one of his sons might eventually become church president.1
In late August 1875, John W. Young, then in Philadelphia, informed Kane of
the unexpected death of his 41-year-old brother Joseph. Ordained an apostle in
1864 (though he never became a member of the Quorum of the Twelve), Joseph
partnered with his father in the construction of the transcontinental railroad
and presided over the Sevier Stake in central Utah.2 John wrote to Kane that his
parents were “resigned, accepting as Gods will, the great loss we sustained.”3
In the following letter to Young, Kane consoled his friend and indicated that he
had hoped that Joseph would one day become the “ruler of his people.”
Source
Kane to Young, September 12, 1875, draft, box 15, fd 7, Kane Collection, BYU.
1. S
ee Compton, “John Willard Young,” 111–134.
2. Arrington, American Moses, 371.
3. John W. Young to Kane, August 28, 1875, Kane Collection, BYU.
490
the prophet and the reformer
Letter
Kane, Septem. 12. 1875
My dear friend:4
Can I tell you how afflicted I am by the tiding of Joseph A.’s death?—
The Prince that he was!5
—With my sorrow comes self reproach. I did not unbend to him as
I should have done. When he invited my confidence and tenderness,
I did not;—although I loved him deeply in return—I did not say so; but
repelled his advances, to imply that I chided the single weakness which
I wished him to correct.6 I wanted him to be perfect.
I or my heart was set upon his becoming, one day, the ruler of his peo-
ple. [p. 2]
And now he dies before me: before you too.
We must now lean still more upon George Q.—strengthen him all we
can. If there is a breath of inspiration in me he shall have it.
Your life was never more valuable than it is now. I beseech you and
the faithful and dear ones near you to continue to sustain your health
and cheerfulness.7
Your friend grieving with you
Thomas L. Kane
4. Kane wrote “President Y
oung” at the bottom of this page to indicate the letter’s recipient.
5. In the days leading up to Joseph’s death, he complained of side effects from ether administered while having a tooth pulled. He soon developed cramps and chills; it was believed that he died from heart failure. Brigham Young wrote that his son’s death “is a sad affliction to his parents, family and numerous relatives and friends, though they all feel to acknowledge the providence of the Lord therein, with as much resignation as possible.” Brigham Young to John W. Young, August 7, 1875, BYOF; “Death of Elder Joseph A. Young,” Deseret News, August 11, 1875, 9; Brigham Young to Alma L. Smith, August 7, 1875, BYOF.
6. Kane may have referred to Joseph’s reputation for periodic alcoholism. For example, a newspaper referred to his “appetite for stimulants.” Family members praised him. Brigham Young Jr. wrote that “he was a great man tho’ possessing many weaknesses, but he was humble and full of faith.” Fanny Stenhouse, a prominent Mormon dissident and Joseph’s mother-in-law, added, “He was always kind and thoughtful . . . a good, kind, and gentle husband he has ever been.” See “Preparing to Die,” St. Louis Globe-Democrat, August 3, 1877; Brigham Young Jr., diary, August 6, 1875; Fanny Stenhouse, The Tyranny of Mormonism: Or An Englishwoman in Utah: An Autobiography (London: Sampson Low, Marston, and Company, 1888), 319–320.
7. In December, George Q. Cannon wrote Kane that Young was “as cheerful and courageous as ever” and was continuing to be a “resolute, indomitable soldier of righteousness.” Besides the death of Joseph A. Young, Brigham had experienced the deaths of several others close to him, including his daughter Alice, his wife Emmeline Free, and his counselor George A. Smith. See Cannon to Kane, December 2, 1875, Kane Collection, BYU.
95
Kane to Young, May 28, 1876
in 1876, Kane collaborated with George Q. Cannon to formulate a strategy
to accomplish one of the goals he and Young had discussed during Kane’s
1872–1873 sojourn in Utah: the establishment of settlements in Mexico as a
possible refuge for the Mormons. In this letter, Kane reported on his corre-
spondence with the Mexican foreign minister to the United States and his
plans with respect to Mexico.
Mexican political conditions encouraged the shared optimism of Kane and
Young. Between 1855 and 1876, a period known as La Reforma, liberals con-
trolling the Mexican government weakened the Catholic Church by encourag-
ing the entrance of Protestant missionaries and by promising land grants to
spur foreign colonization and investment. Given this environment, Kane and
Young hoped that the Saints could practice polygamy in Mexico without gov-
ernment interference. Mormons’ millennialism also fueled their interest in
Mexico, as they believed the conversion of some of the native peoples of Latin
America would occur before Christ’s Second Coming. In addition, Young
and Kane were both intrigued by the possibility for humanitarian work with
Mexican Indians.1
Kane’s interest in Mexico was piqued by his romantic fascination with the
frontier; he saw the American Southwest and Mexico as the next frontier for
American development. During his travel to Mexico in 1876, he succinctly
stated, “The West played out. Now, all that is left is sw.” Modifying the dic-
tum of his old friend Horace Greeley, he exclaimed, “Go Southwest, young
man go Southwest.”2 According to his wife Elizabeth, Kane also hoped that the
1. F
or the context, see F. Lamond Tullis, Mormons in Mexico: The Dynamics of Faith and Culture (Logan: Utah State University Press, 1987), 1–50.
