1845-11-29—New London Democrat—The Mormons

The Mormons

New London CT Democrat, 29 November 1845, p. 2

The N. Y. Sun has an editorial article, as well as a letter from Nauvoo of the 27th October, concerning this extraordinary people.— The letter is from Mr. James Arlington Bennett, and professes to sketch their future designs as follows:

"The present organization of the church, with the twelve apostles at its head, with a president who holds the keys of the kingdom, is the one that must stand; and when these shall have gone to California, Mormonism will be no more in the United States. But there will be a mighty gathering from all nations of the earth to the Mormon empire now about to be established on the Pacific ocean! One thing you may rely on—and that is, this people will never annex themselves to any government on earth; nor is it desirable that they should, as they are determined to be governed by their own laws. The Mormons consider Gov. Ford as an old woman in breeches. They say that, instead of permitting them to defend themselves against the mobs, he legalizes the mobs by throwing into their aid some of the State forces. This is what is called their abuse of the governor that we see in the papers.

“There are already organized twenty-five companies of one hundred families each, to be filled up during the winter, for the march to California. Each family of ten persons will have a strong wagon drawn by four oxen, and supplied with everything necessary for the journey.

“A troop of horse will be organized as an advance guard.

“The whole Mormon people are called in from Europe and America, so that they expect about two hundred thousand persons to congregate within one year at the bay of San Francisco! Several ships will be fitted out in England to take their people round Cape Horn, and others will sail from New York in the spring. Is not this a tempting place for an old United Stales officer like myself, who has been through the last war? They wish me much to join them, and I presume, if I did, I would have the first military command in the camp of the saints. They certainly require a leader with a military and mathematical head, and one who has seen active service; but I am too old to settle in the West."

The N. Y. Sun, in its own editorial article, runs as follows:

“The Mormons.—William Smith, brother of Joe Smith, the Mormon prophet, states that it is their design to set up an independent government somewhere in the neighborhood of the Rocky Mountains, or near California.— That the plan has been maturing for a long time, and that, in fact, with hate in their hearts, skilfully kept up by the Mormon leaders, whose pockets are to be enriched by their toil, the mass of the Mormons will be alike purged of American feeling, and shut out by a barrier of mountains and church restrictions from any other then Mormon freedom. That the design of Brigham Young and the “twelve” is to build up a sacerdotal tyranny, the spirit of which will be more oppugnant to the spread of republican principles than could possibly be the rule of Europe. These are Wm. Smith’s views. He is opposed to the plan of organization and its leaders. We find the following in the Mormon paper, which speaks a bitter, and in some respects, we apprehend, a true spirit in reference to their wrongs. We could not believe that, in a government of laws, any sect, no matter what their faith might be, would ever have been driven out of the land vi et armis. The Mormon papers says:

“We owe the United States nothing. We go out by force, as exiles from freedom. The government and people owe us millions for the destruction of life and property in Missouri and in Illinois. The blood of our best men stains the land, and the ashes of our property will preserve it till God comes out of his hiding place, and gives this nation a hotter place than he did Sodom and Gomorrah. 'When they cease to spoil, they shall be spoiled,’ for the Lord hath spoken it.”

“They will become formidable enemies to the United States, either in California or Oregon; and government should look to this matter in season.”

We entirely concur with the Sun in the belief that “our government should look to this matter in season.” With angry and fanatical feelings such as the Mormons would carry with them, our own citizens would find them “troublesome customers,” let the tide of emigration be diverted to Oregon or to California. We understand that the number of Mormons is already estimated at 57,000.