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Written by Himself
Written by Himself
"Words are the soul's ambassadors who go Abroad, upon her errands to and fro, They are the chief expounders of the mind, And correspondence kept 'twixt all mankind." They place in memory's clasp, truths we have read, Beautiful words, of both living and dead. Helping us cherish, and nurse as they grow, Elysian plants, from thoughts that we sow. Bringing to memory, and waking to life The form, and face of a child, or wife, The choicest treasures to mortals given, The golden thread that leads to he
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APPENDIX—STORIES AND RHYMES.
APPENDIX—STORIES AND RHYMES.
CHAPTER 31. Twenty-fourth of July Musings Sent to President Joseph F. Smith.—Twenty-fourth of July Toast.—Utah.—Thrilling Eruption of Kilauea CHAPTER 32. A Thrilling Experience on the Plains.—The Stampede CHAPTER 33. A Squaw Fight CHAPTER 34. Crusade Against Plural Marriage CHAPTER 35. Salt Lake Valley in 1847.—Utah Pioneers.—A Peaceful Home CHAPTER 36. From the Cradle to the Grave.—Lines to Sister M. L. CHAPTER 37. The Young Men's Pledge.—Brigham Young's One Hundredth Birthday.—Mary's Birthday.
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Chapter 1.
Chapter 1.
Birth.—Childhood Recollections. I was born April 30, 1837, at Kirtland, Ohio. I am the third son of Lorenzo Dow and Persis Goodell Young. My parents were early numbered among the followers of the Prophet Joseph Smith; and my father, being physically strong and restless, full of spirituality, and endowed with deep human sympathy, was naturally among the foremost in all the troubles the Church passed through during the first twenty years of its existence. He suffered much in the Missouri persecuti
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Chapter 2.
Chapter 2.
Camp on Sugar Creek.—Brigham's Charge to the Exiles.—Death of a Noble Woman.—Garden Grove.—Free from Mobs. God pity the exiles, when storms come down— When snow-laden clouds hang low on the ground, When the chill blast of winter, with frost on its breath Sweeps through the tents, like the angel of death! When the sharp cry of child-birth is heard on the air, And the voice of the father breaks down in his prayer, As he pleads with Jehovah, his loved ones to spare! My father was among the first of
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Chapter 3.
Chapter 3.
Petition Governors.—Wm. C. Staines, Captain James Allen. Push on, push on, ye struggling Saints, The clouds are breaking fast. It is no time to doubt or faint; The Rubicon is past. Behind us storms and rivers lie; Before the sun shines bright, And we must win or we must die— We cannot shun the fight. On the 11th of April the main camps moved forward again. There being now more sunshine and the roads firmer, better progress was made; and on the 18th they reached th
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Chapter 4.
Chapter 4.
Thomas L. Kane's Description of the City of Nauvoo, and the Exiled Mormons. And now I wish you to read the graphic lecture of Thomas L. Kane before the Historical Society of Philadelphia: "A few years ago, ascending the upper Mississippi in the autumn, when its waters were low, I was compelled to travel by land past the region of the rapids. My road lay through the Half Breed tract, a fine section of Iowa, which the unsettled state of its land titles had appropriated as a sanctuary for coiners,
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Chapter 5.
Chapter 5.
Daniel H. Wells.—Baptism for the Dead.—Lorenzo D. Young's Mission.—Wilford Woodruff.—Saved by Prayer. The little band of one hundred twenty-five men who for three days defended the city of Nauvoo against fearful odds, are to me patriots and heroes, and their names and deeds should be handed down in history; for the wealth of history is the noble ideals it creates. Had there never been an angry Jewish mob, we should not have the martyr Stephen. Had there been no Gesler to hoist his cap on a liber
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Chapter 6.
Chapter 6.
Brigham's Wise Counsels.—Joseph Toronto.—Joseph Smith.—Seer and Organizer.—Prophecy of August 6, 1842. In those days of constant home changing Brigham was somewhat like the father of a large rustling family; everybody came to him for comfort or counsel. Perhaps I cannot do better than relate a few incidents to show how they trusted to his guidance. In 1845 an Italian sailor by name of Toronto, had saved his earnings, until he had several hundred dollars. But he was worried for fear he would lose
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Chapter 7.
