In his popular biography of Orrin Porter Rockwell (1813-1873), Harold Schindler repeated popular purported prophecy of Joseph Smith:
I
prophesy, in the name of the Lord that you—Orrin Porter Rockwell—so long as ye
shall remain loyal and true to thy faith, need fear no enemy. Cut not thy hair
and no bullet or blade can harm thee! (Harold Schindler, Orrin Porter
Rockwell: Man of God, Son of Thunder [Salt Lake City: University of Utah
Press, 1966], 108-9)
I say “purported” as there appears to be
no primary source documentation of this prophecy. However, there does exist second-hand
sources and reminiscences, even from critics of the Church, hinting that Joseph
probably did offer a prophetic promise to Porter Rockwell in a manner resembling the above narrative. Consider
the following:
Mother
and father were close friends of the Prophet Joseph Smith. One evening they
were at the Prophet's home at a party, a man, tired, looking dirty, hungry,
unshaven, and with hair hanging about his shoulders, came in. Some of the
guests seeing him in the Prophet's house, seized him and were about to throw
him out when the Prophet saw his face. It was Porter Rockwell. He had been in
prison in Missouri. The Prophet immediately went to him, put his arms about his
shoulders, and inquired how he had escaped and how he had been treated.
Rockwell told him he made his escape by climbing out of a hole in the ceiling
where the stove pipe went through. The Prophet told Porter not to cut his hair
but to wear it long, and to live faithful and that his enemeis would have no
power over him. (Etta Holdaway Spendlove, comp., Memories
and Experiences of James Jepson, Jr.
[1944], 7)
Orrin
Porter Rockwell, as I knew him, was a diamond in the rough. It was great to
know his inner self. His honest loyalty to the Church, Country, and friends was
deep and lasting. Be abhorred deceit and intrigue as did I. He knew the need
and power of prayer, as did I. He knew the need and power of prayer, as did I.
He was above average height, quick in movement, with strong arms and chest, and
gray eyes—cool and searching. He was always well armed since his Nauvoo
experiences, although the Prophet Joseph told him to wear his hair long and he
would never be killed by an enemy. He held to that promise and on many
occasions when he stayed over night with me, my wife Elizabeth would plait or
braid his hair and Porter would comb it into a flare next morning, which emphasized
his high forehead, and his aristocratic air. (Flora Diana Bean Horne, comp.,
Autobiography of George Washington Bean, a Utah pioneer of 1847, and his family
records [Salt Lake City: 1945], 175)
"Port,"
as he is generally termed, is common credited with being the chief of the
Danites. He was a faithful friend of Joseph, and in moments of danger was ever
near the Prophet. He was apprehended and tried on this charge, but was able to
prove that he was a few miles distant from the place at the time of the attempt
at assassination. The firing was probably the act of another, but he,
doubtless, was no stranger to the Mormons. The Governor owed his preservation
to the misdirection of the assassin's pistol, "caused by the reflection of
the light upon the "window glass." It is said that Joseph promised
"Port" protection to his life so long as his locks were uncut. This
story smacks something of Samson and Delilah; "Port," however, still
wears unshorn locks. (T.B.H. Stenhouse, The Rocky Mountain Saints [New
York: D. Appleton and Company, 1873], 140n)
Interestingly, Rockwell would, later in life, cut his hair, and such resulted in adverse results:
1855 The widow of the
Prophet's brother, Don Carlos Smith, had lost her hair from typhoid fever.
Rockwell cut his hair to provide her with a wig—and claimed that henceforth he
could no longer control his drinking and swearing. ("Porter
Rockwell," in Richard S. Van Wagoner and Steven C. Walker, A Book of
Mormons [Salt Lake City: Signature Books, 1982], 251])
Further Reading
Resources on Joseph Smith's Prophecies
