At first the iron industry showed considerable promise, but technical difficulties and the enormous cost of transportation without railroad facilities prevented its expansion. Jules Remy, a French observer who passed through the settlements in 1855, states that the mines, both iron and coal, were being worked and the foundries were turning out about a ton of pig iron per day. This was obtained from ore yielding 25 to 75 per cent iron.[31] With the development of railroads across northern Utah, bringing in iron from elsewhere, the industry in the south languished. It had served, however, to accelerate the settlement of this region, and with its passing the pioneers turned to other occupations, especially to agriculture and stockraising, the foundation of the frontier communities. Pushing South into Dixie In the fall of 1851, a party pushed southward from Salt Lake City under the leadership of John D. Lee with the intention of settling on the Virgin or Santa Clara rivers. In this, they were to be disappointed, for actual settlement had to wait upon a preliminary period devoted to missions. Thereafter, during the period of settlement, the Mormons were to maintain contact with the Indians on their southern frontier through the agency of missionaries who were to shoulder the lion’s share of the burden of advance exploration, keep in touch with Indian movements and attitudes, designate routes of travel, report areas suitable for agriculture and grazing and act as emissaries to the Indians in times of trouble. This shift in policy is partly explained in a letter from John D. Lee published in the Deseret News, Saturday, April 3, 1852: Mr. Editor: On the 4th of Nov. I safely reached the city of Parowan, without the loss of an animal or the break of a wagon in the whole company. We then cheerfully went to work with all our might to arrange our affairs and situate our families in this city, that according to counsel we might leave them comfortable, while we would go and select a site and build a fort for our defense. The brethren that joined our company in Iron County sold out their improvements in full faith of helping to form another settlement south of the waters of the Santa Clara and Rio Virgin. The severity of the weather and failure of the mill caused a detention of three weeks. The most of our wagons were loaded and ready for a start, when I received a letter from Pres. B. Young, advising us to tarry ’till another season, and thereby strengthen the settlements already planted. The policy was doubtless good, however revolting the disappointment may have been to my feelings; and past experience admonished me that to hearken was better than to sacrifice.