Description
I Will Beat You To The Valley – Mary Fielding Smith
Mary Fielding Smith was a woman of remarkable faith and courage. Her husband was murdered in June 1844, and notwithstanding having a large family and many dependents, she determined to follow the Twelve and go west. In the spring of 1848, there was a great movement of Latter-day Saints to follow the apostles to the Salt Lake Valley that had been discovered the year before. Mary had made it across to Iowa and now, in the spring of 1848, was determined to go on to Salt Lake. Her son Joseph F. Smith described her dilemma:
“Up to this time one of the teams had two wagons and when we reached a hill, we uncoupled one wagon, taking one at a time. The widow feared to cross the plains in this way and so applied to the Church agent for help.
“After diagnosing our case, considering the number of wagons we had, and the helplessness of the whole company, the wagonmaster very sternly informed the widow that ‘there was no use for her to attempt to cross the plains that year, and advised her to go back to the Missouri River, and remain at Winter Quarters another year, when perhaps she could be helped.’”
“Then the supervisor added: ‘If you start out in this manner, you will be a burden on the company the whole way, and I will have to carry you along or leave you on the way.’ I am happy to say, the widow had a little mettle in her, and she straightened up and calmly replied: ‘I will beat you to the valley and will ask no help from you either.’ At this remark the wagonmaster seemed to be very nettled and replied: ‘You can’t get there without help, and the burden will be on me.’ With this remark he abruptly turned and walked away.”
Mary managed, after some effort, to acquire the oxen needed to make the journey. Upon returning to the Elkhorn River, the emigrant camp was organized, and Mary and her company were assigned to the company of the same angry wagonmaster. Joseph F. said this,
“No doubt this brother was pleased to have Widow Smith and her dependents assigned to his company, for now he would have control and he would prove to her that she should have remained behind and that she would be a burden to the company and dependent upon help from him. In this he, no doubt, gloried, for he was going to see that it was fulfilled.”
Everything went along smoothly until one day one of their best oxen laid down in the yoke and appeared to be dying. The wagonmaster came back to see the source of the commotion in the train.
“The wagonmaster came up,” Joseph F. said, “and seeing the cause of the disturbance he blustered about as if the world were about at an end. ‘There,’ said he, ‘I told you you would have to be helped and that you would be a burden on the company.’”
But Mary would not be deterred. Producing a bottle of consecrated oil she asked her brother Joseph Fielding and James Lawson to administer to the ox. Joseph F. continued,
“These brethren poured oil on the head of the ox and then laid their hands upon it and rebuked the power of the destroyer just as they would have done if the animal had been a human being. Immediately the ox got up and within a very few moments again pulled in the yoke as if nothing had ever happened. This was a great astonishment to the company. Before the company had proceeded very far another of her oxen fell down as the first, but with the same treatment he also got up, and this was repeated the third time; by administration the oxen were fully healed. This brought great chagrin to the countenance of the captain of the company.”
Finally, Mary’s party came within sight of the Salt Lake Valley. They had one more day’s pull before reaching their destination, but on the appointed morning, they arose to find some of their pulling animals gone. Determined to beat Mary to the Valley, the Captain gave the order for the Train to move out. There was no offer of help to find Widow Smith’s cattle. The train started out while Mary’s son, John, went in search of the cattle. Joseph F. described watching the Company leave without them:
“I said to myself, ‘True enough, we have come thus far, and we have been blessed, and not the slightest help from anyone has been asked by us.’ But the last promise seemed to be now impossible; the last hope of getting into the valley before the rest of our company was vanishing in my opinion.”
But just then a violent summer thunderstorm struck the Canyon forcing the Captain to stop and unhitch his cattle. Free of their yokes, the cattle fled the storm, scattering in all directions.
As the storm abated, John returned with Mary’s lost oxen. They yoked up and started on their way. Mary’s brother, Joseph Fielding asked, “Mary, what shall we do? Go on, or wait for the company to gather up their teams?”
Mary’s reply was classic courage. “Joseph, they have not waited for us, and I see no necessity for us to wait for them.” At ten o’clock that night, Mary’s party rolled into the pioneer fort in Salt Lake City. The following morning, being a Sunday, Mary and her party went to services and listened to the brethren preach. Joseph F. Smith concludes the story.
“Then on the afternoon of that Sunday, we went out and met our friends coming in, very dusty, and very foot-sore and very tired! The prediction of the widow was actually fulfilled; we beat them into the Valley, and we asked no help from them either.”
Courage and faith are righteously conjoined. It is hard to tell where one starts and the other ends, but one thing is certain, the possession of both begins with a choice to follow the Lord Jesus Christ.
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