Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1904-08-10
,,,.s Interesting Description Of
''t Their Appearance on Enter
ing Los Angeles
MORMON VETERANS WERE HARDY
r.,,,,,d and Torn They Gave Evidence
Of the Long Journey They
Had Completed.

~ .nd graphic IN description than the
me s,onhen c, Foster. II is matter
~, ,y.sn regret to students OF California
" S,.,ory that Mr. Foster left so Ut
49, record Of life rich In expert
y" both tragic and comic, and that
'", the American occupation from
,s,- "a 1895 AS previously stated, he
- 70 N California as Interpreter for
,so oslormon" battalion, having joined
., Santa Fe, n. NJ, where he wit
..od the entry into that city Of the
,rorlcan army under Gen. kearney' In
mar entitled "My First Procession
4, Tos Angeles" read before the lilsto-
r,,sl society a few years ago ne BaNe
an amusing account OF the paltalloh
he arrival i'm Los Angeles, March
az tS17. part OF which is here gwen
essentially in his own worus; 49,.
-, Nanvoo M, under the leadership OF
brigham Young, their nlst llltenlloI,
l ps's ~ reach California, They stopped
NsS sooson at Council Bluffs, Ia, TO
Lee prop and procure means Tor tur-
is aaT' rroeress. When the call was made
t snr yolunteers, IN Missouri, for service
Nav Mexico and California, Capt
lanes Allen OF the First United states
Sragoons was sent to Council Bluffs
20 rslse battalion Of infantry, enlisted
tor 10 months, TO be discharged
IN calfornia. The order was given by
p,lgham. and within as hours five full
romnanies 600 mem were raised and
on heir march to Fort Leayenworth.
Conditions we're that they were to
choose their company officers, but were
n he commanded by an officer OF the
regular army, and were to receive army
clothlng al Fort Leayenworth. Mis-
souri, troops furnished their own cloth
inc for which the government paid
each man 500 30 a year."
So they started on the long march
with their poorest clothing, When they
reached the fort they learned that the
steamboat bringing their clothing and
percussion muskets had been snagged
in the Missouri river, and everything
was lost. Their commander Capt.
Allen, was taken sick and died. He
had their confidence, and they objected
10 serving under another commander
and 10 start for California without the
promised clothing, which could not be
replaced In less than a month, but the
order was imperative to march. so
they appealed to Brigham for advice,
and he ordered them to push on, even
II they had TO reach California bare
footed and In their shirt-talls, Flint
lock muskets of the pattern OF 1870
we're furnished them and they reached
Santa Fe under command OF Lieut.,
4. ]. Smith of the First dragons. On
their arrival Gen. Kearney ordered
Capt Cooke to command them, and
Lieut.. Smith went with them TO Cali
fornia to rejon his company which
started a month before with Gen. Kear-
ney
After describing the journey over
land TO San Diego, where they were
ordered, by the turn OF events, Mr., Fos-
ter says. "Our last days march was
only ten miles, and we camped on the
San Gabriel at the Pico, crossing early,
and all hands soon were busy prepar-
ing for the grand entree on the NOR
row, Those who had a shirt-and they
were a mnority-could be seen wash
Ing them, others bathing, others mend
Ing their ragged clothes, and as there
was plenty Of sand, all securing their
muskets until they shone again We
made an early start the next morning,
and when we fOrded the Los Angeles
river at old Also, now Macy street,
there was not a single straggler be-
hind
They had left Missouri before recelv-
Ing their annual supply OF clothing and
they presented most dilapidated APP
peaiance, but their tattered caps and
jackets gave them a somewhat soldierly
appearance. Their officers were Cap
tain A. j. Smith, First Lieutenant J, Il.
Davidson and Second Lieutenant
George stoneman; then came four
companies Of the Iowa infantry, conn
pany B having been left to garrison
san Diego, In all they numbered 300
muskets and eighty sabers. The line
Of march was by Also and Arcadia
streets to Main and down Main to the
government house, where the st,
Oharles now stands. There the dra-
eoons dismounted and took up their
quarters. The infantry turned out OF
NAN street past the house of John
temple, now the Downey block, and
plIched their tents In the rear, where
,ney remained until they were mus
tered out. June, 1Si7.
-, nave described the appearance OF
we Dragons, but cannot do justice to
we infantry only by saying 1t was
La'Slal ragged company multiplied
NY Ten. The officers had managed TO
naNe each a decent suit OF clothes, but
4ey brought out in stronger contrast
o'e rags OF the rank and file We had
NV waving nags, but waving rags, and
naly one; nor brass bands, only a
s0HlnIy snare drum andsnfe, played by
II Vermont - 81 81,
.heeked English drummer and they
struck up the star Spangled Banner
% we passed the government house
a.nq kept 1t up until orders were given
I" 9reak ranks and stack arms"
and then came loud hurrah from
e mat ragged soldIery. Their long
auI weary march over mountain, plain
"U1 DESERT 1900 miles. was over.
had left Santa he with only the
,".ues on my back and single change
underclothing, I had been paid off
@ sah Luis Rey and had 5000 In my
o'HeI and had tried 10 get clothing
W. ios Angeles on my first visit, but
n,"n ma none So | rode 10 San
fri,osg, and through the Kindness of
s.Vnlly -warsman got
9, , plue blouse, pair OF marines
t5n"S and brogans, for which | paid
Ky My place in the column as In
tapI,e'er was with the colonel at the
s scaL and / rode with my ride sung
dviUIs5 the saddle. powder horn and
S'ue' pouch crossed about my shout
~ MY beard riyaled IN length that
h,, tue Old colonel by whose side | rode,
N.Y. NINE was az black as the ravens
now" '"' az gray as mine Is
yr % y Foster had bought spirited
Taps, notse at San Luis Rey from a
bon ,' p named ortega, nephew OF
w on llo Pico, and, he continues ~ I
6res.n99t the best looking nor the best
ms gsSe e man. / was the best mounted
ap, on Main street that day.
srll nu, he continues, 'the most com
or uouS man was different tyne
Wa. our March, Dememher isie we
ms, moving from the Black Water
i ow.ss99 uih Of the present Mexican line
va 'su me san Pedro river. Tho snow
COLA ,llne steadily, but IL was not very
was riding that day with the