CHAPTER LIV.

CHAPTER LIV.Family Letters:—"My Fiftieth Year:"—Response by John Taylor.

Family Letters:—"My Fiftieth Year:"—Response by John Taylor.

NEW YORK,January 3d, 1857.

MY DEAR SON PARLEY: I am well; how are you? Please write and let me know. I long to see and hear from you.

I am getting along very comfortably. You will see by the enclosed how "Mormonism" keeps printers and editors busy. Give my best love to all the family, and especially to the children. Remember me to Olivia and Moroni. Do the best you can for me and my family, and try to get a good education; and try by prayer and doing right to cultivate an acquaintance with the Spirit of the Lord.

Read the enclosed letter to the family, and then have it carefully laid away as a part of my history.

Now, my son, farewell.God bless you. Amen.Your affectionate father,P.P. PRATT.

NEW YORK,January 3d, 1857.MY DEAR FAMILY:

A happy New Year to each of you. I am well. I spent Christmas in Philadelphia in a public party of the Saints—say 300 persons—assembled in a large hall neatly furnished and lighted. There were prayers, hymns, songs, recitations, comic, tragic, sublime and ridiculous. There was some music and dancing, merry making, eating and drinking till midnight. I did not dance, but I preached and bore testimony.

On the following Sunday I preached twice in the same hall, some 500 persons being present.

On Wednesday, December 31st, I arrived in this city and put up with President John Taylor. This closed the year 1856.

January 1st, 1857.—I attended a public party of the Saints here from 5 P.M. till midnight. It was like the one in Philadelphia—only there was no dancing. About 400 persons were present. During this party the news arrived of the landing of 220 Saints at Castle Garden direct from Europe, all in good health and spirits. These we visited next day in company with Presidents Taylor, G. A. Smith, and E. Snow, who are here now, and we shall hold a council. The Saints here are mostly emigrants from Europe and very poor. I am now well clothed, and God has opened my way to obtain sufficient funds for travelling expenses.

A letter from my Brother Nelson announces that all is well there, and they are overjoyed to hear that I am to visit them. He is trying to sell and go to the valley.

Brother Orson writes to me that all is well with him.

I have gone as far East as I intend to go. I hope soon to commence to return westward, visiting my brother Nelson as I go. The darkness which broods over this country can be felt—it is no place for me. I feel like going to the frontiers and fitting out as soon as grass grows.

The whole country is being overwhelmed with the most abominable lying, mockery, and hatred of the Saints, and with all manner of corruption. The legions of spirits are let loose and are working wonders. All things are ripening for a universal overthrow of all human power in this land.

I am almost an intruder wherever I go. I am a stranger and the world knows me not. There are a few of the Saints and others who will hear us, and not exactly demand a vote of thanks, although some of them would think it a great condescension for which we ought to thank them.

O, God, let me retire from such a generation into dens, caves, deserts, mountains—anywhere. But I will say no more about them. I feel for my family and pray for them continually. I hope they with me may have grace to endure to the end, and be saved in the kingdom of God.

My history is mostly completed. It will probably not be published in my day. Should anything happen to me, and the record be preserved, I wish it carefully compiled, copied, and taken care of.

My feelings, and the affections of my heart, I will not attempt to describe, but will express them in person when I return. Should I never return, be assured they are as warm and as tender as ever, and I think a little more so.

I hope you will not be cast down or borrow any trouble about me because I admit an if, as to my safe return. I have no doubt but that I shall return in safety and live to a good old age. But still I must acknowledge that I do anticipate with a great deal of pleasure the change of worlds. And, every day that I work on my history, I naturally think that the word finis will soon be added to the end. * * * *

Write when you can via California and Panama. Now God bless and preserve you all, even to little Mathoni. Amen.

Yours ever,P. P. PRATT.

To my wife HANNAHETTE and others.

MY FIFTIETH YEAR

I am fifty years old! I have lived to seeSeven times seven and a Jubilee.That period famed in the days of yoreAs a grand release for the humble poor;When the pledg'd estate was again restor'd,And the bondman free'd from his tyrant lord.When man his fellow was bound to forgive,And begin anew to think and to live.The nations have hail'd the year of my birthAs a Jubilee to the groaning earth.*The triumphs of steam over land and seaHave stamp'd the age of my Jubilee.I have mark'd its progress at ev'ry stride,From the day it was launch'd on the Hudson's tideTill it conquer'd the ocean—grasp'd the land,And join'd the world in a common band.I have liv'd to behold the lightnings yieldTo the mandate of man, and take the field,As a servant-runner to bear the newsIn an instant, where its lord might choose.

