While writing to Brother Pratt, I felt
it was your due to receive a page also. I will begin
by saying your family are well, though I presume Sister
Benson writes you by mail. I paid a visit to Tooele
and Rush Vallies a week ago on Saturday and Sunday.
I find the city of E. T. look sorrowful. Brother Maughn
and some others are going to leave, probably for Cache
Valley; their crop is mostly destroyed by the Salt, worms &c
I went with Elders J. C. Little, J. W. Cummings and C
V. Spencer; we called upon Bro Rowberry—got a good
supper—looked over the saw and grist mills, find
good work in the flouring mills. He thinks he will
start in six weeks. He went with us to Tooele City—
spent the night; started early next morning for Rush
Valley; when we got into it we saw a great smoke, thought
it was the smoke of Johnson's settlement, but found it to
be the old barracks on fire and burnt down; it had
been burning 24 hours or so: we hunted two hours, and
found Johnson & Co in six shanties near the mountains,
each cabin 30 rods apart in the best Indian's hole you
ever saw; two Indians could have scalped the whole
settlement and not alarmed any one until they felt an
arrow, for they were surrounded in the brush and cedars
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He told them to go to and fort up. The settlement at Grants-
ville.
On the 24th of July proclaimed themselves indepen-
dent of British Rule, and Jack Reddin nominated Bro Cooley as President, Wilford Hudson, and Arieh C. Brower
his counselors—it was carried by a large majority: thus
thinking they had gone too far came in to see Prest. Young about it—he finally confirmed the organization,
and let them have it their own way.
We are in the midst of our wheat harvest, but a
great loss of wheat for the want of water. Worms are
destroying corn and potatoes a good deal, but we shall
have a pretty fair crop of wheat, corn and potatoes: frost
has killed some.
Tintick and his band are camped in Scull Valley;
we expect he will visit the people for more scalps and
cattle. He has about 21 men with him now. Auapene
and Ammon were with us on Sunday—they felt well. Ka-no-she was badly kicked by a horse—broke two ribs,
but he is getting better.
It is a general time of health with us all. I am
troubled with the rheumatism a good deal of late.
The California mail arrived on the 29th—not much
news, only the people have risen up against the Governor,
officers and law, and the county is proclaimed in a
State of Insurrection. The Kansas difficulties thicken fast.
The Presidency and many Saints had a splendid
celebration on the 24th of July up the Big Cottonwood Kanyon
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The Eastern Mail came in last night at 9 o'clock;
brought the journals of all your travels to St Louis as a
company, which was very interesting.
A man arrived here yesterday driving 4000
Mexican sheep on the way for California: he wanted
to get them sheared here, and sell the wool, and sheep
too, if he could. He asked $[2] each for his sheep: I do not
think he will get it here.
I shall be pleased to hear from you at any time.
Our emigration is getting along well as far as we
know