Journal of Discourses

Volume 17

By President Brigham Young,

His Counselors, and the Twelve Apostles.

Reported by David W. Evans, and Respectfully Dedicated to the Latter-day Saints in All the World.

Liverpool: Printed and Published by Albert Carrington, 42, Islington.
London: Latter-day Saints’ Book Depot, 20, Bishop’s Grove, Ball’s Pond Road, Islington.

1875

Journal of Discourses, Volume 17. Kindle edition published November 2010 by Ben Crowder. Updated January 2012.

The text of this volume of the Journal of Discourses was originally published in 1875 and is out of copyright. This edition is based on the Wikisource text and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 License. If you reuse the work, please attribute it using the following URL:

http://bencrowder.net/books/journal-of-discourses/

Version 0.9.1

Table of Contents

Original page numbers are in parentheses.

- Preface

- What the Gospel Teaches—Revelation from God Necessary—The Faith and Doctrines of the Latter-day Saints, by John Taylor (1–4)

- Living Faith in God—The Providences of the Almighty in Behalf of His People—Lay up Treasures in Heaven—The Meek to Inherit the Earth—The Word of Wisdom, by Orson Hyde (4–14)

- Remarks to the Young, by William C. Dunbar (15–24)

- The Kingdom not Organized by Man—Man Utterly Unable to Organize the Kingdom of God on the Earth Without Revelation—The Nephites and Lamanites Had All Things in Common—Consecration—The Danger of Pride—The United Order, by Orson Pratt (24–36)

- Cease to Bring in and Build up Babylon—Separate Yourselves from Sinners and from Sin—Have not Come with any New Doctrine—We Must be One—Without Works it Cannot be Proved that Faith Exists—The Time Come to Organize the Saints—The Time and Energies of the Saints all that is Wanted—Geological Researchers of Professor Marsh—Scientific Demonstration of the Truth of the Book of Mormon, by Brigham Young (36–47)

- The United Order—We Want the Most Perfect Union—The Working of the Order to be Such that all Honest Men can Sustain it—Home Manufacture, by John Taylor (47–50)

- The Things of God Known by the Spirit of God—The Light and Intelligence of God Without Money and Price—No True Religion Without Science—All Will be Saved Except the Sons of Perdition, by Brigham Young (51–56)

- The United Order—A System of Oneness, Economy and Wisdom in Becoming Self-sustenance, by Brigham Young (56–58)

- Zion to be Redeemed Through the Law of Consecration—Persecutions of the Saints—A Oneness Among the Saints Necessary—The Hearts of the Fathers to be Turned to the Children, and the Children to the Fathers, by George A. Smith (58–63)

- The Position the Saints Have Occupied has been a Peculiar One—The Unity of the Saints—Home Manufacture Preferable to Importation—Organization Necessary to Self-sustaining, by John Taylor (63–68)

- Union is Strength—United Order Will Bring About Temporal Salvation—The Time has Come to Favor Zion—The Judgments of God Are at the Door of This Generation, by Wilford Woodruff (69–73)

- The United Order of Zion Affords the Utmost Freedom and Liberty, Brother Love and Goodwill to Man—True Riches Relate to Eternity—Establish Confidence in Our Hearts With God, by Erastus Snow (74–80)

- The Blessings of Eternal Life Attained at the Sacrifice of All Things—Tithing—Economy Necessary to Self-sustenance—Home Manufacture, by George A. Smith (80–84)

- Education of Children—The Necessity of Supporting Home Publications—Ladies’ Relief Societies—St. George, and Salt Lake City, Temples—Sabbath Schools, by George A. Smith (84–90)

- General Doniphan’s Connection with the Early History of the Church—Persecutions of the Saints—Mormon Battalion—Hardships Experienced in the Settlement of Utah—Plurality of Wives, by George A. Smith (90–102)

- Interest Manifested Relating to Temporal Affairs—Revelations Pertaining to Being One in Temporal Things—Consecration—Stewardship—Jackson County—Sanctification, by Orson Pratt (103–113)

- The Calling of the Priesthood, to Preach the Gospel, and Proceed with the Organization of the Kingdom of God, Preparatory to the Coming of the Son of Man—All Good is of the Lord—Salvation and Live Everlasting are Before us, by Brigham Young (113–115)

- The Belief of the Saints in the Mission of the Savior—Pertaining to Inheritances Upon the Earth that Shall be Everlasting—It Takes a Higher Power Than a Bill of Divorce, to Take a Woman from a Good Man, by Brigham Young (115–120)

- God has Created Us to be Happy—Experience as Delegate from Utah in Congress—There is Nothing Like Communion with the Holy Spirit, by George A. Smith (120–130)

- It is of Little Import How we Leave This World, so That we are Prepared to Live or Die—God has Ordained that all Men Must Die, by John Taylor (130–133)

- Faith of the Latter-day Saints in Relation to the Resurrection, by George A. Smith (134–138)

- Nothing Strange or New to Live and Die—Must Die in Order to be Quickened—The World of Mankind Ignorant of Immorality—The Righteous Should Live to Enjoy the Light of the Spirit—All People are the Children of God—They Learn by Contrast—Worlds to be Organized and Peopled in Future Existence, by Brigham Young (139–145)

- All Nations Believe in a Future State of Existence—All Inherit the Curse in the Death of the Body. The Zion of Enoch Taken to the Bosom of God—Celestial, Terrestrial and Telestial Sphere—Baptism in Water Essential to Salvation—Divine Authority—Eternal Marriage Ordained of God, by Orson Pratt (145–154)

- The United Order is the Order of the Kingdom of God and Christ Dwell—The Law of the Kingdom of Heaven Protects all People in Their Religious Worship—In Obeying Counsel There is Salvation, by Brigham Young (154–160)

- Prayer Must be Remembered in Families—Elders to be Sent on Missions—Building Temples—Temples Necessary to Salvation. Home Manufactures—The United Order, by George A. Smith (160–165)

- Crime a Transgression of Law—Saints are Under Divine Law—The Gospel a Perfect Law—The Constitution of the United States Government a Just Instrument—Saints Must be Patient and Long-suffering—Latter-day Saints Prepare by Good Works to Meet the Savior, by Albert Carrington (165–168)

- Guard Against Temptation—Those Who Trust in God will not be Disappointed—Joseph Smith a Prophet of God—If There Were no Cause Creating Evil, There Would be no Evil Works, by Charles C. Rich (169–172)

- Knowledge Received by Immediate Revelation—Co-operation in Temporal Affairs—The Saints are Heirs of God and Joint-heirs with Christ, by John Taylor (172–181)

- All Men to be Judged Out of the Books—Adam the Ancient of Days—In the Days of Enoch the Righteous Gathered Together from the Ends of the Earth to One Place—The Great Prophet Joseph Smith Raised up by God to Reveal Hidden Mysteries, by Orson Pratt (181–188)

- The Gospel of Christ Unpopular in Every Age of the World—We Have to Live by Faith—God Has Decreed that His Kingdom will be Established—The Priesthood Conferred Upon Joseph Smith by Holy Angels—All Blessings to be Obtained from the God the Saints Worship, by Wilford Woodruff (188–195)

- Individual Salvation—The Success of the Work of the Lord not Dependent on Man—Encourage Home Manufacture—Build Temples—Safety on the Old Ship Zion, by George A. Smith (195–200)

- Saints are Living Witnesses of the Truth—The People of God Preserved by Divine Providence—Persecution—Individual Salvation, by Brigham Young (200–204)

- Destruction of the Wicked by the Flood, Wisdom in God—Priesthood—Temples—Intelligence Comes from God—The Lord will Take Care of the Saints—Angels Operating with Men in the Work of Human Redemption, by John Taylor (204–214)

- God’s Ancient People Polygamists—Marriage Relations are to Continue Forever—No Power Binding in Marriage But That of the Holy Priesthood Possessed by the Latter-day Saints, by Orson Pratt (214–229)

- Seek for Perfection—Reign of Righteousness—Live in Union—The United Order, by George Q. Cannon (229–244)

- Saints are Chosen—Eternal Life Worth More Than all Things Else—Works Must Correspond with Faith—Prayer to God a Duty, by Wilford Woodruff (244–251)

- Faith Without Works is Dead—Pray to God—Keep the Sabbath-day Holy—Encourage Sunday Schools, by George A. Smith (251–260)

- Saints are the Light of the World—Live Down Falsehood—Union in the Church All-important, by George Q. Cannon (260–264)

- The Gospel Restored From Heaven—Signs Follow Believers—Fulfillment of Prophecy—Book of Mormon a Divine Revelation, by Orson Pratt (264–277)

- Joseph Smith’s First Visions—The Book of Mormon—American Indians Descendants of the House of Israel—Prophecies Fulfilled, by Orson Pratt (278–288)

- Redemption of Zion—Persecution—Baptism of Indians—Second Coming of Christ—Every Jot and Every Tittle of Divine Revelation will be Fulfilled, by Orson Pratt (289–307)

- Second Coming of Christ—The Kingdom of God—Immediate Revelation—A Highway Cast Up—Gathering of Israel—One Universal Government on Earth, by Orson Pratt (307–321)

- Man is the Offspring of God—Truth is Eternal—The Doctrines of Christ—The Law of Gravitation—Free Agency, by Orson Pratt (322–333)

- [Congress and the Saints—Efficacy of Prayer—Strength of Character Necessary—The True Church—Gathering to the Mountains] ](CongressandtheSaints,etc.html), by George Q. Cannon (333–343)

- The Saints Have the Priesthood—The Kingdom of Heaven to be Set up in the Last Days—The Saints Must be Self-sustaining, by Daniel H. Wells (343–349)

- Education Necessary—”Mormonism” is Truth—Conversion of Indians, by Orson Hyde (350–356)

- The Gathering—Knowledge of Salvation Enjoyed by the Latter-day Saints—Build up the Kingdom of God, by Charles C. Rich (357–361)

- Temporal Affairs—Consistency Necessary in Business, by Brigham Young (360–361)

- Self-reliance—Help the Feeble—Keep Out of Debt, by Erastus Snow (363–368)

- Man the Offspring of God, a Dual Being—Immediate Revelation—Operate with the Priesthood, by John Taylor (369–375)

Preface

We take great pleasure in presenting to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints the Seventeenth Volume of the Journal of Discourses of President Brigham Young, his Counselors and the Twelve Apostles. In doing so we feel confident that the work will be received by the Saints with much satisfaction. It is replete with good teachings and wise counsels, and it may be read with profit by all lovers of truth.

THE PUBLISHER

What the Gospel Teaches, etc.

John Taylor

Discourse by Elder John Taylor, delivered in the Fourteenth Ward Assembly Rooms, Salt Lake City, Sunday afternoon, Feb. 1, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

[Continued From Page 376, Vol. 16.]

John the Revelator, when on the Isle of Patmos, wrapt in prophetic vision, said—“I saw another angel flying in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting Gospel to preach to them that dwell upon the earth, to every nation, kindred, tongue and people, crying with a loud voice, ‘Fear God and give glory to him, for the hour of his judgment is come.’” He also saw a time when a certain power “would make war with the Saints, and prevail against them, and they should be given into his hand until a time, times and the dividing of a time.”

Well then, to come back, to accommodate my strange friend, whoever he may be, I will say that we, the Latter-day Saints, believe this Gospel just as Jesus taught it. We believe in faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, and that we should reverence him as the Son of his heavenly Father and our Father. We believe in the ordinances that he introduced, and that were practiced by his disciples; we believe in the same Spirit and revelation that they believed in. I do not wish to argue these matters, or to go into details, for time would fail on the present occasion; but the Scriptures are before us, and I shall only attempt to touch upon some of the principles that Jesus enunciated, and which were taught by him and his disciples; and it is for believing in God and Jesus Christ, in prophecy and revelation, that we are continually arraigned before the world as impostors and deceivers. We believe in being honest to ourselves and with every body, whether they are with us or not; we believe in men acting all the time as though they were in the presence of God and holy angels, and that for all their acts they will be brought to judgment, for we believe that God will bring men into judgment “for every word and every secret thought.” We believe a good deal as David says—Who is he that can dwell with devouring fire, and among everlasting burnings? That man who has feared God in his heart, and who has not lied in his heart, that man who will swear to his own hurt and change not, a pure, virtuous, holy man who regards the rights of others as he regards his own; a man who will concede to others all that he would ask for himself, and who seeks to promote the welfare of the human family.

The Elders of this Church have been called, as the disciples of Jesus were in former times, to go and preach the Gospel without purse and script. I have traveled hundreds and thousands of miles on this errand myself, and I see men all around me here who have done the same. What for? To benefit mankind, to tear away the veil of ignorance, to combat error, to reveal truth, to make known the Divine will, to tell to the human family that God has spoken, that angels have appeared, that the heavens have been opened, that light and intelligence have been communicated to man, that the everlasting Gospel has been restored, and that we, in this age, can enjoy the same blessings that the Saints enjoyed in former days, and to point out to them the way of life and salvation. We have received this commission from our God, and we have endeavored faithfully to fulfill it, so that our blood maybe clear, and that when we come to stand before the Great Eloheim, when all nations shall be gathered together, we can say, “Oh God, we have finished the work which thou gavest us to do.”

What else? We are standing now rather in a political capacity. How is this? We cannot help ourselves, the Gospel told us to gather together. Do the Scriptures say anything about it? Yes; but if they did not, and God gave us that command, the silence of the Scriptures would make no difference at all. But they do, for the ancient Prophets had a view of the gathering of the Saints in the latter days; they saw them flocking to the mountains like doves to the windows; and through them the Lord declared that he would gather his people “from the east and from the west, from the north and from the south.” It is said—“I will take them one of a city and two of a family and bring them to Zion, and give them pastors after my own heart, who will feed them with knowledge and understanding;” and in speaking of the calamities of the last days he says that in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be deliverance.” But we gathered because the revelations given through our Prophet commanded us to do so, these revelations agreeing with those given on the same subject formerly.

Standing in this capacity, we form a large body of people. We have lived in different places, and as the believers in the Gospel in other ages were persecuted, so have we been; and having been persecuted and driven we have come here, as Geo. A. Smith said on a certain occasion, “because we could not help it.” We could not live in Nauvoo, yet we neither injured nor robbed anybody, neither did we interfere with anybody’s rights. They drove us from Missouri and from Illinois, and here we are, and what now? We were on Mexican territory when we arrived here, having been forced to flee from the United States because we could not have protection. Why was it? Who can tell why it was that people who strewed their garments and spread branches of palm trees in the path of Jesus, crying, “Hosanna, blessed be he that cometh in the name of the Lord,” should cry, a short time after—“Crucify him, crucify him?” Said Pilate, “I wash my hands of this just man’s blood;” and the people said, “let his blood be upon us and our children.” Terribly have they realized that invocation, for the avenging hand of the Almighty has been heavy upon them, and in every nation in which they have sojourned, they have been robbed, stripped, their property confiscated, and they have been deprived of all the rights of men. The time will come when God’s wrath will be satisfied towards them, and when they will again be his elect people and gathered to their own land, even to Jerusalem, where, as the Prophet says, “The measuring line shall go forth, and little boys and girls shall again play in the streets of that city;” and when the Son of God will descend and “set his feet on the Mount of Olives, and it will cleave in twain, and there will be a great valley, and they will flee from before him like as they fled in the days of Oziah, King of Judah;” and “the Lord our God,” we are told, “will come and all his Saints with him,” and there will be deliverance in Zion and in Jerusalem in the remnant whom the Lord our God shall call.”

Well, we are here in a political capacity, inhabiting a Territory, and forming an integral part of the United States. Whom do we interfere with? Nobody. Do we rob or pillage anybody, or interfere with the rights of any? No. Do we make incursions on the citizens of surrounding Territories? No, we interfere with the civil or religious rights of no person in this or any other city or Territory; we never did, we do not now; but we can not help being in the capacity that we occupy to-day. We form a body politic, and have necessarily become a Territory, and we could not help ourselves if we would. But we do not interfere with anybody, we observe all good and wholesome law. People will lie about us; but that makes no difference, they lied about Jesus. Our enemies say—“You are a bad people, and that is the reason we persecute you.” That is what the enemies of Jesus said about him; it was not because he was good; you never saw a religious persecution got up on that account, all such persecutions have been “because of the wickedness of the people.” The Scribes and Pharisees, after seeing Jesus heal the blind man, said—“Give God the glory, for we know this man is a sinner, it is true that he cast out devils, but he does it through Beelzebub, the prince of devils.” Well, if they persecuted the Lord of the house, they will persecute the members of his household; if they do these things in the green tree, what will they do in the dry? The fact is, there is, and always has been, and always will be, an antagonism between truth and error, light and darkness, between the servants of God and the servants of the adversary. The devil is called the father of lies, and he delights therein. What difference does that make to us, what do we care about it? Very little. But suppose we are oppressed. We have stood it before and we can stand it again. Suppose they should pass proscriptive laws against us. All right, if the nation can stand it we can. I will risk upholding and standing by correct principles which emanate from God. We will cleave to truth, honor, holiness, and to all the principles that God has revealed to us, and we will go on increasing in every good.

This nation and other nations will be overthrown, not because of their virtue, but because of their corruption and iniquity. The time will come, for the prophecies will be fulfilled, when kingdoms will be destroyed, thrones cast down and the powers of the earth shaken, and God’s wrath will be kindled against the nations of the earth, and it is for us to maintain correct principles, political, religious and social, and to feel towards all men as God feels. He makes the sun to shine on the just as well as on the unjust; and if he has enlightened our minds and put us in possession of more correct principles than others have, let us be thankful and adore the God of Israel. Let us thank our heavenly Father for his goodness towards us in making us acquainted with the principles of the everlasting Gospel, and let us go on from strength to strength, from purity to purity, from virtue to virtue, from intelligence to intelligence; and when the nations shall fall and crumble, Zion shall arise and shine, and the power of God shall be manifest among his people. No man can overturn or permanently hurt those who do right. They may kill some of our bodies, but that is all they can do. We shall live and shout among the assembled throng, in the eternal heavens, “Hosanna, blessed be the God of Israel,” and his kingdom shall grow and increase until the kingdoms of this world shall become the kingdoms of our God and his Christ, and he will rule and reign for ever and ever.

May God help us to be faithful in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Living Faith in God, etc.

Orson Hyde

Discourse by Elder Orson Hyde, delivered in the Fourteenth Ward Assembly Rooms, Salt Lake City, Sunday evening, Feb. 8, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

I rejoice very much, brethren and sisters, at the opportunity we enjoy to-night of meeting together to worship the Lord our God, and to wait upon him, that we may renew our strength. It is the desire of my heart to do all I can to inspire in you a living faith in God, and I am sorry to say that there are those in our midst, against whom I have no particular charge to make, but who, by reason of the favors which fortune or this world has bestowed upon them, have become weak and sick in the faith, and who, I may say, have almost no faith at all. I feel on this occasion that if wealth would destroy what little faith I have I would rather that it would take to itself wings and fly beyond my reach. I have no faith to boast of, but what little faith I may possess I think more of than I do of the wealth of this world, for the wealth of this world will not carry me successfully through the dark valley of the shadow of death; it will not open to me the portals of bliss, but real and genuine faith in God will accomplish this. I remember once, in Nauvoo, when we felt ourselves happy and fortunate if we could get half a bushel of meal to make mush of, the Prophet Joseph Smith, talking to some of us at the house of brother John Taylor, said—“Brethren, we are pretty tight run now, but the time will come when you will have so much money that you will be weary with counting it, and you will be tried with riches;” and I sometimes think that perhaps the preface to that time has now arrived, and that the Saints will soon be tried with riches; but if riches, would kill our prospects of eternal life by alienating us from the Priesthood and kingdom of God, I say it would be far better for us to remain like Lazarus, and that all our fine things should perish like the dew, and we come down to the bedrock of faith, and trust in the true and living God. The question is whether we have to come there in order to inherit eternal life. I will read a little of the words of our Savior, as recorded in the 6th chapter of Matthew. Said he—“Take no thought, saying what shall we eat or what shall we drink, or wherewithal shall we be clothed, for after all these things do the Gentiles seek, for your heavenly Father knoweth ye have need of these things, but seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you. Take therefore no thought for the morrow, for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.”

There are many Saints at this time who are laboring to acquire wealth; and the kingdom, in the hearts of a good many, has become a secondary consideration; if we were to reverse this order of proceeding and seek the kingdom of God first, we could then put our heavenly Father to the proof whether all these things shall be added to us, and thus also test the truth of our religion, and I believe that this would be a legitimate way to test it to our satisfaction.

I have heard several very able discourses, by good men, showing that unless our exports equal our imports, we are not making headway financially. This is all very good so far as it goes, but reasoning of that kind is not our Savior’s, it is the reasoning of this world, and so far as this world is concerned, their reasoning, if correct is just as good as any other reasoning; but if it is not correct, and we are swerved by its force and power from the line marked out for us to walk by, we shall become the losers. I wish now to refer you to certain events that have transpired in days gone by, and then any of you may tell me by what financial calculations these things happened, and whether they were brought down to the very nicety of worldly reasoning, or whether they were left open to the providences of our God.

Once on a time there was a great famine in Samaria, and so sore was that famine that a mule’s head sold for four score pieces of silver in the market, and a cab of dove’s dung sold for food in the market, I can not recollect for how much. We should consider it pretty much of a task or penalty to be compelled to use an article like that for food; but the people of Samaria were sorely distressed with famine, and which way to turn to save themselves they knew not. About this time, the King of Syria, with a large army, came to besiege the city, and there was a mighty host of them, and they brought everything in the shape of food that was necessary for the comfort and happiness of man; and although the famine was so sore among the Samaritans, the old Prophet, Elisha I think it was, told them that on the next day meal should be sold in the gate of their city at very low figures, lower than it had ever been known to be sold before. A certain nobleman, who heard the prophecy of Elisha expressed his doubt of its truth, and he said that if the windows of heaven were opened and meal poured down from above it could not fall to such low figures. Now see what he got by doubting the words of the Prophet—said Elisha to him—“Your eyes shall see it, but you shall not taste it.” That night the Lord sent forth the angels of his presence and they made a rustling in the trees, and sounds like horses’ hoofs and chariots, as if the whole country had combined to go out to battle against the Syrians, and they did not know what to make of it, and they were frightened, and fled, leaving almost every thing they had brought with them in the borders of the town; and as they went, the rustling of the trees and the noise of the horses and chariots seemed to pursue them, and in order to make their burdens as light as possible, they threw away everything they had with them, and their track was strewed with everything good and desirable. The next morning the people of Samaria went out and brought the spoils into the market, and it was overstocked with provisions, and the word of the Lord through the Prophet was fulfilled.

Now, you see, the Lord knew they had eaten mules’ heads long enough, and that they had need of something more palatable; he had had the matter under advisement, no doubt, when the crusade was inaugurated against the people of Samaria, and he, in all probability, inspired them to take abundant supplies, that they might feel all the more confident on account of their great numbers being so well provided for. They no doubt calculated that they had the sure thing, little thinking that God was making them pack animals to take to his people what they needed. Their Father in heaven knew that they had need of them, and he sent them, and the people of Samaria brought them into market, and behold and lo the multitude rushed together just as hungry people will, and this nobleman came out also, and he was trodden down under foot and stamped to death—he saw it but he never tasted it. That is the reward of those who disbelieve the Prophets of God; it was so then, and if the same thing does not occur in every instance something of a similar character is sure to take place. There was no living faith in that man, he could not believe the testimony of the Prophets, and in this he was like some of our—what shall I say, great men, whose faith is weak and sickly, and they think they know it all, and can chalk out right and left that which would be best for building up the kingdom of God.

Well, after the flight of Sennacherib and his hosts, the starving multitudes of Samaria had an abundant supply of food. By what financial calculation was this brought about? Was it by worldly financiering, or was it by the bounteous dispensation of kind Heaven, who, disregarding worldly technicalities, sent a full supply to administer to and supply the wants of those who put their trust in Him, for at that time the people of Samaria stood fairly before him, and he plead their cause.

Said the Savior—“Take no thought what ye shall eat or what ye shall drink, or wherewithal ye shall be clothed, for after all these things do the Gentiles seek.” Have the Gentiles come here to make money and to become wealthy? They say they have; I am told that that is their sole errand. I have not the least objection to it, but I have an objection to my brethren and sisters adopting their spirit by which their faith withers and becomes like a dried reed. The Lord said to Joseph Smith once—“As I live, saith the Lord, I give not unto you that ye shall live after the manner of the world.” Are we seeking to live after the manner of the world by our trading and trafficking? I do not know, however, that there is anything objectionable about legitimate, honorable trading, and I am not going to speak against it; but in these days it is a pretty rare thing to find an honorable dealer. There may be, and undoubtedly there are, men who do nothing but honorable business transactions, but most business men are eager to lay up a fortune, and to get rich in a short time. Some of our merchants think they ought to get rich in from five to ten years, and then retire; but in honorable business transactions it takes almost a lifetime to amass a fortune. I will not, however, speak of things that occurred in old times, but will come down to our own experience.

I recollect when we were forced away from Nauvoo, at the point of the bayonet, and when we crossed the river to the Iowa side there were hundreds of our people camped along the shore, and what had they to eat, or to make themselves comfortable with, in the scorching sun and burning with fevers? Nothing. We wanted meat and other comforts, but we had not the means to procure them, and the Lord in mercy sent clouds of quails right into camp. They came into the tents, flew into the wagons, rested on the wagon wheels, ox yokes and wagon tongues, and our little children could catch them, and there was an abundant supply of meat for the time being. Who financiered that, and by what calculation of two and two make four did it happen? It was the mercy and generosity of kind Providence. After the people arrived here in Salt Lake, they had pretty hard times. I was not one of the honored ones first here, but I arrived soon after, and I can recollect very well hearing of the hard times, when the brethren and sisters were forced to dig roots, and boil up thistletops, and anything that could be converted in the seething pot into food for the stomach. In those days the rations of our people were very short indeed. The Lord was aware of the position of the Saints in those times, he knew that they craved and had need of the necessaries and comforts of life, and he provided a way for them to obtain them. He opened the mines of California, and he caused the news to fly eastward, and this inspired the people of the East, almost en masse, to go to the Eldorado of the West to secure the precious metals. I happened to be on the borders at the time the excitement was in progress, and having crossed the Plains once or twice, people came to me to know what they should load with. I told them to take plenty of flour, for that would be good anyhow, and if they took more than they could carry they could trade it with the Indians to good advantage for something that they needed. I also told them to take plenty of bacon, the very best that they could bring; plenty of sugar, and also plenty of coffee and tea, we were not quite so conscientious in those days about using tea and coffee as we profess to be now. I also told them to take plenty of clothing, such as shirts, overcoats, blankets and everything that would keep the body warm; and I told them that tools of every kind would be very convenient and almost indispensable, such as spades, shovels, planes, saws, augurs, chisels, and everything that a carpenter needs, for said I—“When you get to the end of your journey you may not find everything to your hand that you want, and these things will be very convenient for you to build with.” And I gave them this counsel in good faith, for I thought if they did not feel disposed to carry all these things through, they could very readily exchange them in our valley for something that our folks could spare and which the emigrants would find useful.

Well, they fitted up train after train with these staple articles, and to use a steamboat phrase, they loaded to the very guards, and when many of them reached here, having been retarded by their heavy loads, it was so late that they said—“If we attempt to go through to California with this outfit, we shall be swamped in the snows of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, and so we must leave it here.” They had brought it just where God wanted it, for said he—“I knew you had need of these things;” and while many of those who brought them along were good, honorable men, it so happened in the providence of God that his people were abundantly supplied.

Did not brother Kimball prophecy here once, in a time of the greatest strait, that goods and merchandize of every kind would be so cheap and plentiful within a certain time, that they would have to be piled up on the way side? Yes, and his prediction came true, and the merchandize had to be placed by the wayside because there were not houses enough to put it in. Well, when the emigrants got here with their jaded teams, they were glad to trade them off. Said they—“Here gentlemen, are the dry goods, merchandize, tools, and other things we have brought along, they are at your service, give us a pack mule and a pack-saddle, a lariat and a pair of spurs that we may go on our way.” This was the way matters were arranged in many instances, and there was no fault to find, we did the best we could under the circumstances, and they did the best they were obliged to for us.

Who financiered that? Was that on the principle of two and two make four? I do not object at all to that principle, but one is the result of human skill and wisdom, the other is based upon unshaken faith in God. That is what I am coming to—unshaken faith in God, which in this case, in our own experience, brought deliverance to the Saints, for they were well supplied with tools, wagons, clothing and all they needed to make them comfortable. Our community was small then, a few trains heavily laden were sufficient to supply it, but now it would take a number of railroad trains. We are growing and increasing, and I fear that we are growing beyond our faith, we are taking thought for to-morrow too much.

To illustrate this matter I will suppose that I say to my sons—“Here, my boys, I want you to go and plough, take care of the stock, or make the garden beautiful;” and they reply—“Father, we want some boots, pants and hats.” “I tell them I know they have need of these things, but I want them to attend to what I require of them without first receiving the boots, pants and hats. What would you think of these boys if, because father did not give them what they thought they needed just at the time, they should say “we will strike out on our own hook, for we must have, and are determined to have these things?” How many of us are there now who feel as though we could chalk out and financier our own course irrespective of what the Prophet says? Perhaps some would be grieved if their faith in the ordinances of the Gospel and in the servants of God were questioned; but, as I said in the start, to come down to the bedrock, leaving fiction out of the question, how many of us are there who are ready to strike hands with the Prophet of God and to hang on to him blow high, or blow low, come coarse or come fine? There are some men who have acquired fortunes and who are rich, and I have reason to believe, though perhaps good men in every other respect, there will be a divorce between them and their silver and gold, or I fear they may not enter the kingdom of God. The rich man may say—“Divorced! is it possible that I must be divorced from that to which I am so devotedly attached—my riches—in order that I may obtain life everlasting?”

In further illustration of the subject we have under consideration, I will quote the saying of the Savior, “Lay not up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust can corrupt, and where thieves [thieves] break through and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven where neither moth nor rust can corrupt, nor thieves break through and steal.” If heaven be beyond the bounds of time and space, as some of our religious friends believe, it would require a long arm to deposit our treasures there; but I apprehend that the heaven here referred to is not so far away. I believe it is near, and that when I yield my treasures to the powers that govern the kingdom of God I lay up treasure in heaven. Whenever I see the hungry and feed him, the naked and clothe him, the sick and distressed and administer to their wants I feel that I am laying up treasure in heaven. When I am educating my children and embellishing their minds and fitting them for usefulness, I am laying up treasures in heaven. I would ask that little boy, who is well educated and well trained, “What thief can enter in and steal the knowledge you have got?” It is beyond the power of the thief to steal, it is out of his reach, that treasure is laid up in heaven, for where is there a place more sacred than the hearts of the rising generation which beat with purity, and with love to their parents, and with love to God and his kingdom? What better place can you find in which to deposit treasures than that? But all our obligations are not pointing to one source or quarter, there are many ways in which we can lay up treasures in heaven by doing good here on the earth.

The Bible says, “Take no thought beforehand, what ye shall eat or what ye shall drink, or wherewithal ye shall be clothed.” Says one—“If we are to take no thought beforehand I would like to know how the farmer will ever contemplate sowing his seed if he does not look with an eye to the harvest, if he does not take some forethought?” I do not see any necessity for this. I know that the times and seasons roll around, and when Spring comes my natural senses tell me then is the time to plough, and I go and plough, because I know it is my duty to plough. I keep on ploughing day after day until I get through, and then I commence sowing seed. It is no use for me to give myself any anxiety about the harvest—I have no control over that, as the Scriptures say—“Paul may plant and Apollos water, but God giveth the increase,” and I, with all my figuring, can not swell the kernels of wheat and cause them to germinate. I can do my duty in the time and the season thereof, but I must leave the issue with God. When I see that the grain wants watering I can turn on the water, but never mind to-morrow, let that take care of itself. As each day rolls around I can do the duties thereof, but tomorrow is beyond my reach or control. We, however, are looking to great results from our present labors as Latter-day Saints, and perhaps there is no particular harm in this; but it is far safer for us to do the duties of to-day than to neglect them by dreaming of the glory that is to be revealed in the future. That is in safe-keeping. The hands of the Lord are strong and true, they will keep the reward in reserve for the faithful, and none can rob them of it. Let us do the work of to-day, then, and our heavenly Father knoweth that we have need of all these things.

There is one very peculiar saying of our Savior in the New Testament which I believe I will quote. Said the Savior, “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.” This is a saying which very few people who live now seem to believe, for, apparently, the main object for which most people labor is to get rich, and hence, according to the saying of Jesus, to keep themselves out of the kingdom of God. I know men in this Church whom I would have gladly seen here to-night, but I do not see them. I suppose they have so much riches they have no time to attend meeting. Maybe they are here, I hope so, my sight is not very keen, and I can not see all over the room; but I do hope and pray that I shall never get so much wealth that I shall have no time to attend meetings, or so much as to keep me busy taking care of it, so that I shall not have time to enrich my heart with the knowledge of the Lord our God by putting myself in the way to obtain it. “Easier for a camel to enter the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.” Said the disciples “Who then can be saved?” The Savior answered, “That which is impossible with man is possible with God.”

Now I want to look a little at the possibilities and impossibilities of the matter, not that I claim to understand everything, but sometimes a train of thought comes through my mind which cheers and does me good, That man who claims to be under the jurisdiction of an authority that he professes to believe is paramount with God, and yet is engaged in this way, that way and the other way, in getting rich so that he has no time to honor it, the question is, Can that man enter into the kingdom of God? I am not going to say, but I will bring up another case that, perhaps, may have a bearing on, and serve to illustrate this subject.

There was a certain rich man who fared sumptuously every day. He had abundance of everything that was good. Then there was a poor man named Lazarus, who lay at his gate, and the dogs came and licked his sores. This poor man would have been glad of the crumbs that fell from the rich man’s table. By and by poor Lazarus died and was carried by angels into Abraham’s bosom. I was once conversing with a Presbyterian minister on the subject of polygamy. Said I to him—“My dear sir, where do you expect to go when you die?” He said—“To some good place, I hope.” “To heaven, I suppose?” “Yes,” said he, “I hope to go there.” Said I—“Right into Abraham’s bosom.” Well, he said, figuratively, that was correct. Said I, “If you go right into Abraham’s bosom there will be on one side Sarai and on the other Hagar, and if you make a deadshot right into Abraham’s bosom how do you expect to dodge polygamy? If you get into Abraham’s bosom you get into a curious place.” By this time his argument was exhausted and our conversation closed. But Lazarus went to Abraham’s bosom. I suppose he has a pretty large bosom and a large heart, large enough to embrace all the faithful from his day down to the end of time, for in him and his seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed.

By and by the rich man died, and it is said that he lifted up his eyes in hell, or in torment, and he saw Abraham afar off with Lazarus in his bosom: Said he—“Father Abraham, send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water that he may cool my tongue, for I am tormented in this flame.” Abraham replied, and he spoke to him very kindly and fatherly, “Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things, but now he is comforted and thou art tormented. And besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, so that they who would pass from hence to you cannot, neither can they pass to us who would come from thence.” Here, then, we see illustrated the fate of the man who obtained wealth independent of the Lord Almighty. He obtained wealth and enjoyed it, and down he went to hell, while that poor man who, in this life, lay at the rich man’s gate and desired to be fed with the crumbs that fell from his table, was carried by angels into Abraham’s bosom. Probably, in life, this rich man had oppressed and dealt wrongfully by that poor man, I cannot tell how that was, but at any rate he went to hell.

Now, let me ask you who the man is who may be rich, and still enter into the kingdom of God. There was father Abraham himself, none of you will dispute that he was a rich man while here, yet there he was, on the other side of the great gulf, prepared to welcome Lazarus to happiness and heaven. But how did Abraham get rich? Was it by cheating and defrauding, by calculating and financiering? or did he get it by doing his duty and trusting in God to bestow upon him what he saw fit. He trusted in the Lord, and the Lord gave to him all the Land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession and promised him that his seed should be as numerous as the stars in the sky, or the sands on the sea shore. The Lord made Abraham rich, Abraham did not do it himself; he did not cheat anybody, but in the providences of God he was elevated and made rich. Why, there are some men who can not sleep nights for laying plans to get rich, but I would advise them, if they want to get riches that will last for ever, just to lay plans to build up the kingdom of God, or in other words take the advice of Jesus—“Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all things else shall be added unto you.” I used to think—I can not get married until I get rich, for I can not support a wife; and it was not half so hard to support a wife in the days when I married as it is now, because there was not half the pride or fashion to support then that there are now. Then I did not make money very fast, and I thought that if I waited until I got rich before I married I should wait too long, and finally I concluded that I would marry and take hold with my wife and we would work together. It is certainly better to have two oxen than one, for if one is yoked up at one end the other end of the yoke drags, and when one wheel is off and the other is on, the point of one axle drags in the sand, and it is a complete nothing at all, that is just what it is. Well then I would give the same advice to my young brethren and sisters that I acted upon myself, and that is—Get married and get rich afterwards, and dispense with this fashion that so many are anxious to follow. We cannot very well, unless we are born princes, heirs or millionaires, support the fashion of the present day and prosper, and we had better dispense with it. I like to see everybody cleanly and comfortable, but all this display and paraphernalia that fashion demands of its votaries seems to me like clogging the wheels and creating discomfort rather than comfort. When I was in the old country, I recollect hearing a lady say—“Some people wrap themselves up and put on so much that they are completely clogged. If you draw a net over a fish, how can it swim in the water? It is freedom they want, and it is a light covering we want, especially in warm weather.” I like to see persons neat and clean, and would rather see them thus than adorned in fine feathers, dresses, caps and jewelry. I believe God’s people will be so. I have no particular fault to find, I am only telling what I think would be good.

The man that goes along and does his duty, and, without straining a point, picks up honestly and fairly the blessings and means that God strews in his pathway, can appreciate and do good with his means; and as long as he keeps an open heart and is willing to do good, God will continue to put wealth in his way, and wealth obtained in this way, no matter how much, if it swells as large as the mountains on the east here, can not keep its possessor out of the kingdom, because it is the gift of God, and not the fruits of over-reaching dishonesty. God is not going to keep me out of his kingdom because I have wealth, no matter how much, if I obtain it honestly in his sight, and strive continually to do good with it. The reason why men of God were rich in old times was, that they were willing and desirous that God should rule, govern and control them and their means, while the miserable calculators after the fashion of the world shut God out of the question altogether. Such men are a stink in the nostrils of the Almighty, and he will hurl them from his presence, and they will find that it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for them to enter into His kingdom. This is my faith, and I hope it will last me all the way through and for ever, that if we will keep the commandments of God, build up his kingdom, and lay up treasure in heaven by doing good with whatever means and ability God may entrust us with here, wealth will roll in upon us from quarters we are not aware of, and in a way that eye has not seen nor ear heard, neither has it entered into the heart of man to conceive. All the world is for the Saints, and if they only take the right course and do as they are required, wealth will roll in upon them and can not go anywhere else. The world say the Latter-day Saints are the lowest of all people, and just for argument’s sake we will grant it; but then, if we are so, that fact is only a proof of our excellence, for everything that has weight and worth rolls down and finds the centre, the froth only rises to the top. I will venture to say that if you take a dollar and place it on the edge of a nice washbasin, it will roll down to the centre, and if we are there, we shall all be in the right place. It is the meek and lowly who are to inherit the earth and the kingdom of God, and enjoy the gifts of heaven.

I have spoken once to-day before pretty freely, and I begin to feel a little sore about the sides, and I do not think I shall talk to you much longer on this occasion. I was talking this afternoon about the antediluvians. How strong they were in their own estimation! They were able to carve out their own destiny, and to amass and spend their own fortunes; but when the flood came they and their wealth went together. They were not in the ark, they had no interest in it whatever. I suppose they were a good deal as some people are at the present day. I saw a little ticket out here—I did not stop to read it—but in passing I read the words—“Not one cent for Tithing.” I suppose that was the motto of the ante-diluvians. “Not one cent for Tithing,” not one iota to build up the kingdom of God. Well, they went to destruction.

I wish to say to my brethren I have had considerable experience in the kingdom of God, and I have had some experience that a man never ought to have, and let me here ask my brethren and sisters if everything could be arranged to suit all, where under the heavens would there be any trial of our integrity? There would be no such thing. As the Methodist say—“When I can read my title clear to mansions in the skies,” and neither stumbling-block nor obstacle in the way, I shall begin to think that I am on the wrong road, for I do know that in the way of exaltation and eternal life there are stumbling-blocks and difficulties to overcome, and if I keep in that way I shall have some things to swallow that are unpleasant and uncomfortable. But they will appear smaller and less difficult to overcome, if we swallow less whisky. I would advise all my brethren to avoid it, and to have no connection with it; and if we see those who are feeble in faith, and more inclined to find fault than they are to approve, let us labor with them and do all we can to bring them back to a sense of their obligations.

“Take no thought for the morrow, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink, nor wherewithal shall ye be clothed,” but go to, and do just as God, through your brethren, tells you, and never be the means of administering a blow or doing one act that shall cause a division among the Saints of God, for says Jesus—“Except you are one you are not mine,” and how many are there in this city and throughout the country who are kind of half Jew and half Ashdod, and more Ashdod than Jew in many instances? Do not understand me to apply this to the body of the Saints, but to them that are pairing off, the disaffected and dissatisfied, and those who seem as if they had just swallowed a dose of fishhooks, and were choking over it. I would advise such to grease it well, and it will go down. Let the oil of the grace of God be applied, and there is no obstacle that we can not overcome. I say then, let us never allow ourselves to be the entering wedge to divide the people of God. If we cannot overcome a little difficulty or a little trial, how much faith have we got? Not much. I say to my brethren—God bless you; and to the weak, the Lord, through the Prophet, says, “Be strong.” Be as weak as you have a mind to, but when there is need of strength put it on. If we have the right spirit, the more strength we need the more we shall have, but keep the fire burning, and may the Lord God of heaven bless you.

I could say many more things, but I have said as many as I should say. May the Lord bless you here in the 14th Ward. I used to know all the people who were here, but now I do not know a tithing of them; they have either grown up out of my knowledge, or else there is another set, or else we have lost our faith and our countenances are changed. I do not know which. Well now, let these pipes and tobacco alone, and let whisky alone; and sisters, let tea and coffee alone. I know I am touching you in a vital place, but will you do it? “Oh dear, I shall die if I can not have some.” Well, we have got to die once, and it had better be in a good cause than in a bad one. Then let us keep the Word of Wisdom, and keep ourselves unspotted from the world and live to the honor and glory of God, that when we have got through, having really complied with the will of heaven, we may see opening before us fields of everlasting bliss, and crowns and dominions beyond calculation opening in the wide expanse of eternity. Oh, shall we come short, or shall we not?

Brethren and sisters, live to God, and may God bless you. I want to live until the power of God will be felt and acknowledged in this world, and that day is not far remote. May God bless us for ever, is my prayer in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Remarks to the Young

William C. Dunbar

Remarks by Elder William C. Dunbar, delivered in the Twentieth Ward School House, Salt Lake City, Sunday afternoon, Jan. 4, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

Last Sunday evening I asked the privilege from the Bishop to give a little lesson to the young, and to the old and middle-aged about the young. It is something new for me to ask for the privilege of speaking, for my weakness has generally led me to decline speaking when asked to do so; but inasmuch as I have assumed the task, I trust I shall be assisted by that Spirit that illuminates the understanding, and that it will on this occasion dictate things which will be for our good.

I have heard some say that they thought we made too much fuss and talk about the rising generation; but when we take into consideration the circumstances in which we are placed as Latter-day Saints, we shall see that this is not the case. We are connected with the kingdom of God, established in these last days never to be cast down again. We are not connected with a system of religion which is to expire when we expire, but with one which is to exist when we are gone, and there is a prospect of a great many of us departing this life before very many years more pass away. There are thousands and tens of thousands of us who embraced the Gospel soon after the Church was organized by the Prophet Joseph Smith, and who are now arriving at an age when we must naturally expect that we will not live long upon the earth, hence, in the minds of all such who reflect, there is an anxiety about the young. Why? Because they have an anxiety about the kingdom of God being perpetuated; they have an anxiety about the young, realizing that the responsibility of bearing off this kingdom and its principles must shortly rest upon their shoulders, when they will have to preach the Gospel and to administer the laws and ordinances of the kingdom of God, and to bear off its principles while they shall live upon the earth, hence the anxiety of the old members of the Church to know that their children are in a position to be able to perform the duties devolving upon them as well as, if not better than, their predecessors.

We have around us a multitude of children growing up. We are in the habit of calling them children and of treating them as such, and all the time our speeches to them are as if directed to children; but all of a sudden it has come to our notice that some of these children have arrived at the years of accountability. Some of our sons, for instance, are as old as we were ourselves when we went forth to preach the Gospel, and we see around us a multitude of young men and women who were baptized when they were eight years old, and who, almost unnoticed, have arrived at years when they begin to think and act for themselves. Among there are those who have a knowledge, by the gift of the Holy Ghost, that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the Church and work of God, and perhaps a great proportion of them have this knowledge. Then, there are a great many of them who say they have not this knowledge, but they believe “Mormonism” is true because father and mother say it is; that is, they believe it by education and not by conviction and through understanding it for themselves. Among these children to which I am referring is a small number who have come in contact with certain influences, and who are becoming skeptical and unbelieving as to the principles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

We may shut our eyes to these things, but they are facts, and the question is, How shall we treat them? If we knew that two Gentiles were in this meeting, we would so arrange our discourse as to be suitable to them, and let all the rest of the congregation, who already know these principles, sit and listen. But it appears to me that we have to take a new departure in regard to our preaching. We must adapt ourselves to circumstances, and remember that there are those amongst us of the kind I have mentioned. It is true our children have been raised and grounded, as it were, in the principles of “Mormonism:” they have grown up and have scarcely heard anything else. It is not these little ones here that I am so much concerned about, but it is the young men and the young women, from sixteen to twenty-two or twenty-three years of age, who go out in life for themselves. Perhaps the sisters go to service in various parts of the city and among various kinds of people; and the young men, they go to learn trades—learn to be carpenters, masons, blacksmiths, or some other occupation. They have to go out in life, and they meet with a great many influences now that were not to be found in our midst years ago; for amongst us now are those who are straining every effort to undermine the education that we have been giving to our children. When I say education, I mean the religious training which we have been giving them. There are men in our midst who consider they have a mission to perform, and that mission is to undermine our religion. There are many amongst us now who do not believe in and who care nothing about our religion. Some of these have come to dig in the mountains, to extract the silver and get a fortune; they care nothing about religion of any kind. There are others here who consider they have a mission to undermine “Mormonism,” and who think the only way for them to do that is by undermining the education of our young people. They say, “We can only reach the young, so far as faith in “Mormonism” is concerned; but if we succeed in making the rising generation skeptical, “Mormonism” will be a thing of the past and almost forgotten in the next generation.” There is a class of so-called religious men whose aim is to make our young folks skeptical; there is the apostate, who is either an infidel or a deist, working to accomplish the same object; there is also the Gentile, who is a deist or a freethinker, and does not believe in God or in a life hereafter; and they all feel that it is their special mission to undermine what we have been doing during the last twenty years to establish in the minds of the rising generation the truth of the principles which we have espoused, and which we know to be true.

Now, if it has taken all the knowledge that we have, all the testimony that we have received from the Almighty, to carry us through to the present moment; if it has taken the power of the Holy Ghost and the Spirit of God to enable us to stand and resist the various opposing influences by which we have been assailed since we obeyed the Gospel, it will take the same testimony and the same understanding to enable the rising generation to carry off this kingdom triumphantly in spite of all the combined opposition that may be brought against it. Hence the necessity, my brethren and sisters, of being exercised about the young, and hence the reason that they should have a knowledge of the principles of truth that we have received, that when we are departing this life we can lay our hands upon them and bless them, and set them apart for the work that we have about closed. Then the fathers in Israel can say—“Here are our sons, who will carry out what we have begun;” and the mothers can say—“Here are our daughters, who will carry out what we have commenced.” Under such circumstances the feelings of the dying will be those of joy and pleasure, for they will know that they are leaving behind them a multitude upon whose hearts is ineffaceably impressed the conviction of the divinity of this work.

I am pleased when I hear a young man or young woman testify that they know this is the kingdom of God; but I should not be pleased to hear them testify that they did know if they did not; I should not be pleased to hear them say they believed if they did not believe. It might cost me sorrow to hear my son or my daughter, or your son or your daughter, say, “I do not know that ‘Mormonism’ is true,” or “I do not believe it is true,” or to see them in a kind of betwixt and between state of mind, not knowing what to believe; but at the same time I would rather they would honestly say just what is the fact, than to have them hypocritically say one thing and mean another. I would not like to see this among children or among men and women. But if a person is really sick and we can find out what the disease is, then we can apply the remedy; if, however, the patient insists that he is not sick, and that nothing is the matter with him, we can not touch him. Hence I say, if we know the circumstances in which we are placed, we know what remedy to apply. A young man or young woman will ask this question, for instance, which is very natural—“Father, I hear you say that all the sects in the Christian world are wrong except the ‘Mormons;’ but yet I find, when I attend the Episcopal, Roman Catholic or Methodist church, that they quote from the very same Bible which you quote from. How is it that they are wrong? Do you recollect, brethren and sisters, how we were when first the Gospel reached our ears? One of the first questions that we asked of the Elder who preached to us was—“You say that ‘Mormonism’ only is right, but how is it that all these other sects and parties, who say they believe in God, the Bible and Jesus Christ, are wrong and you only are right?” This was a kind of a mystery to us, it caused a query to arise in our minds, and we could not exactly understand it. This brings to my remembrance a figure that was very frequently used by the Elders when preaching the Gospel in the old country in early days. To explain this seeming mystery to the minds of the new converts, they would liken the Gospel and Church of Jesus Christ and its organization, to a watch with all its complicated machinery, including wheels, pivots and pins, face, fingers and mainspring. All these properly combined will correctly tell the time of day. “But,” said the Elders, “Suppose a man comes along and takes one of these wheels away, and another man takes another wheel, and another takes another wheel; another man takes a pin, and another another pin; another man takes a pivot, and another takes another pivot; one takes the face, another takes a finger, and another takes another finger, and so on, until finally the whole watch is divided up, say among six hundred different people, every one of whom says—“I have got the watch, and I can tell the time of day.” Says the watchmaker—“Do you think I am such a fool as to believe that any of you can tell the time of day? A watch can not tell the time unless it is combined and united together, every wheel and pivot in its place, with the mainspring in good order. It takes the whole machine to tell the time of day, and when a man says—‘I have got the watch,’ and he has only got a wheel, a pivot, or a pin, the face, mainspring, or case, he does not tell the truth, whether he knows it or not.”

So it is, my young friends and brethren and sisters, in regard to the Bible; every religious sect takes that part of it which suits them, and they all say they believe in it, and they have got the plan of salvation. For instance, one sect or party will take faith in Jesus Christ, and say that is all that is necessary for the salvation of man. Another sect will perhaps take baptism, and say that faith and baptism are necessary for salvation, and throw away something else; and thus you find the whole Christian world, although professing to believe in the same Savior and in the same Bible, opposed to each other. And then the “Mormons” come along and they say—“All these sects are wrong and we are right.” They say to the sects—“Why, you have not got the watch, you have only got one of the wheels, one of the pins or fingers, or you have only got the case, and there is nothing in it, and it requires the case with all its contents properly arranged to tell the time of day correctly; in other words, if you would teach the people how to be saved in the kingdom of God, you must teach them to obey every principle of the plan of salvation.” That is precisely what the Elders of this Church do, and that makes the grand distinction and difference between them and the so-called religious teachers of the day.

Now to illustrate this. You attend a church or a chapel, and you perhaps hear a minister preach from the 16th chapter of St. Mark’s Gospel, where the Apostles are commanded to go and preach the Gospel to every creature, with the promise that he that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, &c. Some of our young people have not read the Bible a great deal. It is true that many of them who attend Sunday school do read it, but as a general thing the class I am referring to do not attend Sunday school. They consider that they are too old, that they know too much, or that it is rather humiliating to associate with children; and, with a few exceptions, those I mean are not of the kind who have read the Bible; but you will find, no matter how much it may chagrin us to admit it, that they would rather read the Ledger, Bowbells, or some other book of that character, than the Bible, and consequently when they hear a sectarian minister quote from it, that he that believeth in Jesus shall be saved, they take it for granted that he is reading the Bible, when, if they had read and studied its pages for themselves, they would know that he only quotes part of it. Is it not singular that sectarian ministers, as a general thing, manage to forget that little word “baptism” when exhorting sinners to repent and be saved? Is it not singular that the divines of the day, as a general thing, although they have made the Bible their study, and have gone to college on purpose to study how to explain its contents, should stop short and say, “He that believeth shall be saved,” leaving out all about baptism?

What is the difference, in this respect, between the “Mormon” and the sectarian teacher? The “Mormon” teacher reads the whole of it—the text and the context, and he declares to the people that he that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; and he that believeth not shall be condemned. Is it not singular that men professing to be servants of God and ministers of salvation, when they quote Scripture, should only quote part of it? This is the course pursued by the ministers of nearly every denomination in Christendom. One will take a pivot or a wheel, and leave all the rest of the machinery; another will do the same, and so on, and if we were to examine the whole, we should perhaps find that all of the principles of the Gospel are scattered amongst them, but all of them reject some portions of it.

On the day of Pentecost, when a large multitude of people where assembled at Jerusalem, the Apostles of the Savior, who had been endowed with power from on high, plainly and unmistakably declared unto them the way of life and salvation. In answer to the earnest and anxious inquiries of many on that occasion, Peter, the chief of the Apostles, said—“Repent and be baptized, every one of you, for the remission of your sins, and you shall receive the Holy Ghost,” &c. But how is this Scripture quoted by those who take only one wheel or pivot? They say—“Repent and be saved;” or, Believe in Jesus and be saved;” but somehow or other, either through a defective memory, or from some other cause, they fail to quote the rest of it.

Here is the difference between the sectarians and us who are called “Mormons.” We take the whole chapter, we want the whole watch. We know we can not tell the time correctly if we only take a part of it, and we know we can not get full salvation in the celestial kingdom of God unless we obey the whole Gospel, which is the power of God unto salvation unto all who believe it enough to obey it.

The Apostle Paul, in writing to the Corinthians, lays down the organization of the Church, as established by its founder, Christ. He says that in the Church are placed Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists, Pastors and Teachers. What for? For the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, and for the perfecting of the Saints, until we all come to the unity of the faith. The Apostle also says that there are in the Church a diversity of gifts, such as tongues, the interpretation of tongues, healing, knowledge, faith, wisdom, &c. Now, how much does a sectarian pick out of this when he quotes it? He takes Pastors and Teachers, but he throws away Apostles, Prophets, gifts, helps, tongues, healings, &c.; in fact, he claims to have the whole watch, when, at the same time, he has but one little pin or pivot, and throws away the principal part of the machinery.

Did you ever think of these things my brethren and sisters? If you would read the Bible and New Testament you would get an understanding of them just as we did. How was that? Most of us were trained to read the Bible, and when we heard the Latter-day Saints preach we said—“This is different from anything we ever heard before. The Bible seems like a new book, we never knew there were such things in it. Our ministers never taught us these principles, and when me mention them to them they say they are done away, and no longer needed;” in other words they say that a watch does not need a mainspring now; it was necessary 1800 years ago for a watch to have a mainspring and a variety of wheels and pins all united together in one case, but now it is not necessary, for you can tell the time of day with one of the fingers, or a pin, or with the empty case. We who had read the New Testament, when we heard the Elders explain the organization of this Church, could at once see that it was in accordance with the Scripture pattern, and that it was different to the churches of Christendom; but the reason that our young men and women are sometimes in a quandary when they hear sectarians preach is because they have not read the Scriptures, and hence when they hear a man in a pulpit make an assertion, they are not able to tell whether he quotes the whole or only a part of the passage, and hence the necessity for them to make themselves more acquainted with the Bible.

When I was about seventeen years of age I first heard this Gospel preached by Elder Orson Pratt. He quoted from the Acts of the Apostles, and although I had another word of testimony within me that what he said was correct, that he was a servant of God and that Joseph Smith had had the ministration of angels, when he quoted from the Scriptures I could not say whether it was so or not, because I had never read the Bible. I had never been allowed to read it, for reasons which I stated this afternoon, but I went home directly and read the Bible, and found that what he said was true. Then I went to another place of worship and I heard a man quote the same chapter, but somehow or other he failed to quote the whole passage, and quoted only a little bit of it. This led some of us to investigate, and we did so just as we would any other branch of knowledge. No young man would think of reading Robinson Crusoe in order to make himself acquainted with geography, neither would he read the history of Scotland in order to master algebra; and no young man or young woman would think of studying any branch of science or art by reading novels. But if they really desired to acquire any branch of knowlege they would, of course, procure works that treated on that subject, and make it a matter of earnest study. I knew a man who did nothing but study grammar from the time he was fifteen years old until he was twenty-five. They used to call him “Old Syntax” for a by-name. So it is with our young—they must not expect to study “Mormonism” by reading novels, but they must read the Bible, Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants, Millennial Star, Orson Pratt’s Works, the Voice of Warning and many others. These are the works our children must study if they ever find out for themselves the truth of the principles of “Mormonism.” And besides doing this, they must also pray unto the Almighty for the testimony of his Holy Spirit. How did we, now growing old in the work, get a knowledge of its truth? Many of us, after hearing the testimony of the servants of God, went into our closets, and some of us labored for months with the Almighty before we obtained that knowledge. We prayed “Lord, if the testimony of this man is true, make it known unto us, by some means or another;” and we finally received impressions which induced us to repent and be baptized, and we had hands laid upon us for the gift of the Holy Ghost; and still we labored, and prayed, and contended for the faith once delivered to the Saints, until God in his mercy manifested himself unto us in such a manner that we knew this was his work and kingdom.

Now, if a young man rises and bears testimony that he knows this is the kingdom of God, perhaps some other young man may make fun and say, “How do you know it?” Perhaps he cannot explain, for the revelations of God to the mind and soul of man can not always be explained, any more than Columbus could explain when he asserted there was a vast continent that had not then been discovered, or than the philosopher could explain to unbelievers that the globe was round and not flat; they could not understand it without studying natural laws as he had done. The testimony of the Holy Ghost and the Revelations of God give knowledge to the mind of him upon whom they are conferred but he can not explain their operations to others. In the Scriptures we are told that the things of man are known by the spirit of man, and the things of God only by the Spirit of God, and the promise to those who obey the Gospel is that they shall know for themselves of its truth, and this is the only condition on which the fulfillment of this promise can be obtained. Said Jesus—“Do my will and you shall know of the doctrine, whether it is of God, or whether I speak of myself.”

Our children were baptized when they were eight years old, but that was more by our agency that [than] theirs. The gift of the Holy Ghost was conferred upon them, and that Spirit is within them, and if they understood its whisperings and dictates I believe that they would admit they know a great deal more than they now think they do; and if they would heed its teachings it would lead them in the way of eternal life. But there is a great difference between the “Mormons” and the rest of the religious world when we come to the fundamental principles of all religion, namely, belief in God. The sectarian world say that the[y] believe in God, but that he has neither body, parts nor passions, and yet there are three persons in the godhead—Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. If you were to attend the Sabbath schools of our friends who are not of us, you would probably hear these principles taught. But this is not in accordance with the Bible, for that teaches that God made man in his own image. If you want to know what the Almighty looks like, look at man, only he is in a fallen condition and clothed with humanity. Jesus said that he was the express image and likeness of his Father. The “Mormons” believe this, but the sectarians believe in a God without body, parts and passions; they believe in Jesus sitting at the right hand of a God without body parts and passions; they believe in a God who loves the righteous, and who is angry with the wicked every day, but yet he has neither body, parts nor passions. I am not saying this with a design to deride, or anything of the kind, but I am simply stating facts as they are. The “Mormons” believe these things just as the Bible tells them; they believe that God is a great and exalted Being, filled with knowledge and understanding, that he created this earth, but not out of nothing. One of the principles taught by the religious world of Christendom, is that the earth was made out of nothing, in six of our days. No wonder, as Brother Maeser said the other Sunday evening, that people consider that science and religion are opposed to each other. True science and true religion are not opposed to each other; false religion and true science are opposed to each other, and it is this very fact which has caused infidelity to spread with such rapidity of late years. As men become acquainted with the laws of nature, which are the laws of God, they are compelled to lay false religion aside, and consequently they say religion is all nonsense. For instance, the chemist finds that he can not bring one particle of matter from nonentity neither can he annihilate one particle, therefore he disbelieves in the world being created out of nothing. When a man descends into the bowels of the earth and, through science, becomes acquainted with the laws which govern the materials there contained, he understands that the earth could not be made out of nothing; he also understands that it could not be made in six of our days, and consequently, rather than throw aside science, the truth of which he can demonstrate, he throws religion to one side, the truth of which he can not demonstrate. But if he were in possession of true religion he would not have to throw it away, neither would he have to abandon his science because they would harmonize.

We Latter-day Saints do not believe the world was created out of nothing, but that it was created just upon the same principle that a builder creates a house, that is, there is matter in existence and he organizes it and changes its condition suitable to the circumstances that he wishes to use it for; the builder changes the bricks, lumber and other material into a house or other structure; the Almighty by his power and wisdom takes existing matter and combines it and makes a world; and he places the stars and the sun and moon in the firmament, giving to each the laws by which its movements are governed. If we understand it we should see that it was all done upon true scientific principles. Scientific truth and God’s truth are just the same, hence when a man becomes acquainted with science or the laws of nature he has to throw away his belief in a God without body, parts and passions, and in the estimation of the religious world, he becomes an infidel. But suppose he were to obey the Gospel as taught by the Latter-day Saints, what would be the consequence then? His science and religion would help and sustain each other, and would enable him to bear testimony to the wonderworking hand of God, not only in revealing the true principles of salvation, but also in revealing the laws of nature or the principles of science, and he would embrace both as emanations from the same great Deity.

Here, my young brethren and sisters, is another great distinction and difference between the Latter-day Saints and the rest of the Religious World, and if you were to study the Bible sometimes—I do not say it is necessary to throw away every other book and study the Bible only—you would come to an understanding of these principles for yourselves, then you would know why your fathers and mothers declare that they know “Mormonism” is true.

I have endeavoured to drop a few hints, to show the necessity of our young people taking a course by which they may attain the same realizing sense of the truth of the Gospel and work of God which their seniors possess. If a son or a daughter belonging to any one of us should say—“Father, I know you have always taught me to believe that Joseph Smith was a true prophet, and you say that God has revealed it to you, but he has not revealed it to me and I do not know it,” shall we get mad at them, and resort to coercion in order to make them believe as we believe? No, we may be sorry to hear them make such an avowal, but we must neither get mad nor use harsh language towards them, for that might drive them to do that which we are so anxious to prevent. We must treat them as men and women, or as rational, intelligent beings, and reason with them, and labor with and pray for them just as much as if we were sent to preach the Gospel to the world. That is the course I believe we, the fathers and mothers of Israel, should pursue with the rising generation.

I have said all I desire to say on the present occasion. May God bless us! May the spirit of the Gospel rest upon our young, that they may be led to investigate its principles and come to an understanding thereof for themselve[s], that they may be prepared for the responsibilities that will rest upon those who will succeed us in carrying on the work of the Lord, and be enabled to bear it off triumphantly is my prayer in the name of Jesus. Amen.

The Kingdom not Organized by Man, etc.

Orson Pratt

Discourse by Elder Orson Pratt, delivered at the Forty-fourth Annual Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in the New Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Monday morning, April 6, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

Forty-four years ago to day, the kingdom of God was organized on this earth, for the last time, never to be broken up, never to be confounded or thrown down, but to continue from that time, henceforth and for ever, This kingdom was not organized by man, nor by the wisdom of man, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ, he having guided and directed, by revelation, everything in regard to its organization, and bestowed authority upon his servants to perform the work, and they being only agents or instruments in his hands.

All other Christian denominations for many long centuries, have been organized without revelation. The organizers of these various denominations did not even pretend that God had given them any information from Heaven; they did not even pretend that there was one sentence which had been received in their day from the Lord, in relation to the organization of their institutions, In this respect the Latter-day Saints differ widely from all Christian denominations! it is an essential difference, a peculiar characteristic, and one of the utmost importance. Every person with a little reflection, can see that without divine information, man is utterly unable to organize the Kingdom of God on the earth. He may organize kingdoms, empires, republics and various kinds of civil government and a great variety of governments in a religious capacity, and when he has organized them they are without foundation and authority. The Lord communicates nothing to them, but they are compelled to ponder over that which had been revealed in former ages, and get all the information they can from what God spake formerly. But how impossible it is for people to learn their duties from what God said formerly to somebody else. We might as well, in the organization of a civil government, say, “the canon of laws is sealed up, we need no legislators or Congressmen,” If the question be asked why we do not need them, the answer is, “Oh, we depend upon the laws which were made by our fathers; they are sufficient for our guide.” Just fancy the people of this great republic being governed by the laws enacted in the first Congress after the revolutionary fathers framed the constitution. Only think of all the people now appealing to those ancient laws, made before any of them were born, and having nothing further to govern them!

This would just be as consistent as it would be to suppose that God some eighteen hundred years ago, gave all the information that he ever intended to give in relation to the government of His kingdom and His affairs here on the earth. You know that in civil governments laws are continually required, circumstances call them forth. Laws made last year are not always suitable to the circumstances of this year, and those made ten years ago, might be altogether unsuitable for events now happening, and hence the necessity of something new, direct from the law-making department. So in regard to the kingdom of God. God spake to the ancients, but many of the words he spake then are not binding upon the people now. Some few of the great moral principles revealed to the ancients are binding for ever, but the great majority of the revelations from Heaven were only suited to the individuals to whom they were given. Take, for instance, the case of Abram He was living in Chaldea, the land of his fathers. The Lord spake to him, and commanded him to arise and leave his native country, and journey to a strange land, which was promised to him for an inheritance. Now, I ask, was any other people upon the face of the whole earth bound to obey this divine law given to Abraham? No; it was suited to him and to him only. If we were all under this ancient law, then every one of us would have to go to Chaldea; and after we got there we should have to leave that country and go to some land which we should expect to receive for an inheritance, which would be the very height of absurdity.

Again, when God led forth Abraham into the land of Palestine, we find that he not only communicated laws to him, but that he also made precious promises relating to him and his seed, which did not pertain to all the nations and kingdoms of the earth. God commanded Abraham on that occasion to arise, and to pass through the length and breadth of the land, and to go out on to a certain high place and to cast his eyes eastward and westward and northward and southward, for said the Lord unto him, “All this land which thou seest shall be given to thee, and to thy seed after thee for a possession.” Under this law have I been commanded to go to the land of Palestine and walk through the length and breadth of the land? Never. Have you been commanded to do it? Never. It is not a law that is binding upon us, neither was it binding upon future generations after the days of Abraham.

Again, when God made the promise to Abraham that he should have that land for a possession, and his literal seed after him, he did not mean you nor me, nor the generations of the earth who are not the literal descendants of Abraham.

Again, when God revealed himself to Moses, and told him to go down into Egypt and deliver Israel from bondage, that was a law binding upon Moses and Moses alone. The Latter-day Saints are not under that law, neither are any other people. So we might continue to multiply instances by thousands where God spake to individuals, and they, and they alone, were the persons who were to give heed to his laws. Again, where he spoke in some cases to the nation of Israel, Israel and Israel alone could obey those laws. But sometimes he would reveal to an individual or to a people certain great moral principles that were binding upon them and upon all people unto the ends of the earth, when they were made manifest unto them. Such laws are everlasting in their nature. Sometimes God revealed ordinances as well as commandments and laws. These ordinances were binding just as far as God revealed them for the people to attend to. For instance, the law of circumcision was binding upon Abraham and his seed, and was to be continued for a certain season, but by and by it was to be superseded by some other. God also revealed, in the days of the introduction of the Gospel, many eternal laws, different from those that had been revealed in former times. He revealed many things afresh and anew when he came personally on the earth, which had also been revealed prior to his day. For instance, we will take the law of faith, and repentance. These principles were taught in every dispensation, and were binding upon all people in the four quarters of the earth, and in all generations before Jesus came; they were eternal principles, and were to be continued forever. We will take, again, the law of baptism for the remission of sins. Wherever the Gospel was preached this ordinance was binding upon the people. Wherever men were sent forth with the fullness of the plan of salvation to declare to the children of men, the law of baptism accompanied that message, and all people, as well as Israel, were required to obey that sacred ordinance.

In the latter days, when God establishes his kingdom on the earth for the last time, there will be thousands and tens of thousands of precepts and commandments revealed to certain individuals, which will be binding upon them alone. Then there will be other commandments that will be adapted to all the Church, and they will be binding upon the Church and upon the Church alone. Then there will be certain commandments that will be binding upon all nations, people and tongues, and blessed are they who give heed to the commandments and institutions and ordinances which pertain to them and which are adapted to their circumstances, and which are given for them to obey. But we will return again to the Church and kingdom.

Forty-four years have rolled over our heads since God gave commandment to a young man, a youth, to organize baptized believers into a Church, which was called the kingdom of God, not organized in its fullness, for there were not materials enough at that time to institute all the officers that were needed in that kingdom. The kingdom needed inspired, Apostles, Seventies, High Priests after the order of Melchizedec; it needed the Priesthood of Aaron—the Levitical Priesthood, which the ancient Prophet said should be restored in the latter days. The kingdom needed all the appendages and blessings of these two Priesthoods, and there were not a sufficient number then baptized to make the organization perfect and complete; but so far as there were individuals the organization was commenced, although there were then only six members. Two of these were Apostles, called of God to be Apostles; called by new revelation to be Apostles; called by the ministration of angels to be Apostles; ordained by the laying on of hands of immortal personages from the eternal worlds. Hence, being ordained by this high authority, called by this high and holy calling, and chosen to go forth and organize the kingdom, and to preach the message of life and salvation among the children of men, they were obedient; and the other four individuals were organized in connection with them, upon the foundation that had been laid by the Lord himself, and not upon a creed that had been concocted in some council of uninspired men; not upon some articles of faith that were framed by uninspired men to guide and govern them; but what they received was by direct revelation. Not one step was taken without obtaining a revelation in regard to the manner of proceeding in relation to the laying of this foundation.

How very different this from the Methodists, the Baptists, the Presbyterians, the Church of England, and the various societies and denominations that exist throughout all the Protestant world; not one of them was organized in that way! Supposing that some of these Christian denominations should happen to get the form pretty nearly correct, and yet not have the authority, that would make all the difference. The form with the authority is one thing, and the form without the authority and divine appointment and ordination is another thing. One has power, but the other has not; one is recognized by the Lord Almighty, but the other is only recognized by man. I think we can see the difference between man’s churches and God’s Churches, between man’s organization and God’s organization. In the first place there never were a people, since Adam was placed in the Garden of Eden to the present day, who were acknowledged of God, unless they were founded and directed and counseled by him; unless there were a Priesthood having authority from him; unless God spake to them, and sent his angels to them. There never was a people, in any age of the world, whom God recognized as his people, without these characteristics. Says one, “How very uncharitable you Latter-day Saints are! You exclude the whole of us, you do not except one of our churches or good Christian denominations, and there are very good, moral people in them.” We do not dispute but what they are a very good, moral people; that is one thing, and a Christian Church is another. Morality is good in its place, and it must be in the Christian Church. Morality may exist outside of the Christian Church, but both can not exist together without God organizes the Church.

Perhaps I have spoken sufficiently long upon the subject of the organization of the Church. I might enter fully into the investigation of these matters, and give you the particulars about the angels of God who descended from heaven and conferred the authority upon chosen vessels. I might tell you about the day which God set apart, and upon which he commanded that his Church should be organized, for the very day was mentioned by revelation. I might also relate to you many instructions that were given at that time to all the members of the kingdom of God. But I have other subjects upon my mind that seem to present themselves before me.

There have been probably scores of revelations given from time to time during the last forty-four years, which are not binding now, neither were they binding upon all the people at the time they were given. For instance, God gave a revelation, through his servant Joseph, on the 14th day of November, 1830, to your humble servant who is now speaking, commanding him to go forth and preach the Gospel among the nations of the earth, preparing the way of the Lord for his second coming, and to lift up his voice, both long and loud, and cry repentance to this crooked and perverse generation. I ask this congregation if there is an individual present here, but your humble servant who is under this direct command? No. If you have been commanded to do the same, you have been commanded by a distinct revelation. The revelation given to me was not given to any other individual, and was not binding upon any other. So in regard to the gathering up of the Saints. We were dwelling in the State of New York, and on the second day of January 1831, God commanded that all the Saints in that State, the State in which the Church was organized, and all who were dwelling in all the regions round about, should gather up to the State of Ohio. Is that a commandment binding upon any of this congregation? Not one of them, it was only suited to the circumstances that then existed, and when fulfilled it was no longer even binding upon them. The Lord gave a commandment after we had gathered up to the land of Kirtland, that some of his servants should go forth, two by two, preaching through Indiana, Ohio, Illinois and Missouri, that they should meet together in general Conference on the western boundaries of the State of Missouri, and that the Lord God would reveal unto them the land which should be given unto them for an everlasting inheritance. These persons were commanded to do this. This commandment was binding upon them and them alone. They were the individuals who were commanded to do this work—it was not required of the rest of the Church. They fulfilled their appointment—as many as were faithful went through, two by two, on different routes, preaching and calling upon the people to repent and be baptized, confirming them by the water side, and organizing Churches. Finally those persons thus commanded assembled in August and September, on the western boundaries of the State of Missouri, in Jackson County. Then the commandment was fulfilled; and it was no longer binding upon those to whom it was given. Thus you see that what is suitable for this month is not always suitable for next month, and what is suitable for to-day is not always suitable for tomorrow. It needs new revelation.

When these missionaries assembled in Jackson County, the Prophet Joseph, being with them, inquired still further, and a commandment was given on that occasion, before the Church had gathered, except one small branch, called the Coalsville-Branch, and that commandment was to be binding upon all the Latter-day Saints who should gather up to that land. What was it? That all the people who should gather to Jackson County, the land of their inheritance, should consecrate all their property, everything they had—they were to withhold nothing. Their gold and silver, their bedding, household furniture, their wearing apparel and everything they possessed was to be consecrated. That placed the people on a level, for when everything a people has is consecrated they are all equally rich. There is not one poor and another rich, for they all possess nothing. I do not know but you might call that poor; but they have something in common, namely, that which they have consecrated, and this brings me to an item which I happened to think of just about a half minute before I arose.

I will now read to you what took place on this American continent thirty-six years after the birth of Christ. Jesus appeared here on this continent and organized his Church. He chose twelve disciples and commanded them to go and preach the Gospel in both the land south and the land north, and they did so. This extract gives us a little information about the repentance of the people:—

“And it came to pass in the thirty and sixth year, the people were all converted unto the Lord, upon all the face of the land, both Nephites and Lamanites, and there were no contentions and disputations among them, and every man did deal justly one with another; and they had all things common among them, therefore they were not rich and poor, bond and free, but they were all made free, and partakers of the heavenly gift.”

Now, was not that a marvel? Perhaps you may ask how it was that they were all so easily converted. That would be a very natural question to arise in the minds of many, for they must have been a very different people from those living now-a-days. We have preached, year after year, and have only converted here and there one. But all those millions, inhabiting both North and South America, were converted unto the Lord. Was not that a wonderment? If I explain a little what took place beforehand, it will clear up the wonderment a little.

Just before Christ was crucified in the land of Jerusalem, the people on this land had become exceedingly wicked, and it was foretold to them by their Prophets that, when Jesus, their Savior, should be crucified in the land of their fathers, there should be great destruction come upon those who were wicked in this land, and that many of their cities should be destroyed—they should be sunk and burned with fire, and God would visit them in great and terrible judgments if they did not repent and prepare for the coming of their Savior, for they expected him to appear afar his resurrection. The wicked did not repent, and all those destructions came, just as the Prophets foretold. Darkness covered the face of this land for three days and three nights, while at Jerusalem it was only three hours. Three days and three nights they suffered darkness upon all the face of this land, and very many of their cities, which were great and populous, were sunk, and lakes came up instead of them; a great many were burned with fire, a great many were destroyed by terrible tempests, and a great destruction came upon the wicked portions of the people, who had stoned and put the Prophets to death, and only the more righteous portion of the people were spared.

In the latter part of the year in which Jesus was put to death, he descended among a certain portion of the people on this continent, gathered in the northern part of what we term South America. He descended from heaven and stood in their midst; and on the next day, when a larger multitude were gathered together, he came a second time and there were a great many thousands on that occasion. He often appeared to them after that period, within the course of one or two years, and he chose twelve disciples, and so great was the power made manifest before those thousands, that when they went forth into the north and south and preached the word, according to the commandments of God, the more righteous portion of the people, who had been spared, and who had humbled themselves and partially repented, but did not understand the fullness of the Gospel, were easily converted, and that is the reason why all the people in North and South America were converted unto the Lord; and in the thirty-sixth year, reckoning from the birth of Jesus, they were not only all converted upon the face of this whole land, but they were all organized upon a common stock principle, and there were no poor among them, and they dealt justly one with another.

Says one, “They did the same thing in the land of Jerusalem.” Yes, but they did not keep it up in the land of Palestine—they seem to have failed, for we have no account that this common stock principle, as at first organized, continued among the Saints on the Asiatic Continent. Churches were built up in various parts of Asia and Europe, one in one place, another in another, and they all seem to have had property of their own; and I believe, myself, that they were unprepared, in their scattered condition, to enter into this order of things. There was too mush wickedness at Ephesus; in Galatia, at Corinth, and in the various places where small branches were organized, to enter into this common stock principle, and carry it out successfully. But on this continent there was a fine opportunity, for all the people, millions and millions of them, were in the same faith. How easily, then, could they be guided and directed, and put in their property, and organize it as a common stock fund; and they did so, and were exceedingly blessed and prospered in their operation. And I will tell you how long it existed—about one-hundred and sixty-five years. But in the year two hundred and one after the birth of Christ, the people began to be lifted up, on this continent, in pride and popularity, and began to withdraw their funds from this common stock, and take them into their own hands, and call them their own, and they continued to do this, until the great majority of the people had corrupted themselves and withdrawn from this order. Then, after having broken up this common fund in a great measure, only a few individuals here and there still holding on to it, they became proud and highminded, and lifted up in their hearts, and looked down upon those who were not so prosperous as themselves, and in this way a distinction of classes was again introduced, and the rich began to persecute the poor; and thus they continued to apostatize, until, about three hundred and thirty-four years after Christ, their began to have great and terrible wars among themselves, which lasted about fifty years, during which millions of them were destroyed. Finally, they became so utterly wicked, so fully ripened for destruction, that one branch of the nation, called the Nephites, gathered their entire people around the hill Cumorah, in the State of New York, in Ontario County; and the Lamanites, the opposite army, gathered by millions in the same region. The two nations were four years in gathering their forces, during which no fighting took place; but at the end of that time, having marshalled all their hosts, the fighting commenced, the Lamanites coming upon the Nephites, and destroying all of them, except a very few, who had previously deserted over to the Lamanites.

Before this decisive battle the Nephites, who had kept records of their nation, written on gold plates, hid them up in the hill Cumorah, where they have lain from that day to this. Mormon committed a few plates to his son Moroni, who was a Prophet and who survived the nation of the Nephites about thirty-six years, and he kept these few plates, while all the balance of them were hid up in that hill; and then, Moroni, being commanded of God, hid up the few plates from which the Book of Mormon was translated.

I make mention of these circumstances for the purpose of showing you that, when people have been once enlightened as the Nephites were, and have had all things common, and have been blessed with an abundance of the riches of the earth, working together in harmony, until riches were poured out upon them in vast abundance, and then withdraw themselves from the order of God, they soon bring swift destruction upon their heads. We see the Nephites, after taking this course, descending lower and lower in their wickedness, going into idolatry, offering up human sacrifices unto their idol gods, and committing every species of abomination that they had ever known or heard of, all because they had been once enlightened and had apostatized from the truth, and withdrawn from the order of God, in which their forefathers had had a long experience.

The Lord gave a caution to the Latter-day Saints, when he told them, in a revelation, given in 1831, to enter into the same order pertaining to our possessions in Jackson County. Prior to that, he gave us a promise, saying, that if we would be faithful we should become the richest of all people; but if we would not be faithful in keeping his commandments, but should become lifted up in the pride of our hearts, we should, perhaps, become like the Nephites of old. “Beware of pride,” says the Lord, in one of these revelations, “lest you become like the Nephites of old.”

I have no doubt that you Latter-day Saints are the best people on the face of the earth. God has gathered you out from among the nations; you were the only people, to whom the message of life and salvation was sent, who received the missionaries of the Most High when they came to your respective nations. You not only received the Gospel of repentance and baptism, but you hearkened to those missionaries and the counsels of God, and gathered to this land. Hence, you have done better than all other people, and you have been blessed above all other people. But there is danger, after having been made partakers of the Holy Ghost, and having had the gifts of the Spirit, made manifest more or less according to our faith, if we become lifted up in the pride of our hearts and think, because we have gathered an abundance of the wealth of this world, that we are a little better than our poor brother who labors eight or ten hours a day at the hardest kind of labor. Any person having the name of Latter-day Saint who feels that he is better than, and distinguishes himself from, the poor and supposes that he belongs to a little higher class than they, is in danger. “Beware of pride, lest you become like unto the Nephites of old.”

In order that this pride may be done away, there must necessarily be another order of things in regard to property.

Why does pride exist at all? Let us make a little inquiry about this. Do you know the reason? It all arises out of the love of riches. This is what generally constitutes pride. Now supposing you were all brought on a level in regard to property by a full consecration of everything that you have into a common stock fund, would there be among that number one who should thus consecrate all that he had, who would have anything to boast of above his neighbor? Not at all. He might have the use of property, one man might have perhaps a hundred times more than another, to use as a steward or agent for this general fund; but when he has used it he has his living out of it—his food, his raiment, the necessaries and comforts of life, whether he handles hundreds of thousands or merely a small stewardship, for the man that takes charge of a great manufacturing establishment would require more funds than he who has a small farm, but the funds would not belong to him, he only has his food, raiment and the necessaries and comforts of life. But here is another branch of business, just as important, as far as it goes, as this large manufacturing establishment. What is it? To make mortar, to lay up our buildings, for without them we should soon suffer. The man who makes mortar, then, is just as honorable as the man who takes charge of a large establishment which requires five hundred thousand dollars to carry it on. But in both cases, the surplus of their labor, after taking therefrom the necessaries of life, goes to the common stock fund; and the man who has had charge of the large establishment has nothing that he can boast of over the man who makes mortar—one is just as rich as the other.

But I know there are many Latter-day Saints who have formed an erroneous idea or opinion in regard to this common stock fund. Some for want of reflection, may suppose that every man and every woman must have the same fashioned houses to live in, or there would not be an equality; they must have the same amount of furniture, or there would not be an equality. Some may suppose that all must have the same kind of bedding and everything precisely alike or there would be no equality. But this is not the way God manifests himself in all the works of his hands. Go to the field, the pasture or meadow, and learn wisdom. Search from one end of the pasture to the other and see if you can find two blades of grass that are exactly alike. It can not be done, there is a little deviation, a little variety, and hence we see from this that God delights in variety. But because one blade of grass might be formed a little more pleasing to the eye than another, would the first have any right, if it could reason, to say, “I am above that other?” Not at all. It was made for a certain purpose, and so in regard to everything else. No two men upon the face of the earth have the same features. We have the general characteristics of the human form, and we do not look like the original of man according to Darwin’s idea; we do not look like the monkey or baboon, from which Darwin says man originated. Men the world over, have many features bearing a general resemblance, and their form is moulded in the image of the Most High. But when you come to scan the features of man minutely, you will see some deviation in the countenances of all men throughout all creation. Now, are they not equal? Do those little distinguishing characteristics in the features make them unequal? Not in the least. Then, because it might fall to my lot to make mortar, and to another man’s to take charge of a great store of merchandize, both of us being agents, that does not make the mercantile agent any better than the man who makes the mortar, and I should not expect to wear the same kind of apparel that the man did who was behind the counter. If I was making mortar I should not want on broadcloth, silk, or satin; I should want apparel adapted to the particular class of labor I was engaged in. Hence, there will be a distinction in these things.

Then again, do you suppose that when we come together it would be pleasing in the sight of God for every man and every woman to have on a Quaker bonnet or dress, or to pattern after the Shaking Quakers; that each of the ladies should have on a ribbon that should come under the bonnet, and be of just the same length? Not at all. God delights in variety; we see it throughout all the works of his hands, in every department of creation. Therefore men and women will dress according to their tastes, so far as they can get the means.

You draw your means from the common stock fund, and if you have stewardships set apart to you to manage, and you make little in the stewardships, the Bishops who take charge of these matters will not begin to inquire of you, “Well, brother, what kind of a hat have you worn? Was it straw, and was the straw just so fine or just so coarse, or was it a palm leaf hat you wore? I should like to know what kind of a hat band you have had? Was it a hat band having a bow knot, and, if so, was it any longer than your neighbors?” No such questions as these will be asked; but each man, each family in the stewardship, whatever they make, can exercise their own judgment in regard to many of these things, as they do now; and when you come together on Sunday, it is not expected that every man’s and every woman’s tastes would be to dress precisely like their neighbors, but have variety, and that out of the means of your stewardship.