2. Kane, notebook in Mexico, 1876, Kane Collection, BYU.
492
the prophet and the reformer
cultivation of “intimate commercial relations” between Mexico and the United
States would lead to an “ultimate union” between the nations.3
During his 1872–1873 visit to Utah, Kane and Young apparently agreed that
Kane would make political contacts with Mexican officials while Young would
organize the colonization of Arizona and eventually Mexico. Young dispatched
an exploring company to northern Arizona in December 1872, followed by a
colonizing mission in April 1873. Brigham Young Jr. informed Kane in March
1873, “We have favorable reports for the early settlement of Arizona. Many
have volunteered to go on that mission, who desire a temperate climate to live
in.”4 Most of the participants, however, soon returned to Utah with a negative
report on the deserts of northern Arizona. In response, Young told Kane in July
1873 that he would personally lead an expedition that fall.5 Though he failed
to do so, he wrote Kane in November, “I have forgotten nothing connected
with Arizona; my eye is constantly on the mark.”6 The following month, Kane
wrote Young that his initial efforts “with the land grant matter in the City of
Mexico” failed.7 Despite these setbacks, Young sent small groups of missionar-
ies in 1875 and 1876 to seek for sites of settlement in northern Mexico and to
proselytize. In 1876, Mormon colonists finally established permanent settle-
ments in the Little Colorado Basin of northern Arizona.8
That year, perhaps spurred by these developments, Kane renewed his
; interest in locating a settlement for a Mormon colony in Mexico. Following
a “free and pleasant conversation” in Washington between Kane and Cannon
in February 1876, Cannon recorded, “His feelings are very strongly in favor
of united order, the colonization of Arizona and the South, the conversion of
the Indians.”9 Two weeks later, Cannon informed Kane that he had “made the
inquiries we spoke about concerning the grants of land,” most likely a refer-
ence to the prospects of Mormon settlement in Mexico.10 In April, Kane and
Cannon again met in Washington. Kane told Cannon that he “would like to
go to M[exico] and take a few of the folks with him and get them introduced.”
3. Elizabeth W
. Kane, biographical sketch of Thomas L. Kane, Kane Collection, BYU.
4. Brigham Young Jr. to Kane, March 27, 1873, Kane Collection, BYU.
5. Young to Kane, July 31, 1873.
6. Young to Kane, November 16, 1873.
7. Kane to Young, December 4, 1873.
8. Peterson, Take Up Your Mission.
9. Cannon, journal, February 17, 1876.
10. Cannon to Kane, March 3, 1876, Kane Collection, BYU.
Kane to Young, May 28, 1876
493
Cannon described him as “full of the Mexican project” and supplied Kane
with maps. Kane visited the “Mexican Ministers” in Washington and Cannon
soon went to Philadelphia where he and Kane spoke further on “his Mexican
project.”11
In late May, Kane reported to Young about his efforts to ascertain infor-
mation about Mexican settlement. Perhaps because he likely sent this letter
through the public mails, Kane portrayed the project as entirely his own,
rather than a joint enterprise between himself and Young.
Source
Kane to Young, May 28, 1876, box 40, fd 15, BYOF.
Letter
Kane, May 28, 1876.
My dear friend:
You will rejoice with me that both my wife and my daughter have
experienced a most favorable change of health. They have now been
three weeks in my mountain home, and I already see my daughter’s step
as firm and her heart as light as in the day of her first youth.12 Thus I again
breathe, and again see the world through the mortal glass less darkly.
The prospects for my Utah friends are in all respects so flattering,13
and it is so plain that they can dispense with farther aid from me, that
I am turning my thoughts upon the condition of others who may soon
need14 [p. 2] championship. I am studying the interesting indigenous
11. C
annon, journal, April 4, 8, 17, 20, May 1, 1876.
12. The Kanes’ daughter Harriet suffered from a variety of ailments and died at the age of 41
in 1896. Grow, Liberty to the Downtrodden, 284.
13. Nevertheless, political difficulties continued in Washington, D.C. In March, Cannon wrote Young that “the present prospects for our admission as a State do not look very bright.” The following week, Cannon faced down a litany of standard anti-Mormon criticisms: “polygamy and blood atonement, incest, ignorance of the people, the great preponderance of foreign, the woman driven from the harems in droves to the prods, the reign of theocracy[,] a reign of terror and blood, people in danger of assassination and always excommunicated if they did not vote the Church ticket were all dwelt upon with great emphasis and minuteness.” See Cannon to Young, March 11, 1876 and March 23, 1876, BYOF.
