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Introduction to State of Illinois v. C. L. Higbee Complaint, 24 May 1842 [State of Illinois v. C. L. Higbee] Warrant, 24 May 1842 [State of Illinois v. C. L. Higbee] Subpoena, 24 May 1842 [State of Illinois v. C. L. Higbee] Recognizance, 24 May 1842 [State of Illinois v. C. L. Higbee] Docket Entry, circa 24 May 1842 [State of Illinois v. C. L. Higbee] Docket Entry, circa 24 May 1842, Copy [State of Illinois v. C. L. Higbee] Subpoena, 14 September 1842 [State of Illinois v. C. L. Higbee] Subpoena, 19 September 1842 [State of Illinois v. C. L. Higbee] Case File Wrapper, circa October 1842 [State of Illinois v. C. L. Higbee]

Introduction to State of Illinois v. C. L. Higbee

Page

State of Illinois v. C. L. Higbee
Hancock Co., Illinois, Justice of the Peace Court, 24 May 1842
Hancock Co., Illinois, Circuit Court, circa September 1842
 
Historical Introduction
On 24 May 1842, JS filed a complaint before
Ebenezer Robinson

25 May 1816–11 Mar. 1891. Printer, editor, publisher. Born at Floyd (near Rome), Oneida Co., New York. Son of Nathan Robinson and Mary Brown. Moved to Utica, Oneida Co., ca. 1831, and learned printing trade at Utica Observer. Moved to Ravenna, Portage Co....

View Full Bio
, a justice of the peace in
Hancock County

Formed from Pike Co., 1825. Described in 1837 as predominantly prairie and “deficient in timber.” Early settlers came mainly from mid-Atlantic and southern states. Population in 1835 about 3,200; in 1840 about 9,900; and in 1844 at least 15,000. Carthage ...

More Info
, Illinois, accusing
Chauncey L. Higbee

7 Sept. 1821–7 Dec. 1884. Lawyer, banker, politician, judge. Born in Tate Township, Clermont Co., Ohio. Son of Elias Higbee and Sarah Elizabeth Ward. Lived in Fulton, Hamilton Co., Ohio, 1830. Baptized into Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1832...

View Full Bio
of
slandering

The “malicious publication of words, by speaking, writing, or printing, by reason of which the person to whom they relate becomes liable to suffer corporal punishment, or to sustain some damage.”

View Glossary
and defaming his character, as well as that of his wife
Emma Smith

10 July 1804–30 Apr. 1879. Scribe, editor, boardinghouse operator, clothier. Born at Willingborough Township (later in Harmony), Susquehanna Co., Pennsylvania. Daughter of Isaac Hale and Elizabeth Lewis. Member of Methodist church at Harmony (later in Oakland...

View Full Bio
.
1

Complaint, 24 May 1842 [State of Illinois v. C. L. Higbee].


Earlier that month,
John C. Bennett

3 Aug. 1804–5 Aug. 1867. Physician, minister, poultry breeder. Born at Fairhaven, Bristol Co., Massachusetts. Son of John Bennett and Abigail Cook. Moved to Marietta, Washington Co., Ohio, 1808; to Massachusetts, 1812; and back to Marietta, 1822. Married ...

View Full Bio
had been excommunicated from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints due to sexual misconduct, including allegedly seducing women in
Nauvoo

Principal gathering place for Saints following expulsion from Missouri. Beginning in 1839, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints purchased lands in earlier settlement of Commerce and planned settlement of Commerce City, as well as surrounding areas....

More Info
by telling them that JS and other church leaders condoned and practiced “promiscous intercourse between the sexes.”
2

Letter to the Church and Others, 23 June 1842, in JSP, D10:180–182. For more on Bennett’s excommunication, see Notice, 11 May 1842, in JSP, D10:40–45.


Comprehensive Works Cited

JSP, D10 / Kuehn, Elizabeth A., Jordan T. Watkins, Matthew C. Godfrey, and Mason K. Allred, eds. Documents, Volume 10: May–August 1842. Vol. 10 of the Documents series of The Joseph Smith Papers, edited by Matthew C. Godfrey, R. Eric Smith, Matthew J. Grow, and Ronald K. Esplin. Salt Lake City: Church Historian’s Press, 2020.

