The papers of John Varah Long have been obtained by rare book dealer Ken Sanders. Because Long was Brigham Young's personal clerk, the documents are being called "one of the most important discoveries of LDS documents in recent times." It will take some time to to decipher the documents because they are written in a rare 19th century short hand. The most recent discovery in the papers are some previously unknown poems from Eliza R. Snow, former general relief society president and "Zion's Poetess." Historians eagerly await more information as the papers are slowly decyphered.
Long fell out of favor with Brigham and was excommunicated. Some speculate that Long's drowning in a ditch with just a few inches of water is suspicious. He was last seen with Wild Bill Hickman, Brigham's destroying angel.
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Some of the sloppy and sensational reporting on this story was corrected or clarified today by Ron Barney on Utah Public Radio's show Radio West (http://www.kuer.org/). You can listen in again tonight at 7:00 MST.
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