Chapter 14
Carl Rogers opened the door as quietly as he could and stepped inside. He removed his hat and vest and hung them on the pegs there, then bent down and removed his boots. There was a lamp on the table at the head of the stairs above him. It was turned to the lowest possible setting, but it still provided enough light for him to see. As he started down the hallway he stopped. In the parlor there was something large and dark on the floor. Curious, he went in to take a closer look. To his surprise he saw the two trunks which they kept in the loft of the barn. The lids were open, and as he bent down he could see that both trunks were nearly filled with various items. Perplexed, he straightened and looked around. He could see that there were other things piled on the chairs and on the sofas.
He frowned. What had possessed Melissa to start going through their things now? Normally this kind of sorting was done in the spring or during the long months of winter. But he was too tired to come to any logical conclusion. He moved quietly back into the hallway and up the stairs. He blew out the light, wondering how his wife had known he would be home tonight, then crept into their bedroom. He undressed quickly, then slid between the sheets beside her. Though he tried to do it without waking her, there was a soft murmur and her head turned.
“Carl?”
“Yes, Melissa. It’s me. I didn’t mean to wake you.”
“Why didn’t you come right home?” she murmured sleepily. “Someone told David you were on the six o’clock steamboat.”
He was startled by that, just as he had been startled by the committee of new citizens waiting for him on the dock. It turned out that they weren’t sure when he would arrive but were meeting every boat that landed at Nauvoo. He had gone straight to the home of James Wilson and gotten the report on the current crisis. “The new citizens committee met me and asked me to come to a meeting,” he said softly. He said no more, hoping she was too sleepy to question him further.
It worked. There was a soft murmur, and then she was quiet again. Grateful that he didn’t have to face a confrontation this night, he lay very still until he was sure she was soundly asleep, then turned onto his side. He felt like cursing, that was what he really wanted to do. Curse the anti-Mormons for seizing five of the new citizens and beating them without determining if they were Mormons. Curse the five Mormons who were foolish enough to go north past Pontoosuc the very next day when tensions were so high and allow themselves to be kidnapped. Curse the new citizens and their indignation. Let McAuley and Brattle go and get the five hostages released. The determination to show the antis that they wouldn’t knuckle under to their bully tactics was only aggravating things further. And curse the timing of it all.
Things had not gone as well for him and Jean Claude in St. Louis as they hoped. The price of lumber was down. There was a glut on the market, partially because the long-sustained construction boom in Nauvoo and the surrounding settlements had been choked off as cleanly as a strangled goose. The big lumber rafts were no longer stopping at the bend in the river but went on down to St. Louis to sell the lumber off. So instead of coming home with three or four thousand dollars in his pocket, he had barely a thousand. That wasn’t going to help him convince Melissa that everything was going to be all right. He remembered clearly her parting words before he left. She didn’t want to stay in Nauvoo, which meant that she wanted them to go west and find her family. He had been dreading having to face her ever since he and Jean Claude had settled on a sale for less than half what they expected.
He turned over and buried his head in his pillow. Curse the whole situation of the Mormons and their enemies. Curse the state government for not doing one thing to intervene. If it weren’t for that, Carl’s life would be a lot simpler.
“Thanks for breakfast.”
Melissa smiled at him. “You’re welcome.”
“It’s good to be home.”
“I’m so glad that you are home, Carl. We’ve missed you.”
“I missed you the most, Daddy,” Sarah said. That started an instant debate over the truthfulness of that statement.
“Children,” Melissa broke in. “Don’t make your father sorry to be home.”
That shushed them for a moment, but when they saw their father wink at them they started to giggle again.
Carl turned to Melissa. “By the way, I saw the trunks in the parlor last night. Are you going through your things again?”
Melissa’s head jerked around. The smiles instantly died. The older children glanced anxiously back and forth at their mother and father. The tension in the room was suddenly palpable. Melissa looked away. “Carl and David are going to take the children down to the river and watch the steamboats after breakfast. I thought we could talk then.”
