Joseph's soul rose in arms at these crimes. The sacrifice had been

sufficient. Every possible appeal had been made and denied. Henceforth

the Saints must protect themselves, and God arm the right! It was this

resolve alone which saved the remaining element of the Church that

finally escaped from Missouri. At Adam-ondi-Ahman the mob intended

to make a work of extermination; but after the arrival of the troops

there, promises were demanded and secured from General Parks for the

organization of a militia company to resist the attack and quell the

mob. The force was immediately raised and placed under the command of

Colonel Lyman Wight who held a commission in the fifty-ninth regiment

under General Parks. These troops went out with a determination to

drive the mob or die. They no longer fought in the state of Missouri

for their rights as American citizens; that day had passed. They fought

for life, for home, and for that which was dearer than all, the honor

and safety of their wives and daughters who had been threatened with

ravishment.

A remembrance of the day at Gallatin, when twelve had put one hundred

and fifty to flight, suddenly came upon the mob as they saw the

advancing forces of the Saints; and they fled. But fleeing, they

resorted to stratagem. They removed everything of value from some

of their own old log cabins and then set fire to these structures,

afterwards spreading abroad through all the country the declaration

that the "Mormons" had plundered and burned the mansions of law-abiding

citizens.

An incident of this period shows the Prophet's calmness and

self-command in the face of danger, as well as the influence of his

presence even upon sworn enemies.

He was sitting in his father's house near the edge of the prairie one

day, writing letters, when a large party of armed mobocrats called at

the place. Lucy Smith, the Prophet's mother, demanded their business,

and they replied that they were on the way to kill "Joseph, the Mormon

Prophet." His mother remonstrated with them; and Joseph, having

finished his writing and hearing the threats against himself, walked to

the door and stood before them with folded arms, bared head and such

a look of majesty in his eyes that they quailed before him. Though

they were unacquainted with his identity, they knew they were in the

presence of greatness; and when his mother introduced him as the man

they sought, they started as if they had seen a spectre.

The Prophet invited the leaders into the house, and without alluding to

their purpose of murder, he talked to them earnestly with regard to the

persecutions against the Saints. When he concluded, so deeply had they

been impressed, that they insisted upon giving him an escort to protect

him to his home.

As they departed, one of the mob leaders said to another:

Didn't you feel strange when Smith took you by the hand?

And his companion replied:

I could not move. I would not harm a hair of that man's head for

the whole world.

It was always so when men would listen to Joseph long enough to let the

Spirit which animated him assert itself to their reason.

The extent of the unhallowed league against the Saints is shown by

the fact that not even the United States mails were safe during this

period, for every post was plundered and all letters addressed to the

Prophet were opened.

Unable to bear the pressure and to face the terrors of the time, Thomas

B. Marsh had apostatized and had joined with McLellin and other evil

men to act the part of Judas against the Prophet. The faith of others

also failed, and, thinking by apostasy to save themselves from the

destruction which seemed impending, they came out against Joseph and

the Church and went over to their enemies.

On the 24th of October, eight armed mobbers plundered a house some

little distance from Far West and took three of the brethren prisoners,

namely, Nathan Pinkham, William Seely and Addison Green. With much

exultation, these brigands declared their intention to murder their

prisoners that night. Learning of this awful boast, the judge of the

county instructed Colonel Hinkle to send out a company to rescue the

men and disperse their captors. Seventy-five of the militia, under

command of David W. Patten, were directed by Hinkle to fulfil this

order. In departing, Captain Patten announced his hope to rescue his

unoffending brethren without shedding any blood and to bring them

back to Far West. Fifty men of this company marched to the ford on

Crooked River, where they came upon an ambuscade of the mob, who fired

upon them, mortally wounding a young man named O'Banion. Captain

Patten ordered a charge upon the enemy, at the same time shouting the

watchword, "Our God and liberty!" The concealed mobocrats fired as the

company rushed down upon them. A musket ball pierced the bowels of

David W. Patten, fatally wounding him. At the same fire a shower of

bullets struck Gideon Carter, who fell to the ground to die after a few

moments of agony. So defaced was Carter by his many wounds, that later,

when his brethren were gathering up their dead and wounded, they failed

to recognize his body. Several others among the brethren were wounded.

The others, even after the fall of their leader, dashed on in pursuit

and put the mob to flight. The prisoners were rescued, but one of them

was shot by the mob during the engagement. From them it was learned

that Bogart had commanded the marauders and that his forces had been

greater than those of the attacking party.

When the affray was over, David W. Patten--still alive, but gasping in

mortal extremity--was lifted up by his brethren, and they carried him

tenderly to his home.

A courier brought the news to Far West, and Joseph and Hyrum went out

to meet the sorrowful cavalcade. Several were with Apostle Patten when

he died that night, in the triumph of the faith. He had fulfilled

his covenant to yield life rather than to yield the right. As he was

departing, he spoke with holy exultation of the eternity opening to his

view, and with sorrow of those traitorous Apostles and Elders who had

forsaken the Saints to save their own lives and property. One of his

last expressions to his wife was:

WHATEVER YOU DO ELSE, OH, DO NOT DENY THE FAITH.

Thus perished the first apostolic martyr to the cause of Christ in this

dispensation. How much better his fate than that of the Judases who

helped to bring him to his death!

At the funeral, Joseph stood in the presence of the assemblage, and,

pointing at the noble form marred by the assassin's bullet, testified:

There lies a man who has fulfilled his word: he has laid down his

life for his friends.

CHAPTER XXXIX.

BOGGS ISSUES AN ORDER OF EXTERMINATION--GENERAL ATCHISON'S THREAT

AGAINST THE TYRANT--AVARD ORGANIZES THE DANITES--THE HAUN'S MILL

MASSACRE--FAR WEST BESIEGED--THREE NOBLE ONES REFUSE TO DESERT THEIR

FRIENDS--COLONEL HINKLE'S BASE TREACHERY--"THESE ARE THE PRISONERS

I AGREED TO DELIVER UP"--A COURT MARTIAL SENTENCES JOSEPH AND HIS

COMPANIONS TO DEATH--GENERAL DONIPHAN'S NOBLE ACTION--DEMONIAC DEEDS

ENACTED IN FAR WEST.

On the day of the martyr Patten's funeral at Far West, Lilburn W. Boggs

issued to General John B. Clark an order of extermination against the

Saints. His words were:

The Mormons must be treated as enemies, and must be exterminated

or driven from the state, if necessary for the public good. Their

outrages are beyond all description.

The excuse of this tyrant was the encounter between the militia, sent

out by Colonel Hinkle under judicial endorsement, and Bogart's mobbers.

How quickly Boggs could respond when any of his assassins were checked

in their career of massacre and plunder! Before making his order of

extermination he had already directed two thousand troops to be raised;

and in his edict of death, entrusted to General Clark, he authorized

any desired increase of forces. He also directed Major-General Wallock

and General Doniphan, with one thousand men, to intercept the retreat

of the Saints, should they attempt one, by this act proving that the

Saints were not to be permitted to leave the state, and that his

order of extermination was intended to be construed absolutely and

without alternative. He had taken the command from General Atchison

and given it to General Clark because the latter was more suitable to

his purpose, since he feared that Atchison might have some qualms of

conscience. Incensed at this official slight, at a later time, General

Atchison declared in a public speech:

If the governor does not restore my commission to me, I will kill

him, so help me God.

To make some show of palliation for this unparalleled act of atrocity,

Boggs published the most infamous lies concerning the doings and

intentions of the "Mormons," making it appear that they, a little

handful of poverty-stricken exiles, were about to flood the state with

a ruinous war. His stories were full of tragedy and bombast. They would

have been too ridiculous to be believed for an instant, but that the

infuriate element for whose incitement they were addressed were eager

as he to plunge the knife into the heart of innocence.

All the vile characters in that section of the country soon flocked to

the mob-organizations. The most diabolical combinations were formed:

one of the worst being under the direction of Dr. Sampson Avard, one of

the apostate spirits, who formed a band which he called Danites, to aid

him in purposes of plunder and murder, which he intended to attribute

to the Church, and thus furnish an excuse for the attacks upon his

former brethren. But his plot was discovered by the Prophet, and Avard

was publicly excommunicated, so that the world might know that the

Church had no part in this infamy. His plan was, by this prompt action,

defeated almost before it had birth.

By the 26th of October twenty-five hundred of the mob militia had

congregated at Richmond, and from there they took up their march for

Far West, robbing, plundering, shooting, and threatening ravishment by

the way. It was such rare sport, this outrage of the innocents, that it

drew an overwhelming force to execute the ghastly order of Boggs, the

executioner at wholesale.

The executive decree of massacre fell like music upon the ears of

the wicked mob. On Tuesday, the 30th of October, 1838, a party of

two hundred and forty of them fell upon a few families of Saints at

Haun's Mill on Shoal Creek, and butchered them. The awful particulars

of that deed must be left, with many others of like character, for

another publication now in course of preparation, since the scope of

this volume will not permit of more than a general view of events,

however important, in which the Prophet had no personal part. But one

or two circumstances of that atrocious deed can be detailed to show

the unquenchable thirst for blood of Boggs' emissaries. Among the

Saints at Haun's Mill was one old man named McBride, who had fought for

independence under General Washington. This veteran patriot the mob

seized and shot with his own gun, then they slashed him to pieces with

a corn cutter. Stalwart Missourians slew and mutilated little children,

and afterwards boasted of their deeds. They even robbed the dead.

On the 30th day of October the mob army beleaguered Far West. Their

ranks were constantly augmented, and during the ensuing week six

thousand demoniac men had taken part against that city.

On the first day of the siege a messenger was sent into the town to

demand three persons to whom amnesty was to be accorded, as the mob

declared their intention to massacre all the rest of the people and lay

Far West in ashes. Adam Lightner, John Cleminson and wife were these

three persons. When the messengers offered them the chance of life they

responded: "If the people must be destroyed, we will die with them."

Elder Charles C. Rich was sent out, bearing a flag of truce, to hold a

conference with General Doniphan and others; but when he approached the

camp of the besiegers, Bogart, the Methodist preacher, fired upon him.

The defenders of the city threw up a temporary fortification of wagons

and timber on the south, for they were in hourly expectation of the

attack.

About eight o'clock on the morning of Wednesday, the 31st day of

October, a white flag approached the city from the camp of the mobbers.

Colonel George M. Hinkle went out to meet it and accompanied it back

to the camp. What he did there ought to have made even a Judas blush.

He returned at evening and said to Joseph that hope had arisen for

the settlement of the difficulties, and that the presence of the

Prophet and some of his leading friends was desired by the officers of

the militia. Hinkle pledged his own honor and that of the besieging

generals that no harm was intended or would be permitted against the

brethren.

Always ready to meet personal danger in a just cause, the Prophet

complied, and was joined by the men whom Hinkle designated: Sidney

Rigdon, Parley P. Pratt, Lyman Wight and George W. Robinson. Led by

Colonel Hinkle they proceeded toward the camp and were met by General

Lucas with one piece of artillery and the whole army at his heels. At

this moment Hinkle earned his thirty pieces of silver, for he said:

These are the prisoners I agreed to deliver up.

Lucas brandished his sword and ordered his men to surround the Prophet

and his companions. A fierce and exultant yell burst from the throats

of the mob, and horrid blasphemies poured from them in torrents. They

would not wait for an order to butcher before assailing the Prophet,

so eager were they to take his life; and several of them snapped their

guns at him, but he was spared. Arrived at the camp, the prisoners were

placed in charge of a strong guard of obscene and blasphemous wretches,

who hour after hour profaned the name of God, mocked at Jesus Christ

and boasted of having defiled virgins and wives by force. They demanded

a miracle from Joseph, saying:

There is one of your brethren here in camp whom we took prisoner

yesterday in his own house, and knocked his brains out with his

own rifle, which we found hanging over his own mantel; he lies

speechless and dying; speak the word and heal him, and then we will

all believe.

