Book Review: Life History and Writings of John Jaques.

This book was put together by the great-granddaughter, Stella Jaques Bell, of John Jaques and includes his journal, his reminiscences,  some of his letters, his poetry as well as his sister-in-law.s recollections.  More importantly for us, it documents the deaths of three of the Ashtons; Sarah Barlow Ashton, Elizabeth Ashton and Baby Sarah Jane Ashton.  (See post from 10/12/10)  It also includes his obituary and other writings related to John Jaques.  It was published in 1978 by Ricks College Press.

John Jaques is prominent in LDS history as a former assistant editor of the Millennial Star, as well as the author of poems which are two LDS hymns, Oh Say What is Truth" and "Softly Beams the Sacred Dawning".  His "Cathecism for Children" was used in the Church Sunday School program for many years as an instruction for children.

The knock against this book is that it is hard to figure out the source for some of the material.  It goes back and forth between different sources and even different writers, and is at times hard to follow.

However it is probably the best original source material with regards to the handcarts.  Granted some of the material can be accessed from other sources such as the BYU Library and the Church History website.

My favorite quote is John Jaques words with regards to the women at the last crossing;
"That was a bitter cold day. Winter came on all at once, and that was the first day of it. The river was wide, the current strong, the water exceedingly cold and up to the wagon beds in the deepest parts, and the bed of the river was covered with cobble stones. Some of the men carried some of the women over on their backs or in their arms, but others of the women tied up their skirts and waded through, like heroines as they were, and as they had done through many other rivers and creeks. The company was barely over when snow, hail, and sleet began to fall, accompanied by a piercing north wind, and camp was made on this side of the river."

This book includes a general history of John's life after entering the valley, and his mission back to England.  Of course some of these things don't apply to the study of the handcart company, but are interesting none the less.


John Jaques wrote a summary of his life at age sixty.  He wrote with regards to the handcart trek, "Traveled one of the hardest journeys of my life across the plains by handcart, nearly worked to death, starved to death and froze to death."

Just a sample of John Jaques' poetry from the LDS Hymn Book:

1. Oh say, what is truth? ’Tis the fairest gem
That the riches of worlds can produce,
And priceless the value of truth will be when
The proud monarch’s costliest diadem
Is counted but dross and refuse.

2. Yes, say, what is truth? ’Tis the brightest prize
To which mortals or Gods can aspire.
Go search in the depths where it glittering lies,
Or ascend in pursuit to the loftiest skies:
’Tis an aim for the noblest desire.

3. The sceptre may fall from the despot’s grasp
When with winds of stern justice he copes.
But the pillar of truth will endure to the last,
And its firm-rooted bulwarks outstand the rude blast
And the wreck of the fell tyrant’s hopes.

4. Then say, what is truth? ’Tis the last and the first,
For the limits of time it steps o’er.
Tho the heavens depart and the earth’s fountains burst,
Truth, the sum of existence, will weather the worst,
Eternal, unchanged, evermore.

Text: John Jaques, 1827–1900
Music: Ellen Knowles Melling, 1820–1905

Book Review: John Jaques, reminiscenses

In 1878, 22 years after the Martin Handcart Company, John Jaques wrote a series of newspaper articles which where published in the Salt Lake Herald. As far as I know this was the first published material about the handcart company. The are available through the Church History Library:
http://lds.org/churchhistory/library/pioneercompanysources/1,16272,4019-1-192,00.html
John Jaques had been the company historian. I have other writings from John Jaques put together b Stella Jaques Bell which I will review at another time.

There are lots of things to like from this article and great quotes. There are a couple of things to not like. John Jaques tries to compare the handcart ordeals to the retreat of Napoleon. That just doesn't work. He also uses the third person when he talks about himself and his own family. I guess he didn't want to sound egotistical, but it just confuses things.

Now for a couple of the good quotes. John Jaques describes the last crossing of the Platte River. "That was a bitter cold day. Winter came on all at once, and that was the first day of it. The river was wide, the current strong, the water exceedingly cold and up to the wagon beds in the deepest parts, and the bed of the river was covered with cobble stones. Some of the men carried some of the women over on their backs or in their arms, but others of the women tied up their skirts and waded through, like heroines as they were, and as they had done through many other rivers and creeks. The company was barely over when snow, hail, and sleet began to fall, accompanied by a piercing north wind, and camp was made on this side of the river."

John Jaques also described the duty of those who dug graves, as well as one particular story. This interests me as Isaac Wardle, my ancestor, helped dig graves for those who passed away. "I have mentioned the generally prevalent abnormal indifference to death and the dead, induced by daily familiarity therewith, in the company. In some, if not all, of the hundreds, men were specially appointed to be grave-diggers, and the feelings of these men would naturally grow more callous than those of others of the emigrants, from usage, as well as from the fact that the exigencies of travel would frequently require the interment of the dead in what, under other circumstances, would be considered indecent haste. But on one occasion, at least, the old sensitiveness or normal nervousness returned and re-asserted itself unexpectedly and suddenly though temporarily, to two of these grave-diggers. One evening, on the other side of Devil's Gate, after the tents had been pitched, these two men dug a grave, buried two corpses in it, and filled it up again, out- side of camp. Scarcely had they finished their work, when some unaccountable, irresistible and uncontrollable nervous impulse simultaneously seized them both. Without saying a word to each other at the time, each shouldered his spade or his pick and ran back to camp as fast as his legs could carry him, or in a popular parlance, as if the very Old Harry were after him. This was the only time, one of those grave-digging and pedestrian Tam O'Shanters subsequently declared, that he ever felt frightened over that part of the camp business." I have found lots of other good quotes. I would recommend that people check out the history series, and this series is a good place to start.