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Authors: Thomas Shawver
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response and the ringing of a bell. A new voice commanded the three of us to join hands and recite the old Mormon oath.
“ ‘We and each of us,’ ”
we began,
“ ‘do covenant and promise that we will not reveal the secrets of this…’
“ ‘
Investiture
,’ the voice cued helpfully.
“
‘…investiture. Should we do so, we agree to have our breasts cut open and our hearts and vitals torn from our bodies.’
”
Cripes,
I thought. And this time I really did shudder.
“My uncle then declared:
“ ‘Behold the chosen three, each born of the Covenant to the sixth generation of our forefather Alonzo Stagg, a most noble Saint, yet who failed in his sacred duty to protect the Prophet Joseph Smith and whose soul cannot rest until the final seed of the great betrayer Thomas Ford is destroyed.’
“We were told to bow our heads while hands from behind us removed the blindfolds. I thought we were to pray. Instead, we stood gazing into an open coffin. It held a skeleton fully clothed in well-worn boots, brown dungarees, a yellowed white shirt with string tie, and a black felt hat. Two candles at each end of the coffin illuminated the scene, their flickering shadows creating an illusion of movement by the bones.
“Denny whispered a prayer and Porter muttered an oath. Then a voice, deeper even than my uncle’s and far more chilling, filled the room:
“ ‘I am the body and suffering spirit of your great-great-grandfather, Alonzo Stagg. I was the Prophet’s bodyguard, but failed to protect him from Thomas Ford, who by lies and treachery led Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum to their martyrdom. For that I vowed to kill him and for my seed to destroy his seed to the sixth generation. Seven years after the murder of the Prophet, Thomas Ford met his fate at my hand. Thus endeth my part in retribution for my negligence and his great sin.’
“Hands upon our shoulders guided us to the left to gaze into another similarly lit coffin in which lay another skeleton dressed in clothes from a different era. A different voice, higher in tone and less sure of itself, spoke from behind us.
“ ‘I am the earthly remains and heavenly spirit of your great-grandfather Charles Stagg. Of his ten sons by his fifth wife, Martha, I was chosen to continue the sacred weeding of the betrayer’s seed. Thomas Ford had two sons and three daughters. The sons became cattle rustlers in Kansas and were caught by vigilantes. The first was tried and hung for his crimes, but the second son attempted to escape. I pulled him from his horse and slit his throat. Thus endeth my part in retribution for my father’s negligence and Thomas Ford’s great sin.’
“I feared that the bones in the next coffin to be shown would be that of my beloved grandfather. Instead, it was the grand-uncle to the three of us, a man who had sired twelve children and worn out four wives before dying in bed on top of a fifth. The raspy voice portraying him was that of a brittle old man.
“ ‘I am the earthly remains and heavenly spirit of William Stagg, son of Charles Stagg, grandson of Alonzo Stagg. I was chosen for this sacred duty when my cousin George Reed died of the influenza epidemic. A surviving daughter of Thomas Ford had three children. Julia, the firstborn, died during the same epidemic that took my cousin. Her sister, Katherine, became a Catholic nun. The third was named Louise. She married and produced two male children. I fulfilled my duty by killing the nun as she worked alone in the pantry of her church. Her throat was cut and her blood spilled upon the ground. Because she was a good and holy woman, I pledged five hundred dollars to our temple in her name and performed the endowment ceremony on her behalf so that she might enter the heavenly kingdom of the Saints.’
“We were turned again to stand in front of an empty coffin behind which stood Uncle Lamar in his white flannel garments with a cowl over his head. He held a lit
“ ‘We and each of us,’ ”
we began,
“ ‘do covenant and promise that we will not reveal the secrets of this…’
“ ‘
Investiture
,’ the voice cued helpfully.
“
‘…investiture. Should we do so, we agree to have our breasts cut open and our hearts and vitals torn from our bodies.’
”
Cripes,
I thought. And this time I really did shudder.
“My uncle then declared:
“ ‘Behold the chosen three, each born of the Covenant to the sixth generation of our forefather Alonzo Stagg, a most noble Saint, yet who failed in his sacred duty to protect the Prophet Joseph Smith and whose soul cannot rest until the final seed of the great betrayer Thomas Ford is destroyed.’
“We were told to bow our heads while hands from behind us removed the blindfolds. I thought we were to pray. Instead, we stood gazing into an open coffin. It held a skeleton fully clothed in well-worn boots, brown dungarees, a yellowed white shirt with string tie, and a black felt hat. Two candles at each end of the coffin illuminated the scene, their flickering shadows creating an illusion of movement by the bones.
“Denny whispered a prayer and Porter muttered an oath. Then a voice, deeper even than my uncle’s and far more chilling, filled the room:
“ ‘I am the body and suffering spirit of your great-great-grandfather, Alonzo Stagg. I was the Prophet’s bodyguard, but failed to protect him from Thomas Ford, who by lies and treachery led Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum to their martyrdom. For that I vowed to kill him and for my seed to destroy his seed to the sixth generation. Seven years after the murder of the Prophet, Thomas Ford met his fate at my hand. Thus endeth my part in retribution for my negligence and his great sin.’
“Hands upon our shoulders guided us to the left to gaze into another similarly lit coffin in which lay another skeleton dressed in clothes from a different era. A different voice, higher in tone and less sure of itself, spoke from behind us.
“ ‘I am the earthly remains and heavenly spirit of your great-grandfather Charles Stagg. Of his ten sons by his fifth wife, Martha, I was chosen to continue the sacred weeding of the betrayer’s seed. Thomas Ford had two sons and three daughters. The sons became cattle rustlers in Kansas and were caught by vigilantes. The first was tried and hung for his crimes, but the second son attempted to escape. I pulled him from his horse and slit his throat. Thus endeth my part in retribution for my father’s negligence and Thomas Ford’s great sin.’
“I feared that the bones in the next coffin to be shown would be that of my beloved grandfather. Instead, it was the grand-uncle to the three of us, a man who had sired twelve children and worn out four wives before dying in bed on top of a fifth. The raspy voice portraying him was that of a brittle old man.
“ ‘I am the earthly remains and heavenly spirit of William Stagg, son of Charles Stagg, grandson of Alonzo Stagg. I was chosen for this sacred duty when my cousin George Reed died of the influenza epidemic. A surviving daughter of Thomas Ford had three children. Julia, the firstborn, died during the same epidemic that took my cousin. Her sister, Katherine, became a Catholic nun. The third was named Louise. She married and produced two male children. I fulfilled my duty by killing the nun as she worked alone in the pantry of her church. Her throat was cut and her blood spilled upon the ground. Because she was a good and holy woman, I pledged five hundred dollars to our temple in her name and performed the endowment ceremony on her behalf so that she might enter the heavenly kingdom of the Saints.’
“We were turned again to stand in front of an empty coffin behind which stood Uncle Lamar in his white flannel garments with a cowl over his head. He held a lit
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