[Footnote] *The first steamboat was launched in 1807, on the Hudson river, by Robert Fulton.

And, scarce less strange, I have liv'd to beholdAMormon Sage, with his wand of gold,Overturn the world, and toss it upAs a teller of Fortunes would his cup.*All these are facts; but of little worth,Compared with a Prophet restored to earth.I have seen his day and have heard his voiceWhich enraged a world, while the meek rejoice.I have read the fate of all earthly things:The end of thrones, and the end of kings.I have learned that truth alone shall stand,And the Kingdom of God fill every land.I have seen that Kingdom rolling along,And taking its seat 'mid the mountains strong;While the nations wondered, but could not tellTo what these wondrous things would swell.I have wandered far, over land and sea,To proclaim to the world its destiny—To cry to the nations, repent and live,And be ready the bridegroom to receive.

[Footnote] *An American soldier, of the Mormon Battalion, discovered the gold mines in California in 1847.

I have wandered far—I have wandered wide,From Maine to the wild Missouri's tide;And over the Atlantic's sea-girt islesFull many a weary thousand miles.I have trampled the desert's burning sandsAnd the snow-clad mountains of unknown lands.'Mid the crystal waters of DeseretI have pulled the oar and cast the net.I have climbed the steeps 'mid the golden ore,And roamed o'er the lone Pacific shore.I have ploughed its bosom many a dayTo visit the nations far away.I have stood on Chili's distant shore,Where the Polar Star is seen no more.I have gazed on the Andes' heights of snow,And roamed 'mid the flowery plains below.I have toiled with the great in freedom's cause,And assisted to give to a State its laws.I have lain in a dungeon, bound in chains,And been honored in Courts where Justice reigns.In a thousand joys, and a thousand fearsI have struggled on through my fifty years.And now, by the law of God, I am free;I will seek to enjoy my Jubilee.I will hie me home, to my mountain dell,And will say to the "Christian" world—farewell!I have served ye long—; 'twas a thankless task;To retire in peace is all I ask.Another fifty years will fully proveOur message true, and all our motives love.Then shall an humble world in reverence bow,And hail the Prophets so rejected now.Kings shall revere, and nations incense bringTo Zion's temple and to Zion's King.I shall be there and celebrate the day'Till twice ten fifties shall have passed away.

Another fifty years will fully proveOur message true, and all our motives love.Then shall an humble world in reverence bow,And hail the Prophets so rejected now.Kings shall revere, and nations incense bringTo Zion's temple and to Zion's King.I shall be there and celebrate the day'Till twice ten fifties shall have passed away.

A RESPONSE TO P. P. PRATT'S "FIFTIETH YEAR"BY JOHN TAYLOR

A RESPONSE TO P. P. PRATT'S "FIFTIETH YEAR"