But when you come to render up an account of that stewardship to the Bishop at the end of the year, there may be some prominent, leading questions asked, but not about these little matters. It will be asked if you have squandered your stewardship unnecessarily; have you been very extravagant in things unnecessary, and neglected other things of importance? If you have done these things, you will be counted an unwise steward, and you will be reproved; and perhaps, if you have gone too far, you may be removed out of your stewardship, and another person more worthy may step into it, and you be dropped because of doing wrong. But there never will be any Bishop, who has the Spirit of the living God upon him, who will inquire whether you have the same size stoves in your house, and the same kind of plates, knives, forks, and spoons as your neighbor; but you will have to give an account of those prominent items. That is the way I look at this common stock operation.

Then again, I do not know that the common stock operation which God commanded us to enter into in Jackson County, Mo., will be suitable in the year 1874. I commenced my discourse by showing that what was suitable one year was not always suitable the next. I do not know but here in Utah it may be necessary to vary martially from the principles that were commanded to be observed in Jackson County, Mo. I do not know but we may be required here to not only consecrate all that we have, but even ourselves as well as the property we possess, so that we may be directed by the Bishops and their counselors, or whoever may be appointed, in regard to all our daily avocations. I do not know how it will be. I have not heard. Down in Jackson County they were not thus directed. Every man got his stewardship, and he occupied it, and rendered an account of the same from time to time. But I do not know but it may be necessary here in Utah that we should be directed oftener than once a year, it may be that we shall be told weekly, and perhaps in some cases daily; and perhaps the Bishop or overseer may say to-day, “Here, brother, I would like you to do so and so to-day,” and to-morrow he comes along and says, “I would like you to stop that now; we have something else on hand; come with me, I will put in my hands as well as you, for, although you have selected me by your own voice to take charge, I am no better than you are, therefore I will take hold with you and do all I can in connection with you, and let us go at this business to-day.” Tomorrow there may be something else, and the next day something else, perhaps, according to the judgment of the Bishop and those who are appointed with him. In this way we could, perhaps, more effectually carry out the mind and will of God here in this desert country, than we could if we tried to imitate the pattern which was given to us in another country.

We can not work here as we could in Jackson County, Mo. In that country we did not have to irrigate. We could settle on a piece of rising ground there, and the rains of heaven watered it. We could settle in the valley, and there were no ditches to be made. We could settle in any part of the county, or of the counties round about, and the rains of heaven would descend and water our land. And furthermore, there was timber all around, groves of timber, and we could go out before breakfast and get a lead of wood, and in the course of a few days split rails enough to fence considerable of a patch of ground. Here we have to labor under other circumstances. Here we have not timber so that every man can fence his little farmer stewardship; we have not strength enough. If we happen to farm on some of these high grounds, it is very difficult to dig canals and water-ditches to water our little stewardships. What shall we do, then? Join in together, be of one heart and one mind, and let there be a common stock fund, so far as property is concerned, and so far as our own individual labor is concerned. Consequently, we need not think, because we may not be organized precisely according to the law that was adapted to Jackson County, that this counseling is void of the Spirit of God. Do not let any person begin to think this. You need to co-operate together in your labors. This is necessary in fencing a great many of our farms. You need to co-operate in getting out your water from your water-ditches to water your land, and you need to do it in a great many other respects.

For instance, these mountains, which rise so majestically on the east and on the west, are full of rich minerals, this is one of the richest countries in the world. Will not some of the Latter-day Saints eventually be required to act in the department of mining as well as in the department of agriculture? Yes. Can one individual do as well as half a dozen, or as well as a hundred, at mining? It may require the experience of a vast amount of labor in order to develop the resources of these mountains, and in that case co-operation will be absolutely necessary.

“But,” says one, “the Gentiles have already done that.” But very little, I will assure you. Here and there they have opened a mine, but not one thousandth nor one ten-thousandth of that which exists and which will be developed hereafter. Now, in all these departments the Latter-day Saints must learn to be united, and I am glad to see, I rejoice exceedingly to hear, that the President has been moved upon, not only before he left Salt Lake City to go down South, but while he has been there, to alter the order of things that has existed for many years here in these mountains, among the Latter-day Saints. In what respect? To bring about a united order of things in regard to their property and labor, and the development of the resources of our farming land; in regard to raising flocks and herds, building, and developing the mineral resources of our mountains. In all these respects the President has seen the necessity of beginning to bring about, gradually, as the way may open, a different order of things that will strike the axe at the root of this pride and distinction of classes. I am glad; I rejoice in it. Several of the Branches of the Church south have already entered into this order.

Inquires one, “What is it, what kind of an order is it? Tell us all about it.” I would tell you as much as I thought was wisdom, if I understood it myself; but I do not; I have had but very little information about it. Suffice to say that I know that the order of things that could have been carried out successfully in Jackson County cannot be carried out here, on the same principle, without a little variation, It cannot be done—circumstances require different laws, different counsel, an order of things suited to the condition, of this desert country.

“Are all the people going directly into this thing at once.” “Yes, if they choose; but you may depend upon it that in all cases whenever God has moved upon his servants to introduce anything for the good of the people, it takes time for the people to receive it—they do not receive it all in a moment. The Lord is long-suffering—he bears with the weaknesses and traditions of the people for a long time. When, by the mouths of his servants, he counsels the people to do this, that, or the other, and they are a little backward about it, he does not come out in judgment as he did to ancient Israel, and cut them off by thousands and tens of thousands. He does not do that, but he bears with them, waits year after year. How long he has borne with all of us! Forty-three years ago we were commanded to become one in regard to our property. Forty-three years we have been in disobedience. Forty-three years have rolled over our heads, and we are far from oneness still. God has not cut us off, as he did ancient Israel, but he has borne with us. Oh, how patient and long-suffering he has been with us, perhaps thinking, “Peradventure, they will, by and by, return, reform, repent, and obey my commandments that I gave them in the first rise of the Church. I will wait upon them, I will extend forth my hand to them all the day long, and see whether they will be obedient.” That is the way the Lord feels towards us. Should we not pattern after him? If this order of things should reach Salt Lake City, if these different wards should begin to be organized in some measure, and the people begin to be divided, some entering into the order and others refusing, should we not bear with those who do not? Yes, bear with them, just as the Lord has borne with us, and not begin to think that we are better than our neighbors who have not entered into the order, and flatter ourselves that we are alive them, and revile and persecute them, and exercise our influence against them, saying, “Oh, they do not belong to the united order of God, they are outside of it, and consequently we have not much respect for them.” We must not do this, for perhaps, though we may think we are on a firm foundation, it may slip from under us, and we also may be brought into straightened circumstances. If we exercise patience, long-suffering, and forbearance with the people until they learn by experience what God is doing in our midst, many of these rich people may come into the order, who now say in their hearts, “We will wait and see whether this thing will prosper.” If they are honest in heart, they will finally come to the conclusion that the people in the united order are a happy people; they are not lifted up in pride one above another, and they will say, “I think I will go there, with all I have; I will become one of them;” and in a little while they will come along, while others, perhaps, will apostatize entirely. However, if they want to go, let them go, they are of no particular benefit if they feel to apostatize from anything which God has established for the benefit of the people. May God bless you. Amen.

Cease to Bring in and Build up Babylon, etc.

Brigham Young

Discourse by President Brigham Young, delivered in the Meeting-House in Nephi City, Juab County, Saturday morning, April 18, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

I am thankful that I enjoy the privilege of meeting with the Saints here this morning. While I attempt to speak, I pray that I may have the spirit of the holy Gospel, and have strength to proclaim its teachings to my own and to your satisfaction. I also pray that you may give strict attention. This prayer is offered to you, my brethren and sisters. Pray for the Spirit to open your minds, enlighten your understandings, strengthen me, and so help me, that I may speak the words of truth to you, and that your hearts may be prepared to receive them.

My remarks this morning I design as a text for my brethren and sisters to speak and act upon. We have not come to you with any new doctrine, nor with a new Bible, not by any means. Yet the doctrine we are now preaching, in order to bring about a union among the Saints, seems to be about as new to them as the preaching by the Elders when they first came to their several neighborhoods and called upon them to hear and obey the first principles of the Gospel of Christ. I can say, with all thankfulness and gratitude, that we have never seen the day, from the time we first became acquainted with Joseph and the Church and kingdom of God upon the earth, when the hearts of the people were so well prepared to receive the greater blessings of the kingdom as they are now. We are happy in saying this, for it is true; this is encouraging, and fills me with hope and consolation, that, after laboring and toiling with Joseph, and since his death, to unite the Latter-day Saints, this is the first time that we have seen that we can bring their hearts into a union. This should be encouraging to each and every Latter-day Saint, and should teach us that the Lord is merciful to us, that he still remembers us, that he is still feeling after us, and that he is sending forth his voice—the voice of his Spirit, into the hearts of his people, crying unto them—“Stop! Stop your course! Cease to bring in and build up Babylon in your midst.” It is the duty of each and every one of us to reflect upon the office and calling we possess, and see whether we are doing the will of the Lord, and, if we are not, we should stop and begin anew to establish the kingdom of God upon the earth.

I will now read a portion of Scripture from the 14th chapter of the Revelations of John, beginning at the 6th verse: “And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting Gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come; and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.” I will also read from the 18th chapter of Revelation, commencing at the 4th verse: “And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues. For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.”

I will ask the Latter-day Saints, Do we, as a people, believe that the angel referred to in the 6th verse of the 14th chapter of John’s revelation, has flown through the midst of heaven, that he has been to earth, called upon Joseph, delivered the revelations of the Lord, restored the Priesthood, &c.? Do we, as Latter-day Saints, believe that this angel has been to earth, and that he has committed the Gospel unto the children of men? We certainly should not be here today, if we did not believe this, and that, too, with all our hearts. This is the answer given, for himself and herself, by every Latter-day Saint, “We believe, most firmly, that the Gospel has been revealed in these last days unto and through Joseph Smith the Prophet; that the Priesthood and its keys were bestowed upon him, and through him upon others; and that the proclamation has gone forth to the nations of the earth—“Come out of her, my people,” &c., as mentioned in that portion of Scripture contained in Revelations, 18th chap. and 4th verse.

Has this proclamation been heard by any of the inhabitants of the earth? Yes, the Latter-day Saints most assuredly believe that this Scripture was fulfilled in the rise of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. By and by the cry will be, as prophesied by John the Revelator, “Babylon is fallen.” This is in the future; but this people believe that the voice of the angel has been heard, calling upon the honest in heart in every nation, to come out from confusion and discord, and from the transgressions of the children of men. The cry has come to them—“Separate yourselves from sinners and from sin.” If we, as a people, had not believed this, we should not have been here this day. “Be not partakers of her sins, lest ye receive of her plagues, for her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.” This we believe, consequently I have to say to the people, we have not come with any new doctrine; we have believed this ever since we were baptized for the remission of sins. Have the people come out from the nations? Yes. Have we separated ourselves from the nations? Yes. And what else have we done? Ask ourselves the question. Have we not brought Babylon with us? Are we not promoting Babylon here in our midst? Are we not fostering the spirit of Babylon that is now abroad on the face of the whole earth? I ask myself this question, and I answer, Yes, yes, to some extent and there is not a Latter-day Saint but what feels that we have too much of Babylon in our midst. The spirit of Babylon is too prevalent here. What is it? Confusion, discord, strife, animosity, vexation, pride, arrogance, selfwill and the spirit of the world. Are these things in the midst of those called Latter-day Saints? Yes, and we feel this.

I now ask my brethren and sisters who enjoy the Spirit of the Lord, if we have not traveled as far as we should travel on this road—the high road to destruction, the great highway, the broad gate through which so many pass? The gate is wide the way is broad, and many there be that go in thereat; and many calling themselves Latter-day Saints are scrambling to see how quick they can get in. The spirit of confusion is in the midst of this people, and we have traveled this road just as far as we can travel it and be Saints. Is this the experience of the Latter-day Saints? I can answer that it is; and now, that the Lord is moving upon his servants to bring the Saints to a oneness, there is a spirit resting upon them, and if you talk with them, they will say, at once, “Yes, this is right, we must be one. This is the doctrine that Joseph taught, and the revelations that were first given through Joseph were for the Church to gather together. We were then commanded to come out from the wicked and to consecrate what we had, lay it at the feet of the Bishops, receive our inheritance, improve thereupon, and be one—be as the family of heaven upon earth.” This is the spirit of the people, and they say: “Thank the Lord, I have prayed for this for years and years. I have looked for and expected it, and I am exceedingly thankful it has come.”

I will now quote another portion of Scripture, which I think you are pretty well acquainted with, if you read the Bible. It is one of the last petitions that the Savior presented to his Father in heaven, while he was upon the earth—a short prayer which he made on behalf of his disciples. He had but very few, for, notwithstanding his many miracles and wonderful works, very few seemed to cling to and have confidence in him at all times and under all circumstances; but there were a few who wished to and who did remain with him until his death, that is, they stood a little way off; they said—“We are going to see what they are going to do with him.” But before Peter denied him, and before he was taken by the soldiers, he offered a brief, simple prayer to his Father He had been talking with and exhorting his brethren, and showing them the necessity of living according to the faith that he had taught them, and he offered up this petition—“Father, make these my disciples one, as we are one, I in thou, thou in me, and I in them, that we may all be one; and I pray not for these only, but for all who believe on me through their testimony.” This is a simple prayer. Did he who offered it mean anything, or did he not? If he meant anything, what did he mean? How much did he mean, and how did he calculate his disciples to construe this short prayer in their lives, in their walk, faith and practice after he was taken from them? How far, how much and wherein did he want them to be one? Can any of you show to us exactly what he meant? If you say he meant that every one who believed on him should be one in their belief, that is sectarianism. Take the mother Church—the “Holy Catholic Church”—and the prayer of its members is that all may be Catholics: “Father, I pray thee to make the people all holy Catholics.” This is the faith and prayer of the Catholics, and the meaning they give to the petition of Jesus. The same with the Calvinists; and when they present themselves before the throne of grace, the burden of their petition is—“I pray thee, Father, make these people one as we are one; influence them to leave the Catholic Church, to revolt and come out from that wicked mother, that wicked harlot, that wicked Church, and declare themselves believers in that pure and holy doctrine that God has decreed all things that take place.” Go to those who believe in the doctrine of freewill, which, you know, comprehends many of the so-called Christian societies of the world, and they come up with a double and twisted storm—“God Almighty, make them all Methodists! Yes, lets all be Methodists.” I pray thee, Father, to take away the vail from the minds of this people, that they may see it is free grace and free will! God be praised, let’s all be Methodists.” This is how the sectarians explain and define the meaning of that memorable prayer of the Savior that his followers might be one; and you will excuse me for my manner of illustrating it—I did this to illustrate facts just as they are.

Did Jesus mean this, or did he not? Had he any allusion whatever to one here on the right, and to another on the left, each crying—“Lo! here is Christ, and lo! there is Christ, He is not yonder? And another one pointing this way, and another that way, and so on to every point of the compass? What does all this portray before the mind of the rational being, the philosopher, one who has the spirit of revelation, and who understands the words of life and has the keys of life to the people; and to all who believe in the revelations of the Lord Jesus in the latter days? Confusion upon confusion, discord, strife, animosity, vexation, perplexity, warring to the knife and slaying each other. Oh, the number of Christian wars there have been upon the face of the earth! We can very readily and truthfully say that true Christians—the members of the true Church of Christ on the earth—never take the sword unless to defend themselves.

Brethren and sisters, we want to understand what the Savior meant when he prayed that his disciples might be one. One in faith? Yes. One in doctrine? Yes. One in practice? Yes. One in interests? Yes. One in hope? Yes, and all concentrated in the kingdom of God on the earth and the establishment thereof, the fulfilment of the Scriptures, the gathering of the Saints, and the salvation of the inhabitants of the earth. This is the oneness and the union the Savior meant. Let me here ask the question, Did the Savior design that we should be one with regard to faith in him, repentance of sin, baptism for the remission thereof, the imposition of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost, the gifts and graces of the Spirit of the Lord, that there might be in the Church first Apostles, then Prophets, pastors, teachers, helps, governments, diversities of tongues, the gift of prophecy, the gift of discernment of spirits; also the gift, of faith, so that if poison be administered it should not hurt the believer; and if there should be a necessity to take up serpents, it should be done without danger? Yes, all this is included in the oneness prayed for by the Savior; and some of the gifts I have enumerated have been witnessed by most of us. I myself have seen rattlesnakes handled as you would handle a piece of rope. I remember one night, when going to Missouri, in the year 1834, I was spreading our blankets on the tall prairie grass, which was pretty thick and heavy, that a rattle-snake was under my hands and warned me of his presence by his rattles. I called to one of the brethren who was helping, and turning back the blanket said to him—“Take this snake and carry it off and tell it not to come back again; and to say to its neighbors do not come into our camp tonight, lest some one might kill you.” He took up the snake and carried it off several rods from the camp, and told it to stay away, and to tell its neighbors not to come into the camp, for they might get killed if they did. Many such circumstances have transpired in the experience of the Elders of this Church; but we need not stop to relate them, for it is well known that the gifts of the Gospel are in this Church, such as healing, faith, speaking with tongues, discerning spirits, prophecy, &c., and I need not dwell upon them now.

I will now ask the question, where is the individual who can draw the line and show us that, when Jesus prayed that his disciples might be one, he meant a oneness only in spiritual things, and that it was not to extend to temporal affairs? Will any of you draw the line and tell us? For I am certain that I have not wisdom enough to define the line between spiritual and temporal things. I know nothing about faith in the Lord, without works corresponding therewith; they must go together, for without works you can not prove that faith exists. We might cry out, until the day of our death, that we love the Savior, but if we neglected to observe his sayings he would not believe us. We have his own words to prove this. There were a great many who pretended to think considerable of him while he was here in the flesh; but he said to his disciples—“If you love me, keep my commandments.” This was the proof he demanded, then works and faith went together. The same principle holds good with parents and children. If any of you have a child which says—“I love you, mamma, Oh, I love you dearly;” you, to test the sincerity of the child’s professions, say: “Well, then, my child, you will desist from doing that which displeases me. Come here, and I will give you a little work to do;” or, “I wish you to sit down on that chair, and let that crockery alone;” or, “Do not tear up that cloth, my daughter; if you love me, come and sit down by my side.” “Oh, I love you dearly,” says the little girl, but she keeps tearing up the cloth, or sticking pins and needles into the flesh of the other children. “Mamma, I love you most dearly.” “Well, then,” says mamma, “you must not afflict or give pain to your sister, or your brother; you are naughty to do so, and you must stop this mischief.” But the child continues her naughtiness, still declaring that she loves her mother, though she will not do one thing her mother wishes her to do. Such a child needs chastisement; if soft words will not answer, severity must. Is not this a fact? You have older children who profess to be very fond of you; they will say: “Father, I think everything of you,” and yet they will take a course that is grievous, annoying and disagreeable, and quite contrary to your feelings and wishes. Will a father believe the professions of such children? Not much, I think. To use another comparison: Suppose a young lady dearly loves a young gentleman, who states to others that he is equally as fond of her, and would be very glad to express to her his feelings, but he never calls to see her; now though he may declare to others how much he loves her, the young lady will say—“I do not believe a word of it, for I know that he would make it known to me, if he did.” He might declare until doomsday, that he loved her, but, unless he told her so and proved it by his works, she would say—“That is all folly, he does not mean what he says.” Neither will you or I believe that anybody loves us and wishes to promote our joy and comfort, so long as that person acts contrary thereto; neither will Jesus. And unless these Latter-day Saints stop now, and go to work and prove by their acts that they are the disciples of the Lord Jesus, He will spew them out.

We have gone just as far as we can be permitted to go in the road on which we are now traveling. One man has his eye on a gold mine, another is for a silver mine, another is for marketing his flour or his wheat, another for selling his cattle, another to raise cattle, another to get a farm, or building here and there, and trading and trafficking with each other, just like Babylon, taking advantage wherever we can, and all going just as the rest of the world. Babylon is here, and we are following in the footsteps of the inhabitants of the earth, who are in a perfect sea of confusion. Do you know this? You ought to, for there are none of you but what see it daily; it is a daily spectacle before your eyes and mine, to see the Latter-day Saints trying to take advantage of their brethren. There are Elders in this Church who would take the widow’s last cow, for five dollars, and then kneel down and thank God for the fine bargain they had made.

I have come to this conclusion, which I have preached for years and years and years, and Joseph preached it up to the time of his death, that the people must leave Babylon and confusion behind them, and be the servants and handmaidens of the Lord; they must be His family. They have gathered out from Babylon, and they must prepare themselves to stand in holy places, preparatory to the coming of the Son of Man. I have been watching and waiting, just as steadily, and as earnestly and faithfully as ever a mother watched over an infant child, to see when this people would be ready to receive the doctrine, or the first lessons or revelations given when the center stake of Zion was first located to consecrate their property, and be indeed the servants and handmaidens of the Lord, and labor with all their hearts to do His will and build up His kingdom on the earth; and I have never seen the time when we could organize one little society, or one little ward; but, thank God, the time has come, the Spirit of the Lord is upon the people.

Is it a new doctrine to us that God’s people should and must be one in everything? It is an old doctrine; shall I say it is as old as the hills, as old as the mountains, as old as this world? Yes, I can say it is as old as my Father in heaven; it is an eternal doctrine; it is from eternity to eternity. Ask yourselves the question, Do you expect to go to heaven when you depart this life? “Yes, yes, I am going to the Paradise of God;” I am going to dwell with the Saints of the Most High in the presence of the Father and the Son.” How many interests will there be there? How many locations, or central places of deposit for the affections, labors and wealth of all who dwell there? All in one, all for God, all for his glory and his kingdom, and the extension of his dominions through the immensity of space, kingdoms on kingdoms, every heart and every breath, every voice and every eye, and every feeling for the glory of God. Then ask ourselves—Is the Lord going to have a Church upon the earth? Is the Lord going to have a kingdom on the earth? Certainly, Daniel saw this in the days of Nebuchadnezzar, and gave a description, or rather a hint, in regard to the establishment of that kingdom, when the kingdoms of this world would be handed over to the Saints of the Most High, and they would possess the kingdom and the greatness of the kingdom for ever and ever.

Are we going to enter into the kingdom? Are we going to be prepared for the coming of the Son of Man? Are we going to be prepared to enter into the fullness of the glory of the Father and the Son? Not so long as we live according to the principles of Babylon. Now we are, every man for himself. One says: “This is my property, and I am for increasing it.” Another says; “This is mine,” Another: “I will do as I please; I will go where I please and when I please; I will do this, that, or the other; and if I have a mind to raise grain here and take it to market and give it away, it is none of your business.” It will be said to all such persons, who profess to be Latter-day Saints:—“I never knew you; you never were Saints.”

Now I wish to give you a little of our late experience with regard to the Savior and his doctrines. We have organized in this United Order, commencing at St. George. A thousand thoughts rise in my mind, looking at the subject generally. “St. George! Are you going to send me down to St. George? Why, it is like sending me out of the world!” But I must not talk about this: suffice it to say that St. George is one of the most beautiful places on this little farm—this world that we occupy—this little farm of the Lord’s, one of the choicest places on the face of the earth. I see more wealth in that small place than in any other location, of its size, in this Territory, or in these mountains; and I always have.

We have organized a small Branch there, or, rather, I may say a tolerably large one. I preached a good deal in St. George. It seemed to be the only place we could begin our work; they were the only people we could organize; but we did organize there. God designs to make the people of one heart and one mind from Monday morning to Monday morning again, and that everything they do on the earth shall promote His cause and kingdom, and the happiness and salvation of the human family. “Well,” said they, “we do not understand; we believe we ought to be one, and that we ought to go into the order of Enoch. We understand very well that Enoch was so pure and holy that his city was taken, and the saying went abroad that Zion is fled. This we believe as firmly as you can.” Then some others would say, “There will not be one ward organized after the brethren go over the rim of the basin.” We organized every ward or town south of the rim of the basin, and left them in tolerably good working order, so far as they had advanced. The only trouble with them was, “they did not understand.” They would say, “It is right, and the Scriptures tell us about it; but we do not understand the mode of its operation.” One man came to me, an old “Mormon,” whom I have known over forty-two years, just as we were organizing and said—“Brother Brigham, I have preached for you all the time. I did the same for brother Joseph. Brother Joseph preached this doctrine; is it not strange that the people do not see it?” “Then,” said I, “you are ready to put down your name?” His answer was—“I will think about it.” You do not fully understand your own faith, nor the doctrines you preach to the people, if you do not understand this doctrine; and are not as ready to enter it as you would be to lay down this mortal body and enter heaven if God should call you, or to do any other duty. Suffice it to say, God will establish this order on the face of the earth, and if we do not help Him, others will, and they will enjoy the benefits of it.

When we came this side the rim of the basin, we found the people more willing than south of the rim of the basin to come forward and organize, for they felt that we have traveled as far as we can on our present road, without going to destruction. One Bishop wrote to me—“Please come and organize us. I am glad you are coming this way, we want to be organized. I know that we have to consecrate to somebody, and I would rather consecrate to the Lord than to the devil. We have to consecrate to one or the other, and very soon too.” He is a very good Bishop; he is full of the spirit of this work, and can not keep from talking about it.

We now want to organize the Latter-day Saints, every man, woman and child among them, who has a desire to be organized, into this holy order. You may call it the Order of Enoch, you may call it co-partnership, or just what you please. It is the United Order of the Kingdom of God on the earth; but we say the Order of Enoch on the same principle you find in the revelation concerning the Priesthood, which, to avoid the too frequent repetition of the name of the Deity, is called the Priesthood after the order of Melchisedec. This order is the order of heaven, the family of heaven on the earth; it is the children of our Father here upon the earth organized into one body or one family, to operate together.

As individuals we do not want your farms, we do not want your houses and city lots, we do not want your horses and your cattle, we do not want your gold and your silver, nor anything of the kind. “Well, then, what do you want?” We want the time of this people called Latter-day Saints, that we can organize this time systematically, and make this people the richest people on the face of the earth. If we are the people of God, we are to be the richest people on the earth, and these riches are to be held in God, not in the devil. God tells us how we may accomplish this, as plainly and as surely as he told Joshua and the people of Israel how to cause the downfall of the walls of Jericho. They were to march around the walls once a day for seven days, then seven times in one day, and the last time they went round the walls they blew their horns with all their might, and down fell the walls of Jericho. We do not understand all about this, if we did, we should understand that it was as simple as any of the acts of the Lord: as simple as being baptized for the remission of sins. We want now to organize the people. Says one—“Don’t you want my money and my goods?” We want you to put them into the kingdom of God, into the vaults that are prepared, into the archives, the safe, the institution, to help to increase means for the kingdom of God on the earth. And what are we to have when we enter this order? What we need to eat, drink and wear, and strict obedience to the requirements of those whom the Lord sets to guide and direct; that our sisters, instead of teasing their husbands for a dollar, five dollars, twenty-five dollars, for a fine dress, bonnet, or artificials for themselves or their daughters, may go to work and learn how to make all these things for themselves, being organized into societies or classes for that purpose. And the brethren will be organized to do their farming, herding and raising cattle, sheep, fruit, grain and vegetables; and when they have raised these products, every particle be gathered into a storehouse or storehouses, and every one have what is needed to sustain him. But the people will stop going here, there, and yonder, and saying—“I am after the gold,” “I am after the silver,” or this, that and the other. They will stop this folly and nonsense, for they have already impoverished themselves too much by taking so unwise a course. Looking at matters in a temporal point of view, and in the light of strict economy, I am ashamed to see the poverty that exists among the Latter-day Saints. They ought to be worth millions and millions, and millions on millions, where they are not worth a dollar. Should they spend their means in folly and nonsense? No, not a dollar of it, but put all into the general fund for the benefit of the kingdom. Organize the brethren and sisters, and let each and every one have their duties to perform. Where they are destitute of houses, and it is convenient, the most economical plan that can be adopted is to have buildings erected large enough to accommodate a number of families. For instance, we will say there are a hundred families in this place who have not houses fit to live in. We will erect a building large enough to accommodate them all comfortably, with every convenience for cooking, washing, ironing, &c.; and then, instead of each one of a hundred women getting up in the morning to cook breakfast for father and the large boys, that they may go to their labor, while the little children are crying and needing attention, breakfast for the whole can be prepared by five or ten women, with a man or two to help. Some may say—“This would be confusion.” Not at all, it would do away with it. Another one says—“It will be a great trial to my feelings, if I am obliged to go and breakfast with all these men and women. I am faint and sick, and do not eat much, and I want my breakfast prepared in peace.” Then build side rooms by the dozen or score, where you can eat by yourselves; and if you wish to invite three or four to eat with you, have your table, and everything you call for is sent to you. “Well, but I do not like this confusion of children.” Let the children have their dining room to themselves, and let a certain number of the sisters be appointed to take charge of the nursery and see that they have proper food, in proper quantities and at proper times, so as to preserve system and good order as far as possible, that a love of order may be established in their youthful minds, and they learn how to conduct themselves. Then let there be good teachers in the school rooms; and have beautiful gardens, and take the little folks out and show them the beautiful flowers, and teach them in their childhood the names and properties of every flower and plant, teaching them to understand which are astringent, which cathartic; this is useful for coloring, that is celebrated for its combination of beautiful colors, &c. Teach them lessons of beauty and usefulness while they are young, instead of letting them play in the dirt, making mud balls, and drawing the mud in their hats, and soiling their dresses, and cultivate their mental powers from childhood up. When they are old enough, place within their reach the advantages and benefits of a scientific education. Let them study the formation of the earth, the organization of the human system, and other sciences; such a system of mental culture and discipline in early years is of incalculable benefit to its possessor in mature years. Take, for instance, the young ladies now before me, as well as the young men, and form a class in geology, in chemistry or mineralogy; and do not confine their studies to theory only, but let them put in practice what they learn from books, by defining the nature of the soil, the composition or decomposition of a rock, how the earth was formed, its probable age, and so forth. All these are problems which science attempts to solve, although some of the views of our great scholars are undoubtedly very speculative. In the study of the sciences I have named, our young folks will learn how it is that, in traveling in our mountains, we frequently see sea shells—shells of the oyster, clam, &c. Ask our boys and girls now to explain these things, and they are not able to do so; but establish classes for the study of the sciences, and they will become acquainted with the various facts they furnish in regard to the condition of the earth. It is the duty of the Latter-day Saints, according to the revelations, to give their children the best education that can be procured, both from the books of the world and the revelations of the Lord. If our young men will study the sciences, they will stop riding fast horses through the streets, and other folly and nonsense which they are now guilty of, and they will become useful and honorable members of the community.

I have been very much interested of late with regard to the studies and researches of the geologists who have been investigating the geological character of the Rocky Mountain country. Professor Marsh, of Yale College, with a class of his students, has spent, I think, four summers in succession in the practical study of geology in these mountain regions. What is the result of his researches? There is one result, so far, that particularly pleases me. There are some here who know a man by the name of John Hyde, from London, formerly a member of this Church, who apostatized and went back; and his great argument against the Book of Mormon was, that it stated that the old Jaredites and, perhaps, the Nephites, who formerly lived on this continent, had horses, while it is well known that horses were unknown to the aboriginal inhabitants of America when it was discovered by Columbus, and that there were no horses here until they were imported from Europe. Now, since Professor Marsh and his class began their investigations, they have found among the fossil remains of the extinct animals of America no less than fourteen different kinds of horses, varying in height from three to nine feet. These discoveries made Professor Marsh’s students feel almost as though they could eat up these mountains, and their enthusiasm for studying the geology of the regions around Bridger’s Fort was raised to the highest pitch. In their researches among these mountains they have formed the opinion that there was once a large inland sea here, and they think they have discovered the outlet where the water broke forth and formed Green River. Here in these valleys and in these ranges of mountains we can follow the ancient water line. This discovery of Professor Marsh is particularly pleasing to us “Mormons,” because he has so far scientifically demonstrated the Book of Mormon to be true.

Here is the kingdom of God; do you want to enter into it, or not? Do you want the future blessings of this kingdom, or do you not? Have your choice; but whomsoever you list to obey, his servants you will be, whether it is Jesus or the devil; please yourselves, have your choice. But all know we can not serve two masters acceptably; if we love one, we shall hate the other, and if we hold on to one, we shall despise the other. We must either be for the kingdom of God, or not. But we shall organize this holy order here before we leave. We give the invitation to all of you to come and get organized. Let us be one; let us carry out the order that God has established for the family of heaven.

God bless you.

The United Order, etc.

John Taylor

Discourse by Elder John Taylor, delivered in the Meeting-House, at Nephi, Juab County, Sunday morning, April 19, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

We have heard a good deal since we have assembled, in relation to what is called the Order of Enoch, the New Order, the United Order, or whatever name we may give to it. It is new and then it is old, for it is everlasting as I understand it. I am asked sometimes—“Do you understand it?” Yes, I do, no, I do not, yes I do, no, I don’t, and both are true; we know that such an order must be introduced, but are not informed in relation to the details, and I guess it is about the same with most of you. We have been talking about an order that is to be introduced and established among the Saints of God for the last forty-two years, but we have very little information given us concerning it, either in the Scriptures or in the Book of Mormon. The fullest detail that we have of it is in the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, and that is the case with almost everything pertaining to the kingdom of God on the earth; and hence I have said, and say now, that I believe that Joseph Smith revealed more in relation to the kingdom of God, and was a greater Prophet than perhaps any other man who ever lived except Jesus. I do not know how far Enoch and perhaps some others on this continent went; if we had further records from the Book of Mormon they might throw more light on subjects with which we are not at present very well acquainted.

We occupy a very remarkable position; we are living in a peculiar day and age of the world, in the dispensation of the fullness of times. When the President communicated with us a little before starting from the south, about this new order, I really did not know what shape it would assume or how it would be introduced, but it had got to come; and then, on the other hand, I do not know that we need have very much anxiety in relation to the matter, for if it be of God, it must be right, and its introduction is only a question of time. As to the modus operandi, that is another question. I have sometimes thought, to tell the truth, that we might have different orders, perhaps the patriarchal order, perhaps the order of Enoch, and perhaps an all-things-in-common order, all operating under one head; but I do not know anything definitely about it, and it is not my business. I have had reflections of that kind running through my mind, inasmuch as it is “the dispensation of the fullness of times when God will gather together all things in one.” The greatest embarrassment that we have to contend with at the present time is not in knowing what to do, but knowing how to do it, and the circumstances with which we are surrounded, not so much among our own people as outsiders, and then again among our own people, for we find all kinds of persons amongst us now, as we always have done. Some will start right into anything of this kind, perhaps with a determination to do right, or at least half right; but when they get started in the operation, something or other comes up and they back up, break the traces and play the devil generally. I expect there will be a good deal of the same kind of thing associated with this, as there has been with other things that have been started. I do not expect that every one that is loud-mouthed and seemingly very anxious that this thing should be introduced is going to stick by it for ever and ever, any more than many others have done in other things. At the same time I think it is very proper that the servants of God should be brought under an influence which emanates from him, and that that influence should govern them in all things, temporal as well as spiritual. For my part, I can not see why it is that men should be so much attached to the things of this world, and why they are so extremely desirous to have their own way in relation to them; that is a thing I never could understand. We like freedom, God has put it in our bosoms; and as I said to President George A., the other day, in talking about this matter, in organizing the Order of Enoch, as it may be called, we want on the one hand the most perfect union; and on the other hand the most extended personal liberty that it is possible for men to enjoy consonant with carrying out the principles of unity. Not the liberty to trample on other people’s rights; not the liberty to take from people that which belongs to them; not the liberty to infringe upon public interests or the public benefit, but personal liberty so far as we can enjoy it. These are my ideas and feelings in relation to these matters, based upon the principles of truth and, as it is said—“If the truth shall make you free, then shall you be free indeed, sons of God without rebuke in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation.”

In relation to religious matters I would not have a religion that I could not sustain, and that God would not sustain me in; I do not want it, nor to have anything to do with it. One thing I have always felt proud of, and that is, that the principles of the Gospel of Jesus Christ were so plain, clear, pointed, definite and incontrovertible that they defied the whole world, and so far as I have gone, and the servants of God around me, no man has ever been able to successfully gainsay one solitary principle connected with the Church and kingdom of God upon the earth, that is, in regard to what we term sometimes spiritual things. I want to see the same principle established in relation to our temporal matters, and I believe, from what little conversation I have had with the brethren, that that is their feeling. In relation to these matters I do not want to see one solitary principle that an honest, honorable man cannot sustain; but let everything be so that it can be dragged right forth to the daylight, and turned over and over and over and examined all sides up, and inside out, and see that it is true, good, honorable, upright and honest in every particular. That is the kind of thing we want, as honest men, and we want to get at things in that kind of a way; and if they will not bear investigation of that kind, I should have just the same opinion of them as I have about unsound religious matters, and I should not want anything to do with them. I do not want anything that cannot be sustained in the face of open day, and in the face of God, angels, men and devils.

It is asked—“Well, what is the Order?” We do not know exactly, we know it in part; it is just as Paul said in his day—“We see in part, and we prophecy in part” &c. But to begin with, unless some change does take place in relation to our temporal matters, our situation is anything but pleasant. The fact of the matter is, we are all of us on the highway to financial or temporal ruin. The world is going to the devil just as fast as it can go. Corruption, fraud, chicanery, deception, evil and iniquity of every kind prevail, so that you cannot trust a man in any place, you can not rely upon his word, you can not rely upon any instrument of writing that he gets up, and there is nothing you can rely upon. Every day’s news brings accounts of defalcations, frauds, infamies, rottenness and corruptions of every kind, enough to sink a nation from the presence of God and all honorable beings. And this is not only so in the United States, but other nations, in ours especially.

We, as a people, have come out from Babylon, but we have brought a great amount of these infernal principles with us, and we have been grabbing, grasping, pinching, squeezing, hauling, horning and hooking on every side, and it seems as though every man was for himself and the devil for us all. That is about the position we are in to-day. We want a change in these things. We have come to Zion. What to do? Why to do the will of God, to accomplish his purposes, to save ourselves, our progenitors and our posterity, and we have come because the Spirit of God led us here through the instrumentality of the holy Priesthood of God. Jesus says—“My sheep hear my voice, and they know me and they will follow me, and a stranger they will not follow, because they know not the voice of a stranger.” We who have gathered here have been going in a curious, crooked kind of a way, but we have nevertheless started to build up the kingdom of God and to establish correct principles upon the earth and to help to redeem it. Can we accomplish this by continuing in the course we have hitherto pursued? No, verily, no. But I will tell you how I have always felt, both in Joseph’s day and since then, whenever the Lord has wrought upon the man who stands at the head of his people to introduce anything for the welfare of his kingdom, it is time to look out, and to carry out the counsels that are given; and yesterday, after I arrived here, and had seen President Young, and conversed with him, and then heard him and others speak on these principles, I said to him, “The old fiddle is in tune, the sacred fire is glowing and burning;” and I think so still. The old fiddle is in tune, the right feeling, spirit and influence are operating, and we all feel them.

A great deal has been said about the evils that exist, and we might talk for days about the necessity of something being introduced for the welfare and happiness of the Saints of God here in Zion. I suppose, on a reasonable calculation, that there are ten thouaand [thousand] men out of employment in this Territory, perhaps for five months in a year. Now, if they were at work, and only got one dollar a day, there would be ten thousand dollars a day earned, which in five months would make a very large sum, one million three hundred thousand dollars I think. We are bringing in here all kinds of things that we ought to make ourselves. What are our broom makers and coopers doing? What are you doing with your molasses mills, and where do you get your cloth, shoes, hats, shirts and things of this kind from? It takes quite an amount to supply them, they must come from somewhere, and the question is, where do they all come from? At a Bishops’ meeting in Salt Lake City I said I wanted to get a well bucket, but I could not tell where to get it, and I wished some of them would tell me where; but they could not tell me, although there were a good many Bishops present. This is a pretty state of things. It is true that we have made some advances in some branches of manufacture. There is a big factory in Provo, some near Salt Lake City, one at Ogden, one at Box-Elder and one in the South. It has required great efforts on the part of President Young and others to establish these institutions, and when we get them we do not want the cloth. We do no not want our shoes made here—we would rather send off our hides, and get somebody east to make them, they can make shoes so much better there than here. Then we do not want leather shoes here, we must send off and get a lot of paper things, with heels high enough to put anybody’s ankles out of joint.

Well, my opinion is, that with home labor properly directed and applied, we shall have all the bread, butter, cheese, shoes, cloth, hats, bonnets, shawls and everything that we need, and I think, as the President has said, if we behave ourselves, we shall get pretty rich. That is all right enough, though riches are only a little thing, in comparison to the great principles of eternal lives and exaltation in the kingdom of God, the riches of eternity. But my time has expired and I must close. Amen.

The Things of God Known by the Spirit of God, etc.

Brigham Young

Discourse by President Brigham Young, delivered in the New Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Sunday afternoon, May 3, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

It is nearly time to close this meeting, but I desire to speak a few words. I have very much that I wish to convey to the Latter-day Saints, but I can only say, in as few words as possible, a little at a time, upon a few subjects which I wish to lay before the Saints. First, looking upon the Latter-day Saints, the inquiry within myself is—Do you know whether I am leading you right or not? Do you know whether I dictate you right or not? Do you know whether the wisdom and the mind of the Lord are dispensed to you correctly or not? These are questions which I will answer by quoting a little Scripture, and saying to the Latter-day Saints what was said to the Saints in former times, “No man knoweth the things of God, but by the Spirit of God.” That was said in the days of the Savior and the Apostles, and it was no more true then than it is now, or than it was in the days of the Prophets, Moses, Abraham, Noah, Enoch, Adam, or in any and every age of the world. It requires the same manifestations in one age as in another, to enable men to understand the things of God. I have a request to make of each and every Latter-day Saint, or those who profess to be, to so live that the Spirit of the Lord will whisper to them and teach them the truth, and define to their understanding the difference between truth and error, light and darkness, the things of God and the things that are not of God. In this there is safety; without this there is danger, imminent danger; and my exhortation to the Latter-day Saints is—Live your religion.

Among all intelligent beings upon the earth there is a great mistake in regard to dispensing to others the knowledge they possess. In the political world, right here, and through our government and other governments, there is a great desire in each and every one, who is prominent and influential, to manage their political affairs by and with their friends, and to keep their enemies from knowing anything about them, which creates a party feeling, and parties promote distrust and jealousy, which lead to discord and strife. Such is also the case in the financial world. In our trading and trafficking we wish to confine the knowledge of our business in as small a limit as possible, that others may not know what we are doing, lest we should lose our good bargains and fail in our schemes.

It is more or less the same in the religious world. We wish to know a great deal, and do not want our neighbors to know as much as we do, but wish them to believe that we know it all. This trait of character is very common, both here and through the whole world. We all wish to know something that our neighbors do not know. With scientific men you will often find the same trait of character: “My studies and my researches are beyond those of my neighbors; I know more than they know; I treasure this up to myself, and I am looked upon as a superior being, and that delights me.”

I say to the Latter-day Saints, and to all the world, this is all wrong. We are here upon this earth as the children of our heavenly Father, who is filled with light and intelligence, and he dispenses that to his children as they can receive and profit by it, without money and without price. Is not this a fact? It is. Go to every department of life, to the mechanics, to the manufacturers, to those learned in all the arts and sciences, throughout the world, and not one of them possesses an item of knowledge or wisdom but what has come from God, the fountain of all wisdom and knowledge. The idea that the religion of Christ is one thing, and science is another, is a mistaken idea, for there is no true religion without true science, and consequently there is no true science without true religion. The fountain of knowledge dwells with God, and he dispenses it to his children as he pleases, and as they are prepared to receive it, consequently it swallows up and circumscribes all. This is the great plan of salvation; this is the “bugaboo” that the Christian world hoot at so much, and which they call “Mormonism”—it is the Gospel of life and salvation.

Confidence is lost in the hearts of the nations of the earth. Confidence is lost one towards another, among the religious sects of the day; confidence is lost in the scientific and mechanical world; in the financial and in the political world, and it must be restored. I make this statement, and there is not a scientist or divine on the earth who can truthfully controvert it.

There is a great deal being said and rumored about what we are teaching the people at the present time with regard to being one in our temporal affairs as we are one in the doctrine that we have embraced for our salvation. I will say to you that, erroneous traditions at once begin to present themselves. Why we have received these traditions, those who reflect, read and understand can pass their own decision. You can not find a sect anywhere that strictly believes in the New Testament. Read over the sayings of the Savior to his disciples, those of the disciples one to another, and of the people, with regard to being one; and then bring up the fact that they believed in this doctrine, and that they taught and practiced it so far that the believers sold their possessions and laid the proceeds at the Apostles’ feet. Now, what is the tradition on this point? To sell your houses, your farms, your stores, your cattle, and bring the means and lay it down at the feet of the Apostles, and then live, eat, drink and wear until it is all gone, and then what? Do without? Yes, or be beggars. Our traditions lead us to this point, and that throws us into a dilemma, out of which we know not how to extricate ourselves. To the Latter-day Saints, I say, all this is a mistake; these are false ideas, false conclusions. I am here to tell you how things are, and, as far as necessary, to tell you how they were, and then to tell you how they should be, and how they will be. To begin with, we will unitedly labor to sustain the kingdom of God upon the earth. Shall we sell our possessions, have all things in common, live upon the means until it is gone, and then beg through the country? No, no. Sell nothing of our possessions. True, the earth is at present in possession of the great enemy of the Savior, but he does not own a foot of it; he never did, but he has possession of it, and they say that possession is nine points of the law, and it seems to be so. Well, if I have a foot of land that I have dedicated and devoted to my heavenly Father for his kingdom on the earth, I never dispose of that. I have owned a great deal of land, and I now own a great deal of land in the United States, and I have never yet sold a foot of it. I say to the Latter-day Saints, keep your land, dedicate it to God, preserve it in truth, in purity, in holiness; pray that the Spirit of the Lord may brood over it, that whoever walks over that land, may feel the influence of that Spirit; pray that the Spirit of the Lord may cover our possessions, then gather around us the necessaries of life. Dispose of nothing that we should keep, but continue to labor, praying the Lord to bless the soil, the atmosphere and the water. Then we have our crops, our fruit, our flocks and herds to live upon, to improve upon, and then go on and make our clothing, build houses, improve our streets, our cities and all our surroundings and make them beautiful; beautify every place with the workmanship of our own hands. Keep what is necessary, dispose of what we may have to dispose of. To whom? To those who are operating in our mines to develop the resources in our mountains, and to all who have need. By such a course the wasting of our substance, as has been too much the case, will be stopped; and when we labor, let our labor count something for our benefit. We ask concerning the rich, Do we want your gold and your silver? No, we do not. Do we want your houses and lands? We do not. What do we want? We want obedience to the requirements of wisdom, to direct the labors of every man and every woman in this kingdom to the best possible advantage, that we may feed and clothe ourselves, build our houses and gather around us the comforts of life, without wasting so much time, means, and energy. And instead of saying that I shall give up my carriage for the poor to ride in, we will direct the poor so that every man may have his carriage, if he will be obedient to the requirements of the Almighty. Every family will have all that they can reasonably desire. When we learn and practice fair dealing in all our intercourse and transactions, then confidence, now so far lost, but so much needed, will be restored; and we will be enabled to effectually carry out our operations for the friendly and profitable cooperation of money and labor, now so generally and so injuriously antagonistic.

It has been said that, a few evenings ago, in the 20th Ward, I made use of the expression that the cooperative stores would be used up or spoiled; if I did use such an expression, it must have been in connection with others to qualify it. The question was asked, “What are you going to do with the co-operative stores?” “Why, use them up,” and some of the brethren got the idea that the destruction of these stores was intended, because, to many, the idea of using a thing up, is to destroy it; but this was not the meaning I wished to convey. But I say swallow them up, or circumscribe them or incorporate them, from time to time, in more extensive co-operative plans. By way of comparison, suppose a rope with seven strands, and some one is suspicious of its strength and we add a thousand strands to it, who then can suspect its strength? Now, comparing our present mercantile and stock-raising institutions, our factories and every thing else we have in co-operation, instead of weakening this cord of seven strands, we throw around it a thousand other strands, and weave them in to strengthen it, is not the first cord swallowed up? Yes, it is, in one sense, used up, we cannot see anything of it; and so we shall make our additions of thousands of strands to every co-operative institution we have established, and, instead of having a few of the people sustain this parent co-operative store, or the ward store, we will have the support of the whole people. That is the difference; can you understand it? How careful we should be in the use of language, to prevent, so far as possible the drawing of false conclusions, and the going abroad of erroneous impressions.

This is a comparison with regard to our co-operative stores and every co-operative institution we have; we expect that the whole people will support them and give them their influence; that the whole people will work for the whole, and that all will be for the kingdom of God on the earth. All that I have is in that kingdom. I have nothing, only what the Lord has put in my possession. It is his; I am his, and all I ask is for him to tell me what to do with my time, my talents and the means that he puts in my possession. It is to be devoted to his kingdom. Let every other man and woman do the same, and all the surplus we make is in one great amount for accomplishing the purposes of the Lord. He says, “I will make you the richest people on the earth.” Now, go to work, Latter-day Saints, and make yourselves one, and all needed blessings will follow.

I will now briefly notice a trait in the Christian world in regard to their continually misrepresenting us, which they most emphatically do. Wherever we go they misrepresent us. They do not stop to reason, or for the introduction of good sound logic. They do not stop to know their own minds, and to ask themselves questions with regard to facts as they exist, but are wholly uninfluenced by their erroneous traditions. We Christians are divided and subdivided, but we all believe that there are good people among all the sects of the day. As a “Mormon” or Latter-day Saint, I believe this just as much as any sectarian believes it, but I do not believe it as the sectarians believe it. We all believe that good people do live and have lived among the Christian sects. Says one, “My father was a good man; or, My mother or my sister was a good woman, my brother was a good man, my neighbor was a good person; they lived and died believing in their several faiths; some of them holy Catholics, who died shouting and rejoicing that the time had come for them to be released from this tenement of clay. Others were good Protestants, and they rejoiced and were exceeding glad when the time came for them to lie down and rest their weary bodies, and they were happy.” Now, I, speaking as one of the Christian world, when a man says to me, “Unless you are born of the water and of the spirit you can not enter the kingdom of heaven,” reply, “My dear friend, my father and my mother were just as good Christians as ever lived on the face of the earth, and they died as happy as they could be, and their souls were full of glory. Tell me that they have not gone to heaven! It is all nonsence, it is folly; I do not believe a word of it; you must be one of those deceivers that the Savior taught should come in the latter days.” This erroneous tradition is planted in the bosoms of the Christian world, and from this they take the liberty of saying that the doctrine preached by the Latter-day Saints can not be true, for if it is their fathers and mothers are not saved. Would you not like to know the truth on this point, O Christian world? Yes, yes, the honest ones would; I can not say so much for the bread and butter Christians; but when you meet an honest person, he says—“I wish I knew the truth about this. Our beloved brother and father in the Gospel, the father of the Methodist Episcopal Church, John Wesley, was he not a good man? Tell me that he is not saved!” The Christian world can not endure such an idea. “John Knox not saved! and thousands of others not saved!” They can not endure the thought. I can say to them of a truth, but it will need explanation, there is not one of these men who lived according to the light that he received, and up to every blessing God bestowed upon him, but what is happier to-day than he ever expected that he could be. But the Christian world imbibe the idea that, if these good men, who have died, have not gone into the presence of the Father and the Son, and are not in the kingdom of heaven, they must be in the depths of hell. This is folly in the extreme; but the Christians do not know how to comprehend this, how to understand the words of life. I can say this for all good people, I do not care where they lived and died, they will be far happier hereafter than they ever conceived of while here. Do you think that the good Chinaman and Hindo will be saved? Yes, as much as the Methodist. But erroneous tradition prevents the Christian world from seeing and understanding this. They ought to stop and reflect, and ask the question—“Do we understand the Scriptures when we read them?” I say that they do not, if they did they would see that we have the words of eternal life, and would receive our teachings with joy. I have not time to fully explain this, but I can say that this erroneous tradition palliates, in a measure, the conduct and views of the Christian world when their prejudices arise like towering mountains against these poor Latter-day Saints.

We shall labor and go forward, as long as we live, to redeem the world of mankind. This is the labor the Savior has undertaken. The earth was committed to him by the Father, who said, “My Son, go and redeem the world and all things upon it; pay this debt, and your brethren, who believe on you and who are one, as the Father and the Son are one, will be co-workers in this great and eternal work, until all the sons and daughters of Adam and Eve, that can be saved, will be saved in a kingdom of glory,” and all will be saved, except the sons of perdition.

Can the Christian world understand this? No. There is not a priest in the pulpit, nor a deacon that sits under the pulpit, but what, if he knew the facts as they are, would give glory to God in the highest, that he lived in this day and age of the world, and thank the Father that he has revealed his will from the heavens.

I thank you for your attention, brethren and sisters. I have detained you a little longer than I intended to do. God bless you.

The United Order—A System of Oneness, Economy and Wisdom in Becoming Self-sustenance

Brigham Young

Remarks by President Brigham Young, at the Opening of the Adjourned General Conference, held in the New Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, May 7, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

I do not expect to be able to speak much during this Conference, but I make a request of my brethren who may speak, to give us their instructions and views for or against this general co-operative system, which we, with propriety, may call the United Order. If any choose to give it any other name that will be applicable to the nature of it, they can do so. A system of oneness among any people, whether former-day Saints, middle-day Saints, eleventh hour of the day Saints, last hour of the day Saints, or no Saints at all, is beneficial; but I wish the brethren to give us their views for and against union in a family, whether that family consists of the parents and ten children, or the parents, ten children, fifty grandchildren, or a hundred and fifty great-grandchildren, and so on until you get to a nation. I ask of my brethren who may address the congregations, to give us their views for and against union, peace, good order; laboring for the benefit of ourselves, and in connection with each other for the welfare and happiness of all, whether in the capacity of a family, neighborhood, city, state, nation, or the world.

We see the inhabitants of the earth, as individuals and nations, struggling, striving, laboring and toiling, every one for himself and nobody else; all are anxious to bless their own dear selves. If you will permit me I will quote an anecdote in illustration of this trait of character among the human family. A man, in asking a blessing upon his food, prayed, “O Lord, bless me and my wife, my son John and his wife, we four, and no more. Amen.” If we have generosity of feeling sufficient to pray for blessings upon a fifth person, or upon a whole family, neighborhood or community, all the better.

We are not entering into any new system, order or doctrine. There are numbers of organizations of a similar character, as far as they go, in our own country and in other countries. Our object is to labor for the benefit of the whole, to retrench in our expenditures; to be prudent and economical; to study well the necessities of the community, and to pass by its many useless wants; to study to secure life, health, wealth, and union, which is power and influence to any community; and I ask my brethren, while addressing the people during this Conference, to take up these items of every-day life. It seems to be objectionable to some, for the Latter-day Saints to enter into a self-sustaining system, and the probability of our doing so causes a great deal of talk. If we were infidels, any other sect of Christians, or neither Christians nor infidels, but mere worldlings, seeking only to amass the wealth of this world, nothing would be thought or said against it. But for the Latter-day Saints to make a move to the right or to the left, to the front or to the rear, a suspicion arises directly in the minds of the people. I will say to the inhabitants of the whole earth, that the Latter-day Saints are going to work to sustain themselves, to do good to themselves, to their neighbors and to the whole human family; they are going to labor to establish peace and good order on the earth, just as far and as fast as they can, and to prepare them for a happier world than this.

Talk about it, cry about it, deride it, point the finger of scorn at it, we care not, we are the servants and handmaids of the Lord, and our business is to build up his kingdom upon the earth, and let all the world say what they please, it matters not to us. It is for us to do our duty.

Now let me present one little matter. Here are brethren from all parts of the Territory, to represent the different branches of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We find our brethren in various parts of the Territory are in possession of a little land; take a man, for instance, who has got a five acre lot. He wants his team, he must have his horses, harness, wagon, plow, harrow and farming utensils to cultivate that five acres, just as though he was farming a hundred acres. And when harvest comes; he is not accommodated by his neighbors with a reaping machine, and he says—“Another year, I will buy one,” and this to harvest five acres of grain. Take the article of wagons among this people, we have five where we should not have more than two; and the money that is spent needlessly by our people for wagons would make a small community rich. Again, take mowing and reaping machines, and we have probably twice or three times as many in this Territory as the people need. They stand in the sun and they dry up and spoil, and this entails a heavy waste of property. We may take also the article of harness for horses. If this community would be united, and work cattle instead of horses, they might save themselves from two to five hundred thousand dollars yearly. Is this economy or wisdom? A few years ago we raised our own sweet; but when the railroad came it brought sugar to us very cheap, and where is our sorghum now? There is hardly any raised in the whole Territory. The people say—“The sugar is so cheap.” Suppose sugar was only one penny a pound, and you had not that penny and could not get it, what good would it do you? None at all. If cotton cloth can be bought for fifteen, ten, or six cents a yard, what does it profit a people if they have not the money to buy it? It does them no good. When they have the ground to raise the cotton, and the machinery to work this cotton up and make the fabrics they need, they can do it, money or no money. And so we go on from one thing to another, and we would be glad if our brethren, in their remarks, will give us their views and instructions on these points, and the bearing they have had upon the people in the past, and how they will affect them in connection with the United Order which we are now seeking to introduce.

If any man, merchant, business man, or anybody else has anything to bring forward to show, as they think, that the United Order will militate against the interests of the community, we invite them to speak it freely, and give us both sides of the question. We are for the best, we are for the right, for that which will accomplish the greatest good to the greatest number. I shall now give place for others to speak.

Zion to be Redeemed Through the Law of Consecration, etc.

George A. Smith

Discourse by President George A. Smith, delivered at the Adjourned General Conference, held in the New Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, May 7, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

“Behold I will send you Elijah the Prophet, before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord, and he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.” This passage will be found in the 5th and 6th verses of the 4th chapter of the Prophet Malachi.

The Latter-day Saints were driven from their homes in Jackson County, Missouri, about forty-one years ago. A portion of the mob commenced the outbreak in June or July, and among their first deeds of violence was the destruction of the printing office, plundering the storehouse, and the tarring and feathering of Edward Partridge, the Bishop. This was followed by whipping and killing the people and burning their houses, and finally culminated, on the 13th of October, in driving some fifteen hundred persons from their homes, on the public lands which they had purchased and received titles for from the United States. The people thus driven went into different parts of the State, the great body of them, however, taking shelter in the County of Clay.

The settlements in Jackson County were commenced on the principle of the law of consecration. If you read the revelations that were given, and the manner in which they were acted upon, you will find that the brethren brought, before the Bishop and his counselors, their property and consecrated it, and with the money and means thus consecrated lands were purchased, and inheritances and stewardships distributed among the people, all of whom regarded their property as the property of the Lord. There were, however, at that period, professed Latter-day Saints, who did not see proper to abide by this law of consecration; they thought it was their privilege to look after “number one,” and some of them, believing that Zion was to become a very great city, and that being the centre stake of it, they purchased tracts of land in the vicinity with the intention of keeping them until Zion became the beauty and joy of the whole earth, when they thought they could sell their lands and make themselves very rich. It was probably owing to this, in part, that the Lord suffered the enemies of Zion to rise against her.

The members of the Church at that period were very industrious, frugal, and law-abiding, and there was no possibility of framing any charges or claims against them by legal means, and the published manifesto, upon which the mob was collected, boldly asserted that the civil law did not afford a guarantee against this people, consequently they formed themselves into a combination, a lawless mob, pledging to each other “their lives, their property and their sacred honors” to drive the “Mormons” from their midst. From that hour the heart of every Latter-day Saint has been occasionally warmed with the feeling—may I be permitted to live until the day when the Saints shall again go to Jackson County, when they shall build the Temple, the ground for which was dedicated, and when the Order of Zion, as it was then revealed, shall be carried out! And it has been generally understood among us that the redemption of Zion would not occur upon any other principle than upon that of the law of consecration.

Forty years and more have passed away since these events took place. We have been driven five times from our homes; five times we have been robbed of our inheritances. Our leaders and presiding officers have been killed, and not in a single instance, in any State or Territory where we have lived, has the law been magnified in the protection of the Latter-day Saints, until we were driven into these mountains. In 1834, Daniel Dunklin, the Governor of Missouri, said the laws were ample, and the Constitution was ample, but the prejudices of the people were so great that he and the other authorities of the State were powerless to execute the law for the protection of the Mormons. We have had one protector—our Father in heaven, to depend upon; but governors, judges, rulers, officers of any kind, high or low, have utterly failed to extend protection to the Latter-day Saints. God alone has been our protector, and we acknowledge his hand in every deliverance we have hitherto experienced.

Several times the Church has made advances to organize the Order of Enoch as it was revealed in the Book of Covenants in part, and in the ancient history of the Zion of Enoch; these advances, however, the Saints did not seem prepared to receive. We have been gathered from many nations, and we have brought many notions and traditions with us, and it has seemed that with these notions and traditions we could not dispense. In 1838, an attempt was made in Caldwell County, Mo., the Latter-day Saints owning all the lands in the county, or all that were considered of any value. They organized Big Field United Firms, by which they intended to consolidate their property and to regard it as the property of the Lord, and themselves only as stewards; but they had not advanced so far in this matter as to perfect their system before they were broken up and driven from the State. I understand that three hundred and eighteen thousand dollars in money was paid by the Saints to the United States for lands in the State of Missouri, not one acre of which any one of us has been permitted to enjoy or to live upon since the year 1838, or the Spring of 1839; though at the time of the expulsion, the Commanding General, John W. Clarke, informed the people that if they would renounce their religious faith they could remain on their lands. He said that they were skillful mechanics, industrious and orderly, and had made more improvements in three years than the other inhabitants had in fifteen, and if they would renounce their faith they could remain. But they must hold no more meetings, prayer meetings, prayer circles or councils, and they must have no more Bishops or Presidents; and in view of their refusal to comply with these conditions, the edict of banishment, issued by the Governor of the State, was executed by this general with an army at his heels, and the Latter-day Saints were driven from their happy homes, and thousands of them scattered to the four winds of heaven.

Since our arrival in these valleys, sermons have been preached from year to year, to illustrate to us the principles of oneness. We find that we are one, generally, in faith. We believe on the Lord Jesus Christ; we believe in the first principles of the Gospel—the doctrines of repentance, and baptism for the remission of sins, the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost and the resurrection of the dead; we readily receive, by the power of the Holy Spirit, manifested to us through the Prophets, the doctrine of baptism for the dead, the holy anointing and the law of celestial marriage. This principle came in opposition to all our prejudices, yet when God revealed it, his Spirit bore testimony of its truth, and the Latter-day Saints received it almost en masse. In order to make a step in the right direction, and to prepare the people to return to Jackson County, the principles of co-operation were taught and their practice entered into; and for the purpose of instructing and encouraging the minds of the people upon the benefits of united action, from the earliest settlement of this Territory to the present time, the presiding Elders of the Church have, every Conference, endeavored to impress upon their minds the necessity of making themselves self-supporting. We have looked forward to the day when Babylon would fall, when we could not draw our supplies from her midst, and when our own ingenuity, talent, and skill must supply our wants. The effect of all this instruction is, that we have made some progress in many directions, but not so much as could have been desired.

The cultivation of cotton was introduced in the South. Sheep-breeding has been extensively adopted, numerous factories have been erected to manufacture both the wool and the cotton produced. Several extensive tanneries have also been established for the manufacture of hides into leather, and various other kinds of business have been introduced with a view to making ourselves self-supporting.

Within a few years the railroad has been constructed through our Territory, and the expense of freighting has been greatly reduced. Mines which, before the railroad was built, were perfectly worthless, have been developed and made to pay, and the minds of many of the people seem to have been impressed with the idea that we may expect some regular, general business to grow out of the production of the mines, and a great many have been led to neglect home manufactures, and to depend upon purchasing from abroad. Some settlements have, however, exerted themselves considerably to produce clothing, and many articles within themselves. These circumstances are all clear before us. You go through Utah County, to-day, and say to a farmer, “Have you got any sorgum to sell?” “No, haven’t raised any for two or three years; sugar got so cheap, we could not sell it.” “I suppose you have plenty of sugar?” “No, we are out of sugar, we haven’t any money to buy it with.” This is the position which our course of life has led us to, and which we already begin to feel.

There is another principle connected with this matter which we should consider, and that is, when we as a community, in the valleys of the mountains, provide for our own wants, we are not subject to the fluctuations and difficulties that result from a money panic, or an interruption in the currency. When we came to this Conference a great many of us came with the determination to take such measures as should place us as a people on an independent footing, and hence we propose through our brethren, to go to work and organize a united order. There is at present a deficiency in our organization so far as our business relations are concerned. Of course, in every settlement, there are many industrious men, then there’s some who are schemers; and as each man looks out for himself, that good principle which the Savior taught so strongly, that a man should love the Lord his God with all his heart, and his neighbor as himself, is in a great measure forgotten, and a few gather up the property, while many of the laboring men, who do most of the work, come out at the end of the year behind, without a full supply of the necessaries of life. To avoid this, a United Order would organize a community so that all the ingenuity, talent, skill, and energy it possessed would inure to the good of the whole. This is the object and design in the establishment of these organizations. It is perfectly certain that there is in every community a sufficient amount of skill and energy and labor to supply its wants, and put all its members in possession of every necessary and comfort of life, if all this skill and energy be rightly directed. We propose to take measures to direct aright the labor that we have in our possession, and lay a foundation for comfort, happiness, plenty and the blessings of life within ourselves.

We, further, do not believe that Latter-day Saints, in the service of the Most High, can enjoy that high degree of respect in the presence of the Almighty to which they are entitled, when they are biting, devouring, shaving, skinning, and manoeuvering, and out-manoeuvering and getting the advantage of each other in little petty deals. We want to see these things cease entirely, for we know that we can never be prepared for the coming of the Savior only by uniting and becoming one, in temporal as well as in spiritual things, and being prepared to enjoy the blessings of exaltation.

The principles of life, which we now present for the consideration of the Latter-day Saints were carried out in times past, as we read in the Book of Mormon, among the Nephites and Lamanites, who each enjoyed over a hundred years of unity, peace, happiness and plenty, as the result of adopting this system of unity; and if we will unite in one, acting in good faith, every man esteeming his brother as himself, regarding not what he possesses as his own, but the Lord’s, all carrying out these principles, the result is certain—it is the enjoyment of the Spirit of the Lord, it is the light of eternity, it is the abundance of the things of this earth; it is an opportunity to provide education for our children, amusement and interest for ourselves, a knowledge of the things of the kingdom of God, and all sciences which are embraced therein, and an advance in the work of the last days, preparatory to the redemption of the centre stake of Zion.

Brethren and sisters, think of these things, and as the spirit of the Almighty was in your hearts when you received the laying on of hands and the baptism of the Holy Spirit, bearing testimony that the Gospel of Jesus Christ was true, seek with all your hearts, and know, by the same spirit, that the establishment of the United Order, is another step towards the triumph of that great and glorious work for which we are continually laboring, namely the dawning of the Millennium and the commencement of the reign of Christ on the earth.

This is the work of the Almighty. These principles are from God; they are for our salvation, and unless we remember and abide in them our progress will be slow. If we are slow to learn and progress, but try to carry out the purposes of God, He will not cast us off. He has been very patient with us these forty years, and he may continue to be so. But understand that the hearts of the fathers must be turned to the children and the hearts of the children to the fathers. A unity must exist, the Latter-day Saints must love one another, they must cease to worship this world’s goods, they must lay a foundation to build up Zion and to be one, in order that they may be prepared for the great day that shall burn as an oven.

I bear my testimnny [testimony] to you of the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, of the Book of Mormon, of the ministry of Joseph Smith and of his servants the Elders that were called of the Lord by him, Brigham Young and the Apostles and Elders who have borne these testimonies to the nations of the earth, and I say, brethren, give diligent heed to these things, lest by any means we should let them slip and come short of entering into rest.

May the blessings of Israel’s God be upon you for ever. Amen.

The Position the Saints Have Occupied has been a Peculiar One, etc.

John Taylor

Discourse by Elder John Taylor, delivered at the Adjourned General Conference, held in the New Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, May 7, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

Those things which we have been listening to are of very great importance to the Latter-day Saints. Situated as we are, entertaining the views that we do, in possession of the light and intelligence that have been communicated unto us, we stand, in these respects, in an entirely different position from that of the world with which we are surrounded; and, as has already been stated, it is necessary that we begin to reflect a little upon that which has been revealed to us, that we may understand our position and relationship to each other, the duties and responsibilities that devolve upon us as fathers, as mothers, as children, as Elders of Israel, and in all the various relationships of life, and that we may comprehend the requirements made of us by our heavenly Father. Some of those things which have been presented before us are obvious to every reflecting mind, there is nothing strange, anomalous or peculiar about them; they are things which have been more or less advocated by different statesmen among the various nations of the earth, and, according to circumstances, they have been adopted, more or less, by a great many people, and we, the Latter-day Saints, have approached nearer to them than many of us seem to have any idea of. There would not be time, at present, to enter into an elaborate detail of the various plans, ideas and workings involved in the principles which have been presented before us this morning; but in taking a cursory view of our position, we shall find that it is very different from that of any other people. We have already carried out a great many of those things which have been referred to, that is, a great many of us have; not all. The position that we have occupied in this nation, in the States of Missouri and Illinois, and in the various countries of those States, and the history of this people has been a very peculiar one. It is true, as has been said that if we would give up our religion, and act and feel as others act and feel, we should be hail fellows well met with the world, and we could have the fellowship of the devil and all his imps. We could have this all the time if we would conform our ideas to theirs. But what are their ideas? Who can describe them? They are simply a babel of contrarities, contradictions, confusion, ignorance, darkness, speculation, mystery, folly, vanity, crime, iniquity and every kind of evil that man can think of, and if we were willing to join in with this it would be all right, and we should be hail fellows well met. But we do not propose to do that. God has spoken from the heavens; the light and intelligence which exist in the eternal worlds have been communicated, the heavens have been opened and the revelations of God given to man, and we have participated in them in part, and the light thus received has enabled us to look at the world as it is; it has opened to our view the visions of eternity; it has made us acquainted with our God, with the principles of truth, and we would not barter that for all the world has to give us. We rejoice, therefore, and thank God for the light and intelligence that he has communicated to us, and so far we have measurably been one, and we could not have helped ourselves and prevented it, if we had desired to, for the world was determined to make us one, or make hypocrites of us, like themselves; one of the two. We had either got to be one, or deny the principles that God has implanted in every honest man’s soul, and we would not do that. No man will barter his independence, no man will barter his convictions, no man, who is intelligent and honorable, will barter his religion or his politics at the caprice of any other man. God has implanted certain principles in man, and as long as manhood is retained they can not be obliterated, they are written there as in letters of living fire, and there they will remain so long as we retain our manhood and standing before God. What has been the result of this, so far as it has gone? Why, when the people in Missouri proposed that we should live among them in peace if we would leave our religion, did we do it? Not quite. What did we do? We clung to our religion. And what did those honest, generous, gentle, intelligent, Christian people do? Robbed us of nearly all we possessed, and with the balance we agreed to help one another to get to some place where men could worship God according to the dictates of their conscience, if such a place could be found in republican America. Well, we left. Did we unite? Yes, we did; and every man that had a team, a wagon, two, three or four horses, two, three, four, five or six yoke of cattle, or bread, money or clothing, distributed among his brethren, and we helped one another out until every man who wanted to leave had left. There might have been a few miserable “skeezeks,” such as we have among us here, a few miserable hounds left, but what of them? Why, nothing at all, they did not think anything of themselves, and nobody thought anything of them.

We commenced again in Illinois, just on the same principle. There we built a Temple, and performed the ordinances of God in his house; there we attended to our sacraments, entered into our covenants, and commenced anew to worship God according to the dictates of our own consciences, and there again we found a lot of Christians, just the same as in Missouri, who did not like our religion. Said they—“Gentlemen, we do not like your religion; but if you will be like us, you can live among us; if you do not believe and worship God as we do, you can not stay here.” Well, we could not quite come it then, any more than we did before; and they killed Joseph Smith and Hyrum Smith, burnt our houses, destroyed our property, and let loose mobs upon us, and deprived us of the rights of American citizens; and finally we had to leave the States and come out among the red men of the desert, that we might find that protection among the savages that Christendom denied us. How did we get here? We helped one another. In the Temple that we had erected, and dedicated to the Most High God, we lifted up our hands before God, and covenanted before him that we would help one another to leave that land, so long as there was one left in it who desired to leave. Did we keep this covenant? We did. Why? Because we felt an interest in the welfare of our brethren; we believed in our religion, in building up the kingdom of God, and in carrying out his purposes and designs. The Christians object to all this? Of course they do, but who cares about them? I do not, not one straw; we have had so much of their tender mercies, that they take no effect now upon us. Again, we pay our Tithing. Some may inquire—“Do not the Priesthood rob you?” I do not know, I do not think we are robbed very much, or that we are very much injured. We do not do enough of it to be injured very much, we are something like what the boy said of his father. A man asked a boy—“Are you a Mormon?” “Yes.” “Is your father a Mormon?” Said the boy—“Yes, but he don’t potter much at it.” There are a great many of us who do not potter much at it, but still we make the attempt.

What have we done since we came here? Before the railroad was made we sent from here, year after year, as many as five hundred teams to help the poor who were unable to help themselves. Hence you see that a good deal of this unity of action has been carried out among us, but we have only pottered a little at it, we have not got right into the matter, only in part.

Our Ladies’ Relief and other societies and organizations have done a good deal of this kind of thing, and they are looking after the interests of the poor, the widow and the fatherless. What is the business of our Bishops? Why, to attend to these things. Do they do it? They do. And then, if there is any enterprise, or anything required, the people are ready to take hold and do it, independent, say, of these covenants we have heard spoken of. A short time ago, in St. George, they commenced to build a Temple. Men were called upon from different parts, some from this city, a great many from Sanpete County, and from the different settlements, to go and assist down in that locality in building the Temple. Did they do it? Yes. Was there much grunting about it? I have not heard that there was. I happened to be in a meeting a short time ago, and it was said they wanted a little means to help to clothe these men, and to furnish them certain things, and in a very little while there were some ten or twelve hundred dollars subscribed, without any grunting. There is a feeling of sympathy in the hearts of Latter-day Saints towards one another, and for the upbuilding and advancement of the kingdom of God. But yet some of us are a little startled when we hear about uniting our properties, &c. I am amused sometimes to see the manifestation of feeling by some on this subject. We have been praying a long while that we might go back to Jackson County, and build up the Centre Stake of Zion; that we might enter into the United Order of God, and be one in both temporal and spiritual things, in fact in everything; yet when it comes along it startles us, we are confused and hardly know what to think of it. This reminds me of an anecdote, which I will relate to you. Among the passengers on a steamer crossing the Atlantic, was a very zealous minister who was all the time preaching to those on board about the glory and happiness of heaven, and how happy they would all be when they got there. During the voyage a very heavy storm arose, and the vessel was drifted from her course and was in great danger of striking on a reef of rocks. The captain went to examine his chart, and after a while returned with a very sorrowful face, and said—“Ladies and gentlemen, in twenty minutes from this time we shall all be in heaven.” “God forbid!” said the minister. Many of us are a good deal like this minister; for years we have been talking about a new order of things, about union and happiness, and about going back to Jackson County, but the moment it is presented to us we say—“God forbid.” But then on sober, second thought, another feeling seems to inspire us, and wherever we go a spirit seems to rest upon the people which leads them almost unanimously to embark in these things; and when we reflect, saying nothing about our religion, an extended system of co-operation seems to agree with every principle of good common sense. Is there anything extraordinary or new in the doctrine that it is well for a community to be self-sustaining? Why, the Whigs, you know, of this country, have contended on that principle from the time of the organization of the government, and they have sanctioned it and plead in its behalf before Congress, in political caucusses, and before the people up to the present time. There is nothing new in the doctrine of a people being self-sustaining. The first Napoleon introduced into France what is known as the “Continental system,” which encouraged the production of all necessary articles at home, and it is the results of this system which today gives stability to France, and has enabled her, after the severe trials of the late war, to pay off her indebtedness and stand independent among the nations.

Now, for instance, we require a great many things in connection with human existence. We need boots and shoes, stockings, pants, vests, coats, hats, handkerchiefs, shirts, we need cloth of various kinds, and dresses, shawls, bonnets, &c., and in every reflecting mind, the question naturally arises, Is it better for us to make these things ourselves at home, or to have somebody abroad make them for us? Is it better for each man to labor separately, as we do now, or to be organized so as to make the most of our labor? We have a large number of hides here in this Territory, what do we do with them generally? Send them to the States. We raise a large amount of wool here, what do we do with it? We export a great deal of it to the States. We have got a large amount of excellent timber here, what do we do for our furniture? We send to the States for a great deal of it. Where do we get our pails and our washtubs, and all our cooper ware from? We send to the States for it. Where do we get our brooms from? From the States; and so on all the way through the catalogue, and millions on millions of dollars are sent out of the Territory every year, for the purchase of articles, most of which we could manufacture and raise at home. This is certainly very poor economy, for we have thousands and thousands of men who are desirous to get some kind of employment, and they cannot get it. Why? Because other people are making our shoes, hats, clothing, bonnets, silks, artificial flowers, and many other things that we need. This may do very well for a while in an artificial state of society; but the moment any reverse comes that kind of thing is upset, and all our calculations are destroyed.

I believe in organizing the tanners and having the hides tanned at home. When the hides are tanned I believe in organizing the shoemakers, and manufacturing our own shoes and boots. I believe in keeping our wool at home, and in having it manufactured in our own factories, and we have got as good factories here as anywhere. They should work up all the wool in the country, and if there is not enough raised to keep them running, import more. Then I believe in organizing men to take care of our stock—our cattle and sheep, and increasing the clip of wool, that we may have enough to meet the demands of the whole community. Then, when our cloth is made, I believe in organizing tailors’ companies to manufacture that cloth into clothing—pants, coats, vests, and everything of the kind that we need. Then for our furniture, I believe in going into the mountains and cutting down the timber, framing it into proper shape, and then manufacturing the various articles of furniture that we need; if we require another kind of timber, import that, but make the furniture here, When we talk about co-operation, we have entered but very little into it, and it has been almost exclusively confined to the purchase of goods. There is not much in that. I wish we would learn how to produce them instead of purchasing them. I wish we could concentrate our energies, and organize all hands, old, middle-aged and young, male and female, and put them under proper directions, with proper materials to manufacture everything we need to wear and use. We have forgotten even how to make sorghum molasses, and our memories are getting short on other points. We can hardly make a hat or coat, or a pair of boots and shoes, but we have to send to the States and import these paper ones, which last a very short time and then drop to pieces, and you have your hands continually in your pockets to supply these wants, and by and by your pockets are empty. It is therefore necessary that we right about face, and begin to turn the other end to, and be self-sustaining.

The President said he would like the Elders to give both sides of the question; but there is only one side to this question, and that is union in all our operations, in everything we engage in. They started a little thing like this in Box Elder County some time ago, and I was very much pleased to see the way things went there. I have spoken about it once or twice in public. They have got their co-operative store, it is true; but that is only a small part of it. Sometime ago I asked them—“You have a factory here, haven’t you?” “Yes.” “Well, do you sell your wool, send it to the States to mix up with shoddy and get an inferior article, or do you make it up yourselves?” “We make it up ourselves.” “Then you don’t sell your wool, and keep your factory standing idle?” “No, we don’t, our factory has never stood idle a day for want of wool since it was organized.” Said I—“That looks right. What do you do with your hides? Do you send them off?” “No, we have got a very good tannery and we tan them, and make them into leather for shoes, and for harness and for other purposes.” “Oh, indeed? “Yes, that is the way it is.” “Well, then, what next?” “Why, when we get our shoes made, we have a saddlers’ organization, and they make all the saddlery and harness we want?” “And what do you do with your cows? Do you let them run on the plains, and live or die, just as it happens, without making any cheese or butter?” “No, we have a co-operative dairy, and we have our cows in that, and we receive so much from them all the time regularly.” “Well,” said I, “that looks right. And are you all interested in this?” “Well, about two-thirds or three-fourths of us are all engaged in these matters.” “How about your store, does it run away with the best part of it?” “No.” “Does the factory get the cream of it?” “No.” “Does some keen financial man get his fingers in and grab it?” “No, we are all mutually interested in everything, the profits as well as the losses.” I have learned, since I was there, that they have made it a great success.

Now, then, if you can organize one little thing in that way, everything can be done in the same way. I was talking with President Lorenzo Snow, and he told me that they pay their men every Saturday night; they have a money of their own, and they pay their hands with it, and that is good for everything they require. And they make their arrangements unitedly, and they operate together for the general good. Said I—“How do they feel about this United Order?” “Oh,” I was told, “They are ready for anything that God may send along.” That is the feeling among the Saints, I believe, generally. I was, I think, at the biggest meeting I ever attended in Ogden City, along with some of the Presidency and Twelve and others, and I never saw more unanimity among the people on any question than on this one. That big Tabernacle was full, and the aisles were full, and everything was jammed to overflowing, and when a vote was called, nearly every hand went up. I thank God that his Spirit is operating upon the Latter-day Saints, and is leading them to a union in regard to these things.

May God help us, and lead us in the right path, in the name of Jesus, Amen.

Union is Strength, etc.

Wilford Woodruff

Discourse by Elder Wilford Woodruff, delivered at the Adjourned General Conference, held in the New Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Friday morning, May 8, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

We had a request given to us, at the opening of the Conference, yesterday morning, by President Young, to give evidences for and against the United Order of Zion. I do not know that I should be a very able advocate against it. I have been looking over in my own mind, the arguments which might be brought against it, and there are a few things I will name. If we were to undertake to unite according to the spirit and letter of this order it would, in one sense of the word, deprive us of having half a dozen candidates at elections, as is the custom generally in the Christian world. It would, in a measure, deprive these candidates of the opportunity of spending a month or two stump-speeching to get the votes of the people; then, when the election came, of paying for two or three barrels of bad whiskey to treat those who are going to vote for them. Then it might deprive Alderman Clinton, or some other justice of the peace, of the chance of collecting two or three hundred dollars as fines from those who had committed a breach of the peace. It might deprive the Benedicts and other surgeons of the opportunity of collecting five hundred or a thousand dollars for mending broken arms and legs got in free fights. Probably it would deprive the people of the opportunity of spending fifty or a hundred thousand dollars a year in importing mustard into this Territory, and require the farmers to collect and use that which is now a nuisance on their fields. It might also deprive us of the privilege of paying a hundred thousand dollars for imported brooms, and require us to plant two or three hundred acres of broom corn. These are about the only objections that I can think of against the order, though you might carry it out in detail, perhaps, a good deal further; but with regard to the benefits arising from it, they are so numerous that it would take a long time to enumerate them. I do not think it requires a great deal of argument to prove to us that union is strength, and that a united people have power which a divided people do not possess.

I am very glad that I have lived long enough to see a day when the hearts of the people can be united so as to carry out these things, while they also act upon their own agency in receiving and obeying them. We have been a good many years preaching up the necessity of the Latter-day Saints being one in temporal as well as in spiritual things, and I have felt, for a long time, in my own mind, that there must be a change among us. The way we have been drifting, has not seemed to have a tendency, as a general thing, to carry out the purposes of the Lord, and to prepare us, as a people, for those events which await us.

In our spiritual labors we have been united in a measure, and in some things perhaps in a temporal point of view. Now, for instance, the case I referred to in regard to our elections. I do not think that, for the twenty-four years we have resided in these valleys, any man has ever paid a sixpence in order to obtain any office to which he has been elected by the votes of the people, whether as Delegate to the Congress of the United States, Governor of the Territory, member of the legislature, probate judge, or any other office. I do not think that any man who has been in office has ever even asked for it in any shape or manner. So far as this is concerned we have been united, and we have one consolation in regard to our officers, I do not believe there has ever been a single defaulter among them in the whole Territory, so far as dollars and cents are concerned, in any office. In this respect then we see the advantage of being united.

There are very many advantages that will accrue to us if we unite our hearts, feelings, labors, interests, property, and everything that we are made stewards over, One thing is certain, we can not continue in the course that we have pursued in regard to temporal matters. It is suicidal for any people to import ten dollars’ worth of products while they export only one, and it is a miracle and a wonder to me that we have lived as long as we have under this order of things. We have sent millions of dollars out of the Territory every year, for articles for our home consumption, while we have exported but very little; hence I say that the establishment and success of this new order among us will bring about our temporal salvation.

We occupy a different position from the rest of the world. We believe in the revelations of Jesus Christ contained in the Bible as well as in the record or stick of Joseph in the hands of Ephraim—the Book of Mormon, which gives a history of the ancient inhabitants of this continent, We also believe in the Book of Revelations, which were given through the mouth of Joseph Smith, the Prophet, to the Latter-day Saints and to the inhabitants of the earth. Inasmuch, then, as we believe these things, we, if we carry out our faith, must of necessity go to and prepare ourselves for the fulfillment of the revelations of God. When we are in possession of the Spirit of God, we understand that there is a change at the door, not only for us but for all the world. There are certain events awaiting the nations of the earth as well as Zion; and when these events overtake us we will be preserved if we take the counsel that is given us and unite our time, labor and means, and produce what we need for our own use; but without this we shall not be prepared to sustain ourselves and we shall suffer loss and inconvenience thereby. I am satisfied that as a people, pursuing the course we have pursued hitherto, we are not prepared for the Zion of Enoch or the kingdom of God. There was an order carried out anciently by the people of this continent and by the people of the city of Enoch, wherever that was located, which was very different from the practice which has prevailed among the Saints of latter days; and as far as such a system being any injury to us I can see none in the world. I can see no injury that can overtake the Latter-day Saints, by their uniting together, according to the law of God, and producing from the elements that which they need to eat, drink and wear, and I feel as though the time has come for such an order to be instituted; and the readiness with which the people receive the teachings of the servants of God in regard to this matter is a testimony that the time has come to favor Zion. The Spirit of God bears witness to the congregations of the Saints of the importance of the principles which have been given unto us, and hence their readiness to receive them.

