of some of our near neighbors.
Governor Ford has boasted of being a law-abiding man. A governor
certainly should be law-abiding. It is therefore our best policy to
acquaint the Executive, by affidavits, of every violation of our
rights, so that when the onset comes, he will be obliged by law to
send the militia to our support. Let us keep cool as a cucumber on
a frosty morning. Do not be excited. Say nothing about Missouri's
oppression. "A soft answer turns away wrath but grievous words stir
up anger," therefore we "poor pussy" this generation.
Keep a strict account of the time you serve as policemen. Have
the ordinances of the city always in your possession, and study
them, sad ferret out all grogshops, gambling-houses, brothels, and
disorderly conduct; and if a transgressor resists, cuff his ears.
If anyone lifts a weapon or presents a pistol at you, take his
life, if need be, to preserve your own; but enforce the ordinances,
and preserve the peace of the city, and take care of your own
lives. Let no horses be taken away out of the city, or anything
else stolen, if you can help it.
Let Missouri alone. Keep out of her territory. Don't go over there
on any business whatever. Any of this people would be subject to
cruel abuse, if found in that State, in the same manner that Porter
Rockwell has been. He was seized in St. Louis while attending to
his lawful business, picked up and ironed, and thrown in jail
without any form of law, conveyed to Independence in the custody of
a ruffian who swore falsely in the hope of getting a reward, kept
in irons all the way, lodged in Independence jail without even the
form of an inquiry, chained double in a filthy, damp, unventilated
dungeon,--chained hand and foot, so that he could not straighten
for months, till his body was reduced to a mere skeleton, and he
unable to walk when the irons were taken off, and he had to be
led,--half fed on the refuse of what dogs would not eat: his case
presented to a Jackson county grand jury, and not evidence enough
to warrant them in even finding an indictment. After which, the
Missouri court, in the plenitude of their justice, transmitted the
innocent and unindicted man back to the dungeon, without fire,
provisions, or any other comfort,--hoping by this torture, no
doubt, to produce death, or force him to accede to an infamous
proposition, "that whether Jo Smith was guilty or innocent, only
come out against {152} him, you shall have your liberty, and
receive a liberal reward." After months have passed away, without
any shadow of law, the door is opened, and he is told to "slip off
privately, or the people will hang you." Keep out of Missouri, if
you don't want such treatment as this; for the Averys, Rockwell,
and many others have been thankful to get away with their lives.
If any man attempts to bribe you in any way whatever, or persuade
you to neglect your duty, tell the same to me. Let us have a
reformation.
There are speculators in this State who are wanting to sell
revolving pistols to us, in order to fight the Missourians, and at
the same time inciting the Missourians to fight us. Don't buy: it
would be better to buy ploughshares and raise corn with them.
My life is more in danger from some little dough-head of a fool in
this city than from all my numerous and inveterate enemies abroad.
I am exposed to far greater danger from traitors among ourselves
than from enemies without, although my life has been sought for
many years by the civil and military authorities, priests, and
people of Missouri; and if I can escape from the ungrateful
treachery of assassins, I can live as Caesar might have lived, were
it not for a right-hand Brutus. I have had pretended friends betray
me. All the enemies upon the face of the earth may roar and exert
all their power to bring about my death, but they can accomplish
nothing, unless some who are among us and enjoy our society, have
been with us in our councils, participated in our confidence, taken
us by the hand, called us brother, saluted us with a kiss, join
with our enemies, turn our virtues into faults, and, by falsehood
and deceit, stir up their wrath and indignation against us, and
bring their united vengeance upon our heads. All the hue-and-cry of
the chief priests and elders against the Savior, could not bring
down the wrath of the Jewish nation upon His head, and thereby
cause the crucifixion of the Son of God, until Judas said unto
them, "Whomsoever I shall kiss, he is the man; hold him fast."
Judas was one of the Twelve Apostles, even their treasurer, and
dipt with their Master in the dish, and through his treachery, the
crucifixion was brought about; and _we have a Judas in our midst_.
_The Mayor blesses the Police_.
It shall be said in time to come, Where are our old policemen? Let
us have one of the old policemen, to stand at our window, guard our
interest, and protect our families, and we shall be safe.
If you will magnify your office, the full confidence of Israel
shall be the blessing that shall be conferred on you in time to
come.
{153} Counselor Hyrum Smith spoke of the importance of the police
office.
The Mayor said that if any one offered a bribe to a policeman, the city
will pay that policeman twice the amount offered for the information,
when reported to the Mayor.
_Friday, 29.--_My clerk made copies of five affidavits made yesterday
by Elder Orson Hyde, Mr. Daniel Avery, and others, and sent the same to
the Governor, with the following letter:--
_Letter to Governor Ford--Accompanying Affidavits_.
NAUVOO, December 30, 1843.
SIR:--I forward to your Excellency a number of affidavits relative
to the late kidnapping of the Averys, and upon other matters.
When the mob made efforts to resist the laws, Joseph Smith, as
Mayor, gave notice to Major-General Law to hold a portion of the
Nauvoo Legion in readiness; and Aaron Johnson, Esq., called for
some troops to maintain the laws: but I am happy to say, none were
ordered to march, as it was deemed most advisable to let Colonel
Levi Williams and his mob flourish until indictments could be made
at the Circuit Court of Hancock county.
We shall continue to keep your Excellency informed upon all matters
of moment touching the premises.
_Saturday, 30.--_At nine, a.m., held Mayor's court. Two boys, Roswell
and Evander White, were brought up for stealing six hens and a rooster.
They were sentenced to pay for the fowls, and to ten days' hard labor
each on the streets.
In the afternoon, met in the assembly room with the quorum. William Law
and wife were not present. Warm and rainy.
_Sunday, 31st.--_At home.
In the afternoon, called with Elder Parley P. Pratt to see his wife.
At early candle-light, went to prayer-meeting; administered the
sacrament; after which I retired. At midnight, about fifty musicians
and singers sang Phelps' New Year's Hymn under my window.
{154} Warm and rainy. No ice to be seen.
The subjoined list shows a few of the publications for and against the
Saints during the year.
_Pro et con Mormonism, publications for the year 1843_.
The _Alton Telegraph_ published several very severe articles
against the Church.
Edward Brotherton published a scurrilous pamphlet at Manchester,
England, entitled "Mormonism--its Rise and Progress, and the
Prophet Joseph Smith."
The _Richmond Palladium_ published an amusing and favorable article
on "Mormonism."
The _Boston Bee_ published a series of articles favorable to the
Saints, which had a beneficial effect in putting down prejudice and
misrepresentation.
A favorable account of a visit to Nauvoo was published by Samuel A.
Prior, Methodist minister.
The _Morning Star,_ a Freewill Baptist paper, published a long and
bitter article against the Latter-day Saints, entitled "Mormon
Perversion."
A favorable article, entitled "Nauvoo and Mormonism," was published
by a Traveler.
The _Quincy Whig_ published several bitter articles against me.
The _Warsaw Message,_ and subsequently the _Warsaw Signal_,
published a continual tirade of abuse, misrepresentation, and lies
against the Saints.
The _New Haven_ (Con.) _Herald_ published a favorable account of
the "Mormons" in Nauvoo.
Footnotes:
1. There was also a Memorial prepared by the Prophet from the
inhabitants of Hancock county generally to the same effect as the
above, but it was never extensively signed or presented to Congress.
2. This man afterwards was discovered to be an adventurer and a most
desperate character. Gregg in his Prophet of Palmyra, Chapter XXX,
speaks of him as "an adventurer of fine appearance and gentlemanly
manners, who appeared in the county (Hancock) during the troubles; went
to Nauvoo, and became intimate with Smith and the leaders; afterwards
turned against them--went to Warsaw and issued a pamphlet--claiming to
be an expose of Mormonism and the evil purposes and practices of the
Prophet * * * He was an entire stranger to the county and its people;
no one knew whence he came or what became of him afterwards, when the
excitement was all over. Hence it is just to say, that the equivocal
position in which he stood very justly tended to lessen confidence
of the public in his statements, and his little book made slight
impression. The Mormons charged that he was an adventurer of the worst
class--himself a counterfeiter, etc., and that he quarreled with the
Prophet and the authorities because he was detected and exposed." Gregg
also says that this "Expose was much of the same character as that of
General Bennett's." (Ibid).
{155}
CHAPTER VII.
PRESIDENT SMITH'S CORRESPONDENCE WITH JOHN C. CALHOUN--CARTWRIGHT
DROWNING CASE, ENGLAND--CITY GUARDS INCREASED--FEARS OF LAW AND
MARKS--INVESTIGATION BY THE CITY COUNCIL--RESISTANCE OF OFFICERS AT
CARTHAGE--ANTI-MORMON OBJECTIONS TO CITY ORDINANCES--THE PROPHET'S
DIFFICULTIES WITH FRANCIS M. HIGBEE--REGULATIONS FOR THE SALE OF
SPIRITUOUS LIQUORS.
_Monday, January 1, 1844.--_A cold, blustering rainstorm ushered in the
new year.
At sunrise, Thomas Miller, James Leach, James Bridges, and John
Frodsham were brought before me by the police, charged with disorderly
conduct. Fined Miller $5: the others were discharged.
[Sidenote: New Year's at the Mansion.]
A large party took a new year's supper at my house, and had music and
dancing till morning. I was in my private room with my family, Elder
John Taylor and other friends.
_Tuesday 2.--_Two p.m., Hyrum Dayton was brought before Mayor's
court for disorderly conduct in resisting and abusing the police:
fined $25 and costs. His son, Lysander Dayton, for the same offense,
was sentenced to ten days' hard labor, on the public streets; and
subsequently, for contempt of court, ten days more.
Snow one inch deep.
I here insert Mr. Calhoun's answer to my letter of inquiry, dated
November 4, 1843:--
_Letter: John C. Calhoun to Joseph Smith--Defining What Former's
Policy would be Towards the Saints if Elected President_.
FORT HILL, December 2, 1843.
SIR:--You ask me what would be my rule of action relative the
Mormons {156} or Latter-day Saints, should I be elected President;
to which I answer, that if I should be elected, I would strive to
administer the government according to the Constitution and the
laws of the union; and that as they make no distinction between
citizens of different religious creeds I should make none. As far
as it depends on the Executive department, all should have the full
benefit of both, and none should be exempt from their operation.
But as you refer to the case of Missouri, candor compels me to
repeat what I said to you at Washington, that, according to my
views, the case does not come within the jurisdiction of the
Federal Government, which is one of limited and specific powers.
With respect, I am, &c., &c.,
J. C. CALHOUN.
Mr. JOSEPH SMITH.
To which I wrote the following reply:--
_Letter: Joseph Smith to John C. Calhoun--The Latter's Policy
Towards the Latter-day Saints, if Elected President of the U. S.
Considered_.
NAUVOO, ILLINOIS, January 2, 1844.
Sir:--Your reply to my letter of last November, concerning your
rule of action towards the Latter-day Saints, if elected President,
is at hand; and that you and your friends of the same opinion
relative to the matter in question may not be disappointed as to
me or my mind upon so grave a subject, permit me, as a law-abiding
man, as a well-wisher to the perpetuity of constitutional rights
and liberty, and as a friend to the free worship of Almighty God by
all, according to the dictates of every person's own conscience, to
say that_ I am surprised_ that a man or men in the highest stations
of public life should have made up such a fragile "view" of a case,
than which there is not one on the face of the globe fraught with
so much consequence to the happiness of men in this world or the
world to come.
To be sure, the first paragraph of your letter appears very
complacent and fair on a white sheet of paper. And who, that is
ambitious for greatness and power, would not have said the same
thing? Your oath binds you to support the Constitution and laws;
and as all creeds and religions are alike tolerated, they must
of course, all be justified or condemned according to merit or
demerit. But why--tell me why are all the principal men held up
for public stations _so cautiously careful_, not to publish to the
world that they will _judge a righteous judgment, law or no law?_
for laws and opinions, like the vanes of steeples, change with the
wind.
One Congress passes a law, another repeals it; and one statesman
says that the Constitution means this, and another that; and who
does {157} not know that all may be wrong? the opinion and pledge,
therefore, in the first paragraph of your reply to my question,
like the forced steam from the engine of a steam-boat, makes the
show of a bright cloud at first; but when it comes in contact with
a purer atmosphere, dissolves to common air again.
Your second paragraph leaves you naked before yourself, like a
likeness in a mirror, when you say, that according to your _view,_
the Federal Government is "one of limited and specific powers," and
has no jurisdiction in the case of the "Mormons." So then a State
can at any time expel any portion of her citizens with impunity:
and, in the language of Mr. Van Buren, frosted over with your
gracious _"views of the case,"_ though the cause is ever so just,
Government can do nothing for them, because it has no power.
Go on, then, Missouri, after another set of inhabitants (as the
Latter-day Saints did,) have entered some two or three hundred
thousand dollars' worth of land, and made extensive improvements
thereon; go on, then, I say; banish the occupants or owners, or
kill them, as the mobbers did many of the Latter-day Saints, and
take their land and property as spoil; and let the Legislature,
as in the case of the "Mormons," appropriate a couple of hundred
thousand dollars to pay the mob for doing that job; for the
renowned Senator from South Carolina, Mr. J. C. Calhoun, says the
powers of the Federal Government are so _specific and limited that
it has no jurisdiction of the case!_ O ye people who groan under
the oppression of tyrants!--ye exiled Poles, who have felt the iron
hand of Russian grasp!--ye poor and unfortunate among all nations!
come to the asylum of the oppressed; buy ye lands of the General
Government; pay in your money to the treasury to strengthen the
army and the navy; worship God according to the dictates of your
own consciences; pay in your taxes to support the great heads of a
glorious nation: but remember a _"sovereign State"_ is so much more
powerful than the United States, the parent Government, that it
can exile you at pleasure, mob you with impunity, confiscate your
lands and property, have the Legislature sanction it,--yea, even
murder you as an edict of an emperor, _and it does no wrong;_ for
the noble Senator of South Carolina says the power of the federal
Government is _so limited and specific, that it has no jurisdiction
of the case!_ What think ye of _imperium in imperio_?
Ye spirits of the blessed of all ages, hark! Ye shades of departed
statesmen, listen! Abraham, Moses, Homer, Socrates, Solon, Solomon,
and all that ever thought of right and wrong, look down from
your exaltations if you have any; for it is said, "In the midst
of counselors there _is safety_;" and when you have learned that
fifteen thousand innocent citizens, after having purchased their
lands of the United States {158} and paid for them, were expelled
from a "sovereign State," by order of the Governor, at the point
of the bayonet, their arms taken from them by the same authority,
and their right of migration into said State denied, under pain
of imprisonment, whipping, robbing, mobbing, and even death, and
no justice or recompense allowed; and, from the Legislature with
the Governor at the head, down to the Justice of the Peace, with a
bottle of whisky in one hand and a bowie-knife in the other, hear
them all declare that there is no justice for a "Mormon" in that
State; and judge ye a righteous judgment, and tell me when the
virtue of the States was stolen, where the honor of the General
Government lies hid, and what clothes a senator with wisdom. O
nullifying Carolina! O little tempestuous Rhode Island! Would it
not be well for the great men of the nation to read the fable
of the _partial judge;_ and when part of the free citizens of a
State had been expelled contrary to the Constitution, mobbed,
robbed, plundered, and many murdered, instead of searching into the
course taken with Joanna Southcott, Ann Lee, the French Prophets,
the Quakers of New England, and rebellious negroes in the slave
Slates, to hear both sides and then judge, rather than have the
mortification to say, "Oh, it is _my_ bull that has killed _your_
ox! That alters the case! I must inquire into it; _and if, and
if_--!"
If the General Government has no power to reinstate expelled
citizens to their rights, there is a monstrous hypocrite fed
and fostered from the hard earnings of the people! A real "bull
beggar" upheld by sycophants. And although you may wink to the
priests to stigmatize, wheedle the drunkards to swear, and raise
the hue-and-cry of--"Impostor! false prophet! G--d--n old Joe
Smith!" yet remember, if the Latter-day Saints are not restored
to all their rights and paid for all their losses, according to
the known rules of justice and judgment, reciprocation and common
honesty among men, that God will come out of His hiding place, and
vex this nation with a sore vexation: yea, the consuming wrath
of an offended God shall smoke through the nation with as much
distress and woe as independence has blazed through with pleasure
and delight. Where is the strength of Government? Where is the
patriotism of a Washington, a Warren, and Adams? And where is a
spark from the watch-fire of '76, by which one candle might be lit
that would glimmer upon the confines of Democracy? Well may it be
said that one man is not a state, nor one state the nation.
In the days of General Jackson, when France refused the first
instalment for spoliations, there was power, force, and honor
enough to resent injustice and insult, and the money came: and
shall Missouri, filled with negro-drivers and white men stealers,
go "unwhipped of justice" for tenfold greater sins than France? No!
verily, no! While {159} I have powers of body and mind--while water
runs and grass grows--while virtue is lovely and vice hateful; and
while a stone points out a sacred spot where a fragment of American
liberty once was, I or my posterity will plead the cause of injured
innocence, until Missouri makes atonement for all her sins, or
sinks disgraced, degraded, and damned to hell, "where the worm
dieth not, and the fire is not quenched."
Why, sir, the powers not delegated to the United States and the
States belong to the people, and Congress sent to do the people's
business have all power; and shall fifteen thousand citizens groan
in exile? O vain men! will ye not, if ye do not restore them to
their rights and $2,000,000 worth of property, relinquish to
them, (the Latter-day Saints,) as a body, their portion of power
that belongs to them according to the Constitution? Power has its
convenience as well as inconvenience. "The world was not made for
Caesar alone, but for Cassius too."
I will give you a parable. A certain lord had a vineyard in a
goodly land, which men labored in at their pleasure. A few meek
men also went and purchased with money from some of these chief
men that labored at pleasure a portion of land in the vineyard,
at a very remote part of it, and began to improve it, and to eat
and drink the fruit thereof,--when some vile persons, who regarded
not man, neither feared the lord of the vineyard, rose up suddenly
and robbed these meek men, and drove them from their possessions,
killing many.
This barbarous act made no small stir among the men in the
vineyard; and all that portion who were attached to that part of
the vineyard where the men were robbed rose up in grand council,
with their chief man, who had firstly ordered the deed to be done,
and made a covenant not to pay for the cruel deed, but to keep the
spoil, and never let those meek men set their feet on that soil
again, neither recompense them for it.
Now, these meek men, in their distress, wisely sought redress
of those wicked men in every possible manner, and got none.
They then supplicated the chief men, who held the vineyard at
pleasure, and who had the power to sell and defend it, for redress
and redemption; and those men, loving the fame and favor of
the multitude more than the glory of the lord of the vineyard,
answered--"Your cause is just, but we can do nothing for you,
because we have no power."
Now, when the lord of the vineyard saw that virtue and innocence
were not regarded, and his vineyard occupied by wicked men, he
sent men and took the possession of it to himself, and destroyed
those unfaithful servants, and appointed them their portion among
hypocrites.
And let me say that all men who say that Congress has no power to
restore and defend the rights of her citizens have not the love of
the truth abiding in them. Congress has power to protect the nation
against {160} foreign invasion and internal broil; and whenever
that body passes an act to maintain right with any power, or to
restore right to any portion of her citizens, it is the _supreme
law of the land;_ and should a State refuse submission, that State
is guilty of _insurrection or rebellion,_ and the President has
as much power to repel it as Washington had to march against the
"whisky boys at Pittsburgh," or General Jackson had to send an
armed force to suppress the rebellion of South Carolina.
To close, I would admonish you, before you let your _"candor
compel"_ you again to write upon a subject great as the salvation
of man, consequential as the life of the Savior, broad as the
principles of eternal truth, and valuable as the jewels of
eternity, to read in the 8th section and 1st article of the
Constitution of the United States, the _first, fourteenth_ and
_seventeenth_ "specific" and not very "limited powers" of the
Federal Government, what can be done to protect the lives, property
and rights of a virtuous people, when the administrators of the law
and law-makers are unbought by bribes, uncorrupted by patronage,
untempted by gold, unawed by fear, and uncontaminated tangling
alliances--even like Caesar's wife, not only _unspotted, but
unsuspected!_ And God, who cooled the heat of a Nebuchadnezzar's
furnace or shut the mouths of lions for the honor of a Daniel, will
raise your mind above the narrow notion that the General Government
has no power, to the sublime idea that Congress, with the President
as Executor, is as almighty in its sphere as Jehovah is in his.
With great respect, I have the honor to be
Your obedient servant,
JOSEPH SMITH.
HON. ("MR") J. C. CALHOUN,
Fort Hill, S. C.
[Sidenote: Release of Pugmire and Cartwright from Prison, England.]
Jonathan Pugmire, Senior, and Thomas Cartwright discharged by Judge
Whitehead, at Chester, England. The judge would not allow the costs
of prosecution or witnesses to be paid by the Crown. It was very
evident that the Church of England ministers were at the bottom of the
machinations, and were sorely discomfited at the result. I insert the
statement of the unfortunate occurrence given by Jonathan Pugmire,
Junior:--
_Cartwright Drowning--Accident at a Baptism in England_.
Thomas Cartwright was baptized November 6, 1843, unknown to his
wife, by Elder Jonathan Pugmire, Senior; but she had mistrusted he
{161} had gone to the water, and went to Pugmire's house the same
evening, and inquired where Tom was, (meaning her husband). Mrs.
Pugmire answered she did not know.
After this, Mrs. Cartwright went out and met them returning from
the waters of baptism, and shouted--"Damn you, I'll dip ye!" and
expressing her determination to have revenge on Pugmire's family,
she used a great deal of very bad language.
Some of the neighbors (not belonging to the Church) advised her not
to speak too much against the Latter-day Saints, as she might yet
become convinced of the truth of their doctrines and be baptized
herself. She replied, "I hope to God, if ever I am such a fool,
that I'll be drowned in the attempt!"
A short time afterwards, in consequence of her husband talking
to her about the truths of the Gospel, she consented to go to
Pugmire's house and hear for herself.
After attending a few times she told her husband she had a dream,
in which she saw it was a fearful thing to fall in the hands of the
living God, and requested to be baptized.
Mrs. Pugmire talked with her, reminding her of her harsh
expression. She confessed all, and said, "I am very sorry; and as
my conduct is known to all this neighborhood, I do not wish to have
my baptism public, but to have it done privately; and I wish no
female to accompany me to the water but you."
On the night of her baptism (November 23, 1843), she was conducted
to the water by her husband and Elder Pugmire, witnessed by Mrs.
Pugmire and James Moore. Previous to this time, Elder Pugmire had
baptized eight or ten persons in the same place.
On arriving at the water, they found the creek had overflowed its
banks, in consequence of a heavy rain which had fallen that day.
Elder Pugmire examined its banks, and concluded he could attend to
the ordinance without going into the regular bed of the creek.
This was done; but on raising Mrs. Cartwright, and as they were
walking out, they both went under the water.
It was afterwards discovered that the water had undermined the
bank, and it gave way under their feet. Meantime, Thomas Cartwright
leaped into the creek and seized hold of his wife's petticoat; but
the water carried her off, and left the garment in his hand.
James Moore got hold of Elder Pugmire by the hair of his head, Mrs.
Pugmire holding Moore's hand, and thus they dragged him out.
Moore then ran to the village to give the alarm. On his return, he
found Cartwright about one hundred yards from where he leaped in,
{162} with his head above water, holding on to the stump of a tree.
He said he could not have remained in that situation one minute
longer.
George Knowlen swam the stream and got him out; but his wife was
not found until the day following, when she was found about two
hundred yards from where the accident occurred, standing upon her
feet, with her head above water, the stream having fallen about two
feet.
On Pugmire reaching home, a Church of England minister had him
arrested and dragged from his family the same evening, and kept in
custody of a constable until a coroner's inquest was held on the
body of the deceased.
After she was buried, Cartwright was arrested, and both were sent
to Chester jail, to wait their trial before the judge of assize.
They were in confinement six weeks and three days before their
trial came on.
The judge (Whitehead) remarked to the jury that baptism was an
ordinance of our religion, and that it was a mere accident which
had occurred. He advised the jurymen to be very careful how they
examined the case before them--that it was an ordinance instituted
by God (at that moment the Lord spoke by the voice of thunder,
which shook the court house,) and advised the prisoners to be very
careful in the future to select a proper place for the performance
of that rite. They were then set free.
During their imprisonment, Pugmire had a vision, in which he was
informed that they would be liberated; and he told Cartwright to be
of good cheer, for they certainly would be acquitted.
_Wednesday 3_.--At home.
At noon, met with the City Council. The following is a copy of the
minutes:--
_Difficulty of Wm. Law et al. With the Police_.
SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL, Jan. 3, 1834, 2 o'clock.
Names of members called. All present.
The mayor directed the marshal to notify William Law and John
Snyder that the council was in session, and informed the council
that William Law had said to his brother Hyrum that the police had
been sworn by him (the Prophet) secretly to put Law out of the way.
[The Prophet said] "I have had no private conversation with any of
the police but the high policeman, Jonathan Dunham, and that was
to request him to have especial care of my personal safety, as I
apprehended attempts to kidnap me by the Missourians." He called
on the policemen to say if they had received any private oath from
him, when they all said, "No."
Councilor Hyrum Smith said that William Law told him the police
{163} had sworn him (Law) to keep the secret, which was that he was
to be put out of the way in three months.
The mayor said he wished policemen to understand forever that all
he wanted was that they should execute the ordinances of the city
and his orders according to law.
Several of the police called for the individual to be named who
made the statement to William Law.
The mayor said he thought proper that William Law should come and
make his statement to the council on oath.
The mayor then said to the police, "If you see a man stealing, and
you have told him three times to stand, and warned him that he is
a dead man if he does not stand, and he runs shoot off his legs.
The design of the office of the police is to stop thieving; but an
enemy should not be harmed until he draws weapons upon you."
William Law came in, and was sworn to tell the whole truth touching
the case before the council.
William Law said he had been informed that some of the policemen
had had another oath administered besides the one administered to
them publicly: that one of them said there was a Judas in General
Smith's cabinet,--one who stood next to him; and he must be taken
care of, and that he must not be allowed to go into the world,
but must be taken care of; and he was not only a dough-head and a
traitor like Judas, but an assassin like Brutus: that the idea had
been advanced that the scriptures support such a doctrine.
_Alderman Harris._ Who is the person? and who told you?
_Law._ I am under obligations _not_ to tell.
_Alderman Harris._ That is immaterial. You are bound to disclose
the whole truth here by virtue of your oath.
_Law._ I am afraid to tell. One oath is as good as another.
The Mayor said he would protect him. He was bound to tell.
_Law._ Eli Norton told me.
_Alderman Harris_. Was Eli Norton of the police?
_Law._ No; but he got his information from Daniel Carn, who is a
policeman.
The marshal was sent to bring Eli Norton.
The mayor said to the police--"On conditions I have had no private
conversation with any of you, rise up and change the breech of your
gun upwards," when all arose and changed the positions of their
guns as indicated.
Counselor Hyrum Smith considered the matter very alarming when
he heard it. He referred to Dr. Sampson Avard's and John Carl's
treachery and false swearing in Missouri, and rehearsed what was
said by the mayor to the police in the former council.
{164} The mayor said, "The reason why I made the remarks I did
was on account of the reports brought from Missouri jail by O. P.
Rockwell, that my enemies were determined to get me into their
power and take my life, and thereby thought they would accomplish
the overthrow of 'Mormonism.' And to enable them to effect this,
they had secured the services of some of my most confidential
friends, whom I did not suspect, and who were living in Nauvoo, to
deliver me into their hands so that their religious organizations
upon their own principles might stand; for they feared that
'Mormonism' would destroy their present religious creeds,
organizations, and orthodox systems. They did not design to try me,
but hang me, or take my life anyhow: that they had a man in our
midst who would fix me out, if they could not get me into their
power without." He then referred to his remarks at the previous
council.
Minutes of last council being called for, were then read.
Eli Norton sworn.
_Question by the Mayor_ Did Carn say I had administered a private
oath?
Norton. No. Did not say much about Law. Did not say you had ever
administered any private oath. Carn never intimated to me that
Law must be put out of the way. Did not call William Law's name,
nor any other name. Did not say the policemen had received a
private oath. Understood Carn to say they had received private
instructions; and if a man could not keep a secret, he was not
worthy of a place in the Church. Did not say the mayor had given
him a private charge. Did not tell where the danger was expected to
come from. Told me there were dough-heads about. Did not say the
dough-heads were in danger, but the mayor was in danger from the
dough-heads.
_Question by William Law:_ Did you not understand from Brother
Carn that he was suspicious of some person near Joseph being a
dough-head, and that that person was myself?
_Answer:_ He mentioned a dough-head as being very near Joseph,
and he guessed you was the man; and I thought it might be that
Daniteism was not done with.
_Mayor:_ Tell what you know that made you so alarmed about Brother
Law.
_Answer:_ There was no chain to the conversation; but I drew
the inference that Brother Law was the dough-head from Carn's
conversation; but Carn did not name Law.
_Daniel Carn was sworn:_ Said, "I told Brother Norton that certain
men had been counseled by the Prophet to invest their means in
publishing the new translation of the Bible; and they instead of
obeying that counsel, had used their property for the purpose of
building a {165} steam-mill and raising a hundred acres of hemp;
and the Lord had not blessed them in the business, but sunk their
hemp in the Mississippi river. I told him it was my opinion that
Brother Law was the dough-head referred to.
I have had no secret conversation whatever with the mayor, and
never received any charge except the one, with the rest of the
police, before the city council.
The mayor suggested the propriety, since Rockwell and others are
clear, and we have the promise of protection from the governor; and
as the police are now well organized, that they put up their guns
and that the council pass such an order. The Danite system alluded
to by Norton never had any existence. It was a term made use of by
some of the brethren in Far West, and grew out of an expression I
made use of when the brethren were preparing to defend themselves
from the Missouri mob, in reference to the stealing of Macaiah's
images (Judges chapter 18)--If the enemy comes, the Danites will be
after them, meaning the brethren in self-defense.
The mayor instructed the police to lay up their arms till further
orders.
At half past four p.m. council adjourned.
[Sidenote: Reconciliation of the Prophet and Wm. Law.]
The council spent nearly the whole day in investigating the subject
and examining these two witnesses. The police were all sworn and
cross-examined by William Law and the aldermen, and the result showed
nothing but imagination, having grown out of the surmises of Daniel
Carn; upon which Law became satisfied, shook hands with me, declaring
he did not believe a word of the story, and said he would stand by me
to the death, and called the whole council and the police to witness
his declaration.
_Thursday 4.--_At home.
[Sidenote: Repartee of Joseph and Emma Smith]
I took dinner in the north room, and was remarking to Brother Phelps
what a kind, provident wife I had,--that when I wanted a little bread
and milk, she would load the table with so many good things, it would
destroy my appetite. At this moment Emma came in, while Phelps, in
continuation of the conversation said, "You must do as Bonaparte
did--have a little table, just large enough for the victuals you want
yourself." {166} Mrs. Smith replied, "Mr. Smith is a bigger man than
Bonaparte: he can never eat without his friends." I remarked, "That is
the wisest thing I ever heard you say."
_Friday 5.--_At home.
Last night I dreamed I saw two serpents swallowing each other tail
foremost.
[Sidenote: Alarm of William Marks.]
Another tempest in a tea-pot, or big fuss about nothing at all. In
consequence of the night being severely cold, some persons built a
fire on the bank of the river, nearly opposite William Marks' house.
He then became afraid, and concluded he must either be the Brutus or
the dough-head, and lay awake all night, thinking the police had built
the fire to kill him by! In the morning he called on me, reported the
circumstances and expressed his fears, when another session of inquiry
was held by the city council at his request, and the police sworn and
questioned. The following is a synopsis of the minutes:--
_Special Session of the City Council--Fears of Wm. Law and Marks._
[Sidenote: Friday, January 5, 1834, 11 a.m.]
Names of members called.
Prayer by O. Spencer.
Minutes of the last two councils read and approved.
Object of the council stated by the mayor, similar to the last
council as William Law and William Marks had considered themselves
in danger. When he heard the report he was unwilling to believe
anything about it, from the course the thing took in the last
council; but, for the sake of others, he had called this council.
As Leonard Soby was going home night before last, he was hailed by
a supposed policeman with a gun, which frightened him. Soby says
that a policeman had told him that Marks and Law must not cross his
tracks; that Warren Smith said at another time that William Marks
and William Law were enemies to Joseph.
I have never thought even to dream of doing anything against the
peace of the inhabitants of this city. Did not know I had any
enemies in this city: have stayed at home and heard but little: did
not know that there was so much evil surmising among the people.
My long forbearance to my enemies ought to be {167} sufficient
testimony of my peaceful disposition toward all men. It occurred to
my mind that it was not fear, but got up for effect; but I do not
know it. I want the council to investigate this matter.
_William Marks sworn._ Testified that on Monday evening Brother
Soby came up and said, "Are you aware of the danger you are in?"
Marks replied, "No."
_Soby:_ "Your life is threatened; a policeman stopped me in the
dark last night as I was going home; I was alarmed. I supposed
the threats were from that policeman, but I was mistaken. Another
policeman, Warren Smith, said last Sunday that Joseph had
enemies--that Law and myself were Joseph's enemies, and if they
came in his way they might be popped over. A fire was kindled in
the street near my house, and I thought I was watched. Francis
Higbee told me, and a man in the east part of the town told me; and
a man came from the other side of the river and told the story to
that man, as he said. Yesterday morning, Hyrum Smith, Wilson Law,
and William Law met in the street, and I told the story as before
related.
_Mayor._ Did ever anybody tell you I directed you to be watched?
_William Marks._ No.
Marshal went for Francis M. Higbee and George W. Crouse.
_Leonard Soby sworn._ On Sunday, 31st December last, I met Warren
Smith in Crouse's store; asked him if he knew who the Brutus was.
Warren Smith said he believed William Law was one, and Marks
another; they had better not come in his way. Did not say he would
shoot them, or endanger their life in any way. Did not know whether
there were any private instructions, or not. Believed Brother Marks
was in danger. Did not think Marks in any danger from Joseph.
Thought Warren Smith was under a wrong impression with regard to
Marks. Warren Smith said, "He, Marks, had better not cross my path
when I am on duty." I gathered the idea there was something wrong
with Brother Warren Smith. Do not recollect any person present.
_Mayor._ Did Warren Smith or any other policeman give you to
understand that I had authorized him to believe there was any
difficulty between me and Brother Law or Marks?
_Soby._ No. He did not think Warren Smith would transcend his
official duties towards Law or Marks. Felt at the time Marks and
Law were in danger. Did not think they were in danger, if they did
out rise up against the authorities.
Did not say he had any instruction. Said to Mr. Marks, "You have
enemies." My impression was that somebody had been to Joseph to
make a bad impression on his mind. Warren Smith did mention brother
Marks' name, I think.
{168} Thirty policemen, all who were present, sworn. Testified
that General Smith had never given them any private instruction
concerning the case before the council.
Warren Smith said Soby asked his opinion who was the Judas. I
said, from rumor, I would suspect William Law. Does not believe he
mentioned Marks' name. My opinion was founded on rumor. Brother
Isaac Hill said Brother Law was in a bad situation--was kicking,
and if he did not mind, he would go over the board. If he had his
property in available means and was away, he would feel better.
Have heard it talked of that Brother Law was not going to stand. He
did not tell what he was kicking at. I understand a Brutus to mean
a treacherous man.
_George W. Crouse sworn._ Does not recollect any conversation
between Warren Smith and Leonard Soby, at his store, relative
to the case in question. Had a discussion about the duties of
policemen.
Councilor John Taylor said it was customary in all cities for
policemen to go armed in time of danger.
Councilor Orson Hyde confirmed Councilor Taylor's observation.
Councilor Hyrum Smith spoke. Told a story of the old Dutchman and
the ox. Soby makes me think of an old Dutchman that had an ox--the
first animal he ever owned in his life, and he broke him to ride;
then he filled a sack with rocks and laid it on the ox's back, and
got on himself, and told his son to hide by the roadside, and when
he came along, to jump out and hollo boo, as he wanted to know
how well his ox was broke. The son did accordingly. The ox was
frightened, and threw the old man off. "Father," said the son, "I
did as you told me." "Yes," said the old man; "but you made too big
a boo."
_Francis M. Higbee sworn._ Have received the impression from rumor
that Mr. Law, Mr. Marks and probably one or two others, could
not subscribe to all things in the Church, and there were some
private matters that might make trouble. Don't know of anyone being
in danger. No one told me the police had received any private
instruction. Could not tell who he had received these rumors from.
William Law spoke. Said he had no personal feeling against Warren
Smith. Some two or three years since, he sued Brother Warren, and
stayed the suit, &c. Was suspicious Warren Smith's feelings might
have risen from that source.
Councilor Hyrum Smith, Daniel Carn, Warren Smith, Leonard Soby, and
William Marks addressed the council.
The mayor spoke. Said no one had come to him with tales about
William Marks, to prejudice his mind against him. Was totally
ignorant of it. I said to Brother Dunham,--If any man approach
{169} my house with arms, or attempted to disturb my house, I
wanted the police to take care of that individual, whoever he might
be. I repeat the instruction, and am perfectly astonished that
Brother Law, Marks, or any other man should entertain such an idea
[that they were in danger.] I live above suspicion on this subject
from any source whatever. I never could bring my feelings to take
revenge on my enemies. The City Council did not concoct the idea
of having a police. The several wards petitioned for a police to
protect them against invasion--wanted citizens to pass the streets
at any time of night without molestation; but if the police see a
man breaking in to my house or barn, or anybody's house or barn,
tell him to stand, and inquire his business. I think it possible
that some person has been practicing fraud on Brother Soby and the
police and upon individuals, as the police, according to their
instructions, had laid away their guns.
Don't guard Brother Marks' house any more. Men must not pervert the
power entrusted to them like ex-Governor Boggs, whose executive
oath required him to protect the Saints in Missouri, but perverted
his power to enforce their extermination from the State.
Brother Soby does not know that it was a policeman who stopped him.
Brother Marks does not know that the police kindled the fire before
his house. Let the police have canes. Let the citizens pass and
repass at all times of night.
Councilor Taylor spoke. Thought the conclusion drawn up by Brother
Soby, that Joseph or somebody was going to get revenged by setting
the guard to kill Marks, was the most contemptible that could be
imagined; and if Brother Soby had had the respect for Brother
Joseph he ought to have had, he could not have formed such a
conclusion.
Mayor referred to Francis Higbee's testimony. Thought Francis
Higbee had better stay at home and hold his tongue, lest rumor turn
upon him and disclose some private matters which he would prefer
kept hid. Did not believe there was any rumor of the kind afloat,
or he could have told some of the names of his informants. Thought
the young men of the city had better withdraw from his society, and
let him stand on his own merits. I by no means consider him the
standard of the city.
There has been a system of corruption and debauchery, which these
rumors have grown out of; and the individuals who are the authors
of them are those who do not want a police: they want to prowl in
the streets at pleasure without interruption.
Alderman Orson Spencer spoke, approving the conduct of the police.
General Wilson Law said. "I am Joseph's friend: he has no better
{170} friend in the world: I am ready to lay down my life for him;"
and upon that the mayor and General Wilson Law shook hands.
The ordinance concerning the forty policemen read twice.
The mayor objected to assuming the entire disposal of the police
beyond the definition of the ordinance.
Alderman George A. Smith said he could sleep with a fire near his
house, if there were some of the police warming themselves by it;
and he believed any honest man could do the same.
The police received the thanks of the council.
The cross-examination and speeches are generally omitted.
Council adjourned at dusk for the want of candles.
[Sidenote: Reflections of the Prophet as to Traitors in High Places]
What can be the matter with these men? Is it that the wicked flee
when no man pursueth, that hit pigeons always flutter, that drowning
men catch at straws, or that Presidents Law and Marks are absolutely
traitors to the Church, that my remarks should produce such an
excitement in their minds. Can it be possible that the traitor whom
Porter Rockwell reports to me as being in correspondence with my
Missouri enemies, is one of my quorum? The people in the town were
astonished, almost every man saying to his neighbor, "Is it possible
that Brother Law or Brother Marks is a traitor, and would deliver
Brother Joseph into the hands of his enemies in Missouri?" If not, what
can be the meaning of all this? "The righteous are as bold as a lion."
A number of gentlemen boarding at my house conversed with me on
national affairs. I sent for Brother Phelps, who came and read my
letter to John C. Calhoun, with which they were highly edified.
Elder Brigham Young went to La Harpe for the purpose of instructing the
Saints.
Commenced snowing a little before sunset, and continued all night.
_Saturday, 6.--_Snow about four inches deep. I rode out with Emma in a
sleigh.
The Bishops and lesser Priesthood met at Henry W. Miller's hall.
{171} _Sunday, 7.--_At home in the morning. In the afternoon, rode out
to my farm, and preached in Brother Cornelius P. Lott's house.
The Twelve Apostles attended meetings and preached in different parts
of the city.
At six p.m. attended prayer-meeting with the quorum in the assembly
room. Law and Marks absent.
_Monday, 8.--_At home in the morning.
At eleven went to my office to investigate a difficulty between John D.
Parker and his wife. After laboring with them about two hours, brought
about a reconciliation.
I also had an interview with William Law in the streets.
My uncle, John Smith, from Macedonia, visited me.
Amos Fielding arrived from Liverpool.
_Tuesday, 9.--_At home.
I insert the following from the _Neighbor_, as a specimen of the
respect which the Carthage mob has for law or justice:
DISGRACEFUL AFFAIR AT CARTHAGE--OFFICERS RESISTED.
On Tuesday last Horace S. Eldredge, one of our county officers,
went to Carthage for the purpose of arresting Milton Cook, on the
charge of bastardy, and bringing him before R. D. Foster, justice
of the peace of this county, before whom affidavit had been made
to that effect. He found the accused in Bartlett's grocery,
(Carthage,) and arrested him.
Cook had a gun that he said he had loaded for the purpose, and
would make a hole through the constable if he molested him, and
swore he would not be taken.
Harmon T. Wilson and others then stepped forward to his assistance,
and said that they had sworn to stand by him, and that he should
not go. He [Eldredge] then returned with his process to the justice
of the peace, and told him what had occurred.
Mr. R. D. Foster then summoned eleven men to go along with the
constable and assist him in bringing the delinquent. They went out
and drove to the grocery, where they expected to find him; but he
was not there. They then went out for a short time, without making
known their business, when they saw an armed force gathering.
{172} They shortly afterwards returned to the grocery, and saw him
there where he swore he would not be taken. There was also an armed
force standing in the door, who also swore he should not be taken.
The officer having the process, Mr. Markham and Mr. Eagle stepped
forward and wished to reason the case with them, the officer at the
same time demanding their assistance. They were met with an armed
force of about twenty, four of whom stood in the doorway, two with
guns and bayonets, and two with pistols.
The two having the bayonets charged directly at Mr. Markham, and
swore they would run him through, and rushed upon him with their
bayonets. He, however, warded off their blows with his arm, and
the bayonet glanced and struck Mr. John Eagle in the abdomen. The
bayonet went through his clothes, scratched his body, and glanced
off without doing any further injury, other than giving him a
slight cut in the hand.
Those having the pistols then attempted to shoot, when Mr. Markham
seized the hand of one of them that held the pistol, and prevented
him from firing. The other put his pistol to Mr. Eagle's breast,
and swore he would shoot him.
The company at that time used all their force, and crowded the
officers and their assistants some distance back, and carried off
and secreted the prisoner. The officer and his company then went to
the tavern to stay all night.
The next morning, about eight o'clock, the constable and Mr.
Markham went to the grocery and searched, and Bartlett said that he
was gone--that he had taken his horse and gone out of town.
They then saw a company of men gathered at Harmon T. Wilson's
store, armed with guns, bayonets, pistols, clubs, and other
missiles. Mr. Markham went to the store, where he found the
constable and the prisoner. There were fifty in and about the
store, all armed.
Mr. Eldredge then told the company present who he was, and demanded
all in the house to assist in taking the prisoner, and then seized
him. As soon as he laid hold of the prisoner, about six or eight
men laid hold of the constable. Mr. Markham assisted the constable.
When Mr. Markham had nearly succeeded in liberating the constable,
a man who was called Dr. Morrison, drew his pistol and shot at
Markham. The ball missed Markham, but came so near Mr. Coltrin's
head, who was one of the assistants, as to graze his forehead.
As there were only four of the assistants in the store, they were
overpowered by superior numbers, and the prisoner was taken away
from them.
They saw that it would be impossible to take him without bloodshed,
and consequently returned home. The parties engaged in this affray
{173} swore that, regardless of all law, they would defend the
prisoner, and he should not be taken.
We have received the above particulars from Mr. Markham, and can
consequently rely upon the correctness of the statement, as he is
one of the parties mentioned. The woman who was _enciente,_ who
made the affidavit, is not in the Church, neither is Mr. Eagle--the
person who was struck with the bayonet. Mr. Eagle has gone to the
governor to make complaint.
We think that it is high time that prompt measures be taken to put
a stop to such abominable outrages. If officers can be insulted in
this manner and the law violated with impunity, we think that we
shall speedily slide back into the barbarous ages.
Some of our mobocratic friends who assembled at a mobocratic
meeting some time ago in Carthage, were considerably chagrined at
our terming them mobocrats. We wonder whether they now believe
that they are, or not? If such proceedings as those are cherished,
farewell to our Republican institutions! farewell to law, equity,
and justice! and farewell to all those sacred ties that bind men to
their fellowmen!
We would here ask where the sheriff was. Why was he not applied to?
We merely ask for information. We don't know that he was present
or applied to. If he was, it certainly was his duty to see the law
magnified.
_Wednesday 10.--_At home.
[Sidenote: John Smith, Uncle of the Prophet, Ordained a Patriarch.]
Ordained Uncle John Smith a patriarch. Enjoyed myself well in an
interview with the brethren and concluded to take a ride part way with
my uncle on his return to Macedonia.
In consequence of a visit from some gentlemen from Carthage, I called
the City Council together at seven p.m. I copy the minutes:--
_Special Session of City Council; Complaints of Carthage Citizens
Considered_.
January 10, 1844, 7 p.m.
Names of members called.
The mayor said:--"Messrs. Backman, Hamilton, and Sherman, lawyers
from Carthage, have called on me and told me that the occasion of
the excitement at Carthage and the resistance to the law, in the
case of the arrest of Cook, was the late ordinance of this council
to prevent unlawful search or seizure of person or property by
foreign {174} process in the city of Nauvoo; that they considered
said ordinance was designed to hinder the execution of the statutes
of Illinois within this city; consequently, they, the old citizens,
felt disposed to stop the execution of processes issuing from the
city precincts. They also raised objections against the process by
Justice Foster for the apprehension of Cook, because it was made
returnable to him alone, whereas they said the statute required it
to be made returnable before himself or some other justice.
I explained to them the nature and reason of the ordinance--that
was to prevent kidnapping under the pretense of law or process,
and to facilitate the apprehension of thieves, &c., in this city,
by throwing all foreign processes into the hands of the marshal,
who would be most likely to know the hiding-places of fugitives
from justice, who might secrete themselves in our city; and said
that if any wrong impression had gone abroad with regard to the
motives of the council in passing said ordinance, I would call the
council immediately, that they might have the opportunity of giving
any explanation necessary, so that the public might understand the
ordinance in its true light. I have therefore called the council
accordingly. I also referred the lawyers from Carthage to the
statute which requires all processes issued in cases of bastardy
to be returnable alone to the justice issuing the same, which
they doubted until showed them the law, when they looked a little
crest-fallen and foolish."
After deliberation, an additional section relative to the foregoing
ordinance was read three times, and passed, by way of amendment:--
"Section 3. Be it ordained by the city council of the city of
Nauvoo, that nothing in the foregoing ordinance shall be so
construed as to prevent, hinder, or thwart the designs of justice,
or to retard the civil officers of the state or county in the
discharge of their official duties, but to aid and assist them
within the limits of this city.
"Passed January 10, 1844.
"JOSEPH SMITH, Mayor.
"WILLARD RICHARDS, Recorder."
Council adjourned.
Wrote a letter to Esquire Backman to inform him what the City Council
had done.
[Sidenote: Complaints of F.M. Higbee against the Prophet.]
I received a long equivocating letter from Francis M. Higbee, charging
me with having slandered his character and demanding a public trial
before the Church. It contains no denial of the charges which he
accuses me of having spoken against him, but is full of bombast.
{175}
_Thursday 11.--_At home.
Rode out, ten a.m., and returned at half-past one p.m.
This morning William Jones, who had stayed all night at Wilson's Tavern
in Carthage, was arrested without process by Colonel Levi Williams and
his company, who kept him in custody until noon without rations.
The Twelve Apostles gave an invitation to the Saints in Nauvoo to cut
and draw for me seventy-five or one hundred cords of wood on the 15th
and 16th instant.
_Friday 12.--_Thaw: snow nearly gone.
[Sidenote: Conference in Michigan]
A conference was held in Brownstown, Main county, Michigan. Elder
Mephibosheth Sirrine, president; and Gehiel Savage, clerk. Nine
branches were represented, containing 6 elders, 9 priests, 7 teachers,
1 deacon, 136 members, and 45 scattered members; one hundred members
having removed from that state to Nauvoo since the conference in July
last.
_Saturday 13.--_At home in the morning.
At ten o'clock, attended City Council, where a bill for an ordinance
concerning the recording of deeds in this city was taken under
consideration, and read twice. It elicited much discussion.
The ten policemen who were not present at the meeting of the City
Council on the 5th instant were sworn in the matter of William Law and
William Marks, and testified they had received no private instructions
whatever from me.
A discussion took place on the subject of granting licenses for the
sale of spirits.
I signed resolutions passed at a court martial held this morning.
Stephen M. Farnsworth was chosen president of the priests' quorum, and
William Carmichael and William Box his counselors.
_Sunday 14.--_At home all day.
{176} A prayer-meeting was held at the assembly room. I did not attend.
Warm and rainy towards evening.
The Twelve Apostles preached at private houses in various parts of the
city.
A branch of the Church was organized in New Orleans, with 34 members.
T. B. Jackaway, president, and E. L. Brown, clerk.
_Monday 15.--_At home. Wrote to Sister Maria L. Campbell, Elmira, N. Y.
[Sidenote: A Wood Bee]
At nine, a.m., teams began to arrive with wood, according to the
appointment of the Twelve Apostles, there being about 200 of the
brethren chopping in the woods, and from thirty to forty teams engaged
in drawing the wood to my house. About 100 loads were drawn, and as
many more chopped, and left to be drawn another day.
[Sidenote: Threats of Francis M. Higbee.]
At ten, a.m., Dr. Richards called, and told me it was reported that
Francis M. Higbee was going to put me under $10,000 bonds for speaking
against him.
At the same time, Constable Eldredge summoned me to attend a court as
witness before Esquire Johnson; and I went accordingly, to give my
testimony.
The Twelve Apostles wrote the following letter:--
_Letter: The Twelve Apostles to the Saints at Morley
Settlement--Material Help Asked for_.
NAUVOO, January 15, 1844.
_To President Isaac Morley and the Saints at Morley Settlement, the
Twelve send greeting_:--
BELOVED BRETHREN--While the work of the Lord is great and sought
out by all them that have pleasure therein, the Lord of the
vineyard has laid special charges upon some of His servants to
execute; and while we are striving by all means to raise funds to
hasten the Temple the approaching spring, we are not unmindful of
the "History of the Church," the "Great Proclamation to the Kings
of the Earth," and the "Memorials to Congress," &c., all of which
are now before the Church, though their {177} progress is retarded
for the want of the necessities of life, in the families of those
who are employed in this business.
Two or three clerks are necessarily employed, and that continually,
by our Prophet, who cheerfully devote their time--not a _tenth,_
but the _whole,_ to roll on these desirable objects; but their
hands are palsied and their pens stayed, more or less. Therefore,
with the approbation of our President, we again call on you, as
those who have ever been ready to listen to the wants of the
Church, that you would raise such collections of provisions as you
may have at your disposal, and forward the same _without delay_ to
us, for the special benefit of the clerks of President Smith or the
Church. Asking no more, it is right they should not go hungry or
naked.
Do you ask what is wanting? We answer, Look to your own households,
and say what it requires to make them comfortable, and you will
know just what is wanting by these men. _Eatables of every kind,_
and even soap to keep their hands clean, is scarce at Nauvoo, and
it takes many lights to keep the pen in motion these long evenings.
The President has plenty to do without supporting a number of
clerks, whose business as deeply concerns every other individual in
the Church as himself, although he has done it to a great extent
and with great inconvenience; and we are confident that when you
are made acquainted with the facts, you will be unwilling that
_Joseph_ should _do all, and get all the blessing._ And as you
shall continue your liberality in temporal things, God shall pour
out upon your heads blessings spiritual and temporal; and _now_ is
the time for _action_.
All is peace at Nauvoo, and the last report from the Carthaginians
was, they were beginning to think it was time to throw down their
arms and attempt a compromise. But the "Mormons" can truly say they
have had no quarrel with them. It has all been between the citizens
and the law, their own officers being the executors thereof; and we
feel disposed to let them fight it out among themselves, while we
live in peace and laugh at their folly.
With our prayers and blessings, we subscribe ourselves
Your brethren in Christ Jesus.
In behalf of the quorum,
B. YOUNG, President.
W. RICHARDS, Clerk.
The Municipal Court issued a warrant for the arrest of Francis M.
Higbee, on affidavit of Orson Pratt.
East wind in forenoon, and some rain. Brisk wind from N.W. in afternoon.
[Sidenote: Andrews' Appeal to the State of Maine.]
{178} Benjamin Andrews published in the _Times and Seasons_ "An Appeal
to the people of the State of Maine" setting forth the persecutions,
murders, and robberies committed upon the Saints by the people of the
State of Missouri, and soliciting the assistance of his native State in
procuring redress.
_Tuesday, 16.--_Cold and windy.
[Sidenote: Francis M. Higbee on Trial--Reconciliation with Prophet.]
At ten, a.m., Francis M. Higbee was brought up before the Municipal
Court, on complaint of Orson Pratt, for absenting himself from City
Council without leave, when summoned as a witness, and for slanderous
and abusive language towards one of the members of the Council.
The court adjourned, and the City Council commenced their session,
continuing till two o'clock, during which time a reconciliation took
place with Francis M. Higbee, who had written a slanderous letter
concerning me, and said many hard things, which he acknowledged; and I
forgave him. I went before the Council and stated that all difficulties
between me and F. M. Higbee were eternally buried, and I was to be his
friend for ever. To which F. M. Higbee replied, "I will be his friend
for ever, and his right-hand man."
A number of the brethren assembled and chopped up the firewood which
had been hauled to my house yesterday, and piled it up ready for use.
The following "Ordinance concerning the sale of Spirituous Liquors" was
passed by the City Council:
_An Ordinance concerning the Sale of Spirituous Liquors_.
Whereas, the use and sale of distilled and fermented liquors for
all purposes of beverage and drink by persons in health are viewed
by this City Council with unqualified disapprobation:
Whereas, nevertheless the aforesaid liquors are considered highly
beneficial for medical and mechanical purposes, and may be safely
employed for such uses, under the counsel of discreet persons:
Therefore,
{179} Sect. 1. Be it ordained by the City Council of the city of
Nauvoo, that the Mayor of this city is hereby authorized to sell
said liquors in such quantities as he may deem expedient.
Sect. 2. Be it further ordained, that other persons not exceeding
one to each ward of the city, may also sell said liquors in like
quantities for medical and mechanical purposes by obtaining a
license of the Mayor of the city. The above ordinance to be in full
force and effect immediately after its passage,--all ordinances to
the contrary notwithstanding.
Passed January 16, 1844.
JOSEPH SMITH, Mayor.
W. RICHARDS, Recorder.
An ordinance was also passed, authorizing Henry G. Sherwood to make out
a city directory, and to establish an intelligence office in the city.
Also the following ordinance:--
_An Ordinance concerning Witnesses and Jurors' Fees_.
Be it ordained by the City Council of the city of Nauvoo, that
hereafter all persons subpoenaed and attending upon courts of trial
as witnesses, or as jurors in civil cases, shall not be compelled
to testify or be held in attendance either as witness or juror,
unless they shall first be tendered the sum of fifty cents per day
for each witness and each juror subpoenaed.
Passed January 16, 1844.
JOSEPH SMITH, Mayor.
W. RICHARDS, Recorder.
_Wednesday, 17.--_At home settling accounts with various individuals.
Gave deed of a lot to John Lytle.
The steamer _Shepherdess_ sank near St. Louis, drowning forty
passengers.
_Thursday, 18.--_At home, and wrote letters to Reuben McBride and
Joseph Coe, Kirtland; Clark Leal, of Fountain Green; and to Justin J.
Butterfield, Esq., Chicago.
[Sidenote: Assault Upon Nelson Judd.]
This afternoon a man called on Brother Nelson Judd, and said he wanted
to sell him some wood below Davidson Hibbard's. He went to see the
wood, the man saying he would meet him at the place. When below,
Hibbard's two {180} men came up on horseback, and told him they had
a warrant for him, for taking away Avery's things for Bear Creek.
One shot at him twice and the other snapped at him twice with their
pistols. Judd then coolly said, "Now, 'tis my turn," putting his hand
into his pocket, although he knew he had no pistols: yet the men fled.
There was a cotillion party at the Mansion this evening.
_Friday, 19.--_Rode out in the course of the day. In the evening,
gave a lecture on the Constitution of the United States, and on the
candidates for the Presidency.
Mild weather. Cloudy in the afternoon.
A meeting was held in the assembly room to devise means for the
founding of another library institution in Nauvoo.
{181}
CHAPTER VIII.
PRESENTATION OF THE BOOK OF MORMON TO QUEEN VICTORIA--THE SEALING
POWERS OF THE PRIESTHOOD--GOVERNOR FORD'S WARNING TO THE PEOPLE OF
HANCOCK COUNTY--APOSTROPHE TO MISSOURI--JOSEPH SMITH NOMINATED FOR
PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES--HIS VIEWS ON THE POWERS AND POLICY OF
THE GOVERNMENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
_Saturday, January 20th, 1844.--_Held Mayor's Court on the case--"City
of Nauvoo _versus_ Stephen Wilkinson," for breach of ordinance. I
discharged the defendant, he paying costs.
At six, p.m., prayer-meeting in the assembly room. I was at home.
The High Council met, but, having no business, adjourned.
"STANZAS"
_On the Presentation of the Book of Mormon to Queen Victoria_.
BY MISS E. R. SNOW.
Before leaving London, Elder Lorenzo Snow presented to her Majesty
Queen Victoria, and his Royal Highness Prince Albert, through
the politeness of Sir Henry Wheatly, two neatly bound copies of
the Book of Mormon, which had been donated by President Brigham
Young, and left in the care of Elder Snow for that purpose; which
circumstance suggested the following lines:--
Of all the monarchs of the earth
That wear the robes of royalty,
She has inherited by birth
The broadest wreath of majesty.
{182} From her wide territorial wing
The sun does not withdraw its light,
While earth's diurnal motions bring
To other nations day and night.
All earthly thrones are tottering things,
Where lights and shadows intervene;
And regal honor often brings
The scaffold or the guillotine.
But still her sceptre is approved;
All nations deck the wreath she wears:
Yet, like the youth whom Jesus loved,
One thing is lacking even there.
But lo! a prize possessing more
Of worth than gems with honor rife--
A herald of salvation bore
To her the words of endless life.
That GIFT, however fools deride,
Is worthy of her royal care:
She'd better lay her crown aside
Than spurn the light reflected there.
Oh would she now her influence bend--,
The influence of royalty,
Messiah's kingdom to extend,
And Zion's "nursing mother" be.
Thus with the glory of her name
Inscribed on Zion's lofty spire,
She'd win a wreath of endless fame,
To last when other wreaths expire.
Though over millions called to reign--
Herself a powerful nation's boast,
'Twould be her everlasting gain
To serve the King, the Lord of Hosts.
For there are crowns and thrones on high,
And kingdoms there to be conferred;
There honors wait that never die;
There fame's immortal trump is heard.
{183} Truth echoes--'tis Jehovah's word;
Let kings and queens and princes hear;
In distant isles the sound is heard;
Ye heavens rejoice! O earth, give ear!
The time, the time is now at hand
To give a glorious period birth:
The son of God will take command
And rule the nations of the earth.
Nauvoo, Jan. 20, 1844.
_Sunday 21.--_Preached at the southeast corner of the temple to several
thousand people, although the weather was somewhat unpleasant. My
subject was the sealing of the hearts of the fathers to the children,
and the hearts of the children to the fathers.
[The following synopsis was reported by Elder Wilford Woodruff:]--
_Discourse: The Sealing Power in the Priesthood_.
When I consider the surrounding circumstances in which I am placed
this day, standing in the open air with weak lungs, and somewhat
out of health, I feel that I must have the prayers and faith of
my brethren that God may strengthen me and pour out His special
blessing upon me, if you get very much from me this day.
There are many people assembled here to-day, and throughout the
city, and from various parts of the world, who say that they have
received to a certainty a portion of the knowledge from God, by
revelation, in the way that He has ordained and pointed out.
I shall take the broad ground, then, that we have received a
portion of knowledge from God by immediate revelation, and from the
same source we can receive all knowledge.
What shall I talk about to-day? I know what Brother Cahoon wants
me to speak about. He wants me to speak about the coming of Elijah
in the last days. I can see it in his eye. I will speak upon that
subject then.
The Bible says, "I will send you Elijah the Prophet before the
coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord; and he shall turn
the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of the
children to the fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a
curse."
{184} Now, the word _turn_ here should be translated _bind_, or
seal. But what is the object of this important mission? or how is
it to be fulfilled? The keys are to be delivered, the spirit of
Elijah is to come, the Gospel to be established, the Saints of God
gathered, Zion built up, and the Saints to come up as saviors on
Mount Zion.
But how are they to become saviors on Mount Zion? By building
their temples, erecting their baptismal fonts, and going forth and
receiving all the ordinances, baptisms, confirmations, washings,
anointings, ordinations and sealing powers upon their heads, in
behalf of all their progenitors who are dead, and redeem them that
they may come forth in the first resurrection and be exalted to
thrones of glory with them; and herein is the chain that binds the
hearts of the fathers to the children, and the children to the
fathers, which fulfills the mission of Elijah. And I would to God
that this temple was now done, that we might go into it, and go to
work and improve our time, and make use of the seals while they are
on earth.
The Saints have not too much time to save and redeem their dead,
and gather together their living relatives, that they may be saved
also, before the earth will be smitten, and the consumption decreed
falls upon the world.
I would advise all the Saints to go to with their might and gather
together all their living relatives to this place, that they may
be sealed and saved, that they may be prepared against the day
that the destroying angel goes forth; and if the whole Church
should go to with all their might to save their dead, seal their
posterity, and gather their living friends, and spend none of their
time in behalf of the world, they would hardly get through before
night would come, when no man can work; and my only trouble at the
present time is concerning ourselves, that the Saints _will be
divided, broken up, and scattered,_ before we get our salvation
secure; for there are so many fools in the world for the devil to
operate upon, it gives him the advantage oftentimes.
The question is frequently asked "Can we not be saved without
going through with all these ordinances, &c.?" I would answer,
No, not the fullness of salvation. Jesus said, "There are many
mansions in my Father's house, and I will go and prepare a place
for you." _House_ here named should have been translated kingdom;
and any person who is exalted to the highest mansion has to abide a
celestial law, and the whole law too.
But there has been a great difficulty in getting anything into the
heads of this generation. It has been like splitting hemlock knots
with a corn-dodger for a wedge, and a pumpkin for a beetle. Even
the Saints are slow to understand.
{185} I have tried for a number of years to get the minds of the
Saints prepared to receive the things of God; but we frequently see
some of them, after suffering all they have for the work of God,
will fly to pieces like glass as soon as anything comes that is
contrary to their traditions: they cannot stand the fire at all.
How many will be able to abide a celestial law, and go through and
receive their exaltation, I am unable to say, as many are called,
but few are chosen.
Prayer-meeting in the Assembly Room.
_Monday, 22.--_Rainy; wind easterly; mud very deep.
[Sidenote: Nauvoo Mansion Leased.]
Rented the Nauvoo Mansion and stables to Ebenezer Robinson for one
thousand dollars per annum and board for myself and family and horses,
reserving to myself three rooms in the house.
Prayer-meeting at President Young's; ten present.
[Sidenote: Sale of the Printing Establishment to John Taylor]
_Tuesday. 23.--_Ebenezer Robinson took possession of the Nauvoo
Mansion, to continue it as a public-house. W. W. Phelps, Newel K.
Whitney and Willard Richards valued the printing office and lot at
$1,500; printing apparatus, $950; bindery, $112; foundry, $270; total,
$2,832. I having sold the concern to John Taylor, who in consideration
was to assume the responsibility of the Lawrence estate.
There was a cotillion party in the evening at the Nauvoo Mansion. The
night was clear and cold.
The ship _Fanny,_ Captain Patterson, sailed from Liverpool with 210
Saints on board.
_Wednesday, 24.--_Called at my office about one o'clock. I think the
appraised valuation of the printing office rather too low.
Weather very cold.
The mob party at Carthage, Warsaw, and Green Plains continued their
agitation.
_Thursday, 25.--_At home.
Prayer-meeting at Brother Brigham's: eight of the Twelve Apostles
present. Weather extremely cold.
I approved of the doings of a general court-martial held January 13th.
{186} _Friday, 26.--_I dictated to my clerk an article on the situation
of the nation, referring to the President's Message, &c.
Prayer-meeting at Brother Young's: eight of the Twelve Apostles
present. Elder Orson Hyde went to Carthage to preach. Weather clear and
cool.
_Saturday, 27.--_Weather extremely cold and clear.
Prayer-meeting in the assembly room. High Council met, but, having no
business, adjourned.
_Sunday, 28.--_I had some company in the evening from Warsaw. I
conversed with them on politics, religion, &c. Prayer-meeting in the
assembly room. Weather very cold.
I insert the following from the _Millennial Star_:--
_Importance of Elders Keeping Journals, Case of Healing Recorded_.
MR. EDITOR:--The idea has frequently crossed my mind, that were the
Elders of the Church of Jesus Christ in this age to keep a journal
of their travels and ministry, and record all the healings and
miracles they had witnessed from time to time,--that should their
separate journals be afterwards collected together and published
in a volume, I am inclined to believe that a far greater number of
manifest displays of the power of God would be therein recorded
than is found in the journals of the Elders of the Church of Jesus
Christ in the early ages, at least so far as they are faithfully
handed down to us in the New Testament Scriptures.
And although, as in days of old, we are frequently branded with the
epithets of "fools, fanatics, religious enthusiasts, dupes, and
vile impostors," yet "what we have felt and seen, with confidence
we tell."
We have frequently heard from individuals on whose testimony we
can rely with the greatest confidence, of extraordinary displays
of the power of God in the gift of healing; such, for instance,
as the blind receiving their sight, the deaf having their hearing
restored, the lame man being made to "leap as an hart," the dumb
spirit being cast out, and one instance of the dead being restored
to life.
Another instance of the kind last mentioned, with a heart
overflowing with gratitude, I desire to record. On the afternoon of
yesterday, a child of mine, a girl aged eight years, was sliding
on the rails of the staircase, when on a sudden she turned over,
and fell from top to bottom with a most tremendous crash, falling
on her head, and being completely double when picked up by her
mother,--so much so indeed, that {187} her brother, who heard
the noise, looked out of the kitchen, and seeing something lying
in the passage motionless, concluded that his sister had thrown
some dirty linen over the rails, and took no further notice. Her
mother, on hearing the noise occasioned by her fall, hastened out
of the parlor to the fatal spot, and immediately discovered it
was poor Mary Jane, who lay motionless, speechless, senseless,
yea, lifeless. She instantly took her up in her arms, and when she
beheld her appearance, in an agony she cried out, "My child is
dead! she has fallen and killed herself."
By this time I had hastened to the horrid scene, where I beheld
my lovely girl stretched on the lap of her disconsolate mother,
without the slightest appearance of life. I immediately examined
her, and found that she breathed not, and that her pulsation
had ceased. Her eyes also were wide open, and quite fixed as in
death, and there appeared to be gathering over them the film of
dissolution. In fact, if it be true that Eutychus (the young man
mentioned in the 20th chapter of the Acts of the Apostles, who fell
from an upper story,) was taken up dead, it is equally true that my
daughter was taken up dead, for there was not the slightest vestige
of life apparent.
At this moment, with heart uplifted to my Heavenly Father, I, in
mighty faith, placed my hands upon her and ejaculated, "Lord,
heal my child!" when in one moment she shewed signs of life, and
attempted to speak.
I immediately gave her to drink a little cold water, and bathed her
head with the same. She then sat up and vomited considerably, and
she is now so far recovered as this morning to sing a verse of a
hymn and walk about as usual.
During my presidency over the Liverpool Conference, which is nearly
eighteen months, I have witnessed many cases of healing, but never
any so very striking as the one I have just related.
If you deem the narrative worthy of a place in your pages of the
_Millennial Star,_ you are quite at liberty to insert it.
I remain, dear brother,
Yours sincerely in the Gospel of Jesus,
GEORGE MITCHELSON.
[Sidenote: The Presidential Election Considered.]
_Monday, 29.--_At ten, a.m., the Twelve Apostles, together with Brother
Hyrum and John P. Greene, met at the mayor's office, to take into
consideration the proper course for this people to pursue in relation
to the coming Presidential election.
The candidates for the office of President of the United States at
present before the people are Martin Van Buren {188} and Henry Clay.
It is morally impossible for this people, in justice to themselves, to
vote for the re-election of President Van Buren--a man who criminally
neglected his duties as chief magistrate in the cold and unblushing
manner which he did, when appealed to for aid in the Missouri
difficulties. His heartless reply burns like a firebrand in the breast
of every true friend of liberty--"_Your cause is just, but I can do
nothing for you_."
As to Mr. Clay, his sentiments and cool contempt of the people's
rights are manifested in his reply--_"You had better go to Oregon for
redress,"_ which would prohibit any true lover of our constitutional
privileges from supporting him at the ballot-box.
It was therefore moved by Willard Richards, and voted unanimously--
That we will have an independent electoral ticket, and that Joseph
Smith be a candidate for the next Presidency; and that we use all
honorable means in our power to secure his election.
I said--
_The Prophet on the Campaign_.
If you attempt to accomplish this, you must send every man in
the city who is able to speak in public throughout the land
to electioneer and make stump speeches, advocate the "Mormon"
religion, purity of elections, and call upon the people to stand by
the law and put down mobocracy. David Yearsly must go,--Parley P.
Pratt to New York, Erastus Snow to Vermont, and Sidney Rigdon to
Pennsylvania.
After the April Conference we will have General Conferences all
over the nation, and I will attend as many as convenient. Tell the
people we have had Whig and Democratic Presidents long enough:
we want a President of the United States. If I ever get into the
presidential chair, I will protect the people in their rights and
liberties. I will not electioneer for myself. Hyrum, Brigham,
Parley and Taylor must go. Clayton must go, or he will apostatize.
The Whigs are striving for a king under the garb of Democracy.
There is oratory enough in the Church to carry me into the
presidential chair the first slide.
Captain White, of Quincy, was at the Mansion last night, {189} and this
morning drank a toast. * * * "May Nauvoo become the empire seat of
government!"
[Sidenote: Commencement of the Prophet's Views on Powers and Policy of
U.S.]
I dictated to Brother Phelps the head of my pamphlet, entitled, "Views
on the Powers and Policy of the Government of the United States."
A Millerite lecturer came into the office with Brother Clayton, about
five, p.m. I had some conversation with him about the definition of the
Greek word Hades, and the Hebrew word Sheol, &c. He lectured in the
evening in the hall.
Prayer-meeting at Elder Brigham Young's.
Governor Ford wrote the following expostulatory epistle to the citizens
of Hancock County, through the _Warsaw Signal_:--
_Governor Ford's Warning to the People of Hancock County_.
SPRINGFIELD January 29, 1844.
DEAR SIR:--I have received the copy of the proceeding and
resolutions of a meeting of the citizens of Hancock County, which
you did me the honor to send me.
I have observed with regret that occasions have been presented for
disturbing the peace of your county; and if I knew what I could
legally do to apply a corrective, I would be very ready to do it.
But if you are a lawyer, or at all conversant with the law, you
will know that I, as a governor, have no right to interfere in your
difficulties.
As yet, I believe that there has been nothing like war among you:
and I hope that all of you will have the good sense to see the
necessity of preserving peace. If there is anything wrong in the
Nauvoo charters, or in the mode of administering them, you will see
that nothing short of legislative or judicial power is capable of
enforcing a remedy.
I myself had the honor of calling the attention of the Legislature
to this subject at the last session; but a large majority of both
political parties in that body either did not see the evil which
you complain of, or, if they did, they repeatedly refused to
correct it. And yet a call is made upon me to do that which all
parties refused to do at the last session.
I have also been called upon to take away the arms from the
_Mormons,_ to raise the militia to arrest a supposed fugitive, and
in fact to repeal some of the ordinances of the City of Nauvoo.
Hancock County is justly famed for its intelligence; and I cannot
{190} believe that any of its citizens are so ignorant as not to
know that I have no power to do these things.
The absurd and preposterous nature of these requests give some
color to the charge that they are made for political effect only.
I hope that this charge is untrue; for, in all candor, it would be
more creditable to those concerned to have their errors attributed
to ignorance than to a disposition to embroil the country in the
horrors of war for the advancement of party ends.
But if there should be any truth in the charge, (which God forbid.)
I affectionately entreat all the good citizens engaged in it to
lay aside their designs and yield up their ears to the voice of
justice, reason, and humanity. All that I can do at present is to
admonish both parties to beware of carrying matters to extremity.
Let it come to this--let a state of war ensue, and I will be
compelled to interfere with executive power. In that case also, I
wish, in a friendly, affectionate, and candid manner, to tell the
citizens of Hancock County, _Mormons_ and all, that my interference
will be against those who shall be the first transgressors.
I am bound by the laws and Constitution to regard you all as
citizens of the State, possessed of equal rights and privileges,
and to cherish the rights of one as dearly as the rights of
another. I can know no distinction among you except that of
assailant and assailed.
I hope, dear sir, you will do me the favor to publish this letter
in the papers of your county, for the satisfaction of all persons
concerned.
I am, with the highest respect,
Your obedient servant,
THOMAS FORD.
_Tuesday 30.--_At eleven, a.m., I went into the office with Colonel
Jackson.
One, p.m., held mayor's court at my office, on the case "City _versus_
Thomas Coates." Fined the defendant $25 and costs for beating John
Ellison.
A Millerite preached again in the assembly room, and Elder Rigdon
replied to him. There was a full house.
Prayer-meeting at Elder Brigham Young's.
[Sidenote: Winchester's Mission to Warsaw.]
_Wednesday, 31.--_Eleven, a.m., I called at the office, and told
Benjamin Winchester to go to Warsaw and preach the first principles of
the Gospel, get some lexicons, and return home.
{191} Prayer-meeting at Elder Brigham Young's in the evening. There
seems to be quite a revival throughout Nauvoo, and an inquiry after the
things of God, by all the quorums and the Church in general.
[Sidenote: Rigdon's Appeal to Pennsylvania.]
Sidney Rigdon published a lengthy appeal to the Legislature of the
State of Pennsylvania, setting forth in pathetic style the grievances
he had suffered through the persecution against the Church by the State
of Missouri, which concludes as follows:--
_Peroration of Rigdon's Appeal to Pennsylvania_.
In confidence of the purity and patriotism of the representatives
of the people of his native state, your memorialist comes to your
honorable body, through this his winged messenger, to tell you that
the altar which was erected by the blood of your ancestors to civil
and religious liberty, from whence ascended up the holy incense of
pure patriotism and universal good will to man, into the presence
of Jehovah, a savior of life, is thrown down, and the worshipers
thereat have been driven away, or else they are lying slain at
the place of the altar. He comes to tell your honorable body that
the temple your fathers erected to freedom, whither their sons
assembled to hear her precepts and cherish her doctrines in their
hearts, has been desecrated--its portals closed, so that those who
go up thither are forbidden to enter.
He comes to tell your honorable body that the blood of the heroes
and patriots of the revolution, who have been slain by wicked hands
for enjoying their religious rights, the boon of Heaven to man, has
cried and is crying in the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth, saying,
"Redress, redress our wrongs, O Lord God of the whole earth."
He comes to tell your honorable body that the dying groans of
infant innocence and the shrieks of insulted and abused females,
and many of them widows of revolutionary patriots, have ascended up
into the ears of Omnipotence, and are registered in the archives
of eternity, to be had in the day of retribution as a testimony
against the whole nation, unless their cries and groans are heard
by the representatives of the people, and ample redress made, as
far as the nation can make it, or else the wrath of the almighty
will come down in fury against the whole nation.
Under all these circumstances, your memorialist prays to be heard
{192} by your honorable body touching all the matters of his
memorial. And as a memorial will be presented to Congress this
session for redress of our grievances, he prays your honorable body
will instruct the whole delegation of Pennsylvania, in both houses,
to use all their influence in the national councils to have redress
granted.
And, as in duty bound, your memorialist will ever pray.
SIDNEY RIGDON.
Miss E. R. Snow published the following apostrophe to--
"MISSOURI."
What aileth thee, O Missouri! that thy face should gather
blackness? and why are thy features so terribly distorted?
Rottennesss has seized upon thy vitals, corruption is preying upon
thy inward parts, and the breath of thy lips is full of destructive
contagion.
What meaneth thy shaking? and why art thou terrified? Thou hast
become like Belshazzar. "_Mene, mene, tekel, upharsin_!" is indeed
written against thee; but it is the work of thine own hand;
the characters upon thy wall are of thine own inscription; and
wherefore dost thou tremble?
Wouldst thou know the interpretation thereof? Hast thou sought for
a Daniel to declare it unto thee? Verily one greater than a Daniel
was in thy midst; but thou hast butchered the Saints, and hast
hunted the Prophets like Ahab of old.
Thou has extinguished the light of thy own glory; thou hast plucked
from thy head the crown of honor; thou hast divested thyself of the
robe of respectability; thou hast thrust from thine own bosom the
veins that flowed with virtue and integrity.
Thou hast violated the laws of our sacred constitution; thou hast
unsheathed the sword against thy dearest national rights, by rising
up against thine own citizens, and moistening thy soil with the
blood of those that legally inherited it.
When thou hadst torn from helpless innocence its rightful
protectors thou didst pollute the holy sanctuary of female virtue,
and barbarously trampled upon the most sacred gems of domestic
felicity.
Therefore the daughters of Columbia count thee a reproach, and
blush with indignation at the mention of thy name.
Thou hast become an ignominious stain on the escutcheon of a noble,
free and independent republic; thou hast become a stink in the
nostrils of the Goddess of Liberty.
{193} Thou art fallen--thou art fallen beneath the weight of thine
own unhallowed deeds, and thine iniquities are pressing as a heavy
load upon thee.
But although thy glory has departed--though thou hast gone down
like a star that is set forever, thy memory will not be erased;
thou wilt be had in remembrance even until the Saints of God shall
forget that the way to the celestial kingdom is "through great
tribulation."
Though thou shouldst be severed from the body of the Union, like a
mortified member--though the lion from the thicket should devour
thee, thy doings will be perpetuated; mention will be made of them
by the generations to come.
Thou art already associated with Herod, Nero, and the bloody
Inquisition; thy name has become synonymous with oppression,
cruelty, treachery, and murder.
Thou wilt rank high with the haters of righteousness and the
shedders of innocent blood: the hosts of tyrants are waiting
beneath to meet thee at thy coming.
O ye wise legislators! ye executives of the nation! ye distributors
of justice! ye advocates of equal rights! arise and redress the
wrongs of an innocent people, and redeem the cause of insulted
liberty.
Let not the contagious spirit of corruption wither the sacred
wreath that encircles you, and spread a cloud of darkness over the
glory of your star-spangled banner;
Lest the monarchs of the earth should have you in derision; lest
you should be weighed in the balance with the heathen nations,
and should be found wanting; lest the arm of the Lord should be
revealed in judgment against you; lest an arrow of vengeance
from the almighty should pierce the rotten fabric of a once
sheltering constitution, and your boasted confidence become like
an oak dismembered of its branches, whose shattered trunk is torn
piecemeal by the uprising of the tempest!
For the cries of the widow and fatherless, the groans of the
oppressed and the prayers of the suffering exile have come up
before the God of Hosts, who brought our pilgrim fathers across the
boisterous ocean, and raised up a Washington to break the yoke of
foreign oppression.
Morley Settlement, January, 1844.
_Thursday, February 1.--_At home: weather cold.
[Sidenote: An Appeal to Massachusetts--Phineas Richards.]
Phinehas Richards published a thrilling appeal to the inhabitants of
his native state of Massachusetts, to consider the wrongs sustained in
the loss of lives and property, and other damages {194} done to the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, of which he is a member.
Elder Reuben Hedlock wrote to President Brigham Young, giving the names
of those who had emigrated at the expense of the office, amounting to
$2,378; which is due from the emigrants.
_Friday, 2.--_Dr. Willard Richards called and read Phinehas Richards'
appeal to the inhabitants of Massachusetts, for redress of Missouri
grievances.
Prayer-meeting at Elder Brigham Young's. Weather cold.
I went into the assembly room, where I found Elders Wilford Woodruff,
Willard Richards, and W. W. Phelps, to whom I related the following
dream, which Elder Willford Woodruff reported:
_The Prophet's Dream--Troubled Waters Overcome_.
I was standing on a peninsula, in the midst of a vast body of water
where there appeared to be a large harbor or pier built out for
boats to come to. I was surrounded by my friends, and while looking
at this harbor I saw a steamboat approaching the harbor. There were
bridges on the pier for persons to cross, and there came up a wind
and drove the steamboat under one of the bridges and upset it.
I ran up to the boat, expecting the persons would all drown; and
wishing to do something to assist them, I put my hand against the
side of the boat, and with one surge I shoved it under the bridge
and righted it up, and then told them to take care of themselves.
But it was not long before I saw them starting out into the channel
or main body of the water again.
The storms were raging and the waters rough. I said to my friends
that if they did not understand the signs of the times and the
spirit of prophecy, they would be apt to be lost.
It was but a few moments after when we saw the waves break over the
boat, and she soon foundered and went down with all on board.
The storm and waters were still very rough; yet I told my friends
around me that I believed I could stem those waves and that storm,
and swim in the waters better than the steamboat did; at any rate I
was determined to try it. But my friends laughed at me, and told me
I could not stand at all, but would be drowned.
{195} The waters looked clear and beautiful, though exceedingly
rough; and I said I believed I could swim, and I would try it
anyhow. They said I would drown. I said I would have a frolic in
the water first, if I did; and I drove off in the raging waves.
I had swam but a short distance when a towering wave overwhelmed
me for a time; but I soon found myself on the top of it, and soon
I met the second wave in the same way; and for a while I struggled
hard to live in the midst of the storm and waves, and soon found I
gained upon every wave, and skimmed the torrent better; and I soon
had power to swim with my head out of water: so the waves did not
break over me at all, and I found that I had swam a great distance;
and in looking about, I saw my brother Samuel by my side.
I asked him how he liked it. He said, "First rate," and I thought
so too. I was soon enabled to swim with my head and shoulders out
of water, and I could swim as fast as any steamboat.
In a little time it became calm, and I could rush through the
water, and only go in to my loins, and soon I only went in to my
knees, and finally could tread on the top of the water, and went
almost with the speed of an arrow.
I said to Samuel, See how swift I can go! I thought it was great
sport and pleasure to travel with such speed, and I awoke.
_Saturday 13.--_Prayer-meeting in the assembly room.
The High Council met. Did but little business.
A rather favorable article appears in Niles' _National Register_ of
this date, noticing the correspondence between myself and John C.
Calhoun, a copy of which is contained in the political department of
the same number.
It also notices the correspondence between myself and James Arlington
Bennett, publishing the same, with some of our city ordinances. The
editor also quotes the following from the _Hawk Eye_:--
_Mormon Improvements._
Although much complained has been made about the Mormons, we saw
on our late trip evidences of improvement on our prairies which we
consider highly creditable to the Mormons who made them, without
whom we doubt whether they would have been made for many years to
come. All those who have traveled over the large prairie between
Fort Madison, Warsaw and Carthage, remember how dreary it was a few
{196} years since. Now it is studded with houses and good farms.
The English, who understand hedging and ditching far better than
our people, have gone upon that prairie and have enclosed extensive
fields in this manner. Along the old Rock Island tract, which we
traveled seven years ago, and which was then a dreary waste, we
saw a field enclosed with a good sod fence, six miles long and one
wide. We think such enterprise is worthy to be mentioned. As long
as the Mormons are harmless, and do not interfere with the rights
of our people we think they should be treated well. We shall never
convince them that they are a deluded people, as far as their
religious notions are concerned, in any other way.
[Sidenote: The 144,000 Selection Begun.]
_Sunday 4.--_I attended prayer-meeting with the quorum in the assembly
room, and made some remarks respecting the hundred and forty-four
thousand mentioned by John the Revelator, showing that the selection of
persons to form that number had already commenced.
President Brigham Young held a meeting at Brother Chamberlain's, in the
neighborhood north of the city; and Elder Wilford Woodruff, at Thomas
Kingston's, six miles east of the city.
[Sidenote: City Council]
_Monday 5.--_The regular session of the Municipal Court was opened in
the Mayor's office. Present, George W. Harris, George A. Smith, and N.
K. Whitney. Adjourned to the Nauvoo Mansion, on account of the severity
of the weather. I presided as Chief Justice. The assessors of the
different wards in the city presented their tax-lists, which occupied
nearly all day. The court remitted the taxes of the widows and of the
poor who were unable to pay.
[Sidenote: Architecture of the Nauvoo Temple.]
In the afternoon, Elder William Weeks (whom I had employed as architect
of the Temple,) came in for instruction. I instructed him in relation
to the circular windows designed to light the offices in the dead
work of the arch between stories. He said that round windows in the
broad side of a building were a violation of all the known rules of
architecture, and contended that they should be semicircular--that the
{197} building was too low for round windows. I told him I would have
the circles, if he had to make the Temple ten feet higher than it was
originally calculated; that one light at the centre of each circular
window would be sufficient to light the whole room; that when the whole
building was thus illuminated, the effect would be remarkably grand. "I
wish you to carry out _my_ designs. I have seen in vision the splendid
appearance of that building illuminated, and will have it built
according to the pattern shown me."
[Sidenote: Originality of Bank Views.]
Called at my office in the evening, and revised my "Views of the Powers
and Policy of the Government of the United States." I was the first one
who publicly proposed a national bank on the principles set forth in
that pamphlet.
_Tuesday, 6.--_Very cold day.
I spent the evening with my brother Hyrum, Sidney Rigdon, and the
Twelve Apostles and their wives, at Elder John Taylor's; took supper,
and had a very pleasant time.
_Wednesday, 7.--_An exceedingly cold day. In the evening I met with my
brother Hyrum and the Twelve Apostles in my office, at their request,
to devise means to promote the interests of the General Government.
I completed and signed my "Views of the Powers and Policy of the
Government of the United States," which I here insert:
_Views of the Powers and Policy of the Government of the United
States.--Joseph Smith._
Born in a land of liberty, and breathing an air uncorrupted with
the sirocco of barbarous climes, I ever feel a double anxiety for
the happiness of all men, both in time and in eternity.
My cogitations, like Daniel's have for a long time troubled me,
when I viewed the condition of men throughout the world, and
more especially in this boasted realm, where the Declaration of
Independence "holds these truths to be self-evident, that all men
are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with
certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and
the pursuit of happiness;" but at the same time some two or three
millions of people are held as slaves for life, because the spirit
in them is covered with a darker skin than ours; and hundreds of
our own kindred for an infraction, or supposed infraction, {198}
of some over-wise statute, have to be incarcerated in dungeon
gloom, or penitentiaries, while the duellist, the debauchee, and
the defaulter for millions, and other criminals, take the uppermost
rooms at feasts, or, like the bird of passage, find a more
congenial clime by flight.
The wisdom which ought to characterize the freest, wisest, and most
noble nation of the nineteenth century, should, like the sun in
his meridian splendor, warm every object beneath its rays; and the
main efforts of her officers, who are nothing more nor less than
the servants of the people, ought to be directed to ameliorate the
condition of all, black or white, bond or free; for the best of
books says, "God hath made of one blood all nations of men for to
dwell on all the face of the earth."
Our common country presents to all men the same advantages, the
facilities, the same prospects, the same honors, and the same
rewards; and without hypocrisy, the Constitution, when it says,
"We, the people of the United States, in order to form a more
perfect union, establish justice, ensure domestic tranquility,
provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and
secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do
ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of
America," meant just what it said without reference to color or
condition, _ad infinitum_.
The aspirations and expectations of a virtuous people, environed
with so wise, so liberal, so deep, so broad, and so high a
charter of _equal rights_ as appears in said Constitution, ought
to be treated by those to whom the administration of the laws is
entrusted with as much sanctity as the prayers of the Saints are
treated in heaven, that love, confidence, and union, like the sun,
moon, and stars, should bear witness,
"For ever singing as they shine,
The hand that made us is divine!"
Unity is power; and when I reflect on the importance of it to the
stability of all governments, I am astounded at the silly moves of
persons and parties to foment discord in order to ride into power
on the current of popular excitement; nor am I less surprised at
the stretches of power or restrictions of right which too often
appear as acts of legislators to pave the way to some favorite
political scheme as destitute of intrinsic merit as a wolf's heart
is of the milk of human kindness. A Frenchman would say, _"Presque
tout aimer richesses et pouvoir."_ (Almost all men like wealth and
power.)
I must dwell on this subject longer than others; for nearly one
hundred years ago that golden patriot, Benjamin Franklin, drew
up a plan of union for the then colonies of Great Britain, that_
now_ are such {199} an independent nation, which, among many
wise provisions for obedient children under their father's more
rugged hand, had this:--"They have power to make laws, and lay
and levy such general duties, imports, or taxes as to them shall
appear most equal and just, (considering the ability and other
circumstances of the inhabitants in the several colonies,) and such
as may be collected with the least inconvenience to the people,
rather discouraging luxury than loading industry with unnecessary
burthens." Great Britain surely lacked the laudable humanity and
fostering clemency to grant such a just plan of union; but the
sentiment remains, like the land that honored its birth, as a
pattern for wise men _to study the convenience of the people more
than the comfort of the cabinet_.
And one of the most noble fathers of our freedom and country's
glory, great in war, great in peace, great in the estimation of the
world, and great in the hearts of his countrymen, (the illustrious
Washington,) said in his first inaugural address to Congress--"I
behold the surest pledges that as, on one side, no local prejudices
or attachments, no separate views or party animosities will
misdirect the comprehensive and equal eye which ought to watch
over this great assemblage of communities and interests, so, on
another, that the foundations of our national policy will be laid
in the pure and immutable principles of private morality, and
the pre-eminence of free government be exemplified by all the
attributes which can win the affections of its citizens and command
the respect of the world."
Verily, here shine the virtue and wisdom of a statesman in such
lucid rays, that had every succeeding Congress followed the
rich instruction in all their deliberations and enactments,
for the benefit and convenience of the whole community and the
communities of which it is composed, no sound of a rebellion in
South Carolina, no rupture in Rhode Island, no mob in Missouri
expelling her citizens by Executive authority, corruption in
the ballot-boxes, a border warfare between Ohio and Michigan,
hard times and distress, outbreak upon outbreak in the principal
cities, murder, robbery, and defalcation, scarcity of money, and
a thousand other difficulties, would have torn asunder the bonds
of the Union, destroyed the confidence of man with man, and left
the great body of the people to mourn over misfortunes in poverty
brought on by corrupt legislation in an hour of proud vanity for
self-aggrandizement.
The great Washington, soon after the foregoing faithful admonition
for the common welfare of his nation, further advised Congress
that "among the many interesting objects which will engage
your attention, that of providing for the common defense will
merit particular regard. To be prepared for war is one of the
most effectual means of preserving peace." As the Italian would
say--"_Buono aviso_."
{200} The elder Adams, in his inaugural address, give national
pride such a grand turn of justification, that every honest
citizen must look back upon the infancy of the United States with
an approving smile, and rejoice that patriotism in their rulers,
virtue in the people, and prosperity in the Union once crowded the
expectations of hope, unveiled the sophistry of the hypocrite,
and silenced the folly of foes. Mr. Adams said, "If national
pride is ever justifiable or excusable, it is when it springs not
from _power_ or riches, grandeur or glory, but from conviction of
national innocence, information, and benevolence."
There is no doubt such was actually the case with our young realm
at the close of the last century. Peace, prosperity, and union
filled the country with religious toleration, temporal enjoyment,
and virtuous enterprise; and grandly, too, when the deadly winter
of the "Stamp Act," the "Tea Act," and other close communion acts
of Royalty had choked the growth of freedom of speech, liberty
of the press, and liberty of conscience--did light, liberty, and
loyalty flourish like the cedars of God.
The respected and venerable Thomas Jefferson, in his inaugural
address, made more than forty years ago, shows what a beautiful
prospect an innocent, virtuous nation presents to the sage's eye,
where there is space for enterprise, hands for industry, heads for
heroes, and hearts for moral greatness. He said, "A rising nation
spread over a wide and fruitful land, traversing all the seas
with the rich productions of their industry, engaged in commerce
with nations who feel power and forget right, advancing rapidly
to destinies beyond the reach of mortal eye,--when I contemplate
these transcendent objects, and see the honor, the happiness, and
the hopes of this beloved country committed to the issue and the
auspices of this day. I shrink from the contemplation, and humble
myself before the magnitude of the undertaking."
Such a prospect was truly soul-stirring to a good man. But "since
the fathers have fallen asleep," wicked and designing men have
unrobed the Government of its glory; and the people, if not in
dust and ashes, or in sackcloth, have to lament in poverty her
departed greatness, while demagogues build fires in the north and
south, east and west, to keep up their spirits _till it is better
times._ But year after year has left the people to _hope_, till the
very name of _Congress or State Legislature_ is as horrible to the
sensitive friend of his country as the house of "Bluebard" is to
children, or "Crockford's" Hell of London to meek men. [1]
When the people are secure and their rights properly respected,
then the four main pillars of prosperity--viz., agriculture,
manufactures, {201} navigation, and commerce, need the fostering
care of Government; and in so goodly a country as ours, where the
soil, the climate, the rivers, the lakes, and the sea coast, the
productions, the timber, the minerals, and the inhabitants are
so diversified, that a pleasing variety accommodates all tastes,
trades, and calculations, it certainly is the highest point of
supervision to protect the whole northern and southern, eastern
and western, centre and circumference of the realm, by a judicious
tariff. It is an old saying and a true one, "If you wish to be
_respected,_ respect yourselves."
I will adopt in part the language of Mr. Madison's inaugural
address,--"To cherish peace and friendly intercourse with all
nations, having correspondent dispositions; to maintain sincere
neutrality towards belligerent nations; to prefer in all cases
amicable discussion and reasonable accommodation of differences
to a decision of them by an appeal to arms; to exclude foreign
intrigues and foreign partialities, so degrading to all countries,
and so baneful to free ones; to foster a spirit of independence
too just to invade the rights of others, too proud to surrender
our own, too liberal to indulge unworthy prejudices ourselves, and
too elevated not to look down upon them in others; to hold the
union of the States as the basis of their peace and happiness;
to support the Constitution, which is the cement of the Union,
as well in its limitations as in its authorities; to respect the
rights and authorities reserved to the States and to the people
as equally incorporated with and essential to the success of the
general system; to avoid the slightest interference with the rights
of conscience or the functions of religion, so wisely exempted from
civil jurisdiction; to preserve in their full energy the other
salutary provisions in behalf of private and personal rights, and
of the freedom of the press,--so far as intention aids in the
fulfillment of duty, are consummations too big with benefits not to
captivate the energies of all honest men to achieve them, when they
can be brought to pass by reciprocation, friendly alliances, wise
legislation, and honorable treaties."
The Government has once flourished under the guidance of trusty
servants; and the Hon. Mr. Monroe, in his day, while speaking of
the Constitution, says, "Our commerce has been wisely regulated
with foreign nations and between the States. New States have
been admitted into our Union. Our Territory has been enlarged
by fair and honorable treaty, and with great advantage to the
original States; the States respectively protected by the national
Government, under a mild paternal system against foreign dangers,
and enjoying within their separate spheres, by a wise partition of
power, a just proportion of the sovereignty, have improved their
police, extended their settlements, and attained a strength and
maturity which are the best proofs of {202} wholesome laws well
administered. And if we look to the condition of individuals, what
a proud spectacle does it exhibit! On whom has oppression fallen
in any quarter of our Union? Who has been deprived of any right
of person or property?--who restrained from offering his vows in
the mode which he prefers to the Divine Author of his being? It
is well know that all these blessings have been enjoyed in their
fullest extent; and I add, with peculiar satisfaction, that there
has been no example of a capital punishment being inflicted on
any one for the crime of high treason." What a delightful picture
of power, policy, and prosperity! Truly the wise man's proverb is
just--Righteousness exalteth a nation, but sin is a reproach to any
people.
But this is not all. The same honorable statesman, after having had
about forty years' experience in the Government, under the full
tide of successful experiment, gives the following commendatory
assurance of the efficiency of the _Magna Charta_ to answer its
great end and aim--_to protect the people in their rights._ "Such,
then, is the happy Government under which we live; a Government
adequate to every purpose for which the social compact is formed;
a Government elective in all its branches, under which every
citizen may by his merit obtain the highest trust recognized by the
Constitution, which contains within it no cause of discord, none
to put at variance one portion of the community with another, a
Government which protects every citizen in the full enjoyment of
his rights, and is able to protect the nation against injustice
from foreign powers."
Again, the younger Adams, in the silver age of our country's
advancement to fame, in his inaugural address (1825), thus candidly
declares the majesty of the youthful republic in its increasing
greatness;--"The year of jubilee, since the first formation of our
union, has just elapsed: that of the Declaration of Independence
is at hand. The consummation of both was effected by this
Constitution. Since that period, a population of four millions has
multiplied to twelve. A Territory, bounded by the Mississippi, has
been extended from sea to sea. New States have been admitted to the
Union, in numbers nearly equal to those of the first confederation.
Treaties of peace, amity, and commerce have been concluded with the
principal dominions of the earth. The people of other nations, the
inhabitants of regions acquired, not by conquest, but by compact,
have been united with us in the participation of our rights and
duties, of our burdens and blessings. The forest has fallen by the
ax of our woodsman. The soil has been made to teem by the tillage
of our farmers. Our commerce has whitened every ocean. The dominion
of man over physical nature has been extended by the invention of
our artists. Liberty and law have marched hand in hand. All the
purposes of human association have been accomplished as effectively
{203} as under any other Government on the globe, and at a cost
little exceeding, in a whole generation, the expenditures of other
nations in a single year."
In continuation of such noble sentiments, General Jackson, upon
his ascension to the great chair of the chief magistracy, said,
"As long as our Government is administered for the good of the
people, and is regulated by their will, as long as it secures to us
the rights of person and property, liberty of conscience, and of
the press, it will be worth defending; and so long as it is worth
defending, a patriotic militia will cover it with an impenetrable
_aegis_."
General Jackson's administration may be denominated the _acme_ of
American glory, liberty, and prosperity; for the national debt,
which in 1815, on account of the late war, was $125,000,000, and
being lessened gradually, was paid up in his golden day, and
preparations were made to distribute the surplus revenue among the
several States; and that august patriot, to use his own words in
his farewell address, retired, leaving "a great people prosperous
and happy, in the full enjoyment of liberty and peace, honored and
respected by every nation of the world."
At the age, then, of sixty years, our blooming Republic began to
decline under the withering touch of Martin Van Buren! Disappointed
ambition, thirst for power, pride, corruption, party spirit,
faction, patronage, perquisites, fame, tangling alliances,
priestcraft, and spiritual wickedness in _high places,_ stuck hands
and revelled in midnight splendor.
Trouble, vexation, perplexity, and contention, mingled with hope,
fear, and murmuring, rumbled through the Union and agitated the
whole nation, as would an earthquake at the centre of the earth,
the world heaving the sea beyond its bounds and shaking the
everlasting hills; so, in hopes of better times, while jealousy,
hypocritical pretensions, and pompous ambition were luxuriating on
the ill-gotten spoils of the people, they rose in their majesty
like a tornado, and swept through the land, till General Harrison
appeared as a star among the storm-clouds for better weather.
The calm came, and the language of that venerable patriot, in
his inaugural address, while descanting upon the merits of the
Constitution and its framers, thus expressed himself:--"There were
in it features which appeared not to be in harmony with their ideas
of a simple representative Democracy or Republic. And knowing the
tendency of power to increase itself, particularly when executed by
a single individual, predictions were made that, at no very remote
period, the Government would terminate in virtual monarchy.
"It would not become me to say that the fears of these patriots
have {204} been already realized. But as I sincerely believe that
the tendency of measures and of men's opinions for some years past
has been in that direction, it is, I conceive, strictly proper
that I should take this occasion to repeat the assurances I have
heretofore given of my determination to arrest the progress of that
tendency, if it really exists, and restore the Government to its
pristine health and vigor."
This good man died before he had the opportunity of applying one
balm to ease the pain of our groaning country, and I am willing
the nation should be the judge, whether General Harrison, in his
exalted station, upon the eve of his entrance into the world of
spirits, told the truth, or not, with acting President Tyler's
three years of perplexity, and pseudo-Whig-Democrat reign to heal
the breaches or show the wounds, _secundum artem_.
Subsequent events, all things considered, Van Buren's downfall,
Harrison's exit, and Tyler's self-sufficient turn to the whole, go
to show-- [2] * * * _certainly there is a God in heaven to reveal
secrets_.
No honest man can doubt for a moment but the glory of American
liberty is on the wane, and that calamity and confusion will sooner
or later destroy the peace of the people. Speculators will urge
a national bank as a savior of credit and comfort. A hireling
pseudo-priesthood will plausibly push abolition doctrines and
doings and "human rights" into Congress, and into every other place
where conquest smells of fame, or opposition swells to popularity.
Democracy, Whiggery, and cliquery will attract their elements and
foment divisions among the people, to accomplish fancied schemes
and accumulate power, while poverty, driven to despair, like hunger
forcing its way through a wall, will break through the statues of
men to save life, and mend the breach in prison glooms.
A still higher grade of what the "nobility of nations" call "great
men" will dally with all rights in order to smuggle a fortune at
"one fell swoop," mortgage Texas, possess Oregon, and claim all the
unsettled regions of the world for hunting and trapping; and should
an humble, honest man, red, black, or white, exhibit a better
title, these gentry have only to clothe the judge with richer
ermine, and spangle the lawyer's finger with finer rings, to have
the judgment of his peers and the honor of his lords as a pattern
of honesty, virtue, and humanity, while the motto hangs on his
nation's escutcheon--"_Every man has his price_!"
Now, O people! people! turn unto the Lord and live, and reform this
nation. Frustrate the designs of wicked men. Reduce Congress at
{205} least two-thirds. Two Senators from a State and two members
to a million of population will do more business than the army that
now occupy the halls of the national Legislature. Pay them two
dollars and their board per diem (except Sundays.) That is more
than the farmer gets, and he lives honestly. Curtail the officers
of Government in pay, number, and power; for the Philistine lords
have shorn our nation of its goodly locks in the lap of Delilah.
Petition your State Legislatures to pardon every convict in their
several penitentiaries, blessing them as they go, and saying to
them, in the name of the Lord, _Go thy way, and sin no more_.
Advise your legislators, when they make laws for larceny, burglary,
or any felony, to make the penalty applicable to work upon roads,
public works, or any place where the culprit can be taught more
wisdom and more virtue, and become more enlightened. Rigor and
seclusion will never do as much to reform the propensities of
men as reason and friendship. Murder only can claim confinement
or death. Let the penitentiaries be turned into seminaries of
learning, where intelligence, like the angels of heaven, would
banish such fragments of barbarism. Imprisonment for debt is a
meaner practice than the savage tolerates, with all his ferocity.
"_Amor vincit omnia_."
Petition, also, ye goodly inhabitants of the slave States, your
legislators to abolish slavery by the year 1850, or now, and save
the abolitionist from reproach and ruin, infamy and shame.
Pray Congress to pay every man a reasonable price for his slaves
out of the surplus revenue arising from the sale of public lands,
and from the deduction of pay from the members of Congress.
Break off the shackles from the poor black man, and hire him to
labor like other human beings; for "an hour of virtuous liberty on
earth is worth a whole eternity of bondage." Abolish the practice
in the army and navy of trying men by court-martial for desertion.
If a soldier or marine runs away, send him his wages, with this
instruction, that his country will never trust him again; he has
forfeited his honor.
Make honor the standard with all men. Be sure that good is rendered
for evil in all cases; and the whole nation, like a kingdom of
kings and priests, will rise up in righteousness, and be respected
as wise and worthy on earth, and as just and holy for heaven, by
Jehovah, the Author of perfection.
More economy in the national and state governments would make less
taxes among the people; more equality through the cities, towns and
country, would make less distinction among the people; and more
honesty and familiarity in societies would make less hypocrisy
and flattery in all branches of the community; and open, frank,
candid decorum to all men, in this boasted land of liberty, would
beget esteem, {206} confidence, union, and love; and the neighbor
from any state or from any country, of whatever color, clime or
tongue, could rejoice when he put his foot on the sacred soil of
freedom, and exclaim, The very name of _"American"_ is fraught
with _"friendship!"_ Oh, then, create confidence, restore freedom,
break down slavery, banish imprisonment for debt, and be in love,
fellowship and peace with all the world! Remember that honesty is
not subject to law. The law was made for transgressors. Wherefore a
* * * * good name is better than riches.
For the accommodation of the people in every state and territory,
let Congress show their wisdom by granting a national bank, with
branches in each State and Territory, where the capital stock shall
be held by the nation for the Central bank, and by the states and
territories for the branches; and whose officers and directors
shall be elected yearly by the people, with wages at the rate of
two dollars per day for services; which several banks shall never
issue any more bills than the amount of capital stock in her vaults
and the interest.
The net gain of the Central bank shall be applied to the national
revenue, and that of the branches to the states and territories'
revenues. And the bills shall be par throughout the nation, which
will mercifully cure that fatal disorder known in cities as
_brokerage,_ and leave the people's money in their own pockets.
Give every man his constitutional freedom and the president full
power to send an army to suppress mobs, and the States authority
to repeal and impugn that relic of folly which makes it necessary
for the governor of a state to make the demand of the President for
troops, in case of invasion or rebellion.
The governor himself may be a mobber; and instead of being
punished, as he should be, for murder or treason, he may destroy
the very lives, rights, and property he should protect. Like the
good Samaritan, send every lawyer as soon as he repents and obeys
the ordinances of heaven, to preach the Gospel to the destitute,
without purse or scrip, pouring in the oil and the wine. A learned
Priesthood is certainly more honorable than _"an hireling clergy_."
As to the contiguous territories to the United States, wisdom would
direct no tangling alliance. Oregon belongs to this government
honorably; and when we have the red man's consent, let the Union
spread from the east to the west sea; and if Texas petitions
Congress to be adopted among the sons of liberty, give her the
right hand of fellowship, and refuse not the same friendly grip to
Canada and Mexico. And when the right arm of freemen is stretched
out in the character of a navy for the protection of rights,
commerce, and honor, let the iron eyes of power watch from Maine
to Mexico, and from California to Columbia. Thus may union be
strengthened, and foreign speculation prevented from opposing
broadside to broadside.
{207} Seventy years have done much for this goodly land. They have
burst the chains of oppression and monarchy, and multiplied its
inhabitants from two to twenty millions, with a proportionate share
of knowledge keen enough to circumnavigate the globe, draw the
lightning from the clouds, and cope with all the crowned heads of
the world.
Then why--oh, why will a once flourishing people not arise,
phoenix-like over the cinders of Martin Van Buren's power, and
over the sinking fragments of smoking ruins of other catamount
politicians, and over the windfalls of Benton, Calhoun, Clay,
Wright, and a caravan of other equally unfortunate law doctors,
and cheerfully help to spread a plaster and bind up the _burnt,
bleeding wounds,_ of a sore but blessed country?
The Southern people are hospitable and noble. They will help to
rid so _free_ a country of every vestige of slavery, whenever they
are assured of an equivalent for their property. The country will
be full of money and confidence when a National Bank of twenty
millions, and a State Bank in every state, with a million or more,
gives a tone to monetary matters, and make a circulating medium as
valuable in the purses of a whole community as in the coffers of a
speculating banker or broker.
The people may have faults, but they should never be trifled with.
I think Mr. Pitt's quotation in the British Parliament of Mr.
Prior's couplet for the husband and wife, to apply to the course
which the King and ministry of England should pursue to the then
colonies of the _now_ United States, might be a genuine rule of
action for some of the _breath-made_ men in high places to use
towards the posterity of this noble, daring people:--
"Be to her faults a little blind;
Be to her virtues very kind."
We have had Democratic Presidents, Whig Presidents, a
pseudo-Democratic-Whig President, and now it is time to have a
_President of the United States;_ and let the people of the whole
Union, like the inflexible Romans, whenever they find a _promise_
made by a candidate that is not _practiced_ as an officer, hurl the
miserable sycophant from his exaltation, as God did Nebuchadnezzar,
to crop the grass of the field with a beast's heart among the
cattle.
Mr. Van Buren said, in his inaugural address, that he went in the
Presidential chair the inflexible and uncompromising opponent of
every attempt, on the part of Congress, to abolish slavery in the
District of Columbia, against the wishes of the slave-holding
States, and also with a determination equally decided to resist the
slightest interference with it in the States where it exists.
Poor little Matty made this rhapsodical sweep with the fact before
his eyes, that the State of New York, his native State, had
abolished {208} slavery without a struggle or a groan. Great God,
how independent! From henceforth slavery is tolerated where it
exists, constitution or no constitution, people or no people, right
or wrong_: Vox Matti! Vox Diaboli!_ And peradventure, his great
"sub-treasury" scheme was a piece of the same mind. But the man and
his measures have such a striking resemblance to the anecdote of
the Welshman and his cart-tongue, that when the Constitution was
so long that it allowed slavery at the capitol of a free people,
it could not be cut off; but when it was so short that it needed
a _sub-treasury_ to save the funds of the nation, it _could be
spliced!_ Oh, granny, granny, what a long tail our puss has got.
[3] * * * But his mighty whisk through the great national fire, for
the presidential chestnuts, _burnt the locks of his glory with the
blaze of his folly_!
In the United States the people are the government, and their
united voice is the only sovereign that should rule, the only
power that should be obeyed, and the only gentlemen that should be
honored at home and abroad, on the land and on the sea. Wherefore,
were I the president of the United States, by the voice of a
virtuous people, I would honor the old paths of the venerated
fathers of freedom; I would walk in the tracks of the illustrious
patriots who carried the ark of the Government upon their shoulders
with an eye single to the glory of the people, and when that people
petitioned to abolish slavery in the slave states, I would use all
honorable means to have their prayers granted, and, give liberty
to the captive by paying the Southern gentlemen a reasonable
equivalent for his property, that the whole nation might be free
indeed!