BY JOHN TAYLOR

Thou art "fifty years old"—I am glad to seeThat thou now canst hope for a Jubilee.Go rest thee, my friend, for weary and longThou hast faithfully striven with a wayward throng;With a world environed with error's chainThou hast wrestled and struggled, but not in vain.On thy native shore and on foreign landThou hast battled for truth with a master hand,And their cities, and towns, and hamlets have rungWith the sound of truth, with the voice of song,And thousands in Zion do now rejoice,Who've read thy works or heard thy voice,And millions have seen thy bosom swellWith celestial truths thou lov'st so well.Let drivelling sycophants bow the kneeTo that chameleon shrine, popularity,And with honey'd lips, bound with mammon's spellAnd with wheedling, whining, canting tongue,Daub o'er the deeds of a hellish throng.'Twas thine the mask from their loathsome faceTo rend, and exhibit their foul disgrace.Thou hast grappled with sages in error rife,Thou hast taught to the erring the way of life;With flaming words and a burning penThou hast bearded gaunt priestcraft in his den,And said Baal's grizzly priests, avaunt!I dare you in your dark, ghastly haunt.And the canting, craving minions fledAt the truths thou penned and the words thou said.With Elijah's faith and Elijah's rod,Thou despised their power and defied their god,And made the canting hirelings cowerBeneath the truth's keen withering power.Thou show'd them their systems were doom'd to fallThat "Upharsin" was written on Babel's wall.Thou hast spent 'midst their hordes a busy life;Thou art leaving the den of their Babel strife.Let others know now 'mid the nations roam,And hie thee away to thy mountain home.If, sleeping at night, the weary mayForget the cares and toils of day;And if by God to man is givenA day of rest in every seven;If the pledged possession could be restored,On the grand release by Jehovah's word;If the debtor's bonds could then be broke,And the slave be freed from a master's yoke,And the very land a partaker beOf the general jubilant Jubilee;If all bonds were broken on that day,And chains and manacles thrown away;If throughout the land, by every tongue,All joined in the joyous Jubilee song;If debtors and slaves and earth were free,Thou oughtest to have a Jubilee.If a wish from a sincere friendly heartCan to thee any comfort or joy impart;If a fervent prayer to the God of graceCould smooth thy path in thy onward race,That prayer would be, may grace be givenTo wend thy onward course to Heaven.May'st thou abound in corn and wine,And the blessings of plenty now be thine;May thy family all be free from care,And a husband's and father's plenty share;May thy sun go down with glory rife,And dying may'st thou burst into life;And, when sleeping among the silent dead,Have the blessings of millions on thy head;And living with God, may'st thou be free,And partake of an endless Jubilee.

Let drivelling sycophants bow the kneeTo that chameleon shrine, popularity,And with honey'd lips, bound with mammon's spellAnd with wheedling, whining, canting tongue,Daub o'er the deeds of a hellish throng.'Twas thine the mask from their loathsome faceTo rend, and exhibit their foul disgrace.

Thou hast grappled with sages in error rife,Thou hast taught to the erring the way of life;With flaming words and a burning penThou hast bearded gaunt priestcraft in his den,And said Baal's grizzly priests, avaunt!I dare you in your dark, ghastly haunt.And the canting, craving minions fledAt the truths thou penned and the words thou said.With Elijah's faith and Elijah's rod,Thou despised their power and defied their god,And made the canting hirelings cowerBeneath the truth's keen withering power.Thou show'd them their systems were doom'd to fallThat "Upharsin" was written on Babel's wall.Thou hast spent 'midst their hordes a busy life;Thou art leaving the den of their Babel strife.Let others know now 'mid the nations roam,And hie thee away to thy mountain home.

If, sleeping at night, the weary mayForget the cares and toils of day;And if by God to man is givenA day of rest in every seven;If the pledged possession could be restored,On the grand release by Jehovah's word;If the debtor's bonds could then be broke,And the slave be freed from a master's yoke,And the very land a partaker beOf the general jubilant Jubilee;If all bonds were broken on that day,And chains and manacles thrown away;If throughout the land, by every tongue,All joined in the joyous Jubilee song;If debtors and slaves and earth were free,Thou oughtest to have a Jubilee.

If a wish from a sincere friendly heartCan to thee any comfort or joy impart;If a fervent prayer to the God of graceCould smooth thy path in thy onward race,That prayer would be, may grace be givenTo wend thy onward course to Heaven.May'st thou abound in corn and wine,And the blessings of plenty now be thine;May thy family all be free from care,And a husband's and father's plenty share;May thy sun go down with glory rife,And dying may'st thou burst into life;And, when sleeping among the silent dead,Have the blessings of millions on thy head;And living with God, may'st thou be free,And partake of an endless Jubilee.

FINIS.

APPENDIX

Soon after the last extract from his journal, President P. P. Pratt left St. Louis for Arkansas, where he was followed by three bloodthirsty wretches, who had previously declared their intention to kill him. To aid them in their sanguinary designs they preferred fictitious charges against him, from which he was honorably discharged by a United States Court at Van Buren. These assassins then followed him and murdered him in cold blood, near Van Buren, Arkansas, May 13, 1857.

We extract the following, in relation to his death, fromThe Mormonof May 30, published in New York, John Taylor, Ed.:

ASSASSINATION OF PRESIDENT P. P. PRATT.

