Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1875-07-24
Progress Of the Trial cf the Alleged
AurdeFers at Beaver, Utah
Testimony OF Leading
Witnesses.
Details of the Horrible Slaughter OF
se3, Women aud Children by
Brigham YOuBg's Fell
lowers.
Phillip Klinger Smith, Defendant,
TurEs States EVieeHcS-Where
the DeYilish Plan was
Connected, Etc,

!
o'clock the first witness called was
Robert Keyes, who testified as follows:
Came to Utah October 2, 1857, through
Mountain Meadows; saW two piles Of
bodies, women and children, piled pro-
miscuOuBly; there Were about sixty to
! seventy; the children were from two
months to twelve years of age; the ma
jority were torn by wolves and crows;
some of the bodies were shot, some had
Threats cut, some stabbed, and all torn
| by wolves except one woman who lay q
little off and appeared as il asleep; she
had ball hole in her left side; it az
peared the bodies had been dead fifteen
days; seven Of Us saw this scene; there
was pile OF mems bodies further on,
but we did not go t. see them; there
was no clothing on the bodies, except s.
| leg OF one man, on which was a sock;
none Were scslped.
AsRtel Bennett testified: Was at the
Meadows in December, 1871; saw bones
there; it was 8 horrible sight; there
were skeletons OF women and children
also saw curls, long tresses of hair and
| dried blood; the children We're from ten
! to twelve years old; some Of the skulls
! had flesh dried on them; the bodies had
! been covered up; the wolves evidently
! dug up the bodies.
Philip Kli1ger Smith, defendant, of
| san BernardinO, California, was called.
| The prosecution entered aOUe prOSeQm
as to himself. He lived in Cedar City in
1857, from 1852. The Meadows were
fOrty-tive miles south of Cedar City, on
the California road; was at the massacre
Of September, 1857; heard of the emil
grants coming; the people were forbid
den to trade with them; felt bad about
= I'M
was Friday; some swore, and Higbee
| fined them; they went on; heard rumors
OF trouble Sunday; it was the custom to
have meetings OF the president and
council, the bishop and council and the
high council; l was a bishop; the
matter was brought up for dis
cussiOn as to their destruction;
Haight, Higbee, Merrill, Allen, Willis,
myself and others were there; some of
the brethren opposed destruction; ! did;
Haight jumped up and broke up the
meeting; l asked what would he the
consequences of such an act; then
Haight got mad; the Indians were to
destroy them; Monday Higbee, Height,
White and l, met; the same subject was
again discussed; l opposed destruction;
Haight relented; he told White and l
to go ahead and tell the people the emil
grants should go through safe; we did
so; on the road we met John d. Lee;
we told him where We were going; he /
replied, ~ have something to say about
that matter" we passed the emigrants
at Iron Springs; next morning we
passed them again; as we came back
they had twenty or thirty wagons, and
over a hundred peOple-old men and
middle-sged, old women and middle
aged, youths and children; near home
we met Ira Allen; he said that
the emigrants' doom was sealed |
and the die cast for their destruction;
that Lee had orders to take the men and |
go out to intercept them; Allen to go |
on and cOunteract what we did. / went |
home; three days after Haight sent for |
ne; said orders came from camp that |
they didn't get along, and wanted rein |
fOrcements; that he had been to ParO. |
wan and got further orders from Colonel |
w, II. Dame to finish the massacre, to |
decOy them out and spare only the small |
children who could not tell the tale. l |
went off and met Allen, our first runner, |
and others; Higbee came out and said, |
"YOu are ordered out armed and |
equippedW so l went. Hopkins, Hig- |
bee, John Willis and Sam Purdy went |
along; had two baggage wagons; got to |
miles from the emigrants; there met
Lee and others from the general camp,
where the largest number Of men were
then; found that the emigrants were
not all killed. Lee called me out for
consultation to one side; he told me the
situation OF the emigrants-str0ngly for
titled; no chance TO get them out; that
Higbee had been ordered to decoY them
out the best he could. That was agreed
TO, and the command given to J. D Lee
10 carry out the whole plan. They went
to camp; Lee called all the soldiers into
hollow square and addressed
them; they were all white men,
about fifty in all; the Indians were in
another camp; saw there Slade and his
son, Jim Pearce, probably Bizcon, too;
all those were from Cedar, and Bill
Stewart, Levin Jacobs; l think Dan
M'Fallane, too; Slsde and L were out
ragged, but he said what can we do, can't
help ourselves; just then the order march
was given, and we had to 90; we were
put in dOuble-tile; Higbee had COM
mand of part Of the men; it was the
NauvoO legion, organized from tens up
to hundreds; we marched in sight of
the emigrants; either Bateman or Lee
went out with white flag; man from
the emigrGnts met them; Lee and the
man sat down on the grass and had
talk; don't know what they talked
about; Lee went with the man into the
intrenchments; after some hours they
came out, and the emigIants came up,
with the wounded, in wagons, ahead;
the wounded were those hurt in the
three days previous fight; said Nor
mons and Indians could not GUST emf.
grants; next came the women, next
men; as the emigrRnts came up, the
men halted, and the women and chill
dren, on foot, and the wounded went on
ahead with John ID. Lee; the soldiers
had to be all ready to shoot at the word;
when the word halt came, the soldiers
fred l fired once; don't know If l killed
the man; not all killed the first shot; saw
the women Gfterward, dead with their
Threats cut; saw, as l came up tc them,
q man kill young girl; the men were
marched in dOuble-file first, then thrown
into single-tile, with soldiers along side;
heard the emigrants cOngrRtulating
themselves on their safety from Indians;
at last John NJ. Higbee came and or
dered my squad to fire; Lee, like the
rest, had firearms; no emigrants escap-
ed; saw soldiers on hOlses to take on the
wing those who ran; saw man run,
and saw Bill Stewart on horse 90 after /
him and bill him; saw enc wounded
man beg for his life, and Higbee cut his
throat; the man said, 81 would not do
this to you, Higbee;" he knew him; az
ter fired, L was told to gather up the
little children; as went, saw large
woman running toward the men, crying,
my husband my husbandw a soldier
shot her in the back and she fell dead;
as l went on l found the wagons, with
the wounded all out on the ground and
their throsts cut; went GA and found the
children; put them in q wagon and took
them to Hamblin's house; saw them no
more; the soldiers dispersed at Hamb.
Inns; l think l had to leave it there;
many of the soldiers were from the coun-
ties south, whom l did not know;
next day I and MCurdy aud
Willis took the children to Cedar
City, leaving one at Pinto Creek; on
the road met freight train OF wagons,
the men living here in Beaver; on it |
went to old Mrs. Hopkins's, and told