The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1880-07-27

is the last man on earth llaG any
one acquainted with him would 4
have supposed would have played
any tricks on the colonel. But he 1
took out a cartridge and bit OIL the 4
ball end, which he dropped on the |
ground. He then rammed the pow
der and paper down the gun, capped
it and handed il to tie colonel. |
Several of the officers of tn Bat
talon stood looking on. As the
mule came back TO get the grain and
had arrived within a rod Of him, the
colonel fired the charge into its face,
but the only effect that it had upon
the mule was to cause it to give q
snort, wheel around and kick az him,
and then run off a few rods, after
which it turned to come back again.
This created a good deal of amuse-
ment with the lockers on. The
only remark the colonel made, as
he handed back the musket to Bro.
Bigler, was, "YOung man, that gun
was not properly loaded"
Col. Cook had rather more stern
ness than familiarity in him. When
he gave an order, if he was not fully
understood by the soldiers, they did
not like to question him. On one
occasion he wanted some wire TO fix
up his tent. He ordered one of the
soldiers to go to a certain man and
get some wire, but he did not speak
plain and the soldier did not under
stand what he said. Nevertheless
the soldier started to go on the
GRAND, but began to think that he
could not tell what to ask for. So he
went back to the colonel and asked
lim what he had told him TO get.
The colonel said, "Wire, wire,
wire, damn you, sir. The soldier
went TO the man and asked for some
wire for Col. Cook. But the man
had not got any wire. So the soldier
returned to the colonel and told him
that the man had no wire. ''What
did you ask for?" inquired the Col
onel?" 81 asked Tor wire, wire,
wire, damn you, sir" "ltat will
do, that will DO, young man. You
may go to your tent"
These instances show a little of
the kind of temperament Col. Cook
possessed, but he had a good, gener
Gus heart. He entertained great
respect for the Mormon Battalion
and he always spoke kindly of them
before the government and all men.
When he went through Salt Lake
City with Col. y. :. Johnson, in
1855, he uncovered his head in honor
of the Mormon Battalion, that 500
brave men that he had led 1900
miles over sandy deserts and through
rocky canyons,in the midst of thirst,
hunger and fatigue, in the service OF
their country. May God bless Col.
Cook, and may He bless the Batta
lion and their posterity after them
May their sons ever have right t.
the priesthood and honor God and
heir fathers to the latest genera
Jion.
We now come to the Pioneers, in
honor of whom we have got up this
great celebration to-day. In conse
quence of sickness, President Young
and the main body of the pioneer
camp rested east of the Wasatcli
Noun tains, and on the 18th of July.
lS47, Orson Pratt was appointed to
take some % wagons and AZ men
and go in advance to make a road
over the mountains. They cut a
road through thick groves of quaking
aspen and bear swales. OrsOn Pratt
and Erastus Snow entered this val
ley ahead of their own company on
the Dist of July. They had a fine
view Of the valley and returned to
camp in the evening, one and half
miles up Emigration Canyon.
On the ODD, Orson Pratt, Geo. y.
Smith and seven others rode into the
valley, leaving their camp to follow
and work the road. Prest. Young
being sick, I was carrying him on a
bed made up in my carriage, and we
camped with the main body of the
company on East Canyon Greek.
On the 23d, the remainder of Or
son Pratt's advance company enter
ed the valley, found an encamp-
ment and commenced to plough the
ground. l crossed the noun ains
that day with President Young and
his part of the company, and camp
ed about six miles from the mouth
Of Emigration Canyon. We found
an exceedingly rough road in pass
ng through the stumps of the trees
that the advance company had cut.
On the oath, l drove my carriage.
with President Young lying on a
bed in it, into the open valley, the
rest of the company following.
When we came out OF the canyon
into full view of the valley, 1 turned
the side of my carriage around, open
TO the west, and President Young
arose from his bed and took a sur
vey of the country. While gazing
upon the scene before us, he was en-
wrapped in vision for several min
utes. He had seen the valley before
in vision, and upon this occasion he
saw the future glory of Zion and OF
Israel, as they would be, planted in
the valleys of these mountains. |
When the vision had passed, he
said, SIT is enough. This is the
right place. Drive on" So l drove |
to the encampment already formed |
~ those who had come along in ad- |
vance of US.
When we arrived on the ground, |
the brethren had commenced |
ploughing. l had brought bushel |
of potatoes with me, and l resolved |
that | would neither eat nor drink |
until l had planted them. | got
them into the ground by O'Clock,
and these, with the potatoes that the |
other brethren had planted, became
che foundation for the future potato
crops of Utah.
In the evening, in company with
Heber c. Kimball, Geo. A. Smith
and l.. I. Benson, rode up City
Creek to look for timber. While
5here we had a thunder shower, AID
the rain reached nearly over the
whole valley.
The following day, the 18th, was
the first Sabbath that the Saints OF
God ever spent in these valleys OF
the mountains, and Geo. 4. Smith
preached the first sermon ever deliv-
cred here, followed by Heber G.
and Ezra L. Benson in the
OrenOOn. and w. Woodruff, o. Pratt
and w. Richards in the afternoon.
resident Young, though feeble,
'loSed by giving good advice to the
Saints. He desired them not to
work, fish, hunt or play on Sunday,
lut go to meeting and worship God.
they must keep the commandments
+ God, or not dwell with us, and no
nan should buy or sell land, but
Ill should have what they could cul-
ivate free, and no man should pos
less that which was not his own.
On Monday, the Goth, President