(Editor’s note: Yesterday Mike O’Brien wrote about his admiration for Joseph Rich’s 152 year old report on the Bear Lake monster (see: https://theboymonk.com/my-152-years-of-never-seeing-the-bear-lake-monster/). Today, the original Rich letter from the pages of The Deseret News…)
Correspondence MONSTERS OF BEAR LAKE
Paris, Rich Co., UT., July 27, 1868
Editor Deseret Evening News: – Dear Sir: – Your correspondent for this district has been very tired lately, constitutionally tired, which is the only excuse he has for not previously writing the important events that are continually transpiring in this locality. It is a mystery to me that all the leading journals of the world have not correspondents in Bear Lake, in fact I don’t know how the people tolerate their publications without.
In order that posterity may not be confused in hunting out the most interesting portions of this letter, I shall give headings.
PARIS
Is noted for being the place where I live, and for its fashions, the latest being a loose gown with a puckering string around the neck. It also has three public institutions, the schoolhouse, the public square and the liberty pole. The cow sheds and other ornaments that adorn it, and which were so aptly described by Mons. De La Baume, have all been whitewashed and the dug-outs cut up into wells and sold to the people at a sacrifice. The only articles that are hard to obtain here are clothes, provisions and money. The people, generally, have adopted a fish diet, strictly sucker; but with all its advantages of health. I am informed it is wearing on clothing, as the bones come out like the measles, perforating the skin and rendering it almost impossible to shift a suit without tearing it. Paris also has a Library and Literary Institution, a Sunday School well attended and well managed, and a Female Relief Society all in a prosperous condition.
GRASSHOPPERS
We thought ourselves isolated, not only from the world, but the ravages of these “pestiferous critters.” About a week ago, however, they made their appearance in the south end of the valley, and destroyed all the crops at Round Valley and Swan Creek. Since then they have taken up the line of march northward giving all the settlements a call. They appear to be well disciplined, armed and equipped for war. They travel in column of platoons, and throw out a formidable body of skirmishers as they near a settlement. On the arrival of the advance of the right wing at Paris, we proposed to compromise, and give them one quarter in the half bushel after harvest; but it was no swap, they attacked our front, center, and rear at the same time and up to date, have captured about one-third of our grain forces. Stone walls, nettles, dirt covered houses, stink-bush and bachelors seem to be about the only thing they hold sacred. There was not room for all to light on the ground, so one swarm of a few hundred million eased themselves gently into Bear Lake, which resulted in an extensive grasshopper casualty. Their bodies will not be recovered.
BAD LUCK
While an emigrant was last week driving his wagon, with four fine mules attached, down Bear River Canon, he took the wrong road and ran into the river, drowning the four mules and losing one wheel from the wagon. He jumped into the river to cut the mules loose, when one of them struck his side pocket with its foot, tearing it in such a manner that four hundred dollars in greenbacks were carried away by the current. This reminds me of a saying of Josh Billings that “when a man begins to go down hill, all the wheels seem to have been greased for the occasion.”
The ferry boat between this place and Bennington has sunk twice this summer, each time losing one half a wagon, but recently they have resurrected the lost halves by grappling.
BEAR LAKE MONSTER
All lakes, caves and dens have their legendary histories. Tradition loves to throw her magic wand over beautiful dells and lakes and people them with fairies, giants and monsters of various kinds. Bear Lake has also its monster tale to tell, and when I have told it, I will leave you to judge whether or no its merits are merely traditionary.
The Indians say there is a monster animal which lives in the Lake that has captured and carried away Indians while in the Lake swimming; but they say it has not been seen by them for many years, not since the buffalo inhabited the valley. They represent it as being of the serpent kind, but having legs about eighteen inches long on which they sometimes crawl out of the water a short distance on the shore. They also say it spirts water upwards out of its mouth.
Since the settlement of this valley, several persons have reported seeing a huge animal of some kind that they could not describe; but such persons have generally been alone when they saw it, and but little credence has been attached to the matter, and until this summer the “monster question” had about died out.