"Our readers will doubtless be startled with the above announcement; our heart is deeply pained to say it, but we have no reason for doubting the sad intelligence that has reached us, though, as yet, only by the way of the public press. A few days ago we were advised of his apprehension near Fort Gibson; and, close upon the receipt of that information, we learned, by telegraphic despatch, that he had been assassinated near Van Buren, Arkansas, May 13. * * *

"As we have not the space this week that we require to enter into details, and may, before another issue, receive additional information on the subject, we shall only say, for the benefit of those who are interested, that his assassins followed him some twelve miles from the place of trial, and, taking advantage of his lonely position, shot him.

"Though we deeply deplore the loss to the Church of such a great and upright man, and the bereavement to his family, yet we mourn not. His life has been one of honor and faithfulness; his days have been well spent in the service of his God; his name is revered by thousands and tens of thousands, and will be honored by millions yet unborn; while that of his cowardly assassins, and those who have cheered them on to this damning deed, and who now rejoice over their crime, will be loathsome, and a stink in the nostrils of God and good men."

The following is extracted from theMillennial Starof July 4, 1857, and written by his brother, Orson Pratt, who was then Editor of theStar:

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH OF PARLEY P. PRATT.

"This great Apostle and martyr of the nineteenth century was born on the 12th day of April, 1807, in Burlington, Otsego county, State of New York. He was the third son of Jared and Charity Pratt; Jared was the son of Obadiah and Jemima Pratt; Obadiah was the son of Christopher and Sarah Pratt; Christopher was the son of William and Hannah Pratt; William was the son of Joseph Pratt; Joseph was the son of Lieutenant William and Elizabeth Pratt, who were found among the first settlers of Hartford, Connecticut, in the year 1639. They are supposed to have accompanied the Rev. Thomas Hooker and his congregation, about one hundred in number, from Newtown, now called Cambridge, Massachusetts, through a dense wilderness, inhabited only by savages and wild beasts, and became the first founders of the colony at Hartford, in June, 1636.

"This ancient pilgrim, William Pratt, was a member of the Legislature for some twenty-five or thirty sessions; and the General Court gave him one hundred acres of land in Saybrook, Connecticut, for service performed as lieutenant in the Pequot war; he was one of the judges of the first Court in New London County. Parley P. Pratt is a lineal descendant, of the seventh generation, from that distinguished pilgrim and humble pioneer to the new world.

"The youthful days of Parley P. Pratt were characterized by the soberness and thoughtfulness of manhood. Though from adverse circumstances his education was extremely limited, yet he displayed, even in youth, an originality of mind seldom exhibited. In September, 1830, he, being led by the Spirit of the Lord from his home in the State of Ohio, came several hundred miles eastward, where he fortunately obtained a copy of one of the most remarkable works of modern times—the Book of Mormon. He read the same, was convinced of its divine authenticity, and traveled in search of the highly favored men of God who had seen angels and heard the voice of the Almighty. He soon succeeded in finding some of them, from whom he learned that about five months previous the first Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter-Day Saints had been organized. He requested baptism, and was immediately thereafter ordained an Elder. The same month he visited Canaan, Columbia County, New York—the county where he had spent many of his youthful days—and after preaching a few times in different neighborhoods, and baptizing Orson Pratt, his brother, he returned to Seneca County.

"Receiving a revelation through Joseph the Prophet, he, in company with three or four others, performed a mission, some fifteen hundred miles, to the western boundaries of the State of Missouri, and was among the first of the Saints to stand upon that choice land where the City of Zion is hereafter to be built, preparatory to the second advent of our Saviour.

"In the spring of 1831 he returned to the northern part of Ohio, where he met Joseph the Prophet. In the summer he again performed a mission through Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Missouri, preaching, baptizing and building up the Church.

"In the autumn of 1833 he and about twelve hundred men, women and children were driven by a murderous, furious mob from their own houses and lands in Jackson County, Missouri. Two hundred houses were burned, cattle shot, hay stacks and grain burned, many whipped until their bowels gushed out; others killed, and the afflicted remnant driven across the river into Clay County.

"Soon after this Elder Pratt performed a long journey of about fifteen hundred miles east, preaching repentance and strengthening the Saints.

"In 1834 he again returned to Clay County, Missouri, officiating in his holy calling wherever he went.

"In February, 1835, having returned to the northern part of Ohio, he was chosen and ordained one of the Twelve Apostles of this last dispensation, and the same year performed a lengthy journey through Pennsylvania, New York, and several of the New England States, and returned again to Ohio.