When the people petitioned for a National Bank, I would use my
best endeavors to have their prayers answered, and establish
one on national principles to save taxes, and make them the
controllers of its ways and means. And when the people petitioned
to possess the territory of Oregon, or any other contiguous
territory, I would lend the influence of a Chief Magistrate to
grant so reasonable a request, that they might extend the mighty
efforts and enterprise of a free people from the east to the west
sea, and make the wilderness blossom as the rose. And when a
neighboring realm petitioned to join the union of liberty's sons,
my voice would be, _Come_--yea, come, Texas; come Mexico, come
Canada; and come, all the world: let us be brethren, let us be
one great family, and let there be a universal peace. Abolish the
cruel custom of prisons (except certain cases), penitentiaries,
court-martials for desertion; and let reason and friendship reign
over the ruins of ignorance and barbarity; yea, I would, as the
universal friend of man, open the prisons, open the eyes, open
the ears, and open the hearts of all {209} people, to behold and
enjoy freedom--unadulterated freedom; and God who once cleansed the
violence of the earth with a flood, whose Son laid down His life
for the salvation of all His Father gave him out of the world, and
who has promised that He will come and purify the world again with
fire in the last days, should be supplicated by me for the good of
all people. With the highest esteem, I am a friend of virtue and of
the people,
JOSEPH SMITH,
NAUVOO, ILLINOIS, February 7, 1844.
Footnotes:
1. Reference is had to Crockford's famous gaming club house at No. 50
on the west side of St. James St., London.
2. For Explanation of Ellipses See footnote p. 75 this volume.
3. For explanation of Ellipses See footnote p. 75 this volume.
{210}
CHAPTER IX.
COMMENTS ON CANDIDACY OF JOSEPH SMITH FOR PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED
STATES--TENDERS OF PEACE TO MISSOURI--PRELIMINARY STEPS TO WESTERN
MOVEMENT OF THE CHURCH--JAMES A. BENNETT AND VICE PRESIDENCY.
_Wednesday, February 7, 1844.--_A piece of doggerel appears in the
_Warsaw Message_ of this date, entitled "Buckeye's Lamentations for
the Want of More Wives," evidently the production of Wilson Law, and
breathing a very foul and malicious spirit.
_Thursday, 8.--_Held Mayor's court, and tried two negroes for
attempting to marry white women: fined one $25, and the other $5. In
the evening there was a political meeting in the assembly room, when
Brother Phelps publicly read for the first time my "Views of the Powers
and Policy of the General Government." I addressed the meeting as
follows:--
_Views of the Prophet on His Candidacy for President of United
States_.
I would not have suffered my name to have been used by my friends
on anywise as President of the United States, or candidate for
that office, if I and my friends could have had the privilege of
enjoying our religious and civil rights as American citizens,
even those rights which the Constitution guarantees unto all her
citizens alike. But this as a people we have been denied from the
beginning. Persecution has rolled upon our heads from time to time,
from portions of the United States, like peals of thunder, because
of our religion; and no portion of the Government as yet has
stepped forward for our relief. And in view of these things, I feel
it to be my right and privilege to obtain what influence and power
I can, lawfully, in the United States, for the {211} protection
of injured innocence; and if I lose my life in a good cause I am
willing to be sacrificed on the altar of virtue, righteousness
and truth, in maintaining the laws and Constitution of the United
States, if need be, for the general good of mankind.
I was followed by Elders Hyde an Taylor, and a unanimous vote was taken
to maintain my political views.
_Friday, 9--_Held Mayor's court in my dining-room on the case,
"Nauvoo _versus_ William Withers," for assault. Case withdrawn on my
recommendation.
This evening a public meeting was held. I extract from the _Neighbor_:--
PUBLIC MEETING.
On Friday, the 9th instant, a public meeting was held in the
assembly room, at which a public address of General Joseph Smith's
to the citizens of the United States was read by Judge Phelps.
The address is certainly an able document, big with meaning and
interest, clearly pointing out the way for the temporal salvation
of this Union, showing what would be our best policy, pointing out
the rocks and quick-sand where the political bark is in danger of
being wrecked, an the way to escape it, and evincing a knowledge
and foresight of our political economy worthy of the writer.
Appropriate remarks were made by several gentlemen after the
reading of the address.
_Saturday, 10.--_I instructed the marshal to inform Mr. Cole, who kept
a select school in the assembly room, that I must for the future have
that room for my own use.
Prayer-meeting in the assembly room. Prayed for Sister Richards and
others, who were sick.
A conference was held at Tuscaloosa County, Alabama: Elder John
Brown, president; and George W. Stewart, clerk. Three branches were
represented, containing nine elders, two priests, three teachers, three
deacons, and 123 members.
_Sunday, 11.--_Snow on the ground. Thaw commenced in the afternoon. I
was at home.
{212} _Monday, 12.--_I sat in the city council, and recommended the
repeal of the ordinances entitled "An extra ordinance for the extra
case of Joseph Smith," "An ordinance to prevent unlawful search or
seizure of persons or property, by foreign [1] process, in the city
of Nauvoo," and "An ordinance regulating the currency;" and they were
repealed accordingly. The Memorial to Congress, passed December 21,
1843, was again read, and signed by the councilors, aldermen, mayor,
recorder, and marshal.
I instructed Councilor Orson Pratt to call all the Illinois
representatives together, and tell them our sufferings have been such
that we must have that document passed, and we _will_ have it.
"You must go in for it. Go to John Quincy Adams and ask him to call the
delegates from Massachusetts separate from the Illinois delegation,
and demand the same. Go to Henry Clay and other prominent men. Call
public meetings in the city of Washington. Take the saloon, publish the
admittance so much per ticket, invite the members of both houses to
come and hear you, and roar upon them. You may take all my writings you
think anything of and read to them, &c., and you shall prosper in the
name of God. Amen."
The recorder presented the report of the attendance of the city
council, from which it appears that I have sat with them eleven
sessions, from the 14th of October, 1843, to the 16th of January, 1844,
inclusive.
Councilor Orson Pratt nominated George P. Stiles as councilor during
his absence, which was confirmed by the council.
I burned $81 of city scrip according to ordinance.
Thawing. Streets very dirty.
_Tuesday, 13.--_I was at home. Settled with Theodore Turley, and gave
him the deed of a lot.
Having received an invitation from Brother Joseph L. Heywood to visit
Quincy, I wrote him in reply:--
{213} _Letter:--Joseph Smith to Joseph L. Heywood--Anent a visit to
Quincy_.
NAUVOO, February 13, 1844.
DEAR BROTHER HEYWOOD,--I sit down at this time to acknowledge the
receipt of, and reciprocate the friendly feelings manifest in
yours of the 7th instant; and, although surrounded by a press of
business, shall take pleasure in spending a few moments to reply.
I would take the greatest pleasure imaginable in coming down to
Quincy on a visit to see you and all my friends in your city,
would business and circumstances permit; but it would be a matter
of impossibility almost for me to leave home at the present time,
in consequence of a multitude of business which I have daily to
attend to. Moreover, wisdom and prudence seem to forbid my coming,
on account of the bitter feeling which manifests itself in various
places between this and Quincy,--not that I have any apprehensions
for my personal safety; for the same kind hand which hath hitherto
been my shield and support would save me from the power of my
wicked persecutors; but something might grow out of it which would
prompt my adversaries to get out another illegal writ, and would
eventually, probably, cost me some three or four thousand dollars,
as in other cases, and under which I have still to labor to
disadvantage. Under these considerations, therefore, I am compelled
to decline paying you a visit for the present. At the same time, in
connection with Mrs. Smith, I tender my warmest acknowledgement for
the invitation.
I am pleased to hear of the prosperity of your branch, and hope it
will continue; for, although I never feel to force my doctrine upon
any person; I rejoice to see prejudice give way to truth, and the
traditions of men dispersed by the pure principles of the Gospel of
Jesus Christ.
I should be please to have the privilege of forming an acquaintance
with your partner, Mr. Kimball, and his lady; and should they ever
come up this way, I hope they will call and see me.
As respects things in Nauvoo, I have nothing to say but good.
Although the mobocrats of this county breathe out their shame with
a continual foam, and threaten extermination, &c., the citizens
of Nauvoo are at peace; they fear no danger, for the report of
mobs has become so common, that the "Mormons" pay no attention to
it whatever. Each man minds his own business, and all are making
improvements as fast as they can. In fact, things in general seem
prosperous and pleasing; and I never saw a better feeling amongst
the Saints than at the present time.
My family have been somewhat sick of late, and continue so,
especially my youngest boy.
{214} Accept, dear sir, the warmest respects of myself and Mrs.
Smith, and please present the same to your lady. In the meantime I
remain your friend and brother,
JOSEPH SMITH.
President Brigham Young returned from Bear creek settlements, where he
had been preaching for the last few days.
_Wednesday, 14.--_At home through the day. In the evening the assembly
room was filled by the brethren, when my "Views of the Powers and
Policy of the Government of the United States" was again read. I
afterwards spoke on the same subject at a considerable length.
_Thursday, 15.--_At home. A beautiful day.
I insert the following article from the _Times and Seasons_:--
WHO SHALL BE OUR NEXT PRESIDENT?
This is an inquiry which to us as a people is a matter of the most
paramount importance, and requires our most serious, calm, and
dispassionate reflection. Executive power, when correctly wielded,
is a great blessing to the people of this great commonwealth, and
forms one of the firmest pillars of our confederation. It watches
the interests of the whole community with a fatherly care; it
wisely balances the other legislative powers when over-heated by
party spirit or sectional feeling; it watches with jealous care our
interests and commerce with foreign nations, and gives tone and
efficacy to legislative enactments.
The President stands at the head of these United States, and is the
mouth-piece of this vast republic. If he be a man of an enlightened
mind and a capacious soul,--if he be a virtuous man, a statesman,
a patriot, and a man of unflinching integrity,--if he possess
the same spirit that fired the souls of our venerable sires, who
founded this great commonwealth, and wishes to promote the good
of the whole republic, he may indeed be made a blessing to the
community.
But if he prostrates his high and honorable calling to base and
unworthy purposes,--if he make use of the power which the people
have placed in his hands for their interests to gratify his
ambition, for the purpose of self-aggrandizement or pecuniary
interest,--if he meanly pander with demagogues, loses sight of the
interest of the nation, and {215} sacrifice the Union on the altar
of sectional interests or party views, he renders himself unworthy
of the dignified trust reposed in him, debases the nation in the
eyes of the civilized world, and produces misery and confusion at
home. "When the wicked rule, the people mourn."
There is perhaps no body of people in the United States who
are at the present time more interested about the issue of the
presidential contest than are the Latter-day Saints. And our
situation in regard to the two great political parties is a most
novel one. It is a fact well understood that we have suffered great
injustice from the State of Missouri, that we have petitioned to
the authorities of that state for redress in vain, that we have
also memorialized Congress under the late administration, and have
obtained the heartless reply that "Congress has no power to redress
your grievances."
After having taken all the legal and constitutional steps that
we can, we are still groaning under accumulated wrongs. Is there
no power anywhere to redress our grievances? Missouri lacks the
disposition and Congress lacks both the disposition and power (?);
and thus fifteen thousand inhabitants of these United States can
with impunity be dispossessed of their property; have their houses
burned, their property confiscated, many of their numbers murdered,
and the remainder driven from their homes and left to wander as
exiles in this boasted land of freedom and equal rights; and after
appealing again and again to the legally-constituted authorities of
our land for redress, we are coolly told by our highest tribunals,
"We can do nothing for you."
We have paid hundreds of thousands of dollars into the coffers
of Congress for their lands, and they stand virtually pledged to
defend us in our rights, but they have not done it. If a man steals
a dollar from his neighbor, or steals a horse or a hog, he [the
neighbor] can obtain redress; but we have been robbed by wholesale,
the most daring murders have been committed, and we are coolly
told that we can obtain no redress. If a steamboat is set on fire
on our coast by foreigners, even when she is engaged in aiding
and abetting the enemies of that power, it becomes a matter of
national interference and legislation; or if a foreigner, as in the
case of McLeod, is taken on our land and tried for supposed crimes
committed by him against our citizens, his nation interferes,
and it becomes a matter of negotiation and legislation. But our
authorities can calmly look on and see the citizens of a county
butchered with impunity: they can see two counties dispossessed
of their inhabitants, their houses burned, and their property
confiscated; and when the cries of fifteen thousand men women and
children salute their ears, they deliberately tell us that we can
obtain no redress.
Hear it, therefore, ye mobbers! Proclaim it to all the scoundrels
in {216} the Union! Let a standard be erected around which shall
rally all the renegades of the land: assemble yourselves and rob at
pleasure; murder till you are satiated with blood; drive men, women
and children from their homes: there is no law to protect them, and
Congress has no power to redress their grievances; and the great
father of the Union (the President) has not got an ear to listen to
their complaints.
What shall we do under this state of things? In the event of either
of the prominent candidates, Van Buren or Clay, obtaining the
presidential chair, we should not be placed in any better situation.
In speaking of Mr. Clay, his politics are diametrically opposed to
ours. He inclines strongly to the old school of Federalists, and
as a matter of course would not favor our cause, neither could we
conscientiously vote for him. And we have yet stronger objections
to Mr. Van Buren on other grounds. He has sung the old song of
Congress--"Congress has no power to redress your grievances."
But did the matter rest here, it would not be so bad. He was in
the presidential chair at the time of our former difficulties. We
appealed to him on that occasion, but we appealed in vain, and his
sentiments are yet _unchanged_.
But all these things are tolerable in comparison to what we have
yet to state. We have been informed from a respectable source that
there is an understanding between Mr. Benton, of Missouri, and Mr.
Van Buren, and a conditional compact entered into, that if Mr.
Benton will use his influence to get Mr. Van Buren elected, Van
Buren when elected, shall use his executive influence to wipe away
the stain from Missouri by a further persecution of the "Mormons,"
and wreaking out vengeance on their heads, either by extermination
or by some other summary process. We could scarcely credit the
statement; and we hope yet, for the sake of humanity, that the
suggestion is false: but we have too good reason to believe that we
are correctly informed.
If, then, this is the case, can we conscientiously vote for a man
of this description, and put the weapons into his hands to cut our
throat with? We cannot. And however much we might wish to sustain
the Democratic nomination, we cannot--we will not vote for Van
Buren. Our interests, our property, our lives, and the lives of our
families are too dear to us to be sacrificed at the shrine of party
spirit and to gratify party feelings. We have been sold once in the
State of Missouri, and our liberties bartered away by political
demagogues, through executive intrigue, and we wish not to be
betrayed again by Benton and Van Buren.
Under these circumstances, the question again arises, Whom shall
we support? GENERAL JOSEPH SMITH--a man of sterling worth and
integrity and of enlarged views--a man who has raised himself
from {217} the humblest walks in life to stand at the head of a
large, intelligent, respectable, and increasing society, that has
spread not only in this land, but in distant nations,--a man whose
talents and genius are of an exalted nature, and whose experience
has rendered him in every way adequate to the onerous duty.
Honorable, fearless, and energetic, he would administer justice
with an impartial hand, and magnify and dignify the office of Chief
Magistrate of this land; and we feel assured that there is not a
man in the United States more competent for the task.
One great reason that we have for pursuing our present course is,
that at every election we have been made a political target for
the filthy demagogues in the country to shoot their loathsome
arrows at. And every story has been put into requisition to blast
our fame from the old fabrication of "walk on the water" down to
"the murder of ex-Governor Boggs." The journals have teemed with
this filthy trash, and even men who ought to have more respect
for themselves--men contending for the gubernatorial chair have
made use of terms so degrading, so mean, so humiliating, that a
Billingsgate fisherwoman would have considered herself disgraced
with. We refuse any longer to be thus bedaubed for either party.
We tell all such to let their filth flow in its own legitimate
channel, for we are sick of the loathsome smell.
Gentlemen, we are not going either to "murder ex-Governor Boggs,
nor a Mormon in this state for not giving us his money," nor are we
going to "walk on the water," "nor drown a woman," nor "defraud the
poor of their property," nor send "destroying angels after General
Bennett to kill him," nor "marry spiritual wives," nor commit any
other outrageous act this election to help any party with. You must
get some other persons to perform these kind offices for you for
the future. We withdraw.
Under existing circumstances, we have no other alternative; and
if we can accomplish our object, well: if not, we shall have the
satisfaction of knowing that we have acted conscientiously, and
have used our best judgment. And if we have to throw away our
votes, we had better do so upon a worthy rather than upon an
unworthy individual, who might make use of the weapon we put in his
hand to destroy us with.
Whatever may be the opinions of men in general in regard to Mr.
Smith, we know that he needs only to be known to be admired; and
that it is the principles of honor, integrity, patriotism, and
philanthropy that have elevated him in the minds of his friends;
and the same principles, if seen and known, would beget the esteem
and confidence of all the patriotic and virtuous throughout the
Union.
Whatever, therefore, be the opinions of other men, our course is
marked out, and our motto henceforth will be--_General Joseph
Smith_.
{218} _Friday, 16.--_At home. This evening I spent two hours in the
office. Settled with Brother Whitney; gave him deed of several town
lots, and took his receipt in full.
_Saturday, 17.--_I wrote the following article:--
PACIFIC INUENDO.
The very candid, pacific, and highly creditable _advice_ which
Governor Ford has done himself the honor to address to "the
citizens of Hancock county, Mormons and all," and which appears
in the _Warsaw Signal_ of the 14th instant, is like the balm of
Gilead, well calculated to ease the pain which has troubled the
heads and hearts of the Carthaginians, Warsawvians, and other
over-jealous bodies for _weal and woe_.
It certainly must be admitted, on all hands, that Governor Ford
has exalted himself as a mediator, patriot, lawyer, governor,
peacemaker, and friend of all, not only to magnify the law and make
it honorable, but also in pointing out the part of peace.
Such is what the Latter-day Saints have ever sought at the hands of
those in authority; and with an approving conscience clear as the
crystal spring, and with a laudable intention warm as the summer
zephyr, and with a charitable prayer mellow as the morning dew, it
is now our highest consolation to hope that all difficulties will
cease, and give way to reason, sense, peace, and goodwill.
The Saints, if they will be humble and wise, can now practice what
they preach, and soften by good examples, rather than harden by a
distant course of conduct, the hearts of the people.
For general information, it may be well to say that there has
never been any cause for alarm as to the Latter-day Saints. The
legislature of Illinois granted a liberal charter for the City of
Nauvoo; and let every honest man in the Union who has any knowledge
of her say whether she has not flourished beyond the most sanguine
anticipations of all. And while they witness her growing glory,
let them solemnly testify whether Nauvoo has willfully injured the
country, county, or a single individual one cent.
With the strictest scrutiny publish the facts, whether a particle
of law has been evaded or broken: virtue and innocence need no
artificial covering. Political views and party distinctions never
should disturb the harmony of society; and when the whole truth
comes before a virtuous people, we are willing to abide the issue.
We will here refer to the three last dismissals upon writs
of _habeas corpus,_ of Joseph Smith, when arrested under the
requisitions of Missouri.
The first, in June, 1841, was tried at Monmouth, before Judge
Douglas, of the fifth judicial circuit: and as no exceptions have
been {219} taken to that decision by the state of Missouri--but
Missouri previously entered a _nolle prosequi_ on all the old
indictments against the Mormons in the difficulties of 1838--it is
taken and granted that decision was just!
The second, in December, 1842, was tried at Springfield before
Judge Pope in the U. S. District Court; and from that honorable
discharge, as no exceptions from any source have been made to those
proceedings, it follows as a matter of course that that decision
was just!
And the third, in July, 1843, was tried at the city of Nauvoo,
before the Municipal Court of said city; and as no exceptions to
that discharge have been taken, and as the governor says there is
"evidence on the other side to show that the sheriff of Lee county
_voluntarily_ carried Mr. Reynolds (who had Mr. Smith in custody,)
to the city of Nauvoo without any coercion on the part of any one,"
it must be admitted that that decision was just!
But is any man unconvinced of the justness of these strictures
relative to the two last cases, let the astounding fact go forth,
that _Orrin Porter Rockwell,_ whom Boggs swore was the principal in
his [attempted] assassination, and as accessory to which Mr. Smith
was arrested, has returned home, "clear of sin." In fact, there was
not a witness to get up an indictment against him.
The Messrs. Averys, who were unlawfully transported out of this
state, have returned to their families in peace; and there seems to
be no ground for contention, no cause for jealousy, and no excuse
for a surmise that any man, woman, or child will suffer the least
inconvenience from General Smith, the charter of Nauvoo, the city
of Nauvoo, or even any of her citizens.
There is nothing for a bone of contention! Even those ordinances
which appeared to excite the feeling of some people have recently
been repealed; so that if the "intelligent" inhabitants of Hancock
county want peace, want to abide by the Governor's advice, want to
have a character at home, and really mean to follow the Savior's
golden rule, "To do unto others as they would wish others to do
unto them," they will be still now, and let their own works praise
them in the gates of justice and in the eyes of the surrounding
world. Wise men ought to have understanding enough to conquer men
with kindness.
"A soft answer turneth away wrath," says the wise man; and it
will be greatly to the credit of the Latter-day Saints to show
the love of God, by now kindly treating those who may have, in an
unconscious moment, done wrong; for truly said Jesus, Pray for
thine enemies.
Humanity towards all, reason and refinement to enforce virtue, and
good for evil are so eminently designed to cure more disorders of
society than an appeal to arms, or even argument untempered with
friendship, {220} and the one thing needful that no vision for the
future, guide-board for the distant, or expositor for the present,
need trouble any one with what he ought to do.
His own good, his family's good, his neighbor's good, his country's
good, and all good seem to whisper to every person--The governor
has told you what to do. Now do it.
The constitution expects every man to do his duty; and when he
fails the law urges him; or should he do too much, the same master
rebukes him.
Should reason, liberty, law, light, and philanthropy now guide the
destinies of Hancock county with as much sincerity as has been
manifested for her notoriety or welfare, there can be no doubt that
peace, prosperity, and happiness will prevail, and that future
generations as well as the present one will call Governor Ford _a
peacemaker._ The Latter-day Saints will, at all events, and profit
by the instruction, and call upon honest men to help them cherish
all the love, all the friendship, all the courtesy, all the kindly
feelings, and all the generosity that ought to characterize clever
people in a clever neighborhood, and leave candid men to judge
which tree exhibits the best fruit--the one with the most clubs and
sticks thrown into its boughs and the grass trodden down under it,
or the one with no sticks in it, some dead limbs, and rank grass
growing under it; for by their signs ye can know their fruit, and
by the fruit ye know the trees.
Our motto, then, is Peace with all! If we have joy in the love of
God, let us try to give a reason of that joy, which all the world
cannot gainsay or resist. And may be, like as when Paul started
with recommendations to Damascus to persecute the Saints, some one
who has raised his hand against us with letters to men in high
places may see a light at noonday, above the brightness of the sun,
and hear the voice of Jesus saying, "It is hard for thee to kick
against the pricks."
Intelligence is sometimes the messenger of safety. And, willing to
aid the governor in his laudable endeavors to cultivate peace and
honor the laws, believing that very few of the citizens of Hancock
county will be found in the negative of such a goodly course, and
considering his views a kind of manifesto, or olive leaf, which
shows that there is rest for the soles of the Saints' feet we give
it a place in the _Neighbor,_ wishing it God speed, and saying,
God bless good men and good measures! And as Nauvoo has been, so
it will continue to be, a good city, affording a good market to
a good country; and let those who do not mean to try the way of
transgressors, say "Amen."
The High Council met and settled several cases of difficulty betwixt
brethren.
[Sidenote: Anti-Mormon Convention at Carthage.]
{221} The Anti-Mormons held a convention at Carthage, the object being
to devise ways and means of expelling the Saints from the State. Among
other resolutions was one appointing the 9th of March next as the day
of fasting and prayer, wherein the pious of all orders are requested
to pray to Almighty God that He would speedily bring the false Prophet
Joseph Smith to deep repentance, or that He will make a public example
of him and his leading accomplices.
The ice broke up in the river.
_Sunday, 18.--_Beautiful day. Southwest wind.
A very large assembly of the Saints met at the stand, near the Temple,
when I preached a lengthy discourse.
Four p.m., went to my office with Hyrum and two gentlemen from St.
Louis. Heard Dr. Richards read my correspondence with Senator Calhoun,
and Phelps read my "Views of the Power and Policy of the General
Government."
At seven, attended prayer-meeting in the assembly room.
_Monday, 19.--_At nine a.m. went to my office with Dr. Bernhisel, who
proposed some alterations in my views of the government. Phelps read
the same, and the doctor seemed better pleased with it than before.
_To the Editor of the Neighbor_:--
SIR,--I wish to say to you, as there seems to be a prospect of
peace, that it will be more love-like, more God-like, and man-like,
to say nothing about the _Warsaw Signal_.
If the editor breathes out that old sulphurous blast, let him go
and besmear his reputation and the reputation of those that uphold
him with soot and dirt, but as for us and all honest men, we will
act well our part, for there the honor lies.
We will honor the advice of Governor Ford, cultivate peace and
friendship with all, mind our own business, and come off with
flying colors, respected, because, in respecting others, we respect
ourselves.
Respectfully, I am
JOSEPH SMITH.
A conference was held in Halifax, Halifax county, {222} Nova Scotia,
Elder Robert Dickson, president. Two branches were represented,
consisting of thirty members, three elders, one priest, one teacher,
and two deacons.
The wild geese commenced flying north.
[Sidenote: Delegation from Lyman Wight on Indian Affairs.]
_Tuesday, 20.--_At ten a.m. went to my office, where the Twelve
Apostles and some others met in council with Brothers Mitchell Curtis
and Stephen Curtis who left the pinery on Black River, 1st January.
They were sent by Lyman Wight and Bishop Miller to know whether Lyman
should preach to the Indians, the Menominees and Chippeways having
requested it.
The Chippeways had given Brother Wight some wampum as a token of peace,
and the brethren had given them half a barrel of flour and an ox to
keep the Indians from starving, and Wight had gone through to Green Bay
with them to make a road.
I told them to tell Brother Wight I had no counsel to give him on
the subject. He is there on his own ground and must act on his own
responsibility, and do what he thinks best in relation to the Indians,
understanding the laws and nature of the subject as well as I can here,
and he shall never be brought into difficulty about it by us.
[Sidenote: Western Movement for the Church Contemplated]
I instructed the Twelve Apostles to send out a delegation and
investigate the locations of California and Oregon, and hunt out a good
location, where we can remove to after the temple is completed, and
where we can build a city in a day, and have a government of our own,
get up into the mountains, where the devil cannot dig us out, and live
in a healthful climate, where we can live as old as we have a mind to.
Warm. The ice floating down the river.
[Sidenote: A Wolf Hunt Called for Hancock Co.]
A meeting of the citizens of Hancock county was held at the court-house
in Carthage. Passed a resolution that the second Saturday of March be
appointed for a general wolf-hunt, being the same day {223} selected by
the convention of the 17th instant for a day of fasting and prayer for
my destruction.
[Sidenote: The Prophet on the Necessity of Complete Obedience to God.]
_Wednesday 21.--_The Rev. Mr. De Wolfe, Episcopalian, lectured in the
assembly room in the evening. I attended and, after the sermon, at his
request, spoke to the people, showing them that to get salvation we
must not only do some things, but everything which God has commanded.
Men may preach and practice everything except those things which God
commands us to do, and will be damned at last. We may tithe mint and
rue, and all manner of herbs, and still not obey the commandments of
God. The object with me is to obey and teach others to obey God in
just what He tells us to do. It mattereth not whether the principle is
popular or unpopular, I will always maintain a true principle, even if
I stand alone in it.
My _Pacific Inuendo_, written on the 17th instant, appeared in the
_Neighbor_ of to-day, in connection with Governor Ford's letter of the
29th of January.
Ice left the west bank of the river, opposite the lower brick house.
Very warm and pleasant.
Council of the Twelve met in my office. I insert the minutes:--
_Minutes of a Council Meeting of the Twelve_.
At a meeting of the Twelve, at the mayor's office, Nauvoo, February
21, 1844, seven o'clock, p.m., Brigham Young, Parley P. Pratt,
Orson Pratt, Wilford Woodruff, John Taylor, George A. Smith,
Willard Richards and four others being present, called by previous
notice, by instruction of President Joseph Smith on the 20th
instant, for the purpose of selecting a company to explore Oregon
and California, and select a site for a new city for the Saints.
Jonathan Dunham, Phineas H. Young, David D. Yearsley, and David
Fullmer, volunteered to go; and Alphonzo Young, James Emmett,
George D. Watt, and Daniel Spencer were requested to go.
Voted the above persons to be notified to meet with the council on
Friday evening next, at the assembly room,
WILLARD RICHARDS, Clerk.
{224} _Thursday, 22.--_At home.
Ice continues to run in the river. Very pleasant, cool nights.
_Friday, 23.--_W. W. Phelps received a letter from John Whitmer in
relation to certain records, and a book containing some of the early
history of the Church which had been written by my clerks, and was
Church property, and which had been fraudulently detained from my
possession by John Whitmer; to which Dr. Richards replied.
[Sidenote: The Western Exploring Equipment.]
Met with the Twelve in the assembly room concerning the Oregon and
California Exploring Expedition; Hyrum and Sidney present. I told them
I wanted an exploration of all that mountain country. Perhaps it would
be best to go direct to Santa Fe. "Send twenty-five men: let them
preach the Gospel wherever they go. Let that man go that can raise
$500, a good horse and mule, a double barrel gun, one-barrel rifle,
and the other smooth bore, a saddle and bridle, a pair of revolving
pistols, bowie-knife, and a good sabre. Appoint a leader, and let them
beat up for volunteers. I want every man that goes to be a king and a
priest. When he gets on the mountains he may want to talk with his God;
when with the savage nations have power to govern, &c. If we don't get
volunteers, wait till after the election."
George D. Watt said, "Gentlemen, I shall go." Samuel Bent, Joseph A.
Kelting, David Fullmer, James Emmett, Daniel Spencer, Samuel Rolfe,
Daniel Avery, and Samuel W. Richards, volunteered to go.
_Saturday, 24.--_At home. Had an interview with Brother Phelps at nine
o'clock.
Seth Palmer, Amos Fielding, Charles Shumway, and John S. Fullmer
volunteered to go to Oregon and California.
Fifteen hundred copies of my "Views" out of press.
Very pleasant the past two weeks; the pleasantest February I ever saw.
{225} President Brigham Young went to Knowlton's settlement on Bear
creek, and preached.
_Sunday, 25.--_I preached at the temple block. Hyrum also preached.
[Sidenote: A Prophecy of Deliverance of the Saints]
Evening, I attended prayer-meeting in the assembly room, We prayed that
"General Joseph Smith's Views of the Powers and Policy of the United
States," might be spread far and wide, and be the means of opening
the hearts of the people. I gave some important instructions, and
prophesied that within five years we should be out of the power of our
old enemies, whether they were apostates or of the world; and told the
brethren to record it, that when it comes to pass they need not say
they had forgotten the saying.
Some rain in the evening; cloudy and foggy.
_Monday, 26.--_At home. A cold wind from the north. Rainy, dull day.
[Sidenote: The Case of Botswick Slander of Hyrum Smith.]
In the afternoon, held court at the Mansion. City of Nauvoo _versus_
Orsimus F. Botswick, on complaint of Hyrum Smith for slanderous
language concerning him and certain females of Nauvoo. Botswick was
fined $50 and costs. Francis M. Higbee, his attorney, gave notice he
should appeal to the municipal court, and then to the circuit court. I
told Higbee what I thought of him for trying to carry such a suit to
Carthage--it was to stir up the mob and bring them upon us.
Prayer-meeting in the assembly room in the afternoon. My uncle John
Smith and lady were present, were anointed, and received blessings; and
in the evening Father Morley was also blessed.
Ira S. Miles volunteered to join the mountain exploring expedition.
_Tuesday, 27,--_At home, Cool and clear. River clear of ice.
In the afternoon, visited the printing office.
Mailed my "Views of Powers and Policy," &c., to the {226} President
and cabinet, supreme judges, senators, representatives, principal
newspapers in the United States, (all the German), and many postmasters
and individuals.
Almon L. Fullmer and Hosea Stout volunteered to go on the Western
Exploring Expedition.
_Wednesday, 28.--_At home. Rainy day.
At four, p.m., steamboat _General Brooke_ passed up the river: first
boat this season. No ice in sight.
In the evening I sent Brother Coolidge to Brother Phelps, to call the
brethren and pray for Brother Coolidge's sick child, as he thought it
could not live till morning. Elder John Taylor and others prayed for
him.
Dr. Alphonzo Young published an appeal to his native state of
Tennessee, giving a history of our Missouri troubles, and asking the
influence of that state to obtain redress.
The _Neighbor_ of to-day publishes the following:--
FOR PRESIDENT, JOSEPH SMITH.
Having now raised the name of our General and Prophet to the
head of our columns, it becomes us, as Latter day Saints, to be
prudent and energetic in the cause that we pursue, and not let any
secondary influences control our minds or govern our proceedings.
The step that we have taken is a bold one, and requires our united
efforts, perseverance, and diligence; but important as it may be,
it is no greater than others have taken, and they have conceived
that they had a right, without molestation, to pursue that course,
and to vote for that man whose election they in their wisdom
thought would be most conducive to the public weal.
As American citizens, then we presume that all will concede to us
this right; and whatever may be their views respecting the policy
of such a step, they will acknowledge that we act legally, justly,
and constitutionally in pursuing our present course.
Some have nominated Henry Clay, some Colonel Johnson, others John
C. Calhoun, others Daniel Webster, and others Martin Van Buren.
Those several committees, unquestionably thought that they had
each of them made the wisest selection in naming the man of their
choice. They selected their several candidates because they
thought they were the wisest, the greatest statesmen, and the
most competent to {227} fill the presidential chair, whilst they
severally thought that the other candidates were incompetent.
We have governed by the same principles; and if others think they
have made the wisest selection, so do we. If others think they
have nominated the greatest statesman, so do we; and while those
several committees think that none of the nominations made are so
good as their own, we think that the man of our choice is the most
able, the most competent, the best qualified, and would fill the
Presidential chair with greater dignity to the nation; and that his
election would be conducive of more happiness and prosperity at
home and abroad than that of any other man in these United States.
This is a thing that we, as Latter-day Saints, know; and it now
devolves upon us as an imperative duty to make others acquainted
with the same things, and to use all our influence at home and
abroad for the accomplishment of this object.
Mr. Smith is not so generally known personally as are several of
the above-named candidates; and although he has been much spoken of
as a man, he has been a great deal calumniated and misrepresented,
and his true character is very little known.
It is for us to take away this false coloring; and by lecturing,
by publishing, and circulating his works, his political views, his
honor, integrity and virtue, to stop the foul mouth of slander, and
present him before the public in his own colors, that he may be
known, respected, and supported.
Thomas S. Edwards volunteered to join the exploring expedition to the
Rocky Mountains.
[Sidenote: A Reply Sketched to Cassius M. Clay.]
_Thursday, 29.--_Called at my office, and gave Brother Phelps the
_Zanesville Gazette_ of January 31, containing the speech of Cassius
M. Clay, delivered in Scott county, Kentucky, December 30, 1843, on
annexing Texas to the United States; and instructed him to reply to the
same, and gave him the subject matter, and directed the manner I wished
it done; and then rode out with Porter Rockwell.
The steamer _Ohio_ went up the river.
Moses Smith and Rufus Beach volunteered to join the Oregon exploring
expedition.
_Friday, March 1.--_Very frosty night; showery day, west wind.
Spent the day in counseling.
{228} Letters from the elders show a rapid progress of the work of the
Lord in different parts of the Union. Elder John E. Page has gone to
Washington for the purpose of proclaiming to the rulers of our nation
the principles of eternal truth. By a letter received from him, we
learn he has been preaching and baptizing in Boston and vicinity.
_The High Council to the Saints in Nauvoo_.
_The High Council of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints at Nauvoo to the Saints of this [Nauvoo] Stake, greeting_.
BELOVED BRETHREN,--Realizing as we do, the importance of the work
in which we are engaged, we deem it expedient to lay before you
such matters from time to time as in our opinion will be beneficial
to the Saints, and the spirit in us may seem to require.
We would remind our brethren, the elders, who have at sundry times
been sent forth as flaming heralds, messengers of the everlasting
Gospel, who proclaim a message of salvation to their fellow-men,
thereby gathering and bringing up to Zion the scattered elect of
God, to be taught more perfectly he principles of salvation; that
whilst their message is abroad we have had our mission to remain
at Nauvoo and to participate with the Saints in the blessing of
poverty, if such it may be called; amid sickness and distress, in
the vexations and turmoils of the unruly and ungodly, for which
no man has paid us, for days, weeks, months, and years; that our
time has been spent in endeavoring to settle difficulties, set in
order the things needful to salvation; in trying to reconcile and
cement the feelings of our brethren to each other in the spirit of
the Gospel; whilst at times, circumstances of a more painful nature
have been presented.
Individuals have been brought before us charged with high crimes in
violation of the laws of heaven, on whom much patient exertion in
the labors of love have by us been bestowed, to reclaim them from
the error and evil of their doings.
We regret to have it to say that in some instances our efforts have
been fruitless; for after we have found in them an obstinate and
unyielding spirit to the principles of right, we have (reluctantly)
been compelled to sever them from the Church as withered branches.
Such persons not unfrequently manifest their wickedness by their
trifling with and bidding defiance to all and every good rule,
regulation and law, set forth for the guidance of all Saints.
One single trait of their depravity is frequently manifested by
their going to some ignorant elder and getting re-baptized into the
Church, {229} not having first made the least satisfaction (as was
required) to such as they have injured.
We have to say that baptism in such cases is not valid and cannot
profit. We here continue to say; let such expelled person first be
reconciled to his injured brother, and bring forth fruit mete for
repentance; or, in case of dissatisfaction with our decision, take
an appeal and reverse it, if found wrong.
Expelled persons not complying with these rules (which are in
accordance with the order of heaven), whom we have been once
necessitated to withdraw fellowship from, cannot be restored in any
illegal way; and we would say that all such clandestine entering
into the Church is climbing up some other way, and that such
persons can only be considered as thieves and robbers. We would
also remind the elders that it is improper for them to re-baptize
any such expelled persons while they remain thus obstinate; and
that it will subject them to censure, and bring them to trial
before a proper tribunal of the Church.
We therefore hope, for the future, that certain officious,
forward-feeling elders will be more prudent in such cases hereafter.
We remain yours in the bonds of the new and everlasting covenant,
WILLIAM MARKS,
CHARLES C. RICH,
Presidents.
Samuel Bent, L. Dunbar Wilson,
David Fullmer, Thomas Grover,
Newell Knight, Leonard Soby,
James Allred, Alpheus Cutler,
George W. Harris, Aaron Johnson,
William Huntington, Sen., Henry G. Sherwood,
Counselors.
Hosea Stout, Clerk.
The _Times and Seasons_ of March 1st presents my name to the public as
candidate for president of the United States.
Jonathan Dunham filed his bonds with the recorder, and took the oath of
office as wharf-master of the city of Nauvoo.
Elder Wilford Woodruff very sick; the 37th anniversary of his birthday.
_Saturday, 2.--_Ten a.m. held Mayor's court. Reproved Elder S. B.
Stoddard for giving appearance of evil in attempting to be bail for
Orsimus F. Boswick. Brother Stoddard afterwards explained to my
satisfaction.
{230} President Brigham Young visited Macedonia, accompanied by his
brother, L. D. Young, and preached there on the Sabbath.
_Sunday, 3.--_Ground covered with snow. Attended prayer-meeting in the
evening.
_Monday, 4.--_I suggested the name of James Arlington Bennett, of Long
Island, as a candidate for Vice-President.
At early candle-light, the First Presidency, Twelve Apostles, temple
committee, and others, met in council.
I insert the minutes.
_Minutes of a Council Meeting--Twelve and Temple Committee_.
George Coray came in, and said he was sent by Lyman Wight to get
sheep, &c, to carry to the Pine country, to receipt for them, or
agree to pay lumber.
President Joseph suggested that it was best to let the Nauvoo House
remain as it is until the temple is completed, as we need the
temple more than anything else.
Elder Haws said there was some dissatisfaction about being sent
from the Pinery without accounts, &c., and could not have credit on
tithing, and one month at the Pinery is only called fifteen days
here.
President Joseph told them that they should have their number of
days in full. "We will let the Nauvoo house stand until the temple
is done, and we will put all our forces on the Temple, turn our
lumber towards the Temple, and cover it in this fall, and sell the
remainder to get blasting powder, fuse, rope, steel, &c."
And when the temple is completed, no man shall pass the threshold
till he has paid five dollars; and every stranger shall pay five
dollars towards liquidating the cash debts on the Temple, and I
will not have the house dirtied.
Let Woodworth go to the pinery, take the things wanted, and bring
back the lumber, and his wages go on as usual.
Let a special conference be called on the 6th of April, and all
the elders called home who can come. Let the people of this city
come together on Thursday, at nine o'clock in the morning. After
two or three lectures, we will call on the people to fill up the
boxes with liberal contributions, to procure cash materials for the
temple.
I instructed a letter to be written to James Arlington {231} Bennett to
consult him on the subject of nominating him for Vice-President. I here
insert the letter:--
_Letter--Willard Richards to James Arlington Bennett--The Matter of
Bennett Becoming Candidate for Vice-President of U. S_.
NAUVOO, March 4, 1844.
DEAR GENERAL,--Yours of the 1st of February, was duly received, and
produced the most pleasing sensations among your friends here, and
especially with the Prophet, who said, "Tell General Bennett I am
perfectly satisfied with his explanation; and as to _temper,_ I had
not even thought of it."
You suggest that Brother Joseph's correspondence with Mr. Calhoun
would appear in some degree to contradict the noble sentiments
expressed in that able document to yourself; but if you will notice
that his communication to you was written as an individual, and
that to Mr. Calhoun as the voice of the people he represents,
I think you will discover no discrepancy; but if so, tell me
particulars without delay, and you shall have an explanation.
I have recently mailed to you General Smith's "Views of the
Powers and Policy of the Government of the United States," which
were drawn forth in consequence of his friends selecting him as
a candidate for the next Presidency, which he very reluctantly
acquiesced in, and it seems would not, only to support a favorite
maxim_--"The people must govern;"_ but having once been prevailed
upon to suffer his name to go abroad as a candidate, it is
desirable to him of course, as to every patriot, that those who
have brought him forward should use all honorable means to sustain
him in the canvass; and if I had not felt disposed to uphold him
before the people, I never would have been the first to urge
his nomination; and during the short space since his name has
been published, his friends have been astonished at the flood of
influence that is rolling through the Western States in his favor,
and in many instances where we might have least expected it.
I need not assert what the wisest of the wise admit without
argument--that General Smith is the greatest statesman of the
19th century. Then why should not the nation secure to themselves
his superior talents, that they may rise higher and higher in the
estimation of the crowned heads of the nations and exalt themselves
through his wisdom?
Your friends here consider your letter about the Governorship of
Illinois just like every man in your quarter, mere sport, child's
sport; for who would stoop to the play of a single State, when the
whole nation was on the board?--a cheaper game!
General Smith says, if he must be President, Arlington Bennett
must be Vice-President. To this his friends are agreed--agreed in
everything; and in this consists our power: consequently, your
name will {232} appear in our next paper as our candidate for
Vice-President of the United States. You will receive our undivided
support, and we expect the same in return for General Smith for
the Presidency; and we will go it with the rush of a whirlwind, so
peaceful, so gentle, that it will not be felt by the nation till
the battle is won.
Dear General, if glory, honor, force, and power in righteous
principles are desired by you, now is your time. You are safe in
following the counsel of that man who holds communion with heaven;
and I assure you, if you act well your part, victory's the prize.
Brother Arlington, look well to "General Smith's Views," and his
letter to Calhoun, and comprehend him fully. Say to the _New York
Herald,_ now is the time for your exaltation; raise your standard
high, sound your trumpet long and loud, support General Smith and
myself at the next election; and when we are exalted, you shall not
be forgotten.
Hold forth no false shadows to honest men; yet though there is but
one best piece to the fatted calf, yet there are many good slices;
therefore you will not forget the _"Advertiser," "Niles Register,"
"Globe,"_ &c., &c.
Get up an electoral ticket--New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and
any other state within your reach. Open your mouth wide, and God
shall fill it. Cut your quill, and the ink shall flow freely.
Commence at your own mansion and stay not, only for electioneering
purposes, till by some popular route you reach Nauvoo; and if you
preach Mormonism it will help you. At every stage, tavern, boat and
company, expose the wickedness of Martinism in saying, if he is
elected President, he will annihilate the Mormons, and proclaim the
sycophancy of the candidates generally, and uphold Joseph against
every aspersion and you shall triumph gloriously.
We have many things to say to you, which we must keep till we see
you face to face.
All is right at Nauvoo. We are now fitting out a noble company to
explore Oregon and California, and progressing rapidly with the
great Temple, which we expect to roof this season, though there
is yet a chance at the _eleventh hour_ for you to bring in your
thousand, and secure your "penny."
On the 6th of April is our special conference at Nauvoo. I wish you
could be here on that occasion, but the time is too short. From
that period our Elders will go forth by hundreds or thousands and
search the land, preaching religion and politics; and if God goes
with them, who can withstand their influence?
My words are the words of your friends here--Come and see us. {233}
Brother Joseph's, Young's, and Bernhisel's respects to you. Mrs.
Richards' kind respects with mine to yourself and love to all yours.
Most respectfully yours,
WILLARD RICHARDS.
The temple committee proposed to establish a powder manufactory.
Footnotes:
1. That is, process outside of the city government.
{234}
CHAPTER X.
URGING THE BUILDING OF THE TEMPLE--TENDERS OF PEACE TO
MISSOURI--PROPHET'S DISCOURSE ON ELIAS, ELIJAH, MESSIAH--LYMAN WIGHT'S
PROPOSAL OF A SOUTHWEST MOVEMENT FOR THE CHURCH.
_Tuesday, March 5, 1844.--_I saw Hyrum Kimball at Bryant's store, and
gave him a lecture on his resisting the ordinances of the city, by
telling the captains of the steamboats they need not pay wharfage, &c.
Rode out with Emma.
At two, p.m., met with the City Council. I copy the minutes:--
_Special Session of the City Council_.
March 5, 1844, 2 p.m.
Names of members called. Quorum present.
Mayor stated that he had called the council, because that when the
wharf-master called on the steamboats for wharfage, the officers of
the boats declined paying, assigning as a reason that Hyrum Kimball
and -- Morrison had told them that they owned the land, and they
need pay no wharfage to the city; and he called the council to know
their views on the subject, as he had told Hyrum Kimball that he
should see the ordinances executed; and if the boats did not pay,
he should blow them up and all those who upheld them in resisting
the ordinances. Every measure is taken to palsy the hands of the
officers of the city; and I want to know how to remedy the evil, or
whether I shall abandon the ordinances, &c.
Alderman Harris said that it was the mayor's duty to enforce the
ordinances of the city, and that no man has a right to build a
wharf without leave from the city council.
Councilor Phelps suggested the propriety of licensing those who
owned wharves to collect a tax for the landing of the boat.
{235} Alderman Wells concurred.
Mayor said the land on the water's edge was a street.
Alderman Wells suggested the propriety of having the street worked
as soon as may be.
Councilor Phelps said, if Water street extended round the city,
then Kimball had been constructing a nuisance.
Mayor spoke in explanation, and said that Kimball said, if the city
would make a wharf, he would give up what he had done.
Councilor Orson Spencer said he wished the mayor to execute the law
of the city.
Councilor Brigham Young concurred.
Councilor W. W. Phelps proposed that Water street be worked the
whole length.
Councilor Taylor said, "I go in for executing the laws of the city."
Marshal stated that Morrison said he had a bond for a deed to
low-water mark, and the city could not take his personal rights,
and he objected to the boats paying wharfage.
Councilor Orson Pratt said, if Kimball or Morrison or any one else
has built wharves since that street was laid out, they could get no
damages.
Councilor Daniel Spencer considered the ordinance passed good, and
it ought to be enforced.
Councilor Hyrum Smith, believed it was our duty to stand up to the
ordinances.
Moved by Brigham Young that the city council instruct the Mayor to
order the supervisor to open Water street from Joseph Smith's store
north to the north line of the city.
Councilor Phelps approved of the motion, that the road might be
cleared from rafts, and the rafts might also pay license.
Councilor Warrington said the upper stone house was in the street.
Mayor said that was the greatest nuisance there was in the street.
Councilor Orson Spencer was in favor [i.e., of the motion to open
Water street.] Motion carried unanimously.
The governor having refused to issue commissions to the
aldermen-elect of the city, Councilor Whitney inquired who were
aldermen.
The mayor explained that if the governor refuses to grant a
commission, it does not disqualify the officer elect from acting in
his office; consequently, there is no virtue in the commission, but
the virtue of the office consists in the election.
Councilor Young thought they were aldermen all the time or none of
the time.
Mayor said he wanted all the aldermen to be added to the city
council.
{236} Alderman Wells said he considered the election made the
aldermen, and not the commission.
Mayor said if he had been elected alderman and filed his bonds, he
would act as councilor and magistrate.
[Sidenote: Packard's Memorial to Legislature of Massachusetts]
Noah Packard sent a memorial to the governor, senate, and house of
representatives of Massachusetts, his native state, setting forth in
detail the sufferings of the Saints in Missouri, and their expulsion
from that state.
_Wednesday, 6--_Went to my office, and thence with Brother Phelps to
Mr. Bryant's, to see him about his uniting with Hiram Kimball and
others to resist the ordinances of the city.
The _Neighbor_ publishes the name of James Arlington Bennett as
candidate for Vice-President.
_Thursday, 7.--_A splendid day; wind from the southwest.
_Minutes of a General Meeting in the Interest of the Temple_.
[Reported by Elders Willard Richards and Wilford Woodruff.]
A vast assembly of Saints met at the Temple of the Lord at nine
o'clock a.m., by a special appointment of President Joseph Smith,
for the purpose of advancing the progress of the Temple, &c.
The Patriarch, Hyrum Smith, was present; also of the Twelve
Apostles, Brigham Young, Heber C. Kimball, Parley P. Pratt, Orson
Pratt, Willard Richards, Wilford Woodruff, John Taylor, and George
A. Smith; also the temple committee and about eight thousand Saints.
A hymn was sung by the choir; prayer by Elder Parley P. Pratt, when
another hymn was sung.
Patriarch Hyrum Smith took the stand and said, The object of the
meeting is to stir up your minds by way of remembrance. It is
necessary to have a starting-point, which is to build the Temple.
With the assistance of the sisters, we expect to get the nails and
glass; and with the assistance of the brethren, we expect to do the
rest. I will proclaim in public and in private that the sisters
bought the glass and nails by penny subscription. Choose ye this
day whom ye will serve.
We shall call upon this vast multitude for a donation to buy powder
and fuse-ropes to blast the rocks in the quarry. We want the
brethren to at least do as much as the sisters.
{237} We do not intend to finish the Nauvoo House this season, but
to take all the hands and finish the Temple this summer, or the
walls of it, and get the roof on by December, and do off the inside
next winter; and about a year from this spring we will dedicate it.
We can do anything we undertake. We have power, and we can do great
things. In five years to come the work will progress more than it
has done for ten years past.
Isaiah said we should perform a marvelous work and a wonder. I
don't wonder he said so, if he saw this vast multitude; and I think
this people is abundantly able to build this temple, and much
depends upon it for our endowments and sealing powers; and many
blessings depend upon it.
President Joseph Smith then arrived, took the stand, arose, and,
after requesting Orson Pratt to come to the stand and take his
post, said:--
I do not know whether the object of the meeting has been told you
or not. I apologize for not coming sooner.
I have had so much on my mind since I saw you, that I hardly know
where to begin or what to say; but one of the grand objects I had
in view in calling this meeting was to make a few remarks relative
to the laws and ordinances of the city and the building of the
temple.
The reason I want to speak of the city ordinances is that the
officers have difficulty in administering them.
We are republicans, and wish to have the people rule; but they must
rule in righteousness. Some would complain with what God Himself
would do.
The laws or ordinances are enacted by the city council on petition
of the people; and they can all be repealed, if they wish it, and
petition accordingly.
At all events, the people ought not to complain of the officers;
but if they are not satisfied, they should complain to the
lawmakers by petition.
I am instructed by the city council to tell this people that if
there is any law passed by us which you dislike, we will repeal
it, for we are your servants. Those who complain of our rights and
charters are wicked and corrupt, and the devil is in them.
The reason I called up this subject is, we have a gang of simple
fellows here who do not know where their elbows or heads are.
If you preach virtue to them, they will oppose that; or if you
preach a Methodist God to them, they will oppose that; and the
same if you preach anything else; and if there is any case tried
by the authorities of Nauvoo, they want it appealed to Carthage
to the circuit court. Mr. Orsimus F. Bostwick's case had to go to
Carthage. Our lawyers will appeal anything to the circuit court.
{238} I want the people to speak out and say whether such men
should be tolerated and supported in our midst; and I want to know
if the citizens will sustain me when my hands are raised to heaven
for and in behalf of the people.
From this time I design to bring such characters who act against
the interests of the city before a committee of the whole; and I
will have the voice of the people, which is republican, and is
likely to be the voice of God; and as long as I have a tongue to
speak, I will expose the iniquity of the lawyers and wicked men.
I fear not their boiling over nor the boiling over of hell, their
thunders nor the lightning of their forked tongues.
If these things cannot be put a stop to, I will give such men into
the hands of the Missouri mob. The hands of the officers of the
city falter and are palsied by their conduct.
There is another person I will speak about. He is a Mormon--a
certain man who lived here before we came here; the two first
letters of his name are Hiram Kimball. When a man is baptized and
becomes a member of the Church, I have a right to talk about him,
and reprove him in public or private, whenever it is necessary, or
he deserves it.
When the city passed an ordinance to collect wharfage from
steamboats, he goes and tells the captains of the steamboats that
he owned the landing, and that they need not pay wharfage.
I despise the man who will betray you with a kiss; and I am
determined to use up these men, if they will not stop their
operations. If this is not true, let him come forward and throw off
the imputation.
When they appeal to Carthage, I will appeal to this people, which
is the highest court. I despise the lawyers who haggle on lawsuits,
and I would rather die a thousand deaths than appeal to Carthage,
Kimball and Morrison say they own the wharves; but the fact is,
the city owns them, sixty-four feet from high water mark. From the
printing office to the north limits of the city is public ground,
as Water street runs along the beach, and the beach belongs to the
city and not to individuals.
Another thing: I want to speak about the lawyers of this city. I
have good feelings towards them; nevertheless I will reprove the
lawyers and doctors anyhow. Jesus did, and every prophet has; and
if I am a prophet, I shall do it: at any rate, I shall do it, for I
profess to be a prophet.
The maritime laws of the United States have ceded up the right to
regulate all tolls, wharfage, &c., to the respective corporations
who have jurisdiction, and not to individuals.
Our lawyers have read so little that they are ignorant of this:
they {239} have never stuck their noses into a book on maritime law
in their lives, and, as Pope says:--
Shallow draughts intoxicate the brain;
Drink deep, or taste not the Pierian Spring.
Our city lawyers are fools to undertake to practice law when they
know nothing about it.
I want from this time forth every fool to stay at home and let the
steamboats and captains alone. No vessel could land anywhere, if
subject to individual laws.
The corporation owns the streets of the city, and has as much right
to tax the boats to make wharves as to tax citizens to make roads.
Let every man in this city stay at home, and let the boat-captains,
peace-officers and everybody alone.
How are we to keep peace in the city, defend ourselves against
mobs, and keep innocent blood from being shed? By striking a blow
at everything that rises up in disorder.
I will wage an eternal warfare with those that oppose me while I
am laboring in behalf of the city. I will disgrace every man by
publishing him on the house top, who will not be still and mind his
own business. Let them entirely alone, and they will use themselves
up.
I was visited by an old gentleman this morning, who told me that
the spirit of mobocracy was about subsiding. A couple of merchants
in this city (I will not tell their names,) have told the country
people not to bring butter, eggs, &c., to Nauvoo for sale; at
least, so the people abroad say.
Now, if they will not let the people bring their produce, the
people will not buy their goods; and the result will be, the
merchants will get a spirit of mobocracy.
Another man (I will not call his name,) has been writing to the_
New York Tribune,_ some of the most disgraceful things possible
to name. He says, in that article, that there are a great many
donations to the Temple which have been appropriated to other
purposes.
His object evidently was to stigmatize the trustee and excite
prejudice against us abroad. But I pledge myself that whoever has
contributed any old shoes, harness, horses, wagons, or anything
else, if he will come forward, will show that every farthing is on
the book and has been appropriated for the building of the Temple.
I pledge myself that if he finds the first farthing that we cannot
show where it has been appropriated, I will give him my head for a
football.
He also states that the Temple cannot be built, it costs so much.
Who does not know that we can put the roof on the building this
season, if we have a mind to? By turning all the means from the
Nauvoo House and doubling our diligence we can do it.
{240} There are men in our midst who are trying to build up
themselves at our expense, and others who are watching for
iniquity, and will make a man an offender for a word. The best way
for such men is to be still. If I did not love men, I would not
reprove them, but would work in the darkness as they do.
As to who is the author of the article in the _Tribune,_ read it
and you will see for yourselves. He is not a lawyer; he is nearer
related to a doctor--a small man. (Mr. McNeil inquired if he was
the man.) No; I do not know you: you are a stranger. But I will
rest myself and give way for others.
President Hyrum Smith arose and made a few remarks. He compared the
lawyers to polliwogs, wigglers, and toads. He said they would dry
up next fall. "Those characters, I presume, were made in gizzard
making time, when it was cheaper to get gizzards than souls; for
if a soul cost $5, a gizzard would cost nothing: like tree toads,
they change color to suit the object they are upon. They ought to
be ferreted out like rats. You could describe them as you would a
hedgehog: they are in every hedge, stinking like the skunk." [1]
Charles Foster asked if Joseph meant him.
_Joseph_ said, "I will reply by asking you a question."
_Foster_: "That is no way."
_Joseph_. "Yes, that is the way the Quakers do. But Jesus said,
'Whose image and superscription is this?' Why did you apply the
remarks to yourself? Why did you ask if we meant you?"
_Foster_. "Then I understand you meant me."
_Joseph_. "You said it."
_Foster_. "You shall hear from me."
_Joseph_. "As Mayor, I fine you $10 for that threat, and for
disturbing the meeting."
Doctor Foster spoke in palliation of his brother Charles, and asked
Joseph to await, &c. He said, "He has not threatened you." Joseph
said, "He has." Doctor Foster said: "No one has heard him threaten
you," when hundreds cried, "I have!" Doctor Foster continued to
speak when the Mayor called him to order, or, said he, "I will fine
you."
William W. Phelps then read General Smith's "Views of the Powers
and Policy of the General Government of the United States;" after
which, it was voted, unanimously, with one exception, to uphold
General Smith for the Presidency of the United States.
{241} An article was also read by W. W. Phelps, entitled, "A Voice
of Innocence from Nauvoo," and all the assembly said "Amen" twice.
At thirty minutes past twelve, the meeting adjourned till two p.m.
When the people assembled according to the adjournment, choir sang
a hymn. Prayer by Elder Orson Pratt. Singing.
President Brigham Young addressed the congregation. He said: I wish
to speak on the duty of lawyers, as they have been spoken of this
morning. They were first among the children of Israel to explain
the laws of Moses to the common people.
I class myself as a lawyer in Israel. My business is to make peace
among the people; and when any man who calls himself a lawyer takes
a course to break peace instead of making it, he is out of the line
of his duty. A lawyer's duty is to read the law well himself, then
tell the people what it is, and let them act upon it, and keep
peace; and let them receive pay like any laboring man.
It is desirable for justices of the peace, when men call for writs,
to inquire into the merits of the case, and tell the parties how to
settle it, and thus put down lawsuits. To cure lawing, let us pay
attention to our business.
When we hear a story, never tell it again, and it will be a perfect
cure. If your brother mistreats you, let him alone; if your enemy
cheats you, let it go; cease to deal with men who abuse you. If all
men had taken the straightforward course that some have, we should
not have such disorderly men in our midst.
I have no objection to any man coming here, but I will have nothing
to do with men who will abuse me at midnight and at noonday. Our
difficulties and persecutions have always arisen from men right in
our midst.
It is the lust of individuals to rob us of everything, and to take
advantage of divisions that may arise among us to build themselves
up. I feel that I want every man should stay and lift up holy hands
without dubiety, wrath or doubting.
To the men who own land here I would say: Do not think you can sell
your lands here, and then go off and spend it somewhere else in
abusing the Mormons. I tell you nay; for know it, ye people, that
Israel is here; and they are the head, and not the tail; and the
people must learn it. All those who have gone from us have gone
from the head to the tail.
The grand object before us is to build the temple this season.
We have heard the effects of slander, and we want a cure and balm;
and I carry one with me all the while, and I want all of you to
do the same. I will tell you what it is: it is to mind your own
business, and let others alone, and suffer wrong rather than do
wrong. If any take {242} your property away, let them alone, and
have nothing to do with them.
A spirit has been manifested to divide the Saints. It was manifest
in the last election. It was said, if they did not look out, the
Saints on the flat would beat the Saints on the hill.
Great God! how such a thing looks, that the Saints should be afraid
of beating one another in the election, or being beat? I would ask,
who built up this city? Would steamboats have landed here, if the
Saints had not come? Or could you, even the speculators, have sold
your lands for anything here, if the Saints had not come? They
might have sold for a few bear and wolf skins, but not for money.
If any of you wish to know how to have your bread fall butter-side
up, butter it on both sides, and then it will fall butter-side up.
Oppose this work, and it will roll over you.
When did this work ever stop since it began? Never. The only thing
the Saints now want to know is--what does the Lord want of us, and
we are ready to do it.
Well, then, build the Temple of the Lord. Keep the law of God, ye
Saints, and the hypocrite and scoundrel will flee out of your midst
and tremble, for the fire of God will be too hot for them.
I expect the Saints are so anxious to work, and so ready to do
right, that God has whispered to the Prophet, "Build the Temple,
and let the Nauvoo House alone at present." I would not sue a man,
if he owed me five hundred or a thousand dollars, should he come to
me and say he would not pay me.
Elder John Taylor remarked that it was said by some discontented
persons that the municipal officers of the city were acting in an
arbitrary manner, which was false. He then went to explain the
principles of Democracy, until it was announced that it would be
desirable to set a contribution on foot immediately to get fuse
rope and blasting powder, as a boat was coming down the river, and
the messenger was waiting to go down to St. Louis.
Elder Taylor paused awhile for this purpose, and a collection
amounting to about sixty dollars was made. He then continued his
speech: "When society was first organized they found themselves
without legislature, congress, house of lords, or anything of the
kind, every man was lord over his own house.
Difficulties began to arise, and the people began to contend and
combine together in governments. By-and-by, some two or three
requested that they might return to their original customs, and the
government said they might. This was the situation of this city in
the main, when we asked for a charter.
Of General Joseph Smith some are afraid, and think it doubtful
about his election; and, like the ostrich, stick their heads under
a bush, {243} and leave their bodies out, so that we can all see
them; and after this it will be a by-word--"That man is an ostrich
who hides his head in this cause." He spoke also on going on with
the temple.
President Brigham Young said--"Those who have not paid their
property tithing we shall call upon, and take dinner; and we had
rather be saved that trouble, and have them come up and pay. You
will want a blessing in the temple when it is done."
President Joseph Smith remarked:--In relation to those who give in
property for the temple. We want them to bring it to the proper
source, and to be careful into whose hands it comes, that it may
be entered into the Church books, so that those whose names are
found in the Church books shall have the first claim to receive
their endowments in the temple. I intend to keep the door at the
dedication myself, and not a man shall pass who has not paid his
bonus.
As to politics, I care but little about the presidential chair.
I would not give half as much for the office of President
of the United States as I would for the one I now hold as
Lieutenant-General of the Nauvoo Legion.
We have as good a right to make a political party to gain power to
defend ourselves, as for demagogues to make use of our religion to
get power to destroy us. In other words, as the world has used the
power of government to oppress and persecute us, it is right for us
to use it for the protection of our rights. We will whip the mob by
getting up a candidate for President.
When I get hold of the Eastern papers, and see how popular I am,
I am afraid myself that I shall be elected; but if I should be, I
would not say, "_Your cause is just, but I can do nothing for you_."
What I have said in my views in relation to the annexation of Texas
is with some unpopular; the people are opposed to it. Some of the
Anti-Mormons are good fellows. I say it, however, in anticipation
that they will repent. They object to Texas on account of slavery.
Why, it is the very reason she ought to be received, so that we
may watch over them; for, of the two evils, we should reject the
greatest.
Governor Houston of Texas, says--"if you refuse to receive us
into the United States, we must go to the British Government for
protection."
This would certainly be bad policy for this nation; the British are
now throughout that whole country, trying to bribe all they can;
and the first thing they would do, if they got possession, would be
to set the negroes and the Indians to fight, and they would use us
up. British officers are now running all over Texas to establish
British influence in that country.
It will be more honorable for us to receive Texas and set the
negroes {244} free, and use the negroes and Indians against our
foes. Don't let Texas go, lest our mothers and the daughters of the
land should laugh us in the teeth; and if these things are not so,
God never spoke by any Prophet since the world began.
How much better it is for the nation to bear a little expense than
to have the Indians and British upon us and destroy us all. We
should grasp all the territory we can. I know much that I do not
tell. I have had bribes offered me, but I have rejected them.
The government will not receive any advice or counsel from me: they
are self-sufficient. But they must go to hell and work out their
own salvation with fear and trembling.
The South holds the balance of power. By annexing Texas, I can do
away with this evil. As soon as Texas was annexed, I would liberate
the slaves in two or three States, indemnifying their owners, and
send the negroes to Texas, and from Texas to Mexico, where all
colors are alike. And if that was not sufficient, I would call upon
Canada, and annex it.
Singing by the choir. Prayer by President B. Young.
[Sidenote: Arrival of Wm. Kay and Company of English Saints.]
The barque _Fanny_, Captain Patterson, arrived at New Orleans with
210 souls, led by Elder William Kay. They express, [the opinion] in
a letter to the _Millennial Star,_ that no people ever had a more
prosperous voyage than the Lord has favored this company with; and
such a captain and crew, for kindness, could scarcely be met with,
the captain frequently administering from the cabin stores unto the
necessities of all who required it.
Elder John E. Page published an address to the inhabitants of
Washington.
_Friday, 8.--_Very heavy rain all night, accompanied by thunder.
Bishop Miller arrived from the Pinery.
[Sidenote: Jas. A. Bennett Ineligible for Vice-President of U.S.]
At ten a.m., my scribe, Willard Richards, called to tell me that James
Arlington Bennett was a native of Ireland, and therefore was not
constitutionally eligible to be the Vice-President. He wanted to know
who should be nominated for Vice-President. I told him to counsel with
others upon that {245} point, when he said he would call a council this
evening.
At seven p.m., the First Presidency, the Twelve, Bishop Miller, Levi
Richards, W. W. Phelps, and Lucian Woodworth assembled in the Mayor's
office, when W. W. Phelps read the following pacific communication,
which I had previously dictated him to write:--
_A Friendly Hint to Missouri_.
One of the most pleasing scenes that can occur on earth, when a sin
has been committed by one person against another, is, to forgive
that sin; and then according to the sublime and perfect pattern of
the Savior, pray to our Father in heaven to forgive him also.
Verily, verily, such a friendly rebuke is like the mellow zephyr
of summer's eve--it soothes, it cheers and gladdens the heart
of the humane and the savage. Well might the wise man exclaim,
"A soft answer turneth away wrath; "for men of sense, judgment,
and observation, in all the various periods of time, have been
witnesses, figuratively speaking, that water, not wood, checks the
rage of fire.
Jesus said: "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called
the children of God." Wherefore if the nation, a single State,
community, or family ought to be grateful for anything, it is peace.
Peace, lovely child of heaven!--peace like light from the same
great parent, gratifies, animates, and happifies the just and the
unjust, and is the very essence of happiness below, and bliss above.
He that does not strive with all his powers of body and mind,
with all his influence at home and abroad, and to cause others to
do so too--to seek peace and maintain it for his own benefit and
convenience, and for the honor of his State, nation, and country,
has no claim on the clemency of man; nor should he be entitled to
the friendship of woman or the protection of government.
He is the canker-worm to gnaw his own vitals; and the vulture to
prey upon his own body; and he is, as to his own prospects and
prosperity in life, a _felo-de-se_ of his own pleasure.
A community of such beings are not far from hell on earth, and
should be let alone as unfit for the smiles of the free or praise
of the brave.
But the peacemaker, O give ear to him! for the words of his mouth
and his doctrine drop like the rain, and distil as the dew. They
are like the gentle mist upon the herbs, and as the moderate shower
upon the grass.
Animation, virtue, love, contentment, philanthropy, benevolence,
compassion, humanity and friendship push life into bliss: and
men, a {246} little below the angels, exercising their powers,
privileges, and knowledge according to the order, rules, and
regulations of revelation, by Jesus Christ, dwell together in
unity; and the sweet odor that is wafted by the breath of joy
and satisfaction from their righteous communion is like the rich
perfume from the consecrated oil that was poured upon the head of
Aaron, or like the luscious fragrance that rises from the field of
Arabian spices. Yea, more, the voice of the peacemaker--
It is like the music of the spheres--
It charms our souls and calms our fears;
It turns the world to Paradise,
And men to pearls of greater price.
So much to preface this friendly hint to the state of Missouri:
for, notwithstanding some of her private citizens and public
officers have committed violence, robbery, and even murder upon
the rights and persons of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints, yet compassion, dignity, and a sense of the principles of
religion among all classes, and honor and benevolence, mingled
with charity by high-minded patriots, lead me to suppose that
there are many worthy people in that state who will use their
influence and energies to bring about a settlement of all those old
difficulties, and use all consistent means to urge the State, for
her honor, prosperity, and good name, to restore every person she
or her citizens have expelled from her limits, to their rights,
and pay them all damage, that the great body of high-minded and
well-disposed Southern and Western gentlemen and ladies--the
real peace-makers or a western world, will go forth--good
Samaritan-like, and pour in the oil and the wine, till all that
can be healed are made whole; and after repentance, they shall be
forgiven; for verily the Scriptures say, "Joy shall be in heaven
over one sinner that repents, more than over ninety-and-nine just
persons that need no repentance."
Knowing the fallibility of man, considering the awful
responsibility of rejecting the cries of the innocent, confident
in the virtue and patriotism of the noble-minded Western men,
tenacious of their character and standing, too high to stoop to
disgraceful acts, and too proud to tolerate meanness in others;
yea, may, I not say, without boasting that the best blood of the
West, united with the honor of the illustrious fathers of freedom,
will move, as the forest is moved by a mighty wind, to promote
peace and friendship in every part of our wide-spread, lovely
country.
Filled with a love almost unspeakable, and moved by a desire
pleasant as the dew of heaven, I supplicate not only our Father
above, but also the civil, the enlightened, the intelligent, the
social, and the best inhabitants of Missouri--those that feel bound
by principles of honor, justice, moral greatness, and national
pride, to arise in the character of {247} virtuous freemen from
the disgrace and reproach that might inadvertently blur their good
names, for want of self-preservation.
Now is the time to brush off the monster that, incubus-like, seems
hanging upon the reputation of the whole State. A little exertion,
and the infamy of the evil will blacken the guilty only, for is it
not written, "The tree is known by its fruit?"
The voice of reason, the voice of humanity, the voice of the
nation, and the voice of Heaven seem to say to the honest and
virtuous throughout the State of Missouri, wash yourselves, make
you clean, lest your negligence should be taken by the world, from
the mass of facts before it, that you are guilty!
Let there be one unison of hearts for justice; and when you
reflect around your own firesides, remember that fifteen thousand
once among you, now not, but who are just as much entitled to the
privileges and blessings you enjoy as yourselves, like the widow
before the unjust judge, are fervently praying for their rights.
When you meditate upon the massacre at Haun's mill, forget not that
the Constitution of your State holds this broad truth to the world,
that none shall be deprived of life, liberty, or property, but by
the judgment of his peers or the law of the land.
And when you assemble together in towns, counties, or districts,
whether to petition your legislature to pay the damage the Saints
have sustained in your State, by reason of oppression and misguided
zeal, or to restore them to their rights according to Republican
principles and benevolent designs, reflect, and make honorable,
or annihilate, such statute law as was in force in your state in
1838,--_viz._: "If twelve or more persons shall combine to levy war
against any part of the people of this state, or to remove [them]
forcibly out of the state or from their habitations, evidenced by
taking arms and assembling to accomplish such purpose, every person
so offending shall be punished by imprisonment in the Penitentiary
for a period not exceeding five years, or by a fine not exceeding
five thousand dollars and imprisonment in the county jail not
exceeding six months."
Finally, if honor dignifies an honest people, if virtue exalts
a community, if wisdom guides great men, if principle governs
intelligent beings, if humanity spreads comfort among the needy,
and if religion affords consolation by showing that charity is the
first, best and sweetest token of perfect love, then, O ye good
people of Missouri, like the woman in Scripture who had lost one of
her ten pieces of silver, arise, search diligently till you find
the lost piece, and then make a feast, and call in your friends for
joy.
With due consideration, I am the friend of all good men,
JOSEPH SMITH.
NAUVOO, ILL., March 8, 1844.
[Sidenote: St. Louis Comment on the Prophet's Candidacy.]
{248} Brother George A. Smith brought the information that Brother
Farnham had just returned from St. Louis, and said the people in that
place were saying, "Things have come to a strange pass. If Joe Smith is
elected President, he will raise the devil with Missouri; and if he is
not elected, he will raise the devil anyhow."
[Sidenote: Copeland of Tennessee Considered as Candidate for
Vice-President.]
It was agreed that Colonel Solomon Copeland, living at Paris, Henry
county, Tennessee, should be written to on the subject of the
Vice-Presidency; and that Elder Wilford Woodruff should write the
letter, and invite him to visit us, and see if he would suffer his name
to run for that office.
_Saturday, 9.--_Met in the City Council, and gave my reasons in favor
of the repeal of the hog law. [The subject was discussed at some
length.]
Council adjourned for one hour. In the afternoon City Council rejected
the petition to repeal the hog law.
[Sidenote: Matter of Wharfage.]
I proposed to license Hiram Kimball and Mr. Morrison, who own the land
opposite to the wharf, to make wharves and collect wharfage; then the
city can dispense with a wharf-master; that Kimball and Morrison pay a
tax for the landing of every boat; and they could tax the boat, or not,
as they liked.
The Female Relief Society met twice in the assembly room, and
sanctioned "The Voice of Innocence From Nauvoo," and then adjourned
for one week to accommodate others who could not get into the room at
either of the meetings.
[Sidenote: Death of King Follett.]
Our worthy brother, King Follett, died this morning occasioned by the
accidental breaking of a rope, and the falling of a bucket of rock upon
him while engaged in walling up a well, and the men above were in the
act of lowering the rock to him.
{249} KING FOLLETT BIOGRAPHY.
Elder Follett was one of those who bore the burden, in common with
others of his brethren, in the days when men's faith was put to the
test. He was a native of Vermont and moved many years since into
Cuyahoga county, Ohio.
There, for the first time, he heard the Gospel preached, united
with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the spring
of 1831, and has been a sharer in the afflictions through which the
Saints have passed from that time until the time of his death.
He shared in the violence of Missouri persecution, was cast into
prison, and endured many months' imprisonment; and, after long
delay, obtained a trial on the charges preferred against him, and
was honorably discharged, being acquitted of all the crimes with
which a band of wicked persecutors could charge him.
All the persecutions he endured only tended to strengthen his faith
and confirm his hope; and he died as he had lived, rejoicing in the
hope of future felicity.
Having united with the Church in the forty-first year of his age,
he filled up the prime of his life in the service of his God, and
went to rest in his fifty-sixth year, being fifty-five years, seven
months, and fourteen days old when he slept the sleep of death.
So the righteous pass, and so they sleep, until the mandate of Him
for whom they suffer and in whom they trust shall call them forth
to glory, honor, immortality and eternal life.
_Sunday, 10.--_Frost in the night; beautiful day. South wind.
Brother King Follett was buried this day with Masonic honors.
I attended meeting at the stand, and preached on the subject of Elias,
Elijah, and Messiah. [A sketch of which was reported by Elder Wilford
Woodruff, as follows]:--
_Discourse of the Prophet.--Elias, Elijah, Messiah_.
There is a difference between the spirit and office of Elias and
Elijah. It is the spirit of Elias I wish first to speak of; and in
order to come at the subject, I will bring some of the testimony
from the Scripture and give my own.
In the first place, suffice it to say, I went into the woods to
inquire of {250} the Lord, by prayer, His will concerning me, and I
saw an angel, and he laid his hands upon my head, and ordained me
to a Priest after the order of Aaron, and to hold the keys of this
Priesthood, which office was to preach repentance and baptism for
the remission of sins, and also to baptize. But I was informed that
this office did not extend to the laying on of hands for the giving
of the Holy Ghost; that that office was a greater work, and was to
be given afterward; but that my ordination was a preparatory work,
or a going before, which was the spirit of Elias; for the spirit
of Elias was a going before to prepare the way for the greater,
which was the case with John the Baptist. He came crying through
the wilderness, "Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths
straight." And they were informed, if they could receive it, it
was the spirit of Elias; and John was very particular to tell the
people, he was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that
Light.
He told the people that his mission was to preach repentance and
baptize with water; but it was He that should come after him that
should baptize with fire and the Holy Ghost.
If he had been an imposter, he might have gone to work beyond his
bounds, and undertook to have performed ordinances which did not
belong to that office and calling, under the spirit of Elias.
The spirit of Elias is to prepare the way for a greater revelation
of God, which is the Priesthood of Elias, or the Priesthood that
Aaron was ordained unto. And when God sends a man into the world to
prepare for a greater work, holding the keys of the power of Elias,
it was called the doctrine of Elias, even from the early ages of
the world.
John's mission was limited to preaching and baptizing: but what
he did was legal; and when Jesus Christ came to any of John's
disciples, He baptized them with fire and the Holy Ghost.
We find the apostles endowed with greater power than John: their
office was more under the spirit and power of Elijah than Elias.
In the case of Phillip when he went down to Samaria, when he was
under the spirit of Elias, he baptized both men and women. When
Peter and John heard of it, they went down and laid hands upon
them, and they received the Holy Ghost. This shows the distinction
between the two powers.
When Paul came to certain disciples, he asked if they had received
the Holy Ghost? They said, No. Who baptized you, then? We were
baptized unto John's baptism. No, you were not baptized unto John's
baptism, or you would have been baptized by John. And so Paul went
and baptized them, for he knew what the true doctrine was, and he
knew that John had not baptized them. And these principles are
{251} strange to me, that men who have read the Scriptures of the
New Testament are so far from it.
What I want to impress upon your minds is the difference of power
in the different parts of the Priesthood, so that when any man
comes among you, saying, "I have the spirit of Elias," you can know
whether he be true or false; for any man that comes, having the
spirit and power of Elias, he will not transcend his bounds.
John did not transcend his bounds, but faithfully performed that
part belonging to his office; and every portion of the great
building should be prepared right and assigned to its proper place;
and it is necessary to know who holds the keys of power, and who
does not, or we may be likely to be deceived.
That person who holds the keys of Elias hath a preparatory work.
But if I spend much more time in conversing about the spirit of
Elias, I shall not have time to do justice to the spirit and power
of Elijah.
This is the Elias spoken of in the last days, and here is the rock
upon which many split, thinking the time was past in the days of
John and Christ, and no more to be. But the spirit of Elias was
revealed to me, and I know it is true; therefore I speak with
boldness, for I know verily my doctrine is true.
Now for Elijah. The spirit, power, and calling of Elijah is, that
ye have power to hold the key of the revelation, ordinances,
oracles, powers and endowments of the fullness of the Melchizedek
Priesthood and of the kingdom of God on the earth; and to receive,
obtain, and perform all the ordinances belonging to the kingdom of
God, even unto the turning of the hearts of the fathers unto the
children, and the hearts of the children unto the fathers, even
those who are in heaven.
Malachi says, "I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming
of the great and dreadful day of the Lord: and he shall turn the
heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children
to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse."
Now, what I am after is the knowledge of God, and I take my own
course to obtain it. What are we to understand by this in the last
days?
In the days of Noah, God destroyed the world by a flood, and He
has promised to destroy it by fire in the last days: but before it
should take place, Elijah should first come and turn the hearts of
the fathers to the children, &c.
Now comes the point. What is this office and work of Elijah?
It is one of the greatest and most important subjects that God
has revealed. He should send Elijah to seal the children to the
fathers, and the fathers to the children.
Now was this merely confined to the living, to settle difficulties
with {252} families on earth? By no means. It was a far greater
work. Elijah! what would you do if you were here? Would you confine
your work to the living alone? No; I would refer you to the
Scriptures, where the subject is manifest: that is, without us,
they could not be made perfect, nor we without them; the fathers
without the children, nor the children without the fathers.
I wish you to understand this subject, for it is important; and
if you will receive it, this is the spirit of Elijah, that we
redeem our dead, and connect ourselves with our fathers which
are in heaven, and seal up our dead to come forth in the first
resurrection; and here we want the power of Elijah to seal those
who dwell on earth to those who dwell in heaven. This is the power
of Elijah and the keys of the kingdom of Jehovah.
Let us suppose a case. Suppose the great God who dwells in heaven
should reveal Himself to Father Cutler here, by the opening
heavens, and tell him, "I offer up a decree that whatsoever you
seal on earth with your decree, I will seal it in heaven; you
have the power then; can it be taken off? No. Then what you seal
on earth, by the keys of Elijah, is sealed in heaven; and this is
the power of Elijah, and this is the difference between the spirit
and power of Elias and Elijah; for while the spirit of Elias is a
forerunner, the power of Elijah is sufficient to make our calling
and election sure; and the same doctrine, where we are exhorted to
go on to perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance
from dead works, and of laying on of hands, resurrection of the
dead, &c.
We cannot be perfect without the fathers, &c. We must have
revelation from them, and we can see that the doctrine of
revelation far transcends the doctrine of no revelation; for one
truth revealed from heaven is worth all the sectarian notions in
existence.
This spirit of Elijah was manifest in the days of the apostles, in
delivering certain ones to the buffetings of Satan, that they might
be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus. They were sealed by the
spirit of Elijah unto the damnation of hell until the day of the
Lord, or revelation of Jesus Christ.
Here is the doctrine of election that the world has quarreled so
much about; but they do not know anything about it.
The doctrine that the Presbyterians and Methodists have quarreled
so much about--once in grace, always in grace, or falling away
from grace, I will say a word about. They are both wrong. Truth
takes a road between them both, for while the Presbyterian says
"once in grace, you cannot fall;" the Methodist says: "You can have
grace today, fall from it tomorrow, next day have grace again;
and so follow on, changing continually." But the doctrine of the
Scriptures and the {253} spirit of Elijah would show them both
false, and take a road between them both; for, according to the
Scripture, if men have received the good word of God, and tasted
of the powers of the world to come, if they shall fall away, it
is impossible to renew them again, seeing they have crucified the
Son of God afresh, and put Him to an open shame; so there is a
possibility of falling away; you could not be renewed again, and
the power of Elijah cannot seal against this sin, for this is a
reserve made in the seals and power of the Priesthood.
I will make every doctrine plain that I present, and it shall stand
upon a firm basis, and I am at the defiance of the world, for I
will take shelter under the broad cover of the wings of the work in
which I am engaged. It matters not to me if all hell boils over; I
regard it only as I would the crackling of the thorns under a pot.
A murderer, for instance, one that sheds innocent blood, cannot
have forgiveness. David sought repentance at the hand of God
carefully with tears, for the murder of Uriah; but he could only
get it through hell: he got a promise that his soul should not be
left in hell.
Although David was a king, he never did obtain the spirit and power
of Elijah and the fullness of the Priesthood; and the Priesthood
that he received, and the throne and kingdom of David is to be
taken from him and given to another by the name of David in the
last days, raised up out of his lineage.
Peter referred to the same subject on the day of Pentecost, but the
multitude did not get the endowment that Peter had; but several
days after, the people asked "What shall we do?" Peter says, "I
would ye had done it ignorantly," speaking of crucifying the Lord,
&c. He did not say to them, "Repent and be baptized, for the
remission of your sins;" but he said, "Repent ye therefore, and be
converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of
refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord." (Acts iii.
19.)
This is the case with murderers. They could not be baptized for the
remission of sins for they had shed innocent blood.
Again: The doctrine or sealing power of Elijah is as follows:--If
you have power to seal on earth and in heaven, then we should be
wise. The first thing you do, go and seal on earth your sons and
daughters unto yourself, and yourself unto your fathers in eternal
glory. * * * * * * * I will walk through the gate of heaven and
claim what I seal, and those that follow me and my counsel.
The Lord once told me that what I asked for I should have. I have
been afraid to ask God to kill my enemies, lest some of them
should, peradventure, repent.
I asked a short time since for the Lord to deliver me out of the
hands of the Governor of Missouri, and if it needs must be to
accomplish it, to {254} take him away; and the next news that came
pouring down from there was, that _Governor Reynolds had shot
himself._ And I would now say, "Beware, O earth, how you fight
against the Saints of God and shed innocent blood; for in the days
of Elijah, his enemies came upon him, and fire was called down from
heaven and destroyed them.
The spirit of Elias is first, Elijah second, and Messiah last.
Elias is a forerunner to prepare the way, and the spirit and power
of Elijah is to come after, holding the keys of power, building
the Temple to the capstone, placing the seals of the Melchizedek
Priesthood upon the house of Israel, and making all things ready;
then Messiah comes to His Temple, which is last of all.
Messiah is above the spirit and power of Elijah, for He made the
world, and was that spiritual rock unto Moses in the wilderness.
Elijah was to come and prepare the way and build up the kingdom
before the coming of the great day of the Lord, although the spirit
of Elias might begin it.
I have asked of the Lord concerning His coming; and while asking
the Lord, He gave a sign and said, "In the days of Noah I set a
bow in the heavens as a sign and token that in any year that the
bow should be seen the Lord would not come; but there should be
seed time and harvest during that year: but whenever you see the
bow withdrawn, it shall be a token that there shall be famine,
pestilence, and great distress among the nations, and that the
coming of the Messiah is not far distant.
But I will take the responsibility upon myself to prophesy in
the name of the Lord, that Christ will not come this year, as
Father Miller has prophesied, for we have seen the bow; and I also
prophesy, in the name of the Lord, that Christ will not come in
forty years; and if God ever spoke by my mouth, He will not come in
that length of time. Brethren, when you go home, write this down,
that it may be remembered.
Jesus Christ never did reveal to any man the precise time that
He would come. Go and read the Scriptures, and you cannot find
anything that specifies the exact hour He would come; and all that
say so are false teachers.
There are some important things concerning the office of the
Messiah in the organization of the world, which I will speak of
hereafter, May God Almighty bless you and pour out His Spirit upon
you, is the prayer of your unworthy servant. Amen.
At half-past three p.m., I met with the Twelve, Bishop Miller and the
Temple Committee, in the Nauvoo Mansion.
{255} The following letter from Lyman Wight and others was read:--
_Letter:--Lyman Wight to the First Presidency--Preaching the Gospel
to the Indians and Proposing to Migrate to Texas_.
BLACK RIVER FALLS, Feb. 15, 1844.
_To the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve of the Church
of Christ of Latter-day Saints_.
DEAR BRETHREN,--Through the goodness and mercy of God, the Eternal
Father, and grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, we are
permitted to write and send by a special messenger a concise
account of our lumbering operations, together with the apparent
prospects of the introduction and spread of the Gospel among the
Chippewa and Menomanee Indians, and also the projects of our hearts
in regard to future operations in spreading the Gospel south in
all the extent of America, and the consequences growing out of the
same, all of which we beg leave to submit to your consideration
that we may have your concurrence, or such views as shall be in
accordance with the mind and will of the Lord, and govern ourselves
in accordance therewith.
Since we have been here lumbering, we have had many difficulties
to encounter; but the main hindrance to our successful operations
was the feeding, clothing, and transporting a great many lazy,
idle men, who have not produced anything by their pretended labor,
and thus eating up all that the diligent and honest could produce
by their unceasing application to labor; and we have not yet got
entirely clear of such persons.
But under all these mighty clogs and hindrances, we have been able
to accomplish and have in progress, so that we can deliver in
Nauvoo about one million feet of lumber by the last of July next,
which will be a great deal more than what is necessary to build
the Temple and the Nauvoo House. Besides all this, we have made
valuable improvements here,--all the result of much labor done
under trying circumstances.
We have recently ascertained that the lands from the falls of Black
River to its sources are the property of the Menomanee Indians,
and the general government having urged them to move off the lands
in the vicinity of Green Bay to their own lands. The Indians say
they will, provided the Government will remove all strange Indians
and trespassing white men off their lands; consequently, the agent
and superintendent of Indian Affairs are taking such steps as will
stop all further trespassing on the Indian lands, on the Wisconsin,
Black and Chippewa rivers, under the penalties of the laws relative
to the cases.
{256} We sent Brothers Miller and Daniels, in company with the
principal chief of the Menomanee Indians, overland to the Wisconsin
river, to ascertain more about the matter. They saw the agent;
found him a gruff, austere man, determined to stop all trespassing
on Indian lands.
The Indians are willing to sell privileges to individuals for
lumbering and cutting timber, as they have hitherto done; but the
agent is opposed to it. Thus a difficulty arises between themselves.
Now, as regards the introduction of the Gospel of Christ among the
Indians here, it will require more exertion, to all appearances, to
check the enthusiastic ardor of these our red brethren, until the
full principles of faith in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ shall
be reasoned into their minds, than to urge them on to receive it.
They have great confidence in us.
The country belonging to these northern Indians is a dreary, cold
region, and to a great extent, cranberry marshes, pine barrens, and
swamps, with a small amount of good lands, scarce of game, and only
valuable in mill privileges and facilities for lumbering purposes.
As to mineral resources, they have not been fully developed. There
is no doubt as to the abundance of iron ore, but uncertain as to
quality.
Now, under all these circumstances, a few of us here have
arrived at this conclusion in our minds (such as can undergo all
things,)--that as the Gospel has not been fully opened in all the
South and Southwestern States, as also Texas, Mexico, Brazil, &c.,
together with the West Indian Islands, having produced lumber
enough to build the Temple and Nauvoo House,--also having an
influence over the Indians, so as to induce them to sell their
lands to the United States, and go to a climate southwest, (all
according to the policy of the U. S. Government),--and having also
become convinced that the Church at Nauvoo or in the Eastern States
will not build the Nauvoo House according to the commandment,
neither the Temple in a reasonable time, and that we have, so
far as we have made trials, got means in the south,--we have in
our minds to go to the table-lands of Texas, to a point we may
find to be the most eligible, there locate, and let it be a place
of gathering for all the South (they being incumbered with that
unfortunate race of beings, the negroes); and for us to employ our
time and talents in gathering together means to build according to
the commandments of our God, and spread the Gospel to the nations
according to the will of our Heavenly Father. We, therefore, our
beloved brethren, send our worthy Brother Young, with a few of our
thoughts, on paper, that you may take the subject-matter under
consideration, and return us such instructions as may be according
to the mind and will of the Lord our God.
We have thought it best to sell the mills here, if you think it
expedient. We feel greatly encouraged to spend and be spent in the
cause of Christ, according to the will of our Heavenly Father.
{257} You will, therefore, after due deliberation, send us, by the
hands of Brother Young, such instructions as may be the result of
your deliberations.
Holding ourselves ready under all circumstances in life to try to
do all things whatsoever commanded or instructed to do by those
ordained to direct the officers of the Church of Jesus Christ;
subscribing ourselves yours truly, while life shall endure,
Lyman Wight,
George Miller,
Phineas R. Bird,
Pierce Hawley,
John Young.
Select Committee to write expressly the views of the branch of the
Church at Black River Falls.
Joseph Smith, P. C.,
Brigham Young, P. T.,
Willard Richards, Clerk.
Also a letter to myself from Lyman Wight and others--
_Letter:--Lyman Wight to President Joseph Smith--Suggesting a
Southwest Movement for the Church_.
BLACK RIVER FALLS, WISCONSIN TERRITORY,
February 15th, 1844.
_To Joseph Smith, President of the Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints, and to the Twelve Apostles, greeting:--_
Believing a concert of action in all things in this Church
to be highly important, we deem it necessary, under existing
circumstances, to make you acquainted with our views, feelings, and
temporal and spiritual prospects, as they now exist.
We wrote you last fall a full and complete description of this
country as high as the falls on Black River, without exaggeration,
giving a slight description of the Pinery.
With the exception of several renegades and false brethren, things
passed smoothly until some time in the month of January, when we
were visited by three different tribes of Lamanites upon the most
friendly terms, receiving us as their counselors, both temporal and
spiritual.
The names of those tribes are Menomanees, Chippewa, and
Winnebagoes. They informed us that all the land above the falls
belongs to the Menomanee tribe, and that the agents and the
governor, the general {258} agent in the northwest of all the
Indian affairs, had agreed with them to remove all the lumbermen
from Black River, Chippewa, and Lemanware rivers, by their request;
but after a lengthy conversation with them, they felt to treat us
as their friends, and not their enemies.
We dispatched two messengers--namely, George Miller and Cyrus
Daniels, to go immediately to Wisconsin, where they met with the
agent, who gave them to understand we could get the timber, which
is already cut, at a reasonable rate, and for any future prospect
we will be under the necessity of entering into a contract.
We calculate the present prospect for lumber betwixt this and the
last of July next will be from eight to twelve hundred thousand
feet, which we deem will be all sufficient to finish the two
houses, which will accomplish the mission on which we started to
this country.
We, therefore, as a branch and a member of the body of the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints chose the following
committee--namely, Lyman Wight, George Miller, Pierce Hawley,
Phineas R. Bird and John Young, to correspond with your reverend
council, giving you our views concerning matters and things, and
requesting your counsel on the same.
This committee views it inexpedient to purchase standing timber on
so rapid and unnavigable a stream for the purpose of making lumber
to gain wealth.
The Lamanites owning this land, notwithstanding their great anxiety
to receive the Gospel and the Book of Mormon, have a strong desire,
if counseled by us so to do, to go south-west, where game is more
plentiful as their only resource here for a living is the pitiful
annuities and proceeds from their pine timber, which timber is the
only inducement to the Government to purchase their lands.
This committee is therefore led to take a brief view of the south
and western part of North America, together with the Floridas,
Texas, West India Islands, and the adjacent islands to the Gulf
of Mexico, together with the Lamanites bordering on the United
Territories from Green Bay to the Mexican Gulf, all crying with one
voice, through the medium of their chiefs, Give us an understanding
of your doctrine and principles, for we perceive that your ways are
equal, and your righteousness far exceeds the righteousness of all
the missionaries that we have yet become acquainted with,--that
your conduct with one another is like that of ours, and that all
your feasts and attendant ceremonies are precisely like ours.
Your servants, the committee, have viewed the Colorado river, with
all its beautiful hills and valleys and fertile soil, with deep
regret, when viewing the countless thousands of inhabitants on
either side thereof, without the knowledge of God or the doctrine
of the Church of Jesus {259} Christ of Latter-day Saints, and say
in their hearts, Would it be expedient to form a mission of those
true and full-blooded Ephraimites, who, from principle, and the
love of the truth, have borne the most extreme burdens, fatigue,
and hunger, to prosecute the mission, to procure lumber sufficient
to build the two houses, to open the door to all the regions which
we have named, which regions have never yet had an opportunity
to hear the Gospel and to be made acquainted with the plan of
salvation? or shall they continue to suffer the fatigues of hunger,
wet and cold, in a rigid, inclement climate, for the pitiful sum
that it shall avail them, after undergoing those hazardous perils?
or shall they, like Timothy and Titus, with Paul, hazard the perils
of the sea and land through the Southern States and West India
Islands, and all the Lamanite world, go forth and proclaim to them
the Gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and teach them to
build up Zion?
Are there not thousands of the rich planters who would embrace the
Gospel, and, if they had a place to plant their slaves, give all
the proceeds of their yearly labor, if rightly taught, for building
up the kingdom, being directed by the President of the whole Church
to make the right application? We answer, Yes, we believe they
would.
Your servants, the committee, are of the opinion that a concerted
and reciprocity of action between the North and the South would
greatly advance the building up of the kingdom.
The committee is well informed of the Cherokee and the Chocktaw
nations who live between the state of Arkansas and the Colorado
river of the Texans, owning large plantations and thousands of
slaves, and that they are also very desirous to have an interview
with the Elders of this Church, upon the principles of the Book of
Mormon.
This committee is of the opinion that they can choose soldiers for
this expedition who are as undeviating in the principles of the
doctrine of Christ and the Book of Mormon as the sun in his daily
course, and as indefatigable in their exertions in this cause as
the earth is in its daily revolution.
This committee views it as a matter of investigation, whether would
the Southerner, with his slaves and abundance of wealth, do better
to take them to some slave-holding point, keep them in lively
exercise according to his former customs and habits turning over
his yearly proceeds into the hands of the Trustee-in-Trust for the
whole Church, or to abolish slavery and settle himself in a climate
uncongenial to his nature and entirely derogatory to his former
occupations in life?
After having procured the lumber for those two houses, the
committee is of the opinion that the preaching of the Gospel and
raising funds {260} in the south would be a far more speedy way of
accomplishing the work than any other that could be introduced at
the present time.
We, your servants, therefore, will wait patiently the result
of your council, and submit ourselves to the same with all
cheerfulness, our only object being to advance the cause and
kingdom of God, stand ready to take hold wherever your wise council
may consider it to be of the most advantage.
This committee view with deep regret the many different teachings
this Church has received concerning the distribution of their
property, such as raising funds for the printing of tracts,
evidences of the Book of Mormon, and pamphlets of various
descriptions, which we consider has not advanced the cause in the
least degree, but has tended directly to sap the foundation of
building the houses.
We therefore believe that no person embracing the doctrine of the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints should give any part or
parcel of the property without a direct counsel, written or oral,
from the First Presidency of the Church.
Whereas the committee having appointed George Miller and Lyman
Wight to write the views of the committee, each wrote separate and
apart, having laid the same before the committee, the committee
resolved that both productions be sent without alterations.
We, the committee, conclude by subscribing ourselves your friends
and well-wishers in the Lord, praying a speedy answer from your
worthy council, or the word of the Lord.
LYMAN WIGHT,
GEORGE MILLER,
PHINEAS R. BIRD,
PIERCE HAWLEY,
JOHN YOUNG,
Select Committee to write expressing the views of the branch of the
Church at Black River Falls.
Joseph Smith, Sen., P. C.
Brigham Young, P. T.
William Richards, Clerk.
The brethren went into council on the subject matter of the letters
during the evening.
_Monday 11.--_At home till nine; then spent the day in council in the
lodge room over Henry Miller's house.
_Special Council Meeting on Wight and Miller Letters_.
Present--Joseph Smith, Hyrum Smith, Brigham Young, Heber C.
Kimball, Willard Richards, Parley P. Pratt, Orson Pratt, John
Taylor, {261} George A. Smith, William W. Phelps, John M.
Bernhisel, Lucien Woodworth, George Miller, Alexander Badlam, Peter
Haws, Erastus Snow, Reynolds Cahoon, Amos Fielding, Alpheus Cutler,
Levi Richards, Newel K. Whitney, Lorenzo D. Wasson, and William
Clayton, whom I organized into a special council, to take into
consideration the subject matter contained in the above letters,
and also the best policy for this people to adopt to obtain their
rights from the nation and insure protection for themselves and
children; and to secure a resting place in the mountains, or some
uninhabited region, where we can enjoy the liberty of conscience
guaranteed to us by the Constitution of our country, rendered
doubly sacred by the precious blood of our fathers, and denied to
us by the present authorities, who have smuggled themselves into
power in the States and Nation.
Footnotes:
1. Nauvoo was unfortunate in being overrun with pettifogging lawyers
at this time, and it was to these, doubtless, that the disparaging
remarks of both the Prophet and Hyrum, respecting lawyers referred. It
is unfortunate that they did not segregate the pettifoggers from the
worthy men of the profession; than whom no class of citizens, and no
other profession, render more valuable service to the state.
{262}
CHAPTER XI.
ORSON PRATT SENT TO WASHINGTON AS AGENT OF NAUVOO--AMOS FIELDING TO
ENGLAND, DITTO--COMMENT ON THE CANDIDACY OF JOSEPH SMITH FOR PRESIDENT
OF THE U.S.--CONSPIRACIES OF THE LAWS, HIGBEES, FOSTERS, ET AL. AGAINST
JOSEPH SMITH--THE PROPHET'S MEMORIAL TO CONGRESS==OCCUPATION OF THE
WEST CONTEMPLATED.
_Tuesday, March 12, 1844.--_At home in the morning. At eleven a.m., I
told Brother Cole I wanted the room over the store for more important
purposes, and wished him to remove the school to Henry Miller's house
immediately; which he did.
The brethren who were in council with me yesterday assembled there in
the afternoon and evening.
Gave the following recommend to Elder Orson Pratt.
_Credentials of Orson Pratt as Agent for the City of Nauvoo_.
CITY OF NAUVOO, ILLINOIS, March 12, 1844.
TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN:--
We, the mayor and recorder of said city, do hereby certify that
Orson Pratt, Esq., the bearer, a councilor in city council of
said city, is sent as an agent by the authorities of said city or
corporation to transact such business as he may deem expedient and
beneficial for the community which he represents; and as such agent
and gentleman of principle and character, he by us is recommended
to the due consideration of all the executive officers of the
government, both houses of Congress, and gentlemen generally of the
United States.
In witness whereof we have hereunto set our hands and affixed the
seal of said corporation at the time and place aforesaid.
[CORPORATION SEAL.]
JOSEPH SMITH, Mayor,
WILLARD RICHARDS, Recorder.
{263} A dull cloudy day.
[Sidenote: Co-operative Store Planned.]
A meeting of the inhabitants of the Tenth ward was held this evening
at the schoolhouse on the hill, in Parley street, to take into
consideration the propriety of establishing a store on the principle of
co-operation or reciprocity. The subject was fully investigated, and
the benefits of such an institution clearly pointed out.
The plan proposed for carrying out the object of the meeting was by
shares of five dollars each.
The leading feature of the institution was to give employment to our
own mechanics, by supplying the raw material, and manufacturing all
sorts of domestic goods, and furnishing the necessaries and comforts of
life on the lowest possible terms.
A committee was appointed to draft a plan for the government of said
institute, to be submitted for adoption or amendment at their next
meeting; after which an adjournment took place till next Tuesday
evening, at half-past: six o'clock, at the same place.
_Wednesday, 13.--_In special council from nine to twelve a.m. Orson
Hyde, Wilford Woodruff and James Emmett were present, in addition to
those of the preceding day. Willard Richards was appointed historian,
and William Clayton clerk of the council.
It was decided that Amos Fielding should return to England, when I and
my brother Hyrum gave him the following letter of attorney:--
_Credentials of Elder Amos Fielding on Departing for England_.
"This is to certify that the bearer thereof, our worthy brother
Elder Amos Fielding, hath been appointed by the First Presidency
of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, our agent, to
transact such business as may be deemed necessary for the benefit
of said Church, and such as he shall see proper throughout the
island of Great Britain.
He is hereby authorized to receive moneys for the Temple in Nauvoo,
{264} the poor, or for the Church; and the brethren will be safe
should they deposit money in his hands for any purpose pertaining
to the Church business in this place.
In witness whereof we have hereunto set our hands and placed the
corporation seal of City of Nauvoo this 13th day of March, A. D.
1844.
[CORPORATION SEAL.]
JOSEPH SMITH,
HYRUM SMITH.
Presiding Elders of the whole Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints.
_Thursday, 14.--_In special council over the store from nine till one.
At two, went to see Brother John Wilkie. He had sent to me to come and
see him. He wanted to know what he should do. I told him of the order
of tithing, &c., and he wanted I should come again.
At four, went to assembly room again. Lucien Woodworth sent on a
mission to Texas. At seven, adjourned to next Tuesday, at nine, a.m.
_Friday 15.--_Dull, cloudy day, north wind. Frosty night. Spent the day
in council.
Being in a strait to raise money to assist the hands in the Pine
country, I sent Elders Brigham and Willard Richards to borrow some
money from Mr. Orme, who, it is believed, had a large sum of money
lying idle, but they did not get any.
I copy from the Law of the Lord:--
_John Wilkie. The Blessing of the Prophet upon Him_.
"This day President Joseph Smith rode over to Brother John Wilkie's
at his special request, to give him some instructions relative to
his duty in regard to tithing and consecration.
Brother Wilkie has for a long time back been struggling with his
feelings, designing to do right, but laboring under many fears and
prejudices, in consequence of having in some degree given way to
believe the base reports circulated by individuals for the purpose
of injuring the authorities of the Church, and also from various
other causes. His faithful companion has persevered diligently, and
with fervent prayer has called upon God in his behalf, until she
has realized her utmost wishes.
{265} Brother Wilkie now feels anxious to do right in all things,
and especially to pay his tithing to the full. President Joseph
showed him the principles of consecration and the means whereby
he might realize the fullness of the blessings of the celestial
kingdom; and as an evidence that he desired to do right, he paid
over to the Trustee-in-Trust the sum of three hundred dollars in
gold and silver for the benefit of the Temple, and which is now
recorded on consecration.
He also signified his intention of paying more as soon as he could
get matters properly arranged. The president then pronounced a
blessing upon him and his companion, that they should have the
blessing of God to attend them in their basket and in their
store--that they should have the blessing of health and salvation
and long life, inasmuch as they would continue to walk in obedience
to the commandments of God.
May the Lord grant his Spirit and peace to abide upon Brother
Wilkie and his companion through the remainder of their days; may
their hearts expand and become enlarged to receive the fullness of
the blessings of the kingdom of heaven; may they have the light
of eternal truth continually springing up in them like a well of
living water; may they be shielded from the powers of Satan and the
influence of designing men, and their faith increase from day to
day until they shall have power to lay hold on the blessings of God
and the gifts of the Spirit until they are satisfied; and, finally,
may they live to a good old age; and when they have lived while
they desire life, may they die in peace and be received into the
mansions of eternal life, and enjoy a celestial glory forever and
ever! Even so, amen.
The editors of the _Times and Seasons_ published a short account of
"Our City and the Present Aspect of Affairs," which we insert.
STATUS OF NAUVOO IN THE SPRING OF 1844.
Believing that our patrons and friends are pleased to hear of our
prosperity, we feel happy in apprising them of the same, through
the columns of our paper.
Owing to the scarcity of provision and the pressure in the money
market during the past winter, commercial business has been
somewhat dull; consequently, those who were not previously prepared
have been obliged to employ the principal portion of their time in
obtaining the necessary means for the sustenance of their families:
therefore little improvement has been made. But old Boreas is now
on his receding march, and spring has commenced its return with all
its pleasantness.
{266} Navigation is open, and steamboats are almost continually
plying up and down our majestic river. They have already brought
several families of emigrants to this place, who have cordially
joined with their friends and brethren in the great work of the
upbuilding of Zion and the rolling forth of the kingdom of God.
The work of improvement is now actively begun, and in every
direction may be heard the sound of the mason's trowel, the
carpenter's hammer, the teamster's voice, or, in other words, the
hum of industry and the voice of merriment. Indeed, to judge from
the present appearance, a greater amount of improvement will be
done the ensuing summer than in the preceding one.
Almost every stranger that enters our city is excited with
astonishment that so much has been done in so short a time; but
we flatter ourselves, from the known industry, perseverance, and
diligence of the Saints, that by the return of another winter so
much more will be accomplished, that his astonishment will be
increased to wonder and admiration.
Quite extensive preparations are being made by the farmers in this
vicinity for the cultivation of land; and should the season prove
favorable, we doubt not that nearly, if not a sufficient amount of
produce will be raised to supply the wants of the city and adjacent
country.
We are also pleased that we can inform our friends abroad that the
Saints here of late have taken hold of the work on the Temple with
the zeal and energy that in no small degree excites our admiration.
Their united efforts certainly speak to us that it is their
determination that this spacious edifice shall be enclosed, if not
finished, this season.
And a word we would say to the Saints abroad, which is, that the
Temple is being built in compliance with a special commandment of
God not to a few individuals, but to all. Therefore we sincerely
hope you will contribute of your means as liberally as your
circumstances will allow, that the burden of the work may not rest
upon a few, but proportionately upon all.
Where is the true-hearted Saint that does not with joy and delight
contemplate the endowment of the servants of God and the blessings
He has promised to His people on condition that they speedily
build the Temple? Certainly you cannot reasonably expect to enjoy
these blessings if you refuse to contribute your share towards its
erection.
It is a thing of importance, and much depends upon its
accomplishment: therefore we wish to forcibly impress the matter
upon your minds, hoping you will become aroused to a sense or
your duty--that every company of Saints, every Elder that comes
here, and every mail may bring money and other property for this
important work,--which, {267} when completed, will stand, in one
sense of the word, as a firm pillar in Zion, and which will greatly
facilitate the prosperity of the great cause of truth which we all
are actively engaged in.
_Saturday, 16.--_At home. At one p.m., I sat in council with Willard
Richards, Orrin P. Rockwell, and Bishop George Miller.
The Female Relief Society had two meetings in the assembly room, as it
would not hold all at once, and sanctioned the "Voice of Innocence from
Nauvoo."
[Sidenote: Wind Storm at Nauvoo.]
_Sunday, 17.--_Last night, Nauvoo was visited by a very strong wind
from the west. It blew down a portion of the west wall of the new hall
(28 by 40 feet on the ground,) which the Seventies had commenced on
Bain street, and they had raised for the roof.
The wind continued very strong all day. In the evening, had a smart
snowstorm, which covered the ground, was succeeded by a frosty night.
Attended prayer meeting.
_Monday, 18.--_The frost of last night was so severe as to form ice
inside the houses.
I stayed at home to recite German with Brother Neibaur.
_Tuesday, 19.--_Met in council in the assembly room. Elder Samuel Bent,
Uriah Brown, Samuel James, John D. Parker, Orrin P. Rockwell, Sidney
Rigdon, William Marks, and Orson Spencer met in council, in addition to
the former names.
In the afternoon, heavy, driving rain. Northwest wind. Dull, cold day.
_Wednesday, 20.--_Severely cold northwest wind, with a snow and hail
storm until ten a.m. Afternoon dull. West wind.
Spent the morning and afternoon in the assembly room, studying the
languages.
[Sidenote: Col. Copeland and the Vice-Presidency.]
{268} Elder Woodruff read me a letter which he had written to Colonel
Solomon Copeland concerning his nomination to be a candidate for the
Vice-President of the United States.
The _Illinois Springfield Register_ has the following:--
GENERAL JOSEPH SMITH A CANDIDATE FOR PRESIDENT.
It appears by the Nauvoo papers that the Mormon Prophet is actually
a candidate for the presidency. He has sent us his pamphlet,
containing an extract of his principles, from which it appears
that he is up to the hub for a United States bank and a protective
tariff. On these points he is much more explicit than Mr. Clay,
who will not say that he is for a bank, but talks all the time of
restoring a national currency. Nor will Mr. Clay say what kind of a
tariff he is for. He says to the south that he has not sufficiently
examined the present tariff, but thinks very likely it could be
amended.
General Smith possesses no such fastidious delicacy. He comes right
out in favor of a bank and a tariff, taking the true Whig ground,
and ought to be regarded as the real Whig candidate for President,
until Mr. Clay can so far recover from his shuffling and dodging as
to declare his sentiments like a man.
At present we can form no opinion of Clay's principles, except as
they are professed by his friends in these parts.