Along with Bennett’s own misconduct, he had also apparently been the source of “evil reports” and accusations concerning JS. These included rumors that JS was involved in sexual misconduct—allegations likely arising from JS’s practice of plural marriage.
3

See Historical Introduction to Letter to the Church and Others, 23 June 1842, in JSP, D10:178–180. JS referenced these “evil reports” on 19 May during the Nauvoo City Council meeting. During the meeting, JS asked Bennett to address his claims that JS had authorized him to engage in extramarital sexual relations. Bennett responded by saying that JS had not “given me authority to hold illicit intercourse with women.” (JS, Journal, 19 May 1842.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

JSP, D10 / Kuehn, Elizabeth A., Jordan T. Watkins, Matthew C. Godfrey, and Mason K. Allred, eds. Documents, Volume 10: May–August 1842. Vol. 10 of the Documents series of The Joseph Smith Papers, edited by Matthew C. Godfrey, R. Eric Smith, Matthew J. Grow, and Ronald K. Esplin. Salt Lake City: Church Historian’s Press, 2020.

In the latter part of May, the Nauvoo
high council

A governing body of twelve high priests. The first high council was organized in Kirtland, Ohio, on 17 February 1834 “for the purpose of settling important difficulties which might arise in the church, which could not be settled by the church, or the bishop...

View Glossary
began investigating men who had followed Bennett’s practice of seducing women in Nauvoo, ultimately bringing several men to trial for “unchaste and unvirtuous conduct.” Among these men was Higbee, who was tried on 20 May.
4

Nauvoo High Council Minutes, 20 May 1842; see also Woodruff, Journal, 27 May 1842.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Nauvoo High Council Minutes, 1839–1845. CHL. LR 3102 22.

Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.

Sarah Miller, Margaret Nyman, and Matilda Nyman testified that Higbee had persuaded them to have extramarital sexual relations with him by giving assurances that JS and other church leaders sanctioned it.
5

Though the high council minutes of 20 May 1842 do not identify the women, the minutes of 24 May 1842 provide their names. (Nauvoo High Council Minutes, 24 May 1842.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

Nauvoo High Council Minutes, 1839–1845. CHL. LR 3102 22.

The next day, Margaret and Matilda Nyman swore out affidavits concerning
Higbee

7 Sept. 1821–7 Dec. 1884. Lawyer, banker, politician, judge. Born in Tate Township, Clermont Co., Ohio. Son of Elias Higbee and Sarah Elizabeth Ward. Lived in Fulton, Hamilton Co., Ohio, 1830. Baptized into Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1832...

View Full Bio
’s conduct; Miller gave her affidavit on the same subject three days later.
6

Nauvoo High Council Minutes, 24 May 1842; Margaret Nyman, Testimony, Nauvoo, IL, 21 May 1842; Matilda Nyman, Testimony, Nauvoo, IL, 21 May 1842; Sarah Miller, Testimony, Nauvoo, IL, 24 May 1842, Testimonies in Nauvoo High Council Cases, CHL.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Nauvoo High Council Minutes, 1839–1845. CHL. LR 3102 22.

Testimonies in Nauvoo High Council Cases, May 1842. CHL.

These affidavits, along with the women’s testimonies before the
Nauvoo

Principal gathering place for Saints following expulsion from Missouri. Beginning in 1839, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints purchased lands in earlier settlement of Commerce and planned settlement of Commerce City, as well as surrounding areas....

More Info
high council

A governing body of twelve high priests. The first high council was organized in Kirtland, Ohio, on 17 February 1834 “for the purpose of settling important difficulties which might arise in the church, which could not be settled by the church, or the bishop...

View Glossary
, formed the basis of JS’s complaint, which claimed that Higbee had “slandered and defamed character of the said Joseph Smith, and also the character of
Emma Smith

10 July 1804–30 Apr. 1879. Scribe, editor, boardinghouse operator, clothier. Born at Willingborough Township (later in Harmony), Susquehanna Co., Pennsylvania. Daughter of Isaac Hale and Elizabeth Lewis. Member of Methodist church at Harmony (later in Oakland...

View Full Bio
, his wife.” The complaint accused Higbee of using “their names, the more readily to accomplish his purpose in seducing certain females.”
7

Complaint, 24 May 1842 [State of Illinois v. C. L. Higbee].


