travel on foot to ogden—well received by relatives and friends—reply to inquiries by the people regarding the society islands and the inhabitants thereof—called to go to fort hall—order countermanded—called on a mission to the indians—design of the mission—organization of the company, and start from salt lake city—hard work of the journey—attacked by wolves—fatal duel at fort bridger—plans of desperadoes—we go to smith's fork—build a blockhouse—arrival of more men and supplies—threatening attitude of the indians—writer made sergeant of the guard and quartermaster—instructions from elder orson hyde—life in our new camp—cold weather and wild beasts—learning the indian language—give shelter to indians—desperado chief killed by one of his men—animals perish from cold and starvation—terrific storms and snowdrifts—saving our stock—shoshone indians ask for and receive assistance—hunt for antelope fails—a bachelor's dance—raising a liberty pole—partitioning out lands—plowing and planting—arrival of and instructions by elder orson hyde—selections for a special mission to the indians—organization of green river county.
on june 9, 1853, i started to ogden city, afoot and alone. on the 10th, i paid out the last quarter of a dollar that i had to the ferryman, to set me across the weber river, at east weber. from there i crossed the hills to my uncle john stephens', and found him and his family well and pleased to see me. i reciprocated the pleasure, had dinner and a short visit, then went on to ogden city, where i again met with cousin john m. brown and his father's family, and our two aunts, polly and nancy brown; as also more relatives and former friends, all of whom treated me with much kindness, and as if the lost had been found.
the first sabbath after my arrival in ogden, i was called on to give a report of my mission, and to preach. by doing this, there was a great spirit of inquiry excited about the society islands and their inhabitants. i found that scarce one in a thousand of the people had the remotest idea of affairs on the islands i had been to. the questions asked and the answers given were about like this:
q. where are the islands?
a. in the south pacific ocean.
q. what are they like?
a. the spur of a mountain in a vast plain.
q. what are the chief products?
a. cocoanuts, oranges, lemons, limes, citrus fruits, arrowroot, sweet potatoes or yams (a species of potato that takes about eighteen months to mature), coffee, cotton, chili pepper, corn, rice, tobacco, sugarcane; a root called taro grows in the swamps and somewhat resembles the indian turnip that grows in the middle states, and on the islands is cultivated for food, being one of the most staple products; breadfruit grows in great abundance; there is a fruit called viapple and another called doava, neither of which is of much importance. there are also pineapples, bananas, and a fruit called feii which grows on a plant like the banana, and is one of the best and most generally used fruits there.
q. is the soil rich?
a. yes; but this is limited to small strips along the coasts and the water courses.
q. what kind of a climate is it?
a. very hot. papeete, the capital of tahiti, is in seventeen degrees thirty-two minutes south latitude, and one hundred and forty-four degrees thirty-four minutes west longitude, computed from greenwich, and if it were not for the frequent rains, southerly breezes, and the constant trade winds, it would be almost impossible for human beings to live there.
q. what kinds of timber grow there?
a. various kinds of scrubby timber not known in our country, chief of which is hutu or tamana, an excellent timber for shipbuilding, and for fine furniture; there is also sandal wood, the heart being of great value, as it is used for perfume, and decorating musical instruments, work-boxes, etc.
q. having given a brief description of the islands composing the society group, the tubuoi and tubuoimono archipelago, and of their principal products, the next question was: what kind of people inhabit them?
a. they are very large in stature, are brave, and formerly were very warlike. their complexion is like that of the american indian, and their habits are much the same. they are hospitable to a fault. in their heathenish days, they were idol-worshipers and very devout. originally, their government was patriarchal, but as they increased it became tribal, then confederate. a district of country called monteina would combine for war purposes, and finally would become a monarchy. thus they had their kings and queens, and began to have royalty. as to other matters, there are no native animals, but of fowls there are such as sea birds, and the common wild duck; also of reptiles, a small, harmless, greenish lizard. the greatest insect pests are the nimble flea and the common mosquito, in numberless quantities. many years ago the people had the smallpox, and as it was a strange disease to them, and they were without the knowledge of how to treat it, they died by hundreds, if not by thousands. as soon as they learned that it was contagious, the people fled to the mountains, and there hid away until their swine and chickens went wild, in which state these increased, producing the wild boar and wild chickens, which are frequently hunted by the people, and which, but for the rugged fastnesses of the mountains, soon would become extinct.
