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Show ! Springville Woman Exhibits Copy of First Newspaper Printed in Utah, 1850 I A most interesting and valuable item was brought 1 to the Springville Herald office this week, when Mrs fierwin Blake Riding exhibited an issue of the verv first peseivt News, published June! -.0' f,' 1S!)0. The 105-year-old newspaper, its ,vlC-oS yellow with age but the type ' -till very clear, contained but three ''; wlimins of type per page. Each pace measured 10 inches by 7Vj li Injuns, considerably smaller than the average high school paper to- ': The mast head carried the in-' in-' seription: Deseret News, by W. R. Richards, G. S. L. Deseret, June i5 1S50, Vol. 1, No. 1. In the main column of the paper which oddly enough began on the r ' left hand side, was the prospectus with the paper's motto, "Truth and 1 Liberty." at the top. The prospectus stated in part: "We propose to publish a small ; weekly sheet, as large as our local v circumstances will permit, to be ."' called, Deseret News, designed or-V or-V idnaliy to record passing events : of our state, and in connexion, re- I fer to art and sciences, embracing general education, medicine, law, divinity, domestic and political economy and everything that may fall under our observation, which mav tend to promise the best in- T" terest, welfare, pleasure and - amusement of our fellow citizens. "We shall take pleasure in communicating com-municating foreign news as we have opportunity; in receiving :, communications from our friends, at home and 'abroad; and solicit ornaments of news from our poets !: and poetesses." It went on to state: "The first number may be expected as early in June as subscriptions warrant waiting the action of 300 subscribers. subscrib-ers. Terms: six months, $2.50, invariably in-variably in advance. Single copy, II 15 cents. Advertising, $1.50 per square lines and 50 cents succeeding succeed-ing insertion; $1 for half a square or eight lines. Travelers and Emi- I: grants, 25 cents per copy with the ! insertion of their names, place of residence, time of arrival and leaving." Articles in the paper included: "The Message" from the N. Y. Tribune of Jan. 22, 1850, with a sub-head: To the House of Representatives Repre-sentatives of the United States. t . A fnrvjor portion of the 8-page LaPw ''nS looted to the business in Washington of organizing ter-MeX! ter-MeX! g0rnments in Utah and J f ? Tth, Plication of letters and debates in the legislative capi- pri0l?.ewnt?rr!ting: Para:raph stated stat-ed Wanted, at our office, flour wheat, corn meal, butter, cheese! tallow, and pork, in exchange for the Deseret News." Another stated: "Post office will be open on the Sabbath from 12 until 1 p.m." In what might have been considered con-sidered the feature column was the dream of the early day South Carolina Car-olina senator, the Hon. John C Calhoun. While sitting up late w"t'n? a Plan for the dissolution of the American Union, the article recounted, Mr. Calhoun fell asleep and dreamed that George Washington Wash-ington came to him. from the dead and placed a skeleton on the paper he was writing, the skeleton being be-ing of one who gave his life for the union. About four columns were given over to the dream. Another article began "We would inform our friends and fellow fel-low citizens that a Council of Health was formed in this city about 16 months ago, and attended attend-ed once in two weeks at the house of Dr. W. Richards." It further stated: "We intend to lay before the ' Council from time to time, such medicinal plants as shall come to our knowledge for their approval, believing that the Creator Crea-tor has placed in most lands medicinal medi-cinal plants for the cure of all diseases incident to that climate. And it is better to cultivate our own resources than to send to distant dis-tant lands for such as may be obtained ob-tained in our own vicinity." There was also an article from Washington entitled "Chances of Disunion;" another announcing the surrender of the Copper Mines by the Quebec company in Detroit to the Indians; also a note that 250 brethren had arrived in St. Louis from Liverpool. From the New York Tribune was an article telling of the Mormons Mor-mons , of the Valley of Great Salt Lake holding a convention on March 5, 1850, to organize a state government giving it the name of Deseret. Within their boundaries as they have laid them down, the article stated, is the whole of California Cali-fornia that lies east of the dividing divid-ing ridge of the Sierra Nevada, a territory some six hundred miles wide by eight hundred miles long, only a speck of which is occupied by some 10,000 Mormons who compose com-pose its only civilized population. Another paragraph stated: "We are informed that Oliver Cowdry, Esq., died at Richmond, Ray County, Coun-ty, Missouri, on the 3rd day of March of consumption. Mrs. Riding said she didn't really real-ly know how she came into possession pos-session of the paper, unless it was with some things which belonged to her mother, the late Mrs. A. L. Clawson. She said she also had the 1918 Telegram newspaper which told of the signing of. the Armistice. |