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hull on ā€™em, to my party, beinā€™ out doors I thought there would be room for ā€™em all, poor creeters!

But Miss Meechim is very cautious, and she said that she wuz afraid that such a party given by folks in my high position might have a tendency to encourage polygamy.

And I said, ā€œI would rather give a dollar bill than do that, and mebbe I had better give it up, for we shanā€™t git there in time, anyway.ā€

And so I did, and spent the Christmas holidays on the cars, and tried to keep my heart and mind in a Christmas mood, but donā€™t spoze I did, so many fond recollections and sad forebodinā€™s hanted me as the cars swepā€™ us on, on through the valley of the Platte river on to Denver. Miss Meechim, who is a power on dates, said that Denver wuz five thousand two hundred feet above the sea.

And Tommy wonnered, wonnered who measured it, and if they did it with a yard stick as his ma measured cloth, 46 and then he wonnered if his ma missed her little boy, and then he laid up aginst me and kinder cried a little, evanescent grief soon soothed.

We stayed in Denver two days, sallyinā€™ out to different points of interest about it, and here I see irrigation carried on, water carried into the channels around the crops and trees some as Iā€™ve dug little holes round my house-plants to hold water; only of course Denver wuz carryinā€™ it on, on a bigger scale. It is a handsome city with the water of the Platte river brung in and running along in little streams by the curbstones. We rode out to Idaho Springs on a narrer railroad but easy goinā€™, through Clear Creek Canon. I liked the looks of the Springs first-rate (they made me think of Josiah).

All the way we see Chinamen workinā€™ hard and patient, as is their wont, and their long frocks they had on made me think of him I mourned for, and their hair hanginā€™ in long braids down their back. So would his hair look if he had any, and let it grow.

We had to go a little out of our straight way to visit Salt Lake City but felt that it paid.

47 CHAPTER IV

Salt Lake lays in a rich valley at the foot of a range of snow-capped mountains that tower up ā€™round it, seeminā€™ to the saints, I spoze, as if they wuz heavenly ramparts to protect ā€™em from evil; and lookinā€™ to them that despise the saintsā€™ ways and customs, as if the very earth itself was liftinā€™ up its high hands in horrow at their deeds. But to me, hanted as I wuz by a memory, the mountains looked some like old men with white hair; as his would be when he got older if he wuznā€™t bald. I knew that I ort not to think on it, but it would come onbid. It is a beautiful city with electric lights, electric railways, broad streets lined with lofty trees, and little rivulets of pure cold snow-water runninā€™ along the side of ā€™em. The houses are clean and comfortable looking, with well-kepā€™ lawns and gardens about ā€™em and flowering shrubs. The temple is a magnificent building; it towers up to heaven, as if it wuz jest as sure of beinā€™ right as our Methodist Episcopal steeple at Jonesville. Though we know that the M. E. steeple, though smaller in size, is pintinā€™ the right way and will be found out so on that day that tries souls and steeples and everything else.

The old Bee Hive (where the swarm of Mormons first hived and made gall or honeyā€“ā€“or mebby both)ā€“ā€“is also an interestinā€™ sight to meditate on. It is shaped a good deal like one of them round straw bee hives you see in old Sabbath School books. The bride and groom went to their own home to live, on whom we called, or Tommy and I did, and left ā€™em well situated and happy; and I told him, sez I: ā€œIf you ā€™tend strict to the eighth commandment, youā€™ll git along first rate.ā€

48

And he said that he felt he could rise to any height of goodness with Babyā€™s help. And she scoffed at the idee of pa ever payinā€™ any attention to any other woman but her, when he worshipped her so.

Well, so other men have felt and got led off, but I wonā€™t forebode. But I left ā€™em happy in their own cozy home, which I wuz glad to think I could describe to Phileman and Ann if I ever see that blessed haven, Jonesville, agin.

We went out to visit the Mineral Springs. It only took us about ten minutes on the train, and it only took us about half an hour to go to Garfield Beach. It is the only sand beach on Salt Lake, and some say it is the finest beach in the world, and they say that the sunsets viewed from this spot are so heavenly bright in their glowinā€™ colors that no pen or tongue can describe ā€™em. The blue-green waves wuz dancinā€™ as we stood on the shore, and we wuz told that if we fell in, the water would hold us up, but didnā€™t try it, beinā€™ in sunthinā€™ of a hurry.

At Miss Meechimā€™s strong request we went on a pleasant trip to York City through the valley of the River of Jordan. How good that name sounded to me! How much like scripter! But, alas! it made me think of one who had so often sung with me on the way home from eveninā€™ meetinā€™, as the full moon gilded the top of the democrat, and the surroundinā€™ landscape:

ā€œBy Jordanā€™s stormy banks we stand

 And cast a wistful eye

On Canaanā€™s fair and happy land,

 Where my possessions lie.ā€

Oh, human love and longing, how strong thou art! I knowed that him meant the things of the sperit, but my human heart translated it, and I sithed and felt that the Jordan my soul wuz passinā€™ through wuz indeed a hard pathway, and I couldnā€™t help castinā€™ a wishful eye on Jonesvilleā€™s 49 fair and happy land, where my earthly possession, my Josiah, lay.

But to resoom. We had hearn that Polygamy wuz still practised there, and we had hearn that it wuznā€™t. But every doubt on that subject wuz laid to rest by an invitation we all had to go and visit a Mormon family livinā€™ not fur off, and Miss Meechim and I went, she not wantinā€™ Dorothy to hear a word on the subject. She said with reason, that after all her anxiety and labors to keep her from marryinā€™ one man, what would be her feelinā€™s to have her visit a man who had boldly wedded ā€™leven wives and might want a even dozen!