"In 1836 he visited Canada, and established a large branch of theChurch in Toronto, and other branches in adjoining towns.

"In 1837 he visited New York City, where he founded a large branchof the Church.

"In 1838 he removed to Caldwell County, in the western boundaries of Missouri; and in the same year another dreadful persecution commenced against the Saints, and they were again driven from their own houses and inheritances, and their property to the amount of millions was destroyed; some scores of defenseless men, women and children were murdered; some scores of others were incarcerated in dungeons, among whom was P. P. Pratt; the balance, about fifteen thousand, were exterminated from the State, and found refuge in Illinois. Elder Pratt was kept in prison,without trial, about eight months, when, by the kind providence of God, he made his escape on July 4, 1839. Immediately after gaining his liberty he published a history of the Missouri persecution, written while in prison. The first edition appeared in Detroit in 1839.

"In 1840 he, in company with others of the Twelve, came to England, and in the city of Manchester commenced the publication of a periodical entitled theMillennial Star, which has continued until the present time—-this being the forty-eighth volume (1886).

"In 1841 he was appointed the President over all the British Conferences, and remained in this high and honorable station until the autumn of 1842, during which he edited theStar, superintended the Saints' emigration, and published several small but interesting works. The following winter he returned to Illinois, where he continued laboring in the ministry for one or two years.

"About the beginning of the year 1845 he was appointed the President over all the Churches in the New England and Middle States, his headquarters being at New York City, where he published a periodical entitledThe Prophet. In the summer he returned to Nauvoo.

"In February, 1846, he was again driven from his home by a ruthless mob. Some fifteen or twenty thousand Saints were also driven from the United States about the same time, with the loss of houses, and lands, and an immense amount of property, which the mob are in the unmolested possession of until the present day. After wading through unparalleled sufferings with his family, he and the suffering Saints succeeded in reaching the Indian country at Council Bluffs, and being called by the Holy Ghost, through the Prophet Brigham Young, to go to England, he left his family upon the broad prairie, without house or scarcely any food, to comply with the word of the Lord. He arrived in England, assisted in setting the Churches in order, and in strengthening the Saints throughout the British islands.

"In the spring of 1847 he returned to his family and brethren; and in the summer and autumn of that year he removed to Great Salt Lake Valley, and suffered incredible hardships until the harvest of 1848.

"He assisted in forming a Constitution for the Provisional Government of Deseret, and was elected a member of the Senate in the General Assembly; and was afterwards elected to the Legislative Council when Utah became a Territory of the United States.

"The year 1851 he was sent on a mission to the Pacific islands and to South America.

"In the summer of 1855 he returned over the Sierra Nevada mountains to his home, and occupied a part of his time in preaching in the various settlements of Utah, and at other times laboring with his own hands in the cultivation of his farm. The following winter he officiated as chaplain in the Legislative Council at the State House in Fillmore City.

"In the autumn of 1856 he accompanied about twenty missionaries across the plains to the States. During the winter and part of the following spring he visited the Saints at St. Louis, Philadelphia, New York and other places, preaching, writing and publishing the glad tidings of the kingdom of God.

"And finally, on the 13th of May, 1857, he fell a noble martyr for the cause of truth, which he had advocated with such untiring perseverance for nearly twenty-seven years.

"Among the numerous writings of this martyred Apostle may be mentioned first, the 'Voice of Warning,' printed in New York in 1838, and which has since passed through many editions, and been translated into several foreign languages; second, his 'History of the Missouri Persecutions;' third, his 'Poems;' fourth, his 'Key to Theology;' a masterly production, lately published. 'The History of his Life,' up to near the time of his martyrdom, was written by himself, and is now about ready for the press; this will doubtless prove to be one of the most interesting works proceeding from his pen.

"O, how pleasant is the death of a righteous person! he lays down his body with a sure and certain hope of coming forth from the tomb in the morning of the first resurrection, to reign as a mighty King and Priest of the Most High God, to sit enthroned in eternal glory, ruling with power and dominion for ever and ever.

