Life Story of JAMES NIELS SKOUSEN, THE GENTLE PATRIARCH by Max B. Skousen and Meryle M. Gelisse

Life Story of JAMES NIELS SKOUSEN, THE GENTLE PATRIARCH by Max B. Skousen and Meryle M. Gelisse

SKOUSENS IN AMERICA

Life Story

of

JAMES NIELS SKOUSEN,

THE GENTLE PATRIARCH

by

Max B. Skousen and Meryle M. Gelisse

The Skousens in America are descendants of a strong, wiry Dane who emigrated to this country in 1862 at the age of thirty-two. He was medium height, five feet eight inches, and weighed one hundred eighty-five pounds, which gave him a good strong build. His strong will was predominant, both in his ability to follow through on any call he might receive in the Church, and also in his unwillingness to change his mind once it was made up. His strong will was mellowed by a very jolly nature, for he liked to play and was easily delighted by a good joke.

He was one of the first pioneers to settle the high plateau country of eastern Arizona, but paid for the experience with hardship and modest means. He cheerfully gave all that he had for the work of the Lord, serving as a patriarch for many years. Of his seventeen children by two wives, fifteen lived to maturity. Today (1970) there are over 2, 000 descendants of this man whose story is interwoven with Mormon history in the Southwest.

James, in writing his life story five years be­fore his death, says that his father’s name was Nealis Hanson Cappel and his mother was Johanna Jens Skousen. Most of our records spell his father's name a little differently, such as Niels Hansen Kabel or Kappel. But James took his mother's family name of Skousen, probably because he was raised by his mother's brother, Uncle James Skousen, until he was eighteen. Since his father's first name was Niels, he probably should have kept the name of Nielsen, according to Danish custom. (The Skousen surname remained a surname and did not follow the patronymic system, but in several instances was adopted from the mothers side of the family. ONS) As an adult in Denmark, he was known as Jens Nielsen Skousen, but changed to James Niels when he came to America. (The parish record of his birth lists his name as Jens Nielsen Skousen. The bothers and sisters were named in their parish birthrecords; Hans Nielsen, Maren Nielsdatter, Jens Nielsen Skousen, Margrethe Nielsen, Christian Nielsen Buck, and Soren Nielsen Skousen. ONS)

A FOUNDATION IS LAID

James was born September 30, 1828 at Herslev, Vejle, Denmark. He was the third child in a family of six. When still a very small child, he had the frightening experience of being drowned on two different occasions, but was revived in time. His uncle kept him in the common school until he graduated at fourteen years of age. By the time he was eighteen, he was required to leave his uncle's home. He got employment in a town of Barndrup, North Slaveg. It was a very rough environment with the worst degradations. James remained free from the corruption, thanks in large measure to a God­fearing man who took an interest in the young Skousen. His name was Nelis. He saw the young man's temptations and kept close to him, getting him to think about life, family, God, and mankind. Nelis may have felt that not much good was accomplished, for James, independent and sure of himself, did not seem very much interested. However, the influence was effective. As James wrote many years later, "I could not see it at the time but afterwards, I can see that the Lord's hand was over me. He inspired that man to teach me and warn me of the sins of the world." Because of his teachings, a foundation was laid for a moral life until he came in contact with the Mormons.

The law required that all able-bodied men should serve three years in military training. James had a desire of being a member of the mounted Royal Guard. He joined the cavalry at the age of seventeen under an assumed name of James Huyrot. His attempts to get into the Royal Guard were frust­rated by the fact that he was too short. He had be­come an excellent horseman and did everything possible to be accepted. His persistence paid off when he was able to show that although he was too short, it was only his legs and not his body. He proved to them that on a horse, he was as tall as the other men. So James became a proud member of the finest riding team in the Danish Kingdom. The Royal Guard rode beautiful horses and the men dressed in bright uniforms of red and white in par­ades and other state occasions.

Around the time of leaving the service, he be­came enchanted with a happy-faced, good natured young woman by the name of Sidsel Marie Pedersen. Sidsel is pronounced in English as Cecil, by which she was always known in America. They became engaged and soon set up what was very common in those days in Denmark, a common-law marriage. James was 20 and she was 22. A baby girl was born June 6, 1849 whom they named Petria, but she died two months later, leaving the young couple in great sorrow.

James began to learn the trade of engineer for boilers and rapidly became a very good one even in his twenties. Both were religious and attended one of the large churches in town. He was called to assist the minister on occasion, being well versed in scriptures.

Their second child was not born until seven years after little Petria had died. On September 6, 1856, a young son was born whom they named Peter Niels Skousen. Five months before, James and Sidsel had formalized their marriage by being mar­ried in the church, called Dum Church of Aarhus (The Aarhus Cathedral, the Dom Kirke).