Among the people who came to gloat over them was William E. McLellin,

the apostate. He taunted them with their impending fate, declaring that

there was no hope for them.

When the news reached Far West the people were appalled. They had

feared for Joseph and his brethren, because they knew that to go out

was to enter the lair of a monster; and now they felt that their worst

fears were confirmed.

That night the Prophet and his friends lay upon the wet ground, chilled

by the rains of dawning November and subject to the most cruel and

exasperating insults. The next morning Hyrum Smith and Amasa M. Lyman

were dragged from their families in Far West and brought as prisoners

into the camp.

On the evening of November 1st, 1838, Lucas convened a court martial,

over which he presided. It was composed of seventeen preachers and some

of the principal officers of the mob army. Its purpose was to put the

Prophet and his friends on trial for their lives, but not one of them

was permitted to be present during any part of its deliberations. A

few moments were sufficient for the promulgation of its edict, since

no testimony was to be heard and no pleas admitted. The sentence was

that Joseph and his companions should be shot at eight o'clock the next

morning, November 2nd, 1838, on the public square at Far West in the

presence of their helpless wives and little children.

When the sentence was passed, General Doniphan said:

I wash my hands of this thing; it is murder!

Then he ordered his brigade of troops off the ground, or he would not

permit them to take part in the assassination. General Graham also

resisted the sentence with honor and manliness.

After the adjournment of the court martial the Prophet demanded from

General Wilson the reason why he should be shot, since he had always

been a supporter of the constitution and the government of his country.

Wilson's answer was:

I know it, and that is the reason why I want to kill you.

It was an absurdity to try by court martial, even if that body had been

a legal and just tribunal, a man who had not borne arms nor engaged in

warfare nor committed any overt act. Joseph was a licensed minister

of the gospel, not a soldier. He belonged to the class recognized

always and everywhere as non-combatant. Probably this was the reason

why Lucas had seventeen preachers as members of the court, to give the

proceedings an ecclesiastical air.

On this same day, November 1st, 1838, Lucas required the Caldwell

militia to give up their arms. They only numbered five hundred men, all

told; while the mob army numbered thousands. But the diabolical purpose

which they had in view made it desirable to the attacking horde that no

one in the city should have any power of resistance remaining. Lucas

gave color to his demand by the fact that Hinkle, the betrayer, who

had commanded the forces in Far West, had made a treaty by which the

disarmament of the Caldwell militia was conceded.

The brethren were all marched out of the town and their weapons taken

from them. Then gangs of miscreants were turned loose in Far West to

work their will. They rushed through the streets like wolves, tearing

and devouring whatever came in their way. Such deeds were done that day

as would make a savage hang his head in shame. Property was seized and

carried away without a pretext; houses were fired; the sick and the

infantile were insulted and abused; the men were secured as prisoners;

and women were outraged in sight of their helpless husbands and fathers.

The Prophet's house was singled out for a special attack; his family

was driven out and all his property seized or destroyed.

The brethren who possessed real estate were brought before Lucas, and

at the point of the bayonet, were compelled to sign deeds of trust of

all their possessions to pay the expenses of the mob.

A more appalling instance of cruelty history does not record. An

innocent people are ordered exterminated. But before proceeding to the

final act of massacre the immolators demand their pay in advance from

the victims.

It was an awful night at Far West; but more awful it was feared the

morrow would be, for the sentence of death pronounced upon the Prophet

and his fellow-captives was promised to be executed at eight o'clock

the next morning.

CHAPTER XL.

THE PROPHET'S LIFE SAVED BY THE VANITY OF LUCAS--FAREWELL OF THE

PRISONERS TO THEIR FAMILIES--ON TOWARD INDEPENDENCE--CONTINUED RAVAGES

AT FAR WEST--GENERAL CLARK'S INHUMAN ADDRESS--THE MOVEMENT AGAINST

ADAM-ONDI-AHMAN.

On the morning of Friday, November 2nd, 1838, in pursuance of the

sentence of the secret tribunal of preachers and mobocrats--misnamed a

court-martial--the Prophet and his fellow-prisoners were marched into

the public square at Far West. But the brutal murder which had been

decreed, did not take place. The failure of Lucas to enforce that part

of the sentence was due in part to the manly rebellion of Generals

Doniphan and Graham, and in part to his own wish to drag the Prophet

and his brethren through the country and exhibit them as his captives.

General Clark was expected immediately at Far West. He wanted the

prisoners delivered to him; and jealousy worked in the mind of Lucas.

It was esteemed a high honor to hold Joseph Smith in captivity; and

Lucas was determined not to share this glorious trophy of war with

another. What the tears of women and children, the innocence of men,

and a sense of justice could not accomplish in this bad man's mind, was

easily achieved by the base motives of envy and vanity. He wanted to be

recognized as a victorious general, and the presence of the captives

would add to the pageantry of his march. If greater notoriety could

have been achieved or greater admiration for his prowess secured by the

murder of these men at Far West, he would not have stayed his hand. It

was an opportunity of a lifetime for a militia leader to cover himself

with the dishonors of war. Less than a quarter of a century from that

time, the state of Missouri and all its citizens had ample occasion to

deal with real enemies and to view in every city and village, and every

field and every forest, and in every home the misery of fratricidal

strife. Men who had thirsted for blood were given more than a glut of

it, for hundreds of them weltered in their own gore.

Lucas prepared to continue his triumphal march, intending to take the

brethren to Jackson County and expose them as captives at Independence.

Before they left they begged to be permitted to bid their families

farewell. This boon, so estimable to them and so trifling to the mob,

was ostensibly granted, but under conditions which showed an inhuman

desire to torture. Every prisoner was permitted, under a strong guard,

to seek out his beloved ones, _but was forbidden to speak to them_. He

might gaze on them with tearful eyes and wave them farewell, a long

farewell--forever, if he would; but no word from his lips might fall as

balm upon their bruised spirits.

Hyrum, the Prophet's beloved brother, who was never very far away from

Joseph, was one of the captives. Hyrum's young wife, Mary--for he was

again a husband--was prostrated with suffering. When he was dragged

before her by his armed captors he would have solaced her agony with a

few words of comfort and cheer. He wanted to bid her look up and trust

in God; but the mob soldiers threatened to kill him at her feet if he

breathed a syllable, and to spare her tortured soul this awful pang

he held his peace. Mary saw her husband carried from her, perhaps to

death; she gathered the motherless little children of Jerusha about her

and sought to comfort them. She did not see her noble husband again

until after she had passed through the trial and pain of maternity; for

her son, Joseph Fielding Smith, was born eleven days after, and while

his father was still a captive in the hands of the mob.

To moan and weep over the captive Prophet came his wife and babes, and

his aged father and mother. He had begged to have a moment in which to

comfort his wife, for she was utterly overpowered with fear for his

life. He wanted to reassure her that the sentence of death was not to

be executed that morning and to promise her that they should meet again

in this life. But the mob guards with their swords rudely thrust his

wife and little ones away from Joseph's side, and threatened to kill

him if he should speak.

Joseph gazed upon the overwhelming scene at Far West as he was being

marched forth a captive. He commended the city and its people to the

care of that God whose kindness had always followed them into the dark

valley of tribulation, and who alone could protect them from death and

defilement.

That night the Prophet with Hyrum Smith, Sidney Rigdon, Parley P.

Pratt, Lyman Wight, Amasa M. Lyman and George W. Robinson, were started

for Independence. Under a strong guard, commanded by Generals Lucas and

Wilson, they camped at night on Crooked River.

A vision of hope and security came to Joseph that night, and when he

arose in the morning he spoke to his brethren in a low and cheerful

tone, saying:

Be of good cheer, my brethren, the word of the Lord came to me last

night that our lives should be given us, and that whatever else we

might suffer during this captivity, not one of us should die.

An express from General Clark demanding the august prisoners reached

Lucas at this point. This commanding general had so far achieved

little, the triumphs of the cruel contest being with his subordinates.

He was therefore determined that the prisoners should be dragged at

_his_ chariot wheels and that their slaughter should be under _his_

personal direction, to show Boggs and the populace that he was worthy

of the truculent enterprise entrusted to him. But Lucas was no less

determined that, having won the victory, he himself should enjoy the

spoils and the plaudits; and with all possible speed he hastened

forward with the captives.

Leaving the Prophet and his companions advancing toward their unknown

fate, we must return with their anxious thoughts to the proceedings

at Far West; as General Clark was marching upon that place, and the

prisoners feared for their unprotected families.

Lucas had sent several companies of the mob militia including

Neal Gilliam's band of painted wretches under General Parks to

Adam-ondi-Ahman with instructions to disarm the militia at that place

and to take prisoners. By his orders also a large body of troops had

been left to guard some eighty brethren held captive at Far West.

General Clark did not arrive at the beleaguered city until the 4th of

November, 1838; but on that day he came at the head of two thousand

troops. In the interval of two days the people in the town had been

subjected to every possible indignity. Apostates prowled through the

streets pointing out to the mob all the men of influence or station

in the Church, and aiding to put them in irons. At first it had been

ordered that all who were not held as prisoners should flee the city on

the instant. But finally the mob concluded to keep the people within

the town until General Clark's arrival.

It was a joy to the sectarian ministers of the neighborhood to see

this work of ruin; and many of them visited Far West to exult over the

prisoners and their suffering families.

Many privations and tortures were endured. The captives were kept

without food until they were on the verge of starvation. The mob

continued their work of ruin, hunting and shooting human beings like

wild beasts; and ravishing and murdering women.

Upon Clark's arrival at Far West he selected fifty-six of the leading

men and held them under a strong guard for trial, for what offense

neither he nor they could tell. He also sent a messenger to the

commander of the troops advancing to assault Adam-ondi-Ahman, requiring

him to take all of the "Mormons" prisoners and to secure all their

property to pay the damages of other citizens.

On the 6th day of November, 1838, Clark assembled the people and

delivered an address to them as follows:

GENTLEMEN:

You whose names are not attached to this list of names will now

have the privilege of going to your fields and of providing corn,

wood, etc., for your families. Those who are now taken will go

from this to prison, be tried and receive the due demerit of their

crimes; but you (except such as charges may hereafter be preferred

against), are at liberty, as soon as the troops are removed that

now guard the place, which I shall cause to be done immediately.

It now devolves upon you to fulfill a treaty that you have entered

into, the leading items of which I shall now lay before you. The

first requires that your leading men be given up to be tried

according to law; this you already have complied with. The second

is, that you deliver up your arms: this has been attended to. The

third stipulation is that you sign over your properties to defray

the expenses of the war. This you have also done. Another article

yet remains for you to comply with--and that is, that you leave the

state forthwith. And whatever may be your feelings concerning this,

or whatever your innocence, it is nothing to me. General Lucas

(whose military rank is equal with mine), has made this treaty with

you, I approve of it. I should have done the same had I been here.

I am therefore determined to see it executed.

_The character of this state has suffered almost beyond

redemption_, from the character, conduct and influence that you

have exerted; and we deem it an act of justice to restore her

character to its former standing among the states by every proper

means. _The orders of the Governor to me were, that you should be

exterminated, and not allowed to remain in the state. And had not

your leaders been given up, and the terms of the treaty complied

with, before this time you and your families would have been

destroyed and your houses in ashes_.

