my first impressions of the city of the saints.
when i arrived in salt lake city, a great many improvements had been effected; and expecting, as i did that this would be our future home for many years, perhaps for life, i was interested in everything that i saw.
the first sunday i went to the tabernacle i was greatly amused at the way in which some of the sisters were dressed. quite a number wore sun-bonnets, but the majority wore curious and diverse specimens of the milliner’s art—relics of former days. some wore a little tuft of gauze and feathers on the top of the head, while others had helmets of extraordinary size. there were little bonnets, half-grown bonnets, and “grandmother bonnets” with steeple crowns and fronts so large that it was difficult to get a peep at the faces which they concealed. as for the dresses, they were as diversified as the bonnets. some of them presented a rather curious spectacle. i noticed two young women who sat near me: they were dressed alike in green calico sun-bonnets, green calico skirts, and pink calico sacks. on inquiring who they were, i was told that they were the wives of one man, and had both been married to him on the same day, so that neither could claim precedence of the other. outside of utah such a thing would seem impossible; but so many of the young girls at that time came out to zion without father or mother or any one else to guide them; and left to their own inexperience and afraid to disobey “counsel,” it is no wonder that they soon yielded to the universal custom.
the two young women whom i have mentioned did not appear to me to be overburdened with intelligence; they looked like girls who could be made to believe anything; but after that i met with two well-educated women who, like these foolish girls, thoughtlessly tried the experiment of two or more marrying the same man on the same day, agreeing with their “lord” that that would be the best way to preserve[153] peace in their household. but they were terribly mistaken; and even before the marriage-day was over, the poor bewildered husband had to fly to brother brigham for counsel.
the tabernacle services seemed to me as strange as the women. there was no regular order in conducting the proceedings, but the prominent brethren made prayers or “sermons” as they were called upon to do so. the “sermons” would be more properly called speeches; they are nothing but a rambling, disconnected glorification of the saints, interspersed with fearful denunciations of the gentiles, and not unfrequently a good sprinkling of words and expressions such as are never used in decent society. more unedifying discourses could hardly be imagined. as for the spirituality and devotional feeling which characterized our meetings in england, they were only conspicuous by their absence, and many devout saints have told me that when they first went there, before the erection of the great organ, the free-and-easy manners of the speakers and the brass band which was stationed in front of the platform, made them feel as if they had come to witness a puppet-show rather than to attend a religious meeting.
there was one lady at the tabernacle service whom i regarded with considerable interest. this was no other than eliza r. snow, one of the prophet’s wives. i was told that she was the first woman married in polygamy after joseph smith received the revelation, and i believed it was so. people who lived in nauvoo, respectable people, and not one or two either, have assured me that for four years before joseph is said to have received the revelation, he was practising polygamy, or something worse, and that the revelation was given to justify what was already done. however this might be, it is generally understood that miss eliza snow was the first plural wife of the prophet. her principal occupation at the present time is converting rebellious wives to obedience to their husbands, and convincing young girls that it is their duty to enter into polygamy. unhappy husbands derive great consolation from her counsels. in matters of religion she is a perfect fanatic, and in connexion with the female relief society she reigns supreme; but otherwise there are many excellent traits in her character, and i could tell of many acts of loving-kindness and self-denial which she has performed, and which will surely have their reward. as the chief poet of the mormon church, and as the representative of eve in the mysteries of the endowment house, she[154] enjoys a reputation such as would be impossible to any other woman among the saints.
another of the late joseph’s wives is a mrs. doctor jacobs, who was actually married to the prophet while she was still living with her original husband, jacobs. under the same circumstances she married brigham young, after joseph’s death. for some time her husband knew nothing of the whole affair, but brigham very soon gave him to understand that his company was not wanted. the sister of mrs. jacobs—a mrs. buel—was another of joseph’s wives, and she married the apostle heber c. kimball, but does not appear to have made a very good bargain.