From the commencement of this work to the present day, the labor has been harder with the servants of God to get the people prepared in their hearts to let the Lord govern and control them in their temporal labor and means than in regard to matters pertaining to their eternal salvation. It was hard work for Joseph Smith to get the minds of the people prepared even to receive the Gospel in his day. But the Lord opened the way, the Gospel was preached and the Church was organized in its purity and in the order in which it existed in the days of Jesus Christ and the Apostles, and wherever the Gospel has been sent the ears of the people have been more or less opened and a portion of them have been ready to receive it. This Gospel has been preached in every Christian nation under heaven where the laws would permit, and people from these various nations have overcome their traditions so far as to obey it; but, as I remarked before, it has been hard work for the Latter-day Saints to bring themselves to such a state of mind as to be willing for the Lord to govern them in their temporal labors. There is something strange about this, but I think, probably, it is in consequence of the position that we occupy. There is a vail between man and eternal things; if that vail was taken away and we were able to see eternal things as they are before the Lord, no man would be tried with regard to gold, silver or this world’s goods, and no man, on their account, would be unwilling to let the Lord control him. But here we have an agency, and we are in a probation, and there is a vail between us and eternal things, between us and our heavenly Father and the spirit world; and this for a wise and proper purpose in the Lord our God, to prove whether the children of men will abide in his law or not in the situation in which they are placed here. Latter-day Saints, reflect upon these things. We have been willing, with every feeling of our hearts, that Joseph Smith, President Young, and the leaders of the people should guide and direct us in regard to our eternal interests; and the blessings sealed upon us by their authority reach the other side of the vail and are in force after death, and they affect our destiny to the endless ages of eternity. Men, in the days of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and of Jesus and the Apostles, had blessings sealed upon them, kingdoms, thrones, principalities and powers, with all the blessings of the New and Everlasting Covenant. The question may be asked, are these eternal blessings of interest to us? They are, or should be. Are these blessings worth our earthly wealth, whether we have little or much? Is salvation, is eternal life worth a yoke of cattle, a house, a hundred acres of land, or anything that we possess here in the flesh? If it is, we certainly ought to be as ready to permit the Lord to govern and control us in all our temporal labors as we are in our spiritual labors.

Again, when a man dies he can not take his cattle, horses, houses or lands with him; he goes to the grave—the resting place of all flesh. No man escapes it, the law of death rests upon all. In Adam all die, while in Christ all are made alive. We all understand that death has passed upon all men, but we none of us know when our turn will come, though we know it will not be a great while before we shall be called to follow the generations who have preceded us. When we reflect upon these things I think we all should be willing to let the Lord guide us in temporal matters. In the Book of Mormon we learn that the ancient Nephites, who dwelt on this continent, entered into, and continued in, this order for nearly two hundred years. They were wealthy and happy and the Lord blessed them. They had no poor among them. They were united in heart and in spirit, and the blessings of the Lord rested upon them. It is true they occupied a different position in one sense to what we do. They entered into this order just after the Lord had brought judgment upon the whole nation on account of their wickedness, and many of the wicked had been destroyed: their cities had also been destroyed, and it was while humbled by these judgments that they entered the United Order. But a reign of peace and prosperity rested upon them and continued until they broke the order and began to go, every man for himself and the devil for them all, then utter destruction soon overtook them.

It is different with us. We are entering this order before the wicked are destroyed. We commence it to prepare us for the great events which are at the door, for if the judgments of God ever were at the door of any generation it is this. The whole volume of Scripture points these things out to us in plain language, and all the unbelief of the inhabitants of the earth will not alter the fact, it will not change the hand of God nor stay his judgments, which are at the door of Great Babylon. She will come in remembrance before God, and he will hold a controversy with the nations; his sword is unsheathed and it will fall on Idumea, the world, and who can stay his hand? These things have been proclaimed by almost every Prophet who has ever spoken since the world began. They point to our day, and their words must have their fulfillment.

Over forty years the Gospel of Christ has been proclaimed to this generation and to the whole Christian world as far as we have had opportunity. Light has come into the world, but men have rejected it because their deeds are evil, hence the judgments of God will rest upon the nations of the earth in fulfillment of his word through the Prophets. The Lord has called upon us to unite together and take hold of this work, and to prepare ourselves for the great events which are at hand, that when the destroying angels go forth to reap the earth, beginning at the sanctuary, they need not destroy any man upon whom is the mark set by the writer with the inkhorn, who cried and mourned because of the abominations done among men. The Prophet, in seeing the vision of these things in the last days, saw that the earth was reaped, and the reapers began at the sanctuary, and the wicked were cut off by the judgments of God.

The world now do not believe this any more than they believed in the days of Noah and Lot, and they are no more prepared for it, and they are growing wickeder and wickeder every day of their lives. Wickedness is increasing, for the devil has great dominion over the hearts of the children of men. The Lord is trying to direct and dictate his Saints and I feel that it is our duty, as a people, to unite our interests together, also our time, talents, labor, and all that we are stewards over, that as men who have faith in God, we may be prepared for those things which await us, and for the coming of the Son of Man. We are observing the signs of the times, and we can readily understand the necessity of entering into this order. I think we can all see this if we enjoy any portion of the spirit of our religion and the work of the Lord, which we profess to be engaged in. I can see everything in favor but nothing against the United Order. These teachings are of the Lord; the servants of God have been moved to call upon the people, and the Lord has moved upon the people, and their hearts are being touched by the light of the Holy Spirit, and they are entering into this organization; and my feeling is that if you and I, who profess to be the friends of God, and have entered into a covenant with him, withdraw our hearts from him that we do not see the necessity of uniting ourselves according to this law of God, we shall begin to dry up, and what little life, light, or spirit we have will leave us and we shall go down and we shall not walk in the light of the Lord. I view it as a day of decision to the Latter-day Saints throughout the whole Church and kingdom of God, and we shall find it to our advantage to decide rightly, and to walk in the path marked out for us by the servants of the Lord.

I feel to say God bless the Latter-day Saints and the honest in heart and meek of the earth throughout the whole world, and I pray that the nations may be prepared for that which is to come, for as God lives there is a change at the door, and what the ancient patriarchs and Prophets said will be fulfilled; and if I were to express my feelings as the spirit reveals to me it would be a good deal as Daniel said, that all who will not prepare themselves for the coming of Christ must get out of the way, for the little stone that was cut out of the mountains without hands will shortly grind them to powder, and they will be cast away as the chaff of the summer threshing floor. The kingdom of God, which Daniel saw, the Zion of God in embryo, is on the earth, and is here in these mountains; and it will rise and rise, until it is clothed with the glory of God.

May God help us to prepare for his coming and kingdom, for Christ’s sake. Amen.

The United Order of Zion Affords the Utmost Freedom and Liberty, etc.

Erastus Snow

Discourse by Elder Erastus Snow, delivered at the Adjourned General Conference, held in the Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Friday morning, May 8, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

The United Order of Zion, proposed for our consideration, as will be seen from the remarks that have been made by former speakers, and from the articles which were read yesterday afternoon, is a grand, comprehensive, co-operative system, designed to improve us who enter into it, financially, socially, morally and religiously; it will aid us, as Latter-day Saints, in living our religion, and in building up Zion, and help us, by a combined effort, to cultivate every virtue, to put from us every vice, to conduct ourselves and our children sensibly, and to dispense with childish follies; it will enable us to adopt sensible and discreet fashions and habits of life and style of dress and manners; all of which can be effected by combined efforts, but not easily in our individual capacities. For what man, however good be his desires, can control himself and his family in their habits and manners of life and fashions, without the aid of the surrounding community? What sensible man can hold me or my brethren responsible, in all respects, either for ourselves or our households, unaided by the community and while the community are all working against us? But when the community learn to work together, and are agreed in a common purpose, what is it that they can not accomplish? Union is strength, and a combination of labor and capital will give us power at home and abroad. Our former cooperative systems in this Territory have accomplished very great good for us, but they have been only combinations of capital; the proposed system embraces labor as well as capital, and it designs to make the interests of capital and labor identical. True, there is one feature in the articles read yesterday which may require a little modification; it is at least a good subject for mature reflection and consideration before their final adoption; and these articles are presented before the people for this purpose.

The combination of labor and capital in this order will enable us to promote all branches of industry which shall appear, in the judgment of the common Order, to be for the general good. At present, capitalists are lo[a]th to engage in any enterprise which does not vouchsafe to them profitable returns. It has been said by some among us that the best argument in favor of co-operation, was large dividends; but this is an argument that appeals only to cupidity and avarice, and is especially acceptable to the man who sees nothing but the God of this world to worship. Large dividends corrupt the morals of a community, just as large speculations and the profit resulting therefrom; for however desirable in a financial point of view to those engaged in them, their tendency is always to intoxicate the brain, and lead those engaged therein to further follies, until they overreach and ruin themselves. Moderation is as valuable in financial affairs as in social ethics, moderation in all speculation and in all business, fair profits for labor, fair dividends for capital, and the use of that capital and labor to promote the greatest good of the greatest number, and not for my own dear self. The selfishness that is limited to our own persons savors of the lower instincts of our natures, and comes not from above.

Objections arise in the minds of some. “Shall we not by entering into this order, surrender our manhood, our personal liberty, and those rights so dear to every human being?” I answer, no, not in the least. We do no more than what all people do in the formation of government, of every kind, or associations for any purpose, whether charitable, religious or social. All organizations, corporations, and business firms agree to surrender certain personal privileges in order to secure mutual advantages. All governments, societies, corporations and firms are founded upon the principle of mutual concessions to secure mutual advantages. Without this there could be no government, no power to arrest and punish criminals and protect the rights of the citizen and the sanctity of home.

The Order proposed before us affords the utmost freedom and liberty. All things shall be done by common consent, and all the Branches of the Order, throughout all the land, are to be organized by the selection of the wisest, best and most experienced persons in their midst, to form their councils, and to direct their business affairs and the labors of the community, for the best possible good of the whole, and not to the individual advantage of a few, who may be schemers or who may have acquired an education by which they are enabled to over-reach their fellow-men financially.

The grand principle upon which the Gospel of life and salvation is founded and on which Zion is to be built, is brotherly love and good will to man. This was the theme of the angels of God in announcing the birth of the Savior. Hitherto, under our old systems, it has been “every man for himself, and the devil for us all;” but the principle which the Lord proposes is that we should square our lives by a higher and holier one, namely, every one for the whole and God for us all.

Will this Order benefit the rich? Yes, it will afford security for themselves and families and their capital. It is a mutual insurance institution. Will it afford security and protection to the poor and the honest laborer? Yes, it will lay a foundation for wealth and comfort for them, and their families after them. Is it a free school system? It is a mutual education system. Free? Not to the lazy, vicious and wicked, but it is a mutual education system for the good and industrious, who abide in the Order and fulfill the obligations thereof. Who shall be heirs of the common property? Every child who is born in the Order. Heirs to the whole of it. No, nobody will be heir to the whole of it. To what portion of it will they be heirs? Just what they need. Who shall be the judges? Themselves, if they judge correctly; and if they do not, somebody will judge more correctly for them. “Well, shall I surrender my judgment to anybody else?” Of course, you will; we all agree to that, if it must needs be. But he who judges for himself correctly shall not be judged, but he who is unable to judge himself, but covets everything that he sees, and wishes to scatter and destroy what others are seeking to accumulate and preserve, must have a bit put in his mouth and some, who are more sensible, must handle the reins. This is no agrarian doctrine, to level those who are exalted, down to the mean level of those who are in the mire, but it is the Godlike doctrine of raising those who are of low estate and placing them in a better condition, by teaching them economy, and prudence; it is for the strong to foster and bear the infirmities of the weak, for those who possess skill and ability to accumulate and preserve this world’s goods, to use them for the common good, and not merely for their own persons, children and relatives, so as to exalt themselves in pride and vanity over their fellow-men, and sink themselves to ruin by worshiping the God of this world. This is beneath the character of those who profess to be the people of God. We have done that long enough, but the word of God to us is to change our front, and to learn to love our neighbor as ourselves and so cultivate the spirit of the Gospel.

As to the minut[i]ae of the workings of the various Branches of this Order, the details of the business and the relations of life, one meeting of this kind would not suffice to tell, nor could the people comprehend it if we were able to tell it; but it will be revealed to us as we pass along, line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little, and everything necessary will appear in its time and place, and none need be over-anxious to pass over the bridge before they reach it. God does not reveal to us everything at once, for our minds are not prepared to comprehend it. Like children we must have experience as we pass along. One thing is sufficient for us to understand, and that is that this Order has made all nations and peoples who have entered into and practiced it prosperous.

If any one doubts for a moment the success and final triumph of these principles, that doubt is founded only in his own weakness, and in the weaknesses of his fellow-men around him, and the selfishness that is in our natures. If we are determined to make it a success there is no power beneath the heavens that can make it a failure. If we engage in it with full purpose of heart, with faith towards God, and seeking to cultivate confidence towards one another, and are outspoken and frank in all our business relations and intercourse with each other, and do all things by common consent, with a just and honest purpose of soul, there is no power that can hinder our succeeding in our undertaking. But if we are determined to be selfish, and seek to build ourselves up on the weaknesses of our fellows, instead of building up the kingdom of our God, we ought to go down, and the sooner the better. For the last dozen years many of this people have been going on in the way that our fathers and the world generally walk in; and instead of building up Zion, have been after their personal and individual interests. Forty years have passed over us as a people during which we have been trying a little to carry on the work of God; but we have been like the wary trout in the stream, we have been nibbling around the hook, but we have never swallowed the bait. Now the hook is placed before us naked, and we are simply asked the question, “Will you take it or not?” “What, are we going to be caught?” Yes, this is the fear—“We are going to be caught by the wily fisherman—we are going to be enslaved. Has not somebody got an eye on our property? Does not somebody wish to have our horses and carriages, our fine houses, our substance, and the property we have gathered together?” Yes, the Lord has an eye on all this, for it belongs to him. Which of us has anything that does not belong to him? Where have we got that which we possess? Who has given us ability to accumulate and preserve? To whom are we accountable for our talents and gifts, as well as our substance? The Lord has his eye upon all this. Is he anxious about our property? No. This anxiety is in our own breasts, and if we have any idols the sooner we put them away the better. The Lord cares nothing about our houses and lands, our goods and chattels, our gold, silver or raiment, for all upon the earth belongs to him, and at the best it is only something that perishes with the using. He requires us to be faithful in the use of it, for he has said, “He that is not faithful with the unrighteous mammon, who shall commit to him the true riches?” True riches relate to eternity; the riches that relate to this life all perish with the using. Our houses, horses, carriages, clothing, and our gold and silver perish with the using, together with our tabernacles. We look to a glorious resurrection, to a new and enduring earth, to riches that are immortal, to the habitations that shall not pass away, to a glory that is beyond the grave, as the only true riches, which the Gospel enjoins us to look after. “Seek ye first the kingdom of God and its righteousness, and all things else shall be added unto you.” They will be added in God’s own way, and he wishes to show us a better way, and, in order to deal with us as a kind father does with his children, he proposes to enlighten and instruct us, and he will impart to all of his people who will obey his voice the wisdom that is necessary to make them the richest people on the earth. This is the purpose of the Lord concerning Zion and his people—they are to possess this world’s goods in abundance, not to be foolish with them and to destroy themselves and their children, but that they may preserve themselves and their children from falling into the vices and follies of great Babylon. He will rise up in their midst wise counselors to provide for the welfare of the whole.

Will our trading and trafficking with the outside world cease? Of course not. As long as we are in the world, gathering Saints, preaching to the nations and building up Zion, Zion will be as a city set on a hill, which can not be hid. But the Lord proposes to preserve his people as far as possible from the influences of Babylon, and the transactions outside of the Order will be carried on through the Council of the Order; agents will be appointed by the voice of the Order, that what we bring, from abroad may be bought from first hands and in the lowest market, that we may derive the benefits of it, instead of giving the profits to middlemen who are not of us; and what we have for sale we will sell in the best markets, and so enjoy the benefits of our labor, and not by interior competition and underbidding and underselling each other “scatter our ways to strangers,” as we have done in times past. By this combined effort we shall be able to obtain the full market value of our products—the products of the farm, dairy, orchard, vineyard, the products of the woolen and cotton factory, of our shoe shops, and every mechanical appliance, to enable us to procure all labor-saving machinery, by our combined efforts, which men in their individual capacity are not able to do. We shall also be enabled to start new enterprises, and if they do not pay at first, they are bound to pay in the end, if they are necessary adjuncts to the prosperity of society. Our common fund will nourish these infant establishments, instead of individuals failing and breaking down in their vain efforts to build up new enterprises in a new country, as is often the case now. And if funds are needed from abroad to aid us in any general enterprise, we shall have the combined property and credit of the community as a guarantee to capitalists abroad, instead of individuals mortgaging their inheritances to procure money to carry on individual “wild-cat” speculations by which thousands are ruined. If they were operating in a United Order and would submit their enterprises to the candid decision of that Order, many an enterprising man would be saved from foolish ventures and from ruin, and the wise and prudent would receive the necessary encouragement and financial aid, to make their undertakings a success for the benefit of the whole.

Will our merchants be worse off? No, our merchants, those who belong to this Order, will be just as well off as any of the rest of the Order. They will work where they are appointed, go on missions when called, or tan leather, or make hats or wooden shoes, if they are better adapted for that than for standing behind the counter; but if they are best suited to handle the products of the people and to carry on mutual exchanges among ourselves within the Order and with branch Orders and with the outside world, we will appoint them to this labor and service, and hold them to an account of their stewardships, and the results of their transactions go into the common fund. Then they will not be stimulated to avarice, overreaching, lying and deception, to put what they call an honest, but what I call a very dishonest, penny into their pockets. We will endeavor thus, by a union of effort, to take away temptations from our midst to be dishonest, and let the dishonest share the fate of Ananias and Sapphira; but let the virtuous, upright and good be frank and outspoken, and give their sentiments, the witness of the word of truth in their hearts, for the good of the whole. Those who lack business capacity and experience will labor where they can be useful, that the ability of all may be available for the general good.

These are the principles embraced in the instrument we heard read yesterday afternoon. As to these little personal objections that arise in the mind, we shall find that they exist only in the imaginations of our own hearts, arising from our ignorance or a want of proper understanding, and partly from knowing each other too well, and comprehending each other’s selfishness and weaknesses; because of this we are afraid to trust each other. The remedy for this is for every one to set himself to work to better his own condition, first establishing confidence in his own heart between himself and his God, and so deporting himself that he can command the respect and confidence of his brethren and sisters. Every man and every woman should set themselves to do this, and should enter into this Order with a firm determination to do this. Confidence will then soon be restored in our midst. Then every man and every woman will speak the honest sentiments of their hearts, and vote as they feel to do on every question, in the selection of officers and in the transaction of all business, and we will do whatever we do for the general good, according to the light that is in us. Such a people are bound to draw down from the heavens above the revelations of light and truth; they will tap the clouds from above; every man will be a lightning rod to draw electricity from the clouds, in other words, the revelations of light and truth, into their own hearts and minds; they will possess a combined intelligence that will accomplish all they undertake in righteousness, and they will prevail before the Lord and before the world, and will command the respect and honor of the virtuous and good, at home and abroad. Those who refuse to engage in these enterprizes, and to enter into the holy Order, will become the unpopular ones; and after we have once succeeded in this effort, we shall marvel and wonder that we did not enter into it before.

We have been over forty years trying to learn these lessons, and all the time putting them off to a future day, waiting for our children to carry them out; but we shall marvel that we did not rise up and carry them out before. Thousands of Saints have been anxiously waiting and might, perhaps, have entered into this before now; but we have been continually throwing new clay into the machine, drawing new materials from abroad and raising new elements at home, and the elements brought from Babylon has brought Babylon with it, and our habits, customs, notions and individuality have been so prominent, that we could not see the benefits of mutual concessions to secure the mutual advantages and benefits of combined labor.

I am aware that some capitalists will object to the idea of drawing only fifty per cent. of what remains to their credit, if they should conclude to withdraw from the Order. Be this as it may, I can see no principle appertaining to the Gospel and to the building up of Zion, no principle of justice between man and man, which would permit the capitalist to-day to bring his capital into the Order and surrender it to the custody and care of stout hearts and strong arms to protect and preserve it and to increase it by the erection of factories and machinery and buildings and improvements, by the combined labor of the people, and then all the original capital, together with all the dividends, to be left at the disposal of the few capitalists originally composing the firm, and they be permitted, fifty years hence, to get up and walk off with the whole of it, leaving the great mass of the community, that have grown up from infancy, and preserved and insured and made it valuable, without anything but their daily wages, which they have eaten up as they passed along in supporting themselves and their growing families. I say I see no justice in allowing a few capitalists to draw the whole of their original deposits, together with the whole of the dividends and profits which have been made by the labor of the whole community, and I consider the provision which limits that withdrawal to half the original amount and half the dividends both wise and necessary. It is a question in my mind whether we should, in this Order, recognize the right of capital as above that of labor. This is a point which will bear criticism. But I will pass that over now.

There are many objections which will arise in the minds of the people. The enemy will endeavor to throw every possible objection before our minds; but the more we scan it, and the more we seek to understand the principles of this Order, as set before us in this instrument, the more we shall see the wisdom of God manifest therein, and the revelations of light and truth; the more this spirit goes abroad among the people, the more will their hearts be opened and prepared to receive it. I praise God that he has moved upon the heart of his servant Brigham to call this people to “right about face,” that they may enter in at the strait gate, which may God grant we may be able to do in the name of Jesus. Amen.

The Blessings of Eternal Life Attained at the Sacrifice of All Things, etc.

George A. Smith

Discourse by President George A. Smith, delivered at the Adjourned General Conference, held in the New Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Sunday afternoon, May 9, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

The principles which we have presented before us in the plan of salvation require of us an effort, for we are told that if we would have the blessings of exaltation, we must continue unto the end; and, in the Lectures on Faith, contained in the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, we are informed that if we would attain to the blessings of eternal life, we do it at a sacrifice of all things. The principles connected with this law call upon us to study our acts, designs and intentions in life.

We came into the Church in different parts of the world, under the influence of the Spirit of the Almighty, and we gathered here by the aid of our brethren, or by our own efforts. We came to this land to learn the ways of the Lord and to walk in his paths; but we fail to understand or appreciate, altogether, the importance of a strict attention to our faith, and we become negligent and thoughtless, we are anxious to obtain wealth, and there arises among us a scramble, a kind of emulation one with the other, to obtain a greater amount of this world’s goods than our neighbors. On this account many of us neglect to pay our Tithing, notwithstanding we are very anxious to receive the ordinances which are administered in a Temple. The real time to pay Tithing is when we have the means. When we receive money, merchandize or property, if we, in the first instance, go to Bishop Hunter and pay the tenth, making our record square with our faith, we can then use the remainder with a conscience void of offence, and we shall be blessed therein.

Men may commence reasoning on this subject, and say, “We will figure all the year, and if at the end of it we find that we have saved anything, we will pay some Tithing; but if we do not save anything, we think the Bishops ought to pay us something.” The spirit which prompts this feeling is entirely wrong, and those who come to this conclusion will, in the end, feel that if they lose a crop any year they ought to keep back their Tithing for several years after to make up that loss; but the fact is that a Tithing of what we receive from the Lord is due to him, and the residue we are entitled to use according to our best wisdom. The Prophet Malachi says—“Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation. Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.” Jesus said, he that gives a cup of cold water, in the name of a disciple, to one of these little ones, shall in no wise lose his reward; but in order to have the blessing of faith connected with the payment of Tithing, it is necessary to realize the importance of the commandment of God concerning it, for no man can attain to the faith necessary to salvation and eternal life without a sacrifice of all things. Now, if we prefer the things of this world and the pleasures of life to the things of the kingdom of God, we can have our own choice, but, so far as the comparison is concerned, “eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, nor yet hath it entered into the heart of man to conceive,” the glory that is in store for those who keep the commandments of God, and live in accordance with his requirements. If we are to adopt the order of Zion now, it should become in our hearts a cherished desire, an earnest and determined purpose that, in all our actions, we will seek to love our neighbor as ourselves, that we will labor for the good of Zion, and put away selfishness, corruption and false principles.

We have been instructed upon the necessity of economy, of living within ourselves, and of sustaining ourselves by the production of our own hands, yet we carelessly drift in another direction. How often we have been counseled to avoid getting into debt. When the Order of Enoch was organized in Kirtland the brethren were commanded, in the laws, not to get into debt to their enemies, and on a certain occasion it was commanded that we should make it our object to pay all our debts and liabilities, and that we should take measures to avoid the necessity of incurring more. One of the earliest things I can remember in my boyhood was an answer to the question—How to get rich? The answer was—“Live on half your income, and live a great while.” We know how easy it is to live beyond our income, and to go on the credit system. Credit is a shadow, and debt is bondage, and I advise the brethren to realize that the balloon system of credit so general in our country and among ourselves is dangerous in its nature, and it is our duty, at the earliest time in our power, to close up all our liabilities, pay all our debts, and commence living as we go. I would rather walk the streets in a pair of wooden soles that I own and owe no man for, than in the finest morocco that some merchant was presenting a bill to me to pay for; I should, in my estimation, be more of a gentleman and more of an independent man with the wooden soles than with the fine boots, and I would advise our brethren, if necessity requires, to adopt the wooden sole leather in preference to being in debt.

I visited the land where my ancestors lived in America, the graves of three or four generations of them, and I saw on the old farm, still occupied by some distant kinsmen, a shoe shop. Said I—“What are you doing here?” Said they—“Here is where we make our money, we work the farm in the summer, and in the winter we sit down here and earn three or four hundred dollars making shoes.” “Where do you sell them?” “We make them for some houses in Salem and Lynn, that send them to California and the western Territories and sell them there.” Now, brethren, think of this, a man can learn to make a shoe very quick if he has any ingenuity, and many of us spend our time in partial idleness through the winter, and we buy our shoes from manufacturers in the East, when we could just as well make them ourselves. Another bad feature connected with imported shoes is, that when we put them on and walk into the streets, if the weather is wet, our feet are damp very quick, and I believe, as a matter of health as well as economy, that if, in wet weather, we were to adopt the wooden sole, it would save our children from much sickness, and a great many of us from rheumatism, sore throats and coughs, for much of the imported sole leather is spongy, and that holds the water and makes the feet damp and cold, producing sickness; and I am inclined to believe the statement made by the agricultural societies of Europe, that the use of wooden soles for shoes has a tendency to prevent a great many diseases which are incident to the use of leather. But if we are determined to wear leather, if we set ourselves to the work with a will, we can produce as fine leather of every variety, and as fine shoes and almost every other necessary within ourselves as we import, and a great deal better. But we must stop sending away our hides by the car load and must tan them ourselves. We have plenty of workmen who understand the business, and more can be trained, and we shall then not be compelled to ship car-loads of hair from the States for the use of our plasterers, in mixing the lime to finish our walls. This is true political economy.

When I went to St. George last fall, I had a very good pair of boots, made of nice States sole leather, under my feet. The soil of St. George has a cold mineral in it, and although it may be dry and pleasant to walk about, a man wants a thick sole under his feet. I have bled a great many years from a rupture of the left lung which I got while preaching in the streets of London in 1840, and I have suffered a great deal from it, and the moment I would go out to walk on the streets of St. George, a shock, almost like electricity, would strike, through the spongy leather of my boot, from the hollow of my foot to this lung and cause a pain there. I went and got an extra sole put on and a thickness of wax cloth put between the soles, and in this way I wore, all winter, a boot just as stiff in the sole as a clog, and had no rheumatism and escaped cold. This set me to reflecting why I should pay two dollars for those soles, brought from the States, when a piece of cottonwood was just as good, and would answer my purpose just as well. Says one—“Why not wear overshoes?” Who wants the air kept from their feet by wearing a coat of india-rubber, which sweats them and makes them tender? They keep the feet dry, it is true, but for my own part it is not convenient to wear overshoes, and never has been, and on this account I have been compelled to go without. I also observe that some of those who do wear them, if they are not very careful, or if they should happen to forget and step out into the wet without them are almost sure to take cold, and have an attack of rheumatism, especially if they have delicate health. But with us throughout the Territory, I believe it has become almost a financial necessity that we economize our shoe bills. Think of these things and remember that it is within our power to manufacture just as good leather and as much of it, and as good and handsome shoes here as anywhere else, only let us take the time necessary to do it.

The same thing may be said in relation to hats and clothing, and in fact about nine out of every ten articles that we import. One car-load of black walnut brought here from the States, and paid for as a lower class of freight, will probably make half a dozen car loads of furniture, and we have the mechanics who know how to make it up; and if we lack the necessary machinery we can procure it. If we please we can also bring lumber for every variety of furniture that we want, that our mountain lumber will not make. The same rule will also apply to wagons, carriages and agricultural implements. This course will be much better than wasting ourselves by being slaves to others, and paying out hundreds of thousands of dollars for furniture of a not very durable quality, and other articles that we can manufacture ourselves.

With me this is a very important item of religion, and it is time for us to cease importing shoes, clothing, wagons and so many other things, and that we manufacture them at home. This will reduce instead of increasing our expenses. When a man buys imported articles for the use of his family he helps to create difficulties for himself, for by and by the bills begin to come, and bonds and mortgages and all this sort of thing have to be met, and then he begins to worry and stew; but if he used home-made products the means is kept in the Territory, and he has a chance of working at some branch of trade which will in a short time bring it back to him again; whereas if it is sent out of the Territory it helps to impoverish all. Why not retrench? Says one—“I want to wear as good clothes and as fine shoes as anybody else, and I think I should be laughed at if I were to put clogs on.” Well, if they did laugh they could not do a more foolish thing. Why not feel proud and independent of our own high character, that what we have is our own, and we are slaves to nobody? That is my feeling about it. By continually importing we run into debt and cast our ways to strangers, when it is perfectly in our power, if we will do it, to be independent, comfortable and happy, and owe no man anything.

Education of Children, etc.

George A. Smith

Discourse by President George A. Smith, delivered at the Adjourned General Conference, held in the New Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Sunday afternoon, May 10, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

I rise on the present occasion, desiring the faith and prayers of the brethren and sisters that I may be able to address them by the majesty of the Spirit of the Almighty. When we come before the Lord to partake of the Sacrament, in memory of his death and suffering, we witness unto him that we do remember him, that we love one another, and that we are willing to endeavor to do all in our power to fulfill our several duties on the earth.

One of the first and most responsible duties that rest upon us is the education, training and cultivation of the minds of our children. A child learns from us by our examples, the actions or examples of the parents being ever remembered by the children. A pious old deacon who may, by the way, have been a hypocrite, and had two half bushel measures, one to buy, and the other to sell with, may be very sure that his children will be dishonest. So it may be with our children if we do not act before them as becometh Saints; our precepts may be very good, but their effect will not be very powerful unless our examples correspond.

We are more or less careless as to the observance of the Sabbath; and, in consequence of the neglect of the Latter-day Saints in this respect, I feel anxious to stir them up to diligence in attending meetings on the Sabbath and on fast days, and in having their children do the same. I have visited a number of Sunday schools, and I have found that there was a good deal of interest manifested in them, and that much benefit to the rising generation is resulting from spending a couple of hours on the Sabbath in giving them religious or such other instruction as may be necessary to cultivate their minds; and, I wish the Bishops and presiding Elders, on their return to their several Branches, to stir up the minds of the brethren and sisters to the necessity of encouraging the Sunday schools, that they may be interesting and agreeable as well as instructive. Stir up the parents, too, that they may be alive and awake in getting the children ready for school in season, and that punctuality in attendance be encouraged. Endeavor also to induce parents and other elder members of families who can do so, to attend the Sunday schools, that there may be no lack of teachers, for one of the most useful callings for persons who can possibly or reasonably attend to it, is to teach the youth in Sunday schools.

I also advise that the “Juvenile Instructor” be circulated extensively among our children. It is a work calculated to inform their minds on the principles of the Gospel; from its pages they may also gain a knowledge of the history of the Church, as well as a variety of other useful and entertaining information. It is a very useful publication, and the benefits it is capable of conferring upon our young people are numerous and great. While speaking on this subject, I will refer to other papers published by our brethren in these valleys—the “Deseret News,” the “Salt Lake Herald,” “Ogden Junction,” “Provo Times,” and the “Beaver” and “St. George Enterprise,” all of which contain a good deal of information about our home affairs specially, and of events in the world generally. I hope that, in all the Stakes of Zion, the people will manifest a spirit and determination to support papers which are published for their benefit. The “Deseret News,” daily, semi-weekly, and weekly, besides the general news of the world, also contains many of the sermons of President Young and others of the Church authorities, and it should be widely circulated in all the settlements of the Saints. The mails now run to all parts of the Territory, and though we can not boast a great deal about the punctuality of some of them, yet in nearly every settlement a mail comes along once in a while bringing the “Deseret News,” and a man is pretty safe on the main thoroughfares in taking the weekly, and in many locallities [localities] the semi-weekly or daily may be ventured upon.

We must do something more in relation to printing. The Women’s Relief Society are publishing a paper called the “Woman’s Exponent,” which is a very ably edited sheet, and one containing a great deal of information. I am surprised that all the gentlemen in the Territory do not take it. I invite all the Elders, Bishops and presiding officers in the Stakes of Zion, on their return home, setting the example themselves, to solicit all their brethren, and especially the sisters, to become subs[c]ribers to this little sheet, for I am sure that they will be interested in the instruction and information it contains. I will say that we expect in a short time, through the patronage of the brethren and sisters, that the ladies will be able to enlarge this paper, and to extend its influence far and wide.

It has been my privilege to make visits to, and to become acquainted with the Ladies’ Relief Societies in many of the settlements in the Territory, and I am convinced that great good results from the labors of these organizations; and I feel certain that unless the ladies take hold of any movement designed to forward the work of the Lord in the last days, its progress will be tardy. In all parts of the world, when nations are at war, unless the women take an interest in the matter, the war goes on very heavily. I am of the opinion that in the next war between France and Germany, the French will get the best of it. Not but what I have a great opinion of German skill, energy and pluck, but I am satisfied, from traveling and personal observation, that the women of France are thoroughly aroused, and that in the next war between those two nations, the Prussians will have to fight the women of France, and then France will be likely to win.

I say to our sisters of the Relief Societies, be encouraged, meet together and discuss all questions that are calculated to interest or benefit the community, as you have the ability; and as no man can be elected to office in this Territory without the vote of the ladies, make yourselves thoroughly acquainted, not only with the politics of the country, but with every principle of local government that may be advanced, and then, whatever is calculated to benefit the people in their private or domestic circles, you will be enabled to vote intelligently, and to carry it through without difficulty.

We spend a great deal of money in following vain fashions, and in purchasing a great many articles that are useless. These societies, if they choose, can make their own fashions and they can make them according to wisdom, and so as to promote health; a great many of the fashions of the world are calculated to destroy health. A hundred questions connected with domestic economy—housekeeping, cooking, making bread and kindred subjects, that are of importance to the stomach, health and longevity of every man and woman in the Territory may be properly discussed in these Relief Societies, and useful information disseminated. A great many of the women in these valleys have not had good opportunities to become acquainted with the art of cooking, and that is an art which has something to do with every person’s happiness. The example of the ladies, and the influence which they exercise, have a tendency, above all things else, to maintain, create, and preserve good morals. Men are apt to behave themselves in the society of women, and if women act wisely and prudently in guiding and controlling the course and conduct of each other, they will be able, to a great extent, to guide, control, and regulate the morals and the conduct of men. We think, however, that the policy of the Christian world, in throwing the responsibility, so far as morality is concerned, entirely upon the heads of women, is a blunder; the men should be held responsible for their own acts, and when they are guilty of that which is corrupt, low or degrading, they should be looked upon as transgressors and cast aside until, by repentance and uprightness, they prove that they are worthy of confidence.

I have been, from the commencement of the formation of this Territory, more or less identified with its politics. I was a member of the Legislature of Deseret, before Utah Territory was organized, and while it was a provisional government. I was a member of the first Legislature of the Territory, and served twenty years. During that period I was brought in contact with five different sets of federal officers, and I had a pretty good knowledge of some forty-eight or forty-nine judges. They were men sent here, from different parts of the country, to administer the law. They had a general knowledge of politics, and of the law as administered in their own immediate localities. But few of them were of high minds and noble sentiments, and many of them were incapable of occupying, with honor, the high positions they were selected to fill. Our people here in these mountains did not take much pains to acquaint themselves with the politics of the country. We had been five times robbed of all we posses[s]ed. Our leaders had been murdered and we had been expatriated and driven from the United States into these valleys, then a portion of the republic of Mexico, but afterwards acquired by the United States. We were a great way from any other settlement. It took a month, generally, to get a mail, and for about twelve years we had about seven mails a year; and in the latter part of October or about the first of November, portions of the mails for the winter before would be brought in here with ox teams. This was our condition in early days. We did not pay a great deal of attention to politics; we were not very much divided and hence we cared very little about our elections, and did not pay much attention to them; and a good many who came from abroad were so careless that they did not obtain their naturalization papers, although, from time to time, we advised them to attend to this matter; and I now call upon the Bishops and presiding Elders, when they return home, to recommend the foreign brethren who are not naturalized to see to this; and in all localities or districts which are favored with judges who have more respect for the law than for religious bigotry, let the brethren take all pains to get naturalized, that they may have the benefits of the laws of our country, and be permitted to perform any duty required thereby, and be faithful to do so in all cases; and never let an election go by, or any other occasion in which it is important for us to take part, without paying attention to it. This advice is for the ladies as well as for the gentlemen, for every lady of twenty-one years of age, who is a citizen of the United States, or whose husband or father is a citizen of the United States, has a right, under the laws of Utah to vote; and no one need hope to hold office in Utah if the ladies say no.

I wish to call your attention to the Saint George Temple. We have got the foundation of that Temple up to the water table, about eighteen feet from the ground, and a very nice foundation it is. The building is about one hundred and forty-one feet long and about ninety-three feet wide, and when the walls are up they will be about ninety feet high. We have a very fine draught and design. The building is in a nice locality and in a very fine climate, where, all winter, and in fact the whole year, there is almost perpetual spring and summer weather; and when the Temple is completed there will be an opportunity to go there and spend the winter and attend to religious ordinances or enjoy yourselves; and if you want to go there through the summer you can eat as delicious fruits as ever grew out of the earth in any country I believe. As far as I have traveled I have never seen anything in the way of fruit that I thought was superior to that which is produced in St. George. We invite a hundred and fifty of the brethren to volunteer to go down there this summer to put up this building, and to find themselves while they are doing it. We shall call upon the Bishops, presiding Elders, teachers and others from the various stakes of Zion to take this matter in hand when they reach home, and find brethren, if they can, who are willing to go and do this work, so that by Christmas the building may be ready for the roof, that we may, in a very short time, have the font dedicated and the ordinances of the holy Priesthood performed in that place. We appeal to our brethren and sisters in behalf of this St. George Temple. Our brethren in that vicinity are doing all they can to push forward the work, but five or six months’ help from a hundred or a hundred and fifty men is very desirable.

I will invite all the brethren and sisters from the settlements who may visit Salt Lake City this summer to step on to the Temple Block and see what we are doing for the Temple here. See the beautiful stones that have been quarried in the Cottonwood and brought here, every one cut and numbered for its place. And it is the duty of the brethren to call upon the Lord for his blessing upon the work and upon the workmen. I also call upon the Bishops and teachers in all the stakes of Zion, to be on hand and to see that, in the building of this Temple, in the centre stake of Zion in the mountains, we are not under the necessity of involving ourselves in disagreeable liabilities in order to move the work forward. For the last year we have had from sixty to ninety men engaged in cutting stone on this block, and a number of other mechanics to supply them with tools and other necessaries; last summer we had a considerable force of men laying these stones on the walls. In Little Cottonwood canyon we have continually at work a force of from twenty-five to sixty men quarrying granite, and every day, Sundays excepted, two or three car loads of this granite, from ten to twelve tons each load, are brought from the quarry to the Temple Block. It is really a delightful thing, to a person who has never seen it, to go on to the block and see the skillful manner in which our architects and workmen pick up these big stones and pass them all over the building, and lay them in their place to a hair’s breadth. It shows what can be done with a little management, skill and ingenuity.

We earnestly appeal to all Saints, Tithe payers, to donate liberally and punctually for the prosecution of this work. While we employ so many skilled mechanics and other laborers, their families constantly require a supply of not only home products, but of money, and merchandize which costs money, and unless the brethren furnish the means to supply these necessities, we shall be obliged to dismiss many of the workmen. We have already incurred liabilities which press upon us, and we call upon the brethren to supply the means necessary to enable us to maintain our credit and continue the work.

It is the design of the teachers and superintendents of Sunday schools, to get up a children’s musical jubilee. Some songs have been composed, and they are being learned and practiced, and they calculate to assemble some eight or ten thousand children in this building and have a general time of grand musical song. The enterprise is a very laudable one. We do not know when the festival will take place but brother Goddard, the Assistant Superintendent, and a number of others who are interested in Sunday schools are doing all thay [they] can, and we ask the co-operation of the Bishops, presidents, teachers and brethren and sisters in the several Stakes of Zion to take a part in it, and make it one of the finest festivals of the kind ever held. The progress of our Sabbath schools will be encouraged, and the elevating tendency of music may be appreciated by all who participate therein. We ask our brethren to act wisely and prudently in carrying this matter out, that it may be done in such a manner as shall be satisfactory; and if a little means is necessary on the part of parents or friends let it not be wanting. In the course of my year’s travel I visited schools in various parts of the world, but I found none superior to our own. I think that ours compare favorably with them, and in many respects they are superior to most that I visited, and I hope that a spirit to encourage them will be developed.

I wish to see the common school system encouraged as far as possible. The brethren in many settlements are forming Branches of the United Order, and as soon as they get fairly to work they will be able to introduce improved systems of teaching. I notice, in visiting our settlements, more or less carelessness in relation to schools. Very little pains will make a school-room quite comfortable, and I wish to stir up parents to the importance of visiting the schools and seeing what their children are doing, and what the teachers are doing, find out whether the little fellows are sitting on comfortable seats; whether they put a tall boy on a low seat, or a boy with short legs on a high seat, making him humpbacked. The happiness and prosperity of the whole life of a child may be a good deal impaired while attending school through a blockhead of a teacher not knowing enough to get a saw and sawing the legs of the seats his pupils sit upon, so as to make them comfortable. It is the duty of the people to look after the comfort of their children while at school, and also to procure proper books for them; and to see that the schools are provided with fuel, that in the cold weather they may be warm and comfortable. In a new country I know there are a good many disadvantages to contend with, but I feel anxious that nothing, within our power to promote the welfare of our children, should be neglected. There is no need, however, to send to the States to buy school benches. There is plenty of timber in these mountains, and a few days’ work properly applied will seat any school room perfectly comfortable, for we can make just as good benches in this country as anywhere else, it is only a question of time and attention. Of course if we can do no better, send and buy; but in order that we may have means to buy what we are forced to buy, it is necessary that we exercise prudence and economy and supply our own wants as far as possible. The wholesale Co-operative Store here imports probably five million dollars’ worth of goods per annum. One half of these goods could be produced at home with our own labor; it is only a question of time and management to do it. If we were to produce one-half of these goods we should be in easy circumstances all the time, and should have plenty to buy everything we wanted to buy. We could also produce many things to sell; but by purchasing, in such immense quantities, articles that we can make ourselves, we impoverish ourselves all the time, hence we advise our brethren and sisters, in all their councils, meetings, orders, associations, and relief and retrenchment societies, to take into account every question where economy can be exercised and prudence observed, and where we can save a dollar instead of spending one let us do it, for by taking this course we can lay a foundation for permanent comfort at home, and this will prevent us from being dependent upon abroad. This is a part of my religion and this I shall continue to preach.

In relation to this United Order, I will say to those who are entering it, if questions arise that trouble you and that you wish to have explained; or if anything should arise upon which you wish for advice or counsel, if you will write your queries and send them along here to the President’s office, we will answer them, and show you that the whole affair can be carried out with perfect ease. Only let this people act with one heart and one mind, as the Nephites did, and success is certain; and in a short time a great many will wonder, as some in the southern settlements have already expressed it, “Why did we not unite before?” I feel satisfied that the spirit which has been manifested here and elsewhere on this subject, is the same spirit which bore testimony to you, when you went down into the waters of baptism, that this was the work of God; and when we have this spirit in our hearts we can move forward with joy and thanksgiving, and can accomplish that which is required of us.

I wish to return my thanks to our musicians—those who direct and all who have participated in the musical exercises of our Conference. I have enjoyed them. I have visited many parts of the world, and have been to see their organs and to hear their music; but I have heard none with which I am so well pleased as with our own. There is something sweet and lovely here, and I feel that the Spirit of the Lord has warmed the hearts and inspired the souls of those who have made melody for us during the Conference. I pray that God may bless them, that he may enlighten their minds, enliven their souls, and make their songs songs of glory for ever. Amen.

General Doniphan’s Connection with the Early History of the Church, etc.

George A. Smith

Discourse by President George A. Smith, delivered in the New Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Sunday afternoon, May 24, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

About two days since the daily papers announced the arrival, in this city, of General A. W. Doniphan, of Liberty, Clay County, Missouri. This circumstance brought to my mind incidents thirty-six years passed by, to which I shall briefly refer on the present occasion. There are few men whose names have been identified with the history of our Church, with more pleasant feelings to its members, than General Doniphan. During a long career of persecution, abuse and oppression characters occasionally present themselves like stars of the first magnitude in defence of right, who are willing, notwithstanding the unpopularity that may attach to it, to stand up and protest against mob violence, murder, abuse, or the destruction of property and constitutional rights, even if the parties who are being thus abused, robbed, murdered or trampled under foot have the unpopular name of “Mormons.” The incident of General Doniphan exercising his influence by which means he prevented the murder of Joseph and Hyrum Smith and some other Elders, who had had a mock trial by court-martial, in the State of Missouri, some thirty-six years ago, is familiar to the minds of all the Latter-day Saints who are acquainted with the history of that period, and there is one man in the Territory who was present on the occasion, that is Timothy B. Foote, of Nephi, who witnessed the court-martial. It was represented to Joseph Smith, by a man known among our people as Colonel Hinkle, that Major General Lucas and certain other parties wished to have an interview with him. In the vicinity of the town of Far West there was at that time a large body of armed men, under the orders of the Governor of Missouri, but temporarily under the command of General Lucas, of Jackson County, Mo., who was the ranking officer. It is understood by us that Hinkle had deceived Joseph Smith and the brethren with the idea that the interview was to be of a peaceful and consultory character; but when they came, as they supposed, to hold the interview, they were taken prisoners, tried by a court-martial and sentenced to be shot; the execution, however, was prevented by the protest of General Doniphan, who, at that time, was commander of a brigade, composed, I believe, of the militia of the County of Clay, and who declared that the execution of that sentence would be cold blooded murder.

It was not long after this that General Clark, who had been appointed by the Governor to this command, arrived and took command of this militia. General Atchison was the ranking officer, being the general of a division on the north side of the river, commanding a division containing, I think, six counties, but he was superseded by the appointment of Clark. If I remember right there were as many as thirteen thousand men ordered out, and there were probably five or six thousand collected together on the ground, their object being to expel the Latter-day Saints from the State of Missouri.

The number of Latter-day Saints at that period is not accurately known, but there were, I suppose, in the neighborhood of ten or twelve thousand. The settlements had been rapidly formed. They had occupied the County of Caldwell when there were only seven families in it. A party of Elders visited Caldwell County to look for a location. On their arrival they fell in with these seven families, who were living in log cabins and had made very little improvements. They said the country was a worthless, naked prairie, there was very little timber in it, and, their business being bee-hunting, they had hunted all the bees out of the woods, and they wanted to go somewhere else, as they learned there was better bee-hunting and more honey to be obtained up Grand River; and within an hour after the arrival of the first of these Elders, every one of the seven men had sold their places and received their pay, congratulating themselves on their good fortune in leaving a country where the taking of wild honey had ceased to be a paying business, and there was not a family, other than Latter-day Saints, residing in the county. A good many of our people were settled in Ray County, a few in Clay, and some in Livingstone, Davies, Clinton and Carroll. I understand that three hundred and eighteen thousand dollars had been paid to the United States for lands in the State of Missouri, the titles of which were held by Latter-day Saints. The Order of Governor Boggs exterminated these people from the State. To be sure they owned their lands, and they were industrious and law-abiding. They were increasing rapidly and making vast improvements. The city of Far West had several hundred houses, and other towns and villages were springing up. United firms were being organized, which were putting into cultivation very extensive tracts of land in addition to the large amount already brought under improvement.

In consequence of the influence exerted by General Doniphan, General Lucas hesitated to execute the sentence of his court-martial, and he delivered Joseph Smith and his associates into the charge of General Moses Wilson, who was instructed to take them to Jackson County and there put them to death. I heard General Wilson, some years after, speaking of this circumstance. He was telling some gentlemen about having Joseph Smith a prisoner in chains in his possession, and said he—“He was a very remarkable man. I carried him into my house, a prisoner in chains and in less than two hours my wife loved him better than she did me.” At any rate Mrs. Wilson became deeply interested in preserving the life of Joseph Smith and the other prisoners, and this interest on her part, which probably arose from a spirit of humanity, did not end with that circumstance, for, a number of years afterwards, after the family had moved to Texas, General Wilson became interested in raising a mob to do violence to some of the Latter-day Saint Elders who were going to preach in the neig[h]borhood, and this coming to the ears of Mrs. Wilson, although then an aged lady, she mounted her horse and rode thirty miles to give the Elders the information. Year before last when I was in California, attending the State Fair, I met with a son of Mr. Wilson: he was president of an agricultural society, and was attending the fair, and I named this circumstance to him. He told me that his mother deeply deprecated the difficulties with the Mormons, and did all she could to prevent them.

You can readily see from what I have said that our community, at that time, was very handsomely situated. The poorest man in it, apparently, owned his forty acres of land, while some of the richer had several sections. Farms had been opened, and prosperity seemed to smile upon the people everywhere. Mills were built, machinery was being constructed, and everything seemed to be going on that could be desired to make a community prosperous, wealthy and happy, when suddenly, in consequence of the exterminating order issued by Lilburn W. Boggs, and executed by General Clark, and those under his command, the people were driven from the State. If we would renounce our faith we could have the privilege of remaining, but we were told pointedly that we must hold no prayer meetings, no prayer circles, no conferences, and that we must have neither Bishops nor Presidents, and that if we indulged in any of these forbidden luxuries the citizens would be upon us and destroy us. A very few accepted the conditions and remained, and I believe that, to this day, one or two families occupy their inheritances who then renounced their faith.

This people landed in Illinois destitute. Most of their animals had been plundered from them during the difficulties, and, to use a comparative expression, they arrived in that State almost naked and barefoot. They were, however, a very industrious people, and they immediately went to work; anywhere and everywhere that they could find anything to do their hands laid hold upon it, and prosperity very soon began to smile upon them. Joseph Smith was kept in prison during the winter, but in the spring he and several of his fellow prisoners, among them Bishop Alexander McRae of the 11th Ward, escaped and made their way to the State of Illinois.

Our people had a very singular idea of justice and right; they supposed, having paid their money to the United States for their lands, having actually purchased and received titles for them, that it was the business of the United States to protect them thereon; having little acquaintance with law they entertained the somewhat wild idea that that was no more than justice on the part of the Government. Of course, the government could only be expected to protect them against any adverse titles that might arise; but so far as protecting them from mobs or from illegal violence from the State in which they lived, from oppression from those in authority, or from marauders who might burn their houses, or murder them and ravish their wives, this was no part of the business of the United States; but in their lack of knowledge on these subjects they fancied that the United States should protect them on their lands, hence Joseph Smith and several of his brethren went directly to Washington, carrying the applications of some ten thousand persons, and asked the Government to protect them in the possession of their lands and in their rights, and to restore them to their homes. They had an interview on the subject with Mr. Van Buren, at that time President of the United States, and the answer that he gave has become almost a household word. Said he—“Gentlemen, your cause is just, but we can do nothing for you.” Joseph accordingly returned to his friends in the western border of Illinois, and they commenced purchasing lands in the vicinity of Nauvoo, and they laid out and built a city and remained there.

This occurred in the Spring of 1839, and Joseph remained there until the Summer of 1844, during which time he had several very gr[i]evious law-suits, which arose out of attempts on the part of the authorities of Missouri to carry him back to that State. He was arrested several times, and had one trial, and was discharged on habeas corpus in the circuit court, before Judge Stephen A. Douglas; one trial, and discharged on habeas corpus before Judge Pope, United States judge in the district of Illinois; and one trial before the municipal court of Nauvoo. These several trials cost a great deal of money and a great deal of time, and were a very discouraging feature in the progress of the settlements in that vicinity, though the industry and enterprise of the people were such that they purchased a large portion of the lands in that county and in adjoining counties. They laid out and built the city of Nauvoo, containing some twelve thousand inhabitants, and they were building a Temple and making other improvements, when Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum were murdered, which took place on the twenty-seventh of June, 1844.

I will say in relation to the progress of the work, that missionaries, among them the Twelve Apostles, had been sent abroad to preach, and a great many people had received the Gospel. The Apostles took their departure directly from the re-commencing of the foundation of the Temple in the city of Far West, on the 26th of April, 1839. They went on a mission to Europe for about two years, baptizing some seven thousand persons, and laying a foundation for the gathering from the old world, which has continued up to the present time. The circumstances connected with the death of Joseph and Hyrum Smith were such as to impress upon their enemies even, the disgrace inflicted upon the State by their murder, and upon the world the importance, of their mission. The governor of the State pledged himself, when they gave themselves up, that they should be protected and have a fair trial, but he placed them in the hands of men, who, he was assured by many, were their enemies, and who would murder them if they had the power. Joseph Smith had been brought before legal tribunals forty-seven times, and had in every instance been acquitted. Everything in the shape of a vexatious law suit that could be trumped up against him had been, and in this instance he was arrested on the affidavit of a man, whose word would not have been taken at a saloon in Carthage for a glass of grog, who swore that he was guilty of treason, and he was thrown into prison, and murdered while being detained waiting for an examination. The governor, in a communication to the Elders in Nauvoo, said that the people felt that it was very wrong that he should be murdered in that way, but the great mass of them was very glad that he was dead; and I have reason to believe that this feeling was caused by religious prejudice, which arose from the fact that he came preaching what was considered a new doctrine, which attacked all the hireling priests and religious crafts, and offered free, to all people, a religion, plain and simple and in accordance with the Bible, and which, if accepted, would have a tendency to throw a large portion of the hireling clergy of the age out of employment, or compel them to do as the Apostles did in the days of Jesus—preach the Gospel without purse and scrip. Vexatious law-suits, mob violence, tar and feathers, and finally, bloodshed were successively adopted in hopes of stopping this religion, and it was believed by those who regarded “Mormonism” as a wild theory, that the death of Joseph would scatter the people and destroy their faith in the work. They did not realize that he had laid the foundation of a living, truthful organization, which would be likely to increase the faster the more it was persecuted. But so it was, for the people continued to gather, and the public buildings—Temple and Nauvoo House—were being pushed forward more rapidly than ever, and when this was ascertained, there was an organization formed which expelled the people from the State.

The authorities of the Church at Nauvoo being aware of this combination, petitions were sent to the government of the United States, and also to the governor of every State in the Union, asking each one to give us an asylum in his State. The governor of Arkansas gave us a respectful answer, all the rest treated our petition with silent contempt.

In September, 1845, the mob commenced burning houses, and they continued burning in different parts of the settlements, mostly in Hancock County, until they burned one hundred and seventy-five houses. The governor and authorities of the State were notified, and finally the sheriff of the County took a posse, mostly Latter-day Saints, and stopped the house-burning. The instant this was done the people of the nine adjoining counties rose up and said—“You ‘Mormons’ must leave the county or you ‘Mormons’ must die.” They then made an agreement that we should have time to move away and dispose of our property, and that vexatious law-suits and mob violence should cease. This we kept most faithfully, but so far as they were concerned the agreement was never observed, mob violence continued, house burnings and murders occurred occasionally, vexatious law-suits were renewed; and before the remnant of the people were permitted to get out of the county they were surrounded by armed mobs, as many as eighteen hundred in a single body, and cannonaded out of their houses.

The people thus driven commenced a journey to seek the home where we now reside. The white settlements extended sixty or seventy miles west of the Missouri River, Keosauqua was the most western one. From that place we made the roads, and bridged the streams, some thirty in number, across Iowa, to Council Bluffs, arriving there in June, 1846. The people who started on this journey started under the most forlorn circumstances. They left their houses, lands, crops, and everything they had if they could get a yoke of cattle, wagons without iron tires, carts, or anything of which they could make an outfit, and commenced a journey to hunt a home somewhere where so-called Christians would not be able to deprive them of the right to worship God according to the dictates of their consciences, a right which is actually more dear than life itself.

I think between thirteen and fourteen hundred miles of road were made, though we occasionally followed trappers’ trails, and on the 24th of July, 1847. President Young led the pioneer party—numbering one hundred and forty three men—on to this ground, then a portion of Mexican Territory and one of the most desolate, barren looking spots in the world, and dedicated it to the Most High, that we might once more find an asylum where liberty could be enjoyed. We should most probably have reached this place before we did, but the United States, the year before, invited our camps to send five hundred men to aid them in the war with Mexico, which they did, and they were mustered into service on the 16th of July, 1846, and made the route through from New Mexico to the Pacific coast.

It is a remarkable fact in history, that while these five hundred Latter-day Saints, mustered into service at Council Bluffs, were bearing the American flag across the desert, from New Mexico to the Pacific Coast, a march of infantry characterized by General Cook as unparalleled in military annals, the remnant of their families in Nauvoo were surrounded by eighteen hundred armed men and cannonaded, and driven across the river into the wilderness, without shelter, food or protection, in consequence of which very many of them lost their lives.

Our friends pass through here and they say—“What a beautiful city you have got! What beautiful shade trees! What magnificent fruit trees, what grand orchards and wheat fields! What a splendid place you have got!” When the pioneers came here there was nothing of the kind, and a more dry and barren spot of ground than this was then could hardly be found. Still the little streams were running from the mountains to the Lake. We knew nothing, then, about irrigation, but the streams were soon diverted from their course, to irrigate the soil. For the first three years we had but little to eat. We brought what provisions we could with us, and we eked them out as well as we could by hunting over the hills for wild segoes and thistle roots. There was very little game in the mountains, and but few fish in the streams, and hence we had but a short allowance of food, and for three years after our arrival there was scarcely a family which dared to eat a full meal. This was the condition in which this settlement was commenced. There was no intercourse except with Western Missouri, and it was ten hundred and thirty-four miles to the Missouri river, if we struck it at the mouth of the Platte, where Omaha is now; and our supplies, which were generally brought, by way of that place, were all purchased in Western Missouri.

In 1850 a sufficient crop was raised here to supply the inhabitants with food, but previous to that time we had divided our scanty supplies with hundreds and thousands of emigrants, who drifted in here in a state of starvation while on their way to California, for the discovery of the gold mines there had set the world almost crazy. Many people started on the Plains without knowing how to outfit or what to do to preserve their supplies, and by the time they reached here their outfits would be completely exhausted. We saved the lives of thousands who arrived here in that condition, many of them our bitter enemies, and we aided them on their way in the best possible manner that we could.

There are several incidents which occurred here in early times which, to us, were miraculous. The first year after our arrival the crickets in immense numbers came down from the mountains and destroyed much of the crops. The people undertook to destroy them, and after having done everything they could to accomplish this object, they gave it up for a bad job; then the gulls came in immense numbers from the lakes and devoured the crickets, until they were all destroyed, and thus, by the direct and miraculous intervention of Providence, the colony was saved from destruction.

While crossing the Plains we had to form in companies of sufficient size to protect ourselves against the Indians, there being from fifty to a hundred men in each company. In these companies existed our religious organization, and we also had a civil organization, by which all the difficulties that arose in the companies were settled; and then a militia organization, composed of ablebodied men, whose duty it was to guard the camps from attacks by Indians, and from accidents. We had our meetings every Sabbath, at which the Sacrament was administered; we had days also set apart for washing, and occasionally we had a dance, and our travels were so regulated that the cultivation, enjoyment and associations of society were experienced almost as much as when living together in a settled and well regulated community.

When we started on our journey we knew very little about Indians, but we exercised towards them such a spirit of justice, and such vigilant watchfulness, that we lost very little, and suffered very little on account of difficulties with them during the many years that we were crossing these plains.

Before we left Nauvoo we had covenanted, within the walls of our Temple, that we would, with one heart and one mind, abide by each other, and aid one another to escape from the oppressions with which we were surrounded, to the extent of our influence and property, and just as soon as the brethren were able they formed a perpetual emigration fund in Salt Lake City, and in 1849 Bishop Hunter, with five thousand dollars in gold, was sent back with instructions to use that and what other means he could gather in helping those to come here who were not able to come before; and from year to year this work has continued, being a grand system of brotherly love and united co-operation. In a few years after reaching here we sent a hundred teams back to the frontiers, each team being a wagon and four yoke of oxen or six mules or horses; and as we increased in strength, we sent annually two hundred, three hundred, four hundred, five hundred, and finally six hundred, to bring home those who wished to settle in these valleys; and even at the present time, our system of emigration has been extended across the sea, to gather all who wish to gather with the Saints. There are many thousands of people in these valleys who, had it not been for the organization of the Latter-day Saints and the kind and fatherly care of President Brigham Young, would never have owned a foot of land, or any other property, but they would have been dependent all their lives upon the will of a master for very precarious subsistence.

Our plan of settlement here was entirely different from that we had adopted in any other country in which we had ever lived. The first thing, in locating a town, was to build a dam and make a water ditch; the next thing to build a school house, and these schoolhouses generally answered the purpose of meeting houses. You may pass through all the settlements, from north to south, and you will find the history of them to be just about the same—the dam, the water ditch, then the school house and the meeting house. Crops were put in, trees were planted, cabins were built, mills were erected, fields were enclosed, and improvements were made step by step. This Territory is so thoroughly a desert that unless men irrigate their land by artificial means they would raise comparatively nothing. The settlements at the present time stretch some five or six hundred miles, extending into Arizona on the south and into Idaho on the north.

We have had some difficulty with the Indians, resulting principally from the interference of outsiders. Those of you who have read the history of John C. Fremont’s journey through Western Arizona, may remember that he gives an account of some of his party killing several of the native Piute Indians. From that time the war seems to have commenced between the Indians and the whites. Some of you may also remember the declaration, in regard to the Indians, made by Mr. Calhoun, one of the early governors of New Mexico. He informed the government that the true policy in regard to the Digger and Piute tribes, in the western part of the Territory, which then embraced Arizona and portions of Utah, was to exterminate them, that it was utterly useless ever to attempt to civilize them, or to do anything else but exterminate them. This was the policy adopted by a great many travelers who passed through, and when they saw an Indian, the feeling was to shoot him. This was especially the case in the district of country now comprised in the southern portions of this Territory and the western part of Arizona.

When we came into the country our motive was to promote peace with the Indians, to deal justly with them and to act towards them as though they were human beings, and so long as we were permitted to carry out our own policy with them we were enabled to maintain peace, and there were but few instances in which difficulties occurred. A band of men, rowdies, from Western Missouri, on the way to the mines, shot some Snake squaws and took their horses, up here on the Malad. This aroused the spirit of vengeance in the Indians, and they fell upon and killed the first whites they found, and they happened to be “Mormons” who were engaged in building a mill on the northern frontier, just above Ogden. This difficulty, of course, had to be arranged, and a good many circumstances of this kind, at various times, have made it difficult to get along without having a muss with the indians.

Again, we had people among us who were reckless in their feelings, and who were not willing always to be controlled and to act wisely and prudently. All these things considered, when we realize that we always had four frontiers, and that we were about a thousand miles from any white settlement in any direction, that the Indians were on every side of us, and many of them very wild and savage, it is perfectly wonderful that we have had as little difficulty with them as we have. But the United States, in sending agents here, have frequently been not altogether fortunate in their selection, and in some instances have not sent very good men. Some who have been sent have been very good men, but they were totally ignorant of the business of dealing with, controlling or promoting peace with the Indians. This, of course, has been more or less detrimental to the settlements, and it has cost them a great deal to supply the natives with food and to aid them in getting along, for it is much cheaper to feed the Indians than to fight them. But the general feeling among the Indians is, that as far as the “Mormons” are concerned, they desire to deal with them in a spirit of justice and friendship. There is now little difficulty except from distant Indians, and we sometimes think that white men, perhaps, have employed Indians to plunder ranches and drive off cattle four or five hundred miles and sell them. Some instances of this kind may have occurred, but we have got along wonderfully well.

The people here have shown a vast amount of enterprise in the construction of the roads through the Territory. Strangers who come here run down to this city, go down to Provo and up to Logan, and to various other places on the little branches of our railroad system; but if they were to travel through these mountains and extend their investigations into the valleys, which are well worthy the attention of any traveler for their beauty, they would find that in many places they are so rugged that it is almost a wonder there were ever men enough in the country to make the roads. Then the telegraph wires have been extended some twelve hundred miles through a number of the settlements, north and south; these wires have sometimes been used to prevent the plunder of the ranches by the Indians. From year to year we are extending our railroad system. We have had no encouragement from the General Government in relation to railroads; we have never been permitted even to have the right of way, by act of Congress, over a foot of ground, until we have occupied it with a railroad for a year or two, and sometimes not then; and we are extending our railroad system without any aid from Congress or any other source, but our own ingenuity and means, and that of our friends.

We are doing all we can to unite our brethren to co-operate in the building of factories, in the construction and establishment of machinery of various kinds, in commercial operations, in the building of railroads, the enclosing of farms, and in every branch of business possible we are endeavoring to unite the people in order to save labor, economize, and produce within ourselves as many articles as we possibly can that we need to consume, and some to sell, for our history for the past few years has proved that we have traded too much—we have bought more merchandize than the products of the country would justify, and a system of manufacturing is very important, and our people have constructed some very fine mills for the manufacture of woolen and other goods.

While we are tracing, for the consideration of our friends, our progress, we here say that we have had very little encouragement from the outside. Our mines were worthless in this country until the railroad was built. In 1852, we presented to Congress, by our Delegate, Dr. Bernhisal, a petition for a railroad across the continent. Members of Congress then ridiculed the idea as being a hundred years ahead of the age. Our Delegate invited his friends to come and see him when the road was constructed, and some of them have done so. The memorial was presented six or eight times, being repeated session after session, before any steps were taken by Congress towards the construction of the road, and it was finally completed much earlier than it would have been had it not been for the co-operation of the people of this Territory, who made the road-bed for four hundred miles over the worst part of the route, and, also furnished a good deal of business for the road to do when it was finished.

As soon as the railroad was completed mines here, containing lead, with a small per cent. of silver, became valuable. They were not worked before. Of course we worked them a little when we wanted a little lead, but the silver mines, as they are termed now, were not worth a dollar then. But as soon as the great railroad and our branch lines were completed the mining property of the country became valuable. It would have seemed that a wise government would have encouraged such enterprises, but this has not been the policy of the General Government towards Utah. They have seemed to think that all that was necessary was to send governors and judges, and to pick the most bigoted men they could find to fill these positions; though I must say that, during the twenty-four years that we have been a Territory, we have had many very excellent men sent here, including very good governors, and very good judges, and some who, I think, would have been better employed in other callings. It is really an unfortunate circumstance to pick up men and send them to any country, to occupy important offices, who are totally unacquainted with the country and who have no interest in it, and whose prejudices are against the people• The better policy is the one announced in the Declaration of Independence, that, in relation to these United States, the consent of the governed should be had. This would be a better policy, more republican and more agreeable, but we seem to be a special people, and, of course, acts have to be performed for our special case.

There is one ground of complaint that is alleged against us here, and that is, we believe in a plurality of wives. A great many men and women have practiced this principle rigidly, in all good faith; and until we can find some man who can show us a single passage in either the Old or New Testament, that actually prohibits it, we feel justified in following the examples of Prophets, Patriarchs, and holy men, fathers of the faithful, believing that if it were right in their case it can not be wrong in ours. We are told that the Old Testament sets forth such an example, but that the New Testament condemns it, for that the Savior did it away. The only question I would ask in reference to this subject is—If the Savior did away with plural marriage, why didn’t he say so? If the Apostles put it down why did they not tell us of it? In the last two chapters of the Bible we have an account of the Holy City, the New Jerusalem, the gates of which we are told are to be named after the twelve sons of four wives by one father; and if we enter the gates of that city we face this polygamy, and if we can not face this polygamy we cannot enter the gates into the city. So we understand the New Testament. On account of our belief in and practice of this Scriptural doctrine, extraordinary legislation has been asked against us, that our lives, liberty, property and pursuit of happiness may be at the control of four or five individuals. This is the extreme of folly.

In considering this subject [subject], let us ask where, in all the world, has a Territory been settled under as many disadvantages as this? Where have a hundred and fifty thousand people been collected together and exhibited more order, and given proof of more industry and prosperity under the circumstances than we have? Nowhere. Brigham Young, as President of the Church and leader of the people, from the death of Joseph Smith to the present time, through the influence that he has exercised with his brethren and friends throughout the world, has been able to bring thousands of people from America and other nations, and to locate them in these valleys and put them in possession of happy homes, and to make thriving, flourishing and prosperous communities. “By their fruits ye shall know them.” Then, the true policy is to leave men to the enjoyment of their religion, to the enjoyment of the holy Gospel as they may receive it, extending liberty, peace, good order and happiness to all. I believe to-day there is no Territory so lightly taxed and, with all the drawbacks, none so well governed as this. It is true that since the railroad has come here there has drifted in a population in favor of sustaining grog-shops. I notice that in the last week a petition has been signed by four thousand ladies, asking the City Council to shut up the drinking hells. These institutions are a portion of civilization that has followed the railroad, and that would have caused astonishment here a few years ago. I wish the City Council would grant the petition of the ladies; I suppose they may be restrained by a decision of a court which claims to question their jurisdiction; but I have no doubt the City Council will shut up these hells if it is in their power, consistent with the relations that exist between the Territorial authorities and those of the United States. But I am ashamed of our Congressmen, I am ashamed of our judges, I am ashamed of our federal authorities for fastening upon a people such a system of drunkenness, licentiousness and debauchery, while they are making such a terrible howl over a man who may have two wives, and who labors hard for their support, and for the education of their children, and acknowledges them honorably before the world. Everybody to his taste.

When Mr. Morrill, of Vermont, the author of what is termed the anti-polygamy bill of 1862, told me that he would not care anything about plurality of wives if it were not in the United States, and he was afraid that Vermont was partly responsible for it, I told him that they had a system of licensing prostitution in Vermont. I, however, should raise no objection to that, but I felt myself disgraced and ashamed because I was associated with a State that licensed such a system as that; and that if I could put up with Vermont, he could put up with Utah, that was no more than fair, it was shake for shake.

I heard it stated, or read, not long since, that a hundred thousand infanticides annually occur on Manhattan Island. That is a most horrible state of affairs if it is half true, or quarter true. Can nothing be done to change this system? I will refer my friends to the pamphlet published by a very learned minister, Rev. Doctor Tood, of Pittsfield, Mass., showing the spirit of death, corruption, licentiousness, and murder that exists, even in the churches among professing Christians in Massachusetts and other parts of New England. I felt not a little surprised to go back into the neighborhood where I was raised, where they used to have fifty scholars annually, to find that they were borrowing one or two from another neighborhood to make out fifteen, so that they could draw the public money. There were as many houses in the neighborhood as formerly, and a few more, new ones, had been built; there were also more families in the neighborhood, but they had stopped having children. I, as an American citizen, feel myself disgraced to be associated with any community who have adopted these expedients, at the same time I do not expect, under any circumstances, ever to undertake to interfere with their local regulations, and I simply ask my fellow men to give us the same opportunity.

The Lord has blessed us with many children, and there is no Latter-day Saint, who has an abiding faith in the Gospel and in the great command which God first gave to the children of men, to multiply and replenish the earth, but what rejoices in them, and regards them as a blessing from on high; and nobody in the mountains that I know of has ever complained of the number of children, except some of our friends up here in Idaho. When they ran the southern line of Idaho, it was found that several settlements and parts of three counties, before then supposed to be in Utah, were in that Territory. The people of Idaho have a school law and a school fund, and the most that had been done before with this fund was to give it to the officers; but with the addition of the “Mormon” settlements to the Territory, there was an addition of several thousand “Mormon” children, and they were included in the school report. The officers said—“This cannot be, this must be a humbug, there cannot be anything like this number of children;” but when they came to investigate and count noses they found it verily true, and there were “Mormon” people raising hearty, hale little fellows to walk over these mountains and make them blossom like the rose.

I remember once, in traveling through the State of Indiana, encountering a gentleman who called himself Professor Jones, connected with a university there. He asked me a great many questions about our system in the mountains, and wanted to know how we did this and how we did that. I explained it to him as correctly as I could. I traveled with him a day or two, and he kept asking questions and making notes. When we parted he said he was very much surprised, he had supposed that our system was one of immorality, but he had learned to the contrary. He did not pretend to say anything about its justness and correctness; of course he did not sympathize with it, but one thing was sure, said he, “If you continue the course you are now pursuing, you will produce a set of men in those mountains who will be able to walk the rest of mankind under their feet.” I suppose, like enough, he may be one of the men who would like to proscribe us now. I know this, if the reports of learned men are true, the course now being pursued by a great many of our Christian friends in the East, will, in a few generations, wipe out the race of ‘76 and give the country into the hands of strangers. It is time that somebody was fulfilling the great command of God, to multiply and replenish the earth, and put away licentiousness, and labor for the up-building and welfare of the human race.

Men take up “Mormonism,” and they say it is a humbug. There is where they make a mistake. My friends, the Gospel, as preached by the Latter-day Saints, is true. “Mormonism” is no humbug. Joseph Smith was a true Prophet; he revealed a true religion, and all attempts to destroy it will prove vain. I bear this testimony, I know this to be true, and I warn my fellow-men to receive this faith, and to repent and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. Repent of your sins and be baptized for their remission, and receive the laying on of hands, that you may enjoy the gift of the Holy Ghost, for that Spirit will rest upon you if you receive and obey this Gospel with full purpose of heart. Then add to your faith virtue, to your virtue knowledge, to your knowledge temperance, to your temperance patience, to your patience godliness, to your godliness brotherly kindness, to your brotherly kindness charity, and if these things be and abound in you, you will neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior. Jesus Christ. You will know these things for yourselves, and you will testify, as I testify, that you know this work is the work of God.

May God enable us to do so, is my prayer in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Interest Manifested Relating to Temporal Affairs, etc.

Orson Pratt

Discourse by Elder Orson Pratt, delivered in the New Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Sunday afternoon, June 14, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

There seems to be at the present time a great deal of interest manifested among the Latter-day Saints, and even among those who are connected with our Church, in regard to some instructions that have been imparted to the Latter-day Saints in relation to their temporal affairs. The instructions which have been imparted, and which the people are, in some measure, receiving, are comparatively new in their estimation, that is, it is supposed they are new, and something which we, in times past, have not practiced. But if we appeal to the revelations of God, we shall find that no new thing has been required of us. It is generally termed, however, by Latter-day Saints, the New Order. You hear of it in all parts of the Territory. What is meant by the New Order? Is it really new in the revelations of God, or is it something new for us to practice it? We have been required, in the year 1874, to come back again to an old order, as taught in ancient Mormonism. What I mean by ancient Mormonism is Mormonism as it was taught some forty-three or forty-four years ago. There is a generation now living on the earth who seem to be comparatively ignorant of the doctrines which were taught some forty years ago to men who are now old and have grey heads and gray beards. Since that time a new generation has arisen; and they begin to think that something new, something that will turn things upside down, is being introduced into Mormonism. I will say to all who have such ideas, you are entirely mistaken, it is not so; we are trying to get the people to come back again to the old principles of Mormonism, to that which God revealed in the early rise of this Church.

Every man, whether he is or is not a Latter-day Saint, when he comes to study our written works, the written revelations which God has given, will acknowledge that the Latter-day Saints cannot be the people they profess to be, they cannot be consistent with the revelations they profess to believe in and live as they now live; they have got to come into the system which the Saints call the New Order, otherwise they cannot comply with the revelations of God.

I believe that I will quote a few revelations this morning, in order to show you what God said in relation to property or temporal things, in the early rise of this Church. The first revelation that now occurs to my mind will be found in the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, on page 217; it was given in March, 1831, forty-three years ago last March. In the third paragraph of this revelation we read these words:

“For, behold, the beasts of the field and the fowls of the air, and that which cometh of the earth, is ordained for the use of man for food and for raiment, and that he might have in abundance; but it is not given that one man should possess that which is above another, wherefore the world lieth in sin.”

Do you believe this revelation, Latter-day Saints? “Oh, yes,” says one—“we believe Joseph Smith was a Prophet.” Have you practiced it? Oh, that is another thing. How, then, are we to know that you believe this revelation if you do not practice it? How are the world to know you are sincere in your belief, if you have a revelation which you profess to believe in, and yet give no heed to it. I do not wonder that the world say that the Latter-day Saints do not believe their own revelations. Why? Because we do not practice them. “It is not given that one man should possess that which is above another, wherefore the world lieth in sin.” There may be some strangers here, and they do not believe this book, but I will tell you what they would say as men of reason, they would say that if you Latter-day Saints call this your book of faith, and doctrines, and covenants, to be consistent you ought to comply with it. That is what they would say, and it is really a true saying, and consistent and reasonable. If we believe this, let us practice it; if we do not believe in it, why profess to believe in it?

I will now refer you to a revelation given on the second day of January, 1831, it is on page 120 of the Book of Doctrine and Covenants. I will tell you how this revelation was given, for I was present at the time it was given. The Church, then, was about nine months old. The Prophet Joseph, who received all the revelations contained in this book, was then living in the State of New York, in the town of Fayette, Seneca County. He called together the various branches of the Church that had been organized during the nine months previous in that State, and they assembled together in the house in which this Church was organized, namely, Father Whitmer’s house. You will recollect, in reading the Book of Mormon, that the sons of Father Whitmer, young men, are noted as witnesses of the Book of Mormon, David Whitmer having seen the angel, and the plates in the hands of the angel, and heard him speak, and the hand of the angel was placed on his head, and he said unto him—“Blessed be the Lord and they that keep his commandments.” And he heard the voice of the Lord in connection with three other persons testifying out of the heavens, at the same time that the angel was administering, that the Book of Mormon had been translated correctly by the gift and power of God, and commanding him to bear witness of it to all people, nations and tongues, in connection with the other three that were with him. These were some of the individuals also who saw the plates and handled them, and saw the engravings upon them, and who gave their testimony to that effect in the Book of Mormon. It was in their father’s house where this Church was organized, on the 6th of April, 1830; it was in their father’s house where this little Conference was convened on the 2nd of January, 1831, and this Conference requested the Prophet Joseph Smith to inquire of the Lord concerning their duties. He did so. He sat down in the midst of the Conference, of less than one hundred, I do not know exactly the number, and a scribe wrote this revelation from his mouth. One item contained therein, in the fifth paragraph, reads thus:—

“And let every man esteem his brother as himself, and practice virtue and holiness before me. And again I say unto you, let every man esteem his brother as himself; for what man among you having twelve sons, and is no respecter of them and they serve him obediently, and he saith unto the one, Be thou clothed in robes and sit thou here; and to the other, Be thou clothed in rags and sit thou there, and looketh upon his sons and saith, I am just. “Behold this have I given unto you a parable, and it is even as I am: I say unto you, be one; and if ye are not one ye are not mine.”

Perhaps the Saints may think that this has reference to spiritual things alone, and means to be one in doctrine, principle, ordinances, faith, belief, and so on, and that it has no reference whatever to temporal things; but in order to show you that this has reference to temporal as well as to spiritual things, let me quote that which God said a few months after this in another revelation. I have not time to turn to all these revelations, but I will quote them. The Lord says—“Except ye are equal in the bonds (or bands) of earthly things, how can you be made equal in the bands of heavenly things?” Here was a question put to us: How can you be made equal in the bands of heavenly things, unless you are equal in the bands of earthly? Surely enough, we can not be made equal. If we are unequal in this life, and are not one, can we be entrusted with the true riches, the riches of eternity? I believe I will read to you a small portion of another revelation that was given on stewardships. The Lord commanded certain ones among his servants to take charge of these revelations when they were in manuscript, before they were published, that they might be printed and sent forth among the people, and he also gave them charge concerning the Book of Mormon, and made them stewards over these revelations and the avails arising from them. And the Lord said—“Wherefore, hearken and hear, for thus saith the Lord unto them, I, the Lord, have appointed them and ordained them to be stewards over the revelations and commandments which I have given unto them, and which I shall hereafter give unto them; and an account of this stewardship will I require of them in the day of judgment; wherefore I have appointed unto them, and this is their business in the Church, to manage them and the concerns thereof, and the benefits thereof, wherefore a commandment give I unto them that they shall not give these things unto the Church, neither unto the world, nevertheless, inasmuch as they receive more than is needful for their necessities and their wants, it shall be given into my storehouse and the benefits shall be consecrated unto the inhabitants of Zion, and unto their generations, inasmuch as they become heirs according to the laws of the kingdom.

Now, you notice here, the Lord did not intend those individuals whom he named to become rich out of the avails of the sale of the Book of Mormon and the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, and other revelations and the literary concerns of his Church, he never intended that they should become rich while others were poor, that was not the order; but inasmuch as they received more than was needful for their support what should they do with it? Should they aggrandize themselves while their poor brethren were destitute? No, not at all; they were to give all the surplus, over and above what was really necessary to support them, into the Lord’s store-house, and it was to be for the benefit of all the people of Zion, not only the living but for their generations after them, inasmuch as they became heirs according to the laws of the kingdom of God.

There was a certain way to become heirs according to the laws of the kingdom of God. Heirs of what? Heirs of the avails arising from the sale of the revelations which all the inhabitants of Zion were to be benefited by. Says one—“But perhaps that was limited to those six individuals who are here named, and did not mean the whole Church.” Wait, let us read the next sentence—“Behold, this is what the Lord requires of every man in his stewardship, even as I the Lord have appointed or shall hereafter appoint.” From this we learn that all the stewards which the Lord had appointed; and all that he should appoint, in a future time, to stewardships, were to hand over all their surplus—all that was not necessary to feed and clothe them—into the Lord’s store house. None who belonged to the Church of the living God are exempt from this law. Does that law include us? It includes all who belong to the Church, not one is exempt from it. Have we been doing this, Latter-day Saints, for the last forty-three years, since this revelation was given? Have we been complying with the order we undertook in the year 1831, to enter into? This old order is not a new order that you talk so much about.

Iu [In] the year 1831, we commenced emigrating to the western part of the State of Missouri, to a county, quite new then, called Jackson County; most of the land at that time was Government land. When we commenced emigrating there the Lord gave many revelations. The Prophet Joseph went up among some of the earliest to that county, and God gave many revelations contained in the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, in relation to how the people should conduct their affairs. Among the revelations then given was the commandment that every man who should come up to that land should lay all things which he possessed before the Bishop of his Church. Another revelation, given before we went up to that land, speaking of a land which the Lord, at some future time, would give us for an inheritance, commanded that we should consecrate all our property into his store-house. If we had wagons, horses, mules, oxen, cows, sheep, farming utensils, household furniture, gold and silver, jewelry, wearing apparel, it mattered not what it was, the Lord said, in a revelation given in February, 1831, that it should all be laid before the Bishop of his Church, and that it should be consecrated to the Lord’s store-house. This reduced us all on a level. If a man had a million dollars when he gathered up to Jackson County, if he complied with the law, he would be just as rich as the man who had not one farthing. Why? Because he consecrated all he had, and the poor man could not do any more than that, hence all who complied with the law were equally poor or equally rich.

What was the next step after this consecration? In those days we had but one Bishop—his name was Edward Partridge, and he was called by revelation—and the next step after this general consecration, the Lord commanded the Bishop and his two counselors to purchase all the land in Jackson County, and in the counties round about, that could conveniently be got, the general price being one dollar and a quarter an acre. And what next? After purchasing these lands as far as they had the means to do so, every man that had consecrated his property was to receive an inheritance. Now recollect, none except those who consecrated, none who disobeyed that law, were to receive an inheritance or stewardship; but all who consecrated their properties according to this law were to receive their stewardship.

What is the meaning of a stewardship? A steward is one who is accountable to somebody for the property that he manages, and that is his stewardship, whether it be landed property, farming utensils, wagons, cows, oxen, horses, harness, or whatever may be committed to him. To whom were the brethren in Jackson County accountable for the stewardship committed to them? To the Bishop. The Bishop was called in these revelations a common judge in Zion, ecclesiastically speaking, not according to the civil laws; so far as our ecclesiastical laws were concerned he was to be a common judge, and each person was to render an account of the stewardship which he had to the Bishop. I do not know how often; perhaps once a year, perhaps longer than that, perhaps oftener. I do not know that there was any specified time given in these revelations about how often these accounts should be rendered up. But how were the people to live out of the avails of the stewardship committed to their charge? They were to have food and raiment, and the necessary comforts of life. Well, of course, a wise and faithful steward, having health and strength, and perhaps a good deal of talent, might so take charge of a stewardship that he might gain more than he and his family needed, and keeping an account of all these things, and rendering the same when required, some of them would have a considerable surplus above that which they and their families needed. What was to be done with that? Why, as stewards, they would have to consecrate it into the Lord’s storehouse, the Lord being the owner of the property and we only his stewards.