There is a discretionary power vested in my hands, which,

considering your circumstances, I shall exercise for a season. You

are indebted to me for this clemency. I do not say that you shall

go now, but you must not think of staying here another season or of

putting in crops; for the moment you do this the citizens will be

upon you; and if I am called here again in case of a non-compliance

of a treaty made, do not think that I shall do as if I have done

now. _You need not expect any mercy, but extermination, for I am

determined the Governor's order shall be executed_.

_As for your leaders, do not think, do not imagine for a moment, do

not let it enter into your minds, that they will be delivered and

restored to you again, for their fate is fixed, their dye is cast,

their doom is sealed_.

I am sorry, gentlemen, to see so many apparently intelligent men

found in the situation that you are; and oh! if I could invoke

that Great Spirit, THE UNKNOWN GOD to rest upon and deliver you

from that awful chain of superstition, and liberate you from those

fetters of fanaticism with which you are bound--that you no longer

do homage to a man.

I would advise you to scatter abroad, and never again organize

yourselves with Bishops, Presidents, etc., lest you excite the

jealousies of the people and subject yourselves to the same

calamities that have now come upon you. You have always been the

aggressors--you have brought upon yourselves these difficulties, by

being disaffected, and not being subject to rule. And my advice is,

that you become as other citizens, lest by a recurrence of these

events you bring upon yourselves irretrievable ruin.

The prisoners whom he had taken were sent by him to Richmond, in Ray

County, for trial.

About this same time Boggs wrote a letter requiring Clark to finish the

awful work which had been begun. He directed a movement against the

Saints at Adam-ondi-Ahman and said:

My instructions to you are to settle this whole matter completely,

if possible, before you disband your forces.

To fulfill this edict, Clark ordered General Wilson with his brigade to

Adam-ondi-Ahman, although there were enough mob troops already there to

furnish a special guard and a special executioner for every man, woman

and child in the place. On the 8th of November a cordon was drawn about

Adam-ondi-Ahman. A court of inquiry was instituted with the notorious

Adam Black on the bench, and with a man from General Clark's army as

prosecuting attorney. Not a thing could be proved against any of the

brethren, except that they had been long-suffering victims of senseless

hate, and they were acquitted; but not until a military order was

prepared requiring them, one and all to vacate the place in ten days

and to be outside of the state as early as the next spring or to be

exterminated.

CHAPTER XLI.

JOSEPH PREACHES IN JACKSON AND FULFILLS HIS OWN PROPHECY--FAVOR IN

THE EYES OF THEIR CAPTORS--DRUNKEN GUARDS--IN RICHMOND JAIL--MAJESTY

IN CHAINS--CLARK'S DILEMMA--THE MOCK TRIAL--TREASON TO BELIEVE THE

BIBLE--CLOSE OF THE YEAR 1838.

Early in the year 1838, while it was more than his life was worth

for any Saint to penetrate Jackson County, the Prophet made a public

prophecy that some one of the Elders would preach a sermon there before

the close of the ensuing December.

Lucas crossed the ferry of the Missouri River from Clay into Jackson

County with his prisoners on the night of Saturday, the 3rd of

November, 1838. His march had been made with great expedition, because

he feared to be overtaken by a further demand from his superior officer

for the captives.

The next morning was the Sabbath; and the people along the road came

out in their best attire to view the "Mormon" Prophet, for the news had

preceded his advent, and the whole country was aroused. While they were

yet in camp on that morning a number of ladies and gentlemen visited

them; and one woman inquired of the guards, "Which of the captives is

the Lord worshiped by the Mormons?"

The mobocrat pointed to Joseph with a significant smile and said, "That

is he." After gazing upon the Prophet for a moment the lady candidly

asked whether he professed to be the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Joseph answered:

I am only a man, a humble minister of salvation sent by the

Redeemer to preach His gospel.

Astounded at this reply, so different from what she had been led to

expect, the lady pressed question after question upon the Prophet.

As he responded many listeners gathered around, including a company

of the wondering soldiers; and there on that Sabbath morning, with

hundreds of spectators and his captors for a congregation, the Prophet

preached as impressive a discourse as ever before in his life. He set

forth the doctrines of faith in Jesus Christ, repentance, baptism for

the remission of sin, with a promise of the gift of the Holy Ghost--as

recorded in the Acts of the Apostles. And by this sermon was his own

prophecy fulfilled.

His listeners were filled with strange emotions, this man spoke as no

other had ever talked in their hearing. The woman who had first asked

to see the Prophet was wrought upon by a spirit of conviction. When

Joseph finished his remarks, she arose and praised God in solemn tones,

and she went away praying that the Lord would protect and deliver His

servants.

At ten o'clock of that Sunday morning, the entire brigade having

crossed the river, the march was resumed. As they passed along the road

hundreds of people flocked to see them, and General Wilson often halted

the cavalcade to introduce his prisoners to the populace, pointing

out each one of the captives by name. A few hours later the prisoners

entered Independence surrounded by the exultant troops, who blew every

instant triumphant blasts upon their bugles to arouse the inhabitants

into a frenzy of joy. Rain was falling in torrents, but it could not

extinguish the blazing hate and exultation of the mob as they paraded

the Prophet through the streets of the city whence his brethren had

been once driven from homes and growing wealth.

But soon after their arrival a reaction of feeling set in, and the

prisoners began to be treated with some show of compassion. It is true

they were badly lodged, closely guarded and exhibited every day as a

victorious Roman general might have exhibited his captive kings; but

they were fed, partly shielded from the severity of the season and

were permitted to plead their cause and proclaim their belief to any

interested listener.

The effect of their situation and their teachings was most amazing.

Here in this region where they had once met cruelty in its direst shape

and whither they had been brought in hourly peril of their lives, they

awakened feelings of pity, respect and personal regard.

They were permitted occasionally to walk out in charge of a guard;

and then they visited the spot dedicated for a temple, which had been

denuded of its noble forests and now lay desolate, and also the place

where had once stood the dwellings of the Saints, but not a vestige

of these habitations remained, for they had been consumed by fire or

carried away by plunderers.

After four days' imprisonment at Independence, and after repeated

demands from Clark for their persons, it was decided to send them to

Richmond, Ray County; but the officers, now become somewhat friendly,

could not give them any light concerning the charges to be made against

them. It was agreed that they were not to be tried by civil process,

because none had been served upon them; it was also agreed that they

could not be tried by court martial since they were civilians--amenable

to civil law; martial law had not been declared, and they had not

committed any military offense.

It was extremely difficult to secure guards to accompany the brethren

to Richmond. None would volunteer, and when drafted from the ranks they

refused to obey orders. The soldiers, impressed by the personality

of the captives, and wrought upon by the spirit of mercy, wished the

brethren to go at liberty. Hundreds of the men who had fought against

them with bitterness now entertained for them the kindest feelings;

and, besides, both officers and troops disliked to see General Clark

secure the triumph so ardently desired by him. The view entertained by

Lucas was shared by his officers and men and was stated to the brethren

by General Wilson in the following words:

It was repeatedly insinuated by the other officers and troops,

that we should hang you prisoners on the first tree we came to on

the way to Independence. But I'll be damned if anybody shall hurt

you. We just intend to exhibit you in Independence, let the people

look at you, and see what a damned set of fine fellows you are. And

more particularly to keep you from that G--d damned old bigot of a

General Clark and his troops, from down country, who are so stuffed

with lies and prejudice that they would shoot you down in a moment.

Finally, three men consented to escort the prisoners to Richmond, and

on the morning of Thursday, the 8th day of November, 1838, they started

on their journey. What a reflection it is upon the doings of that time

that the officers in charge of these captives should entrust seven of

them to three guards! Joseph and his brethren had been designated and

treated as the most desperate men in the state of Missouri. The mob

proved their own assertion to be false when they arranged the journey

to Richmond. That afternoon, between Independence and Roy's Ferry, the

three guards became drunk. As Joseph and his brethren had no physical

restraint upon them, they could easily have killed their guard and

escaped; but instead of doing this, they merely secured the arms and

the horses, that the intoxicated soldiers might not injure themselves

or their prisoners and that the steeds might not stray away.

After crossing the Missouri they were met by Colonel Sterling Price

with a guard of seventy-four men, by whom they were conducted to

Richmond and thrown into a vacant house closely watched. A few hours

after their arrival General Clark visited them. When they demanded the

reason why they had thus been carried from their homes, and demanded

a statement of the charge made against them, the great General Clark,

called an eminent lawyer, answered that he could not then determine

what particular offense could be alleged against them, but would think

the matter over. Immediately after he had withdrawn, Colonel Price came

in with ten armed men and some chains and padlocks. The guards were

ordered to stand with muskets ready to fire. Then the windows were

nailed down, and a man named John Fulkerson, chained the seven brethren

together and fastened the manacles with padlocks.

General Clark spent many hours trying to find some definite charge

against the prisoners and trying to find some authority to arraign them

before a court martial. The result of his researches is shown in a

letter addressed to the Governor at that time, in which he says:

I have detained General White and his field officers here a day

or two, for the purpose of holding a court martial, if necessary.

I this day made out charges against the prisoners, and called on

Judge King to try them as a committing court; and I am now busily

engaged in procuring witnesses and submitting facts. There being

no civil officers in Caldwell, I have to use the military to get

witnesses from there, which I do without reserve. The most of the

prisoners here, I _consider_ guilty of treason; and I believe

will be convicted; and the only difficulty in law is, can they be

tried in any county but Caldwell? If not, they cannot be there

indicted until a change of population. In the event the latter view

is taken by the civil courts, I suggest the propriety of trying

Joseph Smith and those leaders taken by General Lucas for mutiny.

This I am in favor of only as a dernier resort. I would have taken

this course with Smith at any rate; but it being doubtful whether

a court martial has jurisdiction or not in the present case--that

is, whether these people are to be treated as in time of war, and

the mutineers as having mutinied in time of war--and I would here

ask you to forward to me the Attorney-General's opinion on this

point. It will not do to allow these leaders to return to their

treasonable work again on account of their not being indicted in

Caldwell. _They have committed treason, murder, arson, burglary,

robbery, larceny and perjury_.

A more helpless state of mind than that of General Clark can scarcely

be imagined. The document which has been quoted and which he closes

with charges against the brethren of nearly all the offenses under the

law--and yet does not know how to substantiate or legally punish a

single one of them--proves that he was in a desperate state of mind.

He was determined that they should die and made his preparations for

the commission of the murder before he had even decided what charge to

bring against the prisoners. While this matter was pending, Brother

Jedediah Grant, then a young man, put up at the same tavern with the

General at Richmond. He saw Clark select the men to shoot Joseph and

his fellow prisoners, and he heard the day of the execution fixed as

Monday, November 12th, 1838. He saw the men who were selected load

their rifles with two bullets each, and after this was done he heard

General Clark say to them:

_Gentlemen, you shall have the honor of shooting the Mormon leaders

next Monday morning at eight o'clock_.

Colonel Price, who had immediate charge of the prisoners, permitted all

manner of abuse to be heaped upon them. They were kept chained together

like wild beasts; left to lie upon the bare floor without any covering.

When they might have forgotten their sufferings of body and mind in

slumber, the inhuman guards kept them awake by yelling ribald songs and

jests and by shrieks of laughter. Parley P. Pratt, who was one of the

prisoners confined with Joseph, writes of one of these painful nights

as follows:

In one of those tedious nights we had lain as if in sleep, till

the hour of midnight had passed, and our ears and hearts had been

pained, while we had listened for hours to the obscene jests, the

horrid oaths, the dreadful blasphemies and filthy language of our

guards, Colonel Price at their head, as they recounted to each

other their deeds of rapine, murder, robbery, etc., which they had

committed among the Mormons while at Far West and vicinity. They

even boasted of defiling by force wives, daughters and virgins, and

of shooting or dashing out the brains of men, women and children.

