Page:Senate Document 189 on the Trial of Joseph Smith.djvu/3

Rh charged his company, several different times, not to touch the Dutchman's potatoes. In the morning the Dutchman had not a potatoe left in his patch. This was in reference to touching no property in our expedition to Daviess county that did not belong to us, but he told us that the children of God did not go to war at their own expense. A vote was taken whether the brethren should embody and go down to Daviess to attack the mob. This question was put by the prophet, Joseph Smith, jr., and passed unanimously, with a few exceptions. Captains Patten and Brunson were appointed commanders of the Mormons, by Joseph Smith, jr., to go to Daviess. He frequently called these men generals. I once had a command as an officer, but Joseph Smith, jr., removed me from it, and I asked him the reason, and he assigned that he had another office for me. Afterwards Mr. Rigdon told me I was to fill the office of surgeon, to attend to the sick and wounded. After we arrived at Diahmon, in Daviess, a council was held at night, composed of Joseph Smith, jr., George W. Robertson, Hiram Smith, Captains Patten and Brunson, Lyman Wight, President R. Cahoon, P. P. Pratt, and myself, and perhaps Mr. Hinkle. President Rigdon was not present. He remained at Far West; a correspondence was kept up between him and Joseph Smith, jr. I heard Mr. Rigdon read one of the letters frorn Smith, which, as I remember, was about as follows: That he knew, from prophecy and from the revelation of Jesus Christ, that the enemies of the kingdom were in their hands; and that they (the Mormon church) should succeed. Rjgdon, on reading the letter, said it gave him great consolation to have such authority that the kingdom of God was rolling on. In the above referred to council, Mr. Smith spoke of the grievances we had suffered in Jackson, Clay, Kirtland, and other places; declared that we must, in future, stand up for our rights as citizens of the United States, and as saints of the most high God; and that it was the will of God we should do so; that we should be free and independent, and that as the State of Missouri, and the United States, would not protect us, it was high time that we should be up, as the saints of the most high God, and protect ourselves, and take the kingdom. Lyman Wight observed, that, before the winter was over, he thought we would be in St. Louis, and take it. Smith charged them that they should be united in supporting each other. Smith said on some occasions, that one should chase a thousand, and two put ten thousand to flight; that he considered the United States rotten. He compared the Mormon church to the little stone spoken of by the Prophet Daniel; and the dissenters first, and the State next, was part of the image that should be destroyed by this little stone. The council was called on to vote the measures of Smith; which they did unanimously. On the next day Captain Patten (who was called by the prophet Captain Fearnaught) took command of about one hundred armed men, and told them that he had a job for them to do, and that the work of the Lord was rolling on, and they must be united. He then led the troops to Gallatin, saying he was going to attack the mob there. He made a rush into Gallatin, dispersed the few men there, and took the goods out of Stolling's store, and carried them to Diahmon, and I afterwards saw the storehouse on fire. When we returned to Diahmon, the goods were deposited in the Lord's storehouse, under the care of Bishop Vincent Knight. Orders were strictly given that all the goods should be deposited in the Lord's storehouse. No individuals were to appropriate any thing to themselves until a general distribution should be made. Joseph Smith, jr., was at Adam on