Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1853-12-17


The excitement occasoned by the threats Of Wakah
the Utah chief continued increase during the day
spent az Pahrawan. Families hocked in from Paragoona
and from otaer small settlements and farms bringing
with them their moveabes and their focks and herds
Parties Of mounted men, well armed patroed the coun
Try expresses came in from different quarters bringing
accounts OF attacks by the Indians small parties and
unprotected farms and houses During stay Walkah
sent in polite message to Colonel G. A. Smith who had
military command Of the district and governed it by
martial law, telling him that I" the Mormons were id
fools for abandoning their houses and towns for he did
not intend 20 molest them there il was his intention
to conhne bis depredatons their cattle and that he
advised them to return AMI mind their crops for If they
neglected them they would starve and be Obliged TO
leave the country which not what he desired for
there would then be cattle in il for him to take" He
ended By declaring war for four years This message
did not tend to the Mornons, who in this dis
trct we're mostly foreigners and stood in great Of
| Indians.
The Utah chiean who occasioned all this panic and ex
citement Is Of great subtety aud energy
He Is not Utah BY BIRTH but has acquired such
ploiss All the restless spirits and ambitious Young
warriors in i have joined his standard Having
limited supply Of hne horses and being Injured TO every
fatigue and pryaon he keeps the Territories OF New
Mexico and Utah. the provinces chihuahua and Sonora
and the southern portion Of California in alarm
His movements rapid and his plans skully and
so secretly laid that he has failed in any
terprise and he has scarcely disappeared from dis
trct before he is heard Of in another lie frequently
divides his into or more bands, which making
1
each headed il is given out by the dreaded Wakah in
person has given him with the ignorant Mexicans the
tribute of ubiquy The principal object Of his orays is
to drive off horses and cattle but particularly the
first; and We noticed among the Utabs' horses many
brands familiar TO US in New Mexico and California
He adopted the name Of Walker account Of the
close intimacy and friendship which In former days united
him t9>Joe Walker, an old mountaineer aud the same
who>discoyered Walkers Pan in the Sierra Nevada.
This chief had brother valiant and crafty him
Rself, to whom he was greatly attached Both speaking
hrnl I'm thay, al IN marn
tain intercourse with the whites without the aid Of
interpreter This brother the Mormons thought they had
killed. for having repeled night attack mill, which
was lead by him, the next morning they found rifle
and hatchet which they recognised as his, and also
traces of blood and tracks of apparently carrying
heavy body Although rejoicing at the death Of Of
their most impacabe enemies the Mormons dreaded the
wrath of the great chiefan which they felt would be
appeased until he had avenged his brothers blood in
theirs. The Mormons surprised at having
passed in safety through Walkers territory and they did
not know to what to attribute escape from destruc
ton They told that the cattle tracks which had
seen few days previous those Of portion Of large
drove lifted by Walker; and that the mounted men we
had noticed in the mountains in the evening Of August
were scouts sent out to watch They en-
deavored to dissuade us from prosecuting journey
they stated that it unsafe travel between
their towns without escort Of from twenty-five to
thirty men.
The Mormons had published, reward OF fifteen thou
sand dollars for Walkers head, but il serious ques-
ton among them who should bell the cat
some beef which we buccantid
The kind reception that received from the nhabi
tants of these settlements during short sojOurn
among them strongly contrastcd with that which we
been led to anticipate from the reports Of the Msxcans
and Indians whom we had met the road On /
rival Colonel g. A. Smith dispatched officer to inquire
OF Mr. Beale who we were business, destination,
&c. at the time apologising for the inquiries by
stating that the disturbed condition Of the country
dered it necessary exercise strict vigilance all
strangers, particularly those who from the d-
recton of their enemys territory Mr.. Beae, OF course,
gave satisfactory replies when treated friends
and received every mark of cordality We spent the
evening of arrival in Parawan the house Of Col.
Smith who was in command Of this portion Of the terri
tory, and organizing military force for its protec-
On He related TO the origin Of these southern set
Elements the many difficulties and hardships that they
had to contend with and gave much interesting inor
nation OF the geography OF the surrounding country lie
also stated that furnaces for smelling iron al
ready in operation in the vicinity of Paragoona and Pa
rawan and that the metal which obtained in sufficient
quantity to supply any demand, also Of excellent
quality and that coal veins had been found Cedar
City, Coal Creek eighteen miles south Of Paragoona,
one Of which fifteen feet in thickness and apparently
inexhaustbe. large force of English miners was en-
poyed working these mines and pronounced the coal
TO be equal TO the best English coal saw it used in the
forges it is bituminous and burns with bright fame
As regards the abomnable practice of polygsmy which
the Mormons have engrafted their religion, would
have suspected its existence among them had not
of the Elders" voluntarily informed that he was
one of those Mormons who believed in plurality Of
wes, and added, for my part have six and this is
one Of them, pointing to female who present and,
tlkng this subject for his text he delivered discourse
highly euogstic Of the Institution Of marriage
in Mormon point Of view of the antiquity of poygamy
its advantages the evil it prevents quoting the example
OF Eastern nations and backing his argument with sta
stcs Of the relative number males and females born
obtained no doubt from the the Book Of
Mormon This discourse did increase respect for
the tcnet he advocated but deemed useless
controversy with who made of such sophis-
try From what he said inferred that large number
Of Mormons did not entirely approve Of the spiritual
wife system and judging from some Of the households,
t evident that the weaker vessel has in many in
stances here, elsewhere the control Of the en0ge
We left Parawan at dusk having sent most Of the party
in advance, with directions to await arrival at the
nearest of those rich meadows known Las psgos de
Santa Clara, about eighteen miles distant.
On entering the Valley Of the Little Salt Lake
upon the line surveyed by COL Fremont and described in
his report published in 1916 Il intention to
follow this line until arrived in California and, the
Mormons had opened a wagon road oil the way, an
tcpated no difficulty in getting TO our journeys end in
good time.
The party arrived al Cedar City about midnight but
indisposition prevented from keeping up with them,
and was finally compelled spread my blanket the
roadside and rest until morninglS miles 1858 miles.
August Al saddled my mule at daylight, and in afew
hours reached Cedar City. | informed there that
the party had already left but that could oEerake them
n few miles from the town.
CEDAR CRY is place of Importance than either
Parawan or Psragoona, but is built the plan.
Around it extensive fields, abundanty irrigated Civ
sg every promise Of rich harvest; the hills in the
ofthe town well tmbered and it is in this vicinity
that the Morons have discovered the cea veins destined
TO form the wealth Of the district The inhabitants
principally foreigners; most Of whom Engshmen
from the coal regions Of Great Britain AT the time Of