besides these there is another lady, a mrs. shearer—or, as she is familiarly called—“aunty shearer.” she is in every respect a unique specimen of womanhood, tall and angular, with cold yet eager grey eyes; a woman of great volubility, and altogether grim-looking and strong-minded. she was an early disciple, and is said to have sacrificed everything for mormonism. she lived in joseph smith’s family, and, of course, saw and heard a great deal about polygamy, and at first it was a great stumbling-block to her. she was, however, instructed by the immaculate joseph, and so far managed to overcome her feelings as to be married to him for eternity. like the others, she is called “mrs.,” and i suppose there is a mr. shearer somewhere, but upon that point she is very reticent. her little lonely hut is fitted with innumerable curiosities and little knick-knacks, which some people are for ever hoarding away in the belief that they will come into use some day. she is a woman that one could not easily forget. she wears a muslin cap with a very wide border flapping in the wind under a comical-looking hood, and is easily recognized by her old yellow marten-fur cape and enormous muff: her dress, which is of her own spinning and weaving, is but just wide enough, and its length could never inconvenience her. add to these personal ornaments a stout pair of brogues, and you will see before you “aunty shearer,” one of the prophet’s spiritual wives.
i may as well explain what is meant by “spiritual” wives and “proxy” wives.
marriages contracted by the gentiles, or by mormons in accordance with gentile institutions, are not considered binding by the saints. that was partly the cause of my indignation and the indignation of many another wife and mother. we were told that we had never been married at all, and that[155] our husbands and our children were not lawfully ours: surely that was enough to excite the indignation of any wife, whatever her faith might be. for a marriage to be valid it must be solemnized in the endowment house in salt lake city, or the persons contracting it can never expect to be husband and wife in eternity. should the husband die before he reaches zion, and if the wife loves him sufficiently well to wish to be his in eternity—when she arrives in salt lake city, if she receives an offer of marriage from one of the brethren, and does not object to him as a second husband in this world, she will make an agreement with him that she will be his wife, for time, but that in eternity she and all her children shall be handed over to the first husband. a woman thus married is called a “proxy” wife.
now “spiritual” wives are of two classes. the one consists of old ladies who have plenty of money or property which of course needs looking after; and generous elders marry them, and accordingly “look after” the said property, and the owner of it becomes the elder’s spiritual wife. she will only be his real wife in eternity when she is rejuvenated.
the other kind of “spiritual” wife is one who is married already, but who does not think that her husband can “exalt” her to so high a position in the celestial world as she deserves—perhaps some kind brother who takes a great interest in her welfare has told her so—she then is secretly “sealed” to one of the brethren who is better able to exalt her—perhaps to this same brother; and in the resurrection she will pass from him who was her husband on earth to him who is to be her husband in heaven—if she has not done so before.
this is what is meant by “proxy” and “spiritual” wives. i think it will be evident even to the dullest comprehension that under such a system, “the world, the flesh, and the devil” are far more likely to play a prominent part than anything heavenly or spiritual.
all this is so repugnant to the instincts and feelings of a true woman, that i feel quite ashamed to write about it. and yet the working out of this system has produced results which would be perfectly grotesque were it not that they outrage every ordinary sense of propriety. let me give an example. one of the wives of brigham young—mrs. augustus cobb young—a highly educated and intelligent boston lady with whom i am intimately acquainted, requested of her prophet husband a favour of a most extraordinary description. she had forsaken her lawful husband and family and a happy and[156] luxurious home to join the saints, under the impression that brigham young would make her his queen in heaven. she was a handsome woman—a woman of many gifts and graces—and brigham thoroughly appreciated her; but she made a slight miscalculation in respect to the prophet. he cares little enough for his first wife, poor lady, and few people who know him doubt for a moment that he would un-queen her and cut her adrift for time and eternity too, if his avaricious soul saw the slightest prospect of gain by doing so; he did not care for her, but he never would allow himself to be dictated to by any woman. so when the lady of whom i speak asked him to place her at the head of his household, he refused: she begged hard, but he would not relent. then finding that she could not be brigham’s “queen,” and having been taught by the highest mormon authorities that our saviour had, and has, many wives, she requested to be “sealed to him!” brigham young told her (for what reason i do not know) that it really was out of his power to do that, but that he would do “the next best thing” for her—he would “seal” her to joseph smith. she was sealed to joseph smith, and though brigham still supports her, and she is called by his name on earth, in the resurrection she will leave him and go over to the original prophet.
