Show depositions OF presidents 13 HIGHAM YOUNG AND GEO A SMITH concerning THE MOUNTAIN MEADOW MASSACRE territory of U utah tah tab 1 beaver co as inthe lathe in tile tiie second judicial district court ef of tho the territory of utah beaver Cou county wity fity the people ac 1 vs indictment john D lee wm vm for murder H dame isaac C I 1 sept 16 haight et al J 1857 questions Ques tiona to be propounded to Brig bangham c hain young on his examination as a witness in the case of john D lee and others on trial at beaver city this of jul jui july juls aj 1875 1 state your age tho the present condition of your health and whether in its condition you could travel to attend in person at beaver the court now sitting there if not state why not 2 what offices lees either ecclesiastical civil or military did you hold in the year 1857 3 state the condition 0 of f affairs between the territory of utah and the federal government in the summer and fall of 1857 4 were there any united states fudges judges here during the tho summer and fall lidl of 1855 7 state what you know about trains of emigrants passing through the territory to the west and particularly ticul arly about a company from arkansas en route for california passing through this city in the summer summet or fall of 1857 6 was this arkansas company ot of enilo calif emigrants frants ordered away from balt silt lake lak 0 city by yourself or anyone any one in authority under you 7 was any counsel or instructions given by any person to the citizens of utah not to sell grain to or trade with the emigrant trains passing through utahan utah at that ti time P e if so what were those instructions and counsel 8 when did your first hear of the tho attack and destruction of this arkansas company at mountain meadows in september 1857 4 9 0 did john 1 D lee report bokou tokou to you at any time after this urias massacre sacre what had been done at that massacre and if BO so what did you reply to him in reference thereto 10 did philip klingen smith call at your office with john D lee at the time of lee making his report and did you at that time order smith to turn over the stock to lee and order them not to talk about the massacre 11 did you ever give any direction concerning the property taken from florn the emigrants emi giants at the mountain meadow massacre or know anything as to its disposition 12 why did you not as G governor governor institute proceedings forthwith to investigate that massacre and bring the guilty authors thereof to justice 13 did boty about the loth of september 1857 receive a communication ni cation catlon from isaac C haight or any other person of cedar city concerning a company of emigrants called the arkansas company 14 have you that communication 15 did you answer this communication ni Ui cation catlon 16 will you stat state ethe othe the substance of your letter to him the answers of brigham young to the interrogatories hereto appended J were reduced to writing and were given after the said brigham young had been duly sworn to testify the truth in the above entitled cause and are as follows 1 to the first interrogatory he be saith I 1 am in in my seventy fifth year it would be a great risk both to m my y health and life for me to travel to beaver at this present time tiffie I 1 am and have been for sometime an invalid 2 ile he saith I 1 was the governor of this territory and ex officio superintendent of or indian affairs and the president of the church churchon of jesus christ of latter day saints during the year 1857 3 he saith in M may a y or june junel 1837 1857 the T united states mails malls for fon utah were stopped by the government all communication by mail was cut oft an ail army of the united states ivas was en routs fouta for fr huoh with the ostensible design of destroying the latter d day ay saints according to the reports depons that reached us from them ast aa 4 He saith 1 I 1 1 to the best of my I 1 1 there was no united states judg judge N here in the latter part of 1857 1837 5 he saith balth I 1 I 1 As usual emigrant trains were were passing through our territory forthe west I 1 heard it rumored that a company 4 from Arkan arkansas sasen en route to california had passed through the city 6 he saith no not that I 1 know of I 1 never b heard eam of any such thing and certainly tain lyno no such order was given by the then acting governor 70 7 he rno saith yes counsel and advice was war given to the citizens not to sell grain nain rain to the ehll ehli emigrants 9 rants to feed their stock 9 but to let them have sufficient for t themselves elves if they were out put the simple reason reabon for this was that for deve weve several years our crops had been short and the prospect bivas was at that time that we might have trouble with the united states army then en route for this place and we wanted to preserve the grain for food the citizens of the territory were counselled counseller coun selled not to feed grain ami to their own stock no person was ever punched or called in question for furnishing supplies to the emigrants within my knowledge 8 he saith I 1 did not learn any anything tIAng of df tife the attack or of the arkansas company until sometime after it had occurred then only by flo fio floating at rumors I 1 0 he saith I 1 within some two or three three months after the massacre he called at my nay office and had bad much to say with regard to the indians s their being stirred up to anger and threatening the settlements of the whites 1 and then commenced giving an ace account aunt of the massacre I 1 told him to stop as from what I 1 had already alrea dyl learned by rumor I 1 did not wish my feelings harrowed up with a recital of details 10 he saith no he did not call with jelin jehn D lee and I 1 have no recollection of b his is ever speaking to menor I 1 to him concerning the massacre mas mast acre nere or anything pertaining to the proper ty 11 ho ue saith no I 1 never gave any directions concerning concertin the property taken from the company of bm emigrants migrants g at the mountain meadow wa massacre sacre nor did I 1 know anything of that property or its disposal and I 1 do not to this day clay except from public rumor 12 he saith because another governor had lind been appointed by the president ot of the united states and was then on themay the way here to take my p place lace 1 and I 1 did not know how bow soon b he 0 m might I arrive and because the U united n t ed states judges were not in the territory soon after governor cumming gumming cumming arrived I 1 asked him to bake take judge who belonged to the southern district with him and I 1 would ac accompany com oom them with sufficient aid ald t to 0 investigate I the matter and bring the offenders to justice justlee 13 he lie saith faith I 1 did receive a communication from isaac 0 haight HaIgh tor or john D lee who was then a farmer for the indians 14 he saith I 1 have not I 1 have made diligent search foint for it but ca cannot annot find it 15 he saith j I 1 did to isaac 0 Haight who was then the acting president at cedaris city 1 16 he saith yes it was to let this company of ot emigrants andali companies companie of emigrants ts pass thred through h the unmolested and and to allay the 0 angry flie ilie ads ag mol mel melis moi eha cha is possible |