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CHAPTER XLII.

1844-6-MORMON WAR.

Manner of Smith's Death-Character of the Mormons-Apostles Assume the Government of the Church-Trial and Acquittal of the Assassins-Saints Driven from the Vicinity of Lima and Green Plains-Leading Mormons Retire Across the MississippiBattle at Nauvoo-Expulsion of the Inhabitants.

When the assassination of the Mormons became known, it ap peared that the force at Nauvoo, agreeably to orders, had marched on the morning of the 27th in the direction of Golden's Point to form a connection with troops at that place, but after they had advanced about & miles they were met by a messenger from Carthage with an order to disband and return home; the gover nor, who issued it, fearing he could not control the inflammable material he was collecting, determined to scatter it. About 150 of the men, instead of complying with the order, blackened their faces with powder, hurriedly started for Carthage and encamped some distance from the village. Here they learned that one of the companies left to guard the Smiths, had gone home and that the other, the Carthage Grays, was stationed in the square, 150 yards distant, and that Sergeant Franklin A. Worrel, with only 8 men, was detailed to watch the prisoners. As soon as messages could be interchanged it was agreed among the conspirators that the guns of the guard should be charged with blank cartridges and fired on the assailants, when they should attempt to enter the jail.

Gen. Deming, who had been left in command, discovering the plot to assassinate the Smiths, and having been deserted by the prin cipal part of the troops, retired from the village, lest an attempt should be made on his own life. After perfecting their scheme of murder, the assailants scaled the slight fence enclosing the jail, and immediately disarming the guards, who according to agreement discharged their pieces, they ascended the flight of stairs leading to the room containing the prisoners. At the time the assault was made, two other Mormons, Richards and Tailor as visitors, were in the large apartment with the Smiths. Hearing the rush on the stairs, the imperilled men instinctively held the door by pressing their weight against it. The attacking party thus denied entrance, fired upon the door, and the bullets passing through it, killed Hiram Smith, who falling, exclaimed "I am a dead man." Tailor receiving 4 wounds, retreated under the bed, and Richards, after the door was burst open, secreted himself

behind it, though afterward in relating the murder, he claimed that he stood in the midst of danger, warding off the balls with a consecrated wand. The prophet, armed with a six barrelled pistol which had been furnished by his friends, fought bravely in defence of his life, and wounded four of his antagonists before he was killed. At length when his pistol was exhausted, severely wounded, he ran to the window, and partly leaped and partly fell into the yard below; there with his last dying energies he gathered himself up in a sitting posture, but his disabled condition and vague, wandering glances excited no compassion in tlie infuriated mob, thirsting for his blood. The broils which had so long distracted the country, infused into the avengers the spirit of demons, and the shooting of Smith was not considered any more criminal than taking the life of a wolf or tiger. While in this position a party of Missourians discharged their guns at him, and he fell crying out "Oh Lord my God.” Four balls had

pierced his body and before the smoke cleared away the Mormon prophet was no more.*

When the tragedy was over horror succeeded the frenzied rage which had possessed the assassins, and in silence they hurried across the dusty prairies to Warsaw, 18 miles distant. The murder occurred at half-past five, and at a quarter before eight the fugitives dragged their weary limbs along the streets of Warsaw, at such an astounding rate had the lash of a guilty conscience driven them. An outburst of vengeance on the part of the Mormons was anticipated, but nothing of the kind occurred. The appalling disaster which had thus befallen the church was not followed by revenge, and it was a long time before they recovered from the stupor and despair attending it. A delegation repaired to Carthage for their dead, and on returning to Nauvoo they were buried with the honors belonging to the general of the legion.

"Thus fell Joe Smith, the most successful impostor of modern times. A man who, though ignorant and coarse, had some great natural parts which fitted him for temporary success, but which were so obscured and counteracted by the inherent corruption and vices of his nature that he could never succeed in establishing a system of policy which looked to permanent success in the füture. His lusts, his love of money and power, always set him to studying present gratification and convenience, rather than the remote consequences of his plans. It seems that no power of intellect can save a corrupt man from this error. The strong cravings of the animal nature will never give fair play to a fine understanding; the judgment is never allowed to choose that good which is far away, in preference to enticing evil near at hand. And this may be considered a wise ordinance of Providence, by which the counsels of talented but corrupt men are defeated in the very act which promised success.