JS’s inclusion of Emma Smith, who had not been mentioned by name in the high council proceedings, suggests that she may have been involved in his decision to file the complaint. Although
Illinois

Became part of Northwest Territory of U.S., 1787. Admitted as state, 1818. Population in 1840 about 480,000. Population in 1845 about 660,000. Plentiful, inexpensive land attracted settlers from northern and southern states. Following expulsion from Missouri...

More Info
had a statute that permitted citizens to bring civil action for slander in response to accusations relating to sexual matters,
8

Illinois law defined “sexual” slander as falsely speaking or publishing words “which in their common acceptation shall amount to charge any person with having been guilty of fornication, or adultery.” This act authorized plaintiffs to bring a civil action at the circuit court level, but as a justice of the peace, Robinson lacked jurisdiction to try slander cases. (An Act Declaring Certain Words Actionable [27 Dec. 1822], Public and General Statute Laws of the State of Illinois [1839], p. 660, sec. 1; Robinson v. Harlan, 1 Scammon 238 [Ill. Sup. Ct. 1835]; see also Dinger, “Sexual Slander and Polygamy in Nauvoo,” 1–22.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

The Public and General Statute Laws of the State of Illinois: Containing All the Laws . . . Passed by the Ninth General Assembly, at Their First Session, Commencing December 1, 1834, and Ending February 13, 1835; and at Their Second Session, Commencing December 7, 1835, and Ending January 18, 1836; and Those Passed by the Tenth General Assembly, at Their Session Commencing December 5, 1836, and Ending March 6, 1837; and at Their Special Session, Commencing July 10, and Ending July 22, 1837. . . . Compiled by Jonathan Young Scammon. Chicago: Stephen F. Gale, 1839.

Scammon / Scammon, J. Young. Reports of Cases Argued and Determined in the Supreme Court of the State of Illinois. 4 vols. St. Louis: W. J. Gilbert, 1869–1870.

Dinger, John S. “Sexual Slander and Polygamy in Nauvoo.” Journal of Mormon History 44, no. 3 [July 2018]: 1–22.

Robinson

25 May 1816–11 Mar. 1891. Printer, editor, publisher. Born at Floyd (near Rome), Oneida Co., New York. Son of Nathan Robinson and Mary Brown. Moved to Utica, Oneida Co., ca. 1831, and learned printing trade at Utica Observer. Moved to Ravenna, Portage Co....

View Full Bio
treated JS’s complaint as a criminal matter and issued a warrant for Higbee’s arrest.
9

It is unclear what statute Robinson relied on for the prosecution. He may have used the Illinois libel law, which defined libel as “a malicious defamation, expressed either by printing or by signs or pictures, or the like” in order “to impeach the honesty, integrity, virtue, or reputation” of a person and “to expose him or her to public hatred, contempt, or ridicule.” As the statute indicates, libel was generally seen as slander that took written or published, rather than oral, form. Spoken slander could prompt criminal charges if the words led to a breach of the peace, but there is no evidence that Robinson saw Higbee’s words as a breach of the peace. Bouvier’s Law Dictionary, covering terminology of this period, stated: “If the matter be understood as scandalous, and is calculated to excite ridicule or abhorrence against the party intended, it is libellous, however it may be expressed.” (An Act relative to Criminal Jurisprudence [26 Feb. 1833], Public and General Statute Laws of the State of Illinois [1839], p. 220, sec. 120; Starkie, Treatise on the Law of Slander and Libel, 2:184–187; see also “Libel,” in Bouvier, Law Dictionary, 2:40–41.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

The Public and General Statute Laws of the State of Illinois: Containing All the Laws . . . Passed by the Ninth General Assembly, at Their First Session, Commencing December 1, 1834, and Ending February 13, 1835; and at Their Second Session, Commencing December 7, 1835, and Ending January 18, 1836; and Those Passed by the Tenth General Assembly, at Their Session Commencing December 5, 1836, and Ending March 6, 1837; and at Their Special Session, Commencing July 10, and Ending July 22, 1837. . . . Compiled by Jonathan Young Scammon. Chicago: Stephen F. Gale, 1839.

