Thursday, February 21—Elder Markham arrived at Far West, and in the evening the committee on removal were in council. Elders Bingham, Turley, and Shearer, were appointed to sell the house of Joseph Smith, Sen., to a gentleman from Clay county.
Charles Bird was sent to Liberty relative to a power of attorney.
Committee Resolutions.
Resolved: To send Stephen Markham to Illinois, to visit the brethren there and obtain a power of attorney from such as had left their lands without selling them. A report of the committee appointed to visit the different parts of the country to ascertain the number of families who were destitute of teams for their removal, was made. William Huntington reported thirty-two families, and Charles Bird seven, as far as they had prosecuted their labors.
Resolved: To send Erastus Bingham to visit the north-west part of Caldwell county for the same purpose, and then adjourned till Monday next.
Action of the Democratic Committee of Quincy.
Saturday, February 25.—At a meeting of the Democratic Association, held this evening at Quincy, Adams County, Illinois, Mr. Lindsay introduced a resolution setting forth that the people called "Latter-day Saints" were many of them in a situation requiring the aid of the citizens of Quincy, and recommending that measures be adopted for their relief, which resolution was adopted, and a committee consisting of eight persons appointed by the chair; of which committee J. W. Whitney was chairman. The association then adjourned to meet on Wednesday evening next after instructing the committee to procure the Congregational church as a place of meeting, and to invite as many of our people to attend as should choose to do so; for it was in their behalf that the meeting was to be held. Also all other citizens of the town who felt to do so were invited to attend. The committee not being able to obtain the meeting house, procured the Court House for that purpose.
Determination of the Prisoners to Escape.
After we were cast into prison, we heard nothing but threatenings, that if any judge or jury, or court of any kind, should clear any of us, we should never get out of the state alive.
This soon determined our course, and that was to escape out of their hands as soon as we could, and by any means we could. After we had been some length of time in prison, we demanded a habeas corpus of Judge Turnham, one of the county judges, which with some considerable reluctance, was granted. Great threatenings were made at this time, by the mob, that if any of us were liberated, we should never get out of the county alive.
Sidney Rigdon's Departure from Prison.
After the investigation, Sidney Rigdon was released from prison by the decision of the judge; the remainder were committed to jail; he, however, returned with us until a favorable opportunity offered for his departure. Through the friendship of the sheriff, Mr. Samuel Hadley, and the jailor, Mr. Samuel Tillery, he was let out of the jail secretly in the night, after having declared in prison, that the sufferings of Jesus Christ were a fool to his; and being solemnly warned by them to be out of the state with as little delay as possible, he made his escape. Being pursued by a body of armed men, it was through the direction of a kind Providence that he escaped out of their hands, and safely arrived in Quincy, Illinois.