History of Utah, 1540-1886 - Brigham Young University

STEPTOE'S INVESTIGATIONS. 493
mer was the people's choice, he refused to accept the
position, and a memorial signed by himself, by the
federal officials, the army officers, and all the prominent
citizens, was addressed to the president, asking
for the reappointment of Brigham as governor and
superintendent of Indian affairs. 25 The request was
granted, and the colonel and his command remained
in the valley until the following spring, being on good
terms with the Mormons, except for a fracas that occurred
between the soldiers and the saints on newyear's
day. 26
Orders had been given to Colonel Steptoe to arrest
and bring to trial the perpetrators of the Gunnison
massacre, and after much expense and the exercise of
great tact and judgment, most of them were secured
and indicted for murder. Eight of the offenders, including
a chief named Kanosh, were put on trial at
Nephi City; and though the judge distinctly charged
the jury that they must find the prisoners guilty or
not guilty of murder, a verdict of manslaughter was
returned against three of the accused, the rest being
acquitted. The sentence was three years imprisonment
in the Utah penitentiary, this being the severest
25 On Jan. 4, 1855, Bernhisel wrote from Washington to F. D. Richards: ' I
regret to inform you that Prest Pierce finally declined to reappoint Gov.
Young. Lieut-col Steptoe is the appointee.' Richards' Incidents in Utah
Hist. , MS. The memorial states that Brigham Young possesses the confidence
of the people of the territory without distinction of party or sect, that he is a
firm supporter of the constitution of the U. S., and that his reappointment
would serve the interests of the territory better than that of any other man,
while his removal would cause the deepest feeling of regret. A copy of it
will be found in Tullidge's Life of Young, 239-40, and in Skelton and Meik's
Defence of Mormonism, 22. Beadle states that Col Steptoe was entrapped by
two of Brigham 's 'decoy women,' and to avoid exposure resigned his commission
as governor. Life in Utah, 171; see also Waite's The Mormon Prophet,
27-8. There are no gounds for such a statement. By Orson Hyde, in Deseret
News, March 21, 1555, and by others of the Mormons, the colonel is spoken
of in the highest terms. Memorials for Brigham's reappointment were also
adopted by the legislature, for which see Utah, Acts Legist, (ed. 1855), 419-21.
26 A quarrel broke out between the troops and the Mormons in some of the
saloons; fire-arms were used, and several men wounded, two of the soldiers
severely. The entire legion turned out and threatened to annihilate Steptoe's
companies, compelling them to intrench and remain under arms for three
days. The matter was settled by mediation. Olshausen's Mormonen, 189. See
also S. F. Herald, March 14, 1S55, and Hickman's Destroying Angel, 107,
where it is stated that the brawl occurred on christmas day. No mention
of this matter is made in the official reports of the officers.