There were some men who were entrusted with a larger stewardship than others. For instance, here was a man who knew nothing about farming particularly, but he might be a master spirit as far as some other branch of business was concerned. He might understand how to carry, on a great cloth manufactory and everything in the clothing line necessary for the inhabitants of Zion. Such a man would require a greater stewardship than the man who cultivated a small farm, and had only himself and a wife and two or three children to support. But would the fact of one man having a greater stewardship than another make one richer than another? No. Why not? Because, if one received fifty or a hundred thousand dollars to build and stock a large manufactory for the purpose of manufacturing various kinds of fabrics for clothing, although he might have a surplus of several thousand dollars at the end of the year, he would not be any richer than the farmer with his few acres of land, and let me show you how they would be equal. The manufacturer does not own the building, the machinery, the cotton or the flax, as the case may be, he is only a steward, like the farmer, and if, at the end of the year, he has five, ten, or fifty thousand dollars surplus, does that make him a rich man? By no means, it goes into the Lord’s storehouse at the end of each year, or as often as may be required, thus leaving him on the same platform of equality with the farmer and his small stewardship. Do you not see the equality of the thing? In temporal matters it is not given that one man shall possess that which is above another, saith the Lord.

Now did the people really enter into this, or was it mere theory? I answer that, in the year 1831, we did try to enter into this order of things, but the hearts of the people had been so accustomed to holding property individually, that it was a very difficult matter to get them to comply with, this law of the Lord. Many of them were quite wealthy, and they saw that on that land a great city called Zion, or the New Jerusalem, was to be built; they understood that from the revelations, and they said in their hearts—“What a fine chance this will be for us to get rich. We have means and money, and if we consecrate according to the law of God we can not get rich; but we know that people by thousands and tens of thousands will gather up here, and these lands will become very valuable. We can now get them at the government price, a dollar and a quarter an acre, and if we lay out a few thousands in land, we can sell it out to the brethren when they come along at a thousand per cent. profit, and perhaps in some cases at ten thousand per cent., and make ourselves wealthy, so we will not consecrate, but we will go ahead for ourselves individually, and we will buy up the lands to speculate upon.” These were the feelings of some who went up to that country; but others were willing to comply with the word of God, and did just as the revelation required, and they laid everything they had before the Bishop, and received their stewardship.

After he had organized these things, Joseph the Prophet, in August of the year 1831, went back to Kirtland, about a thousand miles east, and while there the Lord revealed to him that the inhabitants of Jackson County were not complying with his word; hence Joseph sent letters up to them containing the word of the Lord, chastening them because of their disobedience and rebellion against the law of heaven. He did this on several occasions, and one occasion, especially, as you will find recorded in the history published in some of our periodicals. I think you will find it in the fifteenth volume of the Millennial Star, in language something like this—“If the people will not comply with my law, which I have given them concerning the consecration of their property, the land shall not be a land of Zion unto them, but their names shall be blotted out, and the names of their children and their children’s children, so long as they will not comply with my laws, and their names shall not be found written in the book of the law of the Lord.”

In another revelation, published in the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, the Lord says—“The rebellious are not of the blood of Ephraim, wherefore they shall be plucked up and shall be sent away out of the land.” When this revelation was given all was peace in Jackson County. We had no enemies there any more than we had elsewhere, wherever the Church might be located; all was comparative peace. But the Lord said that the rebellious should be plucked up and sent away out of the land. The people thought there was no prospect whatever of that revelation being fulfilled. All was peace, and to say that they were to be plucked up and driven out of the land was out of the question. They did not repent, that is all of them, but continued in their disobedience, neglecting to consecrate their properties, according to the requirements of the law of the Lord; and hence, when they had been there about two years and five months from the time of their first settlement or location, they were literally plucked up and cast away out of the land. You have the history before you. Their enemies arose upon them and began to tear down their houses, and they burned two hundred and three of the dwellings our people had built in that land. They burned down their grain stacks, hay stacks and fences, and chased the Latter-day Saints around from one part of the county to another, sometimes tying them up to trees and whipping them, in some instances until their bowels gushed out. They tore down the printing office and destroyed it, also one of our dry goods stores, and scattered the goods through the streets; they went into houses and, taking therefrom the bedding and furniture, piled them up in the streets and set fire to them, and thus they continued their persecutions until, finally, they succeeded in driving the Latter-day Saints from the county, and thus the word of the Lord was fulfilled which said—“I will pluck them up and send them away out of the land, for none but the obedient shall eat of the good of the land of latter Zion in these latter days.”

Another revelation God gave, to warn the people, in which he told them to remember the Book of Mormon, and the new covenant which he had revealed, and which, if they did not observe, he said—“Behold, I the Lord have a scourge and a judgment which shall be poured out upon your heads.” This was given between one and two years before we were driven out of that county, in Kirtland, Ohio, through the Prophet Joseph, and sent up to them to warn them. Another revelation said if the people did not do thus and so, they should be persecuted from city to city, and from synagogue to synagogue, and but few should stand to receive an inheritance—meaning those who had gone into that county.

Now go through this Territory, from one end thereof to the other, hunt up the greyheaded and grey-bearded men and the old ladies, who were once in Jackson County, and see how many you can find who lived there then, and you can judge whether the word of the Lord has been fulfilled or not. I guess that you will find but very few if you hunt, all through the Territory.

Let us read a little further in the revelations, and see whether God has cast us entirely off or not. In one of the revelations, given after we were driven out across the Missouri River into Clay County, and into the surrounding counties, the Lord said, concerning the people who were scattered and driven—“Behold, I have suffered these things to come upon them because of their sins and wickedness; but notwithstanding all these afflictions which have come upon my people, I will be merciful unto them, and in the day of wrath I will remember mercy, wherefore I, the Lord, will not utterly cast them off.” Though but few should stand to receive an inheritance, the Lord said he would not utterly cast them off.

What next? He gives an inferior law, called the law of Tithing, suited and adapted to us. After we had been driven for neglecting to comply with the greater law of consecration of all we had, he thought he would not leave us without a law, but he gave us an inferior law, namely, that we should give in one-tenth part of our annual income. This law was given in May, 1838, I do not remember the exact date, and I believe that we have tried to comply with it; but it has been almost an impossibility to get the people universally to comply with it.

There is another item connected with this law of Tithing that has but seldom been complied with, namely, the consecration of all surplus property. Now go round among the Saints, among the emigrants who have gathered up from time to time, and there has been only now and then a man who had any surp[l]us property, let him be the judge. If a man had fifty or a hundred thousand dollars, he said in his own heart—“I really need all this, I want to speculate, I want to buy a great deal of land to sell again when the price of land shall rise; I want to set up a great store in which to sell merchandise to the people, and if I consecrate any of this it will curtail my operations, because it will diminish my capital, and I cannot speculate to the extent I should if I retained it all, and I shall therefore consider that I have no surplus property. Now an honest-hearted individual would have a little surplus property, and he would put it in; but from that day until the present time I presume that the tenth of their annual income has been paid by the majority of the people. I do not really know in relation to this matter, at any rate the Lord has not utterly forsaken us, hence I think we have kept his law in some measure, or in all probability he would have cast us off altogether.

But how is it that we have been smitten, driven, cast out and persecuted, and the lives of our Prophet and Patriarch and hundreds of others destroyed by rifle, cannon, and sword in the hands of our enemies? How is it that such things have been permitted in this free republic? “Oh,” says one, “It is because you practiced polygamy.” I answer that we did not practice polygamy in the days of the persecutions which I have named, they came upon us before we began that practice, for the revelation on polygamy was not given until some thirteen years after the rise of this Church, and that was after we had been driven and smitten and scattered to and fro, here and there by the hands of our enemies, hence, it was not for that that we were persecuted. But if we take the printed circulars written by our enemies, we can give you their reasons for persecuting us. One of their reasons was that we believed in ancient Christianity, namely, speaking in tongues, interpretation of tongues, healing the sick, etc.; and our enemies did not believe in having a community in their midst who claimed to have Apostles and Prophets and to enjoy the gifts of the Gospel the same as the ancient Saints. Our enemies said they would not have such a people in their society, and if we did not renounce these things they would drive us from our homes. You can read this with the names of the mob attached to it, in connection with a great many priests and ministers of different denominations. The Rev. Isaac M’Coy and the Rev. Mr. Bogard, and many others who might be named, were among the leaders of the mob who persecuted the Latter-day Saints.

Now, why is it, Latter-day Saints, that we have been tossed to and fro and smitten and persecuted for these many years? It is because we have disobeyed the law of heaven, we have not kept the commandments of the Most High God, we have not fulfilled his law; we have disobeyed the word which he gave through his servant Joseph, and hence the Lord has suffered us to be smitten and afflicted under the hands of our enemies.

Shall we ever return to the law of God? Yes. When? Why, when we will. We are agents; we can abide his law or reject it, just as long as we please, for God has not taken away your agency nor mine. But I will try to give you some information in regard to the time. God said, in the year 1832, before we were driven out of Jackson County, in a revelation which you will find here in this book, that before that generation should all pass away, a house of the Lord should be built in that county, (Jackson County), “upon the consecrated spot, as I have appointed; and the glory of God, even a cloud by day and a pillar of flaming fire by night shall rest upon the same.” In another place, in the same revelation, speaking of the priesthood, he says that the sons of Moses and the sons of Aaron, those who had received the two priesthoods, should be filled with the glory of God upon Mount Zion, in the Lord’s house, and should receive a renewing of their bodies, and the blessings of the Most High should be poured out upon them in great abundance.

This was given forty-two years ago. The generation then living was not only to commence a house of God in Jackson County, Missouri, but was actually to complete the same, and when it is completed the glory of God should rest upon it.

Now, do you Latter-day Saints believe that? I do, and if you believe in these revelations you just as much expect the fulfillment of that revelation as of any one that God has ever given in these latter times, or in former ages. We look, just as much for this to take place, according to the word of the Lord, as the Jews look to return to Palestine, and to re-build Jerusalem upon the place where it formerly stood. They expect to build a Temple there, and that the glory of God will enter into it; so likewise do we Latter-day Saints expect to return to Jackson County and to build a Temple there before the generation that was living forty-two years ago has all passed away. Well, then, the time must be pretty near when we shall begin that work. Now, can we be permitted to return and build up the waste places of Zion, establish the great central city of Zion in Jackson County, Mo., and build a Temple on which the glory of God will abide by day and by night, unless we return, not to the “new order,” but to that law which was given in the beginning of this work? Let me answer the question by quoting one of these revelations again, a revelation given in 1834. The Lord, speaking of the return of his people, and referring to those who were driven from Jackson County, says—“They that remain shall return, they and their children with them to receive their inheritances in the land of Zion, with songs of everlasting joy upon their heads.” There will be a few that the Lord will spare to go back there, because they were not all transgressors. There were only two that the Lord spared among Israel during their forty years travel—Caleb and Joshua. They were all that were spared, out of some twenty-five hundred thousand people, from twenty years old and upwards, to go into the land of promise. There may be three in our day, or a half dozen or a dozen spared that were once on that land who will be permitted to return with their children, grand-children, and great-grand-children unto the waste places of Zion and build them up with songs of everlasting joy.

But will they return after the old order of things that exists among the Gentiles—every man for himself, this individualism in regard to property? No, never, never while the world stands. If you would have these revelations fulfilled you must comply with the conditions thereof. The Lord said, concerning the building up of Zion when we do return—“Except Zion be built according to the law of the celestial kingdom, I can not receive her unto myself.” If we should be permitted, this present year, 1874, to go back to that county, and should undertake to build up a city of Zion upon the consecrated spot, after the order that we have been living in during the last forty years, we should be cast out again, the Lord would not acknowledge us as his people, neither would he acknowledge the works of our hands in the building of a city. If we would go back then, we must comply with the celestial law, the law of consecration, the law of oneness, which the Lord has spoken of from the beginning. Except you are one you are not mine. Query, if we are not the Lord’s who in the world or out of the world do we belong to? Here is a question for us all to consider. There is no other way for us to become one but by keeping the law of heaven, and when we do this we shall become sanctified before God, and never before.

Talk about sanctification, we do not believe in the kind of sanctification taught by the sectarian religion—that they were sanctified at such a minute and such an hour and at such a place while they were praying in secret. We believe in the sanctification that comes by continued obedience to the law of heaven. I do not know of any other sanctification that the Scriptures tell about, of any other sanctification that is worth the consideration of rational beings. If we would be sanctified then, we must begin to-day, or whenever the Lord points out, to obey his laws just as far as we possibly can; and by obedience to these laws we continually gain more and more favor from heaven, more and more of the Spirit of God, and thus will be fulfilled a revelation given in 1834, which says that before Zion is redeemed, let the armies of Israel become very great, let them become sanctified before me, that they may be as fair as the sun, clear as the moon, and that their banners may be terrible unto all the nations of the earth. Not terrible by reason of numbers, but terrible because of the sanctification they will receive through obedience to the law of God. Why was Enoch, and why were the inhabitants of the Zion built up before the flood terrible to all the nations around about? It was because, through a long number of years, they observed the law of God, and when their enemies came up to fight against them, Enoch, being filled with the power of the Holy Ghost, and speaking the word of God in power and in faith, the very heavens trembled and shook, and the earth quaked, and mountains were thrown down, rivers of water were turned out of their course, and all nations feared greatly because of the power of God, and the terror of his might that were upon his people.

We have this account of ancient Zion in one of the revelations that God has given. What was it that made their banners terrible to the nations? It was not their numbers. If, then Zion must become great it will be because of her sanctification. When shall we begin, Latter-day Saints, to carry out the law of God, and enter upon the process necessary to our sanctification? We are told by the highest authority that God has upon the earth that now is the accepted time and now is the day of salvation, so far as entering into this order which God has pointed out is concerned. Shall we do it? Or shall we say no? Shall there be division among the people, those who are on the Lord’s side come out and those who are against the law of God come out? I hope this division will not be at present. I hope that we shall take hold with one heart and with one mind. The time of the division will come soon enough. It will be in the great day of the Lord’s power, when his face shall be unveiled in yonder heavens, and when he shall come in his glory and in his might. Then the heavens will be shaken and the earth will reel to and fro like a drunken man. “Then,” saith the Lord, “I will send forth mine angels to gather out of my kingdom all things that offend and that do iniquity.” That will be time enough for this great division. Let us not be divided now, Latter-day Saints, but let us manifest our willingness to comply with the word and law of the Most High, and be prepared for the blessings which he has in store for us.

The Calling of the Priesthood, etc.

Brigham Young

Discourse by President Brigham Young, delivered in the Bowery, at Brigham City, Saturday morning, June 26, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

A few of us have come to talk to the people in this place upon the things of the kingdom of God, as our calling is to preach the Gospel, initiate people into, and proceed with, the organization of the kingdom of God as far as we can, preparatory to the coming of the Son of Man. We have commenced to organize, I will say partially, in the Holy Order that God has established for his people in all ages of the world when he has had a kingdom upon the earth. We may call it the Order of Enoch, the Order of Joseph, the Order of Peter, or Abraham, or Moses, and then go back to Noah, and then step to our own position here, and say that we will organize as far as we have the privilege, taking into consideration and acting under the laws of the land. Many branches of industry have been organized here to help to sustain each other, to labor for the good of all, and to establish cooperation in the midst of the Church in this place.

In most of the business transactions of this Church and people, as far as I have directed, I have waited for business to be presented, and endeavored to so live that the Lord will dictate according to his own mind and pleasure, and, at the very time it is necessary, have that knowledge which will enable us to perform every labor acceptably to God and to the heavens, and to discharge our duties one to another, and to accomplish in every particular the work which our Father in heaven has given us to do. I am a minute-man. It is very seldom that I take thought what I shall say or what I shall do. When we meet in the capacity of a Conference, the business matters are presented, and I generally know what to do, and I do not know but what I understand the workings of the kingdom of God upon the earth, by the manifestations of the Spirit at the moment, as well as I should if I had studied them for months; and I can truly say that I have fulfilled one of the sayings of the Savior tolerably well—to take no thought what ye shall say, for in the very hour or moment when you need it, it shall be given to you.

I hope that, during our meetings here, the people will be edified and comforted, and that the system of laboring together for each other’s good will be wisely and satisfactorily laid before them, and that each and every one of us, with ready minds and willing hearts, will proceed to do the things that are required of us by our heavenly Father.

Much can be said upon the doctrine of life and salvation, but I will say this to the Saints in this place concerning the workings of the kingdom of God upon the earth—all good comes from heaven, all good is of the Lord; whatever promotes the happiness of mankind and the glory of God, whatever increases peace and righteousness upon the earth, and leads the people in the way of godliness, comfort, contentment and enjoyment, and tends to increase health and wealth, and life here and hereafter, is of God; and, in laboring for each other’s welfare and happiness, if we can not do all that we want to do, let us do what we can, and leave the event with the Lord, and wait for the time when we can fully enter into the organization of the kingdom of God upon the earth, and fully upon those initiatory steps which will hasten the perfection of the Saints, and prepare them to enter into the joy of their Lord. When we are permitted to do in part, we will step forward and do in part, go as far as we can, and do as much as we can to perfect ourselves and prepare for the building up of the Centre Stake of Zion.

We hope and pray that all who may speak during our meetings here will be filled with the Spirit of the Lord, and that those who pray, sing and hear may be filled with the same Spirit, that we may increase in knowledge and wisdom, and grow in the things of God. This is what we desire and what we pray for, and we hope that our meetings will be profitable to all.

This is a hard place to speak in, and we request the brethren and sisters to be as still as they conveniently can, so that they can hear what is said. Let all be quiet, and every heart be lifted to God, that we may learn his mind and will concerning us; then ask for power to do his will, for a disposition to give us victory over every passion and slothful feeling, that we may be awake to righteousness.

Salvation and life everlasting are before us; it is our business to secure them in the kingdom of our God, and to prepare for the restoration of the inhabitants of the earth who have slept without the Gospel. Let us do what we can to bless ourselves, our posterity and our progenitors, and to save the human family, and so fulfill the mission which the Lord has given us.

The Belief of the Saints in the Mission of the Savior, etc.

Brigham Young

Discourse by President Brigham Young, delivered in the Bowery, Brigham City, Sunday afternoon, June 28, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

I should like the people to keep as quiet as possible, I have a few words to say to them concerning the inheritances of the Saints. I will talk to those who are believers in the Old and New Testaments, as this book which lies before me is called—the Bible, and in the mission of the Savior. I will ask the Latter-day Saints if they believe that the man Christ Jesus, who was crucified at Jerusalem, over eighteen hundred years ago, was the Savior of the world, and that he paid the debt contracted by our first parents, and redeemed the children of men from the fall? Of cour[s]e, they will answer in the affirmative. You believe, then, in the mission of the Savior to the earth? “Of course we do,” is the answer. Do we believe that the Savior is heir to this earth. I will answer for all Saints and all believers in the Savior and say we do. Do we believe that this man Christ Jesus has received his inheritance; has he finished the work which he came into the world and was manifested in the flesh to accomplish? I will answer for all Christians and say he has not, as yet, finished his work or received the kingdom. As for the proof of this you can go to the Bible and all the other revelations that we have in our possession, and you will find it there. Are we co-workers with the Savior to redeem the children of men and all things pertaining to the earth? I will answer for the Saints and say that we most assuredly believe we are. All who, while in the flesh, received and were faithful to the Priesthood, labored with the Savior while they remained here, and when they passed into the spirit world their labors did not cease, but they passed into the prison, and, to this day, they are preaching to the spirits there, and laboring for the salvation of the human family and for the earth and all things pertaining to it.

Have these men, who have lived upon the earth and enjoyed the blessings of the holy Priesthood, received their inheritances? I take the liberty of answering for all Saints in the negative. They have not received their inheritances, but they have received promises like Abraham of old when he was shown the land of Canaan, and it was promised to him that it should be his inheritance, and that of his seed after him forever and ever. To this day they have not inherited the land according to the promises that were made to Abraham. So it is with all others. Have any of us, in the latter-days, received inheritances upon the face of this earth that shall be everlasting? No, we are not prepared to receive them, and they are not prepared for us. I am telling you these things that you may know and understand that, when we talk about property, or anything else that we seem to possess, we have not yet received anything for an everlasting inheritance. If we are faithful we shall receive after a long time, that is, it may seem long to us who reckon time by years, months, weeks, days, minutes and seconds. I should like to have the Latter-day Saints understand what their labor is, and to have each one understand his duty, and then understand the reward of obedience to that duty.

We get a great many good gifts here—we enjoy a great deal that the Lord gives us; gifts that we will say are inherent natural gifts. What a beautiful gift the power of the eye is for a man to enjoy! What a beautiful gift the power of hearing is to the people, and all our senses—tasting, smelling, &c., and the passions when they are governed and controlled, how beautiful they are! Shall we inherit them for ever and ever, or shall we take a course that they shall be taken from us?

We are talking now to the brethren about being one, operating together, submitting all to the kingdom of God. What for? Am I to give what I have? “Why, this is my house, this is my farm, these are my cattle!” We only seem to have them, they are only in our possession for the present. “This is my wife, these are my wives, here are my children!” We seem to possess them, but whether we shall possess them forever depends entirely upon our future course. How long will this state of things last? Until we have passed the ordeals allotted to finite, intelligent beings, and have passed from one degree and state to another; until the work is completed by the Savior, pertaining to this earth, and our eternal salvation is sealed to us. While we live here in the flesh we are subject to turn to the right and to the left, and we have the vanities and allurements of the world to contend with; and we see Latter-day Saints, after traveling five, ten, twenty, and even forty years, faithful in the kingdom of God, turn away from the holy commandments. They will be lost, and all that they have had, and all that they think they have will be taken from them and given to those who are faithful; and those who are faithful will not receive their inheritances, so that they can say they are their own, until they have passed all these ordeals, and until the Savior has completed the work of redemption. He is now trying to get the people to avail themselves of the advantages of his atonement, and we, professedly, are enjoying these advantages, but how slow and slothful we are! What trifling, frivolous shadows, I may say vain ideas, will turn the hearts and the affections and judgment and will of man from the principles of truth! I want you to understand that you have not your eternal inheritances, although you may have an inheritance here in this city.

By and by the centre stake of Zion may be redeemed. We may go there, and Zion may be built up and spread abroad and we receive our inheritances; and if we are faithful we shall receive all that has been promised to us. But suppose that we turn away from our covenants, all will be taken from us and given to others.

When shall we receive our inheritances so that we can say they are our own? When the Savior has completed the work, when the faithful Saints have preached the Gospel to the last of the spirits who have lived here and who are designed to come to this earth; when the thousand years of rest shall come and thousands and thousands of Temples shall be built, and the servants and handmaids of the Lord shall have entered therein and officiated for themselves, and for their dead friends back to the days of Adam; when the last of the spirits in prison who will receive the Gospel has received it; when the Savior comes and receives his ready bride, and all who can be are saved in the various kingdoms of God—celestial, terrestrial and telestial, according to their several capacities and opportunities; when sin and iniquity are driven from the earth, and the spirits that now float in this atmosphere are driven into the place prepared for them; and when the earth is sanctified from the effects of the fall, and baptized, cleansed, and purified by fire, and returns to its paradisiacal state, and has become like a sea of glass, a urim and thummim; when all this is done, and the Savior has presented the earth to his Father, and it is placed in the cluster of the celestial kingdoms, and the Son and all his faithful brethren and sisters have received the welcome plaudit—“Enter ye into the joy of your Lord,” and the Savior is crowned, then and not till then, will the Saints receive their everlasting inheritances. I want you to understand this. We seem to have something now, but how long shall we keep it?

The Latter-day Saints are believers in the atonement of the Savior, and I would like to have the Elders of Israel understand as far as they can all the points of doctrine in regard to the redemption of the human family, that they may know how to talk about and explain them. No one who believes in the Bible and in the mission of the Savior believes that the wicked are going to possess this earth; but they believe that when it is prepared it will be given to the Saints and they will inherit it. The Savior has requested us and all of his disciples to remember him as oft as we meet together, and to break bread in remembrance of his body which was broken for us, and to drink from the cup in remembrance of the blood that was shed for us. We meet, as we are doing to day, and partake of the bread and the water in compliance with this request of the Redeemer. We have a great work before us; and that portion of it we are now trying to inaugurate is not new. The doctrine of uniting together in our temporal labors, and all working for the good of all is from the beginning, from everlasting, and it will be for ever and ever. No one supposes for one moment that in heaven the angels are speculating, that they are building railroads and factories, taking advantage one of another, gathering up the substance there is in heaven to aggrandize themselves, and that they live on the same principle that we are in the habit of doing. No Christian, no sectarian Christian, in the world believes this; they believe that the inhabitants of heaven live as a family, that their faith, interests and pursuits have one end in view—the glory of God and their own salvation, that they may receive more and more—go on from perfection to perfection, receiving, and then dispensing to others; they are ready to go, and ready to come, and willing to do whatever is required of them and to work for the interest of the whole community, for the good of all. We all believe this, and suppose we go to work and imitate them as far as we can. Would it be anything derogatory to the character of a gentleman or a lady? I think not. As far as I understand true principle the title of gentleman should not be applied to any man on the earth unless he is a good man. No gentleman takes the name of the Deity in vain. Some who do take his name in vain may be called gentleman, but it is a mistake, they are not gentlemen. A gentleman carries himself respectfully before the inhabitants of the earth at all times, in all places and under all circumstances, and his life is worthy of imitation. She who is worthy of the title of lady adorns her mind with the rich things of the kingdom of God; she is modest in her attire and manners; she is prudent, discreet and faithful, and full of all goodness, charity, love, and kindness, with the love of God in her heart. Such a woman has a right to the title of lady, and I do not consider that any others have, whether they are elect or not.

We will try to imitate in some small degree, the family that lives in heaven, and prepare ourselves for the society that will dwell upon the earth when it is purified and glorified and comes into the presence of the Father.

For us to think that we have an inheritance on the earth is folly, unless God has declared, and sealed it upon us, by revelation, that we shall never fall, never doubt, never come short of glorifying him or of doing his will in all things. No person, unless he is in the possession of this blessing, has the least right to suppose that he has an inheritance on the earth. For the time being we have our wives, children, farms and other possessions, but unless we prove ourselves worthy, what we seem to have will be taken from us and given to those who are worthy, consequently we need not worry with regard to the defects of one another. I say to the brethren, you need not have the least concern in the world about meeting a man in the celestial kingdom that you, if you are worthy and are so happy as to get into the celestial kingdom, can not fellowship; and if you should happen to be the one that is in fault and you cannot pass the sentinel, and your neighbor or brother does, he will not see you there, you need not be concerned in the least about being joined to any person by the holy sealing power, that will not do right in the next world. I say to my sisters in the kingdom, who are sealed to men, and who say, “We do not want this man in eternity if he is going to conduct himself there as he does here”—there is not the least danger in the world of your ever seeing him in eternity or of his seeing you there if he proves himself unworthy here. But if he honors his Priesthood, and you are to blame and come short of doing your duty, and prove yourself unworthy of celestial glory, it will be left to him to do what he pleases with you. You will be very glad to get to him if you find the fault was in yourself and not in him. But if you are not at fault, be not troubled about being joined to him there, for no man will have the privilege of gathering his wives and children around him there unless he proves himself worthy of them.

I have said a number of times, and I will say again, to you ladies who want to get a bill of divorce from your husbands, because they do not treat you right, or because you do not exactly like their ways, there is a principle upon which a woman can leave a man, but if the man honors his Priesthood, it will be pretty hard work for you to get away from him. If he is just and right, serves God and is full of justice, love, mercy and truth, he will have the power that is sealed upon him, and will do what he pleases with you. When you want to get a bill of divorce, you had better wait and find out whether the Lord is willing to give you one or not, and not come to me. I tell the brethren and sisters, when they come to me and want a bill of divorce, that I am ready to seal people and administer in the ordinances, and they are welcome to my services, but when they undertake to break the commandments and tear to pieces the doings of the Lord, I make them give me something. I tell a man he has to give me ten dollars if he wants a divorce. For what? My services? No, for his foolishness. If you want a bill of divorce give me ten dollars, so that I can put it down in the book that such a man and such a woman have dissolved partnership. Do you think you have done so when you have obtained a bill of divorce? No, nor ever can if you are faithful to the covenants you have made. It takes a higher power than a bill of divorce to take a woman from a man who is a good man and honors his Priesthood—it must be a man who possesses a higher power in the Priesthood, or else the woman is bound to her husband, and will be forever and ever. You might as well ask me for a piece of blank paper for a divorce, as to have a little writing on it, saying—“We mutually agree to dissolve partnership and keep ourselves apart from each other,” &c. It is all nonsense and folly; there is no such thing in the ordinances of the house of God; you cannot find any such law. It is true Jesus told the people that a man could put away his wife for fornication, but for nothing short of this. There is a law for you to be obedient, and humble and faithful.

Now, brethren, the man that honors his Priesthood, the woman that honors her Priesthood, will receive an everlasting inheritance in the kingdom of God; but it will not be until this earth is purified and sanctified, and ready to be offered up to the Father. But we can go to work now and live as near as we can like the family of heaven, that we may secure to ourselves the blessings of heaven and of earth, of time and of eternity, and life everlasting in the presence of the Father and the Son. This is what we want to do. Remember it, brethren and sisters, and try to live worthy of the vocation of your high calling. You are called to be Saints—just think of and realize it, for the greatest honor and privilege that can be conferred upon a human being is to have the privilege of being a Saint. The honor of the kings and queens of the earth fades into insignificance when compared with the title of a Saint. You may possess earthly power, and rule with an iron hand, but that power is nothing, it will soon be broken and pass away; but the power of those who live and honor the Priesthood will increase forever and ever.

Now I am going to yield for my brethren to talk to you. I have said a few things. Remember the exhortation I gave you this morning. Live according to the faith of our religion. Let contention, all contention cease; cease finding fault with and casting reflections upon those who are not exactly with us. Let us show by our daily walk and doings that we have something better than they have. I will say to you who enter this Order, with regard to your temporal affairs, cease your extravagance. The Lord has said he would make the Latter-day Saints the richest people on the earth; but all he will do is to give us the ability and place means in our possession, and we must go to work and organize this means and make ourselves rich; and the first step is to stop our extravagance, cease this needless expense, learn to make that which we wear, raise that which we eat, live within ourselves, accumulate the good things of life, and so make ourselves wealthy.

I pray the Lord our God to bless you and to inspire every heart to faithfulness, that we may be prepared for a better place than this—for this world when it shall be sanctified and glorified, that we may then enjoy the society of each other without sin and without these annoyances.

God has Created Us to be Happy, etc.

George A. Smith

Discourse by Elder George Q. Cannon, delivered in the New Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Sunday afternoon, July 12, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

I rejoice, to-day, in the opportunity which I have of meeting with my brethren and sisters, but it would give me much greater satisfaction to sit and look upon their faces, and to listen to the voice or voices of others, than to occupy the time myself. I am thankful, however, that I am in your midst, and that circumstances are so favorable with us as they are.

I expect, from all I have heard that this past season has been one of some degree of anxiety on the part of the Latter-day Saints in the Territory of Utah. But I do not believe that your happiness has been much interfered with, if I am to judge of your feelings by my own. We have had so many things to contend with all the days that we have been associated with this work, and we made calculations when we espoused it upon the character of the opposition to be contended with, that when we meet it there is no disappointment. In this respect the Latter-day Saints differ from every other people with whom I have met. If any other people in this government were assailed as the Latter-day Saints have been, and were to have so many intolerant and sweeping measures suggested for legislation by the Congress of the United States, real estate would be of very little value, and all kinds of business would be unsettled and ruined. But I cannot perceive that values, business, or your faith in the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ has been in the least disturbed.

I have been questioned a good many times since I returned, as to my feelings during my absence. My reply has been that I never felt better in my life than during the past eight months. I have been absent from home a good many times, and I have traveled in a good many lands, and mingled with many people under a variety of circumstances, but I can say truly this day, that at no period in any of my travels, or under the different circumstances in which I have been placed, have I ever felt better than I have during my recent absence from home.

This may surprise some who are not acquainted with this work, and, in fact, it may excite some degree of surprise in the breasts of those who are familiar with it; but my theory is that when a man is conscious, or a people are conscious, that he or they are in the path of duty, doing that which is right in the sight of God, they should always be happy, no matter what the circumstances may be which surround them. I think that God has created us to be happy, and my belief is that he has placed happiness within the reach of all, and it is man’s own fault if he is not happy and does not enjoy himself every day of his life. This is one of my reasons for liking my religion, this system called “Mormonism,” because it bestows full happiness and joy upon its believers. They can be happy in the midst of the most adverse circumstances; they can rejoice when surrounded with enemies, and when their lives are imperilled. During my absence my feeling has been that God was with his people; I also felt that the faith of the Latter-day Saints was greatly exerted in my behalf, and that it was sustaining and strengthening me.

In some respects my position as delegate from this Territory was not an enviable one, and from the time that I reached Washington until the close of Congress there was one paper, at least, which poured out unlimited abuse upon myself and upon my constituents. Scarcely a day passed that some falsehood was not circulated or some vile slander or charge published about the people in these mountains, or about myself. Appeals of every imaginable character were made to the Congress of the United States, that is, to the House particularly, to take instant measures to expel me, and when, as these writers thought, a disposition was manifested not to comply with their demands, recourse was had to the charge of bribery—that we were spending money, and that members of Congress were paid to prevent their action upon my case. In this respect the condition of a delegate might be considered an unenviable one, but I felt a strength, I felt a power, I had an influence, or thought I had, at least, that no other member of the House of Representatives possessed. For instance, the members of the House generally were constantly harassed with the thought as to what their constituents would think of them, how they would view their action, how they would like their votes, &c., whether they would be displeased with such and such a measure, &c. Their future election, they knew, depended upon their having a popular record, and to secure this required considerable thought and ingenuity upon the part of many. I was divested of this fear, I had no thought as to what my constituents would think of me, it never cost me a single moment’s reflection, because I knew that I had the entire confidence of the people whom I represented; and I knew that whatever I did, so long as I did the best I could, I should be sustained in doing it by you and by all the people throughout these valleys, and in this respect I had a strength which no other one had. I often told members, when it was convenient and appropriate to speak in this strain, that I had the faith of the entire people, and that they were praying for me. This would amuse a good many, but I have never failed, during my absence, to convey, whenever I could, the idea that we were a people who believed in and prayed to God, and that we had faith in our prayers. One of the great lessons that we have to teach the world to-day is faith in God, and though a member of Congress, dealing with political questions and matters which are considered foreign to religion by the great majority of men, I have not thought that religion was like a Sunday garment, to be worn on Sunday in the meeting house, tabernacle, chapel or church, and to be laid aside again on Monday morning. I have never had that idea of religion, I do not have it now.

There is at the present time an almost entire absence of faith in God among men. I have been struck with this more than any other feature that I have witnessed during my absence. Converse with well meaning, intelligent men, men of good moral character, and you will be surprised at the extent of the unbelief there is in the world. There seems to be an idea that God our Eternal Father resides in some remote place so far removed from us that he takes no special cognizance of us or of our actions, that he governs the universe and the affairs of men by great natural and unalterable laws, that there are no special providences in favor of men, but that man prospers according to his wisdom, streng[t]h and talent, and that weak men and a weak people stand no chance in opposition to the strong; hence the remark was made to me, I may say, hundreds of times during my absence—“You people must conform to the ideas of the rest of the world, or you will go to the wall.” “You people must abandon your strange ideas and your peculiar views, or you will inevitably be overthrown.” On such occasions I would not fail to give the ideas that we believed in God, that we believed this was God’s work, that God had sustained and delivered us in the past, that we were still willing to trust him for the future, and that he would provide a way of escape. But while men would listen patiently and kindly to such remarks, you could see incredulity on every lineament of their countenance, a sort of pitying incredulity, as though they looked upon you as very well-meaning, but in this respect a very much mistaken person. The idea that prevails is that God or Providence is on the side of the strongest artillery, and that if we are weak and are warred against we must go down because of our weakness.

Of course, where this idea prevails there can be but little faith in God’s special providences. If this were a correct idea, there would be little use in prayer, in supplicating God, in entreating him for his blessing and his power to be bestowed upon us. But we have proved the efficacy of prayer so often ourselves, that there is no need for us as a people to be fortified upon this point, or to have arguments urged upon us. My own life is full of incidents—as is the life, doubtless, of every individual present who has faith in God—which are evidences of his interposition in answer of prayer, and my feeling is that one of the great duties devolving upon us is to teach the world that there is a God, and that he has power to save to-day, as much as in ancient days, those who are willing to trust him. It is this peculiar feature that makes everything connected with this work so incomprehensible to men. Those of you who have kept posted in relation to affairs, know how wonderfully matters have been arranged for our good. When I look back at the seven or eight months that are past and see what has been done, I am amazed, knowing how thorough have been the measures and the efforts to strip us of every right and to bring us into bondage. No less than eight or nine bills were introduced into Congress early in the session, for the express purpose of reaching the “Mormon” case. These bills were referred to various committees, and arguments had to be made upon them before these committees; but there was a determination on the part of a great many members to vote upon any bill, no matter what its features might be, that might be introduced into the House from a committee. You cannot judge, however, in every instance, of the private feelings of men by heir votes. A great many members of Congress would rather not cast their votes against us if they could have their way; but the timidity of members upon the “Mormon” question is the strength of the enemies of the people of Utah, and they count upon that as a means of insuring the success of their schemes of villainy. They are well aware that there is a feeling of reluctance on the part of public men to place themselves on the record in favor of anything that would look like sustaining or giving countenance to what is called “Mormonism.” Our enemies counted upon this last session. In the beginning of the session they depended upon that as the means by which they would prevent me from taking my seat in the House of Representatives. Disappointed in that, they then commenced operations before the committee on elections and, as you are doubtless well aware, did everything in their power to precipitate that question upon the House. I need not rehearse to you how these attempts have been overruled. To my mind the hand of God is as plainly manifest in all these circumstances as is this light, or these objects which I see before me in the light of this day.

When the bills against Utah were introduced, they were referred, as I have said, to committees. They were principally copies of the bill that passed the Senate in the last session of the forty-second Congress, called the Frelinghuysen bill. One of these was introduced by the chairman of the Committee on Territories and was called the McKee bill. This bill was argued at great length before the Committee on Territories, and it was reported to the House.

To the astonishment of its reputed author, a point of order was raised upon it for which he was not prepared, and, before he scarcely knew it, the bill was taken out of his hands and referred to the committee of the whole and virtually defeated for that session. Of course, our enemies were not suited with that arrangement, they wanted some other bill passed, and hoping that the Poland bill would be the least objectionable and would pass the easiest, they brought that forward and urged its passage before the Judiciary Committee. A number of meetings were held, arguments were made for and against the bill, and finally, through laboring hard with prominent members of that committee a modification was obtained in one important section of the bill, namely, that referring to the selection of jurors. As the bill originally stood it possessed the same feature that all the rest did, giving to the Judge of the District Court, his clerk and the U.S. Marshal, the right to select all our jurors. This section was fought earnestly, and finally Judge Poland was induced to modify it sufficiently to have three commissioners appointed, who should have the selection of jurors. Eventually another change was made in that section, and the feature that now stands in the law as it passed was introduced giving the right to select jurors to the Probate Judge of each county and the clerk of the District Court, each to select alternately a juror from lists already prepared. I felt that this, itself, was a very great triumph, because as the bill originally stood it virtually left us, our lives, our liberties and all our property, at the mercy of three individ[u]als who, judging by past experience in this Territory, would pack juries upon us without any scruples; and I felt that it was a great advantage to us that the infamous raid had been made upon us two years ago by the Judge of this district and those associated with him, for it gave me an opportunity of setting forth what had been done in the past when there was no law to sustain such operations, and to argue what we might expect if there were a law to sustain them.

When the Poland bill was brought before the House there seemed to be a forgetfulness on the part of its sponsor—not its author but its sponsor—Judge Poland, that there was a rule in operation requiring every bill that contemplated an appropriation from the federal treasury to be referred to the committee of the whole. He had forgotten the point that had been made on the McKee bill, and when his reputed bill was introduced that point was again made, and sustained by the Speaker. Judge Poland saw that he could not carry it over the decision of the Speaker and the decision of the best parliamentarians in the House and, to save his bill from being referred to the committee of the whole, he withdrew it. At this point a man who had been down there, very anxious to get legislation, and urging it with his might, met me on the floor of the House, and said—“Mr. Cannon, before you left Salt Lake you told me that God was on your side, and I’ll be d—d if I don’t begin to believe it.” I told him He was, and was on the point of telling him that he would be damned if he did not believe it, when we separated. For the moment, his fears being alive, I suppose he thought there was some power with us, as this was the second bill that had been so nearly killed for that session. Judge Poland succeeded afterwards in getting the privilege of reporting the bill to the House and having it there considered as in committee of the whole, and this saved the point of order.

As I have told you, the strength of our enemies did not consist in the justice or rightfulness of their cause; it did not consist in the strength of their arguments; it did not consist, in fact, in anything of this character that could be brought before members; but their principal reliance was upon the circulation of abominable falsehoods and slanders and the unreasoning prejudices which existed against the people of this Territory, which made members timid in dealing fairly with our question. A people who profess the characteristics of many of the residents of this Territory, and who have shown such willingness to suffer all things for what they consider the right, have difficulty in comprehending how men in power can be timid where principle is involved. But the power of members of Congress is very ephemeral. The tenure of office of many is frequently based upon slight grounds. Some have to struggle hard to get to Congress, and they struggle still harder to keep there. Viewed from their stand point such reason in this wise: I follow politics as a profession; I expect to live by that profession; I reach Congress with difficulty, for my district is closely contested. I must vote in a way not to lessen my majority in my district, or to decrease my influence. There is a prejudice against the Mormons, and if I seem to favor them, my opponents would use it against me on the stump in the next campaign, even if I should succeed in getting a nomination from the convention of my party.

As you know, the Poland bill passed the House and was sent to the Senate. It was expected that it would pass the Senate almost instantaneously; that it would be referred, as a matter of form, to the Committee on the Judiciary and be instantly reported back for passage. But the members of the Judiciary Committee in the Senate, although the Frelinghuysen bill had passed during the previous Congress, were not disposed to pass this hastily through. There had been considerable said, a good many arguments made, and conversations held with Senators, and the true state of affairs, as far as possible, had been represented to them, and they had this fear—that this whole attempt at legislation was merely a pretext by which a raid could be made on the property of the “Mormons” in Utah Territory.

There were two very powerful aids that I had in Washington. One, that idea to which I have just referred, that all this was a scheme on the part of certain interested parties for the purpose of getting up a raid under cover of polygamy and “Mormonism” to rob the people of their hard-earned possessions. Many Senators and members had been to Utah and were aware of the increased value of property through the discovery of mines. They had no faith in carpet-baggers, hence there was a reluctance on the part of considerate men to lend themselves to anything like a scheme of this character.

The other great aid I had were the looks of the men who were urging legislation. All I had to do was to point to these men and ask Senators and members how they would like to have power put in the hands of such persons if they resided in Utah Territory? The argument was a conclusive one if they had the opportunity of seeing the persons who were urging legislation at that time. I do not exaggerate when I say that those who went down there to contest my seat and urge legislation were the best aids that could have been furnished me. Some have thought I ought to have had some help, but I tell you truly that they were the best helps that could be sent. I have been asked repeatedly what we paid one of them at least to be there. The first time the question was put to me I was a little surprised at it, and could not help expressing my surprise, not understanding exactly its drift. I said—“We pay him nothing, what do you mean?” “Well,” said the gentleman who asked the question, “if you do not pay him you certainly can afford to pay him to keep him here.” These were strong reasons on our side, and they contributed materially to help our cause.

When the bill, as I have said, came from the Judiciary Committee to the Senate, it came in its original form except the striking out of one section which extended the common law over this Territory. But there was a disposition to so modify the bill that it could not be used in the way that it was designed by its originators, and you know how it has been pruned. To me, as I have said respecting this other matter, so I can say concerning it, that the hand of God was very visible to me, and I felt that he was laboring on our side, and that he would help us and deliver us as he had delivered others in other times and in past ages; and the Lord did soften the hearts of men, cause them to feel favorable to us and to feel favorably disposed to our cause.

It has been said as an explanation of this, so I have understood, that we have used money at Washington to defeat legislation. I have not seen these statements myself, for I made it a point never to read books or papers which villify this people. I really have too little time to read the works and papers which are instructive and pleasant to me, and with which I ought to be familiar, to spend one moment of time in reading abusive, lying and slanderous writings concerning this people or myself. While I was absent, there was a paper published in Washington that had almost daily, as I have rema[r]ked, articles against you and myself. I made it a point never to read one of them. I did not want to be disturbed in my feelings.’ “Where ignorance is bliss,” the poet says, “‘tis folly to be wise.” I thought the scheme was a blackmailing one; I knew the influences which were put in operation to keep up this abuse and I was determined it should not annoy me. Whenever the use of money has been alluded to in the hearing of President Young he has stated, emphatically, that so far as he was concerned he would not spend one cent of money to preserve our rights, or to obtain extended liberties for us as a people. This has been his emphatic declaration, his expressed determination. His views on this subject have been accepted as every way correct.

I want to say to you here, to-day, my brethren and sisters, that not one cent of money has been spent with any man for the purpose of influencing him. I believe my word can be relied upon by this people; you have known me all my life, and when I say this you can put implicit and perfect reliance in what I say. We have had no aid of this kind, we have used no means of this character, we have had no lobbyist. That which has been done has been fairly and above board, and it has been the blessing of God upon us in answer to the united faith and prayers of this people that has produced the results that we have witnessed. I am thankful that we have been enabled to take this course and that we can trust in God and rely upon him, for he will save to the very uttermost.

I recollect writing home a letter some weeks ago, some weeks in fact before the adjournment, in which I said that so far as the sight of the eye, the hearing of the ear, and natural judgment were concerned men might be justified in thinking there would be legislation that would be very severe, and that I would lose my seat. And yet I can truly say that from the day of my election up to the time that I left Washington I never had a single doubt, not a shadow of a doubt as to my keeping my seat—it never cost me one moment’s thought. I knew when I left here that I would be admitted to my seat; I knew when the attempt was made to expel me that it would be unsuccessful; I knew farther, that every attempt to get legislation such as was contemplated would be defeated, and if a bill did pass it would be in a comparatively mild form. Of course, having these ideas, I have felt, as I stated in the commencement of my remarks, very happy. I have had joy all the time, I have had peace all the time, and I have had good cause to be thankful to God our heavenly Father for his blessings upon me.

That I was not expelled from my seat, however, was not due to the absence of effort on the part of the person who wanted it. It was really amusing to hear the pathetic manner in which the poor creature and his confederates alluded to the technical and legal reply which I made, (and which was published in this city,) to his charges against me in his notice of contest for the place of delegate. He had piled charge upon charge against me, nothing being too false, vile or malignant to embody in these accusations, and because I acknowledged nothing, but threw the onus of the proof upon him, he murmured considerably. It would doubtless have been very gratifying to him to have had his case completed for him. As it was, recourse was had to the most despicable methods to obtain such evidence as was thought necessary. Spies pryed into my domestic affairs, and from them and apostates cooked affidavits were obtained with which it was hoped the desired end would be achieved. If vile slanders, base falsehoods, false affidavits or atrocious attacks could have had the desired effect I would not have kept my seat in Congress. If grossly libelous newspaper articles, if shameless and indecent lectures, if frantic appeals to popular prejudice, or the secret circulation of documents signed by perjured affiants could have influenced Congress to take hasty and ill-considered action, the place of delegate from Utah might have been declared vacant. My opponents attacked me for being a “Mormon” of the most ultra and pronounced type; their great efforts were to prove that in the enunciation and practice of every feature of my religion I was bold though shrewd and not a whit behind the foremost, and because of this should not have a seat in Congress. This endorsement, if it had been worth anything, would have pleased me. But it did not always suit to give me this character. For circulation here, another plan was adopted. I was accused of not standing up to my principles. This charge was false but did not displease me, any more than the others pleased me. I am thankful to say that I have learned to view all such charges with complete indifference. Conscious of the propriety of my own course and that I had the confidence of my constituents, my enemies’ attacks gave me no concern. Indeed, I accepted them as compliments. I was quite willing to be investigated. I had tried to live so that I had no fear of a microscopic investigation of the acts of my life. At the same time I never conceded that Congress had the right to investigate my domestic affairs, I have no idea that, I shall ever be convinced that it has that right.

So far as my personal treatment has been concerned, I have been treated with respect and consideration. A few individuals, a few members, have sought to do us injury; a few men can make a great disturbance on a question upon which men are so tender as this question of “Mormonism.” But by the great majority, by ninety-nine hundredths of the men with whom I have been brought in contact, as members of the House, as senators, as heads of departments, I could not ask any better treatment than I have received, I could not expect it. I have endeavored to deport myself as a gentleman in all the relations of life, to treat everybody with the consideration and respect that were due to them, and I have, in return, been treated in the same manner. I take pleasure in bearing this testimony, because one might imagine, from reports that have reached here, that I have been in a constant war and difficulty. It has been a constant war, but it has been a war that has been confined to fighting and counteracting the lies, the machinations, the slanders and the miserable schemes of those who have been plotting against us. And I wish to bear testimony to you this afternoon, that if you will put your trust in God he will never desert you. I never felt for a moment concerned about our affairs but once, and that was when I heard of the divisions in our elections here; that gave me concern. If these Latter-day Saints are only united, if they will keep the commandments of God and do his will, let me say to you that there is no power on earth or in hell that can injure us or retard the onward progress of this work. I know this as well as I know I stand here. But you be divided, you lose your faith, you array yourselves one against another, and then where is your strength? You are no better than any other people, and God will visit you with scourges and with disaster, and you will be punished and your enemies will have power over you. I hear of men being in doubt concerning their faith in the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. I am astonished at it. It seems to me that every evidence that is necessary to convince people of the divinity of this work, people who examine it carefully and prayerfully, has been given unto us as a people.

I thought I knew something, before I left here, concerning the power of God; I thought I knew something of the providences of God our heavenly Father; but I never had such an experience in my life as I have had while I have been absent. I know that God is with this people. I know that God has chosen Brigham Young to be his servant, and to preside over his Church on the earth. I know this as well as I know that I live, and I might as well doubt my own existence, doubt the existence of the heavens above my head, or the earth on which I stand, as to doubt this, and I know that those who follow his counsel will be blessed and will be delivered, while those who reject his counsel will have to suffer therefor.

This may sound strange that a man should have this power given to him in these days, but it is consistent with the plan of salvation as revealed in ancient days. Recollect the power that Jesus gave to Peter—that he should bind on earth and it should be bound in heaven, and that he should loose on earth and it should be loosed in heaven. What great power this was to give to one man, Jesus said to him, “And I will give unto thee the key of the kingdom of heaven, and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatsoever thou shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.

When God chooses a man to be his servant, he expects all his children to honor that man when they become acquainted with the character of his mission, and those who honor him He will honor, and they who despise him He will despise, and I know that the Latter-day Saints have prospered, it has been the experience of my entire life, from my boyhood up to this day, in obeying the counsel of God’s servant. During the days of Joseph, when the Latter-day Saints obeyed his counsel they were prospered; and since his death, for thirty years now, when they have obeyed the counsel of Brigham they have been blessed and prospered. And there is this evidence, which I consider one of the greatest evidences that we can have—whenever we do that which is required of us we have peace in our hearts, and when we oppose it we are disturbed in our spirits. I look upon this as one of the best guides to judge of the character of a spirit by which we may be assailed, or which may present itself for admission to our hearts. Whenever a spirit presents itself that produces disturbance of feeling, agitation, pain, darkness or doubt, we can know if we will judge as we should do, that it is not of God; but a spirit that produces peace, a spirit that produces joy, light and happiness, comes from God, and as a people we should be able to judge between these two classes of influences.

I said, in the commencement, that it is the privilege, in my opinion, of every man, every human being on the face of the earth to be happy, if he will seek happiness in the right direction. The heathen who lives up to the light God has given him can be a happy man. The idolater, no matter what his condition or belief, if he lives up to the light God has given him, can be happy if he will observe those laws which God has made plain unto all of us. Now, my brethren and sisters, there are lying spirits gone forth in the world who seek to deceive. The spirit of falsehood reigns to-day in the midst of the earth. Men delight in slander and in that which is false. You have proved this sufficiently, and if you are not careful you will be assailed by this spirit and partake of it before you are aware of it. How can you know a good spirit from a bad spirit? By the effect it produces upon your minds. I know that there are some who think that unless a man doubts he cannot acquire knowledge. This to me is great folly. I do not think it at all necessary to doubt or to hold controversies with the devil in order to acquire knowledge. I never saw a man who pursued that course who was not disturbed in his mind and darkened in his understanding. Seek for that which produces a good effect upon your minds; if we follow that it will bring us back to God. We need never be deceived by any spirit or influence, and we may always know the truth when we hear it. We have a guide within ourselves, which all of us carry, and that is the power to detect truth from error, right from wrong, good from evil, the spirit of light from the spirit of darkness. I want no spirit within me that produces any unhappy feeling. I want no spirit to enter into my heart that produces darkness and doubt. I want a spirit that produces peace and joy, and that will cause me to rejoice in the midst of my enemies and when threatened by danger; or if I have to walk that narrow and dreadful path that leads to death because of my faith, or any other terrible consequence, that I can walk it and have the Spirit of God, the spirit of peace, joy and resignation therein, without doubt or darkness assailing me. That is the spirit that we as a people should seek for. And when you are disturbed in your feelings and assailed with doubt and do not feel happy, withdraw yourselves from the world, leave the cares that press you, lay them aside, withdraw to your secret chamber, and bow yourselves down before your God and entreat him, in the name of Jesus, to give you his Spirit, and do not leave your chamber until you are, as it, were, baptized in the Spirit of God and full of peace and joy, all your cares and troubles dissipated and dismissed. This is the course we should take as Latter-day Saints, and this will be far more profitable to us than anything else we can do during that period. There is nothing like communion with the Holy Spirit, there is no blessing to equal it. I have proved it abundantly during my absence, and I rejoice that I can bear this testimony to you to-day.

I expect it sounds strange for a man who has been occupied as I have been to talk in this strain; but there is nothing of greater importance to me, according to my understanding, than the salvation of the human family, temporally and spiritually, in the kingdom of God our heavenly Father; nothing of greater importance than teaching men and women how to live so as to be always in the enjoyment of light and wisdom and the peaceful Spirit of God our heavenly Father.

That God may bless you, that God may preserve you, that God may unite your hearts and make you one, and make you a people who shall prove to the inhabitants of the earth that God still lives and that he is unchanged, that he is the same today that he was yesterday, and that he will be the same forever, is my prayer in the name of Jesus. Amen.

It is of Little Import How we Leave This World, so That we are Prepared to Live or Die, etc.

John Taylor

Discourse by Elder John Taylor delivered at the Funeral Services of Elder Thomas Williams, in the Fourteenth Ward Assembly Rooms, Salt Lake City, Sunday morning, July 19, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

We are met this morning to attend to one of those ceremonies that are intimately connected with human existence. People generally feel reflective on sorrowful occasions like the present, and there is something about the manner in which this, our beloved brother, was taken from us, that rather tends to increase this feeling of commiseration, not for the departed, but for his family, friends and associates. Taken away in the bloom of life and health, without a moment’s warning, snatched off in the face of his family and ushered, as it were, immediately from this world into another state of existence, it produces feelings that are more easily imagined than described. However, my ideas in relation to this matter are that so long as we are prepared to live or to die, so long as we are living in the fear and favor of the Almighty, so long as we are fulfilling the various obligations, duties and responsibilities that devolve upon us, it is a matter of very little importance how or in what manner we leave this world and go into another. It is appointed for man once to die, and we can not evade the fiat which fate has decreed. No persons have yet been able to avoid the operations and summons of the grim monster whenever his call has been made. And when we reflect upon the position that we occupy upon the earth it is analogous, in this respect, to that of myriads of human beings who have existed before. In various parts of the world there have been a variety of opinions about the resurrection and about the state of man after death; but there has been very little difference of opinion about death itself. The myriads of human beings who have lived upon this earth have all gone in the same way, that is more or less. Some have died peaceably and quietly in their beds; others have been submerged in the ocean, and drowned far from friends and homes, some in the violent struggles of the battle-field, and some have departed this life after enduring the agony and pain of lingering disease. There are phases associated with human existence and the departure of humanity from this world that are more pleasant than others, and we should like generally, if we could have our way, to make all preparations, have everything arranged, and to leave this world, bidding adieu to our friends and companions as quietly and easily as practicable. We should all like this if we could have our own way about it. But we do not have our choice. “God moves in a mysterious way,” we are told, and the dispensations of Providence are inscrutable. Nor is it a matter of very much moment, according to my ideas, how, or in what way, we leave this world; the great object is and the great questions for us to solve are, are we prepared? Have we formed a union with God our heavenly Father? Have we obtained the forgiveness of our sins? Are we living our religion? Are we keeping the commandments of God? Have we made arrangements for our everlasting associations with beings in the eternal worlds? If we have, if this is our position, it matters but little how or when we leave this world, that must be left for the Almighty to regulate and to decide upon.

God, in his eternal decrees, has ordained that all men must die, but as to the mode and manner of our exit, as I said before, it matters very little. As part of the household and family of God, as beings associated with eternity as well as time, it behooves us to reflect, and that calmly and deliberately, upon our present position, and our relationship and standing before God our heavenly Father. These are important questions for us to solve, and if we can solve them satisfactorily, then all is right.

These events that are continually transpiring around and among us convince us of the fallacy of all earthly enjoyments as associated merely with this life. No matter what our acquirements—no matter what our talents or abilities, no matter what our wealth, position or circumstances in life, we all have to submit to the same grim monster, hence the question naturally comes to our minds, why are we thus situated? We seem attached more or less, to this world. We are struggling, and striving, and grappling and grasping to possess the things of this world. Of what use are they now to this brother whose lifeless remains lie before us? And yet our whole lives, and thoughts, and energy, and talent are generally bent on their acquisition. In a short time, the body now lying here, with whose face we have been familiar, and whose company we have enjoyed, will be lying up there, enclosed in mother earth. Dust to dust, ashes to ashes, the worms preying upon his system, and his spirit gone into another state of existence. That which we see here to-day, will be our case in a short time. Myriads who have lived before us have gone the same way. Where are the statesmen, warriors, orators, princes, potentates, emperors, philosophers, and great men whose names are found upon the pages of history? They have gone! gone! gone! and we are all sliding down the plane of time and hurrying into eternity. This is the position of all men that ever have lived on the face of the earth. Is this our abiding place then? Is this the land of our immortal, eternal inheritance? Not until a change takes place. And what of the affairs of the earth—the baubles, tinsel, glitter and show, the empty name and appearance of earthly things? Why, just as a great and very sensible man expressed himself: Said he, “When I am gone you will build a monument over me, and you will write upon it—

“Here lies the great;—

but if I could rise from the tomb, and could again speak, I would say—

“False marble, where? Nothing but poor and sordid dust lies there!”

So it will be with all of us, with me with you, we shall soon all be in that position. I do not care what our hopes, aspirations or position in life may be, we have all got to go through the dark valley of the shadow of death. We have all got to appear before the tribunal of a just God to give an account of the deeds done in the body, whether those deeds have been good or evil.

And in the various changes that have taken place, in the cycles of time as they have rolled forward, and as they will continue to take place, what of the earth, what of the men who have lived and died and live again, and what of us? What are our position, ideas and prospects? We believe that God has spoken; we believe that light has emanated from the eternal worlds; we believe that God has given us revelation for our guide in time, and to prepare us for an eternal inheritance. For this the Gospel has been preached; for this the Elders of the Church and kingdom of God have gone abroad; for this we have gathered from distant lands; for this we build our Temples and our Tabernacles; for this we preach and pray daily that God may inspire our hearts with the spirit of revelation that emanates from him, and that the Holy Ghost, the Spirit of truth, may rest upon and dwell within us, that when we get through with this time, we may be prepared, with our progenitors and our posterity, to inherit an eternal exaltation in the celestial kingdom of our God. And what is anything without this? Do I mourn over that man? No, I do not, I feel sorry for his family, I do not mourn over him, not a particle. I would not shed a tear over him. He was a good man, a man who feared God, loved his religion, kept the commandments of God and walked humbly before him; he was a man who was honored and respected by the good, respected and honored of God and of holy angels, and it is all right with him. Do I mourn that he is taken away? No, we would like to have our good men stay among us, but perhaps they have something to do in another sphere. Perhaps the services of brother Williams are required somewhere else. There are other positions for men to occupy besides this earth. We had an existence before we came here. We came here to do a certain work. He has done his and gone. Perhaps God required him and has taken him away. All right, we will say, it is the Lord, let him do what seems him good.

In regard to ourselves, that is another thing that we have individually and personally to do with. It is all right with him, how is it with us? I talk to the living, to those who are in existence, who have their volition, who have the power of action and their reasoning faculties, and I say unto them, look where you will be in a short time, and ask yourselves are you prepared, like him, to meet your God, and to have an inheritance in the celestial kingdom of God? These are the questions that I would ask, and I would say that no matter what your position, what your wealth, what your prospects or ideas pertaining to this world, they are none of them worth anything except sanctified by God and appropriated for the building up of his kingdom and the establishment of righteousness upon the earth.

But the question is, are we the friends of God? Is God our friend? Are we living and walking in the light of his countenance? Do we feel that our spirits, feelings and consciences are right before him, that we have consciences void of offence towards God and towards man? These are some of the thoughts and reflections that we have to do with, and it is for us to think seriously, calmly and deliberately upon these things, and to act as wise, prudent, intelligent beings, that we may keep the commandments of God, live our religion and obtain an inheritance in the celestial kingdom of God when we ahall [shall] have got through with the affairs of time, with which we are surrounded.

May God help us to be faithful and keep his commandments, in the name of Jesus, Amen.

Faith of the Latter-day Saints in Relation to the Resurrection

George A. Smith

Discourse by Elder George Q. Cannon, delivered at the Funeral Services of Elder Thomas Williams, in the Fourteenth Ward Assembly Rooms, Salt Lake City, Sunday morning, July 19, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

While Elder Taylor was speaking of the future condition of the departed, the words of a writer in the Book of Mormon came to my mind, and I think that, probably, reading it will be as appropriate on the present occasion, to refresh the minds of the Saints in relation to their faith, and if there should be strangers present, it will give them an idea of the faith of the Latter-day Saints in relation to the resurrection. I think, I say, it would be as appropriate as anything I could say. They are the words of Jacob, the brother of Nephi, and are recorded in the second book of Nephi and sixth chapter. Speaking to a people who were there, Jacob says—

“Behold, my beloved brethren, I speak unto you these things that ye may rejoice, and lift up your heads forever, because of the blessings which the Lord God shall bestow upon your children. For I know that ye have searched much, many of you, to know of things to come; wherefore I know that ye know that our flesh must waste away and die; nevertheless, in our bodies we shall see God. Yea, I know that ye know, that in the body he shall show himself unto those at Jerusalem, from whence we came; for it is expedient that it should be among them; for it behoveth the great Creator that he suffereth himself to become subject unto man in the flesh, and die for all men, that all men might become subject unto him. For as death hath passed upon all men, to fulfill the merciful plan of the great Creator, there must needs be a power of resurrection, and the resurrection must needs come unto man by reason of the fall; and the fall came by reason of transgression; and because man became fallen, they were cut off from the presence of the Lord; wherefore it must needs be an infinite atonement; save it should be an infinite atonement, this corruption could not put on incorruption. Wherefore, the first judgment which came upon man, must needs have remained to an endless duration. And if so, this flesh must have laid down to rot and to crumble to its mother earth, to rise no more.

“O the wisdom of God! his mercy and grace! For behold, if the flesh should rise no more, our spirits must become subject to that angel who fell from before the presence of the eternal God, and became the devil, to rise no more. And our spirits must have become like unto him, and we become devils, angels to a devil, to be shut out from the presence of our God, and to remain with the father of lies, in misery, like unto himself; yea, to that being who beguiled our first parents: who transformeth himself nigh unto an angel of light, and stirreth up the children of men unto secret combinations of murder, and all manner of secret works of darkness.

“O how great the goodness of our God, who prepareth a way for our escape from the grasp of this awful monster; yea; that monster, death and hell, which I call the death of the body, and also the death of the spirit. And because of the way of the deliverance of our God, the Holy One of Israel, this death of which I have spoken, which is the temporal, shall deliver up its dead; which death is the grave. And this death of which I have spoken, which is the spiritual death, shall deliver up its dead; which spiritual death is hell; wherefore, death and hell must deliver up their dead, and hell must deliver up its captive spirits, and the grave must deliver up its captive bodies, and the bodies and the spirits of men will be restored one to the other; and it is by the power of the resurrection of the Holy One of Israel.

“O how great the plan of our God! For on the other hand, the paradise of God must deliver up the spirits of the righteous, and the grave deliver up the body of the righteous; and the spirit and the body is restored to itself again, and all men become incorruptible, and immortal, and they are living souls, having a perfect knowledge like unto us in the flesh; save it be that our knowledge shall be perfect; wherefore, we shall have a perfect knowledge of all our guilt, and our uncleanness, and our nakedness; and the righteous shall have a perfect knowledge of their enjoyment, and their righteousness, being clothed with purity, yea, even with the robe of righteousness.

“And it shall come to pass, that when all men shall have passed from this first death unto life, insomuch as they have become immortal, they must appear before the judgment seat of the Holy One of Israel; and then cometh the judgment, and then must they be judged according to the holy judgment of God. And assuredly, as the Lord liveth, for the Lord God hath spoken it, and it is his eternal word, which cannot pass away, that they who are righteous, shall be righteous still, and they who are filthy, shall be filthy still, wherefore, they who are filthy, are the devil and his angels; and they shall go away into everlasting fire, prepared for them; and their torment is as a lake of fire and brimstone, whose flame ascendeth up for ever and ever, and has no end.

“O the greatness and the justness of our God! For he executeth all his words, and they have gone forth out of his mouth, and his law must be fulfilled. But, behold, the righteous, the Saints of the Holy One of Israel, they who have believed in the Holy One of Israel, they who have endured the crosses of the world, and despised the shame of it; they shall inherit the kingdom of God, which was prepared for them from the foundation of the world, and their joy shall be full forever.

“O the greatness of the mercy of our God; the Holy One of Israel! For he delivereth his Saints from that awful monster the devil, and death, and hell, and that lake of fire and brimstone, which is endless torment.

“O how great the holiness of our God! For he knoweth all things, and there is not anything, save he knows it. And he cometh into the world that he may save all men, if they will hearken unto his voice; for behold, he suffereth the pains of all men; yea, the pains of every living creature, both men, women, and children, who belong to the family of Adam. And he suffereth this, that the resurrection might pass upon all men, that all might stand before him at the great and judgment day. And he commandeth all men that they must repent, and be baptized in his name, having perfect faith in the Holy One of Israel; or they cannot be saved in the kingdom of God. And if they will not repent and believe in his name, and be baptized in his name, and endure to the end, they must be damned; for the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel, has spoken it; wherefore he has given a law; and where there is no law given, there is no punishment; and where there is no punishment, there is no condemnation; and where there is no condemnation, the mercies of the Holy One of Israel have claim upon them, because of the atonement; for they are delivered by the power of him; for the atonement satisfieth the demands of his justice upon all those who have not the law given to them, that they are delivered from that awful monster death and hell, and the devil, and the lake of fire and brimstone, which is endless torment; and they are restored to that God who gave them breath, which is the Holy One of Israel.”

There is much more in this chapter of a similar character, very instructive to those who read and have faith to believe the testimony of this man.

In speaking to you, my brethren and sisters, who are familiar with the life of him whose remains are in our midst this morning, I need not say to you scarcely what our views and hopes are concerning him. We know when a man dies, inasmuch as he dies faithful to the truth, having kept the commandments of God and obeyed the ordinances of the house of God as far as they have been revealed and as he has had an opportunity, that he is secure, that his future is assured. He goes, as we are taught, to the Paradise of God, there to await the morning of the first resurrection. We know that his body will be called forth from the dust and from the tomb, and that his spirit will re-animate it, and he enter upon that glorious condition of existence concerning which so many promises have been made. In this respect the faith of the Latter-day Saints is not a chimera, it is something tangible.

While I sat here and listened to the words of our brother the reflection came across my mind—how often we are called upon to participate in sad scenes like the present, and yet throughout all this Territory, among all the Latter-day Saints, there is this peculiarity, which was not witnessed in the case of our brother because of the suddenness of his taking off; but I have never yet found, in any instance where people have been summoned hence by death, that there were death and sorrow, and feelings of pain and anguish, and dread concerning the future as I have witnessed elsewhere. In the early days of this Church God promised unto the Latter-day Saints that their deaths should be peaceful, and that the dread of death should be taken away from them, and after forty-four years’ experience we, today, and in all the years that are passed, have realized the truth of this promise.

There is something tangible about the faith which God has revealed. If I go forth believing in the Lord Jesus Christ, and am baptized for the remission of my sins, and receive the Holy Ghost, I know that I have done that which God requires at my hands, and if I should die at such a time what have I to fear? If the Holy Ghost has descended upon me it is a witness and evidence to me that I have received a remission of my sins, and that the promise of God has been fulfilled to me, and that the man who administered that holy ordinance to me was an authorized servant of Jesus Christ.

That was the case with brother Williams. His testimonies were of the most remarkable character. I have heard him speak about the evidences of its truthfulness he had when he joined this Church, and I have been almost overpowered with joy that I lived in a day and age of the world when God revealed his mind and will unto man as he did in ancient days. A more powerful testimony, probably, could not be heard than has been borne so repeatedly by our deceased brother. And then what? Why the Spirit of God rested upon him and impelled him to leave his friends and his former home and associations and gather with the Saints. Did he do this because some “Mormon” Elder told him it was right to do it? No, he did this because the Spirit and power of God rested upon him and impelled him to do it. He was filled with joy and peace in obeying this commandment of God, and it was so after he came here in all the works that devolved upon him. Only the day before he died we had a long conversation about these things together, and I trust I shall never forget the spirit that rested upon him and myself while talking. Speaking about the unfaithfulness of men, he did not say in these exact words, but he conveyed the idea to me that he would rather die, rather lay down his life than prove recreant to the principles of the Gospel which he had espoused, he valued them so highly, more than life and everything else on the face of the earth. He has done all that he could do. That power which God promised, or which Jesus rather gave unto Peter, when he said that he should have the power to bind on earth and it should be bound in heaven, and the power to loose on earth and it should be loosed in heaven, has been exercised in behalf of our deceased brother. He took a wife and she was sealed to him by the power of the holy Priesthood, and he entered into this holy ordinance and obeyed celestial marriage as it was revealed to him in the fullness of his faith, although it was a trial to him. But he was impelled to do so by the power which rested down upon him, and he knew he did that which was right. He went forward in obedience to the commandments, putting his trust in God, and I know, as he knew and still knows, though gone behind the vail, that he has secured to himself, so far as his own works could secure, through the grace and atonement of Jesus Christ, his eternal exaltation in the presence of God our heavenly Father.

It is not a strong assurance or hope that the Latter-day Saints have, that they will receive these blessings in the eternal worlds; but when the promise is sealed upon their heads that they shall come forth in the morning of the first resurrection and be crowned with glory, immortality and eternal lives, there is a testimony from God, our eternal Father in the heavens above, which rests down upon them and confirms the truth of these words upon the soul of a faithful man or woman, and they know, when words are pronounced upon them by a man who has the authority, sealing upon them blessings, keys, thrones, principalities, powers and exaltations in the eternal kingdoms of God our Father, I say they know, by the testimony of the Spirit of God which rests down upon them at such times, that these words are not the words of men, but that they are the words of the Spirit of God inspiring that man, and that God takes a record of that ordinance in the heavens, and that it is sealed upon them and upon their children, and that they will actually come forth in the morning of the first resurrection, according to the promise, hence, there is no fear of death in the minds of the Latter-day Saints. If the stake was standing before us, prepared for our execution—if we had that faith that we should have, and which animated the Saints of God in ancient days, we would walk as calmly to that stake and be bound to it as we would walk to eat a meal of victuals, knowing that God, our heavenly Father, will bestow all the blessings that have been sealed upon us.

This was the faith which animated the ancients and sustained them in the midst of persecutions, and this is the faith that we should cherish and cultivate as a people and as individuals. Woe to the man who has lost that faith! Dreadful is his condition if he has not that faith living within him. Woe to that man, for his condition is far worse than his first condition, that is before he had these blessings sealed upon him.

My associations with our brother who has gone have been of the most tender character. I have known him as I have known a brother. Our associations have been very intimate from the day I first made his acquaintance, on the Missouri river, in 1860, until the present time. I have watched his course, and have been pleased with his faithfulness. A more amiable, more kind-spirited or more loving man I scarcely ever met. I do not know that I ever met one more so. He has been beloved by all who have known him. A modest, unobtrusive man, never setting himself forward, but faithful and diligent, performing the labors assigned to him without any parade but with the greatest devotion and zeal.

That God may bless his wives and his children, and pour out upon them the spirit of consolation, that he may preserve his little ones, that they may grow up in the truth, and tread the straight and narrow path which he has trodden to the end, and like him be crowned with glory, is my prayer in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

Nothing Strange or New to Live and Die, etc.

Brigham Young

Discourse by President Brigham Young, delivered at the Funeral Services of Elder Thomas Williams, in the Fourteenth Ward Assembly Rooms, Salt Lake City, Sunday morning, July 19, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

I do not wish to detain the congregation, for I realize that it is very warm and uncomfortable; but on this occasion I feel to offer a few reflections, and pray that they may be instructive to the living, and encourage us in the faith of the holy Gospel, strengthen us in the little faith that we now possess, and open up to our minds the future prospects and blessings that the Lord has in reserve for the faithful.

We call this a solemn occasion, for we have met together to pay our last respects to one who has lived with us, and with whom we have associated, and we delight to show our respect to the mortal remains of those who, in life, have been near and dear to us. But for me to address a lifeless lump of clay would be useless, while to address the living, who have ears to hear and hearts to understand, may be profitable. I requested the brethren to speak who have already addressed you, and there are more here who would like to speak on the present occasion.

The testimony that has been borne concerning the character of our beloved brother, whose body is now a lifeless mass of clay before us, is true, and more we can say than what has been said.

The scene that we are now called to witness is painful to near and dear friends—it is a scene calculated to wring the very heart—the inmost heart. Such scenes are always painful, still we witness them day by day, and when we contemplate the vast number of souls that come into existence and inhabit bodies here on this earth, and the vast number that are departing, almost every moment, it is nothing strange or new. Except this plant die it cannot be quickened; except this mortality is put off it can not put on immortality; except this body that we have received from the earth returns to mother earth, it can not be brought forth in the morning of the resurrection. This we know and understand; yet how strange it is, and yet we may say it is not strange, that the living, with all that they witness concerning the departure of the living to another state of existence, how few there are who lay it to heart, how few there are who profit by it, how few there are who seek unto God for wisdom, knowledge and understanding to enable them to acquit themselves well here preparatory to this change. There are some who do, but very few, and though we mourn at the loss of our friends, when our natural feelings have passed away, and our hearts have ceased to mourn, cheerfulness takes the place of these mournful feelings, and we think no more of it. This is the common condition of the children of men, those who profess to be Christians, and to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ as the Savior of the world. They have made many inquiries with regard to this passing from one state of existence to another. It seems to be a great mystery to them. A great deal has been said and a great deal has been written, and there have been many reflections—more than has been spoken or written, and yet it is one eternal mystery to the world. Why? Because they have not eyes to see, nor ears to hear, and they do not understand the providences of God; and if they read the word of the Lord—the revelations that he has given concerning the living and the dead—they do not understand them, and so the world is left in darkness, to grope their way like the blind man by the wall. Thus it is with the children of men, taking the whole of the Christian world.

It is true the Latter-day Saints have received a little more—they have received something beyond the imagination of the heart. We have facts before us, we have experience that is satisfactory, and we can rejoice in the hope that God has given us. But if we will be prepared, as this our beloved brother was prepared, to go at a moment’s warning; if we live in this way, we live just as we should live. No person who believes on the Lord Jesus Christ has a right to spend a day, an hour, or a minute of his life or her life in a manner unbecoming the profession of a Saint; they should be ready to depart this life any moment. I say that those who understand the things of God have no right, neither have they any wish, to live only so that they may enjoy the light of his Spirit, enjoy communion with God, with his son Jesus Christ and with the Holy Ghost, so that they may be instructed day by day how to walk in the path that lies before them, the path that leads to life everlasting. But how easy it is for those who profess to be Saints, to be of the earth, earthy, and to seek after and love the world, and fall into the spirit of the world. How easy it is for them to receive the spirit of the world, and to forget the spirit of salvation that has been in their hearts. If we could keep constantly in our minds and before us what we really know, what the Lord has taught us, what we have read and what we have received by the whisperings of the Spirit, this would be satisfactory; but many do not retain these things, they pass from them, and when they have passed away doubt seizes their minds, and they are at a loss to determine whether they ever understood anything or not.

In the great providences of God, in bringing forth worlds into existence, as he has this, which worlds are continually coming into existence and passing from one state to another, inhabitants come forth; every living creature that we have any knowledge of God sends forth upon the earth that he frames, there to live and to enjoy, or to endure all that his providences bring forth upon the earth, that they may have an experience, that they may be prepared for another change. These changes are taking place continually, and have been from the beginning. In the vegetable and in the mineral kingdoms, as well as in the animal kingdom, these changes are continually going on. Man comes on to this stage of action, and he is continually undergoing a change until the time of his departure. He comes here—he knows not how. We know we are here; but who is it understands how we came, and the design and purpose of our Heavenly Father in sending us here? Here is the mystery to the Christian and scientific world; they do not understand it. “Would that we could” say the inhabitants of the earth, and especially those who believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. “How glad I should be to know where Jesus lives!” “How glad I should be to know whether I am going to him when I leave this world! But it is a mystery.” Why should it be a mystery? Because the curtain is shut down before us, and the vision of our minds is closed up for a trial for us, for us to prove ourselves, and to show whether, while passing through darkness and affliction, in ignorance and with clouds of unbelief over us, after being made acquainted with the things of God, we will persevere and be firm to our faith, and so prove ourselves worthy to receive a glorious resurrection, a change to a more exalted state of being than we can possess and enjoy here on this earth.

We are made expressly to dwell with those who continue to learn, and who receive knowledge on knowledge, wisdom on wisdom; we belong to the family of heaven. I am looking now upon a body of divinity. Every face that I see sheds forth a certain amount of the divinity I worship—my Father in heaven. Here we are, we are God’s children, and we are brought forth to give us an experience, that we may know good from evil, light from darkness; that we may know how to serve God; that we may know why and wherefore we should refuse the evil and choose the good. I ask the philosophers—and I think it is probable there are some here to-day—how do you prove facts? By their contrast. How do you know this or that? By its contrast. We know and prove things by their opposite; we understand the evil because the good is present with us, and the Lord sends forth his intelligent children on the face of the earth to prove whether they are worthy to dwell with him in eternity.

How frequently the question arises in the minds of the people—“I wish I knew where I was going!” Can you find out? Well, you will go into the spirit world, where brother Thomas now is. He has now entered upon a higher state of being, that is, his spirit has, than when in this body. “Why cannot I see him? Why cannot I converse with his spirit? I wish I could see my husband or my father and converse with him!” It is not reasonable that you should, it is not right that you should; perhaps you would miss the very object of your pursuit if you had this privilege, and there would be the same trial of faith to exercise you, not so severe a path of affliction for you to walk in, not so great a battle to fight, nor so great a victory to win, and you would miss the very object you are in pursuit of. It is right just as it is, that this veil should be closed down; that we do not see God, that we do not see angels, that we do not converse with them except through strict obedience to his requirements, and faith in Jesus Christ. When we contemplate the condition of man here upon the earth, and understand that we are brought forth for the express purpose of preparing ourselves through our faithfulness to inherit eternal life, we ask ourselves where we are going, what will be our condition, what will be the nature of our pursuits in a state of being in which we shall possess more vigor and a higher degree of intelligence than we possess here? Shall we have labor? Shall we have enjoyment in our labor? Shall we have any object of pursuit, or shall we sit and sing ourselves away to everlasting bliss? These are questions that arise in the minds of people, and they many times feel anxious to know something about hereafter. What a dark valley and a shadow it is that we call death! To pass from this state of existence as far as the mortal body is concerned, into a state of inanition, how strange it is! How dark this valley is! How mysterious is this road, and we have got to travel it alone. I would like to say to you, my friends and brethren, if we could see things as they are, and as we shall see and understand them, this dark shadow and valley is so trifling that we shall turn round and look upon it and think, when we have crossed it, why this is the greatest advantage of my whole existence, for I have passed from a state of sorrow, grief, mourning, woe, misery, pain, anguish and disappointment into a state of existence, where I can enjoy life to the fullest extent as far as that can be done without a body. My spirit is set free, I thirst no more, I want to sleep no more, I hunger no more, I tire no more, I run, I walk, I labor, I go, I come, I do this, I do that, whatever is required of me, nothing like pain or weariness, I am full of life, full of vigor, and I enjoy the presence of my heavenly Father, by the power of his Spirit. I want to say to my friends, if you will live your religion, live so as to be full of the faith of God, that the light of eternity will shine upon you, you can see and understand these things for yourselves, that when you close your eyes upon mortality you wake up right in the presence of the Father and the Son if they are disposed to withdraw the vail, they can do as they please with regard to this; but you are in the spirit world and in a state of bliss and happiness, though we may call it Hades or hell. It is the world of spirits, it is where Jesus went, and where all go, both good and bad. The spirits of the living that depart this life go into the world of spirits, and if the Lord withdraws the vail it is much easier for us then to behold the face of our Father who is in heaven than when we are clothed upon with this mortality. I have not time at present to follow these reflections further.

Then we should be encouraged, we should strengthen our faith by our hope, we should seek unto the Lord until our hope is made perfect, that we may have power to bear like Saints all the afflictions we meet with here on the earth. If we do this, when we have crossed the dark valley of the shadow of death it will be so easy to turn round and behold the path that we have walked, wherein we have had the privilege, the same as the Gods, of learning the difference between good and evil.

You recollect that it was said in ancient days, to her that we call Mother, “Your eyes will be opened if you will eat of this fruit, and you will know as the Gods know, good from evil.” This probation is given us that we may learn this lesson, and if we are faithful in it we shall learn how to succor those who are tempted and tried as we are, when we have the power to rescue them from the ravages of the enemy.

This earth is our home, it was framed expressly for the habitation of those who are faithful to God, and who prove themselves worthy to inherit the earth when the Lord shall have sanctified, purified and glorified it and brought it back into his presence, from which it fell far into space. Ask the astronomer how far we are from the nearest of those heavenly bodies that are called the fixed stars. Can he count the miles? It would be a task for him to tell us the distance. When the earth was framed and brought into existence and man was placed upon it, it was near the throne of our Father in heaven. And when man fell—though that was designed in the economy, there was nothing about it mysterious or unknown to the Gods, they understood it all, it was all planned—but when man fell, the earth fell into space, and took up its abode in this planetary system, and the sun became our light. When the Lord said—“Let there be light,” there was light, for the earth was brought near the sun that it might reflect upon it so as to give us light by day, and the moon to give us light by night. This is the glory the earth came from, and when it is glorified it will return again unto the presence of the Father, and it will dwell there, and these intelligent beings that I am looking at, if they live worthy of it, will dwell upon this earth.

As for their labor and pursuits in eternity I have not time to talk upon that subject; but we shall have plenty to do. We shall not be idle. We shall go on from one step to another, reaching forth into the eternities until we become like the Gods, and shall be able to frame for ourselves, by the behest and command of the Almighty. All those who are counted worthy to be exalted and to become Gods, even the sons of God, will go forth and have earths and worlds like those who framed this and millions on millions of others. This is our home, built expressly for us by the Father of our spirits, who is the Father, maker, framer and producer of these mortal bodies that we now inherit, and which go back to mother earth. When the spirit leaves them they are lifeless; and when the mother feels life come to her infant it is the spirit entering the body preparatory to the immortal existence. But suppose an accident occurs and the spirit has to leave this body prematurely, what then? All that the physician says is—“it is a still birth,” and that is all they know about it; but whether the spirit remains in the body a minute, an hour, a day, a year, or lives there until the body has reached a good old age, it is certain that the time will come when they will be separated, and the body will return to mother earth, there to sleep upon that mother’s bosom. That is all there is about death.

Brother Thomas Williams is no more dead than he was a week ago. His clay is simply dead; and inasmuch as he honored this tabernacle that lies before us, it will take a sleep in the dust, to come forth immortal in the day of the first resurrection.

This will be the case with us all; if we honor our being here. This is our path, and our great object should be to honor our calling here. We have bodies which, in infancy, childhood and youth, are just as pure as the angels, and if we honor these bodies, and preserve them in chastity, purity and holiness, they are just as good as the bodies of those that dwell in endless life, and they will be prepared to come forth in the glorious resurrection, and be crowned with glory, immortality and eternal lives. This is the privilege of all, and the work that the Savior has undertaken is to save all that will come unto him; none will be eternally lost except the sons of perdition; and the great work that God has brought forth in the latter-days in restoring the Priesthood is for the living and for the dead, to bring them up that they may enjoy a glorious resurrection.

Brother Thomas has honored his body here, and he now goes into his glory, that is, as far as he can in the spirit world. He goes where he can do more good. He has gone where he can preach to those who have lived and died on the earth without the Gospel, that they may have the privilege of receiving and obeying it, that they may be judged according to men in the flesh, and have the privilege of a glorious resurrection.

