--- title: Improvement Era description: Monthly periodical of the Mormon church, 1897 onward. This library holds the issues of November 1897 to December 1930. authors: - Snow, Moroni collections: - periodicals tags: - magazine - improvement-era periodical: Improvement Era volume: 15 number: 4 published: 1912-02 publisher: Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations publisher_place: Salt Lake City language: en type: magazine reference: 'Snow, Moroni, "From Nauvoo to Salt Lake XII," *Improvement Era* 15, no. 4 (February 1912): 359–362.' source: url: https://archive.org/details/improvementera1504unse transcription: Transcribed from the Internet Archive scan of each issue (the item for each issue is named in the issue's own source); unnumbered advertising leaves are omitted, printed page numbers are kept as page markers. identifier: improvementera1504unse start_page: 359 end_page: 362 rights: status: public-domain basis: US publication 1930 or earlier (published 1912-02) source: https://archive.org/details/improvementera1504unse publication_year: 1912 note: The Internet Archive item metadata carries a blanket "© Copyright by Intellectual Reserve, Inc." notice. The library owner judged it inapplicable because this issue was published in 1912, before 1931; a scan-level notice does not restore copyright. --- # From Nauvoo to Salt Lake XII From Nauvoo to Salt Lake in the Van of the Pioneers The Original Diary of Erastus Snow EDITED BY HIS SON, MORONI SNOW XII. In our last number the advance company had arrived near the Bear river. The journal continues Sunday, July n. We remained in our place. A sulphur spring was discovered near our camp, also a spring of what is called mineral tar or bituminous pitch, being, in the opinion of Professor Carrington, about 87 per cent carbon. Some of our men filled up their tar buckets and used it for wheel grease. 1 2th. We crossed the Bear river, which was about two feet deep with rapid current running north, and continued our course a little south of west sixteen and a half miles, over a countrj somewhat mountainous though generally of a smooth surface There has been a very evident improvement in the soil productions and general appearance of the country since we left Fort Bridger, but more particularly since we crossed Bear river. The mountain sage has in a great measure given place to grass and a of the variety of prairie flowers and scrub cedars upon the sides hills. We crossed the Bear River Divide this aftern< »on and descended from the head of a narrow vale about three miles, and camped at the head of a broad and beautiful opening of the valley, wher two small springs run west.Here we found excellent spring water, deep, black soil, and the best led for our stock we have had on our route. We named Matthew's Vale. it >n our right, 1 in the side of the bluff, was a curious cave, extending under broad, shelving rock, which, by some means among the boys, have had gained the title of Riding's Cave. Toda) we camp, and there seems to be plenty of game wes lope brought into of Bear river, but between the pass and Bear river we sau 1 little. We saw bones and ancienl signs of buffalo, bul we are t 360 IMPROVEMENT ERA by mountaineers that there have been none of these animals west of the pass for some years. The President being taken with a severe illness, and Captain Rockwood of the first division being nigh unto death, and many others of the camp sick, it was thought advisable to stop. Twentythree of the best teams were selected, with the ablest men (Professor Orson Pratt at their head), to set forward and prepare the way, and to make their way over the Lake mountains around the Weber river canyon. The balance of us remained in camp until Thursday afternoon, the 15th instant, when, the sick being on the mend, we again took up the line of march, and traveled down a vale four and a half miles, the President and Colonel Rockwood riding upon a bed in a carriage. 1 6th. We continued down the same valley six and a half miles and camped about a mile from the main fork of Weber river. Our descent was very rapid all day, while the top of the bluffs seemed to maintain about the same level. Down this narrow vale runs a small creek, fed by the springs of the valley, which we had to cross about every half mile. Towards night, for about onehalf or three-quarters of a mile, the whole camp seemed , perfectly immerged in a dense thicket of large shrubbery and weeds with scattering trees which filled the valley. As we emerged from the thicket we passed through some extensive beds of what mountaineers call "wild wheat," small patches of which we have seen all the way from Bear river. On the right hand, from the thicket down to the river, is a range (nearly perpendicular) of conglomerate rock or pudding-stone of immense height. On the left, the bluffs, though equally high, were a little more sloping, and covered with vegetation. The extreme heights on either side of this evening's encampment are probably not less than 1,500 feet, and the valley about one-third of a mile wide. 17th. We followed down the creek to where it forms a junction at right angles with the river, which here runs about northwest, down which we traveled about one and a half miles, when the President, growing worse, became unable to ride, and we camped upon the right bank of the river, two and a half miles from our last night's encampment. This afternoon a quorum of the Priesthood ascended the heights about two miles, and appeared before the Lord, and offered up their united prayers in behalf of President Young and the sick in camp, and the Saints who are IN THE VAN OF THE PIONEERS 361 following, as well as for our wives and children whom we have left behind. As we descended, we discovered in the head of a deep ravine that opens to the river valley, a conglomerate column, about one hundred and twenty-five feet high, thirty feet in diameter at the base, and ten at the top. The round stones composing the column vary in size from a pebble to those that would weigh five hundred pounds.. Its top may be seen from the road about one and a half miles below the mouth of the small creek. Upon a further examination of these hills, we found numerous smaller towers of a similar kind, resembling old factory or furnace chimneys, all situated in the heads of hollows extending up near high points of the and masses of stone below them, showing a hills, continual wearing down of these columns, though in the wearing down of the hills these had so far resisted the operation of the elements. In many places we found where similar columns had been prostrated, and, sliding down the rugged steeps, had formed windrows of stone resembling a prostrated wall. Sunday, the 18th. We had a prayer meeting in camp, remembering before the Lord the case of the President and the sickincamp, and also in the afternoon a meeting for breaking bread and instruction and exhortation. We had an excellent meeting. The Holy Spirit was upon us, and faith seemed to spring up in nigh every bosom. In the afternoon the President, who had been and the effects of the prayers unto death, was very sensibly better, of the brethren were visible throughout the camp. Monday, the 19th. The President and the Twelve thought it him, and about not advisable for the camp to wait longer for accompanied by forty teams left our encampment on the Weber, Apostles Willard Richards and George A. Smith, with instructions advance company led by Elder Pratt, and halt at to follow the valley and put in our the first suitable spot after reaching the lake regardless of our final seed potatoes, buckwheat, turnips, etc., and others, relocation. Elders Kimball, Woodruff and Benson, followed down the We mained with the President and the sick. came in sight of the canyon, river about three miles, forded it. Pass and ascended a where turning to the left, we took Pratt's frequently crossing the rivumountain, which was a gradual rise, which flowed down the valley. We passed several excellent let little after noon, which was springs, and reached the summit a was over a rough about six miles from the river. Our descent 362 IMPROVEMENT ERA road, which we found necessary often to stop to repair, though our advance company had worked it much. We descended nearly which proved to be a branch five miles, and struck a large creek, of the Weber river, which Elder Pratt named Canyon Creek, from the fact of its entering a tremendous, impassable canyon, just below where the road strikes it, and also winds its way between these mountain cliffs and empties into the river between the upper and lower canyons on that stream. Here the road took up the creek south, and the snowy mountains, encircling us on the south and west, rearing their heads above the intervening mountains, showed us plainly that our climbing was not yet at an end. W e stopped T tonight nn a small patch of grass, surrounded by the thick shrubbery on this creek, having traveled thirteen and three-fourths miles. (To h<) continued)