the reader will be certainly shocked at this terrible burlesque of sacred things, but i felt it my duty to state the truth and place facts in their right light. it is not generally known that the mormons are taught that the marriage at cana of galilee was christ’s own nuptial feast, that mary and martha were his plural wives, and that those women who in various parts of the new testament are spoken of as ministering to him stood to him in the same relation.
malicious first wives, especially if they are rather elderly themselves, frequently call the proxy wives “fixins;” and the tone in which some of them utter the word is in the last degree contemptuous. these poor “fixins” are seldom treated as real wives by the husband himself. he may think sufficiently well of the “proxy” wife to make her his for time and to raise up children to his friend, as the elders say, but he never forgets that in eternity she will be handed over to the man for whom he has stood proxy, and he expects that she also will bear that in mind, and do all she can for her own support, and never complain of his want of attention to her. some men, after having married a young proxy wife, have become so enamoured that they grew jealous of the dead husband,[157] and have tried to get the wife to break faith with him, and be married to them for eternity as well as time. this was certainly rather mean. very few gentile husbands would fret themselves about possibilities in the world to come, if in this world they had the certainty of enjoying the undivided affections of their wives.
mormon husbands are so influenced by their religion that they neither act nor think like other men. i am thinking of one wretched family that i knew soon after i went to utah. there was a man and his wife and four children, all living together in a miserable, poverty-stricken hut. i had heard that the man was paying attentions to a young girl with a view of making her his second wife, and i frequently watched the first wife as she went in and out, doing her “chores,” and wondered how she felt about it. the poverty of the man, of course, was of no consequence; living in the primitive style in which necessity then compelled the saints to live, one, or even half-a-dozen extra wives made very little difference, and brigham and the leading elders have always represented it as a meritorious act, for the young especially, to “build up the kingdom,” without regard to consequences, or the misery of bringing up a family in a destitute condition. i never can see children without loving them, and in this case it was not long before i contrived to make acquaintance with the little ones. one day, while i was talking to them, the mother came out. she seemed pleased to see me, for she had heard of me that i was not too strong in the faith, and she told me that her husband had said, in speaking of such women as myself, who did not like the celestial order of marriage, that their husbands ought to force them right into it, and that would show what they were made of: if they were true-hearted women, seeking their husband’s glory and “exaltation” in the world to come, they would bear it well enough; and if not, the sooner it killed them the better; for if they were dead their husbands could save them in the resurrection, but if they lived they would only be an incumbrance.
this, i found, was the general opinion among the mormon men. even in england the american elders had taught us that the man was the head and “saviour” of the woman, and that the woman was only responsible to her husband. it was necessary, we were told, that the woman should keep in favour with her lord, otherwise he might withdraw his protection and refuse to take her into the celestial kingdom; in which case when she got to heaven she would only be an[158] angel! to be an angel is not considered by the saints to be by any means the highest state of glory. those who do not obey the “celestial order of marriage” will, like the angels, neither marry nor be given in marriage; they will be located, the men in one place, and the women in another, and will serve as slaves, lackeys, and boot-blacks to the saints. brigham young once publicly said of a certain president of the united states, that he would clean the boots of the mormon leaders in heaven. he did not say this as a figure of speech, but meant it literally. those who have obeyed the gospel of the new dispensation, but who have failed to enter into polygamy, will be as upper servants; but the rebellious—the “vile apostates” and the “wicked gentiles”—will join the angels and do all the drudgery for the men of many wives. thus i learned in zion that my youthful notions about the glory of the cherubim were quite a mistake, and that it was not such a fine thing to be an angel after all.