Starkie, Thomas. A Treatise on the Law of Slander and Libel, and Incidentally of Malicious Prosecutions. Vol. 2. Albany, New York: C. Van Benthuysen, 1843.

Bouvier, John. A Law Dictionary, Adapted to the Constitution and Laws of the United States of America, and of the Several States of the American Union; With References to the Civil and Other Systems of Foreign Law. 2 vols. Philadelphia: Deacon and Peterson, 1854.

A
Nauvoo

Principal gathering place for Saints following expulsion from Missouri. Beginning in 1839, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints purchased lands in earlier settlement of Commerce and planned settlement of Commerce City, as well as surrounding areas....

More Info
city constable arrested
Higbee

7 Sept. 1821–7 Dec. 1884. Lawyer, banker, politician, judge. Born in Tate Township, Clermont Co., Ohio. Son of Elias Higbee and Sarah Elizabeth Ward. Lived in Fulton, Hamilton Co., Ohio, 1830. Baptized into Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1832...

View Full Bio
and brought him before
Robinson

25 May 1816–11 Mar. 1891. Printer, editor, publisher. Born at Floyd (near Rome), Oneida Co., New York. Son of Nathan Robinson and Mary Brown. Moved to Utica, Oneida Co., ca. 1831, and learned printing trade at Utica Observer. Moved to Ravenna, Portage Co....

View Full Bio
.
10

Warrant, 24 May 1842 [State of Illinois v. C. L. Higbee].


At JS’s request,
Alexander McRae

7 Sept. 1807–20 June 1891. Tailor, sheriff, prison warden. Born in Anson Co., North Carolina. Son of John B. McRae and Mary. Moved to South Carolina; to Iredell Co., North Carolina; and back to South Carolina. Enlisted in U.S. Army, Mar. 1829, and served ...

View Full Bio
, Miller, and the Nyman sisters were subpoenaed to testify against Higbee.
11

Although McRae was not named in the subpoena, Robinson listed him on the verso of the subpoena document among the witnesses who testified. (Subpoena, 24 May 1842 [State of Illinois v. C. L. Higbee].)


Robinson, who was authorized as justice of the peace to hold preliminary hearings for criminal matters, found sufficient evidence in the witness testimonies to bind Higbee over to appear at the next term of the
Hancock County

Formed from Pike Co., 1825. Described in 1837 as predominantly prairie and “deficient in timber.” Early settlers came mainly from mid-Atlantic and southern states. Population in 1835 about 3,200; in 1840 about 9,900; and in 1844 at least 15,000. Carthage ...

More Info
Circuit Court.
12

Recognizance, 24 May 1842 [State of Illinois v. C. L. Higbee]; An Act to Regulate the Apprehension of Offenders, and for Other Purposes [6 Jan. 1827], Public and General Statute Laws of the State of Illinois [1839], p. 238, sec. 3. Robinson worded the recognizance so that it bound Higbee to appear before the circuit court “to answer a charge of slander and defamation against the character of Joseph Smith”; it is unknown whether the omission of Emma Smith’s name was intentional.


Comprehensive Works Cited

The Public and General Statute Laws of the State of Illinois: Containing All the Laws . . . Passed by the Ninth General Assembly, at Their First Session, Commencing December 1, 1834, and Ending February 13, 1835; and at Their Second Session, Commencing December 7, 1835, and Ending January 18, 1836; and Those Passed by the Tenth General Assembly, at Their Session Commencing December 5, 1836, and Ending March 6, 1837; and at Their Special Session, Commencing July 10, and Ending July 22, 1837. . . . Compiled by Jonathan Young Scammon. Chicago: Stephen F. Gale, 1839.

Robinson certified a copy of his docket entry for the case on 1 September 1842, and it was filed with the circuit court in anticipation of the trial.
13

Docket Entry, Copy, ca. 24 May 1842 [State of Illinois v. C. L. Higbee].


The circuit court
clerk

View Full Bio

subpoenaed the Nyman sisters, Miller, and McRae to appear before the court on 3 October 1842.
14

Subpoena, 14 Sept. 1842 [State of Illinois v. C. L. Higbee].


The clerk also subpoenaed
Nancy Rigdon

8 Dec. 1822–1 Nov. 1887. Born in Pittsburgh. Daughter of Sidney Rigdon and Phebe Brooks. Moved to Bainbridge, Geauga Co., Ohio, 1826. Moved to Mentor, Geauga Co., 1827. Baptized into Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, likely ca. Nov. 1830, in Ohio...