Mormon missionaries had been proselyting in Denmark since 1850. As the missionary effort progressed, especially after polygamy was formally announced in the early fifties, Mormonism was synonymous to white slavery. Many stories we re circulated that these young Mormon Elders were sent to captivate the beautiful young Danish ladies and take them to their harems in the wilderness of west­ern America. James and Sidsel heard these stories with the typical prejudice.

A NEW LIFE

There is probably no better example of the ''typical Skousen spirit,” for which most of his off­spring are noted, than to see the way that James Niels Skousen became a Mormon. It took exactly one-half of a day. From that day until the end of his life, all purpose and direction centered around his new found faith. Here is the way it happened.

Sidsel was acquainted with a neighbor who had become a Mormon. His name was Lars 0. Madsen. He had contacted James and invited him to his house for a meeting. The date scheduled was Sunday, March 8, 1887, at 2:00 pm. It appears that Sidsel was not anxious to have him get involved in such a strange religion, but when she found that he was de­termined to go she said, "I'll go also." James was greatly impressed by the teaching he heard at that meeting. However, his Danish pride made him want to stand by his old beliefs, so he invited Lars Madsen over to the Skousen home immediately after the meeting to reverse the discussion. As James recorded the experience, "I thought that my religion was right but the elder of the Church of Christ knocked my foundation all to pieces until it sat down in a pile of sand. He convinced me that I was wrong.

As evening came on, the full-time mission­aries arrived. It had been raining heavily during the day, and the two American elders were wet and exhausted. However, now that James was fully con­vinced, there was no other course but to be baptized right there and then. He and Sidsel asked for baptism.

As preparations were being made to leave the house to perform the ordinances, James experienced a strange, terrible power that began to distress him. Never in his life had he experienced such a strange power of darkness. But being a man of his word, he moved right along towards the place of baptism. As he was baptized and came up out of the water, this power immediately withdrew and a new, sweet Spirit descended upon him. He recalls, “I felt just as happy as a baby.” That was a Sunday he would remember vividly all the days of his life.

Elder Madsen performed the baptisms and the two traveling elders confirmed them. One of the Elders, Peter Nielsen, recorded the event in his journal as follows: “March 8, l857. Left for Aarhus where we arrived in the evening, very tired and soaked to the skin because of the rain. One family was baptized that same evening. I felt very happy on their behalf. Brother I. Hansen and I confirmed them members of the Church”. So recorded the event which has so changed the lives of the Skousens in America.

After joining the Church, the study and dis­cussion of the gospel became the most interesting thing in James' life. As he began to understand the importance of the great latter-day gathering, he and his wife started putting away money so that they could emigrate to America. In about a month, he was ordained a deacon and by the last of May was ordained a priest. After he had been a member a little over three months, he was surprised by being called by the mission president to go with him into the country to hold a meeting. James was asked to speak to a large congregation of non-members. In his utter inadequacy, he relied on the Lord for help As he began to speak, he was overjoyed and sur­prised to find words flowing out of his mouth. As he testified of the experience, “it is not you that speaks, but your Father's Spirit that speaks through you.”

During this period of his first few months in the Church, word had traveled rapidly about his new faith. His employer at the foundry where James was engineer for the steam boiler began to treat him differently. Finally James was told that he would lose his job if he did not leave this terrible religion. James answered that he knew it was true and could not leave it. Soon the employer brought a new man to James and instructed him to show the new man now to operate the machinery because he was being replaced. This was a very discouraging blow to the two young converts for it jeopardized their trip to Zion.

James attended his first mission conference early in July in the City of Vejle and was delighted to be ordained an older in the Melchizedek Priest­hood. He felt a joy so great that it made him feel that now he understood how the ancient prophets must have felt.

By the next month, in August, 1857, James was called on a mission to preside over the branch of the Church at Randers in Aarhus county. The mission president and a traveling elder went with him to Randers and held a meeting. There were three or four brethren in the branch. When the president asked one of them to speak, James was greatly impressed with how well the man spoke, giving full support to the new branch president. But as the man was speaking, James heard a voice stating that the man would not sus­tain him. As James pondered regarding the instructions he had heard, the voice came the sec­ond time, warning him of the man’s potential defection. With such a warning, President Skousen was on his guard. It was not many weeks before the man started to work against him and the mission leadership in general, finally apostatizing from the church. The man's wife was a very good member, and with her patient help, the brother was finally reinstated into the church.

James was able to obtain another job as an engineer and much to his joy, it actually paid more than did the old job. Some time later, James' old employer tried to get him back because he was having so much trouble with the boiler, but James refused, telling him that he had been fired without cause and would not come back no matter what the consideration might be.