14. Kane wrote “President Young” at the bottom of this page.
494
the prophet and the reformer
nations of New Spain, and find them to be too good and gentle for the
American knife which is drawing near their throats.15 Being thus led to
a correspondence with Señor Don Ygnacio Mariscal16 and the Mexican
Government, I gather many interesting particulars about these poor peo-
ple, especially in regard to the cheapness with which they afford their labor
to judicious employers. I believe that the happiness of thousands would
be consulted by our enabling them to till the rich unpeopled lands of
Northern Mexico. H. E. the Minister labored to convince me that a scheme
for Settlement—ranching and manufacturing in combination—would be
highly lucrative; but, as you know, money making offers few temptations
to me.17 I shall take in a few Swedish artisans from the colony which I have
been so successful in establishing in these Counties, perhaps a sufficient
number to found me a [p. 3] quiet winter home, but will probably want to
look around me, before adventuring farther, at least for the present.18
I rejoice to hear of your improved health: there is a noble life before
you yet.
I do not write you upon national politics, with Cincinnati and St.
Louis so close at hand.19 While you have your present Congressional del-
egate, Deseret will not be without her just weight in either Convention.20
Faithfully yours always
Thomas L. Kane
15. Likely a reference to the Kickapoo, M
escaleros, and Lipan tribes, then being removed
to the interior of Mexico to prevent further “incursions” into Texas. The U.S. government was supporting a treaty in which the Mexican government would establish a reservation for these tribes in Chihuahua. Papers Relating to the Foreign Relations of the United States (Washington: Government Printing Office, 1876): 389–391.
16. Ignacio Mariscal (1829–1910) was envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary of the Lerdo regime. See Treaty Between Mexico and United States, April 29, 1876, Treaties and Conventions Concluded between the United States and Other Powers Since May 1, 1870
(Washington: Government Printing Office, 1876), 1151.
17. Kane also considered investing in railroad enterprises that Thomas Scott was then developing in Mexico. See Kane to Ignacio Mariscal, draft letter, undated; George Q. Cannon to Kane, June 19, 1876, both in Kane Collection, BYU.
18. During the 1860s and 1870s, Kane recruited European immigrants to his community in the Allegheny Mountains; he proved particularly successful at attracting Swedes, who had a long history of immigration to Pennsylvania. Grow, Liberty to the Downtrodden, chp. 12.
19. In 1876, the Democratic national convention met in St. Louis in June and nominated Samuel Tilden; the Republican convention met in Cincinnati in June and nominated
Rutherford B. Hayes. Kane had returned to the Republican Party by 1876 and urged Ulysses S. Grant to run for a potential third term. Grow, Liberty to the Downtrodden, chp. 12.
20. A reference to Cannon. For Cannon’s thoughts on the conventions, see Cannon to Young, February 24 and March 11, 1876, BYOF.
96
Kane to Young, October 21, 1876
notWithstanding his portraYal in his May 28, 1876 letter of a potential visit
to Mexico as being of solely personal interest, Kane’s plans for his Mexican
trip indicate that he conceived of settlements in Mexico as a joint cause with
the Latter-day Saints. One of Young’s sons (most likely John) visited the Kanes
in July and likely consulted with him about this project.1 The following week,
Cannon traveled to Kane, Pennsylvania, and recorded Kane’s plan:
He will be at Dallas in Oct. Our company should be at least 20 and
from that to 30; should pack; have a leader and a second to take his
place in case of necessity; should be judicious men with kindly feel-
ings towards Lamanites; pure men and non-speculators; obedient and
amenable to discipli
ne; good judges of quality of land and how it can be
irrigated and of the necessary amount of water; of this he knows noth-
ing and must depend upon them; some should speak Scandinavian
and be acquainted with that people; does not say how much money
each will need.2
Cannon’s own contacts acquainted with northern Mexico confirmed what
Kane had told him of the “ease with which it [a settlement site] could be
obtained.” Cannon wrote Kane that the Mexican government would “like a
barrier” between southern Mexico and the “Lamanites” (Indians) of north-
ern Mexico (and possibly the southern United States): “This feeling would
make the enterprise an acceptable and welcome one to them.”3
1. H
arriet Kane, journal, July 16, 1876, Kane Collection, BYU.
2. Cannon, journal, July 23, 1876.
3. Cannon to Kane, June 19, 1876, Kane Collection, BYU.
496
the prophet and the reformer
As part of his preparation, Kane met with President Grant, and “obtained
a very strong letter from him,” as well as letters from the State Department
and the War Department which “would enable him to get any aid, provisions,
&c. from any of the posts of the U.S. Marshal.” Grant had also “commu-
nicated” with the Mexican minister, who “took a strong interest” in Kane’s
proposal.4
Cannon returned to Salt Lake City that summer, believing that Kane and
Young “had an understanding” about the Mexican plans and that Young would
readily agree to Kane’s requests to have a group of Mormons meet Kane in
Texas and accompany him to Mexico. Cannon assured Elizabeth Kane during
the summer of 1876 that her husband would be “perfectly safe” as he would
“have a strong guard of our people.”5 However, Cannon recorded, “When
I returned home I related to the Prest. what the general wished and what we
had talked over; but he could not see the way clear to send anybody.” Kane, who
had kept Cannon informed of his preparations through “dispatches in cipher,”
The Prophet and the Reformer Page 69