Snow Flake, Apache Co, Arizona
W. Woodruff,
Sept 1879.
President John Taylor & Council
Dear Brethren
I have been
thinking for some time of addressing you and
give you an account of my Stewardship and
Intentions But realizeing your hands was full
of business with Lawyers, Judges, Courts & wicked
spirits. I have rather hesitated to occupy your
attention with any thinkg I had to say, but still
I feel it proper to give you an outline of
affairs with me. I arved at Sunset on the
17 May I spent some time at Sunset Brigham
City, at their sheep ^heard^, Mill & Dairy all of which
were living in the United Order, there settlemts
in connexion with St Joseph are the ownly
Settlements in Arizona who are living in the order
I feel disposed to sau a few words upon the
subject. I do not look upon them as being
perfect in Every Respect, but as they are the ownly
settlemts in the order I have felt to Sustain
and Com 4 cts. The people are united & contented
as far as I could learn at Sunset. Brother
Lot Smith says He has written to presidet
Taylor concerning Tithing several times &
has never had an Answer. He would like
advice from the council to know what use
to make of tithing, or how to dispose of it.
It would not be profitable for the Church
to permit persons to Deposit wheat in
Utah, and Draw the same in Arizona,
as a Bushel of wheat is worth double in
Arizona what it is Utah. I think some
$1400 worth of Stock was turned out to
Sister Lee on the ferry at Sunset, and the
other Settlemts & I think most of it on
Tithing. Sister Lee has got her pay that was due
in stock and feels well satisfied. I had a long talk
with her at Sunset, she is Located at preset at
Taylor. A few words on the United Order
Their is a great variety of opinions, views,
and minds upon this subject; some do not
think the way they are doing at Sunset proper
He seemed Deeply interested in and
seemed to understand it much better
than I could have expected. He insisted
on my going home with him to Forest-
Dale and telling pedro the peace Chief
of the Natives. I went home with him
and had a Meeting with Pelone & Pedro
the two main Cheiefs of the Nations
I was thankful for the opportunity the
spirit of God Rested upon us all. Petone
Rehearsed to Pedro all I had taught
him in the Mountains, and they both
seemed Highly Delighted they both want
to go to Salt Lake & see the City and the
great Chief. If they go Brother Ebenezar
Thayne will accompany them. If they
do go I hope attention may be paid
to them that they may have a talk with the
president & council, and may be furnished
with a suit of cloths. I must say I
am struck with Wonder at the great inter-
est faith confidence & hope that the Chiefs
when any one, joins them they turn in
all the property they have good, bad or indifferent
all is priced by a committy, & named what it
is, if He wishes to leave, all the samye property
He turned in is returned to him if it exhists
in the same shape, if not, its Equivilent, some
think that all property turned in should draw
an interest of 5 or 10 pr cts, have a $1 a day for their
work, draw out of the Store House, cook & live at
home, & make a Dividend at the End of the year
where this has been tried one Man comes with
$5000, a wife & 3 children, another poor man comes
with $100, a2 wives, & 15 children, at the End of the year
the Rich man has a large surplus & the poor
Man in Debt all over, and all who has tryed
the system have soon had to break up. And
I have thought that while there were some
settlements living in the Utnited Order
In union & prosperity it was better
to let them remain, and work as they
were than to break them up by introducing
a new system among them. And let
other New Settlements be organized on the
them untill sumthing better can be advised
I have spent more time at Sunset than either
of the other settlemts. I can speak more advisedly
than of the others. I think Sunset has proved
itself a success in a tempory as well as spiritual
point of view. Brother Lot Smith who is the
presidet of the stake, takes the lead in the work
does as much hard work as any man in the Branch
faires No better than the poorest, and I think
has produced a good deal more for the support
of the people than any settlemt in the Mountains according
to the Number Employed. They as did Brigham
