[sideways text]
Copy of A letter written
to A W Babbitt Esqr
[end of sideways text]
Cambridgeport Mass Jan 21st 1850
Dear Sir
Yours of Jan 16th has just come to hand and I
must Confess that I am much surprised at its contents and
do not understand it. and I feel think it needs some wisdom
to answer such letters in a right & proper manner lest misun-
derstanding arise of an unpleasant nature between men who are
endeavoring to bring to pass the same object. It it's is also often more
difficult to explain many matters and things by Letter writing than it
is in personal Conversation, However I will venture to come to the subjet
you say you have not recieved a letter from "any one haveing influenc
in the Ch[ur]ch" "Or from any leading men in the Chuch" Now I may
not be a proper judge what amount of influence I may have in the Ch[ur]ch
Still I believe I have some and have endeoved [endeavored] to use that influenc for
the general good of the whole to the best of my ability" I write you
a letter by Dr Bernhisel who was going Direct to Washington to cooperate
(as I supposed) with you) for the vary purpose of laying a foudations to Correspond
with you. The following was the closing remarks "I should essteem it
a great favor to meet in council with you & Dr. Bernhisel at Washington
but do not now expet to have the oppertunity" I should take it as a
faver if you would write to me occasinally and infore me of your
progress & prospets" This letter you recieved. On my I also
addressed a short note to you while at New York as a Letter of
introduction of Mr Copway who was expeting to go [Soon] to Washington
you may not have reci[ev]ed it. After being absent from Home on
my Western tour two months during which time I addessed
assemblies of some kind almost every evening during my absence &
tracting constantly by day, I arved home wearried out whae I fo[un]d
instead of finding rest I fo[u]nd a vary large nuber of
lying before me some 25 ^[many]^ letters from vari[ou]s parts of the world
among them was one from Dr Bernhisel & one from yourself. I
also had rec[eiv]ed among othr thgs an Epistle from the valley
& Letters from the presidency ^in the valley^ requiring certain things [of] ^me^ my hads
which required me to correspod with the Ch[ur]ches which
I have to do by lettr writing as I have No other way of Communi
cation with them, and Hence I need to write some 50 Letters & mail
last Week and am[on]g [thous] I sent one ^one of that [nuber] I sent^ to Washington which I
happened to write and address to Dr. Bernhisel instead of yourself
as I had Nothing to communicate except what was from the
valley & that I expeted you would both receve before mine
woud arive in the form of a visit from Messers Haywood & Wooley
or by the Epistle, still lest you should not receve it I [send]
it in [my] letter to Dr. Bernhisel, and if ^my^ I had had time
^had permtted^ I should have ansued both letters, or if I had known that
or even th[ou]ght that it would have made any difference in
your feelings, or that you ^[consdered] you^ was slighted I certainly should
have add[r]essed you instead of him, But such a thought
neer entered my mind. In addressing him or if I had addessed
you upon that subject it would have been the came with me for I
should have Had no othr thought but that one comunicatin to
either of you Concning any News from the valley would have been
Communictated to equally to both, for I had the not the most
distant idea but what you were haveing a free exchange of views &
sentim[en]ts, in a sotcial manner, almost daily, for the Dr Berhisel had
neer hinted any idea contrary to it in any communcation to me. I
wrote to the Dr as We had spent Considerable time in social con-
versation upon a variety of subjects, ^just previous to his going to Washington^ & I should liked to have enjoyed
the came privilege with your self, that is the ownly lettr I
have writtenthe Dr ^Berhisel^ Since my return Home. I Haven got
recieved a letter from him to day by the same mail that
Brought yours. As to ^the^ accusations against me in the phrasologey
of wanton Neglect in not writing you is an accusation that I shall
not recieve for I am not guilty, in in that sense of the word
and I think friends ought to study each othrs Circumstnces
sufficiently at least to lay a fondatiun for reasonable excuses
whae their is any seeming neglect towards us before we ac◊ee
them to strongly. I wrote you a letter to lay the fondation for
a Correspondane you answered it and the following is your closing
remak "I will keep you informed of all matters & things transpiring here
as touching our common Interest," that letter it is true I did
not answer." In this it may hve appeared to you a [seemg]
neglect, still I do not think from that circustanc you
are warranted in taking the strong grounds in which you accuse
me, for in reality I did not intend any neglect whatev◊e
for as I hve already explaned I thoght one Com[mun]icati[o]n
every Western officers ^upon the subjet which I wrote^ would answer for both this in
Connexion with my being overwhelmed is business was the
ownly reasn why I did not write to both, and agn
frm your last sentanc I judged that I should hve reced [received]
anoth letter from you before long. So much I hve [said]
for myself, As conceing Mr Hyde I have ownly to say
that I have no knowledge concing am [any] instructions He may
have recieved from the presidency concing your mission
or any othe Subject any further than what is made public
through the prress. For although I hve been travelling in this
Easten Contry a[mon]g the Chches, for near two years & sent
him many ^a dozen or more^ letters, containg some 60 or 70 subscribers for the Guadan
yet I have [never] as I recollet recved but two commd◊tes
from Him of any kind, and that mostly cncing [concerning] a [poer] of Attorny
to collet some mo[ne]y for some powers in Iowey. Yet notw◊hst◊d◊
all this I have not for a momet suffered the spirit of prejudice
or Jealousy to take root in my heart agaist him as though
He was neglecting me or was not interestaed in my welfare
or prosperity, or equally ingaged in the same Common
cause with myself, and I have not felt in the least [to]
[imparte] it to any other cause ownly that He was overwhelmed
in busness & cares. I am aware there from conversation
with yourself & public papers, that [there] had been a ^former^ differenc
betwng you & Mr. Hyde But since that He has pub[lis]hed
throgh the Guadian that it was all made up & [settletled] &
I had no idea but that you were on the best of terms
But to sum up the whole matter ^of this subjet^ my views are those
That the cause ^in which^ you are ingaged in is of Equal interest to
yourself, Dr Bernhisel, Mr Hyde, myself, and evy good man
who expets to become a Citizen of the State of Deseret, and I
consider that any man who has any different veiws of this subjet
has a wrong one. Men may differn in politics, I nevr cast
any other vote at the poles in my life, even my Father before me
that I werehve any knowledge of, except a Democrat vote, still &
consider our petition to Congress for a Goverment for Deseret
a vary differet thing from party politics, I consider it are
common cause for all the inhabitants of that Stat whether
[thy] [they] be wDemocrats Whigs or Free soil and I consider any
lawful or legarl influenc extented to eventually give Deseret a
State Gvement to be of interest & worth to her inhabitats let it
eminate from what party it may. This I have given you
my views concering thesee points in your letter that needed explanatin
as feel as I am enabled to do in a communcatin of this ki[n]d a[n]d
I hope it will be satisfactory as far as I am conceed [concerned].