During the five years from 1857 to 1862, James, his wife, Sidsel, and their little son Peter, lived in Randers. They rented an upper story apartment that they also used as a home for the missionaries, using the large front room for the meetings of the branch. Sidsel, in full bloom of health at thirty, had great love for the mission­aries and enthusiasm for the new found restored gospel. One of her greatest desires was to share the gospel with her own family. She had no doubt in her mind but what they would accept it just as she had. She was amazed when they refused to listen. The one who surprised her most of all was her brother who was a school teacher. She thought surely he would be delighted to hear the great news of how God had restored the gospel in its fullness. However, he responded with an offended attitude, asking, "Why do you come to me with such a message? Am I not better learned than you?" She was truly crushed by his rudeness and felt very disappointed that her brother would treat her message in such a way.

During that first winter at Randers, they heard of the war between the United States Army and the saints in Utah. In May 1858, Sidsel became pregnant, and on February 15, 1859, a boy was born. They named him Parley Pratt Skousen, after the great apostle who had been killed the same month that they had joined the Church. They were greatly saddened when the tiny baby died within two days. However, just one year later, February 5, 1860 another son was born whom they named Willard Richard Skousen.

A GREAT VOYAGE

By this time, the Utah war had long since subsided, but the Civil War was breaking out in the United States. News from America was very important to James because the day was soon approaching when they would have the means to go to the promised land. As the winter of 1861 approached, plans were finally being completed for the great voyage. Two ships were being chartered for a large migration in April, 1862. The trip would take practically every penny they had, but they could hardly wait for the day. Even little Peter, just turning 5 would tell the American missionaries that he was going to be one of Brigham's soldiers. One could tell he had listened carefully to the heroic tales of the defense Brigham Young had made against Johnston's army. Sidsel too, was anxious to go, even though she was over four months pregnant.

The large group of "gathering saints of modern Israel” from the Aalborg and Vendsyssel Conferences numbered over 400. On April 6, 1862, they boarded the local steamer, the "Ablion." They sailed southward and on the following morning picked up the emigrating saints from the Aarhus and Skive Conferences at Aarhus. The steamer reached Kiel in Holstein that evening. Here, they were joined by a small group from Copenhagen. They left Jutland, their last sight of Denmark, on April 8th. Their next stop was at Hamburg, Germany, where they were to board their ships for crossing the Atlantic. The people went on board the Humbolt and the Franklin that were anchored in the Elbe on the evening of the 8th.

The next morning, which was Wednesday, April 9th, 1862, the little Skousen family watched their Captain, H. B. Boysen, of the good ship Humbolt, head for open sea. Elder Hans C. Hansen was in charge of the three hundred and twenty-three emigrating saints. Although there were some mixed emotions, the forty-two days spent on board during the crossing included many happy hours. Little did any of them realize the hardships that were to face them in becoming pioneers in the great deserts of Western America.

They sailed into New York Harbor on May 20th. The Civil War was waging further south, so there was probably little evidence of it in the great city or as they traveled by railroad and steamboat across the country to the western outpost of Florence, Nebraska, where they arrived about the first of June.

THE WALK TO BRIGHAM’S TOWN

One can imagine what this Mormon outfitting center of Florence looked like that summer of 1862. There were several thousand people being prepared for the difficult journey of over one thousand miles to Salt Lake. The little Skousen family was typical. James was thirty-three, Sidsel was thirty-five, little Peter was five, and Willard was a toddler of one and one half years. They had been assigned to the second church train that consisted of seven hundred people and sixty-five wagons. They were under the direction of Captain John R. Murdock. Three hundred and eighty-four of this group had come from the Scandinavian countries. Great must have been the task of moving so many across such a rough and forbidding wilderness. Those sixty-five wagons transported all of their earthly belongings and sufficient food to last the company two months. Ten people were assigned for each wagon, which meant that most of those crossing had to walk. To complicate matters for the Skousens, Sidsel was expecting her baby almost any day.

The long wagon train left Florence, Nebras­ka on July 24, 1862. While Sidsel rode in the wagon, James would hold five year old Peter by the hand, put Willard astraddle his neck on his shoulders, and off they would march on their way to Zion. They would walk all day, except for short rests when they got a little ahead of their wagon.

During the second week out, while camped near the Platt River, Sidsel gave birth to a baby girl, August 2, 1862. She was named Johanne Marie, or as the name would be called in America, Hannah Marie.

September 27, 1862, they saw before them the sprawling fifteen year-old pioneer town of Salt Lake City. Their journey across the plains had taken a little over two months, brought four­teen deaths and two births. The total journey from their homeland had taken five months and nineteen days. They had left behind the lovely green countryside and beautiful cities of Denmark and now were strangers in a desolate English-speaking land with scarcely anything except the clothes they were wearing.

It had been just five and one half years since the notable Sunday when they had first heard the strange message. Since then, they had given up everything they owned, home, friends and all worldly ties. A message which declared that God had raised up a prophet and had again spoken to man had brought them to this strange, dry land. The testimony of the truthfulness of this message gave them the strength and courage to go through the trials and tribulations they were just beginning to encounter. Only the physically and spiritually strong ever reached the great basin. Those spiritually weak never started and those physically weak died on the way.

