Angels, October
29, 1857
By the late news
from Los Angeles, I see that the information given by me
in my last letter, in reference to the names of the
murdered emigrants, is about to prove true. In view of
this fact, I went out this morning to see the immigrants
that gave me the information, to learn further particulars
from them. I called on but one of the families, and they
informed me that in Arkansas they lived but three miles
from Bakers farm, and that he was generally known by the
name of Jack or Captain Jack Baker. He was reported to be
wealthy, and left home with four hundred head of cattle,
accompanied by his two sons. One son, named George, had
spent some years in California, and had lived about
Stockton, Sonora and Columbia. The other son was single.
The old man intended, as soon as he could settle here, to
return by water and bring out the remainder of his family.
In his company were two brothers, by the name of Mitchell,
(one of whom had his family,) a man named Milan Jones, and
a widow named Tacket, who was coming to live with her son
in California. I think this son is living near Tuttletown.
My informants saw all these persons at Fort Bridger, about
the last of July. Fancier* (I wrote Fazier by mistake in
my other letter) had spent some years in California, but
my informant did not know in what part. They think the
whole company had at least a thousand head of cattle with
them. They also had many splendid rifles and guns, and
plenty of them. My informants tell me, that the day they
passed the junction of the Cut-off and the main road
through Salt Lake City, (thirty miles this side of the
city,) they saw a party of Indians enjoying a feast given
them by the Mormons. The Mormons said they had just
finished a treaty with the Indians, the purpose of which
was that the Indians were not to trouble the whites who
travelled through by the Salt Lake route, as they wanted
them to pass that way in order to trade with them. The
last news also confirms my opinion as to who were the
perpetrators of this deed. There were some facts connected
with the first information given by the Mormons of this
slaughter, that convinced me that the murderers were not
Indians. It may be true that Indians took part in the
work, but the blame rests with those who led them on. The
first of these facts is, that the young children were
saved. This was no Indian act, but was natural for the
Mormons, who wanted to train them to their faith. The
second is, the suppression of all the names. Now, if no
one of that large company did not tell his name to any
Mormon, they certainly left some evidence among the
property as to who they were and where they were from. The
third is, the statement that the Indians had told the
whites what they had done.
We are all at a
loss to know what is to be done with these people, and we
dread to contemplate the horrors of the future. If
soldiers must be sent to conquer them, rivers of blood
must flow through their valleys before it will be done. If
they are to be left alone to do as they will, the great
highway of travel between the Atlantic States and the
Pacific will be closed, and Utah will be the place of
refuge for all the villains who escape from justice in the
States, and a worse set will be gathered there than the
world has ever seen. The only remedy seems to be to
dissolve the Territorial government, declare their laws
null and void, send large bodies of soldiers to be
stationed at every town and settlement in the Territory,
let martial law prevail, then hang or shoot every man that
rebels, punish every one according to the crime he
commits, and give encouragement to the Gentiles to settle
there. By this policy the country will fill up with
Gentiles. P.
* Should be
Fancher and is a reference to
Captain Alexander Fancher of The Fancher Train.
Captain John (Jack) Twitty
Baker was with
The Baker
Train, as were his two sons,
George W. Baker, and Abel
Baker. The two Mitchell Brothers were
Charles Roark Mitchell
and Joel Dyer Mitchell.
"Milan" Jones is a reference to
John Milum Jones. who was
traveling with the widow
Cynthia Tackitt in the family-related
Poteet-Tackitt-Jones Train. See
The Arkansas Emigrants.