"O, kind hearted, affectionate brother! how dearly we loved thee in life I how joyous to our soul were the words of life which flowed from thy mouth by the pure spirit of inspiration! how lovely still is our remembrance of thee! We weep not for thy death, for it was glorious! Thou hast left us only for a short moment, and we shall soon embrace thee again! Thy fiftieth year had but just rolled away, and now thy Jubilee has come! Rest in thy Father's house, with all the noble martyrs of the nineteenth century, until the Jubilee of the earth shall also come; then shalt thou return and reign triumphantly with all the redeemed of Adam's race."

From the following letter, written only about four months prior to his martyrdom, he plainly indicates that his pilgrimage and "personal history in this world,"' were near their close:

"New York, United States,January 2d, 1857.

"Dear Brother Orson—I received your kind letter on the 30th December, 1856. I was thereby glad to hear from you and of your welfare.

"I am well; I spent about a month in St. Louis; I then came on to Cincinnati and stayed four days, drawing full houses. I arrived in Philadelphia the day before Christmas—was present next day at a grand party in that city in Washington Hall. It was a fine time. Sunday last I preached three times to a full house.

"I arrived here on Wednesday last; found Presidents Taylor and Smith as well as usual.

"Yesterday I attended a party here, in the Saints' Hall; it was an interesting affair, some four hundred persons being present. We were entertained with songs, prayers, preaching, praying, recitations, eating, drinking, etc.

"In the midst of our evening's enjoyment the news arrived of the arrival of the Columbia, with a ship load of Saints from England. To-day we accompanied brother Taylor to see them. All well, but a rough passage; no deaths. The weather is mild here, and the winter so far very fine.

"I have not yet seen the Pratt family, of whom you speak, but I think I will visit them in a day or two.

"You ask how long I will stay in the States. I answer, till spring. I will then go home, if God will, if I have to go with a hand cart. This country is no place for me; the darkness is so thick I can literally feel it. I cannot obtain the least assistance here for my family; a tight match to obtain travelling expenses.

"I have heard nothing from home since October 1st, but I hope to hear soon. I congratulate you on the marriage of your first born, and hope you will soon become a grandfather.

"Now, dear brother Orson, be of good courage—our pilgrimage will soon be over, and our personal history in this world will naturally come to the wordFINIS.

"As to my history, I have it now complete from my birth up to to-day. It will contain about as much reading as the Book of Mormon. I would publish it, in part or in full, if gold was plentiful. * * *

"I have written to Nelson Pratt and received an answer; he is well. I am going there soon, if all is well.

"I am to start from St Louis for home just as early in the spring as the weather will permit. Farewell! God bless you.

"I am your own brother,

"P. P. Pratt."

GENEALOGY

The following correspondence, extracted from a letter from my brother, Orson Pratt, Sen., dated at Washington, D. C, March 10th, 1853, throws a clear light upon our ancestry, back as far as the earliest settlements of the Pilgrim Fathers in Saybrook and Hartford, Conn.

"My dear brotherParley—I embrace the present opportunity to write a few lines to you. * * *

"It affords me much joy to be able to inform you that I have obtained the names and some knowledge of our ancestors back for many generations.

"The genealogy runs thus: Our father, Jared Pratt, was the son of Obadiah, who was the son of Christopher, who was the son of William Pratt, who was the son of Joseph Pratt, who was the son of Lieutenant William and Elizabeth Pratt, who is supposed to have come with his brother, John Pratt, from Essex County, England, about the year 1633, who were found among the first settlers of Hartford, Connecticut, in the year 1639. They are supposed to have accompanied the Rev. Thomas Hooker and his congregation, about one hundred in number, from Newton, now called Cambridge, Massachusetts, through a dense wilderness, inhabited only by savages and wild beasts, and became the first founders of the colony at Hartford, Connecticut, in June, 1636, and thence to Saybrook about the year 1645.

"The way I came by this information is as follows: Seeing a short editorial in some of my exchange papers, that there was an attempt being made to search out the lineal descendants of Lieutenant Wm. Pratt, and that the Rev. Frederick W. Chapman, of South Glastenbury, Conn., was engaged in that work, I immediately addressed a letter to him, giving him the names of Jared, Obadiah and Christopher, and asking him for all the information he was in possession of in relation to our ancestors. He immediately sent me a letter and two printed circulars. The following is a copy of the letter:

South Glastenbury,March 5th1853.