but i have run away from my story, and had almost forgotten my poor acquaintance. she was a woman who was likely to preserve a painful place in the memory of any one who once saw her. her face was pale as death, and her jet-black eyes glistened with an unearthly lustre; it was easy to perceive that she was very unhappy, although she tried hard to exhibit a cheerful disposition, and when our conversation turned to that subject which to women here is all-absorbing, the nervous twitching of her pale face showed how deeply painful such thoughts were to her. she told me that her husband was soon to be married to a young girl about fourteen years of age. “do you see,” she said, “that he is building for her?” and sure enough he was, at odd hours, adding another hut to the miserable hovel in which they already lived; and thither, when it was finished, he intended to take his bride. as i looked at the poor wife, i felt little doubt that ere that time came, her troubles on earth would have ended, and her little ones would be motherless.
the mormon women, as well as the mormon men, are noted for attending to their own business—they do not care to tell their sorrows and trials to strangers or to people who are not of their own faith. in this way visitors to salt lake who have gone there with the intention of “writing-up” the saints in the newspapers or in a book, have generally been misled. my own experience as a mormon woman leads me to form anything but a flattering opinion of the mormon stories told by gentile pens. the following instance will show that the[159] sisters are not quite so free in giving their experience as some writers would suggest.
one day, while passing through the city, i saw a young woman running across the road with a little child in her arms. the child was crying piteously, for the water was running from its clothing, and i saw in a moment that it had fallen into the stream which ran in front of the house. i followed, to see if i could be of any assistance, but fortunately found that the little creature was not seriously hurt, but would soon recover from the fright and cold. i helped the mother to change its clothing, and while she was lulling her baby to sleep we entered into conversation. at first she appeared to be very shy of me, and avoided speaking of anything in the slightest degree personal; but growing more interested, she said at last,—
“are you a mormon?”
“certainly,” i answered; “but why do you ask me?”
“because,” she said, “we have had one or two gentile women among us, and they go round among our people and question the women, and get them to tell their troubles, which god knows are heavy enough; and then they go and write about it, and brigham young finds it out, and their husbands are called to account for allowing their wives to speak to the gentiles. you are sure you are a mormon?” she added, “and you are not deceiving me?”
“i’m sorry you should think such a thing,” i said; “but if you suppose i would deceive you, i will not trouble you with my company.” and i rose up to leave.
“do not go yet,” she said, “and pray forgive me, if i have wounded your feelings; it is simply the fear i have of getting into trouble. brigham young and the elders have frequently told us to have nothing to do with the gentiles, for they are enemies to the kingdom of god, and are seeking our overthrow—and i suppose it is true.”
“how long have you been here?” i asked.
“over two years,” she replied, “and it seems almost twenty—time has passed so slowly. i left father and mother, sisters and brother, for the gospel’s sake, and i do not regret it, because it is right; but it was a very great sacrifice to make. yet i believe that god blesses us for the sacrifices we make, and i shall get my reward.”
“you have it already,” i said, “in that pretty child on your knee; and your husband, i hope, is a good man and kind to you.”
[160]
“yes,” she answered, “my child is a very great source of happiness to me, and i love my husband very much, but—” (hesitatingly) “are you in polygamy?”
“no, not yet; but i do not know how soon my husband may take it into his head to get another wife.”
“are you first wife?” she asked.
“yes,” i replied, “and i suppose you are also?”
“no, i am third wife,” she said, “i wish i were first wife.”
“but why,” i suggested, “do you wish that? if polygamy is the true order of marriage, i do not see that it makes much difference whether one is the first or the twentieth wife?”
“oh dear, yes,” she replied, “it does make a great deal of difference; for the first wife will be queen over all the others, and reign with her husband. if i had known that before i was married, i should have made my husband promise to place me first. men can do that if they like.”