This is the work of the Latter-day Saints, and if we are hated for anything, it is for trying to save the people; if we are persecuted it is for trying to do good to those who are living and those who are dead. I say, then, to the Saints, pursue your course, live your religion and be ready at a moment’s warning. Brother Thomas Williams, while he sat at table eating his dinner, had not the privilege of speaking a word. A blood vessel broke, and his mouth and throat were instantly filled with blood to that degree that he could not speak a word. He tried to swallow a little salt and water, and probably he got a little down, but I doubt it very much. The blood gushed most probably from both stomach and lungs. The vessels were ripe and prepared to break, and the blood within him gushed out so copiously that he never spoke another word. How could he repent of his sins if he had not been prepared? What kind of a confession could he have made if he had wished to? None at all. He could not ask a Priest to pray for him if he had wanted to do so; no, he was prepared to go; he never spoke a word, but committed his soul to God without a moment’s warning. I try to so live that my work is always done; I have done everything that can be done up to the moment, just as he did it. I wish our business men would take pattern by him who lies before us. He was our paymaster in the Parent Branch of Z.C.M.I., and attended to this Branch of the financial business of the Institution, and there was not an order that was to be paid or filed, but what he had written a description of it and pinned it on to that order before he went to his dinner. In all his business there was not one scratch of the pen wanted to be done by other clerks, but every iota was done just as much as though he had known that he was going to breathe his last in twenty minutes.

Saints, I wish you would take pattern by this man, and live your lives as he lived his life. I pray you in Christ’s stead live your religion. If you want to know whether I live mine judge by my works, judge from my daily walk and conversation. You have the right to judge, but you be sure and live so that you will know whether I do or not. I live so that I know whether you do or not, exactly. Latter-day Saints live your religion and honor your God.

I say to this family, the wives and children of brother Williams, God bless you and comfort your hearts; and I say, will you please live your religion so that you may be prepared to meet him? If you do not live so as to honor your Priesthood, you will come short of meeting him in the resurrection, I assure you. Now live your religion. God is not to be mocked, the laws of God are to be honored, and all of his ordinances and requirements are to be filled and fulfilled. He requires strict obedience of his children, and if we are not obedient we shall come short of that glory that we anticipate now.

I hope and pray that the Lord will bless you all. Amen.

All Nations Believe in a Future State of Existence, etc.

Orson Pratt

Discourse by Elder Orson Pratt, delivered in the Old Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Sunday afternoon, July 19, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

I hope the congregation will give their attention and pray for the Holy Spirit to be shed forth upon all those who are upright in heart, that we may be edified and instructed by the inspiration and power thereof, for this is one of the objects which we have in view in assembling ourselves together, from Sabbath to Sabbath, to be instructed in the things pertaining to the kingdom, and also to partake of the emblems of the death and sufferings of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

We find ourselves here, upon this creation, intelligent beings, and questions no doubt arise in the minds of almost every man and every woman in relation to the future destiny of the human family, and what is the object of our being placed here on this earth for a short season and then passing away. It is a question not only asked by intelligent beings who believe in divine revelation, but the heathen and semi-barbarous nations, in fact all people reflect, more or less, concerning the object of their existence here, and what awaits them in the future. Mankind gain very little light on this subject unless through the medium of divine revelation, hence we find among all people a great variety of views in relation to this matter. Our American Indians have some ideas of a future state of existence—they cannot persuade themselves to believe that man is destined, when he lays aside this mortal tabernacle, to be annihilated, but they, look forward to a future state, and the pleasures they will hereafter enjoy in their happy hunting grounds. Some people believe one principle and some another in relation to this matter, and the only way man can be satisfied on a subject of so great importance is by receiving revelation from that order of beings—far in advance of us—who have a knowledge of the future state and condition of man.

We find recorded in the revelations of the Most High, called the Bible, as well as in the Book of Mormon and the various modern revelations which God has given, that man is destined to live forever. God having revealed this fact to ancients and to moderns, raised up witnesses to bear testimony to the children of men that they are immortal beings, and that this change which comes upon them, denominated death, is not an annihilation of their being or an end of their existence, but it is merely a casting off or laying aside of the mortal tabernacle; that man lives in the eternal world even after he appears to be dead, and that, if a righteous man, he has joy and happiness, but if a wicked man, he has the gnawing of conscience, and misery, and wretchedness; and that he expects, according to divine revelation, to receive again, in due time, the tabernacle that he has thrown off for a moment. It is sown in weakness, says the Apostle Paul, it is raised in power; it is laid down as a mortal body, it is raised up as an immortal body.

If we, by study or research, could discover some method or principle by which we could remain in this world and live in this tabernacle forever, we should be willing to do so with all the inconveniences of the present order of things, and still be joyful in our hearts. If any man could by research or learning discover some kind of a way, or means or medicine that would give immortality to the children of men, even in their present state, he would be considered [considered] one of the greatest men that ever lived, and the one who had bestowed the greatest blessing upon his fellow-creatures; he would be lauded to the very skies, and his name would be handed down among all people and nations as one of the greatest benefactors of mankind; so earnestly do we feel to cling to life and desire to live, that we would be very willing to put up with the inconveniences of the present state if we could only remain and the monster death have no power over us. But it is in the order of God that man should die. Man brought this upon himself by transgressing the laws of heaven. By putting forth his hand and partaking of that which God had forbidden, he brought this great evil into the world. Death not only came upon our first parents, who committed the first great transgression, but the curse has been inherited by all their generations. None can escape the curse so far as the mortal body is concerned.

I think, perhaps, this broad assertion may be contradicted in the minds of some. They may tell us of Enoch, who was translated to heaven; they may speak of Elijah, who was caught up in a chariot of fire, and say, “Here, at least, are two exceptions to the general rule.” But what do we know concerning translation? What has God revealed in all the revelations contained in the Old and New Testaments in relation to a translated being? Are we assured that such beings never will have to undergo a change equivalent to that of death?

Our new revelations that we have received inform us of a great many individuals that were translated before the flood. We read that a great and mighty Prophet of the Most High God was sent forth in the days of Adam, namely Enoch, the seventh generation from Adam, who lived contemporary with his ancestor Adam; that in his days a great number of people heard the plan of salvation preached to them by the power of the Holy Ghost that rested upon Enoch and those who were called with him; that they received this plan of salvation and gathered themselves out from among the various nations of the earth where they had obeyed the Gospel; that they were instructed, after they assembled in one, in righteousness, for three hundred and sixty-five years; that they learned the laws of the kingdom, and concerning God and every principle of righteousness that was necessary to enable them to enter into the fullness of the glory of heaven; they were instructed to build up a city, and it was called a city of holiness, for God came down and dwelt with that people; he was in their midst, they beheld his glory, they saw his face, and he condescended to dwell among them for many long years, during which time they were instructed and taught in all of his ways, and among other things they learned the great doctrine and principle of translation, for that is a doctrine the same as the doctrine of the resurrection of the dead, which is among the first principles of the plan of salvation; and we may also say that the doctrine of translation, which is intimately connected with that of the resurrection, is also one of the first principles of the doctrine of Christ. They were instructed in relation to this government, the object of it, &c.

According to the light and knowledge which the Latter-day Saints have upon this subject, revealed in the revelations given through Joseph Smith, we find that those people, when they were fully prepared, having learned the doctrine of translation, were caught up into the heavens, the whole city, the people and their habitations. How much of the earth was taken up in connection with their habitations we are not informed. It, might have been a large region. You may ask—“Where was this city of Zion built in ancient days?” According to new revelation it was built upon this great western hemisphere. When I speak of this western hemisphere I speak of it as it now exists. In those days the land was united; the eastern and the western hemispheres were one; but they dwelt in that portion of our globe that is now called the western hemisphere, and they were taken up from this portion of the globe. No doubt all the region of country occupied by them was translated, or taken away from the earth.

Does this prove that they were immortal beings from the time of their translation? No; it does not prove any such thing. How are we to know anything about it? We can not learn anything in relation to it, except by revelation. God has revealed to us that they are held in reserve, in some part or portion of space; their location is not revealed, but they are held in reserve to be revealed in the latter times, to return to their ancient mother earth; all the inhabitants that were then taken away are to return to the earth.

Some five thousand years have passed away since they were caught up to the heavens. What has been their condition during that time? Have they been free from death? They have been held in reserve in answer to their prayers. What were their prayers? Enoch and his people prayed that a day of righteousness might be brought about during their day; they sought for it with all their hearts; they looked abroad over the face of the earth and saw the corruptions that had been introduced by the various nations, the descendants of Adam, and their hearts melted within them, and they groaned before the Lord with pain and sorrow, because of the wickedness of the children of men, and they sought for a day of rest, they sought that righteousness might be revealed, that wickedness might be swept away and that the earth might rest for a season. God gave them visions, portrayed to them the future of the world, showed unto them that this earth must fulfill the measure of its creation; that generation after generation must be born and pass away, and that, after a certain period of time, the earth would rest from wickedness, that the wicked would be swept away, and the earth would be cleansed and sanctified and be prepared for a righteous people. “Until that day,” saith the Lord, “you and your people shall rest, Zion shall be taken up into my own bosom.” Ancient Zion should be held in reserve until the day of rest should come, “then,” said the Lord to Enoch, “thou and all thy city shall descend upon the earth, and your prayers shall be answered.”

They have been gone, as I have already stated, about five thousand years. What have they been doing? All that we know concerning this subject is what has been revealed through the great and mighty Prophet of the last days, Joseph Smith—that unlearned youth whom God raised up to bring forth the Book of Mormon and to establish this latter-day Church. He has told us that they have been ministering angels during all that time. To whom? To those of the terrestrial order, if you can understand that expression. God gave them the desires of their hearts, the same as he gave to the three Nephites, to whom he gave the privilege, according to their request, of remaining and bringing souls unto Christ while the world should stand. Even so, he granted to the people of Enoch their desire to become ministering spirits unto those of the terrestrial order until the earth should rest and they should again return to it.

Joseph inquired concerning their condition, whether they were subject to death during that period, and was informed, as you will find in the history of this Church, as printed in the Millennial Star and other publications thereof, that these personages have to pass through a change equivalent to that of death; notwithstanding their translation from the earth, a certain change has to be wrought upon them that is equivalent to death, and probably equivalent also to the resurrection of the dead. But before that change comes they minister in their office unto those of another order, that is the terrestrial order. Strangers will not understand perhaps what we mean by the terrestrial order. If they will take the opportunity of reading the doctrines of this Church, as laid down in the revelations given through Joseph Smith, they will learn what our views are in relation to this matter. God revealed by vision the different orders of being in the eternal worlds. One class, the highest of all, is called the celestial; another class, the next to the celestial in glory, power, might and dominion, is called the terrestrial; another class, still lower than the terrestrial in glory and exaltation, is called the telestial. This middle class, whose glory is typified by the glory of our moon in the firmament of the heavens as compared with the sun, are those who once dwelt on this or some other creation and, if they have had the Gospel laid before them they have not had a full opportunity of receiving it; or they have not heard it all, and have died without having the privilege. In the resurrection they come forth with terrestrial bodies. They must be administered to says the vision, and God has appointed agents or messengers to minister to these terrestrial beings, for their good, blessing, exaltation, glory and honor in the eternal worlds.

Enoch and his people understanding this principle sought that they, before receiving the fullness of their celestial glory, might be the instruments in the hands of God of doing much good among beings of the terrestrial order.

We read in the New Testament concerning certain angels that are in the eternal worlds, and the question is asked by the Apostle Paul—“Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for those who shall be heirs of salvation?”—not for those who were already heirs of salvation, but for those who shall be—those who were to be redeemed, that were to be brought forth and exalted. Enoch and his people were appointed to this ministry, holding the Priesthood thereof, with power and authority to administer in order that those beings may be exalted and brought up, and inherit all the glory that they are desirous to receive.

Much might be said concerning these different orders of glory, but we feel to pass on, and we will speak a few words now concerning the resurrection from the dead of those who have fully prepared themselves for the highest glory, the glory of the celestial kingdom, the highest of all, the holiest of all, the kingdom where God the Father sits enthroned in glory and in power, ruling and governing all things. There is a certain law, which God ordained before the foundation of the world, an irrevocable decree that those who would obey that law should have this great and most glorious of all the resurrections, be raised to celestial power, thrones and exaltations, where they could dwell in the presence of their Father and their God, throughout all the future ages of eternity.

Do you enquire what this law is which God revealed, and which was fore-ordained in the counsels of eternity, to be made manifest unto the sons and daughters of men for their exaltation to this highest heaven? Do you desire to know the road, the ordinances, the principles, by which we may attain to that highest of all exaltations? I will begin and say to all, that every individual that ever attains to the fullness of that glory, I mean those who have come to the years of understanding and maturity not referring at all to little children—must be born of the water and of the Spirit in order to be prepared to enter that highest glory of all. No one gets there upon any other principle. No ordinances, principles, laws or institutions laid down by the children of men that vary from that principle, will ever bring us into the celestial kingdom. We have the words of Jesus on this subject, when speaking to Nicodemus—“Verily, verily, I say unto you, except a man be born of the water and of the Spirit, he can in no wise enter into the kingdom of heaven.” It is an impossibility, because the word of the great Jehovah has gone forth, and will not be revoked, and unless we are born of the water and of the Spirit, we cannot enter there.

What do we understand by being born of the water? What we understand, what God has revealed to us, as well as to the ancients, is, that we must be laid under the water and be brought forth out of the water, typical of birth, for this is a birth of the water. Who is a fit subject for this birth of the water? None but those who truly believe in the Lord Jesus Christ as the Savior of the world; those who believe that he died to redeem the world and that he shed his blood to atone for the sins of the world; those who believe this and truly repent of all their sins are the only subjects who are justified before God in going down into the waters of baptism, being immersed in the water and brought forth again out of the water, which is the new birth of the water. It will do no person any good to be baptized a hundred times if his baptism is not connected with true faith in God and in Jesus Christ, and in his revelations and commandments; and unless he sincerely and truly repents of his sins, reforms his life and enters into a covenant with God to serve him in all righteousness, humility, meekness and lowliness of heart, his baptism would be good for nothing, it would not be acknowledged in heaven, it would not be recorded in the archives of eternity to his justification in the great judgment day. Let me go still further, and say, that if we have repented of and been baptized for the remission of our sins, if we do not seek after the birth of the spirit also, our baptism will avail us nothing; they must go hand in hand—the birth of the water first and then the birth of the spirit.

What do we understand by the birth of the spirit? I answer, that there is a birth of the spirit, in other words, those persons who receive the Holy Ghost are filled with it, are immersed within it, they are clothed upon therewith, and consequently are born anew of it, and they are without desires to do evil, their desires to do that which is wrong are taken away, and they become new creatures in Christ Jesus, being born of the spirit, as well as being born of the water. Here then are certain laws, ordinances or principles, as a beginning or starting point, by which we may gain an entrance into that highest glory of which I have been speaking.

Another thing to be considered in receiving these ordinances—I may be ever so sincere and humble and ever so willing to repent of my sins; I may have ever so much faith in God and in his Son Jesus Christ, and yet if I am not baptized by a man holding divine authority from God, having the right to baptize me in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost, my baptism will not be legal, it will not be the new birth, and I cannot enter into the kingdom of God, according to the words of Jesus. What then does it require to constitute a man having divine authority? Can any one by a mere impression upon his mind consider that he has divine authority to baptize his fellows? No; it needs a call from heaven, it needs a new revelation co[n]temporary with the individuals that act, a revelation from God calling the persons by name, setting them apart, ordaining them and calling them to officiate, commanding them to administer. Any other person who attempts to administer baptism will not be acknowledged in heaven. But a man holding the right by virtue of his divine calling and ordination, and by virtue of the power that God has bestowed upon him and the commandment that God has revealed to him, can go down and administer the baptism of water, and it will be recognized in heaven; it will not only be recorded on earth among the Saints in the Church here on the earth, but it will be recorded in the books of eternity, the records that are kept on high, and in that day, when all men shall be judged out of the books that are written, it will be found that the books kept here on earth will accord with those books that are kept in heaven, and by these books will parties be justified, and by these books will the legal ordinances that have been administered be acknowledged and recognized in heaven.

This calls forth another query by the world—“Why is it that you Latter-day Saints are so exclusive in the administration of the ordinances that you will not admit me, a Baptist, to join your society on my old baptism? I have been immersed,” says the Baptist; “I was sincere, I repented of my sins, and yet you Latter-day Saints will not receive me into your communion and to become a member of your Church unless I am baptized by one of your authorities.” The answer is, we do not recognize, as I have already stated, the authority of the Baptists, Presbyterians, Methodists, Roman Catholics, nor of any Christian society upon the whole face of our globe to administer in the sacred ordinances, unless God has called them by new revelation, even as Aaron was called in ancient days. Have they been thus called? Ask them, and they will tell you no. Ask them if there has been any later revelation than the Old and New Testament, and all these societies will tell you that God has not given any revelation, raised up any Prophets or inspired Apostles, sent any angels, or given any visions, since the day that John the Revelator, the last of the Apostles, closed up his writing. Oh what an awful condition they must be in if this is the case! And who, with the exception of the Latter-day Saints, I ask again, among all nations, kindreds, peoples, tongues, and religious denominations, upon the face of our globe, has any divine authority? Not one, hence their baptisms are illegal, their administrations of the Lord’s Supper are illegal, and all their administrations in ordinances are not recognized in heaven. If God has not said anything since the days of the ancient Apostles, no wonder that he commanded, in these latter days, that we should not receive any into our Church unless they came in by the door of baptism.

But we have only told you some of the first principles of the Gospel of the Son of God, which are necessary to prepare the human family to enter into that highest glory that is spoken of by the Apostle Paul—the glory of the celestial. He says in the fifteenth chapter of the first epistle to the Corinthians—“There is one glory of the sun, another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for as one star differs from another star in glory, so also is the resurrection of the dead.” The glory of the sun is the highest, it is called by Paul the celestial, and I have told you some of the first principles of the celestial law. If you would inherit a celestial glory you must be willing to abide by the celestial law, otherwise you will come short. But do we stop with these first principles? No, there are many other great and glorious principles, connected with the celestial law, which God has revealed, and set forth as necessary for his people to receive, in order to prepare them to enter into that glory. I will name one—marriage.

We know very little about the order of heaven, so far as marriage is concerned, and all that we do know God has revealed. He has told us in the New Testament, “What God hath joined together, let no man put asunder.” It seems then that there is a marriage wherein God officiates, or in other words, he officiates by his power and authority, he officiates in the uniting of men and women in marriage, hence it is called joining them together of God—what God joins, not what man joins. It is a divine institution, it cannot be administered by the law-making department. There may be marriages under the civil law; Congress, or the Legislatures of the various States and Territories may pass laws regulating the marriage institution, and marriages performed according to the provisions thereof would be legal, so far as the laws of man are concerned. But has God anything to do with these marriages? Just as much as he has with baptism when it is administered illegally. I have already shown you that a baptism administered by a man without authority is good for nothing; and a man and woman united in marriage by any civil law ever framed since the world began, are illegally married in the sight of heaven; to be legal there, it must be performed by a man called by revelation and ordained and commanded to celebrate that ordinance.

Now I want to say a few words to our young people who dwell in different parts of the Territory. I have heard that some of them, perhaps through a want of understanding of the laws of God, have suffered themselves to be married by the civil law—for instance, by a justice of the peace, alderman or judge. That will do very well so far as the laws of the land are concerned, but has God anything to do with such marriages? Nothing at all. Has he ever authorized marriages to be solemnized after this order? Not at all. Are children born of such marriages your legal sons and daughters in the sight of heaven? Not at all; they are in one sense bastards. That is a pretty hard saying, is it not? They are actually bastards. For instance, there are many old people who never heard of the divine appointment and authority which God has sent forth from heaven in relation to marriage, who have been married according to the laws of the countries in which they resided before they heard of this work. They complied literally with their laws, and so far as the law was concerned that was all right. But were they, legally, in the sight of God, husband and wife? Just as much as I would be a son of God and born of water, if I were sprinkled by a sectarian priest, or baptized by a Baptist priest, just as much. Could we claim a celestial glory, and all the privileges and blessings and exaltation that God has ordained from the foundation of the world to be bestowed upon those who comply with the celestial law, unless we complied with this law? Could our children, in the morning of the resurrection, come up and say unto us—“We claim you as our legal parents;” “I am your son,” “I am your daughter, and you are my parents, and therefore I claim the privilege of partaking of all the glory that you partake of, and of receiving thrones and dominions and kingdoms and powers and principalities in heavenly places in Christ Jesus?” They could not claim any such thing; neither could the parents have a claim upon these children; neither could they be gathered together and organized into a family capacity. Why? Because the celestial law has not been attended to. Inquires one—“Do you mean to make us all out bastards?” Not in the eyes of the law, but in the eyes of heaven. I am pointing out the difference now between the two laws—the law of man and the law of God, or the celestial law. Parents, if you would have your families connected with you in a social capacity hereafter, you must take steps to secure them by obeying the celestial law.

Inquires one—“Is there any remedy for these illegal marriages that we entered into before we heard the Gospel?” Yes, God has ordained from before the foundation of the world, laws and institutions adapted to the condition of all the human family, which, when revealed, if they are attended to by the children of men, will bless and exalt them, and consequently the propriety of gathering. God has not revealed a law in relation to marriage which may be officiated in everywhere, at random, without any record; he has ordained that in the last days, in Zion and in Jerusalem, and in the remnant whom the Lord our God shall call, there shall be deliverance. Deliverance from what? From all our former foolish traditions, and from the powers of darkness and everything evil. For this reason the people are gathering up from the nations of the earth, that they may be taught the law of deliverance; that they may be taught, legally and properly, how to become connected as husbands and wives in the sight of heaven; and inasmuch as our children have been born unto us under the covenants of the civil law, that our marriages may be renewed under the new covenant that God has revealed, and be recorded and sealed on earth and in heaven for the benefit of our children and their posterity for ever and ever. You will find, when you learn further concerning the celestial glory, Paul’s words to be true, that in that glory, those who are in God must themselves be connected in marriage; for says the Apostle Paul, “the man is not without the woman in the Lord, and the woman is not without the man in the Lord.” This is an eternal principle, an eternal law pertaining to that glory. You may try to get the fullness thereof singlehanded, but you can’t do it, for God has made this a point of order and law, that all beings who are exalted to that highest glory shall be united in the Lord, as husband and wife.

Inquires one—“Do you mean that such relationship is going to continue after this life in the eternal worlds?” Yes, that which God has appointed and ordained in eternity, in relation to the creations and worlds that he has made, must be fulfilled. There is no such thing as a woman dwelling separatety [separately] and independently, and inheriting a fullness of the glory of heaven, or a man either; they must be united together in the Lord.

Now you begin to understand a little of the principle of marriage, as believed in by the Latter-day Saints. We might point out a great many other principles of the celestial law, necessary to observe in order to attain the highest glory, but as the heat is intense, it would not be wisdom to detain you. Let me say to my young brethren and sisters, do not transgress the law of heaven. These things could be done without any very great condemnation by people abroad, but when we are at the place where we can be taught and instructed in the ways of the Lord, if we then, with our eyes wide open, go and get our marriages celebrated by the civil authorities of the land alone, we shall find ourselves under great condemnation. God will judge the people according to the light they have, and if you have been properly instructed in regard to his laws and ordinances do not transgress them, but attend to them according to the order of heaven, as you are instructed. Let all your marriages be, not for time only, according to the Gentile system of marriage, but let them be covenants for eternity, and let them be sealed upon you by a man of God having authority to do these things; and let them be recorded, and let these records be such that, when the books are opened, they will be found to accord with the records of heaven, then, if you are faithful, you will be entitled to your wife and your children, to all eternity, by virtue of the covenants which you have entered into, and which have been sealed on earth, by divine authority, and sealed in heaven in your behalf. Amen.

The United Order is the Order of the Kingdom of God and Christ Dwell, etc.

Brigham Young

Discourse by President Brigham Young, delivered in the Meeting House, at Lehi City, Sunday afternoon, August 9, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

There are a few ideas and reflections that I wish to give to the people I shall have to make my remarks brief in order to be prepared for our journey northward. You hear a good deal from time to time; and you think a good deal, about the condition of the Latter-day Saints, and what we are trying to do with them concerning the United Order. I wish you to understand that this is no new revelation; it is the order of the kingdom where God and Christ dwell; it has been from eternity and will be to eternity, without end, consequently we have nothing particularly new to offer you, but we have the commandments that have been from the beginning. With regard to those who wish to have new revelation they will please to accommodate themselves and call this a new revelation. On this occasion I will not repeat anything particular in respect to the language of revelation, further than to say—Thus saith the Lord unto my servant Brigham, Call ye, call ye, upon the inhabitants of Zion, to organize themselves in the Order of Enoch, in the New and Everlasting Covenant, according to the Order of Heaven, for the furtherance of my kingdom upon the earth, for the perfecting of the Saints, for the salvation of the living and the dead.

You can accommodate yourselves by calling this a new revelation, if you choose; it is no new revelation, but it is the express word and will of God to this people.

How many do you think would like and have hearts to enter into this Order? Let me ask you a question. You sisters as well as the brethren who have read the Bible and the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, whether you have read the Book of Mormon and the sermons or not, who is there among you who does not know and understand that the people called the Saints of the Most High, or the disciples of the Lord Jesus, must be of one heart and of one mind? I do not think there are any of you who do not know, feel and understand this just as I do, and yet perhaps you do not realize it. We can see that it does not sit upon the hearts and take hold of the affections of the people; it does not break up every particle of the fallow ground of their hearts so that they can receive this into their affections and bring forth fruit to the glory of God. If those now before me, brethren and sisters, who profess to be Latter-day Saints, were of one heart and of one mind in the sense of the Scripture that is given to us, revealed in days of old and in our day, we never should have to say to them—Pay your Tithing; but the feeling of every heart, and the language of every one who has come to years of discretion would be if there is a Temple to be built—“What can I do to forward this Temple? Do you want my work? I have abundance for my family to eat, they are capable of clothing themselves with a little help from me, I can spend all my time;” and the sisters would say—“We can make the stockings and the shirts, and we can make up the cloth, if you will give it to us, for the hands, and we can make their hats and, if necessary, we can make their shoes.” If this was in the hearts and affections of the people it would no longer be Tithing alone, but the inquiry would be—“What do you want? We have abundance.”

We ask nothing but the labor of the people, and if the Latter-day Saints felt the importance of the mission that is upon them, and of fulfilling the requirements of heaven that are resting upon them, you would see Temples rising here like magic; it would be nothing but a breakfast spell for us to build a Temple. How do you think those feel who do understand the mind and will of the Lord, and view the condition of the Latter-day Saints as it really is? Unless you see it by the Spirit, you know nothing about it.

We can say to the Latter-day Saints, it is the mind and will of God that we organize according to the best plans and patterns and system that we can get for the present. We can do this, and thus far give to the Latter-day Saints the mind and will of the Lord; but we can not make a man or a woman yield to the will of God unless they are disposed to. I can plant, I can water, but I cannot give the increase; I cannot cause the wheat and corn to grow. It is true I can break up and prepare the ground and cast the seed therein, but I cannot cause it to grow, that can only be done by the people having willing hearts, ready minds, and a disposition to go forth with a firm determination and a willing hand to build up the kingdom. I will do my part—I have done it. Brother Erastus Snow has made certain eulogistic remarks about my career in the Church, but I will say this with regard to Brother Brigham—I do not know anything about, what he has earned, I never inquired about that or about what he deserves. All I have to do is to take good care of everything that the Lord gives me, improve upon every means of grace and every talent he gives me, improve upon the visions of the Spirit and speak the word of the Lord to the people. My mind has been and it is to-day, that there is not an Elder in all Israel that can do his duty in declaring the things of God to the nations of the earth unless he declares those truths by the power of revelation. He must speak by the power of God or he does not magnify his calling. The theory of our religion will not answer the purpose of saving us. I can call upon the people, but will they organize themselves? Some inquire, “Is this exactly the order that the Lord requires? It is just exactly what the Lord requires.

I will say to you with regard to the kingdom of God on the earth—Here is the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, organized with its rules, regulations and degrees, with the quorums of the holy Priesthood, from the First Presidency to the teachers and deacons; here we are, an organization. God called upon Joseph, he called upon Oliver Cowdery, then others were called through Joseph, the Church was organized, he with his two counselors comprised the First Presidency. In a few years the Quorum of the Twelve was organized, the High Counsel was organized, the High Priests’ quorum was organized, the Seventies’ quorums were organized, and the Priests’ quorum, the Teachers’ quorum and the Deacons’. This is what we are in the habit of calling the kingdom of God. But there are further organizations. The Prophet gave a full and complete organization to this kingdom the Spring before he was killed. This kingdom is the kingdom that Daniel spoke of, which was to be set up in the last days; it is the kingdom that is not to be given to another people; it is the kingdom that is to be held by the servants of God, to rule the nations of the earth, to send forth those laws and ordinances that shall be suitable and that shall apply themselves to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints; that will apply themselves to the mother Church, “the holy Catholic Church;” they will commend themselves to every Protestant Church upon the earth; they will commend themselves to every class of infidels, and will throw their protecting arms around the whole human family, protecting them in their rights. If they wish to worship a white dog, they will have the privilege; if they wish to worship the sun they will have the privilege; if they wish to worship a man they will have the privilege, and if they wish to worship the “unknown God” they will have the privilege. This kingdom will circumscribe them all and will issue laws and ordinances to protect them in their rights—every right that every people, sect and person can enjoy, and the full liberty that God has granted to them without molestation.

Can you understand me? This Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is organized for the building up of this Church alone; it is not for the building up of Catholicism, it is not for promoting any or all of the dissentients from the Mother Church, it is alone for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and for no other body of people. When we organize according to these laws and ordinances we make this people one, but we do not bring in the Methodists, Presbyterians or Calvinists, they are independent of themselves. But the kingdom of God, when it is established and bears rule, will defend the Methodists in their rights just as much as Latter-day Saints, but it will not allow them to infringe upon the rights of their neighbors; this will be prohibited. These sects may want to afflict the Saints just as now; they may want to persecute each other just as they now do; they may want to bring everybody to their standard just as they do now. But the kingdom of God, when it is set up upon the earth, will be after the pattern of heaven, and will compel no man nor woman to go contrary to his or her conscience. They would compel us to go contrary to our consciences, wouldn’t they? I recollect when there were but few Methodists, when they were poor, and when there was scarcely a college-bred minister on the continent of America in the Methodist Chnrch [Church]. I recollect them in their infancy, but what would they do now? Then they were persecuted, and thought they bore a great deal for Christ’s sake. Perhaps they did.

Now I want to give you these few words—the kingdom of God will protect every person, every sect and all people upon the face of the whole earth, in their legal rights. I shall not tell you the names of the members of this kingdom, neither shall I read to you its constitution, but the constitution was given by revelation. The day will come when it will be organized in strength and power• Now, as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we work our way along the best we can. Can you understand this?

A few words upon the organization of this United Order. We regret that we are not in a capacity to make our own laws pertaining to our domestic affairs as we choose; if we were in a State capacity we could do so. The legislature could then pass laws by which we would have the right to deed our property to the Church, to the Trustee-in-Trust, if we chose, or in any other way the people would like to deed their property to God and his kingdom. But we can not do this now, we are not a State. We are in the capacity of servants now, where we have to bow to the whims and caprices of the ignorant, and to the prejudice of wilful, ignorant sectarianism; consequently we are under the necessity of getting up our constitution or the articles of our association so that they will agree with existing statutes and be legal, that we can carry on business as we wish without being infringed upon or molested by anybody.

Some have complained, and say—“This does not incorporate the whole, we want articles of agreement under which we can give all that we have got.” Let me say to you that our articles of confederation, agreement or association will allow us to deed every particle of property that we have got to this co-operative institution—our houses, farms, sheep, cattle, horses, our labor, our railroad stock, bank stock, factories, and everything that we have we can deed to the trustees of this association. Whatever you have here in Lehi that you wish to deed over to those you have selected to be a board of trustees you can deed to them to take the supervision of it, and then you will put it out of the hands perhaps of unruly froward [forward] children and spendthrifts, and do good by so doing. And if you can put in every particle of your property, and have this governed and controlled by the best men you have here, why not do this just as well as to deed it to George A. Smith, the Trustee-in-Trust? Does not this answer every purpose? It does. Look at the reason of it if you wish to. If it is the word and the wish and the will of the organization here to deed only part of the property, I expect they will take the liberty of doing so; but this would not suit me. If I had property here in this place I should wish to deed every particle of it to this association. I wish to deed every particle of my property in Provo, just as quick as there is an opportunity, and have it done in a way that it will be beneficial to the people. I am laboring under a certain embarrassment and so are many others, with regard to deeding property, and that is to find men who know what to do with property when it is in their hands. I will relate a circumstance here, which I related to some of the brethren the other day. There was a very excellent good man in this Church who found it very hard to get along with his large family. He received a very fine present, for which he was very thankful to the donor; but after it was given to him, he said he did not know what to do with the elephant now that he had got it. He called his present an “elephant” on his hands; he could not plow with him, he could not ride him to meeting, he could not harness him to a carriage, and in fact he could not do anything with him, the “elephant” was too large for him to handle. When this factory at Provo can go into the hands of men who know what to do with it, it will go; when my factory in Salt Lake County can go into the hands of men who know what to do with it, it will go. There is my beloved brother James W. Cummings, who has worked my factory ten or twelve years; he counts himself A No. 1 in all financial business. I have offered the factory to him and his workmen on the co-operative system, in the order that we wish to adopt. I said to him—“Take it and manage it, you are welcome.” Said he—“If I only had plenty of money to furnish it I suppose I could do it.” Have not I furnished it without money? Yes, I had not the first sixpence to begin with. I furnished my factories, and I have built what I have built without asking how much they cost, or where I was to get the money to do it. When we find somebody that knows what to do with property, somebody who knows how to handle the “elephant,” we will give them charge of it. If I had him I would make the “elephant” get down on his knees to me and keep him there until I allowed him to get up, and then teach him to get up with his burden on his back, and carry it where I said. As quick as we can find men who know what to do with the “elephants” we will put the “elephants” into their hands; but here, as elsewhere, you will find, in all these business transactions, that the greatest difficulty will be to find men who know what to do with money or means when they have it. Can you understand this? I want to say to you who have a little money, a farm or other property, seek first to know where God wants you to put that property. That is the word of the Lord to you. Hearken and hear it, men and women, seek to know where God wants you to put it, and if it is into a factory where you will not get a farthing for ten years, put it there, and in the end the Lord will bring out more means to you than if you let it out at twenty four percent. You will make by it. “How do you know, brother Brigham?” I know by my own experience; my character and my life have shown that from the first time I had fifty cents after I came into the Church my first desire was to know what to do with it. In the days of Joseph where we lived and worked, it was harder than to get fifty cents than it is for a poor man to get a hundred dollars now, but if Joseph came along, and said—“Brigham, have you got fifty cents?” “Yes, I have.” “I want it.” “You can have it always and forever.” If it was a hundred dollars, or two hundred dollars, he had it, and had it freely, and I never asked for it again. And if ever I could work at home and get fifty cents in money to buy a little molasses for my family to sop their johnny cake in, if Joseph wanted it he always had it, and I got rich by it, and I can say so of all who take the same course; while the covetous, those who are striving continually to build themselves up in the things of this life, will be poor indeed; they will be poor in spirit and poor in heavenly things.

You have heard me say, a great many times, that there is not that man or woman in this Church, and there never was and never will be, who turn up their noses at the counsel that is given them from the First Presidency, but who, unless they repent of and refrain from such conduct, will eventually go out of the Church and go to hell, every one of them; and I expect one thing will be true that Joseph said when living. A gentleman came to see him and asked him a great many questions, and among the rest he said—“I suppose you calculate that you are just right, and that you “Mormons” are all going to be saved and everybody else will be damned.” Said Joseph, “Sir, I will tell you this one thing, all the rest of the world will be damned, and I expect that most of the “Mormons” will be unless they do better than they have done.” The man did not stop for an explanation. What Joseph meant by being damned was that people will go into the spirit world without the Priesthood, and consequently they are under the power of Satan, and will have to be redeemed, or else they will be forever under his power. That is all there is about that.

Now Latter-day Saints, I want to say this to you, when a man lifts his heel against the counsel that we give him, I know that man will apostatize, just as sure as he is a living being, unless he repents and refrains from such conduct. Brother George A. Smith has been reading a little out of the revelation concerning celestial marriage, and I want to say to my sisters that if you lift your heels against this revelation, and say that you would obliterate it, and put it out of existence if you had the power to nullify and destroy it, I say that if you imbibe that spirit and feeling, you will go to hell, just as sure as you are living women. Emma took that revelation, supposing she had all there was; but Joseph had wisdom enough to take care of it, and he had handed the revelation to Bishop Whitney, and he wrote it all off. After Joseph had been to Bishop Whitney’s he went home, and Emma began teasing for the revelation. Said she—“Joseph, you promised me that revelation, and if you are a man of your word you will give it to me.” Joseph took it from his pocket and said—“Take it.” She went to the fire-place and put it in, and put the candle under it and burnt it, and she thought that was the end of it, and she will be damned as sure as she is a living woman. Joseph used to say that he would have her hereafter, if he had to go to hell for her, and he will have to go to hell for her as sure as he ever gets her.

You sisters may say that plural marriage is very hard for you to bear. It is no such thing. A man or woman who would not spend his or her life in building up the kingdom of God on the earth, without a companion, and travel and preach, valise in hand, is not worthy of God or his kingdom, and they never will be crowned, they cannot be crowned; the sacrifice must be complete. If it is the duty of a husband to take a wife, take her. But it is not the privilege of a woman to dictate the husband, and tell who or how many he shall take, or what he shall do with them when he gets them, but it is the duty of the woman to submit cheerfully. Says she—“May [My] husband does not know how to conduct himself, he lacks wisdom—he does not know how to treat two wives and be just.” That all may be true, but it is not her prerogative to correct the evil, she must bear that; and the woman that bears wrong—and any number of them do in this order—patiently, will be crowned with a man far above her husband; and the man that is not worthy, and who does not prove himself worthy before God, his wife or wives will be taken from him and given to another, so the women need not worry. It is the man who has need to worry and watch himself, and see that he does right. Where is the man who has wives, and all of them think he is doing just right to them? I do not know such a man; I know it is not your humble servant. If I would only be dictated by women I should make a hell of it; but I cannot be, I can humor them and treat them kindly, but I tell them I shall do just what I know to be right, and they may help themselves the best they can. I do not say that in so many words, but that is what I mean, and I let them act it out.

It is time to close this meeting. I say to the brethren and sisters, peace be with you, and may God bless you. If you walk humbly before Him so as to enjoy his Spirit, it will lead into all truth. I have one little sermon to the Bishops, Bishop Young and all the rest of them, and to the Elders. I want to see a pattern set for this holy order, and, I give to each one of them a mission to go and call together five, ten, twenty or fifty families, and organize a complete organization, and show the rest of us how to live.

Prayer Must be Remembered in Families, etc.

George A. Smith

Remarks by President George A. Smith, delivered at the Semi-Annual Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in the New Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Sunday afternoon, October 1, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

I have been much interested in the remarks of the Elders this morning, as all through the Conference, and I hope the instructions we have received will be treasured up in the hearts of all, and carried home to our households and wards, and that the Elders who have attended Conference will stir up the people to diligence, teach them to remember the Sabbath day and to keep it holy, and instead of fooling away their time in labor or pleasure, to devote that day to the worship of God and to rest, according to the original design of heaven. We should remember our prayers at all times in our families, we should also remember to observe the word of wisdom, and be careful to continually pursue such a course as will entitle us to the blessings of the Lord, and that his Spirit may unceasingly abide in our hearts. As members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints we should let our light shine before men, by observing the principles which we profess to have obeyed. We need not be troubled because false reports are sent abroad into the world concerning us; this has been the universal lot of Saints in all ages of the world. The Savior said—“Blessed are ye when men shall persecute you and say all manner of evil against you falsely for my name’s sake.” If we are only conscious within ourselves that these charges are false we need not fear, and we should never hesitate to lift up our voices among the children of men in bearing testimony of the truth revealed in these latter days, through the Prophet Joseph Smith.

We are anxious to publish the standard works of the Church to a greater extent than hitherto. Some of them have been republished, and others are in progress, and we wish to have the co-operation of the Saints, generally, throughout the Territory, in helping on this work. Our publications should be in every family of the Saints, and we wish to exercise that kind of influence in the midst of our people that will lead them to make themselves acquainted with the contents of the Bible, Book of Mormon, Book of Doctrine and Covenants, and such other works as are or have been published illustrative of the principles of life and salvation made known in the Gospel of Jesus Christ, that they may be more generally understood by those professing to be Latter-day Saints.

We expect, before the Conference closes, to call a considerable number of Elders to go and preach the Gospel in the United States. There have been but few missionaries sent to the States, and the present generation there have, to a great extent, formed their notions of us and our faith from the false reports sent through the press; and as we all know that notions so formed can not be other than erroneous, we shall call a considerable number of Elders to go and travel through the States, representing the Gospel in its true light, and bearing testimony to the truth, that the generation that have grown up since we were driven into the wilderness, may learn and know for themselves the facts concerning us.

We are laboring, as has been referred to by some of the brethren who have addressed the Conference, to build a Temple in St. George, and one in this city. The work is moving on in both places: I feel quite gratified at the success of the workmen the present season on the Temple here. Taking the granite from the boulders in the mountains, bringing it here, cutting the blocks, placing the pillars in position, and getting everything in the mechanical style that it is, in the last two years, is perfectly wonderful to me. The erection of a Temple like this is a great work, it requires a vast amount of means, energy and skill, We have not had as much means to sustain the brethren who have been laboring upon it as we anticipated, in consequence of the change of the times, and the failure of some to come forward and pay their Tithing and thereby supply the demand. Yet we have moved the work forward gloriously. Brother Pinnock has the gates open, and I invite the Bishops and all the brethren and sisters from distant places to go and see the beautiful work we have done on that Temple; and while you are inspecting what has been done try and realize the amount of labor and means that have been required to accomplish it. Think of the millions of dollars that King Solomon expended in building the foundation of his Temple, and of the heavy tax it was upon the people; and then, if you want to compare his work with ours, think of the manner in which we are carrying this forth. I wish the Saints, also, when visiting the Temple, to raise their hearts in prayer to the Most High, that he will bless the efforts that are being made to rear a house to his holy name. We invite all the brethren and sisters to contribute their monthly offerings in money, that these workmen may have a portion of their wages in money, and such necessaries as can not be obtained without it. For a considerable portion of the present season the Temple workmen have had to do almost entirely with home products. Some of them have stuck to it faithfully, others have been compelled to quit. In fact, for want of means, we were under the necessity at one time of dismissing fifty hands. But we have kept the work moving, and if the brethren will go and see what we have done they can but be surprised and delighted. It is a glorious work, and one that is to be dedicated to the Most High God. Then let our hearts be lifted to him in prayer that this work may continue, that we may be protected from the wrath of our enemies and from the vengeance of the wicked one, and be able to complete this Temple and dedicate it, that the glory of the Lord may rest upon it, the various quorums of the Priesthood be organized within it, and that we and our children may be permitted to enter its sacred precincts, and receive the ordinances of the Priesthood and the blessings of the Gospel of peace which can be received only in a Temple of the Lord.

I wish to bear my testimony to the principles of the Gospel which have been revealed. I never wish to stand before the Saints without doing that, for when I was called as one of the first Seventies to bear testimony to the people, I lifted my hand to heaven and said—“If I ever forget to bear testimony to the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the true mission of Joseph Smith, let my right hand forget its cunning and my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth.” From that day to this I always remember to bear my testimony when I address the people, for I know that this Gospel and plan of salvation, revealed by Joseph Smith and taught by the Apostles of this Church, is true. Men may say that Brigham Young and the Elders of this Church are impostors; but I know that they were called by revelation and ordained and set apart to do this work through Joseph Smith, and they are the servants of the Most High God. They were called to proclaim the Gospel and to administer its ordinances, and with all their hearts they have labored to accomplish the work assigned them.

It is written that “Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain; and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months.” This shows that a man of like passions to ourselves may obtain faith to perform great and good works, to give, wise instructions, to proclaim the principles of the everlasting Gospel, to bear testimony to the truth, to administer in the work of the Lord and bear of his kingdom. And it is our duty, as we have already been warned, to exercise faith for those in authority, that, while they contend with like passions with ourselves, they may have the Spirit of the Almighty to preserve and guide them, and to sustain their hands, and in all cases be careful never to be found speaking evil of the Lord’s anointed. A tattling tongue is a curse, and, as the Apostle James expresses it, “is set on fire of hell;” and when we are found speaking evil against the servants of God and accusing the brethren we are only following in the wake of the wicked one. Let us then avoid these things, and learn to speak those things that are good, upright and true, and bear a faithful testimony of the Gospel.

As I said before, I wish the Saints generally to remember the brethren who are laboring on the Temple at St. George. They have been working all the season, with very little to supply them, and some of them are destitute of clothing, and other necessaries. Some of the workmen there have labored on the Temple from the very beginning, and the walls are now thirty feet high, and the work is going ahead prosperously. We have invited the people in every settlement to contribute of their means to continue the work and we have also invited brethren to go down to St. George, and labor upon the Temple this winter, that the building may be prepared for the roof as soon as possible. It will be a magnificent Temple, and will contain all the conveniences of the Temples of Kirtland and Nauvoo. It will be one hundred and forty-three feet long and ninety-seven wide, and the walls will be eighty-eight feet high. It is desirable that the brethren contribute their means to supply the wants of those who are laboring on that Temple, that they may be encouraged to continue. We are anxious to push this Temple forward to completion as early as possible. It is not so large nor so elaborate in its design as the one in course of erection in this city. St. George is a place in which parties living in the northern settlements, who may desire to do so, can go and spend the winter, and attend to the ordinances of the Priesthood. When that Temple is finished we can go down there and be baptized for our dead, receive our anointings and ordinances and all the blessings pertaining to the Priesthood, and get our records made to perform that great work which is placed upon us for the salvation of all the generations from the time that the Priesthood was lost, the covenant broken, the laws trampled under foot and the ordinances forsaken, unto the present time, for the salvation of all who have died since then rests upon us as a generation. But if any of us suffer ourselves to be led into darkness by the cunning and craftiness of the wicked one or evil spirits, we lose great and glorious blessings, and a great and glorious responsibility which is laid upon us pertaining to the salvation of ourselves and our ancestors. We call upon all the brethren to consider these things, and we do not wish any to go and labor on that Temple this winter unless they desire to do so, and have got the spirit to go in order that they may assist in forwarding the work.

It is very probable that some who live in the northern settlements, who are able to do so, will make practice of spending the winter in St. George, because of the mild pleasant weather which prevails there during the winter season. Last winter the masons worked on the walls of the Temple all the winter, except seven and a half days, when they were prevented by rain. But to all who may have any intention of going there to spend the winter, I would say, never go with light shoes and thin clothing, but take good warm clothing and thick-soled shoes. Do not be deceived with the idea that you will find summer weather there in the winter season, it is more like pleasant spring weather, and when evening comes, good thick warm clothing is needed.

In speaking of the press I wish to name especially the paper published by our sisters—The Woman’s Exponent. I feel as though I hardly need suggest to the brethren that natural gallantry would require them, all through the Territory, to subscribe to this little sheet, and I believe that if the brethren would do so the paper would be much more widely circulated and would do much more good than at present. The brethren should remember that our sisters hold the ballot in this country, that they have equal influence at the polls with the men, and I certainly think that we should patronize them in their press, for I am satisfied that the prospects of any man being elected to the Legislature of Utah Territory would be very poor if the women were opposed to him, for I presume that the women compose a majority of the legal voters of the Territory, hence, under these circumstances, our natural gallantry and the national characteristic to desire office should prompt us to sustain their publication.

I hope also that the brethren, in reflecting upon the instructions which have been given during Conference, will not forget what has been said in relation to sustaining ourselves with our own material. We have mechanics here who can make good coffins, yet a great many coffins are imported from the States into this Territory, for which the money has to be paid. I say that we ought to be ashamed of this, and I here publicly request my friends, whoever may live to place me in the ground, to place me there in a coffin made of our mountain wood by our own mechanics, and I prohibit anybody who may outlive me paying a dollar for a coffin for me that is imported from the States. That is my sentiment, and I wish it was of every man and woman in the Territory. It may be said to be a small matter, but it takes thousands of dollars of our money away just to gratify pride. Says one—“I am just as good as such a one, and why not I have a coffin from Chicago or St. Louis as well as he have one?” This is a sentiment resulting purely from pride and love of display, which is unworthy of a Latter-day Saint. Carry this principle out and it leads us to reject homemade shoes and other articles which are far superior to the foreign-made imported articles.

We have been talking about the United Order, and getting up tanneries, shoe shops, &c., and initiatory steps have been taken in some of the settlements with these objects in view; but it takes time to carry out and successfully accomplish such projects. But we can produce these things within ourselves, and it is our duty to do it, and instead of manifesting a disposition to oppose anything of this kind, we should exert all the influence and energy we possess to bring it about, and to make ourselves self-sustaining. It is true that the principles of the United Order are such that a great portion of our people at the present time are not in a condition to take hold of it with all they have, for many of them have been foolish enough during the success of business for the last four years, instead of paying their debts, to launch into business of various kinds and get deeper into debt. That class of men have to get their hands untied before they can take hold to promote the great project of uniting the whole of the Latter-day Saints in all their business affairs. But this must be done as fast as possible, and the work of making Zion self-sustaining must be regarded as part of the work of the Lord; for it is an obligation devolving upon us to provide within ourselves labor and the necessaries of life. We must take hold of this matter, brethren and sisters, with all our hearts, and never let ourselves rest until Zion is independent of her enemies and all the world.

May peace and the light of truth abide with you, that you may understand these things and act upon them with all the spirit and power of the gospel of peace, is my prayer, in the name of Jesus, Amen.

Crime a Transgression of Law, etc.

Albert Carrington

Remarks by Elder Albert Carington, delivered at the Adjourned Semi-Annual Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in the New Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Sunday, October 11, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

I have been much interested during our meetings in this Conference, and, with you, I measurably realize the benefits to be derived in thus assembling together. In my reflections in reference to some remarks that have been made I have been led to ask myself—What is crime? Simply a transgression of the law, human or divine. What is law? It is, or should be, a rule of order founded in justice, for the benefit of those to whom it may apply. Now, so far as we are concerned in regard to law, we are under divine law, the Gospel, the grand plan of salvation—a law that is perfect, plain and simple as well as just, and applicable to the whole human family at all times, and in this we should rejoice. But we are also under human laws as well, we pertain to a number of what are termed human governments, subject, in a greater or less degree, to man-made institutions, and are they perfect? No, each and every one of them, notwithstanding the intelligence possessed by mankind, and their centuries of experience, contain the seeds of their own dissolution, and, in the providence of God, they are all destined, in their times and in their seasons, to be superseded by the government and kingdom of God upon the earth—a fact at which every human being should rejoice. But do they? Does even that portion of the world termed Christian rejoice in the ushering in of the kingdom of God upon the earth? I am sorry to say, and chagrined for humanity at being compelled to say, that all Christendom, almost to a unit, perhaps as much a unit on that subject as upon any one thing, although they have the Bible in their hands, are opposed to the establishment of the government of God upon the earth. What folly, absurdity and inconsistency on the part of so-called Christendom to oppose that which was devised in the wisdom of the Gods in the eternal worlds and which, in its very nature and constitution, is calculated to benefit and to promote, to the utmost possible degree, the welfare of mankind in all their relations!

What about the government under which we live? Why, it is one of the very best, as to its form, that the human family have ever devised. It was founded by excellent, honorable, upright, liberal and high-minded men who, in framing the constitution, were measurably inspired by that Holy Spirit which our Father in the heavens bestows upon whom he will. That is the view that we, as Latter-day Saints, have in regard to the fundamental or basic instrument of the government of the United States termed the Constitution; and however much we may be misrepresented, maligned or lied about in regard to that matter, as a people we are loyal to that constitution to the minutest principle therein contained. We understand that constitution—its spirit as well as its letter—and, so far as it is observed, it is a very excellent instrument for the conducting of human affairs. We are a people that uphold that constitution, and we ever have done so, and take great pleasure in doing so, and so also with every constitutional law; and I am at the defiance of the wide world to truthfully controvert the statement that we, as Latter-day Saints, have ever transgressed one single particle of constitutional law, or have ever had any occasion to do so, or ever will have in obeying the principles of the Gospel and laboring to build up and establish the kingdom of God on the earth. What do you think of that? The world will tell you that we are a terrible set, that we are disloyal, ignorant, stupid, fanatical, bigoted, deceivers and deceived, and in all these statements and as many more about the Latter-day Saints, the world will lie like the devil.

Now, you heard me say constitutional law. Mark it well. I understand, as a general thing, somewhat of what I am saying when I speak, and I made use of the expression understandingly. The constitutional laws of this government, what are they? They are laws enacted in pursuance of the principles couched in that constitution under the authority given the Congress of our nation to enact laws for the whole United States, and to make treaties for our government. All that is beyond that one hair’s breadth is just that far usurpation, tyranny and wrong. Have we obeyed that, more or less? Oh, no doubt; we have had to do so now these many years. In the days of the stripling Joseph, when he was first called of God to bring forth this great latter-day work that the Lord our God has set his hand to accomplish, he was assailed unconstitutionally, so far as the constitution of the State of New York was concerned, by the citizens of that State; and again, the same thing occurred in Ohio, in Missouri, and, finally, in Illinois, where, contrary to the plighted faith of the governor of the State, he was slain by a mob, because, according to their own testimony, the law could not reach him, for he had lived above it. What right, then, had they to assail or interrupt him? No right whatever.

Now, we as a people, left the States, and I may say we left Christendom, from the simple fact that we were obliged to do so in order to live our religion. But would they let us alone after we had left the States? No. After having aided in the conquest of the very region to which we fled to avoid persecution and religious tyranny, they were not satisfied even then to leave us unmolested to worship the true and living God according to the dictates of our own consciences; but they have followed us as a nation, and are following us to this day—a professed Christian nation is trying to force upon us the tyranny and oppression of unconstitutional law, administered by officers for whose appointment there is not a scintilla of right under the constitution. What do you think of that? And we are enduring their interference with our domestic affairs with as much patience as we may. We have endured these things with considerable patience for many long years, and I trust that we shall still be able to do so, realizing that patience is one of the great requirements of our Father concerning us as his children. He desires that we should be longsuffering towards those who seek to afflict and oppress us, as he is longsuffering towards the human family in their wickedness and waywardness, and we must become like unto him in these respects if we are his; and if we expect to become perfect in our sphere as he is in his, we not only have to be patient and longsuffering, but we shall have to continue in patience and longsuffering. Will we do so? I trust so, knowing the blindness, ignorance, bigotry, superstition, and consequent intolerance of our fellow-beings; knowing also that they as well as we are answerable to the Lord our God, being careful, while leaving events in the hands of the Supreme Ruler, that our conduct, day by day, is such that it will bear, not only the strictest examination and scrutiny of our fellow-beings, but also of our Father and his angels; realizing, also, now as anciently, that whosoever will live godly in Christ Jesus, must needs suffer persecution. Do not forget that, this is in the very nature of things, from the simple fact that, in order to constitute this a probation, wickedness has been permitted upon the earth, and hence good and evil; and wickedness is and ever has been aggressive, tyrannical, oppressive, cruel and murderous, and so it will ever continue to be. Do not forget these plain facts, and when you hear the wicked lie, and see them strive to oppress you and to deprive you of your rights do not get impatient about it and fancy that it is anything new, but remember that it has ever been so since the days of Cain, and that it will continue until wickedness is swept from this footstool of Jehovah, and not before that time can we hope to cease to be oppressed and wronged. And this is necessary to prove whether we will endure all things, as the great Captain, pattern, and exemplar of our faith and the great High Priest of our salvation endured, in his time. He was buffeted, scourged and mobbed and led like a lamb to the slaughter—a being in whom was no guile, who finally terminated his mortal career by a cruel death on the cross. He was opposed by his own when he came to call and gather them as their king and ruler. Who were his own? The tribes of Israel, and he came more particularly to that, most stubborn and stiffnecked of all the tribes—the tribe of Judah. And did the scribes and pharisees, the rabbins and lawyers, the wise, intelligent and noble hail and welcome him? No, most assuredly not; then how much less need we expect that they will hail and welcome us, his professed followers! When, instead of himself, his word, through the Prophet Joseph Smith, came to Christendom with its almost numberless free schools and its millions of bibles and legions of priests, did the people hail that word? No, they spurned it, and in every conceivable way derided him who brought it; and, as in the days of the Savior, the Priests, the pharisees and sadducees, the lawyers and scribes, the wise in their own estimation and the wealthy all banded together to keep from the children of men the word of God, which is truth, and which is the power of God unto salvation to all who will believe and obey it. Are not these facts? I know they are, though the whole world may gainsay I know that I am telling you the truth, as God lives I know it for myself.

Now, then, with regard to these matters that we are immediately passing through—the attempted enforcement of laws that are not constitutional and, through not being constitutional, that are not valid, and consequently of no force or effect whatever, in justice, what are we going to do about it? I trust that we will endure, with all patience, whatever the Lord our God may permit the evil one and those who, through the exercise of their agency, list to serve him, to accomplish; and while enduring with all patience, that we seek, in all faithfulness and uprightness for the guidance of his Holy Spirit to lead us in the path of truth and to enable us to walk therein, and to endure meekly and patiently all things that he in his providence may see fit to place upon us, in order to prove whether we as individuals and as a people will serve him in evil as well as in good report. Is there anything bigoted or contrary to the principles of eternal truth as taught by the Savior and his Apostles in all this? No. Then why not the world turn to the Lord our God, and live? Why not, Latter-day Saints, for our own sakes, live faithfully, humbly and uprightly and in all respects honor the requirements of the Gospel, until we become powerful through good works and able to meet, with joy, the coming of the Savior, and prepared to hail with gladness the society and companionship of just men made perfect, being worthy to associate with them and to share in their blessings, and finally, be saved in the celestial kingdom of our Father? That this may be our lot is my prayer, in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Guard Against Temptation, etc.

Charles C. Rich

Discourse by Elder Charles C. Rich, delivered at the Adjourned Semi-Annual Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in the New Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Sunday, October 11, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

I have rejoiced in listening to the instructions that we have received this morning, as well as during the whole of this Conference. It seems to me that they ought to make an everlasting impression upon the minds of the Saints, and that we, one and all, should be determined, under the influence thereof, to live more faithfully, and to keep the commandments of God as near as possible in all things; and I have no doubt that this is the feeling, at the present time, of most of those who have attended this Conference. It is for us to guard against temptation that may be presented before us, and, when we leave this place, that we suffer not ourselves to do or to say anything that is wrong, but be willing, with an eye single to the glory of God, to carry out the counsels of his servants, and to perform all the labors required at our hands in aiding to advance his cause and to build up his kingdom upon the earth, that we may prepare ourselves for that which is to come both on the earth and in the eternal worlds. I know very well that there is no being upon the earth who is thus engaged, but what feels well; all such rejoice in their labors, and the Spirit and power of God will rest upon the Saints when they take this course and adopt this policy.

We have been permitted to live in one of the most auspicious times or dispensations that, has ever been ushered in upon the earth—the dispensation of the gathering together of all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth. We may feel our weakness and inability, but it it not our strength or wisdom that is to bring about the triumph of the purposes of God upon the earth, we are simply co-workers with our heavenly Father, and his power will bear off his Saints in the future as it has done in the past and up to the present time. It is upon his arm that we have to lean, and in him we must put our trust. When has there been a time when the Saints have trusted in God and been disappointed? Never; inasmuch as we have done our part, the Almighty has never failed to do his and fulfill his promises. We have the power to carry on this work and to perfect ourselves, and also to perform a labor for our benefit and for the benefit of our friends who lived before us, who did not have such an opportunity as we have. This should be impressed upon our minds, and we should not suffer ourselves to neglect any duty that is iucumbent [incumbent] upon us, whether for our benefit or for the benefit of those who have lived before us. When we pass behind the vail and meet with our friends, if we can tell them that, while we were in the flesh, we attended to and performed certain ordinances and ceremonies in their behalf which they, while here, had not the privilege of attending to and performing for themselves, and which they had not power to accomplish in the spirit world, it certainly will be a matter of rejoicing to us and also to them; but if, on meeting them there, we have to admit that we neglected to do that for their benefit which it had been in our power to attend to, we shall not feel pleasant, and our friends will most assuredly be disappointed.

In speaking of the Temples now in course of erection in which to perform the ordinances for the dead, our hearts ought to be inspired with determinations to do all we can to push them forward to completion, that, in our day, while we yet live in the flesh, we may have the privilege of doing a work therein for our dead friends as well as for ourselves. All these things are before us, and our eyes should be single to the glory of God, and our hearts set upon building up his kingdom upon the earth, and not upon objects that do not tend in this direction. I have felt, for many years, that I was not safe in any place or upon any errand, and had no business to be engaged in any labor, no matter what it might be, unless that business, errand or labor was directed by the Priesthood; and I feel to-day that all the labors and operations of the Latter-day Saints, temporal and spiritual, ought to be organized and directed by the Priesthood which God has established to lead his people. If our labors are thus directed they will tell in the right direction—for the upbuilding of the kingdom of God, and not for the promotion of evil upon the earth. This is a thing against which we should be continually on our guard. Human nature is weak, and many people when brought in contact with evil influences are liable to be led away, they are in danger, and the best, the safest policy is to keep away from dangerous ground and beyond the range of evil, and we should not associate with those whose influence is evil.

Our lives are made up of small items, of labors performed a little at a time. If our acts are good, if our words are such that the righteous can approve of them, we need not fear when they are summed up and judgment rendered, for our lives having been spent in the performance of good deeds, it will be all right with us, and if we have this consciousness we can rejoice wherever we are. I can bear testimony that I have never been disappointed when I have been engaged in the work of the Lord, and in carrying out the counsels of his servants unto me. I can bear testimony that this is the work of God, and that Joseph Smith was a Prophet of God, that Brigham Young is a Prophet of God, and that the Gospel which they have preached to the Latter-day Saints is the Gospel of the Son of God; and inasmuch as we live according to its precepts we shall be delivered from evil. Salvation is revealed in the Gospel, and that salvation commenced to be received by us when we obeyed it. We can be freed from our sins when we learn and obey the truth, for in the Gospel there is deliverance from sin if we will but apply its principles to our lives. When we find a difficulty in the midst of the people, it is simply because some one or more have done that which they ought not to have done, and had they applied the principles of the Gospel applicable to that particular case, the difficulty might have been avoided. When we practice the principles of this Gospel to perfection, we shall be delivered from evil, whether in this world or in the world to come. For instance, if no murders are committed, none of the evils will be experienced which grow out of that crime; if the people generally would cease lying, the evils now resulting because of the great prevalence of falsehood in the world would be unknown. And so we might enumerate all of the evils that are committed by the human family and say that, if the principles of the Gospel of Christ were universally observed, the evils of every kind now so abundant in all parts of the world would be known no more. Then it is for us, to whom this Gospel has been revealed, to learn what is right, and to be faithful in practicing it, and the more faithful we are in applying ourselves to this important duty, the more speedily will evil disappear from amongst us, and the salvation promised by the Gospel be by us enjoyed, and that is precisely what we want—a present as well as an eternal salvation by an application of the principles of the Gospel to our daily lives.

If this course were pursued by mankind generally, it would soon bring about a millennium, or that still more happy time spoken of by the Prophets, when the knowledge of God shall cover the earth as the waters cover the great deep, and when men all the world over are friends and brothers. This is the direction in which the practice of the principles of the Gospel leads us, and a continued and close attention thereto will enable us to overcome every imperfection. At the same time our heavenly Father is disposed to try those who profess to have taken upon them the name of Christ, and, in fact, he is trying us continually in order to prove whether we will serve him in all things. If an evil is presented before us, we must either receive or reject it. If we reject it we have overcome; if we accept it, we are overcome of evil. And we may say that we have continually a trial before us, and it is for us to be on our guard that we enter not into temptation, and that we are not overcome, no matter in what guise or how temptingly evil may present itself to us. We need to be valiant before the Lord, valiant in testimony, valiant in keeping his commandments, valiant in rejecting every evil principle and practice that may be presented before us; and if this is our course, and we continue therein, the time will come when we will be counted worthy of an inheritance and exaltation among the sanctified in the presence of our Father.

I feel to rejoice in the principles of the Gospel that the Lord has revealed to us, and that, many years ago I had the privilege of hearing and obeying them. I can say that, from that time until the present, I have never had the first moment’s sorrow because of anything that I have been called to pass through in connection with the Gospel, and I hope I never shall. My experience in this cause and kingdom has been a source of continual rejoicing, and I believe it will be so to the end. I trust brethren and sisters that this is also your experience, and that you and I may continue faithful to the end, that we may be counted worthy of the privilege of mingling with that great company of the sanctified and just whom we have heard spoken of this morning, and that with them we may receive a crown of glory and immortality. This is my prayer in the name of the Lord Jesus. Amen.

Knowledge Received by Immediate Revelation, etc.

John Taylor

Discourse by Elder John Taylor, delivered at the Semi-Annual General Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in the New Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Friday afternoon, October 9, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

In our assemblies at Conference the representatives of the people from the various parts of the Territory meet together to be informed in relation to any and all measures that may be determined upon for the furtherance of our interests as a people, and the interests of the Church and kingdom of God upon the earth; for the Church and kingdom of God is established upon the earth, and God has communicated unto us his will, and, by revelation, has instructed us how to organize the various orders of the Priesthood as they have been presented before you to-day. I feel that we are acting in the presence of God and of the holy angels, and that we are operating for our own welfare, the welfare of our ancestors and, in part, for the welfare of the millions who have lived upon the earth, and for the introduction of principles which have emanated from God, which are calculated to regenerate, evangelize and redeem the world in which we live.

There is something peculiar in the relationship that we sustain to each other, to those who have gone before us, to our God and to the building up of his kingdom. We are not acting for ourselves individually, but in the interests and for the benefit of all men that have ever lived upon the earth, as well as of those now living upon it.

We are acting in conjunction with the Almighty, with Apostles and Prophets and men of God who have lived in the various ages of the world, to accomplish the great programme that God had in his mind in relation to the human family before the world existed, and which will as assuredly come to pass as God lives. We feel, at the same time, that we are encompassed with the infirmities, weaknesses, imperfections and frailties of human nature, and in many instances we err in judgment, and we always need the sustaining hand of the Almighty; the guidance and direction of His Holy Spirit, and the counsel of his Priesthood that we may be led and preserved in the path that leads to life eternal; for it is the desire of all Latter-day Saints to keep the commandments of God, live their religion, honor their profession and magnify their calling, and so prepare themselves for an inheritance in the celestial kingdom of God.

We have had presented before us to-day, the Church authorities. This may seem to many of us a mere matter of form; but it is at the same time a matter of fact, and one in which we are individually and collectively interested. It presents to our minds a train of reasoning, ideas, thoughts and reflections which men generally do not experience. Here is a President and his council, here are the Twelve, the Bishops, High Priests, Seventies, Elders and the various authorities and councils of the Church upon the earth—the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. What is that Church? Is it a phantom, a theory, an ideality, something that has been got up by the schools, by the wise men and philosophers of the day? No, it is something that emanates from God, that had its origin with him. It is to him that we are indebted for all the light, intelligence and knowledge that we possess. How did we know that we needed a President? God told us. How did we know that we needed counselors? The Lord told us. How did we know that it was necessary that there should be a Twelve in the Church and kingdom of God? The Lord told us. How did we know that there should be quorums of Seventies, High Priests, Elders, High Councils, and all these various organizations? The Lord told us, and we have come together and passed upon these principles, and have united together in the Commonwealth of Israel. And when we talk about this Priesthood, as has been very properly remarked by one of the speakers during this Conference, why, we all of us belong, more or less, thereto. It is emphatically that which was spoken of in the days of Moses—a kingdom of Priests. We are in reality a kingdom of Priests, and we are in possession of principles that will endure throughout all eternity. We are associated with men who have lived before us, and who are connected with the same ministry and calling as we possess, and they are operating with us and we with them for the accomplishment of certain objects which God has in view. And who of us can point out the path wherein we should walk? Who of us can direct our steps in relation to the great principles that lie before us? We need the guidance, instruction, intelligence and revelation that flow from heaven to lead us. We have needed them to bring us thus far. When the Lord got angry with the children of Israel because of their follies, and said, “I will not go up with you, but, my spirit shall go with you,” Moses might well plead and say—“O God, if thou goest not up with us carry us not up hence.” He felt—what can we do, what course shall we pursue unless the Lord directs us? We, the Latter-day Saints are in the same position—unless the Lord guides us we are in a poor fix.

Now then, what were Apostles, Prophets, Pastors, Teachers, Evangelists and other officers placed in the Church for in former days? Paul tells us for the perfecting of the Saints, for the work of the ministry, and for the edifying of the body of Christ until we all come to a unity of the faith, to the knowledge of the Son of God, unto the fullness of the stature of a perfect man in Christ, that we be no more children, tossed about with every wind of doctrine, and the cunning craftiness whereby men lie in wait to deceive, and that we may grow up in him, our living head, in all things. What are Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists, Pastors, Teachers, &c., placed in the Church now for? For precisely the same reasons that they were then, only much more so, for they were connected with a system that had to succumb to the adversary, and to be rooted out—a certain power was to rise up and was to prevail against them; but it is not so with us—our course is onward. We are connected with that little stone that was hewn out of the mountain without hands, and that was to continue to roll until it filled the whole earth. That is the position that we occupy, and it is said that the kingdom shall not be given into the hands of another people.

These several officers, we are told, were placed in the Church for the perfecting of the Saints—we need their labors; they are for the work of the ministry—we need a little of it; they are for the edifying of the body of Christ—we need edifying. How long? Until we all come in the unity of the faith, and until we are perfect in the knowledge of the Son of God. We are not quite there yet. There is a little faltering, shaking, tottering and stumbling like babes amongst us once in a while, and we need the sustaining hand, and instruction of God to support us and help us to pass along in the path marked out for us. He has led us along remarkably, and he has united us to a certain extent in many things, and there is something pleasant and delightful in union. We have done a good deal in being united. Here are many of these Elders around me who have been ready, in any moment, to go anywhere, just as these Elders who have been called to-day to go to the States, England, Scotland, France, Germany, Spain, Portugal, or any other part of the earth, to preach the Gospel, build up settlements or whatever else they are required to do in order to further the purposes and to build up the kingdom of God upon the earth. I was very much pleased at a meeting we had the other evening in the Tabernacle, to learn that over three hundred men could be found who would go down to St. George this winter, find their own food and work as teamsters, carpenters, stone-cutters, and in other callings necessary to forward the work on the Temple. That shows there is something like union among the Latter-day Saints. I like to see principles of that kind operating among us, it shows that we possess a portion of the spirit of the work, and that we appreciate the Gospel. And we have done a good deal of this kind of thing heretofore. Many of you remember what took place when we left Far West. When our people there had been robbed of everything that the thieves could get hold of, they put the balance of their means together to help one another out, until there was not a man left who wanted to leave the State. We agreed to do that and we did it. Then, afterwards, when we left Nauvoo, we covenanted, in the Temple that we built there, that we would never cease our endeavors until every man who wanted to leave that country and come here had had the opportunity, and that we would assist him in doing so. Did we carry it out? We did, and we were united in our efforts, and we did a good many things besides what we promised to do. We have sent as many as five hundred teams at a time from here with provisions and other necessaries, to bring the poor from the frontiers to this land, before the railroad was in existence; and since then we have operated and co-operated with our means to bring them by the railroad. So far these things are good, honorable and praiseworthy.

Then again, we are a good deal united in our doctrinal affairs, and we begin to feel that we are part of God’s creation, that we are operating in this particular day and age of the world to accomplish a certain work, and that work is not for our own individual interests alone, it is not to build up and aggrandize ourselves, but it is to build up the kingdom of God and to forward his purposes upon the earth. That is what we are here for. You might talk about principle to a great many men until your heads turned gray and your tongues cleave to the roofs of your mouths, and it would make no difference—they are not prepared to receive it. But the Latter-day Saints are to a very great extent. Why? Because the very first thing that God did with us was to get us converted, to get us baptized and in a position where we could receive the Holy Ghost, and then we were placed in what some people call en rapport with God—brought into communication and relationship with him so that we could recognize him as our Father and friend, and we are his friends; and he and we, and others who have lived and died here on the earth, who obeyed the same principles that we have obeyed, are all operating together for the accomplishment of the purposes of God on the earth. That is what we are doing. It is a great work, and, everyone of us needs to ponder the path of our feet, to mark well the course that is laid out to us, and seek to do the will of our heavenly Father. We are living in a critical and an important age. Men sometimes are astonished when they see the corruption, wickedness and evil, the departure from honesty and integrity, and the villainy that everywhere exist; but why should they be? Have we not been preaching for the last thirty or forty years that the world would grow “worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived?” Has it not been preached to us that the nations of the earth had the elements of destruction within themselves and that they were bound to crumble? And when we see honor trampled under foot, and integrity and truth standing afar off, while the wicked, corrupt and froward [forward] manage and direct affairs, we may expect that the axe is laid at the root of the tree and that it is decaying and will soon fall. And that is what is being accomplished among the nations today. We need not whine or think there is anything strange or remarkable about it. We have expected these things to transpire, and they will be a great deal worse than they are to-day. But we are engaged in introducing correct principles, and we are trying to get united. We are united, as I said before, in many things, for the religion that we have embraced, in its spiritual signification, brings us into communication one with another, and helps us to love one another, and I wish there was a little more of that disposition among us, and that we loved one another a little better, and studied one another’s interests a little more. I wish we could sympathize with our brethren, and be full of loving-kindness and generosity one towards another. I wish that we could feel that brotherly love continued, and that it was spreading and increasing, flowing from the fountain of life—from God—from heart to heart as oil is poured from vessel to vessel, that harmony, sympathy, kindness and love might be universal among us. This is what the Gospel will do for us if we will only let it. Said Jesus, when speaking to the woman of Samaria—“If thou hadst asked of me I would have given thee water that should have been in thee a well springing up to everlasting life.” Let us drink a little more deeply of our religion, it leads us to God, it opens up a communication between us and our Father, whereby we are enabled to cry “Abba Father.” The principles of the Gospel that we have embraced reach into eternity, they penetrate behind the veil where Christ our forerunner has gone, if we are living our religion and keeping the commandments of God; and wherever the influence of this Gospel is exerted it binds people together, and at the same time unites them with their God who rules in heaven, and with Jesus the Mediator of the New Covenant, and with the heavenly throng, and their minds are illuminated until, like the vision of Jacob’s ladder, they can see the angels of God ascending and descending, carrying messages to and from God and his people. Said Jesus, about the last thing when he was leaving the earth—“Father, I pray for those whom thou hast given me, and not for these only, but for all who shall believe on me through their word, that they all may be one, even as I and the Father are one, that they may be one in us”—one in sentiment, feeling, desire and action for the accomplishment of the purposes of God, whether in the heavens or upon the earth.

Can we conceive of these things? We have little glimpses in relation to them sometimes, by which we are enabled to form a very faint idea of the effect of that unity which exists in heaven, and of the unity that ought to exist on earth. What can bring this latter about? Some speculative theory? No. We want, in the first place, to have our hearts united to God; we want to have the Spirit of God planted in our bosoms; we want to have the power of the Gospel in our households; we want a union with each other there, and a union with our God, and everyone of us to feel as one felt formerly—“As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” As a starting point, we each of us must feel—“No matter what others do, I and my house will fear God, keep his commandments, and do that which is right in his sight, and in the sight of holy angels.” And what then? Why, we will do everything else that God wants us. If it is to build Temples? Yes. Is it profitable? God knows best about that. If it does not make much money, it brings something in the heart that the world cannot give and that man cannot take away—it gives peace and joy and satisfaction, and you feel—“I am of the household of faith, I am a child of God, I am carrying out the will of my Father, and they who have lived and we who now live are operating together for the redemption of the living and the dead, for the regeneration of the world, for the carrying out of the purposes of the great Eloheim, for the introduction of principles that will ennoble and exalt man and enable him to stand in the dignity of his office, calling and Priesthood as a Priest of the Most High God.” That is the position that we ought to occupy, and that is what we are after. It is no little boys’ play that we are engaged in, it is a life-long service, and that life will last while eternity endures. We want to operate here all the time, so that we may have our own approving conscience, that we may have the approval of all good, honorable men; that we may have the sanction and approval of God and of the holy angels, and of the Priesthood who have lived before, and that we may feel that we are operating for the general benefit of the world that was, that is, or is to come.

We are called upon once in a while to take a new step in this great work. At one time it was polygamy, at another it was baptism for the dead, then it was building Temples, then certain endowments, then the sealing of our children to us, then certain promises made to ourselves, such as God made to Abraham in former days, and now it is that we must get a little closer together, and be more united in regard to our temporal affairs, that we may be prepared to act and to operate in all things according to the mind and will of God and this step in advance, like every other, has caused us to reflect and ponder, and many of us are full of fears and doubts in relation to many things and many men. Well, have we all done right? No. Have we all been strictly honest? No. Have we all lived our religion? No. Have we all been upright in our dealings one with another, and done that which is right in the sight of God? No, we have not. What then? Shall we continue to do wrong? We are called upon, in this as in many other things, to take a new step that is contrary to our traditions, ideas and theories but not contrary to the doctrines that have been taught to the Latter-day Saints. But we hardly know, sometimes, how to get at these things, how to fix them up, how to put them right. We have been trying, since God moved upon his servant Brigham, to get things into order, but the ship moves very slowly, there seems to be a good many snags of one kind or other in the way. Many people are very much misinformed in relation to many of these things. There have been a good many things said, and a great many ideas in circulation about the order of things that it is desired should be established among us. I will tell you some of my ideas in relation thereto.

In the first place, it has been a matter of fact with me, for years and years, that such a state of things has to be introduced amongst us. I think that is an opinion that prevails very generally among the Latter-day Saints, and I do not think there is much difference of opinion in relation to it. We have read about it in the Book of Doctrine and Covenants. I think there are as many as a dozen revelations in that book in reference to this subject, and perhaps more than that. I do not propose to quote them, however, at the present time. We read an account of the City of Enoch, which was established on this principle, and how the people acted there; there is also an account of a people who formerly lived on this continent, who carried out the same principle; and when this Church was first organized by Joseph Smith, these very principles were among the first that he introduced to the people, and we have had them before us all the time, so that we have no need to begin and argue the points at all; but I want to come right to matters of fact as they exist among us here to-day.

Many say, “I do not like the thing as it now is, I wish we had it as it is laid down in the Book of Doctrine and Covenant.” No you don’t. “Well, we think we do.” Well, but you don’t, I am sure you don’t, and I will show you why before I get through. We are living in peculiar times—we can not be governed by “Thus saith the Lord” independent of other influences. We are associated with national and judicial affairs that are opposed to every principle that God would reveal or will reveal. That is a fact that I need not argue before the Latter-day Saints, they all know it. Well, what then? The Spirit of the Lord has operated upon President Young to introduce these principles in our midst, that is, as near as they can be to conform to the laws of the land, for the people in these United States profess to be so pure, you know, that they could not think of having anything contrary to law; they would never dream of anything of that kind. Why, the people of the United States, including their Presidents, Governors and rulers, are the most law-abiding people you ever heard of, according to their professions, are they not? They can not think of doing anything contrary to law.

Well, we have to go with the general stream; or at least it is necessary that we protect ourselves from legal cormorants, and from every man who would devour, tear in pieces and destroy, who is after our property and our lives? This class of persons would be very glad to take not only the property but the lives of some of the leaders of God’s people here on the earth; nothing would suit them better, they are so holy, pure and law-abiding. These are the circumstances that we are placed in. Now what shall be done? There are certain principles that emanate from God; but we have to protect ourselves in carrying them out, and make them conform, as near as we can, to the laws of the land. In the Book of Doctrine and Covenants it is said, in the first place, that a man shall place his property at the feet of the Bishop. That is what that lays down, and you say that is what you would like to do. Some would, very many would not. The Bishop, after examining into the position and circumstances of the man, and finding out what his wants are, and what his capabilities and talents, what the size of his family, &c., appoints to him a certain amount of means, which he receives as a stewardship. “Well,” say some, “how does this order you are talking about introducing agree with that? Where does the stewardship come in?” I will tell you. We have organized this as near as may be on the principles of co-operation, and the voice you have in selecting your officers, and in voting for them and the stock you hold in these institutions is your stewardship. You may say—“Is not that taking away our freedom?” I do not think it is. I am not prepared to enter into details, but I should say that one-third, perhaps one-half, of the wealth of the world is manipulated just in the same way. How so? Why, there are among the nations national securities of various kinds issued, which are taken by the people; we have United States bonds, State bonds, county and city bonds in this country as well as in Europe, to which the people subscribe and in which they have an interest, all of which is voluntary, and the free act of the people; then we have railroad bonds, steamship bonds, and we have telegraph, mercantile, manufacturing and cooperative associations, which are represented by those who hold stock therein, and there are hundreds and thousands of millions of dollars throughout the world that are operated in this way by financiers, statesmen, men of intelligence—merchants, capitalists and others, in every grade and condition in life, none of whom consider that there is any coercion associated with it. These men all have their free agency.

What is the modus operandi? For illustration—a company is organized, men subscribe stock into that company, or they purchase bonds perhaps from a government, for which that government pays interest; or, if it is in a company, that company manipulates and arranges matters, not the stockholders individually, they never think of it; they select the officers to do these things for them, and all they have to do with it is to vote in these officers, each person voting according to the amount of stock he holds in the institution. And then they draw their dividends at certain specified times. This is the way, I presume, that one half or perhaps three quarters of the wealth of the civilized world is manipulated to-day.

Well, is freedom taken from these men? Are the men engaged in these operations thieves and robbers? Some of them act very fraudulently it is true, and the amount of defalcation and fraud in our country, of late, is painful to reflect upon; but then, they consider they have a perfect right to buy or to sell any of this stock, and if parties enter into institutions of any kind, mercantile or manufacturing, they must be subject to the rules or laws thereof. But the stockholders do not individually operate these institutions, and what I wanted to say is, that herein we, as they, have our stewardship and freedom of action.

Well, but you want to manipulate men’s time as well? Yes. Will they have a vote? They ought to have, and will have if the law will let them; the great trouble is that the law will not allow us to do everything we would like; but whenever we can get at it we shall vote on all these things as you have voted here to-day. But we have to evade these things a little now, because the law will not allow us to do otherwise.

Now then, there is another feature connected with this matter. You know that, in this order it is not all putting in, there is some taking out, and that is a point I want to get at; it would be a very nice and beautiful thing if we could carry it out. If, as described in the revelation, we could have a general treasury from which we could all draw what we needed, and then return it, together with our tens, fifties, hundreds and thousands, and all act as one family for the general interest of all, it would be a very beautiful thing; but everybody is not so honest, pure and upright as this state of things demands. If we had a general treasury some would be very willing to go the treasurer and request so much to enable them, as they would represent, “to carry out their stewardship,” and he would have to hand it out to them according to the provisions made in the Doctrine and Covenants; but that would in all probability be the last of it with many. Would you business men like to have a system like that in the United Order? You say you would like this order carried out as it is laid down in the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, but I say you would not. Would you like every man, simply because he was a member of the Order, to have power to go to the treasurer and draw out what he thought proper, and use it just according to his fancy? No, you would not, you could not and would not trust your neighbors as far as that, for all men are not capable and all men are not honest and conscientious; if they were we should be nearly ready to be caught up; but we have not reached that point yet, and consequently we have to do the best we can.

Now I will tell you my opinion. I am living in the 14th Ward; we, in that ward, have selected a number of men for our directors, and I would just as soon trust these men with the management of my property as to manage it myself. I do not believe that every man is a thief, scallywag and rascal. I have no such idea. I think there is a great deal of honesty, truthfulness and integrity, and if there is not it is time we turned over a new leaf, and introduced better principles, that we may be governed by purer, nobler laws.

I cannot conceive of anything more beautiful and heavenly than a united brotherhood, organized after the pattern laid down in the Doctrine and Covenants; when all act for the benefit of all—when while we love God with all our hearts we love our neighbor as ourselves; where our time, our property, our talents, our mental and bodily powers, are all exerted for the good of all; where no man grabs or takes advantage of another; where there is a common interest, a common purse, a common stock; where as they did on this continent, it is said of them that “they all dealt justly to each other,” and all acted for the general weal, “when every man in every place could meet a brother and a friend,” when all the generous and benevolent influences and sympathies of our nature are carried out, and covetousness, arrogance, hatred and pride and every evil are subdued, and brought into subjection to the will and Spirit of God. These principles are very beautiful and would be very happifying for a community, a Territory, a State, nation or the world.

