AMONG THE MORMON SETTLEMENTS. 123 



The latter, at last, routed them out of their principal strong- 

 hold, which was near the mouth of the cailon, in the following 

 manner, which was related to me by Captain Littel, one of the 

 conductors of our company, who was engaged in the assault. 

 The stronghold was surrounded on all sides by lofty precipi- 

 tous rocks, except on the side fronting the river, being a sort 

 of a nook cut into the mountain side. For several days the 

 Indians defied their enemies, who had now gathered from all 

 parts of the valley, resolved to avenge the injuries they had 

 received at all hazards. But the besiegers found that without 

 some new mode of attack their efforts would be unavailing, 

 for the besieged had numerous advantages over them, and had 

 already killed several of their number. The Mormons finally 

 planned and executed a species of moveable breastwork, tri- 

 angular in shape, and made of thick plank, which they 

 sheltered themselves behind, and shoved before them up the 

 mountain gorge, at the farther extremity of which the Utahs 

 were posted, at the same time pouring a deadly fire from their 

 rifles. The Indians, astounded at this mode of warfare and 

 seeing how their ranks were being thinned by the storm of 

 bullets directed against them, soon stampeded in a body, and, 

 rushing toward the mouth of their stronghold, attempted to 

 escape. Repulsed here, they endeavored to scale the rocky 

 walls which surrounded them, but the pale-faced sharpshooters 

 picked them from their slight footholds and tumbled them to 

 the bottom of the defile. So utterly were the Utahs routed in 

 this encounter, that they never attempted to molest their 

 neighbors again. 



We remained but a short time in Provo, when we moved on, 

 and, following along the base of the high range of mountains 

 which rises above the eastern limit of the valley, encamped at 

 night at Springville, a village containing about seven hundred 

 inhabitants and appearing quite prosperous. It had the usual 

 quadrangular i^laza, from the centre of which a tall pole shot 