"Dear Sir—I have just received your favor. It affords me pleasure to be able to show you the connecting links between your grandfather, Obadiah Pratt, and the first settler, William Pratt, who came with the company that located at Hartford, Conn. He received a portion of land in the first distribution in February, 1639. He married Elizabeth Clark, daughter of John Clark, of Milford, Connecticut, about the same time. He had eight children. Of these, two were born in Hartford. He removed to Saybrook in 1645. His third child, Joseph Pratt, born at Saybrook, August 1st, 1648.

SECOND GENERATION.

Joseph Pratt & Sarah Chapman, Married September, 1686.Thirteen children—five by a former wife. William one of the children.

THIRD GENERATION.

William Pratt & Hannah Hough, Married October 8, 1700.

Six children, viz:Joseph, born April 13, 1103.Ephraim, born April 1, 1705Margaret, born April 1, 1708Christopher, born Nov. 4, 1712Elizabeth, born Jan. 20, 1717Experience, born Sept. 28, 1720

FOURTH GENERATION

Christopher Pratt, Sarah Pratt, Married June 14, 1739

Children:Stephen, born June 30, 1740, at Saybrook.Obadiah, born Sept. 14, 1742, at Saybrook.Sarah, born March 28, 1745.Hannah, born Aug. 6, 1747.Chalker, born Feb. 14, 1750.Samuel

"I want very much to get all the descendants of the last six. Your letter was the first clue to any of them which I have received. It is more difficult to trace the descendants of Joseph than any other of the six children of William Pratt. In fact, they seem to have disappeared from Saybrook about a century ago.

"I have already collected about two thousand of the descendants of William Pratt. There are probably not less than five thousand. Robert Chapman, my ancestor, was married about two years after William Pratt. I have collected over five thousand of his descendants, and the work—a volume of three hundred to three hundred and fifty pages—is nearly ready for the press. I shall be able to collect most of the descendants of William if those whom I address will answer my letters and lend a helping hand.

"May I rely on you to aid me in collecting the descendants of Christopher Pratt?

"Is your father living? If so, he may be able to inform you where the brothers and sisters of his grandfather, Christopher resided—or, perhaps, give the post-office address of one of the descendants of each family.

"He can, of course, give me some account of his uncles and aunts. Please write immediately and inform me. I want the marriage of Stephen, when and to whom—and of Obadiah, when and to whom, and the names of their children—dates of birth; and so of Sarah and the others.

"You can, of course, give me a list of your grandfather's children. Also give the name of your mother, and date of your father's marriage, with a list of all his children.

"I enclose two circulars. There is a Pratt, ex-Governor of Maryland; I know not his address; if you can ascertain, please forward one. Let me hear from you soon. Respectfully yours,

Frederick W. Chapman.

"Now, my dear brother Parley, when I received the foregoing letter I wept like a little child; I was so overjoyed that I could not refrain from weeping.

"There are none among all the descendants of our ancestor, Lieutenant William Pratt, who have so deep an interest in searching out his descendants as ourselves. We know that the God of our fathers has had a hand in all this. He it was who brought our ancestor William from England, and established him in this choice land of promise, given to us by virtue of the covenant made with our ancient father, Joseph, the son of Jacob.

"The Lord God of our fathers has multiplied them in this land, and made them almost a nation within a nation. Blessed be the name of our God, for He remembereth his covenants forevermore.

"He has wrought upon the hearts of his servants, our relations, though unknown to them, to inquire out the genealogy and history of our fathers upon the promised land. Yea, blessed be the name of the Lord God of Joseph and of Israel, for he hath given into our hands the keys of the priesthood and the doctrines of salvation, that we might stand as saviors upon Mount Zion, in behalf of our ancestors and their lineal descendants. Let us, my dear brother Parley, take hold of this matter in earnest and assist our kindred in the laudable enterprise which they have undertaken.

"I have no records with me and my memory is weak. Therefore, I hope you will search up all the family records, and all the verbal information within your reach—-with names, dates, births, places, marriages and deaths, and forward without delay.

"Does our father's sister, aunt Lovina Van Cott, or yourself know anything about the descendants of Stephen, Sarah and others, the brothers and sisters to our grandfather, Obadiah? How shall we get a clue to them? Is It possible to find out any descendant of either of the brothers or sisters of Christopher Pratt, of Saybrook, our great-grandfather? Who and when did our grandfather, Obadiah, marry? How many children had Obadiah? Whom did they marry, and when? How many children had each of our uncles and aunts, the brothers and sisters of our father? And how many children and grandchildren has each of these cousins? In short, all the descendants of our great-grandfather, Christopher, are wanting.