City lost hundreds of bushels of wheat by the
flood last year, yet almost Evry Mormon
Settlemet in Arizona have Depended upon
Lot Smith for their bread for the last
six months before harvest. He has distributed
to the Saints during the year I think from 15 to
20 Tons of flour & meal. and done it freely. &
when I left Sunset on the 29 July Br Lot Smith
had but 150 Acres of good ripe plump wheat
which I think I am safe in saying that it would
20 bushels to the Acre, & had 55 Acres more to
cut the latest they had & the best, that will
yield 40 bushels to the Acre, total of the wheat
crop 5200 Bushels And he
has but 11 Men &
boys at work on the farm, and he has over 100 Acres
of corn looks well, 30 of cane, 20 of Lucern &
some 15 Beets carrots & other vegitables, all his
other Men are at work at the waggon, Blacksmiths
sheep Heard, Steam Saw Mill, & Dairy quite a
settlement at the Mill & Dairy. The crops at Brigham
City are not near as good but what they have
are in the ben. They have cut their Early ^Sonora^ Sonora
wheat at St Joseph, rather light 15 bushels to the
Acre, later wheat Better, their corn & Garden
very good. Wheat at Snow Flake half cut
a fair crop. corn & vegitables at Sholo Creek
Read Head & Easts very good, corn & potatoes at
Father Cluffs looks well. corn & vegitables
at Forest Dale half a crop. No Irrigation last
year a great crop there. Mr Cooley a friend
to Mormons & Indians (having an Indian wife)
will raise 150000 lbs of Barley. Barley sells at 5 cts
Dividend on other systems as they can
agree. I think the majority of those
in the other settlemets Rather incline to
live on the Individual systems, rather
than to coop on United order systems.
I have of Late been holding meetings &
visiting the Saints at Snow Flake, Bagley
Sholo Creek where Read Head & E. W. East lives
& to Cluff Settlement, & Forest Dale fair
Caspsrops growing in all the settlements. On the
1 Aug. I was invited by several of the Brethrn
to Accompany Petone the war Chief of the
Apaches in the forest on a hunt As it
was the first time I had a chance to form
an aquaintace with An Apache Chief I
thought it wisdom to accept of the
invitation, so I spent 3 days with him
& 7 other Indians, with Brothers ReadHead
East, & Thayne, I followed petone one
day on his hunt He painted & striped
himself with clay like An Antilope
Had a small shirt painted like an Antilop
put an Antelope skins head & horns
on his head, was then prepared for a
hunt. When he saw an Antelope or
Deer He would dismount get on the
ground approach his game on his hands
& knees and in Evry instance draw his
game to him and shot Evry one He see
Having killed 27 in this way During the 3 days
One days Hunt was sufficient for me
for I had to run my home 20 miles
the first forenoon to keep up with him
or be left in the forest, and when he
had 350 lbs of venison with himself on his
horse it did not cause him break
his gallop. We had prayers with him
Morning & night and I had a long
talk with him at the camp fire with
a good interpetor and taught him
concerning his forefathers, their Record
the Gospel Our Relationship to them their
future Destiny and as far Ias I felt it
Wisdom to communicate all of which
been Raging in the pine forest firs
two months, burned 100 miles North &
South & 50 East & West, caused the
Brethren to fight fire for many Days to save
dwelling & grass for States. I learned of
the Mexican Missions from Br. Thatcher
I have thought it might have been
Well to have added August Wilkin
to the company as He has been in South
America and is a good Spanish scholar
& I think would have liked the Mission
I feel to simpathize with you in your
Difficulties with those Heirs Lawyers Judges
& Courts. You have my Daily prayers upon
the subject. In a letter to Br. Snow I read
there was one great consolations to me upon
the subject, and that is I do not think that
those Lawyiers, Judges, courts or the presidet
cabinet, or congress can Recive Mules
Enough in the world to draw away the Temple
Black, with its Improvemnts on the Theater
[Social Hall, Salt Lake City, Salt Lake County, Utah Territory|Social Hall]], Council House, Gardo House
on any Real Estate out of Salt Lake City
And people of there savage war like
tribes have in the Elders, Missionaries, & Chiefs
