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Show 158 "Mosquito Coast" in Central America were offered to the Mormons, whom Kinney thought would be anxious to buy their way out of their present difficulties with the government. But despite the fact that the two agants did their best to promote the sale, describing the country in the most positive terms before President Young and other church authorities, Young finally told the men that "if Mr. Kinney owned all of Central America, and would give it to me for notb- 17 ing, I would not go there." When Cooper persisted, he was informed, "If you have any propositions to make, you will please to make them in writing..." But "you must make them in view that we will not move from this Territory as we are just where we want to be, and where we intend to stay, and all hell i ft cannot move us from here.'ao (italics mine.) John R. Young, who was present at the meeting, said he would never forget Brigham Young's reply to the two men. He remembered it this way: "Gentlemen, God almighty made these everlasting hills to be bulwarks of liberty for the oppressed and down-trodden of the earth. We shall never leave here.... Gentlemen, you have my answer. "1° (Italics mine.) The following day, Cooper and Harbin delivered their written proposal to Young-thirty million acres of the Mosquito Coast for ten cents per acre. The proposition was promptly refused. Before returning to California, the persistent Cooper made one last attempt to sell the land, but the shrewd President Young turned him away cold: "I would not go to that country If it was covered 15 inches deep with gold and we owned it all. We are here and here we will stay in this territory."20 (italics mine.) The colorful episode of the Mosquito Coast country serves to demonstrate Brigham Young's conviction that the Saints should, and would, remain in Utah. He obviously considered Utah to be a haven consecrated for the gathering of zion. Yet, as he was telling Cooper they would never leave, the people were |