* * * Send all the information you can gather to Mr. Chapman. It might not be amiss to send him your 'History of the Persecution,' your 'Voice of Warning,' and such other works as you may be the author of; and also, if you see proper, a biographical sketch of your life I have forwarded to him all of my works. * * * I have also sent him all the information in my power concerning our kindred. * *

"I sent a letter last evening proposing to take some fifty or a hundred dollars worth of the records as soon as published. These will supply myself and brothers and our rising families. I also proposed to search out, if possible, the ancestors of William Pratt, in England. I expect to visit England in April or May, and shall probably be absent two or three months.

"This from your younger brother,

"Orson Pratt."

After receiving the foregoing, I gathered the little information I could, in so new a country as Utah Territory, and adding it to that which I knew myself, the result or summary of the whole is as follows— for a portion of which I am indebted to the family records of my aunt Lovina Van Cott, and to her memory, she being still living, and near my residence in Salt Lake City.

Our great-grandfather, Christopher Pratt, of Saybrook, Conn., had six children, as follows, viz:

Stephen, born June 30, 1740, at Saybrook.Obadiah, born Sept. 14, 1742, at Saybrook.Sarah, born March 28, 1745.Hannah, born Aug. 6, 1747.Chalker, born Feb. 14, 1750.Samuel

Our grandfather, Obadiah Pratt, son of Christopher and Sarah Pratt, born in Saybrook, Conn., September 14, 1742, received in marriage Jemina Tolls, born in New Haven, Conn., August 11th, 1754. Date of marriage not known. He died in Canaan, Columbia County, New York. March 2, 1797. His wife died in Washington, Dutchess County, New York, Nov 24, 1812.

Eleven children, as follows:Jared, born in Canaan, Columbia County, N. Y., November 25, 1769.Barnabas, " " " " " " " March 4, 1771.Samuel, " " " " " " " February 2, 1773.Rhoda, " " " " " " " May 30, 1775.William, " " " " " " " May 21, 1777.Sarah, " " " " " " " September 3, 1781.Obadiah, " " " " " " " July 30, 1784.Lovina, " " " " " " " August 6, 1787.Ira, " " " " " " " October 10, 1789.Ellis, Twin sister of Ira, lived five days. October 10, 1789.Allen, born in Canaan, Columbia County, N. Y., May 3, 1793.

Our father, Jared Pratt, son of Obadiah and Jemima Pratt, received in marriage Mary Carpenter, daughter of Samuel Carpenter, of New Lebanon, N. Y. She bore him one daughter, named Mary, and afterwards died. This daughter married a Mr. Brown, of New Lebanon, and bore one son, named Jerome Brown. She afterwards lost her husband, and was married to Samuel Bigalow, of New Lebanon; they may be still living at that place.

Our father, Jared, afterwards received in marriage Charity Dickison, daughter of Samuel Dickison, of Bolton, N. Y. I remember seeing him once (Dickison) when a small boy.

Our father, Jared, died at Detroit, Michigan, of a fever, November 5, 1839, being near seventy years of age. He died in the house of his eldest son, Anson, who buried him some three or four miles north or northeast from Detroit, in Michigan.

Our mother, Charity, died of cholera in the house of her son Anson, at St. Joseph, Missouri, May 20, 1849, and was buried in the graveyard of that town, and a tombstone erected to her memory.

Their children, five in number, were as follows:

Anson, born January 9, 1801, died May 26, 1849.William D., born September 3, 1802, Town of Wooster, New York, died September 15, 1870, Salt Lake City.Parley P., born April 12, 1807, in Burlington, Otsego County, New York.Orson, born September 19, 1811, in Hartford, Washington Go. New York.Nelson, born May 26, 1815.

Transcriber's Note

This text was prepared by Tom Nysetvold, based on public-domain materials including a text available from the Book of Abraham Project and text and scans available from Archive.org. It is intended to reproduce the 1888 Chicago edition. Email tomnysetvold@gmail.com with corrections or to participate in proofreading of similar early books of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

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