of the Latter Day Saints. The spirit of God is
Resting upon them and they in their last
one begng ^begining^ to look to us for salvation and
Redemption. I am writing at Jesse N Smiths
at Snow Flake. I preached here yesterday—
Sunday to a large congregation to the Saints
& Sinners (one Methodist priest) We were all
Edified. I start tomorrow Morning with
Jesse N Perkins, for Round Vally, J. Hambln
president I expet to Meet there Ammon M. Tenney
to go with him to visit the Zuni's
Indians in their villages they are very
numerous & interesting they have many of the
white Indians among them, when we get through
with them We shall continue our Journey
130 mils from Savoie to visit the Islatus
Indians they are the Chief tribe of the sixteen
villages all have a Distinct Language but
all speak the Spanish Well, and Brother
Tenney is a good Spanish schollar They are in
New Mexico and counted the mat
intelligent Industrious & Wealthy of
all the tribes of the Western World They are
also numerous live in good Houses, has farms
women use cooking stoves & sewing Machines
They have never been visited by our Missionaries
But Brother Tenney is very anxious to visit
them, and open friendly Relations with them
and I Received an Invitation from Jesse
N Smith to accompany him and I feel
Exceedingly anxious to do so. In fact I have
of late had a very strong Missionary spirit
Resting upon me esspecially to go to the Laman-
ites for I feel that the Lord is at work with
them, and It seems as though I had providen-
tially fallen in company with ^a great many of^ the Navajoe—
Moque & Apache Chiefs and I have felt
inspired to preach to them. And as I now
have an oppertunity of visiting the Zunis
and Istatus tribes with good Interpetors
I feel that I cannot spend my time to
any better Advantage. Brother Tenney
is at Savoia will come to Round Valley for
me. We have a few men that have the name
of Mormon, who came to Arizona ^without^ witht
Recommends and dont want any, did not
come to serve God or build up Zion, but
to serve themselfves, they would have been
better to have staid at home some of them
have gone back and it would be well if
others would go but they are not many
the people as a general thing are trying to
live their Religion I think Broth Jesse
N. Smith is doing very will, has many good
Saints to preside over. Br Wm J.
Flake is a doing a great Deal for Zion &
the poor. I think He has fed tons of
flour to the Arkansas Saints, and others
who are Destitute and He has bought
from $15000 to $20000 dollars worth of Ranches
in Arizona for the Saints to Settle on
I have been almost afraid He would
swamp himself in the operation. But
I feel as though I had said about Enough
about affairs in Arizona for the present
We have had some Rains in the country
Enough to put out the fires that have
To the City of Washington and where the
Land breaks in peaces the Nations, and
Rewards those Heirs, Lawyiers, & Judges according
to the Deeds done in the body, and when
the Hasty Emigration of the Ring out of
Salt Lake is Ended, I think the Saints
of God will find the City ofSalt Lake
with all the Temple in Zion Standing upon
their foundations. Therefore rejoice in
the Lord ye Apostles of the Lamb, Even
in tribulation & trust in God for He
will fight your battles and you will
come off victorious in the End. Let the
wicked work while their hour lasts for
their night will soon come and their
wo. Also God is at the helm. You are building
Temples the Devel is mad. Can you
Blame him. He knows his Doom.
I am Enjoying good health & spirits
and trying to do what good I can
That the blessings of God may Rest upon
you all is Evry good word & work is the
prayer of your Brother in the Everlasting Covenant W
My Address is Asahel Hart
Sunset Apache Co Arizona, And
if my letters Reach ther in safety they
will be sent to me
[upside-down text] (Br. Snow informed me of the Difficulty
you have in translationg my letters
into English, a good Deal of my writing
is in the form of the Reformed Egyptian
and as I am not in a situation to take
with me an Interpetor, I would advise
you to call upon Br Jaques or
Brother Cannon to do the Translating
and what they cannot do keep it
untill I come, & I will translate
for you if I can & it does not get
to old) [end of upsidedown text]