I had listened till I became so disgusted, shocked, horrified,

and so filled with the spirit of indignant justice, that I could

scarcely refrain from rising upon my feet and rebuking the guards,

but I had said nothing to Joseph or anyone else, although I lay

next to him, and knew he was awake. On a sudden he arose to his

feet and spoke in a voice of thunder, or as the roaring lion,

uttering, as near as I can recollect, the following words:

"Silence! Ye fiends of the infernal pit! In the name of Jesus

Christ I rebuke you, and command you to be still. I will not live

another minute and hear such language. Cease such talk, or you or I

die this instant!"

He ceased to speak. He stood erect in terrible majesty. Chained,

and without a weapon, calm, unruffled, and dignified as an angel,

he looked down upon his quailing guards, whose knees smote

together, and who, shrinking into a corner, or crouching at his

feet, begged his pardon, and remained quiet until an exchange of

guards.

I have seen ministers of justice, clothed in ministerial robes,

and criminals arraigned before them, while life was suspended upon

a breath in the courts of England; I have witnessed a congress in

solemn session to give laws to nations; I have tried to conceive

of kings, of royal courts, of thrones and crowns; and of emperors

assembled to decide the fate of kingdoms; but dignity and majesty

have I seen but once, as it stood in chains, at midnight, in a

dungeon, in an obscure village of Missouri.

More than fifty of the brethren from Far West were also held in

captivity at Richmond; failing to find authority or excuse for trying

any of these men by court martial, Clark informed them that the

whole party would be turned over to the civil authorities. A court

was convened with Austin A. King presiding, and Thomas C. Burch the

state's attorney, for the prosecution. The first act of this strange

tribunal was to send out a body of mobocratic soldiers, armed with

guns instead of civil process, to bring in witnesses, who, when they

arrived, were sworn at the point of the bayonet. Nearly forty persons

gave evidence for the prosecution. Though they all swore in a general

way monstrous crimes against the accused, not one definite charge was

maintained. When the defense were asked for their witnesses they named

as many as fifty, any of whom could have disproved the accusations.

Captain Bogart, the Methodist preacher, was sent out with a company

of soldiers to procure these witnesses, and when he brought them in

under arrest, they were thrust into jail and kept there until after the

trial, without being accorded an opportunity to testify or to see the

defendants.

One day, while the trial was proceeding, a man named Allen, who knew

something of the facts and was there as an interested spectator, was

called by the defense and sworn. As his testimony was favorable to the

Prophet and the other prisoners, the mob set upon him in open court

and tried to murder him. When he left the building he was pursued by

mobocrats with loaded guns. Observing the outrages inflicted upon

people who wanted to tell the truth, the Prophet and his brethren

ceased to demand witnesses, preferring themselves to suffer than to

involve other people in the toils of mobocratic hate.

The mock investigation continued from day to day until Saturday,

November 24th, 1838, when all of the brethren were discharged except

Joseph Smith, Hyrum Smith, Lyman Wight, Caleb Baldwin, Alexander McRae,

Sidney Rigdon, Parley P. Pratt, Morris Phelps, Luman Gibbs, Darwin

Chase, and Norman Shearer, who were held for murder and treason.

The judge was a Methodist, and he had been particularly anxious to know

whether the defendants believed in the prophecy of Daniel, that:

In the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a

kingdom, which shall break in pieces all other kingdoms, and stand

forever.

And,

The kingdom and the greatness of the kingdom, under the whole

heaven, shall be given to the Saints of the Most High.

When it appeared clear that the prisoners believed in the Bible and in

this particular part of it, their treason was established. The judge

so decided in express terms and he then committed them; and as General

Doniphan, who was present, remarked:

If a cohort of angels were to come down and declare the innocence

of the prisoners it would be all the same; for King has determined

from the beginning to throw them into prison.

King and Burch, the judge and prosecuting attorney, had sat in Lucas's

secret tribunal in Far West which had sentenced the brethren to be

shot; and they were anxious to take this new opportunity to wreak their

vengeance. In open court the judge stated that there was no law to

protect "Mormons" in the state of Missouri, and he was bound to aid the

Governor's edict of extermination.

The prisoners had been kept in chains during the examination; and in

chains they stood to hear the judgment of the court. It was that Joseph

Smith, Hyrum Smith, Lyman Wight, Alexander McRae, Caleb Baldwin, and

Sidney Rigdon be imprisoned in the jail of Clay County until delivered

therefrom by due course of law. The others who were held were retained

in Richmond jail.

Thus was the charge of treason maintained in that day; and upon the

same grounds it has been repeated against the Saints down to the

present time, for they still continue to believe that the Bible is the

word of God.

Joseph and his companions were carried to Liberty, Clay County, in

irons. As they entered the town considerable excitement prevailed among

people desirous to view them. Arrived at the jail, they descended from

the vehicle and walked up the steps to a landing or platform in front

of the entrance of the prison building. Joseph wore a suit of black and

had a cloak of dark colored material hanging on his arm. Hyrum followed

him and the others stood close around. The gaze of the spectators was

concentrated upon Joseph, and his majestic air made a deep impression

upon them. One lady in the crowd cried: "Their Prophet looks like a

gentleman!" Another looking at the group expressed the opinion: "Well,

they are fine looking men if they are Mormons."

It was on the 30th day of November, 1838, that they were incarcerated

in Liberty jail; and at once an order was made to cut off all

communication between them and their friends, while every effort was

put forth to drive away or frighten any witnesses whose testimony might

be desirable for the defendants. And at the same time the threat went

out through all that region that if judges or juries or courts of any

kind should clear the prisoners, they would be slaughtered.

After a little time the rule concerning communications was relaxed, and

Joseph was able to write to his brethren. In one of his letters, dated

from Liberty jail, December 16th, 1838, he said:

But we want you to remember Haman and Mordecai: you know Haman

could not be satisfied so long as he saw Mordecai at the king's

gate, and he sought the life of Mordecai and the people of the

Jews. But the Lord so ordered it, that Haman was hanged upon his

own gallows. So shall it come to pass with poor Haman in the last

days. Those who have sought by unbelief and wickedness, and by

the principle of mobocracy, to destroy us and the people of God,

by killing them and scattering them abroad, and wilfully and

maliciously delivering us into the hands of murderers, desiring us

to be put to death, thereby having us dragged about in chains and

cast into prison, and for what cause? It is because we were honest

men, and were determined to save the lives of the Saints at the

expense of our own. I say unto you, that those who have thus vilely

treated us like Haman, shall be hanged on their own gallows; or in

other words, shall fall into their own gin and snare, and ditch and

trap, which they have prepared for us, and shall go backwards and

stumble and fall, and their names shall be blotted out, and God

shall reward them according to all their abominations.

The people were making their preparations to leave the state; but

in the meantime they addressed a memorial and petition to the

legislature of Missouri, setting forth the wrongs and outrages

committed upon them. These appeals were presented, but after an

angry discussion they were laid upon the table. At the same time an

appropriation of $200,000 was made to the mob to pay them for their

crimes against the Saints.

This action was so outrageous that something must be done to distract

public attention, and the mob element secured the publication of the

most enormous falsehoods against the people. In these accounts the

wickedness of the mob was disguised or denied. But the Prophet exposed

them in the following words:

But can they hide the Governor's cruel order for banishment or

extermination? Can they conceal the facts of the disgraceful treaty

of the generals with their own officers and men at Far West? Can

they conceal the fact that twelve or fifteen thousand men, women

and children have been banished from the state without trial or

condemnation? And this at the expense of two hundred thousand

dollars--and this sum appropriated by the state legislature in

order to pay the troops for this act of lawless outrage? Can they

conceal the fact that we have been imprisoned for many months,

while our families, friends and witnesses have been driven away?

Can they conceal the blood of the murdered husbands and fathers, or

stifle the cries of the widow and the fatherless? Nay! The rocks

and mountains may cover them in unknown depths, the awful abyss of

the fathomless deep may swallow them up--and still their horrid

deeds stand forth in the broad light of day, for the wondering gaze

of angels and men! They cannot be hid.

The year drew to a close. The Saints were impoverished and scattered.

The Prophet and his companions, loaded with chains, were in a noisome

dungeon; several times they were poisoned, and, during a period of five

days, human flesh was served to them as meat. The guards called it

"Mormon beef," and the Prophet warned his companions not to touch it.

The earth was wrapped in gloom for the people of God when the sun sank

for the last time upon the year 1838; but beyond and above this sphere

was the star of eternal faith, whose light no prison walls could shut

out from trusting souls.

CHAPTER XLII.

THE PLEDGE FOR THE POOR SAINTS IN MISSOURI--BRIGHAM YOUNG DRIVEN

FORTH--EFFORTS TO SECURE THE PROPHET'S RELEASE--REMOVAL TO GALLATIN--

EXAMINATION OF THE CASE BY A DRUNKEN JURY--WHOLESALE INDICTMENT--CHANGE

OF VENUE TO BOONE--ESCAPE FROM MISSOURI TO ILLINOIS.

With the dawn of 1839, a pledge was given by many of the brethren in

Missouri that they would assist each other and assist the poor to

escape from the state; and the promise was sacredly redeemed.

But the persecution did not cease. Brigham Young who had been chosen

president of the Twelve in place of Thomas B. Marsh, an apostate, was

driven out of Far West by mobs that sought his life. He with other

fugitive Saints went to Illinois, and the charitable people of Quincy,

Adams County, extended to the persecuted people a hand of kindness.

In January, Heber C. Kimball and Alanson Ripley went to Liberty

and began to importune at the feet of judges for relief for their

suffering Prophet and brethren in prison. One Judge Hughes believed

that they were pleading the cause of the innocent and wanted the

captives admitted to bail; but his associates were hardened and would

not consent. The two supplicants were soon compelled, by mob fury, to

desist from their importunities and were driven away from Liberty.

A writ of _habeas corpus_ was secured about the close of January to

bring the prisoners before Judge Turnham. An examination was held, but

it was a farce. Nearly all the officers of the law, if not in league

with the mob, were in terror of its power. Sidney Rigdon alone was

released at the hearing upon the writ; but he had to return to jail

because the rabble swore they would kill him if he were turned loose. A

little later Sidney was let out of the prison secretly in the night by

a friendly jailor, and he escaped to Quincy.

The families of Joseph, Hyrum and the other captive brethren gathered

up to Quincy after undergoing the most appalling privations. It was

Stephen Markham who escorted Emma, Joseph's wife, and their children

from Far West, through all the dangers of Missouri and to a place of

safety. The Saints were arriving there in large numbers during the

winter and early spring, but were not decided yet where to settle.

On the 15th day of March the Prophet and the other brethren in Liberty

jail made petitions to the judges of the supreme court for writs of

_habeas corpus_, by which they hoped to have the proceedings of their

imprisonment examined; but they were obstructed by the hatred against

them. It was evident that the purpose of their enemies was to withhold

judicial hearing until after the brethren had suffered death in prison.

And their efforts from this time on during their captivity were

continuous to secure such hearing.

A conference was held at Quincy on the 17th of March, 1839, over which

Brigham Young presided as the head of the Twelve. Thomas B. Marsh and

several other persons of some prominence were excommunicated from the

Church.

A gathering place for the Saints was necessary. This the Prophet felt

every hour. While he was in prison in Liberty the brethren had friendly

communication with one Dr. Isaac Galland upon the subject of settlement

by the Saints in Iowa Territory and at Commerce, Illinois. From his

dungeon the Prophet pressed the Elders to make a close examination of

this matter, as the springtime was at hand and the crops for the year

must be planted.

