The story of an small religious weekly newspaper, The Western standard, and its editor, George Q. Cannon, which waged a newspaper war with the leading journals of California from 1856-1857 over the Mormons and the Mormon Church. The editorials, articles, and letters collected in this volume deal with frontier justice, vigilantism, politics, journalism, religion, violence, overland emigration, "white Indians", Danites, and polygamy.