Clay himself has adopted the notion which was once entertained by
an eminent grammarian, who denied that language was intended as a
means to express one's ideas, but insisted that it was invented on
purpose to aid us in concealing them.
The_ Iowa Democrat_ publishes the following:--
_A New Candidate in the Field_.
We see from the _Nauvoo Neighbor_ that General Joseph Smith,
the great Mormon Prophet, has become a candidate for the next
presidency. We do not know whether he intends to submit his claims
to the National Convention, or not; but, judging from the language
of his own organ, we conclude that he considers himself a full team
for all of them.
All that we have to say on this point is, that if superior talent,
genius, and intelligence, combined with virtue, integrity, and
enlarged views, are any guarantee to General Smith's being elected,
we think that he will be a "full team of himself."
{269} The _Missouri Republican_ believes that it will be death
to Van Buren, and all agree that it must be injurious to the
Democratic ranks, inasmuch as it will throw the Mormon vote out of
the field.
A traveler, having visited Nauvoo for a few days, wrote to the
_Times and Seasons_--
"Mr. Editor,--Before I take my departure, permit me to express my
views relative to the leading men of your city, where I have been
these few days.
I have been conversant with the great men of the age; and, last of
all I feel that I have met with the greatest, in the presence of
your esteemed Prophet, General Joseph Smith. From many reports, I
had reason to believe him a bigoted religionist, as ignorant of
politics as the savages; but, to my utter astonishment, on the
short acquaintance, I have found him as familiar in the cabinet of
nations as with his Bible and in the knowledge of that book I have
not met with his equal in Europe or America. Although I should beg
leave to differ with him in some items of faith, his nobleness of
soul will not permit him to take offense at me. No, sir; I find him
open, frank, and generous,--as willing others should enjoy their
opinions as to enjoy his own.
The General appears perfectly at home on every subject, and his
familiarity with many languages affords him ample means to become
informed concerning all nations and principles, which with his
familiar and dignified deportment towards all must secure to his
interest the affections of every intelligent and virtuous man that
may chance to fall in his way, and I am astonished that so little
is known abroad concerning him.
Van Buren was my favorite, and I was astonished to see General
Smith's name as a competitor; but, since my late acquaintance, Mr.
Van Buren can never re-seat himself in the Presidential chair on my
vote while General Smith is in the field. Forming my opinions alone
of the talents of the two, and from what I have seen, I have no
reason to doubt but General Smith's integrity is equal to any other
individual; and I am satisfied he cannot easily be made the pliant
tool of any political party. I take him to be a man who stands far
aloof from little caucus quibblings and squabblings, while nations,
governments, and realms are wielded in his hand as familiarly as
the top and hoop in the hands of their little masters.
Free from all bigotry and superstition, he dives into every
subject, and it seems as though the world was not large enough to
satisfy his capacious soul, and from his conversation one might
suppose him as well acquainted with other worlds as this.
So far as I can discover, General Smith is the nation's man, and
the man who will exalt the nation, if the people will give him the
opportunity; {270} and all parties will find a friend in him so far
as right is concerned.
General Smith's movements are perfectly anomalous in the estimation
of the public. All other great men have been considered wise in
drawing around them wise men; but I have frequently heard the
General called a fool because he has gathered the wisest of men
to his cabinet, who direct his movements; but this subject is too
ridiculous to dwell upon. Suffice it to say, so far as I have seen,
he has wise men at his side--superlatively wise, and more capable
of managing the affairs of a State than most men now engaged
therein, which I consider much to his credit, though I would by no
means speak diminutively of my old friend.
From my brief acquaintance, I consider General Smith (independent
of his peculiar religious views, in which by-the-by, I have
discovered neither vanity nor folly,) the_ sine qua non_ of the
age to our nation's prosperity. He has learned the all-important
lesson "to profit by the experience of those who have gone before;"
so that, in short, General Smith begins where other men leave off.
I am aware this will appear a bold assertion to some; but I would
say to such, call, and form your acquaintance, as I have done; then
judge.
Thus, sir, you have a few leading items of my views of General
Smith, formed from personal acquaintance, which you are at liberty
to dispose of as you think proper. I anticipate the pleasure of
renewing my acquaintance with your citizens at a future day.
Yours respectfully,
A TRAVELER.
A writer in the _Quincy Herald_ reflects very strongly upon the conduct
of the _Quincy Whig, New York Tribune_, and other newspapers, for
publishing slanderous falsehoods against the Saints.
Ten, p.m., commenced snowing again.
[Sidenote: Origin of Memorial to Congress.]
_Thursday, 21.--_A cold snow-storm through the night.
In council in the assembly room, discussing the propriety of
petitioning Congress for the privilege of raising troops to protect the
making of settlements in the uncivilized portions of our continent.
Willard Richards was appointed a committee to draw up a memorial to
Congress.
{271} _Friday, 22.--_Snow on the ground; cold, bleak north wind; cloudy.
At ten a.m., held Mayor's court, and afterwards read German in the
reading room.
In the afternoon, met with the Twelve in prayer at President Brigham
Young's house.
[Sidenote: The Seventies' Hall, Instructions on Rebuilding.]
I advised the Seventies to pull down the remainder of the walls and
rebuild the Seventies' hall on a permanent basis from the foundation
and not erect for themselves a trap, but build one two stories high,
and strong enough to stand for a generation.
_Saturday, 23.--_Day warmer. Rode out with Clayton to endeavor to raise
money to furnish the hands in the Pinery with supplies. Visited the
Temple and public works.
Also called with William Clayton and Alexander Neibaur at Dr. Foster's.
He was gone to Appanoose, and Mrs. Foster was at Mr. Gilman's.
I here extract from William Clayton's journal:--
_President Smith's Interview With Mrs. Foster_.
We went down there and saw her, [Mrs. Foster]. President Joseph
asked Sister Foster if she ever in her life knew him guilty of an
immoral or indecent act. She answered, "No." He then explained
his reasons for asking; which were, he had been informed that
Dr. Foster had stated that Joseph made propositions to his wife
calculated to lead her astray from the path of virtue; and then
asked if ever he had used any indecent or insulting language to
her. She answered, "Never." He further asked if he ever preached
anything like the "plurality of wife" doctrine to her other than
what he had preached in public? She said, "No." He asked her if he
ever proposed to have illicit intercourse with her, and especially
when he took dinner during the doctor's absence. She said, "No."
After some further conversation on the subject, we left. Mrs.
Gillman was present all the time. President Joseph and Neibaur then
went on foot to the farm.
_Sunday, 24.--_At ten, a.m., met at the stand near the {272} Temple.
[The following very brief outline of the speeches is from the journal
of Wilford Woodruff]:--
_Discourse of President Smith--Conspiracies in Nauvoo_.
"President Joseph Smith addressed the people. The following is the
substance of what I heard him say:--
I have been informed by two gentlemen that a conspiracy is got
up in this place for the purpose of taking the life of President
Joseph Smith, his family, and all the Smith family, and the heads
of the Church. One of the gentlemen will give his name to the
public, and the other wishes it to be hid for the present: they
will both testify to it on oath, and make an affidavit upon it. The
names of the persons revealed at the head of the conspiracy are as
follows:--Chancey L. Higbee, Dr. Robert D. Foster, Mr. Joseph H.
Jackson, William and Wilson Law. And the lies that C. L. Higbee has
hatched up as a foundation to work upon are--he says that I had
men's heads cut off in Missouri, and that I had a sword run through
the hearts of the people that I wanted to kill and put out of the
way. I won't swear out a warrant against them, for I don't fear
any of them: they would not scare off an old setting hen. I intend
to publish all the iniquity that I know of them. If I am guilty, I
am ready to bear it. There is sometimes honor among enemies. I am
willing to do anything for the good of the people. I will give the
name of one of the gentlemen who have divulged the plot: his name
is M. G. Eaton. He will swear to it: he is a bold fellow. Joseph H.
Jackson said a Smith should not be alive in two weeks,--not over
two months anyhow. Concerning the character of these men, I will
say nothing about it now; but if I hear anything more from them on
this subject, I will tell what I know about them.
_Elder Orson Spencer_ addressed the people as follows:--
While listening to President Smith's remarks, I thought of a
figure, i.e., if a physician was going to dissect a body, he would
not be likely to begin at the limbs but cut the head off first. So
the adversary of the Saints has laid a plan to cut off the head
of the Church with the intention of scattering and destroying the
whole body. It was so in the days of Jesus Christ; the enemies of
the truth sought to kill Him, that the body might be destroyed;
which was also the case in the days of Elijah, Daniel, and many of
the ancients.
I once heard a man say, who was opposed to this work, "That it
might be true, but it gave Joseph Smith power." True, said I; but
if his power be subordinate to the power of God, it is right. If
a man set up a kingdom by the power of God, then let others seek
power from the same source. God sets up kingdoms and pulls down
kingdoms: {273} this makes men mad who will not submit to the
kingdom of God. We all know the result of the power of Moses, who
was the representative of God.
Judging from what is past, how will it be when God sets up His
kingdom in the last days? Whether there is a conspiracy now, or
not, I don't know; but no doubt there will be, if not now, for it
has always been so. In the days of the Nephites, they had their
Gadianton robbers. I have not any doubt but that the apostates will
join with the other wicked powers to try to put down the power of
God, and I am glad to have the power of the kingdom of God tested;
I care not what sacrifice I am called to make for such a kingdom.
If it is friends, wealth, or even life, at the purchase of such
a kingdom, it is cheap. Did the ancient Apostles, Prophets, or
Saints who died pay too much for that kingdom? They did not. It
is necessary that men be put in possession of the knowledge and
mysteries of the kingdom of God, in order to sin as far as they
wish, that they may go to the highest pitch. How often men lay down
their lives for their country and other purposes. How much better,
then, to die for the cause of Zion! Good and righteous men will
administer justice and rebuke evil. The Church should be cleansed
from bad men, and the Lord will take His own way to cleanse the
Church.
We should lift up our voice against wickedness of all kinds. But
will the rulers of our land do it? No, they will not; they will
be cowards until there is no man to fight, and then be brave.
When Government will not do it, some man should take the helm of
government that will do it. Will it be called treason, if the God
of heaven should set up a kingdom? May the Lord give you more and
more of His Spirit, light and intelligence, until you are cemented
together in union and love. Amen.
Elder Sidney Rigdon addressed the meeting.
President Joseph Smith again arose and said--In relation to the
power over the minds of mankind which I hold, I would say, It is
in consequence of the power of truth in the doctrines which I have
been an instrument in the hands of God of presenting unto them, and
not because of any compulsion on my part. I wish to ask if ever I
got any of it unfairly? If I have not reproved you in the gate? I
ask, Did I ever exercise any compulsion over any man? Did I not
give him the liberty of disbelieving any doctrine I have preached,
if he saw fit? Why do not my enemies strike a blow at the doctrine?
They cannot do it: it is truth, and I defy all men to upset it. I
am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, "Repent ye of your
sins and prepare the way for the coming of the Son of Man; for the
kingdom of God has come unto you, {274} and henceforth the ax is
laid unto the root of the tree; and every tree that bringeth not
forth good fruit, God Almighty (and not Joe Smith) shall hew it
down and cast it into the fire."
After meeting, I rode out with Emma. The trees begin to bud forth.
In the evening, held a conversation with a large company of friends at
my door.
Elder R. H. Kinnamon writes that during the last 22 months he has
baptized over 100 persons while on a mission in Virginia and North
Carolina, organized two branches in Virginia, and calls are continually
made for preaching in every direction.
[Sidenote: Progress on Memorial to Congress.]
_Monday, 25.--_At home in the morning. After dinner rode up to the
upper landing to see the _St. Louis Oak_ steamer. Learned that a
company of emigrants from England were expected soon. Called at my
office on returning, and heard read the draft of a memorial to Congress
which my clerk had been writing, as a committee appointed by the
council on Thursday last, and was pleased with the instrument.
Millions of wild pigeons flying north, and millions of gnats dancing in
the air. Dull day. At night thunder, lightning and rain.
_Tuesday, 26.--_Dull day. From nine to twelve, noon, in council; also
from two to five p.m.
The memorial drawn up by Dr. Richards was read, discussed, and approved
by the general council.
Started this morning to go to Ramus with Brother Amasa Lyman. Rode as
far as the Temple, and found it so muddy that we turned back.
Issued a warrant on the complaint of Vernon H. Bruce, against Ianthus
Rolfe, for stealing two stone-cutter's tools.
I wrote the following:--
{275} _The Prophet's Memorial to Congress_.
_To the Honorable the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America, in Congress Assembled_:
Your memorialist, a tree-born citizen or these United States,
respectfully showeth that from his infancy his soul has been filled
with the most intense and philanthropic interest for the welfare
of his native country; and being fired with an ardor which floods
cannot quench, crowns cannot conquer, nor diplomatic intrigue
corrupt, to see those principles which emanated from the bosoms of
the fathers of seventy-six, and which cost the noblest talents and
richest blood of the nation, maintained inviolate and perpetuated
to future generations; and the proud eagle of American freedom
soar triumphant over every party prejudice and local sinistry, and
spread her golden pinions over every member of the human family,
who shall stretch forth their hands for succor from the lion's
paw or the oppressor's grasp; and firmly trusting in the God of
liberty, that He has designed universal peace and goodwill, union,
and brotherly love to all the great family of man, your memorialist
asks your honorable body to pass the following:--
ORDINANCE.
_An Ordinance for the Protection of the Citizens of the United
States Emigrating to the Territories, and for the Extension of the
Principles of Universal Liberty_.
PREAMBLE.
Whereas, many of the citizens of these United States have migrated
and are migrating to Texas, Oregon, and other lands contiguous to
this nation; _and whereas,_ Texas has declared herself free and
independent, without the necessary power to protect her rights
and liberties; _and whereas_ Oregon is without any organized
government, and those who emigrate thither are exposed to
foreign invasion and domestic feuds; _and whereas_ the Oregon,
by geographical location and discovery more rightfully belongs
to these United States than any other general government; _and
whereas_ it is necessary that the emigrants of that newly settling
territory should receive protection; _and whereas_ the Texan
Government has petitioned the United States to be received into our
Union, but yet retains her national existence; _and whereas_ the
United States remember with gratitude the seasonable support they
received in alike situation from a LaFayette_; and whereas_ the
United States desire to see the principles of her free institutions
extended to all men, especially {276} where it can be done without
the loss of blood and treasure to the nation_; and whereas_ there
is an almost boundless extent of territory on the west and south
of these United States, where exists little or no organization
of protective Government; _and whereas_ the lands thus unknown;
unowned, or unoccupied, are among some of the richest and most
fertile of the continent; _and whereas_ many of the inhabitants of
the Union would gladly embrace the opportunity of extending their
researches and acquirements so soon as they can receive protection
in their enterprise, thereby adding strength, durability, and
wealth to the nation; _and whereas_ the red man, the robber,
and the desperado have frequently interrupted such research and
acquisition without justifiable cause; _and whereas_ Joseph Smith
has offered and does hereby offer these United States, to show
his loyalty to our Confederate Union and the Constitution of our
Republic; to prevent quarrel and bloodshed our frontiers; to extend
the arm of deliverance to Texas; to on protect the inhabitants of
Oregon from foreign aggressions and domestic broils; to prevent
the crowned nations from encircling us as a nation on our western
and southern borders, and save the eagle's talon from the lion's
paw; to still the tongue of slander, and show the world that a
Republic can be, and not be ungrateful; to open the vast regions of
the unpeopled west and south to our enlightened and enterprising
yeomanry; to protect them in their researches; to secure them in
their locations, and thus strengthen the Government and enlarge
her borders; to extend her influence; to inspire the nations with
the spirit of freedom and win them to her standard; to promote
intelligence; to cultivate and establish peace among all with
whom we may have intercourse as neighbors; to settle all existing
difficulties among those not organized into an acknowledged
government bordering upon the United States and Territories; to
save the national revenue in the nation's coffers; to supercede
the necessity of a standing army on our western and southern
frontiers; to create and maintain the principles of peace and
suppress mobs, insurrections, and oppression in Oregon and all the
lands bordering upon the United States and not incorporated into
any acknowledged national government; to explore the unexplored
regions of our continent; to open new fields for enterprise to our
citizens, and protect them therein; to search out the antiquities
of the land, and thereby promote the arts and sciences, and general
information; to amalgamate the feelings of all with whom he may
have intercourse on the principles of equity, liberty, justice,
humanity and benevolence; to break down tyranny and oppression
and exalt the standard of universal peace, provided he shall be
protected in those rights and privileges which constitutionally
belong to every citizen of this Republic; therefore, that the said
memorialist may {277} have the privilege, and that no citizen of
the United States shall obstruct, or attempt to obstruct or hinder,
so good, so great, so noble an enterprise to carry out those plans
and principles as set forth in this preamble, and be shielded from
every opposition by evil and designing men.
Section 1. _Be it ordained by the Senate and House of
Representatives of the United States of America, in Congress
Assembled,_ that Joseph Smith, of the city of Nauvoo, in the State
of Illinois, is hereby authorized and empowered to raise a company
of one hundred thousand armed volunteers in the United States and
Territories, at such times, and places and in such numbers, as he
shall find necessary and convenient for the purposes specified in
the foregoing preamble, and to execute the same.
Sec. 2. _And be it further ordained_ that if any person or persons
shall hinder or attempt to hinder or molest the said Joseph Smith
from executing his designs in raising said volunteers, and marching
and transporting the same to the borders of the United States and
Territories, he, or they so hindering, molesting, or offending,
shall be punished by a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars
each for every offense, or by hard labor on some public work not
exceeding two years, or both, at the discretion of the nearest
District Court of the United States, where the hindrance or offense
shall be committed, having jurisdiction.
Sec. 3. _And be it further ordained,_ the more fully to remove
all obstructions and hindrances to the raising, enlisting, and
marching the volunteers as aforesaid, the said Joseph Smith is
hereby constituted a member of the army of these United States, and
is authorized to act as such in the United States and Territories,
and on all lands bordering upon the United States and Territories,
for the purposes specified in the foregoing preamble, provided
said land shall not be within the acknowledged jurisdiction of any
acknowledged national government.
Sec. 4._ And be it further ordained_ that nothing in this ordinance
shall be so construed by any individual or nation to consider
the volunteers aforesaid as constituting any part of the army
of the United States; neither shall the said Joseph Smith, as a
member of the United States army, disturb the peace of any nation
or government acknowledged as such, break the faith of treaties
between the United States and any other nation, or violate any
known law of nations, thereby endangering the peace of the United
States.
Sec. 5. _And be it further ordained,_ that the said Joseph Smith
shall confine his operations to those principles of action
specified in the preamble to this ordinance, the perpetuity
of which shall be commensurate with the circumstances and
specifications which have originated it.
And your memorialist will ever pray, &c.
JOSEPH SMITH.
CITY OF NAUVOO, ILLINOIS, March 26, 1844.
{278} Dr. Willard Richards wrote to the Saints at Augusta, Lee County,
Iowa, requesting a brief history of the settling of that branch, and
also asking a donation of lumber for his house.
In the afternoon, Abiathar B. Williams made the following affidavit
before Daniel H. Wells, Esq:--
_Affidavit of Abiathar B. Williams, Concerning a Conspiracy against
the Prophet_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
HANCOCK COUNTY, ss.
Personally appeared before me, Daniel H. Wells, Acting Justice of
the Peace in and for the said county, Abiathar B. Williams, who
being duly sworn according to law, deposeth and saith that on or
about the 15th day of March, A. D., 1844, Joseph H. Jackson came to
my house and requested me to walk with him; which I did. During the
time we were walking, said Joseph H. Jackson said that he was then
coming direct from Mr. Law's; that there was going to be a secret
meeting in the city of Nauvoo, probably tomorrow evening: but, as
it was not decided, he could not say positively as to the time; but
he would inform me in season. The said Joseph H. Jackson said that
Doctor Foster, Chauncey L. Higbee, and the Laws were red hot for a
conspiracy, and he should not be surprised if in two weeks there
should not be one of the Smith family left alive in Nauvoo. After
we arrived at Mr. Loomis', near the Masonic hall, in the city of
Nauvoo, he related some things which he stated that Dr. Foster had
said relative to his family. This he did in the presence of Mr.
Eaton and myself, and strongly solicited myself and Mr. Eaton to
attend the secret meeting and join them in their intentions. The
said Joseph H. Jackson further said that Chauncey Higbee had said
that he, the said Chauncey Higbee, had seen men tied hand and foot,
and run through the heart with a sword, and their heads taken off,
and then buried; and he durst not say a word. This the said Jackson
said in Mr. Loomis' room. And further this deponent saith not.
A. B. WILLIAMS.
Sworn to and subscribed before me this 27th day of March, A. D.
1844.
[L. S.]
DANIEL H. WELLS, J. P.
Also M. G. Eaton made affidavit as follows:--
{279} _Affidavit of M. G. Eaton--A conspiracy Against Joseph Smith_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
HANCOCK COUNTY, ss.
Personally appeared before me, Daniel H. Wells, an acting Justice
of the Peace, in and for the said county, M. G. Eaton, who being
duly sworn according to law, deposeth and saith that on or about
the fifteenth day of March, A. D. 1844, Joseph H. Jackson came to
me several times and requested me to go on the hill with him. I
finally consented went with him to the Keystone Store, in the city
of Nauvoo. Dr. Foster and one of the Higbees (I think Chauncey L.
Higbee) were in the store. The said Joseph H. Jackson, together
with the said R. D. Foster and said Higbee, went into the back room
of the store. They appeared to enter into private council. Soon
after they went into the said room, the said Joseph H. Jackson
invited me into the room where they were sitting. I immediately
complied.
Soon after I went in, the said Higbee commenced talking about the
spiritual wife system. He said he had no doubt but some of the
Elders had ten or twelve apiece. He said they married them, whether
the females were living or not; and they did it by recording the
marriage in a large book, which book was sealed up after the record
was made, and was not to be opened for a long time,--probably not
till many of the husbands of those who were thus married were dead.
They would then open the book and break the seals in the presence
of those females, and when they saw their names recorded in that
book they would believe that the doctrine was true and they must
submit. He said this book was kept at Mr. Hyrum Smith's. I asked
the Chauncey L Higbee. * * * * *
[Here follows some expressions too indecent for insertion.]
The aforesaid R. D. Foster then asked me what I would think, if,
during my absence from home, a carriage should drive up to my
house, a person alight, and the carriage then drive off again; this
person should then go into my house and begin to tell my wife a
great many things against me to prejudice her mind against me, and
use every possible means to do this, and finally would introduce
and preach the spiritual wife doctrine to her, and make an attempt
to seduce her; and further, this person should sit down to dine
with my wife, bless the victuals, &c.; and while they were thus
engaged, I should come home and find them thus associated, this
person should rise up and say, "How do you do?" and bless me in a
very polite manner, &c.; and also if, upon these appearances, I
should feel jealous that something was wrong, and when the person
was {280} gone I would ask my wife what had been the conversation
between her and this person, but she would refuse to tell me; I
then draw a pistol and present it to her head and threaten to shoot
her if she did not tell me all, but she would still refuse: I then
would give her a double-barrelled pistol, and say to her, "Defend
yourself; for if you don't tell me, either you or I would shoot"
she would then faint away through fear and excitement, and when she
came to again, she would begin and tell how this person had been
trying to poison your wife's mind against you, and, by preaching
the spiritual wife system to her, had endeavored to seduce her. I
replied, I should think he was a rascal: but who has had such a
trial as that? The said R. D. Foster answered that he was the man
who had had that trial, and who had been thus abused.
The said Dr. Foster, Higbee, and Joseph H. Jackson then remarked
that they were about to hold a secret meeting to oppose and try to
put a stop to such things. The said Joseph H. Jackson also said
that if any person undertook to arrest him, he should begin to cut
them.
The said R. D. Foster further said he was afraid of his life, and
dared not be out at nights.
The said Higbee said he had not a doubt but there had been men
killed in Missouri who had secrets that they were afraid they would
divulge. He said he was afraid of his life.
The said Jackson further said he should not be surprised if there
should be a real muss and an insurrection in the city in less
than two months; and that if a disturbance should take place, the
Carthaginians and others would come and help them.
He mentioned some names of persons who would come from Carthage,
which names I do not remember. The same day, when in Mr. Loomis'
room, I heard the said Jackson say that the Laws were ready to
enter into a secret conspiracy, tooth and nails.
The said Higbee also said, while at the Keystone Store, that if
ever he was brought before the Mayor's court again, and the Mayor
told him to hold his tongue, he should get up and tell him he had a
right to speak, and should do so; and then if any man attempted to
put him out of court, he would shoot him through. And further this
deponent saith not.
M. G. EATON.
Sworn to and subscribed before me, this 27th day of March, A. D.,
1844.
[L. S.]
DANIEL H. WELLS, J. P. [1]
{281} This evening, Dr. Reynolds, of Iowa City, lectured on astronomy
in the assembly room.
_Thursday, 28.--_Dull day, drizzling rain, cold north-east wind.
Transferred the trial of Ianthus Rolfe to Aaron Johnson, J. P.
This afternoon, had the assembly room and office plastered where the
same had been knocked off, &c.
_Friday, 29.--_Night boisterous: about eight, a.m., hailstorm,
northeast wind, nipping frost; frost, hail, and strong wind all day.
Spent the day at home.
[Sidenote: The Robbery at Rollasson's Store in Nauvoo.]
_Saturday, 30.--_This morning I heard there was some disturbance on the
hill; I rode up and found it reported that a robbery had been committed
at the Keystone Store, kept by Mr. Rollasson, of some $400 or $500, and
some goods, and they were suspicious of a certain black man. I issued a
search-warrant and returned to my office, where I found the black man,
-- Chism, with his back lacerated from his shoulders to his hips, with
twenty or more lashes. My clerk, Dr. Richards, kept him secreted, and
called Aaron Johnson, a justice of the peace, who issued a warrant for
-- --, a Missourian, who had boarded at my house a few days, and on
testimony fined him $5 and costs for whipping -- Chism. One Easton, a
witness, said he could not testify without implicating himself, and he
was apprehended and held in custody. W. H. J. Marr, Esq., refused to
testify, because he was counsel.
[Sidenote: Memorial to the President of the United States.]
I got prepared a memorial to his Excellency John Tyler, {282} the
President of the United States, embodying in it the same sentiments as
are in my Petition to the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States, dated 26th March, 1844, asking the privilege of raising
100,000 men to extend protection to persons wishing to settle Oregon
and other portions of the territory of the United States, and extend
protection to the people in Texas.
_Sunday, 31.--_Cold, fine day.
At home this morning until nine, when I went over to my reading-room,
again heard read and signed my memorial to Congress for the privilege
of raising 100,000 volunteers to protect Texas, Oregon, &c., dated 26th
instant; and also a memorial to the President for the same purpose, if
the other fail.
Also signed an introductory letter to Elder Orson Hyde, who is going to
carry the memorials [2] to Washington as follows:--
{283} _"Credentials of Orson Hyde, Agent to Present the Prophet's
Memorial to Congress_.
CITY OF NAUVOO, ILLINOIS, March 30, 1844.
_To whom it may concern:_ We, the Mayor and Recorder of said city,
do certify that Orson Hyde, Esq. the bearer, a Councilor in the
City Council of said city, is sent as our agent, by the authorities
of said city, to transact such business as he may deem expedient
and beneficial for the party whom he represents; and such agent
and gentleman of principle and character, he by us is recommended
to the due consideration of all the executive officers of the
Government, both houses of Congress, and gentlemen generally of the
United States.
In witness whereof, we have hereunto set our hands and affixed the
seal of said corporation at the time and place aforesaid.
[CORPORATION SEAL.]
JOSEPH SMITH, Mayor.
WILLARD RICHARDS, Recorder.
About this time, Brother Alexander Mills, one of the police, informed
me that Chauncey L. Higbee drew a pistol on him the night before, and
threatened to shoot him. I instructed him to make complaint to Esquire
Wells, and have him apprehended.
Footnotes:
1. In addition to these affidavits the Prophet was apprised by two
young men Denison L. Harris and Robert Scott, the latter living in the
family of William Law, of a secret movement then on foot to take his
life, and the lives of several other leading men in the Church, among
them the Prophet's brother, Hyrum. These young men were invited to
the secret meetings by the conspirators, but before going conferred
with the Prophet, who told them to go, but to take no part in the
proceedings of these wicked men against himself. They carried out
his instructions, and at the risk of their lives attended the secret
meetings three times, and brought to President Smith a report of what
they had witnessed. A full account of this conspiracy written by
Horace Cummings--the narrative being detailed to him by Dennison L.
Harris--was published in the _Contributor,_ for April, 1884.
2. President Smith's memorial to Congress, of the 26th of March,
asking to be appointed "a member of the army of these United States,"
to be authorized "to raise 100,000 armed volunteers" to police the
inter-mountain and Pacific slope west, was presented to the House of
Representatives by Mr. John Wentworth, of Chicago, where the following
occurred with reference to it:
MORMONS:
"Mr. Wentworth asked permission to present a memorial from Gen. Joseph
Smith, the head of the Mormons, and required that it might be read by
the clerk for the information of the House.
"The clerk commenced the reading of the memorial.
"Before the reading was concluded.
"Mr. J. R. Ingersoll interposed, and objected a the reception at first,
and still objected.
"Mr. Weber observed that if memorials of this kind were to be read, he
was entrusted with the presentation of one of a peculiar character,
from certain city of Frederick county, Md.
"Mr. Wentworth said he would move a suspension of the rules to enable
him to have the paper read; and he wished a inquire of the chair
whether it would be in order for him to assign him reasons for making
such a motion.
"Mr. Duncan observed, if the gentleman would yield him the floor, he
would move to suspend the rules, to go into committee of the whole on
the Oregon bill.
"Mr. Wentworth said that, as he had the floor, he would make the
motion. Mr. Wentworth then moved that the rules be suspended, for the
purpose of going into committee of the whole on the Oregon Bill.
"The Speaker said that the question would be put on suspending the
rules to go into committee of the whole. If that motion prevailed, the
gentleman could move to take up any bill he pleased.
"Mr. Vance called for the yeas and nays on the question; which were
ordered.
"Mr. McKay inquired if the House should refuse to go into committee of
the whole, if it could by postponement of the previous orders, take up
the naval appropriation bill which had been reported from the committee
of the whole.
"The speaker said a motion to that effect would require a vote of
two-thirds.
"The question was put on suspending the rules and rejected--yeas 79,
nays 86." ("Congressional Globe" for May 25th, 1844. Vol. 13, No. 39,
p. 624.)
{284}
CHAPTER XII.
THE AUTHORITIES OF NAUVOO VS. THE HIGBEES, ET. AL--DEDICATION OF
THE MASONIC HALL--THE CHURCH CONFERENCE OF APRIL, 1844--ADDRESS OF
PRESIDENT SIDNEY RIGDON; DITTO PATRIARCH HYRUM SMITH--HISTORICAL
RESUME, AND BUILDING THE TEMPLE.
_Monday, April 1, 1844.--_In the court-room in the Mansion, Mr. J.
Easton was brought up as being accessory to whipping Chism, [a negro].
Referred the case to Alderman Wells. On investigation, it appeared to
the satisfaction of the court that he had been on trial for the same
offense before Robert D. Foster, and acquitted.
I extract from the _Neighbor_:--
_Comment on the Negro Chism's Case_.
After the court dismissed the case, General Smith fearlessly stated
that he believed that it was a plot on the part of those who were
instrumental in getting up the previous trial to thwart the ends
of justice and screen the prisoner from the condemnation he justly
deserves. Mr. Foster then stated, by way of an apology, that at the
time he issued the warrant he did not know that the prisoner was
under an arrest, or that there was any process out against him.
We hope, for the honor of such a man as Mr. Foster, that his
statement is true. Mr. Foster, however, called upon one of his
jurors, Mr. Carn, to corroborate what he had said; but, to our
astonishment, be replied that when Mr. Foster summoned him to
appear and act as a juryman, he was not informed what case he was
to act upon, nor did he learn until he entered the office, where he
acted according to the evidence given; but believed then, as well
as now, that it was a sham trial, and a mere mockery of justice. We
state facts as they are, and let the public judge for themselves.
{285} The statement of the negro was that Messrs. Easton,
Townsend, and Lawyer W. H. J. Marr were the persons engaged in
this diabolical affair. Mr. Gibbs, one of the witnesses against
Townsend, believed the above persons were engaged in it; but as
a negro knows nothing in this state, and Mr. Gibbs could not
positively swear to it, of course we don't know; but we have our
opinion, and so have the public. We don't remember ever having seen
more indignation manifest than was manifested on this occasion,
and the public mind is not satisfied at the turn affairs have
taken. Lynch law will not do in Nauvoo, and those who engage in
it must expect to be visited by the wrath of an indignant people,
not according to the rule of Judge Lynch, but according to law and
equity.
It was thought best to acquit Easton and leave the case to the Circuit
Court.
[Sidenote: The Higbee Brothers in Trouble.]
Francis M. Higbee and Chauncey L. Higbee were brought up before Esquire
Wells for assaulting the police, and acquitted. Chauncey L. Higbee
a lawyer, was brought before Daniel H. Wells Esq., on the charge of
using abusive language to and insulting the city marshal while in the
discharge of his official duty. He was fined ten dollars.
Also Robert D. Foster, Esq., was taken before Isaac Higbee, J. P.,
and fined ten dollars, for a breach of the ordinance pertaining to
gambling, &c.
We are sorry to find that our lawyers and magistrates should be taking
the lead among gamblers and disorderly persons, and be numbered among
the law-breakers, rather than supporting virtue, law, and the dignity
of the city.
[Sidenote: Counter move of the Higbees.]
_Tuesday, 2.--_At home, somewhat unwell, and kept my house this fine
day. John P. Greene, marshal; Andrew Lytle, and John Lytle, policemen,
were arrested by a warrant issued by Robert D. Foster, on complaint
of Francis M. Higbee, for false imprisonment. As the case was going
to trial, the prisoners were taken by John D. Parker, with a writ of_
habeas corpus_ before the Municipal Court; and tomorrow, at one, p.m.,
was fixed for trial.
{286} _Wednesday, 3.--_At one, p.m., presided in a special session of
the Municipal Court, with Aldermen William Marks, Newel K. Whitney,
Orson Spencer, George W. Harris, Gustavus Hills, George A. Smith, and
Samuel Bennett as Associate-Justices. John P. Greene, Andrew Lytle, and
John Lytle were brought up on _habeas corpus_ having been taken from
the officer who held them on a writ issued by Robert D. Foster, before
whom they had been arraigned on the complaint of Chauncey L. Higbee,
charged with false imprisonment.
Joel S. Miles, Andrew Lytle, John Lytle, John P. Greene, and Robert D.
Foster were sworn, gave testimony in the case, and the court decided
that Greene and the two Lytles be discharged, and that Chauncey L.
Higbee is a very disorderly person; that this case on _habeas corpus_
originated in a malicious and vexatious suit, instituted by Chauncey L.
Higbee against the petitioners now discharged; and that said Higbee pay
the costs.
Warm and cloudy.
[Sidenote: Conference in New York.]
A conference was held in the city of New York; Elder William Smith
presiding, and Elder William H. Miles, clerk. Fifteen branches were
represented, containing 566 members, including 3 High Priests, 26
Elders, 15 Priests, 16 Teachers, and 9 Deacons.
_Thursday, 14.--_In a general council in the assembly room from nine to
twelve, a.m., and from one to four, p.m.
I was visited by eleven Indians, who wanted counsel, and had an
impressive interview.
Elder Orson Hyde was in the council, and left immediately for
Washington. [1]
{287} A company of Saints arrived on the steamer _St. Croix_.
Showery day.
[Sidenote: Dedication Masonic Temple.]
_Friday, 5.--_Attended the dedication of the Masonic Temple, which
was attended by about 550 members of the Masonic fraternity from
various parts of the world. A procession was formed at Henry Miller's
house, and was accompanied by the Nauvoo Brass Band to the hall. The
dedicatory ceremonies were performed by the Worshipful Master Hyrum
Smith. Elder Erastus Snow delivered an able Masonic address. Dr.
Goforth and I also addressed the assembly. All the visiting Masons were
furnished a dinner at the Masonic Hall at the expense of the Nauvoo
Lodge. The building is admitted to be the most substantial and best
finished Masonic Temple in the Western States. It has been erected
under the direction of Mr. Lucius N. Scovil.
In consequence of ill health, I deferred preaching the funeral sermon
of King Follett until Sunday. Elder Amasa Lyman addressed a very large
assembly at the stand.
_General Conference Minutes of the Church, April, 1844_.
Conference met pursuant to adjournment. Present--President Joseph
Smith, Hyrum Smith, Sidney Rigdon, and William Marks. Of the
Twelve--Brigham Young, Heber C. Kimball, Willard Richards, Wilford
Woodruff, John Taylor, and George A. Smith.
The members of the High Council, an immense number of Elders, an a
very large concourse of people.
Presidents Joseph and Hyrum Smith came to the stand at a quarter
past ten o'clock, when the meeting was called to order by Elder
Brigham Young. The choir sang a hymn, after which
_Opening Address of President Joseph Smith_.
President Joseph Smith rose to state to the congregation the
nature of the business which would have to come before them.
He stated that it had been expected by some that the little
petty difficulties which have existed would be brought up and
investigated before this conference, but {288} it will not be
the case: these things are of too trivial a nature to occupy the
attention of so large a body. I intend to give you some instruction
on the principles of eternal truth, but will defer it until others
have spoken, in consequence of the weakness of my lungs. The
Elders will give you instruction; and then, if necessary, I will
offer such corrections as may be proper to all up the interstices.
Those who feel desirous of sowing the seeds of discord will be
disappointed on this occasion. It is our purpose to build up and
establish the principles of righteousness, and not to break down
and destroy. The Great Jehovah has ever been with me, and the
wisdom of God will direct me in the seventh hour. I feel in closer
communion and better standing with God than ever I felt before in
my life, and I am glad of this opportunity to appear in your midst.
I thank God for the glorious day that He has given us. In so large
a congregation it is necessary that the greatest order and decorum
be observed. I request this at your hands, and believe that you
will all keep good order.
Prayer was offered by W. W. Phelps, after which the choir sang a
hymn.
_Elder Sidney Rigdon_.
Elder Sidney Rigdon then rose and said: It is with no ordinary
degree of satisfaction I enjoy this privilege this morning. Want
of health and other circumstances have kept me in silence for
nearly the last five years. It can hardly be expected that when
the violence of sickness has used its influence, and the seeds
of disease have so long preyed upon me, that I can rise before
this congregation, only in weakness. I am now come forth from
a bed of sickness, and have enough of strength left to appear
here for the first time in my true character. I have not come
before a conference for the last five years in my true character.
I shall consider this important privilege sacred in my family
history during life. I hardly promise myself lungs to make this
congregation hear me. I shall do the best I can, and the greatest
can do no more.
The circumstance by which we are now surrounded point out the
principles of my discourse--the history of this Church, which I
have known from its infancy. My text is--"Behold the Church of God
of the last days." I do not know that I can find it in the Bible.
I do not think it necessary to have Paul to make a text for me;
I can make a text for myself. I recollect in the year 1830 I met
the whole Church of Christ in a little old log-house about 20 feet
square, near Waterloo, N.Y., and we began to talk about the kingdom
of God as if we had the world at our command. We talked with great
confidence, and {289} talked big things. Although we were not many
people, we had big feelings.
We knew fourteen years ago that the Church would become as large
as it is today. We were as big then as we ever shall be. We began
to talk like men in authority and power. We looked upon the men of
the earth as grasshoppers. If we did not see this people, we saw
by vision the Church of God, a thousand times larger. And when men
would say we wanted to upset the Government, although we were not
enough to well man a farm, or meet a woman with a milk-pail, all
the Elders, all the members met in conference in a room twenty feet
square.
I recollect Elder Phelps being put in jail for reading the Book of
Mormon. He came to see us, and expressed great astonishment, and
left us, apparently pondering in his heart. He afterwards came to
Kirtland, Ohio, and said he was a convert. Many things were taught,
believed, and preached then, which have since come to pass. We knew
the whole world would laugh at us; so we concealed ourselves, and
there was much excitement about our secret meetings, charging us
with designs against the Government, and with laying plans to get
money, &c., which never existed in the hearts of any one else [_i.
e._, but in the hearts of their accusers]. And if we had talked in
public, we should have been ridiculed more than we were. The world,
being entirely ignorant of the testimony of the Prophets, and
without knowledge of what God was about to do, treated all we said
with pretended contempt and much ridicule, and had they heard all
we said, it would have made worse for us.
We talked about the people coming as doves to the windows; and that
nations should flock unto it; that they should come bending to the
standard of Jesus, saying, "Our fathers have taught falsehoods and
things in which there is no profit," and of whole nations being
born in one day. We talked such big things that men could not bear
them, and they not only ridiculed us for what we did say in public,
but threatened and inflicted much personal abuse; and if they had
heard all we said, their violence would have been insupportable.
God had great things to say for the salvation of the world, which,
if they had been told the public, would have brought persecution
upon us unto death: so we were obliged to retire to our secret
chamber and commune ourselves with God. If we had told the people
what our eyes behold this day, we should not have been believed;
but the rascals would have shed our blood if we had only told them
what we believed. There we sat in secret and beheld the glorious
visions and powers of the kingdom of heaven pass and repass. We had
not a mighty congregation to shelter us. If a mob came upon us, we
had to run and hide ourselves to save our lives.
{290} The time has now come to tell why we held secret meetings. We
were maturing plans fourteen years ago which we can now tell. Were
we maturing plans to corrupt the world, to destroy the peace of
society? No. Let fourteen years' experience of the Church tell the
story. The Church never would have been here if we had not done as
we did in secret. The cry of "False prophet and imposter!" rolled
upon us. I do not know that anything has taken place in the history
of this Church which we did not then believe. It was written
upon our hearts and never could be taken away. It was indelibly
engraved; no power beneath yonder heavens could obliterate it. This
was the period when God laid the foundation of the Church, and He
laid it firmly, truly, and upon eternal truth.
If any man says it is not the work of God, I know he lies. Some of
you who know you have a house, how long would it take to make you
reason yourselves into a belief that you have no house where you
now reside with your family? Neither have we any power whereby we
can ever persuade ourselves that this is not the Church of God. We
do not care who sinks or swims, or opposes, but we know here is
the Church of God, and I have authority before God for saying so.
I have the testimony of Jesus, which is the spirit of prophecy. I
have slept with it,--I have walked with it. The idea has never been
out of my heart for a moment, and I will reap the glory of it when
I leave this world. I defy men and hell and devils to put it out of
my heart. I defy all, and will triumph in spite of them.
I know God. I have gazed upon the glory of God, the throne, visions
and glories of God, and the visions of eternity in days gone by.
What is a man of God to do, when he sees all the madness, wrath and
follies of our persecutors? He will do as God does--he will sit and
laugh. * * * These were the beginning of good days--shut up in a
room eating nothing but dry johnny-cake and buttermilk. Every man
who had a little farm or clothes, sold them and distributed what he
had among the rest, and did the best he could. I had a little to
eat--little to wear, and yet it was the beginning of good days.
Some say "I want plenty to eat, plenty to drink, plenty to wear,
and a good house to live in;" and, say they, then I will believe. But
God will not give it until you have proved yourselves unto Him.
No wonder, then, that we should be joyful today. If the people will
do as they are told, I will tell you what to do. Get the visions
of heaven, and seek not what you shall eat or what you shall
drink, but seek the will of God. Get into the presence of God, and
then you will have johnny-cake and milk-and-water no more. Would
you not be astonished if even now we should tell the glories and
privileges of the Saints of God to you and to the world? We should
be ridiculed; and {291} no wonder we shut it up in secret. If we
were to tell you when Jehovah is looked upon, lo it is beauty, it
is heaven, it is felicity to look upon Jehovah. I should marvel if
it were otherwise. If a man tells you one glory or one message, he
is learning another at the same time. Do not be astonished, then,
if we even yet have secret meetings, asking God for things for your
benefit.
Do not be afraid. Go back to the commencement of this Church, and
see what was concocted then. There was no evil concocted when
we first held secret meetings, and it is the same now. Has God
forgotten to be gracious, to be merciful to mankind? Did He ever
concoct anything that was devilish for mankind? He could not do it.
I never am afraid of God or man concocting anything to hurt me.
I have faith to detect men, even if they did. I would ask God to
detect them, and hold them fast before they should do it. I am not
afraid of men or devils. I have none of those fears, jealousies,
dreads, forebodings, surmisings, &c. I put my trust in God, and
whatever God does for me is only for my salvation.
A man is a bad teamster who runs his team in the worst road. What
I have already said is only to prepare the way. [Here five of the
Pottawattomie tribe appeared with their interpreter, and were
assisted to the stand by the President.] I am going to tell of
something that surprised me at the beginning of the Church. I have
handled, heard, seen and known things which I have not yet told.
After the Church began to grow, it was favored with marvelously
wise men. They had so much wisdom that they could dispute what God
said, and what His servant said. They were opposed to virtue. They
would say they had revelations and visions, and were as certain
that the Lord had given it as I was that the devil had.
He referred to the children of Israel who were snivelling and
murmuring about their leeks and onions, &c., &c.; and so it is in
these last days; some men are always yelling about what the Church
believes and opposing every good thing.
I want devils to gratify themselves; and if howling, yelling and
yelping will do you any good, do it till you are all damned.
If calling us devils, &c., will do you any good, let us have the
whole of it, and you can then go on your way to hell without a
grunt.
We hear these things ever since the Church existed. They have come
up with us; they have had so much more wisdom, they knew all about
the kingdom before God revealed it, and they know all things before
they were heard; they understand more than God knows. We gather of
all kinds. If we get all nations, we get all wisdom, cunning, and
everything else.
The sectarians cannot be as wise as we are, for they have only got
{292} man's plans, the devil's plans, and, the best of all, we have
God's plan.
I do not know whether there are any of these wise men here this
morning or not; I have merely given this as a part of the history
of this Church. I am disposed to give some reasons why salvation
only belongs to the kingdom of God, and to that alone.
I will endeavor to show why salvation belongs to us more
peculiarly, in contradistinction to all other bodies. Will this be
clear enough?
I discover one thing: Mankind have labored under one universal
mistake about this--viz., salvation was distinct from government;
_i. e_., that I can build a Church without government, and that
thing have power to save me!
When God sets up a system of salvation He sets up a system of
government. When I speak of a government, I mean what I say. I mean
a government that shall rule over temporal and spiritual affairs.
Every man is a government of himself, and infringes upon no
government. A man is not an honorable man, if he is not above all
law and above government.
I see in our town we have need of government. Some study law only
for the purpose of seeing how many feuds, how many broils they can
kick up, how much they can disturb the peace of the public without
breaking the law, and then say--"I know my rights, and will have
them;" "I did not know it was the marshal, or I would not have done
it."
He is no gentleman. Gentlemen would not insult a poor man in the
street, but would bow to him, as much as those who appear more
respectable. No marshal or any one else, should pull me up. We
ought to live a great way within the circle of the laws of the land
would live far above all law.
The law of God is far more righteous than the laws of the land. The
kingdom of God does not interfere with the laws of the land, but
keeps itself by its own laws. (Reported by Elder Thomas Bullock.)
Elder Rigdon stopped to refresh himself. The choir sang hymn 104.
Elder John Taylor, being called upon to address the congregation,
said--It gives me pleasure to meet and associate with so large
an assemblage of the Saints. I always feel at home among the
brethren. I consider them the honorable of the earth; and if I can
do anything to conduce to their happiness, or that will in anywise
tend to their edification, I am satisfied.
I therefore address this congregation with cheerfulness and
pleasure, and if by unfolding any of the principles of truth that I
am in possession {293} of, or laying before you anything pertaining
to the kingdom--if my ideas will enlarge your minds, or produce
beneficial results to any, I shall consider myself on this, as on
all other occasions, amply repaid.
Many things have been spoken by Elder Rigdon concerning the early
history of this Church. There is no person who has searched the
oracles of eternal truth, but his mind will be touched with the
remarks made by our venerable friend, which unfold the dispensation
of Jehovah, and have a tendency to produce the most thrilling
feelings in the bosoms of many who are this day present, and
to promote our general edification. He traces with pleasure on
the historic page--the rise of nations, kingdoms and empires.
Historians dwell with great minuteness on the heroic deeds, the
chivalrous acts, the dangers and deliverances, the tact, bravery,
and heroism of their chieftains, generals and governments.
We, as Republicans, look back to the time when this nation was
under the iron rule of Great Britain, and groaned under the power,
tyranny and oppression of that powerful nation. We trace with
delight the name of a Washington, a Jefferson, a LaFayette, and an
Adams, in whose bosoms burned the spark of liberty. These themes
are dwelt upon with delight by our legislators, our governors and
presidents; they are subjects which fire our souls with patriotic
ardor.
But if these things animate them so much, how much more great,
noble and exalted are the things laid before us! They were engaged
in founding kingdoms and empires that were destined to dissolution
and decay; and although many of them were great, formidable and
powerful, they now exist only in name. Their cloud-capped towers,
their solemn temples, are dissolved, and nothing now remains of
their former magnificence or ancient grandeur but a few dilapidated
buildings and broken columns. A few shattered fragments remain to
tell to this and to other generations the perishable nature of
earthly pomp and worldly glory.
They were engaged in founding empires and establishing kingdoms
and powers that had in themselves the seeds of destruction, and
were destined to decay. We are laying the foundation of a kingdom
that shall last forever--that shall bloom in time and blossom in
eternity. We are engaged in a greater work than ever occupied the
attention of mortals. We live in a day that prophets and kings
desired to see, but died without the sight.
When we hear the history of the rise of this kingdom from one who
has been with it from its infancy--from the lips of our venerable
friend who has taken an active part in all the history of the
Church, can we {294} be surprised if he should feel animated, and
that his soul should burn with heavenly zeal? We see in him a man
of God who can contemplate the glories of heaven, the visions of
eternity, and yet who looks forward to the opening glories which
the great Elohim has manifested to him pertaining to righteousness
and peace--a man who now beholds the things roll on which he has
long since beheld in prophetic vision.
Most men have established themselves in authority by laying
desolate other kingdoms and the destruction of other powers. Their
kingdoms have been founded in blood, and supported in tyranny and
oppression. The greatest chieftains of the earth have obtained
their glory--if glory it can be called--by blood, carnage and ruin.
One nation has been built up at the expense and ruin of another,
and one man has been made at the expense of another; and yet these
great men were called honorable for their inglorious deeds of
rapine. They have slain their thousands, and caused the orphans to
weep and the widows to mourn.
Men did these things because they could do it--because they had
power to desolate nations, and spread terror and desolation.
They have made themselves immortal as great men. The patriots of
this country had indeed a laudable object in view--a plausible
excuse for the course they took. They stood in defense of their
rights, liberty and freedom. But where are now those principles
of freedom? Where are the laws that protect all men in their
religious opinions? Where the laws that say, "A man shall worship
God according to the dictates of his own conscience?" What say ye,
ye Saints--ye who are exiles in the land of liberty? How came you
here? Can you in this land of equal right return in safety to your
possessions in Missouri? No. You are exiles from thence, and there
is no power, no voice, no arm to redress your grievance. Is this
the gracious boon for which your fathers fought and struggled and
died? Shades of the venerable dead, could you but gaze upon this
scene, and witness tens of thousands of Americans in exile on
Columbia's soil--if pity could touch your bosoms, how you would
mourn for the oppressed! If indignation, how would you curse the
heartless wretches that have so desecrated and polluted the temple
of liberty? "How has the gold become dim, and the fine gold, how
has it changed." Let it not be told among the monarchs of Europe,
lest they laugh and say, "Ha; so would we have it."
Ye Saints, never let it go abroad that ye are exiles in the land of
liberty, lest ye disgrace your republic in the eyes of the nations
of the earth; but tell it to those who robbed and plundered and
refused to give you your rights. Tell your rulers that all their
deeds of fame are tarnished, and their glory is departed.
{295} Are we now, indeed, in a land of liberty, of freedom, of
equal rights? Would to God I could answer, Yes. But no, no, I
cannot! They have robbed us, we are stripped of our possessions,
many of our friends are slain, and our government says, "Your cause
is just, but we can do nothing for you."
Hear it, ye great men, we are here in exile! Here are thousands of
men in bondage in a land of liberty--of freedom! If ye have any
patriotism, shake off your fetters and come and proclaim us free,
and give us our rights. I speak of this government as being one of
the best or governments--as one of the greatest and purest; and
yet, what a melancholy picture! O ye venerable fathers who fought
for your liberty, blush for your children, and mourn, mourn over
your country's shame! We are now talking about a government which
sets herself up as a pattern for the nations of the earth, and yet,
oh, what a picture! If this is the best, the most patriotic, the
most free, what is the situation of the rest?
Here we speak with national pride of a Washington, a LaFayette, a
Monroe and a Jefferson, who fought for their liberties, achieved
one of the greatest victories ever won; and scarcely has one
generation passed away before fifteen thousand citizens petition
government for redress of their wrongs, and they turn a deaf ear to
their cry.
Let us compare this with the Church of Christ. Fourteen years
ago a few men assembled in a log cabin; they saw the visions of
heaven, and gazed upon the eternal world; they looked through the
rent vista of futurity, and beheld the glories of eternity; they
were planting those principles which were concocted in the bosom
of Jehovah; they were laying a foundation for the salvation of the
world, and those principles which they then planted have not yet
begun to dwindle; but the fire still burns in their bones; the
principles are planted in different nations and are wafted on every
breeze.
When I gaze upon this company of men, I see those who are actuated
by patriotic and noble principles, who will stand up in defense
of the oppressed, of whatever country, nation, color or clime. I
see it in their countenances. It is planted by the Spirit of God.
They have received it from the great Elohim, and all the power or
influence of mobs, priestcraft or corrupt men cannot quench it.
It will burn. It is comprehensive as the designs of God, and as
expansive as the universe and reaches to all the world. No matter
whether it was an Indian, a negro, or any other man or set of men
that are oppressed, you would stand forth in their defense.
I say unto you, continue to cherish those principles. Let them
expand. And if the tree of liberty has been blasted in this
nation--if it has been gnawed by worms, and already blight has
overspread it, we {296} will stand up in defense of our liberties,
and proclaim ourselves free in time and in eternity.
The choir, by request, sang, "O stop and tell me, Red Man." After
prayer by Elder John P. Greene, the meeting was adjourned for one
hour.
Footnotes:
1. The object of his mission was to assist Elders Orson Pratt and John
E. Page in getting President Smith's Memorial, asking to be appointed
"a member of the U. S. Army" and to be authorized to raise one hundred
thousand armed volunteers to police the inter-mountain and Pacific
coast west from Oregon to Texas.
{297}
CHAPTER XIII.
CONFERENCE OF THE CHURCH, APRIL, 1844, CONTINUED--ADDRESS OF PATRIARCH
HYRUM SMITH--THE BUILDING OF THE TEMPLE.
_Saturday, April 6, 1844, [Conference Report Continued_.]
The President arrived at the stand at half-past two o'clock, p.m.
The choir sang a hymn; after which prayer by Elder John P. Greene,
when the choir sang another hymn.
Elder Rigdon resumed his history of the Church.
A little before five o'clock the assembly was dismissed without
ceremony, until next morning, on the appearance of a shower. The
people had scarcely time to retire before a heavy shower of rain,
wind, thunder and lightning followed. A splendid double rainbow
seen in the heavens.
_Sunday, 7_.--
Very pleasant morning. The President arrived at ten o'clock, the
largest congregation ever seen in Nauvoo having assembled. The
choir sang the hymn, "Ye slumbering nations that have slept."
President Rigdon offered an affectionate appeal for the prayers of
the Saints on behalf of the sick, and then prayer by Elder George
J. Adams.
Choir sang the hymn, "The Spirit of God like a fire is burning," &c.
_President Joseph Smith_.
The Mayor requested the people to keep good order, and observed
to the police, who were round the outskirts of the congregation
to keep order, "Policemen, I want you to exercise your authority;
and don't say you can't do anything for us, for the constitutional
power calls you to keep good order, and God Almighty calls you, and
we command you to do it."
Elder Sidney Rigdon arose and continued his subject of yesterday.
Choir sang. Benediction. Intermission.
{298}
During the intermission, thirty-five were baptized in the
Mississippi river for the remission of their sins.
_Address of Elder Hyrum Smith, Patriarch to the Church_.
_At 2 o'clock p. m._
Patriarch Hyrum Smith arrived at the stand, and said he wanted to
say something about the temple.
"We want 200,000 shingles, as we shall resume the work on the
Temple immediately. All who have not paid their tithing, come
on and do it. We want provisions, money, boards, planks, and
anything that is good; we don't want any more old guns or watches.
I thought some time ago I would get up a small subscription,
so that the sisters might do something. In consequence of some
misunderstanding, it has not gone on as at first. It is a matter of
my own; I do not ask it as a tithing. I give a privilege to any one
to pay a cent a week, or fifty cents a year. I want it by next fall
to buy nails and glass. It is difficult to get money. I know that a
small subscription will bring more than a large one. The poor can
help in this way. I take the responsibility upon myself, and call
again upon the sisters. I call again until I get about $1,000. It
only requires two thousand subscribers.
I have sent this subscription plan to England and the branches. I
am not to be dictated to by any one except the Prophet and God. I
want you to pay in your subscriptions to me, and it shall always be
said boldly by me, the sisters bought the glass in that house, and
their names shall be written in the Book of the Law of the Lord. It
is not a tax, but a free will offering to procure something which
shall ever be a monument of your works. No member of the Relief
Society got it up. I am the man that did it. They ought not to
infringe upon it. I am not a member of the Female Relief Society! I
am one of the committee of the Lord's House.
I wish to accomplish something, I wish all the Saints to have an
opportunity to do something. I want the poor with the purse of five
dollars to have a chance. The widow's two mites were more in the
eyes of the Lord than the purse of the rich; and the poor woman
shall have a seat in the house of God--she who pays her two mites
as well as the rich, because it is all she has. I wish to have a
place in that house. I intend to stimulate the brethren. I want to
get the roof on this season. I want to get the windows in, in the
winter, so that we may be able to dedicate the House of the Lord
by this time next year, if nothing more than one room. I will call
upon the brethren to do something.
I cannot make a comparison between the House of God and anything
now in existence. Great things are to grow out of that house.
There {299} is a great and mighty power to grow out of it. There
is an endowment. Knowledge is power. We want knowledge. We have
frequently difficulties with persons who profess to be Latter-day
Saints. When the sacrament will be administered in the Lord's House
it will do away with a great deal of difficulty that is now in
existence. If we can have a privilege and confess our faults unto
God and one another every Sabbath day, it will do away with these.
* * * You sisters shall have a seat in that house. I will stand on
the top of that pulpit and proclaim to all what the sisters have
done. When you offer up your sacraments every Sabbath, you will
feel well a whole week; you will get a great portion of the Spirit
of God, enough to last you a week--and you will increase. We are
now deprived of the privilege of giving the necessary instruction;
hence we want a house.
All the money shall be laid out for what you design it. It shall
not be paid for anything else. I am one of the committee. The
committee tells me the quarry is blockaded; it is filled with rock.
The stone cutters are wanting work. Come on with your teams as soon
as conference is over. It is not necessary for me to tell who will
come and do it. I will prophesy that you will do it. There is not
one in the city but what will do right if he knows it, with only
one or two exceptions, and they are not worth notice. God will
take care of them, and if He doesn't, the devil will. I described
them once, and you will always know them while you see them. They
will keep hopping till they hop out of town. Some of them are tree
toads, who climb the trees and are continually croaking.
We are now the most noble people on the face of the globe, and
we have no occasion to fear tadpoles. We are designated by the
All-seeing Eye to do good, not to stoop to anything low. We are apt
to suffer prejudice to get into our hearts on hearing reports. We
never should allow it--never should pass our judgment until we hear
both sides.
I will tell a Dutch anecdote: A certain Dutchman had a case brought
before him, and heard one side, and he gave in his decision--"Sure
you have got the case;" and when the other party brought their
witnesses, he said again, "Sure, you have got the case, too." If
you hear of any one in high authority, that he is rather inclined
to apostasy, don't let prejudice arise, but pray for him. God may
feel after him, and he may return. Never speak reproachfully nor
disrespectfully; he is in the hands of God. I am one of those
peacemakers who take a stand above these little things. It has
been intimated we should have investigations this conference. Do
you think I would trouble this conference with it? If I have a
difficulty with a man, I will go and settle it. Let them settle
their difficulties. There is not a man who has had a difficulty
{300} who would trouble this congregation about it. We ask no
favors; we can settle it ourselves. Don't think anything about
persons who are on the eve of apostasy; God is able to take care of
them. Let God judge, do your duty and let men alone.
Never undertake to destroy men because they do some evil thing. It
is natural for a man to be led, and not driven. Put down iniquity
by good works. Many men speak without any contemplation; if they
had given the matter a little contemplation it would not have been
spoken. We ought to be careful what we say, and take the example of
Jesus, cast over men the mantle of charity, and try to cover their
faults. We are made to enlighten, and not to darken one another;
save men, not destroy them. Do unto others what you would have them
do unto you. It is well enough to root out conspiracy. Do not fear,
but if you are in the right track, having God to guide you, He will
save you; for God will save you, if He has to destroy the wicked so
as by fire.
I want to put down all false influence. If I thought I should be
saved and any in the congregation be lost, I should not be happy.
For this purpose Jesus effected a resurrection. Our Savior is
competent to save all from death and hell. I can prove it out of
the revelation. I would not serve a God that had not all wisdom and
all power.
The reason why I feel so good is because I have a big soul. There
are men with small bodies who have got souls like Enoch. We have.
We have gathered our big souls from the ends of the earth. The
Gospel picks the big souls out of all creation, and we will get the
big souls out of all the nations, and we shall have the largest
city in the world.
We will gather all the big souls out of every nation. As soon as
the Gospel catches hold of noble souls, it brings them all right
up to Zion. There is a thing called guiding star. The Gospel is
similar. We will have a people great enough to be saved.
Popery could not write what Enoch preached. He told the people that
the Spirit of God took him up into a high mountain, showed him the
distress of the people--the destruction of the world, and he said
his heart swelled wide as eternity. But adherents of Popery could
not receive anything as large as that, and every man-made society
is just like them. Men's souls conform to the society in which they
live, with very few exceptions, and when men come to live with the
Mormons, their souls swell as if they were going to stride the
planets as I stride the Republic of America. I can believe that man
can go from planet to planet--a man gets so high in the mansions
above.
A certain good sister came to my house and she was troubled because
she heard so many big things. She thought it weakened her faith.
I {301} told her she had too much faith. She believed too much. I
will tell you how you may know whether the thing is true or not.
When any one comes to you with a lie, you feel troubled. God will
trouble you, and will not approbate you in such belief. You had
better get some antidote to get rid of it. Humble yourself before
God, and ask Him for His Spirit and pray to Him to judge it for
you. It is better not to have so much faith, than to have so much
as to believe all the lies.
Before this conference closes, I want to get all the Elders
together.
I shall make a proclamation. I want to take the line and ax and
hew you, and make you as straight as possible. I will make you
straight as a stretched line. Every Elder that goes from Nauvoo to
preach the Gospel, if he preaches anything else, we will silence
him through the public print. I want all the Elders to meet and to
understand; and if they preach anything but the pure truth, we will
call them home.
At a quarter-past three p.m., President Smith having arrived, the
choir sang a hymn. Elder Amasa Lyman offered prayer.
President Joseph Smith delivered a discourse before twenty thousand
Saints, being the funeral sermon of Elder King Follett.
[Transcriber's note: page number jumps from 301 to 318 here in the
original. This is a printer's error--there are no missing pages.]
{318}
CHAPTER XIV.
GENERAL CONFERENCE FOR APRIL, 1844, CONCLUDED--THE ANNOUNCEMENT THAT
THE WHOLE LAND OF AMERICA IS ZION--INSTRUCTIONS TO ELDERS SET APART FOR
MISSIONS--A GENERAL CONFERENCE IN ENGLAND.
_Monday, April 8, 1844.--[Conference Report Continued_.]
At three-quarters past 9 a.m., President Joseph Smith took his seat
on the stand and requested the choir to sing a hymn. He called upon
Elder Brigham Young to read 1st Corinthians, 15th chapter, as his
own lungs were injured.
Elder Brigham Young said--to continue the subject of President
Smith's discourse yesterday, I shall commence by reading the 15th
chapter of 1st Corinthians, from an old Bible; and requested W. W.
Phelps to read it.
Prayer by Elder Brigham Young, after which the choir sang a hymn.
_President Joseph Smith's Remarks--The Whole of America Zion_.
President Joseph Smith said:--It is just as impossible, for me to
continue the subject of yesterday as to raise the dead. My lungs
are worn out. There is a time to all things, and I must wait. I
will give it up, and leave the time to those who can make you hear,
and I will continue the subject of my discourse some other time. I
want to make a proclamation to the Elders. I wanted you to stay,
in order that I might make this proclamation. You know very well
that the Lord has led this Church by revelation. I have another
revelation in relation to economy in the Church--a great, grand,
and glorious revelation. I shall not be able to dwell as largely
upon it now as at some other time; but I will give you the first
principles. You know there has been great discussion in relation
to Zion--where it is, and where the gathering of the dispensation
is, and which I am now going to tell you. The prophets have spoken
and written upon it; but I will make a proclamation that will cover
a broader ground._ The whole of America is Zion itself {319} from
north to south, and is described by the Prophets, who declare that
it is the Zion where the mountain of the Lord should be, and that
it should be in the center of the land._ When Elders shall take up
and examine the old prophecies in the Bible, they will see it.
The declaration this morning is, that as soon as the Temple and
baptismal font are prepared, we calculate to give the Elders of
Israel their washings and anointings, and attend to those last
and more impressive ordinances, without which we cannot obtain
celestial thrones. But there must be a holy place prepared for
that purpose. There was a proclamation made during the time that
the foundation of the Temple was laid to that effect, and there
are provisions made until the work is completed, so that men may
receive their endowments and be made kings and priests unto the
Most High God, having nothing to do with temporal things, but their
whole time will be taken up with things pertaining to the house
of God. There must, however, be a place built expressly for that
purpose, and for men to be baptized for their dead. It must be
built in this the central place; for every man who wishes to save
his father, mother, brothers, sisters and friends, must go through
all the ordinances for each one of them separately, the same as for
himself, from baptism to ordination, washings and anointings, and
receive all the keys and powers of the Priesthood, the same as for
himself.
_I have received instructions from the Lord that from henceforth
wherever the Elders of Israel shall build up churches and branches
unto the Lord throughout the States, there shall be a stake of
Zion. In the great cities, as Boston, New York, &c., there shall
be stakes._ It is a glorious proclamation, and I reserved it to
the last, and designed it to be understood that this work shall
commence after the washings, anointings and endowments have been
performed here.
The Lord has an established law in relation to the matter: there
must be a particular spot for the salvation of our dead. I verily
believe there will be a place, and hence men who want to save
their dead can come and bring their families, do their work by
being baptized and attending to the other ordinances for their
dead, and then may go back again to live and wait till they go
to receive their reward. I shall leave my brethren to enlarge on
this subject: it is my duty to teach the doctrine. I would teach
it more fully--the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak. God is
not willing to let me gratify you; but I must teach the Elders, and
they should teach you. God made Aaron to be the mouth piece for the
children of Israel, [1] and He will make me be god to you in {320}
His stead, and the Elders to be mouth for me; and if you don't like
it, you must lump it. I have been giving Elder Adams instruction in
some principles to speak to you, and if he makes a mistake, I will
get up and correct him.
Elder G. J. Adams preached a discourse which occupied three hours,
and which could be heard a great distance.
President Joseph Smith turned over the conference into the hands of
the Twelve.
Choir sang a hymn. Prayer.
President Hyrum Smith called the conference to order at twenty-five
minutes to four p.m., and spoke to the assembly one hour and a half.
He treated upon the subject of Elders preaching abroad. He said
it was a matter of consequence that the Elders of Israel should
know what they were about when they go to preach the Gospel. They
should, like Paul, be ready to give a reason for the hope of their
calling. When they are sent to preach the Gospel, they should
preach the Gospel and nothing else, if they wish to stand approved
themselves. The Elders are sent into the world to preach faith,
repentance, baptism for the remission of sins, and the laying on of
hands for the reception of the Holy Ghost and they should let the
mysteries alone.
God has commanded you to preach repentance to this generation; and
if this generation will not receive the first principles of the
Gospel and the Book of Mormon, they will receive nothing greater.
Just go and do as you are told and God will bless you.
It is the power of God that is going to convert the world, and
nothing but the power of God. Every man who knows me knows that I
have taught these principles from the beginning. It is the honest
and pure in heart that will harken to the everlasting covenant.
They are those who are noble and good; they will feed and clothe
you and receive your testimony; and we want the Elders to gather
out the good seed to Nauvoo. The day will come when you will see
the wicked flee when no man pursueth. I want you to be wise as
serpents and harmless as doves. Preach principles that will stand
the test of ages; teach them good precepts and save souls, go forth
as men of God, and you will find friends wherever you go. Drink
deep of the Spirit of Truth and a great and mighty work shall be
wrought in the world; hundreds {321} and tens of thousands shall
flock to the standard and go up to Zion.
Many other remarks were made by the speaker.
After which Sidney Rigdon made a few remarks, and concurred in what
Brother Hyrum had said.
Twelve minutes to six, adjourned to April 9th, at eight o'clock,
a.m.
_Special Meeting of Elders_.
_Tuesday, 9.--[Conference Report Continued]._ At 8 a.m., the Elders
assembled at the stand, (President Brigham Young presiding,) and
were addressed by Elder Amasa Lyman; after which: President Brigham
Young said--
_Address of Brigham Young_.
What has been given is correct; the speech and conduct of Elders
one towards another is frequently wrong; one Elder will speak evil
of another; and while you trample others you will sink yourself.
A man has sinking principles; but if his feelings are elevated,
he will build up others and build up himself. Just as sure as one
Elder tries to build himself upon the destruction of another, he
will surely sink himself.
I would like to sit and hear the brethren teach for a week; but as
business is pressing, we must hurry through. Preach repentance to
this generation. Faith must go before repentance, and of course all
men must follow the course and obey the laws and ordinances for the
remission of sins, so as to receive the gift of the Holy Ghost, and
then your mission is done. Let a man who goes into the vineyard
build up all he can. If a man preaches anything in error, pray to
God that no man may remember it any more. No Elder will correct
another in public before unbelievers unless he has the sinking
principle. I call all the Elders together to witness that I always
use charity, for it covers a multitude of sins.
_North and South America Zion_.
Let us obey the proclamation of Joseph Smith concerning the Elders
going forth into the vineyard to build up the Temple, get their
endowments, and be prepared to go forth and preach the Gospel. You
may build up Zion, and learn to be men, and not children. It was a
perfect sweepstakes when the Prophet called North and South America
Zion. Let us go to and build the Temple with all our might, that we
may build up the kingdom when established and her cords lengthened.
It is a perfect knock-down to the devil's kingdom. There is not
a faithful Elder who cannot, if he is humble and diligent, build
up the Church. There are many men who will give you large sums to
build a {322} Stake of Zion where they live. It proves the words of
the Prophet of the last days.
The Priesthood is fitted to every capacity in the world. There are
blessings and conditions in that Priesthood that suit every man.
This will suit the condition of thousands, because it is as broad
as the heavens, deep as hell, and wide as eternity.
I am asked all sorts of questions about making gods and devils, and
organizing the eternal worlds; but we could not get it precisely
into our understandings so as to make them. The God we serve is
the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. There is no need of breaking
the law of the land if you keep the law of the Lord. I want a wife
that can take care of my children when I am away, who can pray,
lay on hands, anoint with oil, and baffle the enemy; and this is a
spiritual wife.
The sweepstakes is a perfect knock-down to the devil. We will
build up churches and establish Zion and her stakes. This is a
fire which, cannot be put out: it has spread far faster than ever
it did before. If you kick us and cuff us, we will turn the world
upside down, and make the cart draw the horse. We want to build the
Temple and have the roof on this fall, in the name of Israel's God.
There are hundreds of Elders who will sell their property to build
up the Temple. Let us pay up our tithing. If there are any men who
have not paid their tithing, they will not get in there. Let the
branches send teams with provisions to work all the year.
We are acquainted with the views of Gen. Smith, the Democrats and
Whigs and all factions. It is now time to have a President of
the United States. Elders will be sent to preach the Gospel and
electioneer. The government belongs to God. No man can draw the
dividing line between the government of God and the government of
the children of men. You can't touch the Gospel without infringing
upon the common avocations of men. They may have helps and
governments in the Church, but it is all one at last.
_Address of Hyrum Smith the Patriarch_.
Patriarch Hyrum Smith said: I never knew a proclamation to be
understood at once. President Brigham Young wished to draw the
attention of the brethren, first to build the Temple and get your
washings, anointings, and endowments; after that to build up
branches throughout the nations. We must do all we can to build up
the Temple, and after that to build churches. The gathering will
continue here until the Temple is so far finished that the Elders
can get their endowments; and after that the gathering will be from
the nations to North and South America, which is the land of Zion.
North and South America, are the symbols of the wings. The {323}
gathering from the old countries will always be to headquarters,
and I have no doubt this conference will do a great deal of good.
We have every power and principle to teach the people. Say what
God says, and say no more. Never deviate one fraction from what
God tells you. Elder Rigdon's remarks were very correct. Give
out the simple principles. A man never fails who only says what
he knows; and if any man says more, and can't give reasons, he
falls short. Preach the first principles of the Gospel--preach
them over again: you will find that day after day new ideas and
additional light concerning them will be revealed to you. You can
enlarge upon them so as to comprehend them clearly. You will then
be able to make them more plainly understood by those who teach,
so that you will meet with scarcely any honest man but will obey
them, and none who can oppose. Adduce sufficient reason to prove
all things, and you can convert every honest man in the world. The
knowledge of the Gospel of Jesus Christ is not prevalent in the
world, although it is written in the Holy Book. You can prove it
by the Holy Book they profess to believe in, and your arguments
will be so strong and convincing, that people will hear and obey
it by thousands. The Savior says that to you it is given to know
the mysteries of God, but to the world it is not given. You have
power; you are authorized to put down every foolish thing you hear.
A wise man will put it out of existence as he goes along; for light
cleaveth unto light, knowledge to knowledge, and intelligence to
intelligence.
We engage in the election the same as in any other principle: you
are to vote for good men, and if you do not do this it is a sin: to
vote for wicked men, it would be sin. Choose the good and refuse
the evil. Men of false principles have preyed upon us like wolves
upon helpless lambs. Damn the rod of tyranny; curse it. Let every
man use his liberties according to the Constitution. Don't fear man
or devil; electioneer with all people, male and female, and exhort
them to do the thing that is right. We want a President of the U.
S., not a party President, but a President of the whole people;
for a party President disfranchises the opposite party. Have a
President who will maintain every man in his rights.
I wish all of you to do all the good you can. We will try and
convert the nations into one solid union. I despise the principle
that divides the nation into party and faction. I want it to grow
up like a green bay tree. Damn the system of splitting up the
nation into opposite belligerent parties. Whatever are the rights
of men guaranteed by the Constitution of these United States, let
them have them. Then, if we were all in union, no one dare attempt
to put a warlike foot on our soil. I don't like to see the rights
of Americans trampled down. I am opposed to the policy of all such
persons as would allow Great Britain {324} or any other power to
take from us Oregon or any portion of our national territory; and
damn all who attempt it. Lift up your voices like thunder: there is
power and influence enough among us to put in a President. I don't
wonder at the old Carthaginian lawyer being afraid of Joseph Smith
being elected.
[A unanimous vote was passed by the immense assembly for Joseph
Smith to be the candidate for the next President.]
_Address of Heber C. Kimball_.
Elder Heber C. Kimball arose and said--What Brother Hyrum has told
you is God's truth, and will eventually come to pass. As he was
making his observations to the Elders, it made me think of the
first time that I went out into the vineyard to preach. I dwelt on
one subject till it branched like unto a tree that was cultivated,
until the branches shot forth in all directions. Suppose you
had only one seed to plant, and that seed was an acorn, and you
spend your time in cultivating it till it comes forth a great and
mighty tree, branching forth with many branches, and bearing fruit
abundantly after its own kind. So it is with the first principles
of the Gospel, they branch out in all directions, unfolding new
light continually. They are eternal principles. I never preached
anything else but the first principles. When first we went to
England, we preached nothing else, and never even touched on the
gathering, as there was no place of gathering, the Church having
been driven from Jackson County and also from Kirtland, and the
Prophets, Patriarchs, Apostles and Saints were wandering in the
wilderness seeking for a home; but as soon as the people were
baptized and received the Holy Ghost, the most of them had the
spirit of prophecy, and prophesied of coming to this land, as being
the land of Zion; and the time would come that they should come
here. Yet we never taught the doctrine of the gathering or Book of
Doctrine and Covenants.
If you tell the people to stay, they will gather here stronger
than ever. If you want to cut anything off, you should know how
to restore. You should never cut off the ears of the people until
you are able to make them others. It is no matter what way you
convert them so you do convert them to believe the doctrines of
the very Bible they have always professed to believe. It is no
use attempting to teach them other things until you can make them
believe the principles contained in the Bible which they have been
taught to reverence and believe from their infancy. It teaches the
gathering and all the principles of the Gospel necessary to be
taught to the unbelieving world. This is the thrashing floor, where
the wheat is gathered to be thrashed. There are a great many green
heads, and they of course have to be pelted a little harder. After
the {325} wheat is thrashed, it has to go through the fanning-mill,
and then the screen, and then the smut-mill; then it has to be
ground and to be bolted: but many bolt away and leave. If you get a
cudgeling, don't be mad, for your heads are green. We are going to
arrange a plan for Conferences, and we design to send Elders to all
the different States to get up meetings and protracted meetings,
and electioneer for Joseph to be the next President.
A great many of the Elders will necessarily have to leave their
families, and the mothers will have to assume the responsibility of
governing and taking care of the children to a much greater extent
than when their husbands were at home. I therefore exhort them to
be humble, faithful, and diligent, seeking to the Lord for wisdom
to rear up their children in righteousness and prepare them to roll
on the work of the Lord when their fathers shall have been worn out
in the ministry. The mothers, therefore, are the persons who will
more or less have to train the children.
Twenty minutes to 11: A call was made for the volunteers to go
preaching to pass out to the green. A great company moved out and
returned to the right of the stand, and were numbered 244.
Twenty minutes to 1: Adjourned for one hour.
Met according to adjournment. The names of the volunteers were
called, and places assigned to each.
_Brigham Young's Instruction to the Elders_.
President Brigham Young said: Take care of yourselves, be wise, be
humble, and you will prosper. I curse all who degrade themselves
with corruption and licentiousness, as many have done. Magnify your
calling, keep yourselves pure and innocent, and your path shall be
clear as the horizon. We have all manner of prejudices to contend
with. We thank God for the Gospel, the Book of Mormon, and the
Temple, and sing glory to God; and yet there are characters among
us who from mere covetousness will squeeze a sixpence two inches
long, and we have all their iniquity to bear.
We have the honor to be the first fruits of this dispensation,
and have to contend with floods of oppression. Go humbly and
prayerfully, trusting and believing in God, and what you desire to
do you will accomplish. Cease not to ask the Father what you shall
do, and He will give you the Spirit. You know not the day of your
visitation. What is asked for in the name of Jesus Christ will be
granted. J. C. Bennett's power fell like the lightning. God was
asked not to let Joe Duncan be governor, and it was so. We asked
the Lord to deliver us from Governor Reynolds, of Missouri; and he
shot himself, and has {326} gone to hell. As for Squire Warren, of
Quincy, it takes two of him to make a shadow.
The Lord is cutting off the bitterest branches. Look at the
explosion of the big gun on board of the _Princeton_ war-steamer
at Washington. God will deliver His faithful Saints. You will
be innocent, and do a good work: you will come back, and bring
your sheaves with you, rejoicing. Every man has the privilege of
practicing godliness and virtue, and of manifesting himself as
a servant of the Most High God. Doctor Foster lost his money by
gambling, and joined blacklegs. Those men who say there is evil in
the Church are evil themselves. This doctrine is the best for any
man to practice, and will do him good. Ask of God that you may have
wisdom to do all things. If you hear anything of an Elder preaching
false doctrine, ask of God in full faith that it may be taken off
the minds of the people.
A contribution was taken up for President Joseph Smith, $100 was
raised, and another $100 loaned.
[Sidenote: Comment of President Smith on the Conference.]
_Tuesday, April 9th, [Continued]:--_The weather has been beautiful
for the conference; and they have been the greatest, best, and most
glorious five consecutive days ever enjoyed by this generation. Much
good was done. Many spectators were present from Quincy, Alton, Warsaw,
Fort Madison, and other towns. When we consider the immense number
present, and the good order that was preserved, it speaks much in favor
of the morality of the city.
In the afternoon I rode out with Emma, Dr. Goforth, and others to the
mound. The peach trees look beautiful.
The Mayor and Marshal received a notification to produce docket and
other papers in case of O. F. Bostwick, before the circuit court at
Carthage; also a similar notification to produce papers in case of Amos
Davis, appealed before Circuit Court.
_A General Conference in England Beginning April 6th, and
Continuing Until April 9th, 1844_.
According to previous announcement, the general conference of
the various branches of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints, commenced its sittings in the Music Hall, Liverpool, on the
6th of April, {327} 1844, Elder Reuben Hedlock, president of the
mission, presiding, and Elder J. S. Cantwell, acting as clerk.
_Morning Session_.
After opening meeting by singing and prayer, it was voted
unanimously that Elder Reuben Hedlock preside over the conference
and that Elder J. S. Cantwell, act as clerk.
The number of officers present at the opening are as follows:--High
Priests, 10; Elders, 23; Priests, 5; Teachers, 3; Deacons, 2. The
representation of the various conferences was then called for:--
Manchester Conference represented by Elder Charles Miller,
including the branches of Manchester, Stockport, Ashton,
Duckenfield, Newton Moor, Mottram, Bolton, Edgeworth Moor,
Edgerton, Leith, Chewmoor, Breightmet Fold, Bradshaw, Tottington,
Summerseat, Bury, Haslingden, Royton, Oldham, Rochdale, Eccles,
Pendlebury, Heatons, Ratcliffe, Halfare, Crossmoor, Didsbury,
Middleton, Crompton Fold, Marble Bridge, Ashworth Tops, Vale House.
Comprises 1583 members, 2 High Priests, 41 Elders, 100 Priests, 56
Teachers, 19 Deacons. Baptized since last general conference, 194.
Liverpool Conference represented by Elder Mitchelson, including
Liverpool, the Isle of Man, Chester, part of Wales, Warrington,
St. Helens, and Graseby. Comprises 596 members, 3 High Priests, 29
Elders, 39 Priests, 19 Teachers, 11 Deacons. Baptized since last
general conference, 107.
Preston Conference represented by Elder John Banks, including
Preston, Lancaster, Kendal, Brigsteer Holme, Heskin, Hunter's Hill,
Euxton, Leyland, Southport, and Longton. Comprises 594 members,
1 High Priest, 16 Elders, 23 Priests, 17 Teachers, 4 Deacons.
Baptized since last general conference, 21.
London Conference represented by Elder John Cairns, including
London, Newbury, Woolwich, Dover, and Luton. Comprises 324 members,
1 High Priest, 11 Elders, 21 Priests, 5 Teachers, 5 Deacons.
Baptized since last general conference, 47.
Macclesfield Conference represented by Elder Galley, including
Macclesfield, Bollington, Middlewich, Northwich, Plumbley, and
Crewe. Comprises 219 members, 1 High Priest, 10 Elders, 22 Priests,
14 Teachers, 7 Deacons. Baptized since last general conference, 15.
Birmingham Conference represented by Elder Crook, including
Birmingham, Gritsgreen, Oldbury, Wolverhampton, Dudley,
Brittlelane, Bilston, Kidderminster, Leamington, Bloxwich,
Stratford-upon-Avon, Catthorpe, Westbromwich, Penydarren,
Abersychan, Beaufort, Rumny, Tredegar, Merthyr Tydvil, Aberdare.
Comprises 707 members, {328} 38 Elders, 49 Priests, 27 Teachers, 12
Deacons. Baptized since last general conference, 200.
Wooden Box represented by Elder Robert Crook, including Wooden Box,
Dunstall, Branstone, Barton, and Colebille. Comprises 96 members,
9 Elders, 10 Priests, 6 Teachers, 5 Deacons. Baptized since last
general conference, 60.
Staffordshire Conference represented by Elder George Simpson,
including Burslem, Hanley, Stoke-upon-Trent, Newcastle, Baddely
Edge, Bradley Green, Knutton Heath, Longton, Coxbank, Prees,
Tunstall, Leek, Longport, Hassell Green, Allsager's Bank. Comprises
370 members, 1 High Priest, 29 Elders, 48 Priests, 20 Teachers, 11
Deacons.
Edinburgh Conference represented by Elder George P. Waugh,
including Edinburgh, Wemyss, Sterling, and Pathead. Comprises 330
members, 11 Elders, 16 Priests, 7 Teachers, 3 Deacons. Baptized
since November, 1843, 37.
Garaway Conference represented by Elder Blakey, including Garaway,
Llanfoist, Buckle, Ewaisharold, Llanthony, and Llanvano. Comprises
172 members, 4 Elders, 9 Priests, 8 Teachers, 1 Deacon.
Glasgow Conference represented by Elder James Houston, including
Glasgow, Paisley, Kilbirnie, Bridge of Weir, Thorny Bank and Shaws,
Campsie, Renfrew, Greenock, Ayr, Bonhill, Balfrone, Johnstone,
Airdrie, Irvine, and Calry. Comprises 833 members, 1 High Priest,
26 Elders, 39 Priests, 30 Teachers, 19 Deacons.
Sheffield Conference represented by letter, including Sheffield,
Woodhouse, Dennington, and Brampton. Comprises 201 members, 5
Elders, 9 Priests, 5 Teachers, 3 Deacons.
Bradford Conference represented by Elder William Speakman,
including Bradford, Idle, Leeds, Doncaster. Comprises 206 members,
9 Elders, 15 Priests, 8 Teachers, 6 Deacons. Baptized since last
general conference, 44.
Ireland represented by Elder Sloan, including Hillsborough,
Crawfordsburn, and Melusk. Comprises 52 members, 5 Elders, 1
Priest, 1 Teacher.
Lincolnshire Conference represented by letter. Comprises 27
members, 2 Elders, 2 Priests, 1 Teacher, 1 Deacon. Baptized since
last general conference, 17.
Worcestershire Conference represented by Elder Thomas Smith,
including Earls Common, Pinvin, Flyford Flavel, Worcester,
Bromsgrove, Randan Woods, Barford, St. John's, and Milton.
Comprises 140 members, 6 Elders, 10 Priests, 3 Teachers, 3 Deacons.
Baptized since last general conference, 28.
Clitheroe Conference represented by Elder William Snalam, including
{329} Clitheroe, Chatburn, Downham, Waddington, Ribchester,
Chaigley, and Settle. Comprises 299 members, 16 Elders, 22 Priests,
18 Teachers, 4 Deacons. Baptized since last general conference, 14.
Leicester Conference represented by Elder Thomas Margetts,
including Leicester and Nottingham. Comprises 127 members, 5
Elders, 10 Priests, 1 Teacher, 2 Deacons.
Cheltenham Conference represented by letter, consisting of 18
branches. Comprises 532 members, 17 Elders, 30 Priests, 13
Teachers, 5 Deacons. Baptized since last General Conference, 90.
Bath represented by letter, comprising 31 members, 1 Elder, 2
Priests.
Wolverton represented by letter. Comprises 8 members, 1 Elder, 2
Priests.
Carlisle represented by letter. Comprises 160 members, 8 Elders, 19
Priests, 8 Teachers, 3 Deacons; and contains four branches.
Littlemoor represented by letter. Comprises 6 members, 1 Priest.
Bedfordshire Conference represented by letter, including 12
branches Comprises 184 members, 14 Elders, 20 Priests, 9 Teachers,
2 Deacons.
The number of members and authorities of each conference being
ascertained as nearly as possible, it was determined that the
delegates should represent the condition of each conference, and
what alterations or measures were necessary to be adopted for the
well being of each other.
Elder Charles Miller having remarked that he had been challenged to
discussion, and had accepted it, it led to some remarks from Elder
Ward as to the very little good effected in general by discussions;
and that it was beneath the servants of God to turn aside from the
path of duty to wrangle and dispute like the people of the world;
and that while the professors of modern religion were in a manner
devouring each other, the path of the Saints ought to be onward in
the proclamation of the principles of truth.
Elder Hedlock agreed with the remarks of Elder Ward, and stated
that they were in perfect accordance with the advice of the First
Presidency, and that the evil ought to be guarded against as much
as possible.
[The remaining sessions of the conference were devoted to hearing
reports from the several conferences comprising the mission,
giving instruction relative to ordaining men to the ministry,
and the manner of conducting the ministry of the Church to make
it effective. Among other items of interest was a communication
from the Twelve in Nauvoo making the nomination of Elders Reuben
Hedlock and Thomas Ward to preside over the British Mission, which
nomination was accepted by the conference, and these brethren were
unanimously {330} sustained as the presidency of the mission. The
publication of the _Millennial Star_ had been ordered suspended
by the Twelve, but the conference voted by unanimous acclamation
that this conference request the quorum of the Twelve to permit
the continued publication of that periodical. The minutes of the
conference state that--]
"Elder Hedlock addressed the assembly on the subject of the
publications, and was desirous of taking the sense of that meeting
on the same. It was true that the quorum of the Twelve had advised
that the publication of the _Millennial Star_ be stopped, and
had given him authority to publish a circular as occasion might
require; but he believed most sincerely that the stoppage of the
_Star_ would have a most injurious tendency.
"Several having spoken to the same effect, Elder Ward remarked
that, if a publication was to be issued at all, it appeared
trifling with the interest of the cause to change the name,
inasmuch as the office had received the name of the _Millennial
Star_ Office, and many letters came to them with that address."
[Then followed the action of the conference upon the subject noted
above. Permission must have been given soon afterwards to renew the
publication of the _Star,_ since it missed but one issue, that of
May, 1844.--it was then published monthly. See vols. v and vi.]
Footnotes:
1. The scripture alluded to in the text is as follows:--Moses pleaded
to be excused from the appointment to deliver Israel on the plea that
he was not eloquent; whereupon the Lord said: "Is not Aaron the Levite
thy brother? I know that he can speak well. And also, behold, he cometh
forth to meet thee; and when he seeth thee, he will be glad in his
heart. And thou shalt speak unto him, and put in his mouth; * * * And
he shall be the spokesman unto the people: * * * * he shall be to thee
instead of a mouth, and thou shalt be to him instead of God" (Exodus
iv:14-16.)
Somewhat later this passage occurs: "And the Lord said unto Moses, See,
I have made thee a god to Pharaoh; and Aaron thy brother shall be thy
prophet" (Exodus vii:1.)
{331}
CHAPTER XV.
DIFFICULTIES WITH THE HIGBEES AND FOSTERS--CONFERENCES APPOINTED BY THE
TWELVE THROUGHOUT THE UNITED STATES--INSTRUCTIONS TO REUBEN HEDLOCK,
PRESIDENT OF THE BRITISH MISSION--PREPARATIONS FOR ENLARGEMENT OF THE
WORK--FRANCIS M. HIGBEE'S SUIT AGAINST PRESIDENT SMITH--THE PROPHET
RELEASED.
_Wednesday, April 10, 1844.--_The Twelve were in council arranging a
plan for appointing conferences.
_Thursday, 11.--_In general council in Masonic Hall, morning and
afternoon. Had a very interesting time. The Spirit of the Lord was with
us, and we closed the council with loud shouts of Hosanna!
_Friday, 12.--_The Twelve met in council. Rode out with Brothers Parker
and Clayton to look at some land.
A conference was held at Cypry, Tuscaloosa County, Alabama. Elder
Benjamin L. Clapp, president, and John Brown, clerk. Seven branches
were represented, consisting of 192 members, 12 Elders, 5 Priests, 4
Teachers, and 2 Deacons, all in good standing.
_Saturday, 13.--_At 10 a.m. met in City Council. George P. Styles was
appointed City Attorney. I advise that the council take such a course
as would protect the innocent: that in many cases the attorney would
get his pay off the individual employing him; that the appointment
would be a valuable consideration, and for one year a salary of $100
would be sufficient; perhaps $160 the next year, &c., increasing as
the city increases; and if $100 would not satisfy, we had better have
no attorney. "I would {332} rather give my services as counselor, &c.,
than levy a tax the people are not able to pay; and that every man
ought to be willing to help prop the city by bearing a share of the
burden till the city is able to pay a higher salary. My opinion is
that the officers of the city should be satisfied with a very small
compensation for their services. I have never received twenty-five
dollars for my services; [as counselor] but the peace I have enjoyed in
the rights and liberties of the city has been ample compensation."
I suggested the propriety of inserting a clause in the ordinance to be
made relating to the City Attorney, authorizing him to claim fees of
parties in certain cases, and the small salary satisfy the attorney
in cases where he can get no fees from his client. "I would rather be
docked $100 in my salary than have the $200 given to the City Attorney
by the city."
I also proposed that the Council take into consideration the payment
of the police; also proposed that a public meeting be called in each
ward to see if they will not, then the council will take the case into
consideration.
At 1 p.m., the Municipal Court sat in the assembly room, where I asked
Dr. R. D. Foster if he bore my expenses to Washington, or any part
thereof.
Foster replied he did not.
I stated that Dr. Goforth had said that he was taken in a secret
council when Foster told him he had paid my expenses.
Dr. Foster replied he never had a secret interview with Dr. Goforth,
and gave his version of the meeting.
I then asked him--"Have I ever misused you any way?"
Foster said--"I do not feel at liberty to answer this question, under
existing circumstances?"
I again asked him--"Did I ever misuse you?"
He again replied--"I do not feel at liberty to answer under existing
circumstances."
I then asked--"Did I ever wrong you in deal, or personally misuse you
in any shape?"
{333} Foster said, "I do not feel at liberty to answer. I have treated
you Christianly and friendly too, so far as I have had the ability."
I then asked him to tell me where I had done wrong, and I will ask his
forgiveness; for I want you to prove to this company by your testimony
that I have treated you honorably.
Foster then said--"I shall testify no further at present."
I then asked Justice Aaron Johnson--"Did I ever make oath before you
against Simpson?"
He replied--"Not before the prosecution."
I then told the whole story.
Andrew Colton then came up before the Municipal Court on_ habeas
corpus,_ and was discharged on the insufficiency of the papers.
After which, I preferred the following charge before the High Council
against Dr. Robert D. Foster "for unchristian-like conduct in general,
for abusing my character privily, for throwing out slanderous
insinuations against me, for conspiring against my peace and safety,
for conspiring against my life, for conspiring against the peace of my
family, and for lying."
A charge was preferred against Harrison Sagers for teaching spiritual
wife doctrine and neglecting his family, which was handed over to the
High Council to act upon.
At 2 p.m., Elder John Taylor delivered a political discourse.
About 5 p.m., the _"Maid of Iowa"_ arrived at the Nauvoo House wharf,
filled with passengers from England, led by William Kay. 210 souls
started from Liverpool, and nearly all arrived in good health and
spirits, one smaller company having previously arrived.
_Sunday, 14.--_Rainy day. No meeting at the stand. I preached on board
the _"Maid of Iowa_."
Committee of the Council met in the afternoon at my office.
{334} _Monday, 15.--_At home settling with Dan Jones for steamboat
_"Maid of Iowa."_ She has returned in debt about $1,700. After much
conversation and deliberation, I agreed to buy out Jones, by giving him
property in the city worth $1,231, and assuming the debts.
I rode out in the afternoon.
The Twelve Apostles arranged the appointments for the general
conferences in the United States as follows:
Quincy, Ill.,...............................Sat. and Sun. May 4 and 5
Princess Grove, Ill.,....................... " " " 11 12
Ottowa, Ill.,............................... " " " 18 19
Chicago, Ill.,.............................. " " " 25 26
Comstock, Kalamazoo county, Mich.,.......... " " June 1 2
Pleasant Valley, Mich.,..................... " " " 8 9
Frankland, Oakland county, Mich.,........... " " " 15 16
Kirtland, Ohio,............................. " " " 22 23
G.A. Neal's six miles west of Lockport, N.Y.," " " 29 30
Batavia, N. Y.,............................. " " July 6 7
Portage, Alleghany county, N. Y.,........... " " " 13 14
Hamilton, Madison county, N. Y.,............ " " " 20 21
Oswego, N. Y.,.............................. " " June 29 30
Adams, Jefferson county, N. Y.,............. " " July 6 7
London, Caledonia county, N. Y.,............ " " June 15 16
Northfield, Washington county, ten miles
of Montpelier, at Lyman Houghton's, N.Y., " " " 29 30
Fairfield, Essex Co, at Elder Tracy's, N. Y.," " July 13 14
Boston, Mass.,.............................. " " June 29 30
Salem, " ............................... " " July 6 7
New Bedford, Mass.,......................... " " " 13 14
Peterboro, N. H.,........................... " " " 13 14
Lowell, Mass.,.............................. " " " 27 28
Scarboro, Maine,............................ " " " 6 7
Vinal Haven,................................ " " " 13 14
Westfield, Mass.,........................... " " " 27 28
Farmington, Mass.,.......................... " " Aug. 3 4
New Haven, Conn.,........................... " " " 10 11
Canaan, Conn.,.............................. " " " 17 18
Norwalk, " ............................... " " " 24 25
New York City, N.Y.,........................ " " " 17 18
Philadelphia, Pa.,.......................... " " Aug. 31 Sep.1
Dresden, Weekly county, Tenn.,.............. " " May 25 26
{335}
Eagle Creek, Benton county, Tenn.,..........Sat. and Sun. Jun 8 and 9
Dyer county, C. H.,......................... " " " 22 23
Rutherford county, C. H., Tenn.,............ " " July 20 21
Lexington, Henderson county, Tenn.,......... " " Aug. 3 4
New Albany, Clinton county, Ky.,............ " " June 29 30
Alquina, Fayette county, Ia.,............... " " " 1 2
Pleasant Garden, Ia.,....................... " " " 15 16
Fort Wayne, Ia.,............................ " " " 29 30
Northfield, Boon county, Ia.,............... " " July 13 14
Cincinnati, Ohio,........................... " " May 18 19
Pittsburgh, Pa.,............................ " " June 1 2
Leechburg, " ............................. " " " 15 16
Running Water Branch, Noxuble Co., Miss.,... " " " 1 2
Tuscaloosa, Ala.,........................... " " " 22 23
Washington City, D. C.,........Sept. 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15.
We also publish the names of the Elders who are appointed to the
several states, together with their appointments. Those who are
numbered with the figures 1 and 2 will take the presidency of the
several states to which they are appointed.
MAINE.
J. Butterfield, 1st Jonathan H. Hale
Elbridge Tufts, 2nd Henry Herriman
S. B. Stoddard John Moon
NEW HAMPSHIRE.
W. Snow, 1st Harley Morley
Howard Egan, 2nd Israel Barlow
Alvin Cooley David Clough Sen.
John S. Twiss, Calvin Reed
Charles A. Adams, Chilion Mack
Bethuel Miller Isaac Burton
A. D. Boynton.
MASSACHUSETTS.
Daniel Spencer, 1st George Lloyd
Milton F. Bartlett Orlando D. Hovey
Daniel Loveland Nathaniel Ashby
Joseph J. Woodbury Samuel P. Hoyt
W. H. Woodbury Daniel W. Gardner
John R. Blanchard
{336}
RHODE ISLAND.
William Seabury, 1st Melvin Wilbur
Thomas McTaggart
CONNECTICUT.
E. H. Davis, 1st Quartus S. Sparks
VERMONT.
Erastus Snow, 1st Warren Snow
William Hyde Dominicus Carter
Denman Cornish, Levi W. Hancock
Jeremiah Hatch Alfred Cordon
Martin Titus Charles Snow
William Haight James C. Snow
John D. Chase A. M. Harding
Josiah H. Perry Isaac Houston
Amos Hodges
NEW YORK.
C. W. Wandell, 1st William Newland
Marcellus Bates, 2nd Allen Wait
Truman Gillett William H. Parshall,
A. A. Farnham C. H. Wheelock
Edmund Ellsworth, Timothy B. Foote
Gregory Bentley George W. Fowler
Homer C. Hoyt Henry L. Cook
Isaac Chase, William W. Dryer
Simeon A. Dunn Elijah Reed
Daniel Shearer Solon Foster
James W. Phippin Hiram Bennett
J. H. Van Natta Chandler Holbrook
Samuel P. Bacon Lyman Hall
Bradford W. Elliott William Felshaw
J. R. G. Phelps Daniel Fisher
Joseph P. Noble D. H. Redfield
John Tanner Martin R. Tanner
Thomas Fuller G. D. Goldsmith
O. M. Duel Charles Thompson
Samuel White B. C. Elsworth
W. R. R. Stowell Archibald Bates
William D. Pratt David Pettigrew
Marcellus McKeown Ellis Eames
Horace S. Eldredge
{337}
NEW JERSEY.
Ezra T. Benson, 1st John Pack
PENNSYLVANIA.
D. D. Yearsley, 1st Wm. P. McIntyre
Edson Whipple, 2nd Jacob Zundall
John Duncan Orrin D. Farlin
Stephen Post Henry Mouer
G. W. Crouse G. Chamberlain
Jacob Shoemaker Thomas Hess
Stephen Winchester A. J. Glaefke
Hyrum Nyman Henry Dean
J. M. Cole James Downing
Charles Warner.
DELAWARE.
John Jones Jonathan O. Duke
Warren Snow Justus Morse
MARYLAND.
Jacob Hamblin Patrick Norris
Lyman Stoddard.
VIRGINIA.
B. Winchester, 1st James Park
S. C. Shelton, 2nd A. W. Whitney
Geo. D. Watt, 3rd Pleasant Ewell
Chapman Duncan W. E. Higginbottom
Joseph King John F. Betts
Peter Fife Alfred B. Lambson
Robert Hamilton David Evans
NORTH CAROLINA.
A. McRae, 1st John Holt
Aaron Razer, 2nd John Houston
Thomas Guymon James Sanderson
George Watt
SOUTH CAROLINA.
Alonzo LeBaron, 1st Ekells Truly
John M. Emell William Smith
William D. Lyman
GEORGIA.
Morgan L. Gardner Miles Anderson
Isaac Beebe S. E. Carpenter
{338}
KENTUCKY.
John D. Lee, 1st D. D. Hunt
D. H. Rogers M. B. Welton
Samuel B. Frost Horace B. Owens
John O. Angus Joseph Holbrook
Charles Spry Hiram W. Mikesell
John H. Reid Garret W. Mikesell
William Watkins
TENNESSEE.
A. O. Smoot, 1st J. J. Castell
Alphonzo Young, 2nd J. A. Kelting
W. W. Riley J. Hampton
Amos Davis Alfred Bell
L. T. Coon Armstead Moffitt
Jackson Smith D. P. Rainey
W. P. Vance James Holt
H. D. Buys Warren Smith
A. D. Young J. J. Sasnett
Joseph Younger H. B. Jacobs
G. W. Langley John L. Fullmer
G. Penn Joseph Mount
ALABAMA.
B. L. Clapp, 1st L. D. Butler
G. W. Brandon T. J. Brandon
MISSISSIPPI.
J. B. Walker Daniel Tyler
Ethan Barrus.
LOUISIANA.
J. B. Bosworth, 1st John Kelly
H. H. Wilson George Pew
Wm. Nelson Lorenzo Moore
ARKANSAS.
A. A. Simmons J. A. McIntosh
Darwin Chase Nathaniel Leavitt.
OHIO.
Lorenzo Snow, 1st William Batson
L. Brooks, 2nd G. C. Riser
Alfred Brown Clark Lewis
J. J. Riser B. W. Wilson
{339}
J. Carroll A. W. Condit
L. O. Littlefield Loren Babbitt
J. M. Powers Elijah Newman
Milo Andrus Milton Stow
John Lovelace Edson Barney
W. H. Folsom Hiram Dayton
John Cooper Jacob Morris
S. Carter Ezra Strong
John Nichols J. M. Emmett
David Jones Allen Tulley
Nathaniel Childs P. H. Young
Jesse Johnson S. P. Hutchins
J. A. Casper J. H. Foster
Joseph Rose Nathan T. Porter
W. Brothers Ezra Vincent
Jared Porter Lysander Dayton
John W. Roberts
INDIANA.
Amasa Lyman, 1st U. V. Stewart
G. P. Dykes, 2nd Washington Lemon
A. L. Lamoreaux Edward Carlin
Charles Hopkins L. D. Young
F. M. Edwards Wm. Snow
Salmon Warner Nathan Tanner
F. D. Richards Wm. Martindale
S. W. Richards Henry Elliott
John Mackey A. F. Farr
James Newberry John Jones
Abraham Palmer Frederick Ott
John G. Smith
MICHIGAN.
Charles C. Rich, 1st Wm. Savage
Harvey Green, 2nd David Savage
Thomas Dunn Graham Coltrin
R. C. Sprague Samuel Parker
Joseph Curtis Jeremiah Curtis
Zebedee Coltrin C. W. Hubbard
Reuben W. Strong S. D. Willard
L. N. Kendall Wm. Gribble
ILLINOIS.
E. H. Groves, 1st Morris Phelps, 2nd
{340}
John Vance S. Mulliner
H. Olmstead, Galena John Gould
H. W. Barnes, do. Zenus R. Gurley
Hiram Mott, Jefferson Hunt
David Candland Jacob L. Burnham
W. A. Duncan D. J. Kershner
Wm. O. Clark N. Leavitt
Almon Bathrick John Laurence
P. H. Buzzard Nathan A. West
Zachariah Hardy Levi Jackman
John Hammond Abel Lamb
G. W. Hickerson Howard Coray
Daniel Allen Stephen Markham
David Judah Levi Stewart
Thomas Dobson James Graham
James Nelson Timothy S. Hoit
David Lewis Duncan McArthur
MISSOURI.
A. H. Perkins, 1st Wm. Coray
John Lowry, 2nd O. M. Allen
Wm. G. Rule Wm. H. Jordan
WISCONSIN TERRITORY.
S. H. Briggs
FREE.
F. Nickerson, 1st A. C. Nickerson L. S. Nickerson
Those Elders who are numbered in the foregoing list to preside over
the different states will appoint conferences in all places in
their several states where opportunities present, and will attend
all the conferences, or send experienced and able Elders, who will
preach the truth in righteousness, and present before the people
"General Smith's Views of the Powers and Policy of the General
Government," and seek diligently to get up electors who will go
for him for the Presidency. All the Elders will be faithful in
preaching the Gospel in its simplicity and beauty, in all meekness,
humility, long-suffering and prayerfulness; and the Twelve will
devote the season to traveling, and will attend as many conferences
as possible.
Elder B. Winchester is instructed to pass through Mississippi,
Alabama, Georgia, North and South Carolina and Virginia, to visit
the churches, hold conferences, and preside over them.
BRIGHAM YOUNG, President
W. RICHARDS, Clerk of the Quorum of the Twelve.
{341} _Tuesday, 16.--_Rode out to Brother Greenwood's, but he had not
returned. Five p.m. had a long talk with Chauncey L. Higbee and Esq.
Marr, in front of my house, and read to them Dr. A. B. Williams' and M.
G. Eaton's affidavit before Esq. Wells.
The Twelve Apostles met in council.
_Wednesday 17.--_Rode out with Brother Heber C. Kimball and William
Clayton to the steamboat landing. Remainder of the day at home.
_Thursday, 18.--_Nine a.m. went into general council until noon and
introduced J. W. Coolidge, D. S. Hollister, and added Lyman Wight's
name.
While at dinner I made mention of the report that Foster, Higbee,_ et
al._ were paying someone's board at my table so as to catch something
against me; so that, if the report is true, they may have something to
carry back.
Two to five thirty p.m. in council.
[Sidenote: Excommunication of the Laws, Fosters, _et. al_.]
At 6 p.m. Brigham Young, Willard Richards, John Taylor, George A.
Smith, Heber C. Kimball, Wilford Woodruff, of the Twelve Apostles;
Alpheus Cutler, Samuel Bent, George W. Harris, A. Johnson, William
Marks, of the City Council; Charles C. Rich, Amasa M. Lyman, of the
High Council; William W. Phelps, Newel K. Whitney, John Smith, John M.
Bernhisel, Joseph Fielding, George J. Adams, Erastus Snow, Reynolds
Cahoon, J. W. Coolidge, John Scott, John D. Lee, Levi W. Hancock, S.
Williams, Jos. Young, John P. Greene, John D. Parker, Alexander McRae,
George D. Watt, and William Clayton held a council and unanimously cut
off Robert D. Foster, Wilson Law, William Law and Jane Law, of Nauvoo,
and Howard Smith of Scott county, Illinois, from the Church of Jesus
Christ of Latter-day Saints, for unchristian-like conduct; and their
names were published in the_ Times and Seasons_.
_Friday, 19.--_A company of about eighty Saints arrived.
In the evening rode to the upper steamboat landing.
{342} _Saturday, 20.--_Emma started for St. Louis to purchase goods.
I rode out with Dr. Bernhisel and my boys Frederick and Alexander to
the prairie, which is now very green.
Elders Brigham Young and Wilford Woodruff rode to Lima and spent the
night with Father Morley.
_Sunday, 21.--_At home; rainy day. A meeting at the Stand. Elder
Erastus Snow preached on "The Law of Nature."
Elders Young and Woodruff attended a conference and preached to the
Saints in Lima, where twenty-six Elders volunteered to go out preaching.
Elder Kimball attended a conference at Ramus.
_Monday, 22.--_All night lightning, thundering, raining, with strong
east wind which continued through the day.
The river very high; all the mills in the city stopped on account of
the high water.
This morning a man, who had put up at my house told me he wanted to
see me alone. I went into my room with him, when he told me he was a
prophet of God, that he came from Vermont, and he prophesied that this
Government, was about to be overthrown, and the kingdom which Daniel
speaks of was about to be established somewhere in the West, and he
thought in Illinois.
My brother William arrived from New Jersey with some forty or fifty
Saints. I spent some time with him in the evening.
Elders Young and Woodruff started for Nauvoo; but on account of a
tremendous storm of hail and rain, they were glad to take shelter at
Brother William Draper's where they spent the night.
_Tuesday, 9.--_From 9 to 12 a general meeting of citizens friendly to
my election, was held in the hall, to elect a delegate to go to the
Baltimore Convention, to be held on the first Monday in May. D. S.
Hollister was elected.
{343} From 3 to 5 p.m. again assembled, and many speeches were made,
&c.; and appointed the second Monday in May to hold a State Convention
at Nauvoo.
In the evening, visited Agnes, my brother Carlos' widow, and Dr.
Richards, with Hyrum.
_Wednesday, 24.--_Rode up to the steamboat landing, where we found
Elder J. M. Grant, who introduced me to judge William Richards, of New
Jersey, took him to Brother Winchester's.
In the evening Brother Ezra Thayer, Dr. Richards, and Dr. Williams
were in my room, and a man who boarded at the Masonic Hall. At their
request, I gave them a history of the Laws' proceedings, in part, in
trying to make a difficulty in my family, &c.
Gave recommendations to Elders Amasa M. Lyman and D. S. Hollister.
