Letter from Horace Hotchkiss, 13 September 1841

  • Source Note
  • Historical Introduction
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13th. Sept. 1841
Joseph Smith Esqr.
Dear Sir— Yours of 25th. ult. is recd. and permit me to commence this by expressing my surprise at its contents— I am as you suggest acquainted with the losses you sustained and the persicutions you endured in and the consequent destitute conditions of your people when they arrived in and invariably espoused your cause in this section as an injured people and entitled to public sympathy— The manner in which your preachers have been received in many of the eastern States is conclusive evidence that no hostility against your religious tenets exists here and I beleive a universal wish prevails that the Missourians should be punished for their inhuman outrages
Now as regards paying the interest upon the debt in favour of Messrs. & and I shall be very explicit— You state that I pledged my honor not to call for the interest under five years— In this you are entirely mistaken and the contract would certainly destroy such an idea— At the time of executing the papers it was mentioned by that a difficulty might be experienced in paying the first years interest when due & I said that I would not coerce its payment at maturity then— This is all that was said upon the subject but when I saw you last fall you spoke of the interest being defered <​five years​> and mentioned that I would reccollect that to be the understanding but I told you that I could not possibly remember it— You then proposed to pay the whole debt by lands in & — I assented so [p. [1]]
13th. Sept. 1841
Joseph Smith Esqr.
Dear Sir— Yours of 25th. ult. is recd. and permit me to commence this by expressing my surprise at its contents— I am as you suggest acquainted with the losses you sustained and the persicutions you endured in and the consequent destitute conditions of your people when they arrived in and invariably espoused your cause in this section as an injured people and entitled to public sympathy— The manner in which your preachers have been received in many of the eastern States is conclusive evidence that no hostility against your religious tenets exists here and I beleive a universal wish prevails that the Missourians should be punished for their inhuman outrages
Now as regards paying the interest upon the debt in favour of Messrs. & and I shall be very explicit— You state that I pledged my honor not to call for the interest under five years— In this you are entirely mistaken and the contract would certainly destroy such an idea— At the time of executing the papers it was mentioned by that a difficulty might be experienced in paying the first years interest when due & I said that I would not coerce its payment at maturity then— This is all that was said upon the subject but when I saw you last fall you spoke of the interest being defered five years and mentioned that I would reccollect that to be the understanding but I told you that I could not possibly remember it— You then proposed to pay the whole debt by lands in & — I assented so [p. [1]]
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