In prison, Joseph was in constant communion with the heavens and he

received revelations, without which he and his brethren must have been

cast down and without hope. He also sent epistles full of instruction

and hope to leading men among the Saints. And his cheerful courage

under the most trying circumstances of his life was very helpful in

animating the banished people to pursue their migration with energy and

fortitude.

While the Prophet and companions were still in Liberty jail, and after

having repeatedly and vainly sought release by law, they thought they

saw an opportunity to escape. At Hyrum's instance Joseph prayed to

the Lord and asked if it were His will that they should depart from

prison. The answer came to the Prophet that if they were all agreed

in faith and purpose they might escape that night. When this response

was made known, all of the brethren except Lyman Wight coincided in

the opinion that they should seize their liberty, for they relied

implicitly upon the promise given. But Lyman trembled, hesitated; and,

as his companions would not resolve to leave him and as the promise of

the Lord was based upon their unanimity, they resolved to wait until

the next night as Lyman Wight agreed to then accompany them. The delay

was fatal; they broke the conditions of the promise and remained in

durance. On the night for which the promise was given the jailer came

in alone with their suppers and left the doors wide open, so that they

might easily have escaped. The next night he brought a double guard

with him and also six visiting brethren. As the jailor was leaving

their dungeon some of them attempted to follow him; but they were

foiled. The guards were so enraged at the effort, although it had been

a vain one, that they locked up the visiting brethren and made threats

against their persons and property. The attempt to escape created

great excitement; and the people of the town swarmed around the jail

proposing various plans to destroy Joseph and all his companions. But

the Prophet told his brethren to have no fear; not a hair of their

heads should be harmed, and the brethren who had come in to comfort

them should not lose any of their personal belongings--not even a horse

or a saddle. He told them that they had risked their lives to bring joy

to himself and companions and the Lord would bless them. These promises

were fulfilled to the letter.

When the visiting brethren were called for trial, Brother Erastus Snow,

who was one of them, plead their cause as he had been counseled by

Joseph. He did so in such a forcible and eloquent manner that orders

of discharge in some cases and orders for bail in the others were

immediately entered. Elder Snow's argument had been so strong and

logical in its legal deductions that the lawyers who heard him supposed

that he was a trained attorney.

Many enemies of the Prophet were permitted by the guard to visit and

insult him in prison. It was their habit to charge him with murder.

Several different men accused him of having killed their sons at the

battle of Crooked River; several more, who were no kin to each other,

charged him with having killed their brothers in the same battle. And

this was the texture of the accusations made against him in and out of

court. It had been alleged that only one man was killed at the battle

of Crooked River, so it was impossible for several different men to

lose sons and brothers there; and Joseph was not near the scene of that

contest.

On one occasion a company under the leadership of William Bowman made

solemn oath that they would never eat or drink more until they had

taken the life of Joseph Smith. Bowman himself went to one of the

Elders and made this boast:

After I once lay eyes on your Prophet I will never taste food or

drink until I have killed him.

As these men all saw the Prophet soon afterward, and as he lived more

than five years from that time, they either broke their oath or endured

a long fast.

Before Brigham Young was driven out of Missouri into Illinois he went

with Elders Heber C. Kimball and George A. Smith to see the Prophet in

prison. Joseph enjoyed two visits with them; and when they left him

they were much affected and were determined to do something further for

his release. In the latter part of March, Elders Heber C. Kimball and

Theodore Turley, carrying with them the papers in the case, went to see

the Governor. As Boggs was absent from the capital the secretary of

state reviewed the documents; and he was amazed that any man should be

held in custody upon such papers, for they were in every sense illegal,

insufficient and absurd. However, nothing was done from the executive

office to relieve them; and Elders Kimball and Turley then applied to

the supreme court judges for a writ of _habeas corpus_ but without

avail. When these devoted men returned to Liberty and reported the

failure of their mission, the Prophet bade them be of good cheer and

said:

We shall be delivered; but no arm but that of God can save us now.

Tell the brethren to be of good cheer and to get the Saints away

from Missouri as soon as possible.

On Saturday, the 6th day of April, 1839, Judge King ordered the Prophet

and his fellow-prisoners off to Gallatin, Daviess County. This judicial

autocrat feared a change of venue or some movement from a superior

tribunal to secure the release of the prisoners or their removal from

his personal power, and he determined to carry them away from Liberty.

He sent them under a guard of ten men, promising the brethren that they

should be permitted to go through Far West to see their friends, as

that place was directly on their route. Instead, however, of fulfilling

his promise, the guards carried the captives eighteen miles out of the

direct course to avoid the city, dragging them through a dangerous

country, apparently in the hope that some of their sworn enemies would

fall upon and massacre them.

The journey to Gallatin was very painful, for Joseph and his brethren

had been greatly enfeebled by their long confinement and the privations

which they had endured while enchained in Liberty dungeon. Before they

had started on this journey, some of the captive brethren had desired

to have a party of friends to accompany them for protection. But as

they never did anything without asking the Prophet, they consulted him

upon this point. He responded:

In the name of the Lord, if we put our trust in Him alone we shall

be saved and no harm shall befall us, and we shall be better

treated than ever before since we have been prisoners.

Although this surprised the brethren, it satisfied them. But when they

arrived at the place where the court was to be held at Gallatin, they

began to think the Prophet had been mistaken for once, for the rabble

rushed out upon them shrieking, "Kill them; -------- -------- them,

kill them!" There was apparently no chance for escape except to fight,

and they were unarmed. At this instant the Prophet rose to his feet and

said:

We are in your hands; if we are guilty, we do not refuse to be

punished by the law.

Some of the bitterest mobocrats hearing these words and being impressed

by the power with which they were uttered, warned the blood-thirsty

rabble back and quieted the storm. During the time of their stay in

Gallatin the Prophet's promise was fulfilled; for they enjoyed all the

comforts and some of the luxuries of life, tendered them by men who

sympathized with their long-suffering and patient endurance. The day

after their arrival at Gallatin, an examination of their case commenced

before a drunken jury. Austin A. King, who acted here as the presiding

judge, was as drunk as the jurymen. The same perjured testimony was

invoked at this time as on previous occasions. Everything which was

prejudicial to the prisoners, even when it was a patent falsehood,

and even when, if true, it could have had no relevancy to the case,

was eagerly seized and applauded. Stephen Markham desired to testify

to some facts which were favorable to the defendants. He had reached

Gallatin on the afternoon of the 9th, having hastened from Far West,

swimming several streams by the way, to bring money and comfort to the

Prophet and his companions. At his request his testimony was received.

It did not suit the mobocratic guards, and they attempted to kill him.

The notorious Colonel William P. Peniston was one of their number.

Judge King and all the members of the grand jury saw the attack upon

Markham, and the threats against his life, but they took no cognizance

of these outrages.

On the 11th of April, 1839, the grand jury brought in a bill against

Joseph Smith, Hyrum Smith, Alexander McRae, Caleb Baldwin and Lyman

Wight for "murder, treason, burglary, arson, larceny, theft and

stealing." All of these counts were embodied in one indictment, and not

one of them was sustained by any specific statement of circumstances.

The language of the bill proves that the grand jury, like General

Clark, had failed to find a definite charge which they could

substantiate, and so included everything which they could think of.

That night Elder Markham stayed with the brethren and while he slept

a vision came to Joseph, showing him that his beloved Brother Markham

was in peril of his life, at the same time showing him that his own

deliverance and that of his captive companions, was nigh. The Prophet

aroused Stephen and told him to hasten away from Gallatin, because if

he waited until broad day--according to his expectation for the purpose

of meeting the lawyers--he would be waylaid by a mob which intended to

assassinate him. Stephen knew that the warning was from the Lord and

he fled, thereby baffling the mobocrats who, as shown to Joseph in the

vision, had really made their plot to kill Stephen. After he was gone,

an armed party pursued him a long distance on the road to Far West; but

they were unable to overtake him.

Elder Alexander McRae, who was a prisoner with Joseph at this time,

says that it was the Prophet's characteristic to always defend his

companions no matter how unpopular it might be to speak in their

favor. He was much more solicitous for them than for himself. And as

an illustration Brother McRae says that while they were at Gallatin,

Peniston began to insult one of the captive brethren. Joseph darted a

glance of lightning upon the wretch and said in tones of thunder: "Your

heart is as black as your whiskers."

Peniston threw his hand over his beard, which was as black as a crow

and rushed from the room quaking in every limb.

Elder Markham had left with the brethren a recent statute which

enabled them to secure a change of venue upon their own affidavit; and

after the mock examination in Gallatin the Prophet and his companions

procured a change of venue to Boone County, for which place they

departed on the 15th day of April, 1839, under charge of a strong

guard. On the evening of the 16th, while pursuing their journey, all

of the guards became intoxicated. It was a favorable moment for an

escape, and the brethren seized the opportunity. The Prophet's reasons

for consenting to this escape were stated by him at the time in the

following language:

Knowing the only object of our enemies was our destruction, * * *

we thought that [escape] was necessary for us, inasmuch as we love

our lives, and did not wish to die by the hands of murderers and

assassins; and inasmuch as we love our families and friends.

By this act the brethren took their change of venue from the state

of Missouri to the state of Illinois. After indescribable hardships,

traveling by night and suffering all manner of privations, they arrived

in Quincy, Illinois, and met the congratulations of their friends and

the embraces of their families.

Reviewing the awful experience through which he and his fellow captives

had passed, Joseph wrote on the day of his arrival at Quincy as follows:

We were in their hands, as prisoners, about six months; but

notwithstanding their determination to destroy us, * * and although

at three different times (as we were informed) we were sentenced to

be shot, without the least shadow of law (as we were not military

men) and had the time and place appointed for that purpose, yet

through the mercy of God, in answer to the prayers of the Saints,

we have been preserved and delivered out of their hands, and can

again enjoy the society of our friends and brethren, whom we love

and to whom we feel united in bonds that are stronger than death,

and in a state where we believe the laws are respected, and whose

citizens are humane and charitable.

During the time we were in the hands of our enemies, we must say

that although we felt anxiety respecting our families and friends,

who were so inhumanly treated and abused, and who had to mourn the

loss of their * * * slain, and, after having been robbed of nearly

all that they possessed, be driven from their homes, and forced to

wander as strangers in a strange country, in order that they might

save themselves and their little ones from the destruction they

were threatened with in Missouri, yet as far as we were concerned,

we felt perfectly calm, and resigned to the will of our Heavenly

Father. We knew our innocency, as well as that of the Saints, and

that we had done nothing to deserve such treatment from the hands

of our oppressors. Consequently, we could look to that God who has

the hearts of all men in His hands, and who has saved us frequently

from the gates of death, for deliverance; and notwithstanding that

every avenue of escape seemed to be entirely closed, and death

stared us in the face, and that our destruction was determined

upon, as far as man was concerned, yet from our first entrance

into the camp, we felt an assurance that we, with our families,

should be delivered. Yes, that still small voice, which had so

often whispered consolation to our souls, in the depths of sorrow

and distress, bade us be of good cheer, and promised deliverance,

which gave us great comfort. And although the heathen raged, and

the people imagined vain things, yet the Lord of Hosts, the God

of Jacob, was our refuge, and when we cried unto Him in the day

of trouble, He delivered us; for which we call upon our souls to

bless and praise His holy name. For although we were troubled on

every side, yet not distressed; perplexed, but not in despair;

persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed.

CHAPTER XLIII.

