The merchants refused to receive
the paper of the Deseret Currency Association with which the Territory
was flooded; and its notes were depreciated instantly by more than
fifty per cent. Many of the people were driven to barter cattle and
farm-produce for the articles they needed; and for the first time since
the establishment of the Church in Utah an audible murmur arose among
its adherents against its exactions. The sight of their neglected
farms was also calculated to bring the poorer agriculturists to sober
reflection. They perceived that the army, which they had been taught to
believe would commit every conceivable outrage, was, on the contrary,
demeaning itself with extreme forbearance and even kindness toward them,
and was supplying an ampler market for the sale of their produce than
they had enjoyed since the years when the overland emigration to
California culminated. Nevertheless, their regrets, if entertained at
all, found no public and concerted utterance. The authority of the
Church exacted a sullen demeanor toward all Gentiles.
The 24th of July, the great Mormon anniversary, was suffered to pass
without celebration; but its recurrence must have suggested anxious
thoughts and bitter recollections to a great part of the population.
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