SUCCESSFUL FARMER

After arriving in Salt Lake, James obtained a small room for his little family of five and accepted the call of working at the temple square, cutting stone for the temple. The work was difficult and within a few days, his hand and wrist had become so sore and swollen that he could no longer hold a hammer. In the middle of his fifth day, James was unable to continue the work, hard as he did try. James decided he would do better as a farm laborer. So he moved his family about 25 miles south to Lehi. They obtained a one room house southeast of the village, not far from Utah Lake. James contracted to dig potatoes on shares. He received every seventh bushel. His strong helper was six year-old Peter who would gather the potatoes into baskets as James would spade them to the surface.

Following the harvest and with the coming of winter cold, the family settled down to their humble existence, awaiting the coming spring and the prospects of renewed employment. James spent much of his time studying the scriptures, especially the Doctrine and Covenants. One winter day, he read the 89th Section and was particularly impressed with the 8th verse, which reads, "And again, tobacco is not for the body, neither for the belly, and is not good for man, but is an herb for bruises and all sick cattle, to be used with judg­ment and skill." The Word of Wisdom was not stressed as a commandment in those days, but merely as suggestive counsel from the Lord.

Many prominent members used tobacco. James was very fond of his Danish pipe. But after read­ing what the Lord had to say about tobacco, he turned to Sidsel and in his very broken English, remarked, "I am not a sick cattle.” He picked up his pipe and threw it into the fire, then he took his precious supply of tobacco, walked out of the little house, and scattered it over the snow just as though he was sowing grain in the field. That was the last time he ever used tobacco and also the last time that he ever allowed it to be used in his home.

In the spring a man by the name of Sovendohl (a former missionary to Denmark) asked James to move to Cottonwood and work a farm on shares. James agreed, so he and his family moved from Lehi to Cottonwood and lived there during the summer's work. Brother Sovendohl suggested that he move up into big Dry Creek canyon, and cut logs during the winter and slide them down the mountains so they could be reached by the team. An agreement was reached and the family moved up into a small log house about ten miles from Draper. The winter of 1863-1864 was cold and bitter with two to three feet of snow on the ground. Under such severe weather, James would have to go to Draper for flour and carry it up the moun­tain on his back so they would have food to eat.

James was ordained a Seventy by John Brown in October, 1863. In the spring of 1864, James rented a farm for two years at Draper, Utah from Joshua Terry. The family moved into a log house on the north side of town. The grain crop was a success and James harvested by cutting it with a cradle and Pete and Sidsel tied it into bundles. Terry proved to be a man of his word and James said, "He was the best man I ever worked for." At the expiration of the lease in 1866, James bought forty acres on the south side of Draper, on which was a two room adobe house. He had also obtained a yoke of oxen and a wagon. It was a great feeling to have a place they could call their own after four years of the most severe hardships.

By hard work the family became thoroughly established on the farm. During the winter they would go up into the canyons for wood and haul it to Salt Lake City and trade for goods that could be used in the home and on the farm.

April 17, 1865, a son was born at Draper and they named him Daniel.

Good crops such as wheat, corn, cane, oats, potatoes and garden vegetables were raised to feed the family. They also obtained a cow that provided them with milk and butter. During the summer James, with his son, Peter, would cross to the west side of the Jordan River, where the grass grew thick and tall. He would cut it with a scythe and Pete would rake it into piles. After drying, they would stack what they needed and haul some to Salt Lake City and trade for merchandise. They seldom had a chance to see a dollar as most business was done by trading. A second yoke of oxen was obtained, also a team of horses. It seemed very nice to have horses that would travel much faster than oxen. On occasion, the team was hitched to the wagon and off to church they would go. At times they took butter and eggs up to Alta, a mining town in Little Cottonwood Canyon, to obtain money that made it easier to purchase articles for their home.

James worked on the railroad up in Echo Canyon one winter. It was very cold and many of the men drank coffee feeling it helped to keep them warm, but James drank water and seemed to fair with the best of them.

He made a hay press to bale hay. He would take his teams and go to American Fork or Lehi and buy hay. This he would press into large bales and take to Alta and sell it for a good profit. The bales were so heavy they had to be loaded on to the wagon by the use of skids.

For recreation they held picnics and parties in the canyons during the summer, and dances and plays in the winter.

June 3, 1867, a daughter was born to them at Draper. They named her Caroline. They now had five living children, three boys and two girls.

Two years later, September 13, 1869, James took Sidsel to Salt Lake City for a very special event. They entered the endowment house on temple square and were sealed for time and eternity. They left their children at home in the care of a young woman who was living with them. She was twenty-four year old Ane Kirstine Jorgensen Hansen who had recently emigrated to America from Denmark. Ane had accidentally in­jured her knee when she was a young girl and afterwards, her knee would not lock, which required that she use a crutch. James and Sidsel, aware of her problem of getting settled in a new land, took her in and gave her work.