THE EXODUS COMPLETED--A FRAGMENT OF ITS AGONIES--THE WOES OF A

MARTYR'S WIDOW, A TYPE OF THE GENERAL SUFFERING--THREAT THAT ONE OF

JOSEPH'S PROPHECIES SHOULD FAIL--BUT IT IS FULFILLED BY COURAGEOUS

APOSTLES--MISSOURI'S PUNISHMENT AND ATONEMENT.

The agony of the exodus from Missouri cannot be described. Many of the

brethren had been killed; many more were in prison; and all the rest

were pursued with vindictive hate and threats of death. But for the

spirit of mutual help which prevailed, the half of the stricken Saints

must have perished by massacre or starvation in Missouri. A pitiful

picture of some of the trials they endured was drawn by Sister Amanda

Smith, a survivor of the Haun's Mill massacre. The mob had killed her

husband and one son and had dangerously wounded another of her children.

She says:

They [the mob] told us we must leave the state forthwith or be

killed. It was cold weather, and they had our teams and clothes,

our men all dead or wounded. I told them they might kill me and

my children and welcome. They sent word to us from time to time,

saying that if we did not leave the state they would come and kill

us. We had little prayer meetings; they said if we did not stop

these, they would kill every man, woman and child. We had spelling

schools for our little children; they said if we did not stop these

they would kill every man, woman and child. We [the women] had to

do our own milking, cut our own wood; no man to help us. I started

on the 1st of February for Illinois without money; mobs on the way;

drove our own team; slept out of doors. I had five small children;

we suffered hunger, fatigue and cold.

This is one scene by which the whole Missouri tragedy of that day may

be judged.

Some time after the Saints had completed their exodus Hyrum Smith

epitomized the awful events in the following words:

Governor Boggs and Generals Clark, Lucas, Wilson and Gilliam,

also Austin A. King, have committed treasonable acts against the

citizens of Missouri, and did violate the constitution of the

United States and also the constitution and laws of the state of

Missouri, and did exile and expel, at the point of the bayonet,

some twelve or fourteen thousand inhabitants of the state, and did

murder some three or four hundred of men, women and children in

cold blood, in the most horrid and cruel manner possible. And the

whole of it was caused by religious bigotry and persecution, and

because the Mormons dared to worship Almighty God according to the

dictates of their own conscience, and agreeably to His divine will,

as revealed in the scriptures of eternal truth.

The Prophet himself bore testimony that the conduct of the Saints under

their accumulated wrongs and sufferings was most praiseworthy. He had

observed them from within his prison walls, and after the order of

exile was fully enforced he wrote:

The courage of the Saints in defending their brethren from the

ravages of the mobs, their attachment to the cause of truth, under

circumstances most trying and distressing which humanity can

possibly endure; their love to each other: * * * their sacrifice

in leaving Missouri and assisting the poor widows and orphans and

securing them homes in a more hospitable land; all combine to

raise them in the estimation of all good and virtuous men, and

has secured them the favor and approbation of Jehovah, and a name

as imperishable as eternity. And their virtuous deeds and heroic

actions, while in defense of truth and their brethren, will be

fresh and blooming when the names of their oppressors shall be

either entirely forgotten, or only remembered for their barbarity

and cruelty.

On the 5th day of April, 1839, Captain Bogart, who was now the county

judge of Caldwell, with a number of apostates and mobocrats, visited

Elder Theodore Turley, in Far West, and called his attention to the

revelation given through Joseph Smith, July 8th, 1838, in which the

following passage occurs:

Let them [the Twelve] take leave of my Saints in the city of Far

West on the 26th day of April next, on the building spot of my

house, saith the Lord.

Bogart and his companions said to Elder Turley:

As a rational man, you must give up the claim that Joseph Smith is

a prophet and an inspired man; the Twelve are scattered all over

creation; let them come here if they dare: if they do, they will be

murdered. As that revelation cannot be fulfilled, you must now give

up your faith. This is like all the rest of Joseph Smith's damned

prophecies.

Elder Turley rebuked them with such manliness and power of the Spirit

that John Whitmer, one of the apostates who was present, hung his head

in shame.

But the Lord God Almighty would not permit one jot or tittle of His

promise to fail; He had servants with the courage and fidelity to

perform His command. At 1 o'clock in the morning of the 26th day of

April, 1839, the day promised in the revelation, seven of the Twelve

Apostles, a majority of the quorum, held a conference on the temple

site at Far West; and the master workman laid a corner stone of the

foundation of the Lord's house. After the inspiring services were

ended, the Twelve took leave of the congregation of the Saints, as had

been promised.

It was at this conference that Wilford Woodruff and George A. Smith

were ordained to the Apostleship. Brigham Young presided over the

meeting and John Taylor was its clerk.

President Brigham Young, in speaking of this matter in his history,

details the following incident:

As the Saints were passing away from the meeting, Brother Turley

said to Page and Woodruff, "Stop a bit, while I bid Isaac Russell

good-bye;" and knocking at the door called Brother Russell.

His wife answered, "Come in, it is Brother Turley."

Russell replied, "It is not; he left here two weeks ago," and

appeared quite alarmed; but on finding it was Turley, asked him to

sit down; but he replied, "I cannot; I shall lose my company."

"Who is your company?" inquired Russell.

"The Twelve."

"_The Twelve_!"

"Yes. Don't you know that this is the twenty-sixth, and the day the

Twelve were to take leave of their friends on the foundation of the

Lord's House, to go to the islands of the sea? The revelation is

now fulfilled, and I am going with them."

Russell was speechless, and Turley bid him farewell.

Thus was this revelation fulfilled, concerning which our enemies

said, if all the other revelations of Joseph Smith were fulfilled,

that one should not, as it had day and date to it.

After the fulfillment of this prophecy, none of the Saints had any

desire to remain longer in the state of Missouri, and the last remnant,

except such as were held in chains and dungeons hastened away to join

their brethren in Illinois and to find a new place of gathering. And a

few months later, after undergoing thrice the tortures of death, Parley

P. Pratt and the other captives had all been released.

The turbulent spirits in Missouri had conquered, overriding law and

justice and trampling humanity into the dust. This is not the place for

a review in detail of all the sufferings of the Church of Jesus Christ

in that region; but when the chapter shall be written, it will be as

tragic as anything in American history.

The edict of exile was made and enforced, and so far as the Saints were

concerned, the deed ended there; but not so with the state of Missouri,

for the wrong committed remained to plague and wreak its vengeance

upon guilty and innocent alike. The demon conjured into power by the

murderous and plundering element of that region, would not down. When

there were no "Mormons" to persecute, the turbulent spirits of the

border at times fell upon each other and at other times fell unitedly

upon law-abiding, prosperous citizens. Missouri became deeply involved

in the Kansas troubles, in which the lawless, mobocratic element took

bloody part; and when the Civil War opened, the government of Missouri,

from the executive office down, became a chaos. The man who occupied

the place disgraced by Lilburn W. Boggs, was a secessionist, and fled

from his capital to lead the state militia at Booneville against the

Union troops. The national power triumphed, and the governor and his

forces, among which were many of the old mobocrats, were utterly

routed. The offices which had once been disgraced by cowards were

now declared vacant by an arbitrary decree of a state convention in

sympathy with the Republic, one and indivisible. The state was declared

out of the Union by the secessionist governor, and then became the

theatre for a fratricidal strife which deluged it with blood.

On the 31st day of August, 1861, General John C. Fremont, then in

command of the western department, declared martial law in the state of

Missouri, and proclaimed free the slaves of all persons who had taken

up arms against the United States. It was a wonderful retribution that

Missouri, in which the mob had declared as a pretext for their assaults

upon the Saints that the latter were Abolitionists, should be the

first state in which an edict of manumission went forth. It is also a

wonderful retribution that the state in which the civil power had once

been helpless to protect law-abiding citizens, should, only five months

after the breaking out of the war, have its civil power abrogated and

all its people placed under martial rule. Some of the statements in

Fremont's proclamation show with startling significance the character

of that evil population which had been rewarded by the state for

expatriating the Latter-day Saints.

The General says:

Circumstances in my judgment of sufficient urgency, render it

necessary that the Commanding General of this Department should

assume the administrative powers of the state. Its disorganized

condition, _the helplessness of its civil authority, the total

insecurity of life, and the devastation of property by hands

of murderers and marauders, who infest nearly every county

in the state, and avail themselves of the public misfortunes

and the vicinity of a hostile force to gratify private and

neighborhood vengeance, and who find an enemy wherever they find

plunder_,--finally demand the severest measures to repress the

daily increasing crimes and outrages, _which are driving off the

inhabitants and ruining the state_. In this condition, the public

safety and the success of our arms require unity of purpose:

without let or hindrance, to the prompt administration of affairs.

In order, therefore, to suppress disorders, to maintain as far

as now practicable the public peace, and to give security and

protection to the persons and property of loyal citizens, I do

hereby extend, and declare established, martial law throughout the

state of Missouri. The lines of the army of occupation in this

state are for the present declared to extend from Leavenworth, by

way of the posts of Jefferson City, Rolla and Ironton, to Cape

Girardeau, on the Mississippi River.

All persons who shall be taken with arms in their hands within

these lines shall be tried by court martial, and if found guilty,

will be shot.

Upon the subject of the slaves, in the same proclamation, the General

says:

The property, real and personal, of all persons in the state of

Missouri who shall take up arms against the United States, and

who shall be directly proven to have taken active part with their

enemies in the field, is declared to be confiscated to the public

use; _and their slaves_, if any they have, _are hereby declared

free men_.

And in enforcement of his proclamation to set the negroes free, he

issued deeds of manumission, of one of which we are able to present a

copy:

Deed of manumission.--Whereas, T. L. S., of the city and county of

St. Louis, Missouri, has been taking active part with the enemies

of the United States in the present insurrectionary movement

against the government of the United States, Now, therefore,

I, John Charles Fremont, Major-General, commanding the Western

Department of the Army of the United States, by authority of law,

and the power vested in me, as such Commanding-General, declare

Frank Lewis, heretofore "held to service" or labor, by said T. L.

S. to be free, and forever discharged from the bonds of servitude;

giving him full right and authority to have, use and control

his own labor or service as to him may seem proper, without any

accountability whatever to said T. L. S., or any one to claim

by, through or under him. And this Deed of Manumission shall be

respected and treated by all persons and in all courts of justice,

as the full and complete evidence of the freedom of said Frank

Lewis.

In testimony whereof this act is done at St. Louis, Missouri, this

1st day of September, 1861, as is evidenced by the departmental

seal hereto affixed by my order.

(Signed), JOHN C. FREMONT.

Horace Greeley, in his _American Conflict_, speaks of "Missouri,

betrayed by Jackson" (the governor). Referring to the spectacle of

anarchy and treason exhibited by the seceding states, Greeley reaches

the culmination with Missouri and uses the following words:

_We are now to contemplate more directly the spectacle of a state

plunged into secession and civil war, not in obedience to, but in

defiance of, the action of her convention and the express will of

her people--not, even, by any direct act of her legislature, but by

the will of her executive alone_. * * * The state school fund, the

money provided to pay the July interest on the heavy state debt,

and all other available means, amounting in the aggregate to over

three millions of dollars, were appropriated to military uses, and

placed at the disposal of [Governor] Jackson, under the pretense of

arming the state against any emergency. By another act the governor

was invested with despotic power--_even verbal opposition to his

assumptions of authority being constituted treason_; while every

citizen liable to military duty was declared subject to draft into

active service at Jackson's will, and an oath of obedience to the

state executive exacted.