Now, then, these things are presented before us, and I suppose we shall have to come into them as best we can, and if we ever get into the celestial kingdom of God we shall find that they are just such a set of people. If ever we build up a Zion here on this continent, and in case Zion ever comes down to us, and we expect it will, or that ours will go up to meet it, we have got to be governed by the same principles that they are governed by, or we can not be one; and if we ever get into the eternal worlds we shall have to be heirs of God and joint heirs with Jesus Christ; and it would not do for a man of us to go up into heaven and say—“Look here, Jesus,” or, “Look here, some of you great men who manage matters here, I wish you would set me off a place by myself, I would like to have my own house and garden and my own farming arrangements separate to myself, so that I could manage things a little in my own way as I used to, in the place I come from.” “Well,” says the individual addressed—“I do not see things exactly in that way. We brought you up here, believing you were a pretty decent fellow; but you have got to conform to our rules. These things are all ours, we are heirs of God and joint heirs with Jesus Christ. This is a joint association, we are united together in the one thing, and we are all one, and if you want to go off by yourself you will have to leave here.” That would be just about the position of things, this is the order that exists there—they are heirs of God and joint heirs with Jesus Christ. This is the position we have to attain to, and to do this there will have to be less individuality of feeling than there is now, and we must seek to introduce and establish the principles of the kingdom of God upon the earth. We are not for ourselves; but for the kingdom of God. God called us not to do our own will, but his, and we are operating to prepare ourselves and our children and all who will be governed by the principles of truth for a celestial and eternal glory in the kingdom of our God.

“Well, then,” says one, “you believe in these things?” I do most assuredly. “Do you believe in the authorities?” Yes, I think I do—I have voted for them for a great many years, and by the help of God I mean to sustain them still. That is my feeling. Brethren, is it yours? Shall we sustain the Elders of Israel, the Presidency and the authorities of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints? Shall we do it, ye Latter-day Saints? (The congregation answered, “Yes!”) All who feel like it, say (“Aye,” by the congregation). Now let us go and carry it out. Amen.

All Men to be Judged Out of the Books, etc.

Orson Pratt

Discourse by Elder Orson Pratt, delivered at the Adjourned Semi-Annual Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in the New Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Sunday morning, October 11, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

[The speaker took as a foundation for his remarks the 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th and 13th verses of the 7th chapter of the prophecies of Daniel, and the 20th chapter of the revelations of St. John.]

All Bible believers are looking forward to the time when the inhabitants of this creation shall be brought into judgment, and be judged out of the books which are written, every man according to his works. We should rather conclude from these sayings in Daniel and in the revelations of St. John, that there is a record, or perhaps many records, kept of the works of men—their deeds done in this probation. How these records are kept in heaven is not for me to say; what language they are recorded in, or what are the symbols of the ideas of the heavenly hosts who are engaged in recording, how many records there are, etc., is not known to us; but from what is written, we can form some conclusions in relation to this matter, for we are told in the sayings of Jesus, in the New Testament, that for every idle word and every idle thought men shall give an account in the great judgment day. Hence these words and thoughts must be had in remembrance either in books, or impressed upon the minds of beings who are capable of retaining all things in their remembrance. There must be some way by which the idle words and thoughts of the children of men shall be kept in remembrance, and if the dead are to be judged out of the books that are to be opened, we should naturally draw the conclusion that they are memorandum books of the idle words and thoughts of the children of men.

We also read in the Book of Mormon—a record which all Latter-day Saints profess to believe in, and consider equally sacred with the rest of the word of God that is recorded in the Bible and elsewhere—the sayings of Jesus, that were spoken on this continent some eighteen hundred years ago. Jesus says—“All things are written by the Father.” I suppose by his agents, that is through his direction, by his authority. “All things are written by the Father.” Taking all these passages of Scripture together, we may look for a general reckoning with all the inhabitants of this earth, both the righteous and the wicked. How long this day, called the day of judgment, will be, is not revealed. It may be vastly longer than what many suppose. It seems to me that unless there were a great number engaged in judging the dead, it would require a very long period of time; for, for one being to personally investigate all the idle thoughts and words of the children of men from the days of Adam down until that time, it would require a great many millions of years, and therefore I come to another conclusion, namely, that God has his agents, and that through those agents the dead will be judged.

This reminds me of what was said by the Apostle Paul when reproving the ancient Christians for going to law one with another. He tries to shame them out of this evil practice by referring them to the lowest esteemed among them that were called Saints. Says he, in substance—“Let them be your judges, it is not necessary for you to go to the highest authorities, but let even those who are least among you become judges in regard to many of these things that you now take before unbelievers, and for which you require a judgment from those who have nothing to do with the Saints of God,” or rather with the Gospel in which they believed. And, in connection with these sayings, he asks this question—“Know ye not that the Saints shall judge the world?”

This reminds me of some sayings that are recorded in the Book of Mormon, as also of others contained in the Bible. Jesus said to his twelve disciples or Apostles—“You that have followed me in the regeneration, when the Son of Man shall come sitting upon the throne of his glory, then you shall also sit upon twelve thrones, and shall eat and drink in my presence, and shall judge the twelve tribes of Israel.” It seems, then, that there are certain personages to be engaged in judging the world. The Twelve Apostles are to judge the twelve tribes of Israel, and the Saints will be set to judge the world.

The Book of Mormon, speaking on this same subject, informs us that there were Twelve chosen among the ancient Nephites on this American land, and that, while the Twelve chosen by Jesus on the continent of Asia were to judge the twelve tribes of Israel, the Twelve chosen from among the Nephites should judge the remnant of the house of Israel that dwelt on this land.

Here, then, is another quorum of judgment, another council that is appointed to judge, and so we might continue the subject and bring in all the councils that God has ordained in any generation of those whom he has appointed and selected, and ordained with power and authority from on high. To them was granted not only the privilege of acting here in relation to the ordinances of mercy, but hereafter in relation to the ordinances of justice; hence both justice and mercy were committed, in some measure, into the hands of those who were ordained of the Lord. But in these respects there is one thing to console the Saints of all ages, as well as to console the whole world, and that is, that when the final time shall come to judge the children of men, whoever the agents may be who shall sit in judgment upon their several cases, they will do it by the inspiration of the Almighty, and hence it will be done right.

This reminds me of what Jesus said to the Twelve who were chosen among the Israelites on this continent, eighteen hundred years ago. Said he—“Know ye not that ye shall be judges of this people? What manner of persons, therefore, ought ye to be, in all holiness, and purity and uprightness in heart, if you are to judge this great nation? In other words—“If you are to sit in judgment upon all of their deeds done in the body, and to render a righteous decision before the Almighty, how pure, holy, upright and honest you twelve disciples ought to be in order to become judges indeed of the people, that in judging them you may not condemn yourselves.”

Having quoted these passages, which give us a little understanding of the purposes of the Almighty in regard to judging the world, I will now quote another passage of Scripture that has a bearing in some measure upon this subject, showing that it was a principle understood by the ancient Saints of God, and that the eternal judgment that was to be administered by the Saints at some future time was numbered among the first principles of the doctrine of Christ. It was not one of those hidden mysteries, one of those secret things, one of those wonders that were to be searched out by the faithful, but that it was a doctrine numbered among the first principles of the oracles of God. I will now, leaving the principles of the doctrines of Christ according to King James’ translation, quote from another translation which I have seen, and which I believe to be more correct. The passage to which I will direct your attention reads—“Therefore, not leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, of faith towards God and of the doctrine of baptisms, and of the laying on of hands, and of the resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment.”

These principles of the doctrine of Christ were thoroughly understood by the faithful ones who lived eighteen hundred years ago. They understood that the day would come when God would set them, not only to judge the world, but to judge angels. Some angels have got yet to be judged, and the Saints will be the agents to perform this great work and render the decision of judgment. Jesus said to the Twelve among the ancient Nephites—“Know ye this, that your judgment”—speaking of their judging the Nephite nation—“shall be that judgment which the Father shall give unto you;” in other words—“You shall not judge by your own natural wisdom; you shall not judge according to the outward appearance; but it shall be that judgment which the Father shall give unto you.” Now, the Lord judges mankind according to the law and the testimony. The revealed law is delivered to the people, and those to whom it is revealed will be judged by that law, hence Jesus says—“My words shall judge you at the last day.” It is not the tradition of the children of men that is going to judge the world, that is not the law. The traditions of the children of men are one thing, and the law is another thing; popular ideas are one thing and the law of God is another thing. We are not to be judged by the creeds, doctrines, disciplines and articles of faith invented by uninspired men, but by the pure law of God as it issued forth from his own mouth and by the mouths of his ancient Prophets and Apostles. The testimonies will be forthcoming, one of which will be the record, the books that are written. Every idle word that is spoken, every idle thought that has ever entered into the hearts of man will be written and brought up, and out of that record of our conduct—our thoughts, words and deeds—will we be judged.

Now, if there is to be a vast number of individuals engaged in the work of judgment, it may be a speedy work; for let all mankind be classified—a certain portion delivered over to the Apostles of ancient days, another portion to the Twelve chosen from among the ancient Nephites, another portion delivered over to the Saints who lived in the first ages of the world, another portion to the Saints who lived after the flood, and another portion to the Latter-day Saints, and let all be engaged in this work of judging the human family and the work can speedily be accomplished. It may require years, and it may be accomplished, perhaps, in less than one year, that is a matter that we cannot decide upon now. There is to be, however, a prior judgment to the final judgment day, and we will speak upon that awhile.

There is a certain degree of judgment rendered upon every man and every woman as soon as they have passed the ordeals of this present probation. When they lay their bodies down their spirits return into the presence of God, when a decree of judgment and sentence is immediately passed. Hence we read in the Book of Mormon, that the spirits of all men, as soon as they depart from this mortal body, return home again to that God who gave them life, and then shall it come to pass that the spirits of the righteous shall enter into a state of rest, peace and happiness, called Paradise, where they shall rest from all their labors. And then shall it come to pass that the spirits of the wicked—for behold they have no part or portion of the spirit of the Lord—shall depart into outer darkness, where there is weeping, and wailing and gnashing of teeth; and in these two states or conditions the children of men shall be placed until the time of the resurrection.

Then again there will be a judgment after the resurrection, that will not be the final judgment, that is the judgment of the twelve tribes of Israel, spoken of by our Savior, which will take place when he and the Twelve return again to the earth. That judgment will be exercised more directly on the whole house of Israel that have loved the Lord and kept his commandments.

Here then are the various times of judgment, the various conditions and circumstances of the children of men in the spiritual state, judged before the resurrection, assigned to happiness or misery as the case may be, and in the judgment of the first resurrection certain rewards, glory, power, exaltation, happiness and eternal life will be conferred upon the righteous. But another sentence of judgment will be pronounced upon those who are not favored with coming forth on the morning of the first resurrection, namely, those who have disobeyed the Gospel. To all such the voice of the angel will be—“Let sinners stay and sleep until I call again,” their sins having been sufficiently judged beforehand, that they are not counted worthy of a resurrection among the just and the righteous ones of the earth. This agrees with another passage recorded in the Book of Covenants, that at the sound of the third trump then come the spirits of men that are under condemnation. These are the rest of the dead, and they live not again until the thousand years are ended, neither again until the end of the earth. Why? Because a certain measure of judgment is pronounced upon them even then. Now then let us go to the angels which the Saints are to judge. We find that the angels who kept not their first estate are reserved in chains of darkness until the judgment of the great day. Those angels that fell from before the presence of God were judged in a measure upon their fall, and were cast out to wander to and fro upon the face of this earth, bound as it were with chains of darkness, misery and wretchedness, and this condition is to continue during the whole of the temporal existence of this earth, until the final judgment of the great day, when the Saints, in the authority and power of the Priesthood which God Almighty has conferred upon them, will arise and judge these fallen angels, and they will receive the condemnation of which they are worthy.

Having made these few preliminary remarks in regard to the judgment of the children of men, let us now refer again to the passage contained in the seventh chapter of Daniel.—Says that ancient Prophet—“I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool; his throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheels as burning fire. A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him; thousand thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him: the judgment was set and the books were opened.”

How many are ten thousand times ten thousand. One hundred millions. That would be a larger congregation than you or I ever saw, and larger, probably, than any congregation that has ever been collected together upon this earth at any one time. They would occupy a vast region of country, even for a foothold. A hundred million people stood before this personage—the Ancient of days. Who was this personage called the Ancient of days? We are told by the Prophet Joseph Smith—the great Prophet of the last days, whom God raised up by his own voice and by the ministration of angels to introduce the great and last dispensation of the fullness of times—the last dispensation on the earth so far as the proclamation of mercy is concerned; I say we are told by this Prophet that the Ancient of days is the most ancient personage that ever had an existence in days here on the earth. And who was he? Why, of cou[r]se, old father Adam, he was the most ancient man that ever lived in days that we have any knowledge of. He comes, then, as a great judge, to assemble this innumerable host of which Daniel speaks. He comes in flaming fire. The glory and blessing and greatness of this personage it would be impossible even for a man as great as Daniel fully to describe. He comes as a man inspired from the eternal throne of Jehovah himself. He comes to set in order the councils of the Priesthood pertaining to all dispensations, to arrange the Priesthood and the councils of the Saints of all former dispensations in one grand family and household.

What is all this for? Why all this ar[r]angement? Why all this organization? Why all this judgment and the opening of the books? It is to prepare the way for another august personage whom Daniel saw coming with the clouds of heaven, namely the Son of Man, and these clouds of heaven brought the Son of Man near before the Ancient of days. And when the Son of Man came to the Ancient of days, behold a kingdom was given to the Son of Man, and greatness and glory, that all people, nations and languages should serve him, and his kingdom should be an everlasting kingdom, a kingdom that should never be done away.

This explains the reason why our father Adam comes as the Ancient of days with all these numerous hosts, and organizes them according to the records of the book, every man in his place, preparatory to the coming of the Son of Man to receive the kingdom. Then every family that is in the order of the Priesthood, and every man and every woman, and every son or daughter whatever their kindred, descent or Priesthood, will know their place.

Where will this great conference take place? The Lord has revealed this also. The Lord did not raise up this boy, Joseph, for nothing, or merely to reveal a few of the first principles of the Gospel of Christ; but he raised him up to reveal the hidden mysterious things, the wonders of the eternal worlds, the wonders of the dispensation of the fullness of times, those wonders that took place before the foundation of the world; and all things, so far as it was wisdom in God, were unfolded by this personage called by his enemies “Old Joe Smith,” who was about fourteen years old when the Lord raised him up. I say that he, by the power of the Holy Ghost, and the spirit of revelation, revealed the very place where this great assemblage of ten thousand times ten thousand of the righteous shall be gathered together when the books are opened. It will be on one of the last places of residence of our father Adam here on the earth, and it is called by revelation Adam-ondi-ahman, which, being interpreted, means the valley of God where Adam dwelt, the words belonging to the language which was spoken by the children of men before the confusion took place at Babel. In that valley Adam called together Seth, Enos, Cainan, Mahalaleel, Jared, Enoch, Methusaleh and all the high Priests and righteous of his descendants for some seven or eight generations. Three years before his death he there stood up, being bowed with age, and preached to that vast assembly of people, and pronounced upon them his great and last patriarchal blessing, and they rose up by the authority and power and revelation of the holy Priesthood which they held, and pronounced their blessing upon their great common progenitor Adam, and he was called the Prince of Peace, and the Father of many nations, and it was said that he should stand at the head of and rule over his people of all generations, notwithstanding he was so aged. That was the blessing pronounced, three years before his death, upon the great head, Patriarch and Prophet of this creation, the man whom God choose to begin the works of this creation, in other words to begin the peopling of this earth.

Where was that valley in which that grand patriarchal gathering was held? It was about fifty, sixty or seventy miles north of Jackson County, Missouri, where the Zion of the latter days will be built. Where the garden of Eden was is not fully revealed; where Adam eat the forbidden fruit is not revealed so far as I know, that is, the particular location on the earth, no revelation informs us where he passed the first few centuries of his life; but suffice it to say that, when Adam was about six or seven hundred years old there was a great gathering of the people Enoch, the seventh from Adam, who lived contemporary with his old ancestor, and others who were called by him, went forth and gathered out the righteous from all the nations, and as there was no Atlantic Ocean in those days rolling between the eastern and western continents, they could gather together by land from Asia, Africa and Europe. In those days the earth was not divided as it was after the flood, in the days of Peleg. In that gathering many came from the ends of the earth. Adam might have been among the emigrating companies, if not, then, he most probably had his residence at that central place of gathering. Let this be as it may, it is not revealed. There is a place, however, where this great Conference took place in ancient times, where the Lord revealed himself to that vast assembly, and stood in their midst, and instructed them with his own mouth, and they saw his face. There is the place where it was ordained that Adam should have the power, as the Ancient of Days, after a certain period and dispensations had rolled away, to come in his glory accompanied by the ancient Saints, the generations that should live after him and should take up their abode upon that land where they received their last blessing, there in the valley of Adam-ondi-ahman.

This man, will sit upon his throne, and ten thousand times ten thousand immortal beings—his children—will stand before him, with all their different grades of Priesthood, according to the order which God has appointed and ordained. Then every quorum of the Priesthood in this Latter-day Saint Church will find its place, and never until then. If we go behind the vail we will not see this perfect organization of the Saints of all generations until that period shall arrive. That will be before Jesus comes in his glory. Then we will find that there is a place for the First Presidency of this Church; for the Twelve Apostles called in this dispensation; for the twelve disciples that were called among the remnants of Joseph on this land in ancient times; for the Twelve that were called among the ten tribes of Israel in the north country; for the Twelve that were called in Palestine, who administered in the presence of our Savior; all the various quorums and councils of the Priesthood in every dispensation that has transpired since the days of Adam until the present time will find their places, according to the callings, gifts, blessings, ordinations and keys of Priesthood which the Lord Almighty has conferred upon them in their several generations. This, then, will be one of the grandest meetings that has ever transpired upon the face of our globe. What manner of persons ought you and I, my brethren and sisters, and all the people of God in the latter days to be, that we may be counted worthy to participate in the august assemblies that are to come from the eternal worlds, whose bodies have burst the tomb and come forth immortalized and eternal in their nature.

It will be found then who it is who have received ordinances by divine authority, and who have received ordinances by the precepts and authority of men. It will then be known who have been joined together in celestial marriage by divine authority, and who by wicked counsels, and by justices of the peace who did not believe in God at the time that they did it, or those who have been married merely until death shall part them. It will then be known that those who have received the ordinances of marriage according to divine appointment are married for all eternity; it will then be known that their children are the legal heirs to the inheritances, and glories, and powers, and keys and Priesthood of their fathers, throughout the eternal generations that are to come; and every man will have his family gathered around him which have been given unto him by the sealing of the everlasting Priesthood, and the order and law which God has ordained, and none other. Amen.

The Gospel of Christ Unpopular in Every Age of the World, etc.

Wilford Woodruff

Discourse by Elder Wilford Woodruff, delivered at the Semi-Annual Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in the New Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Wednesday, October 7, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

I did not have the privilege of listening to all the remarks of Elder Taylor this forenoon, yet to what I did hear I can bear testimony of its truth. I always delight in seeing a man valiant in the testimony of Jesus Christ. There is something glorious in the principles of the Gospel. I always did, from my boyhood, hope and pray that I might live long enough in the earth to find some man who would have sufficient courage and independence of mind to believe in the same doctrine and Gospel that Jesus Christ taught, and I have lived long enough to see, hear and partake of it, and I glory in it, because it is true.

The religion or Gospel of Jesus Christ is a very unpopular thing, and has been in every age of the world. Show me a man who was ever inspired of the Lord God of Israel to do a work for him who was popular. You can not find such a man in the whole history of the world. You may take Noah, who was about a hundred and twenty years building an ark, and how many friends did he have? I think about seven in all. Lot was very unpopular the morning he left Sodom and Gomorrah, and so have been all the Patriarchs and Prophets in every age of the world. Jesus Christ, when he came to Jerusalem, the Son of God, the Savior of the world, the great Shiloh of the Jews, came to his own father’s house, yet there was not a man more despised in all Judea and Jerusalem than was Jesus Christ, from the day of his birth until he came to the cross. Why is this? Because men love darkness rather than light—because their deeds are evil. The Lord Almighty, in the last days, has set his hand to carry out and fulfill his words for the past five or six thousand years, given through the mouths of his servants the Prophets and Apostles whenever he has had them on the earth. He has commenced this work and he will perform it, for, as brother Taylor has justly said, there is no power on the earth that can stay his hand, for the simple reason that God controls the destinies of all men—kings, princes, rulers, presidents, statesmen, governors, nations, tongues and people, upon the face of the whole earth, and men are placed in a position where they are under the necessity of exercising faith in God in order to build up his kingdom. Read the eleventh chapter of Hebrews, and you will find that, beginning with the creation of the world, everything has been accomplished by faith. The whole of the work of all the ancient Patriarchs and Prophets was accomplished by the exercise of this principle; and it is just so in the last dispensation of the fullness of times. When God sent angels to Joseph Smith, he knew and understood, by the teachings given unto him, what he had to perform in a measure. The Lord called him to do a work, and raised him up for this purpose. Was Joseph Smith popular among men? No, never, he was persecuted until the day of his death, until he sealed his testimony with his blood. But the persecution against him, and the unbelief of the world, do not make the truth of God without effect. The Lord has carried out and fulfilled all these prophecies from the commencement until now; there never has been a jot or tittle allowed to fall unfulfilled; there never was a revelation, from the days of father Adam until this, given by the inspiration of the Holy Ghost through the mouth of Patriarch or Prophet that will fall unfulfilled. Though the heavens and the earth pass away, these things will not fail of their fulfillment, and, as brother Taylor has said, the world cannot stay the work of God. They never have done, and they never will.

This is a different dispensation from all others. God has set to his hand to build up his kingdom and Zion, and that kingdom and Zion must be built up, or the revelations of God will fall unfulfilled. The Bible is full of these teachings, and they must have their fulfillment, and I bear testimony to their truth. The Bible is true, and its prophecies were spoken by holy men of old as they were moved upon by the Holy Ghost. The revelations of Isaiah concerning the building up of the Zion of God in the last days will have their fulfillment. The house of God will be established upon the tops of the mountains, and all nations must flow unto it. Zion must arise and put on her beautiful garments, she must be clothed with the glory of her God. The Temple of God has got to be built also upon the tops of the mountains; the Gospel must be preached to every nation under heaven before the end shall come.

The world say they do not believe these things; that is true, we do not expect them, we never have expected them to believe them, but the unbelief of the world does not change the work of God. We have to live by faith. When Moroni hid in the earth the record which the Book of Mormon was translated from, four hundred years after Christ came in the flesh, he did it by faith, as much so as Noah built the ark. He looked forward and saw that record come forth in the last days, in fulfillment of the sayings of Ezekiel and of the saying of Isaiah, when the stick of Joseph should be put with the stick of Judah, and they should become one stick in the hands of the servants of the Lord before the eyes of the world, and when the truth should spring out of the earth and righteousness look down from heaven. These things were to be a beginning of the great work of God preparatory to the gathering of the twelve tribes of Israel in the latter days. That work has come forth, just as everything has been fulfilled which has been done by faith and by the commandment of God.

When Joseph Smith began to receive revelations from God he was a boy, an illiterate youth; and had he not had faith and the inspiration of the Almighty upon him, he never could have had power and courage to go forth and introduce the Gospel of Jesus Christ in the midst of a generation of false doctrine, ignorance and darkness. But God preserved, inspired and sustained him, and caused him to live upon the earth until he had planted this kingdom, in fulfillment of the revelations. He organized the Church, he received the holy Priesthood from the hands of angels sent from God—men who had held the Aaronic and Melchizedec Priesthood in other generations upon the earth; they conferred upon Joseph all the powers and keys of the Priesthood necessary to build up the kingdom of God upon the earth, and he lived long enough to organize that kingdom, and it will never be thrown down any more forever.

The revelations of God to us have been encouraging, and we have seen them fulfilled, and we shall continue to do so until the end. I will say to the Latter-day Saints, that we are in the same position that other generations have been—we have got to walk by faith, we must have confidence in the fulfillment of the revelations of God. No man or woman on the face of the earth will ever be disappointed with regard to the fulfillment of the word of the Lord, for he has uttered decrees, made covenants, and through his servants the Prophets has declared his word and will concerning the world and its inhabitants, and not one of his sayings will fail, all must be fulfilled. If it could be otherwise, the Zion of God would never be built up; but God has decreed that his kingdom will be established, that Zion will arise and shine, and that every weapon formed against her will be broken.

The prayers of hundreds and thousands of Saints, dwelling in these valleys of the mountains, daily ascend into the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth, beseeching him to fulfill his word upon the earth and to sustain his servants. Do not the Saints pray for anybody else? Yes, they pray for everybody—for President Grant, Judge McKean, the Governor of Utah, and every man holding official positions here, as well as for Brigham Young and the Apostles. These prayers ascend before the Lord and they will be heard and answered.

Talk about Brigham Young and Joseph Smith, how many have said to Joseph Smith—“How on the earth do you govern and control this people? How easy you do it!” Our enemies, to-day, look at Brigham Young, and they say—“If he would only die Mormonism would stop;” but in this they are mistaken. This work does not depend upon President Young; it did not depend upon Joseph Smith. All the world thought if they could only slay Joseph Smith there would be an end of Mormonism, and so there would have been had it not been the work of God Almighty; if it had been the work of man it would long since have ceased to exist on the earth. The power that has sustained this work from the beginning sustains it now. As brother Taylor has said, all the holy Prophets and Apostles who have been slain on the earth for the testimony of Jesus and the word of God, and who now sit on the right hand of God in the heavens, are just as much engaged in carrying on the work of God here as when they lived in the flesh, and more so, because they have more light and power. And Jesus Christ, himself, who died on the cross, and after his resureection [resurrection] visited the other sheep of his fold on this continent, and offered the Gospel to Jew and Gentile, that same Jesus is pleading with the Father to-day, and has been from the day his body lay in the tomb, to carry out and fulfill his purposes and to accomplish his work in our day and generation. We are not alone in our efforts to carry on the work of God. If the eyes of the world were open, they would see that there are more for us than against us. We are only, in one sense of the word, worms of the dust in the hands of God. This work does not depend on any man or set of men. The Lord Almighty has set his hand to accomplish his purposes, and he is feeling after the honest and meek throughout the world, in order to find those who are willing to take hold and help to build up his kingdom in the latter days. He has found a few, and he will find many more.

How has it been with Joseph Smith, Brigham Young, the Apostles, and thousands of the Elders of Israel who have gone forth to preach the Gospel to the world without purse or scrip, offering the word of life and salvation without money and without price? They have carried their knapsacks on their backs, or with valise in hand have traveled thousands and thousands of miles for this purpose. They have been inspired to do this by the power of the Most High God, and that inspiration has sustained them all the way through; it has upheld this Church from the time it came forth until this hour, and will unto its consummation. We came in here on the 24th of July, 1847, having been driven from our homes, the graves of our fathers, and from lands we purchased from the general Government because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ, or, in other words, because of our religion. We came here and found a barren desert, containing nothing but a few roving Indians, coyote wolves, crickets and grasshoppers. There was no mark of the Anglo Saxon race or of the white man here then, but the whole region of country was a desert of the most forbidding and desolate character. Now when strangers come up to Zion on this great highway, cast up in fulfillment of the revelations of God, what do they see? They see no longer a desert, but a belt, for six hundred miles, of cities, towns, villages, orchards, fields and crops. Who has done this? The Lord God of Israel has inspired his Saints to do it. President Young has been led, guided, counselled and moved upon by the Holy Ghost and by the revelations of Jesus Christ, and that which strangers now behold in this Tabernacle, and throughout this Territory is in fulfillment of that volume of revelation which you can read in the prophecies of Isaiah and others of the Prophets and Patriarchs. These things are true and your eyes can see them, whether you believe them or not has nothing to do with it. I will tell you that if this work had not been of God, and God had not borne testimony to the preaching of the Elders, we might have preached until we had been as old as Methuselah and we could not have gathered the people from almost every nation under heaven as we have done, according to the predictions of the ancient Prophets contained in the Bible. But the Lord has never disappointed anybody so far as his work is concerned. It did not stop after the death of Joseph, and it never will on account of the death of any man, Prophet, Apostle or any other man, for it is in the hands of God, and he has decreed that it shall stand for ever, and that it shall extend until its dominion becomes universal.

We do not see to-day what we saw twenty-four years ago, and we do not see to-day what will be seen twenty-four years hence; there will be no stoppage to the building up of the Zion of God, or to the carrying out of his work. Joseph Smith was a Prophet of God, raised up by the Lord Almighty, and the inspiration of God guided and sustained him to the day of his death. He sealed his testimony with his blood, and that testimony is in force upon all the world. This record which I hold in my hands (Book of Doctrine and Covenants) contains the revelations of God, and in one of them the Lord says—“Let earth and hell combine against you, and they shall not prevail, the kingdom is yours—I have given it into your hands—and you are called upon to build it up.” The Lord is at the helm to govern, guide and control this work, and he will do so unto the end.

Now when men undertake to fight against this work, as brother Taylor has said, they fight against God; it is not against Brigham Young, the Apostles or this people alone, but it is against God. Every man will be rewarded according to his works. Our prayers go up before God day and night, that he will execute justice, judgment, righteousness and truth, that he will sustain everything that leads to good, and does good, and that he will overthrow all that lead to evil and do evil; and we are assured by revelation that the Lord will hear and answer our prayers. The Lord is with this people; but as Latter-day Saints, I do not think that we always prize our privileges. We are called upon to perform a work; the Lord has placed this work in our hands, and we are held responsible before the heavens and the earth to use the talents—the light and truth, which have been committed into our hands.

What is this life? What are the things of this life? The Latter-day Saints are living for things the other side of the vail, the same as all servants of God have done in every age of the world. Now is it not a curiosity that so few of the human family have an interest in eternal things—things the other side of the vail? Bless your souls, our lives here are only a few days in duration, but on the other side of the vail we shall live eternally, we shall live and exist just as long as our Creator will exist, and our eternal destiny depends upon the manner in which we spend our short lives here in the flesh. Will it not pay any man, any Prophet, Apostle or Saint, in this or any other age of the world, to be true and faithful to his God, to magnify his calling, to be valiant in the testimony of Jesus Christ, to preach the Gospel, to bear record of the things of the kingdom to Jew and Gentile in his day and generation? Yes, it will pay men to do right, and men will sorrow and bitterly regret taking any course in this or any other generation against God or his work. What have been the afflictions of the Jews who rejected Jesus Christ? Why every word spoken concerning them by Moses and Jesus has had its fulfillment until the present day, for hundreds of years past and gone. They have been a hiss and a by-word, and trodden under the feet of the Gentiles, in fulfillment of the words of Jesus Christ, and they will continue in their present position until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. Jesus offered his Gospel to the Jews in his day, but in these latter days it has been offered first to the Gentiles, thus fulfilling the saying that the first shall be last and the last shall be first; and when the Gentiles count themselves unworthy of eternal life, the Gospel will go to the House of Israel and they will receive it. The Gentiles should heed the warning given them by the Apostle Paul, lest they fall through the example of unbelief as did the Jews, who were broken off because they rejected the Messiah, and refused the message of salvation which he delivered unto them. From that day to this they have been scattered, peeled and afflicted; their city was overthrown and their Temples destroyed, and the land of their fathers has been in the hands of Gentile nations until to-day. The Lord has said—“Vengeance is mine and I will repay,” and we may rest assured that the Lord will reward those who seek to destroy the lives of his people and to overthrow his kingdom. Vengeance is in the hands of the Almighty. “I will fight your battles,” saith the Lord. We do not seek any man’s hurt, however much of an enemy he may be to us, we leave him in the hands of God, we know that he will reward him, and the reward will be all that God, Saints, angels, devils or wicked men can ask, and it will be all that any man can want. When we undertake to fight against God we have to pay for it. Men will have to pay for every sin committed in the flesh; no matter what they do, they will have to be accountable for it. If a man does right, is valiant in the testimony of Jesus Christ, obeys the Gospel, and keeps his covenants, when he passes to the other side of the vail he has an entrance into the presence of God and the Lamb; having kept celestial law he enters into celestial glory, he is preserved by that law, and he participates in that glory through the endless ages of eternity. It pays any man under heaven to obey and be faithful to the law of God the few days he spends in the flesh. I say to the world, to every sect under heaven, if you ever obtain any blessings in the eternal worlds from anybody at all it will be from the God the Latter-day Saints worship, for God made us all; whether we are Methodists, Baptists, Mormons or anything else we are all the children of one parent. Then why should we persecute one another because of our religion? It is folly in the highest degree. We live in a land and under a constitution which guarantees the right to worship God according to the dictates of conscience to every sect, party, name and denomination under heaven, then why should we be so narrow-minded as to hate or seek to persecute or kill our neighbor because he differs from us in religion?

We worship God and we are Latter-day Saints because we know that the Gospel which has been revealed in these latter days is true. We have received it and have realized the promises made to those who would obey it. The Holy Ghost and the testimony of Jesus Christ never deceived us, and we have received that testimony while abroad in almost every nation under heaven. By this power we have been gathered. That is the reason we are Mormons, as the world call us. We know this work is true, we know it is the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We would not persecute, abuse, or quarrel with any man because of his religious views. A man’s religion, let it be what it will, is between him and his God. He is going to the eternal world, and he will receive his reward, and there is no reason or use in quarreling about religion, and we have never felt to do this in our lives. Whatever may have been said concerning us, our Tabernacles—this and others—have been open to every minister who came along, no matter to what sect or party he belonged. We are not afraid of our doctrines, and we are not afraid to have our children hear the doctrines of others. If any man has got a truth that we have not got, let us have it. Truth is what we are after, and we are not afraid of the doctrines of any man; we are willing to stand by the revelations of God. These are the feelings of the Latter-day Saints. When our Methodist friends came to this city, erected their tent and held their big camp meeting, what was the course pursued by the Latter-day Saints? The President of the Church, the Twelve Apostles and citizens with their wives and children gave them a congregation of many thousands, and we sat in their tent and listened to them while they abused us just as much as they pleased. We believe in giving every man the privilege of saying what he pleases, we have always been willing to let every man express his sentiments here among us. We are not afraid of them. If we have not the truth, that is what we are after, we want it. But we know that we have it, that the Gospel as restored, revealed through Joseph Smith, is the truth of God, and we know that the Lord has set to his hand to build up Zion, and he is going to do it. We bear record of this because we know it is true.

I pray that God will bless the Latter-day Saints. I pray that we may prize our privileges, that we may enjoy the spirit of our calling, and that the Holy Ghost may enlighten our minds continually, that we may not walk in the dark but in the light. I pray that the Spirit of God may bear record to the stranger within our gates. I am satisfied that it does, and it has done more or less for the forty years that are past and gone. But it is the same to-day as it was in the days of Jesus. He told Nicodemus that light had come into the world, but men loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil, and here is where condemnation comes in, but we can not help that. My brethren and I have traveled a great many thousands of miles to preach the Gospel to our fellow-men; we have done this because we know this Gospel is true. We are willing to stand by this Gospel, this testimony and this work in life and in death, in time and in eternity. We shall meet the strangers who come here and visit us, on the other side of the vail; they will meet us there, and if they never know before, they will know then that our testimony is true.

I pray God our heavenly Father that he will bear testimony by his Holy Spirit to the meek and honest among the children of men, that they may receive the truth and be prepared to inherit eternal life, for Jesus’ sake. Amen.

Individual Salvation, etc.

George A. Smith

Remarks by President George A. Smith, delivered at the Semi-Annual Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in the New Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Tuesday morning, October 6, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

The present occasion, a Semi-annual Conference, is one which, in the history that we are making, is marked with more than ordinary importance. I always feel thankful to be permitted to meet the faces and greet the countenances of the brethren and sisters from the different parts of the Territory and elsewhere, who assemble at these Conferences; and I feel it important that, in doing so, we should lay aside the ordinary business transactions of life, and try and compare notes with ourselves as to our actual progress in the things of the kingdom. We have received the first principles of the Gospel, and we have started in their observance; and in doing so we have become obligated by our personal agreements, and covenants in the waters of baptism, and in the ordinances which pertain to the Gospel, to live in accordance with those principles which are revealed. In pursuing our daily avocations we become mixed up, more or less, with the world; we are called to battle with the world, and we have exhibitions from time to time of the weaknesses of human nature. I remember very well in the days of Kirtland, hearing men testify that they knew this was the work of God, and that they had seen visions of the armies of heaven and the horsemen thereof, as did Gehazi, the servant of the Prophet, and then, in consequence of the failure of a bank, or because some business transaction did not come out in accordance with their expectations or desires, they would apostatize and come to the conclusion that they never knew anything about it, and become infidels. This shows the weakness to which some individuals have been subject. I also remember, in the great apostacy which took place in Kirtland, that those who apostatized considered that all the talent of the Church had left it, and yet the work rolled right along, and, so far as they were concerned, they were never missed, and were soon forgotten, and nobody could tell where they went to. I have occasionally met them twenty or thirty years afterwards, and could hardly tell where they dropped out, their disappearance made no ripple. The facts are, brethren, that the work of the Lord does not depend upon us. If we go into darkness, if we let our hearts be filled with covetousness or corruption, or give way to licentiousness, drunkenness, Sabbath-breaking, unbelief, or any crime that corrodes our system or organization, so that our tabernacles become unfit for the holy Spirit to dwell in, it will withdraw from us, and the light that is in us becomes darkened, and that darkness is so great that we grope as a blind man and wander hither and thither, and those who suffer themselves to be led by these blind men fall into the ditch with them, but the work rolls right along.

Now, we assemble here, and we want to review our conduct and our characters before the Lord. It is one of the weaknesses of human nature to sit in judgment on others, but on the present occasion we should bring ourselves to account, one and all, and determine whether we are living in accordance with the principles of the holy Gospel that we have received. I recollect hearing once that Satan had invented for men a certain kind of leather spectacles which, when a man looked at his own sins, made them look very small, and when he looked at his own righteous acts, made them look very large; when he looked at his neighbor’s sins they seemed very large, and when he looked at his neighbor’s righteous acts they appeared very small. Spectacles of this kind should be avoided, and we should be very careful when we are examining ourselves that we do not get them on, as well as when we examine our neighbors.

The first step, then, in relation to the business of this Conference, is to preach the principles of repentance and reformation. We should question ourselves, and determine whether we have suffered ourselves, with the cares of the world, the deceitfulness of riches, the desire of gain, or from any other cause, to become darkened in our minds. There are many false spirits gone out into the world, and when Joseph Smith communicated the keys of the Priesthood to the servants of the Lord, he gave them the power to try these spirits, and this power was given to the Church, and no man need be led astray only as he suffers himself to lose the Holy Spirit, which is the result of sin, wickedness, neglect or transgression.

In addition to this general reformation which we wish to impress upon the minds of our brethren and sisters at the opening of the Conference, we want to take such steps as will be for the temporal and spiritual welfare of the Saints. The changes which have transpired in the world show us how uncertain a tenure our business arrangements are placed upon. From the time that the revelation was given to the Saints, commanding them to let the beauty of their garments be the workmanship of their own hands, to the present time, that doctrine has been preached, and yet, it now seems more necessary than ever that, in all our settlements and associations, we should organize and take such measures as will enable us to provide, within ourselves as far as possible, the articles which we need. It is our duty to ourselves and to our God to unite our interests in such a manner that we can produce what we need within ourselves, without being hewers of wood and drawers of water to strangers. We have made a good deal of progress in this direction, as we can see by the numbers of people who come here clothed in the manufacture of their own factories or looms. Still there is room for further progress in this direction, and during the Conference instructions will be given as may be considered necessary to aid us in facilitating the work of manufacturing our own wool, leather, shoes, hats and every other article of domestic necessity, just as far as our country will admit.

We are always commanded, so says the revelation contained in the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, given on the 19th of January, 1841, to build Temples to the holy name of our Father in heaven. We are now engaged in this work; we are building a Temple in this city and one in St. George; and if any of you ever cast an eye at the beautiful foundation that is now raised up here by the Tithes and offerings of the brethren, you can but rejoice in the idea that we are building, to the name of our Father, an edifice creditable to the work for which it is designed. We wish our brethren and sisters to remember this. It has been counseled and advised by our President, and by those in authority, that it would be a wise thing for every person in the Church to contribute a monthly donation of a half dollar in money for the Temple, that their names may be put in the book of the law of the Lord, that old and young among the Latter-day Saints may feel an interest in this matter, that on their fast days they may make this contribution to aid in supplying the necessary means to the workmen that can not be procured without money, and the necessary materials to facilitate the work. If anybody will go and examine that foundation, and the granite blocks that are lying around, and consider the expense of quarrying them and bringing them here, and of cutting them and fitting them in that foundation, they will realize that the brethren have been very industrious, and that a great work has been done, for such edifices are not erected without great labor, time and expense. We therefore desire the brethren to take into consideration, during the Conference, such subjects as pertain to the advancement of these Temples. We also wish, during the Conference, to call the attention of the brethren to the propriety of some two or three hundred hands from different parts of the northern settlements volunteering to go to St. George this winter to work on the Temple, making a donation of their labor. During last winter quite a number of the brethren went down from Sanpete and some of the neighboring counties, and put in about three months work, and during the entire winter there were only seven and a half days they could not lay stone on the Temple, and they were mostly rainy days. Those of us who have not got anything to employ us to advantage during the winter, can go down there and put in three or four months’ work on that Temple, in getting lumber, and hauling it, in quarrying rock, and in cutting and setting it; in making mortar, providing lime and hauling it, and in aiding in all the various departments of labor necessary. We can have the walls put up and get the timber ready for the roof during the winter, while we should be doing comparatively little at home. This is one item that I wish to have considered through the Conference.

There will be some missionaries called during Conference, whose duty it will be to preach the Gospel and defend the interests of Zion in the United States, Canada, and other parts of the world.

We would invite our brethren and sisters living in this neighborhood, as long as there are vacant seats here, to come and occupy them while the Elders shall give them instruction; and we ask every man and woman who fears the Lord to lift their hearts to him in prayer, that his blessing may rest upon the Elders, that President Young may be healed of his afflictions, and have health and strength to perform the duties of his calling, and that all the Elders who rise to speak may be filled with the power of the Holy Ghost, that we may be instructed, not from the mere natural wisdom of the individual, but by the inspiration of the Spirit of the Almighty, that our testimony, our knowledge of the Gospel, the principles of salvation as revealed unto us, may be inspired unto us by the power of the Almighty, that we may know for ourselves and not for another that we have received the Gospel of Jesus Christ. These are some of the items that will be spoken of during the Conference as the Spirit may direct, as well as other matters pertaining to Zion. You remember the revelation in the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, given June 22, 1834, on Fishing River, Clay County, Mo. It says:

1. “And let all my people who dwell in the regions round about be very faithful, and prayerful, and humble before me, and reveal not the things which I have revealed unto them, until it is wisdom in me that they should be revealed. Talk not of judgment, neither boast of faith, nor of mighty works, but carefully gather together, as much in one region as can be consistently with the feelings of the people; and behold, I will give unto you favor and grace in their eyes, that you may rest in peace and safety, while you are saying unto the people, Execute judgment and justice for us according to law, and redress us of our wrongs.

2. “Now, behold, I say unto you, my friends, in this way you may find favor in the eyes of the people until the army of Israel becomes very great; and I will soften the hearts of the people, as I did the heart of Pharaoh, from time to time, until my servants Baurak Ale, and Baneemy, whom I have appointed, shall have time to gather up the strength of my house, and to have sent wise men to fulfill that which I have commanded concerning the purchasing of all the lands in Jackson County that can be purchased, and in the adjoining counties round about; for it is my will that these lands should be purchased, and after they are purchased that my Saints should possess them according to the laws of consecration which I have given; and after these lands are purchased, I will hold the armies of Israel guiltless in taking possession of their own lands which they have previously purchased with their monies, and of throwing down the towers of mine enemies that may be upon them, and scattering their watchmen and avenging me of mine enemies unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me.

3. “But firstly, let my army become very great, and let it be sanctified before me, that it may become fair as the sun, and clear as the moon, and that her banners may be terrible unto all nations; that the kingdoms of this world may be constrained to acknowledge that the kingdom of Zion is in very deed the kingdom of our God and his Christ: therefore let us become subject unto her laws.

4. “Verily I say unto you, it is expedient in me that the first Elders of my Church should receive their endowment from on high in my house, which I have commanded to be built unto my name in the land of Kirtland; and let those commandments which I have given concerning Zion and her law be executed, and fulfilled, after her redemption. There has been a day of calling, but the time has come for a day of choosing, and let those be chosen that are worthy; and it shall be manifest unto my servant, by the voice of the Spirit, those that are chosen and they shall be sanctified; and inasmuch as they follow the counsel which they receive, they shall have power after many days to accomplish all things pertaining to Zion.

5. “And again I say unto you, sue for peace, not only the people that have smitten you, but also to all people; and lift up an ensign of peace; and make a proclamation for peace unto the ends of the earth; and make proposals for peace unto those who have smitten you, according to the voice of the Spirit which is in you, and all things shall work together for your good; therefore be faithful, and behold, and lo, I am with you even unto the end. Even so. Amen.”

Let us consider these things and sanctify ourselves in all humility. God has preserved us from all our enemies for over forty years since this revelation was given, and we occupy many cities, towns and settlements, and should improve in all the goodly graces of the Gospel preparatory to the great work still before us, for the promises of God are true and will not fail.

Oliver Cowdery, previous to his apostacy said to President Joseph Smith: “If I should leave the Church it would break up.” Joseph said to Oliver—“What, who are you? The Lord is not dependent upon you, the work will roll forth do what you will.” Oliver left the Church, and was gone about ten years; then he came back again, to a branch of the Church in meeting on Mosquito Creek, in Pottawattamie County, Iowa. The body of the Church had come off here to the west, but there was still remaining there a branch of about fifteen hundred or two thousand people, and when he came there he bore his testimony to the truth of the Book of Mormon and the divine mission of the Twelve Apostles, and asked to be received into the Church again, and said that he had never seen in all his life so large a congregation of Saints as the one then assembled. We loved to hear brother Oliver testify, we were pleased with his witness, but when he passed off and went among our enemies he was forgotten, and the work rolled steadily along step by step, so that, ten years after, when he came back to an outside branch, he expressed his astonishment at seeing such a vast body of Saints. Some men in their hours of darkness may feel—I have heard of men feeling so—that the work is about done, that the enemies of the Saints have become so powerful, and bring such vast wealth and energy to bear against them that we are all going to be crushed out pretty soon. I will say to such brethren, it is very bad policy for you, because you think the old ship Zion is going to sink, to jump overboard, for if you jump overboard you are gone anyhow, and the old ship Zion will ride triumphantly through all the storms, and everybody who proves unworthy to remain on board of her and jumps overboard will repent of it when it is too late, as many have done already.

The gospel of Jesus Christ is true, and the Lord has revealed this work. It has been said—“Oh what vast, what wonderful ability Brigham Young has possessed to do what has been done!” The fact in the case is, it is the Lord who has done it. He has guided and directed and has done the work, and his servants who have labored in it, have only been instruments in his hands, he has given them all the ability, wisdom and knowledge which have been manifested; and the same God has the power to still guide, control, instruct and uphold, and he will do so. Those who fall into darkness, error, folly and wickedness simply lose their position; but they who endure to the end the same will be saved. The great work which has been commenced in these last days will continue until, by and by, when the Lord sees fit, he will come to his Temple and will receive his Saints as his own.

Let us then devote our time and attention for a few days to receiving instruction and counsel, that we may have our hearts comforted and renew our testimony, for I can assure you, as the Lord God of hosts lives, the Gospel of Jesus Christ is true, and all of us who fall into darkness and go astray will be the losers. Zion will ride triumphant, which may God grant for Jesus’ sake, Amen.

Saints are Living Witnesses of the Truth, etc.

Brigham Young, Jr.

Discourse by Elder Brigham Young, Jun., delivered at the Semi-Annual Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in the New Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Tuesday morning, October 6, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

I have a testimony also to offer to my brethren and sisters. It is a great thing, in my estimation, to know God and his Son, to know that God has established the kingdom of the latter-days, and to realize that there are men upon the earth, who are capable, through the revelations of Almighty God, to teach the people the way of life, to point out to them the path by which they may regain the presence of their Father and God. Such is the testimony I have had, such a testimony I have at the present time. I am aware that to some it seems incredible, and that in their ears it sounds preposterous to utter such words, and especially does it seem so to those who consider that they are living in the blaze of of the Christian religion, for the large majority of that class of people will not for a moment entertain the idea that God will ever again speak to men upon the earth, or inspire them as he did anciently. They believe the day as gone by when such things can be, and that, having the Bible in their possession, it is no more necessary for God to make known his will to man. I am aware that the Christian world view it in this light, but I can not help that, I am not responsible for them, nor they for me. I stand for myself and am supported by the evidence which I have received from Almighty God. If they can testify to me that the Christian religion is true, I can, in turn, testify to them that God has revealed himself, that he has again spoken to men upon the earth, and that they hear his voice just as much as Isaiah, Ezekiel or any of the Prophets of ancient days. This is my testimony, and I know it to be true. By the same Spirit that revealed unto Peter his Lord and Savior I know that Jesus is the Christ. This has not become knowledge with me through the testimony of others alone. I sought and received that testimony for myself. Said Jesus unto Peter, “Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona, for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven;” and I testify to you this day, that that same God has revealed unto me that these things are true, that this is the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and that this people represent the kingdom of God which Daniel and others of the ancient Prophets said should be established upon the earth in the latter-days. That is the testimony which I have to offer here this morning. If I stood alone in this matter, and there was no other person who could bear the same testimony perhaps people would be justified in disbelieving me, that is, if I gave them no evidence of the truth of my words; but when the proof is positive and the evidences incontrovertible; when there are scores of thousands of people gathered from as well as scattered through the nations of the earth who can rise as one person and bear this testimony, the nations of the earth will be condemned if they reject it.

It is true that Joseph Smith was an unsupported witness in some respects of the Gospel which he had to reveal unto the human family. He came forth a boy, alone; his testimony was given to the world, and God, in his wonderful providences, fulfilled the words of that boy, and others were induced to believe what he told them. He told the people that if they would obey the will of the Father, if they would repent of their sins, be baptized for the remission of them and have hands laid upon them for the reception of the Holy Ghost, they should receive it, and it should be a witness unto them that his words were true and faithful.

Have the words of Joseph Smith been fulfilled in this and in other respects? I answer yes. He bore this mission unto the people, and it, with its promises, came to me, and I obeyed it, doing as I was told in order that I might obtain the evidences of the Holy Spirit. Did I obtain them? Yes I did; and here is a congregation before me, the representatives of a great people, who can bear witness with me this day that the words of Joseph the Prophet were true and faithful to this generation. Our testimony is not unsupported, for I have gone forth into the midst of the nations of the earth, and have stood before strangers and have said unto them—“If you desire the knowledge that the Prophets who were with Jesus on the earth possessed, if you will do those things which have been commanded you shall know of the doctrine whether I speak of myself, or of God who sent me.” I have borne this testimony hundreds of times to the nations of the earth, because I was sent forth to do it, and I had a testimony that it was my mission to testify of these things. What has been the result of the Elders going to the nations of the earth and bearing this testimony? We see before us a mighty people gathered in these mountains. There is scarcely an adult who has been gathered here who came with any other purpose but to build up the kingdom of God, because of the inspiration of the Holy Spirit which he or she received through obedience to the words which were declared unto them. If any have gathered here with any other purpose they are not in this Church or if they are they will not remain in it very long. This people have gathered here by scores of thousands can not those who are not of us put their prejudices to one side for a moment and take a fair and impartial view of the circumstances which surround us? Can not the world look upon the Latter-day Saints and ask themselves—“Is it possible for men to make these promises, and yet be impostors and deceive the people to the extent they have?” Have the Elders deceived the people? It looks to me like folly in the extreme for people to entertain such an idea. Have we deceived the people? No sirs, we have not. Were those words false which were uttered by the Elders when they called upon the people to repent? No. The people verily received that testimony of the truth of this work by the inspiration of the Holy Ghost which was promised them by the Elders, and that is the reason why so many have gathered to these mountains.

But the majority of people now are like the Jews when they arraigned Jesus—they want a miracle. “Then did they spit in his face and buffetted him; and others smote him with the palms of their hands, saying, Prophecy unto us, thou Christ, who is he that smote thee.” That is exactly the same spirit that prevails now—“If you Latter-day Saints have the blessings and gifts you talk of, why don’t you rise up in power? Why does not God come out of his hiding place and preserve you from your enemies?” I can testify to-day that he has done so. From my earliest recollections I have been wandering with this people. I have been with them when driven before their enemies, with my father and his family in their persecutions, and I know, as I know that I live, that God has stretched out his hand and preserved this people when nothing but his providences could have saved them.

Who are they who smite this people? Are they righteous men, men who are seeking to benefit the human family? Are they men who are turning their whole attention to benefit their fellow-men, or building up principles of righteousness and truth, to sustain the poor, and to gather them from the nations of the earth to a land where they can possess those comforts and blessings which should surround the sons and daughters of our God? No, they do not busy themselves about such things as these, they have business on hand, which they think is more important; they have the Latter-day Saints to persecute. They do not have time to turn their attention, nor their minds to such trifles as bringing the poor from the nations of the earth or developing the resources of this great country. They have no time for this, they have a far greater work on hand, opposing the progress of this people and the fulfillment of the prophecies of men of God who have lived upon this earth. That is the view I take of it from my standpoint. Of course I do not expect others, outside of the Church, to look at it as I do; But this people are engaged in what? First, at the present time, in defending themselves, trying to secure their lives and property from men who are seeking to deprive them of both; they are also continuing their efforts to bring the downtrodden of Europe and every other nation, to this land of America, where they can enjoy freedom and religious liberty, and have a home and not be servants of those who are more wealthy than themselves. This people are expending millions of dollars to gather the poor from the nations of the earth that they, with us, may enjoy the blessings of religious liberty, and the blessings of this free land.

Why don’t these men who are persecuting us, and all the time telling how mean and contemptible we are as a people turn their attention, not to our sins, but to their own shortcomings, and pick the beam out of their own eyes before attending to the mote in ours, and then try and do something to ameliorate the condition of the human family? These are simply my views on this subject, and I would to God that every man in this great nation would do right himself and not seek to persecute his neighbors because he thinks they are doing wrong! A man might do a thing in which, according to his conscience, he would be perfectly justified, but from my standpoint it would be very wicked. A heathen might be justified in doing that which I should consider a great crime. Shall I go to work and persecute an individual that does not see exactly as I see? Should I be justified in doing this? No. If I see a person in the wrong I am justified in going to him and trying to teach him the principles of the Gospel which I find contained in the Bible, and which God has revealed to the human family for their salvation; in other words, I should be justified in trying to lead him in what I believe to be the path of righteousness, but I should not be justified in trying to drive him.

Is this the course that is being pursued with us? By no means. The spirit manifested towards us continually is—“If you don’t do as we say we will force you.” Nobody comes here to persuade us, their object is to compel us to bow to their wishes. They wish to make us forsake that which we revere and consider holy, simply because they despise it, and deride it as something that ought to be put down by force. It is not a Christian spirit that induces persecution, not at all. Why not take the example of Jesus, whom they profess to worship? If this people are wrong, convince them of their error. “Oh,” say they, “we can’t do it.” It is like the King of Denmark, Frederick the Seventh, if I mistake not. The Priests complained to him and said that they could not put down the Latter-day Saints, and that they were proselyting in spite of all they could do. Said the King—“Why dont you take the Bible, and confound them and let the people see their errors?’ The Priests said—“We have tried that, but have not succeeded, they have more arguments in the Bible than we have.” “Well,” said the King, “I think yours is the poorest religion of the two, I will let the Latter-day Saints go on, and shall not interfere with them.” I would like this position to be taken by those in this nation who are opposed to us. But they will not assume this position, for we can correct them with the Scriptures of divine truth. Why do they not use the word of God in their operations against us, instead of the carnal weapons which they happen to have because they belong to a certain party? Why not imitate the example of Jesus and try and persuade us if we are in the wrong, and put us in the right. We desire to be saved; it is salvation we hope for. It is the desire for salvation in the kingdom of God that prompts me to say these things; and as long as God shows to me that I am right, as long as I have an approving conscience before Him in carrying out the doctrines which I believe in, so long, with the help of God, will I advocate them, let the issue be what it may. Amen.

Destruction of the Wicked by the Flood, Wisdom in God, etc.

John Taylor

Discourse by Elder John Taylor, delivered at the Semi-Annual Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in the New Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Wednesday, October 7, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

I am happy to have the opportunity of meeting with the brethren and to talk over the affairs pertaining to the kingdom of God in this Conference. We are engaged in a work in which all of us are interested, individually and collectively. It is a work that differs from anything else that exists at the present time on the face of the earth, and in many respects it differs from anything that ever has existed. I do not know that we are in any wise responsible for this, or for the position in which we find ourselves. The circumstances with which we are surrounded are not, particularly or specially, of our own making, nor the principles in which we believe. We have an abiding faith, as we heard referred to this morning, in certain principles which have emanated from the heavens; and we find ourselves on the earth at this particular time, in this peculiar dispensation, and engaged in a work that is dependent, I was going to say, altogether upon the Almighty, and which is part and parcel of that programme which existed in his mind before the world rolled into existence.

There have been different dispensations existing in the various ages of time, as the purposes of God have rolled on in relation to this earth; all of them, more or less, partook of the same principles that have been revealed unto us, that is so far as the Gospel is concerned, but all of them more or less differing.

The first command given to man was to be fruitful, to multiply and replenish the earth; in other words, an earth had been created, and it was necessary, as it had been brought into existence and man placed upon it, that his seed should be propagated, that there might be bodies prepared for spirits to inhabit, that they together might accomplish certain purposes, in the designs of God, pertaining to the creation of the earth.

By and by we find the people departing from the principles of truth, from the laws of the Gospel, repudiating the fear of God, grieving his Holy Spirit and incurring his displeasure. Then a flood came and the inhabitants of the world, with the exception of a very few, were swept from it, after the Gospel had been preached to all who then lived and all had had an opportunity to believe in and obey it. A few of them did so and lived in the fear of God, and, according to the revelations which we have, they were translated and caught up, they had a separate existence from those who lived upon the earth, and occupied the position of translated beings and were necessarily governed by other laws than the denizens of the earth. This was one peculiarity of the dispensation before the flood. Then came the flood, which many people, unacquainted with things as they existed in the bosom of God and with his purposes and designs, consider was a great cruelty, an act of tyranny, evincing a spirit of outrage and oppression upon the inhabitants of the world. Sceptics reason in this manner sometimes, the only reason of their caviling being that they do not understand God or his laws and designs in relation to the earth and the inhabitants that live upon it, and being ignorant of these things they are not competent judges as to the fitness of things generally, and the course pursued by the Almighty in relation to the inhabitants of the earth, hence they arrive at all kinds of foolish conclusions. The fact is there were certain ideas connected with the destruction of the world that were good, proper and merciful. Mankind had committed unto them certain powers, among which was the power to perpetuate their own species, of which they could not according to the laws of nature be deprived while living. And they had a certain agency of their own, which they could act upon, and the people who were destroyed in the flood had departed from the laws of God. Man has a dual being, not only a body or mortal tabernacle, but a spirit, and that spirit existed before he came here; and if men before the flood had been allowed to go on in their iniquities and if, with every thought and imagination of their hearts, which were all unlawful and evil, they had been allowed to perpetuate that kind of existence, of course God would have had very little to do with the operations of the earth and the inhabitants thereof, it would therefore have been unjust to the spirits created by our Father in the eternal worlds to force them to come and inhabit the degenerated bodies which they must have received from such characters as the generation drowned in the flood; and hence God took away their agency by destroying them from the face of the earth, because they were prostituting their powers to an improper use and not only injuring themselves by defying the law of God, but also inflicting an evil upon unborn generations by perverting their own existence and by their powers of procreation entailing misery upon millions of spirits that had a just right to look for protection from their Father. The Almighty therefore took this awful method to redress this aggravated wrong and he had a right to do it. Why, our stockraisers act upon that principle a good deal. I was talking to one of them a little while ago who had a large flock of sheep, and he told me that he had got some better stock, and was going to kill off the poor ones in order that he might raise only good stock and a better breed than he then had. I suppose that God had as much right to do this as sheep raisers and cattle raisers have, and thus by cutting off that wicked generation from the earth he deprived them of the privilege of propagating their own species. And what then? Oh, they were all damned. No, they were not quite, yes they were in part and partly not. God understands all these things and manages matters according to the counsel of his will, and hence he provided a way whereby the people who were then drowned, who would not listen to God’s law and who had departed entirely from the precepts of Jehovah, might hereafter have a chance of obeying the laws of life and salvation. Well, were they not all tee-totally doomed to go and be roasted in flames forever and ever. Not quite; for we read that Jesus, when he was put to death in the flesh, was quickened in the spirit, by which he went and preached to the spirits in prison that sometime were disobedient in the days of Noah, when once the long-suffering of God waited upon them in those days. Hence we see that instead of being eternally damned, Jesus went to preach the Gospel of life and salvation to those whom God, in the days of Noah, swept off by the flood, in order that he might introduce another state of things, and try to raise up a people who would listen to his laws and obey his precepts.

The Scriptures say that Jesus went and preached to the spirits in prison, the same as he had preached to others on the earth. What did he preach? Do the Scriptures say what he came to preach? Yes, they say “he came to preach the Gospel to the poor, to bind up the broken-hearted, to set at liberty those who were bound, and to open the prison doors to the captive.” That is what he came to do, and he did it.

We are not connected with a something that will exist only for a few years, some of the peculiar ideas and dogmas of men, some nice theory of their forming; the principles that we believe in reach back into eternity, they originated with the Gods in the eternal worlds, and they reach forward to the eternities that are to come. We feel that we are operating with God in connection with those who were, with those who are, and with those who are to come.

We find that after the days of Noah an order was introduced called the patriarchal order, in which every man managed his own family affairs, and prominent men among them were kings and priests unto God, and officiated in what is known among us as the Priesthood of the Son of God, or the Priesthood after the Order of Melchisedec. Man began again to multiply on the face of the earth, and the heads of families became their kings and priests, that is, the fathers of their own people, and they were more or less under the influence and guidance of the Almighty. We read, for instance, in our revelations pertaining to these matters, of a man called Melchizedec, who was a great high priest. We are told that “there were a great many high priests in his day, and before him and after him;” and these men had communication with God, and were taught of him in relation to their general proceedings, and acknowledged the hand of God in all things with which they were associated. Noah and his descendants for a length of time, did that which was right in the sight of God to a very great extent, but by and by they departed from his law, and Abraham was raised up as a special agent in the hand of the Almighty to disseminate correct principles among the people, and as a medium through which God would communicate intelligence and blessings to the human family. He went through a very rigid course of discipline, and was tried in almost every possible way, until, finally, he was called upon to offer up his son; and then, when he attempted to do that, and the Lord had fully proved him, the Lord said—“I know that Abraham fears me, that he has not withheld his only son from me, and I know that he will command his children after him to fear my name.” After God had tried Abraham, he took him on to a mountain and said unto him—“Lift up thine eyes eastward and westward, and southward and northward, for to thee and thy seed after thee will I give this land; and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed.” That was a great blessing, and it placed Abraham in a most prominent and important position before God, before the people, and before the world. Now, although God made that promise unto Abraham, yet Stephen, who lived some two thousand years afterwards, said that “God gave him none inheritance in that land, no not so much as to set his foot on, yet he promised that he would give it to him and to his seed after him.” There was a something peculiar about all these men—being in possession of the everlasting Priesthood, which is without beginning of days or end of years, they measured things with the eye of the Almighty, by the principle of faith, by the knowledge and intuition which the Spirit of God gave them, and the revelations which it imparted, and they felt like one of old who said—“When a man dies shall he live again? All the days of my life to my appointed time will I wait until the change come.” Inspired by the Spirit of the living God, in possession of the principles of revelation, holding the keys of the everlasting Priesthood, which unlocked the mysteries of the kingdom of God, they looked forward and backward, and felt that they were a part of the great programme which God designed to accomplish in regard to the earth. It was not for the immediate possession of some temporary good; not for the grasping of something that they could hold for the time being that they were anxious; but they were after riches, exaltations, glory and blessings that would continue “while life or thought or being lasts or immortality endures.”

From the loins of Abraham a great many great Prophets, seers, revelators, men of God, kings, princes and authorities descended; and they raised up a nation that was powerful in its day and generation. But they, like others, finally departed from the laws of God and from the principles of eternal truth, and then the power of the Melchisedec Priesthood was withdrawn from them, and the law was added because of transgression, and although they became a numerous, great, wealthy, wise and intelligent people, yet they lost for a long time the power, intelligence, life and light of revelation which the Gospel imparts.

Then came the time when Jesus appeared on the earth. He was “a lamb slain from before the foundation of the world,” and he came to accomplish things which had been planned by the Almighty before the world was. He was the Being to whom the antediluvians, and Abraham, and Isaac and Jacob, and the Prophets, Patriarchs and those who were filled with the Spirit of God and the light of revelation referred to, and to whom they looked; to him pointed all their sacrifices and the shedding of the blood of bulls and goats, heifers, lambs, &c. Jesus introduced the Gospel, and if the people would have received and obeyed the principles which he taught, the kingdom of God would have been established, the dispensation of the fullness of times brought in, and in the Temple at Jerusalem the baptisms for the dead would have gone on, and the redemption of the living and the dead would have proceeded. But the people could not receive the teachings of Jesus. Here was a dispensation different from any of the others.

There was an Elias to come, who was to turn the hearts of the children to the fathers, and the hearts of the fathers to the children; and when it was asked Jesus—“Art thou the Elias which was to come, or do we look for another?” it was told them, “This is he if ye can receive it.” But they could not, and consequently they beheaded John the Baptist and crucified Jesus, and it was declared that not one stone of their magnificent. Temple should be left upon another without being thrown down, which was literally fulfilled, and the ground upon which it stood was ploughed over. Jesus told his disciples that when they saw “Jerusalem encompassed about with armies they were to flee to the mountains.” One of the Prophets, in speaking of the affairs that were then to take place, said that a certain power should arise which should make war with and prevail against the Saints, and that that power should seek to change the times and the laws, and that they should be given into his hand, for a time, and times and the dividing of times. Very well, these things have taken place.

We now turn our attention to this continent, and find that God transplanted a people who were of the seed of Abraham, from Palestine to this continent. Here they passed through all kinds of vicissitudes and changes, sometimes abounding in iniquity and vice, at other times full of virtue; sometimes they acknowledged the hand of God, and at other times disregarded it; sometimes they were chastened by the Almighty, and at other times permitted to go on in their iniquities. At one time there was a people on this continent who lived for nearly two hundred years in the fear of God, under the direction of his spirit, governed by the laws of the Gospel, and they had all things common among them, and we are informed that there never was a more united, happy and prosperous people upon the face of the earth.

These are some of the changes that have taken place here. And now, we are living in another age and under other circumstances. The world is waxing old; myriads of people have lived upon it, generation after generation have come and gone, some good, some bad, some very wicked, some very righteous; some pure and holy, others to the contrary, embracing every kind, and all the peculiar phases that have been developed by the human family. They have come into existence and they have died, and what of them? What of the good and what of the bad? What of the righteous and what of the unrighteous? What of their standing before God, and what of the nations that have existed, that do exist and that will exist? These are things, which, as intelligent, immortal beings, demand our consideration. And what of us as part of them? We need to reflect, and it is proper that we should understand something in relation to these things. We have our part to perform. We find ourselves in the world in this day and age, which is that which was spoken of by Paul—“the dispensation of the fulness of times, when God would gather together all things in one, whether they be things in the heavens or things on the earth.” There is something very remarkable, very peculiar in that expression. What the gathering is in the heavens it is not for us to say at the present time; what the gathering is on the earth we have some little idea of from the things with which we are associated. There is a peculiarity about it. As I said before, we find ourselves living in this day, and we are called upon to perform a certain work in connection with the economy and designs of God pertaining to the earth we live on, pertaining to ourselves, to our progenitors and to the whole human family that have existed upon the face of the earth. We are here to do a certain work which God has set us to do, and, as I have said, we have had very little to do in bringing about the matter. We did not originate it. We talk sometimes about Joseph Smith, he did not originate it. He told us about a great many things that we talk about, and unfolded many principles unto us. But how did he know them? God called him and set him apart as he called Noah in his day, and as he called Enoch, Abraham and Moses in their day, and as he called the Prophets and Jesus in their day, as he called Nephi, Lehi, Moroni and Alma in their day upon this continent. He has called us, and has introduced to our view certain principles, and we have been learning these princ[i]ples gradually. The first thing was to get baptized, a very simple affair, a very little thing, nevertheless it was an ordinance of God, he appointed it, and we went and were baptized. Then we had hands laid upon us for the reception of the Holy Ghost, and we partook more or less of its influence, according to our faithfulness and diligence in keeping the commandments of God.

We had not anything to do with originating this work; neither had Joseph Smith, neither had Oliver Cowdery, nor Brigham Young, nor any of the Twelve, nor the first Council, nor the Bishops, nor any other man living. God has his work to perform, and at the proper time and in his own way he will fulfill his own purposes and build up his kingdom. He commenced it at his own time, and he called Joseph Smith and gave him revelation. He told him about the ancient history of the people of this continent and enabled him to translate it, he gave him a key to all these things. He could not have done it without any more than you or I could. He was indebted to God, just as much as you and I are, and so were his brethren who were with him. Joseph Smith had many revelations, but who gave them to him, by what spirit and intelligence were they unfolded and communicated to his mind? God revealed them to him, he obeyed the behests of Jehovah. When God called him and set him apart he was obedient, just the same as you and I were. When the Elders of Israel came forth to preach the everlasting Gospel we obeyed it and, through obedience, we obtained the Spirit of God, and that brought us into the position which we occupy at the present time.

And now about the gathering, who understood anything about it? The ancient Prophets prophesied about it, but what did we know about it, or what do the world to-day know about it? Nothing, only as it has been revealed. If God had not revealed it we should have been as ignorant as the rest of mankind are. And so we should about our sealings, and the covenants that men and women make with one another, that the fools around us do not comprehend; they think we are fools, but we know they are; that is the difference between us. We know they are ignorant, brutish, foolish and know not God nor his laws, nor the principles of truth; but we know something about these things, because God has revealed them to us.

We heard this morning that this was a time in which to build Temples, and you know that we are now engaged in a work of that kind. Why are we thus engaged? Is it for our sakes only? God forbid. The Gospel that we preach is not for ourselves only. We have not preached it these many years that we might make money by it. I have traveled a great many thousands of miles to preach this Gospel without purse and without scrip, and I see many men around and before me who have done the same thing. Was it for ourselves? No. Was it because it was pleasant? No, but God had revealed certain principles to us pertaining to the salvation of the world in which we live; he had committed a dispensation of the Gospel to us, and it was woe unto us if we preached not that Gospel, whether we liked it or not. But we did like it, and we went forth in the name of Israel’s God, and God went with us and sanctioned our testimony by his Spirit, and by the gift of the Holy Ghost. We could not have done these things or I will acknowledge that I could not, neither could any of my brethren, unless God had been with us, we had not sufficient faith and intelligence; but God imparted his Spirit, his intelligence and the gift of the Holy Ghost to the Elders of Israel, and they went forth bearing precious seed, the seed of eternal life, and they came again rejoicing and bringing their sheaves with them, and here they are gathered into the garner. What for? For ourselves? No, we are, or ought to be co-workers with God in the accomplishment of his purposes in relation to the world in which we live, and people that have lived before us, and those that shall come after us. The principles which we are in possession of emanated from God. The Priesthood which God has revealed emanated and originated with the Gods in the eternal worlds; it is the principle by which they are governed and by which God governs all things which exist, and we, as the servants of God, acknowledge the hand of God in all these things. Can I preach, do I have any intelligence? God imparted it. Can my brethren preach? have they intelligence? God imparted it. Did Joseph Smith or Brigham Young have intelligence? God imparted it. Have we been delivered at various times, and has the hand of God been manifested in our behalf? Yes, or we could not have been here to-day, the powers of darkness would have prevailed against us, the enemies of Zion would have put their feet upon our necks, and would have trampled us to the dust of death long ago. We talk about the intelligence that has been manifested in connection with this work. Where did it come from? It came from God. As you heard this morning, God, in answer to the prayers of thousands, has inspired his servants and has given them intelligence to carry on his work, and it has been carried on under the influence, guidance and direction of the Spirit of God. Without that none of us could have done anything more than the rest of mankind. Who led us? God. Who has sustained us here? God, and who will continue to sustain us? The Almighty. These fools who think they can trample under foot the servants of God, and overthrow the kingdom of God are reckoning without their host, they are pushing against the buckler of the Great Jehovah, and they will find that he will put a hook into their nose and lead them in a path they know not of Israel will rise and shine, and the power of God will rest upon his people, and the work that he has commenced will roll forth “until the kingdoms of this world shall become the kingdoms of our God and his Christ, and he shall rule for ever and ever.” The purposes of God are not going to be thwarted by the folly, vanity and ignorance of men; and as we had very little to do with introducing these things, we have really very little to do with carrying them on. Somebody was speaking this morning, in reference to certain men who thought that, if they left the Church, the work would not go on; that is perfectly ridiculous. There are certain things that have to be accomplished in the economy of God, and no man or combination of men can stop them, no influence that the world can exert can hinder them, for God is at the helm, and he will roll forth his own work. Hear it, you men of the world, you cannot go further than God will let you, any more than the Latter-day Saints can. It is in God’s work that we are engaged. There is nothing really selfish about our operations when we come right down to the bottom of the work; for we are all engaged with God, and with the spirits of just men made perfect, and with the Priesthood that have existed before us, and with the intelligences that surround the throne of God; with all these intelligences we are united in the grand work of rolling forth the designs and purposes of God. You do not have the Latter-day Saints only to fight against, but you have to fight all the just and good who have lived and died on the earth, and who live again; and besides these you have to fight with God and his angels and the intelligencies who surround his throne.

As Latter-day Saints, we are sometimes apt to think that we must look after ourselves individually. We are a good deal like the man who, when praying, said—“God bless me and my wife, my son John and his wife, us four and no more, amen.” There was no philanthropy, benevolence or kind feeling towards the rest of mankind there, and too many of us feel a good deal in the same way. As Latter-day Saints we ought to feel—and when we feel right we shall feel—that we are the representatives of God upon the earth, that we are engaged in building up his kingdom; that we are living in an age when God designs to accomplish certain purposes, and we are desirous of co-operating with him in that labor, and it is our mission to help to save the living, to redeem the dead and to bring to pass the things spoken of by the Prophets. This is the position that we occupy, and a great many things have yet to be introduced before these things can be accomplished.

We are commencing to build Temples, and hence, as I said before, our dispensation differs from others which have preceded it. It is kind of a time for settling up accounts. You know when a man goes to work on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, he keeps account of what he does, and when Saturday comes it is a kind of settling-up day. It is so with us, it is so with the world, our day is a kind of settling-up day. The Elders have been forth and gathered together a few of the people to whom they have preached; others are gathering, and now we, at home here, are engaged in building Temples? What for, for ourselves? Yes. For somebody else? Yes. For our friends who have lived? Yes. For other people’s friends who have lived? Yes, and to feel after all nations who have lived, for we are interested in the welfare of all the peoples who have ever existed on this earth, and like God, we are feeling after them with a fatherly, kind, generous and philanthropic feeling. That is why we are building our Temples, that is why men are called upon to labor upon these Temples, for we desire to enter therein and to officiate and administer for the living and the dead.

“Well, but it takes a little money.” Oh, does it? Never mind, the gold and the silver are the Lord’s, the cattle on a thousand hills are his, and we shall get a little of his gold and silver, and in using it in building temples to the name of the Lord we are taken into partnership with him, we unite with God, and with the angels, and with the spirits of just men made perfect, with the priesthood that existed anciently and with the Gods. We all unite together for the accomplishment of God’s purposes, and we will feel after the Inhabitants of the earth. If people are foolish around us we cannot help that; let them go on and exhibit their folly, God will take care of us, he is as much interested about us as we are, and a good deal more, and he is as much concerned about the rolling forth of this work as we are, and a good deal more. The ancient Nephites who lived on the earth, those men of God who, through faith, wrought righteousness, accomplished a good work and obtained exaltation, are as much interested in the welfare of their descendants as we are, and a good deal more; and Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and those ancient men of God who once lived on the earth, and who yet live, are as much interested in the accomplishment of God’s purposes as we are, and a good deal more. Well, then, what have we to do? Why to fulfill the duties devolving upon us as they come along day by day, and to introduce every principle that is calculated to save the living and redeem the dead. We are not alone in these things, others are operating with us, I mean all the men of God who ever lived, and they are as much interested as we are, and a good deal more, for they know more, and “they without us cannot be made perfect” neither can we be perfected without them. We are building temples for them and for their posterity, and we are going to operate in these temples, as we have done heretofore, for their welfare and for the welfare of their posterity. And then they are operating for us behind the vail with God and the intelligences which surround his throne; and there is a combination of earthly beings and of heavenly beings, all under the influence of the same priesthood, which is an everlasting priesthood, and whose administrations are effective in time and in eternity. We are all operating together, to bring about the same things and to accomplish the same purposes.

Well then, what shall we do? We will build the temples. And don’t you think we shall feel a little better while we are doing it? I think we shall, for while we are so doing we shall have the approbation of God our Heavenly Father, and of all good men who have ever lived, and we may need this by and by when we get through this world. These Gentiles do not need anything of this kind they are all going to heaven anyhow; but we want to make friends of the mammon of unrighteousness that when we fail they may receive us into everlasting habitations. I want friends behind the vail. I want to be the friend of God and God to be my friend; I want to help to roll forth the Kingdom of God and to build up the Zion of the Most High, and I want to see my brethren engaged in the same work, and we will do it. In the name of Israel’s God we will do it.

We talk about the Order sometimes, well, we will do that too. What, would you? Yes, to be sure I would, or anything else that God wants of me. I am on hand, that is my feeling about these things. Well but, is there not a good many weaknesses to see? I think there is, don’t you think there is about you? Just examine yourselves and then answer the question whether you have not a good many weaknesses. I think there are a great many things among us that we ought to be ashamed of. We are covetous grasping and grinding; there is not enough human sympathy, brotherhood and kindly feeling among us. Every man in Zion ought to feel that in every other he has a brother and a friend, and not a ravenous character who would grasp everything that he has and grind him to the dust of the earth. I want liberality, generosity, kindness and the love of God within us, and flowing around us like wells of water springing up unto everlasting life. These are the principles by which we ought to be actuated and governed. Let the potsherds of the earth strive with the potsherds of the earth, God will take care of his own affairs and manage them his own way. Zion is onward, her progress can not and will not be retarded, I will prophesy it in the name of Israel’s God. It is onward, onward, onward, until the purposes of God shall be accomplished, until the towers of Zion shall arise, until her temples shall be built, until the living shall be saved, until the dead shall be redeemed, and until “the knowledge of God shall cover the earth as the waters cover the sea.”

Let us, then, cleave to righteousness and truth, lay aside our folly, vanity and nonsense, our egotism, ignorance and covetousness and everything that is wicked, sinful, narrow and contracted, and let us feel that we are servants of God, engaged in rolling forth his kingdom and accomplishing his purposes upon the earth.

May God help us to be faithful, in the name of Jesus. Amen.

God’s Ancient People Polygamists, etc.

Orson Pratt

Discourse by Elder Orson Pratt, delivered at the Semi-Annual Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in the New Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Wednesday, October 7, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

I have been requested, this afternoon, to preach upon the subject of marriage. It is a subject which has been often laid before the Latter-day Saints, and it is certainly one of great importance to the Saints as well as to the Inhabitants of the earth, for I presume that no person, who believes in divine revelation, will pretend to say that marriage is not a divine institution; and if this be the case, it is one which affects all the human family.

I will select a passage of scripture in relation to this divine institution as it existed in the days of Moses. In selecting, however, this passage, I do not wish the congregation to suppose that we are under the law of Moses particularly. There are many great principles inculcated in that law which the Lord never did intend to come to an end or be done away—eternal principles, moral principles, then there are others that were done away at the coming of our Savior, he having fulfilled the law. Because we find certain declarations, contained in the law given to Moses, that does not prove that the Latter-day Saints are under that law; that same God that gave the law of Moses—the being that we worship—is just as capable of giving laws in our day as in Moses’ day; and if he sees proper to alter the code given to Moses, and to give something varying from it, we have no right to say that he shall not do so. Therefore, in selecting the passage which I am about to read, it is merely to show what God did in ancient times, and that he may do something similar in modern times.

In the 21st chapter of Exodus, speaking of a man who already had one wife, Moses, says—“If he take him another wife, her food, her raiment and her duty of marriage shall he not diminish.” It will be recollected that this law was given to a polygamic nation. When I speak of a polygamic nation, I mean a nation that practised both plural and single marriage, and believed one form to be just as sacred as the other. Their progenitors or ancestors were polygamists; and they were considered patterns for all future generations. Their piety, holiness, purity of heart, their great faith in God, their communion with him, the great blessings to which they attained, the visions that were made manifest to them, the conversation that God himself, as well as his angels, had with them, entitled them to be called the friends of God, not only in their day, but they were considered by all future generations to be his friends. They were not only examples to the Jewish nation, but in their seed, the seed of these polygamists, all the nations and kingdoms of the earth were to be blessed.

I hope that pious Christians in this congregation will not find fault this afternoon with their Bible, and with the Prophets and inspired men who wrote it. I hope that they will not find fault with God for selecting polygamists to be his friends. I hope that they will not find fault with Jesus because he said, some two thousand years or upwards after the days of these polygamists, that they were in the kingdom of God, and were not condemned because of polygamy. Jesus says, speaking of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob—“Many shall come from the east and from the west, from the north and from the south, and shall sit down with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of God.” Do not find fault with Jesus, you Christians, because he has these polygamists in his kingdom, and because he has said that the Gentiles will be blessed through the seed of these polygamists; neither find fault with him because he has taken these polygamists into his kingdom, and that many will come from the four quarters of the earth and have the privilege of sitting down with them therein.

Jacob married four wives, and may be considered the founder of that great nation of polygamists. He set the example before them. His twelve sons, who were the progenitors of the twelve tribes of Israel, were the children of the four wives of the prophet or patriarch Jacob. So sacred did the Lord hold these polygamists that he said, many hundred years after their death—“I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob, and this shall be my memorial unto all generations.” Now, Christians, do not find fault if God chose these polygamists and, at the same time, wished to make them a sample, a memorial to all generations, Christians as well as Jews.

Several hundred years after God raised up these, his friends, and founded or began to found the twelve tribes of Israel, he saw proper to raise up a mighty man called Moses to deliver the children of Israel from the bondage in which they had been oppressed and afflicted by the Egyptian nation. So great had this affliction become that the King of Egypt issued a decree commanding the Israelitish midwives to put to death all the male children, born among the Israelites. This murderous law was carried out. This was about eighty years before Moses was sent down from the land of Midian to deliver the children of Israel from this cruel bondage. How long this great affliction of putting to death the male children existed, is not given in the Bible; but it seems to have waxed worse and worse during the following eighty years, after which Moses was sent to deliver them. We may reasonably suppose that the oppressive hand of Pharoah was not altogether eased up, but continued on for scores of years, destroying many of the male children, making a great surplus of females in that nation. A great multitude of females over and above that of males, will account for the peculiar passage of Scripture to which I will now refer you. It will be found in the 3rd chapter of Numbers. I have not time to turn to it and read it, but I will quote you the substance thereof. Moses and Aaron were commanded to number all the males in Israel from a month old and upward that were called the firstborn among the various tribes. Now the firstborn does not mean the oldest male child of the first wife, for sometimes the first wife has no children, but it means the first born son that is born to the father whether by the first wife, or second, or third, or any number of wives that he may have; the term firstborn pertains to the first male child that is born to the father. So it was accounted to Jacob’s family of twelve sons. Reuben only was called the firstborn of Israel until he lost his birthright, through transgression, which, we are told in the 5th chapter of first Chronicles, was taken from him and given to one of the sons of Joseph. But so far as age or birth was concerned, Reuben was the firstborn; and had it not been for his transgression, he would have inherited a double portion of his father’s substance, for that was the law in ancient times.

Now how many of the firstborn could be found in the midst of Israel? We are told that there were twenty-two thousand two hundred and seventy-three firstborn males among the eleven tribes: the tribe of Levi was not reckoned at that time, but all the male members of the tribe of Levi, from a month old and upwards was twenty-two thousand souls. Now if the tribe of Levi numbered in proportion to the other eleven tribes, the number of firstborn males in all the twelve tribes would probably amount to between twenty-four and twenty-five thousand souls, it could not have run over that. There might have been some of the firstborn who were dead, which would make a few more families: then there might have been other families who never had any male children, which would increase the families still more. Supposing then, in order to give all the advantages possible, and to make as many families as we possibly can consistently, that we say, instead of twenty-five thousand firstborn in the midst of all Israel, that there were thirty thousand; that is allowing for all these contingencies I have named, where families have no males, and those families that have male children under a month old which were not reckoned, and those families which might have had firstborn male children who died and the number might possibly be increased to four or five thousand more, making the total number of families about thirty-thousand.

Thus we see that the number of firstborn males from a month old or upwards give us a clue to the number of families; we may not be able to determine the number exactly, but these data will enable us to approximate very closely. It is generally admitted, that Israel, at that time, numbered twenty-five hun[d]red thousand souls. There might have been a variation from this of a few thousand souls, but according to the Scriptural and all other evidences that can be gleaned, the number above referred to is about the number of souls that existed in Israel at that time. Among that twenty-five hundred thousand souls then, there were thirty-thousand families. How many were there in a family? All that you have to do to tell how many there were in a family, is to divide twenty-five hundred thousand by thirty thousand and you will find that the quotient is eighty-three, showing that number of souls on an average in each family. Now if these families were all monogamic, how many children must have been born to each wife? Eighty-one.

