sufferings endured by this unhappy people, will one day probably form a prominent part of the history {342} of the Far-west. At sun-set we encamped at Mr. Sarpy's trading post,[230] among the upper Potawotomies, where I met several of my old Indian friends, and among them Potogojecs, one of their chiefs, whose Indian legend of their religious traditions will form the subject of my next letter.
20th. A beautiful day—we visited our old friends in Bellevue, the good Mr. Papin[231] and others. We passed the Papillion, the Mosquito, and the Platte rivers, and encamped near Table Creek.[232]
On the 23d we arrived at St. Joseph's, the highest town in Missouri.[233] It is now in a most thriving and prosper-*
- [Footnote: England. Upon the death of Joseph Smith, Young became the head of the
church—a position maintained until his death in 1877. He guided the emigration to Salt Lake, and in 1850 was appointed governor of the territory of Utah.
De Smet's early sympathy with the Mormons, as expressed at this time and in other letters, later suffered a considerable change. See his letter of 1858 in Chittenden and Richardson, De Smet, iv, pp. 1407-1415.—Ed.]
