| Show I 1 copyright secured HISTORY OF JOSEPH SMITH MARCH 1839 and thus he was not able to have a fair trial that the spirit of the court was tyrannical and overbearing and the whole transaction of his hiis treatment durin during the examination was calculated to convince your peti that it was a reli religious bious persecution I 1 proscribing him in the liber y of conscience conscience which is guaranteed to him by the constitution of the united states and the state of missouri that a long catalogue of garbled testimony was permitted by the court purporting to be the religious sentiment of the said joseph smith jr which tep testimony was false and your petitioners petition ers know that it is false and can prove that it was false because the witnesses testified that those sentiments were promulgated on certain days and in the presence of large congregations and your petitioners petition ers can prove by those congregations that the cs said a joseph smith jr did not promulgate such ridiculous and absurd sentiments for his religion as was testified of and admitted before the honorable austin A king and at the same time those things had no bearing in the case that the said jos joseph eph smith jr was pretended to be cla charged arged with and after the examination the said prisoner was committed to the jail sa ia for treason against the state of missouri whereas the said joseph smith jr did not levy war against the state of missouri neither did he commit any covert acts neither did he aid add or abet any enemy against the state of missouri during the time he is charged with having done so and further r your oar petitioners petition ers have yet to I 1 loewn that the I 1 state Z a te has an enemy neither neit neris is the proof ev evident nor the presumption great in its most in indignant dimant 3 form upon the testimony on the part of the state as it asin is in its nature that the prisoner hascom has committed the slightest degree of treason or any other act of transgression against the laws of the state of missouri Aris houri and yet said prisoner hasteen has been committed to liberty jail clay county mo for treason he has continually offered bail to any amount that could be required notwithstanding your pe titio ners allege that he ought to have been acquitted your petitioners petition ers also allege that the commitment m was an illegal commitment for the law requires that a copy of the testimony should be put in the hands of the jailer which was not done your petitioners petition ers alla af fidge dg that the prisoner prisoners erl has been denied the privilege of the law in q writ of habeas corpus by the judges of oe thi county whether they have prejudged tb ease case of the prisoner or whether they are nt willing to administer law and justice to tie e prisoner or that they are intimidated timi dated y the high office of judge king who only ait i ed in the case of the prisoners as a comais ting tine magistrate a conservator of the anoe i or by the threats of a lawless mob your le e titio ners are not able to say sa V but bat that ii na isa is a fact that they do not come forward bolk boldy g and administer the law to the relief of th prisoner I 1 1 t and further your petitioners petition ers allege tha t immediately after the prisoner was takena his family were frightened frighten dd and driven ouan of their house and that too by the witness y es on the part par t of the state and plundered plunder of their goods thattie th that atthe the prisoner oner was of a very fine horse saddle and bridle and other property of considerable amount that they the witnesses in connection with the mob have finally succeeded by vile threat i ning and foul abuse in driving the family out of the state with little or no means and without a protector and their very subsist ence depends up upon on the liberty of the prisoner and your petitioners petition ers alle allege e that lie is not guilty of any crime where whereby it y he should be restrained of his big liberty from a personal knowledge having been with him and being personally acquainted with the whole of the difficulties between the mormons cormons and their bleir persecutors and that he has never acted at anytime only in his own defence and that too on his big own ground property and possessions that the prisoner p prisoner has never commanded any military company nor held any military authority neither any other office real or pretended in the state of missouri soui ri except that of a religious instructor that he never has borne arms in the military rank and in all such cases has acted as a private character and hs as an individual how then your petitioners petition petit ibbers ers would asican ask can it be possible that the pir prisoner lioner has committed treason the prisoner has had nothing to do in daviess county only on his own business as an individual the testimony molay of dr avard cone concerning or in a council held at james sloans was fa false Is e your petitioners petition ers do solemnly declare that there was no such council that your peti were with the prisoner and there was no such vote nor hor conversation as doctor avard swore to that doctor avard also swore falsely concerning a constitution as he said was introduced among the canites Da that the prisoner had nothing to do with burning in D daviess county that the prisoner made public ablie proclamation against such things g eat that the prisoner did oppose doctor avard and george M hinkle against vile measures measures with the mob but was threatened ened b by them if he did not let them alone that thia prisoner did not have anything to do with what is called bogarte Bo garts marts battle for he knew aliew nothing of it until it was over that he wis at home in the bosom of his own family during the time of that whole transaction and in fine your petitioners petition ers allege that he is held in confinement without cause and under an unlawful and tyrannical oppression and that his health and constitution and life depend on being liberated from his hia confinement your petitioners petition ers aver that they can disprove every item of testimony that has any tendency I 1 of criminality against the prisoner e ri for they know it themselves and can bring b t rig many others also to prove the same b therefore he your petitioners petition ers pray your hon bior to to him the states writ of f habeas corpus directed to the jailer of clay county mo commanding him forthwith to bring before yo you u the body of the prisoner so that wease may be heard before your