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Show 108 the mountain where they were sent, and made no settlement. Now we are going to try it again. Probably there is room in that region for 500*000 persons to live scattered about where there is good grass and water. I am going there where we should have gone six or seven years ago, (italics mine.) Brigham Young apparently had great confidence in the region he was speaking about despite the fact that it was admittedly unexplored. The prophet had greatly over estimated the potential of the interior deserts. The reason for this will be discussed in a later chapter. The transplanting of the gathering was no small task. The logostics problems of moving thousands of people into an unexplored wilderness hundreds of miles from the settlements would be an enormous task under normal circumstances, but the Saints now had to attempt it with an army at their heels. President Young continued his lengthy speech, giving the people some of the rudimentary details as be had worked them out: "When are you going to start?" As soon as this snow is off I am going to start part of my family. I am going to a place that I can say to our enemies, "whither I go you cannot come."...[Note the reference to his prophetic dream of March 6J "How many are you going to call?" Only five hundred families to leave this city immediately, though more may go now, if they wish to.... How can we go without provision?" We are going to send that.... We have enough [wheat) to load 1,200 teams, 40,000 bushels of wheat.... We want five hundred families to go south forthwith, and be ready to raise com, potatoes, squashes, beans, etc., etc., this season. In these valleys we now have more grain in the ground than we know what to do with. Instead of planting the sugar cane seed here, plant it there, and you can |