Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1898-03-21

II never VIII urge us INTO crimes,
we stay by IL too lazy.
Following is the statement OF Eliiai
Thomas referred to:
Five hundred young and middle.
aged men of the travelling camps of tn,
I Nauvoo exile emigration were enlisted
8 under Col. Allen about the middle OF
july, 1876, to serve for one year In the
! army of the United Statos In its war
G with Mexico, and marched to Fort
LeaVenworth. where the colonel dying,
, march was made to Santa Fe. under
Col, Smith from thence under Col. p.
st. George Cooke to San Luis Rey.
. Lower California; arriving there on the
second day OF February 1SiT
Remaining at that place until April.
made 1t a practice to pray privately
! every morning after the battalion SER
, vices and some time during the latter
month at one of these devotions I re-
ceived remarkable vision, wherein it
was shown to me that our company of
men, when discharged. would find a
gold mine. which would he the means
Of gathering Saints from tho sen cogst
to the valley of the Great Salt Lake.
and effect other purposes OF a great
ana revolutionary character In this
connection, speaking of the Great Salt
Lake, before Mormon had ever seen
IT, J call to mind that Brigham Young
at the time OF our enlistment, and be-
fore commencing our march on the
banks of the Missouri river, near Coun-
| ell Bluns. addressed us in n prophetic
ana encouraging mood and told us:
You VIII likely be discharged
about the 18th of July a year hence on
the Pacific const at which time I wish
| you to organize yourselves under tho
| leadership Of Levi w. Hancock. nnd
meet me and the pioneer Saints in the
valley OF the Great Salt Lake
lie said these words In confidence
| ~ Ia
| up to that time few. IL any. of the
| travelling companies had amy idea of
where would be their final stopping
place; but 1t had been shown to him
in prophetic vision. AS anticipated. |
we were discharged on the 18th day of |
July, numbering at that time $40. |
sixty of the number re-enlisted for an
other six months. one hundred and |
sixty organized under Levi w. Han
cock. and journeyed nOrthward and
eastward to the headwaters Of the
Truckee river on the way towards the
Great Basin, At this point three mes
sengers were met. Brown. Brannan and
Smith, one 81 them bearing a letter
from President Brigham Young dated
Mt Green river where that gentleman
had been seen on his way with the
Utah Pioneers toward the valley OF the
Great Salt Lake.
This letter contained request that
should the discharged members Of the
Mormon Battalion be met on their way
eastward. all those who had no families
IN the advancing companies or else
where, should return west to the coast
country. on account no doubt of an
scarcity of provisions during
the succeeding winter, in the Salt Lake
valley.
Forty-two of us returned and trav-
eled as far west as Captain suffers.
where the city of Sacramento now
stands.
Being now in search of enjoyment,
three of our number were deputed,
of Allen. Fyfeid and myself.
to obtain and settle upon contract
which the captain desired to let for
certain mills. etc. =
"Terms were soon agreed upon for
building n Touring mill near the base
1f the Sierra Nevada mountains,
canal requiring to be cut three miles
ong. fourteen feet wide. and five feet
lcep and dam built across the r
American Fork river; canal and dam
10 furnish water for running the pro- I
posed Touring mill. Also for the con-
structun OF saw mill with Its race,
n the mountains, and a lanyard near
his office.
I'm the latter part of January. 1siS.
/ few grains of gold had been found !
~ Mr., Marshall (the foreman) and
line or our company who We're work
Ing in the saw mill race. Our con-
ract on the Touring mill etc, being
Yearly fulfilled prospecting began and
n March following two men named y
Willis and Hudson, penetrated fifteen
niles up the river In "A search. Here
hey found gold in abundance, collect
ng In some instances as much as
hree hundred dollars worth In n day
nd men afterwards averaging as high
8 fifty dollars per day. The rumor of
his discovery reaching the Mormon
aN.aW.T Il. Nrt.
Francisco in the ship Brooklyn, thlr-
cen barges We're chartered and two
undred persons conveyed in them IN
he sacramento and American Fork
lvers TO the site of the new diggings. :
place subsequently named Nor -
ION Island, whore they all COM n
fenced taking out gold. William
lover of the Brooklyn company, who
ad been previously elected mayor of
an Francisco, erected the first tent r.
! the new mining camp. which up to L
nat time had consisted OF the few -
TENDERS Of the battalion company
ho had previously been working for
utter, Elijah Thomas set up the
'cond tent
AT the time Samuel Bannan of the
rookiyn company purchased of Will
: and Hudson one third interest in
Ieir supposed right of discovery; and
ie new firm made a claim upon all
lie diggers for one-third OF all their
aims as tribute or tax. In favor Of
e original discoveries. This was
I'D. however, only a few DAYS
About the LIST of October. lsis.
as selected by about twenty-two TT
miles of the Brooklyn Saints. and
me remaining members of the bnt
lion, To be their captain to pilot them
er the Sierras and across the desert
stward to the now city of the Great
III Lake, with oxen and mules draw
z the necessary wagons A route by
uekee being considered Impractical
Tor wagons. route by Carson val
was chosen. No wagons had oyer
pssed these mountains going east
lrd, Those which had crossed -,
Narus the west had, in "
ming down the western slone
Nefed their wagons down Immense
cps with ropes securely fastened In
se tfees-down mountain sides nj
ly impracticable for teams to travel
wagons to pass in an opposite dlrec-
NJ hence II became necessary to send
n forward to find a way for wagons
\ teams to travel: and it was while
this service that Allen Browctt nnd
We're assassinated by Indians. Ten
II were afterwards detailed to this I
vice and after much labor and time All,
quite was found. and the first east WI
ma wagon train crossed that lofty bu
lge of mountains. tba
The Journey across the mountains