Carl felt himself go cold. This was worse than he suspected. He pressed his lips together, and picked up the last of his bread. “All right,” he said. “We’ll talk then.”
“Melissa, look, I know you’re upset with all of this, but we are not going anywhere. Things are going to settle down again, once they get those men released.” She watched him steadily but said nothing. Her emotionless expression and the flatness of her eyes irritated him a little. “Well, they are.”
“Why don’t you go tell that to Sister Young? It’s her husband and son who have been held hostage for the past four days—assuming they are still alive. Why don’t you go tell her that things will settle down? I’m sure that will comfort her to hear you say it.”
“There’s no call for sarcasm, Melissa. I know the situation is serious, but there is no direct threat to us.”
“Carl, did you know that your son has been hiring out to cut wheat? Did you know that?”
He flinched a little.
“Yes. He went out with a party east of town. It could easily have been him with that group up at Pontoosuc.” She was trembling now, fighting against letting her emotions take over. “If you had seen those men . . .” She shuddered. “It was horrible.”
“I know, I know,” he soothed. “And I’m not trying to say it wasn’t. But that doesn’t mean we are in imminent danger. More and more of the Mormons are leaving every day now. Once they’re gone, then things will be all right.”
There was a short, bitter laugh. “Have you forgotten so soon?”
“Forgotten what?”
“You say ‘more and more of the Mormons’ are leaving.
I
am a Mormon, Carl. And now it’s not just in name only anymore. I am one of them. If anyone asks, I will tell them I am firm in my faith. I will no longer deny what I know to be true. So how do you plan to deal with that little embarrassment, Carl? Tell me that.”
He
had
forgotten for the moment that complication. It was another thing that made him want to swear. Not that he cared a lot one way or another what she believed; but before, it didn’t matter that much. Now, if she really insisted on going around waving the flag of faith, it could prove to be a challenge.
She watched him, shaking her head sadly.
He took a quick breath. “Once the main body of the Church has gone, things will be all right again. The antis are just angry because your people promised to leave by spring.”
“Shall I tell you something else, Carl? It is more complicated than that.”
“What?” he asked warily. “What is more complicated?”
“You have three sons who want to be Mormons too.”
She sat back, watching the impact of her words on his face. Tears now welled up and filled her eyes. “I know what you think, but it’s not true. I haven’t tried to sway them while you were gone. They talked among themselves, and then Carl came and talked to me. They want to be baptized.”
“No.” It came out like a hammer blow on a piece of cold steel.
“They want to go west and join the rest of our family.”
“
No!
” He jumped to his feet, pacing angrily now. “You didn’t have to try and sway them. They’ll do whatever they think you want them to do.”
“That makes it easier for you, doesn’t it? If it’s my fault, then you don’t have to face the fact that your sons might actually believe it’s true.”
“They’re just boys, Melissa.”
“Why is it that they’re men when you expect them to work with you, and boys when it comes to what they believe?”
“I’m not going to argue with you. We’ve talked about this. I will not go west. There is nothing out there, Melissa. Nothing! I predict that within the year, Brigham Young is going to come slinking back looking for somewhere else to put his people. There’s nothing for us anywhere else but here. So get that into your head, Melissa. We are staying here. I will see that you are safe.”
“How much did you get for the lumber?”
It came from a totally unexpected direction and it took him back a step. “What?”
“Why haven’t you been bursting to tell me the news from St. Louis, Carl?”
“I . . .” She had totally flustered him. “We did all right. Not as good as we hoped, but we have . . .” He hesitated for a split second, which he instantly knew gave him away. “We have about a thousand dollars.”
There was a sad smile. “I guess it could have been worse.”
That infuriated him. He kicked viciously at the nearest trunk, hitting it hard enough that the lid, which was propped against a chair, slammed down. “I did the best I could, Melissa! We didn’t just stand around with our hands in our pockets, you know. There’s too much lumber down there right now. We were lucky to get what we did!”
Her face was incredulous. “Is that what you think, Carl? That I’m disappointed in you? No! I know you’re trying. But when are you going to see that we have nothing here anymore? Nothing! The store is a pile of ashes. The brickyard is all but closed. What are we going to do, Carl? You tell me. How are we going to survive?”
