Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1888-02-09
EARLY "REMINISCENCES.
Another Interesting Epistle from
5. w McMaster.
Notes from Pioneers
Diary.

in the winter One day in March was
out some miles in the interior. in the Salt
river bottom, 1t was very muddy; while
there met all old dilapidated rig with a
poor, broken down horse, stuck fast in
the mud In the wagon was woman
with three little children. A more forlorn
looking sight | never saw helped them
out as best could, gave the poor woman
what change | had and started them on
their way to Nauvoo. Some of the Nor.
mons staid about in the neghborhood
until spring. They had occasional preach
ing in a small school house. went one
day to hear them. The sermon was a
wild strange jargOn understood by neither
hearer nor preacher.
The site they selected for their New
Jerusalem was and is one of the most
great river. The temple which they
erected was an imposing structure, made
from white hewn limestone. odd and
strange in its design; not patterned after
any building have ev seen. In going
through the interior of the temple, the
most noticeable thing saw was an i'm.
mense baptismal font resting on the
necks of two huge oxen, Nil carved out
of solid limestone. went through the
temple after their expulsion.
10 Smith, their leader and prophet, had
4 diversity OF occupatious--huirl and
store keeper land owner and mayor, lie
also owned small steamboat, that made
occasional trips to Rock Island. Some :
times he came along as captain
White lying at our wharf saw him get
INTO playful sCufile with one of his men
on the deck OF the boat The man
proved too strong for 10. and
chucked him overheard. lie came up
haptised all over, but in good humor
Nauvoo, in the county of Hancock,
filed up rapidly with his followers and in
1914 they had every thing their own way.
Elected all the magistrates, and ali the
county officers. One of these political
leaders, Backinstos, Jack Mormon, was
appointed county clerk by Stephen A.
Douglas and through his influence was
appointed captain in ritlo company of
the United States troops He was elect
ed member of the legislature and Nau.
WOO legion was chartered by the leglsla>
lure aud the legion was supplied with
arms by the state. In the fall OF 1874 II
member of congress were eleclcd--loseph
p. Hoge, my Old Galena neighbor, was
the democratic candidate, Cyrus Walker
was the WING standard bearer. They
both did all they could TO secure the
Mormon vote, rs this vote would decide
tue election. Joe Smith promised Walker
he would vote for him. and he did,
but the solid Mormon vote went for Hoge,
The congressional district then embraced
all the river counties from Hancock to
10 Daviess The Mormon vote was
over 5000 and IIoae was returned by
500 majority The wings were much eX
asperated at the result. NauvoO and
Hancock counties became the rendeZvOir
for all the lawless elements of that region.
The neighborhOod of the rapids had iuI
number of years bore II hard name,
and have no doubt many of the lawlts3
acts committed were not done by the
Mormons-but they were held respODsiN
BILE.
Soon things got to such a pass that no
legal process affecting Mormon could
be executed. A state of anarchy existed
all over the county. Thomas FOtd, gov
ernor OF the state, was called upon by the
anti MOrmonS for state aid to kut down
this state of lawlessness. He Lied out
number Of companies Of militia, and
invested the town. After some time
negotiations were entered into by which
Joseph and Hiram Smith and the council
of twelve agreed to go to Carthage, the
county seat, and stand trial on charge
of destroying printing press aud other
misdemeanors. They went, stood trial,
and were acquitted, but the prophet
and his brother were arrested on
smother charge and were put in
Jail. The next day large mob
gathered about the jail, broke down
the door and killed Smith and his broth
er. Governor Ford was severely cen.
sured at the time for this murder, but he
was powerless, The feeling was so
strong against Smith that he by himself
could do nothing to prevent this viola
ton of good faith.
Governor Ford, think, acted very
judiciously during these two long years
of Mormon trouble. and by his caution
and prudent course prevented much
bloodshed. He found it necessary to
keep armed troops IN the county for a
number of months to keep the Mormons
and anti Mormons from coming to open
war. The Smiths were killed in June,
1874, and from that time until the MOr>
mons in the spring of 1916 agreed to EN-
grate, the county was in state Of tur-
moil and unrest.
During the winter of 1S45 and AS the
Mormons were busily engaged in getting
ready for their hegira to the far west
They made and purchased some ten thouN
sand to twelve thousand wagons, in
which to move across the great American
deserts-a larger, peaceful caravan than
ever moved across the deserts of Arabia
When they were breaking up in 1916, my
friend Capt Beebe, of the steamer Du>
buque, passing Nauvoo, took on board
the stock of groceries belonging to the
merchants there and brought them to
Galena and left them with me to sell for
their accounts. So the MOrmOns pulled
up stakes for the third time and started
on their tolsome way for some place 10
the great unexplored west. where they
might find u new home And will any,
one say that with all the evil connected
with their peculiar institution po!ygamy,
their settlement in that halfway house
between the Mississippi and the Pacific
has not resulted in gOod2 What would
our gold seekers of 1919 have done with
out some such place where they could
find supplies TO help them along their
weary wayr The Mormons have certain
ly made the desert to blossom as the
rose" The material results they have
accomplished are wonderful A few
years. think, will see polygamy become
a thing of the past. snd the Mormons
under the severe discipline they have had
in the past, will become quiet, orderly
citizens. s. w. MCMAsTER
LOCAL NOTICES.
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