_Thursday, 25.--_Emma returned from St. Louis.
A brother who works in the _St. Louis Gazette_ office came up at the
same time, and wanted to know by what principle I got so much power,
how many inhabitants and armed men we had, &c. I told him I obtained
power on the principles of truth and virtue, which would last when I
was dead and gone, &c.
In general council from 10 till 12, and from 2 to 5, When they
adjourned _sine die_, after appointing a State Convention to meet in
Nauvoo on 17th May. The council then dispersed to go abroad in the
nations.
Instructed Dr. Richards to make out a writ of_ habeas corpus_ for Mr.
Jeremiah Smith, of Iowa, who was expecting to be arrested by the U. S.
Marshal for getting money which was due him, as he says, at Washington.
A play on rational amusement was to commence this evening, but a most
tremendous shower of rain and large hail from the southwest commenced
about six p.m. which prevented it. The small creeks rose over four
feet high, overflowed their banks, sweeping away fences, and doing
considerable damage.
{344} The Mississippi river is higher at this place than ever known by
the oldest inhabitant.
[Sidenote: Violence of the Fosters and Higbees.]
_Friday, 26.--_At home. At 10 a.m. the Marshal went up on the hill to
arrest Augustine Spencer for an assault on his brother, Orson Spencer,
in his own house. Robert D. Foster, Charles Foster and Chauncey L.
Higbee came down. Charles Foster drew a pistol pointed towards me, and
threatened to shoot while standing on the steps of my office. I ordered
him to be arrested and the pistol taken from him, when a struggle
ensued, in which Charles Foster, Robert D. Foster and Chauncey L.
Higbee resisted, and I ordered them to be arrested also, and I as the
Mayor ordered the policemen to be called; then went on to try Augustine
Spencer. He was fined $100, and required to give bonds in $100 to keep
the peace for six months. He appealed the case at once to the Municipal
Court.
Robert D. Foster, Chauncey L. Higbee, and Charles Foster were also
tried for resisting the authorities of the city.
O. P. Rockwell sworn. Marshal John P. Greene sworn:--Said Dr. Foster
swore by God that he would not assist the Marshal, and swore by God
they would see the Mayor in hell before they would go; and that Charles
Foster drew a pistol and presented at the Mayor, which was being
wrested from him when Dr. Robert D. Foster interfered. Charles Foster
and Chauncey L. Higbee said they would be G--d--d if they would not
shoot the Mayor. They breathed out many hard threatenings and menacing
sayings. They said they would consider themselves the favored of God
for the privilege of shooting or ridding the world of such a tyrant
(referring to the Mayor).
Joseph W. Coolidge sworn, and confirmed the Marshal's testimony.
Elbridge Tufts sworn, and confirmed the foregoing statements.
{345} Robert D. Foster, Charles Foster and Chauncey L. Higbee were each
fined $100. They immediately took an appeal to the Municipal Court.
I issued a warrant for Robert D. Foster, on complaint of Willard
Richards, for a breach of ordinance, in that Foster said to Richards;
"You," shaking his fist in the doctor's face, "are another d--ned
black-hearted villain! You tried to seduce my wife on the boat, when
she was going to New York and I can prove it; and the oath is out
against you."
_Saturday, 27.--_A large company of gentlemen from St. Louis and other
places on the river, called at the Mansion. After spending some time,
they returned to the boat, but it was gone, when they again returned to
the Mansion.
At 9 a.m. the case of Dr. Robert D. Foster came up for trial before the
Municipal Court. I had a conversation with Foster in which he charged
me with many crimes, and said that Daniteism was in Nauvoo; and he used
a great variety of vile and false epithets and charges.
The court adjourned to Monday, the 29th at 9 a.m.
Foster agreed to meet me on the second Monday in May, at the Stand,
and have a settlement, and he would publish the result of it in the
Warsaw papers. I told him if he did not agree to be quiet, and not
attempt to raise a mob, I would not meet him; if he would agree to be
quiet, I would be willing to publish the settlement in the _Neighbor_.
But Foster would not agree to be quiet. I then told him I had done my
duty; the skirts of my garments were free from his (Foster's) blood;
I had made the last overtures of peace to him; and then delivered him
into the hands of God, and shook my garments against him as a testimony
thereof.
I continued in the office some time afterwards in conversation, and
then went into the big room and read in the_ Warsaw Signal_ a vile
article against the Saints.
{346} Elder Hiram Smith arrived from Liverpool accompanied by one
hundred and fifty immigrating Saints.
There was a meeting at the Stand at one o'clock, to give instructions
to the Elders going out electioneering. They were addressed by
President Rigdon and William Smith.
Dr. Richards prosecuted Robert D. Foster for slander, &c.
_Sunday, 28.--_At home. A beautiful clear day.
My brother Hyrum preached at the Stand in the morning, and among other
things, said the time will shortly come that when one man makes another
an offender for a word, he shall be cut off from the Church of Jesus
Christ. There were prophets before, but Joseph has the spirit and power
of all the prophets.
President Brigham Young also spoke very pointedly and very truly about
Dr. Foster and others. Dr. Foster was cursed, and the people cried
"Amen."
Several persons were baptized in the river at the foot of Main street.
There was a meeting of the Twelve Apostles, Seventies and others, in
the Seventies' Hall, in the afternoon.
Prayer meeting in the evening: the brethren prayed for the sick, a
deliverance from our enemies, a favorable termination to lawsuits, &c.,
&c. I had been suddenly taken sick, and was therefore unable to attend.
A conference of Elders assembled at Yelrome, or Morley Settlement,
Lima, Isaac Morley presiding, when a quorum of High Priests was
organized, consisting of thirty-one members. Horace Rawson president,
Philip Gardner and Joseph S. Allen, his counselors, and James C. Snow,
clerk.
There was a meeting at Wilson Law's, near the sawmill, of those who had
been cut off from the Church, and their dupes. Several affidavits which
they had taken against me and others were read. William Law, Wilson
{347} Law, Austin A. Cowles, John Scott, Sen., Francis M. Higbee,
Robert D. Foster, and Robert Pierce were appointed a committee to visit
the different families in the city, and see who would join the new
church; _i.e._, as they had decided that I was a fallen prophet, &c.;
and they appointed William Law in my place, who chose Austin Cowles and
Wilson Law as his counselors. Robert D. Foster and Francis M. Higbee to
be two of the Twelve Apostles, &c., &c., as report says.
Elder James Blackeslee preached in the forenoon, bearing a faithful
testimony of the truth of the work and my being a true prophet, and in
the afternoon joined the "Anties." They chose Charles Ivins Bishop.
A conference was held in Sheffield, England, representing 215 members,
7 Elders, 19 Priests, 5 Teachers, and 3 Deacons.
_Monday, 29.--_At home; received a visit from L. R. Foster of New York,
who gave me a good pencil case, sent me by Brother Theodore Curtis,
who is now in New York; and the first words I wrote with it were, "God
bless the man!"
At 11 a.m., Robert D. Foster came up for trial. I transferred the case
to Alderman William Marks. Foster objected to the jurisdiction of the
court, also to an informality in the writ, &c.
The court decided he had not jurisdiction. Esquire Noble, from Rock
river, assisted the City Attorney. Esquire Patrick was present.
I called a special session of the City Council at 3:30 p.m., when it
was voted that W. W. Phelps take the place of John Taylor during his
absence this season; also Aaron Johnson in place of Orson Hyde; Phineas
Richards in place of Heber C. Kimball; Edward Hunter in place of Daniel
Spencer; Levi Richards in place of Brigham Young as councilors in the
City Council; and Elias Smith as alderman in place of George A. Smith.
Lieutenant Williams filed his affidavit _versus_ Major-General {348}
Wilson Law, and he was suspended from office to await his trial before
a court-martial of the Nauvoo Legion for ungentlemanly conduct, &c.;
and he was notified of his command in the Legion being suspended, and
Charles C. Rich was notified to take command, and also notified seven
officers to sit as a court-martial.
William Law was suspended for trial about the same time.
Steamer _Mermaid_ touched at Nauvoo House, landing at 5 p.m. for a
short time when going down.
John P. Greene published the following in the_ Neighbor:_ (Impression
of May 1st.)
_The Foster-Higbee Embroilment_.
All is peace at Nauvoo, among the Saints:
But, Mr. Taylor, I wish you to give the following outrage an
insertion in the _Neighbor_, that the public mind may be disabused,
and the disgrace and shame fall on those who have justly deserved
it and merited the people's rebuke!
On Friday morning, the 26th inst., I was informed by Mr. Orrin P.
Rockwell that one Mr. Augustine Spencer had committed an assault on
the person of Alderman Orson Spencer, and the Mayor of the city had
sent for Augustine Spencer, and found him in Mr. Marr's law office,
made him a prisoner, and informed him he must go with me to the
Mayor's office, when he said he would not go.
I then called upon Robert D. Foster, Chauncey L. Higbee, and
Charles A. Foster to assist me in taking said Spencer to the
Mayor's office; but they swore they would not, and used many
threatening oaths and aspersions, saying they would see the Mayor
and the city damned, and then they would not; but soon followed
me and Mr. Augustine Spencer to the office door, when the Mayor
ordered me to arrest these three men for refusing to assist me in
the discharge of my duty; and when attempting to arrest them, they
all resisted, and with horrid imprecations threatened to shoot.
I called for help, and there not being sufficient, the Mayor laid
hold on the two Fosters at the same time. At that instant Charles
A. Foster drew a double-barrel pistol on Mr. Smith, but it was
instantly wrenched from his hand; and afterwards he declared he
would have shot the Mayor, if we had let his pistol alone, and also
he would thank God for the privilege of ridding the world of a
tyrant! Chauncey L. Higbee responded to Foster's threats, and swore
that he would do it.
{349}
However, the three were arrested and brought before the Mayor,
whereupon Orrin P. Rockwell, Joseph Coolidge, John P. Greene and E.
Tufts testified to the amount of the above statements; upon which
evidence the court assessed a fine of one hundred dollars to each
of the above-named aggressors, who appealed to the Municipal Court.
I wish the public to know who it is that makes insurrections and
disturbs the peace and quiet of the people of the city of Nauvoo;
and in order to do this I need only to tell the world that this
Robert D. Foster is a county magistrate, and the same Robert D.
Foster that was fined for gambling a few weeks since; and that this
Chauncey L. Higbee is a lawyer and notary public of Hancock county,
and the same Chauncey L. Higbee that was fined for insulting the
city officers (the marshal and constable) when in the discharge of
their official duties, a few weeks since.
"When the wicked rule the people mourn, but righteousness exalteth
any nation"--SOLOMON.
J. P. GREENE, City Marshal.
N. B.--We wish it to be distinctly understood that neither of
the three above-named individuals are members of the Church
of Latter-day Saints, but we believe Charles A. Foster is a
Methodist.--J. P. G.
_Tuesday, 30.--_At home counseling the brethren about many things;
received much company, &c.
In the afternoon in council with Hiram Clark and Brigham Young, at
Brigham Young's house, on the affairs of the Church in England.
A complaint was commenced against William and Wilson Law in the Masonic
Lodge, &c.
Sent notification to two more officers to sit in the court-martial on
the trial of William and Wilson Law.
The _Osprey_ steamer touched at the Nauvoo House landing in the evening.
_Wednesday, May 1.--_Heavy rain and wind last night.
At home counseling the brethren, and rode out a short time in the
afternoon with a gentleman from Quincy.
Elder Lyman Wight and Bishop George Miller arrived from the Pine
country.
Mr. Thomas A. Lyne, a tragedian from New York, assisted by George J.
Adams and others, got up a theatrical exhibition in the lower room of
the Masonic Hall, which was fitted {350} up with very tasteful scenery.
They performed "Pizarro," "The Orphan of Geneva," "Douglas," "The Idiot
Witness," "Damon and Pythias," and other plays with marked success. The
Hall was well attended each evening, and the audience expressed their
entire satisfaction and approbation.
_Thursday, 2.--_Very windy all night, breaking down large trees; a
thunder storm also.
At home and counseling the brethren.
Sent William Clayton to Wilson Law to find out why he refused paying
his note, when he brought in some claims as a set-off which Clayton
knew were paid, leaving me no remedy but the glorious uncertainty of
the law.
At 10 a.m. the _Maid of Iowa_ steamer started for Rock River for a load
of wheat and corn to feed the laborers on the Temple.
William Clayton and Colonel Stephen Markham started to attend court at
Dixon, on the case of "Joseph Smith vs. Harmon T. Wilson and Joseph H.
Reynolds."
In the afternoon I rode to the prairie to sell some land, and during my
absence Lucien Woodworth returned from Texas.
Lieut. Aaron Johnson made the following affidavit;
NAUVOO, May 2nd, 1844.
STATE OF ILLINOIS, HANCOCK CO.,
CITY OF NAUVOO, ss
Personally appeared before me, John Taylor, Judge-Advocate of the
Nauvoo Legion, Aaron Johnson; and being duly sworn deposes and
says that on or about the 28th day of April, 1844, at the dwelling
house of Wilson Law in Nauvoo aforesaid, Colonel R. D. Foster,
Surgeon-in-Chief, and Brevet Brigadier-General of said Nauvoo
Legion, while talking about General Joseph Smith, said that General
Smith kept a gang of robbers and plunderers about his house for
the purpose of robbing and plundering, and he (Smith) received
half the spoils; also that said General Joseph Smith tried to get
him (Foster) to go and kill Boggs, with many other ungentlemanly
and unofficer-like observations concerning said General Smith and
others.
AARON JOHNSON,
2nd Lieut., 1st Comp., 1st Regiment, 2nd Cohort, Nauvoo Legion.
Personally appeared, Aaron Johnson, the signer of the above
complaint, {351} and made oath the same was true according to the
best of his knowledge and belief, the day and year above written
before me.
JOHN TAYLOR,
Judge-Advocate of the Nauvoo Legion.
_Friday, 3.--_At home giving advice to brethren who were constantly
calling to ask for counsel. Several thunder showers during the day.
In general council from 2 to 6, and from 8 to 10 p.m. Lucien Woodworth
gave an account of his mission.
Wrote a letter to Uncle John Smith, and requested him to attend general
council next Monday.
The following letter was written:
_Letter: Brigham Young and Willard Richards to Reuben
Hedlock--Instructions on Immigration Matters_.
NAUVOO, May 3rd, 1844.
_Elder Reuben Hedlock_:
DEAR BROTHER--Your long communication by Elder Kay was received two
weeks last Saturday, also the one by Elder Clark last Saturday,
and we feel to thank you for the care you have taken to write us
so particularly. We are glad to receive such communications, and
wish you to continue the same course as opportunities present. The
brethren have all had good passages (four ships). Elder Clark was
only five weeks and three days to New Orleans. All things safe.
All things are going on gloriously at Nauvoo. We shall make a
great wake in the nation. Joseph for President. Your family is
well, and friends generally. We have already received several
hundred volunteers to go out electioneering and preaching and more
offering. We go for storming the nation. But we must proceed to
realities.
The whisperings of the Spirit to us are that you do well to content
yourself awhile longer in old England, and let your wife remain
where she is. We hope the Temple may be completed, say one year
from this spring, when in many respects changes will take place.
Until then, who can do better in England than yourself! But we will
not leave you comfortless; we will send Elders to your assistance.
For three or four months we want all the help we can get in the
United States; after which you may expect help.
In the meantime you are at liberty to print as many _Stars_,
pamphlets hymn books, tracts, cards, &c., as you can sell; and make
all the money you can in righteousness. Don't reprint everything
you get from Nauvoo. Many things are printed here not best to
circulate in England. Select and write doctrine, and matter, (new)
such as will be {352} useful to the Saints in England and new to
us; so that when we exchange papers all will be edified. God shall
give you wisdom, if you will seek to Him, and you shall prosper in
your printing.
We also wish you to unfurl your flag on your shipping office, and
send all the Saints you can to New York, or Boston, or Philadelphia
or any other port of the United States, but not at our expense any
longer. We have need of something to sustain us in our labors, and
we want you to go ahead with printing and shipping, and make enough
to support yourself and help us a bit. You will doubtless find it
necessary to employ Brother Ward. Keep all your books straight, so
that we in the end can know every particular.
Ship everybody to America you can get the money for--Saint and
sinner--a general shipping-office. And we would like to have our
shipping-agent in Liverpool sleep on as good a bed, eat at as
respectable a house, keep as genteel an office, and have his boots
shine as bright, and blacked as often as any other office-keeper.
Yes sir; make you money enough to wear a good broadcloth, and show
the world that you represent gentlemen of worth, character and
respectability.
We will by-and-by have offices from the rivers to the ends of the
earth, and we will begin at Liverpool from this time and increase
and increase and _increase_ the business of the office as fast as
it can be done in safety, and circumstances will permit. Employ a
runner, if necessary, and show the world you can do a better and
more honorable business than anybody else, and more of it. Don't be
afraid to blow your trumpet.
We need not say, deal with everybody so that they will want to deal
with you again, and make all the money you honestly can. Send no
more emigrants on emigration books or _Star_ money. Temple orders
for emigrants may be filled on Temple funds. Keep account of all
moneys in their separate departments and favor us with a report
occasionally.
Sell the Books of Mormon the first opportunity, if it be at a
reduced price, and forward the money by the first safe conveyance
to Brigham Young.
We will pay your wife as you requested in your letter, as soon as
possible. We wish you to take care of yourself and family, and
withal help us besides; and we have now put you in possession of
means to do it.
Let nobody know your business but the underwriters. Our wives know
not all our business, neither does any wise man's wife know all
things, for the secret of the Lord is with those that fear Him and
do His business. A hint to the wise is sufficient. But we will
add, if you want us to do anything for your wife, write us, and we
will do it; but {353} keep our business from your wife and from
everybody else.
We are glad to hear a door is open in France, and sure we have no
objections to your going over and preaching, &c.; but we think
perhaps you will now find as much to do in England as you can
find time to do it in; if not, go by all means. We are in hopes
of sending a special messenger to France in a few days; if so,
very likely he may call on you, and you pass over and give him an
introduction: this would be pleasant for you all.
Brother Hedlock, a word with you privately. Joseph said, last
conference, that Zion included all North and South America; and
after the Temple was done, and the Elders endowed, they would
spread and build up cities all over the United States; but at
present we are not to teach this doctrine. Nay, hold your tongue.
But by this you can see why it is wisdom for the Saints to get into
the United States--anywhere rather than stay in England to starve.
The prophet has a charter for a dam from the lower line of the city
to the island opposite Montrose, and from thence to the sand-bar
above in the Mississippi. Could five, six or seven thousand dollars
be raised to commence the dam at the lower extremity, and erect
a building, any machinery might be propelled by water. The value
of a steam-engine would nearly build the dam sufficient for a
cotton-factory, which we much need. Start some capitalists, if you
can: 'tis the greatest speculation in the world: a world of cotton
and woollen goods are wanted here.
We have proposed to Brother Clark to return to your assistance in
the shipping business soon; also to enter into exchanges of goods
and produce. Which he will do, he has not decided. What will hinder
your doing a good business in shipping this season? Good? Yes, in
competing with the first offices in the city, and by next season
taking the lead, if not this! When the Saints get to New York,
Boston, &c., let them go to work, spread abroad in the land, or
come to Nauvoo, as they and convenient and have means, and when the
season arrives, start again for New Orleans. Write soon after the
receipt of this, and let us know the prospect.
Tell the Saints, when they arrive in America, to make themselves as
comfortable as they can, and be diligent in business, and not be
over anxious if they cannot come to Nauvoo. They will find Elders
in all the states who will be ready to give them instruction; and
if they can gather something by the way by their industry to assist
themselves with when they arrive here, it will be well for them.
We have dropped the Nauvoo House until the Temple can be completed,
and the Temple is going on finely. We have had an open winter and a
forward spring. The Twelve are holding general conferences all over
the United States. They will go East soon, and Brother Young {354}
will write to you as soon as he gets the information to tell what
house you can remit the book money to in New York.
We shall have a State Convention at Nauvoo on the 17th inst.,--an
election. A great many are believing the doctrine. If any of the
brethren wish to go to Texas, we have no particular objection. You
may send a hundred thousand there if you can, in eighteen months,
though we expect before that you will return to receive your
endowments; and then we will consult your interest, with others who
may be going abroad, about taking their families with them.
The kingdom is organized; and, although as yet no bigger than
a grain of mustard seed, the little plant is in a flourishing
condition, and our prospects brighter than ever. Cousin Lemuel is
very friendly, and cultivating the spirit of peace and union in his
family very extensively.
William and Wilson Law, Robert D. Foster, Chauncey L. and Francis
Higbee, Father Cowles, &c., have organized a new church. (Laws
and Fosters were first cut off). William Law is Prophet; James
Blakesley and Cowles, Counselors; Higbee and Foster of the Twelve.
Cannot learn all particulars. Charles Ivins, Bishop; old Dr. Green
and old John Scott, his counselors. They are talking of sending a
mission to England, but it will probably be after this when they
come among you. 'Tis the same old story over again--"The doctrine
is right, but Joseph is a fallen prophet."
Your brethren in the new covenant,
BRIGHAM YOUNG,
WILLARD RICHARDS.
Elder Parley P. Pratt wrote from Richmond, Mass., as follows:
_Letter: Parley P. Pratt to Joseph Smith et al., Denouncing
Augustine Spencer_.
_Dear Brother Joseph and Brother Orson Spencer, or whom it may
concern_:
This is to forewarn you that you have a snake in the grass--a base
traitor and hypocrite in your midst, of whom perhaps you may not be
fully aware. You may think these harsh terms, but I speak from good
evidence and speak the truth.
Mr. Augustine Spencer, brother to Elder Orson Spencer, has written
a letter from Nauvoo, which is now going the rounds in this
neighborhood, and is fraught with the most infamous slander and
lies concerning Joseph Smith and others, and which is calculated to
embitter the minds of the people who read or hear it. It affirms
that Joseph Smith is in the habit of drinking, swearing, carousing,
dancing all night, &c., {355} and that he keeps six or seven young
females as wives, &c., and many other such like insinuations.
At the same time he cautions the people to whom he writes to
keep the letter in such a way that a knowledge of its contents
may not reach Nauvoo, as he says he is on intimate terms and
confidential friendship with the "Prophet Joe" and the Mormons,
and that he hopes to get into office by their means. This is his
own acknowledgment of his own baseness, imposition and hypocrisy.
I have not seen the letter myself, but have carefully examined the
testimony of those who have, and I have also seen and witnessed its
baneful effect upon the people here.
Now, I say to the Saints, Let such a man alone severely; shun him
as they would the pestilence; be not deceived by a smooth tongue
nor flattering words; neither accept of any excuse or apology until
he boldly contradicts and counteracts his lying words abroad; but
rather expose and unmask him in your midst, that he may be known
and consequently become powerless, if he is not already so. I am
well and expect to be in Boston tomorrow.
I remain, as ever, your friend and brother, in the love of truth,
P. P. PRATT.
RICHMOND, MASS., May 3rd, 1844.
_Saturday, 4.--_Rode out on the prairie to sell some land. The Stone
work for four circular windows finished cutting for the middle story of
the Temple. Elder Wilford Woodruff moved into his new brick house.
A court-martial was detailed as follows:
HEADQUARTERS NAUVOO LEGION May 4, 1844.
_To Alanson Ripley, Sergeant-Major, 2nd Cohort, Nauvoo Legion_:
You are hereby forthwith commanded to notify the following
named officers of the Nauvoo Legion to assemble at the office
of Lieut.-General Joseph Smith, on Friday, the 10th inst., at 9
o'clock a.m., as members of a court-martial detailed for the trial
of Robert D. Foster, Surgeon-in-Chief and Brevet Brigadier-General
of the Nauvoo Legion, on the complaint of Lieut. Aaron Johnson for
unofficer-like and unbecoming conduct, and hereof fail not, and
make returns of your proceedings to the President of the Court on
the first day of its sitting--_viz_.
Brig.-Gen. George Miller as President; Brevet Brig.-Gen. Hugh
McFall, Brevet Brig.-General Daniel H. Wells, Brevet Brig.-Gen.
John S. Fullmer, Colonel Jonathan Dunham, Colonel Stephen Markham,
Colonel Hosea Stout, Colonel John Scott, Lieut.-Colonel John D.
Parker, Lieut.-Colonel Jonathan H. Hale, Lieut.-Colonel Theodore
Turley, as members of said court, and Colonel John Taylor as
Judge-Advocate. {356} Also to summons Willard Richards and Aaron
Johnson to appear at the same time and place as witnesses.
Given under my hand the day and year above written.
CHARLES C. RICH,
Major-General N. L., Commanding.
Dr. Richards wrote a letter, at President Brigham Young's request, to
Reuben Hedlock.
_Sunday, 5.--_At home. Rainy day. Elder Jedediah M. Grant preached at
the Mansion at 2 p.m. A large company of friends at my house afternoon
and evening, whom I addressed on the true policy of this people in our
intercourse with the national government.
A conference was held at Marsh Hill, (formerly Froom's Hill) England,
comprising 681 members, 22 Elders, 43 Priests, 15 Teachers, 7 Deacons.
_Monday, 6.--_Attended general council all day. Elder J. M. Grant was
added to the council. Voted to send Almon W. Babbitt on a mission to
France and Lucien Woodworth to Texas. Sidney Rigdon was nominated as a
candidate for the Vice-Presidency of the United States.
I had a warrant served on me by John D. Parker, issued by the clerk of
the Circuit Court at Carthage, on the complaint of Francis M. Higbee,
who had laid his damages at $5,000, but for what the writ does not
state. I petitioned the Municipal Court for a writ of _habeas corpus,_
which I obtained.
At 6 p.m. I was in conversation with Jeremiah Smith and a number of
gentlemen, in my office on the subject of Emma's correspondence with
Governor Carlin.
Beautiful day. West wind.
_Tuesday 7.--_Rode out on the prairie at nine a.m., with some
gentlemen, to sell them some land. A tremendous thunder shower in the
afternoon, with a strong wind and rain, which abated about sunset, and
I stayed at my farm all night.
Esquire Daniel H. Wells issued a writ of ejectment against all persons
who had bought land of Robert D. {357} Foster on the block east of the
Temple, Foster having given them warranty deeds, but not having paid
for the land himself.
An opposition printing press arrives at Dr. Foster's.
The following notice was issued by the Recorder:
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
CITY OF NAUVOO.
_To the Marshal of the said City, greeting_:
You are hereby required to notify Phineas Richards, Edward Hunter
and Levi Richards, that they have been elected members of the City
Council of said city; and Elias Smith, that he has been elected
Alderman of said city by said City Council; and the said Councilors
and Alderman and Gustavus Hills are required to appear, receive
their oath of office, and take seats in said Council on Saturday,
the 8th of June, 1844, at 10 o'clock a.m., at the Council Chamber.
By order of the Council.
Witness my hand and corporation seal this 7th May, 1844.
[L. S.]
W. RICHARDS, Recorder.
_Thursday, 8.--_Returned home. At 10 a.m. went before the Municipal
Court on the case, "Francis M. Higbee _versus_ Joseph Smith."
_The Prophet's Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus_.
MUNICIPAL COURT, CITY OF NAUVOO, ILLINOIS.
Third day, regular term, May 8, 1844.
Before Alderman N. K. Whitney, acting Chief Justice, and Aldermen
Daniel H. Wells, William Marks, Orson Spencer, George W. Harris,
Gustavus Hills, George A. Smith and Samuel Bennett, Associate
Justices presiding.
Exparte Joseph Smith Sen., on _habeas corpus_.
Messrs. Styles and Rigdon, Counsel for Smith.
This case came before the court upon a return to a writ of _habeas
corpus,_ which was issued by this court on the 6th of May instant,
upon the petition of Joseph Smith, Sen., as follows:
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
CITY OF NAUVOO, Sct.
_To the Honorable Municipal Court and for the City of Nauvoo_:
The undersigned, your petitioner, most respectfully represents
that he is an inhabitant of said city. Your petitioner further
represents that he is under arrest in said city, and is now in
the custody of one John D. Parker, deputy sheriff of the county
of Hancock, and state of {358} Illinois; and that the said Parker
holds your petitioner by a writ of _Capias ad respondendum,_ issued
by the clerk of the Circuit Court of the county of Hancock and
state of Illinois, at the instance of one Francis M. Higbee of
said county, requiring your petitioner to answer the said Francis
M. Higbee, "of a plea of the case;" damage, five thousand dollars.
Your petitioner further represents that the proceedings against him
are illegal; that the said warrant of arrest is informal, and not
of that character which the law recognizes as valid; that the said
writ is wanting and deficient in the plea therein contained; that
the charge or complaint which your petitioner is therein required
to answer is not known to the law.
Your petitioner further avers that the said writ does not disclose
in any way or manner whatever any cause of action; which matter
your petitioner most respectfully submits for your consideration,
together with a copy of the said warrant of arrest which is
hereunto attached.
Your petitioner further states that this proceeding has been
instituted against him without any just or legal cause; and further
that the said Francis M. Higbee is actuated by no other motive
than a desire to persecute and harass your petitioner for the
base purpose of gratifying feelings of revenge, which, without
any cause, the said Francis M. Higbee has for a long time been
fostering and cherishing.
Your petitioner further states that he is not guilty of the charge
preferred against him, or of any act against him, by which the said
Francis M. Higbee could have any charge, claim or demand whatever
against your petitioner.
Your petitioner further states that he verily believes that another
object the said F. M. Higbee had in instituting the proceeding was
and is to throw your petitioner into the hands of his enemies, that
he might the better carry out a conspiracy which has for some time
been brewing against the life of your petitioner.
Your petitioner further states that the suit which has been
instituted against him has been instituted through malice, private
pique and corruption.
Your petitioner would therefore most respectfully ask your
honorable body to grant him the benefit of the writ of _habeas
corpus,_ that the whole matter may be thoroughly investigated, and
such order made as the law and justice demand in the premises: and
your petitioner with ever pray.
JOSEPH SMITH, SEN.
_Order of the Municipal Court_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
CITY OF NAUVOO, Sct.
NAUVOO, May 6th, 1844.
_The people of the State of Illinois, to the Marshal of said city,
greeting_:
Whereas application has been made before the Municipal Court of
{359} said city, that the body of one Joseph Smith, Senior, of the
said city of Nauvoo, is in the custody of John D. Parker, deputy
sheriff of Hancock county and state aforesaid.
These are therefore to command the said John D. Parker, of the
county aforesaid, to safely have the body of said Joseph Smith,
Senior, of the city aforesaid, in his custody detained, as it is
said, together with the day and cause of his caption and detention,
by whatsoever name the said Joseph Smith, Senior, may be known
or called, before the Municipal Court of said city forthwith, to
abide such order as the said court shall make in this behalf; and
further, if the said John D. Parker, or other person or persons,
having said Joseph Smith, Senior, of said city of Nauvoo, in
custody, shall refuse or neglect to comply with the provisions
of this writ, you, the marshal of said city, or other person
authorized to serve the same, are hereby required to arrest the
person or persons so refusing or neglecting to comply as aforesaid,
and bring him or them, together with the person or persons in his
or their custody, forthwith before the Municipal Court aforesaid,
to be dealt with according to law; and herein fail not and bring
this writ with you.
Witness, Willard Richards, clerk of the Municipal Court at Nauvoo,
this 6th day of May, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight
hundred and forty-four.
WILLARD RICHARDS,
Clerk M. C. C. N.
I hold the within-named Joseph Smith, Senior, under arrest, by
virtue of a _capias ad respondendum_.
HANCOCK COUNTY COURT.
To May Term, A. D. 1844.
Francis M. Higbee _vs_. Joseph Smith
In case.
The day of his caption, May 6th, 1844.
To damage five thousand dollars.
WM. BACKENSTOS, S. H. C.
By J. D. PARKER, D. S.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
HANCOCK COUNTY. ss
_The people of the state of Illinois to the Sheriff of said county,
greeting_:
We command you that you take Joseph Smith, if to be found within
your county, and him safely keep, so that you have his body before
the Circuit Court of said county of Hancock on the first day of
the next term thereof, to be holden at the Courthouse in Carthage
on the third {360} Monday in the month of May instant, to answer
Francis M. Higbee, of a plea of the case; damage, the sum of five
thousand dollars, as he says; and you have then there this writ,
and make due return thereon in what manner you execute the same.
[Sidenote: [Seal]]
Witness, J. B. Backenstos, clerk of said Circuit Court at Carthage,
this first day of May, in the year of our Lord, one thousand eight
hundred and forty-four.
J. C. BACKENSTOS, Clerk.
By D. E. HEAD, Deputy.
This is a true copy of the original now in the possession of
William B. Backenstos, Sheriff of Hancock county.
By J. D. PARKER, Deputy.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
HANCOCK COUNTY,
CITY OF NAUVOO. Sct.
_To Mr. Francis M. Higbee_:
SIR.--You will please to take notice that Joseph Smith, Senior, has
petitioned for a writ of _habeas corpus_ from the Municipal Court
of said city, praying that he may be liberated from the custody
of John D. Parker, deputy sheriff of Hancock county, by whom he
is held in custody on a _capias ad respondendum,_ issued by the
Circuit Court of Hancock county, on the first day of May instant,
to answer Francis M. Higbee on a plea of the case, etc.; which writ
is granted; and you will have the opportunity to appear before the
Municipal Court at 10 o'clock a.m. on the 7th of May instant, at
the Council Chamber in said city, and show cause why said Joseph
Smith, Senior, should not be liberated on said_ habeas corpus_.
[Sidenote: [Seal]]
Witness my hand and seal, of court this 5th day of May, 1844.
WILLARD RICHARDS, CLERK M. C. C. N.
The case was argued at length by Messrs. George P. Styles and
Sidney Rigdon. After which the court allowed the petitioner and his
counsel to proceed with the case. Whereupon President Joseph Smith,
Brigham Young, Sidney Rigdon, Hyrum Smith, Orrin Porter Rockwell,
Cyrus H. Wheelock, Joel S. Miles, Henry G. Sherwood, Heber C.
Kimball, were permitted to testify proving (1) the very bad and
immoral character of Francis M. Higbee; and (2) the maliciousness
of his prosecution of Joseph Smith. In the course of his testimony
the Prophet said: "The only sin I ever committed was in exercising
sympathy and covering up their [the Higbees', Fosters', Laws' and
Dr. Bennett's] iniquities, on their solemn promise to reform, and
of this I am {361} ashamed, and will never do so again." After
hearing these witnesses the Judge said: "It is considered and
ordained by the court--
"1st. That the said Joseph Smith, Senior, be discharged from the
said arrest and imprisonment complained of in said petition, on the
illegality of the writ upon which he was arrested, as well as upon
the writ of the case, and that he go hence without day.
"2nd. Francis M. Higbee's character having been so fully shown as
infamous, the court is convinced that this suit was instituted
through malice, private pique, and corruption, and ought not to be
countenanced; and it is ordained by the court that the said Francis
M. Higbee pay the costs."
[Sidenote: [Seal]]
In testimony whereof I hereunto set my hand and affix the seal of
said court at the city of Nauvoo, this 8th day of May, 1844.
WILLARD RICHARDS, Clerk.
I copy the following from the _Neighbor_ of this date:
_Hurrah for the General!_ The following which we extract from the
_St. Louis Organ,_ shows how the public mind is turning, and what
their feelings are in regard to the Prophet, his views and theirs
also in regard to the Presidency.
_Forebear awhile--we'll hear a little more._ The matter is now
settled with Messrs. Clay, Tyler and Van Buren. Let Mr. Clay
return at once from his political perambulations in the South, Mr.
Tyler abandon his hopes of re-election by aid of the "immediate
annexation" of Texas, and let Mr. Van Buren be quiet at Kinderhook,
that he may watch the operations of the "sober second thought" of
the people!
General Joseph Smith, the acknowledged modern Prophet, has got them
all in the rear; and from the common mode of testing the success
of candidates for the Presidency, to wit., by steamboat elections,
he (Smith) will beat all the other aspirants to that office two to
one. We learn from the polls of the steamboat _Osprey_, on her last
trip to this city, that the vote stood for General Joseph Smith, 20
gents and 5 ladies; Henry Clay, 16 gents and 4 ladies; Van Buren, 7
gents and 0 ladies.
Attended theatre in the evening.
{362}
CHAPTER XVI.
ADDRESS OF THE PROPHET--HIS PROPHETIC CALLING AND THE
RESURRECTION--STATUS OF AFFAIRS AT NAUVOO--HYDE'S REPORTS FROM
WASHINGTON ON THE WESTERN MOVEMENT--OREGON.
_Thursday, May 9, 1844.--_A court-martial was held in my office for the
trial of Major-General Wilson Law, on a charge of ungentlemanly and
unofficer-like conduct. Present--Generals Hyrum Smith, Charles C. Rich,
Lyman Wight, George Miller and Albert P. Rockwood; Cols. John Scott and
Hosea Stout; Judge-Advocate John Taylor; and Secretary Thomas Bullock.
The charge was sustained and Wilson Law cashiered.
[Sidenote: Theatricals in Nauvoo.]
Evening, attended theatre, and saw "Damon and Pythias" and "The Idiot
Witness" performed.
Elders Wilford Woodruff and George A. Smith called upon me this
morning, and said they were ready to start on their mission to attend
the conferences appointed throughout the north of Illinois, Indiana and
Michigan. I blessed them in the name of the Lord, and told them to go,
and they should prosper and always prosper. They left in company with
Elders Jedediah M. Grant and Ezra Thayer.
_Friday, 10--_Rode out after breakfast to the prairie to sell some land
to some brethren.
The court-martial was held in the Mayor's office on the charge against
Robert D. Foster, Surgeon-General, for unbecoming and unofficer-like
conduct, &c.; Brigadier-General George Miller presiding. The charges
were sustained.
{363} A prospectus of the _Nauvoo Expositor_ was distributed among the
people by the apostates.
The jury of Lee county, Illinois, awarded $40 damages and the
costs against Joseph H. Reynolds and Harmon T. Wilson for illegal
imprisonment and abuse, which I suffered from them last June in that
county.
_Saturday, 11.--_At 10 a.m. I attended City Council, and stayed till
half-past eleven; but there not being a quorum, adjourned until next
regular session. At 1 p.m. at my office, and had a conversation with
Mr. Lyne on the theatre; and at 6 p.m. attended prayer meeting; John P.
Greene and Sidney Rigdon present. Several showers of rain during the
day. The Nauvoo Legion had a company muster.
_Sunday, 12.--_At 10 a.m. I preached at the Stand. The following brief
synopsis of my discourse was reported by my clerk, Thomas Bullock:
_President Joseph Smith's Address--Defense of his Prophetic
Calling--Resurrection of the Dead--Fullness of Ordinances Necessary
Both for the Living and Dead_.
The Savior has the words of eternal life. Nothing else can profit
us. There is no salvation in believing an evil report against our
neighbor. I advise all to go on to perfection, and search deeper
and deeper into the mysteries of Godliness. A man can do nothing
for himself unless God direct him in the right way; and the
priesthood is for that purpose.
The last time I spoke on this stand it was on the resurrection of
the dead, when I promised to continue my remarks upon that subject.
I still feel a desire to say something on this subject. Let us this
very day begin anew, and now say, with all our hearts, we will
forsake our sins and be righteous. I shall read the 24th chapter
of Matthew, and give it a literal rendering and reading; and when
it is rightly understood, it will be edifying. [He then read and
translated it from the German].
I thought the very oddity of its rendering would be edifying
anyhow--_"And it will preached be, the Gospel of the kingdom, in
the whole world, to a witness over all people: and then will the
end come."_ I will now read it in German [which he did, and many
Germans who were present said he translated it correctly].
The Savior said when these tribulations should take place, it
should be committed to a man who should be a witness over the whole
world: {364} the keys of knowledge, power and revelations should be
revealed to a witness who should hold the testimony to the world.
It has always been my province to dig up hidden mysteries--new
things--for my hearers. Just at the time when some men think that
I have no right to the keys of the Priesthood--just at that time
I have the greatest right. The Germans are an exalted people. The
old German translators are the most correct--most honest of any of
the translators; and therefore I get testimony to bear me out in
the revelations that I have preached for the last fourteen years.
The old German, Latin, Greek and Hebrew translations all say it is
true: they cannot be impeached, and therefore I am in good company.
All the testimony is that the Lord in the last days would commit
the keys of the priesthood to a witness over all people. Has the
Gospel of the kingdom commenced in the last days? And will God
take it from the man until He takes him Himself? I have read it
precisely as the words flowed from the lips of Jesus Christ. John
the Revelator saw an angel flying through the midst of heaven,
having the everlasting Gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the
earth.
The scripture is ready to be fulfilled when great wars, famines,
pestilence, great distress, judgments, &c., are ready to be poured
out on the inhabitants of the earth. John saw the angel having
the holy priesthood, who should preach the everlasting Gospel to
all nations. God had an angel--a special messenger--ordained and
prepared for that purpose in the last days. Woe, woe be to that man
or set of men who lift up their hands against God and His witness
in these last days: for they shall deceive almost the very chosen
ones!
My enemies say that I _have_ been a true prophet. Why, I had rather
be a fallen true prophet than a false prophet. When a man goes
about prophesying, and commands men to obey his teachings, he must
either be a true or false prophet. False prophets always arise to
oppose the true prophets and they will prophesy so very near the
truth that they will deceive almost the very chosen ones.
The doctrine of eternal judgments belongs to the first principles
of the Gospel, in the last days. In relation to the kingdom of
God, the devil always sets up his kingdom at the very same time in
opposition to God. Every man who has a calling to minister to the
inhabitants of the world was ordained to that very purpose in the
Grand Council of heaven before this world was. I suppose that I
was ordained to this very office in that Grand Council. It is the
testimony that I want that I am God's servant, and this people His
people. The ancient prophets declared that in the last days the God
of heaven should set up a kingdom which should never be destroyed,
nor left to other people; and the very time that was calculated on,
this people were struggling to bring it out. He that arms himself
with gun, sword, or pistol, except in the {365} defense of truth,
will sometime be sorry for it. I never carry any weapon with me
bigger than my penknife. When I was dragged before the cannon and
muskets in Missouri, I was unarmed. God will always protect me
until my mission is fulfilled.
I calculate to be one of the instruments of setting up the kingdom
of Daniel by the word of the Lord, and I intend to lay a foundation
that will revolutionize the whole world. I once offered my life to
the Missouri mob as a sacrifice for my people, and here I am. It
will not be by sword or gun that this kingdom will roll on: the
power of truth is such that all nations will be under the necessity
of obeying the Gospel. The prediction is that army will be against
army: it may be that the Saints will have to beat their ploughs
into swords, for it will not do for men to sit down patiently and
see their children destroyed.
My text is on the resurrection of the dead, which you will
find in the 14th chapter of John--"In my Father's house are
many mansions." It should be--"In my Father's kingdom are many
kingdoms," in order that ye may be heirs of God and joint-heirs
with me. I do not believe the Methodist doctrine of sending honest
men and noble-minded men to hell, along with the murderer and the
adulterer. They may hurl all their hell and fiery billows upon me,
for they will roll off me as fast as they come on. But I have an
order of things to save the poor fellows at any rate, and get them
saved; for I will send men to preach to them in prison and save
them if I can.
There are mansions for those who obey a celestial law, and there
are other mansions for those who come short of the law, every man
in his own order. There is baptism, &c., for those to exercise who
are alive, and baptism for the dead who die without the knowledge
of the Gospel.
I am going on in my progress for eternal life. It is not only
necessary that you should be baptized for your dead, but you will
have to go through all the ordinances for them, the same as you
have gone through to save yourselves. There will be 144,000 saviors
on Mount Zion, and with them an innumerable host that no man can
number. Oh! I beseech you to go forward, go forward and make your
calling and your election sure; and if any man preach any other
Gospel than that which I have preached, he shall be cursed; and
some of you who now hear me shall see it, and know that I testify
the truth concerning them.
In regard to the law of the priesthood, there should be a place
where all nations shall come up from time to time to receive their
endowments; and the Lord has said this shall be the place for
the baptisms for the dead. Every man that has been baptized and
belongs to the kingdom has a right to be baptized for those who
have gone before; and as soon as the law of the Gospel is obeyed
here by their friends who act as proxy for them, the Lord has
administrators there to set them free. {366} A man may act as proxy
for his own relatives; the ordinances of the Gospel which were laid
out before the foundations of the world have thus been fulfilled by
them, and we may be baptized for those whom we have much friendship
for; but it must first be revealed to the man of God, lest we
should run too far. "As in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall
all be made alive;" all shall be raised from the dead. The Lamb of
God hath brought to pass the resurrection, so that all shall rise
from the dead.
God Almighty Himself dwells in eternal fire; flesh and blood cannot
go there, for all corruption is devoured by the fire. "Our God is a
consuming fire." When our flesh is quickened by the Spirit, there
will be no blood in this tabernacle. Some dwell in higher glory
than others.
Those who have done wrong always have that wrong gnawing them.
Immortality dwells in everlasting burnings. I will from time to
time reveal to you the subjects that are revealed by the Holy Ghost
to me. All the lies that are now hatched up against me are of the
devil, and the influence of the devil and his servants will be used
against the kingdom of God. The servants of God teach nothing but
principles of eternal life, by their works ye shall know them. A
good man will speak good things and holy principles, and an evil
man evil things. I feel, in the name of the Lord, to rebuke all
such bad principles, liars, &c., and I warn all of you to look out
whom you are going after. I exhort you to give heed to all the
virtue and the teachings which I have given you. All men who are
immortal dwell in everlasting burnings. You cannot go anywhere but
where God can find you out. All men are born to die, and all men
must rise; all must enter eternity.
In order for you to receive your children to yourselves you must
have a promise--some ordinance; some blessing, in order to ascend
above principalities, or else it may be an angel. They must rise
just as they died; we can there hail our lovely infants with the
same glory--the same loveliness in the celestial glory, where they
all enjoy alike. They differ in stature, in size, the same glorious
spirit gives them the likeness of glory and bloom; the old man
with his silvery hairs will glory in bloom and beauty. No man can
describe it to you--no man can write it.
When did I ever teach anything wrong from this stand? When was I
ever confounded? I want to triumph in Israel before I depart hence
and am no more seen. I never told you I was perfect; but there is
no error in the revelations which I have taught. Must I, then, be
thrown away as a thing of naught?
I enjoin for your consideration--add to your faith virtue, love,
&c. I say, in the name of the Lord, if these things are in you, you
shall be {367} fruitful. I testify that no man has power to reveal
it but myself--things in heaven, in earth and hell; and all shut
your mouths for the future. I commend you all to God, that you may
inherit all things; and may God add His blessing. Amen.
My brother Hyrum and Elder Lyman Wight also addressed the Saints.
My brother Hyrum received an anonymous letter, supposed to have been
written by Joseph H. Jackson, threatening his life, and calling upon
him to make his peace with God for he would soon have to die.
At 3 p.m. I attended prayer meeting in the council room. William Smith
and Almon W. Babbitt were present. The room was full and we all prayed
for deliverance from our enemies and exaltation to such offices as will
enable the servants of God to execute righteousness in the earth.
I copy the following from the _Times and Seasons_:
FOR THE NEIGHBOR.
_Nauvoo and President Smith_.
Before taking my farewell of your beautiful and growing city, I
avail myself of a few leisure moments in expressing some of my
views and conclusions of the "Prophet Joe" and the Mormons. In the
first place, allow me to say that the Mormons, as a people, have
been most woe fully misrepresented and abused, and, in ninety-nine
instances out of a hundred, by persons who know nothing of their
principles and doctrines.
Before visiting the place, my mind was very much prejudiced against
the Mormons, from reports which I had listened to in traveling
through the different states; and I presume, if I had never taken
occasion to inform myself of their religion and views, my mind
would have remained in the same condition. There is not a city
within my knowledge that can boast of a more enterprising and
industrious people than Nauvoo. Her citizens are enlightened, and
possess many advantages in the arts and sciences of the day, which
other cities of longer standing cannot boast: in a word, Nauvoo
bids fair to soon outrival any city in the West.
General Smith is a man who understands the political history of his
country as well as the religious history of the world, as perfectly
as any politician or religionist I have ever met with. He advances
ideas which if carried into effect would greatly benefit the nation
in point of commerce {368} and finance; and while he maintains and
philosophically shows that our country is approaching a fearful
crisis, which, if not arrested, will end in disgrace to the
country, and cause our national banner to hug its mast in disgust
and shame, clearly points out the remedy.
Shall the liberty which our fathers purchased at so dear a price
be wrenched from the hand of their children? Shall our national
banner, which floated so proudly in the breeze at the Declaration
of Independence, be disgraced and refuse to show its motto? Shall
we, as American citizens, fold our arms and look quietly on, while
the shackles of slavery are being fastened upon our hands, and
while men only seek office for the purpose of exalting themselves
into power? I say, shall we still rush blindly on and hasten on
our own destruction by placing men in power who neither regard the
interests of the people nor the prayers of the oppressed? Every
American citizen will shout at the top of his voice--no!
Mr. Smith's "Views of the Powers and Policy of the Government"
manifest a Republican spirit, and if carried out, would soon place
the nation in a prosperous condition and brighten the prospects
of those who now toil so incessantly to support the profligate
expenditures and luxurious equipage of the present rulers and
representatives of our nation.
Joseph Smith is a man who is in every way calculated to make a free
people happy. He is liberal in his sentiments and allows every man
the free expression of his feelings on all subjects; he is sociable
and easy in his manners, is conversant and familiar on all exciting
topics, expresses himself freely and plainly on the different
methods of administering the Government, while he is not ashamed to
let the world know his views and criticize upon his opinions.
I am, sir, in no way connected with the Mormon Church, but am
disposed to listen to reason in all cases. I have heretofore been a
warm advocate of the measures of the Whig party; but, considering
General Smith's views and sentiments to be worthy the applause of
every citizen of the United States, and especially the yeomanry of
the country, I shall in every instance advocate his principles and
use my utmost influence in his favor. I am, sir, yours in haste,
AN AMERICAN.
NAUVOO MANSION, May 12, 1844.
_Monday 13.--_Heavy thunder showers during the night. At 10 a.m. went
to my office and conversed with several of the brethren. Sold Ellis M.
Sanders one hundred acres of land, received $300 in cash, and his note
for $1,000, and $20 for the Temple. Paid Sisson Chase $298 and {369}
took up a note of Young, Kimball & Taylor, given for money they had
borrowed for me; and gave $10 to Heber C. Kimball.
At 2 p.m. attended meeting of the general council, at which the
following letter from Orson Hyde was read:
_Letter: Elder Orson Hyde's Report of Labors in Washington:
President Smith's Memorial for Western Movement Before Congressmen_.
WASHINGTON, April 25, 1844.
HONORED SIR:--I take the liberty to transmit through you to
the council of our Church the result of my labors thus far. I
arrived in this place on the 23rd instant, by way of Pittsburgh,
Philadelphia, and New Jersey.
I found Elder Orson Pratt here, Elder Page having been called home
to Pittsburgh on account of his wife's ill health. Elder Orson
Pratt has been indefatigable in his exertions in prosecuting the
business entrusted to his charge. His business has been before the
Senate, and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary; and the
report of said committee is not yet rendered, which is the cause of
his delay in writing to you.
Yesterday we conversed with Messrs. Hoge, Hardin, Douglas and
Wentworth; and last evening we spent several hours with the Hon.
Mr. [James] Semple. [1] They all appear deeply interested in the
Oregon question, and received us with every demonstration of
respect that we could desire. Mr. Hoge thought the bill would not
pass, from the fact that there already exists between England and
America a treaty for the joint occupancy of Oregon, and that any
act of our government authorizing an armed force to be raised,
and destined for that country, would be regarded by England as
an infraction of that treaty, and a cause of her commencing
hostilities against us.
But my reply was: These volunteers are not to be considered any
part or portion of the army of the United States, neither acting
under the direction or authority of the United States; and, said I,
for men to go there and settle in the character of emigrants cannot
be regarded by our government as deviating in the least degree from
her plighted faith, unless she intends to tamely submit to British
monopoly in that country.
Mr. Hoge said he would present the memorial, if we desired it. I
thanked him for his kind offer, but observed that I was not yet
prepared for the bill to be submitted, but wished to elicit all the
facts relative to the condition of Oregon, and also advise with
many other members relative to the matter; and we could better
determine then how the bill {370} should be introduced. We do not
want it presented and referred to a standing committee, and stuck
away with five or ten cords of petitions, and that be the last of
it; but we want the memorial read, a move made to suspend the rules
of the House, and the bill printed, &c.
Mr. Wentworth said, "I am for Oregon, any how. You may set me down
on your list, and I will go for you if you will go for Oregon."
Judge Douglas has been quite ill, but is just recovered; he will
help all he can; Mr. Hardin likewise. But Major Semple says that
he does not believe anything will be done about Texas or Oregon
this session, for it might have a very important effect upon the
presidential election; and politicians are slow to move when such
doubtful and important matters are likely to be effected by it.
He says that there are already two bills before the House for
establishing a territorial government in Oregon, and to protect
the emigrants there; and now, he says, "Were your bill to be
introduced, it might be looked upon that you claimed the sole right
of emigrating to and settling the new country to the exclusion of
others. He was in favor of the Oregon being settled, and he thought
the bills already before the House would extend equal protection to
us; and equal protection to every class of citizens was what the
Government could rightly do, but particular privileges to any one
class they could not rightly do."
I observed that the bill asks for no exclusive rights. It asks not
for exclusive rights in Oregon, neither do we wish it. Other people
might make a move to Oregon, and no prejudices bar their way, and
their motives would not be misinterpreted.
But, said I, Missouri knows her guilt; and should we attempt to
march to Oregon without the government throwing a protective shield
over us, Missouri's crimes would lead her first to misinterpret
our intentions, to fan the flame of popular excitement against
us, and scatter the firebrands of a misguided zeal among the
combustible materials of other places, creating a flame too hot
for us to encounter--too desolating for us to indulge the hope of
successfully prosecuting the grand and benevolent enterprise we
have conceived. [2] We have been compelled to {371} relinquish our
rights in Missouri. We have been forcibly driven from our homes,
leaving our property and inheritances as spoil to the oppressor;
and more or less in Illinois we have been subject to the whims
and chimeras of illiberal men, and to threats, to vexatious
prosecutions and lawsuits.
Our government professes to have no power to help us, or to redress
the wrongs which we have suffered; and we now ask the government
to protect us while raising our volunteers. And when we get into
Oregon we will protect ourselves and all others who wish our
protection. And after subduing a new country, encountering all
its difficulties and hardships, and sustaining the just claims
of our nation to its soil, we believe that the generosity of
our government towards us will be equal to our enterprise and
patriotism; and that they will allow us a grant or territory of
land, which will be both honorable to them and satisfactory to us.
This, he says, is all very just and reasonable. But still he thinks
that Congress will take no step in relation to Oregon, from the
fact that his resolution requesting the President of the United
States to give notice to the British Government for the abolition
of the treaty of joint occupation was voted down; and while that
treaty is in force, our government dare do nothing in relation to
that country. This resolution was introduced by Mr. Semple to pave
the way for the passage of those bills in relation to a territorial
government in Oregon.
All our members [Illinois delegation] join in the acknowledgment
that you now have an undoubted right to go to Oregon with all the
emigrants you can raise. They say the existing laws protect you as
much as law can protect you; and should Congress pass an additional
law, it would not prevent wicked men from shooting you down as they
did in Missouri. All the Oregon men in Congress would be glad we
would go to that country and settle it.
I will now give you my opinion in relation to this matter. It
is made up from the spirit of the times in a hasty manner,
nevertheless I think time will prove it to be correct:--That
Congress will pass no act in relation to Texas or Oregon at
present. She is afraid of England, afraid of Mexico, afraid the
Presidential election will be twisted by it. The members all appear
like unskillful players at checkers--afraid to move, for they see
not which way to move advantageously. All are figuring and play
round the grand and important questions. In the days of our Lord
the people neglected the weightier matters of the law, but tithed
mint, rue, anise and cumin; but I think here in Washington they do
little else than tithe the _mint_.
A member of Congress is in no enviable situation; if he will
boldly advocate true principles, he loses his influence and
becomes unpopular; {372} and whoever is committed and has lost his
influence has no power to benefit his constituents, so that all go
to figuring and playing around the great points.
Mr. Semple said that Mr. Smith could not constitutionally be
constituted a member of the army by law; and this, if nothing
else, would prevent its passage. I observed that I would in that
case strike out that clause. Perhaps I took an unwarrantable
responsibility upon myself; but where I get into a straight place I
can do no better than act according to what appears most correct.
I do not intend the opinion that I have hastily given shall abate
my zeal to drive the matter through, but I have given the opinion
for your benefit that your indulgence of the hope that Congress
will do something for us may not cause you to delay any important
action.
There is already a government established in Oregon to some extent;
magistrates have been chosen by the people, &c. This is on the
south of the Columbia. North of that river the Hudson Bay Company
occupy. There is some good country in Oregon, but a great deal of
sandy, barren desert. I have seen a gentleman who has been there,
and also in California.
The most of the settlers in Oregon and Texas are our old enemies,
the mobocrats of Missouri. If, however, the settlement of Oregon
and Texas be determined upon, the sooner the move is made the
better; and I would not advise any delay for the action of our
government, for there is such jealousy of our rising power already,
that government will do nothing to favor us. If the Saints possess
the kingdom I think they will have to take it; and the sooner it is
done the more easily it is accomplished.
Your superior wisdom must determine whether to go to Oregon, to
Texas, or to remain within these United States, and send forth
the most efficient men to build up churches, and let them remain
the time being; and in the meantime send some wise men among the
Indians, and teach them civilization and religion, to cultivate
the soil, to live in peace with one another and with all men. But
whatever you do, don't be deluded with the hope that government
will foster us and thus delay an action for which the present
perhaps is the most proper time that ever will be.
Oregon is becoming a popular question: the fever of emigration
begins to rage. If the Mormons become the early majority, others
will not come; if the Mormons do not become the early majority, the
others will not allow us to come.
Elder Pratt is faithful, useful and true; he has got the run of
matters here very well, and is with me in all my deliberations,
visitings, &c.
Major Semple goes with us this evening to introduce us to the
President and to view the White House.
{373} My heart and hand are with you. May heaven bless you and me.
As ever, I am
ORSON HYDE.
To the Council of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Also the following letter:
_Letter: Orson Hyde's Second Letter from Washington Anent the
Western Movement of the Church--the Probable Route_.
WASHINGTON, April 26, 1844.
DEAR SIR:--Today I trouble you with another communication, which
you will please have the goodness to lay before our council.
We were last evening introduced to the President at the White
House by the politeness of Major Semple, where we spent an hour
very agreeably. The President is a very plain, homespun, familiar,
farmer-like man. He spoke of our troubles in Missouri, and
regretted that we had met with such treatment. He asked us how we
were getting along in Illinois. I told him that we were contending
with the difficulties of a new country, and laboring under
disadvantageous consequences of being driven from our property and
homes in Missouri.
We have this day had a long conversation with Judge Douglas. He
is ripe for Oregon and the California. He said he would resign
his seat in Congress if he could command the force that Mr. Smith
could, and would be on the march to the country in a month.
I learn that the eyes of many aspiring politicians in this place
are upon that country, and that there is so much jealousy between
them that they will probably pass no bill in relation to it.
Now all these politicians rely upon the arm of the government
to protect them there; and if government were to pass an act
establishing a Territorial Government west of the Rocky Mountains
there would be at once a tremendous rush of emigration; but if
government pass no act in relation to it, these men have not
stamina or sufficient confidence in themselves and their own
resources to hazard the enterprise.
The Northern Whig members are almost to a man against Texas and
Oregon; but should the present administration succeed in annexing
Texas, then all the Whigs would turn around in favor of Oregon;
for if Texas be admitted slavery is extended to the South; then
free states must be added to the West to keep up a balance of power
between the slave and the free states.
Should Texas be admitted, war with Mexico is looked upon as
inevitable. The Senate have been in secret session on the
ratification of the treaty of annexation; but what they did we
cannot say. General Gaines who was boarding at the same house with
Judge Douglas, was secretly {374} ordered to repair to the Texan
frontier four days ago, and left immediately. I asked Judge Douglas
if that did not speak loud for annexation. He says no. Santa Anna,
being a jealous, hot-headed pate, might be suspicious the treaty
would be ratified by the Senate, and upon mere suspicion might
attempt some hostilities, and Gaines has been ordered there to be
on the alert and ready for action, if necessary. Probably our navy
will in a few days be mostly in the Gulf of Mexico.
There are many powerful checks upon our government, preventing her
from moving in any of these important matters; and for aught I know
these checks are permitted to prevent our government from extending
her jurisdiction over the territory which God designs to give to
His Saints. Judge Douglas says he would equally as soon go to that
country without an act of Congress as with; "and that in five years
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." He is
decidedly of the opinion that Congress will pass no act in favor of
any particular man going there; but he says if any man will go and
desires that privilege, and has confidence in his own ability to
perform it, he already has the right, and the sooner he is off the
better for his scheme.
It is the opinion here among politicians that it will be extremely
difficult to have any bill pass in relation to the encouragement of
emigration to Oregon; but much more difficult to get a bill passed
designating any particular man to go. But all concur in the opinion
that we are authorized already.
In case of a removal to that country, Nauvoo is the place of
general rendezvous. Our course from thence would be westward
through Iowa bearing a little north until we came to the Missouri
River, leaving the state of Missouri on the left, thence onward,
until we came to the Platte, thence up the north fork of the Platte
to the mouth of the Sweetwater river in longitude 107 degree, 45
W.; and thence up said Sweetwater river to the South Pass of the
Rocky Mountains, about eleven hundred miles from Nauvoo; and from
said South Pass, in latitude 42 degrees 28 north, to the Umpqua and
Klamet valleys in Oregon, bordering on California, is about six
hundred miles, making the distance from Nauvoo to the best portions
of Oregon one thousand seven hundred miles.
There is no government established there; and it is so near
California that when a government shall be established there, it
may readily embrace that country likewise. There is much barren
country, rocks and mountains in Oregon; but the valleys are very
fertile. I am persuaded that Congress will pass no act in relation
to that country, from the fact that the resolution requesting
the President to give notice to the British Government for the
discontinuance of the treaty of joint {375} occupation of Oregon
was voted down with a rush; and this notice must be given before
any action can be had unless Congress violates the treaty; at least
so say the politicians here.
Judge Douglas has given me a map of Oregon, and also a report on an
exploration of the country lying between the Missouri river and the
Rocky Mountains on the line of the Kansas and great Platte rivers,
by Lieut. J. C. Fremont, of the corps of Topographical Engineers.
On receiving it I expressed a wish that Mr. Smith could see it.
Judge Douglas says "It is a public document, and I will frank it
to him." I accepted his offer, and the book will be forthcoming to
you. The people are so eager for it here that they have even stolen
it out of the library. The author is Mr. Benton's son-in-law. [3]
Judge Douglas borrowed it of Mr. Benton. I was not to tell any one
in this city where I got it. The book is a most valuable document
to any one contemplating a journey to Oregon. The directions
which I have given may not be exactly correct, but the book will
tell correctly. Judge Douglas says he can direct Mr. Smith to
several gentlemen in California who will be able to give him any
information on the state of affairs in that country: and when he
returns to Illinois, he will visit Mr. Smith.
Brother Pratt and myself drafted a bill this morning, and handed
it into the committee on the judiciary from the Senate, asking
an appropriation of two million dollars for the relief of the
sufferers among our people in Missouri in 1836-9, to be deposited
in the hands of the City Council of Nauvoo, and by them dealt out
to the sufferers in proportion to their loss. We intend to tease
them until we either provoke them or get them to do something
for us. I have learned this much--that if we want Congress to do
anything for us in drawing up our memorial, we must not ask what
is right in the matter, but we must ask what kind of a thing will
Congress pass? Will it suit the politics of the majority? Will
it be popular or unpopular? For you might as well drive a musket
ball through a cotton bag, or the Gospel of Christ through the
heart of a priest, case-hardened by sectarianism, bigotry and
superstition, or a camel through the eye of a needle, as to drive
anything through Congress that will operate against the popularity
of politicians.
I shall probably leave here in a few days, and Brother Pratt will
remain. I go to get money to sustain ourselves with.
I shall write again soon, and let you know what restrictions, if
any, are laid upon our citizens in relation to passing through the
Indian Territories. I shall communicate everything I think will
benefit. In the meantime, if the council have any instructions to
give us, we shall be happy to receive them here or at Philadelphia.
John Ross is here; we intend to see him. It is uncertain when
Congress {376} rises. It will be a long pull, in my opinion. As
ever, I am, yours sincerely,
ORSON HYDE.
P.S.--Elder Pratt's best respects to the brethren.
Willard Richards was instructed to answer the above letters, and Elders
Lyman Wight and Heber C. Kimball were instructed to carry the answers.
Council adjourned at 6 p.m.
The steamer _Maid of Iowa_ returned from Rock River with four hundred
bushels of corn, and two hundred bushels of wheat, which had been
purchased for the Temple. At 8 p.m. I went on board with Dr. Willard
Richards, and visited Captain Dan Jones.
I insert a letter which I received from Henry Clay:
_Letter: Henry Clay to the Prophet_.
ASHLAND, November 15, 1843.
DEAR SIR.--I have received your letter in behalf of the Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, stating that you understand that
I am a candidate for the presidency, and inquiring what will be my
rule of action relative to you as a people should I be elected.
I am profoundly grateful for the numerous and strong expressions of
the people in my behalf as a candidate for president of the United
States; but I do not so consider myself. That must depend upon
future events and upon my sense of duty.
Should I be a candidate, I can enter into no engagements, make no
promises, give no pledge to any particular portion of the people of
the United States. If I ever enter into that high office I must go
into it free and unfettered, with no guarantees but such as are to
be drawn from my whole life, character and conduct.
It is not inconsistent with this declaration to say that I have
viewed with lively interest the progress of the Latter-day Saints;
that I have sympathized in their sufferings under injustice, as it
appeared to me, which have been inflicted upon them; and I think,
in common with other religious communities, they ought to enjoy the
security and protection of the Constitution and the laws.
I am, with great respect, your friend and obedient servant,
H. CLAY.
To Joseph Smith, Esq.
_The Prophet's Answer to Clay's Letter_.
[Under the date of the Journal's entry here being followed, May
13, {377} 1844, President Smith sent a reply to the above eminent
statesman's letter, taking him severely to task for his evident
desire to be non-committal with reference to the problem presented
by the wrongs which had been inflicted upon the Latter-day Saints
by Missouri. Vexed by remembrance of the cruelty and injustice
endured by the Saints in Missouri and the general indifference
to their suffering among public men, the letter was written in a
caustic and, at times, vehement vein.]
I instructed Thomas Bullock to take charge of the books of the_ Maid of
Iowa_ and go on board as clerk.
_Tuesday, 14.--_Rode out about 7 a.m. The _Maid of Iowa_ started for
St. Louis at 8:30 a.m.
This afternoon, Mr. Reid, my old lawyer [4] gave a lecture on the
stand, relating the history of some of my first persecutions. I spoke
after he closed, and continued my history to the present time, relating
some of the doings of the apostates in Nauvoo.
At 4 p.m. prayer meeting; few present. Prayed for Elder Woodworth's
daughter, who was sick. Elder Lyman Wight was present.
_Wednesday, 15.--_At home; much rain through the day; river rising
rapidly. Mr. Adams, son of John Quincy Adams, with Dr. Goforth, called
to see me at the Mansion.
At 5 p.m. went to my office, and heard my letter to Mr. Clay read. At 7
p.m. rode to the upper landing with Mr. Adams.
I insert the following from the _Times and Seasons_:
STATUS OF AFFAIRS AT NAUVOO.
We take pleasure in announcing to the Saints abroad that Nauvoo
continues to flourish, and the little one has become a thousand.
Quite a number of splendid houses are being erected, and the Temple
is rapidly progressing, insomuch that there is one universal
expectation that before next winter closes in upon us the cap-stone
will have been raised and the building enclosed.
The Saints continue to flock together from all parts of the
widespread continent and from the islands of the sea. Three ship's
companies {378} have arrived this spring from England, and are now
rejoicing in the truths of the everlasting Gospel.
The Prophet is in good health and spirits, and unwearied in his
anxiety and labors to instruct the Saints in the things of God and
the mysteries of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ. Indeed we may truly
say that those who come to scoff remain to pray.
Many have come here filled with prejudice and strange
anticipations, but have been convinced that report with her
thousand tongues is false, and have almost invariably left a
testimony behind them. Instead of finding Mr. Smith the cunning,
crafty, and illiterate character that he had been represented
to be, they have found in him the gentleman and scholar--open,
generous, and brave.
But it is his immediate connections and associates alone that can
appreciate his virtues and his talents. While his face is set as
a flint against iniquity from every quarter, the cries of the
oppressed ever reach his heart, and his hand is ever ready to
alleviate the sufferings of the needy.
A few heartless villains can always be found who are watching for
his downfall or death; but the Lord has generally caused them to
fall into their own pit, and no weapon formed against him has
prospered. One or two disaffected individuals have made an attempt
to spread dissension; but it is like a tale that is nearly told,
and will soon be forgotten.
It was first represented as a monster calculated to spread
desolation around; but we are credibly informed by a person who
attended their first meeting, that there was much difficulty
in raising a committee of seven, for there was some objection
to Father--; but as none could be found to fill the vacuum, he
constituted one of the seven _stars_!
It will be unnecessary for us to say much about those luminaries
of the last days, as they shine forth in their true colors in our
columns this week in the trial of President Smith. But to say
anything by way of warning to the brethren abroad would resemble
the "ocean into tempest tossed, to waft a feather or drown a fly."
"By their fruits ye shall know them. Do men gather grapes of thorns
or figs of thistles?"
The glad tidings of salvation and the fullness of the Gospel are
fast spreading from city to city and from nation to nation. The
little stone will still increase till the knowledge of God covers
the earth and righteousness and truth extend from pole to pole.
I copy from the _Neighbor_:
WITHDRAWAL OF WILLIAM SMITH AS CANDIDATE FOR THE LEGISLATURE.
_To the Friends and Voters of Hancock County:_ Elder William Smith
(late representative) wishes to say to the friends and voters {379}
of Hancock county, that in consequence of the sickness of his
family, now in the hands of a doctor in the city of Philadelphia,
he relinquishes the idea of offering himself as a candidate for a
seat in the next Legislature of Illinois; but, as a matter of the
highest consideration, would recommend his brother Hyrum Smith as a
suitable and capable person to fill that office and worthy of the
people's confidence and votes.
We know of no person that would be more qualified to fill his
station than General Hyrum Smith (his, William's, brother). We
are not informed whether the General will accept of the office or
not. If he will, we don't know of any gentleman in Hancock county
who would be more competent. General Smith is a man of sterling
integrity, deep penetration and brilliant talents. He is well
versed in politics and as unchangeable as the everlasting hills. He
is a man of probity and virtue, and an unwavering patriot.
If General Hyrum Smith will allow his name to be brought forth, we
go it for him; and we know from the confidence and respect that
are entertained for him as a gentleman and a patriot, he will be
elected. What say you, General?
_Thursday, 16.--_Went to my office at 8 a.m., and heard a letter
written by Elder Willard Richards, in behalf of the council to Elders
Orson Hyde and Orson Pratt at Washington.
I ordered the Municipal Court to meet at one p.m. and spent the morning
in reading.
_Session of Municipal Court--Case of Jeremiah Smith_.
At one p.m. I presided in Municipal Court. The case of Jeremiah
Smith, Sen., who had been arrested by Jones on the charge of
procuring money under false pretenses, came up on _habeas corpus_.
The complainant, T. B. Johnson, by his counsel, Chauncey L. Higbee,
asked for and obtained an adjournment for one week in order to
procure witnesses. The petitioner by his counsel, George P. Stiles,
objected to the plea, supposing the prosecuting party always ready
for a trial. The court decided that it was an important case, and
it was not best to be in haste; and if the prisoner is discharged
on the merits of the case after a full investigation, he goes
free forever. The majority of the court decided to adjourn until
Thursday next.
I was about home the rest of the day and read in the {380} _Neighbor_
the report of the trial in the Municipal Court on the 8th inst.
The following appears in the _Times and Seasons_:
LETTER: WILLIAM CLAYTON DESCRIBING THE FARCICAL PROCEEDINGS OF THE
COURT AT DIXON IN THE CASE OF JOSEPH SMITH VS. JOSEPH H. REYNOLDS
OF MISSOURI AND HARMON T. WILSON.
DEAR SIR.--I have just returned from the north part of this state,
where I have been on business for our beloved President Joseph
Smith; and it feels so good to breathe the pure air of liberty and
friendship after spending some three or four days in a swamp, or
rather a slough of religious prejudice and political hypocrisy,
which are equally nauseous and offensive, that I cannot let this
opportunity pass without giving vent to some of my feelings in
regard to what passed while I remained at Dixon, on Rock River.
My principle business was to appear in the Lee county Circuit Court
as a witness in the case of Joseph Smith, _vs_. Joseph H. Reynolds
and Harmon T. Wilson, for false imprisonment and using unnecessary
force and violence in arresting the plaintiff.
A plea had been entered in this suit by this counsel for the
defendants, to which the counsel for the plaintiff demurred. The
demurrer was argued on Wednesday morning, the 8th inst., and the
parties finally joined issue on the charge of using unnecessary
force and violence; and the court gave permission, by consent of
the bar, to proceed with the trial, but the counsel not being fully
prepared, it was laid over until the following morning, the 9th
inst.
On Thursday morning, after the usual preliminaries of opening
court, the above case was called up for trial, and the clerk
ordered to impanel a jury; and here, sir, a scene took place which
ought to make every honest American citizen blush and weep for the
credit and honor of his country and laws. A number of men were
called up, and when questioned as to whether they had previously
expressed opinions in relation to the suit now pending, nearly
the whole answered in the affirmative. The further question was
then put as to whether they had any prejudice against either of
the parties; to which a great majority replied they had against
Smith. They were then questioned as to what their prejudice had
reference--his religious sentiments, or general course of conduct.
The greater part replied, to his religious sentiments; and the
remainder said they were opposed to his general course of conduct.
{381} About twenty men had to be called upon, one after another,
out of the number the court finally selected twelve as competent
jurors though the majority of these decidedly expressed their
feelings of prejudice against the plaintiff. They were, however,
accepted on the ground that they said they thought they could do
justice to both parties, although some of them expressed a doubt
whether they could do justice or not.
The jury being sworn, the court, or rather the counsel, proceeded
to examine the witnesses on the part of the plaintiff, which
occupied nearly the whole day. But little of the real matter of
fact could be set before the court on account of their being
confined to the charge of unnecessary force and violence; but this
was proven in the clearest point of light.
I must refer to the testimony of old Mr. Dixon, whose silvery
locks seem to tell an age of many years. His evidence related to
the circumstance of the Missouri sheriff refusing for a length of
time to give the plaintiff the privilege of_ habeas corpus_, and
threatening to drag him to Missouri in fifteen minutes from the
time they arrived at Dixon. The old gentleman seemed to tremble
with indignation while relating the simple facts as they transpired
at the time; and, like a true lover of his country, appeared proud
of the privilege of telling those men that the citizens of Dixon
would not suffer themselves to be disgraced by permitting them to
drag away a citizen of this state to a foreign state for trial
without the privilege of a trial by _habeas corpus_--a privilege
which is guaranteed to every individual under like circumstances,
and especially when it was understood that he was to be dragged
to Missouri, amongst a people whose hands are yet dripping with
the blood of murdered innocence, and who thirst for the blood of
General Joseph Smith as the howling wolf thirsts for his prey.
Surely such a picture would melt the heart of anything but an
adamantine. There are those, and men too who profess to be the
followers of the Lord Jesus Christ, who can hear such things and
still wish the Missourians had got General Smith to Missouri to
murder him without judge or jury, and surely they are no better
than murderers themselves, and only lack the opportunity to make
them shedders of innocent blood.
After the evidence was through on the part of the plaintiff, the
witness for the defense was examined, which only occupied a few
minutes. The arguments were then advanced on both sides, during
which time I could not help noticing how apt the respectable
gentleman of the opposite counsel was to sing the song of "old Joe
Smith," &c., which might appear very gentlemanly in his mind, but
to me it seemed as contemptible as the voice of a stupid ass, or
the tongue of slander.
Finally the case was submitted to the jury, who were charged by the
court, and then ordered to retire and bring in a sealed verdict the
following {382} morning at nine o'clock. Friday morning came and
with it the verdict, and it proved to be in favor of the plaintiff
and against the defendants for forty dollars and costs of suit.
I confess I was astonished when I heard it, and could not help
thinking that prejudice sometimes overrules justice even in the
jury box. I could not help comparing the results of this trial
with one which came off the day previous, wherein a certain person
complained of another for destroying his cow by setting his dogs
on the animal until they worried her. It appeared the cow of the
plaintiff had seen fit to break into the defendant's lot without
asking leave, and the defendant, or rather his men, not liking such
treatment, set the dogs on her and destroyed her. Well, the result
of this trial was a verdict of damages for the plaintiff of thirty
dollars and costs!
Now, sir, compare the two cases. On the one hand here is a citizen
of the United States near two hundred miles from his home and his
friends; he is on a visit with his family, not dreaming of danger
or difficulty. Two men--or rather wolves in sheep's clothing--for
it is a fact that when Wilson and Reynolds made inquiry for General
Smith at Dixon at the time of the arrest, they said they were
"Mormon Elders," and wanted to see President Smith, &c.--two men, I
say, while he is thus enjoying himself with his family, came upon
him with each a loaded pistol in his hand, and threatened to shoot
him dead if he offered the least resistance, although no resistance
had been offered. They then began to haul him about; and when he
asked them what they wanted with him, and what was their authority,
they replied they were going to take him to Missouri; and jamming
their pistols at his side, swore that was their authority. He
requested them to let him go into the house to bid his family
good-by; but this they positively refused, not even giving him the
privilege to get his hat. They then forced him into the wagon and
placing themselves one on each side, with a loaded pistol pressed
close against his side, and repeatedly striking him with them,
so as to make him lame and sore for two weeks afterwards, they
drove him to Dixon, and ordered horses ready in fifteen minutes
to drag him among his murderers, and otherwise abused, insulted,
threatened, and treated him in the cruelest manner possible,
filling his family with the most excruciating pangs, and rending
the heart of his beloved companion with grief to witness their
ferocious cruelty, not knowing but his life would be sacrificed
before morning; and finally pursued their persecutions until it
cost him from $3,500 to $5,000 expenses; and all this without a
cause; and when he sues for justice against these men he obtains
damages to the amount of forty dollars!
On the other hand, a man loses a cow which had broke into his
neighbor's lot, and he obtained damages to the amount of thirty
dollars.
{383} Now, sir, if this is not the effects of prejudice amounting
to oppression, then I am no judge of right and wrong. I am very
much inclined to think that if General Joseph Smith or any of his
friends had treated any citizen of this state or any other state
in the manner he was treated by these men, and they had sued for
damages as he did, the case would have terminated very differently.
However, so it is.
The idea of a man yielding to such a degree of prejudice as to
render him incapable of executing justice between man and man,
merely from rumor and report, is to me perfectly ridiculous and
contemptible, as well as wicked and unjust. And when a man is all
the day long boasting of the rights and privileges guaranteed to
every citizen of the United States under the Constitution and laws,
and at the same time is so prejudiced against one of the most
peaceable citizens that he does not know whether he can render
him justice in a court of equity, but would rather strengthen the
hands of mobocrats and law-breakers, the inference that one must
naturally draw is that such a man is a consummate scoundrel and
hypocrite, or that he is guilty of the most flagrant violation
of the most sacred constitutional principles embraced in the
fundamental doctrines of this republic. I am happy, sir, to have
evidence daily that no such corrupt prejudice exists in the heart
of General Joseph Smith, nor in the community, so far as I have
been able to discover.
Now, as to the exceptions these men have taken in regard to General
Smith's religious views or general course of conduct, it matters
not much. His religious views are his inalienable right, and are
nobody's business; and the man who cannot render him justice on
that account is a wilful violator of the laws he professes to
admire; and, sir, I have for more than two years last past been
a close observer of General Smith's general course of conduct,
as well as his private life; and justice to him, to myself,
and the community at large, compels me to say that, in all my
intercourse with men, I never associated with a more honorable,
upright, charitable, benevolent, and law-abiding man than is the
much persecuted General Smith; and, sir, when I hear men speak
reproachfully of him, I never ask for a second evidence of their
corruptness and baseness. General Smith, sir, is a man of God, a
man of truth, and a lover of his country; and never did I hear him
breathe out curses or raillery at any man because he saw fit to
differ in religious matters. Shame on the principle--shame on the
man or set of men who show themselves so degraded and miserably
corrupt.
The last night of our stay at Dixon, I had the privilege of
speaking on the principles of my religion to a number of
individuals in a kind of argument with two men; and, sir, although
it is near some four years since I have made a practice of
preaching, it felt as sweet as ever. Truth to an honest heart is
sweet, but to a wicked man is like a piercing {384} sword, as was
manifest on that occasion; for although the principles of the
Gospel were laid down so plain and clear that it was impossible to
misunderstand, yet the opposing party repeatedly misconstrued my
language, and even his own admission.
I cannot persuade myself that the prejudice referred to above is a
general thing. There are many honorable exceptions, and I presume
if the Mormons had signified their intentions of supporting the
Democratic candidate for the presidency at the ensuing election,
instead of nominating an independent candidate of their own choice,
their prejudice would not have been so great at the trial of
Reynolds and Wilson, and perhaps General Smith would have obtained
a judgment somewhat equivalent to the injuries he sustained from
that unholy prosecution. But the Mormon people are too noble-minded
to be bought or biased by fear or favor, and have been too often
deceived by the plausible pretensions of demagogues to put trust in
any but tried friends. General Smith has ever been an undeviating
friend, not only to this community, but to the oppressed of every
name or society, and we consider him as competent and qualified for
the highest office of the United States as any other man, and a
little more so; and a great deal more worthy of it.
In conclusion, let me say that whatever others may say, I consider,
it an honor to be associated with such a man as General Joseph
Smith, and all true followers of the Lord Jesus Christ; and the
more wicked men despise and misrepresent the principles and conduct
of President Smith, the more I love him and delight in his society;
and this I can do without prejudice or animosity against any man or
set of men. I believe in the broad principle of equal rights and
privileges, so far as religion or politics are concerned; and while
I seek to enjoy my religion according to the knowledge in me, I
will interfere with the rights of no man, nor persecute because my
neighbor does not think as I do.
A multitude of business compels me to close, and I must forbear. I
have the honor to be your brother in the everlasting covenant.
WILLIAM CLAYTON.
NAUVOO, May 16, 1844.
From the _Neighbor_:--
STEAMBOAT ELECTION.
On the last upward voyage of the _Osprey_ from St. Louis to this
place as usual, the merits of the several candidates for the next
Presidential election were discussed. A vote was taken, and the
following was the {385} state of the polls as handed to us by a
gentleman who came as passenger:--
General Joseph Smith, 26 gentlemen, 3 ladies.
Henry Clay, 6 gentlemen, 2 ladies.
Van Buren, 2 gentlemen, 0 ladies.
The ladies are altogether forsaking Van Buren, and the gentlemen
as a matter of course are following after. There is a wonderful
shrinkage Henry Clay, but the General is going it with a rush.
_Hurrah for the General_!
Footnotes:
1. This was Illinois' senior Senator at the time.
2. The reason for this reference to Missouri and of possible difficulty
arising from the Saints going to Oregon without a guarantee of
protection from the general government grew out of the fact that nearly
all the early settlers of the Oregon territory were from Missouri. Even
in this month of May, 1844, Cornelius Gilliam, the inveterate enemy
of the Saints, and who took so prominent a part in the troubles about
Far West, was collecting a large company at Independence, Missouri,
numbering over three hundred persons, to start for Oregon that season;
and all along the Oregon route on the south side of the Platte river,
the road was thronged during the next several years by emigrants, very
many of whom, and for some time the most of whom, were from Missouri_.
(See Western Missouri Expositor,_ May 18 1844. Also Bancroft's _Oregon_
Vol. I, page 449,_ Passim_).
3. This was John C. Fremont.
4. For the part taken by Mr. Reid in defending the Prophet in those
early experiences, See this HISTORY Vol. I, pp. 89-96 and _note_ p. 94
_et seq_.
{386}
CHAPTER XVII.
THE STATE PRESIDENTIAL CONVENTION AT NAUVOO--THE STATES
REPRESENTED--SPEECH OF JOHN S. REID, ESQ.--EARLY DAYS WITH THE PROPHET.
_Friday, May 17, 1844.--_The State Convention met in the assembly room.
I copy the minutes.
_State Convention at Nauvoo_.
Convention met according to appointment, and was organized
by appointing General Uriah Brown to the chair, and Dr. F.
Merryweather secretary.
Dr. G. W. Goforth presented the following letter, and took his
seat in the convention. Several letters of the same character were
presented by other gentlemen, but we have not room to insert them.
MUSCOUTAH, ST. CLAIR COUNTY, ILL., May 4th, 1844.
_Mr. G. W. Goforth_:
Sir,--At various meetings held in this county, where I had the
honor of attending, and the interesting topic of the selection of
a suitable person for the high station of President of the United
States being at this time the most important to Americans, and with
the names that are now before the people, Joseph Smith of Nauvoo
is recognized respectfully as a candidate, declarative in the
principles of Jeffersonianism, or Jefferson democracy, free trade,
and sailor's rights, and the protection of person and property.
A convention being about to be held in the City of Nauvoo on the
17th of this month (May), your name has been on every occasion
given as a delegate to said convention, and through me the message
to be imparted you, asking you to represent our expressions in the
case.
Please say for us, as Americans, that we will support General
Joseph Smith in preference to any other man that has given, or
suffered his name to come before us as a candidate. And at the
great Baltimore Convention, to be held on the 13th of July, our
delegation to said convention be authorized to proclaim for us
submission to the nominee as may be by them brought before the
people, in case of a failure to {387} nominate Joseph Smith (our
choice), and unite approbatively for his support.
Respectfully, sir, this communication and authority usward is
forwarded you as your voucher at said convention, with our hearty
prayers for the success of him whose special name is given in the
important affairs.
HENRY B. JACOBS.
Agent for the friends of General Joseph Smith.
Mr. Clay's letter to General Joseph Smith was then read by Mr.
Phelps, and also General Joseph Smith's rejoinder, which was
applauded by three cheers.
It was moved and seconded that the following gentlemen be appointed
a committee to draft resolutions for the adoption of this
convention:--
Dr. G. W. Goforth, John Taylor, Wm. W. Phelps, William Smith, and
Lucian R. Foster.
It was moved and seconded that he correspondence of the Central
Committee for Government Reform of New York be read by W. W.
Phelps, also General Joseph Smith's answer to the same.
NEW YORK, April 20, 1844.
_Joseph Smith, Esq_.,
SIR,--The subscribers, the Central Committee of the National
Reform Association, in accordance with a duty prescribed by their
constitution, respectively solicit an expression of your views as
a candidate for public office, on a subject that, as they think,
vitally affects the rights and interests of their constituents.
We see this singular condition of affairs, and while wealth in
our country is rapidly accumulating, while internal improvements
of every description are fast increasing, and while machinery has
multiplied the power of production to an immense extent, yet with
all these national advantages, the compensation for useful labor is
getting less and less.
We seek the cause of this anomaly, and we trace it to the monopoly
of the land, which places labor at the mercy of capital. We
therefore desire to abolish the monopoly, not by interfering with
the conventional fights of persons now in possession of the land,
but by arresting the further sale of all lands not yet appropriated
as private property, and by allowing these lands hereafter to be
freely occupied by those who may choose to settle on them.
We propose that the public lands hereafter shall not be owned, but
occupied only, the occupant having the right to sell or otherwise
dispose of improvements to any one not in possession of other land;
so that, by preventing any individual from becoming possessed of
more than a limited quantity, every one may enjoy the right.
This measure, we think, would gradually establish an equilibrium
{388} between the agricultural and other useful occupations, that
would ensure to all full employment and fair compensation for their
labor, on the lands now held as private property, and to each
individual on the public lands the right to work for himself on his
own premises, or for another, at his option.
An answer, as soon as convenient, will much oblige your
fellow-citizens.
John Windt, Egbert S. Manning, James Maxwell, Lewis Masquerier,
Daniel Witter, Geore H. Evans, Ellis Smalley.
NAUVOO, ILL., May 16th, 1844.
_To John Windt, Egbert S. Manning, James Maxwell, Lewis Masquerier,
Daniel Witter, George H. Evans, and Ellis Smalley, Esqrs_.
GENTLEMEN:--
Your communication of April 20th, soliciting my views relative
to the public lands, is before me; and I answer, that as soon as
the greater national evils could be remedied by the consolidated
efforts of a virtuous people and the judicious legislation of wise
men, so that slavery could not occupy one-half of the United States
for speculation, competition, prodigality, and fleshy capital, and
so that enormous salaries, stipends, fees, perquisites, patronage,
and the wages of spiritual wickedness in ermine and lace could not
swallow up forty or fifty millions of public revenue, I would use
all honorable means to bring the wages of mechanics and farmers
up, and salaries of public servants down, increase labor and money
by a judicious tariff, and advise the people--who are only the
sovereigns of the soil--to petition Congress to pass a uniform land
law! that the air, the water, and the land, of the asylum of the
oppressed, might be free to free men!
With consideration of the highest regard for unadulterated freedom
I have the honor to be your obedient servant.
JOSEPH SMITH.
After which, the meeting adjourned for one hour.
It was moved and seconded that the following gentlemen be
constituted a committee to appoint electors for this State:--
Dr. G. W. Goforth, L. Robinson, L. N. Scoville, Peter Hawes, and
John S. Reid.
It was moved and seconded that the following gentlemen be
constituted a central committee of correspondence, having power to
increase their number:--
{389} Dr. Willard Richards, Dr. J. M. Bernhisel, W. W. Phelps, and
Lucian R. Foster.
The following delegates from the different states of the Union were
then received by vote:--
It was moved, seconded, and carried by acclamation, that General
Joseph Smith, of Illinois, be the choice of this convention for
President of the United States.
It was moved, seconded, and carried by acclamation, that Sidney
Rigdon, Esq., of Pennsylvania, be the choice of the Convention for
Vice-President of the United States.
The nine following resolutions were then adopted, the fifth of
which was carried by acclamation.
_Resolutions_.
1._ Resolved,_ that from all the facts and appearances that are now
{391} visible in the United States, we believe that much imbecility
and fraud is practiced by the officers of Government; and that to
remedy these evils it is highly necessary that a virtuous people
should arise in the panoply of their might, and with one heart and
one mind correct these abuses by electing wise and honorable men to
fill the various offices of Government.
2. _Resolved,_ that as union is power, the permanency and
continuance of our political institutions depend upon the
correction of the abuses.
3. _Resolved,_ that as all political parties of the present day
have degraded themselves by adhering more or less to corrupt
principles and practices, by fomenting discord and division among
the people, being swallowed in the vortex of party spirit and
sectional prejudices, until they have become insensible to the
welfare of the people and the general good of the country; and
knowing that there are good men among all parties, in whose bosoms
burn the fire of pure patriotism, we invite they, by the love of
liberty, by the sacred honor of freemen, by the patriotism of
the illustrious fathers of our freedom, by the glorious love of
country, and by the holy principles of '76, to come over and help
us to reform the Government.
4. _Resolved,_ that to redress all wrongs, the government of the
United States, with the President at its head, is as powerful in
its sphere as Jehovah is in His.
5. _Resolved,_ that the better to carry out the principles of
liberty and equal rights, Jeffersonian democracy, free trade, and
sailor's rights, and the protection of person and property, we will
support General Joseph Smith, of Illinois, for the President of the
United States at the ensuing election.
6._ Resolved,_ that we will support Sidney Rigdon, Esq., of
Pennsylvania, for the Vice-Presidency.
7._ Resolved,_ that we will hold a National Convention at Baltimore
on Saturday, the 13th day of July.
8. _Resolved,_ that we call upon the honest men of all parties in
each state to send their delegates to said convention.
9._ Resolved,_ that all honest editors throughout the United States
are requested to publish the above resolutions.
10. _Resolved,_ that those gentlemen who stand at the head of
the list, who have gone to the several states to take charge of
our political interests, be requested to use every exertion to
appoint electors in the several electoral districts of the States
which they represent, and also to send delegates to the Baltimore
Convention.
11. _Resolved,_ that Dr. Goforth and John S. Reid, Esq., be
requested to furnish a copy of their speeches for publication.
{392} 12. _Resolved,_ that the electors be instructed to make stump
speeches in their different districts.
13. _Resolved,_ that the thanks of this meeting be given to Mr.
Hancock for his patriotic song.
It was moved and seconded that Orson Hyde, Heber C. Kimball,
David S. Hollister, Orson Pratt, and Lyman Wight represent this
convention at the convention to be held in Baltimore on the 13th of
July next.
Sidney Rigdon, Esq., then addressed the meeting, and was succeeded
by the following gentlemen:--Gen. Joseph Smith, Dr. G. W. Goforth,
Lyman Wight, W. W. Phelps, John Taylor, Hyrum Smith, and John S.
Reid, Esq.
It was moved, seconded, and carried, that the thanks of this
meeting be given to the chairman and secretary.
The Convention was addressed in an eloquent speech by Sidney
Rigdon, Esq., showing the political dishonesty of both Henry Clay
and Martin Van Buren, and stating his views, and the present
condition of the country.
Dr. Goforth rose and addressed the convention. [Dr. Goforth dealt
chiefly with the past glories of the republic, and the wrongs
suffered by the Latter-day Saints in Missouri].
_Synopsis of the Remarks of Hon. John S. Reid_. [2]
_Mr. Chairman_:
I cannot leave this subject and do justice to my own feelings and
the character of Gen. Smith, without giving a short history of the
first persecution that came upon him in the counties of Chenango
and Broome, in the State of New York, commenced by that class of
people calling themselves Christians.
The first acquaintance I had with Gen. Smith was about the year
1833. He came into my neighborhood, being then about eighteen years
of age, and resided there two years; during which time I became
intimately acquainted with him. I do know that his character was
irreproachable; that he was well known for truth and uprightness;
that he moved in the first circles of the community, and he was
often spoken of as a young man of intelligence and good morals,
and possessing a mind susceptible of the highest intellectual
attainments.
I early discovered that his mind was constantly in search of truth,
expressing an anxious desire to know the will of God concerning
His children here below, often speaking of those things which
professed Christians believe in. I have often observed to my best
informed friends {393} (those that were free from superstition
and bigotry) that I thought Joseph was predestinated by his God
from all eternity to be an instrument in the hands of the great
Dispenser of all good to do a great work. What it was I knew not.
After living in that neighborhood about three years, enjoying the
good feelings of his acquaintance as a worthy youth, he told his
particular friends that he had had a revelation from God to go to
the west about eighty miles to his father's, in which neighborhood
he should find hid in the earth an old history written on golden
plates, which would give great light and knowledge concerning
the will of God towards His people in this generation, unfolding
the destiny of all nations, kindreds and tongues. He said that
he distinctly heard the voice of him that spake. Joseph Knight,
one of the fathers of your Church, a worthy man, and my intimate
friend, went with him. When I reflect upon our former friendship,
Mr. Chairman, and upon the scenes that he had passed through in
consequence of mal-administration, mobocracy and cruelty, I feel
to lift up my voice to high heaven, and pray God to bless the aged
veteran, and that his silver locks may go down to the grave in
peace, like a shock of corn fully ripe. In a few days his friends
[Joseph Smith's] returned with the glad news that Joseph had
found the plates and had gone down to his father-in-law's for the
purpose of translating them. I believe he remained there until he
finished the translation. After the book was published, he came
to live in the neighborhood of Father Knight's, about four miles
from me, and began to preach the Gospel; and many were pricked in
their hearts, believed, and were baptized in the name of the Lord
Jesus. He soon formed a Church at Colesville; his meetings were
numerously attended, and the eyes of all people were upon him with
astonishment. Oh, Mr. Chairman, the world was turned upside down
at once, and the devil,--always ready to assist and help along in
all difficulties that arise among men--personified in some of the
religionists, began to prick up his ears and jump, and kick and
run about, like Jim Crow, calling for rotten eggs to help in the
wake. You would have thought, sir, that Gog and Magog were let
loose on the young man. He called upon the world's people (as they
are called) but got no help; he then flew about in the sectarian
churches, like lightning, and they immediately came to his aid,
and uniting their efforts, roared against him like the thunders of
Mount Sinai. When those fiery bigots were let loose, they united
in pouring the red hot vials of their wrath upon his head. Their
cry of "False Prophet! False Prophet!" was sounded from village to
village, and every foul epithet that malice and wicked ingenuity
could invent were heaped upon him. Yes, sir; the same spirit that
influenced the Presbyterians of Massachusetts about one hundred and
fifty years ago, in their persecution of the Quakers, when they
first began to preach their doctrines in that state, was fully
manifested by those religious bigots, {394} who were afraid if they
let them alone, their own doctrines would come to naught. What was
the result of the persecution in Massachusetts? Why, sir, warrants
were made out by those churches having authority, and the Quakers
were tried for heresy. But what was the result of those trials. The
sentence of death was passed upon the Quakers for heresy by those
religious fanatics, and three of them were hanged by the neck on
Bloody Hill, in Boston, to make expiation for that unpardonable
crime. "Tell it not in Gath," nor publish it not on the tops of
the mountains in this boasted land of freedom, that the Puritans
of New England, who had fled from the Old World in consequence
of religious intolerance, that they might enjoy the sweets of
liberty, so soon became persecutors themselves, and shed innocent
blood, which still cries aloud from the dust for vengeance upon
their heads. Let shame cover our faces when we mention the name of
freedom in our grand republic.
O my God! when in one portion of our country blood is flowing from
the crime of worshiping our Creator according to the dictates of
conscience, or as the Spirit directs, and in the other are great
rejoicings in consequence thereof, where, I ask, is the boasted
freedom for which our fathers fought and bled?
O Thou who holdest the destinies of all things in Thine hands
here below, return these blessings unto us, that we may keep
them as precious jewels till time is no more. But, Mr. Chairman,
I am wandering too far from the subject. I will return to the
persecutions which followed General Smith, when his cheeks
blossomed with the beauty of youth, and his eyes sparkled with
innocence.
These bigots soon made up a false accusation against him, and had
him arraigned before Joseph Chamberlain, a justice of the peace, a
man who was always ready to deal out justice to all, and a man of
great discernment of mind.
The case came up about 10 o'clock a.m. I was called upon to defend
the prisoner, the prosecutors employed the best counsel they could
get, and ransacked the town of Bainbridge and county of Chenango
for witnesses that would swear hard enough to convict the prisoner;
but they entirely failed. Yes, sir; let me say to you that not one
blemish nor spot was found against his character. He came from that
trial, notwithstanding the mighty efforts that were made to convict
him of crime by his vigilant persecutors, with his character
unstained by even the appearance of guilt.
The trial closed about twelve o'clock at night. After a few
moments' deliberation, the court pronounced the words, "Not
guilty," and the prisoner was discharged. But, alas! the devil, not
satisfied with his defeat, stirred up a man not unlike himself, who
was more fit to dwell {395} among the fiends of hell than to belong
to the human family, to go to Colesville and get another writ and
take him to Broome county for another trial. They were sure they
could send that boy to hell or to Texas, they did not care which;
and in half an hour after he was discharged by the court, he was
arrested again, and on the way to Colesville for another trial.
I was again called upon by his friends to defend him against his
malignant persecutors, and clear him from the false charges they
had preferred against him. I made every reasonable excuse I could,
as I was nearly worn down through fatigue and want of sleep, as I
had been engaged in lawsuits for two days and nearly the whole of
two nights. But I saw the persecution was great against him; and
here let me say, Mr. Chairman, singular as it may seem, while Mr.
Knight was pleading with me to go, a peculiar impression or thought
struck my mind that I must go and defend him, for he was the Lord's
anointed. I did not know what it meant, but thought I must go and
clear the Lord's anointed. I said I would go, and started with as
much faith as the Apostles had when they could remove mountains,
accompanied by Father Knight, who was like the old patriarch that
followed the ark of God to the city of David.
We rode on till we came to the house of Hezekiah Peck, where a
number of Mormon women were assembled, as I was informed, for the
purpose of praying for the deliverance of the Prophet of the Lord.
The women came out to our wagon, and Mrs. Smith among the rest.
O my God, sir, what were my feeling when I saw that woman who
had but a few days before given herself, heart and hand, to be
a consort for life, and that so soon her crimson cheeks must be
wet with tears that came streaming from her eyes! Yes, sir; it
seemed that her very heart strings would be broken with grief. My
feelings, sir, were moved with pity and sorrow for the afflicted,
and on the other hand they were wrought up to the highest pitch of
indignation against those fiends of hell who had thus caused the
innocent to suffer.
The next morning about ten o'clock, the court was organized. The
prisoner was to be tried by three justices of the peace, that his
departure out of the county might be made sure. Neither talents nor
money were wanting to ensure them success. They employed the ablest
lawyer in that county, and introduced twenty witnesses before dark,
but proved nothing.
They sent out runners and ransacked the hills and vales, grog-shops
and ditches, gathered together a company that looked as if they
had come from hell, and had been whipped by the soot-boy thereof,
which they brought forward to testify one after another, but with
no better success. Although they wrung and twisted into every
shape, in trying {396} to tell something that would criminate the
prisoner, nothing was proven against him whatever.
Having got through with the examination of their witnesses about
two o'clock in the morning, the case was argued about two hours.
There was not one particle of testimony against the prisoner. No,
sir; he came out like the three children from the fiery furnace,
without the smell of fire upon his garments.
The court deliberated upon the case for half an hour with closed
doors, and then we were called in. The court arraigned the prisoner
and said--"Mr. Smith, we have had your case under consideration,
examined the testimony, and find nothing to condemn you; and
therefore you are discharged."
They then proceeded to reprimand him severely--not because anything
derogatory to his character in any shape had been proven against
him by the host of witnesses that had testified during the trial,
but merely to please those fiends in human shape who were engaged
in the unhallowed persecution of an innocent man, sheerly on
account of his religious opinions.
After they had got through, I arose and said--"This court puts
me in mind of a certain trial held before Felix of old, when the
enemies of Paul arraigned him before that venerable judge for some
alleged crime, and nothing was found in him worthy of death or
bonds. Yet, to please the Jews who were his accusers, he was left
bound, contrary to law, and the court had served Mr. Smith in the
same way, by their unlawful and uncalled for reprimand after his
discharge to please his accusers."
We got him away that night from the midst of three hundred people
without his receiving any injury; but I am well aware that we were
assisted by some higher power than man; for to look back on the
scene, I cannot tell how we succeeded in getting him away. I take
no glory to myself: it was the Lord's work, and marvelous in our
eyes.
This, Mr. Chairman, is a true history of the first persecution that
came upon General Smith in his youth among professed Christians,
and in a country heralded to the ends of the earth as a land of
freedom, where all men have the constitutional right to worship as
they please and believe what they please, without molestation, so
long as they do not interfere with the rights and privileges of
others--yes, sir; a persecution got up through the influence of
religious bigotry by as vile a set of men as ever disgraced the
family of man. But their devices against him were brought to naught
by the Overruling Power that controls all things and brings to
naught the counsels of the wicked.
Mr. Chairman, little did I think that I was defending a boy that
would rise to eminence like this man--a man whom God delights to
honor as a {397} Prophet and leader of His people--one to whom He
has given the keys of heaven and earth, and the power of David,
and said to him, Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in
heaven, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against you. And
may he live to put his foot upon the neck of his enemies in love
and meekness! I know, sir, that God has made him a leader of many
thousands of people; and may he teach them in meekness and with
that wisdom and judgment that God shall direct.
I add no more.
The Convention adjourned _sine die_
URIAH BROWN, President,
F. MERRYWEATHER, Secretary.
I rode out in the afternoon.
About 6 p.m., a caucus was held; but, Emma being sick, I could not
attend. At night a large assemblage burned a barrel of tar in the
street. I went out to see what was the matter, and found they were
giving toasts; and as soon as they became aware of my presence; they
carried me on their shoulders twice round the fire, and escorted me to
the Mansion by a band of music.
Elders Franklin D. Richards and Joseph A. Stratton were ordained High
Priests and set apart to go on a mission to England by Elders Brigham
Young and Heber C. Kimball and Willard Richards.
Footnotes:
1. It is to be observed that these delegates named from the various
states were now, and for some time past had been, residents of Nauvoo,
Ill.
2. This was the "former lawyer" who defended the Prophet in his first
prosecution in the State of New York, before local justices of the
peace in Chenango and Broome counties, 1830; See this HISTORY, vol. I,
ch. XX.
{398}
CHAPTER XVIII.
CHARGES AGAINST PRESIDENT SMITH BEFORE THE CIRCUIT COURT--HIS VOLUNTARY
APPEARANCES AT COURT--TREATMENT--RETURN TO NAUVOO.
_Saturday, May 18, 1844.--_At 9 a.m., I went with Heber C. Kimball
to visit President Brigham Young, and afterwards went out to the
regimental training, and also in the afternoon riding on my horse, "Joe
Duncan."
At 5 p.m., two cannons were fired opposite my old house, and the
regiments were dismissed.
The high Council cut off from the Church James Blakesley, Francis M.
Higbee, Charles Ivins, and Austin Cowles, for apostasy.
_Sunday, 19.--_Cloudy morning; rain about noon. I remained at home.
Elder Lyman Wight preached at the stand in the morning. The usual
prayer meeting at 2 p.m. was dispensed with on account of the mud and
rain.
In the evening I talked to the brethren at my house, Esquire Reid, my
old lawyer, being present, W. W. Phelps read my last letter to Henry
Clay to the company.
_Monday, 20.--_Emma continued very sick, and I was with her most of the
time.
At 10 a.m., there was a meeting at the stand for the purpose of
collecting means to enable Elder Lyman Wight to go to Washington.
[Sidenote: Court Session at Carthage.]
The Circuit Court commenced its sitting at Carthage, Judge Thomas
presiding. Brother Phelps and many of the brethren went to Carthage.
Phelps returned in the evening with the intelligence that {399} a
summons was supposed to be issued for me to appear on the same case
on which I was set free by_ habeas corpus_ on the 8th inst. [1] The
lawyers agreed to move an abatement. A good influence in favor of the
Saints appears to have prevailed.
A general court-martial of the Legion was held, Brevet Major General
Hyrum Smith presiding. It was adjourned to the 10th of June next.
_Tuesday, 21.--_A very pleasant morning. I rode out on horseback to the
prairie, with Porter Rockwell and Mr. Reid. At 7 a.m., Elders Brigham
Young, Heber C. Kimball, Lyman Wight, and about a hundred Elders, left
this city on the steamer _Osprey_ (Captain Anderson) for St. Louis.
The_ Maid of Iowa_ arrived at 8 a.m., with sixty-two Saints from the
Eastern States on board, all in good health and spirits. The clerk,
Thomas Bullock, reported the fields on each side of the river covered
with water to the depth of upwards of sixteen feet, and all the farms
on the flats of the Mississippi river were submerged, and the river was
still rising eight inches per day. The _Maid of Iowa_ started up the
river for Wapello on the Iowa river at 3 p.m.
I was at home towards night with Emma, who is somewhat better. I
shoveled dirt out of the ditch, while Wasson stood on the corner of the
fence to watch. An officer arrived having a summons and an attachment
to take me to Carthage, but he could not find me. I rode out in the
evening to see David Yearsley's child, who was sick, and returned home
at 9 p.m.
I copy from the _Times and Seasons_:--
LETTER: GEORGE A. SMITH TO "TIMES AND SEASONS"--CONFERENCE AT
NEWARK, ILLINOIS.
"NEWARK, KENDALL COUNTY, ILL., May 21, 1844.
_Editor of the Times and Seasons_:--
DEAR SIR,--We arrived at Ottawa on the 17th inst., after driving
{400} four days through the constant rains, and over roads almost
impassable for man or beast. We were soon informed that the
conference was removed twenty miles up Fox River, at the Newark
Branch.
Notice had been given for a political address to be delivered
in the Court House in the evening by one of the Twelve; several
hundred citizens assembled, and were addressed by Elder G. A.
Smith. The speaker considered General Smith the smartest man in
the United States, and best calculated to fill the presidential
chair, which was applauded by the assembly. His political views as
presented on that occasion seemed to please most of the people. At
the close of the speech the congregation quietly dispersed. Elder
Woodruff continued his journey ten miles, and held a meeting with
the LaSalle Branch of 46 members, mostly emigrants from Norway.
On the 18th we arrived at Newark, and attended the Conference
according to appointment.
The following is a copy of the minutes, which we forward for
publication:--
NEWARK, KENDALL COUNTY, ILL., May 18, 1844.
Conference convened pursuant to notice.
There were present two of the quorum of the Twelve, one High
Priest, two Seventies, nine Elders, one Priest, and one Teacher.
Conference called to order by Elder Woodruff.
Elder George A. Smith called to the chair.
Conference opened by singing, and prayer by the president.
Representation of the several branches was called for, when the
following branches were represented as follows:
Newark Branch, 35 members, 1 Elder, 1 Teacher; Lasalle Branch, 46
members, 2 Elders: Ottawa Branch, 16 members, 2 Elders; Bureau
Branch, 15 members, 3 Elders; Pleasant Grove, McHenry County, 19
members, 2 Elders; Indian Creek Branch, 5 members; Big Vermillion
Branch, 4 members; French Creek Grove Branch, 2 members. Total 133
members, 10 Elders, and 1 Teacher,
Canute Petersen, Severt Olson, Zimri H. Baxter, Levi Lightfoot, S.
D. Huffaker, Mades Madison, Vance Jacobs, and Oder Jacobson, were
ordained Priests; Ole Johnson and Peter Maclin ordained Teachers,
under the hands of Elders Wilford Woodruff, Geo. A. Smith, and Ezra
Thayer.
Appropriate remarks were then made by Elders Woodruff and Smith
by way of counsel and instruction to those who had been ordained;
followed by Elder David Savage.
Adjourned until Sunday morning, 10 o'clock.
Sunday, 19th.
Met according to adjournment.
Opened by singing and prayer by Elder a.m. Wilsey.
{401} A discourse was then delivered by Elder Wilford Woodruff, in
which he instructed the Elders to be careful to preach the first
principles of the Gospel and doctrines of Christ, and not to spend
their time in warring with the opinions of other men; showed the
importance of revelation, and the necessity of a Prophet of God,
as the head of the Church on earth, being as necessary in order to
exist and advance in knowledge as for a natural body to possess a
head in order to live. He considered we were enjoying the society
of as good a Prophet in this day as any people ever enjoyed in any
age of the world, and believed all good men would think so, if they
were fully acquainted with him and his principles.
He was followed by Elder Geo. A. Smith, who bore testimony to the
truth of the fullness of the Gospel, counseled the Elders to be
humble, and not get head and shoulders above their brethren, lest
they fall, like the tallest trees of the forest, that are first
swept down by the raging storm.
Two o'clock, met according to adjournment, when the sacrament
was administered, and many testimonies given from the Elders and
members present concerning the truth of the work they had received.
Conference was dismissed amid the best of feelings, which
were manifested not only by all the Saints, but by the whole
congregation of citizens that attended. Good order prevailed
through the whole conference. Attention, kindness, and civility,
were manifested by all.
GEO. A. SMITH, President.
ASA MANCHESTER, Clerk.
At the close of the Conference, Elders C. C. Rich, David Fullmer,
Norton Jacobs, and Moses Smith arrived direct from Nauvoo, on their
way to Michigan.