a typical tahitian with his burden of bread fruit and feii.
a typical tahitian with his burden of bread fruit and feii.
i will leave that subject now and return to my own experiences after getting home. i turned my hand to farm labor, and anything i could get to do until the 6th of september. then major moore, having received orders from governor young to raise a company of men and send them north to fort hall, to protect or assist a company there on some business, called me to take charge of that company. when we were within three hours of starting, the order to go was countermanded, and i continued to work for two dollars per day until the 8th of october, when, at a general conference, i was called, with several others, to take a mission to the indian tribes east of the salt lake valley.
elder orson hyde was chosen to lead the company to somewhere in the region of the green river, select a place, and there build an outpost from which to operate as peacemakers among the indians, to preach civilization to them, to try and teach them how to cultivate the soil, to instruct them in the arts and sciences if possible, and by that means prevent trouble for our frontier settlements and emigrant companies. we were to identify our interests with theirs, even to marrying among them, if we would be permitted to take the young daughters of the chief and leading men, and have them dressed like civilized people, and educated. it was thought that by forming that kind of an alliance we could have more power to do them good, and keep peace among the adjacent tribes as also with our own people.
it was known that there were wicked and cruel white men among the indians, working up the spirit of robbery and murder among the savage tribes, and against the mormon people. our missionary call was to take our lives in our hands, as true patriots, and head off, and operate as far as possible against the wicked plots of white men who were trying to carry their plans to success through the indians, and possibly set the savages on the war path, that the government might send troops out. and thus make a better market for the schemers' herds of cattle and horses.
from the october conference i returned to ogden city, settled what little business i had, and prepared for the mission, going to salt lake city on the 15th, ready for the work assigned me. there i reported myself, but the majority of the men who had been called at the same time that i was were not ready until the 1st of november, when we met in the council house, and there effected an organization.
it was in the evening, about 8 o'clock, when we met. there were thirty-nine men who reported themselves ready to start next morning. november 2nd. elders orson hyde, parley p. pratt and ezra t. benson, of the twelve apostles, were present, and organized the company by appointing elders john nebeker president and captain, john harvey first counselor and lieutenant and james s. brown second counselor and lieutenant. the captain and lieutenants were so that we might act in a military capacity if necessity required it, and the president and counselors were for ecclesiastical affairs. the officers were blessed and set apart by the three apostles named. the apostles told the members of the company that they would be blessed equally with the officers if they would be prayerful, do their duty, and hearken to and be united with their officers. we were also told that some of us might have to take indian wives.
on november 2nd twenty wagons, with one hundred and ten head of cattle, horses and mules, were ready for a start. to each man there was three hundred pounds of flour, seventy-five pounds of seed wheat, and forty pounds of seed potatoes. each man fitted himself up with such other provisions and seed as he chose or could do. we started out at 1 o'clock p.m., and that night camped in emigration canyon.
we crossed the little mountain on november 3rd. having to double teams, we made slow headway, and only got to within four miles of the big mountain. on the 5th, we crossed that, and camped at its eastern base. the road was very bad, so that we made but few miles on the 6th, and camped in the foothills, where our stock was attacked about 3 o'clock a.m. by a pack of big gray wolves, which were so savage that every man had to be called out to fight them. the night was very dark, and we fired guns, built fires in a circle around the stock, and stayed with them till daylight. yet, with all that, some of the milch cows had part of their udders torn off, while others were badly gashed as by a sharp knife. by hard work we succeeded in preventing the wolves killing any of our animals, and then got an early start on the morning of the 7th.
as we were heavily loaded, and the roads very rough, we did not reach fort bridger until november 15th. at that place there were twelve or fifteen rough mountain men. they seemed to be very surly and suspicious of us and the spirit of murder and death appeared to be lurking in their minds. many of our party could feel that terrible influence and made remarks about it. it was not long till we were informed by some of the party at the fort that two men there had fought a duel the night before with butcher knives, and both were killed. the others of the party had dug a hole and had thrown both men into it as they had fallen and died—clasped in each other's arms. thus the gloom and cloud of death that we had felt so plainly was partially explained. we passed one and a half miles above the fort, and camped on black's fork. that night it snowed about six inches.
