The Ottawa free trader., 1875-07-31
MOUNTAIN MEADOW.

the Beecher trial in interest II not IN It's pru
rient details The attempt is, after lapse o
sixteen or seventeen years, to fasten the gull
upon and bring to punishment the perpctra
tors (or, at least as many as survlye) OF TIT
noted Mountain Meadow Massacre that tool
place in Southern Utah in 1857, and OF whicl
it has always been believed by most people
) that the Mormons were exclusively guilty
in spite of attempts to saddle at least par
of the guilt on Indians.
The facts may be briefly related as follows
1t was in the year 1857 when the M0rmon'
had assumed an attitude of quasi.rebellior
against the L. s., and President Buchanan
had organized military expedition to march
to Salt Lake city and bring them into sub
lection, that two large bodies Of emigrants
started from Missouri and Arkansas overland
to California, passing, Of course, on their
route through the Mormon territory Of Utah
The Arkansas party called themselves the
Tough Boys" and are said to have been a
wild, noisy, blasphemous set. The other
company was from Missouri and Illinois,
and made up chiefly Of married men and their
families, numbering, in all, about 40 souls.
They reached Salt Lake IN safety, but the
Tough Boys finding the Mormons uniriend-
ly, made no stoppage, but bore off rapidly to
the southwest and got through to California
without molestatlon. The other party, how.
ever stopped several days at Salt Lake city to
rest recruit and replenish their stores. They
found the Mormons quite unfriendly, an pro.
cured even the sCantiest addition to their sup
plies with difficulty, but otherwise were not
m0lestcd Leaving the inhospitable city,
they took the southern route TO San Bernar-
dino. 10 sooner, however, LQl they left the
city, than they were exposed 10 3 thousand
annoyances Coming from the two states
from which fifteen years before the MOrmonsI
had been expelled by violence, and now beng
eXasperated by reports of the advance Of Bu-
chanan's invading army. the Mormon's seem
to have settled it among themselves that this
body Of emlgrants, with their large number
Of horses and cattle, wagons, furniture and
ether rich booty, were legitimate objects for
plunder by the "Saints."
All the settlers south of Salt Lake lived in
walled towns, and as they approached any Of
these the emlgrants found the gates closed
against them and the people unwilling to SELL
them supplies of any sort They found, also,
that messengers had preceded them, and that
hey were harrassed and annoyed apparently
On preConCerted plan, wherever they touched.
One excuse given for this by the Mormons
was, that the Tough Boys" in
passing over the route short time before
lad committed all sorts of Outrages; also that
hese emigrants had destroyed their crops,
'un off and killed their cattle, robbed their
zen roosts, &c, Of which, however, there is
10 proof
In this way the cmIgrants at length passed
hc last settlement and came to Mountain
Meadow, where they made a halt to rest and
eCruit their cattle, preparatory to entering
he Great Desert Exactly what occurred here,
kept the general aud terrible fact that all
he cmigrants were massacred is what the
y. S. Court in the present trial is attempting ,
o find out Thus far but one important wit. I
lcss has been examined. His name is Phil ,
p Klinger Smith, and he was at the time of
he massacre a Mormon "Bishop' After. ,
wards, however, he deserted the Brighamies n
nd joined the Smith branch of the Mormons, !
o that, as against the parties engaged in the I
- t,g l. l.
which he is hostile, and allowance is to be (
made for his evidence to that extent. He
tatcs, however, as is well known, that the q
massacre was committed by band of rcgu- Y
ar Mormon soldiers, Hndcr command oftheir A
cgular officers, and he further says they ac
ed throughout under direct orders from Brig
am Young himself Whether all this is I
rae or not, however there is no doubt the D
murder was the work of Mormons, and that i
hey did it with a tcrocous brutality that
,Ould have Shamcd tue worst tribe of Apache "
+ Comanchc Indians The cmigrants had n
arkcd their wagons and stood scigc for Il
lree days, during which some of them had c
cen killed and more wounded. I
Then says this witness: N
"Lce ton trial for The murdcr) went out with h
white Sag n man from the cmigrants met o
lem; Lee and the man sat down on the grass c
ad talk; don't know what they talked Il
zee went with the man into the intrcnCh. b
lcnts. After some hours they came out and n
nc cmigrantS came up with their wounded
a wagons Ahead of the wounded were .
nose hurt in the three days previous fight;
lld the Mormons and Indians could not oust p
nc cmigrants; next came the women, next u
ic men; as the en- Grants came up, the men u
altcd aud the women on foot; the children =
nd wounded went on ahead with John ID. y,
zee The soldiers had 20 be all ready to shoot u
the word; when the word Halt" was civ. s.
n; | fired once; don't know if | killed the /
IAN or not. All were killed at the first shot =,
lw the women afterwards dead with their %
lrOat, cut j
| saw rs ] came up 10 them, a man kill
oung girl. The men were marched in double y
II. IL. l.. IL. Il =