20th--We have appointed a political meeting in Newark, this
evening, and one at Joliet tomorrow evening, where we expect to
present to the citizens General Smith's Views of the Powers and
Policy of the Government, and discuss the subject of politics.
WILFORD WOODRUFF.
GEO. A. SMITH.
_Wednesday, 22.--_At home, watching, as the officers from Carthage were
after me.
[Sidenote: Visit of Sac and Fox Indians to Nauvoo.]
At 10 a.m., about 40 Indians of the Sacs and Foxes came up in front of
the Mansion, four or five of them being mounted, among whom was Black
Hawk's brother, Kis-kish-kee, &c. I was obliged to send word I could
not see them at present. They encamped in the Council Chamber afternoon
{402} and night. I was with the police on duty, and saw several
individuals lurking around.
Very pleasant day.
President Brigham Young preached to the brethren in St. Louis this
evening.
_Thursday, 23.--_Emma rather better. Read Hebrew with Neibaur, and
counseled with various friends.
At 10 a.m., the Municipal Court met, Newel K. Whitney presiding; but
there not being a quorum present, adjourned for one week.
[Sidenote: Address of the Prophet to the Indians.]
At one p.m., had a talk with the Sac and Fox Indians in my back
kitchen. They said--"When our fathers first came here, this land was
inhabited by the Spanish; when the Spaniards were driven off, the
French came, and then the English and Americans; and our fathers talked
a great deal with the Big Spirit." They complained that they had been
robbed of their lands by the whites, and cruelly treated.
I told them I knew they had been wronged, but that we had bought this
land and paid our money for it. I advised them not to sell any more
land, but to cultivate peace with the different tribes and with all
men, as the Great Spirit wanted them to be united and to live in peace.
"The Great Spirit has enabled me to find a book [showing them the Book
of Mormon], which told me about your fathers, and Great Spirit told me,
'You must send to all the tribes that you can, and tell them to live in
peace;' and when any of our people come to see you, I want you to treat
them as we treat you."
At 3 p.m., the Indians commenced a war dance in front of my old house.
Our people commenced with music and firing cannon. After the dance,
which lasted about two hours, the firing of cannon closed the exercise,
and with our music marched back to the office. Before they commenced
dancing, the Saints took up a collection to get the Indians food.
{403} A. A. Lathrop came to my clerk, Dr. Richards, and told him an
officer was on his way with an attachment for him, and that the grand
jury had found a bill against me for adultery, on the testimony of
William Law; he had come from Carthage in two hours and thirty minutes
to bring the news. Dr. Richards came to my house and stayed all night.
Aaron Johnson came from Carthage, and said that Foster had been
swearing that I swore to the complaint on which Simpson was arrested. I
instructed Johnson and Rockwell to go to Carthage in the morning, and
have him indicted for perjury, as I never did swear to the complaint.
The officer was after John D. Parker also, and report says Brigham
Young, Heber C. Kimball and W. Clayton.
Past nine p.m., I walked a little way with Dr. Richards for exercise.
[Sidenote: Hyrum's Caution to the Prophet on the Freedom of Speaking.]
My brother Hyrum called in the evening, and cautioned me against
speaking so freely about my enemies, &c., in such a manner as to make
it actionable. I told him that six months would not roll over his head
before they would swear twelve as palpable lies about him as they had
about me.
President Brigham Young left St. Louis at noon in the steamboat _Louis
Philippe_.
_Friday, 24.--_With my family all day.
Aaron Johnson and Orrin P. Rockwell went to Carthage to get Robert D.
Foster indicted; but they returned again as the grand jury had risen.
Joseph H. Jackson was at Carthage, and had sworn falsely against me.
At 6 p.m., went to Dr. Bernhisel's room, and had counsel with Brothers
Richards and Phelps. I ordered a meeting of the City Council for
tomorrow, and returned to my family after being absent about one hour.
The Central Committee wrote a letter to Hugh Clark Esq.:--
{404} _Letter: Central Campaign Committee to Hugh Clark,
Esq.,--Presidential Election Matters_.
NAUVOO, ILLINOIS, May 24, 1844.
SIR.--Having received your address through our mutual friend, Mr.
Edward Doughty, we forward with this per next mail the Nauvoo
_Neighbor_ of the 22nd inst., through which you will learn the
doings of a State Convention held in this place on the 17th; and
this communication has been drawn forth, in a great degree, through
our sympathies for a people who are now being mobbed in the city
of brotherly love (Philadelphia) as we have been for many years
in Missouri; and for what? For our religion, although called by
another name.
The Mormons and the Catholics are the most obnoxious to the
sectarian world of any people, and are the only two who have not
persecuted each other and others in these the United States, and
the only two who have suffered from the cruel hand of mobocracy
for their religion under the name of foreigners; and to stay this
growing evil, and establish Jeffersonian democracy, free trade
and sailor's rights, and protection of person and property, we
have nominated General Joseph Smith for the next president of
the nation--a man with whom we are thoroughly acquainted, and
have no fear in pledging our lives, our fortunes and our sacred
honor, that, if elected, he will give and secure these inestimable
blessings to every individual and society of men, no matter what
their religious faith. Help us to elect this man, and we will help
you to secure these privileges which belong to you, and break every
yoke.
You will please to consider yourself a member of the corresponding
committee with us, agreeable to the resolution of the State
Convention, and lay this subject before your people, giving us your
views on receipt hereof, and open such correspondence as wisdom
shall dictate.
General Smith's prospects are brightening every day. With
sentiments of the highest consideration, we are your obedient
servants,
WILLARD RICHARDS,
JOHN M. BERNHISEL,
W. W. PHELPS,
LUCIAN R. FOSTER,
Central Committee of Correspondence for the Election of General
Joseph Smith to the Presidency.
HUGH CLARK, ESQ. Alderman.
Corner of Fourth and Masters Street, Northern Liberties,
Philadelphia.
Rainy evening.
A conference was held at Chicago, Alfred Cordon, president, and James
Burgess, clerk. Eleven Elders were {405} present, and a very favorable
impression was made upon the minds of the people.
[Sidenote: Reported Indictments of the Prophet.]
_Saturday, 25.--_At home, keeping out of the way of the expected writs
from Carthage. Towards evening, Edward Hunter and William Marks, of
the grand jury returned from Carthage; also Marshal John P. Greene and
Almon W. Babbitt, who informed me there were two indictments found
against me, one charging me with false swearing on the testimony of
Joseph H. Jackson and Robert D. Foster, and one charging me with
polygamy, or something else, on the testimony of William Law, that I
had told him so! The particulars of which I shall learn hereafter.
There was much false swearing before the grand jury. Francis M.
Higbee swore so hard that I had received stolen property, &c., that
his testimony was rejected. I heard that Joseph H. Jackson had come
into the city. I therefore instructed the officers to arrest him for
threatening to take life, &c.
I had a long talk with Edward Hunter, my brother Hyrum, Dr. Richards,
William Marks, Almon W. Babbitt, Shadrach Roundy, Edward Romney and
others, and concluded not to keep out of the way of the officers any
longer.
At 2 p.m. I was in council in my north room, and heard the letters from
Elder O. Hyde read, and instructed Dr. Richards to write an answer,
which he did as follows:
_Letter:--Willard Richards to Orson Hyde--Answering Hyde's Letter
on Western Movement_.
NAUVOO, May 26, 1844.
_Orson Hyde, Esq_.:
SIR.--Yours of April 30th is received. The council convened this
afternoon, and, after investigation, directed an answer, which must
be brief to correspond with the press of business.
All the items you refer to had previously received the deliberation
of the council.
{406} Messrs. Lyman Wight and Heber C. Kimball will doubtless be in
Washington before you receive this, from whom you will learn all
things relative to Texas, &c. Our great success at present depends
upon our faith in the doctrine of election; and our faith must be
made manifest by our works and every honorable exertion made to
elect Gen. Smith.
Agricultural pursuits will take care of themselves, regulating
their own operations and the rich also; but the poor we must gather
and take care of, for they are to inherit the kingdom.
Nauvoo will be a "corner stake of Zion" forever, we most assuredly
expect. Here are the house and the ordinance, extend where else we
may.
Press the bills through the two houses, if possible. If Congress
will not pass them, let them do as they have a mind with them. If
they will not pass our bills, but will give us "something," they
will give what they please, and it will be at our option to accept
or reject.
Men who are afraid of "hazarding their influence" in the councilor
political arena are good for nothing. 'Tis the fearless, undaunted
and persevering who will gain the conquest of the forum.
Sidney Rigdon, Esq., is about to resign the postoffice at Nauvoo,
in favor of Gen. Joseph Smith, the founder of the city. He has the
oldest petitions now on file in the general postoffice for that
station, and has an undoubted claim over every other petitioner, by
being the founder and supporter of the city, and by the voice of
nineteen-twentieths of the people; and every sacred consideration;
and it is the wish of the council that you engage the Illinois
delegation to use their influence to secure the office to General
Smith without fail, and have them ready to act on the arrival of
Mr. Rigdon's resignation, and before too, if expedient.
We are also writing to Justin Butterfield, Esq., U. S. Attorney
for the district of Illinois, who has kindly offered his services
to secure the post office to the General, he having been here and
seen for himself the situation; and probably his letter to the
department will arrive nearly as soon as this.
The election on the principle of Jeffersonian democracy, free
trade, and protection of person and property, is gaining ground in
every quarter. All is well in Nauvoo, although some of the Anties
are trying to do us injury; but their efforts are palsied, and they
make very little headway. You remember the Preston motto, "Truth
will prevail!" [2] Therefore we go ahead.
{407} You have the best wishes of the council and friends here. I
am, sir, most respectfully yours,
W. RICHARDS, Recorder.
By order of the council.
N. B. Your families and friends were well last information.
Sidney Rigdon resigned the office of postmaster of Nauvoo, and
recommended me as his successor.
The _Maid of Iowa_ arrived at five p.m.
The High Council have directed the following testimony to be published
in the _Neighbor_, I copy it with the editor's remarks, to show the
character of the men who are now seeking to destroy my life and
usefulness, and overthrow the work of the Lord which He has commenced
through my instrumentality:
[Here follow the affidavits of Margaret J. Nyman, Matilda J. Nyman,
Sarah Miller, and an extract from the testimony of Catherine Warren
before the High Council of the Church to the effect that Chauncey
L. Higbee had brought about their ruin by deceit in representing
that Joseph Smith taught that promiscuous sexual relations were not
sinful when kept secret, and by this misrepresentation he, the said
Chauncey L. Higbee, accomplished his wicked purposes].
_Editorial Comment_.
We have abundance of like testimony on hand which may be
forthcoming if we are compelled; at present the foregoing may
suffice.
"Why have you not published this before?" We answer--on account of
the humility and entreaties of Higbee at the time; and on account
of the feelings of his parents, who are highly respectable, we
have forborne until now. The character of Chauncey L. Higbee is so
infamous, and his exertions such as to destroy every principle of
righteousness, that forbearance is no longer a virtue.
After all that this Chauncey L. Higbee has done in wickedly and
maliciously using the name of Joseph Smith to persuade innocent
females to submit to gratify his hellish lusts, and then blast the
character of the most chaste, pure, virtuous and philanthropic man
on earth, he, to screen himself from the law of the land and the
just indignation of an insulted people, and save himself from the
penitentiary, or whatever punishment his unparalleled crimes merit,
has entered into a conspiracy with the Laws and others against
the lives of those who are knowing to his abandoned conduct, thus
hoping to save himself from the disgrace which must follow an
exposure, and wreak his vengeance and gratify his revenge for his
awful disappointment.
[Sidenote: Conference in Jefferson Co., N.Y.]
{408} A two days' conference was held in Jefferson county, New York,
at 10 a.m. Present 300 Saints, 150 of whom had embraced the Gospel
since last autumn. Nine branches were represented, containing 289
members, 16 Elders, 8 Priests and 1 Teacher. An immense concourse of
people assembled to hear the Elders preach. Elder Benjamin Brown was
President, and J. W. Crosby, Clerk.
[Sidenote: Conference, Dresden, Tenn.]
A three days' conference was held at Dresden, Weakly county, Tennessee.
Elder A. O. Smoot was chosen president, and D. P. Raney, secretary. A
large congregation assembled, but the proceedings were interrupted by
a mob headed by some of the leading men of the county; yet a candidate
for elector was appointed by my friends.
_Sunday, 26.--_At 10 a.m. I preached at the Stand. The following
synopsis was reported by Mr. Thos. Bullock, clerk of the steamer, _Maid
of Iowa_.
_Address of the Prophet--His Testimony Against the Dissenters at
Nauvoo_.
President Joseph Smith read the 11th Chap. II Corinthians. My
object is to let you know that I am right here on the spot where
I intend to stay. I, like Paul, have been in perils, and oftener
than anyone in this generation. As Paul boasted, I have suffered
more than Paul did. I should be like a fish out of water, if I were
out of persecutions. Perhaps my brethren think it requires all
this to keep me humble. The Lord has constituted me so curiously
that I glory in persecution. I am not nearly so humble as if I
were not persecuted. If oppression will make a wise man mad, much
more a fool. If they want a beardless boy to whip all the world, I
will get on the top of a mountain and crow like a rooster: I shall
always beat them. When facts are proved, truth and innocence will
prevail at last. My enemies are no philosophers: they think that
when they have my spoke under, they will keep me down; but for the
fools, I will hold on and fly over them.
God is in the still small voice. In all these affidavits,
indictments, it is all of the devil--all corruption. Come on! ye
prosecutors! ye false swearers! All hell, boil over! Ye burning
mountains, roll down your lava! for I will come out on the top at
last. I have more to boast of than ever any man had. I am the only
man that has ever been able to keep a whole church together since
the days {409} of Adam. A large majority of the whole have stood
by me. Neither Paul, John, Peter, nor Jesus ever did it. I boast
that no man ever did such a work as I. The followers of Jesus ran
away from Him; but the Latter-day Saints never ran away from me
yet. You know my daily walk and conversation. I am in the bosom of
a virtuous and good people. How I do love to hear the wolves howl!
When they can get rid of me, the devil will also go. For the last
three years I have a record of all my acts and proceedings, for I
have kept several good, faithful, and efficient clerks in constant
employ: they have accompanied me everywhere, and carefully kept my
history, and they have written down what I have done, where I have
been, and what I have said; therefore my enemies cannot charge me
with any day, time, or place, but what I have written testimony
to prove my actions; and my enemies cannot prove anything against
me. They have got wonderful things in the land of Ham. I think the
grand jury have strained at a gnat and swallowed the camel.
A man named Simpson says I made an affidavit against him, &c. Mr.
Simpson says I arrested him. I never arrested Mr. Simpson in my
life. He says I made an affidavit against him. I never made an
affidavit against him in my life. I will prove it in court. I will
tell you how it was: Last winter I got ready with my children to
go to the farm to kill hogs. Orrin P. Rockwell was going to drive.
An Englishman came in and wanted a private conversation with me. I
told him I did not want any private conversations. "I demand one
of you!" Such a one I am bound to obey anyhow. Said he--"I want
a warrant against the man who stabbed Brother Badham." He said it
was a man who boarded at Davis'. He said it was Mr. Simpson--it
answered his description. I said I had no jurisdiction out of the
city. He said--"The man must be arrested, or else he will go away."
I told him--"You must go to Squire Wells, Johnson, or Foster." Mr.
Lytle stepped up and said--"I am a policeman." I jumped into my
carriage, and away I went.
When I came back I met Mr. Jackson. He said--"You did wrong in
arresting Mr. Simpson." I told him I did not do it. I went over
and sat down, and related the circumstances. He turned round and
said--"Mr. Smith, I have nothing against you; I am satisfied." He
went and supped with me. He declared in the presence of witnesses,
that he had nothing against me. I then said--"I will go over to
Esquire Johnson, and testify what the Englishman told me." I told
him not to make out that I believe he is the man, but that I
believe he is innocent. I don't want to swear that he is the man.
Messrs. Coolidge, Rockwell, Hatfield, and Hawes were present.
Mr. Johnson made one [a complaint] out in due form: and as I sat
down in a bustle the same as I do when one of the clerks brings a
deed for {410} me to sign. Johnson read it. I said--"I can't swear
to that affidavit; I don't believe it; tear up that paper." Mr.
Simpson agreed to come before Badham and make it up. I did not
swear to it [_i. e._ to the complaint.]
After a while, Dr. Foster and others came in. They called me up
to testify. I told it all the same as I do here. Mr. Simpson rose
up, and asked--"Do you believe now that I am the man who stabbed
Mr. Badham?" I replied--"No sir, I do not now, nor ever did: the
magistrate says I did not swear to it." He considered, and made a
public declaration that he was satisfied with me.
Aaron Johnson went before the grand jury and swore I did not swear
to it, when Dr. Foster goes and swears that I swore to it, and that
he was in the room when he was not in. Chauncey wanted me to stay
and have a conversation. Dr. Foster asked Aaron Johnson for the
writ and affidavit. He handed them to Dr. Foster, who read them,
and then threw them into the fire. I said--"Doctor, you ought not
to have burned it; it was my paper." Dr. Foster goes to the grand
jury and swears he did not burn only one; but I say he burnt both.
This is a fair sample of the swearing that is going on against me.
The last discharge was the 40th; now the 41st, 42nd, 43rd; all
through falsehood. Matters of fact are as profitable as the Gospel,
and which I can prove. You will then know who are liars, and who
speak the truth I want to retain your friendship on holy grounds.
Another indictment has been got up against me. It appears a holy
prophet has arisen up, and he has testified against me; the reason
is, he is so holy. The Lord knows I do not care how many churches
are in the world. As many as believe me, may. If the doctrine that
I preach is true, the tree must be good. I have prophesied things
that have come to pass, and can still.
Inasmuch as there is a new church, this must be old, and of course
we ought to be set down as orthodox. From henceforth let all the
churches now no longer persecute orthodoxy. I never built upon any
other man's ground. I never told the old Catholic that he was a
fallen true prophet God knows, then, that the charges against me
are false.
I had not been married scarcely five minutes, and made one
proclamation of the Gospel, before it was reported that I had seven
wives. I mean to live and proclaim the truth as long as I can.
This new holy prophet [William Law] has gone to Carthage and swore
that I had told him that I was guilty of adultery. This spiritual
wifeism! Why, a man dares not speak or wink, for fear of being
accused of this.
William Law testified before forty policemen, and the assembly
room full of witnesses, that he testified under oath that he never
had heard or seen or knew anything immoral or criminal against me.
He testified {411} under oath that he was my friend, and not the
"Brutus." There was a cogitation who was the "Brutus." I had not
prophesied against William Law. He swore under oath that he was
satisfied that he was ready to lay down his life for me, and he
swears that I have committed adultery.
I wish the grand jury would tell me who they are--whether it will
be a curse or blessing to me. I am quite tired of the fools asking
me.
A man asked me whether the commandment was given that a man may
have seven wives; and now the new prophet has charged me with
adultery. I never had any fuss with these men until that Female
Relief Society brought out the paper against adulterers and
adulteresses.
Dr. Goforth was invited into the Laws' clique, and Dr. Foster and
the clique were dissatisfied with that document, and they rush
away and leave the Church, and conspire to take away my life; and
because I will not countenance such wickedness, they proclaim that
I have been a true prophet, but that I am now a fallen prophet.
Jackson has committed murder, robbery, and perjury; and I can prove
it by half-a-dozen witnesses. Jackson got up and said--"By God, he
is innocent," and now swears that I am guilty. He threatened my
life.
There is another Law, not the prophet, who was cashiered for
dishonesty and robbing the government. Wilson Law also swears that
I told him I was guilty of adultery. Brother Jonathan Dunham can
swear to the contrary. I have been chained. I have rattled chains
before in a dungeon for the truth's sake. I am innocent of all
these charges, and you can bear witness of my innocence, for you
know me yourselves.
When I love the poor, I ask no favors of the rich. I can go to
the cross--I can lay down my life; but don't forsake me. I want
the friendship of my brethren.--Let us teach the things of Jesus
Christ. Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before
a downfall.
Be meek and lowly, upright and pure; render good for evil. If you
bring on yourselves your own destruction, I will complain. It is
not right for a man to bare down his neck to the oppressor always.
Be humble and patient in all circumstances of life; we shall then
triumph more gloriously. What a thing it is for a man to be accused
of committing adultery, and having seven wives, when I can only
find one.
I am the same man, and as innocent as I was fourteen years ago;
and I can prove them all perjurers. I labored with these apostates
myself until I was out of all manner of patience; and then I sent
my brother Hyrum, whom they virtually kicked out of doors.
I then sent Mr. Backenstos, when they declared that they were my
enemies. I told Mr. Backenstos that he might tell the Laws, if they
had any cause against me I would go before the Church, and confess
it {412} to the world. He [Wm. Law] was summoned time and again,
but refused to come. Dr. Bernhisel and Elder Rigdon know that I
speak the truth. I cite you to Captain Dunham, Esquires Johnson and
Wells, Brother Hatfield and others, for the truth of what I have
said. I have said this to let my friends know that I am right.
As I grow older, my heart grows tenderer for you. I am at all
times willing to give up everything that is wrong, for I wish this
people to have a virtuous leader, I have set your minds at liberty
by letting you know the things of Christ Jesus. When I shrink not
from your defense will you throw me away for a new man who slanders
you? I love you for your reception of me. Have I asked you for your
money? No; you know better. I appeal to the poor. I say, Cursed
be that man or woman who says that I have taken of your money
unjustly. Brother Babbitt will address you. I have nothing in my
heart but good feelings.
I rode out in the afternoon. On my return, my lawyers, Col. Richardson
and Almon W. Babbitt, called upon me on the subject of the writs which
were out against me.
[Sidenote: Threat to Kidnap Jeremiah Smith.]
A man called and informed me that John Eagle and several others
intended to kidnap Jeremiah Smith during the night. I therefore
stationed an extra police in order to protect him.
President Brigham Young arrived at Cincinnati at 5 p.m.
[Sidenote: President Smith Voluntarily goes to Carthage to Meet
Indictments.]
_Monday, 27.--_About 8 a.m., I started on horseback with a few friends,
went by the Temple, and purchased my course towards Carthage, thinking
it best for me to meet my enemies before the Circuit Court, and have
the indictments against me investigated. After I had passed my farm
on the prairie, most of the following brethren joined my company, and
the remainder soon after my arrival in Carthage--viz.: Aaron Johnson,
Dr. Bernhisel, Joseph W. Coolidge, John Hatfield, Orrin P. Rockwell,
Lorenzo Rockwell, William Walker, Harrison Sagers, Hyrum Smith, John
P. Greene, Judge William Richards, Shadrach Roundy, Theodore Turley,
Jedediah M. Grant, John Lytle, Joseph B. Noble, Edward Bonney, Lucien
Woodworth, Cornelius P. Lott, Johathan Dunham, and other friends.
{413} We arrived at Hamilton's hotel about noon. Charles A. Foster
overtook us three or four miles from the city, and accompanied us to
Carthage. I had considerable conversation with him, and he appeared to
be more mild than previously, and as though he was almost persuaded
that he had been influenced to some extent by false reports.
Joseph H. Jackson, Francis M. Higbee, and Chauncey L. Higbee were in
Hamilton's hotel when we arrived. Soon after our arrival there, Charles
A. Foster took me into a private room and told me in a friendly manner
that there was a conspiracy against my life. Robert D. Foster told some
of the brethren (with tears in his eyes) that there was evil determined
against me; and that there were some persons who were determined I
should not go out of Carthage alive. Jackson was seen to reload his
pistols, and was heard to swear he would have satisfaction of me and
Hyrum.
I had a short interview with Judge Thomas, who treated me with the
utmost courtesy. He is a great man and a gentleman. After dinner (at
the second or third table) we retired to our room, when Jackson, who
had been to the Court House, came towards the hotel. Some person told
him Hyrum had arrived, when he immediately turned towards the Court
House again.
My lawyers, Messrs. Richardson, Babbitt, and Skinner, used all
reasonable exertions to bring forward my trial on the charge of
perjury; but the prosecuting party were not ready,--one Withers, a
material witness (as they asserted in court), being absent.
My attorneys frequently called on me to report the state of things in
court, and I was ready to go in at a moment's warning, being anxious
for my trial; but the case was deferred till next term. I was left to
give bail to the sheriff at his option. He told me I might go home,
where he would call and take bail at his own convenience.
We immediately called for our horses; and while they {414} were being
harnessed, Chauncey L. Higbee came to me and wanted me to stay as
a witness in a certain case in which he was employed as attorney.
He urged me considerably, but I told him I did not recollect the
occurrence he referred to particularly enough to testify in the case,
and got him to excuse me.
[Sidenote: The Return to Nauvoo.]
At half-past four p.m., we started on our return; but when we had got
as far as Brother George D. Grant's, a heavy shower of rain commenced,
and I went into the house, while most of the brethren went into the
barn until the shower abated. After the storm had subsided, we went
forward, and I, Hyrum, and some others arrived at home about 9 p.m.,
and found Emma sick. My carriage, with Joseph B. Noble, arrived a
little after. It was upset on the Temple Hill, but no one was hurt. I
rode on horseback all the way on "Joe Duncan."
As we left the tavern in Carthage, and passed the Court House, there
were many people about in small groups. Jackson stood on the green with
one or two men some distance off.
While at Hamilton's, Chauncey L. Higbee offered some insulting language
concerning me to Orrin P. Rockwell, who resented it nobly as a friend
ought to do. Hamilton, seeing it, turned Rockwell out of doors.
It was afterwards reported to me by James Flack that Robert D. Foster,
Charles A. Foster, Wm. B. Rollinson, and the Higbees were on the hill
when I passed in the morning. They immediately gathered their pistols,
mounted their horses, and were in Carthage before me, excepting Charles
A. Foster.
Also Mr. Powers was talking with Mr. Davies, a tailor, about my going
to Carthage, and said they would attempt to kill Joseph Smith. Mr.
Davies replied, "O no, I think not." Mr. Powers rejoined, "They will,
by G--; and you know it, by G--."
Samuel Smith, of Montebello, heard at five this morning, {415} that I
had been taken prisoner to Carthage by a mob. He immediately gathered a
company of twenty-five men for the purpose of assisting me, and arrived
at Carthage about the time I did.
Footnotes:
1. Case of Chauncey L. Higbee vs. Joseph Smith, See Ch. XVI.
2. Referring to the motto that was displayed in the streets of Preston,
England, the arrival of Elders Kimball and Hyde as missionaries to that
city in 1837. See this HISTORY, vol. II, pp. 498-9.
{416}
CHAPTER XIX.
CASE OF JEREMIAH SMITH BEFORE MUNICIPAL COURT AT NAUVOO--AFFIDAVITS OF
CRIMES OF CHAUNCEY L. HIGBEE--APPEARANCE OF THE "EXPOSITOR."
_Tuesday, 28.--_At home all day. Rain in the afternoon. The _Maid of
Iowa_ started for the Iowa river at 11 a.m.
I received a letter from Mr. J. Bronder, dated Philadelphia, May 20th,
expressing his strong desires that I should allow my name to stand as
candidate for the Presidency of the United States, urging many reasons
for his request.
_Wednesday, 29.--_At home. Rain in the morning.
[Sidenote: Arrest of Jeremiah Smith, by U.S. Authority.]
Luther W. Hicock, of Burlington, Iowa, came in and arrested Jeremiah
Smith on a warrant issued by Nathanial Pope, Judge of the U. S. Circuit
Court. During our conversation in the afternoon we learned to our
mutual joy that Jeremiah Smith and I were of one origin.
Received the following letter:
_Letter: D. S. Hollister to Joseph Smith--Presidential Election
Matters_.
BALTIMORE, May 9th, 1844.
DEAR BROTHER JOSEPH.--From the time of my departure to that of my
arrival here on Saturday last, I was blessed with prosperity. The
feelings manifested by the passengers on the boat to St. Louis were
quite favorable.
At St. Louis I embarked on board the steamer _Valley Forge_, with
about 125 cabin passengers. I gradually introduced myself to those
whose faces gave indications of honest hearts and intelligent minds.
On Sunday I was invited to give, in a public discourse, the points
of difference between faith of the Latter-day Saints and other
professors of {417} the Christian religion. There was a Methodist
preacher on board, with whom arrangements were made, to follow
me and blow Mormonism to the four winds. Well, I led off in a
discourse of an hour and a half. After dinner the Methodists tried
to rally their preacher; but he could not be induced to undertake
the fulfillment of his engagements.
I spent the time in conversing with groups of inquirers, and
giving further information to those who sought it. After tea, the
Methodist priest was, by much persuasion, induced to preach; but,
to the astonishment of all, never once mentioned "Mormonism."
By-the-by, we had a beautiful specimen of Missouri treatment of the
Saints on board. While I was speaking, I referred to the many false
statements which found their way to the public through the papers.
A case in point was that of Joseph Smith having just discarded his
wife.
After I had finished speaking, and was standing on the guard of
the boat, a Missourian stepped up to me, asking me if I wished
to be understood that all who said Jo Smith had discarded his
wife were liars. On my answering him in the affirmative, he drew
his bowie knife on me; but some passengers, who had heard him
threaten my life, were watching, and caught him as he was in the
act of striking and I in the act of pitching him overboard; but
they saved him, and I am glad of it. The whole affair turned much
to my advantage. It was an ocular demonstration to the crowd of
Missourians' feeling toward the Church of Christ.
By this time the way was pretty well paved for introducing national
matters; and from this on to our arrival at Wheeling, the time
was principally occupied on that subject--reading your views on
political economy, &c.
On arriving at Wheeling, a stranger might have imagined me to be a
man of some consequence, for it was, "Will you take a seat in our
coach?" "Go with us in this stage." "Hold on, and take a seat with
us," says the third. In fact, the Mormon was quite a lion among the
passengers.
But passing the minutiae, I arrived in the city two days after the
great Whig convention. All is joy and enthusiasm among the Whigs,
while doubt and consternation are manifested among the Democrats.
The convention has been got up at an immense expense; hundreds of
thousands of dollars have been expended.
The Democratic convention comes off on the 27th inst. In the
meantime I shall do what is in my power for the promotion of the
good cause, and endeavor to be well accoutered for that occasion.
I expect to co-operate with Hyde, Pratt and Page, though as yet I
have not heard from them.
{418} I shall expect to receive from you the proceedings of the
convention held at Nauvoo on Monday last, together with such
instructions as you deem proper to give.
D. S. HOLLISTER.
[Sidenote: Municipal Court--Case of Jeremiah Smith.]
_Thursday, 30.--_Municipal Court met at 10 a.m., over which I presided
as mayor and chief justice. Present, William Marks, Orson Spencer,
George W. Harris, Gustavus Hills and Samuel Bennett, alderman,
associate justices Jeremiah Smith, Sen., was brought up on _habeas
corpus_ from the custody of T. B. Johnson, the complainant.
T. B. Johnson being called by the court answered that he did not
acknowledge the jurisdiction of this court; that his writ was only to
keep Smith until he could get another writ for him; that Mr. Hickock
had a writ from Judge Pope, and he considered Mr. Smith his prisoner,
and he attended this court as a matter of courtesy; and if any one
offered resistance, he was instructed by Government to give their
names, &c., and wrote the names of the court, &c.
Smith's counsel replied to such a subterfuge writ.
The court thought it due the court to hear the reasons why the
jurisdiction of the court was not regarded.
T. B. Johnson said he did not come to make a speech; but was instructed
to arrest the man. He intended to make no defense. He was an agent of
the United States. "Your writ of _habeas corpus_ had nothing more to
do with this case than with a man in the moon. I have not been able to
get authority, and did not come to make defense." Read from Charles B.
Penrose's handwriting (so purporting) 33 sec. of Act Sept. 24th, 1789,
Act of Congress. Had agreed to wait the decision of this court, but had
not agreed to abide the decision.
James A. McCanse was called by the court and asked, "Do you subscribe
to the decision of Mr. Johnson in the matter?"
McCanse would not decide. Would like counsel.
{419} T. B. Johnson said he did not ask any favors of the court. He was
a United States agent.
Councilor Hugins said--"If McCanse surrenders his claim we will not go
into the merits of the case; but if McCanse claims the prisoner, we
will go into the merits."
Councilor Hugins read a petition of Jeremiah Smith for another writ of
_habeas corpus._ G. P. Stiles, counsel for prisoner, said that Johnson
had given up the prisoner on the first claim.
T. B. Johnson said he did not surrender his claim; had nothing to say
about it. "Take your own course, gentlemen."
Stiles said he has given him up on the first writ, and now says he says
nothing about it; and upon this ground we claim a discharge.
T. B. Johnson said--"We would be defending the writ before Judge Pope.
I come here as an agent of the United States. The prisoner has been
taken out of my hand, I consider illegally. I do not come here to
prosecute or to defend a writ of _habeas corpus._ There is no law for
these proceedings. I know my rights. If this court thinks it right to
discharge the prisoner, let them do it--let them do it. I do not ask
any favors of the court--I ask justice. The laws of Illinois have no
power over the United States laws. Let this court discharge him, and I
shall take another course--I do not say against you as a court. I came
here to arrest Jeremiah Smith."
Justice Harris asked if he meant to intimidate the court by threats.
The chief justice remarked that it was the duty of the United States
and Federal Government to treat their subjects and constituents with
all that complacency and good feeling which they wished in return,
and to avoid every threatening aspect, every intimidating and harsh
treatment. He respected the United States laws, but would not yield
up any right ceded to the court. The United States have no right to
trample our laws under their feet. {420} The court is bound by oath to
support the Constitution of the United States, and State of Illinois
and writ of_ habeas corpus._ The Constitution of the United States and
_habeas corpus_ shall not be denied. If the court deny the writ of
_habeas corpus,_ they perjure themselves. The United States have no
right to usurp power to intimidate, and the court would see them all
destroyed before he would perjure himself. We have asked no power. Mr.
Smith asked us to investigate. We were bound to do so. Let the Federal
Government hurl on us their forces, dragoons, &c.; we are not to be
intimidated. The court is clothed with _habeas corpus,_ [power] and
will execute it according to the law. "I understand some law and more
justice, and know as much about the rights of American citizens as any
man."
T. B. Johnson said--"If I did say anything indecorous to the court, I
take it back."
Court responded--"All is right."
Court ordered that the prisoner be discharged, the complainant having
refused to prosecute his claim; and that judgment be entered up _v._ T.
B. Johnson, as agent, for costs of suit.
Afterwards another petition for another writ of _habeas corpus_ was
presented and the writ issued and tried. I copy the minutes from the
municipal docket:
_Municipal Court Minutes in the case of Jeremiah Smith_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
CITY OF NAUVOO, Municipal Court.
_United States, vs. Jeremiah Smith, on Habeas Corpus_.
May 30th, 1844, came Jeremiah Smith, and upon the reading and
filing the petition for a writ of _habeas corpus_ to be directed
to one Luther W. Hickock to have forthwith before the Municipal
Court the body of the said Jeremiah Smith upon said writ. Said
writ was granted by the court in accordance with the prayer of the
petitioner.
The writ of _habeas corpus_ was served instanter by the Marshal
in court and petitioner present; which writ with Marshal's return
thereon, is on file in the clerk's office.
{421} The foregoing petition of said Jeremiah Smith, together
with a certified copy of the warrant, by virtue of which the said
Hickock held the said Jeremiah Smith in custody, are on file in the
clerk's office.
Present, Joseph Smith, mayor and chief justice; and William Marks,
Orson Spencer, George W. Harris, Gustavus Hills, and Samuel
Bennett, aldermen, associate justices.
Luther W. Hickock was called by the court to answer in the case,
who said he had a writ from Judge Pope, and should consider Smith
his prisoner until he was compelled to give him up. Wanted an
adjournment.
The court informed Hickock that Smith was their prisoner.
H. T. Hugins and George P. Stiles, counsel for Smith, objected to
an adjournment, as there had been two weeks adjournment for the
Government to procure witnesses in another suit which had closed,
arising out of the same case, and which had been abandoned by the
prosecuting party.
T. B. Johnson appeared before the court and said--"I stand here
as an agent for the Government to act in the case of Smith in
any state where he may be found; and if we are to go into an
investigation on the merits of the case, and go behind the writ,
I must have time to send to Washington for witnesses; and I am
instructed to consult with Justin Butterfield, Esq., Governor
Chambers of Iowa, and Mr. McPherson of St. Louis."
The marshal, J. P. Greene, presented the prisoner for trial.
The court ordered the marshal to take charge of the prisoner, and
have him forthcoming from time to time for trial.
Hickock asked for an adjournment until afternoon.
Hugins said--"If they want to go into the merits of the case,
we will give them any time; but we propose to dispense with the
merits, and move a discharge on the insufficiency of the papers.
Dr. Hickock has no legal authority to arrest the prisoner," and
read from page 51, Revised Statutes of Illinois, sec. 399.
T. B. Johnson said he could show the law different, and asked for
one week's adjournment.
One o'clock p.m., court adjourned until after dinner to hear the
pleas.
Three o'clock, p.m., court sat, the same as in the morning.
H. T. Hugins and George P. Stiles, counsel for Smith, read and
filed their plea, moving the court that said Smith be discharged,
and suffered to go at large.
1st. Because the person issuing the warrant on which he has been
arrested is unauthorized to issue the same.
2nd. Because the process has been issued in a case and under
circumstances where the law does not allow process.
{422} 3rd. Because the person having custody of said Smith is
unauthorized to execute the warrant under which he is acting, and
is not the person empowered by law to detain him.
4th. Because said Smith has been, by and before a competent court,
legally examined and discharged in relation to the subject matter
set forth in said warrant.
5th. Because said writ is defective in a substantial form required
by law.
L. W. Hickock was called, and persisted in considering the
authority under which he acted good and sufficient.
Counselor Hugins urged the first and second count in his plea, and
read from the Constitution of the United States, Art. 4, 2nd sec,
2nd part, 3rd count, read Revised Statutes of Illinois, page 51,
sec. 399, and page 324; 4th count, read the certificate of John S.
Dunlap, clerk of the District Court for the county of Des Moines,
Iowa Territory, dated May 21st, 1844, a copy of which is on file in
the clerk's office.
L. W. Hickock said he had nothing to say; and the case was
submitted.
DECISION--The court are of opinion, when they take into
consideration their oath to support the Constitution of the United
States, that the certificate of John S. Dunlap, clerk of the
District Court for the county of Des Moines, Territory of Iowa,
is sufficient to authorize the discharge or the prisoner, because
the Constitution says no person shall twice be put in jeopardy
of life for the same offense. The decision of the court is that
the prisoner be discharged on all the points for which plea has
been made in his behalf, and that judgment be entered against the
prosecutor for cost.
Evening, T. B. Johnson was going to Burlington. Jeremiah Smith swore
out an execution for $77.75. Mr. Johnson acknowledged the fee bill, and
afterwards threatened to bring the dragoons in order to get Jeremiah
Smith.
Mr. Hickock called for a copy of the proceedings of the Municipal Court.
I wrote the following letter to Judge Pope:--
_Letter: Joseph Smith to Judge Pope Introducing Jeremiah Smith_.
NAUVOO, May 30, 1844.
SIR,--Permit me to introduce to your particular notice and
confidence as "brethren of the mystic tie," Mr. Jeremiah Smith
of Iowa Territory, and Mr. H. T. Hugins of Burlington, in said
Territory Mr. Smith is a gentleman whose statements can be relied
on, and Mr. Hugins a lawyer, {423} of sound principles, as well
as promising talents; and I always take pleasure in extending the
reputations of honorable men among honorable men, especially when
it appears to me that the benevolence and clemency extended by me
is needed and merited by worthy men. Conscious, too, that your
Honor is liberal and just in your sphere, and will appreciate "the
golden rule," I have only to greet you with my best wishes for your
welfare and happiness.
Respectfully, I have the honor to be,
Your humble servant,
JOSEPH SMITH.
JUDGE POPE.
A Presidential election was recently held on board the _Osprey_ and the
result was as follows:--
Joseph Smith, 65 gentlemen and 6 ladies.
Henry Clay, 27 " " 3 "
Van Buren, 12 " " 0 "
_Friday, 31st_.--
_Affidavit H. T. Hugins, Anent Threat to Bring Dragoons Against
Nauvoo_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
CITY OF NAUVOO, ss.
May 31, 1844.
Then and there personally appeared before me, Joseph Smith, Mayor
of the City of Nauvoo, the undersigned H. T. Hugins, of Burlington,
Iowa Territory, and made solemn oath that Thomas B. Johnson did,
on the 30th day of May, 1844, declare in his presence that he
intended to bring dragoons and troops of the United States from
Iowa Territory into this city, for the purpose of resisting the
authority and power of the Municipal Court of said city, and that
he should disregard entirely the authority of said court, and
that he deemed the authority of said court of no effect. Deponent
further states that said Johnson, in his said conversation, had
reference to the case of Jeremiah Smith, which had been decided by
said court.
H. T. HUGINS.
Subscribed and sworn to before me, this 31st day of May, 1844.
WM. W. PHELPS, Clerk M. C.
Upon the foregoing affidavit, I issued a _capias_ to arrest Thomas
B. Johnson for threatening the peace of the city with United States
dragoons. At 10 a.m., called at my {424} office. At 1 p.m., called to
see Sister Richards, who was sick. I administered to her the laying on
of hands, when she felt better. Afternoon I attended general council,
when Brother Emmett made his report. Rode out in the evening to Van
Orden's, and paid him $100. Two or three Indians staid in the hall at
night.
_Saturday, June 1.--_At home. Some gentle showers.
At one, p.m., I rode out with Dr. Richards and Orrin P. Rockwell.
Called on Davis at the boat. Paid Manhard $90. Met George J. Adams, and
paid him $50. Then went to John P. Greene's, and paid him and another
brother $200. Called at William Clayton's, while Dr. Richards and Orrin
P. Rockwell called at the doctor's new house. Returned home at 4:30 p.m.
At 8 p.m., Peter Maughan, John Saunders, and Jacob Peart called at Dr.
Richards' to consult about a coal-bed on Rock River. I suggested it
would be profitable to employ the _Maid of Iowa_ in the business of
carrying the coal, &c; and all approved of this plan.
President Brigham Young and Elder John E. Page held a conference in
Pittsburg.
I received the following letter:--
_Joel H. Walker to Joseph Smith--Proposes to Join Prophet in
Western Volunteer Movement_.
BOSTON, May 9th, 1844.
MY DEAR SIR.--Being so closely confined in the postoffice in this
city, where I have been but a short time, I have not, before this
morning been aware that you had petitioned Congress in relation to
raising a military force to protect our Southern Frontier.
My purpose in addressing you is to offer my services, either in
military or civil duty, as I am so much confined that my health
must suffer if I remain a great length of time.
If I can make myself known to you by reputation which I think
possible, I have every confidence, if in your power, you will favor
my wishes.
At any rate, I hope you will write me at your earliest convenience
upon receipt of this.
{425} I was born in Peacham, Vermont, October 14th, 1813. My
father is Col. Joel Walker, now of Belvidere, Illinois. Hon. E.
Peck, of Springfield, Illinois, is my brother-in-law. I was in the
mercantile business in Chicago from 1836 to '39, (one of the firm
of King, Walker & Co.,) since which time I have been here, with
the exception of a year; have been in the military since the age
of sixteen, and am considered somewhat proficient, having devoted
much attention to the study of its principles, and an ardent love
for the art. I have received a good academical and mercantile
education; and if there is in your place anything which would be
for our mutual advantage,
I am yours respectfully,
JOEL HAMILTON WALKER.
GENERAL JOSEPH SMITH, Nauvoo.
I replied as follows:
_Letter: Joseph Smith to Joel H. Walker_.
NAUVOO, ILLINOIS, June 1st 1844.
SIR.--Yours of May 9th is before me, and according to my custom I
answer off hand. I have not yet ascertained whether Congress will,
by special act, authorize me to protect our beloved country. If it
should, I have not a doubt but your services could be agreeably
used.
As to what you could do in Nauvoo, I am unable to say. Gentlemen
with a small capital, or a large one, can easily employ it to good
advantage, our city is so rapidly improving.
Truth, virtue, and honor, combined with energy and industry, pave
the way to exaltation, glory and bliss.
Respectfully, I have the honor to be your obedient servant,
JOSEPH SMITH.
JOEL HAMILTON WALKER, Boston, Mass.
[Sidenote: Conference at Kalamazoo, Michigan.]
A conference was held at Kalamazoo, Michigan. Present, Wilford
Woodruff, George A. Smith, of the Twelve, S. Bent, C. C. Rich and B.
Fullmer, of the High Council; also 5 High Priests, 8 Seventies, 14
Elders, 2 Priests, and 1 Deacon. Elder Wilford Woodruff presided.
Seven branches were represented, containing 126 members, 15 Elders,
4 Priests, 1 Teacher and 2 Deacons. Two Elders were ordained; also 1
Priest and 1 Teacher.
A conference was held at Alquina, Fayette Co., {426} Indiana. Elder
Amasa Lyman presided. 5 High Priests, 2 Seventies and 4 Elders present.
_Sunday, 2.--_At home. Pleasant day.
[Sidenote: Conference at Glasgow, Scotland.]
A conference was held in Glasgow, Scotland, representing 1,018 members,
including 1 High Priest, 30 Elders, 46 Priests, 36 Teachers and 20
Deacons.
_Monday, 3.--_At home. Received the following letter:
_Letter: "Horace" to President Joseph Smith--Threatened Invasion of
Nauvoo_.
BURLINGTON, IOWA, June 2nd, 1844.
FRIEND SMITH.--I have just received intimation that there is a
project on foot here to visit Nauvoo with a body of from five to
six hundred armed men, for the purpose of liberating Dr. Hickock,
who, it is stated, is confined in your prison. I, as a friend to
your society, consider it my duty to make you aware of the danger
you may be in, that you may be prepared to meet them. I think it
best to keep my name from you, for were it known here that I had
given notice of their proceedings, it would not be safe for me to
remain. Do not think it a humbug, and treat it lightly; but prepare
yourselves for the coming storm. From what I can learn, they intend
going on the next boat. I hope this may reach you in time.
I am, with respect, your friend,
HORACE.
Rode out on the hill about 9 a.m.
Municipal Court sat. I was not present. The appealed cases of Augustine
Spencer, Chauncey L. Higbee, Charles A. Foster, and Robert D. Foster,
came up; but as they failed to appear, the cases were referred back to
the court below.
At 5 p.m. I read German with Alexander Neibaur.
President Brigham Young left Pittsburg, and preached in the evening to
an attentive congregation in Old Britain.
_Tuesday, 4.--_At home.
Arthur Morrison and Pulaski Cahoon proposed to give $100 per month for
the use of the _Maid of Iowa._ Made out their own bonds with their own
security; but I would not receive them.
{427} In the afternoon I went out to my farm, and accidentally broke
the whippletree of my buggy.
Wrote the following letter to Mr. Tewkesbury, Boston.
_Letter: Joseph and Hyrum Smith to Mr. Tewkesbury--Seeking to
Restore Latter to Fellowship_.
NAUVOO, ILLINOIS, June 4th, 1844.
SIR.--We understand that you have been cut off from the Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints; and feeling an ardent desire
for the salvation of the souls of men, we take pleasure in feeling
after you; and therefore would, in the sincerity of men of God,
advise you to be rebaptized by Elder Nickerson, one of the servants
of God, that you may again receive the sweet influences of the Holy
Ghost, and enjoy the fellowship of the Saints.
The law of God requires it, and you cannot be too good. Patience
is heavenly, obedience is noble, forgiveness is merciful, and
exaltation is godly; and he that holds out faithful to the end
shall in no wise lose his reward. A good man will endure all things
to honor Christ, and even dispose of the whole world, and all in
it, to save his soul. Grace for grace is a heavenly decree, and
union is power where wisdom guides.
Respectfully,
JOSEPH SMITH,
HYRUM SMITH.
The Municipal Court issued an execution against Francis M. Higbee for
$36.26 1/2 for costs incurred on 8th May last.
[Sidenote: Prosecution of the Laws and Fosters Discussed.]
At 6 p.m. I was in council with Elders John Taylor, Hyrum Smith,
Willard Richards, Almon W. Babbitt, Lucien Woodworth, and William
W. Phelps on the propriety of prosecuting the Laws and Fosters for
perjury, slander, &c. Counseled Taylor to go on with the prosecution
in behalf of Maria Lawrence. I concluded to go to Quincy with Taylor,
and give up my bonds of guardianship as administrator of the Lawrence
estate.
Alpheus Cutler and Reynolds Cahoon are so anxious to get property, they
will all flat out as soon as the Temple is completed and the faith of
the Saints ceases from them, &c.
{428} At 7 p.m. I walked out with Lucien Woodworth.
_Wednesday, 5.--_I went to the prairie to show some land, and returned
home towards night.
At 8 p.m. I walked out with Dr. Richards. The lightning in the north
was most beautiful. About 10 a shower of rain passed over, with
continued distant thunder. There has not been any rain for some days
back. Thermometer stood at 94 1/2 degrees in the shade. Very warm.
I received a book entitled _"An Original History of the Religious
Denominations at Present Existing in the United States_," [1] and wrote
the following acknowledgment:
_Letter: Joseph Smith to L. Daniel Rupp--Book on Religious Sects_.
NAUVOO, ILLINOIS, June 5th, 1844.
DEAR SIR.--He pasa Ek-klesia, &c., together with your note, has
safely reached me, and I feel very thankful for so valuable a
treasure. The design, the propriety, the wisdom of letting every
sect tell its own story, and the elegant manner in which the work
appears, have filled my breast with encomiums upon it, wishing you
God speed.
Although all is not gold that shines, any more than every religious
creed is sanctioned with the so eternally sure word of prophecy,
satisfying all doubt with "Thus saith the Lord;" yet, "by proving
contraries," truth is made manifest," and a wise man can search out
"old paths, wherein righteous men held communion with Jehovah, and
were exalted through obedience.
I shall be pleased to furnish further information at a proper time,
and render you such further service as the work and vast extension
of our Church may demand for the benefit of truth, virtue and
holiness.
Your work will be suitably noticed in our papers for your benefit.
With great respect, I have the honor to be,
Your obedient servant,
JOSEPH SMITH.
L. D. RUPP, ESQ., Lancaster City, Pa.
_Thursday, 6.--_About 9 a.m. I ordered my carriage for a ride; but it
stood at the door till nearly noon, while I read my letter to Henry
Clay to many strangers, in the {429} bar-room, [2] among whom was one
who advocated the claims of Henry Clay for the presidency. I argued
with him for a long time to show the subject in its true light, and
that no man could honestly vote for a man like Clay, who had violated
his oath, and not acted on constitutional principles.
About half-past twelve Dimick B. Huntington came and said that Robert
D. Foster felt very bad, and he thought there was a chance for his
return, if he could be reinstated in his office in the Legion, &c.,
&c.; and that Foster had all the affidavits of the anti-Mormons under
his control. I told Huntington that if Foster would return, withdraw
all the suits he had commenced, and do right, he should be restored.
I rode out in the carriage with several persons for an hour or two. At
7 p.m. a heavy shower of rain, accompanied by thunder and lightning,
and another shower at 9. p.m.
I issued the following caution to the public:
Having once notified the public against receiving a certain
currency called "Kirtland Safety Society;" I again caution all
persons against receiving or trading in said paper money, as
all that was issued as genuine was redeemed. After the first
officers who signed said bills retired, a new set of officers
were appointed, and the vault of the institution was broken open
and robbed of several hundred thousand dollars, the signatures
forged upon the said stolen bills, and those bills are being slyly
bartered or had in trade, for the purpose of wilful and malicious
prosecution and collection.
In the first place the bills are not collectable by law in an
unchartered institution. In the second place, they are spurious,
the signature being a forgery, and every person passing or trading
a bill is guilty of passing counterfeit money, besides the
bare-faced act of swindling. And lastly, he that uses said bills
in any way, as a medium of trade is guilty of fraud, and shows a
wicked and corrupt determination to willfully, maliciously and
feloniously rob the Latter-day Saints; and if the executors of the
laws are as ready to mete out even handed justice to such {430} men
as the Mormons, more indictments will indicate more honesty. Time
will show.
JOSEPH SMITH.
Nauvoo, June 6, 1844.
[Sidenote: Prophet's Conversation with Dr. Foster.]
_Friday, 7.--_Robert D. Foster called professedly to make some
concessions in order to return to the Church. He wanted a private
interview, which I declined. I had some conversation with him in the
hall, in the presence of several gentlemen. I told him I would meet
with him in the presence of friends. I would choose three or four,
and he might choose an equal number, and that I was willing to settle
everything on righteous principles. In the evening a report was
circulated that Foster had said that I would receive him back on any
terms, and give him a hat full of dollars into the bargain.
I went to the printing office about 2 p.m., and instructed Elder John
Taylor to answer a certain bill or receipt of George W. Harris.
[Sidenote: First number of the_ Expositor_.]
The first and only number of the _Nauvoo Expositor_ was published,
edited by Sylvester Emmons.
In the evening I received an extremely saucy and insulting letter from
Robert D. Foster. Pleasant evening.
_Saturday, 8.--_From 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. in City Council; also from
3 to 6:30 p.m. The subject the _Nauvoo Expositor_ was taken under
consideration. An ordinance was passed concerning the City Attorney and
his duties.
Elder Jedediah M. Grant preached in the Mansion this evening. Thunder
and rain this evening and during the night.
A ferry-boat came down from Burlington with a pleasure party, and
landed at the Nauvoo House at 2 p.m.
I sent William Clayton to Carthage to give in some lots for
assessments; and while there Backenstos told him that Walter Bagby had
been gone eight days to Missouri to try to get another writ for me.
Brother Clayton also got {431} news that the Democrats had dropped Van
Buren, and substituted James K. Polk, of Tennessee for president, and
Silas Wright of New York, for vice-president.
I walked out in the evening with Brother Clayton.
[Sidenote: Conference at Pleasant Valley, Michigan.]
A conference was held at Pleasant Valley, Michigan. Present of the
Twelve, Wilford Woodruff, and George A. Smith. Elder Wilford Woodruff
presided. Six branches were represented, comprising 89 members, 5
Elders, 2 Priests, 4 Teachers, and 3 Deacons. Five Elders were ordained.
_Sunday, 9.--_At home. My health not very good, in consequence of my
lungs being impaired by so much public speaking. My brother Hyrum
preached at the Stand.
At 2 p.m. several passengers of the steamer _Osprey_ from St. Louis and
Quincy arrived, and put up at the Mansion. I helped to carry in their
trunks, and chatted with them in the bar-room.
There was a meeting at the Mansion at 6 p.m.
Footnotes:
1. An article prepared by President Smith, under the title "The
Latter-day Saints," is published in this work.
2. This was the public sitting room of the Mansion, which, it will be
remembered was used at this time as a hotel.
{432}
CHAPTER XX.
THE DESTRUCTION OF THE "NAUVOO EXPOSITOR"--PROCEEDINGS OF THE NAUVOO
CITY COUNCIL AND MAYOR.
[Sidenote: _Nauvoo Expositor_ before Nauvoo City Council.]
_Monday, June 10, 1844.--_I was in the City Council from 10 a.m., to
1:20 p.m., and from 2:20 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. investigating the merits
of the _Nauvoo Expositor,_ and also the conduct of the Laws, Higbees,
Fosters, and others, who have formed a conspiracy for the purpose of
destroying my life, and scattering the Saints or driving them from the
state.
[Sidenote: Ordinance on Libels.]
An ordinance was passed concerning libels. The Council passed an
ordinance declaring the_ Nauvoo Expositor_ a nuisance, and also issued
an order to me to abate the said nuisance. I immediately ordered the
Marshal to destroy it without delay, and at the same time issued an
order to Jonathan Dunham, acting Major-General of the Nauvoo Legion, to
assist the Marshal with the Legion, if called upon so to do.
About 8 p.m., the Marshal returned and reported that he had removed the
press, type, printed paper, and fixtures into the street, and destroyed
them. This was done because of the libelous and slanderous character
of the paper, its avowed intention being to destroy the municipality
and drive the Saints from the city. The _posse_ accompanied by some
hundreds of the citizens, returned with the Marshal to the front of
the Mansion, when I gave them a short address, and told them they had
done right and that not a hair of their heads should be hurt for it;
that they had executed the orders which were given me by {433} the City
Council; that I would never submit to have another libelous publication
established in the city; that I did not care how many papers were
printed in the city, if they would print the truth: but would submit
to no libels or slanders from them. I then blessed them in the name
of the Lord. This speech was loudly greeted by the assembly with
three-times-three cheers. The _posse_ and assembly then dispersed all
in good order. Francis M. Higbee and others made some threats.
East wind. Very cold and cloudy.
I here insert the
_Ordinance Concerning Libels and for Other Purposes_.
Whereas the Saints in all ages of the world have suffered
persecution and death by wicked and corrupt men under the garb
of a mere holy appearance of religion; and whereas the Church
of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints, from the moment that its
first truth sprang out of the earth till now, has been persecuted
with death, destruction, and extermination; and, whereas men to
fulfill the Scriptures that a man's enemies are they of his own
household, have turned traitors in the Church, and combined and
leagued with the most corrupt scoundrels and villains that disgrace
the earth unhung, for the Heaven-daring and damnable purpose of
revenge on account of disappointed lust, disappointed projects
of speculation, fraud, and unlawful designs to rob and plunder
mankind with impunity; and, whereas such wicked and corrupt men
have greatly facilitated their unlawful designs, horrid intentions,
and murderous plans by polluting, degrading and converting
the blessings and utility of the press to the sin-smoking and
blood-stained ruin of innocent communities--by publishing lies,
false statements, coloring the truth, slandering men, women,
children, societies, and countries--by polishing the characters
of blacklegs, highwaymen, and murderers as virtuous; and whereas
a horrid, bloody, secret plan, upheld, sanctioned and largely
patronized by men in Nauvoo and out of it, who boast that all they
want for the word _go_, to exterminate or ruin the Latter day
Saints, is for them to do one unlawful act, and the work shall be
done, is now fostered, cherished, and maturing in Nauvoo,--by men,
too, who helped to obtain the very charter they would break, and
some of them drew up and voted for the very ordinances they are
striving to use as a scarecrow to frighten the surrounding country
in rebellion, mobbing, and war; and whereas, while the blood of
{434} our brethren from wells, holes and naked prairies, and the
ravishment of female virtue from Missouri, and the smoke from the
altars of infamy, prostituted by John C. Bennett, and continued in
the full tide of experiment and disgraceful damnation by the very
self-called fragments of a body of degraded men that have got up
a press in Nauvoo to destroy the charter of the city--to destroy
Mormonism, men, women, and children as Missouri did; by force of
arms--by fostering laws that emanate from corruption and betray
with a kiss; wherefore to honor the State of Illinois, and those
patriots who gave the charter, and for the benefit, convenience,
health, and happiness of said city:--
Sec. 1. Be it ordained by the City Council of Nauvoo that if any
person or persons shall write or publish in said city any false
statement or libel any of the citizens, for the purpose of exciting
the public mind against the chartered privileges, peace, and good
order of said city, or shall slander (according to the definition
of slander or libel by Blackstone or Kent, or the act in the
statute of Illinois,) any portion of the inhabitants of said city,
or bribe any portion of the citizens of said city for malicious
purposes, or in any manner or form excite the prejudice of the
community against any portion of the citizens of said city, for
evil purposes, he, she, or they shall be deemed disturbers of the
peace; and, upon conviction before the Mayor or Municipal Court,
shall be fined in any sum not exceeding five hundred dollars, or
imprisoned six months, or both, at the discretion of said Mayor or
court.
Sec. 2. Be it further ordained that nothing in the foregoing
section shall be so construed as to interfere with the right of any
person to be tried by a jury of his vicinage, with the freedom of
speech or the liberty of the press, according to the most liberal
meaning of the Constitution, the dignity of freemen, the voice of
truth, and the rules of virtue.
Sec. 3. And be it further ordained that this ordinance shall be in
force from and after its passage.
Passed June 10th, 1844.
GEO. W. HARRIS, President, pro tem.
W. RICHARDS, Recorder.
I also insert a brief synopsis of the proceedings of the City Council
of the city of Nauvoo, relative to the destruction of the press and
fixtures of the _Nauvoo Expositor_.
_Synopsis of Proceedings in the City Council against the Nauvoo
Expositor_.
CITY COUNCIL, REGULAR SESSION,
June 8th, 1844.
In connection with other business as stated in last week's paper,
the {435} Mayor remarked that he believed it generally the case,
that when a man goes to law, he has an unjust cause, and wants to
go before some one who wants business, and that he had very few
cases on his docket; and referring to Councilor Emmons, editor of
the _Nauvoo Expositor,_ suggested the propriety of first purging
the City Council; and, referring to the character of the paper
and proprietors, called up Theodore Turley, a mechanic, who being
sworn, said that the Laws (William and Wilson,) had brought bogus
dies to him to fix.
Councilor Hyrum Smith inquired what good Foster and his brother and
the Higbees and Laws had ever done. While his brother Joseph was
under arrest from the Missouri persecution, the Laws and Robert
D. Foster would have been ridden on a rail, if he had not stepped
forward to prevent it, on account of their oppressing the poor.
Mayor said, while he was under arrest by writ from Governor Carlin
William Law sued him for $40 he was owing Law, and it took the last
expense money he had to pay it.
Councilor Hyrum Smith referred to J. H. Jackson's coming to this
city, &c. Mayor said that William Law had offered Jackson $500 to
kill him.
Councilor Hyrum Smith continued--Jackson told him he (Jackson)
meant to have his daughter, and threatened him if he made any
resistance. Jackson related to him a dream, that Joseph and Hyrum
were opposed to him, but that he would execute his purposes; that
Jackson had laid a plan with four or five persons to kidnap his
daughter, and threatened to shoot any one that should come near
after he had got her in the skiff; that Jackson was engaged in
trying to make bogus, which was his principal business. Referred
to the revelation read to the High Council of the Church, which
has caused so much talk, about multiplicity of wives; that said
revelation was in answer to a question concerning things which
transpired in former days. That when sick, William Law confessed
to him that he had been guilty of adultery, and was not fit to
live, and had sinned against his own soul, &c., and inquired who
was Judge Emmons? When he came here he had scarce two shirts to his
back; but he had been dandled by the authorities of the city, &c.,
and was now editor of the _Nauvoo Expositor,_ and his right hand
man, was Francis M. Higbee, who had confessed to him that he had
had the--!
Washington Peck sworn, said--"Soon after Joseph H. Jackson came
here, he came to witness to borrow money, which witness loaned him
and Cook some jewelry as security."
Soon after a man from across the river came after the jewelry.
Jackson had stolen the jewelry from him.
{436} At another time wanted to get money of witness. Asked witness
if he would do anything dishonorable to get a living. Witness said
he would not. Jackson said witness was a damn fool, for he could
get a living, a deal easier than he was then doing, by making
bogus; and some men high in the Church, are engaged in the business.
Witness asked if it was Joseph. "No," said Jackson; "I dare not
tell it to Joseph." Witness understood him the Laws are engaged in
it. Jackson said he would be the death of witness, if he ever went
to Joseph, or anyone else, to tell what he had said.
AFTERNOON.--Ordered by the Council that Sylvester Emmons be
suspended until his case could be investigated, for slandering the
City Council. That the Recorder notify him of his suspension, and
that his case would come up for investigation at the next regular
session of the Council. (The order is in the hands of the Marshal).
Councilor John Taylor said that Council or Emmons helped to make
the ordinances of the city, and had never lifted his voice against
them in the Council, and was now trying to destroy the ordinances
and the charter.
Lorenzo Wasson sworn, said Joseph H. Jackson had told witness that
bogus-making was going on in the city; but it was too damned small
business. Wanted witness to help him to procure money, for the
General (Smith) was afraid to go into it; and with $500 he could
get an engraving for bills on the Bank of Missouri, and one on the
State of New York, and could make money. Said many times witness
did not know him. Believed the General had been telling witness
something. "G--d d--n him; if he has, I will kill him; Swore he
would kill any man that should prove a traitor to him," Jackson
said, if he could get a company of men to suit him, he would go
into the frontiers and live by highway robbery; had got sick of the
world.
Mayor suggested that the Council pass an ordinance to prevent
misrepresentations and libelous publications and conspiracies
against the peace of the city; and, referring to the reports that
Dr. Foster has set afloat, said he had never made any proposals
to Foster to come back to the Church. Foster proposed to come
back; came to Mayor's house, and wanted a private interview. Had
some conversation with Foster in the hall, in presence of several
gentlemen, on the 7th inst. Offered to meet him and have an
interview in presence of friends, three or four, to be selected by
each party; which Foster agreed to, and went to bring his friends
for the interview; and the next notice he had of him was the
following letter:--
{437} TO GENERAL JOSEPH SMITH:
June 7th, 1844.
SIR,--I have consulted my friends in relation to your proposals of
settlement, and they as well as myself, are of opinion that your
conduct, and that of your unworthy, unprincipled clan, is so base,
that it would be morally wrong, and detract from the dignity of
gentlemen, to hold any conference with you. The repeated insults
and abuses I, as well as my friends, have suffered from your
unlawful course towards us, demands honorable resentment. We are
resolved to make this our motto.
Nothing on our part has been done to provoke your anger, but have
done all things as become men. You have trampled upon everything
we hold dear and sacred. You have set all law at defiance, and
profaned the name of the Most High to carry out your damnable
purposes; and I have nothing more to fear from you than you have
already threatened; and I, as well as my friends, will stay here
and maintain and magnify the law as long as we stay; and we are
resolved never to leave until we sell or exchange our property that
we have here.
The proposals made by your agent, Dimick Huntington, as well as
the threats you sent to intimidate me, I disdain and despise as I
do their unhallowed author. The right of my family and my friends
demands at my hand a refusal of all your offers. We are united in
virtue and truth, and we set hell at defiance, and all her agents.
Adieu.
R. D. FOSTER.
Mayor continued--And when Foster left his house, he went to a shoe
shop on the hill, and reported that Joseph said to him, if he
would come back he would give him Law's place in the Church, and a
hat-full of specie.
Lucien Woodworth sworn. Said that the conversation as stated by the
Mayor was correct. Was at the Mansion June 7th, when Dr. Foster
rode up and inquired if General Smith was at home. Dr. Foster
went into the house; witness followed. Dr. Foster was there, the
General, and others, looking at some specimens of penmanship.
Something was said respecting a conversation at that time between
the General and the Doctor, Gen. Smith observed to Foster, if
he had a conversation, he would want others present. The Doctor
said he would have a word with him by himself, and went into the
hall. Witness went to the door that he might see and hear what
was passing. They still continued to talk on the subject of a
conversation that they might have afterwards with others present,
whom Mr. Smith and Foster might choose. Foster left, and went for
those that he said he wanted present, {438} and would return soon
with them. He heard all the conversation. Heard nothing about Gen.
Smith's making any offers to Foster to settle.
Mayor said he wished it distinctly understood that he knew nothing
about Dimick Huntington going to see Foster.
Woodworth said he sent Dimick Huntington to Foster, and Joseph knew
nothing about it.
Councilor Hyrum Smith said Dimick Huntington came to him on the 7th
inst. and said he had had an interview with Dr. Foster, and thought
he was about ready to come back, and a word from him or Joseph
would bring it about.
Mayor said--"The conduct of such men and such papers are calculated
to destroy the peace of the city, and it is not safe that such
thing should exist, on account of the mob spirit which they tend
to produce." He had made the statements he had, and called the
witnesses to prepare the council to act in the case.
Emmons was blackguarded out of Philadelphia, and dubbed with
the title of Judge (as he had understood from citizens of
Philadelphia); was poor, and Mayor helped him to cloth for a coat
before he went away last fall, and he (Emmons) labored all winter
to get the postoffice from Mr. Rigdon (as informed).
Mayor referred to a writing from Dr. Goforth, showing that the
Laws presented the communication from the Female Relief Society in
the_ Nauvoo Neighbor_ to Dr. Goforth, as the bone of contention,
and said if God ever spake by any man, it will not be five years
before this city is in ashes and we in our graves, unless we go to
Oregon, California or some other place, if the city does not put
down everything which tends to mobocracy, and put down murderers,
bogus-makers, and scoundrels. All the sorrow he ever had in his
family in this city has arisen through the influence of William Law.
Councilor H. Smith spoke in relation to the Laws, Fosters, Higbees,
editor of the _Signal,_ &c., and of the importance of suppressing
that spirit which has driven us from Missouri, &c.; that he would
go in for an effective ordinance.
Mayor said, at the time Governor Carlin was pursuing him with his
writs, William Law came to his house with a band of Missourians for
the purpose of betraying him. Came to his gate, and was prevented
by Daniel Carn, who was set to watch. Law came within his gate and
called, "Mayor," and the Mayor reproved Law for coming at that time
of night with a company of strangers.
Daniel Carn sworn. Said that about ten o'clock at night a boat
came up the river with about a dozen men. William Law came to the
gate with them. Witness on guard, stopped them. Law called Joseph
to {439} the door, and wanted an interview. Joseph said--"Brother
Law, you know better than to come here at this hour of the night,"
and Law retired. Next morning Law wrote a letter to apologize,
which witness heard read, which was written apparently to screen
himself from the censure of a conspiracy; and the letter betrayed a
conspiracy on the face of it.
Adjourned at half-past 6 p.m. till Monday, 10th, 10 o'clock a.m.
Adjourned session, June 10th, 10 o'clock a.m. Alderman Harris
presiding.
Mayor referred to Dr. Foster, and again read his letter of the 7th
instant (as before quoted).
Cyrus Hills (a stranger) sworn. Said one day last week, believed
it Wednesday, a gentleman whom witness did not know, came into the
sitting room of the Nauvoo Mansion, and requested the Hon. Mayor
to step aside; he wanted to speak with him. Mayor stepped through
the door into the entry by the foot of the stairs, and the General
(Mayor) asked him what he wished? Foster (as witness learned since
was his name) said he wanted some conversation on some business
witness did not understand at the time. The General refused to go
any farther, and said he would have no conversation in private,
and what should be said should be in public, and told Foster, if
he would choose three or four men, he would meet him with the same
number of men (among whom was his brother Hyrum), and they would
have a cool and calm investigation of the subject; and by his
making a proper satisfaction, things should be honorably adjusted.
Witness judged, from the manner in which Foster expressed himself,
that he agreed to the Mayor's proposals, and would meet him the
same day in the presence of friends. Heard no proposals made by
Major to Foster for settlement. Heard nothing about any offers
of dollars, or money, or any other offer except those mentioned
before. Nothing said about William Law. Was within hearing of the
parties at the time conversation was going on.
Orrin P. Rockwell sworn. Some day last week saw Dr. Foster ride
up to the Nauvoo Mansion and go in. Witness went in and found the
Mayor and Dr. Foster in conversation. General Smith was naming the
men he would have present, among whom were Hyrum Smith, William
Marks, Lucien Woodworth, and Peter Haws; and Dr. Foster had leave
to call an equal number of his friends, as witness understood, for
the purpose of having an interview on some matters in contention.
The Doctor's brother was proposed. General said he had no
objection; wanted him present. Dr. Foster started, saying he would
be back shortly. Before Dr. Foster left, the men whom General Smith
had named to be present at the conversation were sent for.
{440} Cross-examined. Witness went into the house as Mayor and Dr.
Foster were coming out of the bar-room into the hall. Nothing said
by the Mayor to Dr. Foster about his coming back. Made no offer to
Foster about a settlement.
Mayor said the first thing that occurred to his mind, when
he stepped into the hall with Foster, was that he wanted to
assassinate him. He saw something shining below his vest. Mayor put
his finger on it and said--"What is that?" Foster replied--"It's my
pistol," and immediately took out the pistol, and showed it openly,
and wanted the Mayor to go with him alone. Mayor said he would not
go alone. Mayor never saw the pistol before. Had a hook on its side
to hang on his waist-band.
Andrew L. Lamoreaux sworn. Said that in 1839 or '40, while
President Joseph Smith, Elder Rigdon, Judge Higbee, Orrin P.
Rockwell, and Dr. Robert D. Foster were on their way to Washington,
called at witness' house in Dayton, Ohio; that the evening was
spent very agreeably, except some dissatisfaction on the part
of certain females with regard to the conduct of Dr. Foster. On
their return from Washington, witness informed President Smith of
Foster's conduct. President Smith said he had frequently reproved
Foster for such conduct, and he had promised to do better, and told
witness to reprove Foster, if he saw anything out of the way. That
evening Foster refused to join the company, and walked through
the town till about 8 o'clock, when he came in and interrupted
President Smith, who was expounding some passages of the Scripture,
and changed the conversation. Soon after the company were invited
to Mr. Brown's at the next door, whither they all repaired. While
at Mr. Brown's, conversation was going on, and the room much
crowded. Dr. Foster and one of the ladies he had paid so much
attention to before took their seats in one corner of the room.
[Here follows statement of such lewdness in speech and conduct
on the part of Foster that it would violate propriety to print
it.] Next morning witness went in while Foster and others were
at breakfast, and related what he had seen. Foster denied it.
President Smith told him not to deny it, for he saw it himself, and
was ashamed of it. Foster confessed it was true, and promised to
reform.
Peter Haws sworn. Said that he came to Nauvoo before the Laws and
brought considerable property. It was a short time after the Church
had been driven out of Missouri, and had arrived in this place. The
families having been robbed of all in Missouri, were in a starving
condition. By the counsel of the Presidency, witness converted
his funds to feeding the poor, bringing in meat and flour, &c.;
and while thus engaged, drew upon the Laws, who were at that time
engaged in {441} merchandise, to the amount of some six hundred
dollars, which, on account of expenditure for the poor, he was not
able to pay within seventy or eighty dollars, which they pressed
him for as soon as they wanted it, although he offered them good
property at considerable less than the market value, as witness was
obliged to leave the city on Church business for a little season.
William Law threatened and intimidated witness' family during his
absence for the pay.
Dr. Foster made a public dinner on the 4th of July. Witness was
obliged to be absent, and deposited meat, flour, &c., with William
Law to give to the poor at that dinner, and Law handed it out as
his own private property. Witness carried a load of wheat to Law's
mill to be ground. Law would not grind it only to give a certain
quantity of flour in return by weight. Law used up the flour,
promising from time to time he would refund it. As witness was
about to start on a mission to the south with his valise in his
hand saw Law before his door talking with Hyrum Smith. Called on
Law, and told him he was going away, and his family wanted the
flour. Law promised on the honor of a gentleman and a Saint, that
his family should have the flour when they wanted.
Councilor Hyrum Smith said he recollected the time and circumstance.
Hawes said when he returned he found his family must have starved,
if they had not borrowed money to get food somewhere else; could
not get it of Law; and Law was preaching punctuality,_ punctuality,
punctuality,_ as the whole drift of his discourses to the Saints,
and abusing them himself and grinding the poor.
Mayor said, if he had a City Council who felt as he did, the
establishment (referring to the _Nauvoo Expositor_) would be
declared a nuisance before night; and then he read an editorial
from the _Nauvoo Expositor._ He then asked who ever said a word
against Judge Emmons until he attacked this Council? or even
against Joseph H. Jackson or the Laws, until they came out against
the city? Here is a paper (_Nauvoo Expositor_) that is exciting
our enemies abroad. Joseph H. Jackson has been proved a murderer
before the Council, and he declared the paper a nuisance--a greater
nuisance than a dead carcass. They make it a criminality for a man
to have a wife on the earth while he has one in heaven, according
to the keys of the Holy Priesthood; and he then read a statement
of William Law's from the _Expositor,_ where the truth of God was
transformed into a lie concerning this thing. He then read several
statements of Austin Cowles in the _Expositor_ concerning a private
interview, and said he never had any private conversations with
Austin Cowles on these subjects; that he preached on the stand from
the Bible, showing the order in ancient days. What the opposition
party {442} want is to raise a mob on us and take the spoil from
us, as they did in Missouri. He said it was as much as he could do
to keep his clerk, Thompson, from publishing the proceeding of the
Laws and causing the people to rise up against them. Said he would
rather die tomorrow and have the thing smashed, than live and have
it go on, for it was exciting the spirit of mobocracy among the
people, and bringing death and destruction upon us.
Peter Hawes recalled a circumstance which he had forgotten to
mention concerning a Mr. Smith who came from England and soon
after died. The children had no one to protect them. There was one
girl sixteen or seventeen years old, and a younger sister. Witness
took these girls into his family out of pity. Wilson Law, then
Major-General of the Nauvoo Legion, was familiar with the oldest
daughter. Witness cautioned the girl. Wilson was soon there again,
and went out in the evening with the girl, who, when charged by the
witness' wife, confessed that Wilson Law had seduced her. Witness
told her he could not keep her. The girl wept, made much ado, and
many promises. Witness told her if she would do right she might
stay; but she did not keep her promise. Wilson came again and she
went out with him. Witness then required her to leave the house.
Mayor said certain women came to complain to his wife that they had
caught Wilson Law with the girl [in compromising relations] at Mr.
Hawes' in the night.
Councilor Hyrum Smith proceeded to show the falsehood of Austin
Cowles in the _Expositor,_ in relation to the revelation referred
to.
Mayor said he had never preached the revelation in private; but
he had public. Had not taught to the anointed in the Church in
private, which statement many present confirmed; that on inquiring
concerning the passage on the resurrection concerning "they neither
marry nor are given in marriage," &c., he received for answer, "Man
in this life must marry in view of eternity, otherwise they must
remain as angels, or be single in heaven," which was the doctrine
of the revelation referred to; and the Mayor spoke at considerable
length in explanation of this principle, and was willing, for
one, to subscribe his name to declare the _Expositor_ and whole
establishment a nuisance.
Two o'clock p.m. Willard Richards, the clerk of the Council, bore
testimony of the good character and high standing of Mr. Smith and
his family, whose daughter was seduced by Wilson Law, as stated
by the last witness before the morning council; that Mrs. Smith
died near the mouth of the Mississippi, and the father and eldest
daughter died soon after their arrival in this place; and that the
seduction of such a youthful, fatherless and innocent creature,
by such a man in high standing as the Major-General of the Nauvoo
Legion, was one of the darkest, damnedest, and foulest deeds on
record.
{443} Councilor Hyrum Smith concurred in the remarks made by the
clerk concerning the excellent character of Mr. Smith and his
family.
Mayor said the Constitution did not authorize the press to publish
libels, and proposed that the Council make some provision for
putting down the _Nauvoo Expositor_.
Councilor Hyrum Smith called for a prospectus of the _Expositor_.
Councilor Phelps read article 8, sec. 1, Constitution of Illinois.
Mayor called for the charter.
The clerk read the prospectus of the _Nauvoo Expositor_ as follows:
PROSPECTUS OF THE "NAUVOO EXPOSITOR."
The _Nauvoo Expositor_ will be issued on Friday of each week, on
an imperial sheet, with a new press and materials of the best
quality, and rendered worthy of the patronage of a discerning and
enlightened public.
The _Expositor_ will be devoted to a general diffusion of useful
knowledge, and its columns open for the admission of all courteous
communications of a religious, moral, social, literary, or
political character without taking a decided stand in favor of
either of the great political parties in the country. A part of
its columns will be devoted to a few primary objects, which the
publishers deem of vital importance to the public welfare. Their
particular locality gives them a knowledge of the many_ gross
abuses exercised under the "pretended" authorities of the Charter
of the City of Nauvoo,_ by the legislative authorities of said city
and the _insupportable oppression_ of the _Ministerial powers in
carrying out the unjust, illegal and unconstitutional ordinances of
the same._ The publishers therefore deem it a sacred duty they owe
to their country and their fellow-citizens to advocate through the
columns of the _Expositor_ THE UNCONDITIONAL REPEAL OF THE NAUVOO
CITY CHARTER, to restrain and correct the abuses of the UNIT POWER,
to ward off the iron rod which is held over the devoted heads of
the citizens of Nauvoo and the surrounding country, to advocate
unmitigated DISOBEDIENCE TO POLITICAL REVELATIONS, and to censure
and decry gross moral imperfections wherever found, either in the
plebeian, patrician or SELF-CONSTITUTED MONARCH--to advocate the
pure principles of morality, the pure principles of truth, designed
not to destroy, but to strengthen the mainspring of God's moral
government--to advocate and exercise the freedom of speech in
Nauvoo, independent of the ordinances abridging the same--_to give
free toleration to every man's religious sentiment,_ and sustain
ALL in worshiping their God according to the monitions of their
consciences, as guaranteed by the Constitution of our country, and
to oppose with uncompromising hostility any UNION OF CHURCH AND
STATE, or any preliminary step tending to the same--to sustain ALL
_however humble,_ in their equal and constitutional rights, and
oppose the {444} sacrifice of the liberty, the property and the
happiness of the MANY, to the _pride_ and _ambition_ of the FEW;
in a word, to give a full, candid and succinct statement of FACTS
AS THEY REALLY EXIST IN THE CITY OF NAUVOO _fearless of whose
particular case the facts may apply_--being governed by the laws of
editorial courtesy, and the inherent dignity which is inseparable
from honorable minds, at the same time exercising their own
judgment in cases of flagrant abuses of moral delinquencies,--to
use such terms and names as they deem proper, when the object is of
such high importance that the end will justify the means. In this
great and indispensable work, we confidently look to an enlightened
public to aid us in our laudable effort.
The columns of the _Expositor_ will be open to the discussion
of all matters of public interest, the production of all
correspondents, subject to the decision of the editor alone, who
shall receive or reject at his option. National questions will
be in place, but no preference given to either of the political
parties. The editorial department will contain the political news
of the day, proceedings of Congress, election returns &c. Room will
be given for articles on agriculture, the mechanic arts, commercial
transactions, &c.
The first number of the _Expositor_ will be issued on Friday, the
7th day of June, 1844. The publishers bind themselves to issue the
paper weekly for one year, and forward 52 copies to each subscriber
during the year. Orders should be forwarded as soon as possible,
that the publishers may know what number of copies to issue.
The publishers take pleasure in announcing to the public that
they have engaged the service of Sylvester Emmons, Esq., who will
have entire charge and supervision of the editorial department.
From an acquaintance with the dignity of character and literary
qualifications of this gentleman, they feel assured that the
_Nauvoo Expositor_ must and will sustain a high and honorable
reputation.
All letters and communications must be addressed to Charles A.
Foster, Nauvoo, Ill., postpaid, in order to insure attention.
WILLIAM LAW,
WILSON LAW,
CHARLES IVINS,
FRANCIS M. HIGBEE,
CHAUNCEY L. HIGBEE,
ROBERT D. FOSTER,
CHARLES A. FOSTER,
Publishers.
Nauvoo, Ill., May 10th, 1844.
Mayor read the statements of Francis M. Higbee from the
_Expositor,_ {445} and asked--"Is it not treasonable against
all chartered rights and privileges, and against the peace and
happiness of the city?"
Councilor Hyrum Smith was in favor of declaring the _Expositor_ a
nuisance.
Councilor Taylor said no city on earth would bear such slander, and
he would not bear it, and was decidedly in favor of active measures.
Mayor made a statement of what William Law said before the City
Council under oath, that he was a friend to the Mayor, &c.. and
asked if there were any present who recollected his statement, when
scores responded, Yes.
Councilor Taylor continued--Wilson Law was President of this
Council during the passage of many ordinances, and referred to
the records. "William Law and Emmons were members of the Council,
and Emmons has never objected to any ordinance while in the
Council, but has been more like a cipher, and is now become editor
of a libelous paper, and is trying to destroy our charter and
ordinances." He then read from the Constitution of the United
States on the freedom of the press, and said--"We are willing they
should publish the truth; but it is unlawful to publish libels. The
_Expositor_ is a nuisance, and stinks in the nose of every honest
man."
Mayor read from Illinois Constitution, article 8, section 22,
touching the responsibility of the press for its constitutional
liberty.
Councilor Stiles said a nuisance was anything that disturbs the
peace of a community, and read Blackstone on private wrongs, vol.
2, page 4; and the whole community has to rest under the stigma
of these falsehoods (referring to the_ Expositor_); and if we
can prevent the issuing of any more slanderous communications,
he would go in for it. It is right for this community to show a
proper resentment; and he would go in for suppressing all further
publications of the kind.
Councilor Hyrum Smith believed the best way was to smash the press
and pi the type.
Councilor Johnson concurred with the Councilors who had spoken.
Alderman Bennett referred to the statement of the _Expositor_
concerning the Municipal Court in the case of Jeremiah Smith as a
libel, and considered the paper a public nuisance.
Councilor Warrington considered his a peculiar situation, as he
did not belong to any church or any party. Thought it might be
considered rather harsh for the Council to declare the paper a
nuisance, and proposed giving a few days limitation, and assessing
a fine of $3,000 for every libel; and if they would not cease
publishing libels, to declare it a nuisance; and said the statutes
made provisions for a fine of $500.
Mayor replied that they threatened to shoot him when at Carthage,
and the women and others dare not go to Carthage to prosecute; and
{446} read a libel from the _Expositor_ concerning the imprisonment
of Jeremiah Smith.
Councilor Hyrum Smith spoke of the _Warsaw Signal,_ and
disapprobated its libelous course.
Mayor remarked he was sorry to have one dissenting voice in
declaring the _Expositor_ a nuisance.
Councilor Warrington did not mean to be understood to go against
the proposition; but would not be in haste in declaring a nuisance.
Councilor Hyrum Smith referred to the mortgages and property of the
proprietors of the_ Expositor,_ and thought there would be little
chance of collecting damages for libels.
Alderman Elias Smith considered there was but one course to pursue
that the proprietors were out of the reach of the law; that our
course was to put an end to the things at once. Believed by what he
had heard that if the City Council did not do it, others would.
Councilor Hunter believed it to be a nuisance. Referred to the
opinion of Judge Pope on _habeas corpus,_ and spoke in favor of
the charter, &c. Asked Francis M. Higbee, before the jury, if he
was not the man he saw at Joseph's house making professions of
friendship. Higbee said he was not. (Hundreds know this statement
to be false.) He also asked R. D. Foster if he did not state before
hundreds of people that he believed Joseph to be a Prophet. "No,"
said Foster. They were under oath when they said it. (Many hundreds
of people are witness to this perjury).
Alderman Orson Spencer accorded with the views expressed, that
the _Nauvoo Expositor_ is a nuisance. Did not consider it wise to
give them time to trumpet a thousand lies. Their property could
not pay for it. If we pass only a fine or imprisonment, have we
any confidence that they will desist? None at all. We have found
these men covenant-breakers with God, with their wives, &c. Have we
any hope of their doing better? Their characters have gone before
them. Shall they be suffered to go on, and bring a mob upon us,
and murder our women and children, and burn our beautiful city!
No! I had rather my blood would be spilled at once, and would like
to have the press removed as soon as the ordinance would allow:
and wish the matter might be put into the hands of the Mayor, and
everybody stand by him in the execution of his duties, and hush
every murmur.
Councilor Levi Richards said he had felt deeply on this subject,
and concurred fully in the view General Smith had expressed of
it this day; thought it unnecessary to repeat what the Council
perfectly understood; considered private interest as nothing in
comparison with the public good. Every time a line was formed in
Far West, he was there--for what? To defend it against just such
scoundrels and influence {447} as the _Nauvoo Expositor_ and its
supporters were directly calculated to bring against us again.
Considered the doings of the Council this day of immense moment,
not to this city alone, but to the whole world; would go in to put
a stop to the thing at once. Let it be thrown out of this city, and
the responsibility of countenancing such a press be taken off our
shoulders and fall on the State, if corrupt enough to sustain it.
Councilor Phineas Richards said that he had not forgotten the
transaction at Haun's Mill, and that he recollected that his
son George Spencer then lay in the well referred to on the day
previous, without a winding-sheet, shroud or coffin. He said he
could not sit still when he saw the same spirit raging in this
place. He considered the publication of the _Expositor_ as much
murderous at heart as David was before the death of Uriah; was
prepared to take stand; by the Mayor, and whatever he proposes;
would stand by him to the last. The quicker it is stopped the
better.
Councilor Phelps had investigated the Constitution, Charter, and
laws. The power to declare that office a nuisance is granted to
us in the Springfield Charter, and a resolution declaring it a
nuisance is all that is required.
John Birney sworn. Said Francis M. Higbee and Wm. Law declared they
had commenced their operations, and would carry them out, law or no
law.
Stephen Markham sworn. Said that Francis M. Higbee said the
interest of this city is done the moment a hand is laid on their
press.
Councilor Phelps continued, and referred to Wilson Law in
destroying the character of a child--an orphan child, who had the
charge of another child.
Warren Smith sworn. Said F. M. Higbee came to him, and proposed
to have him go in as a partner in making bogus money. Higbee said
he would not work for a living; that witness might go in with him
if he would advance fifty dollars; and showed him (witness) a
half-dollar which he said was made in his dies.
Councilor Phelps continued and he felt deeper this day than ever he
felt before, and wanted to know, by "Yes," if there was any person
who wanted to avenge the blood of that innocent female who had been
seduced by the then Major-General of the Nauvoo Legion, Wilson Law;
when "Yes!" resounded from every quarter of the house. He then
referred to the tea plot at Boston, and asked if anybody's rights
were taken away with that transaction; and are we offering, or have
we offered to take away the rights of anyone these two days? ("No!"
resounded from every quarter.) He then referred also to Law's
grinding the poor during the scarcity of grain, while the poor had
nothing {448} but themselves to grind; and spoke at great length in
support of active measures to put down iniquity, and suppress the
spirit of mobocracy.
Alderman Harris spoke from the chair, and expressed his feelings
that the press ought to be demolished.
The following resolution was then read and passed unanimously, with
the exception of Councilor Warrington:--
"Resolved, by the City Council of the city of Nauvoo, that the
printing-office from whence issues the_ Nauvoo Expositor_ is a
public nuisance and also all of said _Nauvoo Expositors_ which may
be or exist in said establishment; and the Mayor is instructed to
cause said printing establishment and papers to be removed without
delay, in such manner as he shall direct.
GEORGE W. HARRIS,
President, _pro tem._
W. RICHARDS, Recorder.
The following order was immediately issued by the Mayor:--
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
CITY OF NAUVOO, ss.
_To the Marshal of said City, greeting_.
You are here commanded to destroy the printing press from whence
issues the _Nauvoo Expositor,_ and pi the type of said printing
establishment in the street, and burn all the _Expositors_ and
libelous handbills found in said establishment; and if resistance
be offered to your execution of this order by the owners or others,
demolish the house; and if anyone threatens you or the Mayor or the
officers of the city, arrest those who threaten you, and fail not
to execute this order without delay, and make due return hereon.
By order of the City Council,
JOSEPH SMITH, Mayor.
Marshal's return--"The within-named press and type is destroyed and
pied according to order, on this 10th day of June, 1844, at about 8
o'clock p.m.
J. P. GREENE, C. M.
HEADQUARTERS, NAUVOO LEGION,
June 10th, 1844.
_To Jonathan Dunham, acting Major-General of the Nauvoo Legion_.
You are hereby commanded to hold the Nauvoo Legion in readiness
forthwith to execute the city ordinances, and especially to remove
the printing establishment of the _Nauvoo Expositor;_ and this is
what you are required to do at sight, under the penalty of the
laws, provided the Marshal shall require it and need your services.
JOSEPH SMITH,
Lieut-General, Nauvoo Legion.
{449} _Tuesday 11.--_Spent the forenoon in council with the brethren at
my house. Went to the office and conversed with my brother Hyrum, Dr.
Richards, George G. Adams, and others.
I issued the following.
PROCLAMATION.
By virtue of my office as Mayor of the city of Nauvoo, I do hereby
strictly enjoin it upon the municipal officers and citizens of
said city to use all honorable and lawful means in their power to
assist me in maintaining the public peace and common quiet of said
city. As attempts have already been made to excite the jealousy
and prejudice of the people of the surrounding country, by libels
and slanderous articles upon the citizens and City Council, for
the purpose of destroying the charter of said city, and for the
purpose of raising suspicion, wrath, and indignation among a
certain class of the less honorable portion of mankind, to commit
acts of violence upon the innocent and unsuspecting, in a certain
newspaper called the _Nauvoo Expositor,_ recently established
for such purposes in said city, and which has been destroyed as
a nuisance, according to the provision of the charter. I further
call upon every officer, authority, and citizen to be vigilant in
preventing, by wisdom the promulgation of false statements, libels,
slanders, or any other malicious or evil-designed concern that may
be put in operation to excite and ferment the passions of men to
rebel against the rights and privileges of the city, citizens, or
laws of the land; to be ready to suppress the gathering of mobs;
to repel, by gentle means and noble exertion, every foul scheme of
unprincipled men to disgrace and dishonor the city, or state, or
any of their legally-constituted authorities; and, finally to keep
the peace by being cool, considerate, virtuous, unoffending, manly,
and patriotic, as the true sons of liberty ever have been, and
honorably maintain the precious boon our illustrious fathers won.
In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and affixed the seal
of said corporation at the city of Nauvoo, this 11th day of June,
1844.
JOSEPH SMITH, Mayor.
I had an interview with Elder G. J. Adams out of doors and then
returned home to dinner.
At 2 p.m. I went into court. Many people were present. I talked an hour
or two on passing events, the mob {450} party, &c., and told the people
I was ready to fight, if the mob compelled me to, for I would not be in
bondage. I asked the assembly if they would stand by me, and they cried
"Yes" from all quarters. I returned home.
The Recorder issued a summons for Sylvester Emmons to attend the City
Council on the second Saturday in July, at 10 a.m. to answer charges
then and there to be preferred against him for slandering the City
Council.
Dr. Richards came to me at my room as I was talking to my brother
Hyrum, Eaton Bonney and others, and read the following letter:
_Letter: L. W. Hickok to Joseph Smith--Probability of Indictment of
the Prophet et al, at Springfield_.
SPRINGFIELD, ILL., June 6th, 1844.
_General Joseph Smith or Dr. Richards_:
GENTLEMEN.--I arrived at this place on yesterday, safe and sound,
in company with Major Smith, who is in good health, and wishes to
be remembered to you and all his friends.
I have just learned that T. B. Johnson, the individual who figured
so large at Nauvoo is about to present the case, or his case,
before the grand jury at this place. This is to inform you of the
fact, that you may take the necessary precaution, or do what you
think advisable in the case. From what I can gather, you are all to
be indicted who were present in the case according to the law of
the city of Nauvoo.
I remain a friend to humanity, "equal rights," and justice to all
mankind.
L. W. HICKOK.
P. S.--I have just learned that Elder Wight is in this place, and
shall put this in his hands, thinking that he may act with more
efficiency than the mail.
I am, &c.,
L. W. H.
Our communications by mail appear to be cut off, as no part of our
extensive correspondence has come to hand by the U. S. mail for the
last three weeks, and Dr. Hickok seems to be aware of it. Instructed
Dr. Richards to {451} answer Dr. Hickok's letter, and then rode out
with O. P. Rockwell.
I received the following letter:
_Letter: H. T. Hugins to Joseph Smith--Warning the Prophet of
Probable Indictment_.
SPRINGFIELD, ILL., June 6, 1844.
DEAR SIR.--I have just received information that T. B. Johnson is
making an effort to procure from the grand jury for the United
States, now in session at this place, an indictment against the
members of your Municipal Court for exercising their legal and
constitutional rights, and discharging their sworn duty in acting
in the matter of Jeremiah Smith's petition for _habeas corpus._
I could hardly have supposed that he would succeed, had I not
been informed that there is no doubt that he will accomplish his
object. I give you this information that you may be able to act as
circumstances may require. Mr. Smith has not had a hearing, and
will not till tomorrow morning.
Yours truly,
H. T. HUGINS.
GENERAL JOSEPH SMITH, Nauvoo.
Elders Jedediah M. Grant and George J. Adams preached at my house in
the evening. Cloudy and cool day.
The captain of the steamer _Osprey_ called this forenoon at the
printing office to see me. I rode with him to his boat, which was
at the upper landing. When I came up, Charles A. Foster called the
passengers to see the meanest man in the world. Mr. Eaton stopped him,
and told the passengers that it was Foster who was the meanest man in
the world. Rollison attempted to draw a pistol, but Eaton silenced him,
and kept them all down.
David Harvey Redfield reported that last evening, while on the hill,
just before the police arrived, Francis M. Higbee said while speaking
of the printing press of the _Nauvoo Expositor,_ if they lay their
hands upon it or break it, they may date their downfall from that very
hour, and in ten days there will not be a Mormon left in Nauvoo. What
they do, they may expect the same in return. Addison Everett also heard
him.
{452} Jason R. Luse reported that Ianthus Rolf said, while the press
was burning that before three weeks the Mansion House would be strung
to the ground, and he would help to do it; and Tallman Rolf said the
city would be strung to the ground within ten day. Moses Leonard also
heard him, Joshua Miller being also present.
Bryant, (merchant of Nauvoo) said before he would see such things, he
would wade to his knees in blood.
It is reported that runners have gone out in all directions to try to
get up a mob; and the mobbers are selling their houses in Nauvoo and
disposing of their property.
{453}
CHAPTER XXI.
PRESIDENT SMITH ARRESTED FOR RIOT IN RELATION TO "EXPOSITOR"
AFFAIR--HABEAS CORPUS PROCEEDINGS BEFORE MUNICIPAL COURT--A CALL FROM
ARKANSAS--THE PROPHETS'S DREAMS--MASS MEETING AT WARSAW--LETTERS TO
GOVERNOR FORD ON "EXPOSITOR" AFFAIR.
_Wednesday, June 12, 1844.--_At 10 a.m. in my office.
At half-past one I was arrested by David Bettisworth on the following
writ:
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
HANCOCK COUNTY, ss.
_The People of the State of Illinois to all Constables, Sheriffs
and Coroners of State, Greeting_:
_Whereas_ complaint hath been made before me, one of the justices
of the peace within and for the county of Hancock aforesaid, upon
the oath of Francis M. Higbee of said county, that Joseph Smith,
Samuel Bennett, John Taylor and William W. Phelps, Hyrum Smith,
John P. Greene, Stephen Perry, Dimick B. Huntington, Jonathan
Dunham, Stephen Markham, William Edwards, Jonathan Holmes, Jesse P.
Harmon, John Lytle, Joseph W. Coolidge, Harvey D. Redfield, Porter
Rockwell and Levi Richards, of said county did on the 10th day of
June instant commit a riot at and within the county aforesaid,
wherein they, with force and violence broke into the office of
the _Nauvoo Expositor_, and unlawfully and with force burned and
destroyed the printing press, type and fixtures of the same, being
the property of William Law, Wilson Law, Charles Ivins, Francis M.
Higbee, Chauncey L. Higbee, Robert D. Foster, and Charles A. Foster.
These are therefore to command you forthwith to apprehend the said
Joseph Smith, Samuel Bennett, John Taylor, William W. Phelps,
Hyrum Smith, John P. Greene, Stephen Perry, Dimick B. Huntington,
Jonathan Dunham, Stephen Markham, William Edwards, Jonathan
Holmes, Jesse P. Harmon, John Lytle, Joseph W. Coolidge, Harvey D.
Redfield, Porter Rockwell and Levi Richards, and bring them before
me or some other justice of the peace, to answer the premises, and
further to be dealt with according to Law.
{454} Given under my hand and seal at Carthage, in the county
aforesaid, this 11th day of June. A. D. 1844.
[Seal]
THOMAS MORRISON, J. P.
[Sidenote: The Prophet Asserts his Rights Under the Law.]
After the officer got through reading the writ, I referred him to the
clause in the writ--"Before me or some other justice of the peace or
said county," saying, "We are ready to go to trial before Esquire
Johnson or any justice in Nauvoo, according to the requirements of the
writ;" but Bettisworth swore he would be damned but he would carry
them to Carthage before Morrison, who issued the writ and seemed very
wrathy. I asked him if he intended to break the law, for he knew the
privilege of the prisoners, and they should have it. I called upon all
present to witness that I then offered myself (Hyrum did the same) to
go forthwith before the nearest justice of the peace, and also called
upon them to witness whether the officer broke the law or not.
I felt so indignant at his abuse in depriving me of the privilege of
the statute of Illinois in going before "some other justice," that
I determined to take out a writ of _habeas corpus,_ and signed the
following petition:
_The Prophet's Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS, CITY OF NAUVOO.
_To the Honorable Municipal Court in and for the said City of
Nauvoo_:
Your petitioner, Joseph Smith, respectfully represents that he is
now under arrest in the said city of Nauvoo.
That he is in the custody of one David Bettisworth, a constable
in and for said county of Hancock, who holds your petitioner, as
he says by virtue of a warrant issued by one Thomas Morrison, an
acting justice of the peace in and for the said county of Hancock,
and State of Illinois, which warrant was issued upon the affidavits
of one Francis M. Higbee, charging your petitioner with being
guilty of a riot, or of having committed a riot within the county
aforesaid.
Your petitioner further represents that the warrant of arrest, by
virtue of which the said David Bettisworth has made this arrest,
does not disclose sufficiently clear and explicit the charge they
have preferred.
Your petitioner further avers that this proceeding against him has
{455} been instituted through malice, private pique and corruption.
Your petitioner further avers that the design and intention of
the said F. M. Higbee in commencing this prosecution is to commit
and carry out more easily a conspiracy against the life of your
petitioner; and that the said Higbee has publicly declared that
it was his determination to do everything in his power to throw
your petitioner into the hands of his enemies: and that there is
a determination upon the part of said Higbee and his unhallowed
coadjutors to commit an unlawful act, and to set the rights and
privileges of your petitioner at defiance, and bring down upon his
head this corrupt and unhallowed prosecution.
Your petitioner further avers that he is not guilty of the charge
preferred against him; that he seeks an investigation before an
impartial tribunal, and fears not the result.
Your petitioner would therefore ask your honorable body to grant
him the benefit of the writ of _habeas corpus,_ that this matter
may be investigated upon legal principles, and that the legal and
constitutional rights of your petitioner may be determined by your
honorable body. And your petitioner, as in duty bound, will ever
pray.
JOSEPH SMITH.
Subscribed and sworn to this 12th day of June, 1844, before me.
WILLARD RICHARDS, M. C. C. N.
Whereupon the clerk issued the following:
_Petition of the Prophet Granted_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS, CITY OF NAUVOO.
_The People of the State of Illinois to the Marshal of Said City
Greeting_:
_Whereas,_ application has been made before the Municipal Court
of said city, that the body of one Joseph Smith, of the city
aforesaid, is in the custody of one David Bettisworth, constable of
the county of Hancock, and State aforesaid.
These are therefore to command the said David Bettisworth,
constable as aforesaid, to safely have the body of said Joseph
Smith, of the city aforesaid, in his custody detained, as it is
said, together with the day and cause of his caption and detention,
by whatsoever name the said Joseph Smith may be known or called,
before the Municipal Court of the said city forthwith, to abide
such order as the said court shall make in his behalf. And further,
if the said David Bettisworth, or other person or persons having
said Joseph Smith of said city of Nauvoo in custody shall refuse
or neglect to comply with the provisions of this writ, you, the
marshal of said city, or other person authorized to serve the
same, are hereby required to arrest the person or persons {456} so
refusing or neglecting to comply, as aforesaid, and bring him or
them together with the person or persons in his or their custody,
forthwith before the Municipal Court aforesaid, to be dealt with
according to law. And herein fail not, and bring this writ with you.
Witness, Willard Richards, clerk of the Municipal Court at Nauvoo,
this 12th day of June, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight
hundred and forty-four.
[Seal]
WILLARD RICHARDS,
Clerk of the Municipal Court of the City of Nauvoo.
At 5 p.m. I appeared before the Municipal Court on the above _habeas
corpus_. The following is a copy of their docket.
_Hearing on the Expositor affairs Before the Municipal Court of
Nauvoo--Habeas Corpus Proceedings_.
Special session, June 12th, 1844, 5 o'clock p.m.
Present--Alderman N. K. Whitney, Orson Spencer, George W. Harris,
Gustavus Hills, Elias Smith, and Samuel Bennett, associate
justices. The Mayor being on trial, George W. Harris was elected
president _pro tem_.
John P. Greene, Marshal, made his return on the writ of_ habeas
corpus;_ "the body of Joseph Smith in court."
David Bettisworth made his return on the copy of the warrant which
was attached to the petition as follows:--"I hold the body of
Joseph Smith by virtue of a writ, of which the within is a copy.
David Bettisworth, constable."
7th section of Addenda of City Ordinance read by Councilor George
P. Styles. Resolution of City Council June 10th, 1844, declaring
printing establishment of the _Nauvoo Expositor_ a nuisance read.
Mayor's order to the Marshal to execute the same was also read, and
Lieut.-General's order of June 10th, 1844, to Major-General Dunham
to assist the Marshal to destroy said printing establishment.
Theodore Turley sworn, said that the order of the Marshal was
executed quietly and peaceably. There was no riot or disturbance,
no noise, no exultation; the Marshal endeavored to keep peace and
silence, and the officers did also. The two companies under command
of Dunham and Markham retired in perfect order; no exultation or
shouting. Marched in front of the Mansion, and were dismissed.
J. R. Wakefield confirmed the statements of Theodore Turley: said
the Marshal stated his authority, and demanded the keys of the
building, which Higbee denied; and Marshal ordered the door to be
forced, and the press was broken, and type pied in the street.
{457} James Jackson, sworn, confirmed the statements of previous
witnesses; heard no noise on opening the door. Most of the
confusion he heard was Higbee and his company throwing blackguard
language to the posse, which they did not regard: saw the whole
proceedings till they were dismissed; all was done in order.
Higbee's blackguard language was not answered to at all by the
ranks. Heard nothing said about shooting. Heard some one damn the
city authorities. Understood it was Charles Foster. I am a stranger
in this place.
John Kay, Robert Clift, Augustus A. Farnham, Joseph A. Kelting,
Henry G. Sherwood, Augustus Stafford, Cyrus Canfield, John Gleason
sworn.
Henry G. Sherwood confirmed the statements of previous witnesses.
Pullin called for Dr. Foster and the officer commanded silence.
Francis M. Higbee's threats have been lavish towards General Smith
and Hyrum for a long time; has threatened injury upon them and the
property of the Smiths. His conspiracies and threats have not been
a little.
Orrin P. Rockwell sworn. Some three or four weeks ago said Francis
M. Higbee said he would go his death against Joseph and Hyrum
Smith. Francis said, "I know my course is wrong; but if I stop I
shall get hell, and if I go on I shall only get hell;" and would
do what he intended at the risk of his life, and would destroy
the General if possible. Said the Council had ordered the press
destroyed and "who lays his hands on the press it is death to
them." Witness has frequently heard Higbee tell lies about the
General to injure his character.
John Hughes, Joseph Dalton, William Clayton and James Goff sworn.
John Hughes said, Higbee said, "By God, all I want to live for
is to see this city sunk down to the lowest hell, and by God it
shall!" This was just previous to the Marshal's arriving on the
10th. William Clayton said two years ago this June Francis M.
Higbee confessed he was concerned with John C. Bennett in his
iniquity, and had a bad disorder: said he knew his character was
ruined. From time to time since that, witness knew Higbee had been
threatening General Smith's character and property.
Leonard Soby heard Higbee threaten to shoot General Smith at
Rollinson's store, and Higbee said the destinies of this people are
this day sealed in the archives of heaven, and there shall not be
left one stone upon another on that temple.
John P. McEwan: Higbee said, in reference to Joseph Smith,
"G--d--him, I will shoot him and all that pertains to him; and
before ten suns shall go over our heads, the Temple, Nauvoo House
and Mansion shall all be destroyed, and it will be the total
downfall of this community."
{458} Cyrus Canfield: Higbee said he would never let things go till
he had accomplished the downfall of General Smith; that he did not
value his life to produce the downfall of General Smith.
Joseph Dalton: Higbee said, if they laid their hands on the press,
from that hour they might date their downfall; that ten suns should
not roll over their heads till the city was destroyed.
Court decided that Joseph Smith had acted under proper authority in
destroying the establishment of the _Nauvoo Expositor_ on the 10th
inst.; that his orders were executed in an orderly and judicious
manner, without noise or tumult; that this was a malicious
prosecution on the part of Francis M. Higbee; and that said
Higbee pay the costs of suit, and that Joseph Smith be honorably
discharged from the accusations and of the writ, and go hence
without delay.
I received the following letter:
_Letter: Washington Tucker to President Smith--Asking that Elders
be Sent to Arkansas_.
ELDORADO, UNION COUNTY, ARKANSAS, May 4th, 1844.
_To General Joseph Smith of Nauvoo, Illinois_:
REVEREND SIR.--Last winter, while in the State of Mississippi, I
became acquainted with one of your missionaries who was laboring
at the time in that state. Also at the same time, I had an
opportunity of perusing some of your sacred books; and from what I
have been able to learn, as well from reading as from observation,
I am constrained to be very favorably impressed towards the new
doctrine. Although to me it certainly appears quite novel, yet I
cannot do otherwise than believe there is great reality in it;
so much so, indeed, that I am extremely anxious to become better
informed on this all important and truly vital matter.
And, moreover, I am not the only one in this part who is an ardent
seeker after truth. Indeed, the subject is beginning to produce a
great deal of inquiry and some excitement in this country. Hundreds
who never before heard of the new revelation are opening their eyes
and staring and gaping to know more about it.
Some few days ago, several emigrants arrived here from Mississippi,
who speak in the highest terms of the Latter-day Saints. Their
report has greatly increased the inquiry and excitement previously
going the rounds in this quarter. I hear a number speak of visiting
Nauvoo, some of taking their families with them, and so remain
there. But it is the general wish of a great many here in Union
county for you to send a minister here immediately to instruct
us and lead us more fully into {459} the light of this wonderful
and new revealed religion, and direct us into the true road to
salvation.
This is the only subject on which my thoughts dwell both day and
night; for, indeed, during my waking hours nothing diverts my
meditation from this absorbing topic, and while asleep I dream of
nothing else.
If you please, be so good as to send a laborer among us
immediately; for indeed the harvest is great, and the laborers
but few, or none at all, I have not the least doubt but that a
Latter-day Saint would succeed here as well as the most sanguine
could promise himself. His labors, I am sure, would be crowned
with success, and the salvation of many a precious yet perishing
soul might be rescued from death and prove the rich fruits of the
missionary's toil.
The principal denominations here are the Methodists, the Baptists
and Campbellites. A great many of the people, however, are
none-professors, the greater majority of whom are quite moral, and
many of them religiously inclined.
I shall look for a minister from you within two or three months.
When he does come, I will see that he is hospitably received and
entertained.
Your obedient and humble servant,
WASHINGTON TUCKER.
To which I wrote the following reply:
_Letter: Joseph Smith to Washington Tucker, Promising that an Elder
Should be Sent_.
NAUVOO, ILLINOIS, June 12th, 1844.
SIR.--Your letter, dated May 4th, has reached me, and its contents
duly considered. A multiplicity of business keeps me from writing
as freely to correspondents as I could wish; still my heart is
large enough for all men, and my sensibilities keen enough to have
compassion for every case when justice, mercy, virtue, or humanity
require it. Be pleased to accept my thanks for your very kind
letter; study the Bible, and as many of our books as you can get;
pray to the Father in the name of Jesus Christ, have faith in the
promises made to the fathers, and your mind will be guided to the
truth. An Elder shall be sent as soon as the Twelve can make the
necessary arrangements.
In the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ,
I am your obedient servant,
JOSEPH SMITH.
WASHINGTON TUCKER, Eldorado, Arkansas.
The editor of the _Neighbor_ writes:
{460} RETRIBUTIVE JUSTICE.