Chapter 7.
A Religious Commonwealth.—General Clark's Decree.—Brigham's Indian Policy.—Its Peaceable Fruits.—The Glory of the Immigrants' First View of The Valley. On April 10, 1847, that historical band of one hundred forty-three men, three women, and two children, known as the Mormon pioneers, started for the West, led by Brigham Young and Heber C. Kimball. The story of that journey has been so often told, and our western people are so accustomed to traveling with team, and camping out, that I fear my wea
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Chapter 8.
Chapter 8.
Mormon Stalwarts.—A Waif on the Plains.—Death of Celestia Kimball.—Two Indian Girls Tortured.—Sally's Death.—Ira Eldredge's Dog and the Wolf.—Delicious Rawhide Soup.—Eat Thistles.—The Devastating Crickets.—Deliverance Wrought by the Sea Gulls. Having foreshadowed the immigration movement in general, I turn back to the parting at Winter Quarter's. Owing to the poverty of our people, and to the lack of men, conditions were such that in making up the Pioneer Company many families were divided. Such
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Chapter 9.
Chapter 9.
My First Mission.—Uncle Brigham's Counsel.—Parley P. Pratt, Teacher and Orator.—My First View of the Ocean.—San Francisco.—Tracting the City.—Scrap with a Hotel Keeper.—Labor as a Cook in the Home of Mr. McClain.—The Man Who Murdered Parley P. Pratt. In 1854, at the April Conference in Salt Lake City, I was appointed a mission to the Sandwich Islands. I was then in my sixteenth year, and with my overcoat on I weighed, on Father Neff's mill scales, just ninety-six pounds. On the 4th of May I star
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Chapter 10.
Chapter 10.
Sail for the Islands.—At Honolulu I Labor in Tin Shop.—My First Kanaka Meal—At Home With Kiama.—Attend Native Funeral.—Meet Mr. Emerson.—Three Days Without Food.—Saved by a Donkey.—Lose My Eye-sight.—Receive a Glorious Vision. On August 29, 1854, I sailed for the Sandwich Islands. The voyage was long and disagreeable, especially as I was sea-sick all the way. How glad I was when we reached the sunny, coral-reefed Islands! At first I as appointed to labor at Honolulu in President Phillip B. Lewis
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Chapter 11.
Chapter 11.
On Oahu Again.—John Hyde's Apostasy.—I Meet Him in the Presbyterian Church.—At Waialua. On October 6, 1856, all the Elders of the mission met in conference at Wailuku, island of Maui. Here I met my brother Franklin W. and John Brown, an old playmate. They had just arrived from Zion. Our conference was a truly happy one. I was appointed to labor on Oahu, under the presidency of Edward Partridge. October 12, 1856, with a large company of Elders, I walked over the mountain, forty miles, without wat
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Chapter 12.
Chapter 12.
Hear of Parley P. Pratt's Death.—Buchanan Sends Harney to Utah.—Letter from Brigham Young. On Tuesday, August 25, 1857, I learned from the Western Standard of the death of Apostle Parley P. Pratt. I was deeply moved by the news. He had been cruelly murdered by Mr. McLain, the man with whom I had lived a month while in San Francisco. I wrote the following humble lines, and only regret that my tribute is not more like the noble man whose untimely fate I mourned: He was fifty years old—how littl
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Chapter 13.
Chapter 13.
Praise for the Elders.—Efforts to Bring Two Natives to Utah.—Sail for Home.—Description of Steerage.—An Earnest Prayer.—Timidity of the Saints.—Baptize a New Convert at Midnight. November 22, 1857. The day was beautiful, perhaps because my heart felt to rejoice; for I had been truly blest during my sojourn on these islands. I attended meeting and listened to remarks by Elders Bigler, Woodbury, Bell, and Cluff. I loved Brother Bigler for his wisdom and humility; Brother Woodbury for his loyalty t
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Chapter 14.