View Full Bio
,
Sarah Marinda Bates Pratt

5 Feb. 1817–25 Dec. 1888. Seamstress. Born in Henderson, Jefferson Co., New York. Daughter of Cyrus Bates and Lydia Harrington. Baptized into Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints by Orson Pratt, 18 June 1835, near Sackets Harbor, Jefferson Co. Married...

View Full Bio
, Emeline White, Amanda Gee, and Melissa Schindle to testify in Higbee’s defense.
15

Subpoena, 19 Sept. 1842 [State of Illinois v. C. L. Higbee]. JS allegedly proposed plural marriage to Latter-day Saints Nancy Rigdon and Sarah Marinda Bates Pratt. John C. Bennett in his book History of the Saints further accused JS of attempting to seduce Emeline White and Melissa Schindle, married women who were not Latter-day Saints. According to Bennett, Higbee was the one who obtained an affidavit from Schindle about JS for him. (Bennett, History of the Saints, 226–247, 253–255.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

Bennett, John C. The History of the Saints; or, an Exposé of Joe Smith and Mormonism. Boston: Leland and Whiting, 1842.

Although at least some of the subpoenas were served on the witnesses, for unknown reasons the circuit court evidently took no further action on the case.
16

Subpoena, 14 Sept. 1842 [State of Illinois v. C. L. Higbee]; Subpoena, 19 Sept. 1842 [State of Illinois v. C. L. Higbee]. There are no docket entries in the October term mentioning an indictment against Higbee. (Hancock Co., IL, Circuit Court Records, 1829–1897, vol. C, p. 319–334, microfilm 947,496; Hancock Co., IL, Circuit Court, Index to Court Papers, 1830–1865, vol. A, p. 75, microfilm 955,126, U.S. and Canada Record Collection, FHL.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

U.S. and Canada Record Collection. FHL.

 
Calendar of Documents
This calendar lists all known documents created by or for the court, whether extant or not. It does not include versions of documents created for other purposes, though those versions may be listed in footnotes. In certain cases, especially in cases concerning unpaid debts, the originating document (promissory note, invoice, etc.) is listed here. Note that documents in the calendar are grouped with their originating court. Where a version of a document was subsequently filed with another court, that version is listed under both courts.
 
Hancock Co., Illinois, Justice of the Peace Court

1842 (5)

May (5)

24 May 1842

JS, Complaint, before Ebenezer Robinson, Nauvoo, Hancock Co., IL

  • 24 May 1842. Not extant.
  • 24 May 1842; typescript; signatures of Richard and Pamela Price; typescript in possession of Richard and Pamela Price.
    1

    See Docket Entry, ca. 24 May 1842 [State of Illinois v. C. L. Higbee]; and Price and Price, Joseph Smith Fought Polygamy, 146.


    Comprehensive Works Cited

    Price, Richard, and Pamela Price. Joseph Smith Fought Polygamy: Volume 1. Independence, MO: Price Pub. Co., 2000.

24 May 1842

Ebenezer Robinson, Warrant, Nauvoo, Hancock Co., IL, to IL Sheriffs, Coroners, and Constables, for Chauncey L. Higbee

  • 24 May 1842; Hancock Co., IL, Circuit Court Legal Documents, 1839–1860, BYU; handwriting of Ebenezer Robinson; docket in handwriting of Ebenezer Robinson; notations in handwriting of Lewis Robison; notation in handwriting of Jacob Davis.
24 May 1842

Ebenezer Robinson, Subpoena, for Margaret Nyman and Others, Nauvoo, Hancock Co., IL

  • 24 May 1842; location unknown; photocopy in possession of Richard and Pamela Price; printed form with manuscript additions in handwriting of Ebenezer Robinson; docket and notation in handwriting of Ebenezer Robinson; notation possibly in handwriting of Ebenezer Robinson; notation in handwriting of Lewis Robison.
    1

    See Docket Entry, ca. 24 May 1842 [State of Illinois v. C. L. Higbee]; and Price and Price, Joseph Smith Fought Polygamy, 147–48.


