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Show I A PIONEER I APPRECIATION (By LeRoy J Letshman) For one day only let us stay the hand That builds a mighty commonwealth, that we May nearer bring the fading past with its store Of dauntless souls The treasures of the days When Utah knew nor fame nor history his-tory Are open to inspire the anxious youth, The gallant builder, maker of the future fu-ture ; And all the time-erected walls that hide Past deed6, events and characters are torn From base to summit. Therefore let U6 walk The hallowed ground and mingle with the scenes Of most a life-time back, when noble no-ble men And women reared an Infant territory. Among the cloudy peaks and rugged hills, That rise In awful magnitude from bases Of rock and stone, broad vales extend and reach Their sun-baked surfaces from mountain moun-tain side To mountain side Each stretch of land Is but A barren desert place, where crops as yet Were never sown, the loftier altitudes Alono producing w-hat little green the eyes Can see Clear streams of crystal waters wa-ters wind Adown the canvons where the mountains moun-tains gap, And wait the hand of man to utilize Their wasted waters to redeem the desert And arid lands. Here In the Wasatch range The first Americans devise their rude Abodes and roam from place to place. The like Of many a hunter, some were members mem-bers of The Hudson Bay company, made caches in The6e valleys hiding there their food and furs; And earliest explorations Utah knew Were made by them, the Spanish and the French, And frontiers-men in search of hides and gold No more than they can tell of this mountain land Is known until the sturdy pioneers Make settlements. The human race, since first In Pharaoh's day the whole of Israel fled That all might better worship Adam's God. Has found her noblest sons invading lands As yet unpeopled, there to worship as Their creeds advised. Since then the flight For greater liberty has ever been A journey westward, one unending march With faces ever toward the setting sun. From Asia Into Europe and from thence Across (he seas they went to another world, Unsettled save as 6ome religious band Sought greater freedom or relief from hard And cruel persecutions. Thus the law Of selection chooses fittest from the more Unfit among humanity, for trials That pioneers and empire-founders meet None save the bravest and most hardy men Can well endure. The weaker fall or lag Behind, the stronger ever westward move. In modern times another pilgrimage pilgrim-age Of freedom-seekers, bound to worship God. Outdoes full many a similar event In ages past. In Kirtland they, as best A bank of mortals born to human sin And failings could, did live in peacp with man And with the good Creator, till the mob Intolerant, and empty with a lack Of reason, made their city most unsafe, un-safe, For death awaited all who disagreed With rulings of the vile unlawful mob. Preferring truth far more than submission sub-mission to These adversary powers, they took their flight From Ohio into Illinois, as yet In ignorance as to their future lot. Conditions here, unable to support The band of Mormon people, caused the death Of some and the illness of a greater number. Rewards of constant toll alone preserved pre-served The welfare and the health of other 'mid Those trying circumstances. Persecutions Perse-cutions Soon made their stay unpleasant as could be. And another permanent abiding place They sought to find. The fate ot the Mormons since They first embraced this new and different faith Were hard bb mental pictures can depict, de-pict, And massacres that happened now and then , Thinned out the religious body. Ere tho saints Had left Ohio it Prophesied That Zlon should be built upon the hills. . . And flourish and rejoice upon the mountains Where God's elect should all bo gathered gath-ered In. Collecting necessary clothing, food And camping goods, a part of Nau-voo'a Nau-voo'a Inhabitants departed westward toward The Rocky Mountains, far across the plains. With Ox team and hand-carts scantv property Was moved along, and few of all the band Found room to ride, and so they walked afoot Entrusted to the Lord's protecting carp Ere long the remnant still remaining remain-ing at Nauvoo were fiercely persecuted and Were stricken by disease Far worso than fate Of those who went before into the West. Was that of those remaining still behind. be-hind. No homes, no food, and very little means To clothe themselves was but a part of their Misfortune hunger-cries of children all Were heard in vain, for none could ease thpir feehlp Craving for food; the elder members bow ed With sufferinc, from cold by night, and in The day from sunburn's ravages, found all These things unbearable. The mobs, enthused By fiendish appetites, at last drove all The Mormon population ' from the town At point of bayonet. They too fled toward Tbe unknown western land. The winter snows O'ertook the journeyers, the former band As well as these; and so they stopped, and made A camp at which to stay until the Spring This canvas city, known as Winter Quarters, Held even greater trials in store than did Their former dwelling place. Somp were barefooted, And " were cold, enduring worst than one Can well Imagine. Finally Sprinc began To thaw the snow and icp. and parlv all Departed for the West in companies. Tne foremost doing exploration work Another mighty company of more Thann t'lftepn hundred persons cam':1 uruuiu In sections. Fording streams, and cutting brush ! That blocked the unmade road, tho : went their way Until each evening came At night they made A circle of the wagons, like a wall Around the center where the people ate And slppt, In order better to protect i Themselves against their common enemy. The thistle was a source of livelihood. And this, together with provisions from Tbe larder, formed the company's scanty meal. The fcrprooBt band of pioneers ar- i rl vpH In Salt Lako Valley on the twenty-fourth twenty-fourth Of that July in plghteen forty-seven. They straightway built a fort, and- started homes For both themselves and their com-I panions, still Upon the road enduring frightful peril. With many of their loved ones dying j on The blazoned way Rpaminlng companies com-panies came Tbp coming fall, and ere the winter's blight Began, their future home was reached The Spring At length arrived, and then a city raised Its head above the plains. With dauntless hearts Nor toil, nor labor fearing, the pioneers pio-neers Began to irrigate, and arid lands Were made to grow abundant crops. How firmly does tho present stand Upon a most praise-worthy past, When toil and virtue, hand In hand, Endure until the last! May all the force of youthful zest Continue to produce the best, That. In the Future's hopeful years, The courage that our pioneers Thus nobly shown in every deed May never be a lacking part; Nor ever mav a crying need Of sterling worth be heard to start Oh builders of a starring stafp, Mav all thy works be noblv crpat, Mav art and science ever claim Their portion In a lasting fame, And as the coming years draw nigh, I May all beholders find the name Of Utah growing soaring high' Ogden. Utah, July 21, 1913. , I nn B |