Thomas L. Kane's recollection of an interview with Indian chief Kanosh. Emigrants poisoned the cattle.

Date
Feb 28, 1858
Type
Personal Journal / Diary
Source
Thomas L. Kane
Non-LDS
Hearsay
Direct
Reprint
Reference

Diary of Colonel Thomas L. Kane for February 28, 1858. Transcription taken from David L. Bigler and Will Bagley, eds., Innocent Blood: Essential Narratives of the Mountain Meadows Massacre (Kingdom in the West: The Mormons and the American Frontier volume 12; Norman, Oklahoma: The Arthur H. Clark Company, 2008), 168

Scribe/Publisher
Thomas L. Kane
People
Kanosh, Thomas L. Kane
Audience
Thomas L. Kane
Transcription

Kenosh Chief of Parvans near the sink of Corn Cr. This Company camped at a kind of spring there. The Indians came in as usual [two words illegible] to by and [sell?] [5 lines illegible] they understood [two words illegible] The Inidans went away they did not want any fuss with them! they was careful about the [?] mules above, sold their After the Camp had moved off they [the Pahvants?] went into the Camp ground to move off. After the Indians had come into the Camp they noticed a white like flour upon the grass and the Mormon cattle & the Indian cattle was running around and they noticed one critter went off a little and died right off. The Indians went to work & skinned him. One or two of the Indians got thirsty and stooped down to drink at this Spr[in]g where the Emigrants got their water and drank and one died and a number more came very near dying. And The friends of the man who died set up a bowl and followed them that night. Kenosh tried not to have them follow them but he [cou]ld not prevent them. They followed them that night shot at their camp wounded one man & stole four head of cattle. One of the Emigrants on guard Supposing he shot an Indian killed his own mate. The Parvans Indians passed this word on to the Pah eats in whose country is where the Mountain Meadows are. It is about a hundred miles to the Mountain Meadows from Cork Creek and there the Paheats boxed them again. By law they [?] Indians wanted pay for their travelling through the country burning their wood wasting their grass &c. They killed a beef for them but must have poisoned it. For four men and a number of women & children (the number I don't remember[?] of them) died of eating that beef. That is all I got from Kenosh. Then they got so mad! They passed the word around [?] * gathered all together and used them up. The bands of the Paheats was there was Quanāras band Younggwitche’s Tâta â gûbbét’s

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