    Comprehensive Works Cited

    Price, Richard, and Pamela Price. Joseph Smith Fought Polygamy: Volume 1. Independence, MO: Price Pub. Co., 2000.

24 May 1842

Chauncey L. Higbee and Francis M. Higbee, Recognizance, Nauvoo, Hancock Co., IL, to the People of IL

  • 24 May 1842; Hancock Co., IL, Circuit Court Legal Documents, 1839–1860, BYU; handwriting of Ebenezer Robinson; signatures of Chauncey L. Higbee and Francis M. Higbee; certification in handwriting of Ebenezer Robinson; docket in handwriting of Ebenezer Robinson; notation in handwriting of Jacob Davis.
Ca. 24 May 1842

Docket Entry, Nauvoo, Hancock Co., IL

  • Ca. 24 May 1842; Robinson and Johnson, Docket Book, 117, Collection of Manuscripts about Mormons, 1832–1954, Chicago History Museum; handwriting of Ebenezer Robinson; notation in handwriting of Ebenezer Robinson.
  • 1 Sept. 1842; Hancock Co., IL, Circuit Court Legal Documents, 1839–1860, BYU; handwriting of Ebenezer Robinson; certification in handwriting of Ebenezer Robinson; docket and notation in handwriting of Jacob Davis.
    1

    This certified copy of the docket entry was filed with the Hancock County Circuit Court on 14 September 1842.


 
Hancock Co., Illinois, Circuit Court

1842 (3)

May (1)

Ca. 24 May 1842

Docket Entry, Copy, Nauvoo, Hancock Co., IL

  • 1 Sept. 1842; Hancock Co., IL, Circuit Court Legal Documents, 1839–1860, BYU; handwriting of Ebenezer Robinson; certification in handwriting of Ebenezer Robinson; docket and notation in handwriting of Jacob Davis.
    1

    This represents the certified copy of Ebenezer Robinson’s docket entry filed with the Hancock County Circuit Court on 14 September 1842.


September (2)

14 September 1842

M. Avise on behalf of Jacob Davis, Subpoena, to Hancock Co. Sheriff, for Margaret Nyman and Others, Carthage, Hancock Co., IL

  • 14 Sept. 1842; location unknown; photocopy in possession of Richard and Pamela Price; printed form with manuscript additions in handwriting of M. Avise; docket printed with manuscript additions in handwriting of M. Avise; notations printed with manuscript additions presumably in handwriting of Henry Marks.
    1

    See Price and Price, Joseph Smith Fought Polygamy, 153–54.


    Comprehensive Works Cited

    Price, Richard, and Pamela Price. Joseph Smith Fought Polygamy: Volume 1. Independence, MO: Price Pub. Co., 2000.

19 September 1842

M. Avise on behalf of Jacob Davis, Subpoena, to Hancock Co. Sheriff, for Nancy Rigdon and Others, Carthage Hancock Co., IL

  • 19 Sept. 1842; location unknown; photocopy in possession of Richard and Pamela Price; printed form with manuscript additions in handwriting of M. Avise; docket printed with manuscript additions in handwriting of M. Avise.
    1

    See Price and Price, Joseph Smith Fought Polygamy, 154–55.


    Comprehensive Works Cited

    Price, Richard, and Pamela Price. Joseph Smith Fought Polygamy: Volume 1. Independence, MO: Price Pub. Co., 2000.

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Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Introduction to State of Illinois v. C. L. Higbee
ID #
18267
Total Pages
1
Print Volume Location
Handwriting on This Page

    Footnotes

    1. [1]

      Complaint, 24 May 1842 [State of Illinois v. C. L. Higbee].

    2. [2]

      Letter to the Church and Others, 23 June 1842, in JSP, D10:180–182. For more on Bennett’s excommunication, see Notice, 11 May 1842, in JSP, D10:40–45.

      JSP, D10 / Kuehn, Elizabeth A., Jordan T. Watkins, Matthew C. Godfrey, and Mason K. Allred, eds. Documents, Volume 10: May–August 1842. Vol. 10 of the Documents series of The Joseph Smith Papers, edited by Matthew C. Godfrey, R. Eric Smith, Matthew J. Grow, and Ronald K. Esplin. Salt Lake City: Church Historian’s Press, 2020.

