The command of the “revelation” was faithfully obeyed.  A large party of Mormons, painted and tricked out as Indians, overtook the train of emigrant wagons some three hundred miles south of Salt Lake City, and made an attack.  But the emigrants threw up earthworks, made fortresses of their wagons and defended themselves gallantly and successfully for five days!  Your Missouri or Arkansas gentleman is not much afraid of the sort of scurvy apologies for “Indians” which the southern part of Utah affords.  He would stand up and fight five hundred of them.

At the end of the five days the Mormons tried military strategy.  They retired to the upper end of the “Meadows,” resumed civilized apparel, washed off their paint, and then, heavily armed, drove down in wagons to the beleaguered emigrants, bearing a flag of truce!  When the emigrants saw white men coming they threw down their guns and welcomed them with cheer after cheer!  And, all unconscious of the poetry of it, no doubt, they lifted a little child aloft, dressed in white, in answer to the flag of truce!

The leaders of the timely white “deliverers” were President Haight and Bishop John D. Lee, of the Mormon Church.  Mr. Cradlebaugh, who served a term as a Federal Judge in Utah and afterward was sent to Congress from Nevada, tells in a speech delivered in Congress how these leaders next proceeded: 

“They professed to be on good terms with the Indians, and represented them as being very mad.  They also proposed to intercede and settle the matter with the Indians.  After several hours parley they, having (apparently) visited the Indians, gave the ultimatum of the savages; which was, that the emigrants should march out of their camp, leaving everything behind them, even their guns.  It was promised by the Mormon bishops that they would bring a force and guard the emigrants back to the settlements.  The terms were agreed to, the emigrants being desirous of saving the lives of their families.  The Mormons retired, and subsequently appeared with thirty or forty armed men.  The emigrants were marched out, the women and children in front and the men behind, the Mormon guard being in the rear.  When they had marched in this way about a mile, at a given signal the slaughter commenced.  The men were almost all shot down at the first fire from the guard.  Two only escaped, who fled to the desert, and were followed one hundred and fifty miles before they were overtaken and slaughtered.  The women and children ran on, two or three hundred yards further, when they were overtaken and with the aid of the Indians they were slaughtered.  Seventeen individuals only, of all the emigrant party, were spared, and they were little children, the eldest of them being only seven years old.  Thus, on the 10th day of September, 1857, was consummated one of the most cruel, cowardly and bloody murders known in our history.”

The number of persons butchered by the Mormons on this occasion was one hundred and twenty.