honor of the prisoner be considered and adjusted according to law andjus i tice as it shall be presented before your honor and as in duty bound your peti will ever pray and farther your petitioners petition ers testify that the said joseph smith jr did make a public proclamation in far west in favor of the militia of the state of missouri and of its laws and also of the constitution of the I 1 united states that he be has ever been a warm I 1 frind to his and did us a 3 all his in for peace that he is a peaceable an citizen and is not worthy of death 0 strides es bond or imprisonment he above mentia mentioned ned speech was deliver ed m n the day before the surrender of far fai wt alanson ripley heber 0 kimball wil lian huntington joseph B noble QU ith jr jr 11 state tate of missouri county of clay ss Ts day personally appeared bafo before re me abraham shafer a justice of the peace bihin and for the aforesaid county rilley heber 0 kimball wm hunting toy joseph B noble and joseph smith jr wb being duly sworn do depose and say the matters and things set forth in the forgoing foe going 0 petition upon their own know ae lege ge are true in substance and in fact and as set forth upon the information of oters they believe to be true lanson alanson ripley heber 0 kimball willim huntington joseph B noble joseph eiith jr sworn and subscribed to before me this ith day of march 1839 abraham shair ash J P we the undersigned undersigner under signed being many of us personally erso nally acquainted with the said joseph smith jr and the circumstances connected his imprisonment do concur in the petion and testimony of the above named in di duals as most of the transactions there it ii hention mentioned ed we know from personal know e to be correctly set forth and from in lo nation of others believe the remainder remaina er to betrue ansa lyman H G sherwood james Ne Newl rry cyrus daniels erastus snow Elia tl same day caleb baldwin lyman wig alexander mcrae and hyrum smith my flow prisoners made each a a similar imil a r extract from the minutes of Xon conference ference of the church of jesus chri of latter day saints held in quincy on ts lath of march 1839 brigham young unanimously was called to the chair and robt robrt B thompson chosen clerk E er young then arose and gave a state denof the circumstances of the church at barvest far test and his feelings in in regard to the scat scarring ca bring ring of the brethren believing I 1 it to be aisom to unite together as much as possible blea i extending the hand of charity for the relia of the poor who were suffering buffering under theland of persecution in missouri and to durue that course that would prove for the enral good of the whole church who were for the gospels sake and would advie the saints to settle if possible in so co or in a situation so as to be or acied into churches that they might be nourished loui shed hed and fed by the shepherds for without the sheep would be scattered and ie aso impressed it upon the minds of the sains ains to give hed to the revelations of especially the elders should be careful 0 impart d part from all ini iniquity gity and to remember he bounsel given by t those ose whom god hath bath lacad A as counselors in his church that they lay become as wise stewards in the viney arri of the lord that every man ma may know nd get act in his own place for there is order i the kingdom of god and we must regard lat order if we expect to be blessed elder young also stated that elder jona jena lan dunham had received previous instruct inspru c ons not to call any conferences in this tate or elsewhere but to go forth and reach repentance which was his calling ut jut contrary to those instructions he called conference in springfield ill and 1 there and brought forth the business ich he had to transact and his proceed g in many respects during the conference as contrary to the feelings of elder W goodruff oo druff and other official members who are present they considered his pro edings contrary to the will and order of od dd the conference then voted that elder J acham anham be reproved for his improper course and that he be advised to adhere to the given him and after transacting various other busi ss elder george W harris made some marks relative to those who had left us the times of our perils persecutions and ingers gers 11 and were acting against again qt the inter t of the church and that the church could longer hold them in fellowship unless they dented of their sins and turned unto god after the conference fully expressed their akings upon the subject it was isly voted voted that the following persons be communicated from the church of jesus trist irist of latter day saints viz george M akle sampson avard john corrill rill reed eed bk wm W W phelps frederick G wil oas ms thomas B marsh burr riggs and veral others after which the conference sed by prayer BRIGHAM YOUNG pros pres B THOMPSON clerk parley P Pratt ls wife left the prison juse use where she had voluntarily been with r husband most of the winter and return I 1 e ed d to far west to get passage with some of the brethren for illinois this morning inthe the committee met at the house of daniel shearer far west william W 1 H huntington un hington antho in the chair present pres ent br D W rogers from quincy ill br rogers made known the proceedings of the brethren in quincy in relation to locating in the iowa territory and read a private letter from doctor galland to him on the same subject and presented a power of attorney from bishop partridge to dispose of the lands of the church in jackson county and also some lots in far west he then presented a copy of the proceedings of a council held in quincy on the ath dinst which was read after which br rogers explained pla i led some things relative to said meeting and the proceedings thereof A bill of articles wanted by the prisoners in liberty liberia jail was presented by elder kimball and charles bird was pointed to accompany br rogers to jackson county to assist him in the sale of the jackson lands ac on motion resolved that we will not patronize br lamb in his market shaving shop or any other of the kind in this place A petition of A ripley and others to the honorable judge tompkins of the supreme court of the state of missouri praying for a writ of habeas corpus for joseph smith jr was read by A ripley monday the committee met in the course of the day and appointed theodore turley to go to jefferson with elder kimball to carry carry the petitions of the prisoners in clay and richmond jails |
