The Rock Island Argus., 1883-10-13
CHAPTER XVII.

OF DccCliDtF bHt bFdiu Wtut IOI HIt1
miles TO the southeast, then it ran up
wards about as farnortherly, approach
ING the Great Salt Lake.
Passepartout, about nine O'clock in
the morning, went on the platform to
take the air The weather was cold,
the sky gray, but it had stopped snow
ing. The disc of the sun, enlarged by
the mist, looked like an enormous piece
of gold, and Passepartout was busy cal
culating lis value in pounds sterling,
when his attention was taken from this
useful work by the appearance of avery
strange parsonage.
This personage, who took the train
at Elko Station, was tall, very brown,
had black moustache, black stockings,
black silk hat, black waistcoat, black
pantaloons, white cravat and black
dog-skin gloves. He might have been
taken for a clergyman. He went from
one end of the train to the other, and
on the door of each car fastened with
waters written notice.
Passepartout approached and read on
one of these notices that Elder William
Hitch, taking advantage Ofhis presence
on train No. IS, would, from eleven to
twelve O'Clock, deliver an address on
Mormonism in car No 117-inviting to
hear him all desirous of being instruct
ed concerning the mysteries OF therelig
ion of the Latter Day Saints"
Certainly. will CO." said Passe-
partout to himself, who knew nothing
Of Mormonism but its custom of polyg-
amy, the base oil Mormon society.
The news spread rapidly through the
train, which carried about one hundred
passengers. OF this number, thirty at
most, attracted by the notice of the
meeting, occupied at eleven O'Clock the
seats in car No. III. Passepartout was
prominent in the front rank of the
faithful. Neither his master nor Fix
thought it worth while to take the
trouble.
At the appointed hour Elder William
Hitch rose, and i'll quite an irrltated
voice. as If he-had been cOntradicted in
advance, he cried:
"I tell you that Joe Smith is mar
tyr, that his brother Hiram is martyr,
and that the persecution by the United
States Government of the prophets will
also make a martyr OF Brigham Young.
Who dares to maintain the contrary"
No one yentured to contradict the
missionary, whose excitement con-
trasted with his naturally calm physiog-
nomy But, without doubt, his anger
was explained BY the fact that Mormon
ism was now subjected to severe trials.
The United States Government had,
not without difficulty, just reduced
these indeDendent fanatics. 1t had
made Itself master of Utah, and had
subjected it to the laws of the Union,
after imprisoning Brigham Young, ac-
cused of rebellion and pelygamy. Since
that period, the disciples of the prophet
redoubled their efforts. and, whilst not
coming TO acts, resisted in words the
demands of Congress.
We see that Elder William Hitch was
trying to proselyte even on the trains
And then he related, emphasizing his
narrative by his loud voice and the vio-
lence of his gestures, the history of
Mormonism from Bible times: ''How
in Israel, q Mormon prophet of the
tribe of Joseph published the annals of
the new religion and bequeathed them
to his son Moron; how, many centuries
later, a translation of this precious
book, written in Egyptian characters,
was made by Joseph Smith, Jr., "a
farmer in the State of Vermont, who
revealed himself as q mystical prophet
in 1925; how, finally, celestial mos
senger appeared to him in an illumi-
mated forest and gave him the annals of
the Lord
At this moment, some of his hearers,
not much interested in the retrospect
i've narrative of the missionary, left the
car; but William Hitch, continuing,
related show Smith, Jr., with his
father, his two brothers, and few dis
ciples, founded the religion of the Lat
ter Day Saints-a religion which,
adopted not only in America, but in
England. in Scandinavia, and in Ger
many, counts among its faithful, arti-
sans and also q number of people en-
gagged in the liberal professions; how a
colony was founded in Ohio; how a
temple was built at a cost OF two hun
dred thousand dollars, and a city built
at Kirkland; how Smith became an en-
terprising banker and received from n
simple mummy Snowman papyrus
scroll containing narrative written
| by Abraham and other celebrated
Egyptians"
This narrative becoming little long,
the ranks of his hearers thinned cut
still more, and the audience only con-
sisted of twenty persons.
But the Elder, undsturbcd by this
desertiOn, related the details of chow
Joe Smith became bankrupt in 1887;
| how his ruined stockholders gave him a
coat of tar and feathers; how he APP
peared again, more honorable and more
honored than ever, a few years after,
| at Independence, in Missouri, at the
head of a fiourishin9 community, which
counted not less than three thousand
disciples; and that then, pursued by the
hatred of the Gentiles, he had to fly to
the far West"
| Ten hearers were still there, and
among them the honest Passepartout,
who listened with all .his ears. Thus he
learned thow, after long prosecutions,
Smith reappeared in Illinois. and in
1889 founded, on the banks of the Mis-
sissippi, Nauv0o the beautiful, whose
population rose to twenty five thousand
souls; how Smith became the Mayor,
Chief Justice and General-in- Chief; how
in 1913 he announced himself as candi-
date for the Presidency of the United
States; and how, finally, he was drawn
into an ambuscade at Carthage, thrown
into prison, and assassinated by banc
of masked men.
At this moment Passepartout was the
only hearerin the car, and the Elder, look
ing him in the face. fascinating him by
his words, recalled to his mind that, two
years after the assassination OF Smith
his successor, the inspired prophet
Brigham Young, leaving Nauvoo, es
tablished himself on the banks of Sal
Lake. and that there in that splendiC
| Territory, in the midst of that fertile
country on the road which the emf
grants take in crossing Utah to reacl
California, the new colony, thanks tt
the Mormon principles OF polygamy
had increased enormously.
| ! TVs