THE CHALLENGE OF PLURAL MARRIAGE

Plural marriage was beginning to receive strong legal and political attention by the enemies of the Church. Brigham Young responded by en­couraging the practice more than ever, especially requesting the men to marry the young, unmar­ried women. One day, about a year after her own temple marriage, Sidsel had a very startling and unsettling conversation with her husband. She said, "I think you had better marry Annie and raise another family. I've got about all of mine." James was almost beside himself. With dismay, he re­plied to his good wife, "Humph, I can't even take care of the family I have, let alone another." Sidsel calmly responded, "You might just as well make up your mind to marry her, because you are going to take care of her anyway. She is a cripple, has no folks or home to go to, and I'm not going to turn her out."

James finally gave in and took Ane to Salt Lake, where they were married August 1, 1870. James was just turning forty-two and Ane was twenty-five. Their married life started out with a surprise. On their way home from Salt Lake crossing a fill over a stream, James pulled the horses too far to one side and caused the buggy to slide off the road and tip over, throwing them both into the water. The newly-weds arrived home that evening completely soaked.

That fall, James built Ane a two-room adobe house just east of their old home on another piece of land in Draper, Utah. About that time, Ane be­came pregnant and the following summer, on August 20, 1871, her first child was born, a little girl whom they named Ella Marie Skousen. The year before, on May 2, 1870, a daughter named Mary was born to Sidsel. A year later, August 21, 1872, Sidsel had her last child, a boy, who was given his father's name, James Niels Skousen Jr. Almost two years later, May 3, 1874, Ane had her second child, a boy, whom they named Erastus Skousen.

James and his growing family lived in Draper, just twenty miles from Salt Lake for another two years, until 1876. That made twelve years since arriving in Utah. They had been hard but fruitful years. During that time, he had built two homes, had purchased a nice forty-acre farm and accumu­lated other assets, such as horses, wagons, and livestock. Now, at the age of forty-eight, he could begin to enjoy the fruits of his labor. His boys were beginning to do a real man's share of the work around the farm. Pete was a husky young man of twenty. Willard was a strong powerful boy of six­teen.

A CALL TO SACRIFICE

In January, 1876 the general authorities held a conference in St. George, Utah and decided to call about two hundred men to colonize the East ­central portion of Arizona. Leaders and names were selected. Four companies, each of fifty men and their families, were organized under Lot Smith, Jesse 0. Ballenger, George Lake and William E. Allen. The call was to be one of serving a mission and the people would live a socialized form of the united order, rather than the pure Order of Enoch.

One can well imagine the shock and excite­ment that filled the two Skousen homes when they found that James Niels Skousen was to be one of the missionaries. Those called from the southern part of Salt Lake County and the northern part of Utah County were called together in Salt Lake City, in the bitter cold of February, 1876, to receive in­structions from President Brigham Young. James found William C. Allen was to lead the group from that geographical area. The group was told to sell all of their possessions except that which they could take with them. They were to assemble im­mediately at Kanab, Utah, over 300 miles to the south on the Arizona border.

As James returned to his beloved farm, tears flowed freely as they contemplated leaving their friends, homes, and all they had. There were those who advised James, "Take one of your families. Don't sell anything. Just go down there and stay a year or two and then return. You will have done your duty." James' response to these suggestions was typical of this determined man. He replied, "Brigham Young is a prophet of God and when the prophet calls, I am going to accept the call and do the best I can to fulfill that call."

It might seem strange to us, in this day, as to why the Arizona missionary pioneers would be rushed on their journey in the middle of a Rocky Mountain winter. The groups left Salt Lake in February, reaching Kanab in time to move out during the first week of March. Many of the men left their families behind because of the perilous conditions of traveling at that time of the year. The urgency was probably due to the need to get located with their settlements in time to plow the ground and plant crops while the soil was still moist from the winter moisture. But the most critical problem had to do with crossing the Colo­rado River before the floods, which come from the melting of winter snow in the Rockies.

James Skousen decided to leave Sidsel and her children at home in Draper while he took Ane and her two small children, Ella, four, and Erastus, three years old. Sidsel's oldest boy, Peter, was attending school at the University of Deseret in Salt Lake and was asked to drop out in order to take care of the farm. Pete was then twenty.

The journey through mountain passes from Draper to Kanab was extremely difficult, due to the severe cold, heavy snow and poor roads. The saints in the settlements along the route were kind and did everything they could to alleviate suffering and hardship.

After the group had assembled at Kanab, they headed almost due East, crossing over the rugged Buckskin Mountains, and in seven days had reached Lee's Ferry on the Colorado River north of the Grand Canyon.