we learned from the men at fort bridger that fifteen or twenty mountain men had moved over on to henry's fork, and that the ute indians were coming over there to winter. that was the place we were heading for, and some of the roughest men of the mountains were claiming that as their country. our information now being that there was a well-organized band of from seventy-five to a hundred desperadoes in the vicinity of green river, at the very point that we had hoped to occupy with our little company, the situation was serious; and with snow on the ground, to decide what to do was an important matter. we broke camp and passed over the divide to smith's fork. there the spirit seemed to forbid us going any farther, and we held a short consultation, which resulted in the appointment of a committee of five, of which the writer was one.
this committee followed up the creek to a point where the water comes down through the foothills, and there, between the forks of the stream, selected a spot for winter quarters, and to build a blockhouse. then they returned and made their report, which was accepted by the captain and his men. the camp was moved to the chosen ground on november 27th. we at once pitted our potatoes, the committee named being retained to draft and superintend the erection of the blockhouse. the writer made the plans of the blockhouse, which was built with four wings, or rooms, of equal size; these, uniting at the corners, formed a center room, which was built two stories high. all the rooms were provided with port holes, the center being used for storage, and the upper for a guardhouse, from which the country around could be overlooked. the plan being accepted, every man went to work with a will, and in two weeks the house was ready for occupancy. this was not an hour too soon, for the weather was very cold and threatening.
on the 26th, captain isaac bullock came in with fifty-three men and twenty-five wagons. when they joined us our company was ninety-two strong, all well armed; and when our blockhouse was completed we felt safer than ever. the work of building was continued until all were comfortably housed in log cabins, and a heavy log corral was constructed for our stock in case of an emergency.
we had not been settled down long, when some of the mountaineers paid us a visit and applauded our energy and enterprise. notwithstanding that, we could easily discern a feeling of envy on their part. in consequence, we did not feel any too safe, especially when the snow became deep between our friends and ourselves, for we frequently heard that the ute indians, then a very warlike and hostile tribe, were threatening to come upon us from the east, by an open country. under the circumstances, we could see the wisdom of our military organization; and as we had to have a regular guard, we found that we must have a sergeant thereof; accordingly, the author was elected to fill that position, and as we had several beef cattle and other provisions in common, a commissary or quartermaster was necessary, and the sergeant was called to fill that position also. we further perfected our organization by electing a captain for every ten men. we were also instructed to keep our firearms in perfect order, and to have our powder dry, that we might be prepared for any emergency. thus provided for, we continued to get out fencing limber, and exploring parties were sent out, which acted as scouts, and we learned the resources of the country, and sought out every advantage.
it was on december 8 when apostle orson hyde came into camp. he preached to us that evening, and gave many words of encouragement. on the 9th he examined our work and defenses. he was highly pleased with the country, and applauded our choice of location; in fact, he seemed generally well pleased with what we had done. he preached again, and gave us much cheer and sound instructions. we prepared our mail in answer to the one he had brought us, and on the 10th he set out on his return trip, every one feeling blessed by his visit.
in our religious and social arrangements, we held regular meetings, had lectures on different subjects, organized a debating society, and had readings. on december 26, f. m. perkins and a party returned from salt lake city, bringing much interesting news, and also supplies of food. on the 28th, the weather was so cold that we had to abandon outdoor work.
wolves became troublesome to our stock, so we put strychnine and set traps for the wild beasts, which killed several head of cattle and one of the strongest horses in our band. the wolves were very numerous, and when they band, as they do sometimes, and did then, it is almost impossible for any kind of stock to escape without some loss. yet, with rifle, trap and poison, we kept about even with our ravenous enemies.
january 1, 1854, the weather was fine. on the 5th cold and storms came, and we also heard more threatening news from the ute indians; but this did not alarm us much, though it prompted us to increased diligence in looking after our stock. there was some dissatisfaction about guard duty, as some thought there was too much of it to suit them, and felt that others should stand two hours to their one; but that was soon settled and we continued our studies in the shoshone indian dialect, having elisha b. ward, an old mountaineer and trapper, and his indian wife, sally, to assist us. then there was an indian family of four who got starved out and came to us for help. we took them in, fed them, and gave them a room to themselves. then sally's brother, indian john, and his wife, madam, came, so that we took them in and fed them. this condition afforded us increased facilities for studying the shoshone dialect, which we carefully availed ourselves of.
