Daily Los Angeles herald., 1879-06-01
"REMINISCENCES.
General Stoneman's Lecture Last Evening-A
Highly Interested Assemblsg Excerpts
from the Discourse.

Highly Interested Assemblage Excerpts
from the Discourse.
The series of lectures arranged
for the benefit of the Fort Street
M. e. Church was opened Friday
evening by a discourse delivered by
General Geo. A. Stoneman; SUBJ
ject, "Unwritten Scenes and Incl
dents of the Frontier and of the
Late War" The large auditorium
of the church was reasonably filled,
notwithstanding the fact that the
day had been one of unusual heat
and exertion, leaving many of our
citizens in anything but lecture
hearing mood. Rev. M. M. Bo.
ward, Pastor of the church, intro.
duced the speaker. who delivered a
highly interesting and instructive
address of about an hours duration.
We have space to make only few
excerpts. Beginning, he said:
1t has been the fortune of your
speaker here tonight, during his
not altogether uneventful life, to
fill variety of offices, hold respon-
sible trusts, and follow many diff
ferent callings. He finds himself,
however, this evening, entering
upon field to him entirely new,
and if he shall not acquit himself
with that credit, which by him is
desired and by you is expected, he
will have to beg the indulgence of
kind friends and charitable and
considerable public. His effort will
be confined principally to plain
and simple narration of scenes and
events OF past generation, come of
which he was and most of which he
saw.
A RETROSPECT.
Let us then turn back the leaves
in the record of time to the year
1846Athe month of June-33 years
ago.
James X. Polk was then Presi-
dent OF the United States of Amer
lea. and Lopez de Santa Ana was
President of the Republic of Mex
leo. War bad just been declared
between these two Governments,
and the battles of Palo Alto and
Resaca de Ia Palma had just been
fought. The whole land was
ablaze with the most intense ex-
ctement. Thousands and tens of
thousands OF volunteers were offer
ing their services for the war, and
begging for an opportunity to be
amongst the first 10 enter the halls
of the MonteZumas. The war was
the direct result Of the annexation,
10 the United States, of the repub-
lie of Texas, the Independence of
which, up to that time, had never
been acknowledged by the Govern-
ment of Mexico. 1t was u South
ern measure, and there was much
doubt in The minds of very many
people as to its business. propriety
or necessity. 1t made the admin
istration of President Polk one of
the most brilliant and important
in the history of our country; and
1t gave us California, with its sill.
yer and its gold, its soil and its cli-
mate, the present home of the fair
est of fair women and the bravest
of brave men.
OFF FOR THE WAR.
The members of the GLASS that
graduated from the West Point
Military Academy in the year 1915,
and to which I belonged, instead of
receiving the customary two
months furlough upon graduation,
received orders to i'm Immediately join
their regiments wherever they
might be serving, and we therefore
entered at once upon the duties de-
vOlving upon an officer of the
United States army.
We had youth, health, zeal, am
bition and emulation. We were
full of youthful enthusiasm, and of
the romance Of the service; the past
void Of regret and the future full of
hope. A war was In progress with
all its chances for distinction and
promotion. What more could we
expect or desire?
The first duty assigned me to
perform was, luckily, that of Quar-.
termaster of the Mormon Battal-
ion. L say luckily because 1t
brought me across the continent to
California, and any person Is lucky
who can have the opportunity of
getting to that country.
We formed part OF the Army of
the West, under the command of
one of its ablest Generals, Stephen
Kearney, organized for the con-
quest OF New Mexico and Califor-
MIA.
A GLANCE AT THE HISTORY OF
MoRMoNDoM.
Probably but few of you have
ever heard Of, or know anything
about, what was called "the Nor
mon Battalion The Mormons,
or as they called themselves.
the Latter Day Saints are,
as you probably all know, the
converts to the doctrines as taught
by their founder, High Priest and
Prophet, Joseph Smith. These con-
verts went west and concentrated
themselves under their leader at
Nauvoo, Illinois. on the east bank
OF the Mississippi river. They soon
became very obnoxious to the peo-
pie of that State, who proceeded to
drive them therefrom across the
Mississippi river. In the conflicts
that ensued Smith was killed, and
he became Mormon martyr, as
well as Prophet and High Priest.
The People of Missouri refused
them an asylum, ana the Saints
were forced to go further west to a
point in the Indian Territory then,
as now, called Council Bluffs.
In their exodus they crossed
during the dead of Winter
northern Missouri, then an
/, almost trackless wilderness,
making their own roads and build
ing their own bridges scantily
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