One of the most critical experiences of the trip occurred as they were making the treacherous descent down the steep ridges descending to the river at Lee's Crossing. Ane was driving one of the wagons and a span of mules. As she was try­ing to ease her wagon down "Lee's Backbone" Trail, the brakes gave way, permitting the wagon to roll up on the mules, causing them to jump. Ane was pulled off the wagon and landed down be­tween the mules, clinging to the wagon tongue. The mules were not considered gentle, but she grabbed their tails and yelled for help. The mules never made any attempt to kick or run but tried to hold the wagon back. They were stopped and Ane was removed without being injured.

The river was crossed on March 9, 1876. They continued their journey in the winter cold, reaching Moencopy March 14th and the Little Colo­rado River on the 15th. James Skousen's group, under Captain William C. Allen reached their destination on the Little Colorado, March 24th. It was called Allen's camp until officially given the name of St. Joseph.

Progress with the irrigation system and farms had advanced well enough by the end of July that about half of the men were assigned to return to get their families. James was one of the group.

In the fall of 1877, which was the following year, James sold everything at Draper, Utah, and left for Arizona with his wife Sidsel and family. A social and farewell was held the evening before their departure. This was a joyful and yet sad affair, many shedding tears at the thoughts of parting with friends. Words cannot express the feelings that swelled in their breasts over the leaving of their homes, friends and all to take a journey into a dry, harsh wilderness. Yet when the Prophet Brigham Young called, James said, "That is the word of the Lord to me." Leaving Draper, James Sr. Pete, and Willard drove the three teams. Daniel drove the cows and other loose stock. Other members of the family were Sidsel, James, Han­nah, Caroline and Mary.

They traveled south through San Pete County. They stopped at Johnson Settlement and left their stock and outfits and journeyed to St George where they spent several days doing work in the temple from November 20th to the 23rd, 1877. After their stay at St. George they returned to Johnson Settle­ment and continued their journey. They crossed the Buckskin Mountains, passed Houserock Springs and through the heavy sands to Jacob's Pool, on to Lee's Backbone, Navajo and Bitter Springs to the Little Colorado River and up it to Sunset, Brigham City and arrived at Allen's Camp on Christmas Eve, l877. The family was once again all back together.

THE BIG TABLE

Life in the new settlements was organized under what was called the "Big Table Order." Each family was required to turn into a common storehouse all they owned. This meant that James had to relinquish all his stock, teams and wagons.

The whole community operated as a large family, all eating at a large table. The women folks were assigned different jobs, such as cooking, tending table, making butter and cheese, weaving and other duties common to a frontier settlement.

One of the group was appointed to supervise each job. The men were also assigned various jobs and overseers to manage and see that the work was properly done. It fell to James Skousen lot to be in charge of the community farm. The idea is fine but will not work satisfactorily when some of those assigned to work loaf on the job or will not show up when the work needs to be done. Thus James found much of the undesirable work was left for him to do.

In the spring of 1878, wheat was planted and a fine crop raised. About time for harvesting, it started raining and continued until most of the grain was ruined. The dam washed out and the people were disheartened.

After several years of failure, James, with several others, decided to look for land elsewhere. In the early part of February, 1879, James Niels Skousen, Peter J. Christofferson, James Robert­son and others obtained property in Round Valley at Springerville, which was further up the Little Colorado, in the rising foothills of the White Mountains. Later in the spring they moved their families there.

James, at the age of fifty, obtained eighty acres south of town near the Little Colorado River and also obtained a city lot. Ane lived on the farm and Sidsel lived in town.

IMPRISONMENT

One night while James was up in Williams Valley, he had a dream in which he was impressed that someone was trying to find him. It left him disturbed with a feeling of anxiety that prevailed all day. As the evening shadows began to lengthen out, he heard a loud shrill whistle. Recognizing the whistle, he said, "There he is now.” It was Dan. He approached his father and told him to come and give himself up as the Government had issued a warrant for his arrest.

Religious persecution had been going on ever since the Government sent in “carpet baggers," who were non-resident political appointees, to hold the offices of the territory. Infringing on the local authorities of the counties and cities, per­secution multiplied rapidly. In Utah, many of the leading citizens had gone to jail; others were in hiding, largely in adjoining territories. The same lawless element started the persecution in Arizona that, like Utah, was still a territory and not allowed self government.

On November 11, 1884, at the age of fifty-six, James N. Skousen went to Prescott for his trial. Four others were there Wm, J. Flake and C. J. Kempe of Concho, Ammon Tenney of St. Johns and Peter Christofferson of Springerville.

In all cases both in Arizona and Utah, an arrest meant a conviction. There was little need for evidence. The trial was a long drawn out affair, yet to those on trial, it was nothing but a mockery, a travesty on justice. The government was paying the bill and the administrators were making money on it. Ammon Tenney was tried first and declared guilty and was confined in jail. It was a filthy, vile facility, filled with criminals. The trial went on and two more were convicted without evidence. The judge agreed to free William Flake if he would plead guilty. He said he would if they changed the indict­ment to state the truth. James Skousen joined Flake in the guilty plea. The judge gave each of them six months imprisonment and $500.00 fines. The other received five years and $500.00 fines.