    3. [3]

      See Historical Introduction to Letter to the Church and Others, 23 June 1842, in JSP, D10:178–180. JS referenced these “evil reports” on 19 May during the Nauvoo City Council meeting. During the meeting, JS asked Bennett to address his claims that JS had authorized him to engage in extramarital sexual relations. Bennett responded by saying that JS had not “given me authority to hold illicit intercourse with women.” (JS, Journal, 19 May 1842.)

      JSP, D10 / Kuehn, Elizabeth A., Jordan T. Watkins, Matthew C. Godfrey, and Mason K. Allred, eds. Documents, Volume 10: May–August 1842. Vol. 10 of the Documents series of The Joseph Smith Papers, edited by Matthew C. Godfrey, R. Eric Smith, Matthew J. Grow, and Ronald K. Esplin. Salt Lake City: Church Historian’s Press, 2020.

    4. [4]

      Nauvoo High Council Minutes, 20 May 1842; see also Woodruff, Journal, 27 May 1842.

      Nauvoo High Council Minutes, 1839–1845. CHL. LR 3102 22.

      Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.

    5. [5]

      Though the high council minutes of 20 May 1842 do not identify the women, the minutes of 24 May 1842 provide their names. (Nauvoo High Council Minutes, 24 May 1842.)

      Nauvoo High Council Minutes, 1839–1845. CHL. LR 3102 22.

    6. [6]

      Nauvoo High Council Minutes, 24 May 1842; Margaret Nyman, Testimony, Nauvoo, IL, 21 May 1842; Matilda Nyman, Testimony, Nauvoo, IL, 21 May 1842; Sarah Miller, Testimony, Nauvoo, IL, 24 May 1842, Testimonies in Nauvoo High Council Cases, CHL.

      Nauvoo High Council Minutes, 1839–1845. CHL. LR 3102 22.

      Testimonies in Nauvoo High Council Cases, May 1842. CHL.

    7. [7]

      Complaint, 24 May 1842 [State of Illinois v. C. L. Higbee].

    8. [8]

      Illinois law defined “sexual” slander as falsely speaking or publishing words “which in their common acceptation shall amount to charge any person with having been guilty of fornication, or adultery.” This act authorized plaintiffs to bring a civil action at the circuit court level, but as a justice of the peace, Robinson lacked jurisdiction to try slander cases. (An Act Declaring Certain Words Actionable [27 Dec. 1822], Public and General Statute Laws of the State of Illinois [1839], p. 660, sec. 1; Robinson v. Harlan, 1 Scammon 238 [Ill. Sup. Ct. 1835]; see also Dinger, “Sexual Slander and Polygamy in Nauvoo,” 1–22.)

      The Public and General Statute Laws of the State of Illinois: Containing All the Laws . . . Passed by the Ninth General Assembly, at Their First Session, Commencing December 1, 1834, and Ending February 13, 1835; and at Their Second Session, Commencing December 7, 1835, and Ending January 18, 1836; and Those Passed by the Tenth General Assembly, at Their Session Commencing December 5, 1836, and Ending March 6, 1837; and at Their Special Session, Commencing July 10, and Ending July 22, 1837. . . . Compiled by Jonathan Young Scammon. Chicago: Stephen F. Gale, 1839.

      Scammon / Scammon, J. Young. Reports of Cases Argued and Determined in the Supreme Court of the State of Illinois. 4 vols. St. Louis: W. J. Gilbert, 1869–1870.

      Dinger, John S. “Sexual Slander and Polygamy in Nauvoo.” Journal of Mormon History 44, no. 3 [July 2018]: 1–22.

    9. [9]

      It is unclear what statute Robinson relied on for the prosecution. He may have used the Illinois libel law, which defined libel as “a malicious defamation, expressed either by printing or by signs or pictures, or the like” in order “to impeach the honesty, integrity, virtue, or reputation” of a person and “to expose him or her to public hatred, contempt, or ridicule.” As the statute indicates, libel was generally seen as slander that took written or published, rather than oral, form. Spoken slander could prompt criminal charges if the words led to a breach of the peace, but there is no evidence that Robinson saw Higbee’s words as a breach of the peace. Bouvier’s Law Dictionary, covering terminology of this period, stated: “If the matter be understood as scandalous, and is calculated to excite ridicule or abhorrence against the party intended, it is libellous, however it may be expressed.” (An Act relative to Criminal Jurisprudence [26 Feb. 1833], Public and General Statute Laws of the State of Illinois [1839], p. 220, sec. 120; Starkie, Treatise on the Law of Slander and Libel, 2:184–187; see also “Libel,” in Bouvier, Law Dictionary, 2:40–41.)