Chapter 14.
Visit My Cousin.—His Tempting Offer.—Meet the Agents of Mr. Walker, the Nicaragua Filibusterer.—Baptize Mrs. Bradford. On Monday, December 28, 1857, I borrowed two dollars and fifty cents and bought from a Jew store a very good second-hand coat as I had come from the islands in my shirt sleeves. The returning elders scattered out in search of work. Elders Molen and Speirs went to Sacramento, Elders Johnson, King, West, and Thurston went to the Redwoods; while Elders Cluff, Bell, and I remained i
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Chapter 15.
Chapter 15.
Start for a Thirteen-Hundred-Mile Walk.—Become Indian Scout—Meet Jacob Hamblin, the Indian Peacemaker.—Surrounded by Forty Indian Warriors.—Shooting a Dove Saves our Scalps. By the first of March forty persons had gathered at the Redwoods, 40 miles south of San Francisco, prepared to go to Utah. We organized a company by appointing Eli Whipple, captain; Sextus E. Johnson, sergeant of the guard; John R. Young, chaplain; and Elemuel Sawtell, clerk. Brother Whipple furnished the provisions, and hau
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Chapter 16.
Chapter 16.
Home Activities.—Counseled Not to Study Law.—Called to Uinta, and Dixie. As soon as I had seen the army "pass through," I returned to Provo to report myself to President Young. I had been gone on my mission a little over four years, as before recorded. When Apostle John Taylor set me apart for this mission he said, "You shall be cast upon the bosom of the sea; but fear not, the hand of the Lord shall be over you, and you shall return in safety to your father's home;" also in parting President Yo
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Chapter 17.
Chapter 17.
Miss Carmichael's Parting Words.—San Francisco.—Orson Pratt's Prophecy. Sail for Hawaii.—Delivered From the Hands of a Wicked Man.—Visit Walter M. Gibson.—View Kawaimanu. Wednesday, April 27, 1864. I spent the day visiting my dear mother, and passed the night beneath my father's hospitable roof. Miss S. E. Carmichael wrote "A Parting Word to my Friend John R. Young:" My words are seldom strong, or bright, A woman's tones are low, And 'tis not much a hand so slight Can offer thee
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Chapter 18.
Chapter 18.
Conference at Wailuku.—Return to Honolulu.—Sail for Home.—Man Overboard. On Sunday, August 14, 1864, a conference was held at Wailuku, with sixty members present. Arrangements were made to build a new meetinghouse, Gibson having sold the old one which was built ten years ago. President Joseph F. Smith testified that the Saints, in following Mr. Gibson's teaching, had departed from the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and had become darkened in their minds. "As soon as you manifest works meet for repentan
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Chapter 19.
Chapter 19.
United Order.—Indian Troubles.—Mission to England. In the winter of 1873 and 1874 President Young visited Dixie, and taught the people the principles of the United Order. I received a letter from him requesting me to meet him at Rockville. I took my son Ferra, then a lad of eight years, and crossed the mountain on horseback. The snow was three feet deep on the divide, and the weather stormy. In fact, we faced a blizzard for eight hours. When we reached Rockville, the afternoon meeting was in ses
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Chapter 20.
Chapter 20.
Transferred to the Bristol Conference.—A Remarkable Woman.—My Views of Celestial Marriage. On Monday, October 1, 1877, I bade goodbye to Elder Joseph H. Parry—who had succeeded Samuel Leigh as president of the Welsh Conference—and to Walter J. Lewis, and the Saints of Cardiff, and went to Bristol, where I was kindly received by President Daniel Jacobs. And now comes a repetition of my experience in Wales. Day after day, with carpet sack in hand, I walked alone; talking by the wayside, preaching
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Chapter 21.
Chapter 21.
A Visit to Wales.—Mrs. Simons' Good Work.—A Tribute to Joseph Fielding Smith.—A Letter from My Wife, Albina. December 19, 1877. In the evening President Jacobs baptized John Wadley. On the 20th we walked eight miles to Little Dean. It was warm and muddy. We were kindly received by Sister Burr is, who ever has a tidy room, and a 'bit of cake' for the Elders. We decided to visit Wales. In response to an invitation from President Joseph H. Parry, we took cars to Cardiff and Ponty Pridd, arriving th
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Chapter 22.