James Niels Skousen departed for the Yuma Penitentiary December 7, 1884. The experiences at Yuma, if written, would fill a book. The prisoners were all shaved clean and their hair clipped. The prison was in a continual turmoil. The snake den had been full for months. One man was wheeling and loading dirt and had a big ball and chain on his ankle. He would haul it in his wheelbarrow when he moved around. The heat was so severe that work­ing in it without sufficient relief caused many to die. The guards were generally merciless, making the reputation of the prison infamous.

The Warden had two young boys and no one to look after them. They wanted to go fishing in the nearby Colorado River. This caused the warden some consternation as he feared they would be drowned and yet he did not want to make them stay home all the time. He asked James Skousen to care for them. From then until he was released, James spent almost every day with those boys, often taking a lunch and staying with them until dark. He was in charge of the small gate and the boys would come there and call for Mr. Skousen any time they wanted, and he went. So James fared better than most in­mates.

Apostle Francis M. Lyman, with other lead­ers, came to Arizona to visit the saints, cheering them up and helping them bear their burdens. Elder Lyman left the others and went to visit the brethren in Yuma Prison. The Warden gave them the best room available and the full day to themselves. The brethren had a real spiritual feast. They obtained bread and water so they could partake of the Sacra­ment. At the conclusion, the apostle of the Lord gave each one of them a wonderful blessing.

William Flake left for home June 5, 1885. James was unable to pay his $500.00 fine so he was given thirty days more in its place. He said, "It was the best month's pay I ever received."

James was released from the federal peni­tentiary in July, 1885, and made the long, hot trip back to his humble home in Springerville. He re­joiced in seeing his two families. Sidsel's children were almost all grown. Peter, the oldest, had married two years before, taking two wives on the same day, one being a young widow with five little children. Willard had been married for three years. Hannah, Sidsel's oldest daughter, had been married for seven years. Both Dan and Caroline would be married late that year, and then only little thirteen year-old James Jr. would be left. Ane's children consisted of six (with two more to come). Ella was fourteen, Erastus was eleven, Orson was eight, Anna was five, Eliza was three and there was a little one year-old baby, Melvina.

UNEXPECTED FAREWELL

As a convicted polygamist, James could not afford to have both of his families remain in the United States. Peter had already established homes in Mexico to escape what the Mormons felt was re­ligious persecution in the form of unconstitutional interference in the freedom of religion. Hannah, who was the third wife of her husband, was also in Mexico. So James decided that Sidsel, with the help of Pete, Dan, and James, should move to Colonia Juarez while he stayed on the farm and took care of Ane and her young family.

The last prosperity James Skousen had seen, or would ever see in this life, was nine years before when he left his fine farm in Draper, near Salt Lake. The failure of The Big Table Order at St. Joseph had reduced him to near destitution. But he was a big man in strength, pluck, faith, and hope. With his natural zest for life, no one could keep him depressed for long. He always wore a cheerful grin on his face and a twinkle in his eye. The Church was the most important thing on earth to him, for it was the work of the Lord. As long as he was doing what was being asked of him, he felt that things would work out.

But be that as it may, it was a sad day when he prepared to bid Sidsel, his life-long sweetheart, goodbye. Ane was also deeply saddened by Sidsel's departure. They had always been very close as are beloved sisters. Ane also felt a deeper security and peace in the home with Sidsel nearby, since she had such a lovable, peaceful spirit about her.

Peter was on hand to take Sidsel south. James purchased two gray mares and a light covered wagon. A box that contained six hens and a roost­er was attached to the back of the wagon. The cargo consisted of a bedstead, a ten-inch plow, shovel, hoe, tools, household goods, flour, wheat, seeds, and what clothing they had. A barrel was fastened to the side of the wagon box for water. A carpet was thrown over the bows under the canvas wagon cover.

Sidsel, sixty years of age, with Peter, Daniel, and James Jr., joined about seven other wagons on May 2, 1886. James went with them for the first day's journey to Coyote Springs. The next morning, James prepared to leave them in order to return to Ane. Young James, Jr. recalls the heart rending moment. He said, "Mother cried like everything. Father kissed us all goodby and went back, then we went on." It took twenty-one days for the little caravan to reach Juarez, Mexico.

James remained with his wife, Ane, and farmed the eighty acres across the river from Springerville. He filed on his homestead March 30, 1887. It was hard work for a man reaching sixty, but he managed with the help of his growing children. He was ordained a High Priest and in 1887 was sustained as president of the High Priest Quorum of St. Johns Stake, which position he re­tained until 1894, when he was ordained the Stake Patriarch.

Ane had two more children, Mary Esther born May 10, 1887, and Terry Danaboe, born June 20, 1887. This made a large family of eight children for Ane, all of whom lived to maturity.