“I’ll find something else. Once things settle down, business will pick up again. We’ll rebuild the store. Sell the brickyard.”
“All the time you’re hiding the fact that your wife and sons are believing Mormons?”
“My sons are not Mormons!” he shouted. “And don’t you forget it.”
The tears spilled over now. “Carl, what’s happening to us? Why can’t we ever talk things through anymore?”
“I think you know the answer to that,” he snapped. “Since you turned religious again, you don’t listen anymore.”
She stared at him, her eyes wide and filled with pain.
“I . . .” He started toward her, but then let his anger take the reins again. He clamped his mouth shut and looked away.
He heard her turn and walk slowly to the hallway. She stopped. He looked up. Her back was still to him.
“Perhaps the next time you choose to go off and leave us here alone, we won’t wait to finish packing our things.”
He stepped forward, fists clenched, mouth tight. “What are you saying? Are you telling me you’re going to run out on me?”
“I’m telling you that I love you, Carl. I do. But I love my children too. I will not stand by and watch them be put in danger because you are too blind to see what is happening right before your very eyes.”
“So you’d leave me?” he flung back at her.
Her chin dropped and now the tears flowed freely. “I don’t know. Somehow I was hoping I wouldn’t be forced to make that decision.”
The morning of Thursday, the sixteenth of July, dawned bright and clear. By eight o’clock it was already promising to be a hot and humid day. Three things of great significance would take place on this day.
First, Brother Ezra T. Benson would be ordained and set apart as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles to take the place of John E. Page, who had fallen into apostasy.
Second, after hearing Wilford Woodruff’s report of a leadership crisis in England, the Quorum determined that Reuben Hedlock and Thomas Ward, who had been left in charge there, be disfellowshipped for refusing to follow counsel. At the same time it was voted that Elders Orson Hyde, Parley P. Pratt, and John Taylor be sent to England to put the affairs of the Church there back in order.
Third, Companies A, B, C, and E of the newly formed Mormon Battalion gathered together on Redemption Hill, on the eastern bluffs above the Missouri River, and were officially mustered into the United States Army of the West.
The entire Steed clan crossed over on the ferry and walked up the eastern bluffs. The children were as excited as if this were a great holiday. The adults were considerably more subdued. By afternoon the day was sweltering, and they were all sweating by the time they reached the assembly area. That did little to diminish the euphoria the children were feeling. Emily and Rachel, the oldest of the female cousins, raced up to Mary Ann as they came in sight of the gathering out ahead of them. “Grandma, can we go find Uncle Derek and Aunt Rebecca?” they clamored.
She smiled and nodded. “Yes. Just don’t get in the way.”
“I’m going too,” Luke hollered and took off after his sister. That was all it took. Half a dozen of the oldest cousins were off with a whoop. Lydia watched Josh carefully. He and Luke had been walking together—they were close to the same age—but Josh watched them go without stirring. She sighed. Once it was over, once they were actually gone, it would be easier, she thought. She wanted to reach out and touch him, reassure him that this was right, but she knew it wasn’t the time.
In a moment, Mark appeared again, running and waving. He was accompanied by Christopher, Derek and Rebecca’s oldest child. “They’re up here!” Mark shouted. “Come on.”
For a time it was little more than a pleasant and happy state of confusion on Redemption Hill. Men ran back and forth between their tents and their packs, grabbing last-minute items they had forgotten. Children raced everywhere, screeching and yelling just for the sheer joy of it. The officers and noncommissioned officers for each company, chosen from the ranks of the Saints themselves, shouted out orders, trying to get some control. They had little impact on anyone except those within a few feet of their voices.
At two o’clock the atmosphere suddenly changed. Several of the Twelve had arrived by then, including Brigham Young. A bugle sounded and everyone turned toward the sound. Mary Ann couldn’t see who had blown it, but in the silence that followed she heard a bellowing voice. “We’ll form into companies in a hollow square in ten minutes. Brethren, now is the time to say farewell to your families.”