Chapter 22.
Death of Jehiel McConnell.—A Letter to My Daughter.—Five Thousand Dollars Reward.—A Letter from Apostle Joseph F. Smith. Brother Jehiel McConnell was one of the party who were with Elder George A. Smith, Jr. when he was killed by the Navajo Indians. When George A. was wounded and the party had to retreat, Brother McConnell got onto his big mule behind the saddle, took George A. in his arms in front of him, and carried him until he died; thus manifesting a love and loyalty to his wounded brother
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Chapter 23.
Chapter 23.
A Letter to my Son.—An Enquirer Answered.—The Sinking of the Euridice.—Four Hundred Men Perish.—Letters from Home.—Two Splendid Dreams. "Silas S. Young: My dear son: Your very neat letter of February 2nd came safely to hand, and I was pleased to have you write to me. "I have recently been to Crew Kerne, a noted pleasure resort and while there, witnessed the Somerset steeple-chase races. I will try to tell you something about them. To begin with, I must tell you that England, and Wales, so far as
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Chapter 24.
Chapter 24.
Death of a Lady Apostle Woodruff Baptized in 1840, at Midnight.—Baptize an Aged Backslider.—A Letter from Apostle Wilford Woodruff.—Transferred to the London Conference. On April 12, 1878, I walked seventeen miles to Cheltenham, and received the following letter: "Beloved Brother Young: I received your kind and welcome letter yesterday, and was very glad to hear from you. I read your letter with pleasure. I also read and read over again, your letter to Brother Leigh, and I feel to say, amen, to
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Chapter 25.
Chapter 25.
I Visit London, the Grandest City in the World.—Meet the Claridge family and leave my testimony with them.—Visit Portsmouth, and the Home of Nellie Grant Sardys.—Labor With Elder Connelly.—Rake Hay, and Receive a Gift from an English Lord. "On May 8th, 1878, a wet, disagreeable day, I walked twelve miles to Brother John Wadley's. The next day I baptized and confirmed Mrs. Eliza Wadley and her son Henry. I received a letter of instructions from Elder John Cook, President of the London Conference.
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Chapter 26.
Chapter 26.
Conditions at Orderville.—Letter to E. M. Webb, on Politics.—Visit Winchester's Cathedral.—Pass Through the Tower of London.—Letter from President William Budge.—Mobbed at Albourne. July 4, 1878, a quiet peaceable day, I baptized Miss Eliza Combs, also Mrs. Powell and her daughter. It is a comfort, while gleaning, to find, once in a while, a cluster of fruit. I also received letters from home. Newell is very poor in health. I fasted and prayed that he might be healed, and live to be an active wo
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Chapter 27.
Chapter 27.
Good-bye to England—A Poem—The Master's Question. I continued to labor pleasantly with Elder Howard O. Spencer until I was released to return home. I remember the sad look that rested on Howard's face when I said goodbye to him; a man of sorrows, but as true and good a man as ever lived. I borrowed ten dollars of John H. Miles, and sold him my valise for five dollars. Then I bought a suit of clothes that served me until I returned home. My last Sunday in England I spent with Elder Jacobs. We att
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Chapter 28.
Chapter 28.
In Memory of My Wife, Albina.—"By Their Fruits Ye Shall Know Them." In 1858, when I was returning from my first mission to the Sandwich Islands, I met in San Francisco, Lorenzo Sawyer, the attorney-general of the state of California. He was my cousin on my mother's side. At that time the Mormon people were under a cloud of displeasure from the people and government of the United States. Acting upon misrepresentation, and without investigation, President Buchanan had sent an army of two thousand
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Chapter 29.
Chapter 29.
