Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1897-07-03
THE PIONEERS.

, 1860. Shut now thu volume, eiiace the
records, stand back in tnst evontful
July day OF lsa7, api roll me II you
can what will be In 1891
Here were few men and women
with tbousands on tho way, far from
supplies, nothing here ana me land
desert. Wipe out the faitn
which held those men and women
az an expanding unit ami in - few
months the group would hsvs scat
tered and disappeared. But they
clmo not Tor ricnes nor tor lame. They
believed Themselves missiOneJ Of
God To carry the Gospel over III =
world and Yet thsy came 10 n ds sert
to 10 thc work. Tiled by all canouA
i OF criticism they mus. have been put
down as deiudo1 people who would
simply starve ana leave their bones
bleaching In the sun to tell tue world
IN alter years OF their fate. What
saved then? Their faith and their
leader. Fam in their religion, trust
In their chosen director. For years
anu years the euferinla OF the Nor
mons in gathering mere; their prlvs-
tions here; their, bopeiuI, unremittiue
toll; their lnvincible gtin-s ni- oeaT.il
men and women. But they gaineu
lltle by little, year by year until their
prosperity ngain aroused cupidity and
nate, anu again they were threatened
with expulsion. Bat tieir leader said
10 the worlJ. NJ mob shall ever
sgain drive this psopl,! Our women
and children will take 20 tue noun
lains and we VIII die In cur tracks ana
over our bodies our burning houses
shall foil In ruin before We Will suf.
render what we have won from the
deses! He would have been un.
worthy to lead had he said LEES.
He went steadily on with his work
OF colonizing the thousands wno were
gathering rom far. In twenty years
he peopled Utah, and far into 1uaht,
over into Wyoming, ant away south
into Arizona no had eeiu mis- people
wipDing grandIy forward rs tiliers oil
the eoil, aud thea he was gathered to
mis- fathers anu passed, loved and rev.
cred by tho hosta VINO hal protltei by
mis- counsel, as lew men have been iu
this world. He hhu won q gu blime
Victory agsinst untold odds aad the
prosperity OF Titan, as n sister star IL
the galaxy Of eIatcs, Is the best m0nu-
mvnt 10 his Dnme.
o! curse, IL must cot be forgotten
that other than Mormon energy hRs
added to the prosperity AMI glory OF
Utah. Particularly is this true OF the
mining industry. But that was sue.
cessiul because Brigham helu hts own
peopie back from mad rusl after gull
and maie them an agricultural class.
HIS Idea was that all prosperity 10
Dased primarily upon prciuotiveness
OF soil; that prosperous people with
out homo supply OF food is imposai-
ole. To-Day the UnitsI States turns IN
Utah Tor It's mosL successful colonies
and they are uue TO tue wisdom anJ
foresight OF Brigham Young. Utah
was made by Colonization. she h ,s
half mtlliou farms ana nearly all
are unJer irrigation. Ye. In lS4T
irrigation was unknown In lie
United States. Itiss Mormon evoiu.
ton In American tanning and aim jst
every farmer In Utah is now or has
been Mormon. Ii Ray be- cleimeI,
therefore, without exciting JEALOUSY
that the SUCCESS Ut Utsff ref sc;s the
glory OF it's great eoiOnizer, And thu
SUCCESS must De set down, in any fair
estimate, as the outgrowth OF u dee1
faith anu zeal thnt nave been religious
and industrial, ethical aud practical /
the same time. Without the faltn tbs
people could not have held together
to do the hard, haru work necessary to |
cUaDge this vast inter. mountain Gun.
Try from b,rrenness to prosperity; u ID
without the firm hand and directing
Will OF u leader teoognizs1 q, ths in-
carnation OF that faith its fires would
have become ashes, and the semi
Centennial would not have bsen what
II Il. But II should be more thin q
mere show. II should, in part al lelet,
be a deeply reverentiai thapkiulness
In memory OF the men anu women
who toiled early and late, endured un-
told hardship ana privatiOn and wou
homes anu prosperity for those OF tn,
present VINO were fortunate enough |
not to be living In tn0so times tina.
tired the souls OF tho toilers as they
never were tried before. Anythinv
less weuld be gross ingratitude Tor
and cruel iorgetiulness of the meas.
ureless benefits Conferred upon thsir
descendants by the heroes and herUinet
OF the early Utah years who are pass.
Ing, passing, passing away, but whose
memories, to their chil1rea and their
childreu's children, ehould evermore
smell sweet and bloSsom ia tue dust.
CHARLES ELLIS.