Among the people who came to gloat over them was William E. McLellin, the apostate. He taunted them with their impending fate, declaring that there was no hope for them.
When the news reached Far West the people were appalled. They had feared for Joseph and his brethren, because they knew that to go out was to enter the lair of a monster; and now they felt that their worst fears were confirmed.
That night the Prophet and his friends lay upon the wet ground, chilled by the rains of dawning November and subject to the most cruel and exasperating insults. The next morning Hyrum Smith and Amasa M. Lyman were dragged from their families in Far West and brought as prisoners into the camp.
On the evening of November 1st, 1838, Lucas convened a court martial, over which he presided. It was composed of seventeen preachers and some of the principal officers of the mob army. Its purpose was to put the Prophet and his friends on trial for their lives, but not one of them was permitted to be present during any part of its deliberations. A few moments were sufficient for the promulgation of its edict, since no testimony was to be heard and no pleas admitted. The sentence was that Joseph and his companions should be shot at eight o'clock the next morning, November 2nd, 1838, on the public square at Far West in the presence of their helpless wives and little children.
When the sentence was passed, General Doniphan said:
I wash my hands of this thing; it is murder!
Then he ordered his brigade of troops off the ground, or he would not permit them to take part in the assassination. General Graham also resisted the sentence with honor and manliness.
After the adjournment of the court martial the Prophet demanded from General Wilson the reason why he should be shot, since he had always been a supporter of the constitution and the government of his country. Wilson's answer was:
I know it, and that is the reason why I want to kill you.
It was an absurdity to try by court martial, even if that body had been a legal and just tribunal, a man who had not borne arms nor engaged in warfare nor committed any overt act. Joseph was a licensed minister of the gospel, not a soldier. He belonged to the class recognized always and everywhere as non-combatant. Probably this was the reason why Lucas had seventeen preachers as members of the court, to give the proceedings an ecclesiastical air.