The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1881-06-26
MORMONISM.
The Settlement Of the Peculiar
People in Jackson County
And Subsequent Expulsion.
General DOniphan's Recollections
of the Troubles Of That Early
Time.

There is probably no man in west
ern Missouri who is better &C
lquainted with the various causes of
the difficulties between the citizens
of Jackson and Caldwell Counties
and the Mormons during the years
of 1888 and 1888 than General Alex.
w. Doniphan, then resident of
Clay County, but now of Richmond,
Ray County, Mo-, and there is, per-
haps no one who took such az active
part in the events of those years
who can now look back and relate
the history of these troubles as dis
paSsiOnately as he can. In view of
these facts a representative of the
Journal called upon Gen. Doniphan
at his rooms at the Hudgins House,
at Richmond, for the purpose of in
terviewing him upon the subject.
The general, after learning the OBJ
| iect of the visit, seemed very willing
to communicate all he knew in
regard to the history Of the Mormon
troubles, and after a few introduce
tory remarks, related the following ::
81 came to Missouri in 1880 and
located in Lexington, where l lived
until April, 1888, when / removed to
Liberty, Clay County. The Nor
mons came to Jackson County in
1880, and | first met Oliver Cow
derry, John Whitmer and Christian
Whitmer, three of the elders, in In
dependence, during the spring of
1881. Peter Whitmer was a tailor,
and 1 employed him to make me a
suit of clothes"
what kind of people were the
MormonS ?"
"They were northern people who,
on account of their declining to own
slaves and their denunciation Of the
system of slavery, where termed
free Sailors The majority of them
were intelligent. industrious and
law-abiding citizens, but there were
some ignorant, supplemented IA
naticS among them whom the peo-
pie said would steal. Soon after
they came to Jackson County they
established a newspaper at indie
pendence called the Morning and
Eoening Star, edited by w. w.
Phelps, in which they published
their peculiar tenetS and pretended
revelations. in which they set forth
that they had been sent to Jackson
County by divine Providence, and
that they, as a church, were to
POSSESS THE WHOLE OF THE
COUNTRY.
Which then embraced what is now
Jackson, CaSS and Bates counties.
These assumptions were evidently
made use of for the purpose of eX-
citing the jealousy of persons of
other religious denominations and
the more ignorant portions of the
community. This of course caused
hard feelings between them and the
people of the county, but [ think the
real objections to the MOrmOnS were
their denunciatiOn Of slavery, and
the objections slave holders had to
having so large settlement Of anti
slavery people in their midst, and
also to their acquiring such large
amount Of land, which then be-
lOnged TO the government, and
subject to presumption. From these
and other causes very bitter feeling
was engendered between the Nor
mons and citizens which eliminated
in the month of July, 1883, when a
public meeting was held at the court
house in Independence, at which it
was resolved to tear down the Nor
mon printing establishment, which
resolve was Immediately carried
out. The mob also committed
numerous other Outrages, the most
brutal of which was the
TARRING AND FEATHERING
Of Bishop Partridge. / can't posi-
lively state who were the leaders of
the mob but it was participated in
by large number of the leading
citizens Of the county. The Nor
mons made but little if any resist
ance, but submitted to the inevitable,
and agreed not to establish another
paper, and there was an apparent
tranquility existing until about the
1st of the following November when.
from imprudent conduct upon both
sides, both MOrmOnS and Gentiles-
as the citizens were Their called by
the MormonS-Seemed to arm them
selves as if expecting collision
The first clash Of arms took place
at Wilson's store on Big Blue, about
four miles east of Westport, about
the third or fourth day of Noyem-
Der, which resulted in several per-
sons being killed upon both sides
and several others wounded.
"In few days after this the citi-
zenS organized and determined upon |
eiecting the MormOnS from the |
county which soon after was done. |
During the ejectment a great many |
outrages were perpetrated and the
NFor-1oDC I1yaro cornOpIIad 70 Iaava