A knot of base men, to further their wicked and malicious designs
towards the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and to
bolster up the intents of blacklegs and bogus-makers, and advocate
the characters of murderers, established a press in this city
last week, and issued a paper entitled the_ Nauvoo Expositor_.
The prospectus showed an intention to destroy the charter, and
the paper was filled with libels and slanderous articles upon the
citizens and City Council from one end to the other.
"A burnt child dreads the fire." The Church as a body and
individually has suffered till "forbearance has ceased to be a
virtue." The cries and pleadings of men, women and children, with
the authorities were, "Will you suffer that servile, murderous
paper to go on and vilify and slander the innocent inhabitants of
this city, and raise another mob to drive and plunder us again as
they did in Missouri?" Under these pressing cries and supplications
of afflicted innocence, and in the character, dignity, and honor
of the corporate powers of the charter, as granted to the city of
Springfield, and made and provided as a part of our charter for
legislative purposes--viz., "to declare what shall be a nuisance
and to prevent and remove the same." The City Council of Nauvoo
on Monday, the 10th instant, declared the establishment and
_Expositor_ a nuisance; and the city marshal, at the head of the
police, in the evening, took the press, materials and paper into
the street and burned them.
And in the name of freemen, and in the name of God, we beseech all
men who have the spirit of honor in them to cease from persecuting
us, collectively or individually. Let us enjoy our religion,
rights and peace like the rest of mankind. Why start presses to
destroy rights and privileges, and bring upon us mobs to plunder
and murder? We ask no more than what belongs to us--the rights of
Americans.
[Sidenote: Further Account of Municipal Court on _Expositor_ Case.]
_Thursday, 13_.--At nine a.m. presided in Municipal Court, which sat in
the Seventies' Hall. Present, William Marks, Newel K. Whitney, George
W. Harris, Gustavus Hills, and Elias Smith, associate justices. Hyrum
Smith, John P. Greene, William W. Phelps, Stephen Markham, Harvey D.
Redfield, John Lytle, Dimick B. Huntington, John Taylor, Levi Richards,
Stephen Perry, Jonathan B. Holmes, Jonathan Dunham, Samuel Bennett and
William W. Edwards were arrested on the complaint of Francis M. Higbee,
before Thomas Morrison, J. P., of {461} Carthage, by David Bettisworth,
constable of Hancock county. They petitioned for and obtained a writ
of _habeas corpus._ I sat as chief-justice; William Marks, Newel K.
Whitney, George W. Harris, Gustavus Hills, and Elias Smith as associate
justices.
Addison Everett and James Jackson gave their testimony under oath, when
they were all honorably discharged from the accusations and arrest, the
court deciding that said Higbee pay the costs; whereupon execution was
issued for the amount.
[Sidenote: The Prophet's Dreams on Condition of Apostates in Nauvoo.]
In the evening I attended meeting in the Seventies' Hall. George J.
Adams preached and I made some observations afterwards, and related a
dream which I had a short time since. I thought I was riding out in
my carriage, and my guardian angel was along with me. We went past
the Temple, and had not gone much further before we espied two large
snakes so fast locked together that neither of them had any power. I
inquired of my guide what I was to understand by that. He answered,
"Those snakes represent Dr. Foster and Chauncey L. Higbee. They are
your enemies and desire to destroy you; but you see they are so fast
locked together that they have no power of themselves to hurt you. I
then thought I was riding up Mulholland street, but my guardian angel
was not along with me. On arriving at the prairie, I was overtaken
and seized by William and Wilson Law and others, saying, "Ah! ah! we
have got you at last! We will secure you and put you in a safe place!"
and, without any ceremony dragged me out of my carriage, tied my hands
behind me, and threw me into a deep, dry pit, where I remained in a
perfectly helpless condition, and they went away. While struggling to
get out, I heard Wilson Law screaming for help hard by. I managed to
unloose myself so as to make a spring, when I caught hold of some grass
which grew at the edge of the pit.
{462} I looked out of the pit and saw Wilson Law at a little distances
attacked by ferocious wild beasts, and heard him cry out, "Oh! Brother
Joseph, come and save me!" I replied, "I cannot, for you have put me
into this deep pit." On looking out another way, I saw William Law with
outstretched tongue, blue in the face, and the green poison forced out
of his mouth, caused by the coiling of a large snake around his body.
It had also grabbed him by the arm, a little above the elbow, ready to
devour him. He cried out in the intensity of his agony, "Oh, Brother
Joseph, Brother Joseph, come and save me, or I die!" I also replied to
him, "I cannot, William; I would willingly, but you have tied me and
put me in this pit, and I am powerless to help you or liberate myself."
In a short time after my guide came and said aloud, "Joseph, Joseph,
what are you doing there?" I replied, "My enemies fell upon me, bound
me and threw me in." He then took me by the hand, drew me out of the
pit, set me free, and we went away rejoicing.
[Sidenote: Threat of Carthage Mob against Nauvoo.]
Two of the brethren arrived this evening from Carthage, and said that
about three hundred mobbers were assembled there, with the avowed
intention of coming against Nauvoo; also that Hamilton was paying a
dollar per bushel for corn to feed their animals.
The following was published in the _Warsaw Signal_ office. I insert it
as a specimen of the unparalleled corruption and diabolical falsehood
of which the human race has become capable in this generation:
MASS MEETING AT WARSAW.
At a mass meeting of the citizens of Hancock county, convened at
Carthage on the 13th day of June, 1844 Mr. Knox was appointed
president, John Doty and Lewis F. Evans, vice-presidents; and
William Y. Head, secretary.
Henry Stephens, Esq., presented the following resolutions, passed
at a meeting of the citizens of Warsaw, and urged the adoption of
them as the sense of this meeting.
{463} _Preamble and Resolutions_.
Whereas information has reached us, about which there can be no
question, that the authorities of Nauvoo did recently pass an
ordinance declaring a printing press and newspaper published by the
opponents of the Prophet a nuisance, and in pursuance thereof did
direct the Marshal of the city and his adherents to enter by force
the building from whence the paper was issued, and violently (if
necessary) to take possession of the press and printing materials,
and thereafter to burn and destroy the same; and whereas, in
pursuance of said ordinance, the Marshal and his adherents,
together with a mob of Mormons, did, after sunset on the evening
of the 10th instant, violently enter said building in a tumultuous
manner, burn and destroy the press and other materials found on the
premises.
And whereas Hyrum Smith did, in the presence of the City Council
and the citizens of Nauvoo, offer a reward for the destruction
of the printing press and materials of the _Warsaw Signal,_ a
newspaper also opposed to his interests;
And whereas the liberty of the press is one of the cardinal
principles of our government, firmly guaranteed by the several
constitutions of the states, as well as the United States;
And whereas, Hyrum Smith has within the last week publicly
threatened the life of one of our valued citizens, Thomas C. Sharp,
the editor of the_ Signal_;
Therefore, be it solemnly
Resolved by the citizens of Warsaw in public meeting assembled,
that we view the recent ordinance of the city of Nauvoo, and the
proceedings thereunder as an outrage of an alarming character,
revolutionary and tyrannical in tendency, and being under color
of law as calculated to subvert and destroy in the minds of the
community all reliance on the law.
Resolved, that as a community we feel anxious, when possible, to
redress our grievances by legal remedies; but the time has now
arrived when the law has ceased to be a protection to our lives and
property. A mob at Nauvoo, under a city ordinance, has violated
the highest privilege in government; and to seek redress in the
ordinary mode would be utterly ineffectual.
Resolved, that the public threat made in the Council of the city,
not only to destroy our printing-press, but to take the life of
its editor, is sufficient, in connection with the recent outrage,
to command the efforts and the services of every good citizen to
put an immediate stop to the career of the mad prophet and his
demoniac coadjutors. We must not only defend ourselves from danger,
but we must resolutely carry the war into the enemy's camp. We do
therefore declare that we will {464} sustain our press and the
editor at all hazards; that we will take full vengeance, terrible
vengeance, should the lives of any of our citizens be lost in
the effort; that we hold ourselves at all times in readiness to
co-operate with our fellow-citizens in this state, Missouri and
Iowa, to exterminate, utterly exterminate the wicked and abominable
Mormon leaders, the authors of our troubles.
Resolved, that a committee of five be appointed forthwith to notify
all persons in our township suspected of being the tools of the
prophet to leave immediately on pain of instant vengeance. And we
do recommend the inhabitants of the adjacent townships to do the
same, hereby pledging ourselves to render all the assistance they
may require.
Resolved, that the time, in our opinion, has arrived, when
the adherents of Smith, as a body, should be driven from the
surrounding settlements into Nauvoo. That the prophet and his
miscreant adherents should then he demanded at their hands;
and, if not surrendered, a war of extermination should be waged
to the entire destruction, if necessary for our protection, of
his adherents. And we hereby recommend this resolution to the
consideration of the several townships, to the Mass Convention
to be held at Carthage, hereby pledging ourselves to aid to the
utmost the complete consummation of the object in view, that we may
thereby be utterly relieved of the alarm, anxiety and trouble to
which we are now subjected.
Resolved that every citizen arm himself to be prepared to sustain
the resolutions herein contained.
Mr. Roosevelt rose and made a brief but eloquent speech, and called
upon the citizens throughout the country to render efficient aid
in carrying out the spirit of the resolutions. Mr. Roosevelt then
moved a committee of seven be appointed by the chair to draft
resolutions expressive of our action in future.
Mr. Catlin moved to amend the motion of Mr. Roosevelt, so that the
committee should consist of one from each precinct; which motion,
as amended, was adopted.
The chair then appointed the following: Col. Levi Williams, Rocky
Run precinct; Joel Catlin, Augusta; Samuel Williams, Carthage;
Elisha Worrell, Chili; Captain Maddison, St. Mary's; John M.
Ferris, Fountain Green; James Rice, Pilot Grove; John Carns, Bear
Creek; C. L. Higbee, Nauvoo; George Robinson, La Harpe; and George
Rockwell, Warsaw, were appointed said committee.
On motion of Mr. Sympson, Walter Bagby, Esq., was requested to
address the meeting during the absence of the committee. He
spoke long and eloquently upon the course of our grievances, and
expressed his belief that the time was now at hand when we were
individually and collectively called upon to repel the innovations
upon our liberties, and {465} suggested that points be designated
as places of encampment at which to rendezvous our forces, that we
may be ready when called upon for efficient action.
Dr. Barnes, one of the persons who went with the officers to Nauvoo
for the purpose of arresting the rioters, having just arrived, came
into the meeting and reported the result of their proceedings,
which was, that the persons charged in the writs were duly
arrested, but taken from the officers' hands on a writ of _habeas
corpus_ from the Municipal Court, and discharged, and the following
potent words entered upon the records--_honorably released_.
On motion of O. C. Skinner, Esq., a vote of thanks was tendered to
Dr. Barnes for volunteering his services in executing said writs.
Francis M. Higbee was now loudly called for. He stated his personal
knowledge of the Mormons from their earliest history--throughout
their hellish career in Missouri and this state--which has been
characterized by the darkest and most diabolical deeds which have
ever disgraced humanity.
The committee appointed to draft resolutions brought in the
following report, which, after some considerable discussion, was
unanimously adopted:
Whereas, the officer charged with the execution of a writ against
Joseph Smith and others, for riot in the county of Hancock, which
said writ said officer has served upon said Smith and others; and
whereas said Smith and others refuse to obey the mandate of said
writ; and whereas in the opinion of this meeting, it is impossible
for said officer so raise a posse of sufficient strength to
execute said writ; and whereas it is the opinion of this meeting
that the riot is still progressing and that violence is meditated
and determined on, it is the opinion of this meeting that the
circumstances of the case require the interposition of executive
power. Therefore,
Resolved, that a deputation of two discreet men be sent to
Springfield to solicit such interposition.
2nd, Resolved, that said deputation be furnished with a certified
copy of the resolution, and be authorized to obtain evidence, by
affidavits and otherwise, in regard to the violence which has
already been committed, and is still further meditated.
Dr. Evans here arose and expressed his wish that the above
resolutions would not retard our operations, but that we would each
one arm and equip ourselves forthwith.
The resolutions passed at Warsaw were again read by Dr. Barnes, and
passed by acclamation.
On motion of A. Sympson, Esq., the suggestion of Mr. Bagby, {466}
appointing places of encampment, was adopted--to wit., Warsaw,
Carthage, Green Plains, Spilman's landing, Chili and La Harpe.
On motion, O. C. Skinner and Walter Bagby, Esqs., were appointed a
committee to bear the resolutions adopted by this meeting to his
Excellency the Governor, requiring his executive interposition.
On motion of J. H. Sherman, a central corresponding committee was
appointed.
Order that J. H. Sherman, H. T. Wilson, Chauncey Robinson, William
S. Freeman, Thomas Morrison, F. M. Higbee, Lyman Prentiss, and
Stephen H. Tyler be said committee,
On motion of George Rockwell,
Resolved that constables in the different precincts hold themselves
in readiness to obey the officer in possession of the writs,
whenever called upon, in summoning the posse.
On motion, the meeting adjourned.
JOHN KNOX, President.
JOHN DOTY,
LEWIS F. EVANS, Vice-Presidents,
W. Y. HEAD, Secretary.
_Friday, 14.--_Wrote to Governor Ford as follows:
_Letter: Joseph Smith to Governor Ford--Explaining Action of City
Council in Proceedings in "Expositor" Affairs_.
NAUVOO, June 14, 1844.
_His Excellency Thomas Ford_:
SIR.--I write you this morning, briefly, to inform you of the facts
relative to the removal of the press and fixtures of the _Nauvoo
Expositor_ as a nuisance.
The 8th and 10th instant were spent by the City Council of Nauvoo
in receiving testimony concerning the character of the _Expositor_,
and the character and designs of the proprietors.
In the investigation it appeared evident to the council that
the proprietors were a set of unprincipled, lawless debauchers,
counterfeiters, bogus-makers, gamblers, peace-disturbers, and
that the grand object of said proprietors was to destroy our
constitutional rights and chartered privileges. To overthrow all
good and wholesome regulations in society, to strengthen themselves
against the municipality, to fortify themselves against the Church
of which I am a member, and destroy all our religious rights and
privileges by libels, slanders, falsehoods, perjury, &c., and
sticking at no corruption to accomplish their hellish purposes;
and that said paper of itself was libelous of the deepest dye, and
very {467} injurious as a vehicle of defamation, tending to corrupt
the morals and disturb the peace, tranquility and happiness of the
whole community, and especially that of Nauvoo.
After a long and patient investigation, of the _Expositor_ and
the character and design of its proprietors, the constitution,
the charter, (see Addenda to Nauvoo Charter from the Springfield
Charter, sec. 7) and all the best authorities on the subject;
(See Chitty's Blackstone Bk. iii:v, and n., &c., &c) the City
Council decided that it was necessary for the "peace, benefit, good
order and regulations" of said city, "and for the protection of
property," and for "the happiness and prosperity of the citizens
of Nauvoo," that said _Expositor_ should be removed, and declaring
said _Expositor_ a nuisance ordered the Mayor to cause them to be
removed without delay; which order was committed to the Marshal
by due process, and by him executed the same day, by removing the
paper, press and fixtures into the streets and burning the same;
all which was done without riot, noise, tumult or confusion, as has
already been proved before the municipality of the city; and the
particulars of the whole transaction may be expected in our next
_Nauvoo Neighbor_.
I send you this hasty sketch that your Excellency may be aware of
the lying reports that are now being circulated by our enemies
that there has been a "mob at Nauvoo," and "blood and thunder,"
and "swearing that two men were killed," &c., &c., as we hear from
abroad, are false--false as Satan himself could invent, and that
nothing has been transacted here but what has been in perfect
accordance with the strictest principles of law and good order on
the part of the authorities of this city; and if your Excellency is
not satisfied, and shall not be satisfied after reading the whole
proceedings which will be forthcoming soon, and shall demand an
investigation of our municipality before Judge Pope, or any legal
tribunal at the Capitol, you have only to write your wishes, and we
will be forthcoming. We will not trouble you to fill a writ or send
an officer for us.
I remain, as ever, a friend of truth, good order, and your
Excellency's humble servant,
JOSEPH SMITH.
The following letters were also written:
_Letter: John M. Bernhisel to Governor Ford--Confirming Correctness
of the Prophet's Report of "Expositor" Affair_.
NAUVOO, June 14th, 1844.
_To His Excellency Governor Ford_:
SIR.--Though I have not the honor of a personal acquaintance with
you, I take the liberty of stating to you that I arrived here from
{468} the city of New York about a year since, where I was engaged
in the practice of medicine for many years; that General Smith's
letter to you of this date has been read in my hearing; that the
statement contained therein in relation to the proceedings of the
municipal authorities for the removal of the press whence issued
a scandalous sheet entitled the _Nauvoo Expositor_ are correct,
having been an eye-and ear-witness of them.
The whole affair was conducted by the City Marshal and his posse in
the most quiet and orderly manner, without the least noise, riot or
tumult; and when the nuisance was abated, they immediately retired
and were dismissed.
Having been a boarder in General Smith's family for more than
nine months, and having therefore had abundant opportunities of
contemplating his character and observing his conduct, I have
concluded to give you a few of my "impressions" of him.
General Joseph Smith is naturally a man of strong mental powers,
and is possessed of much energy and decision of character, great
penetration, and a profound knowledge of human nature. He is a man
of calm judgment, enlarged views, and is eminently distinguished
by his love of justice. He is kind and obliging, generous and
benevolent, sociable and cheerful, and is possessed of a mind of a
contemplative and reactive character. He is honest, frank, fearless
and independent, and as free from dissimulation as any man to be
found.
But it is in the gentle charities of domestic life, as the tender
and affectionate husband and parent, the warm and sympathizing
friend, that the prominent traits of his character are revealed,
and his heart is felt to be keenly alive to the kindest and softest
emotions of which human nature is susceptible; and I feel assured
that his family and friends formed one of the greatest consolations
to him while the vials of wrath were poured upon his head, while
his footsteps were pursued by malice and envy, and reproach and
slander were strewn in his path, as well as during numerous and
cruel persecutions, and severe and protracted sufferings in chains
and loathsome prisons, for worshiping God according to the dictates
of his own conscience.
He is a true lover of his country, and a bright and shining example
of integrity and moral excellence in all the relations of life.
As a religious teacher, as well as a man, he is greatly beloved
by this people. It is almost superfluous to add that the numerous
ridiculous and scandalous reports in circulation respecting him
have not the least foundation in truth.
In haste, I have the honor to be your Excellency's most obedient
and humble servant,
JOHN M. BERNHISEL.
{469} _Letter: Wakefield to Governor Ford--Anent the "Expositor"
Affair_.
CITY OF NAUVOO, June 14th, 1844.
_Hon. Governor Ford_:
Being a stranger in the city of Nauvoo, but fully acquainted with
the facts as stated in Gen. Smith's letter of June 14th, I assert
that they are true in every particular, and that the press, in
the minds of all unprejudiced people, was a nuisance of the worst
character, and that the authorities acted perfectly proper in
destroying it; and in accomplishing the act there was no noise,
tumult or riot. Furthermore, having remained for a few weeks at
General Smith's house, I think it my duty to state that I have seen
nothing in his deportment but what is correct in all his domestic
relations, being a kind husband and an affectionate father; and all
his affairs, both domestic and official, have not only been free
from censure, but praiseworthy, and ought to be imitated by every
one desirous of order and peace.
Yours, sir, most obediently,
J. R. WAKEFIELD, M. D.
_Letter: Sidney Rigdon to Governor Ford--"Expositor" Affair_.
POST OFFICE, NAUVOO, ILL., June 14 1844.
_His Excellency, Thomas Ford_:
DEAR SIR.--I address this letter to your Excellency by the hand of
Mr. Samuel James, in consequence of the difficulties now existing
in this county, difficulties in which I have had no concern; and
fearing as I do, that in the midst of an excitement so great as I
have understood now exists in this county, (I say understood, for
it is by report only that I speak) there may be attempts made to
prejudice your mind to take some measures of a violent character
that may seriously affect the citizens of this place, and injure
innocent and unoffending persons, which I am satisfied would grieve
your Excellency, as well as every other thinking and humane man.
There have for a length of time difficulties existed between a
number of the citizens of this place, which kept increasing. One
of the parties had recourse to the _Warsaw Signal_ as a medium
through which they communicate their difficulties to the world.
These productions were inflammatory to a high degree, and the party
thus assailed charged the matter as libelous and highly abusive.
To these exposures responses appeared in the papers of this place,
charging the matter as being false and the authors as defamers and
slanderers.
Things continued thus until a paper was established in this place
called the _Nauvoo Expositor._ The first number of this paper made
its appearance, and it was inflammatory and abusive to an extreme.
This {470} raised the excitement to a degree beyond control, and
threatened serious consequence.
At this particular juncture all the authorities of the city feeling
a common interest in the peace and quiet of the place, and fearing
the worst consequences must follow if something were not done, the
City Council met and took the matter into consideration, and, after
deliberating on the subject and examining the charter, came to the
conclusion to hazard all the consequences of declaring the press a
nuisance, and accordingly ordered its removal. The city marshal, in
obedience to this order, went and removed the press and destroyed
it. This was done without tumult or disorder. When the press was
destroyed, all returned home, and everything has been perfectly
quiet ever since.
Within the last three days warrants have been issued from a
justice of the peace in Carthage, calling for the bodies of the
persons who destroyed the press. The officer having the matter in
charge, refuses the persons a hearing before any other justices
of the peace than the one issuing the warrants. With this demand
they refused to comply, as there is a large assembly of persons
assembled at Carthage making threats of violence; and they say,
and I have no doubt they verily believe that by going there their
lives will be in danger; and from the intelligence which I received
last evening from a person in no way connected with the affair, and
one of undoubted veracity, I must think so myself. This gentleman
informs me that he has been in Carthage since Monday last at the
land sales, and he heard threatenings by the persons assembled
there that if they could get into Nauvoo they would murder
indiscriminately, and those who wanted to escape must leave. This
your Excellency would abhor as I do.
The citizens of this county who do not reside in Nauvoo, and those
of other counties, have indeed no interest of a personal kind at
stake in this matter. There are no persons disturbing them, nor
going to do so; and this great excitement does savor of something
else to me than a regard for the laws. Why not let the parties, as
in all other cases of the kind settle their difficulties as the
laws of the country in such cases have provided.
Have the citizens of Nauvoo ever interfered with cases of
difficulty existing in other parts of the county, held public
meetings to inflame the public mind in favor of one party, and
prejudice it against the other party? Most assuredly they have not.
Why, then, must the citizens of this place be scourged with such
attempts?
If the citizens of Hancock want the supremacy of the laws
maintained let these tumultuous assemblies disperse, and let the
civil officers, if resisted, do as in other cases--call for aid
instead of assembling in {471} advance, and then call for persons
to be brought into their midst as prisoners amidst threats and
insults.
From the confidence I have in your Excellency's superior
intelligence, and sound discretion, I doubt not that your
Excellency will arrive at just conclusions when the matter is
submitted to your consideration, as I understand it is about being.
I can see no need for executive interference in this case, but
disperse all uncalled for assemblies, and let the laws have their
regular course, which they can have if these assemblies will
disperse. If not, I fear the consequences.
I send this to your Excellency as confidential, as I wish not to
take any part in the affair, or be known in it.
With consideration of high regard, I am, dear sir, your
Excellency's most obedient servant,
SIDNEY RIGDON.
I read the doings of the City Council to Dr. Wakefield, and gave him a
volume of the _Times and Seasons._ About 4 p.m., I rode out with Dr.
Bernhisel. Pleasant and warm day. Towards night some clouds.
A Mr. Norton was tried before Esq. Aaron Johnson, J. P., on a charge of
firing Foster's printing office, and acquitted.
_Saturday, 15.--_At home. Two brethren came from Lima, and said that
Colonel Levi Williams had demanded the arms belonging to the Mormons in
that neighborhood. They wished my advice on the subject. I told them
that when they gave up their arms, to give up their lives with them as
dearly as possible.
[Sidenote: The Prophet's Advice on giving up Arms.]
It is reported that a company of men were constantly training at
Carthage. Mr. John M. Crane, from Warsaw, said that several boxes of
arms had arrived at Warsaw from Quincy. There was some considerable
excitement, but expected they were going to wait the meeting at
Carthage, which was fixed for the middle of next week.
The _Maid of Iowa_ arrived at half-past two p.m., while I was examining
the painting, "Death on the Pale Horse," by Benjamin West, which has
been exhibiting in my reading room for the last three days. The _Maid_
had {472} lost her lighter, which was loaded at the time with corn and
lumber, it having broken in two on a snag in the Iowa river.
This morning Samuel James started for Springfield to carry letters and
papers to Governor Ford concerning the destruction of the _Expositor_
press.
About 7 p.m. I rode out with Orrin P. Rockwell.
I received the following letter:
_Letter: A. Ladd a Joseph Smith--Wharfage Matter_.
FORT MADISON, June 15th, 1844.
_Gen. Joseph Smith_:
DEAR SIR.--I have been informed that a writ was issued against the
steam ferry, _New Purchase,_ for wharfage, on Tuesday last, but no
such writ has been served or shown to me, and I am anxious to learn
the facts of the case. If it is required, I will pay wharfage with
the greatest of pleasure; but I would dislike to have cost to pay
in addition. I expect to visit this place with my boat at least
once a week during the season. You will confer a favor on me by
informing me in relation to the ordinance, &c.
It has been rumored that the _New Purchase_ was employed to convey
to Nauvoo an armed force to attack the citizens in connection with
other companies, on account of the late difficulties at your place;
but it is not true. I assure you that the boat will not be employed
in any unlawful enterprise, and I further assure you that there is
no unkind feeling existing in our place against the people of your
place.
I remain yours with respect,
A. LADD.
Captain of the _New Purchase_.
GEN. JOSEPH SMITH, Nauvoo, Ill.
{473}
CHAPTER XXII.
DISCOURSE OF THE PROPHET--THE GODHEAD--THE MOB UPRISING--ARREST OF
PRESIDENT SMITH, ET AL. OVER THE "EXPOSITOR" AFFAIR--TRIAL BEFORE
ESQUIRE WELLS.
[Sidenote: Conference in Michigan.]
A conference was held at Franklin, Michigan. Present of the Twelve,
Wilford Woodruff and George A. Smith; Elder George A. Smith presided.
Nine branches were represented, comprising 170 members, 8 Elders, 5
Priests, 5 Teachers and 3 Deacons. There were ordained 1 High Priest,
9 Elders, 2 Priests, and 1 Deacon, under the hands of Elders Wilford
Woodruff, George A. Smith and Charles C. Rich.
_Sunday, June 16, 1844_.--I preached at the stand at 10 a.m. Before
I closed my remarks it rained severely. The following synopsis was
reported by Elder Thomas Bullock, whom I had transferred from the
duties of clerk of the _Maid of Iowa_ to my office.
SERMON BY THE PROPHET--THE CHRISTIAN GODHEAD--PLURALITY OF GODS.
_Meeting in the Grove, east of the Temple, June 16, 1844_.
Prayer by Bishop Newel K. Whitney.
Choir sang, "Mortals Awake."
President Joseph Smith read the 3rd chapter of Revelation, and
took for his text 1st chapter, 6th verse--"And hath made us kings
and priests unto God and His Father: to Him be glory and dominion
forever and ever. Amen."
It is altogether correct in the translation. Now, you know that of
late some malicious and corrupt men have sprung up and apostatized
from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and they
declare that the Prophet believes in a plurality of Gods, and, lo
and behold! we have discovered a very great secret, they cry--"The
Prophet says there are many Gods, and this proves that he has
fallen."
{474} It has been my intention for a long time to take up this
subject and lay it clearly before the people, and show what
my faith is in relation to this interesting matter. I have
contemplated the saying of Jesus (Luke 17th chapter, 26th
verse)--"And as it was in the days of Noah, so shall it be also in
the days of the Son of Man." And if it does rain, I'll preach this
doctrine, for the truth shall be preached.
I will preach on the plurality of Gods. I have selected this text
for that express purpose. I wish to declare I have always and in
all congregations when I have preached on the subject of the Deity,
it has been the plurality of Gods. It has been preached by the
Elders for fifteen years.
I have always declared God to be a distinct personage, Jesus Christ
a separate and distinct personage from God the Father, and that the
Holy Ghost was a distinct personage and a Spirit, and these three
constitute three distinct personages and three Gods. If this is in
accordance with the New Testament, lo and behold! we have three
Gods anyhow, and they are plural: and who can contradict it?
Our text says "And hath made us kings and priests unto God and His
Father." The Apostles have discovered that there were Gods above,
for Paul says God was the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. My
object was to preach the scriptures, and preach the doctrine they
contain, there being a God above, the Father of our Lord Jesus
Christ. I am bold to declare I have taught all the strong doctrines
publicly, and always teach stronger doctrines in public than in
private.
John was one of the men, and apostles declare they were made kings
and priests unto God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. It reads
just so in the Revelation. Hence, the doctrine of a plurality of
Gods is as prominent in the Bible as any other doctrine. It is
all over the face of the Bible. It stands beyond the power of
controversy. A wayfaring man, though a fool, need not err therein.
Paul says there are Gods many and Lords many. I want to set it
forth in a plain and simple manner; but to us there is but one
God--that is _pertaining to us;_ and he is in all and through all.
But if Joseph Smith says there are Gods many and Lords many, they
cry, "Away with him! Crucify him! crucify him!"
Mankind verily say that the scriptures are with them. Search the
scriptures, for they testify of things that these apostates would
gravely pronounce blasphemy. Paul, if Joseph Smith is a blasphemer,
you are. I say there are Gods many and Lords many, but to us only
one, and we are to be in subjection to that one, and no man can
limit the bounds or the eternal existence of eternal time. Hath he
beheld the eternal world, and is he authorized to say that there is
only one God? He makes himself a fool if he thinks or says so, and
there is an end of his {475} career or progress in knowledge. He
cannot obtain all knowledge, for he has sealed up the gate to it.
Some say I do not interpret the scripture the same as they do. They
say it means the heathen's gods. Paul says there are Gods many and
Lords many; and that makes a plurality of Gods, in spite of the
whims of all men. Without a revelation, I am not going to give
them the knowledge of the God of heaven. You know and I testify
that Paul had no allusion to the heathen gods. I have it from God,
and get over it if you can. I have a witness of the Holy Ghost,
and a testimony that Paul had no allusion to the heathen gods in
the text. I will show from the Hebrew Bible that I am correct, and
the first word shows a plurality of Gods; and I want the apostates
and learned men to come here and prove to the contrary, if they
can. An unlearned boy must give you a little Hebrew_. Berosheit
baurau Eloheim ait aushamayeen vehau auraits,_ rendered by King
James' translators, "In the beginning God created the heaven and
the earth." I want to analyze the word _Berosheit. Rosh,_ the
head; _Sheit,_ a grammatical termination, The _Baith_ was not
originally put there when the inspired man wrote it, but it has
been since added by an old Jew. _Baurau_ signifies to bring forth;
_Eloheim_ is from the word _Eloi_, God, in the singular number; and
by adding the word _heim,_ it renders it Gods. It read first, "In
the beginning the head of the Gods brought forth the Gods," or, as
others have translated it, "The head of the Gods called the Gods
together." I want to show a little learning as well as other fools--
A little learning is a dangerous thing.
Drink deep, or taste not the Pierian spring,
There shallow draughts intoxicate the brain,
And drinking largely sobers us up again.
All this confusion among professed translators is for want of
drinking another draught.
The head God organized the heavens and the earth. I defy all
the world to refute me. In the beginning the heads of the Gods
organized the heavens and the earth. Now the learned priests and
the people rage, and the heathen imagine a vain thing. If we pursue
the Hebrew text further, it reads, _"Berosheit baurau Eloheim ait
aashamayeen vehau auraits"--_"The head one of the Gods said. Let
us make a man in our own image." I once asked a learned Jew, "If
the Hebrew language compels us to render all words ending in _heim_
in the plural, why not render the first _Eloheim_ plural?" He
replied, "That is the rule with few exceptions; but in this case
it would ruin the Bible." He acknowledged I was right. I came here
to investigate these things precisely as I believe them. Hear and
judge for yourselves; and if you go away satisfied, well and good.
{476} In the very beginning the Bible shows there is a plurality
of Gods beyond the power of refutation. It is a great subject I am
dwelling on. The word _Eloheim_ ought to be in the plural all the
way through--Gods. The heads of the Gods appointed one God for us;
and when you take [that] view of the subject, it sets one free to
see all the beauty, holiness and perfection of the Gods. All I want
is to get the simple, naked truth, and the whole truth.
Many men say there is one God; the Father, the Son and the Holy
Ghost are only one God! I say that is a strange God anyhow--three
in one, and one in three! It is a curious organization. "Father, I
pray not for the world, but I pray for them which thou hast given
me." "Holy Father, keep through Thine own name those whom thou hast
given me, that they may be one as we are." All are to be crammed
into one God, according to sectarianism. It would make the biggest
God in all the world. He would be a wonderfully big God--he would
be a giant or a monster. I want to read the text to you myself--"I
am agreed with the Father and the Father is agreed with me, and
we are agreed as one." The Greek shows that it should be agreed.
"Father, I pray for them which Thou hast given me out of the world,
and not for those alone, but for them also which shall believe
on me through their word, that they all may be agreed, as Thou,
Father, art with me, and I with Thee, that they also may be agreed
with us," and all come to dwell in unity, and in all the glory and
everlasting burnings of the Gods; and then we shall see as we are
seen, and be as our God and He as His Father. I want to reason a
little on this subject. I learned it by translating the papyrus
which is now in my house. I learned a testimony concerning Abraham,
and he reasoned concerning the God of heaven. "In order to do
that," said he, "suppose we have two facts: that supposes another
fact may exist--two men on the earth, one wiser than the other,
would logically show that another who is wiser than the wisest may
exist. Intelligences exist one above another, so that there is no
end to them."
If Abraham reasoned thus--If Jesus Christ was the Son of God, and
John discovered that God the Father of Jesus Christ had a Father,
you may suppose that He had a Father also. Where was there ever a
son without a father? And where was there ever a father without
first being a son? Whenever did a tree or anything spring into
existence without a progenitor? And everything comes in this way.
Paul says that which is earthly is in the likeness of that which is
heavenly, Hence if Jesus had a Father, can we not believe that _He_
had a Father also? I despise the idea of being scared to death at
such a doctrine, for the Bible is full of it.
I want you to pay particular attention to what I am saying. Jesus
{477} said that the Father wrought precisely in the same way as
His Father had done before Him. As the Father had done before. He
laid down His life, and took it up the same as His Father had done
before. He did as He was sent, to lay down His life and take it up
again; and then was committed unto Him the keys, &c. I know it is
good reasoning.
I have reason to think that the Church is being purged. I saw Satan
fall from heaven, and the way they ran was a caution. All these are
wonders and marvels in our eyes in these last days. So long as men
are under the law of God, they have no fears--they do not scare
themselves.
I want to stick to my text, to show that when men open their lips
against these truths they do not injure me, but injure themselves.
To the law and to the testimony, for these principles are poured
out all over the scriptures. When things that are of the greatest
importance are passed over by weak-minded men without even a
thought, I want to see truth in all its bearings and hug it to my
bosom. I believe all that God ever revealed, and I never hear of a
man being damned for believing too much; but they are damned for
unbelief.
They found fault with Jesus Christ because He said He was the Son
of God, and made Himself equal with God. They say of me, like they
did of the apostles of old, that I must be put down. What did Jesus
say? "Is it not written in your law, I said, Ye are Gods? If He
called them Gods unto whom the word of God came, and the scriptures
cannot be broken, say ye of Him whom the Father had sanctified and
sent into the world, Thou blasphemest, because I said I am the
Son of God?" It was through Him that they drank of the spiritual
rock. Of course He would take the honor to Himself. Jesus, if they
were called Gods unto whom the word of God came, why should it be
thought blasphemy that I should say I am the son of God?
Oh, poor, blind apostates! did you never think of this before?
These are the quotations that the apostates take from the
scriptures. They swear that they believe the Bible, the Book of
Mormon and the Doctrine and Covenants and then you will get from
them filth, slander, and bogus-makers plenty. One of the apostate
Church official members prophesied that Joseph would never preach
any more, and yet I am now preaching.
Go and read the vision in the Book of Covenants. There is clearly
illustrated glory upon glory--one glory of the sun, another glory
of the moon, and a glory of the stars; and as one star differeth
from another star in glory, even so do they of the telestial world
differ in glory, and every man who reigns in celestial glory is a
God to his dominions. By the apostates admitting the testimony of
the Doctrine and Covenants, they damn themselves. Paul, what do you
say? They impeached Paul {478} and all went and left him. Paul had
seven churches, and they drove him off from among them; and yet
they cannot do it by me. I rejoice in that. My testimony is good.
Paul says, "There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the
moon, and another glory of the stars; for one star differeth from
another star in glory. So is also the resurrection of the dead."
They who obtain a glorious resurrection from the dead, are exalted
far above principalities, powers, thrones, dominions and angels,
and are expressly declared to be heirs of God and joint heirs with
Jesus Christ, all having eternal power.
The scriptures are a mixture of very strange doctrines to the
Christian world, who are blindly led by the blind. I will refer
to another scripture. "Now," says God, when He visited Moses in
the bush, (Moses was a stammering sort of a boy like me) God said,
"Thou shalt be a God unto the children of Israel." God said, "Thou
shalt be a God unto Aaron, and he shall be thy spokesman." I
believe those Gods that God reveals as Gods to be sons of God, and
all can cry, "Abba, Father!" Sons of God who exalt themselves to
be Gods, even from before the foundation of the world, and are the
only Gods I have a reverence for.
John said he was a king. "And from Jesus Christ, who is the
faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the
Prince of the kings of the earth. Unto Him that loved us, and
washed us from our sins in His own blood, and hath made us kings
and priests unto God, and His Father; to him be glory and dominion
forever and ever Amen." Oh, Thou God who art King of kings and
Lord of lords, the sectarian world, by their actions, declare, "We
cannot believe Thee."
The old Catholic church traditions are worth more than all you
have said. Here is a principle of logic that most men have no more
sense than to adopt. I will illustrate it by an old apple tree.
Here jumps off a branch and says, I am the true tree, and you
are corrupt. If the whole tree is corrupt, are not its branches
corrupt? If the Catholic religion is a false religion, how can
any true religion come out of it? If the Catholic church is bad,
how can any good thing come out of it? The character of the old
churches have always been slandered by all apostates since the
world began.
I testify again, as the Lord lives, God never will acknowledge
any traitors or apostates. Any man who will betray the Catholics
will betray you; and if he will betray me, he will betray you.
All men are liars who say they are of the true Church without the
revelations of Jesus Christ and the Priesthood of Melchisedek,
which is after the order of the Son of God.
It is in the order of heavenly things that God should always send
a {479} new dispensation into the world when men have apostatized
from the truth and lost the priesthood; but when men come out
and build upon other men's foundations, they do it on their own
responsibility, without authority from God; and when the floods
come and the winds blow, their foundations will be found to be
sand, and their whole fabric will crumble to dust.
Did I build on any other man's foundation? I have got all the truth
which the Christian world possessed, and an independent revelation
in the bargain, and God will bear me off triumphant. I will drop
this subject. I wish I could speak for three or four hours; but it
is not expedient on account of the rain: I would still go on, and
show you proof upon proofs; all the Bible is equal in support of
this doctrine, one part as another.
[On account of the rain it was impossible for Thomas Bullock to report
any more].
[Sidenote: Advice of Judge Thomas on _Expositor_ Affair.]
Judge Jesse B. Thomas came to Nauvoo, and advised me to go before some
justice of the peace of the county, and have an examination of the
charges specified in the writ from Justice Morrison of Carthage; and if
acquitted or bound over, it would allay all excitement, answer the law
and cut off all legal pretext for a mob, and he would be bound to order
them to keep the peace.
[Sidenote: Inquiry of Delegation from Madison.]
Some forty gentlemen from Madison came down on a steamer to inquire
into our difficulties. I met them at the Masonic Hall at 2 p.m., and
gave them the desired information. Dr. Richards, the city recorder,
read the minutes of the council declaring the _Nauvoo Expositor_ a
nuisance. They expressed themselves satisfied. I then went to the
Temple stand and met some thousands of the brethren. I instructed them
to keep cool, and prepare their arms for defense of the city, as it
was reported that a mob was collecting in Carthage and other places. I
exhorted them to be quiet and make no disturbance, and instructed the
brethren to organize into the capacity of a public meeting and send
delegates to all the surrounding towns and villages, to explain the
cause of the disturbance, and show {480} them that all was peace at
Nauvoo, and that there was no cause for any mobs.
A messenger arrived stating that the clerk of the county court expected
to be driven out of Carthage tomorrow, and the only way to prevent the
shedding of blood was to get the Governor in person to come down with
his staff.
I wrote to Governor Ford stating the facts as follows:
_Letter: Joseph Smith to Governor Ford--Inviting the Governor to
Nauvoo_.
NAUVOO, ILLINOIS, June 16th, 1844.
_His Excellency Thomas Ford_:
SIR.--I am informed from credible sources, as well as from the
proceedings of a public meeting at Carthage, &c., as published
in the _Warsaw Signal_ extra, that an energetic attempt is being
made by some of the citizens of this and the surrounding counties
to drive and exterminate "the Saints" by force of arms; and I
send this information to your Excellency by a special messenger,
Hugh McFall, Adjutant-General, Nauvoo Legion, who will give
all particulars; and I ask at your hands immediate counsel and
protection.
Judge Thomas has been here and given his advice in the case, which
I shall strictly follow until I hear from your Excellency, and in
all cases shall adhere to the Constitution and laws.
The Nauvoo Legion is at your service to quell all insurrection and
support the dignity of the common weal.
I wish, urgently wish your Excellency to come down in person with
your staff and investigate the whole matter without delay, and
cause peace to be restored to the country; and I know not but this
will be the only means of stopping an effusion of blood.
The information referred to above is before me by affidavit.
I remain, sir, the friend of peace, and your Excellency's humble
servant,
JOSEPH SMITH.
I enclosed a copy of the following affidavit:
_Affidavit: Mob Movements_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS, HANCOCK CO.,
CITY OF NAUVOO. ss.
June 16th, 1844. Personally appeared before me Willard Richards,
clerk of the Municipal Court of the City of Nauvoo, Thomas G.
Wilson; and after being duly sworn according to law, deposeth and
saith that during the last evening Robert Johnson, of the county
aforesaid, told {481} deponent that fifteen hundred Missourians
would assemble at Warsaw, in said county, on the morning of the
17th instant; that the arms of the Quincy Greys had been sent up to
Warsaw; that they had five cannon at Warsaw; that said Missourians,
and others who would join them, would proceed to Carthage, and the
Quincy Greys and other companies from Adams county were to meet
the Missourians in Carthage at the time before stated; that from
Carthage they were going round to the branches of the Church of
Latter-day Saints in said county, and inform them that they must
deny Joseph's being a Prophet, and if they did not deny Joseph,
they must leave immediately: and on Thursday next the whole mob
were to proceed to Nauvoo and demand Joseph and Hyrum Smith, and
the City Council of said city, and if Joseph and Hyrum and the City
Council were not given up they would blow up the city, and kill and
exterminate all the inhabitants of said city.
THOMAS G. WILSON.
[Seal of Municipal Court.]
Subscribed and sworn to before me, Willard Richards, clerk. In
testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and seal of the
Municipal Court of said city, at the time and place above written.
WILLARD RICHARDS,
Clerk of the Municipal Court, City of Nauvoo.
I have compared the within affidavit with the original, and find it
a true copy.
In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and seal of court at
the city of Nauvoo, this 16th day of June, 1844.
WILLARD RICHARDS,
Clerk of the Municipal Court, City of Nauvoo.
Brother Butler, from Bear Creek, came in and made affidavit before the
Recorder that fifteen hundred Missourians were to cross the Mississippi
to Warsaw the next Morning, on their way to Carthage.
I received a letter from Father Morley:
_Letter: Isaac Morley to Joseph Smith--Mob Threats_.
_President Joseph Smith_:
SIR.--Believing it to be my duty to inform you of the proceedings
of a wicked clan against the Saints in this place, I improve this
opportunity. On yesterday, George Baker, in company with Joseph
Barber, a Mr. John Banks, Luther Perry and one more, (his name I
have not got) came to my house. Mr. Baker came to my door and said
he had {482} some business, and wished to speak with me. I went
out into my dooryard with him, and he came in company with a Mr.
Banks and others. They informed me they were a committee appointed
to inform me and our people that they had three propositions to
make to us. In the first place, yourself and about seventeen others
had broken the law and good order of society; that we, the Mormon
people, must take up arms and proceed with them for your arrest, or
take our effects and proceed immediately to Nauvoo, otherwise give
up our arms, and remain quiet until the fuss is over. We have until
Monday morning next to make up our minds. We have made up our minds
that we shall not comply with any of these proposals, but stand in
our own defense. We have no signature from the Governor, or any
official officer, to accept of such wicked proposals.
We are informed that the company must be at Col. Williams' tomorrow
morning at eight o'clock to proceed to Nauvoo.
I have thought it my duty to inform you of the proceedings here.
This from your humble servant,
ISAAC MORLEY.
June 16th, 1844,
We certify the above is true.
GARDNER SNOW,
EDMUND DURFEE,
IRA WILLSEY.
I sent the following answer by Joseph S. Allen:
_Letter: Joseph Smith to Isaac Morley--Instructions on Resisting
Mob_.
HEADQUARTERS NAUVOO LEGION, NAUVOO.
LIEUT.-GENERAL'S OFFICE,
June 16th, 1844
_Col. Isaac Morley_:
SIR.--In reply to yours of this date, you will take special notice
of the movements of the mob party that is stirring up strife and
endeavoring to excite rebellion to the government and destroy the
Saints, and cause all the troops of said Legion in your vicinity to
be in readiness to act at a moment's warning; and if the mob shall
fall upon the Saints by force of arms, defend them at every hazard
unless prudence dictate the retreat of the troops to Nauvoo, in
which case the mob will not disturb your women and children; and if
the mob move towards Nauvoo, either come before them or in their
rear and be ready to co-operate with the main body of the Legion.
Instruct the companies to keep cool, and let all things be done
decently and in order.
Give information by affidavit before a magistrate and special
messengers {483} to the Governor of what has occurred, and every
illegal proceeding that shall be had on the subject, without delay.
Also notify me of the same, and demand instruction and protection
from the Governor.
JOSEPH SMITH.
Lieut.-Gen. Nauvoo Legion.
I insert the minutes of a public meeting:
_Minutes of a Public Meeting at Nauvoo_.
A public meeting was held in the city of Nauvoo on Sunday evening,
the 16th inst.
Mr. John Taylor was unanimously called to the chair, and William
Clayton appointed clerk.
The chairman stated briefly the object of the meeting, whereupon it
was unanimously
Resolved, that inasmuch as many false reports are being circulated
through this county by designing characters for the purpose of
bringing persecution upon the peaceable citizens of this city we
will use our endeavors to disabuse the public mind, and present a
true statement of facts before them as speedily as possible.
Resolved that for the more speedy accomplishment of this object,
this meeting appoint delegates to go to the different precincts
throughout the county to lay a true statement of facts before the
public.
The following delegates were then appointed;
To Warsaw precinct, Messrs. Joseph A. Kelting, Hugh McFall and John
T. Barnett.
Rocky Run precinct, Messrs. Anson Call, E. Horner, Nicholas Boscow
and David Evans.
Carthage precinct, Messrs. Lewis Robinson, Jeremiah Hatch, Jun..
and Dr. Robinson.
Lima precinct, Messrs. William Allen, Elam Luddington, and Charles
Warner.
La Harpe and Pilot Grove, Messrs. Benjamin Warrington and Hiram
Kimball.
Spilman's Landing and Appanoose, Messrs. Elijah R. Swackhammer, and
Truman Gillett, Jun.
St. Mary's and Chili, Messrs. Philander Colton and Averett.
Fountain Green and Macedonia, Messrs. Moses Claire and Andrew R.
Perkins.
Augusta and Plymouth, Messrs. Peter Slater, Darwin Chase and John
McIllwrick.
On motion, meeting adjourned _sine die_.
JOHN TAYLOR, President,
WILLIAM CLAYTON, Secretary.
{484} And I issued the following:
PROCLAMATION.
MAYOR'S OFFICE, NAUVOO, June 16th, 1844.
As there are a number of statements in circulation which have for
their object the injury of the Latter-day Saints, all of which are
false and prompted by black-hearted villains, I therefore deem
it my duty to disabuse the public mind in regard to them, and to
give a plain statement of facts which have taken place in the
city within a few days past, and which have brought upon us the
displeasure of the unprincipled and the uninformed, and seems to
afford an opportunity to our enemies to unite and arouse themselves
to mob. And already they have commenced their hellish operations by
driving a few defenseless "Mormons" from their houses and homes in
the vicinity of Warsaw and Carthage.
A short time since a press was started in this city which had for
its object the destruction of the institutions of the city, both
civil and religious. Its proprietors are a set of unprincipled
scoundrels, who attempted in every possible way to defame the
character of the most virtuous of our community, and change our
peaceful and prosperous city into a place as evil and polluted
as their own black hearts. To rid the city of a paper so filthy
and pestilential as this became the duty of every good citizen
who loves good order and morality. A complaint was made before
the City Council, and after a full and impartial investigation it
was voted (without one dissenting voice) a public nuisance, and
to be immediately destroyed. The peace and happiness of the place
demanded it, the virtue of our wives and daughters demanded it, and
our consciences demanded it at our hands as conservators of the
public peace.
That we acted right in this matter we have the assurance of one of
the ablest expounders of the laws of England, namely, Blackstone,
the Constitution of the state of Illinois, and our own chartered
rights.
If, then, our charter gives us the power to decide what shall be a
nuisance, and cause it to be removed, where is the offense? What
law is violated? If, then, no law has been violated, why this
ridiculous excitement and bandying with lawless ruffians to destroy
the happiness of a people whose religious motto is "Peace and good
will toward all men?"
Our city is infested with a set of blacklegs, counterfeiters and
debauchers, and that the proprietors of this press were of that
class the minutes of the Municipal Court fully testify, and in
ridding our young and flourishing city of such characters we are
abused by not only villainous demagogues, but by some who from
their station and influence {485} in society, ought rather to raise
than repress the standard of human excellence.
We have no disturbance nor excitement among us, save what is made
by the thousand-and-one idle rumors afloat in the country. Everyone
is protected in his person and property, and but few cities of a
population of twenty thousand people, in the United States, have
less of dissipation or vice of any kind than the city of Nauvoo.
Of the correctness of our conduct in this affair, we appeal to
every high court in the state, and to its ordeal we are willing to
appear at any time that his Excellency, Governor Ford, shall please
call us before it. I therefore, in behalf of the Municipal Court of
Nauvoo, warn the lawless not to be precipitate in any interference
in our affairs; for, as sure as there is a God in Israel, we shall
ride triumphant over all oppression.
JOSEPH SMITH, Mayor.
I received a letter from my uncle, John Smith:
_Letter: John Smith to Joseph Smith--Accompanying Delegation to the
Prophet_.
MACEDONIA, ILLINOIS, Sunday, June 16th, 1844.
_President Smith_:
DEAR SIR.--We send you Brothers Perkins, two faithful brethren, who
will give you all the information which is within our knowledge
of the proceedings of our enemies; and as we have not heard or
received communication from Nauvoo as regards the course we should
pursue, we now ask your counsel, and you will please forward per
Brother Perkins. We should have sought your counsel sooner, only on
account of high water. Please communicate in writing the course we
in this part of the country should pursue. The brethren in these
parts are in good faith, spirits, and health generally, and may be
relied on.
Respectfully,
JOHN SMITH.
GENERAL JOSEPH SMITH.
_Monday, 17.--_I wrote the following to my uncle, John Smith:
_Letter: Joseph Smith to John Smith--Instructions in Case of Mob
Violence_.
NAUVOO, June 17th, 1844.
_Uncle John_:
DEAR SIR.--The brethren from Ramus arrived here this morning. We were
glad to see them, and to hear that you were all alive in the midst of
the ragings of an infatuated and blood-thirsty mob. I write {486} these
few lines to inform you that we feel determined in this place not to be
dismayed if hell boils over all at once. We feel to hope for the best,
and determined to prepare for the worst; and we want this to be your
motto in common with us, "That we will never ground our arms until we
give them up by death." Free trade and sailor's rights, protection of
persons and property, wives and families.
If a mob annoy you, defend yourselves to the very last; and if they
fall upon you with a superior force, and you think you are not able to
compete with them, retreat to Nauvoo. But we hope for better things.
But remember, if your enemies do fall upon you, be sure and take the
best and most efficient measures the emergency of the case may require.
Remember the front and the rear of your enemies, because if they should
come to Nauvoo to attack it unlawfully and by mob force, a little
annoyance upon the rear with some bold fellows would be a very good
thing to weaken the ranks of an enemy.
It is impossible to give you correct information what to do beforehand;
but act according to the emergency of the case, but never give up your
arms, but die first.
The brethren will give you information of the conversation between us.
We have sent to the Governor, and are about to send again, and we want
you to send affidavits and demand the attention of the Governor, and
request protection at his hand, in common with the rest of us that by
our continual wearying we may get him to come and investigate the whole
matter.
I now conclude with my best wishes, and must refer you to the brethren
for further information.
JOSEPH SMITH.
Mayor of the City of Nauvoo, and Lieut.-General of the Nauvoo Legion.
My brother Hyrum wrote the following letter to President Brigham Young.
_Letter: Hyrum Smith to Brigham Young--Calling Home the Twelve_.
CITY OF NAUVOO, June 17th, 1844.
_Dear Brother Brigham Young_:
There has been for several days a great excitement among the
inhabitants in the adjoining counties. Mass meetings are held upon
mass meetings drawing up resolutions to utterly exterminate the
Saints. The excitement has been gotten up by the Laws, Fosters and
the Higbees, and they themselves have left the city and are engaged
in the mob. They have sent their runners into the State of Missouri
to excite them to murder and bloodshed, and the report is that a
great many hundreds {487} of them will come over to take an active
part in murdering the Saints. The excitement is very great indeed.
It is thought best by myself and others for you to return without
delay, and the rest of the Twelve, and all the Elders that have
gone out from this place, and as many more good, faithful men
as feel disposed to come up with them. Let wisdom be exercised;
and whatever they do, do it without a noise. You know we are not
frightened, but think it best to be well prepared and be ready for
the onset; and if it is extermination, extermination it is, of
course.
Communicate to the others of the Twelve with as much speed as
possible, with perfect stillness and calmness. A word to the wise
is sufficient; and a little powder, lead and a good rifle can be
packed in your luggage very easy without creating any suspicion.
There must be no excuses made, for wisdom says that a strict
compliance with our request will be for our safety and welfare.
In haste, I remain yours in the firm bonds of the new and
everlasting covenant,
HYRUM SMITH.
P. S.--Large bodies of armed men, cannon and munitions of war are
coming on from Missouri in steamboats. These facts are communicated
to the Governor and President of the United States, and you will
readily see that we have to prepare for the onset.
In the bonds of the new and everlasting covenant, I remain yours,
JOSEPH SMITH.
[Sidenote: Arrest of the Prophet _et. al._ for Destroying the
_Expositor_.]
This morning [17th of June] I was arrested, together with Samuel
Bennett, John Taylor, William W. Phelps, Hyrum Smith, John P. Greene,
Dimick B. Huntington, Jonathan Dunham, Stephen Markham, Jonathan H.
Holmes, Jesse P. Harmon, John Lytle, Joseph W. Coolidge, H. David
Redfield, O. P. Rockwell, and Levi Richards, by Constable Joel S.
Miles, on a writ issued by Daniel H. Wells, on complaint of W. G. Ware,
for a riot on the 10th inst. in destroying the _Nauvoo Expositor_
press. At 2 p.m. we went before Justice Wells at his house; and after a
long and close examination we were discharged. The following is a copy
of the minutes of this trial.
{488} _Minutes of the Trial of Joseph Smith et al. Before Esquire
Wells--"Expositor" Affair_.
FOR THE "NEIGHBOR."
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
COUNTY OF HANCOCK, ss.
Justice's Court, June 17th, 1844, Daniel H. Wells, Justice of the
Peace, presiding.
State of Illinois _v._ Joseph Smith, Samuel Bennett, John Taylor,
William W. Phelps, Hyrum Smith, John P. Greene, Stephen Perry,
Dimick B. Huntington, Jonathan Dunham, Stephen Markham, Jonathan H.
Holmes, Jesse P. Harmon, John Lytle, Joseph W. Coolidge, H. David
Redfield, Orrin Porter Rockwell and Levi Richards.
Defendants were brought before the court by Joel S. Miles,
constable of the county aforesaid, by virtue of a warrant issued
by the court on complaint of W. G. Ware, for a "riot committed in
the city of Nauvoo, county aforesaid, on or before the 10th day of
June, 1844, by forcibly entering a brick building in said city,
occupied as a printing office and taking therefrom by force, and
with force of arms, a printing-press, types and paper, together
with other property, belonging to William Law, Wilson Law, Robert
D. Foster, Charles A. Foster, Francis M. Higbee, Chauncey L. Higbee
and Charles Ivins, and breaking in pieces and burning the same in
the streets."
George P. Stiles, Esq., appeared as counsel for the defense, and
Edward Bonny, Esq., for the prosecution.
W. G. Ware sworn. Said he was present when the City Council passed
an order for the destruction of the press. Went up to the Temple
and heard the Marshal read the order of the Mayor. Did not know how
they got into the building. The press was taken out and destroyed.
Defendants' counsel objected to witness, stating who voted for the
passage of the bill in the council and read Burns' definition of a
riot, and said there could be no accessory.
Councilor Bonny read from the statute, page 173, and pleaded there
might be an accessory to a riot. Court decided there might be an
accessory to any crime either before or after the fact.
Witness knew some who voted for the order in the City Council.
Heard Gen. Dunham give orders for the destruction of the press.
Dunham, Redfield and Richards took an active part in the
destruction of the press. Did not know all the persons.
Cross-examined: City Council considered the press a nuisance,
and ordered it to be abated. Was present at the execution of the
Mayor's {489} orders. No unnecessary noise. All was done peaceably.
Saw no disorder. Heard no language by the prisoners calculated to
disturb the peace.
Henry O. Norton sworn. Was at the printing office. Heard Marshal
Greene give orders to open the door. Markham carried out the press
and type. Recollected Dunham. Could not identify any others. No
contention between the marshal and Higbee. Marshal asked Charles
A. Foster for the key, which he refused to give. Heard no threats
concerning the destruction of the press any time.
O. F. Moesseur sworn. Saw many of the people gather around the
printing office. Went over, back, and over again. Could not
identify any person. Heard no loud talking or noise.
P. T. Rolfe sworn. Was at work in the printing office last Monday
night. Chauncey Higbee came in and said the Council was about to
destroy the press, and took some papers from the desk. Marshal
Greene came with a company and demanded the key. Foster and Higbee
forbade him. Door was opened by Lytle, as witness thought. The
press and fixtures were destroyed, and some paper and a desk
belonging to Dr. Foster, containing several thousand dollars of
property, four thousand dollars auditor's warrants, and other
valuable papers.
Cross-examined: Did not know the amount of warrants and papers.
Presumed they were destroyed, Did not know whether they were
destroyed. Was from the office long enough to have them taken out.
Said Greene, Dunham, Markham, Holmes, Perry, Edwards and Harmon
helped to move the press. Never knew anything against Joseph Smith
personally.
B. Warrington sworn. Was present at the Council when the bill
passed to destroy the press.
Joseph Smith objected to calling in question the doings of the City
Council, and referred to the proceedings of Congress to show that
all legislative bodies have a right to speak freely on any subject
before them, and that Congress is not responsible for a riot
which might arise on the execution of their order by the Marshal;
that the execution of such order could not be a riot, but a legal
transaction; that the doings of the City Council could only be
called in question by the powers above them, and that a magistrate
had not that power; that the City Council was not arraigned here
for trial, but individuals were arraigned for a riot. If the City
Council had transcended their powers, they were amenable to the
Supreme Court; and that Judge Thomas had decided that an action
could not lie if no riot had been committed.
Councilor Bonny said, if the act was committed under an ordinance
of the city, they might show it in justification.
{490} Court decided that the gentlemen arraigned were arraigned in
their individual capacity, and could not be recognized by the court
in their official capacity.
Witness said that all he heard the prisoners say was said as
councilors.
Testimony on the prosecution closed.
Councilor Stiles moved that the prisoners be dismissed for want of
a case being made out.
Councilor Bonny read the riot act, and pleaded a case had been made
out.
Motion overruled by the Court.
Dr. Wakefield, Willard Richards and Edward Wingott sworn.
Dr. J. R. Wakefield, of New York, said he went on the hill after
the order passed the Council. Saw some portion of the Legion
collected, walking quietly along as though they were walking to the
"Dead March in Saul." There was no noise or tumult. Higbee asked
the Marshal his authority. Marshal stated his authority from the
Mayor for abating the nuisance. Higbee set them all at defiance.
Some twelve men were called out, who went up stairs and opened
the door. Did not know how the door was opened. There was not
more than one thump. Marshal Greene asked one of the officers if
anything was destroyed except what belonged to the press? and the
officer replied, "No." All was done in perfect order--as peaceably
as people move on a Sunday. Was present all the time. All that was
done was done in their official capacity as officers of the city.
Councilor Bonny objected to the testimony, as it was not before the
Court that there was any city.
Court decided that any knowledge in possession of the Court was
testimony in the Court.
E. Wingott, of Boston, concurred in Dr. Wakefield's statements.
Was by the door when it was opened, and knew that nothing more
than a knee was put against it. All was done quietly. Was present
in the City Council when the order passed. Nothing said in Council
except what was said in capacity of councilors and aldermen. Was
by the door all the time when the press and type and things used
in connection with the press were destroyed. There was no other
property taken from the building.
Cross-examined: Did not know the name of the man who opened the
door. Knew Orrin P. Rockwell.
Willard Richards read the resolutions of the City Council of the
10th instant, declaring the press a nuisance, &c., and the Mayor's
order to the Marshal to destroy the press, and the Lieut.-General's
order to Major-General Dunham to assist the Marshal with the
Legion, if needed, {491} to abate the nuisance, and the Marshal's
return that the press and type were destroyed (as published in the
_Neighbor_, June 19).
Court queried about the destruction of the desk.
Dr. Wakefield was again called up. Heard Marshal tell the officers
and men to hurt no property, except the press, type and fixtures:
and after the abatement, Marshal inquired if his order had been
obeyed, and the officers said it had.
E. Wingott called again. Heard Mr. Foster ask Higbee for the key of
the office, and afterward saw him deliver the key to Mr. Higbee.
There was nothing destroyed but what pertained to the press.
Addison Everett of New York, sworn. Saw the press and type taken
out and burned. Saw no other property burned. Desk might have been
taken away before. Should not have seen it, if it had been. Saw no
desk burned. Does not believe any desk was burned.
Joel S. Miles sworn. Foster said his docket was not burned. Witness
was sure that Dr. Foster said he had taken other papers out of the
desk.
W. G. Ware called again. Saw Charles Foster coming from the office
and go into Foster's house with books under his arm. Looked like
account books. Saw nothing but the press and fixtures brought out,
except a chair, and the Marshal ordered it to be carried back.
E. Wingott recalled. Stood close by the door. Could see all that
was done. Did not believe a desk could be brought out and he not
see it.
Dr. Wakefield recalled. Joseph Smith and Hyrum were not on the hill
at all that evening.
Joseph W. Coolidge was discharged by the Court and sworn. Charles
Foster asked Francis Higbee for the key to the office. Higbee
hesitated. Foster said he wanted to get a desk that had some
valuable papers in it. Foster got the key and went in. Did not see
him remove the desk. Might have removed it, and witness not see it.
There was no desk burned.
The councilors submitted the case without plea, and the court
discharged the prisoners.
{492}
CHAPTER XXIII.
RUMORS OF INVASION FROM MISSOURI--THE LEGION ORDERED TO ASSIST THE CITY
MARSHAL--NAUVOO PLACED UNDER MARTIAL LAW--THE MAYOR'S ADDRESS TO THE
LEGION.
_Monday, June, 17, 1844, (continued).--_Edward Hunter, Philip B.
Lewis and Major John Bills started with the affidavit of Thomas G.
Wilson and my letter, &c., to take to Governor Ford. I charged Edward
Hunter, under oath, to tell Governor Ford all he knew concerning me,
good or bad, as he has known me for several years; and I said to him,
"Brother Hunter, you have always wished you had been with us from the
commencement. If you will go to Springfield and do this business for
me now in this time of danger, it shall be as though you had been in
Missouri and had always been with us."
Stephen Markham made the following affidavit:
_Affidavit of Stephen Markham--Nauvoo to be Attacked_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
CITY OF NAUVOO, ss.
On the 17th day of June, 1844, came Stephen Markham before me,
Willard Richards, recorder of said city; and after being duly
sworn, deposeth and saith that, from the public papers, especially
the Warsaw papers, and from reports from the various precincts, a
mob may be expected to make an immediate attack upon the citizens
and city of Nauvoo, on account of the gatherings at the various
precincts, and threats to exterminate the Latter-day Saints.
STEPHEN MARKHAM.
Sworn and subscribed to before me this 17th day of June, 1844.
WILLARD RICHARDS,
Recorder of the city of Nauvoo.
{493} As soon as the affidavit came to my knowledge, I issued the
following:
PROCLAMATION.
NAUVOO, June 17th, 1844.
_To John P. Greene, Marshal of the City of Nauvoo, &c_.:
SIR.--Complaint having been made to me on oath that a mob is
collecting at sundry points to make an attack on this city, you
will therefore take such measures as shall be necessary to preserve
the peace of said city according to the provisions of the charter
and the laws of the state; and with the police and the Legion,
see that no violent act is committed. General Dunham is hereby
instructed to act with the Marshal in keeping the peace, according
to law.
JOSEPH SMITH, Mayor.
And also:
ORDER TO THE LEGION.
HEADQUARTERS NAUVOO LEGION,
NAUVOO, June 17th, 1844.
_To Major General in Command, Jonathan Dunham_:
Complaint having been made on oath that a mob is preparing to
make an attack upon this city and citizens of Nauvoo, and having
directed the Marshal to keep the peace, you are hereby commanded to
order the Nauvoo Legion to be in readiness to assist said Marshal
in keeping the peace, and doing whatever may be necessary to
preserve the dignity of the state and city.
JOSEPH SMITH, Lieut.-General N. L.
Also:
LEGION PLACED AT COMMAND OF CITY MARSHAL.
HEADQUARTERS NAUVOO LEGION, June 17th, 1844.
_To Major-General in Command, Jonathan Dunham_:
You are hereby instructed to execute all orders of the Marshal,
and perform all services with as little noise and confusion as
possible, and take every precaution to prevent groups of citizens,
&c., from gathering on the bank of the river, on the landing of
boats or otherwise, and allay every cause and pretext of excitement
as well as suspicion, and let your operations be efficient and
decided.
JOSEPH SMITH, Lieut.-Gen. N. L.
I also issued an order to Col. A. P. Rockwood to call out {494} my
guard and staff immediately to my headquarters; and I also ordered the
Legion to parade tomorrow at 10 a.m.
HEADQUARTERS NAUVOO LEGION,
LIEUT.-GENERAL'S OFFICE
June 17th, 1844.
_To Col. A. P. Rockwood_:
You are hereby commanded to notify my guard and staff to appear at
headquarters without delay, armed and equipped according to law for
military duty and inspection, with powder and ball.
JOSEPH SMITH, Lieut.-Gen. N. L.
I advised my brother Hyrum not to mail his letter to President Young at
present.
I directed my clerk, Thomas Bullock, to remain in the Masonic Hall and
take affidavits of the men who are constantly coming in with news of
the movements of the mob and preserve copies to forward to the Governor.
I received the following letter:
_Letter: H. T. Hugins to Joseph Smith--Probable Indictment of the
Prophet at Springfield_.
BURLINGTON, IOWA TERRITORY,
June 17th, 1844.
DEAR SIR.--I write to inform you that Jeremiah Smith arrived here
yesterday in safety and free from arrest. He desires, through me,
to thank you for your kindness and attention to him while at Nauvoo.
I wrote from Springfield to apprise you that an effort was making
to procure an indictment against the members of your Municipal
Court for the part they acted in trying the _habeas corpus_
petitions. Through the efforts of myself and Dr. Hickock, that
result was prevented, and T. B. Johnson exposed. The boat is
casting off, and I must close. Dr. Dunlop will write to apprise you
of the William and Wilson Law's proceedings here. You will hear
from me again soon.
Yours truly,
H. T. HUGINS.
GENERAL JOSEPH SMITH, Nauvoo, Ill.
The mob is still increasing in numbers at Carthage and other places.
{495} It is reported that William and Wilson Law have laid a plan
to burn the printing office of the _Nauvoo Neighbor_ this night. I
therefore stationed a strong police round the premises and throughout
the city.
The captain of the steamer _Osprey_ called upon me.
[Sidenote: Charge of Threats Against Foster's Life.]
About 11 p.m. a negro came into my office with an open letter, without
any date or name, and said that Dr. Foster gave it to him at Madison
to give Henry O. Norton. In that letter Foster said that Dunham and
Richards swore in my presence that they would kill him (Foster) in two
days, and that there was a man in Madison would swear he had heard them
say so at my house.
I closed the issuing of orders about 12 at night, ready to retire to
rest. Pleasant weather.
To refute the lying slanders of the _Warsaw Signal,_ as published in
the proceedings of a meeting held at Carthage an the 13th instant, I
insert the following certificate. [1]
TO THE PUBLIC.
We, whose names are undersigned, having seen in the _Warsaw
Signal,_ containing the proceedings of a meeting held at Carthage
on the 13th instant, many statements calculated to arouse the
indignation and wrath of the people against the citizens of Nauvoo,
do certify that Hyrum Smith did not make any threats, nor offer any
reward against the _Signal_ or its editor in the City Council.
John Taylor, George W. Harris, Aaron Johnson, Phinehas Richards,
William Boles, Thomas Smith, George P. Stiles, Edward Hunter, W.
W. Phelps, Moses F. Clark, Alanson Ripley, Levi Richards, Orson
Spencer, Addison Everett, John P. Greene, Philip B. Lewis.
NAUVOO, June 17, 1844.
{496} A _Nauvoo Neighbor_ extra was issued with the following editorial:
TO THE PUBLIC.
As a soft breeze on a hot day mellows the air, so does the simple
truth calm the feelings of the irritated; and so we proceed to give
the proceedings of the City Council relating to the removal of the
_Nauvoo Expositor_ as a nuisance. We have been robbed, mobbed and
plundered with impunity some two or three times; and as every heart
is more apt to know its own sorrows, the people of Nauvoo had ample
reason, when such characters as the proprietors and abettors of
the _Nauvoo Expositor_ proved to be before the City Council, to be
alarmed for their safety.
The men who got up the press were constantly engaged in resisting
the authority or threatening something. If they were fined, an
appeal was taken, but the slander went on; and when the paper came,
the course and the plan to destroy the city was marked out. The
destruction of the city charter and the ruin of the Saints was the
all-commanding topic.
Our lives, our city, our charter and our characters are just as
sacred, just as dear, and just as good as other people's; and while
no friendly arm has been extended from the demolition of our press
in Jackson county, Missouri, without law, to this present day, the
City Council with all the law of nuisance, from Blackstone down to
the Springfield charter, knowing that if they exceeded the law of
the land a higher court could regulate the proceedings, abated the
_Nauvoo Expositor_.
The proceedings of the Council show, as sketched out, that there
was cause for alarm. The people, when they reflect, will at once
say that the feelings and rights of men ought to be respected.
All persons otherwise, who, without recourse to justice, mercy or
humanity, come out with inflammatory publications, destructive
resolutions, or more especially extermination, show a want of
feeling a want of respect and a want of religious toleration that
honorable men will deprecate among Americans as they would the
pestilence, famine, or horrors of war. It cannot be that the people
are so lost to virtue as to coolly go to murdering men, women and
children. No; candor and common sense forbid it!
Dr. Richards and Thomas Bullock sat up all last night writing the
proceedings of the City Council for the press.
_Tuesday, 18.--_At 8 a.m. the Legion assembled according to orders, and
organized at 9 a.m., under Acting Major-General Jonathan Dunham. The
first cohort under the command of Colonel Stephen Markham, acting {497}
Brigadier-General, and the second cohort under Colonel Hosea Stout,
acting Brigadier-General.
Just before, I was informed that there were several boxes of arms
landed at the upper stone house, which were secured by the Marshal.
Soon after it was discovered that the arms (40 stand) had been sent by
Henry G. Sherwood, and the Marshal bought them for the city.
About 1:45 p.m. I proclaimed the city under martial law, and caused the
following orders to be issued from the Mayor's office:
DECLARATION OF MARTIAL LAW.
PROCLAMATION.
MAYOR'S OFFICE, CITY OF NAUVOO,
June 18th, 1844.
_To the Marshal or the City of Nauvoo_:
From the newspapers around us, and the current reports as brought
in from the surrounding country, I have good reason to fear that a
mob is organizing to come upon this city, and plunder and destroy
said city, as well as murder the citizens; and by virtue of the
authority vested in me as Mayor, and to preserve the city and the
lives of the citizens, I do hereby declare the said city, within
the limits of its incorporation, under martial law. The officers,
therefore, of the Nauvoo Legion, the police as well as all others,
will strictly see that no persons or property pass in or out of the
city without due orders.
JOSEPH SMITH, Mayor.
About 2 p.m. the Legion was drawn up in the street close by the
Mansion. I stood in full uniform on the top of the frame of a building.
Judge Phelps read the _Warsaw Signal_ extra of the 17th, wherein all
the "old citizens" were called upon to assist the mob in exterminating
the leaders of the Saints and driving away the people.
I addressed the Legion for about an hour and a half.
[The following synopsis of this address was compiled by George A.
Smith, from the verbal reports of Joseph G. Hovey, William G. Sterrett,
Robert Campbell and many others who heard the Prophet on the occasion]:
{498}
_The Last Speech of President Smith to the Legion_.
It is thought by some that our enemies would be satisfied with my
destruction; but I tell you that as soon as they have shed my blood
they will thirst for the blood of every man in whose heart dwells
a single spark of the spirit of the fullness of the Gospel. The
opposition of these men is moved by the spirit of the adversary of
all righteousness. It is not only to destroy me, but every man and
woman who dares believe the doctrines that God hath inspired me to
teach to this generation.
We have never violated the laws of our country. We have every
right to live under their protection, and are entitled to all the
privileges guaranteed by our state and national constitutions. We
have turned the barren, bleak prairies and swamps of this state
into beautiful towns, farms and cities by our industry; and the
men who seek our destruction and cry thief, treason, riot, &c.,
are those who themselves violate the laws, steal and plunder from
their neighbors, and seek to destroy the innocent, heralding forth
lies to screen themselves from the just punishment of their crimes
by bringing destruction upon this innocent people. I call God,
angels and all men to witness that we are innocent of the charges
which are heralded forth through the public prints against us by
our enemies; and while they assemble together in unlawful mobs to
take away our rights and destroy our lives, they think to shield
themselves under the refuge of lies which they have thus wickedly
fabricated.
We have forwarded a particular account of all our doings to the
Governor. We are ready to obey his commands, and we expect that
protection at his hands which we know to be our just due.
We have taken the counsel of Judge Thomas, and have been tried
before a civil magistrate on the charge of riot--not that the law
required it, but because the Judge advised it as a precautionary
measure, to allay all possible pretext for excitement. We were
legally acquitted by Esq. Wells, who is a good judge of law. Had
we been before the Circuit, the Supreme, or any other court of law
in the state or nation, we would have been acquitted, for we have
broken no law.
Constable Bettisworth came here with a writ requiring us to go
before Mr. Morrison, "or some other justice of the peace of the
county," to answer to the charge of riot. We acknowledged ourselves
his prisoners, and were ready to go before any magistrate in any
precinct in this part of the county, or anywhere else where our
lives could be protected from the mob who have published the
resolutions for our extermination which you have just heard read.
This is a privilege the law guarantees to us, and which the writ
itself allows. He broke the law and refused us this privilege,
declaring that we should go before Morrison {499} in Carthage, and
no one else, when he knew that a numerous mob was collected there
who are publicly pledged to destroy our lives.
It was under these circumstances that we availed ourselves of the
legal right of the ancient, high, and constitutional privilege of
the writ of_ habeas corpus,_ and were brought before the Municipal
Court of this city and discharged from the illegal detention under
which we were held by Constable Bettisworth. All mob-men, priests,
thieves, and bogus makers, apostates and adulterers, who combine to
destroy this people, now raise the hue and cry throughout the state
that we resist the law, in order to raise a pretext for calling
together thousands more of infuriated mob-men to murder, destroy,
plunder and ravish the innocent.
We are American citizens. We live upon a soil for the liberties of
which our fathers periled their lives and spilt their blood upon
the battlefield. Those rights so dearly purchased, shall not be
disgracefully trodden under foot by lawless marauders without at
least a noble effort on our part to sustain our liberties.
Will you all stand by me to the death, and sustain at the peril
of your lives, the laws of our country, and the liberties and
privileges which our fathers have transmitted unto us, sealed with
their sacred blood? ("Aye!" shouted thousands.) He then said,
"It is well. If you had not done it, I would have gone out there
(pointing to the west) and would have raised up a mightier people."
I call upon all men, from Maine to the Rocky Mountains, and from
Mexico to British America, whose hearts thrill with horror to
behold the rights of freemen trampled under foot, to come to the
deliverance of this people from the hand of oppression, cruelty,
anarchy and misrule to which they have long been made subject.
Come, all ye lovers of liberty, break the oppressor's rod, loose
the iron grasp of mobocracy, and bring to condign punishment all
those who trample under foot the glorious Constitution and the
people's rights. [Drawing his sword, and presenting it to heaven,
he said] I call God and angels to witness that I have unsheathed my
sword with a firm and unalterable determination that this people
shall have their legal rights, and be protected from mob violence,
or my blood shall be spilt upon the ground like water, and my body
consigned to the silent tomb. While I live, I will never tamely
submit to the dominion of cursed mobocracy. I would welcome death
rather than submit to this oppression; and it would be sweet, oh,
sweet, to rest in the grave rather than submit to this oppression,
agitation, annoyance, confusion, and alarm upon alarm, any longer.
I call upon all friends of truth and liberty to come to our
assistance; and may the thunders of the Almighty and the forked
lightnings of heaven and pestilence, and war and bloodshed come
down on those ungodly {500} men who seek to destroy my life and the
lives of this innocent people.
I do not regard my own life. I am ready to be offered a sacrifice
for this people; for what can our enemies do? Only kill the body,
and their power is then at an end. Stand firm, my friends; never
flinch. Do not seek to save your lives, for he that is afraid to
die for the truth, will lose eternal life. Hold out to the end,
and we shall be resurrected and become like Gods, and reign in
celestial kingdoms, principalities, and eternal dominions, while
this cursed mob will sink to hell, the portion of all those who
shed innocent blood.
God has tried you. You are a good people; therefore I love you
with all my heart. Greater love hath no man than that he should
lay down his life for his friends. You have stood by me in the
hour of trouble, and I am willing to sacrifice my life for your
preservation.
May the Lord God of Israel bless you for ever and ever. I say it
in the name of Jesus of Nazareth, and in the authority of the Holy
Priesthood, which He hath conferred upon me.
(The people said "Amen.")
Hyrum said that the statement of Sharp in the _Warsaw Signal,_ that he
(Hyrum) had threatened to take his life, was false as hell--there was
not a syllable of truth in it.
About 3:15 p.m., I took the command, and with my staff rode in front of
the Legion, marched up Main Street, and returned to our former parade
ground. The number on parade was very large, considering the number
of Elders who had been sent on missions. After dismissing the Legion
to their several commands, I returned home and gave orders to the
several commanders only to receive official communications through my
aides-de-camp, the proper official channel. I appointed Edward Bonney
one of my aids-de-camp.
Truman Gillett, Jr., made the following affidavit:
_Affidavit: Truman Gillett--the Treachery of William Law_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
CITY OF NAUVOO, ss.
June 18th, 1844.--Personally appeared Truman Gillett, Jr., before
me, Willard Richards, recorder of the city of Nauvoo; and after
being duly sworn, deposeth and saith that on or about the first day
of June, 1842, while passing up the Ohio river on the steamboat
_Massachusetts_, {501} deponent overheard two men, one a resident of
Missouri and the other of Ohio, as reported, conversing together
concerning incidents on the Upper Mississippi, when one said to the
other. "If Law could have succeeded in getting an introduction for
us to Joe Smith, damn him, we would have gagged him and nabbed him;
and, damn him, all hell could not have rescued him from our hands."
The next morning deponent got in conversation with the man before
mentioned from Missouri, who stated that he had been on the Upper
Mississippi on business; that he stopped at Nauvoo on his way down
with some twelve or fourteen other men, who laid a plan to kidnap
Joe Smith; that some of the company queried about getting access
to him, but one of them said he knew they could if he could find
William Law. They called on William Law in the evening to get an
introduction to their great Prophet, and Law went with them to the
gate, where they were stopped by the police; "and it was well for
him that we did not succeed in getting an introduction to him."
Deponent said, "Did William Law know your business?" And he said
"Yes." Deponent asked, "What have you against Joseph Smith? Did he
ever injure you?" The man replied, "No, but he has others." "Did
you ever see him?" "Yes. I was one who helped to run the Mormons
from Missouri," and related many circumstances concerning the
Missouri mob.
Deponent said to the man, he was acquainted with William Law;
considered he was an honorable man, and was led to doubt his being
engaged with them in a conspiracy against Joseph Smith. He replied,
"G--d d--n you, it is true, whether you believe it or not," and
repeatedly affirmed it. Deponent did not believe the statements of
the man from Missouri as mentioned above until after hearing the
recent developments before the City Council.
TRUMAN GILLETT, JR.
[Seal]
Sworn and subscribed at the time and place above written, before me.
WILLARD RICHARDS, Recorder C. N.
At 8 p.m. I wrote the following:
_Letter: Joseph Smith to H. T. Hugins--Congratulating Jeremiah
Smith on his release_.
NAUVOO, ILL., June 18th, 1844.
_H. T. Hugins. Esq_.
SIR.--I received your communication from Burlington per Captain
Anderson; also Dr. Hickock's from Springfield; and feel grateful
for your favors, and congratulate you and Mr. Smith also.
The enemy, or mob, is prowling in the southern and eastern part of
{502} the county, and threatening us with extermination; and we ask
the friends of peace and good government everywhere to use their
influence in suppressing the spirit of mobocracy, and sustain us in
our righteous course.
So far as you can conscientiously speak in our behalf, and lend
your influence in our favor for the public good your favors will be
highly appreciated.
Please show this to Dr. Hickock and such confidential friends as
you think proper. Also request Mr. Dunlop to direct his letter to
me.
The bearer, Dr. Wakefield, will give you all particulars.
In haste, I remain your friend, respectfully,
JOSEPH SMITH.
I sent the letter by Dr. Wakefield to Burlington.
[Sidenote: Governor Ford's Treatment of the Mob.]
Nine messengers arrived from Carthage, and report that the mob had
received intelligence from the Governor, who would take no notice of
them; and they damned the Governor as being as bad as Joe Smith. They
did not care for him, and they were just as willing he would not help
them as if he would.
There was a body of armed men in Carthage, and a mob meeting at
Fountain Green, which attracted considerable attention.
[Sidenote: Threat Against the Prophet's Life.]
Shadrach Roundy, a policeman, reported at 10 p.m., after I had retired,
that a man by the name of Norton had threatened to shoot me. An
examination was immediately had, but no proof was found.
This evening I appointed Theodore Turley Armorer-General of The Legion.
I insert the following affidavit:
_Affidavit, Canfield and Belknap--Concerning Threats of Invasion
from Missouri_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
CITY OF NAUVOO, ss.
HANCOCK COUNTY, June 18, 1844.
Personally appeared before me, Aaron Johnson, a justice of the
peace, Cyrus Canfield and Gilbert Belknap, of Hancock county; and
being duly sworn depose and say that on yesterday, June 17th, 1844,
{503} certain persons--to-wit, Dr. Barnes and Joseph H. Jackson,
having entered into conversation with your deponents, among
other things declared that the Governor of Illinois was as big a
scoundrel as Joseph Smith, and that he is the d--dest scoundrel
that was ever suffered to live; that they did not care for the
Governor, and had rather that the Governor would side with Smith;
that they (the mob) were coming to Nauvoo with a sufficient force
to take Smith; and if the people endeavored to prevent them, they
should kill the people; and that if Smith had left Nauvoo, they
had determined to destroy the Mansion and other buildings. And
your deponents further say that one John Eller declared that he
had lived in Missouri and was at the massacre of the Mormons at
Haun's Mill, that he had killed one Mormon, and that he had left
Missouri on purpose to fight the Mormons, and would hunt a Mormon
as he would a deer. And your deponents further say that they heard
that about one hundred persons had already arrived from Missouri,
and were expecting as many more from that State. And your deponents
further say, that they heard in Carthage that they had already
received a number of guns and ammunition and provisions from St.
Louis, in order to prosecute their attack upon Nauvoo. And, further
your deponents say not.
CYRUS CANFIELD,
GILBERT BELKNAP.
Sworn and subscribed to before me, this eighteenth day of June,
1844.
AARON JOHNSON,
A Justice of the Peace.
Footnotes:
1. This was published in the _Nauvoo Neighbor_ impressions of June 19
1844.
{504}
CHAPTER XXIV.
ATTEMPTS TO DRAFT SAINTS INTO MOB SERVICE AGAINST NAUVOO--THREATENED
INVASION FROM MISSOURI--JAMES A. BENNETT URGED TO COME TO NAUVOO.
_Wednesday, June 19, 1844.--_The Legion assembled on the parade-ground.
A company of the Legion came in from Green Plains about 11 a.m. I met
them at the front of the Mansion, and an escort came down from the
parade-ground below the Temple and escorted them to the ground.
At 1 p.m. a company of volunteers arrived from Iowa and were also
escorted to the parade-ground.
[Sidenote: Effort to Draft Chester Loveland into Mob Service.]
On Sunday, the 16th, a committee of the mob, headed by James Charles,
a constable of Hancock county, went to the house of Captain Chester
Loveland, who lives four miles southeast of Warsaw, and required him to
call out his company to join the _posse_ of David Bettisworth to go to
Nauvoo and arrest me and the City Council. He peremptorily refused to
comply with their request. The same _posse_ returned on the 17th with
an order, as they stated, from the Governor, which Loveland believed
(and no doubt correctly) to be a forgery, and therefore still refused
to go on any terms. The _posse_ then reported his refusal to Colonel
Williams, who appointed a committee of twelve to lynch, tar and feather
Captain Loveland on the 18th; which committee went that evening and
arrived about midnight.
Loveland, who had been informed of Williams' order, prepared himself
for defense and kept watch. As soon as they came and he saw their
number, and that they were {505} provided with tar bucket, bag of
feathers and a bundle of withes, in addition to their fire-arms, he
blew out his light and placed himself in a suitable position to defend
the door (which he had fastened) and the window. They went around his
house several times, tried his door, rapped, called him by name, and
consulted together. Some were for breaking the door; others thought
it too dangerous. They knew he must be in there, for they were near
his door when the light was blown out. Finally their courage failed;
and notifying him to leave the country immediately, they took their
departure. During this trying time Loveland did not speak.
[Sidenote: Roads Leading into Nauvoo Picketed.]
In the afternoon I gave orders to General Dunham to have a picket-guard
under Col. Markham, posted on all the roads leading out of the city;
also an inner guard, under Major Jesse P. Harmon, posted in all the
streets and alleys in the city, and also on the river bank. I also gave
orders to have all the powder and lead in the city secured, and to see
that all the arms were in use, and that all unclaimed arms be put in
the hands of those who could use them.
I insert the affidavit of Anson Call, David Evans and William E. Horner:
_Affidavit: Call, Evans and Horner--Treatment of Nauvoo Committee
by Levi Williams, et al_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
CITY OF NAUVOO, ss.
HANCOCK COUNTY, June 19, 1844.
Personally appeared before me, Aaron Johnson, justice of the peace
of said county, Anson Call, David Evans and William E. Horner, of
Hancock county and state aforesaid; and being duly sworn, depose
and say that on Monday, the 17th instant, we started for Rocky Run
precinct, and arrived yesterday. We then went to Col. Williams' of
that place, and there soon assembled twenty or thirty men. We were
informed that Col. Williams had gone to Lima to get the colonel
there to bring on his regiment. We then informed them that we were
delegated on behalf of the people of Nauvoo to transact business
with them. {506} They informed us they had a committee set apart to
do their business, and that one was absent, and the other two would
shortly be here. That while a person was seeking the two men, we
observed to the people that General Smith was willing to be tried
in any state, for any crime of supposed crime that he had ever
committed, except in the state of Missouri.
One of the persons objected to General Smith being tried by the
Municipal Court in Nauvoo, and declared that nothing else would do
but for him to be taken upon the old writ, and by the same person
who took him in custody before, and tried at the place where the
writ was issued.
It was then observed that Judge Thomas had advised General Smith
to enter into bonds to be tried before the Circuit Court, and this
would allay all the excited feelings of the people.
It was then moved by one of their company, and sanctioned by the
people, that a committee should wait on the Judge who gave General
Smith this advice, and give him a coat of tar and feathers; when
one John Elliott, of notoriety, agreed to find the tar and feathers
for that purpose.
After some further conversation, a man whom they called Lawyer
Stephens came in from Warsaw, and asked where Col. Williams was.
He was told that he had gone to Lima. They then observed to the
lawyer that we were delegates from Nauvoo, when he replied. "We are
expecting delegates, too, at Warsaw;" and he said the people were
talking of introducing them to the Mississippi river; and says he,
"Gentlemen, you can do with your delegates what you think proper."
A Mr. Crawford, one of the committee, observed that he went against
such proceedings, and advised them as a body to keep cool. They
then told the lawyer the advice that the Judge of the Circuit
Court had given to General Smith, when he said it was unlawful
advice, and it was a second time moved and assented to that a
committee should wait on Judge Thomas and give him a coat of tar
and feathers. The remainder of the committee having come in, they
stated to us that they had written to the Governor to obtain aid
from other counties; and if the Governor did not send them aid,
they were too weak to go themselves now, but were summoning all the
people that would come into the county until they got force enough
to come up and take Joseph Smith with the first warrant, and take
him to the place where the writ was first issued; and nothing less
than that would satisfy the people.
ANSON CALL,
DAVID EVANS,
WM. E. HORNER.
Sworn and subscribed to this 19th day of June, 1844.
AARON JOHNSON, J. P.
{507} From the best information they could learn, there were two
hundred armed men at Rocky Run precinct, two hundred at Warsaw, two
hundred in Missouri, and the whole receiving constant additions.
At 9 p.m. I was at home. The city all quiet.
[Sidenote: Preparations for an Attack.]
_Thursday, 20.--_At daybreak I went with my staff and Major-General
Dunham to the prairie, to view the situation of the ground, and to
devise plans for the defense of the city, and select the proper
locations to meet the mob, and made arrangements for provisions for the
city, instructing my agent to pledge my farms for the purpose.
[Sidenote: Report of Dr. Southwick.]
At 10 a.m. Dr. Southwick from Louisiana arrived, and reported that
there was not much excitement in St. Louis; that a cannon had arrived
at Warsaw from Quincy, and that it had been reported to him that there
was great excitement in Upper Missouri.
At 11, I reviewed the Legion facing the Mansion, and went to parade on
the banks of the river.
I insert the affidavit of Carlos W. Lyon.
_Affidavit: Carlos W. Lyon_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
CITY OF NAUVOO, ss
On the 20th day of June, 1844, came before me, Willard Richards,
recorder of the city aforesaid, Carlos W. Lyon; and after being
duly sworn, deposeth and saith that while at St. Louis, Mo., on
Monday, the 17th instant, it was a common topic that they were
furnishing arms and ammunition to be sent by steamboat to Warsaw,
Illinois; and said if the people of Warsaw need five hundred men,
to give notice by the steamer _Boreas_, and the men should be sent
from St. Louis to Warsaw; and that your said affiant also saw a
cannon landed from the steamer_ Mermaid_ at Warsaw; and further he
saith not.
CARLOS W. LYON.
Subscribed and sworn to before me this 20th day of June, 1844,
WILLARD RICHARDS,
Recorder of the City of Nauvoo.
{508} Wrote to John Tyler, President of the United States, as follows:
_An Appeal to President Tyler_.
CITY OF NAUVOO, ILLINOIS, June 20th, 1844.
SIR.--I have just enclosed to the Governor of the State of Illinois
copies of the enclosed affidavits and extra. I am sorry to say
that the State of Missouri, not contented with robbing, driving
and murdering many of the Latter-day Saints, are now joining the
mob of this state for the purpose of the "utter extermination" of
the Mormons, as they have resolved. And now, sir, as President
of the United States, will you render that protection which the
Constitution guarantees in case of "insurrection and rebellion,"
and save the innocent and oppressed from such horrid persecution?
With great respect, I have the honor to be your obedient servant,
JOSEPH SMITH, Mayor.
JOHN TYLER, President of the U. S., Washington, D. C.
I here insert affidavits of Hiram B. Mount and John Cunningham:
_Affidavit: Mount and Cunningham--Attempt to Draft them into the
Mob Service_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
HANCOCK COUNTY, ss.
CITY OF NAUVOO, June 20th, 1844.
Personally appeared before me, Aaron Johnson, an acting justice of
the peace in and for the county of Hancock, Hiram B. Mount and John
Cunningham, who being duly sworn, depose and say that George Baker,
John Banks, Joseph Barber, and two others came to your deponents on
Saturday the 15th inst., at Morley Settlement, in said county, and
demanded our arms. We replied that we had none, when they required
of us to go with them to Nauvoo to take Joseph Smith and other
prisoners, and they promised to supply us with arms. Second, if we
would not do so, that we were required to leave our homes and go to
Nauvoo. We must either go against Smith, or take part with him.
They then told us they intended to go to Nauvoo to take Smith; and
if they could not take him, they would take some of the head men
of Smith's clan, and hold them under bonds of death until Smith
was delivered up to them. And your deponents further say that John
Banks {509} told them if they could not get volunteers enough, they
would get a force that would take him.
HIRAM B. MOUNT,
JOHN CUNNINGHAM, (x--his mark).
[Seal]
Subscribed and sworn to this 20th day of June, 1844, before me,
AARON JOHNSON, J. P.
_Affidavit: Allen T. Wait--Attempt to Draft him into Mob Service_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
HANCOCK COUNTY, ss.
CITY OF NAUVOO, June 20th, 1844.
Personally appeared before me, Aaron Johnson, an acting justice
of the peace in and for said county, Allen T. Wait, of Morley
Settlement in said county; and being first duly sworn, deposeth and
saith that on Saturday morning he was at the house of Colonel Levi
Williams, when he told me that I must take up arms and go and fight
against Joseph Smith, or I must leave the place immediately, or
else I must give up my arms and stay at home.
He also said they would take Smith by law if they could; or if the
Governor would not grant a writ to take him they would take him
anyhow. He also said, if the people would not give Smith up, they
would lay the whole city of Nauvoo in ashes.
I inquired what they would do with those people of Nauvoo who would
not fight? He said they must make some signal, or else they must
share the same fate--they must all perish, men, women, and children.
I then left in order to go home, when Captain Harrison P. Crawford
overtook me, and told me if the Governor would not help them they
did not care for the Governor anyhow. He said Governor Ford was an
unconstitutional man; he had issued two illegal writs, and they
were done so on purpose: and any such man ought not to hold any
office whatever; and they intended to proceed against the Mormons
whether they got any authority from the Governor or not.
ALLAN T. WAIT.
[Seal]
Subscribed and sworn to this 20th day of June, 1844, before me,
AARON JOHNSON, J. P.
Likewise the affidavit of Isaac Morley, Gardner Snow John Edmiston and
Edmund Durfee.
{510} _Affidavit: Isaac Morley et al.--Attempt to Draft them into
Mob Service_,
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
HANCOCK COUNTY, ss.
CITY OF NAUVOO, June 20th, 1844.
Personally appeared before me, Aaron Johnson, an acting justice
of the peace in and for said county, Isaac Morley, Gardner Snow,
John Edmiston and Edmund Durfee, all of Hancock county aforesaid;
and being first duly sworn, depose and say that on Saturday, the
15th day of June, 1844, at Morley Settlement in said county,
certain persons--to wit., George Baker, farmer, John Banks, Esq.,
Luther Perry, constable, Joseph Barber, farmer; and another person
whose name we do not know, called upon your deponent, Isaac
Morley, when John Banks said they waited on him to make three
propositions--namely: first, that we were to take up arms, join
with, and go along with them to Nauvoo to arrest one Joseph Smith
and others, about seventeen in number, living in Nauvoo; second,
to remove our effects to Nauvoo; or third, to give up our arms to
them and remain neutral. And said Isaac Morley was required to
notify all the brethren in the neighborhood, and report to the said
committee, which of these propositions we accepted, by 8 o'clock on
Monday morning following; and that one of the above resolutions was
to be complied with within that time.
On the same day said Joseph Barber and Luther Perry went to where
your deponent, Edmund Durfee, was at work in a field in the same
neighborhood, and said they had come to notify him that said Durfee
must comply with one of the above propositions; if not that said
Durfee would smell thunder.
And all your deponents further depose and say that they have
been compelled to leave their homes and flee to Nauvoo for
protection. "For we were afraid to stay there on account of the
mobs threatening to utterly exterminate us," according to a _Warsaw
Signal_ extra of June, 14th, 1844, if we stayed at home; and
further your deponents say not.
ISAAC MORLEY,
GARDNER SNOW,
JOHN EDMISTON,
EDMUND DUFREE.
[Seal]
Subscribed and sworn to this 20th day of June, 1844, before me,
AARON JOHNSON, J. P.
Also the affidavit of Solomon Hancock, William Garner, and John G.
Lofton:
{511} _Affidavit: Hancock, Garner, Lofton--Attempt to Draft them
into Mob Service_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
HANCOCK COUNTY, ss.
CITY OF NAUVOO, June 20th, 1844.
Personally appeared before me, Aaron Johnson, an acting justice of
the peace, Solomon Hancock, William Garner and John G. Lofton, who
being first duly sworn, depose and say that on Saturday, the 15th
day of June, 1844, at Morley Settlement in said county, certain
persons,--to wit., John Clark, John Crawford, Jeremiah Bently, and
three others, all farmers, came to your deponents and made three
several propositions to them, to wit: first, that we were to take
up our arms and join with them in going to Nauvoo, to take Joseph
Smith and others prisoners; second, to remove with our effects to
Nauvoo immediately; or, third, to give up our arms to Col. Levi
Williams and remain neutral.
We were ordered to give in our decision on Monday then next by
8 o'clock in the morning; and if we would not agree to their
decision, we must abide the consequences. And in consequence of
mobs gathering in the neighborhood, we have been obliged to leave
our homes in order to save our lives, and are come to Nauvoo for
protection.
Solomon Hancock further deposeth and saith that said John Clark did
on Tuesday, 18th instant, inform your deponent that one of their
party had gone to St. Louis and had obtained three cannon, and were
expecting three companies of volunteers from St. Louis to join them
in going to Nauvoo to exterminate the Mormons; and further your
deponents say not.
SOLOMON HANCOCK,
WILLIAM GARNER,
JOHN G. LOFTON.
[Seal]
Subscribed and sworn to this 20th day of June 1844, before me,
AARON JOHNSON.
Also the affidavit of James Guyman:
_Affidavit: James Guyman--Threats of Invasion from Missouri_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
HANCOCK COUNTY. ss
CITY OF NAUVOO, June 20th, 1844.
Personally appeared before me, Aaron Johnson, an acting justice of
the peace in and for said county, James Guyman, of Green Plains
precinct in said county; and being first duly sworn deposeth
and saith that on Saturday morning, the 15th instant, he was at
Rocky Run precinct, {512} when one Captain Wyers, captain of an
"Independent Anti-Mormon Minute Men Company," came to a house where
your deponent was staying. He inquired for a drum. He wanted either
to borrow it or buy it until the affray with the Mormons was over.
I asked him how he was going to proceed to take Smith. He then said
Missouri had offered to send over two thousand men, to come over to
assist and take him.
I asked whether it was legal for them to come over here. He replied
when they came over the constables were going to summons them, and
also to summons every man who was in or would come into the county.
I asked if it was according to law to proceed that way, and he
replied it was, and he went in for the law and democracy. He said
they had sent two men to the Governor to order the militia out in
their favor to help to take those criminals: and if he would not
do just right, they would execute him by taking his head from his
shoulders.
I replied, "You said you were a democracy man, and went for the
law." I said, "Do you call that democracy or mobocracy?"
He said if they went that far, and if the Governor ordered the
militia against them instead of in favor of them, he would turn
mob, and the militia would join him, and they would take the
Governor's head from his shoulders. He repeated it two or three
times.
I enquired if it was law to go and drive those innocent Mormons who
were living in the neighborhood, or tyrannically compel them to do
things not agreeable to their will? He allowed that in this case it
was.
I asked what he was going to do with these old settlers who would
neither take up arms and fight against Smith nor in favor of him;
when he replied they must fight either for one side or the other,
or they must share the same fate as the Mormons.
Your deponent further saith that he is not a Mormon, and does not
belong to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints; and
further saith not.
JAMES GUYMAN.
[Seal]
Subscribed and sworn to this 20th day of June, 1844, before me,
AARON JOHNSON, J. P.
Also the affidavit of Obadiah Bowen:
_Affidavit: Obadiah Bowen--Attempt to Draft him into Service of
Mob_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
HANCOCK COUNTY. ss
CITY OF NAUVOO, June 20th, 1844.
Personally appeared before me, Aaron Johnson, an acting justice
{513} of the peace, in and for said county, Obadiah Bowen, of
Morley Settlement, in said county; and being first duly sworn,
deposeth and saith that on Saturday the 15th instant, John Clark
rode up to where I was at work in Morley Settlement, and said he
was afraid the Mormons would come and destroy their property;
"and," said he, "if I have any destroyed by any person, I shall
make my resort upon the nearest Mormons, and take their property in
place of that which shall be taken away;" wherever he could find
it, so long as it was a Mormon's; and that on Tuesday, the 18th
instant, as I was coming from my house to the road leading to Lima,
a mob was at the forks of the road standing still and consulting
together; I came on the road about twenty rods ahead of them. In a
few moments Colonel Levi Williams, John Clark and five others rode
along the same road after me.
I heard them talking about shooting the Mormons, when Clark
said, "It is no disgrace to shoot a Mormon, anyhow," when they
all laughed. They overtook me, and Col. Williams asked me where
I lived. I replied in Morley Settlement. He asked me if I was a
Mormon, when Clark laid it was no odds--he is on their part.
Col. Williams then threatened me, and said I must be sure and be
at his house by nine o'clock in the morning; if not I must either
get out of Morley Settlement, or be served the same sauce as the
Mormons. He gave me to understand that they were going to make a
total destruction of Morley Settlement tomorrow, and I had better
get out of it.
He then talked about Joseph Smith, when I replied I understood
Joseph Smith had a fair trial and was bound over to the Supreme
Court. He said, "If he is not, we do not care, it is illegally
done;" and he should go ahead. He should gather the troops, and
there would be two thousand men landed tomorrow from Missouri. He
said they were volunteers. They should meet next day at Carthage,
and then go against Joseph Smith and demolish the city of Nauvoo,
for have him at any rate they would. He was in a very great
passion, and let out a great many oaths and [said] other things
that I have not mentioned.
In consequence of their threats, and to save our lives, we were
obliged to leave our homes in a very stormy night, and had to cross
a dangerous stream that was swollen by the rain, and was unable to
protect myself from great sufferings and hardships, and came to the
city of Nauvoo for protection.
OBADIAH BOWEN.
[Seal]
Subscribed and sworn to this 20th day of June, 1844, before me,
AARON JOHNSON, J. P.
Also the affidavit of Alvah Tippitts:
{514} _Affidavit: Alvah Tippetts--Violence of John Williams Upon_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
HANCOCK COUNTY. ss
CITY OF NAUVOO. June 20th, 1844.
Personally appeared before me, Aaron Johnson, a justice of the
peace in and for the said county, Alvah Tippetts, of Warsaw, in
Hancock county and state aforesaid; and being first duly sworn,
deposeth and saith that on Wednesday, June 12th, at Green Plains,
one Col. Levi Williams came to your deponent about sunrise, and
ordered me out of the house that very day.
I replied he was very hasty. He again ordered me out of the house,
and said, if I spoke a word, he would put me out of the house
immediately.
I then took away part of my goods and left the house accordingly,
because I was afraid to stay there another night.
The next day I went back after the remainder of my property, and
called at the house of Col. Levi Williams for some things belonging
to me.
When I arrived there John Williams, the son of said Levi Williams,
aged about twenty-eight years, abused me for placing confidence
in Joseph Smith and the people of Nauvoo. He then took me by the
back of my neck and pushed me away, and said he would not have
such stuff in his house. The second time he pushed me by the neck,
and his foot to my back. He pushed me several times and kicked me.
Again, when in the street, he kept kicking and pushing me, and
abusing me with his tongue. I am sixty-one years old. I did not say
anything to him to cause this abuse; but it was all on account of
my believing that Joseph Smith and the people of Nauvoo would do
nothing but what was according to law.
ALVAH TIPPETTS.
[Seal]
Subscribed and sworn to this 20th day of June, 1844, before me,
AARON JOHNSON, J. P.
[Sidenote: Reinforcement for Nauvoo from Ramus.]
I had sent orders to Captain Almon W. Babbitt, commander of the company
at Ramus, to come immediately with his company to Nauvoo, and help to
defend the place; and this morning my brother-in-law, William McLeary,
informs my that when the letter was read to the company, Babbitt
refused to come, and said it was a foolish move, and {515} objected
to any of the company coming. The company was marshaled into line,
when Babbitt said, "If any of you go, not one will ever get to Nauvoo
alive," when immediately my Uncle John Smith stepped in front of the
line and said, "Every man that goes at the call of the Prophet shall go
and return safe, and not a hair of his head shall be lost; and I bless
you in the name of the Lord."
The company immediately threw the command upon Uriah B. Yager, who
accepted of it, and started for Nauvoo, although many of them were
destitute of boots or shoes. The company had not traveled five miles
before they suddenly came upon double their number of the mob, who had
two red flags flying, and who had paraded their company and taken a
position in a wood that commanded the road. The company from Macedonia
opened file about ten feet apart and marched past them within rifle
shot, while the mob fired several guns at them, the balls whizzing past
their heads. They came here at daybreak this morning, and I directed
the quartermaster to furnish those who needed with shoes.
I wrote the following letter:
_Letter: Joseph Smith to Ballantyne and Slater--Advice on moving
into Nauvoo_.
NAUVOO, June 20th, 1844.
BROTHERS BALLANTYNE AND SLATER:--On information from you by J.
McIllrick, I would advise that your families remain where they
are and be quiet, as the mob will not be likely to disturb them;
but any amount of wheat or provisions you may have you had better
remove without delay to Nauvoo, as it will be better for you to
bring it here and have your pay than to leave it for the mob to
consume and destroy.
I remain your brother in Christ Jesus,
JOSEPH SMITH.
BALLANTYNE AND SLATER, Doyles Mills, near Plymouth, Ill.
I here insert the affidavit of John P. Greene and John M. Bernhisel:
{516} _Affidavit: Greene and Bernhisel--Threatened Invasion from
Missouri_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
COUNTY OF HANCOCK, ss.
CITY OF NAUVOO.
On the 20th day of June, 1844, personally appeared before me, Aaron
Johnson, a justice of the peace within and for said county, John
P. Greene, marshal of said city, and John M. Bernhisel; and after
being duly sworn, depose and say that a body of citizens, in a
mass meeting convened on the 13th instant at Carthage, resolved to
exterminate the Latter-day Saints of the said city of Nauvoo, and
for that purpose, according to the purport of the _Warsaw Signal_
extra, dated June 14, 1844, bodies of armed men are coming from
the State of Missouri, and also from the territory of Iowa, and
the cannon and ammunition are being transported from the state
of Missouri to Illinois for the purpose of utterly exterminating
the Latter-day Saints. And your affiants would further state that
these bodies of armed men, cannon, arms, and munitions of war are
transported in steamboats navigating the waters of the United
States, and that the name of one of these boats is the _Die Vernon_.
JOHN P. GREENE,
JOHN M. BERNHISEL.
[Seal]
Subscribed and sworn to before me, this 20th day of June, 1844.
AARON JOHNSON, J. P.
Dr. Richards wrote the following:
_Letter: Willard Richards to Jas Arlington Bennett--Affairs in
Nauvoo--Western Movement_.
MAYOR'S OFFICE, NAUVOO, June 20th, 1844.
DEAR GENERAL.--Yours of the 14th of April was received at a late
date. A multiplicity of business on account of the peculiar state
of affairs, has prevented a reply till now. Your views about
the nomination of General Smith for the Presidency are correct.
We will gain popularity and external influence. But this is not
all: we mean to elect him, and nothing shall be wanting on our
part to accomplish it; and why? Because we are satisfied, fully
satisfied, that this is the best or only method of saving our free
institutions from a total overthrow.
You will discover by this day's extra_ Nauvoo Neighbor,_ and
previous papers which I shall forward with this, that we are
already being surrounded by an armed mob; and, if we can believe
a hundredth part of {517} their statements we have no alternative
but to fight or die. All the horrors of Missouri's murders are
crowding thick upon us, and the citizens of this county declare in
mass-meetings, "No peace till the Mormons are utterly exterminated
from the earth." And for what?
A band of thieves, counterfeiters, bogus-makers, gamblers,
debauchers, murderers, and all that is vile, established a
printing-press in this city for the purpose of carrying on
all their hellish plans and overthrowing every principle of
righteousness; and after publishing one number, called the _Nauvoo
Expositor,_ filled on every column with lies and libel the most
dark and damnable it were possible for men or demons on the earth
or in the shades of Gehenna, calculated to destroy every chartered
right to our peaceful city, and constitutional principles to our
nation, being destitute of every vestige of truth, and without one
redeeming quality, either in the paper or the characters of its
publishers.
The City Council, on the 10th instant, ordered the press and
fixtures to be abated as a nuisance which order was executed by
the proper authorities without delay, without noise, tumult or
confusion.
The proprietors immediately evacuated their houses and the city,
and the night following fired one or more of their buildings, just
as they did in Missouri, thinking to raise a hue-and-cry that the
Mormons had done it, and by that means bring a mob on us without
a moment's delay; but our vigilant police discovered the fire and
abated that also.
Chagrined at their disappointment, and drunk with madness, they
next went to Carthage, the county seat and headquarters of
mobocracy, and swore that Joseph and about seventeen others had
committed a riot, and sent a warrant for their apprehension. They
offered to go before any magistrate in the vicinity and answer to
the charge. The officer would not consent, but would take them to
Carthage. They had threatened their lives at Carthage and did not
consider it safe to go thither, and prayed out a writ of _habeas
corpus_ from the Municipal Court, and were set free.
This only enraged the mob the more, and another writ was issued
by a county magistrate in the vicinity, not a Mormon, before whom
they were brought, and every exertion made to convict them, but the
magistrate discharged them.