To support him in his treasonable exercise of power, among the men

chosen by Governor Jackson was John B. Clark, the man whom Boggs had

selected as a willing tool and whom Jackson now found pliant to his

purpose. Another of the mob officers, Sterling Price, was now made by

Jackson, Major-General of the state forces.

Poor Missouri atoned with rivers of blood and tears for her sin against

herself in permitting the executive to usurp unlawful authority. The

precedent of Boggs' exercise of power was handed down. In the day

of the persecution of the Saints, a court had decided that belief

in the Bible was treason against the government. The idea had moved

with terrible momentum; for here we find in 1861 that, "even verbal

opposition to the governor's assumption of authority was constituted

treason."

It is true that with any kind of a population Missouri must have taken

part either for or against the Union; but it is also true that the

existence within her boundaries of thousands of lawless wretches who

loved plunder and rapine, largely increased her sufferings. The entire

state was punished for permitting the massacre of the Saints to go

unchecked and for encouraging the spirit of plunder by rewarding the

mobocrats with money from the state treasury. Men learned to live by

murder and rapine. It cost Missouri dearly to get rid of the evil, but

happily for her much of the bad element was eliminated. Many of the old

mobocrats suffered all the tortures which they had inflicted.

But Missouri largely purged herself of the vile element, and after

the strife was ended better men and better sentiments came into the

ascendancy. Some of the men who had been averse to mobocratic violence

against the Latter-day Saints believed that retribution would come.

They lived to see the day of atonement and to participate in a local

reconstruction and a restoration of better things.

The constituency of the mob is thus described by the Prophet, in a

letter dated at Commerce, Illinois, May 17th, 1839:

We have not at any time thought there was any political party,

as such, chargeable with the Missouri barbarities, neither any

religious society as such. They were committed by a mob composed

of all parties, regardless of all difference of opinion either

political or religious.

And at a later day in repeating this view, he said:

We consider that in making these remarks, we express the sentiments

of the Church in general as well as our own individually, and also

when we say in conclusion, that we feel the fullest confidence,

that when the subject of our wrongs has been fully investigated by

the authorities of the United States, we shall receive the most

perfect justice at their hands; whilst our unfeeling oppressors

shall be brought to condign punishment, with the approbation of a

free and enlightened people, without respect to sect or party.

CHAPTER XLIV.

THE LOCATION OF COMMERCE--NAUVOO, THE BEAUTIFUL--PITY FROM PROMINENT

MEN IN ILLINOIS--A DAY OF MIRACLES--THE PROPHET RAISES THE SICK AT THE

SOUND OF HIS VOICE--JOSEPH SOUNDS THE TRUMP OF WARNING--THE MISSION OF

THE APOSTLES--THEIR SELF-SACRIFICE AND COURAGE--CONFERENCE AT COMMERCE.

It was a sudden shifting of scenes from Missouri to Illinois in that

sad springtime of 1839.

An examination had been made of lands in Iowa, and tracts were

eventually secured there; but the beauty of the site of Commerce

and the hospitality evinced by the people of Illinois were great

attractions and decided the Prophet upon making the location at that

place. It was on the 1st day of May that Joseph made the first purchase

of lands in that locality. The town consisted of only six houses; the

land was covered with trees and brush; and the soil was so wet that

teams mired in the streets. The climate was very unhealthy; but the

Prophet knew that the blessing of God would make it a fit habitation

for His Saints.

It was a magnificent site, overlooking the Mississippi which swept

around it in a half circle, giving the place three fronts upon the

noble river. Because of the loveliness of the site the name of Commerce

was changed to Nauvoo which means in Hebrew, the fair or beautiful.

The woes of the Saints while in Missouri had been observed with an eye

of pity from Illinois. Such monstrous crime against an unoffending

people shocked the patriotism and humanity of all who witnessed it, and

the people of Illinois wondered how the Missourians could be so lost to

all sense of justice and mercy as to commit these acts of murder and

pillage. Under date of May 8, 1839, Governor Thomas Garlin, Senator

Richard M. Young, and many other prominent citizens of Illinois, wrote

a letter to all whom it might concern, in which they spoke of "the

sufferings of this unfortunate people [the Saints], stripped as they

have been of their all, and now scattered throughout this part of the

state. We say to the charitable and benevolent, you need have no fear,

but your contributions in aid of humanity will be properly applied if

entrusted to the hands of Mr. [John P.] Greene. He is authorized by his

church to act in the premises; and we most cordially bear testimony to

his piety and worth as a citizen."

It was on the 10th day of May that Joseph arrived with his family at

the Commerce purchase, taking up his abode in a small log cabin on the

bank of the river, thankful to get even this poor shelter.

Joseph had been as much a sufferer as any among the Saints. He and his

family were in a state of utter destitution as were his brethren and

sisters when the location was made at Nauvoo. His own afflictions and

poverty showed him what the Saints were enduring, and he ministered

among them with the unselfishness and vigor of his life. The people

looked to him for counsel and help from day to day; and he found time,

in all the multiplicity of the business thrust upon him, to aid and

advise each individual according to his needs. It was almost a work of

creation from chaos to gather the scattered people and establish the

community in one spot, to feed and clothe and house the destitute and

afflicted.

The region surrounding Nauvoo had been too sickly for other settlers,

and soon after the Saints reached there they suffered greatly from

malaria. Joseph had filled his house and tents with the sick, and

through his exertions in their behalf and his other labors he was soon

prostrated. But on the morning of the 22nd day of July, 1839, the

Spirit of the Lord rested powerfully upon him, and he arose from his

own bed and commenced to administer to the sick who were at his place.

He commanded them in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ to arise and

be made whole; and all who heard him in faith were healed. The events

of that day of miracles are thus minutely described in the journal of

President Wilford Woodruff, which was written at the time:

Many lay sick along the bank of the river, and Joseph walked along

up to the lower stone house, occupied by Sidney Rigdon, and he

healed all the sick that lay in his path. Among the number was

Henry G. Sherwood, who was nigh unto death. Joseph stood in the

mouth of his tent and commanded him in the name of Jesus Christ

to arise and come out of his tent, and he obeyed him and was

healed. Brother Benjamin Brown and his family also lay sick, the

former appearing to be in a dying condition. Joseph healed them

in the name of the Lord. After healing all that lay sick upon the

bank of the river as far as the stone house, he called upon Elder

Kimball and some others to accompany him across the river to visit

the sick at Montrose. Many of the Saints were living at the old

military barracks. Among the number were several of the Twelve. On

his arrival, the first house he visited was that occupied by Elder

Brigham Young, the President of the quorum of the Twelve, who lay

sick. Joseph healed him, when he arose and accompanied the Prophet

on his visit to others who were in the same condition. They visited

Elder W. Woodruff, also Elders Orson Pratt and John Taylor, all

of whom were living in Montrose. They also accompanied him. The

next place they visited was the home of Elijah Fordham, who was

supposed to be about breathing his last. When the company entered

the room the Prophet of God walked up to the dying man, and took

hold of his right hand and spoke to him; but Brother Fordham was

unable to speak, his eyes were set in his head like glass, and he

seemed entirely unconscious of all around him. Joseph held his hand

and looked into his eyes in silence for a length of time. A change

in the countenance of Brother Fordham was soon perceptible to all

present. His sight returned, and upon Joseph asking him if he knew

him, he, in a low whisper, answered "Yes." Joseph asked him if he

had faith to be healed. He answered, "I fear it is too late; if

you had come sooner I think I could have been healed." The Prophet

said, "Do you not believe in Jesus Christ?" He answered in a feeble

voice, "I do." Joseph then stood erect, still holding his hand

in silence several moments, then he spoke in a very loud voice,

saying, "Brother Fordham, I command you in the name of Jesus Christ

to arise from this bed and be made whole." His voice was like the

voice of God, and not of man. It seemed as though the house shook

to its very foundation. Brother Fordham arose from his bed and was

immediately made whole. His feet were bound in poultices, which

he kicked off, then putting on his clothes he ate a bowl of bread

and milk and followed the Prophet into the street. The company

next visited Brother Joseph Bates Noble, who lay very sick. He

also was healed by the Prophet. By this time the wicked became

alarmed, and followed the company into Brother Noble's house. After

Brother Noble was healed all kneeled down to pray. Brother Fordham

was mouth, and, while praying, he fell to the floor. The Prophet

arose, and looking round, he saw quite a number of unbelievers in

the house, whom he ordered out. When the room was cleared of them

Brother Fordham came to and finished his prayer.

After healing the sick in Montrose, all the company followed Joseph

to the bank of the river, where he was going to take the boat to

return home. While waiting for the boat a man from the west, who

had seen that the sick and dying were healed, asked Joseph if he

would not go to his house and heal two of his children, who were

very sick. They were twins and were three months old. Joseph told

the man he could not go; but he would send some one to heal them.

He told Elder Woodruff to go with the man and heal his children. At

the same time he took from his pocket a silk bandanna handkerchief,

and gave it to Brother Woodruff, telling him to wipe the faces of

the children with it and they should be healed; and remarked at the

same time: "As long as you keep that handkerchief it shall remain a

league between you and me." Elder Woodruff did as he was commanded,

and the children were healed, and he keeps the handkerchief to this

day.

There were many sick whom Joseph could not visit, so be counseled

the Twelve to go and visit and heal them, and many were healed

under their hands. On the day following that upon which the above

described events took place Joseph sent Elders George A. and Don

Carlos Smith up the river to heal the sick. They went up as far

as Ebenezer Robinson's--one or two miles, and did as they were

commanded, and the sick were healed.

With the summer the building of the city was begun; also settlements

were established across the river in Iowa.

Joseph bestowed constant attention upon the spiritual as well as the

temporal interests of the people. He gave them many important points of

doctrine at this time; and he labored as a missionary among both Saints

and strangers throughout the regions surrounding. His efforts and those

of his brethren, the Apostles, in preaching the gospel bore rich fruit.

There were many sincere people who were seeking for light and these

soon joined the ranks of the believers.

The material welfare of the Saints increased marvelously, the marshy

wilderness on the Mississippi banks soon grew to be a solid resting

place for their weary feet. The Twelve, on whom the burden of the

exodus from Missouri had fallen, were now preparing for their mission

to England; but before they went Joseph uttered the warning sound which

was to penetrate to the ends of the earth:

The signs of the coming of the Son of Man are already commenced.

One pestilence will desolate after another. We shall soon see war

and bloodshed. The moon will be turned into blood. I testify of

these things, and that the coming of the Son of Man is nigh, even

at your doors. If our souls are not looking forth for Him, we shall

be among those to call for the rocks to fall upon us.

* * * * * * *

I see men hunting the lives of their own sons, and brother

murdering brother, women killing their own daughters, and daughters

seeking the lives of their mothers. I see armies arrayed against

armies. I see blood, fire, desolation. Jesus has said that the

mother shall be against the daughter, and the daughter against the

mother. These things are at our doors. They will follow the Saints

of God from city to city. * * * I know not how soon these things

will take place; and after a view of them, shall I cry peace? No! I

will lift up my voice and testify of them.

