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Why did this human hyena, who fills the capacities of Governor and
Superintendent of
Indian Affairs, take prompt action for the punishment of
the
Indians, if there was no complicity between him and the tribes? He
boasts of his power over these barbarous hordes, and why was it not
exercised, instead of welcoming numbers, if not all, of those attached to
the band into Salt Lake City, with the most friendly greetings on the part
of the inhabitants, immediately after the massacre was performed? Indeed,
it may almost be said, that these
Indians danced their congratulatory war
dance in hellish glee almost within the limits of the town, and
Brigham Young and all Mormondom
looked on in quiet satisfaction.
It is to be presumed that the course of Mormon policy has been about
played out. This independent denial of Young of all knowledge of the
burning of the government train, is such an apparent and blackening
falsehood, that it will have the effect of permanently sealing the ears of
the Administration against the belief in any of his future statements in
palliation or excuse of crimes or overt acts of treason. Hos record is at
length written up, and he will have to pay the penalty of his many
atrocious crimes.
Meanwhile, those of our citizens, who, while they express their abhorrence
of Mormonism, are busily engaged, in the capacity of newspaper
corresponding, in patching up arguments against the right and policy of
sending troops to Salt Lake City, to take summary vengeance upon Young and
his hosts, if it becomes necessary, if they can reconcile themselves to
accept these gospel denials of Young as possessing one grain of truth, may
have some reasonable excuse for the course which they are pursuing. If
they cannot do so, then we suggest that they expend their tender
sympathies upon the orphans and relatives of the band of emigrants who
were butchered, last fall, through the instigation of Young, while on
their way to become good citizens of
California.
~~~~~~
The Utah Expedition, New York Times,
February 4, 1858
From the New York Times Army correspondent near
Fort Bridger,
Utah Territory, December 14, 1857
The Army in Good Health -- Volunteers Enrolled -- Mormon
Complicity with the Indians --Interesting Statement of Facts
... The rumors of Mormon complicity with
the
Indians in the horrible massacre of the
California emigrants and
others, in passing through
Utah, is confirmed by the report of Dr. Hurt,
the
Indian Agent, and others.
Brigham Young's boasted power and
influence over the
Indians since he has assumed his treasonable position
towards the General Government, is used to its full extent against it.
Persons passing to and from
California through
Utah, were often cautioned
against the
Indians by the Mormons. After being very inquisitive about the
route they intended to take, they would say to them "Look out, the
Indians
are very bad on that road;" or, "If you ain't careful, the
Indians will
clean you out before you get through."
The significance of these remarks and a few incidents will serve to
establish.
Early in February last, two gentlemen, John Peltro and John Tobin, the
latter an apostate Mormon, in company with several others, came to the
Indian Farm, on the Spanish Fork, on their way to
California. While there,
Brigham Young, junior, a son of the
High Priest, and a young man named Taylor, overtook them and remained over
night and all left in the morning. Peltro and his party started first, and
jocularly asked
Young and Taylor if they were going
their way.
Young was heard to say, in an under
tone: "We will overtake you soon enough." As soon as they had left it was
the talk among the Mormons that the
Indians were very hostile on the route
this party had taken. In anticipation of the facts, before Mr. Peltro and
the party had time to reach the southern settlements, rumors were rife
that they had all been cut off by the
Indians.
The mail carrier of the
California mail that came up soon after reported
that the party was attacked in the night, while asleep on the Santa Clara
River, by the
Paiute
Indians, who robbed them. John
Tobin was severely wounded in the face; two
others of the party were also wounded but not so seriously. It is a
significant fact that all the balls found in the blankets of the sleeping
party fitted the navy-size revolvers, and the
Utah
Indians pertinaciously
assert that the
Paiute
had nothing to do with it. One of the party wrote an account of the affair
to General Burr, at
Salt Lake City, and forwarded it by the mail before
referred to. When the mail reached Provo the letter was taken out and torn
up by a Mormon, with the remark that the "old General should never see
that mess of stuff."
In the early part of September, G.W. Hancock, a Mormon merchant from Paysan,
was at the
Indian Farm, and said that an express had gone up to President
Young with the intelligence that
some
California emigrants had been attacked by the
Indians, and were
entrenched behind their wagons, and to get his instructions what to do
with the American. On the next day one of the
Utah
Indians, who had been
gathering pine nuts west of the Seveir Lake, came in and said that he met
a band of the
Paiutes, who told him that the Mormons had killed all the
emigrants. Three days later another of the Utahs came to the Farm and
confirmed the report, saying that his brother Ammon, a chief, went to Iron
County and tried to persuade the
Indians to leave the road. The Bishop of
the settlement ordered him away, telling him he had no business there.
This
Indian said that the
Paiutes
had been instigated by the Mormons. These reports of the massacre were
soon confirmed by others, and the
Indians
persisted in saying "the Mormons had killed the Americans." Dr. Hurt,
wishing to learn more definitely what had occurred, the nature of the
difficulties, and the instigators, sent a young
Indian
in whom he could confide, by a secret route to the
Paiutes.
He met them at Ammon's (Indian) village, in Beaver County. They
acknowledged having participated in the massacre of the emigrants, but
said the Mormons persuaded them to it; that about ten or eleven "sleeps" ago,
J.D. Lee came to their village and told them that the
Americans were bad people, and always killed
Indians whenever they had a
chance and that they killed the Mormons, who were the friends of the
Indians, and prevailed on them to attack the emigrants (over 100 in
number,) and promised that the Mormons would help them. The
Paiutes
made three different attacks, but were repulsed each time, when a number
of Mormons, with
Lee and the Bishop of Cedar City, went to the emigrant
camp, pretending to be friends, and, under the pretext of settling the
difficulties, persuaded them to lay down their arms, and permit the
Indians to come inside their defenses, when the work of butchery
commenced. To use the language of the young
Indian, "they cut all their
throats," but a few of them started to run off, and the
Paiutes
shot them. He also said there were some 15 or 16 small children, who were
not killed, but were taken by the Bishop.
Lee and the Bishop took all the
stock, (over 1,000 head,) and a large amount of money.
A report also reached the
Indian farm that the Snake
Indians, under a
chief named Little Soldier, had attacked an emigrant train in charge of a
man named Squiers, from
Missouri, He was encamped near Ogden. They drove
off all his cattle, (nearly 500 head,) and all his mules and horses. The
Utah
Indians say that the Mormons took the stock themselves. Ben Simons, a
Delaware
Indian, who lives with the Snakes in Weber Valley, says that in
the early part of September Dimick B. Huntington, (Brigham Young's
Indian interpreter) and Bishop West, of Ogden, came to the Snake village,
and told the
Indians that
Brigham Young wished them to
steal the emigrants' cattle. He says the Snake chiefs consulted him about
it. He advised them not to do it, which advice they concluded to
follow -- but Huntington and West insisted upon their stealing the cattle;
the chiefs replied that they did not want them, and if the Mormons wanted
them, they might get them themselves. Simons says he know the Mormons have
got the stock.
~~~~~~
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