Idaho semi-weekly world. [volume] (Idaho City, Idaho Territory) 1875-1908, 1881-08-09
THE MOUNTAIN MEADOWS MAS
HACRE, ~
One OF the Witnesses Against JOhn
ID. Lee Killed by Destroy
ing Angels.
Phoebe Kecurd.

News has reached P,oshe that Bisll-
op Philip kIingcn Smith, ut one time
a man Of high standing and great in
fnence in the M,rlnom Church, aud
the exppscr of the Mountain Meadow
Massacre, and the names of the men
wlu participated in the bloody deed.
is dead. HIS body was found in
prospect hole, ia the State of Sonora,
Mex co, and u letter f,on there, which
was received in the vicinity Of Phoebe,
states that The mystery surrounding
the body indicates that Smith had
been murdered. Smith died just as
he expected, for on his return from
Beaver in 1916. after tcstltying in the
trial of John d. Lee, we met Smith in
town, IN IL sort OF secluded spot, and
during the Co ,versation Snitb r..
marked: 81 know that the Churcl,
viii kill me-, soprer or later, aud | am
as confident of that fact as | am t',al
am sitting on tins rock. It's only "A
question Of time; but Pm going to
live as long AS | can" lmmcdIalel,
after Smiths return from Lees trial
az his wife at Pauaca refused To have
anything to do with him, eng 80 or.
dered by the Church, he started SOUTH
ward, and lived IN Arizona for some
time, following prospecting. During
his residence in the mountains Ut thai
Territory two attempts were made up.
on his life, and by whom he was new
er able to discover. Smith made the
exposure of the bulchery at Mountain
Meadows more for self-proteciion than
anything else. In early days, when
Hike was the county seat of Lincoln
aud the f,nrishi g and only promi,
nent mining camp in the southern,
country. the Mormons' used to haul all
the rock from Salt Lake to Hike.
Smith was engaged in treighling, and
his son, Bud. Smith, was assisting
him. During one Of these trips father
aud son had quarrel and Bud Smith
went to Hike and obtained employ
ment. 1t was during the winter OF
1857 8, when KiIningen Smith arrived
in Hike with load of freight, his son
pointed him out To the people and told
them that Just after the massacre, his
father pointed out a young girl to him
and ordered him to kill her, saying
that il he (Bud) did not kill her he
(his father) would kill him. Bud told
his father that he would not kill the
girl, and that he might kill him. Then
Bishop Smith tnrued upon the poor
girl himself and knocked her brains
out with club. This was the first
inkling to anything authentic in CON
nection with the massacre aud caused
considerable excitement among the
settlers of Hike. Wandell, one of the
county officials at that time, informed
Bishop Smith what his son had expos.
ed and hurried him out of town. After
that, while en- gagged in hauling freight,
upon his arrival in Panaca, Smith
would always hire snme person to
drive his team over to Hike. In 1871
Bishop Smith made affidavits before
the Clerk of Lincoln county, making
the exposure of the massacre and the
names of those connected Herewith
which was publiehed in the Record
and made public for the first time.
Mrs. Smith is now living at Bullion
vile and is married to mau named
Dolf Laudrich. Mrs. Smith is an in
telligent old lady, and is the mother of
seventeen children by Smith, the last
two born being twin girls, who are
now about sixteen years of age Most
OF the Smith family reside in Lincoln