ZELPH.

After crossing the Illinois River Zion's Camp passed many of those mysterious earth mounds so common in that section. Mysterious mounds! No, not mysterious to them, for they had with them the record of the peoples who erected them—the Nephites and Lamanites, or, more likely still, the people of Jared.

While encamped on the western bank of the Illinois, Joseph and several others ascended one of these high mounds from which they could overlook the tops of the trees, and see the prairies beyond. On the top of the mound were three stone altars, erected one above the other, "according to the ancient order," said Joseph. Human bones were scattered about on the surface of the ground; and after removing about a foot of the soil at the crown of the mound, they found the skeleton of a man nearly complete. Between his ribs was an Indian arrowhead which, doubtless, had produced his death. The visions of Joseph's mind the day following were opened, and he learned that this man whose skeleton they had found was named Zelph. He was a white Lamanite; the curse of the black skin had been taken from him because of his righteousness. He was a noted character, a warrior and chieftain under the great prophet Omandagus, who was known from the hill Cumorah to the Rocky Mountains. He was killed in the last great struggle of the Lamanites and Nephites by the arrow-head found between his ribs.^[A]

[Footnotes A: President Brigham Young took possession of the arrow-head.]