In 1890 after a four year separation, James made a visit to Mexico to spend some time with Sidsel. While he was gone, a man by the name of Miles Phelps obtained possession of eighty acres adjacent to the Skousen farm. James had irrigated his land from a ditch that brought water from fur­ther up the Little Colorado. The ditch crossed the farm that Phelps had purchased, and he filled it in and plowed over it. When James returned home, he was shocked by what had been done. Being an independent Dane, there was nothing to do but to rebuild the ditch and he told Phelps just exactly that. However, Phelps was not going to yield and he knew his legal rights. Finally, James realizing that fighting would only cause trouble, sold Phelps his farm for the sacrifice price of $1, 000, the sum to­tal of almost twelve years of labor.

One can well imagine how this Danish immi­grant felt. Here he was at the age of sixty-two, with a big family of eight children, and only a small house in Springerville and a thousand dollars to his name. As he looked around for another farm, he had some good fortune. There was one up higher in the mountains, at Alpine, that he might be able to obtain for back taxes. The Olsen family who had owned the farm had gotten into trouble. Two of their boys had taken some cattle that belonged to some of the stockmen and the boys were notified to leave the country. James checked on the story and found that by paying the back taxes of $17.00, it would be his. There was a small house and a barn on the place. He moved his family to Alpine in the spring of 1891. The farm is still owned by members of the Skousen family to this day (1970). It has been sold since then.

GENTLE PATRIARCH

James was ordained a Patriarch January 12, 1894, by Apostle Brigham Young Jr. He held that office until his death, eighteen years later. In 1897, Sidsel became quite ill, so James moved down to Mexico to see her. She was living with her son, James Jr. at the time. She died February 20, 1898, at the age of seventy-one.

Since his wife, Ane, was now being taken care of by her two older sons, Erastus, age twenty-four and Orson, age twenty-one, James decided to stay on in Mexico where he could be near his other child­ren. His daughter, Hannah Taylor, made a home for him in her house. James was now seventy. His assignment as Patriarch was transferred to the Juarez Stake and he continued to give blessings un­til he left there fourteen years later.

Patriarch James N. Skousen, with his heavy Danish accent, clipped white beard, and ever ­present grin, became quite an institution in the Mexico colonies. He had a great love for the young people, especially the older teenagers. His typical action would be to walk up to a young couple, put his arm around them, and ask if they had found their mate yet for marriage. It would be quite an under­statement to say that this was not fully appreciated, especially when a young man was chatting with a lady friend. But James did not seem to mind about their flushed faces and "dirty" looks. In his typi­cally jolly manner, he would move to another young couple nearby.

James loved to visit his grandchildren, who were becoming very numerous. When he came to call, the little ones would always run up and reach in his vest pocket for the candy that was always there.

Hannah was a great comfort to her father after the death of Sidsel. She made life pleasant for him, being much like her mother.

James watched the gradually developing crisis as the Mexican Revolution began to swirl around the colonies. By 1912, conditions had become so dangerous that the saints were ordered to flee to the bor­der. On July 29, 1912, he left with the crowded train of saints for El Paso, Texas. His son, James put him on a train for Thatcher, Arizona, where he would stay with another son, Orson. He remained there until the latter part of September or the early part of October. He was quite anxious to get to his old home in Alpine. He finally got a chance to go to Springerville with a family by the name of Pulsipher, who were traveling by team and wagon. Because of the large size of the Pulsipher family and the loaded condition of the wagon, James had to sleep under the wagon at night while camping out. He was eighty-four years old and as they reached the higher mountains, he took cold. When he got to Springerville, he sent word to Erastus at Alpine to come and get him. When Erastus got there, he found him in a very weak condition.

James died shortly thereafter, October 21, 1912, at Alpine, Arizona, and was buried in the little hamlet's cemetery. Ane, who was sixty-seven, lived four more years, and then was buried beside him. She died September 21, 1916, at Alpine, Ari­zona.

He was a man of his word, with a good natur­ed way of getting things done. This was a man filled with love for his God and his fellow man. It has been said that his face was beautiful to look upon, for love and spirituality radiated from it. Though features were strong, the lines that time formed there, never became harsh, but remained soft to the end. His deep set clear blue eyes were warm with compassion, yet their crystal clarity had a way of knowingly piercing a soul. Behind them was a great spirit. He looked the part - and more than that - he was a true patriarch. He gave everything he had for the work of the Lord when he joined the Church in 1857, when he emigrated to Utah in 1862, and when he became one of the mis­sionaries to Arizona in 1876. He was a hard worker, but was never allowed time to accumulate much of this world's goods. He did collect a large and noble family, now numbering well over 2,000. The majority of them are staunch members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, holding many prominent positions. It is fairly safe to believe that there is nothing that makes James Niels Skousen happier than that.