In Memory of My Wife, Lydia. When I married Albina, Uncle Brigham and Aunt Clara D. honored me with their presence at the banquet, which father provided. Uncle Brigham told this incident: "The first time that I spoke on the principle of plural marriage was in the Nauvoo temple, in a room we had finished and dedicated as a prayer-circle room. At the close of our exercises, I gave permission for any one to ask questions. Dr. Bernhisel, who was on a visit from Philadelphia, arose and said: "I have
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Chapter 30.
Chapter 30.
In Memory of My Wife, Tamar. More than four thousand years ago the Lord said to the children of Israel, "Honor thy father and thy mother," and thou shalt inherit a blessing; and today, among Christian or heathen nations, the child that gives love and obedience to its parents is in return loved and honored by his fellow men. In 1869, I was laboring in President Young's cotton factory at Washington, Utah. Joseph Burch, the superintendent, sent me with a four-horse team loaded with factory goods, t
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Chapter 31.
Chapter 31.
Twenty-fourth of July Musings, Sent to President Joseph F. Smith.—Twenty-fourth of July Toast,—Utah—Thrilling Eruption of Kilauea. Sitting 'neath the pines, in the cold mountain air, Inhaling the inspiration of the chaplain's prayer; Breathing the spirit of the orator's theme, Memory sweeps backward o'er the troubled stream Of my people's lives. Wild, vivid scenes of frontier life burst like a meteor on the mind. I see the broad prairie lands of our dear Far West, with a hundred new-built, New E
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Chapter 32.
Chapter 32.
A Thrilling Experience on the Plains.—The Stampede. In 1863, I was living in southern Utah. It was believed the Mormon immigration would be unusually heavy that year; hence great exertions were put forth by the people, to bring the season's gathering to a successful termination. Cooperation was the power which, under the wise guidance of Brigham Young, made it possible to build up a prosperous commonwealth in that isolated desert. Teams were raised in all parts of the territory, organized into c
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Chapter 33.
Chapter 33.
A Squaw Fight. The coming of our people to Utah in 1847 brought us into contact with the powerful intermountain tribe of Utes. Up till then, these Indians had had but little association with the white man; consequently in their social life, they were following exclusively the customs and traditions of their savage ancestors. Many of their practices were horrifying. The law of "an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth" was born and bred in them; hence, if a white man killed an Indian, the tribe
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Chapter 34.
Chapter 34.
Crusade Against Plural Marriage. When the crusade against plural marriage commenced in Utah, I was not willing to give up my families; and being of a timid nature, I sought to avoid trouble. In my heart I felt justified in having more wives than one, believing plural marriage to be God's law; and therefore I resolved to cleave to my wives and children, let come what might. On the other hand, I did not court martyrdom; I was quite willing to retire and live in seclusion until the wave of prejudic
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Chapter 35.
Chapter 35.
Salt Lake Valley in 1847. Salt Lake Valley, as it lay in eighteen forty-seven, Was a desert desolate. Its parched wastes were given As a play ground for the hot winds that in whirlpools Sent clouds of alkali dust whirling through the air, Poisoning with its white breath the scant vegetation existing there. And in the summer, from the grey, sunburned bench lands, Looking westward, the glimmering lake, and the glistening sands Of the great American desert, met the traveler's view. Forming a horizo
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Chapter 36.
Chapter 36.
From the Cradle to the Grave. A little boy at his mother's knee, Laughing and babbling in childish glee; A willow horse in his chubby hand; Acting the role of a grown-up man. Shaking his head in an angry mood, As if deep wrongs he had endured. Tossing a lock from his baby brow— Catching a flash of repentance now, Then cuddling close to his mother's side, As if to heal his wounded pride— And many a wound, by a mother's kiss Is changed from pain to a cup of blis
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Chapter 37.
Chapter 37.
The Young Men's Pledge.—Brigham Young's One Hundredeth Birthday—Mary's Birthday.—Some Things that I Remember. Joseph Smith and John M. Horner. Two boys were hoeing corn one day, Beneath a July sun. And as they worked, in friendly chat Their youthful fancies run. "I'll be a farmer," the younger said, "And study nature's laws— If there is growth of tree or plant I'll know the primal cause." Thus John, the younger of the two, With a bright, progressive mind, Explaine
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