New-York daily tribune., 1844-08-01
Things and Thoughts ut the West.


NoI CHICAGO. JULY, 1874.
JOE SMITH is dead. Society sustains no loss
and were his murderers hung up by the neck,
should say that bad materials had been put TO
good use-and this without expressing any par
tiality for one side or the other. You will hear
different opinions of this man; with some, he is
as they term il, a ''smart fellow" or he couldnot
have built such an empire. With others, he is
low, vulgar impostor, with Just tact and cunning
enough TO demonstrate the differ ence between
that, and talent. / have no doubt that the latter
opinion is nearer correct. A man of first, second,
or oven third rate abilities could hardly have done
the work of Joe. 1t required talents of precisely
his order You have but to look at the materials
with which he wrought, and very few farther
considerations explain the whole. The religious
sentiment is natural to man; but it is not every
man that receives such religious education as
that, when grown, he has any very rational or
even distinct religious ideas. The love of the
marvellous is inherent also, and in such cases re-
ceives none of the chastenings of culture. Such
men arc as naturally the prey OF religious impos-
ture, as perch is Of heron. These are the
mass of Joes men. There are among them others,
Of better educatiun and higher cast of intellect.
These are leaders-mcn of unbalanced minds
men vho wear their tattcred garb Of moral prln.
ciples loosely-mcn who have been unsuccessful
in business Where better could such make
headway, or at any rate get living, and find
plenty Of range for overgrown sensuallsm, than
In city of twenty thousand people, breathing
the atmosphere of broad deluSlon, and ready
for any thing in the shape of innovation. Your
Imagination can fill the pcture and tit runs pref
ty free you will not make it too vivid.
But what will the Mormons do? Break up ?
think not-at least at present. They will CO.
here while the pressure of active opposition Is on
them. They will choose leader if they can, but
will not invest him with much Of prophetic
character; that was n far too inconvenient pre-
rogatiye of Joe's in the eyes Of some Of them
When chosen, they will obey him till thckening
rebellions drive them asunder.
Joe's place had been no sinecure for long
time, as free a range as he had. Threatening
dissensions, revolls. and fears of assassination
even, to which he knew his brutal, overbearing
conduct and the lawlcssness of his appetites had
exposed him, kept him in perpetual alarm. If the
clan could have been let absolutely alone for one
year more, believe the evil would have worked
Its cure. AS it is, another deed of blood is added
to fearful cluster in which we read our dishon.
or. 1t is by means certain that the matter will
stop where it is. The SAINTS are cowardly but
vindictiYe, and private opportunities for revenge
will not be wanting.
The Fourth went OFF quietly. No national
speeches, no frothihcadon-next 10 no guns
Squibs, blazing serpents, crackers, fiery grass.
hoppers, and such flashing phantasmagorla of the
neither world, in abundance. The children of the
4
ono procession, mostly Sucker.bom. How il
makes ones heart leap to see The happy, shining
faces of these beautiful blossoms of The human
world crowding past you by tae mile There
was military company or Two on parade-one
of horse and one OF the Emcraders, on
foot-tcw in numbers each, but respectable
in look. The latter seemed tn swing the Ameri.
can Flag and play Yankee Doodle with great
pride and zcst. These chaps are evidently anx-
ious to be American, ifthey only knew how.
see no use in quarrelling with them-they Ger.
tainly take great pride in their new country; and
appropriate its historic glcres with as much zeal
as we do those of our Saxon Fathers. They
would fight for the land of their adoption to-
morrow like bulldogs. l hope they may never
have chance.
BY tho way, there is no getting up celebrations
any more every fourth year, unless they are party
ones. how can man discuss any principle of
our poity before mixed audience, without
stepping on somebody's toes in these high party
tmes9 He may 70 back and "lck" the British
over again if he please but his audience, like chill
dren at school. cease to enjoy i, when it is done
every day. Besides a sensible man does not
care to be twattling about the way we won our
freedom, while he feels that i, is a problem, whe
ther we can keep it-nor to add any thing to the
fuel of the war'sprit, now gradually dying out.
He would like to discuss the subject Of Constitu-
tional Freedom perhaps, but somebody would
smell a hit at Dorrism in tha,-or he might think
TO rebuke political ana,icism, or the spirit ofmob
ifm; but the "Libertyites, ""Natiyes." and 'For-
cigners" would all cry Treason, if they thought
he meant them. It is demonstrated that the only