Letter to William Jackson Hooker, 29 May 1856
Great Salt Lake City, Utah Territory,
Hon. Sir,
The only mail from the east by way of the South Pass since last October arrived
here on the 10th. inst, and brought us your favor of the 14th Feby last, which in take the earliest
opportunity of answering. We shall take great pleasure in laying your esteemed communication
before the Society at our next meeting, and in making such arrangements as will ensure as
far as possible the fulfilling of your requests. We have a great variety of cactuses, some
of which bear beautifully scented flowers of scarlet, purple, yellow, and white; the cones
vary in size from an apple to over 60 inches in circumference, and bear a fruit which much
resembles the flavor of the mellow gooseberry. We have also in the southern portion of our ter-
ritory several varieties of the Agave or Soap Plant.
The almost inaccessible mountains are covered with many varieties of Pines, Balsams,
Firs &c; among others we have the Pinyon Pine, which exudes a gum universally used by the
natives, and now by many whites, for its healing properties. The Pinyon Pine is a dwarf tree,
its foliage measured through horizontally generally exceeding in diameter the height of the
tree; in its early growth it takes the shape of a haycock, and eventually that of an expanded
umbrella; it seldom exceeds 20 feet in height, and the berry or nut being nutritious is gathered
by the natives for sustenance, the last resembling that of the filbert. We have also the Red
and white Cedar in immense quantities. Our Mountain Maple differs from all the varieties
with which we are acquainted; it is a very hard grained wood, and seldom exceeds a foot
in diameter. But the greatest curiosity of its kind is the Deseret Mountain Mahogany; it
is the heaviest, hardest, and finest of any wood we have seen, being very close grained, and
capable of a very fine polish; the colors are intermixed throughout from a dark brown to
nearly white; it is a scarce tree, being found in but few localities. The Box Elder is a
beautifully grained wood, much resembling the Bird's eye Maple, and is used for secretaries,
Tables &c; this tree is found more or less throughout the Territory, but in the greatest quantity
about 70 miles north of this city, giving the name to Box Elder County. Although we are
writing on "Royal Oak day", we cannot boast much of our oaks in this territory; there are
but few, and then mostly of a scrabby stunted growth.
