At the close of the meeting, President Phillips and myself were conducted to a hotel, where, after supper, we were shown to lodgings in an upper room. As we passed into the bedchamber, while closing the door, I noticed that, owing to some defect in the lock, it could not be fastened. We soon retired to rest, then about 11 o'clock; thinking ourselves safe from harm, we slept soundly, until probably about 2 o'clock a.m., I was suddenly awakened by a savage looking fellow standing close to my bedside, ordering me and my companion to leave our bed forthwith or suffer the consequences; at the same time using the most blasphemous language, and uttering the most hideous oaths imaginable, while fiendishly striking his huge fists in close proximity to my face. Two of his comrades, stout, fierce looking fellows, were standing by, evidently prepared for an encounter. Brother Phillips was soundly sleeping, and it was with some difficulty that I awakened him sufficiently to comprehend our situation. Of course, we could do but little towards defending ourselves against a trio of ruffians, desperately bent on mischief; and as we afterwards learned, had been hired to mob us, and that the landlord was secretly conniving with the actors in the hellish raid. In the contest, the light which one of them held, was by some means, suddenly extinguished, which caused an alarm, resulting in their retreat forthwith from the room; upon which I suggested to Elder Phillips that we immediately do our best to secure ourselves by barricading the door, for I felt assured the insurgents would make another attack. We placed a chair at the door, with the top directly under the knob of the door lock, and there I assumed the responsibility of holding it, while Brother Phillips performed the duty of pressing his large and stately person against the door. No sooner had these protective arrangements been completed, than the mobocrats, with considerable reinforcements, came rushing forward to renew the attack. They persistently endeavored to force the door open, but failing, they placed themselves against it, Sampson like, but, owing to the position of things inside, without avail; then, with a volley of oaths, they commenced pounding and kicking the door, and continued until the noise and uproar was so great that the landlord did not dare any longer to ignore the situation, and coming to our relief, he quelled the disturbance by requesting the ruffians to retire. Some years after the date of this occurrence, I was informed that the hotel in which the foregoing disgraceful scenes were enacted was being used as a common stable for the accommodation of horses; and that the landlord had been signally reduced to beggary, and was a vagabond upon the earth. CHAPTER XXVI.