This argument is founded on Scripture, and it shows plainly, even if you should double the number of families or of the firstborn, that they could not be all monogamic families, for if we suppose there were sixty thousand families, it would make every married woman the mother of forty odd children, and if such a supposition could be entertained it would go to show that women in those days were more fruitful than they are now. These declarations are given in your Bible, which is also my Bible; that is, in King James’ translation. We all believe, or profess to be Bible believers or Christians. Do not be startled my hearers at these declarations of your Bible. No wonder then that this passage which I have taken for my text was given to that people, because they were a people who needed to be guided in relation to their duty. “If a man take another wife,” that is, after he has got one, if he take another one, “her food”—whose food? the food of the first wife;—her raiment,” that is the raiment of the first wife, “her duty of marriage, he shall not diminish.” Now this is plain, pointed and positive language in regard to polygamy as it existed among the house of Israel in ancient times. Why did not the Lord say, if polygamy were a crime or a sin—“If a man take another wife let all the congregation take him without the camp and stone him and put him to death?” or if that was too severe let them incarcerate him in a prison or dungeon for several years? If it be a crime why did he not say so? It is just as easy to say that, as to give directions as to what course a man shall pursue with regard to his first wife, if he take another one.

This is Bible doctrine as it existed in those days. I know that it has been argued that the first woman, here spoken of, was merely a betrothed woman, and not married. But if this be so, what a curious saying this in our text—that her duty of marriage shall he not diminish if he take another wife. This and other expressions show clearly that they were both wives, and that there was a certain duty to be attended to by the husband, besides providing them with food and raiment. It was argued here in this tabernacle before some eight or ten thousand people, on a certain occasion, that the Hebrew word translated “duty of marriage,” ought to have been translated “dwelling”—“Her food, her raiment and her dwelling he shall not diminish.” I recollect asking the learned gentleman, Rev. Dr. Newman, why he translated it dwelling, instead of translating it as all other Hebraists have done? I asked him to produce one passage in all the Bible where that word translated “duty of marriage,” meant a “dwelling,” but he could not do it. The Hebrew word for “dwelling,” and the Hebrew word for “duty of marriage,” are two entirely distinct words. I referred him to the learned professors in Yale College, and to many others who have translated this Hebrew word “duty of marriage.” These professors and other learned translators, have referred to this special passage, and have translated it in two ways—one is “duty of marriage,” and the other is cohabitation. Now, if this latter be correct—her food, her raiment and her cohabitation, shall not be diminished. I asked him why he varied in his translation of the Hebrew, from all these translators and lexicographers? His only answer was that he found a certain Jew in Washington who told him that it meant “dwelling,” or rather that its original root referred to a “dwelling.” I thought that was a very poor argument against all the translators of the Christian world, who are mostly monogamists. But we will pass on. I do not intend to dwell too long on these subjects.

So far as the law of Moses is concerned, to prove that the house of Israel kept up their polygamous institution from generation to generation, let me refer you to another law to show that they were compelled to do this, or else to come out in open rebellion against the law of Moses. In the 25th chapter of Deuteronomy, we read something like this—“When brethren dwell together, and one of them die, the living brother shall take the widow of the deceased brother, and it shall come to pass that the firstborn that is raised up shall succeed in the name of his brother.” This was a positive command given to all Israel. Now was this command confined to young men who were unmarried, or was it an unlimited command so far as living brothers were in existence? This is a question to be decided. There is nothing in all the Scriptures that makes any distinction between a married brother who survives and an unmarried brother; the law was just as binding upon a living brother, if he had already a wife living, as it was upon a living brother if he had no wife, it being a universal law, with no limits in its application, so far as the house was concerned. This law, then, compelled the children of Israel to be polygamists; for in many instances the living brother might be a married man, and in many instances there might be two or three brothers who would take wives and die without leaving seed, and in that case it would devolve upon the surviving brother to take all the widows. This law was not given for that generation alone, but for all future generations. Some may say, that when Jesus came, he came to do away that law. I doubt it. He came to do away the law of sacrifices and of burnt offerings, and many of those ordinances and institutions, rites and ceremonies which pertained to their tabernacle and temple, because they all pointed forward to him as the great and last sacrifice. But did he come to do away all these laws that were given in the five books of Moses? No. There are many of these laws that were retained under the Christian dispensation. One of the laws thus retained was repentance. The children of Israel were commanded to repent, and no person will pretend to say that Jesus came to do away the law of repentance. Another was the law of honesty, upright dealing between man and man; no one will pretend to say that that law ceased when Jesus came. The laws concerning families and the regulation of the domestic institutions were not intended to cease when Jesus came, and they did not cease only as they were disregarded through the wickedness of the children of men. The laws concerning monogamy, and the laws concerning polygamy were just as binding after Jesus had come, as they were before he came. There were some laws which Ezekiel says were not good. Jesus denounced them, and said they were given because of the hardness of the hearts of the children of Israel. Ezekiel says that God gave them statutes and judgments by which they should not live. Why did he do it? Because of their wickedness and hardness of heart. I will tell you how this law became done away and ceased to exist among the children of Israel—it was in consequence of their rejection of the Messiah. In consequence of this their city was overthrown, and their nation destroyed, except a miserable remnant, which were scattered abroad among the Gentile nations, where they could not keep the law in regard to their brothers’ widows. When John the Baptist was raised up to that nation, he must have found thousands on thousands of polygamists, who were made so, and obliged to be so, by the law which I have just quoted.

Some of you may enquire—“Had not a surviving brother the right to reject that law of God?” He had, if he was willing to place himself under its penalty. I will quote you the penalty, and then you can see whether he could get away from polygamy or not. One penalty was that he should be brought before the Elders and that the widow whom he refused to marry, according to the law of God, should pluck his shoe from off his foot, and should then spit in his face, and from that time forth the house of that man should be denounced as the house of him that hath his shoe loosed, a reproach among all Israel. Instead of being a man of God, and a man to be favored by the people of God; instead of being a man such as the Christian world would now extol to the heavens because he rejected polygamy, he was a man to be scorned by all Israel. That was the penalty. Was that the only penalty? I think not. Read along a little further, and it says—“Cursed be he that continues not in all things written in this book of the law.” Oh, what a dreadful penalty that was, compared with being reproached by the whole people! Oh, what a fearful curse upon a man that refused to become a polygamist, and would not attend to the law of God! A curse pronounced by the Almighty upon him, also the anathemas of all the people as well as from God! The word of the Lord was that all the people should say amen to this curse. Now, if I had lived in those days, I should not have considered it very desirable to bring myself under the curse of heaven, and then have the curse of all the twelve tribes of Israel upon my head. I should not have liked it at all. I would rather have gone into polygamy according to the command, even if it had subjected me to a term of five years in a penitentiary.

We find many other passages, touching upon this subject. I will quote one, which will be found in the 21st chapter of Deuteronomy. It reads as follows: “If a man have two wives, one beloved and another hated, and they have borne him children, both the beloved and the hated; and if the first-born son be hers that was hated, then it shall be when he makes his sons to inherit that which he hath, that he may not make the son of the beloved, firstborn before the son of the hated, which is indeed the firstborn.”

Now this applies to two classes of polygamists. First, to those who may have two wives living at the same time, and then to those who may have married two wives in succession. It applies to both classes, for both classes existed in those days, and the Lord gave this, not to condemn polygamy, not to do away with it, but to show that the individual who had two wives should be impartial in regard to his children. Did he approbate this man that might have two wives in his hatred of one, and in loving the other? No, he did not, but inasmuch as man is weak and may sin against God, and suffer himself to be overcome with prejudice and hatred to one person, and feel in his heart to love and respect another, the Lord gave laws in case any such crime should exist among them as a husband’s hating one wife and loving another; he gave laws to regulate it, not that he approbated the hating part.

As I have already proved to you that there were great and vast numbers of polygamic families in Israel, and that there were thousands of firstborn from these plural wives, these firstborn persons, whatever might be the conduct of their mothers, were entitled to their inheritance, namely a double portion of all that the father had to bestow. That was the law in ancient times. We might close here so far as the law of Moses is concerned, but I wish to call your attention to a peculiar saying in this law.

This law has got to be restored again. Says one—“You astonish me beyond measure, I thought it was done away for ever.” Well, listen to what the Lord said to Israel in the closing of this book of Deuteronomy. When the children of Israel shall be scattered in consequence of their iniquities to the uttermost parts of the earth among all the nations, and their plagues shall be of long continuance, and they shall be cursed in their basket and in their store, and with numerous curses which he mentioned should come upon them; after these things had been of long continuance, the Lord says—“After they shall return unto me and hearken unto all the words contained in this book of the law, then I, the Lord God, will gather them out from all the nations whither they are scattered, and will bring them back into their own land.” Oh, indeed! Then when they do absolutoly [absolutely] return and hearken to all the words of the book of this law God has promised to gather them again; that is, they must enter into polygamy, they must believe when their brother dies and leaves no seed, that the surviving brother, though he has one, two, or a half a dozen wives living, shall take that widow. That is part of the law, and they must fulfill all the words of this law, and then God has promised to gather them again. Says one, “When that is fulfilled it will be in the days of Christianity.” We can’t help it; polygamy belongs to Christianity, as well as to the law of Moses.

Says one—“The children of Israel have been scattered now some 1800 years among all the nations and kindreds of the earth, in fulfillment of this curse, but if we believe that saying which you have just quoted, we are obliged to believe that the children of Israel are yet to return to attend to all these institutions, and that too while the Christian religion is in vogue, and that they are to regulate their households according to the law of God, whether those families are monogamic or polygamic.” What will the good Christians think when that is fulfilled? They cannot help themselves, for God will not gather Israel until they do return with all their hearts unto him, and hearken to and obey all the words of this law, written in this book. This is the word of the Lord, and how can you help yourselves? Says one “We will pass laws against them.” That will not hinder, when God sets his hand to carry out his purposes, laws that may be passed by England, Denmark, Norway or any other Christian community will not hinder the Israelites from attending to all the words contained in the book of his law; for they will want to get back again to their own land.

Inasmuch then as the Lord has promised to restore all things spoken of by the mouth of all the holy Prophets since the world began, supposing that he should begin this great work of restoration in our day, how are we going to help ourselves? I can’t help it. Brigham Young, our President, can’t help it; Joseph Smith could not help it. If God sees proper to accomplish this great work of restoration—the restitution of all things, it will include what the Prophet Moses has said, and it will bring back with it a plurality of wives. The 4th chapter of Isaiah could never be fulfilled without this restoration. The passage to which I refer is familiar to all the Latter-day Saints—“In that day the branch of the Lord shall be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the earth shall be excellent and comely; and in that day seven women shall take hold of one man, saying, we will eat our own bread and wear our own apparel, only let us be called by thy name to take away our reproach.” Now will this prophecy ever be fulfilled, unless this great restoration or restitution shall take place? It cannot. If this great restitution does not take place, Jesus will never come, for it is written in the New Testament, in the 3rd chapter of the Acts of the apostles, that “the heavens must receive Jesus Christ, until the times of the restitution of all things which God has spoken by the mouths of his holy Prophets, since the world began.” Jesus will have to stay a long time in the heavens providing that monogamist principles are the only principles that will be introduced, in fact he never can come, for the Scriptures say the heavens must retain him until all things are restored.

God has said that seven women shall take hold of one man for the purpose of having their reproach taken away, that they may be called by his name, not cast off as harlots or prostitutes; not to take away the name of the father from the children, and cast them into the streets, as the Christian nations have been doing for many long centuries that are past. But these seven women will be desirous of having the name of their husband for themselves and their children. Isaiah says it shall be so, and it will have to be under the Christian dispensation. How are the Christians going to get rid of this? Can you devise any way? Is there any possible way or means that you can think of that will put a stop to the Lord’s fulfilling his word? I will tell you one way—if you will all turn infidels and burn up the Bible, and then begin to persecute, the devil will tell you that you can successfully overcome, and that God will never fulfill and accomplish his word; but if you profess to believe the Bible, by the Bible you shall be judged, for, saith the Lord, “My words shall judge you at the last day.” The books will be opened, God’s word will be the standard by which the nations will be judged; hence if you wish a righteous judgment I would say—Forbear, do not destroy the Bible because it advocates polygamy; but remember that every word of God is pure, so it is declared; and he has nowhere in this book, condemned plural marriage, even in one instance.

I know that it has been argued that there is a law against polygamy; but in order to make the law the Scripture had to be altered. It is in that famous passage which has become a byword in the mouth of every schoolboy in our streets, Leviticus xviii. ch., 18 v. Now let us examine for a few moments that passage and see what it says. You will find that the fore part of this chapter forbids marriage between certain blood relations. Prior to this time it had been lawful for a man to marry two sisters. Jacob, for instance, married Rachel and Leah, and there was no law against it prior to this time. It had also been lawful for a man to marry his own sister, as in the days of Adam, for you know there were no other ladies on the face of the earth for the sons of Adam except their own sisters, and they were obliged to marry them or to live bachelors. But the Lord saw proper when he brought the children of Israel out of Egypt into the wilderness, to regulate the law of marriage, so far as certain blood relations were concerned, called the law of consanguinity, which speaks of a great many relationships, and finally comes to a wife and her sister. This law was given to regulate the marriage relations of the children of Israel in the wilderness. It was not to regulate those who lived before that day who had married sisters; not to regulate those who might live in the latter days, but to regulate the children of Israel in that day. It reads thus: “Neither shalt thou take a wife to her sister, to vex her, to uncover her nakedness besides the other in her lifetime.”

This passage has been altered by certain monogamists in order to sustain their ideas of marriage, and we find in some large Bibles what are called marginal readings that these monogamists have put in, and instead of taking this in connection with all other blood relationships, they have altered it—Neither shalt thou take one wife to another. The men who translated King James’ Bible were monogamists, yet they had sense enough to know that the original Hebrew would not bear that construction which has been given by later monogamists. The original Hebrew, when translated word for word, makes it just as King James’ translators have made it. The Hebrew words are—Ve-ishaw elahotah-lo takkah. These are the original Hebrew words, and if they are translated literally, word for word, the translation stands just as it is in the text. But this is not saying but what the words, El-ahotah, under certain circumstances, are translated in another form, namely, “one to another,” “one sister to another,” and I am willing that it should be translated that way. Then it would read—“Thou shalt not take one sister to another to vex her in her life time.” So you may take it either way, and it bears out King James’ translation, or the meaning given by him.

I do not profess to be a Hebraist to any very great extent, although I studied it sufficiently many years ago, to understand its grammatical construction, and to translate any passage in the Bible; but then, having lacked practice for many years, of course a person may become a little rusty in regard to these matters. But I have searched out all the passages that can be found in the Old Testament, either singular or plural, masculine or feminine, pertaining to the words contained in this text, and I find a far greater number rendered according to the words that are here given, literally, in this text than what are translated—“one sister to another.” But I am willing that this translation should be allowed.

Now, if we thought the congregation would like to hear the translation of all this, and the reasons why, we could give it; but I presume that there are but few Hebrew scholars present, and if the translation were given, the great majority of the congregation would not understand whether it was translated correctly or not, and for that reason I shall not take up your time by referring to these technicalities. But I will make the broad statement, that there is not a Hebrew scholar living on this earth who can translate that passage from the words contained in the original Hebrew, without adding words of his own, not contained in the original text, if he translates it, as Dr. Newman did—“one wife to another.” If the first word—Ve-ishaw means one, as he would try to have us understand, it does not mean wife also: but if it means wife, it cannot be translated as he has it, and therefore it cannot bear out that construction. But I see that I am dwelling too long on the subject of the law of Moses.

Now I wish to come directly to the point in regard to polygamy as it exists at the present time among the Latter-day Saints. I stated in the beginning of my remarks, that polygamy, or any other institution that was given at one age, might not be binding upon another, without a fresh revelation from God. I made that statement when I was discussing that subject in this house. I still say, that we are not under the necessity of practicing polygamy because God gave laws and commandments for its observance and regulation in ancient times. Why then do the Latter-day Saints practice polygamy? That is a plain question. I will answer it just as plainly. It is because we believe, with all the sincerity of our hearts, as has been stated by former speakers from this stand, that the Lord God who gave revelations to Moses approbating polygamy, has given revelations to the Latter-day Saints, not only approbating it, but commanding it, as he commanded Israel in ancient times.

Now let us reason on this point. If God did do such things in former ages of the world, why not the same Being, if he sees proper, perform the same or similar things in another age of the world? Can any one answer this? If God saw proper to give certain laws in ancient times, and then to revoke them; or if he saw proper to give laws that were not revoked, but done away by the transgressions of the children of men, has he not a right, and is it not just as consistent for that same Divine Being to give laws, for instance, in the 19th century, concerning our domestic relations, as it was for him to do it in the days of Moses? And if he has that right, as we Latter-day Saints believe that he has, are not the people’s consciences just as sacred in regard to such laws in these days, as the consciences of ancient Israel? or must there be some power to regulate our religious consciences? Here is a grand question. Shall our religious consciences be regulated by civil government or civil laws, or shall we have the privilege of regulating them according to the divine law of the Bible, or any divine law that may be given in accordance with the ancient Bible? I answer that, when I was a boy, I thought I lived in a country in which I could believe in anything that agreed with, or that could be proved by the Bible, whether it was in the law of Moses or in the doctrines of the New Testament. I really thought the Jews had a right to reject Christ, or, in other words, if they had not the right to do it morally, they had the right, so far as civil law is concerned, to reject this Messiah, and to believe in and practice the law of Moses in our land; but I am told, that such liberty of conscience is not to be tolerated in our Republican government. If the Jews should collect in any great numbers, and should say one to another—“Come brethren, we are the descendants of Abraham, let us now begin to practice according to the laws that were given to our ancient fathers, and if a brother dies and leaves a widow, but no children, let his living brother, though a married man, marry the widow, according to our law,” it is doubtful whether they would be permitted to associate together and practice those laws now, if they were so disposed. Why? Because the prejudice of the people is so great that they are not willing others should believe, in the whole Bible, but only in such portions as agree with their ideas. If we were instituting a practice that the Lord God never approbated, but for the punishment of which he had prescribed penalties, or if we were introducing something foreign and contrary to the Bible, then there would be some excuse for the people in saying that such a thing should not be practiced in the name of religion. But when we take the Bible as a standard in relation to crime, it is altogether another thing; and I do think that every American citizen who professes to believe in any part or portion of that sacred record, on which all the laws of Christendom pretend to be founded, has the right to do so, and to practice it, and that, too, without being molested.

Now, after having said so much in relation to the reason why we practice polygamy, I want to say a few words in regard to the revelation on polygamy. God has told us Latter-day Saints that we shall be condemned if we do not enter into that principle; and yet I have heard now and then (I am very glad to say that only a few such instances have come under my notice,) a brother or a sister say, “I am a Latter-day Saint, but I do not believe in polygamy.” Oh, what an absurd expression! what an absurd idea! A person might as well say, “I am a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ, but I do not believe in him.” One is just as consistent as the other. Or a person might as well say, “I believe in Mormonism, and in the revelations given through Joseph Smith, but I am not a polygamist, and do not believe in polygamy,” What an absurdity! If one portion of the doctrines of the Church is true, the whole of them are true. If the doctrine of polygamy, as revealed to the Latter-day Saints, is not true, I would not give a fig for all your other revelations that came through Joseph Smith the Prophet; I would renounce the whole of them, because it is utterly impossible, according to the revelations that are contained in these books, to believe a part of them to be divine—from God—and part of them to be from the devil; that is foolishness in the extreme; it is an absurdity that exists because of the ignorance of some people. I have been astonished at it. I did hope there was more intelligence among the Latter-day Saints, and a greater understanding of principle than to suppose that any one can be a member of this Church in good standing, and yet reject polygamy. The Lord has said, that those who reject this principle reject their salvation, they shall be damned, saith the Lord; those to whom I reveal this law and they do not receive it, shall be damned. Now here comes in our consciences. We have either to renounce Mormonism, Joseph Smith, Book of Mormon, Book of Covenants, and the whole system of things as taught by the Latter-day Saints, and say that God has not raised up a Church, has not raised up a prophet, has not begun to restore all things as he promised, we are obliged to do this, or else to say, with all our hearts, “Yes, we are polygamists, we believe in the principle, and we are willing to practice it, because God has spoken from the heavens.”

Now I want to prophecy a little. It is not very often that I prophecy, though I was commanded to do so, when I was a boy. I want to prophecy that all men and women who oppose the revelation which God has given in relation to polygamy will find themselves in darkness; the Spirit of God will withdraw from them from the very moment of their opposition to that principle, until they will finally go down to hell and be damned, if they do not repent. That is just as true as it is that all the nations and kingdoms of the earth, when they hear this Gospel which God has restored in these last days, will be damned if they do not receive it; for the Lord has said so. One is just as true as the other. I will quote this latter saying, as recorded in the Book of Covenants. The Lord said to the Elders of this Church, in the very commencement as it were, “Go ye forth and preach the Gospel to every creature, and as I said unto mine ancient Apostles, even so I say unto you, that every soul who believes in your words, and will repent of his sins and be baptized in water shall receive a remission of his sins, and shall be filled with the Holy Ghost; and every soul in all the world who will not believe in your words, neither repent of his sins, shall be damned; and this revelation or commandment is in force from this very hour, upon all the world,” as fast as they hear it. That is what the Lord has said. Just so, in regard to polygamy, or any other great principle which the Lord our God reveals to the inhabitants of the earth.

Now, if you want to get into darkness, brethren and sisters, begin to oppose this revelation. Sisters, you begin to say before your husbands, or husbands you begin to say before your wives, “I do not believe in the principle of polygamy, and I intend to instruct my children against it.” Oppose it in this way, and teach your children to do the same, and if you do not become as dark as midnight there is no truth in Mormonism. I am taking up too much time. I would like to dwell on another more pleasing part of this subject, if there were time. (President G. A. Smith—“There is plenty of time, brother Pratt.”)

I will go on and tell the people why polygamy was instituted in this dispensation. So far as a future state is concerned, God has revealed to us that marriage as instituted by him, is to benefit the people, not in this world only, but to all eternity. That is what the Lord has revealed. Do not misunderstand me; do not suppose that I mean, that marriage and giving in marriage are to be performed after the resurrection; I have not stated any such thing, and there will be no such thing after the resurrection. Marriage is an ordinance pertaining to this mortal life—to this world—this probation, just the same as baptism and the laying on of hands; it reaches forth into eternity, and has a bearing upon our future state; so does baptism; so does the ordinance of the laying on of hands; so does every ordinance which the Lord our God has revealed to us. If we attend to these things here in this life, they secure something beyond this life—for eternity. They neither baptize, nor receive baptism, after the resurrection. Why? Because neither was intended to be administered after the resurrection. After the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage. Why? Because this is the world where these ceremonies are to be attended to. That which is secured here, will be secured hereafter, if it be secured upon the principles of law which God has revealed. Marriage, then for eternity, is the great principle of marriage with the Latter-day Saints; and yet, I am sorry to say, that there are some of our young people who will suffer themselves to be married by the civil law; not for eternity, but just like the old Gentile custom—the way our forefathers were married. A justice of the peace, a judge, or some one having the right by the civil laws, will pronounce them husband and wife for a short space, called time; perhaps to last only about three score years, and then it is all over with the marriage contract; it is run out; they are husband and wife until death shall separate them, and then they are fully divorced. We do not believe in any such nonsense; it is one of the ideas of the Gentile world in regard to marriage.

The first great marriage celebrated in this world of ours—that of our first parents—is a sample of marriage that should be introduced and practiced by and among all generations and nations, so far as the eternity of its duration is concerned. Our first parents were immortal beings; they knew nothing about death; it was a word that had never been spoken in their ears. The forbidden fruit had never been laid before them; no law in respect to that was yet given. But Eve was brought to our father Adam as an immortal woman, whose body could not die to all ages of eternity; she was given to an immortal husband, whose body could not die to all future periods of duration, unless they brought death upon themselves. Sin entered into the world, and death by sin; death is one of the consequences of sin; and they brought it upon themselves. But before that, they were married—the immortal Adam had the immortal Eve given to him.

Now if it had been possible for them to have resisted that temptation, they would have been living now, just as fresh, and as full of vigor, life and animation, after six thousand years, as they were on the morning in which this ceremony of marriage took place; and if you should reflect upon millions and millions of ages in the future, they would still be considered husband and wife, while eternity should last. You could not set a time—you could not point your finger at a moment or hour, when they would be separated, and the union be dissolved.

That is the kind of marriage that we Latter-day Saints believe in; and yet some of our young people, professing to be members of the Church, and who say they wish to keep the commandments of God, go and get married by a justice of the peace, or some person authorized to perform that ceremony by the civil law. Ask parties who are guilty of such folly, why they were married by these officers of the law until death should part them? and they will say, “We did it inconsiderately, and without reflection,” or perhaps they will say that their parents did not teach them on that point. Do you not know that such marriages are not sealed by him that is appointed by divine authority? that they are not of God and are illegal in his sight, and your children are illegitimate in the sight of God? If you expect to have any benefits in eternity arising from your children, they must be yours legally, according to divine appointment, under a divine marriage. “What God has joined together let not man put asunder.” But what has God to do with it, when a magistrate, who, perhaps, is an infidel, and does not believe in a God at all, says to a man and woman, “Join your hands together,” and then, when they have done so, he says, “I pronounce you husband and wife?” What has God to do with such a marriage as that? Has God joined them together? No, a civil magistrate has done it; and it is legal so far as the laws of the country are concerned, and the children are legal and heirs to their parents property so far as the civil law is concerned, but what has God to do with it? Has he joined them together? No, and the marriage is illegal, and, in the sight of heaven, the children springing from such a marriage are bastards.

How are we going to legalize these matters? There are many who are very sorry for the Latter-day Saints; so sorry that they would favor the passing of a law which would legalize all the children who have been born in polygamy, and thus prevent them from being what they consider bastards. Now we are just as anxious, on the other hand, to get all our fathers and mothers, who have been married by these Gentile institutions, joined together by divine authority, in order that they may become legal in the sight of God. We do not want their children to be bastardized; and hence, we get them adopted, or we shall do so when the Temple is built; I mean all those who have been born of parents that have never been joined together of the Lord or by his authority. All such children, as well as men and women, married only by the civil law, have got to have ordinances performed for them in the Temple. The men and women will have to be legally married there; and the children born before their parents were thus legally married, will have to pass through ordinances in order that they may become the legal sons and daughters of their parents; they will have to be adopted according to the law of God. You young men and women, who are married in a manner that the Lord does not authorize or own, put yourselves to a great deal of trouble, because you will have a great deal of work to do hereafter in temples in order to get things legalized. How much better it would be for you to come to those whom God has appointed, and have your marriages solemnized as immortal beings, who have to live to all eternity.

It is true that we have all to die by and by, and we shall be separated for a little season; but this separation is a good deal like a man’s leaving his family to go on a mission: he returns after a while to his wives and children, and he has not lost the one nor has he been divorced from the other, because they have been separated. And if death separates, for a little season, those who are married according to God’s law, they expect to return to each other’s embraces by virtue of their former union; for it is as eternal as God himself.

“Do you mean to say,” says one, “that people in the immortal state, will be united in the capacity of husbands and wives, with their children around them?” Yes, we do believe that all persons who have these blessings sealed upon them here, by the authority of the Most High, will find that they reach forward into the eternal world, and they can hold fast to that which God has placed upon them. “Whatsoever you seal on earth,” said the Lord to the ancient Apostles, “shall be sealed in the heavens.” What could be of more importance than the relationship of families—the solemn and sacred relationship of marriage? Nothing that we can conceive of. It affects us here and it affects us hereafter in the eternal world; therefore, if we can have these blessings pronounced upon us by divine authority and we, when we wake up in the morning of the first resurrection, find that we are not under the necessity of either marrying or giving in marriage, having attended to our duty beforehand, how happy we shall be to gather our wives and our children around us! How happy old Jacob will be, for instance, when in the resurrection, if he has not, already been raised—a great many Saints were raised when Jesus arose and appeared to many—if Jacob did not rise then, and his four wives, and his children, how happy he will be, when he does come forth from the grave, to embrace his family, and to rejoice with them in a fulness of joy, knowing that, by virtue of that which was sealed upon him here in time, he will reign upon the earth! Will it not be a glorious thing, when that polygamist, by virtue of promises made to him here, comes forth to reign as king and priest over his seed upon the earth? I think that in those days polygamy will not be hated as it is now. I think that all things that have been prophesied by the ancient prophets will be fulfilled, and that Jacob will get, his wives, by virtue of the covenant of marriage; and that he will have them here on the earth, and he will dwell with them here a thousand years, in spite of all the laws that may be passed to the contrary. And they will be immortal personages, full of glory and happiness. And Jesus will also be here, and the Twelve Apostles will also sit on the twelve thrones here on the earth, judging the twelve tribes of Israel; and during a whole thousand years, they will eat and drink at the table of the Lord, according to the promise that was made to them.

Old Father Abraham will come up with his several wives, namely Sarah, Hagar and Keturah and some others mentioned in Genesis; and besides these all the holy prophets will be here on the earth. I do not think there will be any legislation against polygamy.

By and by they will build a polygamous city, and it will have twelve gates, and in order to place as much honor upon these gates as possible, they will name them after the twelve polygamist children that were born to the four polygamous wives of Jacob; and these good old polygamists will be assembled together in this beautiful city, the most beautiful that ever had place on the earth.

By and by some Christian will come along, and he will look at these gates and admire their beauty, for each gate is to be constructed of one immense splendid pearl. The gates are closed fast and very high, and while admiring their beauty he observes the inscriptions upon them. Being a Christian he of course expects to enter, but looking at the gates, he finds the name of Reuben inscribed on one of them. Says he—“Reuben was a polygamous child; I will go on to the next, and see if there is the name of a monogamous child anywhere.” He accordingly visits all the twelve gates, three on each side of the city, and finds inscribed on each gate the name of a polygamous child, and this because it is the greatest honor that could be conferred on their father Jacob, who is in their midst, for he is to sit down with all the honest and upright in heart who come from all nations to partake of the blessings of that kingdom.

“But,” says this Christian, “I really do not like this; I see this is a polygamous city. I wonder if there is not some other place for me! I do not like the company of polygamists. They were hated very badly back yonder. Congress hated them, the President hated them, the cabinet hated them, the Priests hated them, and everybody hated them, and I engendered the same hatred, and I have not got rid of it yet. I wonder if there is not some other place for me?” Oh yes, there is another place for you. Without the gates of the city there are dogs, sorcerers, whoremongers, adulterers and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie. Now take your choice, Amen.

Seek for Perfection, etc.

George Q. Cannon

Discourse by Elder George Q. Cannon, delivered at the Semi-Annual Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in the New Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Thursday afternoon, October 8, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

Six weeks ago yesterday I left this city to visit the settlements throughout the southern portion of our Territory. My trip has been one of the most interesting and pleasant I ever undertook, and I have rejoiced exceedingly in the opportunity which I have had of meeting with the people in that section of country. There is a great anxiety in many places and with many people to know what the condition of affairs is in that region. I can say that I never saw our people feeling better as a general thing, and more willing to do that which is required of them than at the present time. There was great anxiety among them to be instructed, and the meetings in every instance were crowded, the people turning out with great alacrity, and expressing regret that we could not stay longer. Brother Erastus Snow and brother Musser and myself attended most of the meetings. Part of the time in visiting the western settlements I was alone. The anxiety of the people seems to be to know what to do and to be instructed in the best manner of doing that which God requires at their hands; and this is the spirit which, as Latter-day Saints, we should entertain and cherish. God has called us to be a peculiar people; he has raised up Prophets, has organized his Church, has placed within it those callings and offices and gifts and qualifications and blessings which characterized the Church in ancient days, and he has condescended in his mercy and goodness to reveal himself unto the children of men, to teach them, counsel them and inspire them so that they may be instruments in his hands in building up his kingdom, and laying the foundation of that work of which the Prophets have spoken, and which we are told shall stand for ever. We as a people, with the views which we entertain, should not make up our minds to live in accordance with the methods of life, the modes of doing business, and the habits and the traditions of our forefathers, who have lived in ignorance of these principles and of this spirit of revelation—for we are required, in obeying this Gospel, to hold ourselves in a position to receive the word of God, to be counselled, to be directed, to be guided by that word in all our transactions, in the doctrines which we believe, in the habits of life which we adopt and in all our practices and labors. This is one of the first lessons which is impressed upon us in starting out in obedience to the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. The very first teachings we received impressed upon our minds the necessity of forsaking these errors and false traditions which we have received from our fathers—errors in doctrine, false traditions concerning God, concerning his kingdom, and concerning the plan of salvation which he has revealed; and if we have profited by that first lesson we have been continually progressing, learning new truths, new to us, acquiring knowledge concerning ourselves, concerning the work with which we are connected, concerning the earth and the inhabitants thereof, and we have been unlearning and forsaking the errors and the faults of our forefathers and of the world from which we have been gathered.

The prayer which Jesus taught his disciples to ask the Father that his kingdom might come, and his will be done on earth as it is in heaven, will be fulfilled by means of this work with which we are identified. The foundation of that kingdom has already been laid. And the aim of every true Latter-day Saint, from the day that he or she joined this Church until to-day, has been to approximate to that life which we are told is led by those who are exalted through keeping the commandments of God—to do the will of God on earth as it is done in heaven; for as the Apostle John says—“Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be; but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. And every man that hath this hope within him purifieth himself even as he is pure.” So with the Latter-day Saints, they have a hope of salvation within them, they desire to keep the commandments of God, and they have been seeking, from the beginning until to-day, to purify themselves, to live a heavenly life, and to reduce to practice in their daily walk and conversation, those precepts and laws, obedience to which would prepare them to dwell eternally with God in the heavens.

There is a characteristic about the faith of the Latter-day Saints, in which they perhaps differ from most of the professed followers of Jesus Christ—they do not believe that God expects or desires them to put off acquiring these perfections, powers, gifts and graces which belong to the heavenly world until they reach that world; but they believe that God has placed them here in a state of probation, and that he has hid himself only to a certain extent from them; that he has drawn a veil of darkness between himself and his children on the earth for the purpose of trying their faith, of developing their knowledge and testing their integrity, so that those who will feel after him in faith, persevering in the midst of ignorance, darkness, doubt, confusion and the temptations of Satan, and all the evils with which we come in contact in this state of being may receive his blessings and the gifts, graces and favors which he bestows upon his most favored children. Hence, the Latter-day Saints believe in doing everything here that will help to prepare them for life eternal in his presence. They look upon this world as a place where they should attend to these things. By baptism? Yes. By having hands laid upon them? Yes. Have the gifts of the Holy Ghost? Certainly, have them here as well as hereafter; have them here to a partial extent to prepare them for the life that is to come. Have the voice of God here? Yes, why should we not know God’s will here? Why should we be closed out entirely from all knowledge of God here, and yet believe that as soon as we die we are ushered into the fulness of his glory. Receive these blessings here? Yes, every blessing that is necessary. Be perfect here? Yes, it is man’s privilege, the Latter-day Saints believe, to be as perfect in his sphere as God our eternal Father is in his sphere, or as Jesus in his sphere, or as the angels in their spheres. Said Jesus to his disciples—“Be ye perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect.” Perfection, then, is to a certain extent possible on earth for those who will live lives that are agreeable to the mind and will of God.

Now as fast as the Latter-day Saints can comprehend the life that God, his angels and those who are made perfect in his presence lead, they should be willing, and I believe that the most of them are willing, to copy after that life in this state as quickly as possible. “Well but,” says one, “how useless it is for frail, fallible, mortal beings to attempt to live lives of perfection like the angels and those who are just and perfect in the presence of God!” I know that if we are to judge of men naturally, as we see them in the midst of their sins, breaking the commandments of God, trampling upon his holy ordinances, disregarding his requirements, we should say it is useless; and it is not only useless but it is impossible for men ever to reach that perfection of which we speak. But I am encouraged in my hopes that perfection, to a certain extent at least, is possible even in this mortal life, by witnessing the results in the midst of a people who are striving after it. I know that the efforts of this people in this direction, though not always crowned with the success that we have desired, yet there has been abundant cause for rejoicing and thanksgiving in the progress which we have made. We have attained unto a degree of union and love that approximates to some extent to that union and love which we believe exist in the eternal worlds. We have not yet reached, probably, that point when we can love our neighbor as we do ourselves; but still, if we strive for and keep that object in view, and endeavor to reach that perfection, undoubtedly we shall overcome our selfishness, and all those feelings which seem to be a part of fallen human nature, sufficiently to carry out that command of God.

If we could get a glimpse of heaven, that heaven to which we are hastening, or to which we hope we are hastening, have you any idea that there would be any conflict of interests among the inhabitants of that blissful abode? Do you imagine that we should see one arrayed against another, that there would be clashing and struggling, each one scrambling to get the advantage of his neighbor, and to acquire influence and power, and the blessings that belong to that abode more and greater than his neighbor? That is not the idea that we have formed of heaven; we have not entertained such views, but we imagine when we get there that God will be the possessor—he is the possessor—of all things that are comprehended within that sphere of existence, that the thrones, the principalities; powers and crowns, and even the very garments that the exalted wear belong to God, and that he will give them to us, that we shall possess them, subject, of course, to his law and to those regulations which he will enact, or which he has already enacted. I do not suppose there was a Christian that ever lived, I do not suppose there was a heathen that ever lived who expected that, when he got to the next world, to the place of bliss which he anticipated in his faith while here, he would live in anything like the condition he occupied here. Converse with the Christians about the next world, and they will all say that they do not expect to have anything; that they are redeemed by the precious blood of the Lamb, and that all the glory and honor of their salvation they ascribed unto God and the Lamb; that they will be content with anything he chooses to give them when they reach there, they would be content to be door-keepers or to occupy the lowest position if they could only be permitted to dwell in the presence of God. And the heathen who believe in a future state of existence, and this belief is universal among them, (I believe it was Bancroft who said that atheism is the sin or crime of civilization, and not of heathendom or of natural men,) the heathen universally believe in a future state of existence, and they picture to themselves a condition such as I have described, of course varying according to their faith and their views of this life, thinking that they will have circumstances similar in that life which is to come, with this difference only, that they will be more perfect and will be delivered from the evils to which they are subjected here as mortal beings.

If then, my brethren and sisters, we are striving to live in accordance with that life to which we are hastening, we, by a little reflection, can see how much there is for us to do in order to prepare ourselves for the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. One of the first teachings or revelations that was given to this church after its organization, was to the effect that we should dwell together as one family: that there should be an identity of interests among us; that we should approximate to some extent at least, and as far as practicable to that identity of interest which we understood, by the revelations of Jesus Christ, to exist in the eternal worlds. This revelation is one of the earliest given to this people, and its practice was entered upon in early days. We have been told by those who are old enough to know, and who had experience at that time, that to the disobedience or failure of the people in carrying out this revelation was due the expulsion of the Latter-day Saints from Jackson county in the State of Missouri; and that, afterward, the same causes operated to produce the results which the people experienced at that time, God suffering the enemies of his kingdom and people to have power over them because of their disobedience to respond to the call which he made upon, and to the commandments which he gave unto, them.

This is one of the traditions that has come down to us of a younger generation, from the fathers of this Church. It has been taught to us and impressed upon us for years, probably upon many of since we knew anything of this work, until the belief is fastened upon the hearts, consciences and feelings of the great bulk of the Latter-day Saints, and that at some time or other, in the future of this Church that doctrine would be again taught, and the requirements embodied in that revelation would be again made upon us as a people; in fact the teachings I have received have been that until we did obey that the privilege of going back and building up the centre stake of Zion and redeeming that land which God first gave unto his people as an inheritance, in the State of Missouri, would not be granted unto us, and that until we did obey it we should be pilgrims and wanderers, and should not have the privilege of going back and laying the foundation of the centre stake of Zion and of that great Temple which God has said shall be reared in this generation. So that for years, speaking of my own feelings, I have awaited, I will not say with anxiety, but, with great desire, the time when this people would have sufficient faith, and when the circumstances should be so favorable that God should command us to enter upon the practice of that principle, or to enter into that order which he commanded us in the beginning to obey.

Every time I have traveled among the nations of the earth, I have thanked God that he had provided a panacea for the evils which I saw everywhere around me. When I saw the rich revelling in luxury, crowding upon the poor, crushing out their lives, the poor living in squalor and misery, their lives a burden to them, not having, in many instances, enough food to eat, or raiment to wear, or a shelter, and when winter approached dreading it with feelings indescribable. In society in the world there is a large class of people having more means than they can spend for their comfort and convenience. They have the finest houses, abundance of food, every convenience, troops of servants to wait upon them to do their bidding, and have all the wealth they can desire, every luxury they can conceive of. At the same time there are living in the same community thousands of poor creatures destitute of the necessaries of life. My heart has been pained within me in visiting the large cities of Europe, at seeing women degraded like beasts of the field, and their lives continual burdens to them, their existence almost joyless. It has been a wonder to me how people could keep from committing suicide in the midst of the want that was everywhere apparent. I have thought, how can God bear with this people, and the cries of the poor ascending to him continually; and, as I have said, I have thanked God in my heart that he had provided a means of deliverance from such evils for his people.

There is an expression used in the prophets, which I have often thought of, about the rich grinding the faces of the poor. It is a most forcible and significant metaphor. The tyrrany [tyranny] and oppression that are practiced upon the poor are terrible. In many places their faces are literally ground by those who rule over them. Yet there are philanthropic men and women, rich people who do not take comfort in their riches because of the existence of this misery on every hand of which I have spoken, and they form benevolent societies of every name and nature in order to relieve the wants of the suffering poor, and yet with all their efforts the suffering is not lessened to any measurable extent. The people live and toil and die in the most squal[l]ed misery by thousands in all the large cities of thickly populated countries. I have also, in conversation at various times and under various circumstances, been told by those with whom I have conversed and who have taken some interest in the work with which we are identified, that so long as we were a primitive people and were simple in our habits, so long as we did not have a great deal of wealth in our midst we should probably continue to prosper and increase and bring forth and manifest in our lives the virtues which I described as having an existence among us. Men have told me—“O yes, Mr. Cannon, the picture you draw of the manner of life of your people is very delightful; it is delightful to find a people exhibiting such qualities as you describe as existing among, or possessed by, your people; but you are a new people, a new sect or denomination; but wait awhile, wait until you have grown in wealth, importance, numbers and power, and then we shall see whether your system possesses elements superior to the systems with which we are acquainted and which have preceded yours.” Men who have reflected, who have read and made themselves acquainted with the histories of other peoples, know full well that when once wealth increases in the midst of a people, when class distinctions make their appearance, when education is promoted and aspired after by certain classes which other classes cannot reach; when refinement, the refinement of education and culture, has its effects, creating distinctions among a people who originally were primitive, and luxurious habits come in to foster these differences, then the strength of former communities has disappeared, and nations which have been noted as possessing the strength and the union of iron, have fallen into decay and have lost their power and have been broken into fragments and have eventually disappeared. Judging us by the light of this kind of experience many have made predictions which you have probably seen in the papers thousands of times, that there were causes operating in the midst of the Mormon community that would work out its disintegration and eventually bring about its utter overthrow and downfall, or at least bring about an assimilation between it and the systems by which it was surrounded.

There is one thing, however, that is not taken into account in measuring us, and that is that God has laid the foundation of this work. Men do not recognize that, but they recognize other causes and other influences that are apparent to them and with which they are familiar. We have consoled ourselves, in listening to these predictions, with the reflection that we are the people of God, that God has made promises unto this people, that he has said that this work shall stand forever, and shall not be given into the hands of another people. These predictions, therefore, have not had any discourraging [discouraging] effect upon us. But, with all our confidence, we must not lose sight of the fact, that God works by means. If we are to withstand the encroachments of the evil one we must, on our part, do that which will fortify us against his encroachments, we must take steps to render us impregnable to his assaults. We are not the first people to engage in such a work as this. Others have made repeated attempts to establish the kingdom of God on the earth. One by one the prophets fell, one by one they became victims to the power of the evil one and to the assaults of the wicked. The Son of God himself fell a martyr to this fell spirit; his apostles one by one, although they endeavored in their day and generation to establish this order of Enoch to which I have referred, also fell martyrs to the same spirit of persecution, until the inhabitants of the earth had, either slain or driven off every apostle, and not a man was left to stand up in the midst of the people to say—“Thus saith the Lord,” having the authority and power of the apostleship and of the holy priesthood from God to admininister [administer] in the things of God and to communicate the mind and will of God unto the people.

What followed? A reign of night, darkness and confusion covered the face of the whole earth. There was no heavenly voice to disturb the solemn stillness that ensued. Every man of God who aspired to revelation had been killed or swept from among men, and then, and not till then was the vengeance of the adversary satiated; but as long as there was a holy man, who aspired to the distinction, or to the honor or blessing of knowing God’s will so long there were those arrayed against him who scrupled not to shed his blood, and were not satisfied until that blood was spilled.

You trace the various dispensations down from the days of Adam until the days of these apostles of which I have spoken, and see how short-lived were the attempts to establish a reign of righteousness. If we turn to the Book of Mormon, which gives an account of God’s dealings on this land, we shall find that while the circumstances which surrounded the Jaredites and the Nephites were more favorable than those which surrounded the people of Asia, yet the same causes operated on this land, and after Jesus came and the wicked had been swept off by the judgments of God, and none were left but those who were righteous or partly so at least, that then they sought to establish this holy order among them and were successful, it continuing in their midst until the year two hundred and one after the birth of Jesus. And we are told that during that time all the generations that lived passed away in righteousness before the Lord. The circumstances were undoubtedly favorable for the establishment of an holy order among that people, because, as I have said, the judgments of God had visited the land, and the wicked had been swept off; but no sooner did they begin again to divide, each one seeking after his own affairs to the exclusion of the general affairs of the people than they began again to fall into sin and transgression, and the result was that they were punished of God, and the Nephites were eventually blotted out; but we are informed that one hundred and sixty-seven years, terminating in the year 201 of the Christian era, were passed in perfect peace and righteousness. It was almost millennial righteousness. Satan was bound almost as much during that one hundred and sixty-seven years in his operations among the Nephites, if we may judge by the short record which has come to us, as if he did not have an existence, or as he will be during the thousand years’ reign of peace, that is so far as leading away the hearts of the people to commit sin is concerned.

I have alluded to these various attempts on the part of holy men to establish truth and righteousness on the earth. We have seen that they have only been partially successful; they did not succeed in overcoming sufficiently to entirely bind Satan and to banish from the earth the evils of which he is the cause; but we are told that in the last days God will establish his kingdom Brother Penrose described, this morning, in the close of his remarks, some of the results which should follow. He said that the lamb and the wolf should lie down together, and the bear and the cow should feed together, and there should be nothing to hurt or destroy in all the mountain of the Lord, but that peace and union and love should prevail throughout the earth for one thousand years. The Prophets have spoken of this time, those to whom I have referred, who fell victims to the rage of their persecutors; they looked forward to the time when this kingdom should be established and should be successful, and they dwelt upon it with great delight and anticipation. The Apostles John, the Revelator, speaks about a thousands years of peace and righteousness, when Satan should be bound and should not have power over the hearts of the children of men to tempt them, or to lead them astray, and that this should last for one thousand years, and then at the close of that period he should be loosed again for a little season.

The revelations which we have received through the Prophet Joseph Smith speak of the same period, that is, anticipate such a time as this that the Apostle John speaks of; and we have been taught from the beginning until the present time that this work, this system, this gospel, called Mormonism, should be the beginning of this work, and that it should spread and increase until it should fill the whole earth, and bring to pass the fulfillment of these predictions. Now what I wish to impress upon your minds, in bringing them to this point is this, that if we are engaged in a work that is to be more successful than any other work that has been established by God our Heavenly Father from the beginning until now there must be greater faith and union there must be more power, there must be a willingness to sacrifice more than has ever been manifested by any people who have preceded us in works of this character, or in any dispensation which God has given unto men. I know that many think that God will do a great deal. I believe that I am a believer in God’s power to the fullest extent, but I have noticed in my experience that God works by means, and that he does not himself come down in person, neither does he send his angels down, except on visits occasionally; but he commands his people, his children on the earth to do that which he requires at their hands, and then helps them in doing this, and my conclusion is that if we lay the foundation of a work that shall stand forever, that shall never be overthrown or given into the hands of another people, we must have more faith, practice a higher righteousness, be more valiant for the truth and possess more of God’s power than any people who have ever preceded us. Are we prepared for this? Did the Latter-day Saints take this into their calculation when they joined this church? If they did, it is well, if they did not, they had better begin to investigate the matter and satisfy themselves as to what their duties are. It may be said, as I have already stated, that God will assist us. Undoubtedly he will; he assisted his servants in ancient days. But we have a foe to contend with who is sleepless. The adversary of our souls has not lost his cunning. He knows that his time is short and that the last struggle is approaching, and he will not relax in the least degree his vigilance or his diligence in seeking to destroy this work and to martyr or destroy the men and the women connected with it. The supremacy of the earth depends upon the issue of the contest. He has held the sway, he has been dominant, he has been successful in destroying the holiest and the best that ever trod the earth’s surface. The Son of God himself and the pure and holy in all ages he has succeeded in destroying, and in spreading his pall of darkness over the earth, and in destroying faith from the midst of the children of men, and now that the attempt is made to revive the work of God and to establish his kingdom on the earth we may make calculations with all certainty that he will not cease his endeavors until either he, or God and his kingdom are triumphant. He wants to vanquish and he will vanquish if possible, and he will spare no means to destroy this work, for if it is established the foundation of his kingdom is sapped.

There are principles taught unto us now which will fortify us more effectually than anything that has ever been taught to us before, so far as resisting this pressure that is brought to bear upon us to destroy us. I refer to this Order to which I have alluded before—the Order of God, the order that is called after Enoch because, as we are told in the revelations, he established it among his people, and brought about that perfection which enabled him and his city to be translated. I know there are many feelings among the people in relation to this. I have heard more since I returned to Salt Lake City, in the few days I have been here concerning the feelings of men who call themselves Latter-day Saints, than I imagined existed among us. In the south the people have organized, and they have gone along very well during this last season. Bishop Callister remarked to me, when I was at Fillmore passing south, that he doubted whether Enoch himself and his people made more or better progress than they had made in the same time. I doubted it also, and subsequent observation confirmed the truth of this remark. So far as other settlements are concerned I found the people in some instances discouraged a little, but on the whole they were greatly encouraged by the results of the seasons labor, and they felt to organize themselves more perfectly according to the new articles of association, and to carry out the requirements which had been made upon them. I was delighted in visiting a little town on the banks of the Rio Virgen, called Price. There the superintendent of the farming, Brother Baker, remarked, “I wish you had come about an hour earlier, you would have seen us all here together at our meal.” Said I—“What do you mean?” He said they had just got through dinneer [dinner]. Said I—“Do you eat together?” “O yes,” said he, “we have been living as one family all this season.” I was surprised for I had not heard of it, and I was so much interested in it that I commenced to make enquiries as to their condition. I found that there were from forty to forty-four men, women and children who had joined together in accordance with the counsel given by President Young while in the South. They had proceeded to farm together, and to live together as one family. I thought that the best persons that I could refer to, to obtain information as to the real workings of the affair would be the sisters, so I proceeded to interrogate them. The leading sister told me that sometimes it was rather hard work. I did not wonder at it when I saw the kitchen. They had three small cooking stoves, and they were quite inconveniently situated. But she added—“We have felt excellently and feel greatly encouraged.” Said I—“Are the people satisfied? don’t you sometimes have fault-finding with your cooking, or your meals, or something of this kind?” No, she said, there had been no fault found. “How do the sisters feel, are they tired of it?” No, she said, they were not, they felt greatly encouraged, and they divided the labor so that it was not very heavy upon any of them, not too heavy. “How do you arrange about your washing?” They told me, that in the beginning they put their washing all together, but they had no machinery, and they found that it was no advantage, as it was too heavy even for the strong women, and they concluded that it was better to divide their washing, and for each family to do its own. I spoke to the Superintendent—“How do you manage with your men? Are the brethren willing, when you require them to do anything, do they go with alacrity, or do you have difficulty in controlling them?” “Not in the least,” said he, “I have never made a requirement or asked a man to do a thing that he has refused to do, and in our farming they have worked well and patiently together, and they are satisfied with the arrangement.” I spoke to others who worked there and made inquiries of them, and I found, in every instance, that there was a good deal of satisfaction in the arrangement, and they hoped, if they could get up a suitable building and have suitable convenience for their cooking, that a great deal of this labor would be lightened and they would get along much better even than they had done.

Brother Samuel Miles is one of the company, a man whom many of this congregation know, and who has been a long time in the Church. I talked with him, being an old acquaintance, and he told me that, from his observation during the entire season, he deemed that what was originally an experiment was an entire success, and he felt very much gratified with the result. After rising in the morning they meet in one room together and have prayers; then they sit down to breakfast, and while at breakfast the Superintendent converses with the men as to the arrangement of labor for the day. After breakfast they go to their work, one to one department, another to another. At noon they again assemble, for dinner, eat their dinner after having asked a blessing upon it, and then spend a little leisure—until one o’clock or the hour expires—and then resume their labors. They come together again in the evening, when they have supper and attend to prayers, and spend the remainder of the evening in social conversation or in conversation on business or in arranging their affairs, as the case may be.

I afterwards visited a little settlement of the name of Hebron, where there are about thirty families. The Bishop, George H. Crosby, said they had brick and lumber on hand to build several residences, but they hesitated about building as they had some thought of carrying out the suggestions which President Young made to the people, or to some of them, to enter into a family arrangement, and they thought, that, probably it would be well to use their material and build a suitable building. It was afterwards suggested that they build a dining-room and a commodious kitchen, etc., and that they live in their own residences during this coming summer and try the effect of eating together. This they may do. They had found that it would be far more convenient for them, in their labor, to be together during the summer season at least and, the weather being fine, they could walk from their houses to the dining room and eat their meals, and then the men go to their labor and the women and children separate again. In that settlement they have labored during this past season in the United Order, and they told me they had raised double the amount of crops they ever raised before; and all their labors are proportionately advanced, and this is the testimony of a good many settlements. There are some complaints as a matter of course. I heard some about tools being misused, about wagons not being greased, about animals not being fed, harness not being cared for; but these results are due to a great extent to want of system.

Another objection that we found and that has resulted badly in some instances, is that men have put in a portion of their property only and kept out a portion; of course, the portion that is kept out absorbs nearly all their attention, while that which is put into the Order does not receive that share of attention which it should have, and when they were called upon to labor they had other interests which called them off, and they excused themselves or sent their boys to attend to it. In some wards and settlements they have been crippled in consequence of this. But recent instructions which have been given by the First Presidency, that no one should be admitted into the Order, unless he enters with all he has, (except in case of debt, then the board of directors to exercise their discretion about that,) will have a good effect throughout the entire South. It will concentrate the labors of the people in one direction, and where a man’s treasure is there will his heart be also; and if all a man’s property is in the United Order if he be a Latter-day Saint, he will labor with fidelity for the furtherance of the objects which the Order has in view.

There is one thing which has been demonstratrd [demonstrated] by this season’s labor, namely, that better results can be produced by a combination of labor, as proposed in the United Order, than by individual effort to the same extent. I was much gratified at finding that this was the universal testimony of all with whom I conversed on the subject.

While at St. George, after holding two days’ meeting, brother Snow and myself held meetings with the Bishops, superintendents, foremen and leading men in the various settlements throughout that Stake. We requested them to give us a full and free expression of their feelings concerning the season’s labors, to tell us all the causes of discouragement if there were any, and also the causes of encouragement, and those that I have already alluded to were the principal ones given. There have been in some instances indolence, carelessness and indisposition to work, and an inclination manifested to throw the labor upon those who are industrious and energetic. It might be expected that such would be the result, it could scarcely be otherwise. I was reminded very much, in hearing the statement of the brethren, of what the Prophet Joseph said when alive about the indolence, carelessness and indifference to work manifested by some men. He said there were three kinds of poor—the Lord’s poor, the devil’s poor, and the poor devils. I thought that this Order was bringing to the surface the poor devils, and I should not be surprised if it would have this effect; in fact, if a man who is not inspired with right feelings should get connected with the Order, there is no doubt that he would shirk work and be careless and indifferent whenever he could be. We know that there are many eye-servants among us—men who work only when they are watched; and so far as the use of tools is concerned, any man who has employed other men, and has not been in a position to look after them and watch what they are doing, knows how men work, even as we are situated at the present time. He knows how his tools are misused and mislaid, and his harness and his wagons and his teams are used or abused, and that it requires much care on his part, or on the part of somebody equally trusty to preserve his property. He has to frequently buy new tools—new spades, hoes, forks, ploughs, and if he has a mower and entrusts it to other hands than his own, in many instances he gets it broken. This is not always the case; but it is too much the case, and we have these things to contend with now, and in my opinion judging by my observation, as far as it has extended, they are no worse in the United Order; and there is this about this Gospel—it brings every imperfection to the light that a man has within him. When this Gospel has been preached for the first time in neighborhoods, I have heard hundreds say to me, at different times—“Oh, I am so glad that I have got this truth, there is Mr. So and so,” or “there is my aunt” or “my uncle” or “such and such a friend,” “my wife” or “such a relative,” “there is my minister, if I go to him and tell him what I have received he will embrace it gladly and be a Latter-day Saint,” and they go and tell what they have received. Probably hundreds of you who are here to-day, have gone filled with zeal—“Why, I have got the truth, I want you to hear the truth,” and what has been the result? The devil has manifested himself immediately and they have found that their relatives had a spirit which they never dreamed of, and they have proved their ministers to be anything but willing to receive the truth. This Gospel has that effect, it brings men and women’s imperfections to light, it shows the imperfections of their characters; it tests people and tears the covering from hypocrisy and false pretensions as nothing else can. The United Order being one of its principles will, I expect, have this effect; but would it not be better for our faults and imperfections to be brought to light in this life than to wait until the next and have them brought to the surface then?

The people feel very well so far as I have had opportunity to observe. We have explained the articles of association to them; they have been gratified at the explanations which have been made. Many have reasoned upon it like this—“if I put all I have got into the United Order, and I begin to draw days’ wages only out of the Order, I have got a large family, how can I sustain them upon my day’s wages? It takes the product, of my property managed with care and economy, in addition to my own labor, to enable me to live, and if I put all my property into the Order, how am I to live?” This has been the inquiry more frequently made than another. It is not the intention, in establishing the United Order, to destroy the productiveness of property; it is not the intention to take property from men who have it and give it to those who have none. There are two extremes to be avoided, one is the disposition of the rich to aggrandize themselves at the expense of the poor. That is what we are trying, in this United Order, to put a stop to, so that we may prevent the growth of class distinctions, the increase of wealth in a certain class, and that class have interests diverse from and frequently adverse to the rest of the community. That is one extreme. The other is this idea, to which I have referred, the anxiety of poor people to get possession of the accumulations of the rich, and to have them divided among them, and a general levelling take place. There is no such idea connected with this order, such a thing could not stand very long; and let me say to you who find fault with this United Order, ask yourselves when you ever saw anything connected with this Church or its doctrines that was unnatural, that, was not consistent with good common sense? Do you think that we can teach and practice anything that will repress people, that will destroy individual effort, that will take away from enterprise its incentive? No, there is nothing connected with this system of this character, and it is upon this point that men and women are so much deluded by the false and slanderous reports which are circulated. There never was a day since our organization as a people, according to my ideas and my reading of our early history and my subsequent experience, when there were so many falsehoods in circulation about any principle as there have been about this United Order. There is far too much ignorance among us, and men take advantage of this to deceive the people by their falsehoods. It is the intention to preserve that which we have. If a man is a man of business let him have a chance to show his business capacity, not stop him, not take his property from him and give it to somebody who never had anything. The intention is to use the skill of the business man in elevating those who are not business men, to bring up the poor from their level to the broad upper level, not to pull down the upper level to the plane of the lower. That is not the design, but it is that we shall work for each other’s good; and where men have property let them take means to preserve it, not to destroy it. It is not the intention for boards of directors to use arbitrary power over men and property.

There are many cases where if a man were to put all that he has into the Order, it would be found that he already manages that property better than the board of directors could. Under such circumstances it would be better to say: “Here, you have managed this property economically, you have done well with it, we could not do so well with it if we took it. There is no object to be gained by our taking it from you; you continue to use and manage it as a stewardship, and keep up its productiveness.” This will have to be done doubtless in many instances.

But as to our farming interests, we can farm together far better than separately. Instead of having so many mowers and reapers, and so many tools, teams and wagons as we have now, we can concentrate our labors and have better results from the use of a given quantity of capital and labor than under our present system; and I do hope that the Bishops in this city will take hold of this matter as they should do. Will they do it? or will they stand in the way of the people? I firmly believe that many of our leading men are standing to-day in the way of the people in relation to the organization of this United Order; but if they were to do as they should do, as God requires of them, they would take hold of this principle in the spirit of it.

“Well, but,” says one, “suppose I lose my property?” Suppose you do, it is not intended that you should lose it, but suppose that you do? If my property goes, what odds is it? God gave it to me, and if I lose it in obeying his commandments, who cares? I do not. When I got old enough to understand this Gospel I saw that it might take everything men had, and even their lives, to maintain it in the earth, and if a man is not willing to lay down his life for this Gospel, he is not worthy of it; if he should not be willing to risk his property in carrying out a great principle, of what value are his professions of faith? And when God calls upon us, we who have been saying all the day that our property was upon the altar, and proposes a plan to save and exalt us and give us strength, we begin to mourn about our property, and to tell what failures there have been in the management of property, about co-operation being a failure, and thus justify ourselves for refusing to do what God requires! And yet call ourselves Latter-day Saints! Out upon men and women calling themselves Saints of God and making the professions which they do, and striving for the exaltation which they profess to be aiming for, who would make such expressions. Suppose that in doing that which God requires, all of our property should be taken, which we may rest assured will not be the case? If God were to permit a mob to come upon us, they could sweep away the whole of our property. If a mob were to come upon us and drive us, how much would any of us be worth? And can not God let our enemies have power to scourge us? I think he can; and unless there is a different spirit manifested by leading men, by Bishops and by men who ought to have the Spirit and power of God resting upon them, and by the people themselves in many instances anger may be aroused against us. I believe that to-day President Young is prostrated under a load that, if we were obedient he would be relieved from. I believe he would have been sound and well able, to-day, to teach us from this stand if we had done as we should have done. He is wearied by his labors in teaching and laboring in our midst, calling upon us early and late, entreating us to listen to the counsel of God.

I have said, and I repeat it, that if we do not know that this United Order is true of ourselves by the revelations of God, we should be willing to obey it just because President Young teaches it, a man who has taught us and led us for so many years, so faithfully and so successfully, God having blessed him as he has done in so signal a manner all the time. If this people would take hold of the principle in that spirit they would soon know that it was of God; the testimony of Jesus would rest upon them, and they would know it for themselves; and then, when they get that spirit, they would not care about property, if it took it all, they would say, “all right.”

When you made up your minds to obey this Gospel, did you hesitate because your friends told you that if you became Mormons you would spoil your prospects and lose your friends? No; you sacrificed every worldly consideration, you risked all for the truth, for the salvation which God promised you. And so in this United Order if you have a testimony that it is of God, you will feel—“No matter what it costs, all right.” Failures, yes there may be failures. I expect there will be failures and mistakes as long as we are so full of frailty, but who cares for that? But this will not be the fault of the principle. If God commands us to do anything, let us do it with all our heart, and he will prepare the way and preserve us from the bad effects of failures; he always has controlled results for our good, and he will do it again. Why there are men who would say that the mission of Jesus was a failure, (was he not killed by the Jews?) and the plan of salvation is a failure, and that creation is a failure, and they may just as well say these things as to say that cooperation is a failure, and that many other things are failures. Some say that God failed in putting Adam and Eve in the garden and allowing the serpent to tempt them and cause them to fall, and the whole scheme was a failure. Why not as well say that as to say that other things are failures? There are some people who can only judge of merit by success. If successful, no matter what it may be, it is meritorious. It may have its origin in hell, and success is, in their estimation, a test of merit. The best of schemes and plans have failed frequently in this sense, and yet have been true and perfect.

I know that God requires this union at our hands, and by the help of God I am determined, with all the influence and power that he has given me or that he may give me, to use my endeavors with the people to organize in a manner to resist every encroachment made against them. All hell is arrayed against us, and the powers thereof are bound to destroy this work if they can, and it is our duty, as Latter-day Saints, to band ourselves together in the power of God. We shall be able to do it if we do right, and the wicked will not gain a single advantage over us. That is just as true as that God lives, and I know it. I know that this United Order is of God, for God has revealed it to me; the revelations of Jesus Christ have imparted this knowledge to me, and I know it for myself. I know by the gift of the Holy Ghost that it is our duty as a people, and as individuals, to enter into this United Order and carry it out in the spirit that God has revealed it in. Listen to this testimony, and the men and women who have the love of the truth within them have, or will have the testimony of Jesus that these words are true and faithful.

And I desire to say further—there has got to be a spirit of repentance sought for by many of those who are now called Latter-day Saints, or they will lose the spirit of God and their standing among this people. Will God prosper us in this United Order? Yes, and we cannot be a rich people, we cannot be the people which God designs us to be, until we live after that pattern. There are hundreds of men who are praying constantly to God to deliver them from apostacy and there are others who pray that God will deliver them from being rich, because, they perceive that, frequently, when men get rich, they are not easily handled, they become intractable, they lose, in some instances, the Spirit of God; and therefore, they pray that God will deliver them from being rich, that they may not be lifted up in pride. Yet we know that the revelations and prophecies say that God will make us a rich people.

Speaking about the Zion of the last days, Isaiah says that the Lord will bring for brass gold, for iron silver, for wood brass, and for stones iron to build up the Zion of God. When will that be done? When we are united, so that we shall not consume the wealth that God will give us upon our lusts, upon creating class distinctions, raising one class above another, one class living in luxury and another class grovelling in poverty; but when we are so organized that there will be no rich and no poor, but all partaking alike of the bounties that God shall give unto us, then, and in my opinion, not till then, can he bestow upon us the wealth that he has promised. It would ruin us to-day if we had it, and God, as I view his providence, withholds these blessings from us because of the effects they would have upon us as a people. He does not wish to destroy us. But when we are organized aright, then what? Why, then will be fulfilled after a while another saying of Isaiah’s—“And strangers shall stand and feed your flocks, and the sons of the alien shall be your ploughmen and your vinedressers; but ye shall be named the Priests of the Lord; men shall call you the ministers of our God.”

All these problems of capital and labor can be solved by this principle and in no other way, and there will be an incessant and never-ending conflict between capital and labor until they are solved in this manner.

That God may pour out his holy Spirit upon you, my brethren and sisters, and fill you therewith, to enable you to do his will perfectly, is my prayer in the name of Jesus, Amen.

Saints are Chosen, etc.

Wilford Woodruff

Remarks by Elder Wilford Woodruff, delivered at the Semi-Annual Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in the New Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Friday morning, October 9, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

We, as a people, have had a great deal of teaching and counsel in our day and generation. Some of us have been taught in the things of this kingdom for over forty years, and, by this time, we ought to exercise faith in the promises of God. We have looked forward to the fulfillment of the revelations which have been given in all ages and dispensations which are past and gone; and we have not only expected their fulfillment, but we have helped to fulfill a great many of them in the course of our lives. This work is the work of God, it is not the work of man. The Lord has set his hand in these last days in fulfillment of revelation and prophecy and the promises which have been made for thousands of years past and gone, concerning the earth and the dispensations thereof.

I will here say that all inspired men, from the days of father Adam to the days of Jesus, had a view, more or less, of the great and last dispensation of the fulness of times, when the Lord would set his hand to prepare the earth and a people for the coming of the Son of Man and a reign of righteousness. One of the brethren was speaking here about the views entertained by some in the world who regard Christianity and the work of God as a failure. I will say that the work of the Lord has never been a failure and it never will. His purposes have to be accomplished in the earth. There is one thing true with regard to the history and travels of the Saints of God in every age of the world—they have had to pass through trials, tribulations and persecutions, and have had to contend with opposition, and this will always be their fate until the power of evil is overcome. This is one of the legacies that is designed from God to the Saints while dwelling in the flesh among a world of devils, for the world is full of them, there are millions and millions—all that were cast out of heaven; they never die, and they never leave the earth, but they dwell here and will continue to do so until Satan is bound. As a people we have to meet this warfare, and the Saints of God have had to contend with it in every age of the world. Any man who undertakes to serve God has to round up his shoulders and meet it, and any man who will not trust in God and abide in his cause even unto death is not worthy of a place in the celestial kingdom. Said Jesus—“I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hate you; if you were of the world the world would love its own. They have hated me, they will hate you; and if they persecute me they will persecute you.” This is the legacy which all Saints may depend upon receiving. True, there has been a difference in the various dispensations. This is the only dispensation that God has ever established that was foreordained, before the world was made, not to be overcome by wicked men and devils. All other dispensations have been made war upon by the inhabitants of the earth, and the servants and Saints of God have been martyred. This was the case with Jesus and the Apostles in their day. The Lord gave that good old Prophet Enoch, President of the Zion of God, who stood in the midst, of his people three hundred and sixty five years, a view of the earth in its various dispensations, showing him that the time would come when it would groan under the wickedness, blasphemy, murders, whoredoms and abominations of its inhabitants. The Prophet asked the Lord whether there would ever be a time when the earth should rest; and the Lord answered that in the dispensation of the fulness of times the earth would fill the measure of its days, and then it would rest from wickedness and abominations, for in that day he would establish his kingdom upon it, to be thrown down no more for ever. Then a reign of righteousness would commence and the honest and meek of the earth would be gathered together to serve the Lord, and upon them would rest power to build up the great Zion of God in the latter days. These things were also shown to Abraham, and many others of the ancient servants of God had glimpses of them by vision, revelation and the inspiration of the Spirit of God, and what they saw, or an account of what they saw, has been left on record.

This dispensation is one that all the Patriarchs and Prophets had their eye upon, and the Lord has commenced it, and has carried it, on now for more than forty years, since this Church was organized with six members. We have not altogether traveled on beds of ease, we have had warfare and opposition from the commencement until this day; but we and the world may set our hearts at rest concerning “Mormonism,” for it will never cease until the Lord Jesus Christ comes in the clouds of heaven. This nation and other nations will war with the Saints of God until their cup is full; and when they become ripened in iniquity the Lord Almighty will cut them off, and the judgments of the Most High God will follow the testimony of the Elders of Israel.

This is the way I look upon it. We are called upon to do our duty with regard to the subject which has been spoken of by brothers Van Cott and Cannon. What is this world I would like to know? What are the things of this world? What are houses and lands, goods and chattels, and the treasures of the earth generally, to us? What are they to any Saints of God compared with eternal life? We should certainly be as well off to unite ourselves and our interests together in the things of God as to be separate. There have been too much selfishness and division and every man for himself amongst us, and the devil for us all. Eternal life is worth more to a Saint of God than all things else put together, in fact it is the greatest gift God ever gave to man, or that he can give to him, and whatever the Lord requires at our hands we should be ready to do, individually and collectively.

As I have often remarked in my testimony, from my youth up I had a desire to live to see a people rise up in the earth and contend for the faith once delivered to the Saints, who would receive and teach the Gospel of Jesus Christ as it was taught in his day and generation. When I heard this Gospel I embraced it. The first sermon I ever heard the Spirit of God bore record to me that it was true, and I went forth and was baptized for the remission of my sins. I received the laying on of hands and the Lord gave me the Holy Ghost and a testimony, just the same as he gave to you, and to hundreds of thousands of those who have obeyed the Gospel.

It was but a short time after embracing the work that I was called to go with my brethren a thousand miles for the redemption of Zion. I went willingly, for I knew it was the work of God, it was what I had sought for from the time I was eight years old, what I had been taught in the Presbyterian Sunday School and what I had read in the New Testament in my father’s house. From that time up I had looked for these things, and I had a testimony that I should live to see them, and I did, and when I embraced this Gospel my heart was filled with joy and consolation; and as for this world, if I had the whole of it, I felt in those days, as I feel now, it would not stand in my path in seeking for eternal life.

I was called to take my life in my hands and go up to Missouri, and a little handful of us went up to redeem our brethren. We certainly had to go by faith. My neighbors called upon and plead with me not to go; said they—“Do not go, if you do you will lose your life.” I said to them—“If I knew that I should have a ball put through my heart the first step I took in the State of Missouri I would go.” I went, and I did not get shot, neither did any of the rest of us, but we fulfilled the commandment of God. That is the way I felt in those days with regard to the work of God, and that is the way I feel to-day. I am after salvation and eternal life, and I do not want anything to stand between me and that which I am in pursuit of. It does not make any difference what we as a people may be called to pass through. Men can go no further than they are permitted by the Lord. I have often remarked, and I repeat it, your destiny, the destiny of this nation, and the destiny of every king, prince, president, statesman and ruler under heaven are in the hands of the God of Israel. He made the world and all its inhabitants, and they can go no further than they are permitted. If we unite ourselves according to the law of God we shall have far more safety than if we turn away from the commandments of the Lord and set our hearts upon the things of this world. If we forget God we are liable to be scourged; that is my feeling this morning.

This is the work of God. The Lord has set his hand to build up his kingdom, and he will do it whatever the consequences may be. Whatever the persecutions or difficulties his Saints may be called to pass through, the Lord will never withdraw his hand, for he decreed, before the foundation of the world, that in the dispensation of the fulness of times his kingdom should be set up upon the earth, never more to be thrown down.

The world has had its dispensations: we are at the end of the sixth thousand years, and are bordering upon the coming of the Son of Man in the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory, to reward every man according to the deeds done in the body; and whatever the feelings of the world may be the Lord has decreed a woe upon that man, that house, that nation or that people that rejects the testimony of his servants. The Lord says that he will hold a controversy with the nations, and judge the world with fire and sword, and he will plead with all flesh, and the slain of the Lord will be many. What if some of us do have to sacrifice our lives for the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ? What of it? What is a man’s life? The whole world will die. Armies, containing thousands of men, go forth for the honor of being killed, in order to defend a king or a government. Is it any worse to die for the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ than to die serving the devil? Not a particle. I glory in my feelings at the valiant spirit that is and has been manifested by the servants of the living God in the cause of truth and in defence of the great latter-day work. The Lord never raised up a better set of men and women since the world was than are they who have embraced the Gospel of Jesus Christ in these latter days. They have the testimony of Jesus Christ with them, and they have been called to pass through many trials thus far in the history and progress of the work of God. It is true that many have broken their covenants and turned away from the Lord, and the reason is that they stopped serving God and undertook to serve themselves, and that led them into darkness. They rejected the things of the kingdom of heaven, and the spirit of God was taken from them, and that class of people, in every age of the world is the darkest of any who ever breathe the breath of life. They lose all confidence in every principle of salvation and eternal life revealed to man.

With regard to our present position I want to say that it is the duty of every Saint of God in these valleys of the mountains to let his prayers ascend into the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth, day and night in the season thereof, in the family circle and in private places, for the Lord to sustain his people, build up Zion and fulfill his promises. We are in duty bound to fulfill ours, and the Lord will not fail now any more than he has any other time. He did not fail in the days of Jesus Christ, not a bit of it. Jesus was poor, and from the manger to the cross, spent his whole life in the deepest poverty, suffering and affliction; he descended below all things that he might rise above all, and we are told that he had not money enough to pay his taxes to Caesar, and had to send Peter to catch a fish to get money for that purpose. He was poor all the way through his life. Is it any worse for you, or me, or any other Saint of God, to suffer persecution, affliction, poverty or trials than for our great Leader, President, Redeemer, King and Savior, who is going to come in the clouds of heaven? No, not a particle. As some of our brethren have said, there is need for us to repent and humble ourselves before the Lord our God, that we may have and enjoy more of the Holy Spirit to prepare us for that which lies before us. It is our duty to unite together as a people; our temporal salvation lies in this, and we should not be backward in this matter We should not only preach it, but be also ready to practice it; as leaders and as people, all should unite in carrying out that which is required of us. As an individual I am not afraid of starving to death, I never was afraid of that in my life, and I have traveled a great many thousand miles to preach the Gospel without money and without price, and so have many of my brethren who are around me, and we never starved to death and we do not expect to. The amount of it is that everything we have herein these valleys of the mountains—this Tabernacle, this Temple, these public grounds, and all the cities and towns that have been built over six hundred miles of Territory, are the gift of God to us. The Lord knows this country was barren enough when we came here, and a faithful people were tried here with cricket and grasshopper wars, until famine stared them in the face; but they trusted in God, and they did not get disappointed.

Our prayers should go up day and night in behalf of our President, and the Presidency whom God has sustained from the beginning, and also for the leaders of the people and for each other. We should labor and pray for this. We are making history. The travels and experience of the Latter-day Saints have been as interesting as the history of any people in any dispensation since the world began. Joseph Smith was a Prophet of God, and he was called to lay the foundation of this kingdom; he was raised up from before the foundation of the world for this purpose, and he came forth, through the loins of ancient Joseph who was sold into Egypt, and dwelt in the flesh, and nothing failed in its fulfillment as far as he was concerned. He lived until he planted the Gospel, until he received the apostleship, and every branch of the Priesthood of Aaron and Melchizedek, all the keys of the kingdom of God, everything that was necessary in order to lay the foundation of this Church and Kingdom, which God, through the mouths of holy Prophets, declared should be established in the latter days, to be thrown down no more for ever.

Under these circumstances, of course, faith is required on the part of the Saints to live their religion, do their duty, walk uprightly before the Lord and build up his Zion on the earth. Then it requires works to correspond with our faith. I know the testimony of Jesus Christ is not palatable; it does not, and never did, suit the ears of the world at large. Christendom to-day does not like “Mormonism,” because it comes in contact with the traditions handed down from the fathers; the world never did like the truth. We can not help that, it is our duty to bear a true and faithful testimony to the work of God, and to preach the Gospel which has been revealed to us in our day by the ministration of angels out of heaven. That Gospel is the same as was taught by Adam, and the ancient patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, Noah, Enoch, Methuselah and all the ancient Prophets, also by Jesus and the Apostles. There never was but one Gospel, and never will be but one delivered to the children of men, and that never changed and never will change in time or eternity. It is the same in every age of the world; its ordinances are the same. Believers in the Gospel had faith in Jesus before he came in the flesh, and repentance of sin was preached before his day as well as since; they also practiced baptism for the remission of sins and the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost; and they had the organization of the Church with inspired men therein. Saith the Lord Jesus, “I have set in the Church, first, Apostles, second Prophets, third Teachers, pastors, gifts, helps, and governments.” What for? For the work of the ministry, for the perfecting of the Saints, etc. These things are necessary in every age of the world, and they have been restored in these last days, and they are true and will have their effect upon the children of men. When this Gospel is preached to the Gentiles and they count themselves unworthy of eternal life it will go to the house of Israel, and the first will then be last, as the last has been first.

It is our duty as a people to unite together and not to be slothful in well-doing. As I have already said, we should let our prayers ascend before the Lord. I have more faith in prayer before the Lord than almost any other principle on earth. If we have no faith in prayer to God, we have not much in either him or the Gospel. We should pray unto the Lord, asking him for what we want. Let the prayers of this people ascend before the Lord continually in the season thereof, and the Lord will not turn them away, but they will be heard and answered, and the kingdom and Zion of God will rise and shine, she will put on her beautiful garments and be clothed with the glory of her God, and fulfill the object of her organization here upon the earth. Therefore, I say, brethren and sisters, let us do our duty. Let us pray for the Presidency of this Church; let us uphold and sustain them by our faith and by our works. They are called of God, they have been our leaders for years. President Young has led this Church longer a great deal than any other man. His works and his life have been before you, and you know him, and the course he has pursued. God has blessed him and he has been profitable unto us. The revelations of God and the principles which he has brought forth have been a consolation to Israel. Our prayers should ascend for him that he may be restored to health and be preserved by the hand of God. We should pray to the Lord for everything else that we stand in need of. Then we should go to and do our duty in building the Temples of our God, that we may magnify our calling, and be saviors on Mount Zion, for the living and the dead. In the seventeen hundred years which are past and gone, over fifty thousand million people have gone into the spirit world who never saw the face of a Prophet or of an Apostle, and never heard the words of an inspired man, for during the whole of that time no man was called of God to build up his kingdom on the earth. Whatever the Christian world may think, these things are true. When the Apostles were put to death the Priesthood went from the earth, and the Church went into the wilderness, or, in other words, there was a falling away among the Gentiles, as there had been before among the Jews. Those generations are in the spirit world, shut up in prison; they have got to be visited by men who held the Priesthood in the flesh, that they may preach the Gospel unto them, the same as Jesus did when he went to preach to the spirits in prison during the three days and nights when his body lay in the tomb. This is our duty. And I will here say that every Elder of Israel who lays down his life, whether he dies in his bed, or is put to death by the enemies of truth, when he goes into the spirit world his works follow him, and he rests in peace. The Priesthood is not taken from him, and he has thousands more to preach to there than he ever had here in the flesh. But it depends upon the living here to erect Temples, that the ordinances for the dead may be attended to, for by and by you will meet your progenitors in the spirit world who never heard the sound of the Gospel. You who are here in Zion have power to be baptized for and to redeem your dead. The resurrection and the coming of the Messiah are at the door. The signs of heaven and earth indicate the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. The fig trees are putting forth their leaves in the eyes of every man who has the faith of the Gospel. Let us, therefore, try and do our duty. Let us attend to the ordinances of the house of God, and unite ourselves according to his law, for Jesus will never receive the Zion of God unless its people are united according to celestial law, for all who go into the presence of God have to go there by this law. Enoch had to practice this law, and we shall have to do the same if we are ever accepted of God as he was. It has been promised that the New Jerusalem will be built up in our day and generation, and it will have to be done by the United Order of Zion and according to celestial law. And not only so, but we have to keep that law ourselves if we ever inherit that kingdom, for no man will receive a celestial glory unless he abides a celestial law; no man will receive a terrestrial glory unless he abides a terrestrial law, and no man will receive a telestial glory unless he abides a telestial law. There is a great difference between the light of the sun at noonday and the glimmer of the stars at night, but that difference is no greater than the difference of the glory in the several portions of the kingdom of God.

I always have said and believed, and I believe to-day, that it will pay you and me and all the sons and all the daughters of Adam to abide the celestial law, for celestial glory is worth all we possess; if it calls for every dollar we own and our lives into the bargain, if we obtain an entrance into the celestial kingdom of God it will amply repay us. The Latter-day Saints have started out for celestial glory, and if we can only manage to be faithful enough to obtain an inheritance in the kingdom, where God and Christ dwell, we shall rejoice through the endless ages of eternity.

I thank God that my ears have heard the sound of the Gospel. I thank God that I have been preserved upon the earth to live to see the face of an Elder of Israel, to be called of God and to administer the ordinances of his house. I traveled a good many miles with President Joseph Smith, as some of you did; I have also traveled a good many miles with President Young and with the Apostles and Elders of Israel, and I have never seen the hour yet, in the midst of our deepest afflictions and persecutions, that I was sorry that I had embraced the Gospel, and I hope I never shall.

I pray God my heavenly Father that he will inspire our hearts as Latter-day Saints, that we may become one and, not having the fear of man before our eyes, but the fear of God, that we may be ready to do whatever is required of us, and to carry out the counsels of the servants of God. When we do this we shall be happy, and we shall be saved whether in life or in death. I pray that we may pursue this course, and that we may overcome the world, the flesh and the devil, and inherit eternal life, for Jesus’ sake. Amen.

Faith Without Works is Dead, etc.

George A. Smith

Discourse by President George A. Smith, delivered at the Semi-Annual Conference, in the New Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Sunday morning, October 11, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

This being the closing day of the Conference, and as we are administering the sacrament, we naturally call our minds up in a way of discipline for ourselves, on various subjects which pertain to our every-day life. The Apostle James tells us that “faith without works is dead, being alone,” and good works are certainly the best illustrations of that faith which prompts us.

As our brethren will soon scatter through the different wards and settlements of the Territory, and to other parts of the world, we wish them to carry forth just and wise impressions in relation to the simple principles of faith and practice which pertain to the holy Gospel, and to disseminate the instructions they have received, that all may be benefited thereby. When we come here and take bread and drink of the cup in memory of the death and sufferings of our Savior, we witness unto him that we remember him, that we love his law, that we are determined to abide by his Gospel and that we will do all in our power to walk in the principles of faith and patience, forbearance and longsuffering, and of truth and righteousness in which we are engaged. As a short illustration, and to draw the minds of the congregation directly to the points of instruction, I am disposed to read a portion of the rules of the United Order.

Rule one says, “We will not take the name of the Deity in vain, nor speak lightly of his character or of sacred things.” I am sorry to say that many professed Latter-day Saints are careless in the observance of this rule, which every Latter-day Saint, and every person who has respect for his own character must certainly consider most wholesome and wise, and absolutely obligatory. Let us be very careful, and never indulge in profane language or use the name of the Deity except in such a manner as becomes his high and holy position and our dependence upon him for every breath we draw; and let us also inculcate in our children a respect for that chaste, discreet, upright and pure language which is becoming Saints of the Most High.

