array. A few of the Militia then paraded in front of the city of which <​caused​> the cowardly assailants to come to a halt at about a mile distant in full view of the . A messenger arrived from them & demanded three persons before they massacred the rest & laid the in ashes. the names of the persons demanded were , & his wife. They gave no authority <​information​> who this army were nor by what authority they came neither had we at that time any knowledge of the ’s order or any of these movements the Mail having been designedly stopped by our enemies for three weeks previously. We had supposed on their first appearance that they were friendly troops sent for our protection, but on receiving this alarming information of their wicked intensions we were much surprised and, sent a with a white flag to enquire of them who they were and what they wanted of us & by whose authority they came this <​flag​> was fired upon by , the Methodist priest, who afterwards told me the same with his own mouth. After several attempts however we got an interview with by which we learned who they were and that they pretended to have been sent by the to exterminate our people. We <​They​> offered no resittance to Upon learning this fact no resistance was offered to their will or wishes they demanded the arms of the Militia, they were given up to them. <​which & forcibly took away them away—​> They then requested that Mr Joseph Smith & other leaders of the church should come into their Camp for consultation and with an assurance of <​giving them a sacred​> promise of protection & safe return; accordingly Messrrs: Joseph Smith, , , & myself started in company with to their Camp when we were soon abruptly met by with several hundreds of his soldiers, in a hostile manner [p. 3]