The Apostles shared in his zeal. About the 1st of July, 1839, six of

them, all who were then at that point--Brigham Young, Heber C. Kimball,

John E. Page, Wilford Woodruff, John Taylor and George A. Smith,

addressed a communication to the Elders of the Church, to all the

branches, and to all the Saints scattered abroad wherever they might

be. Their epistle was so pleasing to the Prophet that he embodied it in

his personal journal, and from it the following sentiments are selected:

Many of you have been driven from your homes, robbed of your

possessions, and deprived of the liberty of conscience. You have

been stripped of your clothing, plundered of your furniture, robbed

of your horses, your cattle, your sheep, your hogs, and refused

the protection of law; you have been subject to insult and abuse,

from a set of lawless miscreants; you have had to endure cold,

nakedness, peril and sword; your wives and your children have

been deprived of the comforts of life; you have been subject to

bonds, to imprisonment, to banishment, and many to death, "for

the testimony of Jesus, and for the word of God." Many of your

brethren, with those whose souls are now beneath the altars, are

crying for the vengeance of heaven to rest upon the heads of their

devoted murderers, and saying, "How long, O Lord, holy and true,

dost Thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the

earth?" But it was said to them, that they should rest yet for a

little season, until their fellow-servants also, and their brethren

that should be killed as _they were_, should be fulfilled.

Dear brethren, we should remind you of this thing; and although

you have had indignities, insults and injuries heaped upon you,

till further suffering would seem to be no longer a virtue: we

would say, be patient, dear brethren, for as saith the Apostle, "ye

have need of patience, that after being tried you may inherit the

promise." You have been tried in the furnace of affliction; the

time to exercise patience is now come; and we shall reap, brethren,

in _due time_ if we faint not. Do not breathe vengeance upon your

oppressors, but leave the case in the hands of God; "for vengeance

is mine, saith the Lord, and I will repay."

We would say to the widow and the orphan, to the destitute, and

to the diseased, who have been made so through persecution, _be

patient_; you are not forgotten; the God of Jacob has His eye upon

you; the heavens have been witness to your sufferings, and they

are registered on high; angels have gazed upon the scene, and your

tears, your groans, your sorrows, and anguish of heart, are had in

remembrance before God; they have entered into the sympathies of

that bosom who is "touched with the feelings of our infirmities,"

who was "tempted in all points like unto you;" they have entered

into the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth; _be patient_ then, until the

words of God be fulfilled, and His designs accomplished; and then

shall He pour out His vengeance upon the devoted heads of your

murderers; and then shall they know that He is God, and that you

are His people.

* * * * * * *

We wish to stimulate all the brethren to faithfulness; you have

been tried; you are now being tried; and those trials, if you are

not watchful, will corrode upon the mind, and produce unpleasant

feelings; but recollect that now is the time of trial; soon the

victory will be ours: now may be a day of lamentation--then will be

a day of rejoicing; now may be a day of sorrow--but by and by we

shall see the Lord; our sorrow will be turned into joy, and our joy

no man taketh from us. Be honest; be men of truth and integrity;

let your word be your bond; be diligent, be prayerful; pray for

and with your families; train up your children in the fear of the

Lord; cultivate a meek quiet spirit; clothe the naked, feed the

hungry, help the destitute, be merciful to the widow and orphan, be

merciful to your brethren, and to all men; bear with one another's

infirmities, considering your own weakness; bring no railing

accusation against your brethren.

* * * * *

We are glad, dear brethren, to see that spirit of enterprise and

perseverance which is manifested by you in regard to preaching the

gospel; and rejoice to know that neither bonds nor imprisonment,

banishment nor exile, poverty nor contempt, nor all the combined

powers of earth and hell, hinder you from delivering your testimony

to the world, and publishing those glad tidings which have been

revealed from heaven by the ministering of angels, by the gift of

the Holy Ghost, and by the power of God, for the salvation of the

world in these last days. And we would say to you, that the hearts

of the Twelve are with you, and they with you are determined to

fulfil their mission, to clear their garments of the blood of this

generation, to introduce the gospel to foreign nations, and to make

known to the world these great things God has developed. They are

now on the eve of their departure for England, and will start in

a few days. They feel to pray for you, and to solicit an interest

in your prayers, and in the prayers of the Church, that God may

sustain them in their arduous undertaking, grant them success

in their mission, deliver them from the powers of darkness, the

stratagem of wicked men, and all the combined powers of earth and

hell. And if you unitedly seek after unity of purpose and design;

if you are men of humility, and of faithfulness, of integrity and

perseverance; if you submit yourselves to the teachings of heaven,

and are guided by the Spirit of God; if you at all times seek the

glory of God and the salvation of men, and lay your honor prostrate

in the dust, if need be, and are willing to fulfil the purposes of

God in all things, the power of the priesthood will rest upon you,

and you will become mighty in testimony, the widow and the orphan

will be made glad, and the poor among men rejoice in the Holy One

of Israel.

The bond between the Prophet and his brethren, the Apostles, was close

and strong. He relied upon them, confided in them, and showed them all

the respect which their nobility of soul deserved. In their exercise

of authority during his incarceration in Missouri he gave them cordial

support, subsequently having all their acts ratified by the voice of

the general conference. When he escaped from captivity and joined them

in Illinois, the love with which he greeted them was like that of

brother for brothers. Brigham Young, writing of the meeting, says:

It was one of the most joyful scenes of my life to once more strike

hands with the Prophet, and behold him and his companions free from

the hands of their enemies. Joseph conversed with us like a man who

had just escaped from a thousand oppressions, and was now free in

the midst of his children.

Joseph met with the Apostles frequently before their departure, praying

for them and blessing them for their work. He also attended their

farewell meetings and added his voice to the instructions which they

gave to the Saints at Nauvoo before departing to engage in the vast

work in the Old World. Elder Parley P. Pratt, now freed from prison,

and Elder Orson Pratt were with them. In the months of August and

September seven of the Twelve departed on their mission to England.

Elders John Taylor and Wilford Woodruff were the first, leaving on the

8th day of August, 1839. Elder Woodruff arose from the bed to which he

had been confined for two weeks in order to start on this journey. Both

of these devoted men left their no less devoted families at Montrose

in sickness and poverty and distress; and yet all relying upon the

Lord for preservation and blessing. Elders Taylor and Woodruff started

together without purse or scrip.

Elders Parley P. Pratt and Orson Pratt, making all necessary

sacrifices, departed from Nauvoo on the 29th of August.

Elders Brigham Young and Heber C. Kimball started together on the 18th

of September, 1839. Brigham was so sick that he was unable to walk a

few rods down to the river without assistance. He left his wife ill

with a babe only ten days old, and all his other children helpless.

Heber was in the same plight. His wife and all her children but one

were prostrated. After Brigham and Heber had traveled thirteen miles

on their journey, they stopped at the residence of a friend and were

so feeble as to be unable to carry into the house their trunks, which

contained the very few articles of clothing they were able to take with

them. In less than a month after their departure President Brigham

Young's father John Young, died at Quincy, Adams County, Illinois;

so when Brigham bade his father farewell to go on this mission, the

parting was for the remainder of their earthly lives. John Young was a

noble man: he had been a soldier in the Revolution. At his death the

Prophet said of him:

He was a firm believer in the everlasting gospel of Jesus Christ,

and fell asleep under the influence of that faith which buoyed up

his soul, in the pangs of death, to glorious hope of immortality;

fully testifying to all that the religion he enjoyed in life was

able to support him in death. He was driven from Missouri with the

Saints; * * * he died a martyr to the religion of Jesus, for his

death was caused by his sufferings in that cruel persecution.

On the 21st of September, 1839, Elder George A. Smith departed for

England. He left his father, mother, sister and brother sick in a log

stable, all unable to help themselves or each other. He, himself, was

so emaciated that after he was a little way on his journey, he met

some men who cried out: "Somebody has been robbing a graveyard of a

skeleton."

Three other men started with the Apostles: Hiram Clark in company with

Parley and Orson, and Theodore Turley and Reuben Hedlock in company

with George A. Smith.

This was the sublime missionary movement of the Apostles. How like

the grain of mustard seed! Leaving the people of God in sickness and

in poverty, they themselves being on the verge of the grave, these

disciples of Jesus went forth to proclaim the gospel of redemption. If

their faith had not been such as not to be shaken, the world never more

would have heard of their endeavor. But it was firm and steadfast, and

God rewarded it; and the little mustard seed quickened and grew and

became a mighty tree. The Prophet said of them:

Perhaps no men ever undertook such an important mission under such

peculiarly distressing, forbidding and unpropitious circumstances.

Most of them * * * were worn down with sickness and disease or

were taken sick on the road. Several of their families were also

afflicted and needed their aid and support. But knowing that they

had been called by the God of heaven to preach the gospel to other

nations, they conferred not with flesh and blood, but obedient to

the heavenly mandate, without purse or scrip, commenced a journey

of five thousand miles entirely dependent on the providence of that

God who had called them to such a holy calling.

The Twelve faltered not an instant in their appointed labor, and while

they spread abroad the tidings of salvation, the Prophet in Nauvoo

was directing the gathering Saints that they might build a city whose

loveliness and greatness should attract the eye of every beholder.

On the 5th day of October, 1839, a general conference of the Church

of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was convened at Nauvoo, at which

it was decided to establish there a stake of Zion, and to organize

a branch of the Church on the opposite side of the river in Iowa

Territory, and officers were appointed to preside and officiate in the

stake and over the branch.

At this same conference it was resolved that Joseph Smith, accompanied

by Elias Higbee and Sidney Rigdon, should proceed to Washington to lay

before the President and Congress of the nation the wrongs which the

Saints had endured.

CHAPTER XLV.

REASONS FOR AN APPEAL TO WASHINGTON--JOSEPH AND COMPANIONS DEPART FOR

THE NATIONAL CAPITAL--THE PROPHET'S ACT OF PHYSICAL HEROISM--HE SEES

INGRATITUDE--MARTIN VAN BUREN AND JOSEPH SMITH--THE LATTER'S SCORN--

COWARDICE AND CHICANERY--"YOUR CAUSE IS JUST, BUT I CAN DO NOTHING FOR

YOU."

The Saints had suffered innocently in Missouri; they had appealed in

vain for redress; they were impoverished through the robberies which

had been perpetrated upon them; and their old men, delicate women, and

little children, even after the gathering to Nauvoo, were dying of

privations.

These were material reasons for an application to the national

government for succor; and besides these, the Prophet knew that the

Lord required this appeal to be made that--upon the answer thereto--the

nation's responsibility for the barbarities might be judged.

On Tuesday, the 29th day of October, 1839, Joseph and his companions

departed from Nauvoo. At Columbus, Ohio, Joseph was obliged to leave

Sidney Rigdon in the care of attendants, as Sidney's frail health made

travel slow, and the Prophet's business required expedition; so Joseph

went on with Judge Elias Higbee.

Joseph and Judge Higbee traveled in the coach; and on the way while

they were passing through the mountains the driver of the stage stopped

at a public house to get some liquor. While he was gone the horses took

fright and ran down a steep hill, at full speed. The coach was crowded

with passengers, some of whom were members of Congress, with two or

three ladies. There was very much excitement in the vehicle. Joseph did

all he could to calm his fellow-passengers and was able to reassure

most of them. But he had to hold one woman to keep her from throwing

her infant out of the stage window. As soon as he got the people in

the coach under control, he opened the door; and securing his hold

on the side, he climbed up into the driver's seat, a feat requiring

physical strength, as well as nerve and a cool head, for the stage was

pitching and rolling like a boat in a storm. He instantly seized the

lines and stopped the maddened steeds. They had run about three miles;

but the coach, horses and passengers all escaped without injury--thanks

to Joseph's presence of mind and courage. The passengers praised him

extravagantly; they thought his conduct most heroic; and the members

of Congress even went so far as to suggest that the incident should

be mentioned in that body, as such a deed of daring deserved a public

recognition. But upon inquiring of Joseph what his name was, in order

to mention it as that of the hero who had saved their lives, they found

that their deliverer was Joseph Smith, the "Mormon Prophet." The mere

mention of the name was sufficient for them; and he heard no more of

their praise, gratitude or promises of reward.