No one moved, no one spoke. He stood there drawn to his full height, calm but defiant--the master of the situation.
After a pause of some moments he continued his remarks and preached with great boldness and power for some three hours.
At the conclusion of his discourse, he was waited upon by some of the leading citizens of the place who expressed their pleasure at what they had heard, and disclaimed, in behalf of the people, any intention of tarring and feathering him; but the brethren still insisted that such was the intention of the crowd, and that the tar and feathers had been provided; but they had been awed into silence by the boldness of Elder Taylor.
Near Indianapolis, Indiana, Brother Mills and the other brethren who had joined their company, obtained employment, and Elder Taylor and his family stayed at the house of a Brother Miller. While there his second son, Joseph James, was born.
During the two months that he remained in that place, he worked at his craft and also made a carriage for himself. He preached the gospel in Indianapolis and raised up a small branch of the Church. His wife having recovered from child bed, he continued his journey to the west, parting company with Brother Mills who was not ready to go.
Approaching De Witt, Caroll County, Missouri, about fifty miles from Far West, as he was holding back his horse, while descending a hill, his foot slipped and he fell from his carriage. The wheels passed over his arm, inflicting a serious injury, and he was again detained.
In DeWitt there was a number of Saints who had purchased land and settled there, and Elder Taylor stayed at the house of a Brother Humphreys. It was while at DeWitt that he had his first experience with mobs. It was late in the summer of 1938 when he arrived there, and the persecutions which were to terminate in the expulsion of the Saints from Missouri were just beginning.
The mob that first came upon the Saints at DeWitt, was led by two alleged ministers of the gospel, Sashiel Woods and Abbot Hancock. "This was the first mob I had ever seen," remarks Elder Taylor, "and the whole affair was new to me, especially when I considered the kind of officers they had. I had heretofore looked upon gospel ministers as messengers of peace; here they came not only in a war-like capacity, but as the leaders of an armed mob--a gang of marauders and free-booters, with the avowed object of driving peaceful citizens--men, women and children--from their homes."