This does not satisfy them. They are determined to have "Joe
Smith," brought before themselves for trial at the headquarters
of mobocracy swearing that all they want is to get him out of the
city; and they will shoot the "damned rascal."
Cannon, ammunition and men are passing over the Mississippi from
Missouri to Illinois, and the mob is collected by hundreds at
different points in the county swearing everlasting vengeance; and
when their oaths and writs will end, God knows.
{518} We have sent messengers to the Governor, but had no returns,
and shall dispatch messages to the President of the United States
next boat.
If the virtuous part of the community, the state, the nation,
will come to the rescue of innocence and the rights our fathers
bled to purchase, that our peace and happiness may be secured to
us in common with others, it is all we ask; but if they will not,
and the mob goes on, we say a dishonorable life is worse than an
honorable death, and we are ready for the onset; and we call upon
all patriots, far and near, to lend a helping hand to put down the
mob and restore peace.
If this is not done immediately, and the mob attempt to execute
their threats, you may soon have the opportunity of beholding that
glorious "vision in the west" you have sublimely contemplated in
your letter.
I write you at this time at the request of the Prophet, and I
invite you to come to our assistance with as many volunteers as you
can bring. And if the mob cannot be dispersed, and the Government
will not espouse our righteous cause, you may soon, very soon,
behold the second birth of our nation's freedom; for live without
the free exercise of thought, and the privilege of worshiping God
according to the dictates of our consciences, we will not! We will
die rather, and go where the wicked cease to trouble. But we firmly
believe there are virtuous men and patriots enough yet left to
sustain those principles which alone are worth living for. Will you
come?
Here is Oregon. Here is California. Where is your ambition?
Patriotism? Your "separate and independent empire," if you sit
calmly still and see the most virtuous and noble people that ever
trod upon the footstool of Jehovah ground to powder by a miscreant
mob and not stretch forth your potent arm for their defense in all
the majesty of a God? If you do not, your turn may come next; and
where will it cease?
Let the first blow be struck upon us from this hour, and this field
is open for every honest patriot from the east to the west sea, and
from the river Mississippi to the ends of the earth.
General, will you stand neutral? Come, and you will know for
yourself.
I close in haste, with good wishes to yourself and family.
W. RICHARDS.
GENERAL J. A. BENNETT,
Arlington House, N. Y.
{519}
CHAPTER XXV.
THE TWELVE CALLED FROM EASTERN MISSION--GOVERNOR FORD AT
CARTHAGE--NAUVOO DELEGATION TO GOVERNOR--THREATS AND CONSPIRACY AGAINST
THE PROPHET'S LIFE--GOVERNOR FORD INVITED TO NAUVOO TO INVESTIGATE
CONDITIONS.
[Sidenote: The Apostles Called Home.]
_Thursday, June 20, 1844 [continued].--_I wrote to those of the Twelve
Apostles who are absent on missions to come home immediately, namely,
Brigham Young, Boston; Heber C. Kimball, Washington; Orson Hyde,
Philadelphia; Parley P. Pratt, New York; Orson Pratt, Washington;
Wilford Woodruff, Portage, New York; William Smith, Philadelphia;
George A. Smith, Peterboro; John E. Page, Pittsburgh; and Lyman Wight,
Baltimore. Also to Amasa Lyman, Cincinnati, Ohio, and George Miller,
Richmond, Madison county, Kentucky. I sent the letters by express by
Aaron M. York to the Illinois river, on account of the stoppage of the
mails.
At 8 p.m. Thomas Bullock came and read to me the affidavits of Isaac
Morley, Gardner Snow, John Edmiston, Edmund Durfee, Solomon Hancock,
Allen T. Waite, James Guyman, Obadiah Bowen, Alvah Tippetts, Hiram
B. Mount, and John Cunningham, with the affiants; and afterward the
affidavits were all sworn to before Aaron Johnson, Esquire.
Ten p.m. John Pike and Henry Gates went to the quarters of the
Major-General, and informed him they had seen a number of men driving
about three hundred head of cattle in the direction of the mob camp.
The drovers reported themselves as having come from Missouri, and were
about nine miles from Nauvoo.
[Sidenote: A Prophecy--No Gun Fired on Part of Saints.]
{520} I gave directions to Theodore Turley to commence the manufacture
of artillery. He asked me if he should not rent a building, and set
some men to repairing the small arms which were out of order. I told
him in confidence that there would not be a gun fired on our part
during this fuss.
I extract the following from a letter from Robert D. Foster dated
"Carthage, June 20th, 1844, to John Proctor, Sen., Nauvoo."
_Letter: Robert D. Foster to John Proctor--Fragment--Instruction as
to Property_.
We have a hundred barrels of flour here for the folks, and Nauvoo
has no means to live, only from the country, and that is cut off
sure. There are thousands of armed men ready now and thousands more
coming from Missouri and the country around. Tell John to sleep
in the barn, and take care of fire and robbery, and all my things
there, as I shall be home soon. Tell Amos Davis to keep his eyes
open, as we learn that consecration law will soon commence on him.
This we know, and he had better look out sharp. Let him read this
sheet. Tell Norton Gibbs and all my boys that I should be glad to
see them a minute, but I cannot come. They must be patient and
faithful, and I will be there and reward every man according to his
desert; and I won't forget the perjured villains there either.
[Sidenote: Hyrum Smith's Fidelity to the Prophet.]
I advised my brother Hyrum to take his family on the next steamboat and
go to Cincinnati. Hyrum replied, "Joseph, I can't leave you." Whereupon
I said to the company present, "I wish I could get Hyrum out of the
way, so that he may live to avenge my blood, and I will stay with you
and see it out."
_Friday, 21.--_About 10 a.m. I rode out with my guard up Main Street
past the Major-General's quarters, and reviewed the Legion. I returned
to headquarters about 2:30 p.m., having met Col. Elam L. Freeman and
Mr. Bartlett, who came as express from the Governor who had arrived at
Carthage this morning, and they delivered me the following letter:
{521} _Letter: Governor Ford to Mayor and Council of Nauvoo Asking
Representatives to Meet him at Carthage_.
HEADQUARTERS CARTHAGE, June 21st, 1844.
_To the Honorable the Mayor and Common Council of the City of
Nauvoo_:
GENTLEMEN.--Having heard of the excitement in this part of the
country, and judging that my presence here might be necessary to
preserve the peace and enforce the laws, I arrived at this place
this morning. Both before and since my arrival, complaints of a
grave character have been made to me of certain proceedings of
your honorable body. As chief magistrate, it is my duty to see
that impartial justice shall be done, uninfluenced either by the
excitement here or in your city.
I think before any decisive measure shall be adopted, that I ought
to hear the allegations and defenses of all parties. By adopting
this course I have some hope that the evils of war may be averted,
and, at any rate, I will be enabled by it to understand the true
merits of the present difficulties, and shape my course with
reference to law and justice.
For these reasons I have to request that you will send out to me
at this place, one or more well-informed and discreet persons, who
will be capable of laying before me your version of the matter, and
of receiving from me such explanations and resolutions as may be
determined on.
Col. Elam L. Freeman will present you this note in the character of
a herald from the Governor. You will respect his character as such
and permit him to pass and repass free from molestation.
Your messengers are assured of protection in person and property,
and will be returned to you in safety.
I am, gentlemen, with high consideration most respectfully,
Your obedient servant,
THOMAS FORD.
Governor and Commander in Chief.
[Sidenote: Joseph H. Jackson at Nauvoo.]
I immediately notified the City Council to meet in session at 4 p.m.
About 11 a.m. a rumor was circulated at General Dunham's headquarters
that Joseph H. Jackson was seen at Davidson Hibberd's. He [Dunham]
ordered out a _posse_ to arrest him, which went accordingly, but
returned without success.
At 4 p.m. I met with the City Council, when the affidavits of the
following persons were read--namely {522} Isaac Morley, Gardner Snow,
John Edmiston, Edward Durfee, Solomon Hancock, William Gardner, John G.
Lofton, Allen T. Waite, James Guyman, Obadiah Bowen, Alvah Tippetts,
Hiram B. Mount, John Cunningham, Cyrus Canfield, Gilbert Belknap,
Anson Call, David Evans, William E. Horner, Stephen Markham, Thomas
G. Wilson, John P. Greene, John M. Bernhisel, Truman Gillett, Jr.,
Carlos W. Lyon, and H. T. Hugins; when Dr. J. M. Bernhisel, Councilor
John Taylor, and Dr. Willard Richards were appointed by the council to
return with the express to the Governor at Carthage, and carry said
affidavits with the following letter:
_Letter: Joseph Smith to Governor Ford--Submitting Documents_.
NAUVOO, June 21, 1844.
SIR--The affidavits and handbills herewith connected, are submitted
for your Excellency's consideration.
Respectfully, I have the honor to be your Excellency's obedient
servant,
JOSEPH SMITH.
THOMAS FORD, Governor of Illinois, Carthage.
Messrs. Taylor and Bernhisel went accordingly, but Dr. Richards tarried
to prepare additional documents.
The following affidavit was taken:
_Affidavit: John P. Greene--Joseph H. Jackson,--Threatens Prophet's
Life_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS, HANCOCK CO.,
CITY OF NAUVOO. ss.
June 21st, 1844.--Personally appeared John P. Greene before me,
Willard Richards, recorder of said city; and after being duly
sworn, deposeth and saith that on or about the 27th day of May,
1844, while at Hamilton's tavern, in Carthage, county aforesaid,
in company with Joseph Smith and others, Robert D. Foster called
deponent into a private room, and there and then said, "For God's
sake, don't suffer that man, Joseph Smith, to go out of doors; for
if he steps outside of the door his blood will be spilt;" to which
statement deponent replied he had no such fears; when said Foster
confirmed said statements with considerable emotion, and said he
knew that Smith could not go out of doors, but his blood would be
spilt.
{523} Deponent asked Foster who would do it. Foster said he would
not tell; but he knew the proud spirit of Jackson, that he would
not be insulted, and that he would kill Joseph Smith if he had to
die on the spot; and there were many others in Carthage who would
assist to do the same thing. Joseph H. Jackson was in the house
below at the time.
A day or two previous to the above conversation, while at Carthage
aforesaid, deponent heard Joseph H. Jackson say that Joseph Smith
was the damnedest rascal in the world, and he would be damned if
he did not take vengeance on him, if he had to follow him to the
Rocky Mountains; and said Jackson made many more such like threats
against Joseph Smith and Hyrum Smith.
JOHN P. GREENE.
Sworn and subscribed this 21st day of June, 1844, before me,
[Seal]
WILLARD RICHARDS,
Recorder of the city of Nauvoo.
And as this affidavit confirms what was told me in Carthage, I made the
following affidavit:
_Affidavit: Joseph Smith--Conspiracy Against Affiant's Life_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
COUNTY OF HANCOCK. ss.
CITY OF NAUVOO, June 21st, 1844.
Personally appeared Joseph Smith before me, Willard Richards,
recorder of the City of Nauvoo; and after being duly sworn deposeth
and saith that while at Hamilton's tavern at Carthage, in the
county aforesaid, on or about the 27th day of May, 1844, whither
deponent had gone to transact business in the Circuit Court of the
county aforesaid, Charles A. Foster took deponent into a private
room, and told deponent there was a conspiracy against the life of
deponent, and that deponent had not better go out of doors. If he
did, his blood would be shed. Foster said he was deponent's friend,
and did not want to see bloodshed.
JOSEPH SMITH.
[Seal]
Sworn and subscribed this 21st day of June, 1844, before me,
WILLARD RICHARDS,
Recorder of the City of Nauvoo.
I instructed my clerks, Willard Richards, William Clayton, Thomas
Bullock and John McEwan, to prepare all {524} necessary papers and
affidavits ready to be sent to the Governor tomorrow morning.
Joseph Jackson made the two following affidavits:
_Affidavit: Joseph Jackson--Francis M. Higbee's Threat to Kill the
Prophet_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
CITY OF NAUVOO. ss
On the 21st day of June, 1844, came before me, W. W. Phelps, clerk
of the Mayor's Court, Joseph Jackson: and after being duly sworn,
deposeth and saith that on Tuesday, the 11th instant, he was in
Nauvoo, when Francis M. Higbee, while speaking of the destruction
of the printing press, said he was very sorry, for the proprietors
had set up that press for the destruction of the city, and that he
meant to kill Joseph Smith and Hyrum Smith; and he saith no further.
JOSEPH JACKSON.
Subscribed and sworn to before me, this 21st day of June, 1844.
WILLIAM W. PHELPS, Clerk M. C.
_Affidavit: Joseph Jackson--Reporting Mob at Pilot Grove_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
CITY OF NAUVOO. ss
On the 21st day of June, 1844, came before me, W. W. Phelps, clerk
of the Mayor's Court for said city, Joseph Jackson; and after
being duly sworn, deposeth and saith, that on the 19th day of June
instant, at his residence near Pilot Grove, in the afternoon, about
twenty-four persons fired about twenty-six guns at him, and that
the balls whistled close by his head. Thus this mob, of which John
McKay was one, fired about one hundred guns, but not all at your
affiant; and that this mob was very noisy, cursing and swearing
that they would kill every damned Mormon; and he says no further.
JOSEPH JACKSON.
Subscribed and sworn to before me, this 21st day of June, 1844.
WILLIAM W. PHELPS, Clerk M. C.
At 7 p.m. James Emmett went by order of the Sergeant of the Guard at
the Stone House to the Major-General and reported the crew of the _Maid
of Iowa_ for firing five guns contrary to orders, which were, that any
firing of guns was an alarm.
After the news had reached the city of the Governor's {525} arrival at
Carthage, an express was sent to Keokuk to stop an express which I had
sent to the Governor at Springfield before I had learned of his arrival
at Carthage.
An officer of the United States army, having arrested a deserter, came
to Nauvoo, and stayed at my house all night.
Col. Brewer and lady arrived at the Mansion about 9 p.m. Also James W.
Woods, Esq., my attorney from Burlington.
At 10 p.m., Private -- Minor gave information that as he was passing,
an hour since, about two miles out of the city to his home, he was
fired upon by some unknown person. General Stephen Markham ordered out
a detachment to proceed to the designated place, scour that part of the
country, and see that all was right.
[_Saturday, June 22.--_]
_Letter: Joseph Smith to Governor Ford--Inviting the Governor to
Come to Nauvoo and Investigate Conditions_.
NAUVOO, Saturday Morning, June 22, 1844.
_To His Excellent Thomas Ford, Governor_:
DEAR SIR.--I this morning forward you the remainder of the
affidavits which are ready to present to you, by the hands of a
gentleman who is fully competent to give you information on the
whole subject which has been the cause of the origin of our present
difficulties. I would respectfully recommend the bearer, Col.
Woodworth, as one of my aides, and a man whose testimony can be
relied upon.
I presume you are already convinced that it would be altogether
unsafe for me or any of the City Council to come to Carthage on
account of the vast excitement which has been got up by false
report and libelous publications. Nothing could afford me a greater
pleasure than a privilege of investigating the whole subject before
your Excellency in person; for I have ever held myself in readiness
to comply with your orders and answer for my proceedings before any
legal tribunal in the state.
I would hereby respectfully pray your Excellency to come to Nauvoo,
if congenial with your feelings, and give us a privilege of laying
the {526} whole matter before you in its true colors, and where
abundance of testimony can be forthcoming, to prove every point by
disinterested persons--men of character and of worth and notoriety,
strangers--who were here all the time. But I am satisfied your
Excellency does not wish men to expose the lives of the citizens of
this place by requiring them to put themselves into the power of an
infuriated, blood-thirsty mob, a part of whom have already several
times fired upon our people without the least shadow of cause or
provocation.
I am informed this morning that some gentleman has made affidavit
that he had a private conversation with me, in which I stated that
I had secret correspondence with you, &c. If any person has been
wicked enough to do this, he is a perjured villain; for in the
first place, I do not suffer myself to hold private conversation
with any stranger; and, in the second place, I have never even
intimated anything of the kind as having secret correspondence with
your Excellency.
Our troubles are invariably brought upon us by falsehoods and
misrepresentations by designing men. We have ever held ourselves
amenable to the law; and, for myself, sir, I am ever ready
to conform to and support the laws and Constitution, even at
the expense of my life. I have never in the least offered any
resistance to law or lawful process, which is a well-known fact to
the general public; all of which circumstances make us the more
anxious to have you come to Nauvoo and investigate the whole matter.
Now, sir, is it not an easy matter to distinguish between those
who have pledged themselves to exterminate innocent men, women and
children, and those who have only stood in their own defense, and
in defense of their innocent families, and that, too, in accordance
with the Constitution and laws of the country, as required by the
oaths, and as good and law-abiding citizens?
In regard to the destruction of the press, the truth only needs to
be presented before your Excellency to satisfy you of the justice
of the proceedings. The press was established by a set of men who
had already set themselves at defiance of the law and authorities
of the city, and had threatened the lives of some of its principal
officers, and who also made it no private matter that the press was
established for the express purpose of destroying the city, as will
be shown by the affidavit of Joseph Jackson, and as they stated to
me in their threats.
Mr. Babbitt informs me that reports are in circulation that we
have taken property which belongs to the Messrs. Law and others.
There has been no property meddled with, to my knowledge, belonging
to any person, except property we have purchased of the rightful
owners.
Mr. Law turned over some property to a Mr. Hicks, to pay a debt.
This I purchased of Mr. Hicks, and I am responsible to him for
the {527} amount. We have been especially careful to preserve the
property of those who are exciting the public against us, inasmuch
as we know that every means would be used which could be invented
to raise excitement; and we have appointed the police to watch this
property and see that no harm was done to it by any person, as they
had tried to fire their own building and were detected in the act.
The fire was extinguished by the policemen, and no property damaged.
There have been no prisoners taken in this city, neither any person
held as hostage, only some who are residents of this place, who had
broken the laws. No stranger has been interfered with or detained
in the city under any circumstances.
In haste, I have the honor to remain, dear sir, your most obedient
servant,
JOSEPH SMITH.
Lieut.-Gen. N. L.
This letter was accompanied by other affidavits, and was sent by Lucien
Woodworth, who was delegated to go in place of Dr. Richards. He started
at noon in company with Squire Woods of Burlington.
{528}
CHAPTER XXVI.
PREPARATIONS TO DEFEND NAUVOO--MOB MOVEMENTS ON CARTHAGE ROAD--GOVERNOR
FORD'S REVIEW OF HANCOCK COUNTY DIFFICULTIES--JOSEPH SMITH'S ACCOUNT OF
THE SAME DIFFICULTIES, DEFENSE OF HIS OWN AND ASSOCIATES' COURSE.
_Saturday, June 22 [continued].--_Legion met as usual; and after
receiving instructions, were dismissed until 6 p.m., when they met
again.
[Sidenote: Orders for Nauvoo's Entrenchment.]
At 7 p.m. I instructed General Dunham to cause the regiment of the 2nd
cohort to turn out tomorrow, and work by turns three or four hours
each, with entrenching tools, and to take the best measures in case of
attack. I also gave orders that a standard be prepared for the nations.
Almon W. Babbitt arrived from Carthage this morning, having come at the
request of the Governor, who thought it not wisdom to have Richards and
Phelps and others of the City Council go to Carthage.
Edward Robinson made the following affidavit:
_Affidavit: Edward Robinson--Threats Against Nauvoo_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
CITY OF NAUVOO. ss.
On the 22nd day or June, 1844, came before me, W. W. Phelps, clerk
of the Mayor's Court, in said city, Dr. Edward Robinson, who, after
being duly sworn, deposeth and saith that while at Carthage, on the
18th and 19th instant, I heard several persons who had assembled
together for warlike purposes, (having their arms and one cannon
with them) say that they were gathering together for the purpose
of destroying the property of General Joseph Smith, or, as they
said, "Joe Smith," and his followers, and the City Council, with
the exception of {529} one; and finally said they would destroy the
town and exterminate the Latter-day Saints.
EDWARD ROBINSON.
Subscribed and sworn to before me this 22nd day of June, 1843.
WILLIAM W. PHELPS, Clerk M. C.
James Olive made the following affidavit:
_Affidavit: James Olive--Mob Movements on the Carthage Road_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
HANCOCK COUNTY. ss
CITY OF NAUVOO, June 22nd, 1844.
Personally appeared before me, Aaron Johnson, a justice of the
peace in and for said county, James Olive; who being first duly
sworn, deposeth and saith that on Friday afternoon, the 21st
instant, about 3 o'clock, he was at his own house, about two miles
from Appanoose. In a southeasterly direction, he saw a four-horse
wagon with some men before it, all traveling towards Appanoose.
They went about a quarter of a mile beyond my house; there met a
two horse wagon and a company of men, about fifteen in number.
Both parties then took the road towards the Big Mound. A part of
the men were mounted and a part were on foot. The mounted men were
forward; and after passing my house, they wheeled and rode back to
the footmen who were some little distance behind, and said to them,
"There are some fellows oh the Mound; you had better hurry on, and
we will take those fellows and carry them to Carthage." They used
profane language. I watched them until they got near the Mound, and
saw the guard on the Mound turn and run towards Nauvoo. After that
the company went on to the Mound, and halted near the spot where
the guard had run from.
On the same evening, about sundown, there was a man by the name
of Milton Hamilton came into my house and told me to arm and
equip myself according to the law and stand in readiness; that
the Governor bad demanded Joseph Smith according to law, and
that he would not come it (meaning that Joseph Smith would not
surrender); that the General had issued orders for the militia to
be in readiness to take said Smith. I asked him what general, and
he observed that he believed it was Col. Williams. I asked him if
it was done by orders of the Governor, and he said that was the
understanding. He told me he acted under the orders of Captain
McAuley; and further saith not.
JAMES OLIVE.
[Seal]
Subscribed and sworn to this 22nd day of June, 1844, before me,
AARON JOHNSON, J. P.
{530} Phebe Levett states that she saw Finch, Rollison, Foster, and
Squire McAuley in the company who fired on the guard on the La Harpe
road.
George G. Johnstone made the following affidavit:
_Affidavit: George G. Johnstone--Militia Under Governor to Move on
Nauvoo_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
COUNTY OF HANCOCK. ss
CITY OF NAUVOO, June 22nd, 1844.
Personally appeared before me, Aaron Johnson, a justice of the
peace in and for the county of Hancock, George G. Johnstone, living
on Spring Creek in McDonough county; who, being first duly sworn,
deposeth and saith that yesterday, Napoleon Hardin came to your
deponent and said that the Governor had sent orders for the militia
to be called out for today at 4 o'clock p.m., and to start on the
22nd to Carthage, there to wait until all were ready from the
different counties in the state, and then they should march out
to the prairie. They should stop on the prairie and send a flag
of truce to Nauvoo, and demand the body of General Joseph Smith.
If the people of Nauvoo refused to give him up, then they should
exterminate the whole of them.
GEORGE G. JOHNSTONE.
[Seal] Subscribed and sworn to this 22nd day of June, 1844, before
me,
AARON JOHNSON, J. P.
Gideon Gibbs made the following affidavit:
_Affidavit: Gideon Gibbs--Mob on La Harpe Road_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
CITY OF NAUVOO. ss
On the 22nd day of June, 1844, came before me, William W. Phelps,
clerk of the Mayor's Court for said city, Gideon Gibbs, and after
being duly sworn deposeth and saith that on the afternoon of the
21st instant, about a half-mile southeast of the Big Mound on the
La Harpe road, a party of about eight or ten men, in a warlike
attitude, in company with two teams, passed your said affiant, and
one of them said he fired at two men near the Big Mound. Thought he
killed them both and your deponent saith no further.
GIDEON GIBBS.
Subscribed and sworn to before me, this 22nd day of
June, 1844.
WILLIAM W. PHELPS, Clerk M. C.
{531} Luman H. Calkins made the following affidavit:
_Affidavit: Luman H. Calkins--Nauvoo Conspiracy Against the
Prophet's Life_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
CITY OF NAUVOO, ss
June 22nd, 1844.
Personally appeared before me, George W. Harris, an alderman acting
in and for the city of Nauvoo, Luman H. Calkins; and being first
duly sworn, deposeth and saith that about seven weeks ago I came on
the steamboat _Ohio_ from St. Louis to Nauvoo, when William Nesbit,
who was on board, entered into conversation with your deponent.
I asked him if he knew anything about the conspiracy in Nauvoo to
kill Joseph and Hyrum, and all that believed on them. He said he
did. It was intended that they should be killed between then and
the 1st of July.
I asked him who was at the head of the conspiracy. He replied he
was sworn not to tell who the head one was. I asked him if there
were any in Nauvoo concerned. He replied there was, and named the
two Laws, two Fosters, two Higbees, Charles Ivins, and several
others. I asked if it was to be made a public thing. He replied the
first blow was to be struck in Nauvoo by those who were opposed to
Joseph. I asked how many they could rely on in Nauvoo. He said they
could rely on five hundred, if they could only get arms for them.
He said as soon as the first blow was struck in Nauvoo, there
were about seven thousand men ready in Missouri to join them to
exterminate all who believed on Joseph Smith. He also told me that
the _Die Vernon,_ when she came on her pleasure-trip to Nauvoo,
that there were none but spies, and who came on purpose to see
the places in order to know how to strike when the time comes to
strike: and he also said "the Reformers" had got spies continually
passing Nauvoo in order to spy out all that took place; that there
was not a thing took place in Nauvoo but what was made known to
them in St. Louis as soon as a steamboat landed.
I told him I should think he would be afraid to stop here. He said
he should stay in Nauvoo and carry on his butchering as usual, as
if there was nothing taking place; that he had as good a gun as any
man ever put to his face, and that the first shot he should fire
would be to kill Joseph and Hyrum. Said I, "The people will surely
kill you then." He replied he would rush through a thousand people
to wash his hands in Joseph's blood, and especially in Hyrum's, if
he was to be immediately cut into a thousand pieces. He said he
should be willing to die as soon as he had killed them.
{532} About five weeks since I had another conversation with
William Nesbit, when he confirmed the whole of the foregoing
conversation; and he also said he had made arrangements with Mr.
Bostwick of St. Louis to send him a brace of the best pistols, for
the purpose of being ready when he wanted them. He also said that
he would kill Hyrum any time he could get an opportunity without
being detected. I then asked him if Hyrum could be put in his way
so that no man would mistrust him, would you kill him? He said, "By
God, I would." I asked if he would not be afraid to kill him in
cold blood. He replied, "No, I would not; I would do it in a moment
if I could get an opportunity."
The day following I left for Galena, and returned on Tuesday, the
18th instant, and on the 19th I saw William Nesbit in the ranks,
and I cautioned Richard Brazier to keep an eye on Nesbit, for he
had sworn to wash his hands in Joseph's and Hyrum's blood.
LUMAN H. CALKINS.
Subscribed and sworn to this 22nd day of June, 1844, before me,
GEORGE W. HARRIS,
Alderman of the City of Nauvoo.
At 12, noon, orders were sent to the different guards and pickets to
let persons pass and repass without hailing until further orders.
I issued the following:
GENERAL ORDERS.
MAYOR'S OFFICE AND HEADQUARTERS, OF THE NAUVOO LEGION,
NAUVOO, June 22nd, 1844.
_To Col. Jonathan Dunham, Acting Major-General Nauvoo Legion_:
SIR.--You will proceed without delay, with the assistance of the
Nauvoo Legion, to prepare the background [Eastern part] of said
city for defense against an invasion by mobs, cause the Legion to
be furnished with tents, and make your encampment in the vicinity
of your labor.
JOSEPH SMITH,
Mayor of the City of Nauvoo, and Lieut.-Gen. Nauvoo Legion.
To COL. JONATHAN DUNHAM, Major-General in command Nauvoo Legion.
[Sidenote: A Prophecy.]
At 6 p.m. I prophesied that in the sickly seasons sickness would enter
into the houses of the mob and vex them until they would fain repent in
dust and ashes. They will be smitten with the scab, &c.
At 7 p.m. I received the following:
{533} _A Petition to Hear the Prophet Speak_.
We, the undersigned citizens of Hancock county, respectfully
request General Joseph Smith to preach on tomorrow, and that we
have liberty of seats near enough to the stand to hear, inasmuch as
we have an opportunity to hear him but seldom, and some of us have
not heard him at all.
Yours respectfully,
JAMES HAMILTON AND CO., Capt. at the Liberty Branch.
NATHANIEL CASE, Capt. 7th Co., 4th Reg., 2nd Cohort, N. L. from La
Harpe.
URIAH H. YAGER AND CO., Captain at the Branch of Macedonia, 2nd
Cohort.
HIRAM CLARK 1st Lieut. at the Midland Branch Company.
Z. D. WILSON'S COMPANY.
ALNA L. TIPPETT'S COMPANY.
S. HANCOCK, Major of the First Battalion of the 3rd Regiment.
WARREN SNOW, Captain and Co., 4th Reg. 2nd Cohort of N. Legion.
At 10 p.m. I received the following letter by the hands of Captain
Yates, who accompanied Elder John Taylor and Dr. John M. Bernhisel on
their return from Carthage:
_Letter: Governor Ford to Mayor and Council of the City of Nauvoo_.
HEADQUARTERS CARTHAGE, June 22nd, 1844.
_To the Mayor and Council of the City of Nauvoo_:
GENTLEMEN.--After examining carefully all the allegations on the
part of the citizens of the country in Hancock county, and the
defensive matters submitted to me by the committee of your citizens
concerning the existing disturbances, I find that there appears
to be but little contradiction as to important facts, so that it
may be safely assumed that the immediate cause of the existing
excitement is the destruction of the press and _Nauvoo Expositor,_
and the subsequent refusal of the individuals accused to be
accountable therefore according to the general laws of this state,
and the insisting on your parts to be accountable only before your
own municipal court, and according to the ordinances of your city.
Many other facts have been asserted on both sides as tending to
increase the excitement; but as they mostly relate merely to
private persons, and committed by individuals, and tend simply to
show the present state of affairs, I will not further notice them
in this communication.
The material facts to be noticed are that a newspaper called the
_Nauvoo Expositor_ was established in Nauvoo; that this newspaper
was {534} deemed offensive to the people of that city; that the
Common Council, without notice or process to the owners, entered
into a trial and heard statements not under oath, and evidence
which was under oath, in relation to the character, conduct
and designs of the owners and editors of the press; that, upon
hearing such statements and evidence, the Common Council passed
an ordinance or resolution declaring said press and paper to be a
public nuisance, and ordered the same to be abated as such; that a
writ was issued by the Mayor to the Marshal of the city for that
purpose; that a military order was issued at the same time by the
Mayor, who is also Lieutenant-General of the Nauvoo Legion, to the
Major-General in command of that Legion, for a force sufficient to
ensure the execution of the writ aforesaid.
It appears also the press was destroyed in obedience to the
foregoing ordinance and writ, according to a return on the same by
the Marshal in the following words: "The within press and type is
destroyed and pied according to order on this 10th day of June,
1844, at about six o'clock p.m.--J. P. GREENE, C.M."
It appears also that the owners of the press obtained from a
justice of the peace at Carthage a warrant against the authors
of this destruction for a riot; that the constable charged with
the execution of this process, arrested some of the persons
accused, who immediately obtained writs of _habeas corpus_ from
the Municipal Court of your city, by virtue of which they were
tried in Nauvoo and discharged from arrest, and that they have ever
since refused to be arrested or to submit to a trial at any other
place or before any other court, except in the city and before the
Municipal Court aforesaid.
It has also been reported to me that martial law has been declared
in Nauvoo; that persons and property have been and are now forcibly
imprisoned and detained there, and that the Legion has been ordered
under arms to resist any attempt to arrest the persons accused.
I have not particularly inquired into the truth of these latter
reports; for although they may become matters of great importance
in the sequel, they are not necessary to be ascertained and acted
upon at present.
I now express to you my opinion that your conduct in the
destruction of the press was a very gross outrage upon the laws and
the liberties of the people. It may have been full of libels, but
this did not authorize you to destroy it.
There are many newspapers in this state which have been wrongfully
abusing me for more than a year, and yet such is my regard for
the liberty of the press and the rights of a free people in a
republican government that I would shed the last drop of my blood
to protect those presses from any illegal violence. You have
violated the Constitution in at least four particulars. You have
violated that part of it which {535} declares that the printing
presses shall be free, being responsible for the abuse thereof, and
that the truth may be given in evidence.
This article of the Constitution contemplates that the proprietors
of a libelous press may be sued for private damages, or may be
indicted criminally, and that upon trial they should have the right
to give the truth in evidence. In this case the proprietors had no
notice of the proceeding.
The Constitution also provides that the people shall be protected
against unreasonable searches and seizures of their property and
"That no man shall be deprived of life, liberty or property, except
by the judgment of his peers (which means a jury trial) and the
law of the land," which means due process of law and notice to the
accused.
You have also violated the Constitution and your own charter in
this: Your Council, which has no judicial powers, and can only pass
ordinances of a general nature, have undertaken to pass judgment as
a court and convict without a jury a press of being libelous and a
nuisance to the city.
The Council at most could only define a nuisance by general
ordinance, and leave it to the courts to determine whether
individuals or particulars accused came within such definition.
The Constitution abhors and will not tolerate the union of
legislative and judicial power in the same body of magistracy,
because, as in this case, they will first make a tyrannical law,
and then execute it in a tyrannical manner.
You have also assumed to yourselves more power than you are
entitled to in relation to writs of _habeas_ under your charter.
I know that you have been told by lawyers, for the purpose of
gaining your favor that you have this power to any extent. In this
they have deceived you for their own base purposes. Your charter
supposes that you may pass ordinances, a breach of which will
result in the imprisonment of the offender.
For the purpose of insuring more speedy relief to such persons,
authority was given to the Municipal Court to issue writs of_
habeas corpus_ in all cases arising under the ordinances of the
city.
It was never supposed by the Legislature, nor can the language of
your charter be tortured to mean that a jurisdiction was intended
to be conferred which would apply to all cases of imprisonment
under the general laws of the state or of the United States, as
well as the city ordinances.
It has also been reserved to you to make the discovery that a
newspaper charged to be scurrilous and libellous may be legally
abated or removed as a nuisance. In no other state, county, city,
town or territory {536} in the United States has ever such a thing
been thought of before. Such an act at this day would not be
tolerated even in England. Just such another act in 1830 hurled
the king of France from his throne, and caused the imprisonment of
four of his principal ministers for life. No civilized country can
tolerate such conduct, much less can it be tolerated in this free
country of the United States.
The result of my deliberations on this subject is, that I will
have to require you and all persons in Nauvoo accused or sued to
submit in all cases implicitly to the process of the court, and
to interpose no obstacles to an arrest, either by writ of _habeas
corpus_ or otherwise; and that all of the people of the city of
Nauvoo shall make and continue the most complete submission to the
laws of the state, and the process of the courts and justices of
the peace.
In the particular case now under consideration, I require any and
all of you who are or shall be accused to submit yourselves to be
arrested by the same constable, by virtue of the same warrant and
be tried before the same magistrate whose authority has heretofore
been resisted. Nothing short of this can vindicate the dignity of
violated law and allay the just excitement of the people.
I am anxious to preserve the peace. A small indiscretion may bring
on a war. The whole country is now up in arms, and a vast number of
people are ready to take the matter into their own hands. Such a
state of things might force me to call out the militia to prevent
a civil war. And such is the excitement of the country that I fear
the militia, when assembled, would be beyond legal control.
You are wrong in the first instance, and I can call out no portion
of the militia for your defense until you submit to the law. You
have made it necessary that a _posse_ should be assembled to
execute legal process; and that _posse,_ as fast as it assembles
is in danger of being imbued with the mobocratic spirit. If you,
by refusing to submit, shall make it necessary to call out the
militia, I have great fears that your city will be destroyed, and
your people many of them exterminated.
You know the excitement of the public mind. Do not tempt it too
far. A very little matter may do a very great injury; and if you
are disposed to continue the causes of excitement and render a
force necessary to coerce submission, I would say that your city
was built, as it were, upon a keg of powder which a very little
spark may explode.
It is my intention to do all I can to preserve the peace, and
even, if obliged, to call the militia to prosecute the war so
as not to involve the innocent and comprehend all in the same
punishment. But excitement is a matter which grows very fast upon
men when assembled. The {537} affair, I much fear, may assume a
revolutionary character, and the men may disregard the authority of
their officers.
I tell you plainly that if no such submission is made as I have
indicated. I will be obliged to call out the militia; and if a few
thousand will not be sufficient, many thousands will be.
I sincerely hope that your people may do nothing which will
make such a proceeding necessary. I hope also that they will be
well-disposed to co-operate with me in allaying the excitement of
the public mind. Immediately discharge such persons as you have
under martial law. Let them go without molestation. Abstain from
all injury to private property. Let people go where they please
without swearing them first to take no part against you. All such
proceedings tend only to inflame the public mind, and raise up ten
men disposed to fight you for every one thus foolishly disabled.
Your committee assures me that you are sincerely desirous of
preserving the peace; and if so, I hope you will co-operate with me
in everything necessary to allay the excitement in the minds of the
people.
The following-named persons are reported to me as being detained
against their will by martial law: John A. Hicks, H. O. Norton, A.
J. Higbee, John Eagle, P. J. Rolf, Peter Lemon, and T. J. Rolf. It
will tend greatly to allay excitement if they shall be immediately
discharged and suffered to go without molestation.
It is also reported here, and generally believed, (but whether true
or not I have not yet learned) that there are many foraging parties
abroad from Nauvoo committing depredations upon the cattle and
property in the vicinity. These acts, if correctly reported, must
absolutely cease immediately, if you expect any person here to have
the power to preserve the peace.
In case the persons accused should make no resistance to arrest, it
will be against orders to be accompanied by others. If it should
become necessary to have witnesses on the trials, I will see that
such persons shall be duly summoned,_ and I will also guarantee the
safety of all such persons as may thus be brought to this place
from Nauvoo either for trial or as witnesses for the accused_.
If the individuals accused cannot be found when required by the
constable it will be considered by me as an equivalent to a refusal
to be arrested, and the militia will be ordered accordingly.
I am, gentlemen, with great respect, your obedient servant,
THOMAS FORD,
Governor and Commander-in-Chief.
To which I wrote the following answer:
{538} _Letter: Joseph Smith to Governor Ford--Defending the action
of the City Council in the "Expositor" Affair_.
NAUVOO, June 22nd, 1844, 12 o'clock p.m.
_To His Excellency, Thomas Ford_:
SIR.--Yours of this date is received by Messrs. Taylor and
Bernhisel. A part of the same delegation, Mr. Woodworth, who
was detained yesterday, started for Carthage at 12 noon, this
date, who, we perceive, had not arrived at your last date. Some
documents conveyed by him would tend to counteract some of the
views expressed in your Excellency's communication, and we feel
confident, if all the facts could be before your Excellency, you
would have come to different conclusions.
Our "insisting to be accountable only before our own Municipal
Court," is totally incorrect. We plead a _habeas corpus_ as a
last resort to save us from being thrown into the power of the
mobocrats, who were then threatening us with death, and it was with
great reluctance we went before the Municipal Court, on account of
the prejudice which might arise in the minds of the unbiased; and
we did not petition for a _habeas corpus_ until we had told the
constable that on our lives we dare not go to Carthage for trial,
and plead with him to go before any county magistrate he pleased in
our vicinity, (which occurrence is common in legal proceedings) and
not a member of our society, so that our lives might be saved from
the threats thus already issued against us.
The press was declared a nuisance under the authority of the
charter as written in 7th section of Addenda, the same as in the
Springfield charter, so that if the act declaring the press a
nuisance was unconstitutional: we cannot see how it is that the
charter itself is not unconstitutional, and if we have erred in
judgment, it is an official act, and belongs to the Supreme Court
to correct it, and assess damages _versus_ the city to restore
property abated as a nuisance. If we have erred in this thing, we
have done it in good company, for Blackstone on "Wrongs," asserts
the doctrine that scurrilous prints may be abated as nuisances.
As to martial law, we truly say that we were obliged to call out
the forces to protect our lives; and the Constitution guarantees
to every man that privilege; and our measures were active and
efficient, as the necessity of the case required; but the city is
and has been continually under the special direction of the marshal
all the time. No person, to our knowledge, has been arrested only
for violation of the peace, and those some of our own citizens,
all of whom we believe are now discharged. {539} And if any
property has been taken for public benefit without a compensation,
or against the will of the owner, it has been done without our
knowledge or consent, and when shown shall be corrected, if the
people will permit us to resume our usual labors.
If we "have committed a gross outrage upon the laws and liberties
of the people," as your Excellency represents, we are ready to
correct that outrage when the testimony is forthcoming. All men are
bound to act in their sphere on their own judgment, and it would
be quite impossible for us to know what your Excellency's judgment
would have been in the case referred to; consequently acted on our
own and according to our best judgment, after having taken able
counsel in the case. If we have erred, we again say we will make
all right if we can have the privilege.
"The Constitution also provides that the people shall be protected
against all unreasonable search and seizure." True. The doctrine we
believe most fully, and have acted upon it; but we do not believe
it unreasonable to search so far as it is necessary to protect life
and property from destruction.
We do not believe in the "union of legislative and judicial power,"
and we have not so understood the action of the case in question.
Whatever power we have exercised in the _habeas corpus_ has been
done in accordance with the letter of the charter and Constitution
as we confidently understood them, and that, too, with the ablest
counsel; but if it be so that we have erred in this thing, let the
Supreme Court correct the evil. We have never gone contrary to
constitutional law, so far as we have been able to learn it. If
lawyers have belied their profession to abuse us, the evil be on
their heads.
You have intimated that no press has been abated as a nuisance in
the United States. We refer your Excellency to Humphrey _versus_
Press in Ohio, who abated the press by his own arm for libel, and
the courts decided on prosecution no cause of action. And we do
know that it is common for police in Boston, New York, &c., to
destroy scurrilous prints: and we think the loss of character by
libel and the loss of life by mobocratic prints to be a greater
loss than a little property, all of which, life alone excepted,
we have sustained, brought upon us by the most unprincipled
outlaws, gamblers, counterfeiters, and such characters as have
been standing by me, and probably are now standing around your
Excellency--namely, those men who have brought these evils upon us.
We have no knowledge of men's being sworn to pass our city. And
upon receipt of your last message the Legion was disbanded and the
city left to your Excellency's disposal.
{540} How it could be possible for us now to be tried
constitutionally by the same magistrate who first issued the writ
at Carthage we cannot see, for the Constitution expressly says
no man shall twice be put in jeopardy of life and limb for the
same offense; and all you refer to, have been, since the issuance
of the_ habeas corpus,_ complied with for the same offense, and
trial before Daniel H. Wells, justice of the peace for Hancock
county, and, after a full investigation, were discharged. But,
notwithstanding this, we would not hesitate to stand another trial
according to your Excellency's wish, were it not that we are
confident out lives would be in danger. We dare not come. Writs, we
are assured, are issued against us in various parts of the country.
For what? To drag us from place to place, from court to court,
across the creeks and prairies, till some bloodthirsty villain
could find his opportunity to shoot us. We dare not come, though
your Excellency promises protection. Yet, at the same time, you
have expressed fears that you could not control the mob, in which
case we are left to the mercy of the merciless. Sir, we dare not
come, for our lives would be in danger, and we are guilty of no
crime.
You say, "It will be against orders to be accompanied by others,
if we come to trial." This we have been obliged to act upon in
Missouri; and when our witnesses were sent for by the court, (as
your honor promises to do) they were thrust into prison, and we
left without witnesses. Sir, you must not blame us, for "a burnt
child dreads the fire." And although your Excellency might be
well-disposed in the matter, the appearance of the mob forbids our
coming. We dare not do it.
We have been advised by legal and high-minded gentlemen from
abroad, who came on the boat this evening to lay our grievances
before the Federal Government, as the appearance of things is not
only treasonable against us, but against the state on the part of
Missouri, unless the same has been requested of Governor Ford by
the Federal Government. And we suppose your Excellency is well
aware by this time that the mass-meetings of the county declared
utter extermination of the Mormons, and that the Legion was not
called out until complaints were made to the Mayor, and the
citizens were afraid of their lives, and losing their confidence
in the authorities of the city, and that nothing on the part of
the city authorities had been wanting, legally and judiciously,
to allay excitement and restore peace. We shall leave the city
forthwith to lay the facts before the General Government, and,
as before stated, the city is left open and unprotected; and by
everything that is sacred, we implore your Excellency to cause our
helpless women and children to be protected from mob violence, and
let not the blood of innocence {541} cry to heaven against you.
We again say, if anything wrong has been done on our part, and we
know of nothing, we will make all things right if the Government
will give us the opportunity. Disperse the mob, and secure to us
our constitutional privileges, that our lives may not be endangered
when on trial.
I remain most respectfully, your Excellency's humble servant,
JOSEPH SMITH,
Mayor, and Lieut.-Gen. N. L.
{542}
CHAPTER XXVII.
GOVERNOR FORD'S WRONG VIEWPOINT--ELDER TAYLOR'S ACCOUNT OF THE
INTERVIEW WITH THE GOVERNOR AT CARTHAGE--CLOSE OF THE PROPHET'S JOURNAL
NARRATIVE OF HIS LIFE.
[Sidenote: Gov. Ford's Biased Judgment.]
_[Saturday, June 22nd, 1844, continued].--_It appears that the
Governor, on arriving at Carthage, ordered the entire mob into service,
adopted the lies and misrepresentations circulated against us by our
enemies as truth, turned Supreme Court, and decided on the legality
of our municipal ordinances and proceedings, which is the business
of the judiciary alone. He charges us in his letter, based upon most
cursed falsehoods, with violations of law and order, which have never
been thought of by us. He treated our delegates very rudely. My
communications that were read to him were read in the presence of a
large number of our worst enemies, who interrupted the reader at almost
every line with, "That's a damned lie!" and "That's a G--d--d lie!" He
never accorded to them the privilege of saying one word to him only in
the midst of such interruptions as, "You lie like hell!" from a crowd
of persons present. These facts show conclusively that he is under the
influence of the mob spirit, and is designedly intending to place us in
the hands of murderous assassins, and is conniving at our destruction,
or else that he is so ignorant and stupid that he does not understand
the corrupt and diabolical spirits that are around him.
{543} Elder John Taylor gave the following account of his interview
with the Governor:
_Elder John Taylor's Account of Interview With Governor Ford at
Carthage_.
After waiting the Governor's pleasure for some time, we had an
audience--but such an audience! He was surrounded by some of the
vilest and most unprincipled men in creation. Some of them had
an appearance of respectability, but many of them lacked even
that. Wilson, and, I believe, William Law were there, Foster,
Frank and Chauncey Higbee, Mr. Marr, a lawyer from Nauvoo, a
mobocratic merchant from Warsaw, Joseph H. Jackson, a number of his
associates, and the Governor's secretary--in all fifteen or twenty
persons, most of whom were recreant to virtue, honor, integrity
and everything that is considered honorable among men. I can well
remember the feelings of disgust that I had in seeing the Governor
surrounded by such an infamous group, and on being introduced to
men of so questionable a character; and had I been on private
business, I should have turned to depart, and told the Governor
that if he thought proper to associate with such questionable
characters, I should beg leave to be excused; but coming, as we
did, on public business, we could not of course consult our private
feelings.
We then stated to the Governor that, in accordance with his
request, General Joseph Smith had, in response to his call, sent
us to him as a committee of conference; that we were acquainted
with most of the circumstances that had transpired in and about
Nauvoo lately, and were prepared to give him the information;
that, moreover, we had in our possession testimony and affidavits
confirmatory of what we should say, which had been forwarded to him
by General Joseph Smith; that communications had been forwarded to
his Excellency by Messrs. Hunter, James and others, some of which
had not reached their destination, but of which we had duplicates
with us. We then in brief related an outline of the difficulties,
and the course we had pursued from the commencement of the troubles
up to the present, and, handing him the documents, respectfully
submitted the whole. During our conversation and explanations with
the Governor, we were frequently rudely and impudently contradicted
by the fellows he had around him, and of whom he seemed to take no
notice.
He opened and read a number of the documents himself, and as he
proceeded he was frequently interrupted by, "That's a lie!" "That's
a G-- d--d lie!" "That's an infernal falsehood!" "That's a blasted
lie!" &c.
{544} These men evidently winced on an exposure of their acts, and
thus vulgarly, impudently and falsely repudiated them. One of their
number, Mr. Marr, addressed himself several times to me while in
conversation with the Governor. I did not notice him until after a
frequent repetition of his insolence, when I informed him that my
business at that time was with Governor Ford, whereupon I continued
my conversation with his Excellency.
During the conversation the Governor expressed a desire that Joseph
Smith and all parties concerned in passing or executing the city
law in relation to the press had better come to Carthage; that
however repugnant it might be to our feelings, he thought it would
have a tendency to allay public excitement and prove to the people
what we professed--that we wished to be governed by law.
We represented to him the course we had taken in relation to this
matter, our willingness to go before another magistrate other
than the Municipal Court, the illegal refusal by the constable,
of our request, our dismissal by the Municipal Court, a legally
constituted tribunal, our subsequent trial before Esq. Wells at the
instance of Judge Thomas (the circuit judge), and our dismissal by
him; that we had fulfilled the law in every particular; that it
was our enemies who were breaking the law, and, having murderous
designs, were only making use of this as a pretext to get us into
their power.
The Governor stated that the people viewed it differently, and
that, notwithstanding our opinions, he would recommend that the
people should be satisfied.
We then remarked to him that, should Joseph Smith comply with his
request, it would be extremely unsafe, in the present excited
state of the country, to come without an armed force; that we had
a sufficiency of men, and were competent to defend ourselves, but
that there might be danger of collision should our forces and those
of our enemies be brought in such close proximity.
He strenuously advised us not to bring any arms, and pledged his
faith as Governor, and the faith of the state, that we should be
protected, and that he would guarantee our perfect safety.
At the termination of our interview, and previous to our
withdrawal, after a long conversation and the perusal of the
documents which we had brought, the Governor informed us that he
would prepare a written communication for General Joseph Smith,
which he desired us to wait for. We were kept waiting for this
instrument some five or six hours.
About five o'clock in the afternoon we took our departure with not
the most pleasant feelings. The associations of the Governor, the
spirit that he manifested to compromise with these scoundrels, the
{545} length of time that he had kept us waiting, and his general
deportment, together with the infernal spirit that we saw exhibited
by those whom he admitted to his counsels, made the prospect
anything but promising.
I had a consultation for a little while with my brother Hyrum, Dr.
Richards, John Taylor and John M. Bernhisel, and determined to go to
Washington and lay the matter before President Tyler. [1]
About 7 p.m. I requested Reynolds Cahoon and Alpheus Cutler to stand
guard at the Mansion, and not to admit any stranger inside the house.
At sundown I asked O. P. Rockwell if he would go with me a short
journey, and he replied he would.
[Abraham C. Hodge says that soon after dusk, Joseph called Hyrum,
Willard Richards, John Taylor, William W. Phelps, A. C. Hodge, John L.
Butler, Alpheus Cutler, William Marks and some others, into his upper
room and said, "Brethren, here is a letter from the Governor which I
wish to have read." After it was read through Joseph remarked, "There
is no mercy--no mercy here." Hyrum said, "No; just as sure as we fall
into their hands we are dead men." Joseph replied, "Yes; what shall we
do, Brother Hyrum?" He replied, "I don't know." All at once Joseph's
countenance brightened up and he said, "The way is open. It is clean
to my mind what to do. All they want is Hyrum and myself; then tell
everybody to go about their business, and not to collect in groups,
but to scatter about. There is no doubt they will come here and search
for us. Let them search; they will not harm you in person or property,
and not even a hair of your head. We will cross the river tonight, and
{546} go away to the West." He made a move to go out of the house to
cross the river. When out of doors he told Butler and Hodge to take the
_Maid of Iowa,_ (in charge of Repsher) get it to the upper landing,
and put his and Hyrum's families and effects upon her; then go down
the Mississippi and up the Ohio river to Portsmouth, where they should
hear from them. He then took Hodge by the hand and said, "Now, Brother
Hodge, let what will come, don't deny the faith, and all will be well."]
I told Stephen Markham that if I and Hyrum were ever taken again we
should be massacred, or I was not a prophet of God. I want Hyrum to
live to avenge my blood, but he is determined not to leave me. [2]
Footnotes:
1. "At this juncture the council was interrupted by the withdrawal of
President Smith to give an interview to two gentlemen--one of whom
was a son of John C. Calhoun--who had arrived at the Mansion and were
anxious to meet with the Prophet" (Life of John Taylor, page, 125).
Elder Taylor withdrew at a late hour from the council because of great
weariness. "Shortly after he [Elder Taylor] retired, however, the
Prophet returned, and the informal council meeting was resumed. The
project of laying the case before President Tyler was abandoned. Joseph
had received an inspiration to go west and all would be well" (Ibid).
2. Here the direct narrative of the Prophet ends; what happened in the
next few days of his life occurred under such circumstances as not to
permit of his dictating an account of it to his secretary or clerks, as
was his custom.
Concerning the statement in the text about the Prophet's desire to have
Hyrum live, and the purpose of it, Mr. Edward Tullidge, in his _Life
of Joseph the Prophet_, gives a different version of it. He states
it_: "I want Hyrum to live to lead the Church, but he is determined
not to leave me"_ (Tullidge, p. 491). On what authority Mr. Tullidge
makes the change is not known; but there is evidence in addition to his
statement that the Prophet did desire Hyrum Smith to succeed him in the
presidency of the Church, and even "ordained" him to take that place.
At the October conference following the martyrdom of the two brothers,
President Brigham Young said_: "Did Joseph ordain any man to take his
place? He did. Who was it? It was Hyrum. But Hyrum fell a martyr before
Joseph did"_ (_Times and Seasons_ Vol. 5, page 683.)
{547}
CHAPTER XXVIII.
THE PROPHET STARTS FOR THE ROCKY MOUNTAINS--THE COUNSEL OF FALSE
BRETHREN--THE RETURN TO NAUVOO--THE SURRENDER AND ARRIVAL AT CARTHAGE.
_An account of the arrest, imprisonment and martyrdom of President
Joseph Smith and Patriarch Hyrum Smith in Carthage jail, Hancock
county, Illinois, as collected from the journal kept at the time by
Willard Richards and the statements published by John Taylor, Messrs.
Reid and Woods and John S. Fullmer, and the writings and statements of
Dan Jones, Cyrus H. Wheelock, Stephen Markham and many other persons,
who were personally acquainted with the transactions. [1]_--_By the
Historian_. [2]
[Sidenote: The Warning to Flee to the Rocky Mountains.]
_Saturday, June 11, 1844.--_About 9 p.m. Hyrum came out of the Mansion
and gave his hand to Reynolds Cahoon, at the same time saying, "A
company of men are seeking to kill my brother Joseph, and the Lord has
warned him to flee to the Rocky Mountains to save his life. Good-by,
Brother Cahoon, we shall see you again." In a few minutes afterwards
Joseph came from his family. His tears were flowing fast. He held a
handkerchief to his face, and followed after Brother Hyrum without
uttering a word.
Between 9 and 10 p.m. Joseph, Hyrum and Willard, while waiting on the
banks of the river for the skiff, sent {548} for William W. Phelps,
and instructed him to take their families to Cincinnati by the second
steamboat, arriving at Nauvoo; and when he arrived there to commence
petitioning the President of the United States and Congress for redress
of grievances, and see if they would grant the Church liberty and
equal rights. Joseph then said: "Go to our wives, and tell them what
we have concluded to do, and learn their feelings on the subject; and
tell Emma you will be ready to start by the second steamboat, and she
has sufficient money wherewith to pay the expenses. If you ascertain
by tomorrow morning that there is anything wrong, come over the river
to Montrose, to the house of Captain John Killien, and there you will
learn where we are."
About midnight, Joseph, Hyrum and Dr. Richards called for Orrin P.
Rockwell at his lodgings, and all went up the river bank until they
found Aaron Johnson's boat, which they got into, and started about 2 a.
m to cross the Mississippi river. Orrin P. Rockwell rowed the skiff,
which was very leaky, so that it kept Joseph, Hyrum and the doctor busy
baling out the water with their boots and shoes to prevent it from
sinking.
[Sidenote: Preparations for the Western Journey.]
_Sunday, 23.--_At daybreak arrived on the Iowa side of the river. Sent
Orrin P. Rockwell back to Nauvoo with instructions to return the next
night with horses for Joseph and Hyrum, pass them over the river in the
night secretly, and be ready to start for the Great Basin in the Rocky
Mountains.
Joseph, Hyrum and Dr. Richards walked up to Captain John Killien's
house, where they arrived at sunrise; but he not being at home,
they went from thence to Brother William Jordan's. About 9 a.m. Dr.
Bernhisel came over the river to visit Joseph; also Reynolds Cahoon,
who made some explanations respecting Governor Ford's letter.
[Sidenote: Arrival of Constable's _Posse_.]
Early in the morning a _posse_ arrived in Nauvoo to {549} arrest
Joseph, but as they did not find him, they started back to Carthage
immediately, leaving one man of the name of Yates behind them, who said
to one of the brethren that Governor Ford designed that if Joseph and
Hyrum were not given up, he would send his troops and guard the city
until they were found, if it took three years to do it.
[Sidenote: Emma's Message to the Prophet.]
At 1 p.m. Emma sent over Orrin P. Rockwell, requesting him to entreat
of Joseph to come back. Reynolds Cahoon accompanied him with a letter
which Emma had written to the same effect, and she insisted that Cahoon
should persuade Joseph to come back and give himself up. When they went
over they found Joseph, Hyrum and Willard in a room by themselves,
having flour and other provisions on the floor ready for packing.
Reynolds Cahoon informed Joseph what the troops intended to do, and
urged upon him to give himself up, inasmuch as the Governor had pledged
his faith and the faith of the state to protect him while he underwent
a legal and fair trial. Reynolds Cahoon, Lorenzo D. Wasson and Hiram
Kimball accused Joseph of cowardice for wishing to leave the people,
adding that their property would be destroyed, and they left without
house or home. Like the fable, when the wolves came the shepherd ran
from the flock, and left the sheep to be devoured. To which Joseph
replied, "If my life is of no value to my friends it is of none to
myself."
[Sidenote: Consultation with Rockwell.]
Joseph said to Rockwell, "What shall I do?" Rockwell replied, "You are
the oldest and ought to know best; and as you make your bed, I will lie
with you." Joseph then turned to Hyrum, who was talking with Cahoon,
and said, "Brother Hyrum, you are the oldest, what shall we do?" Hyrum
said, "Let us go back and give ourselves up, and see the thing out."
After studying a few moments, Joseph said, "If {550} you go back I will
go with you, but we shall be butchered." Hyrum said, "No, no; let us go
back and put our trust in God, and we shall not be harmed. The Lord is
in it. If we live or have to die, we will be reconciled to our fate."
After a short pause, Joseph told Cahoon to request Captain Daniel C.
Davis to have his boat ready at half-past five to cross them over the
river.
Joseph and Hyrum then wrote the following letter:
_Letter:--Joseph and Hyrum Smith to Governor Ford--Consenting to go
to Carthage_.
BANK OF THE RIVER MISSISSIPPI,
Sunday, June 23rd, 1844, 2 p.m.
_His Excellency Governor Ford_:
SIR.--I wrote you a long communication at 12 last night, expressive
of my views of your Excellency's communication of yesterday. I
thought your letter rather severe, but one of my friends has just
come to me with an explanation from the captain of your _posse_
which softened the subject matter of your communication, and gives
us greater assurance of protection, and that your Excellency has
succeeded in bringing in subjection the spirits which surround your
Excellency to some extent. And I declare again the only objection I
ever had or ever made on trial by my country at any time, was what
I have made in my last letter--on account of assassins, and the
reason I have to fear deathly consequences from their hands.
But from the explanation, I now offer to come to you at Carthage
on the morrow, as early as shall be convenient for your _posse_ to
escort us into headquarters, provided we can have a fair trial, not
be abused nor have my witnesses abused, and have all things done in
due form of law, without partiality, and you may depend on my honor
without the show of a great armed force to produce excitement in
the minds of the timid.
We will meet your _posse,_ if this letter is satisfactory, (if not,
inform me) at or neat the Mound, at or about two o'clock tomorrow
afternoon, which will be as soon as we can get our witnesses and
prepare for trial. We shall expect to take our witnesses with us,
and not have to wait a subpoena or part at least, so as not to
detain the proceedings, although we may want time for counsel.
We remain most respectfully, your Excellency's humble servants,
JOSEPH SMITH,
HYRUM SMITH.
{551} Also wrote to Horace T. Hugins, Esquire:
_Letter: Joseph Smith to H. T. Hugins--Engaging Counsel_.
NAUVOO, Sunday, June 23, 1844.
_H. T. Hugins, Esq_:
SIR.--I have agreed to meet Governor Ford at Carthage tomorrow to
attend an examination before Justice Morrison, and request your
attendance professionally with the best attorney you can bring.
I meet the Governor's _posse_ on the Mound at 10 a.m.; in Carthage
at 12 noon. Do not fail me, and oblige,
Yours respectfully,
JOSEPH SMITH.
_per_ W. RICHARDS, Clerk.
P.S.--Dr. J. R. Wakefield I wish as witness, &c.
And also to Dr. J. Wakefield as follows:
_Letter: Joseph Smith to J. R. Wakefield Soliciting Latter's
Attendance as Witness_.
NAUVOO, June 23, 1844.
_Dr. J. R. Wakefield_:
SIR.--I would respectfully solicit your attendance at court in
Carthage tomorrow at 12 noon, as witness in case "State of Illinois
on complaint of Francis M. Higbee, _versus_ Joseph Smith and
others." Dear sir, do not fail me, and oblige your old friend,
JOSEPH SMITH,
_per_ WILLARD RICHARDS, Clerk.
P. S.--Esq. Hugins and co-partner are expected. We meet the
Governor's _posse_ on the Mound at 10 a.m.: at Carthage at 12 noon.
Bearer will give particulars.
[Sidenote: The Prophet Returns to Nauvoo.]
About 4 p.m. Joseph, Hyrum, the Doctor and others started back. While
walking towards the river, Joseph fell behind with Orrin P. Rockwell.
The other shouted to come on. Joseph replied, "It is of no use to
hurry, for we are going back to be slaughtered," and continually
expressed himself that he would like to get the people once more
together, and talk to them tonight. Rockwell said if that was his
wish he would get the people together, and he could talk to them by
starlight.
{552} It was the strong persuasions of Reynolds Cahoon, Lorenzo D.
Wasson and Hiram Kimball, who were carrying out Emma's instructions,
that induced Joseph and Hyrum to start back to Nauvoo. They re-crossed
the river at half-past five. When they arrived at the Mansion in
Nauvoo, Joseph's family surrounded him, and he tarried there all night,
giving up the idea of preaching to the Saints by starlight.
[Sidenote: Vacillation of Governor Ford.]
He sent the letter of this date to Governor Ford by Col. Theodore
Turley and Elder Jedediah M. Grant, who carried it to Carthage, where
they arrived about 9 p.m. They gave the letter to Governor Ford, who
first agreed to send a _posse_ to escort General Smith in safety to
Carthage. Immediately afterwards Mr. Skinner came in and made a very
bitter speech to the Governor, in which Wilson Law and Joseph H.
Jackson joined, telling him naught but lies, which caused Elder Grant
to ask if messengers to him were to be insulted in that manner. The
Governor treated them coldly, and rescinded his previous promise, and
refused to send or allow an escort to go with Joseph, as he said it
was an honor not given to any other citizen. He would not allow the
messengers to stay in Carthage through the night, but ordered them
to start at 10 o'clock, and return to Nauvoo with orders for General
Smith to be in Carthage at 10 o'clock tomorrow morning without an
escort; and he threatened that if General Smith did not give himself
up at that time, that Nauvoo would be destroyed and all the men, women
and children that were in it. Messrs. Grant and Turley immediately
started; but on account of their horses being wearied, they did not
arrive in Nauvoo until about four a.m. of the 24th, when they went to
General Smith to report to him the state of excitement in Carthage. He
would not hear one word of the warning, as he was determined to go to
Carthage and give himself up to the Governor.
{553} At night Joseph conversed with Captain Anderson, who reported
that the mob at Warsaw had stopped his boat, and threatened to fire
into her with his cannon. He gave the following certificate:
_Certificate: Captain Anderson--on Retention of People in Nauvoo_.
NAUVOO, June 23rd, 1844.
This is to certify that on Tuesday morning last, I stated to
General Joseph Smith that the number of passengers leaving that day
might produce the effect on the public mind that they were afraid
of being attacked, and prove injurious; and I further observed, in
order to preserve peace and good order, that it would be better to
use his endeavors to retain those in the city until the excitement
should abate.
GEORGE C. ANDERSON,
Captain steamer _Osprey_.
Joseph received the following letter:
_Letter: Ed. Johnston to Joseph Smith--About Counsel_.
Sunday Evening, June 23rd, 1844.
_General Joseph Smith_:
SIR.--I have this moment received your favor of this day per the
hands of Mr. Adams. I regret to say, in reply, that I am now
awaiting every moment a boat for St. Louis, whither my business
requires me to go, and which, of course will deter me from acceding
to your request. I have introduced Mr. Adams to a friend who is
entirely competent to do full justice to your cause.
In great haste, yours respectfully,
ED. JOHNSTON.
FORT MADISON, IOWA.
[Sidenote: Preparations for Going to Carthage.]
Preparations are making for an early start tomorrow morning for
Carthage. Joseph gave directions to gather some horses for the purpose
of carrying him and his friends to Carthage tomorrow.
Although the Governor has threatened to send his troops into the city,
none have appeared as yet.
[Sidenote: Defendants in the _Expositor_ Case.]
_Monday, 24.--_Francis M. Higbee having sworn out a writ before Thomas
Morrison, a justice of the peace at {554} Carthage on the 11th instant,
against Joseph Smith, Hyrum Smith, Samuel Bennet, John Taylor, William
W. Phelps, John P. Greene, Stephen C. Perry, Dimick B. Huntington,
Jonathan Dunham, Stephen Markham, William W. Edwards, Jonathan Holmes,
Jesse P. Harmon, John Lytle, Joseph W. Coolidge, David Harvey Redfield,
Orrin P. Rockwell and Levi Richards for riot, in destroying the _Nauvoo
Expositor_ press, the property of William and Wilson Law and others,
on the 10th instant, and Governor Ford having sent word by the _posse_
that those eighteen persons should be protected by the militia of the
state, they, upon the assurance of that pledge at half-past six a.m.
started for Carthage, Willard Richards, Dan Jones, Henry G. Sherwood,
Alfred Randall, James Davis, Cyrus H. Wheelock, A. C. Hodge and several
other brethren, together with James W. Woods as counsel, accompanying
them.
[Sidenote: Incidents _en route_ for Carthage.]
When they arrived at the top of the hill, Joseph sent Rockwell with
a horse for Dr. Southwick, a Southern gentleman who had been staying
some days at the Mansion, and who wished General Joseph Smith to buy
considerable property in Texas; but Ed. Bonny took possession of the
horse, so that Dr. Southwick could not then go.
Joseph paused when they got to the Temple, and looked with admiration
first on that, and then on the city, and remarked, "This is the
loveliest place and the best people under the heavens; little do they
know the trials that await them." As he passed out of the city, he
called on Daniel H. Wells, Esq., who was unwell, and on parting he
said, "Squire Wells, I wish you to cherish my memory, and not think me
the worst man in the world either."
[Sidenote: Meeting with Captain Dunn.]
At ten minutes to 10 a.m. they arrived at Albert G. Fellows' farm, four
miles west of Carthage, where they met Captain Dunn with a company
of about sixty mounted militia, on seeing which Joseph said, "Do not
be alarmed, brethren, for they {555} cannot do more to you than the
enemies of truth did to the ancient Saints--they can only kill the
body." The company made a halt, when Joseph, Hyrum and several others
went into Fellows' house with Captain Dunn, who presented an order
from Governor Ford for all the state arms in possession of the Nauvoo
Legion, which Joseph immediately countersigned.
[Sidenote: A Pathetic Prophecy.]
Henry G. Sherwood went up to Joseph and said, "Brother Joseph, shall
I return to Nauvoo and regulate about getting the arms and get the
receipts for them?" Joseph inquired if he was under arrest, or expected
to be arrested. Sherwood answered "No," when Joseph directed him to
return ahead of the company, gather the arms and do as well as he could
in all things. Joseph then said to the company who were with him, _"I
am going like a lamb to the slaughter, but I am calm as a summer's
morning. I have a conscience void of offense toward God and toward all
men. If they take my life I shall die an innocent man, and my blood
shall cry from the ground for vengeance, and it shall be said of me 'He
was murdered in cold blood!'"_ He then said to Father Sherwood, "Go,
and God bless you." Sherwood then rode as swiftly as he could to Nauvoo.
Esquire Woods left the company there, and continued his journey to
Carthage.
This order for the delivery of the state arms was evidently designed
to drive the citizens of Nauvoo to desperation, so that in the heat of
their indignation they might commit some overt act which the Governor
could construe into treason, and thus have a shadow of excuse for his
mob militia to destroy the Mormons.
[Sidenote: Dunn's Request that the Prophet Return to Nauvoo:]
Captain Dunn requested the company to return to Nauvoo to assist in
collecting the arms, and pledged his word as a military man, that
Joseph and his friends should be protected even if it were at the
expense of his own life, {556} and his men responded to the pledge
by three cheers. Captain Dunn, no doubt feared that the order of the
Governor would excite the inhabitants of Nauvoo beyond endurance, and
therefore chose to depend on the well-known integrity of General Smith
than to risk the chances of exciting the feelings of a much-abused
people. At the same time Joseph sent a messenger to the Governor with
the following letter:
_Letter: Joseph Smith to Governor Ford--Explaining his Return to
Nauvoo_.
FOUR MILES WEST OF CARTHAGE MOUND,
HANCOCK COUNTY, ILLINOIS,
Monday, 10 o'clock.
_His Excellency Governor Ford_:
DEAR SIR.--On my way to Carthage to answer your request this
morning, I here met Captain Dunn, who has here made known to me
your orders to surrender the state arms in possession of the Nauvoo
Legion, which command I shall comply with; and that the same may
be done properly and without trouble to the state, I shall return
with Captain Dunn to Nauvoo, see that the arms are put into his
possession, and shall then return to headquarters in his company,
when I shall most cheerfully submit to any requisition of the
Governor of our state.
With all due respect to your Excellency, I remain your obedient
servant.
JOSEPH SMITH.
He also issued the following order:
_Order: Joseph Smith to General Dunham--Complying with Governor
Ford's Demand for State Arms_.
HEADQUARTERS NAUVOO LEGION,
Prairie Four Miles West of Carthage,
June 24th, 1844, 10 o'clock and 10 minutes.
_To Major-General Jonathan Dunham and all commissioned and
non-commissioned officers and privates of the Nauvoo Legion_:
You are hereby ordered to comply strictly with the within order of
the Commander-in-Chief, Governor Ford.
JOSEPH SMITH.
Lieut.-Gen. Nauvoo Legion.
{557} And requested that the state arms should be taken to the Masonic
Hall without delay.
[Sidenote: Messenger Sent to Carthage.]
Hyrum then said to Abram C. Hodge, "You go on into Carthage and see
what is going on, and hear what is said on this matter."
Joseph and his company then returned with Captain Dunn, and arrived in
Nauvoo at half-past two p.m.
When Hodge arrived at Carthage, he met with Rev. Mr. Dodge, who had
some time previously been very kindly treated by Hyrum. He warned
Hodge that as sure as Joseph and Hyrum came to Carthage, they would be
killed. Hodge also saw Hamilton, the innkeeper, who, pointing to the
Carthage Greys, said, "Hodge, there are the boys that will settle you
Mormons." Hodge replied, "We can take as many men as there are there
out of the Nauvoo Legion, and they would not be missed."
[Sidenote: Surrender of State Arms.]
When the fact of the order for the state arms was known in Nauvoo, many
of the brethren looked upon it as another preparation for a Missouri
massacre, nevertheless, as Joseph requested that it should be complied
with, they very unwillingly gave up the arms.
About 6 p.m., when all the states' arms were collected, and the company
were ready to start, Captain Dunn and Quartermaster-General Buckmaster
made a short speech, expressing their gratitude at the peaceable
conduct of the citizens of Nauvoo, and that while they thus conducted
themselves they would protect them.
It appears that Governor Ford feared that the Nauvoo Legion, although
disbanded, might avenge any outrage that might hereafter be committed
on the persons of their leaders, and so thought he had better disarm
them as he had previously disbanded them; yet the mob was suffered to
retain their portion of the state's arms, even when within a half-day's
march of Nauvoo, and they in a threatening and hostile attitude, while
the Nauvoo Legion had not {558} evinced the least disposition whatever,
except to defend their city in case it should be attacked; and they had
not set a foot outside the limits of the corporation.
[Sidenote: The Prophet's Farewell to his Family.]
Joseph rode down home twice to bid his family farewell. He appeared
solemn and thoughtful, and expressed himself to several individuals
that he expected to be murdered. There appeared no alternative but that
he must either give himself up, or the inhabitants of the city would be
massacred by a lawless mob under sanction of the Governor.
[Sidenote: Looking Back-Sadness.]
The company (about fifteen) then started again for Carthage, and when
opposite to the Masonic Hall, Joseph said, "Boys, if I don't come back,
take care of yourselves; I am going like a lamb to the slaughter."
When they passed his farm he took a good look at it, and after they
had passed it, he turned round several times to look again, at which
some of the company made remarks, when Joseph said: "If some of you
had got such a farm and knew you would not see it any more, you would
want to take a good look at it for the last time." When they got to
the edge of the woods near Nauvoo, they met A. C. Hodge returning from
Carthage. He reported to Hyrum what he had heard in Carthage, told him
what his feelings were and said, "Brother Hyrum, you are now clear, and
if it was my duty to counsel you, I would say, do not go another foot,
for they say they will kill you, if you go to Carthage," but as other
persons gathered around, nothing further was said. About this time
Joseph received the following letter:
_Letter: Messrs. Reid and Woods to Joseph Smith--Documents for
Defense_.
CARTHAGE, 5 o'clock p.m.
_General Joseph Smith_:
DEAR SIR.--In accordance with previous arrangements with Elder
Adams, I am here at your service; and it will be necessary for us
to have, on the examination here before the justice, a certified
copy of the city ordinance for the destruction of the _Expositor_
press, or a copy {559} which has been published by authority. We
also wish the original order issued by you to the marshal for the
destruction of said press, and such witnesses as may be necessary
to show by whom the press was destroyed, and that the act was not
done in a riotous or tumultuous manner.
Yours respectfully,
H. T. REID.
DEAR SIR.--I concur fully as to the above, and will add, from an
interview with Governor Ford, you can, with the utmost safety,
rely on his protection, and that you will have as impartial an
investigation as could be expected from those opposed to you. The
excitement is much allayed, and your opponents (those who wish to
make capital out of you) do not want you to come to Carthage. Mr.
Johnson has gone east, and that will account for Mr. Reed being
here.
Respectfully, your obedient servant,
JAMES W. WOOD.
CARTHAGE, 24th June, 1844.
[Sidenote: The Prophet's Arrival at Carthage.]
The company arrived at Fellows' house, four miles west of Carthage,
about 9 p.m., where they stopped about half an hour, and partook of
such refreshments as they had brought with them. Captain Dunn and his
company of mounted militia, returning with the state arms from Nauvoo,
joined them here, and escorted them into Carthage, where they arrived
at five minutes before 12 at night, and went to Hamilton's tavern.
While passing the public square many of the troops, especially the
Carthage Greys, made use of the following expressions, which were
re-echoed in the ears of the Governor and hundreds of others, "Where is
the damned prophet?" "Stand away, you McDonough boys, and let us shoot
the damned Mormons." "G--d--you, old Joe, we've got you now." "Clear
the way and let us have a view of Joe Smith, the prophet of God. He has
seen the last of Nauvoo. We'll use him up now, and kill all the damned
Mormons." The rear platoon of the Carthage Greys repeatedly threw their
guns over their heads in a curve, so that the bayonets struck the
ground with the breech of their guns upward, when {560} they would run
back and pick them up, at the same time whooping, yelling, hooting and
cursing like a pack of savages.
[Sidenote: The Governor Pacifies the Mob.]
On hearing the above expressions, the Governor put his head out of
the window and very fawningly said, "I know your great anxiety to see
Mr. Smith, which is natural enough, but it is quite too late tonight
for you to have the opportunity; but I assure you, gentlemen, you
shall have that privilege tomorrow morning, as I will cause him to
pass before the troops upon the square, and I now wish you, with this
assurance, quietly and peaceably to return to your quarters." When this
declaration was made, there was a faint "Hurrah for Tom Ford," and they
instantly obeyed his wish.
[Sidenote: The Apostates at Carthage.]
There was a company of apostates also quartered at Hamilton's
hotel--namely William and Wilson Law, the Higbees and Fosters,
Augustine Spencer, Henry O. Norton, John A. Hicks, (formerly president
of the Elder's quorum) and others. Hicks stated to C. H. Wheelock
that it was determined to shed the blood of Joseph Smith by not only
himself, but by the Laws, Higbees, Fosters, Joseph H. Jackson, and many
others, whether he was cleared by the law or not. Jackson talked freely
and unreservedly on that subject, as though he were discoursing upon
the most common occurrence of his life. Said he, you will find me a
true prophet in this respect. Wheelock told Ford what Hicks had said,
but he treated it with perfect indifference, and suffered Hicks and his
associates to run at liberty and mature their murderous plans.
A writ was also issued by Robert F. Smith against Joseph W. Coolidge
on complaint of Chauncey L. Higbee, charging him with the illegal
detention of Charles A. Foster.
Footnotes:
1. This is the title of the first _Compilation of Data_ as it appears
in the _Millennial Star,_ Vol. XXIV, p. 332. A _Second Compilation_ was
made by the Church Historian, extending from the 22nd of June to the
8th of August, 1844, at which time the Twelve were accepted for the
time as the Presiding Council of the Church; and the claims of Sidney
Rigdon rejected.
2. George A. Smith was the Historian from 1854 to 1875. Consequently
this Compilation was made under his supervision.
{561}
CHAPTER XXIX.
ARREST OF JOSEPH AND HYRUM SMITH ON A CHARGE OF TREASON--FALSE
IMPRISONMENT--ELDER TAYLOR'S PROTEST--FALSE IMPRISONMENT.
[Sidenote: The Governor's Pledge of Protection.]
_Tuesday, June 25, 1844.--_This morning the prisoners voluntarily
surrendered themselves to the constable, Mr. Bettisworth, who held the
writ against them. The Governor was at headquarters in person, and had
pledged his own faith and the faith of the state of Illinois, that the
Smiths and other persons should be protected from personal violence,
and should have a fair and impartial trial, if they would surrender
themselves to be dealt with according to law. During the Governor's
stay in Carthage, he repeatedly expressed to the legal counselors of
the Smiths his determination to protect the prisoners, and to see that
they should have a fair and impartial examination.
[Sidenote: The Arrest for Treason.]
At 8 a.m. President Smith had an interview with William G. Flood of
Quincy, U. S. Receiver of Public Moneys. While in conversation with
him, Constable David Bettisworth arrested Joseph for treason against
the state of Illinois, with the following writ, which had been granted
on the oath of Augustine Spencer:
_Writ of Arrest on the Charge of Treason--Joseph Smith_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
CITY OF NAUVOO. ss
_The people of the State of Illinois, to all sheriffs, coroners and
constables of said state greeting_:
Whereas complaint has been made before me, one of the justices of
{562} the peace in and for said county aforesaid, upon the oath of
Augustine Spencer, that Joseph Smith, late of the county aforesaid,
did, on or about the nineteenth day of June. A. D. 1844, at the
county and state aforesaid, commit the crime of treason against the
government and people of the State of Illinois aforesaid.
These are therefore to command you to take the said Joseph Smith
if he be found in your county, or if he shall have fled, that you
pursue after the said Smith into another county within this state,
and take and safely keep the said Joseph Smith, so that you have
his body forthwith before me to answer the said complaint and be
further dealt with according to law.
[Seal]
Given under my hand and seal this 24th day of June, A. D. 1844.
R. F. SMITH, J. P.
Hyrum Smith was also arrested at the same time for treason on the same
writ, granted on the affidavit of Henry O. Norton:
_Writ of Arrest for Treason--Hyrum Smith_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
HANCOCK COUNTY. ss
_The people of the State of Illinois, to all sheriffs, coroners and
constables, greeting_:
Whereas complaint has been made before me, one of the justices
of the peace, in and for the county of Hancock, upon the oath of
one Henry O. Norton, that one Hyrum Smith, late of the county of
Hancock and state of Illinois, did, on the 19th day of June, 1844,
commit the crime of treason against the government and people of
the state of Illinois aforesaid.
These are therefore to command you to take the body of the said
Hyrum Smith, if he be found in your county, or if he shall have
fled that you pursue after the said Hyrum Smith into any county
within this state, and take and safely keep the said Hyrum Smith,
so that you have his body forthwith before me, to answer unto the
said complaint, and be further dealt with according to law.
[Seal]
Given under my hand and seal, this 24th day of June. 1844.
R. F. SMITH, J. P.
[Sidenote: Governor Ford's Speech to the Troops.]
_8:30 a.m.--_Governor Ford called all the troops and ordered them to
form a hollow square on the public ground near the Court House; and
when formed, he {563} mounted an old table, and addressed them in a
most inflammatory manner, exciting the feelings of indignation against
Generals Joseph and Hyrum Smith which were already burning in their
breasts, occasioned by the falsehoods and misrepresentations that were
in circulation, giving his assent and sanction to the rumors that had
gathered them together, and stating that although they were dangerous
men in the community, and guilty of all that they might have alleged
against them, still they were in the hands of the law, which must have
its course. He continued speaking twenty or thirty minutes.
[Sidenote: The Prophet's Request for an Interview with Gov. Ford.]
_9:15 a.m.--_The Governor came in and invited Joseph to walk with
him through the troops. Joseph solicited a few moments, private
conversation with him, which the Governor refused. While refusing, the
Governor looked down at his shoes, as though he was ashamed. They then
walked through the crowd with Brigadier-General Miner R. Deming and Dr.
Richards, to General Deming's quarters. The people appeared quiet until
a company of Carthage Greys flocked around the doors of General Deming
in an uproarious manner, of which notice was sent to the Governor. In
the meantime the Governor had ordered the McDonough troops to be drawn
up in line for Joseph and Hyrum to pass in front of them, they having
requested that they might have a clear view of the Generals Smith.
Joseph had a conversation with the Governor for about ten minutes, when
he again pledged the faith of the state that he and his friends should
be protected from violence.
Robinson, the postmaster, said, on report of martial law being
proclaimed in Nauvoo, he had stopped the mail and notified the
Postmaster-General of the state of things in Hancock county.
[Sidenote: The Prophet Presented to the Troops.]
From the General's quarters Joseph and Hyrum went in front of the
lines, in a hollow square of a company of {564} Carthage Greys. At
seven minutes before ten they arrived in front of the lines, and passed
before the whole, Joseph being on the right of General Deming, and
Hyrum on his left, Elders Richards, Taylor and Phelps following. Joseph
and Hyrum were introduced by the Governor about twenty times along the
line, as General Joseph Smith and General Hyrum Smith, the Governor
walking in front on the left. The Carthage Greys refused to receive
them by that introduction, and some of the officers threw up their
hats drew their swords and said they would introduce themselves to the
damned Mormons in a different style. The Governor mildly entreated them
not to act so rudely, but their excitement increased. The Governor,
however, succeeded in pacifying them by making a speech, and promising
them that they should have "full satisfaction." General Smith and party
returned to their lodgings at five minutes past ten.
[Sidenote: Revolt of the Carthage Greys.]
_10:30.--_News reached Joseph at the hotel that the Carthage Greys had
revolted, and were put under guard by General Deming. Joseph told all
his friends to stay in the two rooms occupied by them in the hotel.
_10:50.--_Quietness was apparently restored among the Carthage Greys.
_11:15.--_News arrived that the Warsaw troops were near Carthage, and
had come of their own accord.
Mr. Prentice, U. S. Marshal for Illinois, called to see Joseph.
[Sidenote: Threats of Apostates to Plunder Nauvoo.]
_12 minutes before 1.--_Intelligence was given to Joseph that the
Laws, Higbees, Fosters and others, were going to Nauvoo to plunder. To
Governor called at the door with some gentlemen, when Joseph informed
him of what he had heard, and requested him to send a guard to protect
the city of Nauvoo.
Willard Richards wrote a letter to his wife.
{565} _1:30 p.m.--_After dinner, Mark Aldrich of Warsaw called to see
Joseph.
_2:30.--_The Governor communicated that he had ordered Captain
Singleton with a company of men from McDonough county, to march to
Nauvoo to co-operate with the police in keeping the peace; and he would
call out the Legion, if necessary.
Joseph wrote to Emma as follows:
_Letter: The Prophet to Emma Smith--Governor Ford Going to Nauvoo_.
CARTHAGE, June 25th, 1844.
2:30 o'clock p.m.
DEAR EMMA.--I have had an interview with Governor Ford, and he
treats us honorably. Myself and Hyrum have been again arrested for
treason because we called out the Nauvoo Legion; but when the truth
comes out we have nothing to fear. We all feel calm and composed.
This morning Governor Ford introduced myself and Hyrum to the
militia in a very appropriate manner, as General Joseph Smith and
General Hyrum Smith. There was a little mutiny among the Carthage
Greys, but I think the Governor has and will succeed in enforcing
the laws. I do hope the people of Nauvoo will continue pacific and
prayerful.
Governor Ford has just concluded to send some of his militia to
Nauvoo to protect the citizens, and I wish that they may be kindly
treated. They will co-operate with the police to keep the peace.
The Governor's orders will be read in the hearing of the police and
officers of the Legion, as I suppose.
_3 o'clock.--_The Governor has just agreed to march his army to
Nauvoo, and I shall come along with him. The prisoners, all that
can, will be admitted to bail. I am as ever,
JOSEPH SMITH.
EMMA SMITH.
[Sidenote: The Prophet's Warning to Rockwell.]
Joseph also sent a message to Orrin P. Rockwell not to come to
Carthage, but to stay in Nauvoo, and not to suffer himself to be
delivered into the hands of his enemies, or to be taken a prisoner by
any one.
It was reported by Israel Barlow that he had heard resolutions of the
Warsaw troops read, to the effect that they would return to Warsaw at 3
p.m., then go to Golden's Point on Thursday, and thence to Nauvoo.
[Sidenote: The Prophet's Interview with Militia Officers.]
{566}
Several of the officers of the troops in Carthage, and other gentlemen,
curious to see the Prophet, visited Joseph in his room. General Smith
asked them if there was anything in his appearance that indicated he
was the desperate character his enemies represented him to be; and
he asked them to give him their honest opinion on the subject. The
reply was, "No, sir, your appearance would indicate the very contrary,
General Smith; but we cannot see what is in your heart, neither can we
tell what are your intentions." To which Joseph replied, "Very true,
gentlemen, you cannot see what is in my heart, and you are therefore
unable to judge me or my intentions; but I can see what is in your
hearts, and will tell you what I see. I can see that you thirst for
blood, and nothing but my blood will satisfy you. It is not for
crime of any description that I and my brethren are thus continually
persecuted and harassed by our enemies, but there are other motives,
and some of them I have expressed, so far as relates to myself; and
inasmuch as you and the people thirst for blood, I prophesy, in the
name of the Lord, that you shall witness scenes of blood and sorrow to
your entire satisfaction. Your souls shall be perfectly satiated with
blood, and many of you who are now present shall have an opportunity to
face the cannon's mouth from sources you think not of; and those people
that desire this great evil upon me and my brethren, shall be filled
with regret and sorrow because of the scenes of desolation and distress
that await them. They shall seek for peace, and shall not be able to
find it. Gentlemen, you will find what I have told you to be true."
[Sidenote: Law Cannot Reach Them--Powder and Ball Must.]
_12 minutes to 4.--_Report came to Joseph that William and Wilson Law,
Robert D. Foster, Chauncey L. Higbee and Francis M. Higbee had said
_that there was nothing against these men; the law could not reach them
but powder and ball would,_ and they should not go out of Carthage
alive.
[Sidenote: Arraigned on the _Expositor_ Affair.]
{567}
Joseph, Hyrum and thirteen others, were taken before Robert F. Smith, a
justice of the peace residing in Carthage (he being also captain of the
Carthage Greys) on the charge of riot destroying the printing press of
the _Nauvoo Expositor_.
It is worthy of notice here, that when the defendants went before
Esquire Wells, the prosecution objected, and insisted that they should
be taken before the justice who issued the writ--viz., Thomas Morrison,
and that Governor Ford had also stated in his letter to General Joseph
Smith that he must go before the justice in Carthage who issued the
writ. But when the prosecution had the defendants in their own power
in Carthage, they could then ride over their own objections by taking
them before another justice, who was known to be a greater enemy to
the defendants than Justice Morrison, and moreover, before one who was
not only a justice of the peace, but also the Military commander of a
company of Carthage Greys, who had already been arrested for mutiny.
Chauncey L. Higbee, one of the prosecutors, moved an adjournment.
H. T. Reid and James W. Woods on behalf of the defendants, objected
to an adjournment, and said that the court was not authorized to
take recognizance without their acknowledging their guilt, or having
witnesses to prove it, and we admit the press was destroyed by order of
the Mayor, it having been condemned by the City Council as a nuisance.
They read law to show that justices could not recognize without
admission of guilt, and offered to give bail.
Mr. Reid stated that the law quoted by the prosecution belonged to
civil, not criminal cases.
The prosecution insisted to have a commission of the crime acknowledged.
[Sidenote: Prophet_ et. al_. Bound over to Circuit Court.]
After a good deal of resistance on the part of the prosecution, court
asked if the parties admitted that there was {568} sufficient cause
to bind over, and the counsel for the defense admitted there was,
and offered to enter into cognizance in the common form, in order to
prevent, if possible, any increase of excitement.
[Sidenote: The Sureties for the Prophet.]
_5 p.m.--_Court acknowledged the admission and ordered recognizances,
whereupon Joseph Smith, Hyrum Smith, John Taylor, William M. Phelps,
John P. Greene, Stephen C. Perry, Dimick B. Huntington, Jonathan
Dunham, Stephen Markham, Jonathan H. Holmes, Jesse P. Harmon, John
Lytle, Joseph W. Coolidge, David Harvey Redfield, and Levi Richards
gave bonds, with John S. Fullmer, Edward Hunter, Dan Jones, John
Benbow, and other unexceptionable sureties, in the sum of $500 for each
of the defendants, total $7,500, for their appearance at the next term
of the Circuit Court for Hancock county.
It was evident that the magistrate intended to overreach the wealth
of the defendants and their friends, so as to imprison them for want
of bail; but it happened that there was strength to cover the demand,
for some of the brethren went security to the full extent of their
property; and Justice Smith adjourned his court over, and left the
court house without calling on Joseph and Hyrum to answer to the charge
of treason, or even intimating to those prisoners, or their counsel
that they were expected to enter into an examination that night.
Captain Smith, the only magistrate who could grant subpoenas for
witnesses, disappeared until a late hour, as if purposely to prevent
the appearing of the defendant's witnesses, and in keeping with the
conviction expressed by Joseph's enemies the previous day, that the law
cannot touch them, but that powder and bail will.
[Sidenote: Another Warrant Sought--Daniel's Kingdom and Treason.]
_About 6:30 p.m.--_Dan Jones heard Wilson Law, whilst endeavoring to
get another warrant against Joseph Smith for treason, declare that
while he (Mr. Smith) was once preaching from Daniel 2nd chapter, 44th
verse, said that the {569} kingdom referred to was already set up, and
that he was the king over it. He also heard Joseph H. Jackson, and
other leaders of the mob, declare that they had eighteen accusations
against Joseph and as one failed, they would try another to detain him
there, and that they had had so much trouble and hazard, and worked so
hard in getting him to Carthage, that they would not let him get out of
it alive. Jackson pointed to his pistols and said, "The balls are in
there that will decide his case." Jones immediately went up stairs to
Joseph and informed him what he had heard Jackson say.
_About 7:30 p.m.--_Dr. Levi Richards and most of the brethren, after
they had signed the bonds, left for Nauvoo when Joseph and Hyrum
went into the Governor's room and spoke with him, as Governor Ford
had promised them an interview. After a few moments' conversation,
the Governor left them to order the captain of the guard to give the
brethren some passes. They then went to supper.
[Sidenote: Illegal Imprisonment of the Smith Brothers.]
_8 p.m.--_Constable Bettisworth appeared at the lodgings of Joseph and
Hyrum, and insisted that they should go to jail. Joseph demanded a copy
of the mittimus, which was refused. Messrs. Woods and Reid, as counsel,
insisted that the prisoners were entitled to be brought before a
justice of the peace for examination before they could be sent to jail.
The constable, to their surprise, then exhibited the following mittimus:
_The False Mittimus_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
HANCOCK COUNTY, ss.
_The people of the State of Illinois to the keeper of the jail of
said County, Greeting_:
Whereas Joseph Smith and Hyrum Smith, of the county aforesaid, have
been arrested upon oath of Augustine Spencer and Henry O. Norton,
for the crime of treason, and have been brought before me as {570}
a justice of the peace in and for the said county, for trial at the
seat of justice thereof, which trial has been necessarily postponed
by reason of the absence of the material witnesses--to wit, Francis
M. Higbee and others. Therefore, I command you, in the name of the
people, to receive the said Joseph Smith and Hyrum Smith into your
custody in the jail of the county aforesaid, there so remain until
discharged by due course of law.
[Seal]
Given under my hand and seal this 25th day of June, A. D. 1843.
(Signed)
R. F. SMITH J. P.
Joseph remonstrated against such bare-faced, illegal, and tyrannical
proceedings, but the constable still insisted that they should go to
jail. Lawyer Woods requested the officer to wait until he could see
Governor Ford, and was told by Bettisworth that he could only wait five
minutes.
[Sidenote: Governor Ford Refuses to Interfere with Illegal Proceedings.]
Joseph and Hyrum again remonstrated, and the constable waited until
about nine o'clock, when they heard by Mr. Wood that the Governor did
not think it within the sphere of his duty to interfere, as they were
in the hands of the civil law, and therefore he had not the power to
stay process, of the due course of law, and that he could not interrupt
a civil officer in the discharge of his duty.
Governor Ford knew this [proceeding] was illegal, (for he had formerly
been an associate-justice of the Supreme Court of the state) and when
he was appealed to by Captain Robert F. Smith to know what he must do,
as he had found his mittimus as a magistrate was illegal, and therefore
that it was a false committal, Governor Ford replied, "You have the
Carthage Greys at your command."_ Captain Smith_ therefore commanded
his "Greys" to execute and carry into effect his illegal mittimus as
a _magistrate,_ thus practically blending the civil and military in
the same person at the same time; and the prisoners were violently and
illegally dragged to jail without any examination whatever, while his
Excellency was in the adjoining room from that from which they {571}
were thus taken. So much for his professions that _the law must be
executed_.
Thus a justice of the peace acting as a military officer also by virtue
of his commission as such, orders his command to appear under arms
and to incarcerate the prisoners whom he had just before ordered to
commit to jail by_ mittimus without having them brought before him for
examination;_ and the Governor, having been himself at one time a judge
upon the bench, knew and well understood the illegality of the above
proceedings.
He also well knew that military power and [civil] authority had been
used by one and the same person, and yet he, acting at that time
as Commander-in-Chief, which gave him the supervision over all his
officers, and in fact made him responsible for all their acts and
movements, refused to interfere when requested by the prisoners to
interpose his authority in their behalf against an illegal civil
process, and also refused to countermand the illegal, oppressive and
unofficer-like order of one of his captains.
Moreover, having taken the oath of office, as Governor of the state
of Illinois, he was by virtue of that oath bound to see the laws
faithfully executed, and not, as in this instance, see them violated
and trodden under foot, and even prompt one of his officers in his
lawless course. Thus he violated his solemn pledges and oath of office.
[Sidenote: Elder Taylor's Remonstrance with Governor Ford.]
Elder John Taylor says, "As I was informed of this illegal proceeding,
I went immediately to the Governor and informed him of it; whether he
was apprized of it before or not I do not know, but my opinion is that
he was. I represented to him the character of the parties who had made
oath, the outrageous nature of the charge, the indignity offered to men
in the position which they [the prisoners] occupied, and that he knew
very well that it was a vexatious prosecution, and that they were not
guilty of any such thing."
The Governor replied that he was very sorry that the {572} thing had
occurred; that he did not believe the charges, but that he thought that
the best thing to be done in the premises was to let the law take its
course.
"I then reminded him that we had come out there at his instance, not to
satisfy the law, which we had done before, but the prejudices of the
people in relation to the affair of the press; that we had given bonds,
which we could not by law be required to do, to satisfy the people at
his instance, and that it was asking too much to require gentlemen in
their position in life to suffer the degradation of being immured in a
jail at the instance of such worthless scoundrels as those who had made
this affidavit.
"The Governor replied that it was an unpleasant affair, and looked
hard, but that it was a matter over which he had no control, as
it belonged to the judiciary; that he, as the executive could not
interfere with their proceedings, and that he had no doubt but that
they would be immediately dismissed.
"I told him that we had looked to him for protection from such insults,
and that I thought we had a right to do so from the solemn promises
he had made to me and Dr. Bernhisel in relation to our coming without
a guard or arms; that we had relied upon his faith and had a right to
expect him to fulfill his engagements, after we had placed ourselves
implicitly under his care, and complied with all his requests, although
extra-judicial.
"He replied that he would detail a guard, if we required it, and see us
protected, but that he could not interfere with the judiciary.
"I expressed my dissatisfaction at the course taken, and told him that
if we were to be subject to mob rule, and to be dragged contrary to law
into prison, at the instance of every infernal scoundrel whose oath
could be bought for a dram of whiskey, his protection availed very
little, and we had miscalculated his promises.
"Seeing there was no prospect of redress from the Governor, I returned
to the room and found the Constable, {573} Bettisworth, very urgent to
hurry Brothers Joseph and Hyrum to prison, whilst the brethren were
remonstrating with him.
"At the same time a great rabble was gathered in the streets and around
the door, and from the rowdyism manifested, I was afraid there was a
design to murder the prisoners on the way to the jail.
[Sidenote: Elder Taylor Takes Independent Action.]
"Without conferring with any person, my next feeling was to procure a
guard, and seeing a man habited as a soldier in the room, I went to
him and said, "I am afraid there is a design against the lives of the
Messrs. Smith, will you go immediately and bring your captain, and if
not convenient, any other captain of a company, and I will pay you well
for your trouble."
"He said he would, and departed forthwith, and soon returned with his
captain, whose name I have forgotten [1] and introduced him to me.
"I told him of my fears, and requested him immediately to fetch his
company. He departed forthwith, and arrived at the door with them, just
as the time that the constable was hurrying the brethren downstairs.
"A number of brethren went along, and one or two strangers, and all of
us safely lodged in prison, remained there during the night."
As Esquire Woods went to the door he met Captain Dunn, with some
twenty men, they having come to guard the prisoners in jail. Mr.
Woods accompanied Governor Ford to (Captain) Justice Robert F. Smith,
who gave as a cause for issuing the warrant of committal, that the
prisoners were not personally safe at the hotel. Mr. Woods then
requested the Governor to have a company of troops from some other
county detailed to guard the jail.
[Sidenote: In Carthage Jail.]
Captain Dunn, with his company, escorted Joseph and {574} Hyrum Smith
from their lodgings, together with Willard Richards, John Taylor, John
P. Greene, Stephen Markham, Dan Jones, John S. Fullmer, Dr. Southwick,
and Lorenzo D. Wasson, to the jail. Markham had a very large hickory
cane, which he called "the rascal-beater." Dan Jones had a smaller
walking-stick, and they walked on either side of Joseph and Hyrum,
keeping off the drunken rabble, who several times broke through the
ranks.
They were received by the jailer, Mr. George W. Stigall, and put
into the criminal's cell; but he afterwards gave them the debtors'
apartment, where the prisoners and their friends had amusing
conversations on various interesting subjects, which engaged them till
late. Prayer was offered, which made Carthage prison into the gate of
heaven for a while. They laid promiscuously on the floor, where they
all slept from 11:30 until 6 a.m. of the 26th.
Counselor H. T. Reid, in his published statement, writes as follows:
"The recitals of the mittimus, so far as they relate to the prisoners,
having been brought before the justice for trial, and it there
appearing that the necessary witnesses of the prosecution were absent,
are wholly untrue, unless the prisoners could have appeared before the
justice, without being present in person or by counsel; nor is there
any law of Illinois which permits a justice to commit persons charged
with crimes to jail, without examination as to the probability of their
guilt."
Footnotes:
1. This was Captain Dunn, of Augusta township, who had been sent to
Nauvoo a few days before to collect the state arms at Nauvoo, and who
afterwards escorted the Prophet and his friends into Carthage.
{575}
CHAPTER XXX.
INTERVIEW IN CARTHAGE PRISON BETWEEN GOVERNOR FORD AND THE
PROPHET--TAYLOR'S REPORT OF THE INTERVIEW--TESTIMONY TO THE EXISTENCE
OF A CARTHAGE CONSPIRACY AGAINST THE PROPHET'S LIFE.
_Wednesday, June 26, 1844; 7 a.m.--_Joseph, Hyrum, and the rest of the
brethren, took breakfast with Stigall, and were then removed to the
room upstairs.
Dr. Southwick went to see the Governor.
[Sidenote: Messages to the Governor]
_At 7:30 a.m.,_ Markham, Wasson, and Jones were severally sent by
Joseph with messages to the Governor, but at 8 a.m., got no return.
He also sent word to his counsel that he wanted a change of venue to
Quincy, Adams County.
_At 8 a.m.,_ Joseph and Hyrum had a conversation with the jailor, Mr.
Stigall, who said a week last Wednesday the mob were calculating to
have made an attack on Nauvoo, and they expected about 9000 persons,
but only about 200 came. They had sent runners to Missouri, and all
around the counties in Illinois.
_At ten minutes past 8 o'clock a.m._ Joseph wrote to Governor Ford, as
follows and sent it by Mr. Stigall:--
_Letter--Joseph Smith to Governor Ford--Soliciting an Interview_.
CARTHAGE JAIL, June 26, 1844.
Ten minutes past 8 a.m.
_His Excellency Governor Ford_:
SIR.--I would again solicit your excellency for an interview having
been much disappointed the past evening. I hope you will not
deny me this privilege any longer than your public duties shall
absolutely require.
{576} We have been committed under a false mittimus, and
consequently the proceedings are illegal, and we desire the time
may be hastened when all things shall be made right, and we
relieved from this imprisonment.
Your servant,
JOSEPH SMITH.
P. S.--Please send an answer per bearer.
[Sidenote: Word from Governor Ford.]
_At 8:30 a.m.,_ Markham and Jones returned, stating that the Governor
said he was taken by surprise last evening, and was very sorry. Was
afraid we would think he had forfeited his word about having an
interview, that the wrath of the people was about to turn on the head
of Jackson, the mob, &c. That the Governor was doing as fast as he
could.
_Twelve minutes before 9._ Received the following reply on the same
sheet:--
"The interview will take place at my earliest leisure to-day.
"GOVERNOR FORD."
[Sidenote: Consultation with Counsel]
_Ten minutes to 9._ Mr. Reid and others arrived at the jail and
investigated the merits of the case, and concluded to take a change
of venue before Justice Greenleaf, of Augusta, Hancock county, and
to send for Dr. James H. Lyon, Col. J. Brewer, Edward Bonney, M. G.
Eaton, Dr. Abiathar Williams, Thomas A. Lyne, George J. Adams, Dr. J.
M. Bernhisel, Daniel H. Wells, Daniel Spencer, Orson Spencer, Dr. J.
R. Wakefield, George P. Stiles, Jonathan Dunham, Albert P. Rockwood,
Captain G. C. Anderson, William Marks, Hiram Kimball, Lorenzo D.
Wasson, and Samuel Searles, as witnesses.
[Sidenote: Interview with Gov. Ford.]
_9:27 a.m._ The Governor, in company with Col. Thomas Geddes, arrived
at the jail, when a lengthy conversation was entered into in relation
to our difficulties; and after some preliminary remarks, at the
Governor's request Brother Joseph gave him a general outline of the
state of the country, {577} the tumultuous, mobocratic movements of our
enemies, the precautionary measures used by himself, (Joseph Smith) the
acts of the City Council, the destruction of the press, and the moves
of the mob and ourselves up to that time.
_The Following Account of this Interview is from the Manuscript
History of the Church in the Historian's Office, and not Hitherto
Published_.
Joseph Smith stated to them [Governor Ford and Col. Geddes] the
origin of the difficulty, the facts relating to the _Expositor_
press, the course pursued by the City Council; the legality, as
they thought, of their legislation; the pledges that he had made by
letter and sent by expresses to his Excellency, that he was willing
to satisfy all legal claims in case it should be shown that the
City Council had transcended their legal bounds, etc., and that
the Legion had been called out for the protection of the city,
while it was threatened with immediate hostilities by an infuriated
mob, until his Excellency could afford relief, and not for the
purpose of invasion. (The Governor seemed to be satisfied that this
was the truth, but still he did not interfere in their illegal
imprisonment). Joseph adverted to all the leading causes which
gave rise to the difficulties under consideration in a brief, but
lucid, energetic and impressive manner. The Governor said he was
satisfied it was the truth. General Smith then read copies of the
orders and proceedings of the City Council of Nauvoo, concerning
the destruction of the _Expositor_ press, and of the correspondence
forwarded to his Excellency, in relation thereto; and also informed
him concerning the calling out of the Legion, and the position they
occupied of absolute necessity, not to make war upon, or invade the
rights of any portion of the citizens of the State; but it was the
_last resort,_ and _only_ defense_, in the absence of executive
protection,_ against a large, organized military and mobocratic foe.
General Smith reminded his Excellency that the question in dispute
[the _Expositor_ case] was a _civil_ matter, and to settle which
needed no resort to arms, and that he was ready at any time, and
had always been ready to answer any charge that might be preferred
against him, either as the Lieutenant General of the Legion, the
Mayor of the City, or as a private individual, in any court of
justice, which was unintimidated by a mob or military array_, and
make all the satisfaction that the law required, if any, etc._ The
Governor said he had not called out this force; [i. e., {578} the
one then gathered at Carthage] but found it assembled in military
array, without his orders, on his arrival at Carthage, and that the
laws _must be enforced,_ but that the prisoners must and should be
protected, and he again pledged his word, and the faith and honor
of the State, that they should be protected. He also stated that he
intended to march his forces (that is, those who had assembled for
mobocratic purposes; and whom he had mustered into his service) to
Nauvoo to gratify_ them,_ and that the prisoners should accompany
them, and then return again to attend the trial before the said
magistrate, which he said had been postponed for the purpose of
making this visit. (John S. Fullmer) Joseph alluded to the coming
of Constable Bettisworth when he gave himself up, also to his offer
to go before_ any other justice of the peace,_ and called upon some
twenty bystanders to witness that he submitted to the writ, but
for fear of his life if he went to Carthage he had preferred to go
before Esq. Daniel H. Wells, a gentleman of high legal attainments,
who is in no way connected with the Mormon Church.
Joseph also said that he had sent frequent expresses and letters
to the Governor; that Dr. J. R. Wakefield, Dr. J. M. Bernhisel and
Mr. Sidney Rigdon also had written letters to the Governor; that he
had written another letter to the Governor which was sent on the
15th of June by Mr. James; that he had written again on the 16th of
June, enclosing affidavits, and sent them by Messrs. Edward Hunter,
Phillip B. Lewis and John Bills. He also read Captain Anderson's
certificate of the proceedings of the mob at Warsaw; also his
Proclamation, his orders as Lieutenant General to Major General
Dunham, the proceedings of the City Council of Nauvoo, and copies
of communications forwarded to Springfield; also his letter of the
21st of June which was sent by Dr. Bernhisel, and Mr. John Taylor,
and his letter of the 22nd, which was sent by Lucien Woodworth and
Squire Woods.
Marshal John P. Greene explained about giving passes to persons
going in and out of the city, and denied that any arrests had been
made.
The Governor referred to the trial before Esq. Wells, which did
not satisfy the feelings of the people in and about Carthage.
The Governor admitted that sufficient time had not been allowed
by the posse for the defendants to get ready, or to gather their
witnesses, said it can be very safely admitted that your statements
are true, and was satisfied now that the people of Nauvoo had acted
according to the best of their judgment.
Mr. Reid said that it was very evident from the excitement created
by Mr. Smith's enemies it would have been unsafe for him to come
to Carthage, for under such circumstances he could not have had an
impartial trial.
{579} The Governor said he came here to enforce the laws on all
the people whether Mormons or not; and then expressed his feelings
about the destruction of the _Expositor_ press.
Joseph spoke of his imprisonment in Missouri, and of the shameful
kidnapping of his witnesses, and their being thrust into prison to
prevent them from giving their testimony in his favor.
Governor Ford spoke of the Constitution.
Joseph said we were willing to pay for the press, as he did not
want the owners to suffer any loss by it, [i. e. its suppression]
neither did he wish such a libelous paper to be published in
Nauvoo. As for calling out the Nauvoo Legion, if it was intended to
resist the government of the State, it would be treason; but, as
they believed, they were endeavoring to defend themselves, and had
no such intention as to resist the government--it was all right.
The following report is by Elder John Taylor. [1]
_Elder John Taylor's Account of Governor Ford's and President
Smith's Interview_.
_Governor--_General Smith, I believe you have given me a general
outline of the difficulties that have existed in the country, in
the documents forwarded to me by Dr. Bernhisel and Mr. Taylor;
but, unfortunately, there seems to be a discrepancy between
your statements and those of your enemies. It is true that you
are substantiated by evidence and affidavit, but for such an
extraordinary excitement as that which is now in the country,
there must be some cause, and I attribute the last outbreak to
the destruction of the_ Expositor,_ and to your refusal to comply
with the writ issued by Esq. Morrison. The press in the United
States is looked upon as the great bulwark of American freedom,
and its destruction in Nauvoo was represented and looked upon as
a high-handed measure, and manifests to the people a disposition
{580} on your part to suppress the liberty of speech and of the
press; this, with your refusal to comply with the requisition of a
writ, I conceive to be the principal cause of this difficulty, and
you are, moreover, represented to me as turbulent and defiant of
the laws and institutions of your country.
_Gen. Smith.--_Governor Ford, you, sir, as Governor of this State,
are aware of the prosecutions and persecutions that I have endured.
You know well that our course has been peaceable and law-abiding,
for I have furnished this State, ever since our settlement here,
with sufficient evidence of my pacific intentions, and those of
the people with whom I am associated, by the endurance of every
conceivable indignity and lawless outrage perpetrated upon me
and upon this people since our settlement here, and you yourself
know that I have kept you well posted in relation to all matters
associated with the late difficulties. If you have not got some of
my communications, it has not been my fault.
Agreeably to your orders, I assembled the Nauvoo Legion for the
protection of Nauvoo and the surrounding country against an armed
band of marauders, and ever since they have been mustered I have
almost daily communicated with you in regard to all the leading
events that have transpired; and whether in the capacity of mayor
of the city; or lieutenant-general of the Nauvoo Legion, I have
striven to preserve the peace and administer even-handed justice
to all; but my motives are impugned, my acts are misconstrued, and
I am grossly and wickedly misrepresented. I suppose I am indebted
for my incarceration here to the oath of a worthless man that was
arraigned before me and fined for abusing and maltreating his lame,
helpless brother.