“but do you think you would be doing right in trying to gain the position of first wife in that way?”
“why not?” she said; “didn’t jacob obtain his brother’s birthright by deception—and was he ever punished for it? do you think that brother brigham, notwithstanding that he is the inspired servant of god, could have obtained his position, and all his money, by simple honest dealing? if you think so, i don’t; and it is just as proper and right for us women to secure a position for ourselves by such means as it is for brigham young—the end justifies the means.”
“if that is so,” i said, “it is a wonder to me that any woman should consent to become second, third, or fourth wife—seeing they cannot be queens.”
“i can see that you have not yet had your ‘endowments,’” she said, “or you would understand more about these things; but as you are a good mormon, i can speak freely to you. you see it is not always those who are first wives in this world who will be first in the celestial kingdom. it all depends upon the amount of sacrifice the wife is capable of making for her husband, her faithfulness to him, and the number of children she has borne him. if she pleases him in every particular, and is good, patient, and above all things obedient to all his wishes and commands, then she is almost certain to be made queen, unless the first wife is just as good, and then i don’t know how they would fix that. and so you see it is safer to be first wife at once.”
[161]
“well, but,” i asked, “knowing all this, i am surprised that you consented to be third wife!”
“but i did not know it then,” she continued. “my husband told me that all the wives were queens—all equal—and he says so still when i talk to him about it. but he can’t deceive me. i have spoken to some of the old nauvoo women who know all about it, and they tell me that all the polygamic wives will be subject to the first wife; but the first wife, having suffered most, will be the one who has gone through the fire and been purified, and found worthy.”
“but do you think that your husband would wish to deceive you about such an important matter?” i said.
“wait till you have lived a little longer here,” she replied, “and you will be able to answer that question yourself, or else your experience will be very different from that of the rest of the people here.”
just then the husband made his appearance, and put an end to the conversation. he was a tall, dark-looking man, with grey hair, old enough to be her father. he appeared to be well educated and to have seen better days, though everything about their home indicated poverty—the room in which we were sitting had no carpet on the floor, there was a plain white-pine table in the middle, a small sheet-iron stove, four wooden chairs, a small looking-glass, and some cheap pictures. this was the sitting-room for the whole family—three wives, eleven children, one husband. he asked me if i had seen the rest of the family.
i replied negatively, and he said he would see if any of them were about. presently he returned accompanied by an elderly woman whom he introduced as mrs. simpson. then came another, not quite as good-looking as the first, but a great deal younger, and he introduced her as “my wife ellen. and this one,” he said, turning to the one with whom i had been conversing, “is my wife sarah. don’t you think i have got three fine-looking women?” then, after a pause, he added, “and they are just as good as they are good-looking—good, obedient wives. i have no trouble with them; my wishes are law in this house. here you have a family in which the spirit of god reigns. we are not rich in worldly goods, as you see, but we are laying up treasure in heaven. we all live in this little home of four rooms. my wife ellen here, has given up her room for a parlour for us all to meet together in, and she sleeps in a waggon-box; it is not the most comfortable, but she never grumbles. then, here is our[162] sarah; we are obliged to humour her a little, and give her a room all to herself. she is young and inexperienced, and doesn’t like to put up with the inconveniences that the saints have to bear with; while old mother here has got to have half-a-dozen children in her room, but she never complains.”
“why did you not wait,” i said, “until you had a larger house?”
“then where would my kingdom be?” he answered, “young men may wait, but old men must improve their time.”
there came in now a troop of children of all ages. they had been playing in the lot, were miserably clad, barefooted, and some looked gaunt and hungry:—manners to match. “these,” he said, with all a father’s fondness—“these constitute my kingdom, and i am proud of them.”
i felt thankful that i was not destined to be queen over such a kingdom, wished them good-bye, and with a sad heart went home to my own darling little ones, not knowing what might be their fate.
brigham young