about this time, louis tromley, a frenchman, stabbed samuel callwell. the affair took place near fort bridger. callwell was said to be at the head of the gang of desperadoes who plied their vocation from bridger to green river, and back on the emigrant route to laramie; he was a large, trim built man, about six feet six inches tall, and very daring. but after a bowie knife was plunged into his vitals he did not survive long, dying in about twenty-four hours from the time he received the fatal wound. tromley was one of callwell's band, and made his escape. it was thought by some that if his victim had lived he would have made trouble for us, but this quarrel gave the gang something else to do.
we continued our labors and studies; yet with all the opportunities at hand, there were only about six of us out of the ninety-two that made even fair progress in learning the indian tongue. on february 7, we received more mail. about the 22nd we lost many of our cattle from starvation and cold. deep snows fell, and drifted so that our houses were completely buried, and from the south side we could walk right up on top of our cabins, while on the north the snow drifted to the tops of the doors, and packed so hard in one night that it had to be cut out with the spade, the large chunks being laid back on the floor until we could get out far enough to clear the houses. this condition continued for many days. on march 8, the wind blew fearfully, and the snow drifted so deep that we had to break snow roads, and then drive our poor cattle and horses from point to point where the snow had been blown off, leaving the grass bare. in this way many of our animals were saved.
on the 12th of march, a party of fifteen or twenty shoshone indians came and pitched camp close to the blockhouse. they were very hungry, and we divided bread with them, that being the only kind of food we had left; and in turn their presence afforded us better opportunity to study their language and customs, a knowledge of the latter being essential to the successful interpreter. on march 18, more hungry indians came. they appeared almost starved, and they begged until they became a nuisance; yet we divided with them, and ran ourselves short before our store could be replenished. on the 27th we turned out on a general hunt for antelope; at this time we were living on bread and water. our hunt failed, as it was probable the starving indians had killed or run off all the game from that part of the country. on the 29th the weather was still blustery, with heavy snow. we cleared the blockhouse, and had a jolly dance, to drive dull care away. there being no ladies to join with us, we christened it the bachelor's dance.
april 1st came, and we cleared the snow and ice from our houses. on the 5th we received another mail from salt lake city, and on the 6th we hoisted the first liberty pole that was raised in green river county to spread the stars and stripes of the united states of america to the mountain breeze. on the 17th there was continuous snow and rain, making very disagreeable weather. committees were appointed to select and stake off the farm land, the writer being on one of the committees. we also placed out picket guards and chose men to herd our stock, and corral them at night. on the 18th we started the plows, marking to each mess their portion, as the committee had been directed to do. from the 23rd to the 26th we had cold, snowy weather.
on the 28th president nebeker and c. merkley started for salt lake city, and on may 1st d. r. perkins and some others left for their homes. the rest of the company continued to plow and plant. on the 7th it snowed, and on the 8th apostle orson hyde came with twenty-five new men, bringing us a fresh supply of provisions. this supply was very much appreciated, for we were, and had been for some weeks, living on bread alone. the new company also brought our mail. i had eleven letters, all containing good news from home.
elder hyde preached to us on the evening of the 9th, and we had good cheer; everyone seemed to be encouraged. we also held a council meeting to select elders to go to the indian camps, and learn as near as possible the feeling of the red men, and their movements, and to carry out the object of our mission. in that meeting, elder hyde called on the council for four or five elders to volunteer to go east and hunt up the indian camps. there were seven volunteered, namely, e. b. ward, isaac bullock, john harvey, j. arnold, w. s. muir, james s. brown and one other whose name i have lost. elder hyde said that e. b. ward, isaac bullock, and james s. brown were three accepted from that list, while james davis was taken for the fourth. the persons named were then sustained by the vote of the council, without a dissenting voice. elder hyde gave us some instructions, and said the party would start in one week from that day, or as much sooner as they chose.
the council meeting then adjourned, and judge w. i. appleby organized the county of green river by appointing the officers therefor, mr. appleby having been duly commissioned as judge, and authorized to act in the capacity in which he did.