That I should be charged by you, sir, who know better, of acting
contrary to law, is to me a matter of surprise. Was it the Mormons
or our enemies who first commenced these difficulties? You know
well it was not us; and when this turbulent, outrageous people
commenced their insurrectionary movements, I made you acquainted
with them, officially, and asked your advice, and have followed
strictly your counsel in every particular.
Who ordered out the Nauvoo Legion? I did, under your direction.
For what purpose? To suppress these insurrectionary movements. It
was at your instance, sir, that I issued a proclamation calling
upon the Nauvoo Legion to be in readiness, at a moment's warning,
to guard against the incursions of mobs, and gave an order to
Jonathan Dunham acting major-general, to that effect. Am I then
to be charged for the acts of others; and because lawlessness and
mobocracy abound, am I when carrying out your instructions, to be
charged with not abiding the {581} law? Why is it that I must be
held accountable for other men's acts? If there is trouble in the
country, neither I nor my people made it, and all that we have ever
done, after much endurance on our part, is to maintain and uphold
the Constitution and institutions of our country, and to protect an
injured, innocent, and persecuted people against misrule and mob
violence.
Concerning the destruction of the press to which you refer, men may
differ somewhat in their opinions about it; but can it be supposed
that after all the indignities to which we have been subjected
outside, that this people could suffer a set of worthless vagabonds
to come into our city, and right under our own eyes and protection,
vilify and calumniate not only ourselves, but the character of our
wives and daughters, as was impudently and unblushingly done in
that infamous and filthy sheet? There is not a city in the United
States that would have suffered such an indignity for twenty-four
hours.
Our whole people were indignant, and loudly called upon our city
authorities for redress of their grievances, which, if not attended
to they themselves would have taken the matter into their own
hands, and have summarily punished the audacious wretches, as they
deserved.
The principles of equal rights that have been instilled into our
bosoms from our cradles, as American citizens, forbid us submitting
to every foul indignity, and succumbing and pandering to wretches
so infamous as these. But, independent of this, the course that we
pursued we considered to be strictly legal; for, notwithstanding
the insult we were anxious to be governed strictly by law, and
therefore convened the City Council; and being desirous in our
deliberations to abide law, summoned legal counsel to be present on
the occasion.
Upon investigating the matter, we found that our City Charter
gave us power to remove all nuisances; and, furthermore, upon
consulting Blackstone upon what might be considered a nuisance,
that distinguished lawyer, who is considered authority, I believe,
in all our courts, states, among other things, that a libelous and
filthy press may be considered a nuisance, and abated as such.
Here, then one of the most eminent English barristers, whose works
are considered standard with us, declares that a libelous press
may be considered a nuisance; and our own charter, given us by the
legislature of this State, gives us the power to remove nuisances;
and by ordering that press abated as a nuisance, we conceived that
we were acting strictly in accordance with law. We made that order
in our corporate capacity, and the City Marshal carried it out. It
is possible {582} there may have been some better way, but I must
confess that I could not see it.
In relation to the writ served upon us, we were willing to abide
the consequences of our own acts, but were unwilling, in answering
a writ of that kind, to submit to illegal exactions sought to be
imposed upon us under the pretense of law, when we knew they were
in open violation of it.
When that document was presented to me by Mr. Bettisworth, I
offered, in the presence of more than 20 persons, to go to any
other magistrate, either in our city of Appanoose, or any other
place where we should be safe, but we all refused to put ourselves
into the power of a mob.
What right had that constable to refuse our request? He had none
according to law; for you know, Governor Ford, that the statute
law in Illinois is, that the parties served with the writ shall
go before him who issued it, or some other justice of the peace.
Why, then, should we be dragged to Carthage, where the law does
not compel us to go? Does not this look like many others of our
prosecutions with which you are acquainted? And had we not a right
to expect foul play?
This very act was a breach of law on his part--an assumption of
power that did not belong to him, and an attempt, at least, to
deprive us of our legal and constitutional rights and privileges.
What could we do under the circumstances different from what we
did do? We sued for, and obtained a writ of _habeas corpus_ from
the Municipal Court, by which we were delivered from the hands of
Constable Bettisworth, and brought before and acquitted by the
Municipal Court.
After our acquittal, in a conversation with Judge Thomas, although
he considered the acts of the party illegal, he advised, that to
satisfy the people, we had better go before another magistrate who
was not in our Church.
In accordance with his advice we went before Esq. Wells, with whom
you are well acquainted; both parties were present, witnesses were
called on both sides, the case was fully investigated, and we were
again dismissed.
And what is this pretended desire to enforce law, and these lying,
base rumors put into circulation for, but to seek, through mob
influence, under pretense of law, to make us submit to requisitions
that are contrary to law, and subversive of every principle of
justice?
And when you, sir, required us to come out here, we came, not
because it was legal, but because you required it of us, and we
were desirous of showing to you and to all men that we shrunk not
from the most rigid investigation of our acts.
{583} We certainly did expect other treatment than to be immured
in a jail at the instance of these men, and I think, from your
plighted faith, we had a right to, after disbanding our own forces,
and putting ourselves entirely in your hands; and now, after having
fulfilled my part, sir, as a man and an American citizen, I call
upon you, Governor Ford, and think I have a right to do so, to
deliver us from this place, and rescue us from this outrage that is
sought to be practiced upon us by a set of infamous scoundrels.
_Gov. Ford--_But you have placed men under arrest, detained men as
prisoners, and given passes to others, some of which I have seen.
_John P. Greene, City Marshal--_Perhaps I can explain. Since these
difficulties have commenced, you are aware that we have been placed
under very peculiar circumstance, our city has been placed under a
very rigid police guard; in addition to this, frequent guards have
been placed outside the city to prevent any sudden surprise, and
those guards have questioned suspected or suspicious persons as to
their business.
To strangers, in some instances, passes have been given, to prevent
difficulty in passing those guards. It is some of those passes that
you have seen. No person, sir, has been imprisoned without a legal
cause in our city.
_Gov.--_Why did you not give a more speedy answer to the _posse_
that I sent out?
_Gen. Smith.--_We had matters of importance to consult upon. Your
letter showed anything but an amicable spirit. We have suffered
immensely in Missouri from mobs, in loss of property, imprisonment,
and otherwise.
It took some time for us to weigh duly these matters. We could not
decide upon the matters of such importance immediately, and your
_posse_ were too hasty in returning. We were consulting for a large
people, and vast interests were at stake.
We had been outrageously imposed upon, and knew not how far we
could trust anyone; besides, a question necessarily arose, how
shall we come? Your request was that we should come unarmed. It
became a matter of serious importance to decide how far promises
could be trusted, and how far we were safe from mob violence.
_Geddes--_It certainly did look from all I have heard, from the
general spirit of violence and mobocracy that here prevails, that
it was not safe for you to come unprotected.
_Gov.--_I think that sufficient time was not allowed by the _posse_
for you to consult and get ready. They were too hasty; but I
suppose they found themselves bound by their orders. I think, too,
there is a {584} great deal of truth in what you say, and your
reasoning is plausible; yet, I must beg leave to differ from you
in relation to the acts of the City Council. That council in my
opinion, had no right to act in a legislative capacity, and in that
of the judiciary.
They should have passed a law in relation to the matter, and then
the Municipal Court, upon complaint, could have removed it; but for
the City Council to take upon themselves the law-making and the
execution of the laws, in my opinion, was wrong; besides, these men
ought to have had a hearing before their property was destroyed; to
destroy it without was an infringement of their rights; besides, it
is so contrary to the feelings of the American people to interfere
with the press.
And furthermore, I cannot but think that it would have been more
judicious for you to have gone with Mr. Bettisworth to Carthage,
notwithstanding the law did not require it. Concerning your being
in jail, I am sorry for that, I wish it had been otherwise. I hope
you will soon be released, but I cannot interfere.
_Joseph Smith--_Governor Ford, allow me, sir, to bring one thing
to your mind, that you seem to have overlooked. You state that you
think it would have been better for us to have submitted to the
requisition of Constable Bettisworth, and to have gone to Carthage.
Do you not know, sir, that that writ was served at the instance of
an anti-Mormon mob, who had passed resolutions and published them
to the effect that they would exterminate the Mormon leaders; and
are you not informed that Captain Anderson was not only threatened
when coming to Nauvoo, but had a gun fired at his boat by this
said mob at Warsaw, when coming up to Nauvoo, and that this very
thing was made use of as a means to get us into their hands, and we
could not, without taking an armed force with us, go there without,
according to their published declarations, going into the jaws of
death?
To have taken a force would only have fanned the excitement,
as they would have stated that we wanted to use intimidation,
therefore we thought it the most judicious to avail ourselves of
the protection of the law.
_Gov.--_I see, I see.
_Joseph Smith--_Furthermore, in relation to the press, you say that
you differ with me in opinion; be it so, the thing after all is a
legal difficulty, and the courts I should judge competent to decide
on that matter.
If our act was illegal, we are willing to meet it; and although
I cannot see the distinction that you draw about the acts of the
City Council, and what difference it could have made in point of
fact, law, or justice, between the City Council's acting together
or separate, or how {585} much more legal it would have been for
the Municipal Court, who were a part of the City Council, to act
separate, instead of with the councilors.
Yet, if it is deemed that we did a wrong in destroying that press,
we refuse not to pay for it. We are desirous to fulfill the law in
every particular, and are responsible for our acts.
You say that the parties ought to have had a hearing. Had it been
a civil suit, this of course would have been proper; but there was
a flagrant violation of every principle of right, a nuisance, and
it was abated on the same principle that any nuisance, stench, or
putrified carcass would have been removed.
Our first step, therefore, was to stop the foul, noisome, filthy
sheet, and then the next, in our opinion, would have been to have
prosecuted the men for a breech of public decency.
And furthermore, again, let me say, Governor Ford, I shall look
to you for our protection. I believe you are talking of going to
Nauvoo; if you go, sir, I wish to go along. I refuse not to answer
any law, but I do not consider myself safe here.
_Gov._ I am in hopes that you will be acquitted; but if I go, I
will certainly take you along. I do not, however, apprehend danger.
I think you are perfectly safe, either here or anywhere else. I
cannot, however, interfere with the law. I am placed in peculiar
circumstances and seem to be blamed by all parties.
_Joseph Smith--_Governor Ford, I ask nothing but what is legal,
I have a right to expect protection at least from you; for,
independent of law, you have pledged your faith, and that of the
State, for my protection, and I wish to go to Nauvoo.
_Gov.--_And you shall have protection, General Smith. I did not
make this promise without consulting my officers, who all pledged
their honor to its fulfillment. I do not know that I shall go
tomorrow to Nauvoo, but if I do, I will take you along. [2]
{586} _10:15 a.m.--_The Governor left after saying that the prisoners
were under his protection, and again pledging himself that they should
be protected from violence, and telling them that if the troops marched
the next morning to Nauvoo, as he then expected, they should probably
be taken along, in order to insure their personal safety, with how much
sincerity may be seen by the following affidavits:--
_Affidavit--Alfred Randall--Threats against the Prophet's life in
Carthage_.
TERRITORY OF UTAH,
GREAT SALT LAKE CITY. ss
Personally appeared before me, Thomas Bullock, Recorder of Great
Salt Lake County, Alfred Randall, who deposes and says, that about
ten o'clock on the morning of the (26th) twenty sixth day of June,
one thousand eight hundred and forty-four, he was in Carthage,
Hancock county, Illinois, and as the troops, under Governor Thomas
Ford, were in squads around the square, he went up to several
of them, and heard one of the soldiers say: "When I left home I
calculated a see old Joe dead before I returned," when several
others said, "So did I," "So did I," and "I'll be damned if I
don't," was the general reply.
One fellow then spoke up and said "I shouldn't wonder if there is
some damned Mormon hearing all we have to say." Another who stood
next to Randall, replied, "If I knew there was, I would run him
through with my bayonet."
In a few minutes Randall went to another crowd of soldiers, and
heard one say, "I guess this will be the last of old Joe." From
there Randall went to Hamilton's Hotel, where Governor Thomas Ford
was standing by the fence side, and heard another soldier tell
Governor Thomas Ford, "The soldiers are determined to see Joe Smith
dead before they leave here." Ford replied, "If you know of any
such thing keep it to yourself."
In a short time Randall started for his own home, stayed all night,
and arrived in Nauvoo on the twenty-seventh of June, when Governor
{587} Ford was making his notorious speech to the citizens. And
further this deponent saith not.
ALFRED RANDALL.
Subscribed and sworn to before me this twelfth day of February, one
thousand eight hundred and fifty-five.
THOMAS BULLOCK,
Recorder, Great Salt Lake County.
_Affidavit--Jonathan C. Wright--Conspiracy against the Prophet's
Life at Carthage_.
On the 26th day of June, A. D. 1844, near the mansion in the city
of Nauvoo, I fell in company with Col. Enoch C. March and Geo. T.
M. Davis, Esq.. from Alton, Illinois, editor of the_ Telegraph_,
who had just arrived from Carthage, where they said they had been
for some days, in company with Governor Ford and others, in council
upon the subject of the arrest and trial of Joseph and Hyrum Smith,
who were then prisoners in the county jail in Carthage.
After considerable conversation between myself and them on the
subject of the Mormon religion, and the reasons why I had embraced
that faith, and renounced my former religious discipline--viz, that
of the Methodists, Mr. March asked me what I thought of Joe Smith,
and if I had any hopes of his return to Nauvoo in safety.
I answered that I knew Joseph Smith was a true Prophet of the
living God, as good and virtuous a man as ever lived upon the
earth; that the Book or Mormon was true as holy writ, and was
brought forth precisely in the way and manner it purported to be,
by the gift and power of the Lord Almighty, and from no other
source; and that the revelations he had received and published were
eternal truth, and heaven and earth would pass away before one
jot or tittle of the same should fail, and all that he pretended
and testified to concerning the ministration of holy angels from
the heavens to him, the Urim and Thummim, the voice of God, his
correspondence with the heavens, was the truth and nothing but the
truth; and that in relation to his return I had no doubt but that
he would be honorably discharged upon his trial by the court, and
would be preserved in safety from the power of his enemies; that he
was in the hands of his God, whom he loved and faithfully served;
and He, who held the destinies of nations in His own hands, would
deliver him from his enemies, as He had done hundreds of times
before.
Col. March replied, "Mr. Wright, you are mistaken, and I know it;
you do not know what I know; I tell you they will kill Joe Smith
before he leaves Carthage, and I know it, and you never will see
him alive {588} again." Said I, "Enoch, I do not believe it, he is
in the hands of God, and God will deliver him." Says he, "I know
better; when you hear of him again, you will hear he is dead, and I
know it. The people at Carthage wanted permission from the Governor
to kill you all and burn up your city, and Ford (the Governor)
asked me if I thought it was best to suffer it. I replied, "No,
no, for God's sake, Ford, don't suffer it, that will never do, no
never. Just see for a moment, Ford, what that would do; it would
be the means of murdering thousands of innocent men, women and
children, and destroying thousands of dollars' worth of property,
and that would never do, it would not be sanctioned, it would
disgrace the nation. You have now got the principle men here under
your own control, they are all you want, what more do you want?
When they are out of the way the thing is settled, and the people
will be satisfied, and that is the easiest way you can dispose of
it; and Governor Ford concluded upon the whole that was the best
policy, and I know it will be done."
MAYOR'S OFFICE, GREAT SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH
TERRITORY,
Jan. 13th, A. D. 1855.
Personally appeared before me, Jedediah M. Grant, Mayor of said
City, Jonathan Calkins Wright, who being duly sworn, deposeth and
saith that the foregoing statement contained in his report of the
conversation between himself and Enoch C. March, in presence of
Geo. T. M. Davis, Esq., on the 26th day of June, 1844, in the city
of Nauvoo, is true to the best of his knowledge and belief; and
further this deponent saith not.
JONATHAN CALKINS WRIGHT.
Sworn to and subscribed before me, this 13th day of January, 1855,
in Great Salt Lake City, Utah Territory.
J. M. GRANT,
Mayor of Great Salt Lake City.
_Affidavit:--Orrin P. Rockwell--Gov. Ford in Nauvoo_.
Personally appeared before me, Thomas Bullock, County Recorder in
and for Great Salt Lake County, in the Territory of Utah, Orrin P.
Rockwell, who being first duly sworn, deposeth and saith that about
the hour of 3 o'clock in the afternoon of the 27th day of June,
one thousand eight hundred forty-four, a short time only before
Governor Ford addressed the citizens of Nauvoo, he (Ford) and his
suit occupied an upper room in the mansion of Joseph Smith, in the
city of Nauvoo, when he, the said Rockwell, had of necessity to
enter said upper room for his hat, and as he entered the door, all
were sitting silent except one man, who was standing behind a chair
making a speech, and while in the act of dropping his right hand
from an uplifted position, said. "The {589} deed is done before
this time," which were the only words I heard while in the room,
for on seeing me they all hushed in silence. At that time I could
not comprehend the meaning of the words, but in a few hours after
I understood them as referring to the murder of Joseph and Hyrum
Smith in Carthage jail.
ORRIN P. ROCKWELL,
Subscribed and sworn to before me, the fourteenth day of April,
1856.
THOMAS BULLOCK.
Recorder of Great Salt Lake County.
_Affidavit:--Wm. G. Sterrett--Conduct of Gov. Ford and Posse While
in Nauvoo_.
STATE OF DESERET, GREAT SALT LAKE COUNTY.
Personally appeared before me, Thomas Bullock, Recorder in and for
Great Salt Lake County, this third day of October, one thousand
eight hundred and fifty, William G. Sterrett, who being first duly
sworn, deposeth and saith that on the twenty-seventh day of June,
one thousand eight hundred and forty-four, in the city of Nauvoo,
county of Hancock, and State of Illinois, I heard Thomas Ford,
Governor of Illinois, address an assembly of several thousand
citizens, gathered around the frame of a building situated at the
corner of Water and Main streets. He reproached the people in
severe terms for the course they had taken in resisting the _posse
comitatus,_ and among other things, "The retribution thereof will
be terrible, and you must make up your minds for it. I hope you
will not make any more trouble, but be a law-abiding people, for if
I have to come again it will be worse for you."
And your deponent further saith, that about half-past five in the
afternoon the said Governor Thomas Ford and his guard visited the
Temple and the workshops on the Temple block,
Mr. Alpheus Cutler, one of the building committee of the Temple,
sent me to watch them in and about the Temple. I was close to the
Governor when one of his men called him to look at one of the oxen
of the font in the basement of the Temple, that had part of one
horn broken off. The Governor stepped up to it, and laying his hand
on it remarked, "This is the cow with the crumply horn, that we
read of." One of the staff continued, "That tossed the maiden all
forlorn," and they all had a laugh about it.
Several of the horns were broken off the oxen by the Governor's
attendants. A man who stood behind me said, "I'll be damned but I
should like to take one of those horns home with me, to show as a
curiosity, but it is a pity to break them off."
{590} After they had passed round the font, one of them remarked,
"This temple is a curious piece of workmanship, and it was a damned
shame that they did not let Joe Smith finish it, so that we could
have seen what sort of a finish he would have put on it, for it
is altogether a different style of architecture from any building
I have ever seen or read about." Another said, "But he is dead by
this time, and he will never see this temple again."
I replied, "They cannot kill him until he has finished his work."
The Governor thereupon gave a very significant grin, when one of
his suit who stood next to me said, "Whether he has finished his
work or not by God he will not see this place again, for he's
finished before this time."
Another of his suit pulled out his watch and said, "Governor, it's
time we were off, we have been here too long already. Whether
you go or not, I'm going to leave, and that damned quick." The
Governor said, "Yes, it's time for us to be going." They then all
left the stone shop, mounted their horses, which were hitched
near the temple, and went out of the city towards Carthage by way
of Mulholland Street, taking with them one of the horns that the
company had knocked off. Further this deponent saith not.
WM. G. STERRETT.
Sworn to and subscribed before me, this day and year first above
written.
THOMAS BULLOCK,
Great Salt Lake County Recorder.
While Joseph was writing at the jailor's desk, William Wall stepped up,
wanting to deliver a verbal message to him from his uncle John Smith.
He turned round to speak to Wall, but the guard refused to allow them
any communication.
At noon Joseph wrote to Judge Thomas as follows:
_Letter: Joseph Smith to Judge Thomas--Engaging Thomas as Legal
Counsel_.
CARTHAGE JAIL, June 26, 1844.
_His Hon. Judge Thomas_.
DEAR SIR,--You will perceive by my date that I am in prison. Myself
and brother Hyrum were arrested yesterday on charge of treason
without bringing us before the magistrate; last evening we were
committed {591} on a mittimus from Justice Robert F. Smith, stating
that we had been before the magistrate, which is _utterly false;_
but from the appearance of the case at present, we can have no
reasonable prospect of anything but partial decisions of law, and
all the prospect we have of justice being done is to get our case
on _habeas corpus_ before an impartial judge; the excitement and
prejudice is such in this place, testimony is of little avail.
Therefore, sir, I earnestly request your honor to repair to
Nauvoo without delay, and make yourself at home at my house until
the papers can be in readiness for you to bring us on _habeas
corpus._ Our witnesses are all at Nauvoo, and there you can easily
investigate the whole matter, and I will be responsible to you for
all the trouble and expense.
Footnotes:
1. This report of the Prophet's interview with Governor Ford, it is
only proper to say, was not written until a number of years after the
interview took place. (See ms. Statement, Feb. 22, 1847, on Atlantic
Ocean; also in _Taylor's Journal_, kept at Nauvoo, c. f. with "The
Martyrdom of Joseph and Hyrum Smith, opening paragraphs, published in
Tyler's "Mormon Battalion.") The extract above quoted is taken from
"Taylor's Martyrdom of Joseph and Hyrum Smith," written at the request
of George A. Smith and Wilford Woodruff "Church Historian," hence no
earlier than 1854-1856, since Geo. A. Smith did not become Historian
until the year first given, and Wilford Woodruff, assistant Historian
in the second. The interview therefore, though given in dialogue form,
can only be Elder Taylor's recollection of it, and could not be a
_verbatum_ report.
2. Thomas Gregg, author of the History of Hancock County, page 372,
gives the following statement of Col. Thomas Geddes mentioned in the
above interview as the companion of Governor Ford. If true, and it is
quite in keeping with all the circumstances and with both the character
and subsequent actions of the Governor, then it is a very important
statement as showing the double dealing of which Governor Ford was
always suspected in relation to his course with reference to the
difficulties between the citizens of Nauvoo and their enemies. And now
Col. Geddes as reported by Gregg:
"While the Smiths were in jail, I went to the jail in company with
Governor Ford, and there we conversed with them for some time,
the burden of Smith's talk being that they were only acting in
self-defense, and only wanted to be let alone. After leaving the jail,
and while returning from it, the Governor and I had still further
conversation about the subject matter. After some time the Governor
exclaimed, "O, it's all nonsense; you will have to drive these Mormons
out yet!" I then said: "If we undertake that, Governor, when the proper
time comes, will you interfere?" "No, I will not," said he; then, after
a pause, adding, "until you are through!"
{592}
CHAPTER XXXI.
THE PROPHET IN CARTHAGE PRISON--THE UNION OF JUDICIAL, EXECUTIVE, AND
MILITARY AUTHORITY IN DEALING WITH THE PRISONERS--THE LAST NIGHT IN
PRISON.
_Wednesday, June 26, 1844.--(Noon)--_Willard Richards made copies of
the orders of Joseph Smith as Mayor to Marshal John P. Greene, and as
Lieut.-General to Major-General Jonathan Dunham.
[Sidenote: The Prophet's Anxiety for His own Safety.]
Joseph remarked, "I have had a good deal of anxiety about my safety
since I left Nauvoo, which I never had before when I was under arrest.
I could not help those feelings, and they have depressed me." Most of
the forenoon was spent by Dan Jones and Col. Stephen Markham in hewing
with a penknife a warped door to get it on the latch, thus preparing to
fortify the place against any attack.
The Prophet, Patriarch, and their friends took turns preaching to
the guards, several of whom were relieved before their time was out,
because they admitted they were convinced of the innocence of the
prisoners. They frequently admitted they had been imposed upon, and
more than once it was heard, "Let us go home, boys, for I will not
fight any longer against these men."
[Sidenote: Hyrum as Comforter.]
During the day Hyrum encouraged Joseph to think that the Lord, for his
Church's sake, would release him from prison. Joseph replied, "Could my
brother, Hyrum but be liberated, it would not matter so much about me.
Poor Rigdon, I am glad he is gone to Pittsburgh out of the way; were he
to preside he {593} would lead the Church to destruction in less than
five years."
Dr. Richards was busily engaged writing as dictated by the Prophet,
and Elder Taylor amused him by singing. Joseph related his dream about
William and Wilson Law, also his dream about trying to save a steamboat
in a storm.
[Sidenote: Status of Prisoners Under the Law.]
One of the counsel for the prosecution expressed a wish to Esq. Reid,
that the prisoners should be brought out of jail for examination on the
charge of treason. He was answered that the prisoners had already been
committed "until discharged by due course of law," and therefore the
justice and constable had no further control of the prisoners, and that
if the prosecutors wished the prisoners brought out of jail, they might
bring them out on a writ of_ habeas corpus,_ or some other "due course
of law," when we would appear and defend.
_12:30, noon--_Dr. Bernhisel arrived at the jail.
Mr. Reid came with the following letter from General Deming.
_Letter--Gen. Miner R. Deming to Joseph Smith--Protection and
Admission to Presence of the Prophet_.
_Messrs. Smith,--_I was requested by the governor to order you
such protection as circumstances might require. The guard have
been acting upon the supposition that your protection excluded all
persons but those admitted by a pass. I have caused the officer of
the guard to be correctly instructed of his duties, so that you
need suffer no further inconvenience.
M. R. DEMING, Brig.-Gen'l.
Headquarters,
Carthage, June 26, 1844.
[Sidenote: Effect of a False Commitment.]
Counselor Reid said that he had got the magistrate on a pin hook, for
the magistrate had committed them without examination, and had no
further jurisdiction in the case, {594} and he would not agree to a
trial unless (Captain) Justice Smith would consent to go to Nauvoo for
examination, where witnesses could be had.
Reid said that a week ago, Harmon T. Wilson and another, had concocted
a scheme for a writ to take Joseph, and when he was apprehended, to
take him to Missouri; and Harmon T. Wilson returned from Missouri the
night before the burning of the press.
_1 p.m.--_Willard Richards wrote to his wife, and sent the letter by
Cyrus C. Canfield.
[Sidenote: Threats in Governor's Presence.]
It was common conversation on the camp ground and in the dining-room of
the hotel, in the presence of Governor Ford, "The law is too short for
these men, but they must not be suffered to go at large;" and, "if the
law will not reach them, powder and ball must."
[Sidenote: Loyalty of Mr. Stigall to His Prisoners.]
_Half past 2--_Constable Bettisworth came with Alexander Simpson, and
wanted to come in, with an order to the jailor demanding the prisoners;
but as Mr. Stigall, the jailor, could find no law authorizing a justice
of the peace to demand prisoners committed to his charge, he refused to
give them up until discharged from his custody by due course of the law.
[Sidenote: Conference of Gov. Ford and Justice Smith.]
Justice Robert F. Smith then inquired what he must do. Governor Ford
replied, "We have plenty of troops; there are the Carthage Greys under
your command bring them out." Joseph sent Lorenzo D. Wasson to inform
the Governor of what had just taken place, and also to inform his
counsel, Messrs. Reid and Woods.
_Twenty minutes to 3--_Dr. Bernhisel returned from the Governor, and
said apparently the Governor was doing all he could.
_3 p.m.--_Wrote to Messrs. Woods and Reid as follows which was carried
by Elder John Taylor.
{595}
_Letter: Joseph Smith to Messrs. Woods and Reid--Anent Excitement
in Carthage_.
CARTHAGE JAIL, June 26, 3 p.m.
_Messrs. Woods and Reid_.
SIRs,--Constable Bettisworth called a little while since, and
wanted to come in, the guard would not [allow it]. We have since
learned that he wanted to take us before the magistrate, and we
have since learned that there is some excitement because we did not
go, and we wish to see you without delay.
We are informed that Dr. Foster has said that they can do nothing
with us, only by powder and ball, as we have done nothing against
the law.
Yours,
JOSEPH SMITH.
Per W. RICHARDS.
[Sidenote: Joseph and Hyrum Smith Forced from Prison.]
_Twenty minutes to 4--_Upon the refusal of the jailor to give up the
prisoners, the constable with the company of Carthage Greys, under the
command of Frank Worrell, marched to the jail, and by intimidation
and threats, compelled the jailor, against his will and conviction of
duty, to deliver Joseph and Hyrum to the Constable, who forthwith, and
contrary to their wishes, compulsorily took them.
Joseph, seeing the mob gathering and assuming a threatening aspect,
concluded it best to go with them then, and putting on his hat, walked
boldly into the midst of a hollow square of the Carthage Greys; yet
evidently expecting to be massacred in the streets before arriving at
the Court House, politely locked arms with the worst mobocrat he could
see, and Hyrum locked arms with Joseph, followed by Dr. Richards,
and escorted by a guard. Elders Taylor, Jones, Markham, and Fullmer
followed, outside the hollow square, and accompanied them to the court
room.
[Sidenote: Prisoners Before the Court.]
_4 o'clock.--_Case called by Robert F. Smith, Captain of {596} the
Carthage Greys. The counsel for the prisoners then appeared, and called
for subpoenas for witnesses on the part of the prisoners, and expressed
their wish to go into the examination as soon as the witnesses could be
brought from Nauvoo to Carthage. This was objected to most vehemently
by the opposite counsel.
_4:25.--_Took copy of order to bring prisoners from jail for trial, as
follows:--
_Copy of Order to Bring Prisoners into Court_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
HANCOCK COUNTY. ss
To David Bettisworth, Constable of said county.
You are hereby commanded to bring the bodies of Joseph Smith and
Hyrum Smith from the jail of said county, forthwith before me at my
office, for an examination on the charge of treason, they having
been committed for safe keeping until trial could be had on such
examination, and the state now being ready for such examination.
Given under my hand and seal this 26th day of June, 1844.
(Signed) R. F. SMITH, J. P. [L. S.]
_4:30--_Made a copy of the list of witnesses.
_4:35--_C. L. Higbee, O. C. Skinner, Thos. Sharp, Sylvester Emmons and
Thos. Morrison, appeared as counsel for the State.
The writ was returned, endorsed,
"Served on June 25th," which was false.
Mr. Wood said, they were committed to jail without any examination
whatever.
Mr. Reid urged a continuance of the case till the witnesses could be
obtained from Nauvoo for the defense.
_4:45 p.m.--_Mr. Skinner suggested that the court adjourn until 12
o'clock tomorrow.
Mr. Wood proposed that the court adjourn until witnesses could be got
together, or until tomorrow at any time, and again adjourn if they are
not ready, without bringing the prisoners into court.
Mr. Reid hoped no compulsory measures would be made {597} use of by the
prosecution in this enlightened country.
Mr. Skinner: "If witnesses cannot be had after due diligence by the
defense, a continuance will be granted."
Court said this writ was served yesterday, (which was not the case,
unless it could be served without the prisoners or their counsel
knowing it).
[Sidenote: Examination Postponed.]
On motion of counsel for the prisoners, examination was postponed
till tomorrow at 12 o'clock noon, and subpoenas were granted to get
witnesses from Nauvoo, twenty miles distance, whereupon the prisoners
were remanded to prison with the following mittimus:--
_Second Mittimus Remanding Smith Brothers to Prison_.
STATE OF ILLINOIS,
HANCOCK COUNTY. ss
To the keeper of the jail of Hancock County, Illinois, greeting:
Whereas Joseph Smith and Hyrum Smith have been arrested and brought
before me, Robert F. Smith, a justice of the peace in and for said
county, for examination on the charge of treason against the State
of Illinois, and have applied for a continuance, which is granted
until the 27th June, 1844, at 12 o'clock, m.
These are therefore to command you to receive the said Joseph Smith
and Hyrum Smith into your custody in the jail of the county, there
to remain until they are brought before me for said examination
according to law.
Given under my hand and seal this 26th day of June, 1844.
R. F. SMITH, J. P. [L. S.]
_5:30.--_Returned to jail, and Joseph and Hyrum were thrust into close
confinement.
[Sidenote: Brave Patriarch John Smith.]
Patriarch John Smith came from Macedonia to jail to see his nephews
Joseph and Hyrum. The road was thronged with mobbers. Three of them
snapped their guns at him, and he was threatened by many others who
recognized him. The guard at the jail refused him admittance.
Joseph saw him through the prison window, and said to {598} the guard,
"Let the old gentleman come in, he is my uncle." The guard replied they
did not care who the hell he was uncle to, he should not go in.
[Sidenote: Pathetic Interview Between the Prophet and "Uncle John."]
Joseph replied, "You will not hinder so old and infirm a man as he
is from coming in," and then said, "Come in uncle;" on which, after
searching him closely the guard let him pass into the jail, where he
remained about an hour. He asked Joseph if he thought he should again
get out of the hands of his enemies, when he replied, "My brother
Hyrum thinks I shall. I wish you would tell the brethren in Macedonia
that they can see by this, that it has not been safe for me to visit
them; and tell Almon W. Babbitt I want him to come and assist me as an
attorney at my expected trial tomorrow before Captain R. F. Smith."
Father Smith then left the jail to convey this message to A. W.
Babbitt, who was at Macedonia.
_6 p.m.--_Copied witnesses' names and mittimus.
Dr. Bernhisel brought the following:--
_The Governor's Suggestions to the Jailor_.
I would advise the jailor to keep the Messrs. Smith in the room in
which I found them this morning, unless a closer confinement should
be clearly necessary to prevent an escape.
THOMAS FORD,
Governor and Commander in-Chief.
June 26th, 1844.
_6:15 p.m.--_Received the following letter from William Clayton:--
_Letter:--William Clayton to Joseph Smith--Conditions in Nauvoo_.
NAUVOO, June 26, 1844.
DEAR PRESIDENT,--
I write this line to inform you that Mr. Marsh, who lives down the
river, and of whom you have had corn, pork, etc., has sent word
if you {599} want any bail he is ready for one to any amount; and
further, that he has got some corn left which he wants you to have,
lest the mob get it. (We will endeavor to obtain it.)
They have already taken two loads, but he has charged them a dollar
a bushel for it.
The _Amaranth_ has just landed at the foot of Main Street, and
unloaded 200 bbls. flour,--95 for Mr. Kimball, and the balance for
Bryant.
Captain Singleton, who came at the head of the police this morning,
is sending a request to the Governor to call them home. He says he
finds no difficulties to settle here, but there is plenty to settle
at home. He furthermore says that while the police were at Carthage
they were treated as soldiers, but since they came to Nauvoo they
have been treated as gentlemen.
The company all got home safe and well last night.
A messenger is about to start forthwith to Judge Thomas.
All is peace in Nauvoo. Many threats keep coming that the mob are
determined to attack the city in your absence, but we have no fears.
With fervency and true friendship, I remain yours eternally,
WILLIAM CLAYTON.
This letter was sent from Nauvoo by Joel S. Miles. Joseph instructed
Cahoon to return to Nauvoo with all haste, and fetch a number of
documents for the promised trial.
_Twenty-five minutes to 7.--_Sent a message to Counselor Woods to get
subpoenas for Samuel James, Edward Hunter, and Philip B. Lewis, with
instructions to bring with them the papers that they carried to the
Governor at Springfield, and which the Governor had not seen, as he had
started for Carthage before they arrived at Springfield.
_Fifteen minutes to 8.--_Supper.
[Sidenote: Militia Council meeting at Carthage.]
_8 p.m.--_Counselors Woods and Reid called with Elder John P. Greene,
and said that the Governor and military officers had held a council
which had been called by the Governor, and they decided that the
Governor, and all the troops should march to Nauvoo at eight o'clock
to-morrow, except one company of about 50 men, in order to gratify
the troops, and return next day, the company {600} of fifty men to
be selected by the Governor from those of the troops whose fidelity
he could most rely on, to guard the prisoners, who should be left in
Carthage jail; and that their trial be deferred until Saturday, the
29th.
After the consultation, the justice, (Robert F. Smith), who was one of
the officers in command, altered the return of the subpoenas until the
29th. This was done without consulting either the prisoners or their
counsel.
_About 8:15, p.m.--_Patriarch John Smith met Lawyer Babbitt, and
delivered the message, when Babbitt replied "You are too late, I am
already engaged on the other side."
_9 p.m.--_Messrs. Woods, Reid, and Greene returned to Hamilton's Hotel.
_9:15.--_Elder John Taylor prayed. Willard Richards, John Taylor, John
S. Fullmer, Stephen Markham, and Dan Jones stayed with Joseph and Hyrum
in the front room.
[Sidenote: The Last Night in Carthage Prison.]
During the evening the Patriarch Hyrum Smith read and commented upon
extracts from the Book of Mormon, on the imprisonments and deliverance
of the servants of God for the Gospel's sake. Joseph bore a powerful
testimony to the guards of the divine authenticity of the Book of
Mormon, restoration of the Gospel, the administration of angels, and
that the kingdom of God was again established upon the earth, for the
sake of which he was then incarcerated in that prison, and not because
he had violated any law of God or man.
[Sidenote: Conversation with John S. Fullmer.]
They retired to rest late. Joseph and Hyrum occupied the only bedstead
in the room, while their friends lay side by side on the mattresses on
the floor. Dr. Richards sat up writing until his last candle left him
in the dark. The report of a gun fired close by caused Joseph to arise,
leave the bed, and lay himself on the floor, having Dan Jones on his
left, and John S. Fullmer on his right. {601} Joseph laid out his right
arm, and said to John S. Fullmer, "Lay your head on my arm for a pillow
Brother John;" and when all were quiet they conversed in a low tone
about the prospects of their deliverance. Joseph gave expression to
several presentiments that he had to die, and said "I would like to see
my family again," and "I would to God that I could preach to the Saints
in Nauvoo once more." Fullmer tried to rally his spirits, saying he
thought he would often have that privilege, when Joseph thanked him for
the remarks and good feelings expressed to him.
[Sidenote: Prophecy on the Head of Dan Jones.]
Soon after Dr. Richards retired to the bed which Joseph had left, and
when all were apparently fast asleep, Joseph whispered to Dan Jones,
"are you afraid to die?" Dan said, "Has that time come, think you?
Engaged in such a cause I do not think that death would have many
terrors." Joseph replied, "You will yet see Wales, and fulfill the
mission appointed you before you die."
{602}
CHAPTER XXXII.
THE DAY OF MARTYRDOM--THREATS--REPEATED WARNINGS OF THE PRISONERS'
DANGER GIVEN TO GOVERNOR FORD--THE CARTHAGE GREYS AS GUARDS.
_Thursday, 27, 5 a.m.--_John P. Greene and William W. Phelps called
at the jail, on their way to Nauvoo.
[Sidenote: Threats of Frank Worrell.]
_5:30 a.m.--_Arose. Joseph requested Dan Jones to descend and inquire
of the guard the cause of the disturbance in the night. Frank Worrell,
the officer of the guard, who was one of the Carthage Greys, in a very
bitter spirit said, "We have had too much trouble to bring Old Joe here
to let him ever escape alive, and unless you want to die with him you
had better leave before sundown; and you are not a damned bit better
than him for taking his part, and you'll see that I can prophesy better
than Old Joe, for neither he nor his brother, nor anyone who will
remain with them will see the sun set today."
[Sidenote: Governor Ford Warned of Worrell's Threat.]
Joseph directed Jones to go to Governor Ford and inform him what he
had been told by the officer of the guard. While Jones was going to
Governor Ford's quarters, he saw an assemblage of men, and heard one of
them, who was apparently a leader, making a speech, saying that, "Our
troops will be discharged this morning in obedience to orders, and for
a sham we will leave the town; but when the Governor and the McDonough
troops have left {603} for Nauvoo this afternoon, we will return and
kill those men, if we have to tear the jail down." This sentiment was
applauded by three cheers from the crowd.
Captain Jones went to the Governor, told him what had occurred in the
night, what the officer of the guard had said, and what he had heard
while coming to see him, and earnestly solicited him to avert the
danger.
His Excellency replied, "You are unnecessarily alarmed for the safety
of your friends, sir, the people are not that cruel."
[Sidenote: Jones' Warning to Gov. Ford.]
Irritated by such a remark, Jones urged the necessity of placing better
men to guard them than professed assassins, and said, "The Messrs.
Smith are American citizens, and have surrendered themselves to your
Excellency upon your pledging your honor for their safety; they are
also Master Masons, and as such I demand of you protection of their
lives."
Governor Ford's face turned pale, and Jones remarked, "If you do not do
this, I have but one more desire, and that is if you leave their lives
in the hands of those men to be sacrificed--"
"What is that, sir?" he asked in a hurried tone.
"It is," said Jones, "that the Almighty will preserve my life to a
proper time and place, that I may testify that you have been timely
warned of their danger."
Jones then returned to the prison, but the guard would not let him
enter. He again returned to the hotel, and found Governor Ford standing
in front of the McDonough troops, who were in line ready to escort him
to Nauvoo.
[Sidenote: Boasts of the Mob.]
The disbanded mob retired to the rear, shouting loudly that they were
only going a short distance out of town, when they would return and
kill old Joe and Hyrum as soon as the Governor was far enough out of
town.
Jones called the attention of the Governor to the threats {604}
then made, but the Governor took no notice of them, although it was
impossible for him to avoid hearing them.
Jones then requested the Governor to give him passports for himself and
friends to pass in and out of the prison, according to his promise made
to the prisoners. He refused to give them, but he told General Deming
to give one to Dr. Willard Richards, Joseph Smith's private secretary.
[Sidenote: Chauncy L. Higbee's Declared Intention to Kill the Prophet.]
While obtaining this, Jones' life was threatened, and Chauncey L.
Higbee said to him in the street, "We are determined to kill Joe and
Hyrum, and you had better go away to save yourself."
At 7 a.m., Joseph, Hyrum, Dr. Richards, Stephen Markham and John S.
Fullmer ate breakfast together. Mr. Crane ate with them, and wanted to
know if the report was true that Joseph fainted three times on Tuesday,
while being exhibited to the troops. He was told it was a false report.
_8 a.m.--_Cyrus H. Wheelock, at Joseph's request, applied to the
Governor, and obtained the following passes:
_Cyrus H. Wheelock's Passes_.
Suffer Mr. C. H. Wheelock to pass in to visit General Joseph Smith
and friends in Carthage jail unmolested.
THOMAS FORD,
Governor and Commander-in-Chief.
June, 27th, 1844.
Protect Mr. C. H. Wheelock in passing to and from Carthage and
Nauvoo.
THOMAS FORD,
Governor and Commander-in-Chief.
June 27th, 1844.
While receiving these passes he related to the Governor the numerous
threats he had heard.
John S. Fullmer went to the Governor to get a pass.
_8:20 a.m.--_Joseph wrote to Emma as follows:
{605} _Letter: Joseph Smith to Emma Smith--Prophet's Instruction as
to Reception of the Governor_.
CARTHAGE JAIL, June 27th, 1844.
20 minutes past eight a.m.
DEAR EMMA.--The Governor continues his courtesies, and permits us
to see our friends. We hear this morning that the Governor will
not go down with his troops today to Nauvoo, as we anticipated
last evening; but if he does come down with his troops you will be
protected; and I want you to tell Brother Dunham to instruct the
people to stay at home and attend to their own business, and let
there be no groups or gathering together, unless by permission of
the Governor, they are called together to receive communications
from the Governor, which would please our people, but let the
Governor direct.
Brother Dunham of course will obey the orders of the government
officers, and render them the assistance they require. There is no
danger of any extermination order. Should there be a mutiny among
the troops (which we do not anticipate, excitement is abating) a
part will remain loyal and stand for the defense of the state and
our rights.
There is one principle which is eternal; it is the duty of all men
to protect their lives and the lives of the household, whenever
necessity requires, and no power has a right to forbid it, should
the last extreme arrive, but I anticipate no such extreme, but
caution is the parent of safety.
JOSEPH SMITH.
P. S.--Dear Emma, I am very much resigned to my lot, knowing I am
justified, and have done the best that could be done. Give my love
to the children and all my friends, Mr. Brewer, and all who inquire
after me; and as for treason, I know that I have not committed any,
and they cannot prove anything of the kind, so you need not have
any fears that anything can happen to us on that account. May God
bless you all. Amen.
_8:30.--_John S. Fullmer returned to jail.
_9:40 a.m.--_Mr. Woods and Mr. Reid called. They said another
consultation of the officers had taken place, and the former orders
of the Governor for marching to Nauvoo with the whole army were
countermanded.
[Sidenote: Dr. Southwick's Report of the Carthage Meeting.]
Dr. Southwick was in the meeting, seeing what was going on. He
afterward told Stephen Markham that the purport of the meeting was to
take into consideration the best way to stop Joseph Smith's career,
as his views on {606} government were widely circulated and took like
wildfire. They said if he did not get into the Presidential chair
this election, he would be sure to the next time; and if Illinois and
Missouri would join together and kill him, they would not be brought to
justice for it. There were delegates in said meeting from every state
in the Union except three. Governor Ford and Captain Smith were also in
the meeting.
[Sidenote: Appointment of the Carthage Greys to Guard the Prisoners.]
Captain Dunn and his company were ordered to accompany the Governor
to Nauvoo. The Carthage Greys, who had but two days before been under
arrest for insulting the commanding general, and whose conduct had been
more hostile to the prisoners than that of any other company, were
selected by Governor Ford to guard the prisoners at the jail; and other
troops composed of the mob whom the Governor had found at Carthage, and
had mustered into the service of the State and who had been promised
"full satisfaction" and that they should be marched to Nauvoo, were
disbanded and discharged in Carthage; yet Governor Ford suffered two or
three hundred armed men to remain encamped about eight miles off on the
Warsaw road, [1] apparently under the control of Col. Levi Williams,
a notoriously sworn enemy to Joseph, and who had on many occasions
threatened the destruction of Nauvoo and the death of Joseph. Moreover
it was the duty of {607} the Governor to dismiss the troops into the
hands of their several officers in order to be marched home and there
disbanded, and not to have disbanded them at a distance from home,
and at a time and place when they were predisposed to acts of lawless
violence, rapine and murder.
[Sidenote: Wheelock's Remonstrance to Gov. Ford.]
Cyrus H. Wheelock, states that previous to leaving Carthage he said to
the Governor, "Sir you must be aware by this time that the prisoners
have no fears in relation to any lawful demands made against them,
but you have heard sufficient to justify you in the belief that their
enemies would destroy them if they had them in their power; and now,
sir, I am about to leave for Nauvoo, and I fear for those men; they
are safe as regards the law, but they are not safe from the hands of
traitors, and midnight assassins who thirst for their blood and have
determined to spill it; and under these circumstances I leave with a
heavy heart."
Ford replied: "I was never in such a dilemma in my life; but your
friends shall be protected, and have a fair trial by the law; in this
_pledge_ I am not alone; I have obtained the _pledge_ of the whole of
the army to sustain me."
[Sidenote: Arms Given to the Prisoners.]
After receiving these assurances, Wheelock prepared to visit the
prison. The morning being a little rainy, favored his wearing an
overcoat, in the side pocket of which he was enabled to carry a six
shooter, and he passed the guard unmolested. During his visit in the
prison he slipped the revolver into Joseph's pocket. Joseph examined
it, and asked Wheelock if he had not better retain it for his own
protection.
This was a providential circumstance, as most other persons had been
very rigidly searched. Joseph then handed the single barrel pistol
which had been given him by John S. Fullmer, to his brother Hyrum, and
said, {608} "You may have use for this." Brother Hyrum observed, "I
hate to use such things or to see them used." "So do I," said Joseph,
"but we may have to, to defend ourselves;" upon this Hyrum took the
pistol.
Wheelock was intrusted with a verbal request to the commanders of the
Legion to avoid all military display, or any other movement calculated
to produce excitement during the Governor's visit. He was especially
charged to use all the influence he possessed to have the brethren and
friends of Joseph remain perfectly calm and quiet, inasmuch as they
respected the feelings and well-being of the Prophet and Patriarch.
[Sidenote: Reflections of the Prophet on Exposing Wickedness.]
Said Joseph, "Our lives have already become jeopardized by revealing
the wicked and bloodthirsty purposes of our enemies; and for the future
we must cease to do so. All we have said about them is truth, but it is
not always wise to relate all the truth. Even Jesus, the Son of God had
to refrain from doing so, and had to restrain His feelings many times
for the safety of Himself and His followers, and had to conceal the
righteous purposes of His heart in relation to many things pertaining
to His Father's kingdom. When still a boy He had all the intelligence
necessary to enable Him to rule and govern the kingdom of the Jews,
and could reason with the wisest and most profound doctors of law and
divinity, and make their theories and practice to appear like folly
compared with the wisdom He possessed; but He was a boy only, and
lacked physical strength even to defend His own person, and was subject
to cold, to hunger and to death. So it is with the Church of Jesus
Christ of Latter-day Saints; we have the revelation of Jesus, and the
knowledge within us is sufficient to organize a righteous government
upon the earth, and to give universal peace to all mankind, if they
would receive it, but we lack the physical strength, as did our Savior
when a child, to defend our principles, and we have of necessity to be
afflicted, persecuted and smitten, and to {609} bear it patiently until
Jacob is of age, then he will take care of himself."
Wheelock took a list of witnesses' names that were wanted for the
expected trial on Saturday. When the list was read over, a number of
names were stricken out, among whom were Alpheus Cutler and Reynolds
Cahoon, it being deemed by Brother Hyrum unnecessary for them to
attend. Brother Joseph asked why they should not come. Hyrum answered,
"They may be very good men, but they don't know enough to answer a
question properly." Brother Joseph remarked, "That is sufficient
reason."
[Sidenote: The Prisoner's Messages to Friends in Nauvoo.]
The prisoners also sent many verbal messages to their families. They
were so numerous that Dr. Richards proposed writing them all down,
fearing Wheelock might forget, but Brother Hyrum fastened his eyes
upon him, and with a look of penetration said, "Brother Wheelock will
remember all that we tell him, and he will never forget the occurrences
of this day."
Joseph related the following dream which he had last night:
[Sidenote: The Prophet's Dream of his Kirtland Farm]
"I was back in Kirtland, Ohio, and thought I would take a walk out
by myself, and view my old farm, which I found grown up with weeds
and brambles, and altogether bearing evidence of neglect and want of
culture. I went into the barn, which I found without floor or doors,
with the weather-boarding off, and was altogether in keeping with the
farm.
"While I viewed the desolation around me, and was contemplating how it
might be recovered from the curse upon it, there came rushing into the
barn a company of furious men, who commenced to pick a quarrel with me.
"The leader of the party ordered me to leave the barn and farm,
stating it was none of mine, and that I must give up all hope of ever
possessing it.
"I told him the farm was given me by the Church, and {610} although I
had not had any use of it for some time back, still I had not sold it,
and according to righteous principles it belonged to me or the Church.
"He then grew furious and began to rail upon me, and threaten me, and
said it never did belong to me nor to the Church.
"I then told him that I did not think it worth contending about, that I
had no desire to live upon it in its present state, and if he thought
he had a better right I would not quarrel with him about it but leave;
but my assurance that I would not trouble him at present did not
seem to satisfy him, as he seemed determined to quarrel with me, and
threatened me with the destruction of my body.
"While he was thus engaged, pouring out his bitter words upon me, a
rabble rushed in and nearly filled the barn, drew out their knives, and
began to quarrel among themselves for the premises, and for a moment
forgot me, at which time I took the opportunity to walk out of the barn
about up to my ankles in mud.
"When I was a little distance from the barn, I heard them screeching
and screaming in a very distressed manner, as it appeared they had
engaged in a general fight with their knives. While they were thus
engaged, the dream or vision ended."
[Sidenote: Testimony of Joseph and Hyrum to the Book of Mormon.]
Both Joseph and Hyrum bore a faithful testimony to the Latter-day
work, and the coming forth of the Book of Mormon, and prophesied of
the triumph of the Gospel over all the earth, exhorting the brethren
present to faithfulness and persevering diligence in proclaiming the
Gospel, building up the Temple, and performing all the duties connected
with our holy religion.
Joseph dictated the following postscript to Emma:
_Letter: Postscript_.
_P. S.--20 minutes to 10.--_I just learn that the Governor is
about to disband his troops, all but a guard to protect us and the
peace, and {611} come himself to Nauvoo and deliver a speech to the
people. This is right as I suppose.
_He afterwards wrote a few lines with his own hand, which were not
copied_.
The letter was sent by Joel S. Mills and Cyrus H. Wheelock.
[Sidenote: Gov. Ford Warned of the Conspiracy Against Prisoner's Lives.]
John P. Greene, (Nauvoo city marshal) told Governor Ford that if he
went to Nauvoo, leaving only the Carthage Greys to guard the jail,
that there was a conspiracy on foot to take the lives of Joseph and
Hyrum Smith during his absence, to which the Governor replied, "Marshal
Greene, you are too enthusiastic."
Footnotes:
1. It is the record of the case, however, that Governor Ford did send
an order disbanding the regiment from Warsaw which he had ordered to
rendezvous at Golden's Point for the purpose of marching with the rest
of the Governor's troops into Nauvoo. "The Governor," remarks the
late John Hay, who is the authority for the incident of disbanding
the Warsaw troops--"the Governor, fearing he could not control the
inflammable material he had gathered together, had determined to
scatter it again" (_Atlantic Monthly,_ December, 1869). The courier of
the Governor to the Warsaw troops was Mr. David Matthews, a well-known
citizen of Warsaw. But after receiving the order for disbandment, while
most of the troops returned to their homes, about one hundred and fifty
volunteered to follow several of the militia captains--leaders on their
own responsibility--to Nauvoo; of whom about seventy-five reached that
place and participated in the murder of the Brothers Smith.
{612}
CHAPTER XXXIII.
DEPARTURE OF GOVERNOR FORD FOR NAUVOO--THE AFTERNOON IN CARTHAGE
PRISON--THE ASSAULT ON THE PRISON--THE MARTYRDOM OF JOSEPH AND HYRUM
SMITH.
_Thursday, June 27, [continued] 10:30.,--_Governor Ford went to
Nauvoo some time this forenoon, escorted by a portion of his troops,
most friendly to the prisoners, and leaving the known enemies of the
Prophet, ostensibly to guard the jail, having previously disbanded the
remainder.
Joseph sent a request to the Governor by Dan Jones for a pass for his
private secretary, Dr. Willard Richards.
_11 a.m.--_John S. Fullmer left the jail for Nauvoo, with a verbal
charge to assist Wheelock in gathering and forwarding witnesses for the
promised trial.
James W. Woods, Esq., Joseph's principal lawyer, left Carthage for
Nauvoo.
_11:20 a.m.--_Dan Jones returned with the following pass for Dr.
Richards:--
_Pass for Willard Richards_.
Permit Dr. Richards, the private secretary of Joseph Smith, to be
with him, if he desires it, and to pass and repass the guard.
THOMAS FORD,
Commander-in-Chief.
June 27th, 1844.
Jones said he could not get one for himself.
Dan Jones met Almon W. Babbitt in the street, and informed him that
Joseph wanted to see him.
{613} _11:30.--_A. W. Babbitt arrived at the jail and read a letter
from Oliver Cowdery.
Joseph, Hyrum, and Dr. Richards tried to get Jones past the guard, but
they persisted in refusing to admit him.
_12:20 noon.--_Joseph wrote for Lawyer Browning of Quincy to come up on
Saturday as his attorney, as follows:--
_Letter: Joseph Smith to O. H. Browning--Engaging Browning as Legal
Counsel_.
CARTHAGE JAIL, June 27th, 1844.
_Lawyer Browning_:--
SIR.--Myself and brother Hyrum are in jail on charge of treason,
to come up for examination on Saturday morning, 29th inst., and we
request your professional services at that time, on our defense,
without fail.
Most respectfully, your servant,
JOSEPH SMITH.
P. S.--There is no cause of action, for we have not been guilty of
any crime, neither is there any just cause of suspicion against us;
but certain circumstances make your attendance very necessary.
J. S.
[Sidenote: The Guard's False Alarm Over the Nauvoo Legion.]
Almon W. Babbitt took the letter and left the jail. He handed it to
Jones, with directions to take it to Quincy forthwith. The guard being
aware of the letter, told the mob that, "old Joe" had sent orders
to raise the Nauvoo Legion to come and rescue him. The mob gathered
around Jones, and demanded the letter; some of them wanted to take it
from him by force, and said that Jones should not get out of Carthage
alive, as a dozen men had started off with their rifles to waylay him
in the woods. Having previously ordered his horse, Jones took advantage
of their disagreement, and started off at full speed. He, by mistake,
took the Warsaw road, and so avoided the men who were lying in wait for
him. When he emerged on the prairie, he saw the Governor and his {614}
posse, whereupon he left the Warsaw road for the Nauvoo road.
Dr. Southwick called at the jail. Joseph gave him a note to Governor
Ford or General Deming, requesting them to furnish him with a pass.
_1:15 p.m.--_Joseph, Hyrum, and Willard dined in their room. Taylor and
Markham dined below.
[Sidenote: Markham Forced out of Carthage.]
_1:30 p.m.--_Dr. Richards was taken sick, when Joseph said, "Brother
Markham, as you have a pass from the Governor to go in and out of
the jail, go and get the doctor something that he needs to settle
his stomach," and Markham went out for medicine. When he had got
the remedies desired, and was returning to jail, a man by the name
of Stewart called out, "Old man, you have got to leave town in five
minutes." Markham replied, "I shall not do it." A company of Carthage
Greys gathered round him, put him on his horse, and forced him out of
the town at the point of the bayonet.
_3:15 p.m.--_The guard began to be more severe in their operations,
threatening among themselves, and telling what they would do when the
excitement was over.
Elder Taylor sang the following:--
_The Poor Wayfaring Man of Grief_.
A poor wayfaring man of grief
Had often crossed me on my way,
Who sued so humbly for relief
That I could never answer, Nay.
I had not power to ask his name;
Whither he went or whence he came;
Yet there was something in his eye
That won my love, I knew not why.
Once, when my scanty meal was spread,
He entered--not a word he spake!
Just perishing for want of bread;
I gave him all; he blessed it, brake,
And ate, but gave me part again;
Mine was an angel's portion then,
For while I fed with eager haste,
The crust was manna to my taste.
{615}
I spied him where a fountain burst,
Clear from the rock--his strength was gone,
The heedless water mocked his thirst,
He heard it, saw it hurrying on.
I ran and raised the suff'rer up;
Thrice from the stream he drain'd my cup,
Dipp'd, and returned it running o'er;
I drank and never thirsted more.
'Twas night, the floods were out, it blew
A winter hurricane aloof;
I heard his voice, abroad, and flew
To bid him welcome to my roof.
I warmed, I clothed, I cheered my guest,
I laid him on my couch to rest;
Then made the earth my bed, and seem'd
In Eden's garden while I dream'd.
Stripp'd, wounded, beaten nigh to death,
I found him by the highway side;
I rous'd his pulse, brought back his breath,
Revived his spirit, and supplied
Wine, oil, refreshment--he was heal'd;
I had myself a wound conceal'd;
But from that hour forgot the smart,
And peace bound up my broken heart,
In pris'n I saw him next--condemned
To meet a traitor's doom at morn;
The tide of lying tongues I stemmed.
And honored him 'mid shame and scorn.
My friendship's utmost zeal to try,
He asked, if I for him would die;
The flesh was weak, my blood ran chill,
But the free spirit cried, "I will!"
Then in a moment to my view,
The stranger started from disguise:
The tokens in his hands I knew,
The Savior stood before mine eyes.
He spake--and my poor name he named--
"Of me thou hast not been asham'd;
These deeds shall thy memorial be;
Fear not thou didst them unto me."
When he got through, Joseph requested him to sing it again, which he
did.
Hyrum read extracts from Josephus.
_4 p.m.--_The guard was again changed, only eight men being stationed
at the jail, whilst the main body of {616} the Carthage Greys were in
camp about a quarter of a mile distant, on the public square.
_4:15 p.m.--_Joseph commenced conversing with the guard about Joseph H.
Jackson, William and Wilson Law, and others of his persecutors.
Hyrum and Dr. Richards conversed together until quarter past five.
_5 p.m.--_Jailor Stigall returned to the jail, and said that Stephen
Markham had been surrounded by a mob, who had driven him out of
Carthage, and he had gone to Nauvoo.
[Sidenote: Anxiety of the Jailor.]
Stigall suggested that they would be safer in the cell. Joseph said,
"After supper we will go in." Mr. Stigall went out, and Joseph said to
Dr. Richards, "If we go into the cell, will you go in with us?" The
doctor answered, "Brother Joseph you did not ask me to cross the river
with you--you did not ask me to come to Carthage--you did not ask me to
come to jail with you--and do you think I would forsake you now? But
I will tell you what I will do; if you are condemned to be hung for
treason, I will be hung in your stead, and you shall go free." Joseph
said "You cannot." The doctor replied, "I will."
[Sidenote: Wine for the Guard.]
Before the jailor came in, his boy brought in some water, and said the
guard wanted some wine. Joseph gave Dr. Richards two dollars to give
the guard; but the guard said one was enough, and would take no more.
The guard immediately sent for a bottle of wine, pipes, and two small
papers of tobacco; and one of the guards brought them into the jail
soon after the jailor went out. Dr. Richards uncorked the bottle, and
presented a glass to Joseph, who tasted, as also Brother Taylor and
the doctor, and the bottle was then given to the guard, who turned to
go out. When at the top of the stairs some one below called him two or
three times, and he went down.
[Sidenote: The Assault on the Jail.]
{617} Immediately there was a little rustling at the outer door of the
jail, and a cry of surrender, and also a discharge of three or four
firearms followed instantly. The doctor glanced an eye by the curtain
of the window, and saw about a hundred armed men around the door.
It is said that the guard elevated their firelocks, and boisterously
threatening the mob discharged their firearms over their heads. The mob
encircled the building, and some of them rushed by the guard up the
flight of stairs, burst open the door, and began the work of death,
while others fired in through the open windows.
[Sidenote: The Prisoner's Defense.]
In the meantime Joseph, Hyrum, and Elder Taylor had their coats off.
Joseph sprang to his coat for his six-shooter, Hyrum for his single
barrel, Taylor for Markham's large hickory cane, and Dr. Richards for
Taylor's cane. All sprang against the door, the balls whistled up the
stairway, and in an instant one came through the door.
Joseph Smith, John Taylor and Dr. Richards sprang to the left of the
door, and tried to knock aside the guns of the ruffians.
[Sidenote: Death of Hyrum Smith.]
Hyrum was retreating back in front of the door and snapped his pistol,
when a ball struck him in the left side of his nose, and he fell on
his back on the floor saying, "I am a dead man!" As he fell on the
floor another ball from the outside entered his left side, and passed
through his body with such force that it completely broke to pieces the
watch he wore in his vest pocket, and at the same instant another ball
from the door grazed his breast, and entered his head by the throat;
subsequently a fourth ball entered his left leg.
A shower of balls was pouring through all parts of the room, many of
which lodged in the ceiling just above the head of Hyrum.
[Sidenote: The "Handsome Fight" of Joseph Smith and John Taylor.]
{618} Joseph reached round the door casing, and discharged his six
shooter into the passage, some barrels missing fire. Continual
discharges of musketry came into the room. Elder Taylor continued
parrying the guns until they had got them about half their length into
the room, when he found that resistance was vain, and he attempted to
jump out of the window, where a ball fired from within struck him on
his left thigh, hitting the bone, and passing through to within half an
inch of the other side. He fell on the window sill, when a ball fired
from the outside struck his watch in his vest pocket, and threw him
back into the room.
[Sidenote: Taylor Wounded and Helpless.]
After he fell into the room he was hit by two more balls, one of them
injuring his left wrist considerably, and the other entering at the
side of the bone just below the left knee. He rolled under the bed,
which was at the right of the window in the south-east corner of the
room.
While he lay under the bed he was fired at several times from the
stairway; one ball struck him on the left hip, which tore the flesh in
a shocking manner, and large quantities of blood were scattered upon
the wall and floor.
When Hyrum fell, Joseph exclaimed, "Oh dear, brother Hyrum!" and
opening the door a few inches he discharged his six shooter in the
stairway (as stated before), two or three barrels of which missed fire.
[Sidenote: The Death of the Prophet.]
Joseph, seeing there was no safety in the room, and no doubt thinking
that it would save the lives of his brethren in the room if he could
get out, turned calmly from the door, dropped his pistol on the floor
and sprang into the window when two balls pierced him from the door,
and one entered his right breast from without, and he fell outward into
the hands of his murderers, exclaiming. "O Lord, my God!"
[Sidenote: Willard Richard's Remarkable Escape.]
{619} Dr. Richards' escape was miraculous; he being a very large man,
and in the midst of a shower of balls, yet he stood unscathed, with
the exception of a ball which grazed the tip end of the lower part of
his left ear. His escape fulfilled literally a prophecy which Joseph
made over a year previously, that the time would come that the balls
would fly around him like hail, and he should see his friends fall on
the right and on the left, but that there should not be a hole in his
garment.
The following is copied from the_ Times and Seasons_:--
TWO MINUTES IN JAIL.
Possibly the following events occupied near three minutes, but I
think only about two, and have penned them for the gratification of
many friends.
CARTHAGE, June 27, 1844.
A shower of musket balls were thrown up the stairway against the
door of the prison in the second story, followed by many rapid
footsteps.
While Generals Joseph and Hyrum Smith, Mr. Taylor, and myself, who
were in the front chamber, closed the door of our room against the
entry at the head of the stairs, and placed ourselves against it,
there being no lock on the door, and no catch that was usable.
The door is a common panel, and as soon as we heard the feet at the
stairs head, a ball was sent through the door, which passed between
us, and showed that our enemies were desperadoes, and we must
change our position.
General Joseph Smith, Mr. Taylor and myself sprang back to
the front part of the room, and General Hyrum Smith retreated
two-thirds across the chamber directly in front of and facing the
door.
A ball was sent through the door which hit Hyrum on the side of his
nose, when he fell backwards, extended at length, without moving
his feet.
From the holes in his vest (the day was warm, and no one had his
coat on but myself), pantaloons, drawers, and shirt, it appears
evident that a ball must have been thrown from without, through
the window, {620} which entered his back on the right side, and
passing through, lodged against his watch, which was in his right
vest pocket, completely pulverizing the crystal and face, tearing
off the hands and mashing the whole body of the watch. At the same
instant the ball from the door entered his nose.
As he struck the floor he exclaimed emphatically, "I am a dead
man." Joseph looked towards him and responded, "Oh, dear brother
Hyrum!" and opening the door two or three inches with his left
hand, discharged one barrel of a six shooter (pistol) at random in
the entry, from whence a ball grazed Hyrum's breast, and entering
his throat passed into his head, while other muskets were aimed at
him and some balls hit him.
Joseph continued snapping his revolver round the casing of the door
into the space as before, three barrels of which missed fire, while
Mr. Taylor with a walking stick stood by his side and knocked down
the bayonets and muskets which were constantly discharging through
the doorway, while I stood by him, ready to lend any assistance,
with another stick, but could not come within striking distance
without going directly before the muzzle of the guns.
When the revolver failed, we had no more firearms, and expected an
immediate rush of the mob, and the doorway full of muskets, half
way in the room, and no hope but instant death from within.
Mr. Taylor rushed into the window, which is some fifteen or twenty
feet from the ground. When his body was nearly on a balance, a
ball from the door within entered his leg, and a ball from without
struck his watch, a patent lever, in his vest pocket near the left
breast, and smashed it into "pie," leaving the hands standing at 5
o'clock, 16 minutes, and 26 seconds, the force of which ball threw
him back on the floor, and he rolled under the bed which stood by
his side, where he lay motionless, the mob from the door continuing
to fire upon him, cutting away a piece of flesh from his left hip
as large as a man's hand, and were hindered only by my knocking
down their muzzles with a stick; while they continued to reach
their guns into the room, probably left handed, and aimed their
discharge so far round as almost to reach us in the corner of the
room to where we retreated and dodged, and then I recommenced the
attack with my stick.
Joseph attempted, as the last resort, to leap the same window from
whence Mr. Taylor fell, when two balls pierced him from the door,
and one entered his right breast from without, and he fell outward,
exclaiming, "Oh Lord, my God!" As his feet went out of the window
my head went in, the balls whistling all around. He fell on his
left side a dead man.
{621} At this instant the cry was raised. "He's leaped the window!"
and the mob on the stairs and in the entry ran out.
I withdrew from the window, thinking it of no use to leap out on a
hundred bayonets, then around General Joseph Smith's body.
Not satisfied with this I again reached my head out of the window,
and watched some seconds to see if there were any signs of life,
regardless of my own, determined to see the end of him I loved.
Being fully satisfied that he was dead, with a hundred men near the
body and more coming round the corner of the jail, and expecting a
return to our room, I rushed towards the prison door, at the head
of the stairs, and through the entry from whence the firing had
proceeded, to learn if the doors into the prison were open.
When near the entry, Mr. Taylor called out, "Take me." I pressed my
way until I found all doors unbarred, returning instantly, caught
Mr. Taylor under my arm and rushed by the stairs into the dungeon,
or inner prison, stretched him on the floor and covered him with a
bed in such a manner as not likely to be perceived, expecting an
immediate return of the mob.
I said to Mr. Taylor, "This is a hard case to lay you on the floor,
but if your wounds are not fatal, I want you to live to tell the
story." I expected to be shot the next moment, and stood before the
door awaiting the onset.
WILLARD RICHARDS.
While Willard Richards and John Taylor were in the cell, a company
of the mob again rushed up stairs, but finding only the dead body
of Hyrum, they were again descending the stairs, when a loud cry
was heard, "The Mormons are coming!" which caused the whole band of
murderers to flee precipitately to the woods.
The following communication was written and sent to Nauvoo:--
_First Message to Nauvoo_.
CARTHAGE JAIL, 8:05 o'clock, p.m., June 27th, 1844.
Joseph and Hyrum are dead. Taylor wounded, not very badly. [1] I am
well. Our guard was forced, as we believe, by a band of Missourians
{622} from 100 to 200. The job was done in an instant, and the
party fled towards Nauvoo instantly. This is as I believe it. The
citizens here are afraid of the Mormons attacking them. I promise
them no!
W. RICHARDS,
JOHN TAYLOR.
N. B.--The citizens promise us protection. Alarm guns have been
fired.
The above note was addressed to Governor Ford, Gen. Dunham, Col.
Markham, Emma Smith, Nauvoo.
This letter was given to William and John Barnes, two mobocrats, who
were afraid to go to Nauvoo, fearing that the Mormons would kill them
and lay everything waste about Carthage; they therefore carried it
to Arza Adams, who was sick with the ague and fever, about two and a
half miles north of Carthage. He was afraid to go on the main road;
and after two hours persuasion Mr. Benjamin Leyland consented to
pilot Adams by "a blind road," and about midnight they started, and
arrived in Nauvoo a little after sunrise. They found the news had
arrived before them, for about a dozen men were talking about it at
the Mansion, but not knowing what to believe until Adams handed in the
above official letter.
Footnotes:
1. This statement was made at Elder Taylor's request, that he might not
alarm his family he was, however, severely wounded, as the narrative in
the text bears witness. When the note above was being prepared, Elder
Taylor said, "Brother Richards, say I am _slightly_ wounded;" and when
it was brought to him he signed his name as quickly as he could, lest
the tremor of his hand should be noticed and the fears of his family
aroused (_The Life of John Taylor,_ pp. 144-5).
{623}
CHAPTER XXXIV.
GOVERNOR FORD IN NAUVOO--NEWS OF THE MARTYRDOM--MESSAGES TO
NAUVOO--ARRIVAL OF THE BODIES--SORROWFUL SCENES--THE BURIAL.
[Sidenote: Governor Ford in Nauvoo.]
_Thursday, June 27th (continued).--_In the meantime the Governor was
making to the Saints in Nauvoo one of the most infamous and insulting
speeches that ever fell from the lips of an executive. Among other
things he said, "A great crime has been done by destroying the
_Expositor_ press and placing the city under martial law, and a severe
atonement must be made, so prepare your minds for the emergency.
Another cause of excitement is the fact of your having so many
firearms. The public are afraid that you are going to use them against
government. I know there is a great prejudice against you on account
of your peculiar religion, but you ought to be praying Saints, not
military Saints. Depend upon it, a little more misbehavior from the
citizens, and the torch, which is already lighted, will be applied, and
the city may be reduced to ashes, and extermination would inevitably
follow; and it gives me great pain to think that there is danger of so
many innocent women and children being exterminated. If anything of a
serious character should befall the lives or property of the persons
who are prosecuting your leaders, you will be held responsible."
[Sidenote: Military Display.]
The Governor was solicited to stay until morning, but he declined,
and left Nauvoo at about 6:30 p.m.; and in passing up Main Street his
escort performed the sword exercise, giving all the passes, guards,
cuts and thrusts, taking up the entire width of {624} the street, and
making as imposing a show as they could, until they passed Lyon's
store, near the Masonic Hall. This was apparently done to intimidate
the people, as the Governor had remarked in his speech that they need
not expect to set themselves up against such "well disciplined troops."
Soon after Captain Singleton and his company left for home.
[Sidenote: Gov. Ford's Interception of Grant ant Bettisworth.]
When the Governor and his party had proceeded about three miles from
Nauvoo, they met two messengers (George D. Grant and David Bettisworth)
hastening with the sad news to Nauvoo. The Governor took them back to
Grant's house, one and one-half miles east of Carthage, with him in
order to prevent their carrying the news until he and the authorities
had removed the county records and public documents, and until most of
the inhabitants had left Carthage. The Governor then proceeded towards
Carthage, when Grant took another horse and rode into Nauvoo with the
news that night.
_Second Message to Nauvoo_.
12 o'clock at night, 27th June,
CARTHAGE, HAMILTON'S TAVERN.
_To Mrs. Emma Smith and Major General Dunham, &c_.:
The Governor has just arrived; says all things shall be inquired
into, and all right measures taken.
I say to all the citizens of Nauvoo, my brethren, be still, and
know that _God reigns. Don't rush out of the city_--don't rush to
Carthage--stay at home, and be prepared for an attack from Missouri
mobbers. The Governor will render every assistance possible--has
sent out orders for troops. Joseph and Hyrum are dead. We will
prepare to move the bodies as soon as possible.
The people of the county are greatly excited, and fear the Mormons
will come out and take vengeance. I have pledged my word the
Mormons will stay at home as soon as they can be informed, and no
violence will be on their part, and say to my brethren in Nauvoo,
in the {625} name of the Lord, be still, be patient, only let such
friends as choose come here to see the bodies. Mr. Taylor's wounds
are dressed and not serious. I am sound.
WILLARD RICHARDS,
JOHN TAYLOR,
SAMUEL H. SMITH.
Defend yourselves until protection can be furnished necessary. June
27th, 1844.
THOMAS FORD,
Governor and Commander-in-Chief.
_Mr. Orson Spencer_:
DEAR SIR:--Please deliberate on this matter--prudence may obviate
material destruction. I was at my residence when this horrible
crime was committed. It will be condemned by three-fourths of the
citizens of the county. Be quiet, or you will be attacked from
Missouri.
M. R. DEMING.
It was near midnight before Dr. Richards could obtain any help or
refreshment for John Taylor, who was badly wounded, nearly all the
inhabitants of Carthage having fled in terror.
[Sidenote: Departure of the Governor from the Danger Zone.]
_Friday, 28.--1 a.m._ The Governor said the matter should be
investigated, and that there was a great responsibility resting upon
him. He also said he would send a messenger with an express for Dr.
Richards, and wrote an order for the citizens of Nauvoo to defend
themselves.
He then went to the public square, and advised all who were present
to disperse, as he expected the Mormons would be so exasperated that
they would come and burn the town, whereupon the citizens of Carthage
fled in all directions, and the Governor and his _posse_ fled towards
Quincy, and did not consider themselves safe until they had reached
Augusta, eighteen miles distant from Carthage.
Captain Singleton, of Brown county arrived in Carthage from Nauvoo with
his troops.
[Sidenote: The Start for Nauvoo with the Bodies of the Martyrs.]
{626} About 8 a.m. Dr. Richards started for Nauvoo with the bodies of
Joseph and Hyrum on two wagons, accompanied by their brother Samuel
M. Smith, Mr. Hamilton, and a guard of eight soldiers who had been
detached for that purpose by General Deming. The bodies were covered
with bushes to keep them from the hot sun. They were met by a great
assemblage of citizens of Nauvoo, on Mulholland Street, about a mile
east of the Temple, about three p.m. under direction of the city
marshal.
The City Council, the Lieut.-General's staff, Major. General Jonathan
Dunham and staff, the acting Brigadier-General Hosea Stout and staff,
commanders and officers of the Legion, and several thousands of the
citizens were there amid the most solemn lamentations and wailings that
ever ascended into the ears of the Lord of Hosts to be avenged of their
enemies.
When the procession arrived, the bodies were both taken into the Nauvoo
Mansion. The scene there cannot be described.
[Sidenote: The Address of Dr. Richards _et. al_.]
About eight or ten thousand persons were addressed by Dr. Willard
Richards, William W. Phelps, Esquires Woods and Reid of Iowa, and Col.
Stephen Markham. Dr. Richards admonished the people to keep the peace,
stating that he had pledged his honor, and his life for their good
conduct, when the people with one united voice resolved to trust to the
law for a remedy of such a high-handed assassination, and when that
failed, to call upon God to avenge them of their wrongs.
O, Americans, weep, for the glory of freedom has departed!
When the bodies of Joseph and Hyrum arrived at the Mansion, the doors
were closed immediately. The people were told to go quietly home, and
the bodies would be viewed the next morning at eight o'clock.
{627}
[Sidenote: Preparation of the Bodies for Burial.]
Dimick B. Huntington, with the assistance of William Marks and William
D. Huntington, washed the bodies from head to foot. Joseph was shot in
the right breast, also under the heart, in the lower part of his bowels
and the right side, and on the back part of the right hip. One ball had
come out at the right shoulder-blade. Cotton soaked in camphor was put
into each wound, and the bodies laid out with fine plain drawers and
shirt, white neckerchiefs, white cotton stockings and white shrouds.
(Gilbert Goldsmith was doorkeeper at the time).
After this was done, Emma (who at the time was pregnant) also Mary
(Hyrum's wife) with the children of the martyred Prophet and Patriarch,
were admitted to see the bodies. On first seeing the corpse of her
husband, Emma screamed and fell back, but was caught and supported
by Dimick B. Huntington. She then fell forward to the Prophet's face
and kissed him, calling him by name, and begged him to speak to her
once. Mary, (the Patriarch's wife) manifested calmness and composure
throughout the trying scene, which was affecting in the extreme.
Relatives and particular friends were also permitted to view the
remains during the evening.
_Saturday 29.--_At 7 a.m. the bodies were put into the coffins which
were covered with black velvet fastened with brass nails. Over the
face of each corpse a lid was hung with brass hinges, under which was
a square of glass to protect the face, and the coffin was lined with
white cambric. The coffins were then each put into a rough pine box.
[Sidenote: Lying in State.]
At 8 a.m. the room was thrown open for the Saints to view the bodies of
their martyred Prophet and Patriarch, and it is estimated that over ten
thousand persons visited the remains that day, as there was a perfect
living stream of people entering in at the west door of the Mansion and
out at the north door from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., at which hour a request
was made {628} that the Mansion should be cleared, so that the family
could take their farewell look at the remains.
The coffins were then taken out of the boxes into the little bedroom in
the northeast corner of the Mansion, and there concealed and the doors
locked. Bags of sand were then placed in each end of the boxes, which
were nailed up, and a mock funeral took place, the boxes being put into
a hearse and driven to the graveyard by William D. Huntington, and
there deposited in a grave with the usual ceremonies.
This was done to prevent enemies of the martyred Prophet and Patriarch
getting possession of the bodies, as they threatened they would do. As
the hearse passed the meeting ground accompanied by a few men, William
W. Phelps was preaching the funeral sermon.
[Sidenote: The Real Burial.]
About midnight the coffins containing the bodies were taken from the
Mansion by Dimick B. Huntington, Edward Hunter, William D. Huntington,
William Marks, Jonathan H. Holmes, Gilbert Goldsmith, Alpheus Cutler,
Lorenzo D. Wasson, and Philip B. Lewis, preceded by James Emmett as
guard with his musket.
They went through the garden, round by the pump, and were conveyed
to the Nauvoo house, which was then built to the first joists of the
basement, and buried in the basement story.
After the bodies were interred, and the ground smoothed off as it was
before, and chips of wood and stone and other rubbish thrown over, so
as to make it appear like the rest of the ground around the graves, a
most terrific shower of rain, accompanied with thunder and lightning,
occurred, and obliterated all traces of the fact that the earth had
been newly dug.
The bodies remained in the cellar of the Nauvoo House where they were
buried, until the fall, when they were removed by Dimick B. Huntington,
William D. Huntington, Jonathan H. Holmes, and Gilbert Goldsmith, at
Emma's request, to near the Mansion, and buried side by {629} side, and
the bee house then moved and placed over their graves.
The deceased children of Joseph were afterwards removed and interred in
the same place. It was found at this time that two of Hyrum's teeth had
fallen into the inside of his mouth, supposed to have been done by a
ball at the time of the martyrdom, but which was not discovered at the
time he was laid out, in consequence of his jaws being tied up. * * * *
* * *
[It is thought proper that this volume, which brings the HISTORY OF
THE CHURCH to close of its first Period--the administration of its
First President, and, by way of pre-eminence _the_ Prophet of the New
Dispensation of the Gospel, should close with the official statement of
the Martyrdom of the Prophet and the Patriarch. A statement so true,
and conservative, and excellent that now for a long time it has been
published in the "Doctrine and Covenants."]
MARTYRDOM OF JOSEPH SMITH, THE PROPHET, AND HIS BROTHER HYRUM.
_(From the Doctrine and Covenants)_.
To seal the testimony of this book and the Book of Mormon, we
announce the Martyrdom of Joseph Smith the Prophet, and Hyrum
Smith the Patriarch. They were shot in Carthage jail, on the 27th
of June, 1844, about 5 o'clock p.m., by an armed mob, painted
black--of from 150 to 200 persons. Hyrum was shot first and fell
calmly, exclaiming,_ "I am a dead man!"_ Joseph leaped from the
window and was shot dead in the attempt, exclaiming, _"O Lord, my
God!"_ They were both shot after they were dead in a brutal manner,
and both received four balls.
John Taylor and Willard Richards, two of the Twelve, were the only
persons in the room at the time; the former was wounded in a savage
manner with four balls, but has since recovered; the latter through
the providence of God, escaped, "without even a hole in his robe."
Joseph Smith, the Prophet and Seer of the Lord, has done more (save
Jesus only) for the salvation of men in this world, than any {630}
other man that ever lived in it. In the short space of twenty years
he has brought forth the Book of Mormon, which he translated by
the gift and power of God, and has been the means of publishing
it on two continents; has sent the fullness of the everlasting
Gospel which it contained to the four quarters of the earth; has
brought forth the revelations and commandments which compose this
Book of Doctrine and Covenants, and many other wise documents and
instructions for the benefit of the children of men; gathered many
thousands of the Latter-day Saints, founded a great city; and left
a fame and name that cannot be slain. He lived great, and he died
great in the eyes of God and his people, and like most of the
Lord's anointed in ancient times, has sealed his mission and his
works with his own blood--and so has his brother Hyrum. In life
they were not divided, and in death they were not separated!
When Joseph went to Carthage to deliver himself up to the pretended
requirements of the law, two or three days previous to his
assassination, he said:
_"I am going like a lamb to the slaughter; but I am calm as a
summer's morning; I have a conscience void of offense toward God
and towards all men. I shall die innocent, and it shall yet be said
of me--he was murdered in cold blood_."
The same morning after Hyrum had made ready to go--shall it be
said to the slaughter? Yes, for so it was,--he read the following
paragraph near the close of the fifth chapter of Ether, in the Book
of Mormon, and turned down the leaf upon it:
_"And it came to pass that I prayed unto the Lord that He would
give unto the Gentiles grace that they might have charity. And it
came to pass that the Lord said unto me, if they have not charity,
it mattereth not unto you, thou hast been faithful: wherefore thy
garments are clean. And because thou hast seen thy weakness thou
shall be made strong, even unto the sitting down in the place which
I have prepared in the mansions of my Father. And now I . . . bid
farewell unto the Gentiles; yea, and also unto my brethren whom I
love, until we shall meet before the judgment-seat of Christ where
all men shall know that my garments are not spotted with your
blood_."
The testators are now dead, and their testament is in force.
Hyrum Smith was forty-four years old, February, 1844, and Joseph
Smith was thirty-eight in December, 1843: and henceforward their
names will be classed among the martyrs of religion; and the reader
in every nation will be reminded that the Book of Mormon and this
Book of Doctrine and Covenants of the Church, cost the best blood
of the nineteenth century to bring them forth for the salvation
of a ruined world; and that if the fire can scathe a _green tree_
for the glory of God, how easy it will burn up the "dry trees" to
purify the vineyard of corruption. {631} They lived for glory, they
died for glory; and glory is their eternal reward. From age to age
shall their names go down to posterity as gems for the sanctified.
They were innocent of any crime, as they had often been proved
before, and were only confined in the jail by the conspiracy of
traitors and wicked men; and their innocent blood on the floor of
Carthage jail, is a broad seal affixed to "Mormonism" that cannot
be rejected by any court on earth; and their_ innocent blood_ on
the escutcheon of the State of Illinois with the broken faith of
the State, as pledged by the Governor, is a witness to the truth
of the everlasting gospel, that all the world cannot impeach; and
their _innocent blood_ on the banner of liberty, and on the _magna
charta_ of the United States is an ambassador for the religion of
Jesus Christ that will touch the heart of honest men among all
nations; and their_ innocent blood_ with _the innocent blood_ of
all the martyrs under the altar that John saw, will cry unto the
Lord of Hosts, till He avenges that blood on the earth. Amen.
(END OF PERIOD I.)
{633}
INDEX TO VOLUME VI.
A
Affidavits of Delmore Chapman, 100; of Richards and Lewis, 103; Sission
Chase, Avery Case, 109; of Willard Richards, Nauvoo in danger, 119;
of Amos Chase, Elliott affair, 121; of Philander Avery, 122; of the
Hamiltons, 123; of Orson Hyde, 145; of Daniel Avery, 145-148; of
Abiathar B. Williams, on conspiracy, 278; of M. G. Eaton on conspiracy,
279-280; of Aaron Johnson, 350; Margaret J. Nyman _et al_. against
Chauncey L. Higbee, 407; H. T. Hugins, Nauvoo threatened, 423; Thomas
G. Wilson, on mob movements, 480-481; of Stephen Markham, Nauvoo to be
attacked, 492; of Truman Gillett, 500; of Canfield & Belknap, 502; Call
_et al_., 505-506; Carlos W. Lyman, 507; Mount and Cunningham, 508; of
Allen T. Wait, 509; Morley _et al_., 510; Solomon Hancock _et al_.,
511; James Guyman, 511-512; Obediah Bowen, 512-513; of Alvah Tippetts,
514; Greene & Bernhisel, 516; John P. Greene, Jackson's threats, 522;
of Joseph Smith, on conspiracy, 523; of Joseph Jackson, threats against
the Prophet, 524; of Edward Robinson, threats against Nauvoo, 528;
James Olive, mob movements, 529; George G. Johnstone, move on Nauvoo,
530; Gideon Gibbs, on mob, 530; Luman Calkins, on conspiracy, 531-532;
of Alfred Randall, threats against the Prophet's life, 586; of Jonathan
C. Wright, on conspiracy against Prophet, 587; of O. P. Rockwell on
Ford in Nauvoo, 588; of William G. Sterrett, on Ford in Nauvoo, 589-590.
Apostles in conference, 11; return of to Nauvoo, 60; epistles of to
Elders and Churches abroad, 63-64; action of on publications, 66;
minutes of council meeting of, 223; instructed to send delegation to
California, 222-224; minutes of meeting of, 230; Appoint conferences in
U.S., 334-335; called home, 519.
Apostates in Nauvoo, excommunication of, 341; Plans for organization of
new Church, 346-347; collection of at Carthage, 560; reported intention
to plunder, 564.
Arms, public, for Legion, 31.
Avery, Daniel, held as prisoner in Missouri, 108; escape of from
Missouri, 143; affidavit of treatment in Missouri, 145.
Avery, Philander, affidavit of, 122.
Address of the Mayor to Nauvoo police, 150-152.
Andrews, Benjamin, appeal of to the state of Maine, 178.
B
Bagby, Walter, injustice of to the Prophet, 4.
Babbitt, Almon W., preaches at Nauvoo, 34; refuses to obey orders,
514-515; engaged as council against the Prophet, 600; visits {634}
Prophet in prison, 612-613.
Backenstos, W., marriage of to Miss Wasson, 43.
Badham, Richard, assaulted, 110.
Bennett, James Arlington, nominated for Vice-President U.S.,
231-233-244.
Bettisworth, Constable David, arrests Prophet for treason, 561-562.
Botswick, Orsimus F., slanders of, 225.
C
Cahoon, Reynolds, urges Prophet to return to Nauvoo, 549, 552.
Carthage, Anti-Mormon meeting at, 4; and note, 43; disgraceful affair
at, 171-173; complaints of citizens against Nauvoo ordinances, 173-174;
Anti-Mormon convention at, 221; citizens of, call for "wolf-hunt," 222.
Cartwright, Thomas and wife, baptism of, 160-162.
Chism, negro, case of, 281, 284.
Chase, Amos, affidavit of, 121.
Clay, Henry, letter of to the Prophet, 376; Joseph Smith's answer to,
376-377.
Clayton, William, attends court at Dixon, 350; report of procedure of
court, 380-384.
Cole, Mr., school teacher, 65-66.
Convention, Anti-Mormon, Carthage, 221; presidential at Nauvoo, 386-397.
Communications, (see letters).
Conference, minutes of, at Manchester, England, 2; and (note); in
Alexander, New York, 98; Brownstown, Michigan, 175; general at
Liverpool, England, 326-330; of the Twelve, Ralston Hall, Boston,
11-30; special at Nauvoo, 47-52; in New York, 286; general of the
Church, April, 1844, 287-300; Kalamazoo, Michigan, 425; Glasgow,
Scotland, 426; at Cypry, Alabama, 331; list of appointed in U.S.,
334-335; presidents of appointed in U.S., 335-340; at Pleasant Vallet,
Michigan, 431.
Copeland Colonel Solomon, of Tennessee, invited to be candidate for
vice-president, 248.
Co-operation, plans of for store, 263.
Court, Municipal, petitioned for trial by Joseph Smith, 357-361, _et
seq_.; case of Jeremiah Smith before, 379, 418-420; minutes of in case
of Jeremiah Smith, 420-423; petition of Prophet before, _Expositor_
case, 454-456; hearing before, on _Expositor_ case, 456-458; members of
city council before, 460-461.
Council special at Nauvoo, 39.
D
Dayton, Hyrum and Son, before mayor's court, 155.
Data, compilation of by historians, (note) 547.
Dunn, Captain, sent to demand state arms from Legion, 554-555.
Discourses, on sealing powers, 183-184; Elias, Elijah, Messiah, 249,
354; on Conspiracies in Nauvoo, 272-274; on Prophetic Calling and
Fullness of Ordinances for Living and Dead, 363-367; Dissenters at
Nauvoo, 408-412; the Godhead, Plurality of Gods, 473-479.
Drama in Nauvoo, 349-350.
Dunham, Jonathan, on mission to Governor Ford, 61; made wharf-master,
229.
E
Elliott, John, arrest and trial of, 117-118.
Election, Presidential, 1844, who shall be candidate for, 187-188;
_Times and Seasons_ editorial on, 214-217.
{635} Excommunications of apostates, 341.
_Expositor, Nauvoo_, first and only number of, 430; declared a nuisance
and destroyed, 448; proceedings in city council against, 434-448;
Francis M. Higbee on destruction of, 451-452; comment of _Neighbor_ on,
460.
F
_Fanny_, barque, arrives in New Orleans, 244.
Female Relief Society, Voice of Innocence from, 248.
Folsom, William H., clerk of New York conference, biography (note) 1.
Follett, King, death of, 248; biography, 249.
Ford, Governor Thomas, arrival of at Carthage, and accepts mob
as militia, 542; interview of with Taylor an Bernhisel, 543-545;
perplexity of, 552; pacifies mob, 560; pledges faith of the state for
fair trial of the Smiths, 561; presents Joseph Smith to militia, 564;
refuses to prevent false imprisonment, 570-571; directs Justice R. F.
Smith to use Carthage Greys, 598; holds militia council on visit to
Nauvoo, 599-600; visit of to Nauvoo, 623; intercepts messengers with
news of martyrdom, 624; course of at Carthage, 625; flees from danger
zone, 625.
Foster, Dr. R. D., misunderstanding of with Prophet, 332-333, 344-345;
seeks private interview with Prophet, 430.
Fielding, Amos, credentials of, 263.
Frierson, Colonel, represents John C. Calhoun, 81 (and note); drafts
memorial to Congress in behalf of Saints, 83, _et seq_. (and note.)
Fullmer, John S., with Prophet in Carthage prison, 600-601.
G
Geddes, Col. Thomas, with Governor at interview, Carthage prison, 576;
report of Governor Ford's statement on leaving prison, 585 (and note).
Greene, John P., returns from New York mission, 60; report of Foster
Higbee embroilment, 348-349.
Grant, Jedediah M., preaches at mansion, 356.
Greys, Carthage, boisterous conduct of, 559-560; revolt of, 564; left
as guard to Prophet and Patriarch, 606-607.
H
Hanks, Knowlton F., missionary, death of, 64.
Harris, Dennison, L. reveals conspiracy against Prophet, 280-281 (note).
Hedlock, Reuben, president of the British mission, 65-66; presides at
conference in England, 327-330.
Higbee, Francis M., charges Prophet with slander, 174; threatens
Prophet with bonds, 176; before Municipal Court, 178; before Esquire
Wells for assaulting police, 285; before Municipal Court, 357-361.
Higbee, Chauncey L., before Esq. Wells for assaulting police, 285;
affidavits against, 407.
Hodge, Abraham C., reports Prophet's determination to go West, 545;
sent on special mission to Carthage, 557.
Hunter, Edward, sent as special messenger to Governor Ford, 492.
I
Indians, Sacs and Foxes, visit of to Nauvoo, 401-402.
{636} J
Jackson, Joseph, H., conversation of with Prophet; character of, 149
(and note); attempt to arrest, 521; threats against Prophets, 569.
Johnson, Benjamin F., instructions of the Prophet to, 60.
Judd, Nelson, assault upon, 179-180.
Journals, importance to elders of keeping, 186.
Jones, Elder Dan, Prophecy upon head of, 601; with the Prophet in
prison, 601, 621; sent by the Prophet with messenger to Gov. Ford, 602,
604.
K
Kay, William, in charge of immigrants from England, 244; arrives with
company at Nauvoo, 333.
Kimball, Heber C., address of at April conference, 324.
L
Legion, Nauvoo, muster of, 34; aid of applied for, 119.
Law, Wilson, doggerel written by, 210; cashiered from Legion, 362;
seeks to get warrant against the Prophet, 568.
Law, William, difficulty of with police, 162-165; reconciliation
of with the Prophet, 165; second trouble with police, 166-170;
excommunication of, 341.
Letters: Governor Ford to the Prophet, 35; Reuben Hedlock to the First
Presidency, 44; H. R. Hotchkiss to Joseph Smith, 55; Heywood to Joseph
Smith, 62; Joseph Smith to the Saints in England, 69-70; James A.
Bennett to Joseph Smith, 71-73; Joseph Smith to Bennett, 73-78; Brigham
Young to John Page, 81-83; Ewing, state auditor, to Major John Bills,
95; Lamborn, attorney-general Ill., Legion affairs, 95; McDougall, to
state auditor on Legion affairs, 96; Joseph Smith to Governor Ford,
100; Wilson Law to Joseph Smith, 108; Joseph Smith, to Governor Ford,
109; Joseph Smith to John Smith, 110; Governor Ford to Joseph Smith,
113; W. W. Phelps to John White, 132; Joseph Smith to Governor Ford,
affidavits, 153; Calhoun to Joseph Smith, 155; J. Smith to Calhoun,
156-160; Twelve Apostles to Saints at Morley, 176-177; Ford to citizens
of Hancock county--warning, 189; Joseph Smith to Haywood--visit to
Quincy, 213; Joseph Smith to editor of _Neighbor_, 221; High Council
to Saints in Nauvoo, 228-229; Willard Richards to James A. Bennett,
231-233; Lyman Wight _et al_., to First Presidency, 255-257; ditto to
President Smith, 257-260; Young and Richards to Hedlock, England, 351;
P. P. Pratt to Joseph Smith _et al_., 354; Charles C. Rich to Alanson
Ripley, 355; Hyde's report to President Smith--Western Movement,
369-376; Henry Clay to Joseph Smith, 376; Prophet's answer to same,
376-377; William Clayton, reporting court procedure at Dixon, 380-384;
George A. Smith to _Times and Seasons_, 399-401; Richards _et al_. to
Central Election Committee, 404; Willard Richards to Orson Hyde--Western
Movement, 405-407; D.S. Hollister to Joseph Smith, election matters,
416-418; Joseph Smith to Judge Pope, 422; Joel H. Walker to Joseph
Smith--Western Movement, 424-425; Joseph Smith's answer, 425; "Horace"
to Joseph Smith, {637} 426; Joseph and Hyrum Smith to Tewkesbury,
427; Joseph Smith to I. Daniel Rupp, 428; Hickok to Joseph Smith,
450; Hugins to Joseph Smith, 451; Washington Tucker to Joseph Smith,
458-459; Prophet's answer to Tucker, 459; Joseph Smith to Governor
Ford--defense to _Expositor_ case, 466; Bernhisel to Governor Ford,
467-468; Wakefield to Governor Ford, 469; Sidney Rigdon to Gov. Ford,
469; Ladd to Joseph Smith, 472; Joseph Smith to Gov. Ford--urges
Governor to come to Nauvoo, 480; Morley to Joseph Smith--mob threats,
481-482; John Smith to the Prophet, 485; the Prophet's answer, 485-486;
Hyrum Smith to Brigham Young--calling home to Twelve, 486-487; Hugins
to Joseph Smith, 494; Joseph Smith to H. F. Hugins, 501; Joseph Smith
to Ballantyne and Slater, 515; Richards to James A. Bennett, 516-518;
Foster to John Procter, 520; Governor Ford to Mayor of Nauvoo, 521;
Joseph Smith to Gov. Ford--urging latter to come to Nauvoo, 525-527;
Gov. Ford to Mayor and City Council of Nauvoo--on _Expositor_ affair,
533-537; Joseph Smith in answer to above, 538-541; Joseph and Hyrum
Smith to Gov. Ford, 550; Joseph Smith to Hugins, 551; Joseph Smith to
J. R. Wakefield, 551; Johnston to Joseph Smith, 553; Joseph Smith to
Gov. Ford, 556; Reid and Woods to Joseph Smith, 558-559; the Prophet to
Emma Smith, 565; Joseph Smith to Gov. Ford, 575; Joseph Smith to Judge
Thomas, 590; Miner R. Deming to Joseph Smith, 593; Joseph Smith to
Messrs. Woods and Reid, 595; William Clayton to Joseph Smith, 598-599;
Joseph Smith to Emma Smith, 605; P. S., 605; Richards, _et al_. to
Saints at Nauvoo--second message announcing martyrdom, 624-625.
Lytle, Andrew and John, trial of, before Municipal Court, 286.
Lyne, Thomas A., a tragedian, 349.
Loveland, Chester, threats of violence against, 504-505.
M
_Maid of Iowa_, arrives at Nauvoo with England passengers, 333.
Markham, Col. Stephen, attends court at Dixon, 350; with the Prophet in
Carthage prison, 592, 614; forced out of Carthage, 614.
Marks, William, police difficulties of, 166-170.
Marriage, plural, 46.
_Metoka_, sailing of, with Saints, 4.
Mansion, Nauvoo, made a hotel, 33; party and dinner at, 42.
Mormon, Book of, evidence of in ruins in America, 53-54; presented to
Queen Victoria--poem on, 181-183.
Miller, Bishop George, returns from mission, 61.
Mormonism, publications _pro-et-con_. for 1843, 154.
Mormons, improvements of, 195-196.
Misrepresentations, corrected, 67.
Missouri, peace proposals to, 218-220; "Friendly Hint" to, 245-247.
Mittimus, false, 569; second remanding Smith Brothers to prison, 597.
Memorial to U.S. Congress, 84, _et seq_; action of meeting on, 88;
officially signed by Mayor and city council, 116; of the city council
to Congress, 125-132; origin of Joseph Smith's Western Memorial,
270; memorial to Congress, Joseph Smith's, 275; before House of
Representative, 282 (note); Joseph Smith's to {638} President John
Tyler, 281-282.
Meetings, public, at Nauvoo, 101; at Nauvoo--appeal to government on
local affairs, 107; at Nauvoo--aggressions of Missouri, 111-113; mass,
at Warsaw, 462-466; public at Nauvoo--to correct false reports, 483.
N
Nauvoo, prosperity of, 9; special session of city council of, 234-236;
status of, 1844, 265-267, destructive wind at, 267; status of at close
of 1843, 377-378; declaration of martial law in, 497.
New Orleans, branch organized in, 176; _Neighbor, Nauvoo_, on
destruction of _Expositor_, 460, 496.
O
Orders to city marshal, 103; reply, 104; Mayor's to Legion, 104;
to Nauvoo Legion, 119; to Wilson Law calling out Legion, 120; to
Major-General to Legion, 493; to A. P. Rockwood to notify guard, 494;
general to Legion, 532; Joseph Smith to General Dunham--surrender of
state arms, 556; to bring prisoners into court, 596.
Ordinances, special in Prophet's case, 105; for erection of a dam in
Mississippi, 106; enlarging police force, 110; on sale of liquors,
111; to prevent unlawful arrests by "foreign" process, 124; for the
protection of the Church of Latter-day Saints, 130-132; complaint of
Carthage citizens against, 173-174; on sale of liquors, 178-179; on
witnesses and jurors' fees, 179; for protection of U.S. citizens,
asking Congress to pass, 275-277; concerning libels and other purposes,
433-434.
_Ospray_, election on board of for President of U.S., 384-385; captain
of calls on Joseph Smith, 451.
Owen, case of in Mayor's court, 4.
P
Packard, Noah, Memorial of to Massachusetts, 236.
Pacific Island, mission to, 71.
Page, John E., appointed to a mission to Washington, 81.
Petition to hear the Prophet, 533.
Phelps, W. W., mission of to Gov. Ford, 61; reads Prophet's Views at
Nauvoo, 211.
Phenomena, strange, reported, 121.
Police, names of special, 149-150; difficulty of with William Law,
162-165.
President, U.S., who shall be our next?, 39.
Pratt, Addison, on death of Elder Hanks, 64.
Proclamation to kings, instructions to write, 80; Joseph Smith to keep
order in Nauvoo, 449; of Joseph Smith against false charges, 484-485;
of Joseph Smith to Nauvoo marshal, 493.
Pratt, Parley, attends conference, Boston, 11; enthusiastic on appeal
to "Green Mountain Boys," 93-94.
Pratt, Orson, affidavit of against Higbee, 177-178; credentials of, 262.
Pugmire, Jonathan, Sen., _et al_., released from English prison, 160.
R
Rapids, Des Moines, canal around, 80 (and note).
Rigdon, Sidney, dissatisfaction of Prophet with, 46; appeals to
Pennsylvania, addresses conference, 288-295, _et seq_., nominated for
vice-presidency, U.S., 356.
{639} Reid, John S., Prophet's lawyer in early experience, 377; address
at Nauvoo, early experience, 392-397.
Richardson, Mr., repents of part in Avery case, 133.
Richards, Dr. Levi, marriage of, 134.
Richards, Phinehas, appeals to Massachusetts, 193.
Rollasson, Mr., store robbed, 281.
Rockwell, Orrin Porter, accompanies Prophet in his start for the West,
548-550-551; warned of Prophet to stay at Nauvoo, 565.
Richards, Willard, with Prophet in Carthage, 613-614; his "Two Minutes"
in jail, 619-621; announces the martyrdom of Patriarch and Prophet,
621-622; conveys bodies of martyrs to Nauvoo, 626; addresses people at
Nauvoo, 626.
S
Scott, Robert, reveals conspiracy against Prophet, 280-281 (and note).
Smith, Joseph, the Prophet, in council with Hyrum _et al_., 2;
description of, _New York Sun_, 3; seeks public arms for Legion, 31;
prayers for sick, 31; _New Haven Herald_ on, 32-33; on Socialism,
32-33; inspects Legion, 34; appoints mission to Russia, 41; on plural
marriage, 46; remarks on the demise of James Adams, 50-52; opinion of
on mesmerism, 56; on Constitution and Bible, 56-59; visits Macedonia,
59; writes to candidates for presidency, 63, 65; poisoned, 65;
dictates appeal to "Green Mountain Boys," 80; address to, 88, _et
seq_., proposes canal around Des Moines Rapids, 80; prophesies against
oppressors, 95; views on standing of Legion, 97; suggests petition to
make Nauvoo U.S. Territory, 107; prediction on Government of U.S.,
116 (and note;) gives instructions for order in Nauvoo, 124; receives
Christmas serenade, 134; holds Christmas party at Mansion, 134;
receives letters from Cass and Calhoun, candidates for President, 144;
address of to Nauvoo police, 150-152; comments of on Marks' and Laws'
police fears, 166, 170; discourse of on Priesthood, 183-185; nominated
as candidate for president, 187-188; views of on candidacy, 210; views
on the Powers and Policy of U.S. Government, 189, 197-209; dream of
troubled waters, 194; recommends repeal of "extra" city ordinance, 212;
instruction of to Orson Pratt, 212; instructs Twelve to send delegation
to California, 222; sends views on Government to national officials,
225-226; editorial, _Neighbor_, on candidacy of, 226; sketches reply to
Casius M. Clay, 227; Friendly Hint of to Missouri, 245-247; comments on
candidacy, 268-270, 361, 367-368; interview of with Mrs. Foster, 271;
discourse of on Conspiracies, 272-274; sends memorial to U.S. Congress,
275-277; preaches King Follett's funeral sermon, 301; announces the
whole of America as Zion, 318-320; altercation with Dr. Foster _et
al_., 344; petition of for _habeas corpus_ before Municipal Court in
_Expositor_ case, 357; discourse by on prophetic calling, fullness of
ordinance for living and dead, 363-367; indictment of at Carthage,
405; goes to Carthage to face charges, 412-415; caution "Kirtland
Safety Society" script, 429; interview of with Foster, 430; address of,
current events, 449-450; arrest of by David Bittisworth, 453-454, {640}
dream of on Nauvoo apostates, 461-462; sermon on Godhead--plurality of
Gods, 473-479; interview of with gentlemen from Madison, 479; address
of to Nauvoo Legion, 497-500; takes command of Legion, 500; appeal of
to President Tyler, 508; comment on preparations for defense, 520;
desire of to have Hyrum leave him, 520; determines to go to the West,
545-546 (and note); also 547-548-549-550; is urged to return to Nauvoo,
549-550; decides to return, 550-551; starts for Carthage, "_a lamb to
the slaughter_," 554-556; return of to Nauvoo, 557; final departure
of for Carthage, 558; arrival at Carthage, 559-560; surrender of to
constable, 561; arrested for treason, 561-562; introduced to troops by
Gov. Ford, 563-564; prophecy of to gentlemen at Carthage, 566; before
Justice R. F. Smith, 567-568; committed to Prison on false mittimus,
569-570; interview of with Gov. Ford--Carthage jail, 576-585; anxiety
of for safety, 592; comments on reproofs to the wicked, 608; dream of
struggle with enemy, 609-610; testifies of Book of Mormon to guards,
510; "handsome fights," of, 617-618; death of, 618-621; arrival of body
at Nauvoo, 626; burial of, 628-629; official account of martyrdom of,
629-31.
Smith, Hyrum, appointed one of Temple committee, 53; begins work, 61;
injures knee joint, 98; slander of, by Botswick, O. F., 225; address of
at April conference, 296-301, 322; remonstrance of with Prophet, 403;
denial of threats against _Warsaw Signal_ and editor, 495, 500; refuses
to leave Prophet, 546; seeks to comfort Prophet in prison, 600-601,
death of, 617; arrival of body at Nauvoo, 626; burial of, 628-629;
official account of martyrdom of, 629-631.
Smith, Emma, kindness of to husband, 165; message of to Prophet, urging
husband to return to Nauvoo, 549-552.
Smith, Uncle John, ordained Patriarch, 173; heroism of, 515; comes to
Carthage prison to see the Prophet, 598.
Smith, William, arrival of at Nauvoo with company of Saints, 342;
withdraws as candidate for legislature, 378.
Smith, Jeremiah, issues out writ of _habeas corpus_ at Nauvoo, 343;
Threats to kidnap, 412; before Municipal Court, 418-425.
Snow, Eliza R., Poem to Queen Victoria 181-183; Apostrophe of to
Missouri, 192-193.
Southwick, Dr., report of on mob movement, 507; reports officers'
meetings to the Prophet, 605-606.
Spencer, Augustine, assaults his brother, 344.
Stoddard, reproved by Prophet, 229.
Styles, George P., appointed city attorney, 331-332.
Stigall, George W., jailor at Carthage, receives Prophet _et al_., 574;
reports intention to attack Nauvoo, 575.
T
Taylor, Elder John, on Socialism, 33; purchases printing office, 185;
appointed delegate to Governor at Carthage; 522; account of interview
with Governor Ford, 543-545; remonstrance of to Governor Ford, 571-573;
report of Governor Ford's and president Smith's interview, 579-585,
sings for President Smith, "A Poor, Wayfaring Man," 614-615; wounded in
Carthage prison, 618.
Temple, plan for women's subscriptions to, 142; meeting in interest of,
236-244.
{641} Temple, Masonic, dedicated, 287.
Thieves, _Neighbor's_ editorial on, 38.
Thomas, Judge Jesse B., holds court at Carthage, 398; courtesy of to
Prophet, 413; advice of to Prophet, _Expositor_ affair, 479.
V
Van Buren, President U.S., letter and postscript to, 65.
W
Western Movement proposed, exploration for, 222, 224.
Wells, Daniel H. justice of the peace, issues writ of ejectment
from Temple block, 356-357; trial of Mayor and City Council before,
_Expositor_ affair, 487-491; call of Prophet upon _en route_ for
Carthage, 554.
Wheelock, warning of to Governor Ford, 607; leaves pistol with the
prisoners in Carthage prison, 607-608.
Weeks, William, architect of Nauvoo Temple, difference of with Prophet,
196-197.
Winchester, Benjamin, sent to preach at Warsaw, 190.
Wilkie, John, blessed by Prophet, 264.
Wolfe, Mr. De, lectures at Nauvoo, 223.
Wight, Lyman, asks Prophet's advice on preaching to Indians, 222;
letters of to First Presidency, 255; to President Smith, 257; views of,
considered in council 260-261.
Woodruff, Wilford, in railway wreck, 32.
Y
Young, Brigham, in conference, Boston, 11-30, _et seq_.; address at
April conference, 321; on whole America as Zion, 321; instructions of
to elders, 325.
Z
Zion, the whole of America is, 318-321.
*** End of this LibraryBlog Digital Book "History of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Volume 6" ***
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