PIONEER TENACITY



The following stories are paraphrased from a Mormon Channel presentation:


Do we ever think about the details of privation that accompanied the Mormon Pioneers as they headed west? Movies and legends combine to make the arduous journeys of the 1800s seem almost less difficult than they really were. We think about it and try to experience a tiny glimpse of what it must have been like when we participate in stake treks to places like Martin’s Cove, or by reading from the journals of ancestors, and are left surprised that so many arrived safely to the Salt Lake Valley.


Wind, dust, snakes, mosquitoes, skunks, wolves, and Indians were just a few of the many challenges faced by the weary travelers heading for the setting sun. During their day, many did not consider themselves pioneers, unless they were in the vanguard company. Some were seasoned travelers but others came from Europe and other locales that had never driven oxen, pitched a tent, slept on the ground, cooked out of doors and a myriad of tasks. They learned as they went. One man, who had lost his sense of smell, years before, longed to bring home a meal for his family, like others in the camp who hunted for deer or buffalo.


He walked a few yards from the campsite and discovered a black and white furry animal and beat it to death with his cane. He then threw the animal over his shoulder and attempted to walk into camp with it but was chased away when the smell warned of his approach.


Mosquitoes were so thick that children cried themselves to sleep at night and then couldn’t open their eyes in the morning because their eyelids had been bitten so many times that their eyes were swollen shut. One young man said that on his journey he had seen hundreds of Indians, thousands of buffalo and billions of mosquitoes.


Women bore their children on the trail. One woman gathered buffalo chips in her apron and then later used that same apron to carry her baby back to camp. She was ready to move west the next day despite her recent childbirth. Even if she was fortunate enough to ride, there were no shocks or rubber tires on the wagon. It has been said that pioneer men were strong but women were amazing.


It was not uncommon to hold little children that were too tired to walk on the shoulders of men as they trudged through sand. We often think of pioneers needing help from an angel as they plowed through snow but many tell of angelic help when pulling through sand while carrying a child. Dust was so thick that people as well as oxen would often be blinded. Tears would form on man and beast to help clear the eyes so that sight could be restored. Some travelers even wore goggles.


Many Scandinavians made the journey and at a church meeting a Brother Peterson was asked to say the closing prayer. Ten men stood up and the requestor said, “No. I mean Peter Peterson.” Four men sat down.


Despite all the hardships, many Saints arrived stronger in the faith than when they began. Adversity kindled a fire in their souls that burned brighter, forging a mighty testimony that lasted the rest of their lives.