"It must not be supposed that the pretended prophet practiced the tricks of a common impostor; that he was a dark and gloomy person, with a long beard and grave and severe aspect, and a reserved and saintly carriage; on the contrary he was full of levity, even to boyish romping, dressed like a dandy and at times drank

* John Hay in the Atlantic Monthly of December, 1860

like a sailor and swore like a pirate. He could, as occasion required, be exceedingly meek in his deportment, and then again, rough and boisterous as a highway robber, being always able to satisfy his followers of the propriety of his conduct. He always quailed before power, and was arrogant to weakness. At times he could put on the air of a penitent, as if feeling the deepest humiliation for his sins, suffering unutterable anguish and the most gloomy forebodings of eternal woe. At such times he would call for the prayers of the brethren in his behalf with a wild and fearful energy and earnestness. He was full six feet high, strongly built and uncommonly well muscled. No doubt he was as much indebted for his influence over an ignorant people to the superiority of his physical vigor as to his cunning and intellect.*"

The Mormon church at this time, consisted of two classes, the rulers and the ruled, knavery in the one and credulity in the other being the heterogeneous characteristics which kept them together. The former consisted of unprincipled men of talent, who, abandoned in character and bankrupt in fortune, espoused the cause of Mormonism for speculative purposes, knowing it was an adventure in which they had nothing to lose, while it might be the means of retrieving their fortunes. Having neither respect for God nor man, and not reverencing any religion, they proposed, like Mahomet and others, to found a new system of theology, and if they could impose it on the credulity of mankind and live on the labor of their dupes, they had no higher object to accomplish. They formed a nucleus which attracted to Nauvoo adventurers and adepts in every species of crime, while the extraordinary powers which had been conferred on the city authorities enabled them to screen the guilty from the penalties of the laws they habitually violated. At their social entertainments, where music and dancing constituted the principal pastime, great attention was paid to dress, while little prudence was exercised in the selection of their company. There were in the same gay assemblage the brazen-faced desperado who despised the law, and the venal magistrate who protected him in his crimes, the wanton wife and the truant husband on an equal footing with those who respected the sanctity of marriage, the reckless adventurer in search of fortune, and the successful impostor in possession of ecclesiastical emoluments and honors. Discordant and incongruous in nature, they managed to keep time to the same music, and to forget minor differences, provided their principal objects, sensual pleasure and public plunder, were subserved.

The lay members of the church, on the other hand, were generally honest and industrious but ignorant, and the dupes of an artful delusion. In devotion to the principles which they professed, they were not surpassed by the believers of other creeds, for humanity exhibits little difference in this respect, whatever may be the system of religion. If the system is crude, the intelligent devotee rejects it, but if his want of knowledge allows him to believe it he will adhere to its dogmas with a tenacity equal to that exhibited by the enlightened advocate of a rational theology. With the great majority of the Mormons their religious belief amounted almost to infatuation, and they were, therefore, more

*Ford's History.

properly objects of compassion than persecution. Certainly no greater calamity can befall a member of the human family than to have the adoration which he offers the Deity perverted by the vagaries of such a monstrous superstition.

Mormonism, instead of perishing by the death of Smith, received a new impetus from his martyrdom. His followers now regarded him as a saint; his words on going to Carthage were adduced as fresh proof of his prophetic character, and a thousand stories. were circulated respecting the meekness with which he met death. Prophecies were published that in imitation of Christ he would raise from the dead. Many confidently expected the fulfillment of these predictions, and in due time it was reported he was seen, attended by a celestial army, coursing his way through the heavens on a great white horse.

The principle that the death of the martyr is the seed of the church, proved true in regard to Mormonism. Smith, though well qualified to originate a movement of this kind, was unable to safely direct it through the complication of perils which always besets religious innovation. By dying he made room for Brigham Young, the present head of the church, who, by his superior administrative ability, perhaps, saved the Mormon theocracy from disorganization and its subjects from dispersion. Cunning and duplicity may be used by the founders of a sect, but great prudence and judgment best befits him who would afterwards harmonize its jarring elements and shape its future career.