About three weeks ago Mr. S. M. Johnson, who lives on the east side of the lake at a place called South Eden, was going to the Round Valley settlement, six miles to the south of this place, and when about half way he saw something in the lake which, at the time, he thought to be a drowned person. The road being some little distance from the water’s edge he rode to the beach, and as the waves were running pretty high he thought it would soon wash in to shore. In a few minutes two or three feet of some kind of an animal that he had never seen before were raised out of the water. He did not see the body, only the head and what he supposed to be a part of the neck. It had ears or bunches on the side of its head nearly as large as a pint cup. The waves at time would dash over its head, when it would throw water from its mouth or nose. It did not drift landward, but appeared stationary, with the exception of turning its head. Mr. Johnson thought a portion of the body must lie on the bottom of the lake or it would have drifted with the action of the water. This is Mr. Johnson’s version as he told me.
The next day an animal of a monster kind was seen near the same place by a man and three women, who said it was swimming when they first saw it. They represent it as being very large, and say it swam much faster than a horse could run on land. These recent discoveries again revived the “monster question.” Those who had seen it before brought in their claims anew, and many people began to think the story was not altogether moonshine.
On Sunday last as N. C. Davis and Allen Davis, of St. Charles, and Thomas Slight and J. Collings of Paris, with six women, were returning from Fish Haven, when about midway from the latter named place to St. Charles their attention was suddenly attracted to a peculiar motion or wave in the water, about three miles distant. The lake was not rough, only a little disturbed by a light wind. Mr. Slight says he distinctly saw the sides of a very large animal that he would suppose to be not less than ninety feet in length. Mr. Davis don’t think he (Davis) saw any part of the body, but is positive it must have been not less than 40 feet in length, judging by the wave it rolled up on both sides of it as it swam, and the wake it left in the rear. It was going South, and all agreed that it swam with a speed almost incredible to their senses. Mr. Davis says he never saw a locomotive travel faster, and thinks it made a mile a minute, easy. In a few minutes after the discovery of the first, a second one followed in its wake; but seemed to be much smaller, appearing to Mr. Slight about the size of a horse. A larger one followed this, and so on till four large ones, in all, and six small ones had run southward out of sight. One of the large ones before disappearing made a sudden turn to the west, a short distance; then back to its former track. At this turn Mr. Slight says he could distinctly see it was of a brownish color. They could judge somewhat of their speed by observing known distances on the other side of the lake, and all agree that the velocity with which they propelled themselves through the water was astonishing. They represent the waves that rolled up in front and on each side of them, as being three feet high from where they stood. This is substantially their statement as they told me. Messrs. Davis and Slight are prominent men well known in the county, and all of them are reliable persons whose veracity is undoubted. I have no doubt they would be willing to make affidavits to their statement.
There you have the monster story so far as completed, but I hope it will be concluded by the capture of one some time. If so large an animal exists in this altitude and in so small a lake, what can it be? It must be something new under the sun, the scriptural text to the contrary, notwithstanding. Is it fish, flesh or serpent, amphibious, am-fabulous or a great big fib, or what is it? I give it up, but live in hopes of some day seeing it, if it really exists, and I have no reason to doubt the above statements. Here is an excellent opportunity for some company to bust Barnum on a dicker for the monster, if they can only catch one; already some of our settlers talk of forming a joint stock arrangement and see what they can do in the business.
I have already extended this letter beyond the limit I designed. The health of the people is good and everything satisfactory, except the rushing, buzzing music of the everlasting grasshoppers as they waft themselves through the air, freighted with our grain in the milk. May they mash their brains out against the North Pole!
Very respectfully, J. C. R. (Joseph C. Rich)
Dear Brother Cannon: – I have talked with some of the parties in relation to the monster story, and it is as Joseph has stated it. I am, yours truly, Charles C. Rich.
(Editor’s note: More monsters in more lakes tomorrow…stay tuned!)
