Footnotes
The other two surviving letters are Oliver Cowdery, Independence, MO, to the Church in Ohio, 29 Jan. 1831, in Letter to Hyrum Smith, 3–4 March 1831; and Letter from Oliver Cowdery, 8 Apr. 1831.
Williams was present in Missouri with Cowdery when this letter was written and thus had firsthand knowledge of what addressee was listed on the original packet. For discussion of Whitney’s franking privilege, see Historical Introduction to Letter from Oliver Cowdery, 8 Apr. 1831.
See Historical Introduction to Letter from Oliver Cowdery, 8 Apr. 1831.
Oliver Cowdery, Independence, MO, to William Clark, [St. Louis, MO], 14 Feb. 1831, U.S. Office of Indian Affairs, Central Superintendency, Records, vol. 6, p. 103; see also Letter from Oliver Cowdery, 8 Apr. 1831.
U.S. Office of Indian Affairs, Central Superintendency. Records, 1807–1855. Kansas State Historical Society, Topeka. Also available at kansasmemory.org.
Pratt later explained that he and the other missionaries to the Indians decided that “one of our number had better return to the church in Ohio, and perhaps to head quarters in New York, in order to communicate with the Presidency, report ourselves, pay a visit to the numerous churches we had organized on our outward journey, and also to procure more books.” (Pratt, Autobiography, 61.)
Pratt, Parley P. The Autobiography of Parley Parker Pratt, One of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Embracing His Life, Ministry and Travels, with Extracts, in Prose and Verse, from His Miscellaneous Writings. Edited by Parley P. Pratt Jr. New York: Russell Brothers, 1874.
Peter Whitmer Jr. recorded that after Cummins threatened to arrest them, the missionaries “then resorted among the Gentiles and declared the word.” (Whitmer, Journal, Dec. 1831, [1].)
Whitmer, Peter, Jr. Journal, Dec. 1831. CHL. MS 5873.
See Pratt, Autobiography, 61–64.
Pratt, Parley P. The Autobiography of Parley Parker Pratt, One of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Embracing His Life, Ministry and Travels, with Extracts, in Prose and Verse, from His Miscellaneous Writings. Edited by Parley P. Pratt Jr. New York: Russell Brothers, 1874.
Revelation, 7 May 1831 [D&C 49]; Pratt, Autobiography, 64–65, 73.
Pratt, Parley P. The Autobiography of Parley Parker Pratt, One of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Embracing His Life, Ministry and Travels, with Extracts, in Prose and Verse, from His Miscellaneous Writings. Edited by Parley P. Pratt Jr. New York: Russell Brothers, 1874.
See Revelation, 6 June 1831 [D&C 52:3, 42–43]; and Revelation, 20 July 1831 [D&C 57:1–3].
Cowdery and Ziba Peterson apparently baptized a dozen or so persons in Lafayette and Jackson counties in the months that followed, including Rebecca Hopper, whom Peterson married on 11 August 1833. (Romig, “Lamanite Mission,” 30–32; Lafayette Co., MO, Marriage Records, 1821–1919, vol. B, p. 21, 11 Aug. 1831, microfilm 959,414, U.S. and Canada Record Collection, FHL.)
Romig, Ronald E. “The Lamanite Mission.” John Whitmer Historical Association Journal 14 (1994): 25–33.
U.S. and Canada Record Collection. FHL.
See Isaiah 59:14.
This letter from church leaders in Kirtland is not extant and the date of its composition is unknown. However, the previous letter to Cowdery from the Kirtland area, written during a time of poor weather, took approximately a month to arrive at its destination. The letter mentioned here was therefore likely written sometime in early April 1831.
See Acts 5:41.
See Jude 1:9, 13; and Romans 12:19.
After its founding in 1827, Independence quickly became the eastern terminus for the Santa Fe Trail and the starting point for many western travelers, so Cowdery may have had ready access to such information about the Navajo people from local travelers.
This insertion was likely added in the wrong place by Frederick G. Williams when he copied this letter into JS’s letterbook. He apparently intended to insert the caret between the words “you” and “all.”
Pratt had presumably carried the letter from Cowdery to Superintendent William Clark requesting permission for the Mormons to proselytize among the Indians. When Pratt arrived in St. Louis, Clark was away from the city and had been at least since 9 January 1831. John Ruland, subagent of Indian affairs, conducted business for Clark in his absence until sometime in March. Pratt likely arrived in Kirtland in April, but he soon left on a short mission to the Shakers and a subsequent mission near Kirtland. (John Ruland, [St. Louis, MO], to John Henry Eaton, [Washington DC], 9 Jan. 1831, U.S. Office of Indian Affairs, Central Superintendency, Records, vol. 4, p. 198; William Clark, St. Louis, MO, to John Henry Eaton, [Washington DC], 31 Mar. 1831, U.S. Office of Indian Affairs, Central Superintendency, Records, vol. 4, p. 207; Historical Introduction to Revelation, 7 May 1831 [D&C 49]; Pratt, Autobiography, 64–65, 73.)
U.S. Office of Indian Affairs, Central Superintendency. Records, 1807–1855. Kansas State Historical Society, Topeka. Also available at kansasmemory.org.
Pratt, Parley P. The Autobiography of Parley Parker Pratt, One of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Embracing His Life, Ministry and Travels, with Extracts, in Prose and Verse, from His Miscellaneous Writings. Edited by Parley P. Pratt Jr. New York: Russell Brothers, 1874.
TEXT: Possibly “Scor[ta]tions”, meaning “fornicators.” Alternatively, Frederick G. Williams may have mistranscribed Cowdery’s biblical wording “scorpions” (see Ezekiel 2:6).