a Court Martial then in session, consisting of thirteen or fourteen officers Circuit Judge & District Attorney; also Presbyterian priest & about 20 other priests of the other different religious denominations in that country. He said they were determined to shoot us on the next morning in the public square in . I made him no reply. On the next morning about sunrise ordered his brigade to take up the line of march & leave the camp. He came to us where we were under guard to shake hands with us & bid us farewell. His first salutation was. “By God you have been sentenced by the Court Martial, to be shot this morning: but I will be damned if I will have any of the honor of it, or any of the disgrace of it: therefore I have ordered my brigade to take up the line of march & to leave the camp, for I consider it to be cold blooded murder, and I bid you farwell,” & he went away. This movement of made considerable excitement in the army & there was considerable whisperings amongst the officers. We listened very attentively, & frequently heard it mentioned by the guard, that the damned Mormons would not be shot at this time, In a few moments the guard was relieved with a new set; one of those new guard said that the damned Mormons would not be shot this time for the movement of had frustrated the the whole plan & that the officers had called another court martial & had ordered us to be taken to & there to be executed and in a few moments two large Waggons drove up & we were ordered to get into them & while we were getting into them there came up four or five men armed with guns who drew up & snapped their guns at us, in order to kill us, Some flashing in the pan & others only snapped, but none of their guns went off They were immediately arrested by several officers & their guns taken from them & the drivers drove off. We requested of to let us go to our houses & get some clothing in order to <​do​> this, we had to be drove up into the — It was with much difficulty, we could get his permission to go & see our families & get some clothing, but after considerable consultation we were permitted to go under a strong guard of five or six men to each of us, and we were not permitted to speak to any one of our families under the pain of death. The guard that went with me, ordered my to get me some clothes immediately, within two minutes, & if she did not do it, I should go off without them. I was obliged to submit to their tyrranical orders, however painful it was with my & children clinging to my arms & to the Skirts of my garments & was not permitted to utter to them a word of consolation, & in a moment was hurried away from them at the point of the bayonet. We were hurried back to the wagons and ordered into them, all in about the same space of time. In the mean while our , and , & sisters, had forced their way to the wagons to get permission to [p. 70]