| 34 where his brethren had fled to. They also threatened women and children. In this manner they spent their time for about an hour, when about sundown a company, of thirty brethren, marched up, and as soon as they came near enough, the mob fired upon them, and they immediately fired back; after a round or two, the mob retreated and left the ground; they were followed a short distance, but not far.
Two of the mob, and a number of horses were killed, and some five or six wounded. The mob were so frightened, that they left their dead on the ground over night. The saints had four or five wounded, one by the name of Barber mortally, who died the next day. P. Dibble was wounded, in the bowels by the first gun fired.
The same day at Independence, A. S. Gilbert, I Morley, J. Corrill, and Wm. E. McLelin were taken for assault and battery, and false imprisonment by McCarty, whom they had taken the Friday night previous. And although they could not get a warrant for him, for breaking the store, yet he had obtained one for them, for catching him at it.
They were prisoners in the court house, on trial, when news of the battle reached town. It was stated, that the Mormons had killed twenty of the mob, and had gone to Wilson's and shot his son. In a moment as it were, all was confusion in the house. The majority were for massacreing [massacring] the prisoners forthwith; but a few, more human then the rest, were not willing to see prisoners murdered, while in open court, they advised them to go to jail to save their lives; this they did, and were hurried, but with difficulty protected by those few friends, to the jail; where they felt happy to be locked in. They were visited by some influential men, who told them that the mob had now become desperate, and that the whole county had become enraged, and nothing would stop them from massacreing [massacring] the whole society but to leave the county forthwith. About midnight the sheriff, with two other men, went with Morley, Corrill and Gilbert to visit their brethren who were collected near town. A short consultation was held with some of them, when it was agreed that they should leave the county immediately and use their influence with their brethren, to have them go also. These were times which tried men's souls; to stay where they were was death, and to undertake to remove so large a body at once, there being about ten or twelve hundred of them, looked like destruction of much property, if not of lives. It seemed, however to be the only alternative; and property at that time was no object. If they could but obtain sufficient to live upon, they chose rather to wander off into some lonely wilderness, or even descent where they could enjoy peace, than to stay where they were, even if they could, and be continually harrassed [harassed] as they had been for a few months past. But to return to the thread of our story, the party in returning back to jail, were met at the jail, by a company of mobbers who were disposed to kill the prisoners in spite of the sheriff and his assistants; Morley and Corrill seeing their danger, broke and run, but were fired at; Gilbert had two guns snapped at him, one of which flashed in the pan; he was then knocked down, but not injured so but that with the help of the sheriff and his assistants he soon got into the jail, where he felt himself measurably safe. Early next morning the prisoners were discharged. It was afterwards acknowledged by the enemy that they had intended to have taken the leading men for some pretended crime. a few at a time until they got them all, ahd [had] shut them up in prison; and then to have fallen upon the rest and drove them out of the county and then sent the leaders after them.
The saints were such abominable characters, doing so many wicked things which the law could not reach, that they had become very obnoxious, to the good people of Jackson county, who were so pious, so moral and so loyal to the constitution and laws of our country, that they would not live with them, but must thrust them out: Whereas, if any, even the most abandoned amongst the saints would leave the Church, deny the faith take a good dram of whiskey, swear and blaspheme the name of God roundly, they could be permitted to stay, they were hail fellows well met. They made the offer themselves, that if any would deny the faith and leave the
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