The church, as originally organized, contained 3 presidents, Joseph Smith, Hiram Smith and Sidney Rigdon, and 12 apostles. The latter were abroad, and till they could return home the saints were in doubt as to the future government of the church. Rigdon, being the only surviving member of the presidency, claimed the government, and fortified his pretensions by declaring that the will of the prophet was in his favor, and that he had received several new revelations to the same effect. One of his revelations, requiring the wealthy to dispose of their possessions and follow him to Pennsylvania, rendered him unpopular, the rich being reluctant to part with their property, and the poor unwilling to be deserted by those whose patronage enabled them to live. When the apostles returned a fierce conflict arose between them and Rigdon for supremacy, which resulted in the expulsion of the latter from the church.

He afterwards retired with a small fragment of the saints, and established a little delusion of his own near Pittsburgh, while the larger part submitted to the apostles, with Brigham Young, a talented but dishonest and licentious man, as their leader.

Missionaries to the number of 3,000 were now sent abroad to preach in the name of the martyred Joseph, and Mormonism increased more rapidly than it had at any time in its past history. In their wild enthusiasm they were willing to compass sea and land to make a single convert, and everywhere they went they found the ignorant and credulous ready to become infatuated with their strange fanaticism. No other religion promised such great spiritual and temporal advantage with such little self-denial, and not only dupes but sharpers united with the church, and it is said that within 14 years after its organization it numbered 200,000 members. The missionaries always informed their wondering

and deluded converts that it was necessary to repair to the place of gathering where the sublime fullness of the gospel alone could be fully revealed and enjoyed. When removed thither, by seeing and hearing nothing but Mormonism, and associating with those who placed implicit confidence in its dogmas, they ultimately became so deluded as to believe the greatest extravagances and submit to the most intolerable despotism. Many by this system of training became devoted disciples, who would have spurned the empty pretensions and licentiousness of their religion, had it at first been presented to them in its real deformity.

About a year after the apostles had assumed the reins of gov ernment, they concluded to suspend for a time their efforts to convert the world, and accordingly their missionaries and all others connected with the church were called home. In a short time Mormons commenced pouring into Nauvoo from all parts of the world, and the infuriated elders, instead of expounding the gospel to the congregations which were regularly called together, indulged in a tirade of abuse against the gentiles, curses on the government and all who were not of the Mormon church or its tools. Nor were the anti-Mormons or those who opposed them idle. The death of the Smiths had not appeased their desire for vengeance, and more determined than ever to expel their adversaries from the country, they frequently called on the gov ernor for aid. The Mormons also invoked the assistance of the executive in punishing the murderers of their prophet, and both parties were thoroughly disgusted with the constitutional provisons which imposed restraint on the summary attainment of their unlawful designs. The elections coming off in August, 1844, for members of the legislature and congress, and another pending for the presidency of the United State, further complicated the difficulties and enmities of the parties. The whig politicians, who were unable to secure their support, uniting with the antiMormons, sent invitations to the militia captains of Hancock and all the adjoining counties of Illinois, Missouri and Iowa to rendezvous with their companies in the vicinity of Nauvoo, preparatory to engaging in a wolf hunt, it being understood that the Mormons were the game to be hunted. Preparations were made for raising several thousand men; the anti-Mormons commenced anew the most exaggerated accounts of Mormon outrages, the whig press in every part of the United States came to their assistance, and the publications of the opposite party, which had hitherty been friendly, now quailed under the tempest which followed, leaving the denunciated and discredited sheet at Nauvoo alone to correct public opinion. Prominent politicians who had received the Mormon vote, were now unwilling to risk their reputation in defending them, so great was the cowardice of the one and the odious character of the other.

In the meantime, the anti-Mormon force, which had been summoned to meet in the guise of hunters, commenced assembling for the purpose of assaulting Nauvoo, and driving its inhabitants ont of the country. To avert the blow, the governor, assisted by Gen. J. J. Hardin, and Cols. Baker and Merriman, raised a force of 500 men and marched to the scene of the threatened outbreak. When he arrived a large part of the malcontents fled across the river into Missouri. Flight, however, was unnecessary, for the State forces

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