I could see it to once, so didnā€™t urge the matter, but left Tommy with her and Aronette. As nigh as I could make out, the Mormons had felt that Miss Meechim and I wuz high in authority in Gentile climes, one on us had that air of nobility and command that is always associated with high authority, and they felt that one on us could do their cause much good if they could impress us favorable with the custom, so they put their best twenty-four feet forward and did their level best to show off their doctrine in flyinā€™ colors. But they didnā€™t do any good to ā€œone on us,ā€ nor to Miss Meechim, either; sheā€™s sound in doctrine, though kinder weak and disagreeable in spots.

Well, we found that this family lived in splendid style, and the husband and all his pardners acted happy whether they wuz or not. And I dā€™no how or why it wuz, but when we all sot down in their large cool parlor, Miss Meechim and I in our luxurious easy chairs, and our host in one opposite with his wife occupyinā€™ ā€™leven chairs at his sides, a feelinā€™ of pity swepā€™ over meā€“ā€“pity for that man.

Yes, as I looked at that one lonely man, small boneded at that, and then looked at them ā€™leven portly wimmen that called that man ā€œour husband,ā€ I pitied him like a dog. I had never thought of pityinā€™ Mormon men before, but had poured out all my pity and sympathy onto the female Mormons. But havinā€™ a mind like a oxes for strength, I begun 50 to see matters in a new light, and I begun to spozen to myself, even whilst I sot there with my tongue keepinā€™ up a light dialogue on the weather, the country, etc., with the man and his wife (ā€™leven on ā€™em). I spozed what if they should all git mad at him at one time how wuz he goinā€™ to bear their ā€™leven rages flashinā€™ from twenty-two eyes, snortinā€™ from ā€™leven upturned noses, fallinā€™ from ā€™leven angry voices, and the angry jesters from twenty-two scornful hands. Spozeinā€™ they all got to weepinā€™ on his shoulder at one time how could one shoulder blade stand it under the united weight of ā€™leven full-sized females, most two ton of ā€™em, amidst moreā€™n forty-four nervous sobs, for they would naterally gin moreā€™n two apiece. In sickness now, if they wanted to soothe his achinā€™ brow, and of course they would all want to, and have the right to. But how could twenty-two hands rest on that one small fore-top? Sixty-six rubs at the least figger, for if they stroked his forehead at all they would want to stroke it three times apiece, poor creeter! would not delerium ensue instead of sooth? And spozeinā€™ they all took it into their heads to hang on his arm with both arms fondly whilst out walkinā€™ by moonlight, how could twenty-two arms be accommodated by two small scrawny elbows?

It couldnā€™t be done. And as I mused onā€™t I spoke right out onbeknown to me, and sez I:

ā€œThe Lord never meant it to be so; it hainā€™t reasonable; itā€™s aginst common sense.ā€

And the hull twelve sez, ā€œWhat didnā€™t the Lord mean? What wuz aginst common sense?ā€

And beinā€™ ketched at it, I sez, ā€œThe Mormon doctrine;ā€ sez I, ā€œto say nothinā€™ on moral and spiritual grounds, and state rights, itā€™s against reason and good sense.ā€

I felt mortified to think I had spoke out loud, but had to stand my ground after I had said it.

But they all said that the Mormon doctrine wuz the true belief, that it wuz writ in heaven, then it wuz engraved on plates, and dug up by Joe Smith, a Latter Day Saint.

51

Sez I, ā€œIf anybody trys to prove sunthinā€™ they want to, they can most always dig up sunthinā€™ to prove it. You say a man dug this plate up; what if some woman should go to digginā€™ and find a plate provinā€™ that one woman ort to have ā€™leven husbands?ā€

ā€œOh, no!ā€ sez the man in deep scorn, ā€œno such plate could be found!ā€

The wimmen all looked as if they would kinder like to see such dishes, but they all sez faintly, ā€œWe donā€™t spoze that it could be found.ā€

ā€œBut,ā€ I sez, ā€œyou donā€™t know how many plates there are in the ground, nor whoā€™ll dig ā€™em up.ā€

ā€œOh, that idee is preposterous!ā€ sez the man, as visions of dividinā€™ one womanā€™s heart into eleven parts and reigninā€™ over that little mossel riz up before him. ā€œMen never would agree to that; there would be mutiny, internal bloodshed and sizm.ā€

ā€œWell,ā€ sez I, ā€œmebby there is more or less internal heart bleedinā€™ goinā€™ on in the wimmenā€™s hearts that have to divide a manā€™s love and care a dozen times.ā€ Sez I, ā€œA hull manā€™s hull affections are onstiddy and wobblinā€™ and oncertain enough without dividinā€™ it up so many times.ā€

Them wimmen wuz touched. I see a answerinā€™ gleam of understandinā€™ come into about twenty-one eyes as I spoke; one on ā€™em stood firm and looked hauty and cast iron, but I mistrusted it wuz a glass eye, but donā€™t know, it might have been principle.

And even on the manā€™s small-sized countenance my words had seemed to make a impression. But yet he didnā€™t want to give up in a minute; he spoke of how the Mormons had flourished since they come to Utah, how they had turned the desert into a garden, and he felt that the Lord must look on ā€™em favorable or they wouldnā€™t be so prosperous.

ā€œYes,ā€ sez I, not wantinā€™ to lie, ā€œyour country is beautiful, it is in a flourishing state, and shows the good results of systematic labor, industry and ambition; you have made the 52 desert bloom like the rosy, many of your ways and customs might be follered with profit by older communities, and more orthodox accordinā€™ to my idees. But I donā€™t know as your flourishinā€™ in worldly affairs is

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