      The Public and General Statute Laws of the State of Illinois: Containing All the Laws . . . Passed by the Ninth General Assembly, at Their First Session, Commencing December 1, 1834, and Ending February 13, 1835; and at Their Second Session, Commencing December 7, 1835, and Ending January 18, 1836; and Those Passed by the Tenth General Assembly, at Their Session Commencing December 5, 1836, and Ending March 6, 1837; and at Their Special Session, Commencing July 10, and Ending July 22, 1837. . . . Compiled by Jonathan Young Scammon. Chicago: Stephen F. Gale, 1839.

      Starkie, Thomas. A Treatise on the Law of Slander and Libel, and Incidentally of Malicious Prosecutions. Vol. 2. Albany, New York: C. Van Benthuysen, 1843.

      Bouvier, John. A Law Dictionary, Adapted to the Constitution and Laws of the United States of America, and of the Several States of the American Union; With References to the Civil and Other Systems of Foreign Law. 2 vols. Philadelphia: Deacon and Peterson, 1854.

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      Warrant, 24 May 1842 [State of Illinois v. C. L. Higbee].

    11. [11]

      Although McRae was not named in the subpoena, Robinson listed him on the verso of the subpoena document among the witnesses who testified. (Subpoena, 24 May 1842 [State of Illinois v. C. L. Higbee].)

    12. [12]

      Recognizance, 24 May 1842 [State of Illinois v. C. L. Higbee]; An Act to Regulate the Apprehension of Offenders, and for Other Purposes [6 Jan. 1827], Public and General Statute Laws of the State of Illinois [1839], p. 238, sec. 3. Robinson worded the recognizance so that it bound Higbee to appear before the circuit court “to answer a charge of slander and defamation against the character of Joseph Smith”; it is unknown whether the omission of Emma Smith’s name was intentional.

      The Public and General Statute Laws of the State of Illinois: Containing All the Laws . . . Passed by the Ninth General Assembly, at Their First Session, Commencing December 1, 1834, and Ending February 13, 1835; and at Their Second Session, Commencing December 7, 1835, and Ending January 18, 1836; and Those Passed by the Tenth General Assembly, at Their Session Commencing December 5, 1836, and Ending March 6, 1837; and at Their Special Session, Commencing July 10, and Ending July 22, 1837. . . . Compiled by Jonathan Young Scammon. Chicago: Stephen F. Gale, 1839.

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      Docket Entry, Copy, ca. 24 May 1842 [State of Illinois v. C. L. Higbee].

    14. [14]

      Subpoena, 14 Sept. 1842 [State of Illinois v. C. L. Higbee].

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      Subpoena, 19 Sept. 1842 [State of Illinois v. C. L. Higbee]. JS allegedly proposed plural marriage to Latter-day Saints Nancy Rigdon and Sarah Marinda Bates Pratt. John C. Bennett in his book History of the Saints further accused JS of attempting to seduce Emeline White and Melissa Schindle, married women who were not Latter-day Saints. According to Bennett, Higbee was the one who obtained an affidavit from Schindle about JS for him. (Bennett, History of the Saints, 226–247, 253–255.)

      Bennett, John C. The History of the Saints; or, an Exposé of Joe Smith and Mormonism. Boston: Leland and Whiting, 1842.

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      Subpoena, 14 Sept. 1842 [State of Illinois v. C. L. Higbee]; Subpoena, 19 Sept. 1842 [State of Illinois v. C. L. Higbee]. There are no docket entries in the October term mentioning an indictment against Higbee. (Hancock Co., IL, Circuit Court Records, 1829–1897, vol. C, p. 319–334, microfilm 947,496; Hancock Co., IL, Circuit Court, Index to Court Papers, 1830–1865, vol. A, p. 75, microfilm 955,126, U.S. and Canada Record Collection, FHL.)

      U.S. and Canada Record Collection. FHL.

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