Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1903-10-03
THE LIONS
OF THE LORD"

tain-GrlmWay-wh had assisted Rae
TO leave Nauyoo, and subsequently
married the woman TO whom Rae was
betrothed She, too, was with the emil
grants attacked at Mountain Meadows.
and Rae after killing her husband, saw
her murdered and scalped by an In
dian. From the number of emigrants
doomed to death Rae rescued n white
haired boy and the little daughter Of
his one-time bctrothed wife, Prudence
Corson. The boy he leaves at Hamb-
Inns ranch, whence he escapes swear
Ing vengeance against Rae whom he
saw XIII the father OF the little girl
Prudence Grlmway, The girl Prudence
named after her mothcr-Rae leaves
at neighboring ranch claiming her
as his own child, for whom he will later
return. Haunted by the memories Of
the awful slaughter of the Gentle emf
grants at Mountain Meadows, he goes
north. actively participates in the re-
sistance to the United States army
under Albert sidney Johnston entering
Utah, but Is disguised with the final
submission OF Brigham Young to
United states authority, and takes up
his abode in new settlement far to
the south Of Salt Lake city and not
far from the Mountain Meadows. Here
u
OF self-sacrihce he marries a woman
with but one hand and disagured
face. The hand she lost by having It
frozen while pushing a handcart in the
Debated company Rae had led to Utah
years before. He also married another
Woman--a poor half-starved cast off
wife Of a prominent Mormon" Bishop;
ana later still another wife, a shallow
witted, laxative cerature who IL a
cross indeed to the man OF many sor-
rows He takes under his protection
also poor imbecile man, the victim
of horrible mutilation; and a woman
who had gone insane because her hus-
band married another wife. The wives.
to his honor be 1t said, were such in
name only. This collection of the woe
begone, with the child Prudence add
ed, make M the Rae household The
girl Prudence becomes beautiful OF
course, and Is much sought by men
OF middle life already possessed OF
many wives, no less parsonage than
brigham Young being among the num-
Der and 1t is represented that the lat
ter "suitor' had but TO send word IN
advance TO the foster father of his in
tention to marry the girl on his next
Journey south, In order to close the
matrimonial incident, except the form
nj word ceremony, and taking away the
bridel But Miss Prudence had visited
Salt Lake, and while there witnessed
the performance at the theater OF
Romeo and Juliet which is sufficient
to give her Ideas OF love and matri-
mony MI her own. The balcony scene
much impressed her. and ever after
wards became her ideal of expressed
love. few years of dreaming on the
part OF the maiden, and few years of
silent suffering on the part of Joel Rae,
now the little man Of sorrows" then
the lad of the Meadows. Ruel Follett
who escaped from Hamblin's ranch
swearing vengeance on Rae and two
other participants in the massacre, re-
turns, seeking his revenge. He is now
a young man, handsome brave, strong
aggressive. But he Is baflled In his mis-
sion Of retributon. Two of the MUIR
dcrers he seeks are already dead some
time since. and Rae Is so pitifully weak
and distraught by the haunting mem
cries of that awful butchery that young
Follett cannot find the heart to kill
him; besides there is Prudence. who
loves the little man of sorrows' with
true flllal affection. The upshot Of II
allgis that young Follett leaves to time
the duty of taking off Rae--an event
that cannot be long deferred, since the
little man Is fast Fastening to the hnis
OF his earthly career. and meantime
Follett insidiously woos Prudence, and
wins her love. while she makes an UNI
successful effort to convert him to
"Mormonism." In all their readings,
and conversations upon the Book of
Mormon and other subjects connected
with the Mormon" religion, Folett Is
given an easy victory over the poor
girl by the employment of covert
sneers, slightly concealed sarcasms,
and tender ridicule Meantime Joel
Rae has lost his faith in "Mormonism;
he discovers that polygamy is wrong;
the Saints abandoned of God; and on
the occasion of Brigham Young paying
his annual visit to the settlement
where Rae lives. he tells the prophet
ana the people his discoveries An
ticipating the vengeance of the Sons
or Dan Rae files to the cross and
oalrn OF stones erected on the site of
the Mountain Meadows massacre that
he may die--according TO orthodox
dramatic canOns-at the place where
his awful crime was committed He
is followed by Prudence and young Fol
lett, who come up 10 him at the cross
erected by Gentle hands on the site
or the massacre. where, I'm company
with two Indians. they watched him
peacefully pass away in n rather pro-
tiacted death scene, to the accompany
ment Of an Indian tom tom drum, and
one Of the redmen
waves before his eyes the yellow scalp
lock winch years before he had seen
reeklng Win blood snatched from the
mead OF the woman he loved Young
Follett and Prudence. as soon as the
little man Of sorTows" Ia buried leave
for the east with a passing wagon
train, and having been married by Rae
a few minutes before his death, the
reader is left to infer that they lived
happily ever after In some eastern
CITY, iar, Tar away from fanatlcal
'Mormons' and their wickedness. whore
only homogeneous marriages Obtain. |
and conjugal happiness is never dis. |
turbed by the haunting fears of marital
or polygamy, simultaneous |
or consecutive,
have been at the palns TO give this |
rather fun synopsis OF the story that |
my readers may be witnesses of the |
fact that Mr.. Wilson has certainly |
massed enough OF gruesome materials |
TO furnish to repletion several cham |
bers of horrors. Far be IL from me 10 |
suggest that so prominent an author |
mas stopped TO the methods OF yellow |
backed, ten cent noyeliSs Of quarter
,f century ago in the matter at least |
II the quality and mass Of Incidents 10 |
be woven into story, This glance at |
The incidents of the story also reveals |
The opportunity they will afford the |
author for gathering into one View the |
Dlgotry' Ignorance, weakness, fanati- !
ism, and wickedness OF individual |
,Mormons, all to be interviewer with |
NE mockery sarcasm ridicule. ribald-
~, innuendo and insults of their enc
mics.
And now as TO the treatment of the
meme. The author Of the Lions OF the
LORD In his opening chapter--the pref
lest piece OF descriptive writing In the
look-has drawn heavily upon. IL he
lAa nnL nnIllnllt. l.ln..n ~ 60 - i