Rule two reads—“We will pray in our families morning and evening, and also attend to secret prayer.” Now brethren and sisters, remember this. Those of you, if any, who have been careless and negligent on this subject, remember how often God has heard our prayers and how dependent we are upon him for every blessing we possess and enjoy, and for the protection which has been extended unto us. While almost all the world has been ready to destroy the Latter-day Saints from off the earth, the Lord has answered our prayers and has protected us, as it were, in the hollow of his hand. Let us not forget to call upon him morning and evening, that our families may learn, from their childhood, to observe this great and important duty. And before we lie down to rest or rise in the morning let us lift up our hearts in secret prayer to the Most High, asking his protection and blessing in all things, that by united faith we may be able to perform the great and arduous duties which are placed upon us. And in our prayers let us remember our Bishops and Teachers and those in authority—the President of the Church, his counselors and all those who act in the holy Priesthood that the Spirit of the Almighty may rest upon them as well as upon us, that with one heart and one mind we may have a knowle[d]ge of the things of God; and that by observing these duties of prayer and preserving ourselves in purity before the Lord, when teaching, instruction, or counsel is sent forth among the Saints, or revelation is proclaimed unto us, we may have enough of the Holy Ghost in our hearts to know, each for himself or herself, whether these things are true or not; and that when false spirits go forth and lead men astray into darkness, error and folly, we may know the true from the false, detect those who are liars, and expose them as may be necessary.

The third rule is—“We will observe or keep the word of wisdom, according to the spirit and meaning thereof,” Remember this, brethren and sisters. I hear occasionally of brethren indulging in intoxicating drinks, and I see many of them yet, even young men, who indulge in the use of tobacco, a habit which is very pernicious and injurious to health, and a violation of the word of wisdom. There are also other violations of this rule among us which should cease, for we are told in the word of wisdom that if we will observe it with all our hearts, keeping the commandments of God, we shall have faith, health and strength, marrow in our bones, and have wisdom and great treasures of knowledge, and the destroyer will pass by us and not slay us Brethren, how general it is with us when persons are sick and afflicted, or when our children are sick, to say to the Elders—“Brethren, come and lay your hands upon them,” and in thousands of instances they are healed. Perhaps we are losing some of our faith. We read in the Scriptures that King Asa, whom God had healed and blessed, when he was diseased he trusted not to the Lord, but sought physicians, and King Asa died. While we recommend and approve of using every reasonable means within our power to preserve our lives and those of our children, we do depend, first of all, upon faith in the holy Gospel, the administration of its ordinances and the fulfillment of the promises of God; and inasmuch as we observe the word of wisdom and keep the commandments of God we have faith, and we have the promises of God, upon which we can rely, and by which thousands and thousands are delivered from the afflictions which prey upon them.

“We will treat our families with kindness and affection; and set before them an example worthy of imitation. In our families and in our intercourse with all persons we will refrain from being contentious and quarrelsome. We will cease to speak evil one of another, and cultivate a spirit of charity towards all. We consider it our first duty to keep from acting selfishly or from covetous motives, and we will seek the interests of each other and the salvation of all mankind.” This is rule four, and in calling your attention to it I wish it to be remembered that it enters into our business transactions and every-day life. I have noticed in the course of many years that I have traveled and preached, being in hundreds of families—that some men were pleasant and agreeable, while others were crabbed, cross, ill-natured and surly in their disposition; the very tone of their voice would show it. This is all wrong. We should cultivate kindness, forbearance and patience in our families, and a spirit that will incline them unto us, and in all things set such an example before our children that we may be as shining lights unto them, that as they grow up imitating our examples they may become pillars of society, plants of renown and ornaments in the kingdom of God, and not be led by covetousness, dishonesty, idolatry or any corrupt motive whatever. Consider all these things, and remember this as one of the rules of the United Order which it is of special importance that we should observe.

Rule five teaches—“We will observe personal cleanliness, preserve ourselves in all chastity, refrain from adultery, whoredom and lust, and discountenance and refrain from all vulgar and obscene language and conduct.” In regard to this rule, I am sorry to say that the influx of so-called civilization and Christianity in our midst has shown its effects upon some portions of our community, and that strict and firm adherence to the principles of chastity, for which the Latter-day Saints have been remarkable ever since the organization of the Church and the gathering of the people, seems, in some instances, to be wanting. We call upon all such persons to repent and humble themselves before the Lord; and we exhort all Latter-day Saints to maintain such a high position before God that every act of their lives may be approved of him. Never let us be guilty of any word or deed that we will be ashamed of before our father, mother, brother, or sister, or before our heavenly Father. This is a principle that we should cultivate, maintain and abide by in all things; and wherever any have been foolish enough to fall or go astray, through the toils or snares that have been set for them, let them repent and humble themselves before the Lord, and let a spirit of unity, harmony, peace, stern integrity, purity and chastity abide in every heart, for if we ever inherit blessings and glory, if we ever are made partakers of the thrones, dominions, principalities, powers and endless lives which pertain to the exaltation of the kingdom of God, we shall do so by maintaining a purity like that of Joseph who was sold into Egypt.

The sixth rule is—“We will observe the Sabbath day and keep it holy.” I regret to say that I have noticed a great many instances of laxity in the observance of this rule, and I wish the Elders and teachers in all the Branches and settlements to preach and practice the observance of the Sabbath. Brethren, work six days, and on the seventh rest and observe the Sabbath according to the revelation; and impress this principle upon the Saints everywhere by practice. I remember once I was in a hurry to come to Salt Lake City. Fillmore was then the only settlement between my place in Parowan, Iron County, and the settlements in Utah County. The Sunday was very fine; we had attended meeting and, having been a long time away from the brethren in Salt Lake City, we wanted to hurry on. I certainly thought we could travel twenty miles on Sunday evening, as well as not, so we started. I was a little conscience-stricken; I said to myself—“This is not exactly right, and I am afraid we shall not get along as well as we would to have staid until Monday morning.” We drove about twenty or twenty-two miles that evening. I told the brethren to tie up the horses, but some of them got loose and went clear back, and in the morning the brethren had to go the whole distance after them. That is what we gained at the start by breaking the Sabbath; but it did not end there. The next day we broke a wagon, and then we got into a storm, and we were six days in reaching Fillmore, and it took us some twelve days to reach this city. Now, I do not believe that, as a general thing, anything is gained in property or in time by working on the Sabbath; and I advise and exhort all men professing to belong to the United Order, or to be Latter-day Saints, to observe the Sabbath; keep it holy, devote it to worship, to the study of good books, to rest, to imparting instruction, to attending meeting, and do not, under any circumstances, lapse into a habit of thinking that you can do as you please on the Sabbath, and that so doing is clear gain. We have, some day, to meet our Father in heaven, and that day is not very far off with many of us. I meet here at this Conference quite a number with whom, forty years ago this summer, or last spring, I marched on the Zion’s Camp journey—a thousand miles. That does not seem long, but we are marching steadily to our last account, and we should not let our love for self, our desire for gain, or our anxiety for pleasure so mar our path that when we come into the presence of our Father in heaven we shall be smitten with the reflection that, instead of observing the Sabbath, according to the command, we went off spreeing, or hunting, or we went looking after cattle, or getting wood, or dashing around and breaking the Sabbath time and again, for if our conscience reprove us, God is greater than our consciences, and he surely will condemn us.

Rule seven—“That which is not committed to our care we will not appropriate to our own use.” That is a very modest way of agreeing or promising that we will not steal or take that which does not belong to us. One of the ten commandments teaches—“Thou shalt not steal;” and in the Book of Doctrine and Covenants we are informed that he that steals shall be cast out and delivered to the law of the land. These things should never be forgotten by those professing to be Latter day Saints. I have noticed, in the course of my life, a great many men professing a great deal of piety, who have been very dishonest. In the neighborhood where I was raised there were men who would charge a good round price for a bushel of wheat, and then use a false measure. In that way they reared children to be dishonest. If there are fathers or teachers in Israel who indulge in this covetous practice, or who take that which does not belong to them, they set examples before their children which cause them to grow up a generation of thieves. I was once conversant with an incident illustrative of this principle. A young man was cut off from the Church for stealing. When he came home his mother upbraided him for it, “but,” said he, “mother, you have yourself to thank for it. My father always told me not to steal; he commanded me not to touch a thing that did not belong to me, but you used to send me to the neighbors to steal eggs; you taught me to steal, and you are measurably responsible for my disgrace.” This was rather a bitter pill for the mother, but it contains an important lesson, if we will consider it.

“That which we borrow we will return according to promise, and that which we find we will not appropriate to our own use, but will seek to return it to the proper owner.” There is too much of a want of confidence in the midst of the Saints. When some promise they too often fail to keep their word; and those who are in business do not feel as free to trust their brethren as outsiders do. I have had brethren come to me and say—“They are not as accommodating to me as outsiders are,” and I sometimes answer them by saying—“Perhaps you are not as punctual to pay your brethren as you would be to pay an outsider.” Many of our brethren are not, and this is all wrong. Confidence should be established in each other by fulfilling what we undertake. What we borrow we should return; what we agree to do we should fulfill. We should be careful to make our agreements so that we can fulfill them, and then do so, and if through some unforeseen circumstances we are unable to do so, we should immediately make known the facts of the case, and be honest. I hope these cases are by no means common, but I am satisfied they are more numerous than they ought to be.

The ninth rule requires us, as soon as possible, to cancel all indebtedness, and thereafter to avoid getting into debt. For the last few years, owing to the opening of mines, the construction of railroads, and the good crops that have been raised, the prosperity of the people has been very great, and as a wise and prudent community we should have taken a course to have had the benefits of all this means without being involved in debt, for, notwithstanding we have been put to vast expense in consequence of persecution and oppression from our enemies, we have been in a condition to have saved a great deal. But many of our brethren are in debt notwithstanding all this prosperity. Now this rule requires that we take measures to pay, or cancel, our debts as soon as possible, and then avoid getting into debt by living within our means. Ambition to push forward and make wealth should not induce us to involve ourselves in debt, but we should, with economy and prudence, live within our means.

The residue of these rules I will not read, but commend them to the consideration of all the brethren, as being of the utmost importance. There is one, however, to which I will just call your attention. It refers to our manner of dress and living, and requires us to use proper economy and prudence in the management of all things intrusted to our care. I exceedingly regret to see the disposition to extravagance which exists among us, as also a disposition to purchase from abroad a variety of articles that are not of the first necessity. I do think that it is right and proper that we should take the utmost pains in our power, as a United Order and a united people, to provide everything that we can produce within ourselves, and not be sending away all the money we can get to buy things that we can make ourselves. Our brooms, for instance, and a great deal of our clothing, and most of our shoes can be made here. With all the ridicule that has been expended in relation to wooden-soled boots and shoes, I sincerely advise every man who is afflicted with a cough, or who is subject to colds or rheumatism, asthma, or any ailment of that kind, to put wooden soles under his feet this Fall. They will preserve health a great deal better than rubber; and if they happen to be paid for it will be much better than to owe a trader for them, or to wear leather that is like a sponge, through which the damp will penetrate, striking directly to and promoting cough or rheumatism. I am of the belief that wooden-soled shoes worn in winter will cure nine cases out of ten of rheumatism and will save the lives of many of our children, by keeping their feet dry and warm. I feel like preaching up wooden shoes as a medical prescription, if you please, as well as on the score of economy.

I wish you brethren when you return to the settlements to look after the schools, see that they are established in all the settlements for the winter, that no child be left without a chance to acquire a knowledge of the common branches of education. See that all the poor are provided with the means of sending their children to school, that no child be deprived of the privilege of attending school through the poverty of its parents. Make your schoolhouses comfortable and pleasant. Make the seats of the proper h[e]ight and comfortable, so that the children may not become humpbacked or round shouldered, nor contract spinal complaints, or anything of that kind through their seats being awkwardly constructed. There is plenty of lumber in the mountains, and plenty of workmen; let them make good comfortable seats for the children. See that your school-rooms are properly warmed, and be careful as to the characters of the men you employ for school teachers. Do not hire a scoundrel, a seducer, or blackleg for the position, for if you employ as teachers of your schools those who are foul, wicked, and corrupt in their habits, you assume a terrible responsibility, for the impressions made upon and the lessons taught to the children while attending school have a great influence for good or for evil, upon their future lives and welfare. I believe I have preached upon this subject almost every Conference since I can remember, or since I began to speak at Conferences, and I shall continue to do so. Let parents be stirred up in regard to the education of their children, and provide for their welfare. In the early days of the Territory the first house built in every settlement, as a general rule, was a school-house. Let this rule still be followed, and let our children receive their education directly within ourselves; and if we want them to study the advanced branches, fill up our home universities; instead of sending them abroad to be edncated [educated] in foreign schools, uphold your own university and sustain your own schools.

After the close of this Conference meetings in this building will be discontinued during the winter and will be held, under the direction of the Bishops, in the ward assembly rooms every Sunday afternoon and evening. The forenoons will be devoted to Sunday Schools, and I exhort the brethren and sisters to have their children ready, so that they can be at school in time. And I invite the young men and especially the young sisters, to attend Sunday schools; I want to stir up the young men to go there and form Bible classes. And I exhort the Elders to be present as teachers, that there may be no lack of teachers. I want to express my admiration of brother Goddard and a number of other school superintendents and teachers, with whom I am acquainted, because of their efforts to spread among the young throughout the Territory a knowledge of the principles of the Gospel, as taught in the Bible, Book of Mormon, Book of Doctrine and Covenants, and in the standard works of the Church. And I say to the young men, that if they will attend the Bible classes and study the catechism in use in our schools, and make themselves familiar with it, they will become so thoroughly informed in the principles of the Gospel and the evidences of it, that when called upon to go abroad to defend the doctrines of Zion they will be well prepared to do so. I invite the Elders to see that these classes are formed in all the settlements.

I will again repeat the idea that has already been presented, to sustain our own literary institutions and publications—the Juvenile Instructor, the Woman’s Exponent, the Deseret News, which contains discourses by the First Presidency and Twelve, and also the publications in the several counties. They are conducted by men who take pains to disseminate the truth, as well as the general news of the world, and they ought to be sustained, that their influence may be extended and increased. Do not spend your money in buying lies, nor your time in reading yellow-covered literature, or in studying such things as are calculated in their nature to degenerate the human mind and degrade the soul. One of the best books you can read on the earth is the Bible. It is the finest history ever published in Great Britain. Study its history and its precepts. It is the foundation of the sciences of the world, and the basis of the laws of all the Christian nations; and although men in every direction have departed from it, we can read and understand it for ourselves. See that it is on every table, in every household, in every pulpit, and that it is the school book of every family throughout the Territory.

I want to say, with regard to the Temple at St. George, that the walls are between twenty-five and thirty feet high. Some of the brethren remained at work upon it all summer, some of them without shoes and poorly supplied with clothing. About 309 persons have reported, I believe, as going there this winter to aid in pushing forward the work on this Temple, as volunteers from the different settlements of the Territory. We hope, by means of this help and the contributions that may be sent there, to have the roof on early next spring, and very soon a baptismal font in the basement, in which we can begin the administration of the principle of baptism for the dead and the ordinances of the Gospel in connection with our fathers. The climate in St. George is well suited to those in feeble health, and such of that class of persons as desire to do so can, after the Temple is completed, go there and spend the winter, and attend to the ordinances for their dead.

I have invited the brethren, during the Conference, to go and look at the Temple foundation in this city. It is a very beautiful foundation, and the design of the building is grand. The labor of taking the granite from the mountains, bringing it on to this ground and cutting it and putting it in position is immense You saw a great many prepared stones that are not laid: I will explain how that has happened. We had a good many beginners who could shape a rough stone, but not so many stonecutters who could do a finished job, and all the stones for the outside had to be done by skillful workmen. A great number of those that you see lying round, numbered up as high as thirteen or fourteen courses, were cut by men who were not skilled workmen. That is the reason why so many are not yet laid in the building. We found it necessary during the harvest to dismiss fifty workmen of this kind from the block, that they might go and aid in gathering in the harvest, because we could not supply them with work so far in advance of the laying. Brother Trueman O. Angell has been exceedingly zealous in attending to this work: he has been so fearful lest a stone should be laid wrong that he has been on the walls early and late to see that every stone has been set in its proper place, to a hair’s breadth. His zeal has been such that I have almost feared that, in spite of the faith of the Saints and the energy of the man’s soul, he would work himself into the ground. I want the brethren to pray for him that he may be sustained in his arduous labors.

One great difficulty in getting along on this Temple, has been the want of money to supply the workmen with actual necessaries. We have been accustomed, during the prosperous times of the past year or two, to pay them one-fourth in cash or merchandize; this season we were unable to do that, hence an invitation was given by the First Presidency and the Bishops, to all the Saints, far and near, to make a donation of fifty cents a month to aid in the prosecution of the work on the Temple the names of all who respond are to be entered in the “Book of the Law of the Lord.” Quite a number have responded, and some means has come in from this source. I now invite the brethrens, sisters, strangers, and all who feel an interest in the Temple, and wish to have their names enrolled in the “Book of the Law of the Lord,” to make this monthly contribution, that the hearts of the workmen may be gladdened and that the hands of those who are called to conduct this business may not be tied. We have been compelled to borrow money and to pay interest to carry on this work; the resources that have come in have been insufficient, and the kind that has come in has not been such that we could make it available in carrying on the work as vigorously as we desired to do on this Temple and upon that at St. George. I appeal to the brethren also to remember the Temple in their prayers. Let us pray that God will give us power to erect and dedicate it, and that he will preserve the life of our President to organize the Priesthood in all its beauty and order in that Temple, and fulfill to the uttermost the duties of those keys, which were delivered to him by Joseph Smith, pertaining to the twelve and to the church, and to the bearing off of this work in the last days. Let us lift our hearts to God that he will preserve his servants for the accomplishment of this work. And while we raise our hearts in prayer for this object, let our souls be filled with benevolence and liberality to pay our tithes and offerings. I fully believe that, if one half of the brethren had honestly paid tithing as we understand it, our hands would not have been tied. Think of these things and act upon them.

Most of the emigration the present season has been through their own means and the aid of relatives and friends, and a goodly number have thus been gathered. We now again invite all those who owe the Perpetual Emigration Fund, or whose relatives or friends are indebted to it, to remember their obligations, that those in the old countries who desire may be gathered here as fast as possible. We also invite the brethren to send for their friends from abroad; but before expending your money for that purpose, find out whether those whom you wish to gather still remain Saints, or whether they have corrupted their ways before the Lord. It would be a very good idea to learn this before expending money to help them, though it is an act of charity to bring anybody from the old world and place them on the broad plains of America, where they may be enabled to obtain homes of their own.

I want to say, in relation to the missionary labors of President Brigham Young in going to Europe and founding and starting the system of emigration, and gathering thousands upon thousands of people from the old world and placing them in positions to get homes of their own, that he is the most distinguished and extensive benefactor of his race of any living man within my knowledge. We regret that he has been unable to speak to us during this Conference. We feel confident, however, that had the gospel which he has preached for the last forty-three years to the inhabitants of the world, been received as honestly by those who heard it as it has been declared by him and his brethren, all the human family would have had a knowledge of the gospel to-day, and the Millennium would have brought it. This, however has not been the case; but the forms preaching of President Young, and the acts of his life in teaching and being a father to the people will be had in everlasting remembrance; and we will exercise our faith that God will restore his health, that his voice may again be heard amongst us, though that is not possible at this time. We are gratified to know that he is able to be in our midst, to hear our testimonies, see our countenances, and know that within us there is a portion of that Holy Spirit which God has revealed for our salvation.

Saints are the Light of the World, etc.

George Q. Cannon

Discourses by Elder George Q. Cannon, delivered to the Adjourned Semi-Annual Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in the New Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Sunday afternoon, October 11, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

The teachings which we have heard at this conference have been of a character most important to us as a people, and should be treasured up by all who have heard them; and those of us who reside in other places who have attended Conference should carry the instructions they have received to the places where they reside, that the spirit of this work and the spirit of this conference may be disseminated among all the Saints.

We are living in one of the most important periods of the earth’s history. Events are of such a character connected with us as to excite the greatest interest, and no one connected with the people, who feels as he or she should, can help being interested in the way in which this work is progressing and attracting attention throughout the earth. There is no people, to-day, on the face of the earth who are situated in this respect as are the Latter-day Saints. God is dealing with us in a most remarkable manner, and is fulfilling, through his people, the predictions of the holy prophets, and we behold on every hand, when we open our eyes to see and our hearts to understand, the great events which God said should transpire in some day and age in the future.

There is one thing with which I am greatly impressed, and that is, within a few years how determined the enemies of the kingdom of God have been to destroy that work which he has founded. How they have envied, maligned, and maliciously persecuted this people, and how they have concocted plots for their overthrow! In this last Congress no less than eight bills were introduced, having for their object the subjugation of the people of Utah to the ring of men who have sought their destruction, and yet the population of this entire Territory does not number as much as a second class city in the United States. I remarked to members of Congress, of the House and of the Senate, that Congress was paying us a great compliment, a people so insignificant numerically, so devoid of wealth, in the estimation of many so illiterate, so deluded, so bound and fettered and so barbarous in our habits. I think it a great compliment that the representatives of forty millions of people should bestow such attention upon one hundred and fifty thousand. Yet it is not these representatives who wish so much to do us harm, but it is a body of men here who are anxious to gain power and influence at the expense of a people whose prosperity and influence they envy. I have been impressed with the wonderful manner in which we have been advertised now for some years back. I can not fail to recognize the hand of God in this. I look around me and I see a people who, if they were not Latter-day Saints, if they did not believe the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, would not be noticed in any particular manner, but who, because they are Latter-day Saints, are known more widely and whose movements attract more attention and excite greater interest, whose public men are more advertised and their lives and characters published more widely throughout the earth than those of many rulers of great nations. Men say it is because this is such a great imposture, because Brigham Young is a false prophet, and because the Latter-day Saints are deluded. These are singular statements to make, as though a few deluded and ignorant people, led by a false prophet, could occupy the attention of the nations of the earth. It is something unheard of in history except, as we testify, in the case of those who have preceded us in the same work. Jesus said to his ancient disciples, “Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hid.” The eyes of the world were upon them. And in our day we behold the same effect. The Latter-day Saints and their work have been like a city set on a hill. They have attracted the gaze of the nations, and that, too, without any especial effort on their part to make themselves conspicuous. The clamor of our enemies has greatly contributed to this. What do their attacks accomplish for us? They advertise us and give us an importance to which we could not otherwise attain. Every effort that is made to destroy this work or to embarras[s] its onward progress, or to deprive its leaders of their lives or of their liberties only enhances its importance in the midst of the earth, gives it publicity, preaches the gospel, attracts attention, causes men and women to think, to reason and to investigate what it is about this people that creates so much excitement.

I have said, and I do not think I exaggerate in the least degree, that the efforts of the past three or four years, in this Territory, to destroy this work and to deprive the leaders of this people of their liberty have had more effect in preaching what is called Mormonism than the efforts of a thousand missionaries would have been able to accomplish. “Well, but,” says one, “they say such terrible things about you, and it is no advantage to be spoken of in this manner, to be maligned and accused of wrong.” It is an advantage, because, as I have said, it causes men and women to reason and reflect, and it promotes investigation. There have been hundreds who have come here and been brought in contact with this people, who have been astonished at what they have seen, because what they have seen has been so different in every respect from the stories that they have heard, and the effect and revulsion of feeling have been much greater than they would have been had they never heard anything about us at all. And it is our business to live down the lies that are put in circulation about us. I, myself, rejoice in these things, because I see the hand of God in it all, I see the fulfillment of the predictions of the holy prophets, I see a people being gathered together who are united, not so much as they should be, but still more united than they were before they heard this gospel, and I rejoice that this is the case.

I hope that we shall continue to cultivate within us the principle of union. Remember the story of the Scythian king. When on his deathbed he told his boys to bring him a bundle of arrows. “Now,” said he “let me see you break this.” They tried one after another, but they could not break the bundle. “Cut the string that ties them,” said the king, “and try to break them singly.” They cut the string and tried the arrows singly and broke the entire bundle with ease. There is power in concentration of effort, and it is this which gives us our character in the earth to-day. Cause the Latter-day Saints to be disunited, divide us asunder, split us into factions and what would we amount to? Why, nothing at all, we would not count anything in the history of the race or of the earth; but the very notice that we receive, the attention that we attract is a tribute to our union and to that amount of the cementing influence which prevails among us as a people. Union among us is all-important, because we have a power opposed to us that will destroy us if it can, there is no disguising this fact, it is publicly announced everywhere. It was hoped when the railroad was completed that that would do it; it was hoped that when the mines were discovered and emigration floated in here that the accompanying influences would accomplish it, that fashion, luxury, vice with all their corroding influences at work at this system would destroy it, or produce the disintegration of the entire people. Every effort of this kind has for its object the destruction of the union of this people. Why, if we were disunited, if we were split into factions we might have houses of ill-fame on every corner in juxtaposition with churches; we might have drinking saloons and gambling saloons; we might practice harlotry to the fullest extent, and who would indict us for it or say one word against our practices? No one; we would be following the fashion of the world. Why, it would furnish themes for preachers and they would have excellent texts, for where these things abound they flourish. But because we are united, because we have set our faces against these things, because we discourage vice we are unpopular, and we shall continue to be so until a better judgment prevail. I have said there is no disguising the fact, nobody attempts to disguise it, that the object sought for at the present time is the destruction of this people as a people. Not that many would avow their wish to have our lives taken, but to destroy our union, to destroy the influence of our leading men. Now, I ask you, Latter-day Saints, are you so blind and so foolish as not to see that this is the object of every attack which is made upon us? You who do not feel in favor of more union and of concentrating our efforts, ask yourselves this question and reflect upon the objects sought to be obtained by those who are arrayed against us. We do not seek the destruction of any, we have never been aggressive, we have never sought to force our opinions upon any one; we have invited all to come to this land and proclaim their principles here, without let or hindrance. They have not been gagged in their faith, or restrained or restricted in any manner. They have had the privilege of preaching to the fullest extent in our tabernacles and meeting-houses, and we have not had the least objection thereto, but on the contrary we have been pleased to see them. This is the course we have taken. But when we are threatened with destruction, as a pure matter of self-defence it is our duty to organize ourselves to resist these attacks, and the people who would not do it are unworthy of an existence upon the earth. I, therefore, have ever been, am now, and will always be, while I feel as I do at the present time, in favor of greater union among this people, in favor of the United Order in favor of everything that will give us strength and cement us closer and closer together and make our lines more impregnable than they are. And as I said the other day so say I again, with the help of God, my life shall be devoted to that object with all the strength, influence and ability which God shall give me among this people. Is there any harm in this? Not in the least, so long as our objects are what they are. We want to save, we want to preserve, we want to disseminate good principles, and any man or woman who will practice this can live forever in the midst of the Latter-day Saints and never have any difficulty. Every fair-minded man who comes to this land and deports himself as a gentleman, and any fair-minded lady who comes and deports herself in like manner, might live here until they were as old as Methuselah was, if we continued as we have been, without ever having the least cause of feeling against us. We ask no more from others than we are willing to extend to them with the greatest liberality and freedom; but we expect to have liberty and freedom for ourselves, and we shall contend for them in every constitutional and legal manner as long as we live.

My brethren and sisters, if you have not got this spirit of union let me advise you to seek for it. Humble yourselves before God and seek for it until the desire to be more closely united will burn within you, until you regard it as one of the greatest objects that can be attained. In a family capacity, in a ward capacity, or as a people, from north to south, we should not have these clashing and conflicting interests—Latter-day Saints against Latter-day Saints, and yet all of us professing to have the building up of God’s kingdom at heart. I do not know of anything else that we have to do. God has sent us here for this object, and I do not know any better thing that we can engage in than to build up the Zion of God. It is as good and as great a labor as we can be engaged in, in fact it is the labor which God has assigned unto us as a people and as individuals, and if any of us are engaged in anything else we are not in the line of our duty, and we should turn aside from that and pursue the path which God has marked out.

May God bless you and fill you with his Holy Spirit, that you may carry it with you to your various homes in the remote parts of the Territory, and that it may live and burn within you, fill you with good and holy desires to do the will of God, keep his commandments and live in close communion with him, and then you need never be afraid of being deceived, for you can not be if you have the Holy Ghost within you, and that this may be the case, is my prayer, in the name of Jesus. Amen.

The Gospel Restored From Heaven, etc.

Orson Pratt

Discourse by Elder Orson Pratt, delivered in the Fourteenth Ward Assembly Rooms, Sunday afternoon, November 15, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

We profess, Latter-day Saints, to be living in a dispensation called the dispensation of the fulness of times, a dispensation commenced and committed to men in our age by the administration of angels, by the revelations of the Holy Ghost, by bringing forth the word of God to the people, by restoring authority to the children of men to administer the ordinances of the Gospel, and by committing to them a message which is required to be published among the inhabitants of the earth. It is very evident from what was declared by the ancient Apostle that another dispensation after his day was to be introduced among the inhabitants of the earth. We read, in the first chapter of Paul’s epistle to the Ephesians, that in the dispensation of the fulness of times all things that are in Christ shall be gathered together in one. It is in accordance, therefore, with this dispensation that we see the people gathering here in this Territory and extending their settlements east and west, north and south. But we are only a very few of the people that God intends to gather together in one in this dispensation. It is literally a dispensation of gathering, not merely a gathering together of those who are here on the earth in the flesh; but before it is completed all things in Christ which are in heaven will also be gathered and united with those who are in Christ on the earth. We have but barely commenced in this glorious dispensation. The Church has been organized, by divine revelation, angels have appeared, the apostolic authority has been restored by the ministration of angels, and the kingdom of God has been set up in fulfillment of the promise made to the ancient Prophet Daniel—a kingdom which shall never be destroyed, never again be rooted out of the earth and never be committed to another people, but it shall continue forever while all human governments, of whatever name they shall be, will be rooted out of the earth by the divine judgments that will take place as the kingdom of God rolls forth among the nations. This is clearly foretold by nearly all the Prophets whose words are recorded in the divine Scriptures. They have spoken of the day when the Gospel should be restored; they have spoken of the period in which the kingdom of God should be set up and what it should accomplish; they have spoken of the signs that should be made manifest in those days both in the heavens and upon the earth; they have told us concerning the gathering, not only of the literal descendants of Israel, from the four quarters of the earth, but also of the gathering of all the Saints. These are matters so clearly foretold that I have often wondered in my own mind that people professing to believe the Bible and to receive the plain and pointed instructions contained therein, have not been looking for a dispensation connected with all these events that I have named.

What can possibly be the meaning, Latter-day Saints, of that prediction in the revelations of St. John, that another angel should fly through the midst of heaven, having the everlasting Gospel to preach to them that dwell on the earth, to every nation and kindred and people and tongue, saying with a loud voice—“Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come; and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters!” What can possibly be the meaning of this prediction and vision of John in relation to the future and the hour of God’s judgment if there never was to be another dispensation made manifest to the children of men? Certainly, before John saw this vision the Gospel had been very extensively preached among the inhabitants of the earth, to both Jews and Gentiles, so much so that Paul, prior to this time, speaking upon the subject of the preaching of the Gospel, says it had been preached to every creature under heaven, “whereof I, Paul, am made a minister.” It seems, according to his declaration, that he had an understanding in some way, either by revelation or from some other source, that the Gospel that was committed in his day had already been preached before his death to every creature under heaven; yet John, after this period, while on the Island of Patmos, after having written several epistles to the churches that were built up called the seven churches, and reproved them for their wickedness, apostacy and luke-warmness, threatening to remove their candlesticks out of their places, and fighting them with the spirit of his mouth; after having seen all this in vision on Patmos and writing to these churches, had presented before him a scene that was still in the future—a scene of darkness, apostacy, sin and corruption, wherein all nations should be more or less overcome, and during which certain powers should arise and fight against the kingdom of God, and make war with and overcome the Saints, and then another power should be established on the earth under the name of “The Mother of Harlots”—an ecclesiastical power, described as a woman sitting on a scarlet-colored beast, having a golden cup in her hands full of the filthiness and abominations of the earth, causing all nations to drink out of that cup, and making them drunk with the wine of the wrath of her fornication. John saw this portrayed among the events that were to take place after his day. He saw the Saints overpowered and, as the Apostle Paul had clearly predicted, a great falling away take place, and that men should be lovers of their own selves, proud boasters, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unholy, without natural affection, truce breakers, &c., having a form of godliness but denying the power thereof. This was clearly seen by the revelator on Patmos, as well as by the Apostle Paul. After having seen this, beholding all nations overcome, all people, kindred and tongues worshiping according to the creeds and ceremonies of this great ecclesiastical power that had risen, and supping out of the golden cup, the angel who revealed these things to John, in order to encourage him, showed that this wickedness would not always continue among the nations, and also gave him a view of the manner in which God would again visit the inhabitants of the earth, and he uses this prediction which I have quoted about the coming of another angel.

It seems that this angel was to come at a period when there would be no nation, kindred, tongue or people on the whole earth that had the power and authority to administer the Gospel of Christ. The ancient Apostles had very different views on this subject from those entertained by the divines of the present day. Almost all Christian denominations suppose that there have been Christian churches on the earth ever since the days of the Apostles, according to the New Testament pattern; but the ancient Apostles saw that, instead of being churches of Christ, they would have a form of godliness, denying the power, in other words, they would have no power to administer the Gospel as it was administered in ancient times; and this apostacy should be so universal in its nature that all people, nations and kindreds upon the face of the whole globe should be overcome by it, so much so that there should be no Christian church left, no people left that should have authority, no people left that could administer the ordinances of the Gospel, and hence it needed to be restored from heaven, and the method of its restoration was to be by an angel from heaven.

If we go among all these different denominations calling themselves Christians, and enquire of them if God has sent an angel, the answer of every soul will be—“No angel has come in our day. God sent angels to the Christian church in the primitive ages of Christianity, but now, for something like seventeen hundred years we have not been visited by angels, and no new message has been given.” This will be their declaration throughout the four quarters of the globe, wherever Christian churches, so called, are organized. Go to the great Mother Church, the oldest in existence among those professing Christianity, and make the enquiry of her members, and they will make the same declaration—“No message later than that given in the New Testament. God has said nothing by new revelation to guide our church. The holy Scriptures and the traditions handed down from the fathers are our rules of faith and practice.” Go to the Greek church, which separated from the Roman Catholics, the members of which are now so numerous that they number their millions, and ask them if they have received any message from God, and they will give an answer similar to that given by the Catholics—“Nothing new, our ecclesiastical authorities, archbishops, cardinals, etc., do not reveal anything new.” This you will find recorded in their writings. They declare that it is their business to interpret the old and to bring forth what the ancient fathers have said, and the church must be guided by these interpretations, and by the decrees of its uninspired authorities. Thus we may trace the Christian world in the four quarters thereof, and we shall find that they all acknowledge and declare that this angel, spoken of by John the Revelator, has never appeared to any of them.

Suppose that we now enquire of the Latter-day Saints. What do you believe, Latter-day Saints, about this matter? Why your universal answer is—“We as a people, without one dissenting voice, believe with all our hearts that God has sent his angel from heaven and restored the everlasting gospel in all its fulness.” What do you say, you missionaries, elders and high priests, and you seventies and apostles who have gone forth during the last forty-four years, and published these tidings in the four quarters of the globe? Why your universal answer is—“Wherever we have been we have published that which we were commanded—namely, that God has sent his angel from heaven, that that angel, by his administrations in our day, has brought to light a sacred record called the Book of Mormon, containing the fulness of the everlasting gospel as it was preached in ancient times upon this American Continent among the forefathers of the Indians.” This has been your testimony for almost half a century has it? Yes. Why did you bear this testimony among the people? Because you were commanded to do so, it was a message committed to you, and if you had not fulfilled the requirement given in the commandment you would have been under condemnation.

Then so far as the faith of this people is concerned it is consistent with the prediction that was uttered by the Apostle John. John said that such should be the case, the Latter-day Saints say that such is the case; one predicted that it should be in the future, the other declares that it has already come to pass, and that God, in our day, has commissioned that angel and that he has appeared unto some, and through them, committed the fulness of the everlasting gospel to the human family and commanded them to bear record of it to all people. There is nothing inconsistent so far as this item of faith is concerned.

But here will arise a question in the minds of some who have not investigated this subject; they will admit that, if our testimony is true, the message which we proclaim is one of the most important that has been committed to man for seventeen hundred years past. This all will admit; for this message does not concern one nation alone, but all nations, for, as John stated, it is to be declared to every nation, kindred, tongue and people. Why? Because none of them had the gospel at the time it was revealed, that is the reason. If there had been one little corner of the earth where the gospel was preached and its ordinances administered by divine authority, there would have been no necessity for its restoration by an angel, all we would have had to do would have been to hunt up that little corner of the earth, where some tongue or people had the gospel and the church organized among them; they could have baptized and confirmed us, and administered to us the sacrament and all the blessings of the gospel. But from the very fact that there were no such people on the earth in the four quarters thereof, it had to be restored anew from heaven. This is our testimony, and it is plain and pointed, but the query is, among those who have not investigated it—“Is this true?”

Among the evidences that have accompanied the committing of this gospel to men in our day by an angel, let me refer you to those which were given before this church arose, when Joseph Smith, that farmer’s boy, was commanded to go to the hill Cumorah and take from the place of their deposit the plates from which the Book of Mormon was translated, and to translate them. When he was commanded to do this work, and while in the act of doing it, the Lord God sent his angel to three men besides the translator, and to these men the angel exhibited, leaf by leaf, the unsealed portion of these plates, and at the same time the voice of the Lord from heaven was heard, testifying that the work had been translated correctly, and commanding them to bear witness of it unto all people, nations and tongues to whom this work should be sent. They, therefore, prefix their testimony in the Book of Mormon to that effect, testifying to the ministration of the angel, to seeing the plates and the engravings thereon, and to its correct translation.

Here then, were four witnesses—the translator and three others, before the rise of this church, who testify that God sent his angel. It is not a speculation with them, but something absolutely certain. They could not be deceived in relation to this matter. Joseph Smith could not be deceived when the angel told him to go and obtain these plates, and gave him a vision of the very place where they were deposited, and he actually obtained them, and with them the Urim and Thummim, by which he translated them. There was no possibility of his being deceived in relation to the matter. And when these three men, in answer to their prayers, saw the angel in his glory, saw him descend from heaven clothed with glory, saw him take these plates, saw them in his hands, heard the voice of God from heaven bearing testimony to the correctness of the translation, commanding them to bear witness to all people, they could not be deceived in relation to this matter, it was something positive to them; and if you say they were deceived, with the same propriety an infidel may say that all the prophets from Adam down to the days of John, who professed to see angels, were deceived; with the same propriety they could contend against the holy Scriptures on the same ground that many would contend against the testimony of the Book of Mormon.

Were there any others who saw the plates besides these four men? Yes. How many? Eight, all before this church was organized. These eight witnesses have also given their testimony, and it is prefixed to the Book of Mormon. The eight did not see the angel, but they saw the plates, and they testify that they handled them, and saw the engravings thereon, all of which had the appearance of ancient workmanship, and, in the close of their testimony they say—“And this we bear testimony of, and we lie not, God bearing witness of it.”

This makes twelve witnesses to the original of the Book of Mormon. Would to God that we had twelve witnesses to the original of the Bible, so that it might stand on equal testimony with the Book of Mormon! But, alas, there is not one original in existence that we know of, and neither has there been for many generations past, of any one book of the Bible from the beginning of Genesis to the end of Revelation. Says one—“Do you mean to say that King James’s translators did not translate the Bible from the original?” Yes that is what I say. They translated it from from the language of certain manuscripts, which language, of course, was not the English language; but they did not translate from the original. Why? Because, for aught we know, these manuscripts might have been the 999th copy from the original. There might have been two thousand copies handed from one scribe to another and transcribed instead of the original. Indeed, what man for the last ten centuries has ever seen one of the originals of the Bible? I do not know of any, and we have no account in history, either sacred or profane, that the original has ever been seen by any person for the last ten or twelve centuries; but we have the testimony of many learned men, men who profess Christianity and to believe the Bible, that, in gathering together the most original manuscripts they could find and comparing them one with another—manuscripts in the Hebrew, Greek and other ancient languages—they found that they contradicted one another, and that there are something like thirty thousand different readings among those different manuscripts. Some of these learned men have collected together an immense quantity of these different manuscripts and have expended large fortunes in so doing. For what purpose? That they might translate them into the English language; but when they came to compare them they found such a variety of contradictions that they gave the task up in despair. Others have taken such manuscripts as they could get hold of, and have done the best they could. One thing is certain, King James’s translators, being among the wisest men and greatest scholars of their day, did justice to the subject as far as it was possible by uninspired men.

Now the Christian world believe the Bible, so do the Latter-day Saints. We believe that the original was just as true as the Book of Mormon, that is our faith; and that the Book of Mormon is just as true as the original books of the Bible. The world believe that the Bible is a divine record, but on what evidence do they believe it? Certainly not because there is the testimony of any parties who ever saw the original. Here, then, we bring forth the Book of Mormon to you, and we present to you twelve witnesses who have seen the original of that book. Do you not perceive that, so far as this one species of evidence is concerned, the Book of Mormon is supported by a greater amount of evidence than the Bible? Is there one person among all the Christian churches and denominations, for the last sixteen centuries, who knows the Bible to be true by the ministration of an holy angel? No, not a single individual, for according to the testimony of all the Christian sects, during the whole of that time no angel has been sent and nothing new has been revealed.

If it be true that God has not revealed anything since the days of John the Revelator, then no person has had a knowledge given him as to the truth of the Bible. But how is it with the Book of Mormon? Four men have seen an angel. Now compare or contrast this evidence concerning the two books. These four men were men of your own times, men whom you could cross-question, witnesses whom you had the privilege of interrogating in relation to their testimony. But we are told that the Bible bears record of its own divinity, and that the Saints who lived in ancient days did see angels. Now suppose we admit that the Bible does bear testimony of its own divinity. Turn to and read the declarations of Nephi and Alma, and of the prophet Jacob, and many other prophets who wrote the various books in the Book of Mormon, and they bear testimony that they saw angels. The Bible bears testimony that the prophets who wrote the various books which it contains did the same. Now put one on a par with the other and, so far as that species of evidence is concerned, one is just equal to the other.

Again, the Bible says, in giving a commission to the ancient apostles to go and preach the gospel, that certain signs should follow all the believers through the whole world. “Go ye forth and preach the gospel to every creature under heaven, he that believes and is baptized shall be saved, and he that believeth not shall be damned; and these signs shall follow them that believe—in my name they shall cast out devils.” Mark, now, not the apostles alone, they were not the only ones whom these signs should follow, but they were to follow every creature in all the world who should believe, making it as definite and unlimited as possible. They were not only to have salvation, but they were to be blessed with certain signs following them. What were they? “In my name they shall cast out devils, they shall speak with new tongues, they shall take up serpents, and if they drink any deadly thing it shall not harm them, they shall lay hands on the sick and they shall recover.” Certain definite promises were made to the believers by which they could distinguish themselves from all the rest of mankind, and it is recorded in the following verses of of the same chapter, that the apostles went everywhere preaching the word, the Lord working with them and confirming the word by signs following.

What are we to understand by confirming the word with signs following? Are we to understand that the Apostles alone confirmed the word? No. There were certain signs which were to follow the believers wherever they preached. The promise was to every creature in all the world. They went everywhere and preached this word, and the Lord wrought with them by confirming the word to every believer throughout all the world, by causing the promise to be fulfilled to those believers. Here then, the believers had no particular necessity for asking the apostles to perform miracles, for they themselves were blessed with certain miraculous signs, and the Lord confirmed these signs upon them, so that they were not obliged to seek foreign testimony, or for miracles wrought by somebody else, for every person, male or female, who believed and obeyed that gospel, obtained for himself, the signs promised. This is what the Scriptures inform us, and in this dispensation, when God revealed this Gospel anew, and sent his angel and organized his church, and sent forth his servants, the same promise was made as to the ancient Saints. I can read it here in this book, for this is the book of the revelations and commandments that was given to the Prophet Joseph Smith before the rise of this church, and a short period after its rise. In this book we find recorded something like this—“As I said unto mine ancient apostles I say unto you”—speaking to the elders of this church—“go ye forth among all the nations, preaching my gospel; he that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, and he that believeth not shall be damned; and these signs shall follow them that believe—in my name they shall cast out devils, in my name they shall open the eyes of the blind they shall unstop the ears of the deaf, they shall cause the tongue of the dumb to speak, and the lame man to leap as a hart.” This promise was not made to the elders alone who went forth in this dispensation, but to all throughout the world who believe in their testimony.

This was pretty bold language to be used if Joseph Smith was really an impostor; if he was an impostor he, in using such language and making such a promise, laid the foundation for the overthrow of his own system. It is a very easy matter to make a promise of this kind, nothing is easier than that; but to fulfill that promise is altogether another thing. Here was a promise made in the very early rise of this church, upwards of forty years ago, that certain signs should follow them that received and obeyed this gospel. Let us inquire on this subject, for this is one species of evidence that is dwelt upon by the opposers of this work wherever we go. When the elders came to you Latter-day Saints, in the various nations where you resided, and preached the gospel to you, did the Lord confirm these promises unto you, or did he not? You can hear the united testimony of some fifty or a hundred thousand people dwelling in this Territory, that God did truly and in reality confirm this promise unto his servants, and unto his handmaidens while in the different nations from which they emigrated; that he did cause the blind to see, the lame to walk, the tongue of the dumb to speak, and that he did cause his power to be made manifest in very deed, just as the promise was given.

Here then, was a vast cloud of witnesses, some fifty thousand living witnesses. Can we find one living witness who will bear such evidence as this to the truth of the Bible? No. Go among all the Christian denominations and ask them—“Are you believers?” “O yes, we are believers.” “Do the signs follow you that Jesus said should follow the believers?” What is their answer? No, almost without an exception. There may be some few exceptions; but what was the universal answer before spiritualism commenced, before the days in which Joseph brought forth this work, and for some few years after, among the Christian denominations? It was—“No, God has not shown forth any of those signs that he said should follow the believers.” Why then do you call yourselves believers? If God has not confirmed the word to you by signs following how do you know that you are believers? May it not be that you are deceiving yourselves? May it not be that you have merely got a form of godliness, and that the power does not attend you? According to their own testimony they have no right nor authority to call themselves believers; and the promise contained in the Bible, made to believers, have never been confirmed to any of the so-called Christian sects since the days that King James’ translators translated them. But when we take the Book of Mormon and examine it on this kind of evidence we have fifty thousand witnesses ready to testify to the fulfillment of these promises, many of them having experienced the fulfillment thereof in their own persons, while others have seen the manifestations of God’s power in healing the sick and afflicted among his people from time to time; consequently the Latter-day Saints have fifty thousand times more evidence so far as the signs following are concerned, of the divinity of the Book of Mormon than what the Christian world have of the divinity of the book called the Bible.

Moreover there is another kind of evidence which the Lord promised before the rise of this church, when he conferred the apostleship again upon the heads of the children of men, and gave them authority to preach this gospel and to administer its ordinances; he told them that they should preach the gospel, and that they should baptize every penitent believer who desired baptism, and that they should lay their hands upon the heads of those penitent, believers in confirmation, pronouncing, by the authority of their apostleship and office and calling, the Holy Ghost upon those baptized believers; and God promised, before the rise of this church, that every soul among all people, nations and tongues that would receive this gospel with full purpose of heart, should be baptized with fire and with the Holy Ghost by the laying on of the hands of his servants. It is a very easy matter for an impostor to make a promise of this kind, but supposing it should not be fulfilled, supposing that the Holy Ghost did not come upon the people, in the course of one or two years the believers, so called, in Mormonism would all apostatize, they would very naturally say—“the promise was made that we should receive the Holy Ghost through the ordinance of the laying on of hands, and yet we have not received it.” “Here is the promise that we should heal the sick, and that the various signs should follow us, but these promises have not been fulfilled, we turn away from your system with disgust, we do not believe there is any authority in it,” and Mormonism would soon have been banished out of existence. But what are the facts? The fact that there is now a hundred thousand Latter-day Saints gathered from the various nations of the earth into these mountain regions proves to me beyond dispute or controversy that they did realize the promise, namely, that the Holy Ghost did rest upon them, and that by virtue of that gift they did receive revelation and visions and prophecies and the word of the Lord to themselves, and knew of a surety that this was the work of God; and in consequence of this knowledge, not mere faith, but in consequence of this knowledge which they received in their own native lands they gathered up here to this land. It would require a great degree of faith to induce people to forsake their own lands and the homes and graves of their ancestors, to come across the ocean some three thousand miles, then take an inland journey of two or three thousand miles or more, and come to a desert country, as we did when we first settled this land; I say it would require a great deal of faith to induce people to do this. But let me tell you that it was not by faith alone that the believers in the system established by the Prophet Joseph Smith did this; it was something beyond faith—they obtained a knowledge before they started. There may have been some exceptions, but many of them obtained a knowledge before they left their native countries that this was the work of God. You obtained this knowledge through the inspiration of the Holy Ghost; the gifts of that Spirit were manifest among you as they were among the members of the ancient Church, and by its inspiration you were edified and instructed, and you received a knowledge, in fulfillment of the promise of Jesus made in ancient times—“If any man will do the will of my Father, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself.” In the first place, they have to believe before they can do the will of the Father; but belief and knowledge are two very different things. By faith, without a knowledge, many repent and obey the ordinances of the Gospel, and then they receive a testimony to themselves, some in one way, some in another; some by having visions given to them, some by the ministrations of holy messengers, some by the healing of the sick, some by the revelations and inspiration of the Holy Ghost.

These are the evidences then which we have to present before the world, to substantiate the divine authenticity of the Book of Mormon. Have you any objection to them? Says one—“Here is my objection; it matters not how many miracles are wrought, how many signs are given, and whatever evidence may be pretended to have been received, it does not matter about this, if a thing is inconsistent in and of itself, if it contradicts itself, if it contradicts the Bible I shall reject it.” I honor you for that judgment, I would do the same. If the Book of Mormon contradicted the revelations of God called the Bible, given on the other continent, you might tear up the sycamore trees and cast them into the sea, or you might say to this mountain—“Depart hence,” and if it should be done it would not be sufficient evidence in my mind to make me receive it. A thing must be consistent, and when we come to open and read the Book of Mormon, do we find any evidence therein of its falsity? Read it from beginning to end in relation to its historical matter. It pretends to be a history of the coming of a small colony, two or three families, from the city of Jerusalem, led by the hand of the Lord. They built a ship by the command of the Lord, and were guided by his hand across the ocean; they landed on the western coast of South America, about six hundred years before Christ; and after that they worked their way up towards the narrow strip of land we call the Isthmus, and founded settlements and, finally, about fifty years before Christ, sent forth their colonies into the north wing of the continent, which we call North America, and in process of time the whole land became peopled and overspread with millions of people. Now read this history from the time they left Jerusalem until the time that the Nephite nation were destroyed by another portion of the nation called Lamanites, and their records were hid up by their last Prophet: read this history and see if you can find any contradictions therein; if you can not, you can not condemn the book so far as the historical matter is concerned.

Says one—“Oh, but it might have been got up by some cunning individual, who was very careful in his management, so as to get all the links of the history perfectly in accordance one with another, and still it may be false.” On what ground? Says the objector—“Perhaps the doctrines taught in the different ages by the several Prophets mentioned in the various books of the compilation do not agree.” Very well, read the whole of the books contained in the compilation, the period included in which comprises a thousand years, from the time they landed on the continent to the time the Nephites were destroyed, search the doctrine preached by each Prophet in the successive generations and see if you can find any contradictions; if you cannot find anything that contradicts itself, then see if you can find in that book anything that contradicts what is contained in the compilation of the Prophets on the eastern hemisphere; see if you can find anything in the Book of Mormon that clashes with or contradicts the Bible, then perhaps you will have a little justification for saying you do not believe it. But when you have made this thorough examination and find no contradictions between the two records you will certainly have no right to say the book is false, so far as its doctrines are concerned.

Says one—“That book called the Book of Mormon professes to be a prophetic record, and has a great many prophecies, and perhaps these prophecies may disagree with the prophecies contained in the Old Testament, or perhaps they may disagree among themselves, in which case it would weaken my faith in regard to it.” In this ease I would say as I said concerning its doctrines—search all its prophecies diligently—and it contains prophecies that reach to the very end of the earth—search diligently those that have been fulfilled since the rise of the Church as well as before, and search those that are yet to be fulfilled from this time until the coming of the Savior, and from that time down to the end of the earth, and see if you can find one contradiction in all the record; and then compare them with the prophecies contained in the Bible, and if they do not contradict one another, have you or I any right to say that it is not a revelation from God? There must be some evidence that we can bring forward by which we can be justified in rejecting a book as being a divine revelation. Now where is that evidence, what species of evidence is it, where can it be obtained, from what quarter, in order to condemn that book as not being a divine revelation? I know of none.

I have given you, very briefly, my reasons, and the reasons of the Latter-day Saints for believing that book to be a divine revelation. Moreover, let me go still further. We find in the Bible, the Jewish record, many prophecies that point forward to the coming forth of a similar record to that called the Book of Mormon, pointing out what should be fulfilled when a certain record or book should come forth; pointing out a period, time or age of the world when it should come forth, and the object for which it should come forth.

Now the Book of Mormon has come forth to fulfill these ancient prophecies. I have not time to refer to them to-day particularly, but those who have heard these things for forty years past are well versed in relation to the predictions of the Bible, concerning the coming forth of such a work as the Book of Mormon. Now let any learned man prove that this work has not come forth in fulfillment of these prophecies, show some discrepancy, show wherein it can not possibly be the fulfilling of these prophecies. Can they do this? If they can they perhaps may have a little justification for rejecting the work; but if, on the other hand, they can not show the fulfilling of those prophecies in any other facts that have been revealed; if they can not prove that the Book of Mormon is not the fulfillment of those prophecies they certainly can not be justified in rejecting it. “Well,” says one, “is there any special prophecy in the Bible that calls that book by name, or that there should be a book called the Book of Mormon, come forth?” In answering this question, let me ask you another question—Is there anything in the prophecy of Isaiah or any Prophet who lived before his days that speaks particularly of a Prophet coming forth by the name of Jeremiah, who should reveal certain revelations? “Oh no,” says one. Well, then, ought you not to reject the prophecy of Jeremiah, inasmuch as no Prophet preceding him spoke of him, no one who lived before him who said a word about his book called the Book of Jeremiah? Moreover, were there no Prophets that prophecied concerning the coming of Ezekiel and his book, and Hosea and his book, and of Joel, Amos, Malachi, and many of the ancient Prophets who might be named? What preceding Prophet prophecied concerning the coming forth of these books? None at all. The Jews would have had the same right in the days of these Prophets to say—“I will reject you Jeremiah, and I will not receive your revelations, and my reasons for rejecting you are that none of the preceding Prophets have named you by name, and they have not spoken of your book.” The Jews might have rejected the whole catalogue of the Prophets on this ground; therefore, this is another species of evidence in favor of the Book of Mormon, over and above that which can be brought to establish the divinity of the Bible.

What more might be said to prove the divinity of the Book of Mormon? I will bring up some other evidence besides all that I have named. We are told in the prophecies of the holy Prophets, not only about the coming of the angel, but we are told that when God should set up his kingdom and send that angel, it should be a dispensation of gathering the people of God. Now, supposing that Joseph Smith had all these proofs that I have named to testify concerning the divinity of this book, and had said nothing about the gathering, what then? Why you and I could go to our homes and say, “good by Joseph Smith, we do not believe you to be a Prophet.” “Why?” “Because the latter-day dispensation was to be characterized by the gathering together of all things in one that are in Christ, and you have said nothing about it, and therefore we reject you.” But is it so? No; before the rise of this Church, while Joseph Smith was translating the Book of Mormon, it is predicted here, in this translation, that the Church should go forth from this continent to all the people, nations and tongues of the earth, and that all who believed should be gathered in one. Now how did Joseph Smith know that that would be fulfilled when there was no Church in existence? It is a very easy matter, as I said before, to prophesy, but to fulfill is another thing. But here in Utah is the fulfillment, for here are upwards of a hundred thousand people gathered out from the nations of the earth, proving definitely, at least so far as this species of evidence is concerned, that Joseph Smith certainly was a true Prophet, for he predicted it before it commenced to take place.

There is another species of evidence in this book. It is foretold within its pages that after it should come forth in the latter day and the Church should have been established, the blood of the Saints should cry from the ground against their persecutors and those who should slay them. This was a prophecy, the fulfillment of which in an enlightened age like this, seemed very unlikely. We find that, since the organization of this free government, and our great charter of liberties and constitution, since the time of the enunciation of these choice republican principles upon this continent by this great and powerful nation, that the blood of no sects or parties has, as it were, stained our ground because of the belief of the people. Sometimes they get killed in mobs about anti-slavery, or something of that kind; but when it comes to religion it has generally been a little persecution with the tongue, and that has been about all. But here was a prediction before the rise of the Church that the blood of the Saints should cry from the ground against their persecutors. This has been literally fulfilled. We have no need to refer you to the scores of Saints that were shot down in cool blood, who, while emigrating with their wives and children in order to locate in another country, were fallen upon by mobs, chased into a blacksmith’s shop, and there some eighteen or twenty of them were shot down by their persecutors, who pointed their guns between the logs of the shop, it being a log building. Then, when they had got through with these murders they began to rob them of their clothes and pulled off their boots and put them on, and while in the act of doing this they discovered two or three little children who had crept under the bellows in hope of escaping. What did they do with these children? Called them out, and placing their guns to their heads shot them down and destroyed them. All these things have transpired within the past forty years upon this great and glorious land of ours. The constitution is good, that is not to blame, that gives us the privilege of religious liberty; but those who have lived under this free government have seen proper to thus persecute and murder the Saints, and their blood has been shed, and it now cries from the ground for vengeance on the nation.

Says one—“Why on the nation?” Because it was not done by a private mob, but by the officers of a State; it was done by the highest authority and power of a State, by individuals who were organized under State authority to go against an innocent people. We had never broken a law, and the records of their courts could not show one case wherein this people had transgressed the laws of the land.

The people thus organized to drive the Latter-day Saints, of course, had their reasons for so doing, everybody has, or endeavors to find a reason for the course he pursues. One reason assigned for persecuting the Saints was that they believed in the gifts that the ancient Saints believed in. Some may be disposed to doubt the truth of this statement, but to such I say, go and read their documents and there you will find the reasons they set forth for this murderous work, and among those reasons they say—“A certain people have come amongst us who believe in speaking in tongues, in the interpretation of tongues, in the healing of the sick, and in the various gifts that were in existence in the ancient Church, and we pledge ourselves and our property and all that we have that we will remove them from our midst, peaceably if we can and forcibly if we must.”

Now, would you believe that people would be driven from their homes and murdered by individuals because they were exercising religious rights guaranteed to them by the constitutlon [constitution] of their country? Did Joseph Smith know that such persecution would arise before the Church was organized? Could he have written such prophecies and the Book of Mormon if he had been an impostor? How did he know they would ever be fulfilled? How did he know that this Gospel would he spread to the uttermost parts of the earth? How did he know that the people abroad in other nations would gather to this land, according to the prophecies that were uttered? All these things prove him to be a prophet sent of God, as his prophecies were fulfilled.

Finally, examine every point of evidence you can think of; take up, step by step, the various events that must take place—the preaching of the Gospel to the Gentiles to bring in their fulness that their times may be fulfilled; the preaching of it to the Jews; the preaching of it to the scattered tribes of Israel, and all the other events predicted in connection with this Latter-day work; take them up one by one, and see if this people have left one thing out of their faith that should characterize the dispensation of the fulness of times. Do the Scriptures foretell the gathering of the Jews from the four quarters of the earth? The Book of Mormon does the same thing. Do the Scriptures say that the Jews should remain scattered until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled? The Book of Mormon and the Revelations given to this Church declare the same thing. Did the ancient Prophets and Apostles declare that the Gospel of the Kingdom should be preached to all nations, that the fulness of the Gentiles should come in before all Israel should be saved? This also is according to the faith of the Latter-day Saints’ Church and is contained in our writings. And, finally, take up every principle, predicted by the ancient Prophets, pertaining to the great preparatory work for the coming of the Lord from the heavens and see if it differs in the least iota from the belief of the Latter-day Saints. When we come to combine all these evidences we are not ashamed of our faith, we are not ashamed of our doctrine, we are not ashamed of the dispensation which has been committed to us. We are abundantly able, through the assistance of the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven, and the grace of God shed forth in our hearts to maintain with all boldness and confidence the great, heavenly and glorious principles which God our heavenly Father has revealed to us in these latter times. Amen.

Joseph Smith’s First Visions, etc.

Orson Pratt

Discourse by Elder Orson Pratt, delivered in the New Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Sunday afternoon, September 20, 1874. Reported by David W. Evans.

I will read the 3rd and 4th verses of the 29th chapter of Isaiah:

“And I will camp against thee round about, and I will lay siege against thee with a mount, and I will raise forts against thee.

“And thou shalt be brought down, and shalt speak out of the ground, and thy speech shall be low out of the dust, and thy voice shall be as of one that hath a familiar spirit, out of the ground, and thy speech shall whisper out of the dust.”

[The speaker also read the 10th, 11th, 12th, 13th, 14th and 18th verses of the same chapter.]

It will be forty-seven years the day after to-morrow since the plates, from which the Book of Mormon was translated, were obtained by the Prophet Joseph Smith, and as there may be persons in this assembly who are unacquainted with the circumstances of the finding of this book, I will relate some circumstances in relation to the beginning of this great and marvelous work.

Joseph Smith, generally known in the world as “Old Joe Smith,” was a boy about fourteen years of age at the time the Lord first revealed himself in a very marvelous manner to him. The circumstances were these: This boy, in attending religious meetings that were held in his neighborhood, seemed to be wrought upon in a very wonderful manner, and he felt great concern in relation to the salvation of his soul. Many young people were wrought upon by the same spirit, and they commenced seeking the Lord, and professed to be converted. Among this number were several of the Smith family, who united themse[l]ves with the Presbyterians. During the progress of this revival a sort of rivalry sprang up among the various denominations, and each one seemed determined to obtain as many of the converts as possible, and have them unite with his particular religious order. This boy, Joseph Smith, was solicited and advised to unite himself with some of the religious denominations in that vicinity, but being of a reflecting turn of mind, he inquired in his own heart which among these several religious bodies was right. I presume that many of you, at some period of your existence, have been wrought upon in the same manner, because you have been anxious to join yourselves to the true church of God if you could only find which was God’s church. It was not, therefore, at all strange that this young man should have these ideas passing through his mind; but how to satisfy himself he did not know. If he went to one denomination they would say, “We are right, and the others are wrong,” and so said all the others. Like most boys of his age, Joseph had never read the Bible to any great extent, hence he was unable to decide in his own mind, as to which was the true church. When he saw several denominations contending one with the other, he naturally enough supposed that some of them must be wrong. He began to search the Bible in his leisure time after his work was done upon the farm; and in perusing the New Testament, he came across a passage which is very familiar indeed to most of my hearers; the passage reads thus—If any of you lack wisdom let him ask of God, who giveth to all men liberally and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.” Mr. Smith really believed this passage. He did not read this as one would read a novel, thinking that it was all imaginary; but, from his heart, he believed that it meant what it said, and he said to himself—“I certainly lack wisdom in relation to my duty. I do not know which of these denominations is correct, and which is the church of Christ. I desire to know, with all my heart, and I will go before the Lord, and call upon his name, claiming his promise.” He therefore retired a short distance from his father’s house, into a little grove of timber, and called upon the Lord, claiming this promise, desiring to know his duty and to be informed where the true Church of Christ was. While thus praying, with all his heart, he discovered in the heavens above him, a very bright and glorious light, which gradually descended towards the earth, and when it reached the tops of the trees which overshadowed him, the brightness was so great that he expected to see the leaves of the tree consumed by it; but when he saw that they were not consumed he received courage. Finally the light rested down upon and overwhelmed him in the midst of it, and his mind at the same time seemed to be caught away from surrounding objects, and he saw nothing excepting the light and two glorious personages standing before him in the midst of this light. One of these personages, pointing to the other, said—“Behold my beloved Son, hear ye him.” After this, power was given to Mr. Smith to speak, and in answer to an inquiry by the Lord as to what he desired, he said that he desired to know which was the true Church, that he might be united thereunto. He was immediately told, that there was no true Church of Christ on the earth, that all had gone astray, and had framed doctrines, and dogmas, and creeds by human wisdom, and that the authority to administer in the holy ordinances of the Gospel was not among men upon the earth, and he was strictly commanded to go not after any of them, but to keep aloof from the whole of them. He was also informed that, in due time, if he would be faithful in serving the Lord, according to the best of his knowledge and ability, God would reveal to him still further, and make known to him the true Gospel, the plan of salvation, in its fulness.

Mr. Smith had this vision before he was fifteen years old, and, immediately after receiving it, he began to relate it to some of his nearest friends, and he was told by some of the ministers who came to him to enquire about it, that there was no such thing as the visitation of heavenly messengers, that God gave no new revelation, and that no visions could be given to the children of men in this age. This was like telling him that there was no such thing as seeing, or feeling, or hearing, or tasting, or smelling. Why? Because he knew positively to the contrary; he knew that he had seen this light, that he had beheld these two personages, and that he had heard the voice of one of them; he also knew that he had received instruction from them, and therefore, to be told that there was no such thing as revelation or vision in these days, was like telling him that the sun did not shine in these days. He knew to the contrary, and he continued to testify that God had made himself manifest to him; and in consequence of this, the prejudices of the different denominations were aroused against him.

Why should they feel such concern and anxiety in relation to his testimony as to persecute him, a boy not quite fifteen years of age? The reason was obvious—if that testimony was true, not one of their churches was the true Church of Christ. No wonder, then, that they began to persecute, point the finger of scorn, and say—“There goes the visionary boy.”

In the year 1823, Mr. Smith, being not quite eighteen years old, was meditating in his heart concerning the former vision, and was feeling great anxiety that the promise might be fulfilled to him, that he should, at some future time, have revealed to him the Gospel in all its fulness. He retired to his room one Sunday evening, in September (1823,) and commenced to pray with all the earnestness and faith that he could possibly obtain, that the Lord would fulfill the promise that he had made to him. While thus praying, he discovered that a light seemed to be breaking into his room, growing brighter by degrees, until he saw a personage, apparently an angel, standing before him. This personage wore a white robe, and his countenance had the appearance of lightning, but yet appeared of an innocent expression. This personage did not stand upon the floor of the room, but his feet were a short distance above the floor. He informed this boy that the Lord had sent him as a messenger, in answer to his prayer, in order to impart unto him further information. And then he commenced telling him that this great American continent was once occupied by a numerous people, the descendants of the house of Israel, most of them the descendants of a remnant of the tribe of Joseph; that they came here from Jerusalem by the direct guidance of the Almighty, some six centuries before Christ; that in a vessel, which they built by the command of God, they came round by the Gulf of Arabia, crossed the Great Pacific Ocean, and landed on the western coast of South America; that the descendants of these people had many Prophets among them, and that after they had been on this continent about a thousand years, during the progress of which they had become divided into two distinct nations, they fell into great wickedness, and that God threatened them with overthrow; the people of one of these nations were called Lamanites, from Laman, one of the colony which came out of Jerusalem; that the people of the other nation were called Nephites, taking their name from Nephi, the brother of Laman; that between three and four centuries after Christ these two nations occupied the two great wings of this continent, the Lamanites occupying South America, and the Nephites North America; but the Nephites, at that time, having apostatized from the religion of their fathers, and many of them having become exceedingly wicked, the Lord threatened them with an overthrow. And he commanded one of the last Prophets, named Mormon, to make an abridgment of all the records of former Prophets who had been raised up on this land, an abridgment of the history of the nation from the time that they left Jerusalem until that time. He did so, and committed the abridged record, written on plates of gold, into the hands of another Prophet, his son Moroni. The original records, from which the abridgment was made, were hid up by Mormon in a hill called Cumorah, in the interior of what is now called the State of New York, but the abridgment was still in possession of the Prophet Moroni. About this time, or a little before this time, there had been a fifty years war between the inhabitants of North and South America; and finally the Lamanites of South America drove the Nephites from the Isthmus, and continued to burn their towns, cities and villages, and they destroyed hundreds and thousands of the Nephites; and ultimately they were driven into what we now call the State of New York. Three hundred and eighty years after the birth of Christ they entered into terms of peace, or, in other words, an armistice, for the space of four years, during which time the two nations gathered together all their forces into one vicinity, near the hill Cumorah. And when the four years of peace, or armistice, had expired, they came together in battle, in which the Nephites were overpowered, and hundreds of thousands of them killed, including women and children. Moroni, who was among the few Nephites who were spared, and in whose possession was the abridgment which had been made by his father, Mormon, was commanded to hide up that abridgment in the hill Cumorah, near the town of Manchester, Ontario County, State of New York. The Lord commanded him not only to hide up the record, but also to deposit with it the Urim and Thummim, an instrument used by the ancient seers who dwelt on this Continent. The Lord promised Moroni that, in the latter days, he would bring forth that book out of the ground, that it should whisper out of the dust; that it should speak unto the living as if it were from the dead, and when he should bring it forth this Urim and Thummim, deposited with it, should enable the finder to translate it into the language of the people who should then inherit the land.

I have now given you a brief statement of these things, in substance, as they were taught by the angel of God who administered to Joseph Smith in September, 1823. After giving this instruction the angel disappeared; and as Mr. Smith continued to pray and call upon the name of the Lord, the angel appeared the second time, and made the same narration in relation to the Lamanites and Nephites as he made on his first visit. When conversing with Mr. Smith about these records, the vision of his mind was opened so that he was enabled to see where the records were deposited, and he was told by the angel that, if he would be faithful and do according to the commandments of the Lord his God, he, in due time, should have the privilege of bringing the records forth, and that he should translate them for the benefit of the people.

The angel again departed, and Mr. Smith, being unable to go to sleep, continued to pray, and the vision was renewed again; the angel, on his third visit, not only reiterating his previous statement, but also declaring many things that were then in the future in relation to the marvelous work and wonder which the Lord was about to perform upon the earth. When he had withdrawn for the third time, daylight began to appear in the east, and Mr. Smith had not slept the whole night; but he nevertheless went to work with his father in the field, at their usual early hour. But the visions of the night wrought upon his mind to that degree, that his natural strength began to fail, and his father, noticing that he looked pale, advised him to return at once to the house. He started to do so, but had only gone part of the way, when he again saw the light in the heavens, and the angel of God came down and stood before him, and commanded him to return to his father, and relate the visions of the previous night to him. He did so; and the old man commanded his son to be obedient to the heavenly messenger, believing with all his heart that the vision was from the Almighty. On this last occasion the angel told Mr. Smith to go to the hill Cumorah, which had been shown to him in vision the previous night, which was about three miles from his father’s house, and there he should have the privilege of beholding the records. He, after having spoken to his father, accordingly went, and beheld the records. He knew the place as soon as he saw it. He saw the crowning stone of the stone box that covered the records. It was oval in form, and was partially bare, the edges being under the sod. He immediately removed the turf that covered the edges of this stone, and, with a lever, succeeded in lifting off the upper stone, which was cemented to four others, in the form of a box, within which he saw the plates and the Urim and Thummim. He was about to put forth his hand to take the plates, when lo! the angel of God appeared again, and told him that the time had not fully come for these records to come forth; that he (Joseph) was yet inexperienced, and needed strength, and that if he would be obedient to the commands which he would give to him, and which the Lord would impart from time to time, he should, in due time, be permitted to receive these records, commanding him at the same time to come there one year from that date, and that he would appear again to him, and give him further instructions; and thus he should do from year to year, until he should receive the plates, provided that he should prove himself worthy before God; for the angel said unto him, that these plates could not be obtained by any person for speculative purposes; that they contained records that, were sacred, prophecies and doctrines that were written by ancient Prophets, and that the Lord God had promised that these prophecies and revelations should go forth to all people, nations and tongues, and that they could not be entrusted with any one to get gain.

From that time, Mr. Smith, on the 22nd of September each year, continued to visit this place, until the year 1827, he being then not quite twenty-two years old. On the morning of the 22nd of September, in the year 1827, the angel of the Lord permitted him to take these records, with the Urim and Thummim, and he carried them to his father’s house. The people in that neighborhood, having learned about these things, sought by every means in their power—by persecution, mobs, and every other means that they could bring to bear, to find these plates and take them from him. But the Lord gave him directions, through the Urim and Thummim, what he should do with the plates, where he should hide them, and gave him all the information that was necessary to keep them out of the hands of the mobs.

Finally, the persecution became so great, that this young man was obliged to leave his father’s house, and proceed to the Susquehanna river, in Pennsylvania, and there he commenced to transcribe or make a facsimile of some of the characters or words that were written on these metallic plates; and the transcript, then made, was taken by a man named Martin Harris to the city of New York, and exhibited to the learned, to see if they could translate them. Remember, it was not the plates that were taken to the learned, but it, was the words of the book, transcribed from the plates, and the learned were requested to read them. But Mr. Harris could not succeed in finding any person who was able to translate them; although he found one man—Professor Anthon—well known through the United States, and in European nations, as a great linguist, who said that he would assist, according to his best ability and judgment, in translating the transcript presented to him by Mr. Harris, and he gave a written promise to that effect. “But,” said he, “where did you get these records?” Mr. Harris informed him that they had been revealed by an angel of God to a young man named Joseph Smith. Mr. Anthon then said to Mr. Harris, “Give me that paper I have given you.” Mr. Harris handed it back to him, and he tore it in pieces, saying—“There is no such thing as the ministering of angels in these days, but bring the record here, and we will see what we can do in relation to assisting in translating it.” Mr. Harris replied that a part of the record was sealed, and that only one portion of it was permitted to be translated at the present time. This learned man said—“I can not read a sealed book,” thus fulfilling the words I have read—“And the vision of all is become unto you as the words of a book that is sealed, which men deliver to one that is learned, saying, ‘Read this I pray thee,’ and he saith, ‘I can not for it is sealed, I can not read a sealed book.’” The next verse says—“And the book is delivered to him that is not learned, saying—“Read this I pray thee;’ and he saith—‘I am not learned.’”

When Martin Harris reported to this boy, what the learned had said, and how they had proceeded in relation to this matter, the Lord God commanded this young man to translate the record himself, through the aid of the Urim and Thummim. But he made this excuse—“I am not learned.” And the Lord answered him in the very words of Isaiah, as recorded in the next verse—“Wherefore the Lord said, inasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth and with their lips do honor me, and have removed their hearts far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precepts of men, therefore, behold, I will proceed to do a marvelous work among this people, even a marvelous work and a wonder; for the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hid.” That is the answer that the Lord made this young man, commanding him to read the book.

It was marvelous that a man who did not possess the ordinary education, obtained in the common schools of the country, and who could barely read, and could write but very little; a man who had only read the bible a very little, and who knew but little about the various theological doctrines of the day; I say that for such a man to be called of the Lord God, and commanded to translate from an ancient record and to bring forth a book for the benefit of all nations, kindreds, tongues and peoples, was marvelous in the extreme, and it did literally cause the wisdom of the wise to perish. “And I will raise forts against them, they shall be brought down, and shall speak out of the ground, and thy speech shall be low out of the dust,” &c.

Now this record is as if one spoke from the dead; it is the voice of the ancient dead Prophets who once inhabited this great continent; it is the voice of the dead to the living, a warning voice, the everlasting Gospel in all its plainness and purity, speaking out of the ground, whispering out of the dust, just as this passage of Scripture declares. Not the book, but the words of the book were sent to the learned; and, lastly, the book itself was commanded to be translated by the unlearned. All this is marvelous.

The eighteenth verse, which I read, says—“And in that day shall the deaf hear the words of the book.” What book? We answer, the one that the Prophet had been speaking of, the one that was to speak out of the ground, and that was to be translated by the unlearned. “In that day shall the deaf hear the words of the book, and the eyes of the blind shall see out of obscurity and out of darkness. The meek also shall increase their joy in the Lord, and the poor among men shall rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.”

This book, that has thus been marvelously translated, is for the benefit of the meek and the poor among men. When Jesus came in ancient days, and preached the Gospel to the learned and the unlearned, we are told that on one occasion, the disciples of John came and asked him if he was the true Messiah, or should they look for another? And he said unto them—“Go and tell John that the dead are raised, that the blind see, and that the poor have the Gospel preached to them.” So, in these latter days, when the Lord God causes a book to come forth out of the ground, and to whisper from the dust, it is for the benefit of the poor among men, and they are to rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.

Has this ever been fulfilled literally? It has. We have lifted up our voices for forty-four years and upwards among the inhabitants of this nation, and also for many years among the inhabitants of other nations, bearing testimony to all people that the Lord God has sent his angel, according to the promise made in the fourteenth chapter of the Revelations of St. John, flying through the midst of heaven, having the everlasting Gospel to preach to every nation, kindred, tongue and people that dwell upon the face of the earth. We have borne testimony, faithfully and diligently without purse or scrip, for these many years among the inhabitants of the earth, to the rich as well as the poor. But the rich will not obey it; no, they have their riches to look after. One says—“I have a yoke of oxen that I have just bought, I must go and try them.” Another says—“I have invested so many hundred thousand dollars in merchandize, I must attend to that.” Another says—“I have some other business, I must look after that.” But the poor among men, whose hearts are pure and meek because of the oppression that they have received from the monopolist, and from the rich, are humble, and they receive this work, hence they have gathered out from among the various nations, where they are no longer oppressed or under taskmasters, and have accumulated homes of their own, and lands, and flocks and herds of their own, which neither they nor their fathers in the old countries inherited from generation to generation. The poor among men, when they shall hear the words of the book, shall rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.

To show more fully the time when this book should be brought to light, let me say that it is a latter-day work, and to prove it, I will read the following verses. “The poor among men shall rejoice in the Holy One of Israel, for the terrible one is brought to naught, and the scorner is consumed, and all that watch for iniquity are cut off; all that make a man an offender for a word, or that lay a snare for him that reproveth in the gate, or that turn aside the just for a thing of naught.” All these are to be cut off. When? When they have heard the words of this book, when the proclamation has been sounded in their ears. When they are become fully ripened in iniquity, they will be cut off according to the declaration of the Prophet Isaiah. But their times must first be fulfilled; their fulness must come in, before these terrible judgments and destructions shall lay waste the nations of the Gentiles. But is there no hope for Israel, when this book comes forth? When I speak of Israel I mean the literal Israel, the descendants of the twelve tribes, whose fathers inherited ancient Palestine. Is there no hope for them when this great and marvelous work shall be accomplished? We will read the next verse. “Therefore, thus saith the Lord, who redeemed Abraham, concerning the house of Jacob. Jacob shall not now be ashamed, neither shall his face now wax pale; but when he seeth his children, the work of mine hands, in the midst of him, they shall sanctify my name, and sanctify the Holy One of Jacob, and shall fear the God of Israel.”

It seems then, that Jacob was to be scattered and dispersed, and made ashamed, his face was to wax pale, and he be counted a hiss and a byword among the people, until the set time should arrive, until God should rise up in his majesty and power in the latter days, and should set to his hand according to the words of the Prophets, a second time to recover his people from the four corners of the earth. And when he should commence this great work, he would bring forth the words of them that have slumbered in the dust, should whisper out of the ground, and their speech should be low out of the dust; and Israel, after that time, should no longer be made ashamed, neither should their faces wax pale. Why? Because they must be gathered from the four quarters of the earth by means of that book.

There is another object expressed in the next verse, the last verse of the chapter, for the bringing forth of this book. “And they also that erred in spirit shall come to understanding, and they that murmured shall learn doctrine.” How many hundreds of thousands of good, upright, moral people among all the nations of Christendom, have erred in spirit because of the false doctrines that have been promulgated, from generation to generation, in their midst; doctrines of form without any power? Doctrines that exclude all communications with the heavens, that shut up the voice of the Almighty in continued silence; that closed up the heavens as brass over their heads; that proclaimed in all their creeds, articles of faith, and discipline, that the Bible contained all that God would ever reveal to the children of men. Millions have erred in spirit because of these doctrines; others have murmured because of them, and have found fault, and said, “How can we know the true doctrine, or the true church, when we find several hundred all teaching different, each one going his own way, each proclaiming his own dogma, creed and discipline? Contradicting and quarrelling with one another? Christian nations fighting against Christian nations,” etc. They have murmured about it; and many have begun to think that there is nothing in revealed religion. It has made thousands on thousands of infidels; and it is not to be wondered at; for instead of taking the Bible as their guide, and comparing ancient Christianity with the truth, they have taken this Babel of confusion, called modern Christianity, and have asked if that could be from heaven? And they do not believe in it. They do not believe that God is the author of confusion, and they have murmured, contended and complained. But when this book should come forth, “they that murmured should learn doctrine, and they that erred in spirit should come to understanding.” How? In what way? Because this book, translated from those plates, contains the doctrine of Christ in such perfect plainness, that no two persons who read that doctrine disagree in relation to it. It is plain, and easy to be understood. For instance, let me mention in relation to one ordinance about which there is much contention among the sects of Christendom, namely the ordinance of baptism. One says it must be by pouring, another by sprinkling, another by immersion; a fourth says you must be baptized three times, once in the name of the Father, once in the name of the Son, and then in the name of the Holy Ghost. And thus they quarrel, and contend, and have their different views about that one doctrine.

Now, when you take up the Book of Mormon, and read, in the latter part of the book, concerning this ordinance, you find that our Lord and Savior, after his resurrection, descended to the northern part of what we call South America, and stood in the midst of a large congregation of people who saw him descend, and who also beheld the wounds in his hands and in his feet, and they heard him teach his gospel, and he commanded them that they should no more offer sacrifices and burnt offerings on this American continent, as their fathers had been accustomed to do, but that they should do away with these things. And he taught them his gospel, and commanded them to believe and repent with all their hearts, and to come down into the depths of humility, like little children, and be baptized in his name for the remission, of their sins, and promised them, if they would do so, that they should be filled with the Holy Ghost. And he called twelve disciples on this American continent, the same as he called twelve apostles in ancient Palestine. And after he had called and ordained these twelve disciples, he commanded them to baptize all penitent believers, and he gave them the pattern, saying unto them—“You shall go down and stand in the water and, in my name, you shall baptize them. And now, behold, these are the words which you shall say, calling them by name—‘Having authority given me of Jesus Christ, I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, Amen,’ and then shall ye immerse them in the water, and shall come forth again out of the water. And after this manner shall ye baptize in my name, for behold the Father and the Son, and the Holy Ghost are one,” etc.

Now, let me ask, who could draw any two conclusions from words as plain as these? No person could; and there could be no two churches differing, or built up upon the principle of baptism as here revealed. So it is in regard to every other point of doctrine relating to the plan of salvation revealed in this book; they are all just as plain as the one to which I have called your attention. Hence, when people understand, and comprehend by the power of the Holy Ghost, that this record is divine, and when they can once put their confidence in it as such, they never after that need be at a loss concerning the points of the doctrine of our Lord and Savior. “They that erred in spirit shall come to understanding; they that murmured shall learn doctrine.”

Again he says—“The deaf shall hear the words of the book,” Has this been literally fulfilled, or must it be spiritualized? “The eyes of the blind shall also see out of obscurity and out of darkness in that day.” Does this mean those who are blind spiritually, or does it mean literally? I think it means both. Those who have been blind spiritually are seeing out of obscurity and out of darkness, and those who have been deaf spiritually are beginning to hear. But this is not the entire meaning. Do not the greater part of this congregation, now sitting before me, know of a surety that the Lord God has, since he sent forth the proclamation of this Gospel among the people, caused the eyes of the blind—those blind physically, born blind—to be opened? Do they not know that the ears of some who were so deaf that they could not hear the loudest sound have been literally opened? Yes; you know this, for it has been done in the four quarters of the earth. Not in some obscure corner, where a few individuals have seen it, but among the nations and kingdoms where this gospel has been preached; therefore, the Lord God has indeed fulfilled, to the very letter, these predictions, uttered by the ancient prophets in relation to the great work that should be performed on the earth in the latter days, when he should bring forth this book, and should cause the earth, as it were, to open and bring forth salvation.

This agrees with the testimony of David the Prophet; for not only Isaiah, but David says, in the 85th Psalm, when enquiring about the long captivity of Jacob—“Lord wilt thou not bring back the captivity of Jacob, that Israel may rejoice, and that thy people may be glad?” The Lord, in answering this prayer of David, tell him how he will do it. Says he—“I will cause truth to spring out of the earth and righteousness shall look down from heaven, and they shall go before us, to set us in the way of his steps.” Yes, by bringing forth this work out of the earth, and by raising up his church, by the divine authority which he restored again, and by pouring out the Holy Ghost from heaven, by sending down righteousness from heaven, and by truth, which has sprung forth out of the earth, the Lord has set us again in the way of his steps. And Israel will truly be made glad, and the house of Jacob, when this work shall go forth to them, will no longer be made ashamed.

This agrees with another prophecy, where the Prophet Isaiah, in looking after the consolation and redemption of Jacob in the last days, says—“Let the skies pour down righteousness, and let the earth open and bring forth salvation. It seems then that the earth was to bring forth truth and salvation, and the skies at the same time were to pour down the blessings of eternity upon the heads of the people, and by this means the Lord God would save the nations of the earth, and redeem Israel from the four quarters thereof. But alas! for the wicked in that day. Let us see what is to become of them. I have already quoted one passage stating that they were to be cut off in a terrible manner, and be brought to naught, the scorner being consumed, and all that watch for iniquity being cut off. Let us read another passage, in this same 29th chapter—“The multitude of all nations that fight against Zion shall be as a hungry man who dreameth and behold he eateth, but he waketh and his soul is empty; or as when a thirsty man dreameth and behold he drinketh, but he waketh, and behold he is faint, and his soul hath appetite. So shall the multitude of all the nations be that fight against Mount Zion.”

Has that ever been fulfilled upon the nations of the earth? It does not matter how many of them there are, they are in the hands of the Almighty, and by the blast of his nostrils they can be consumed, and swept away by the breath of his lips, and they will become like a hungry or a thirsty man who dreams that he has something to eat or to drink, and behold it is all disappointment; for he wakes and his soul is thirsty and hath appetite. So it will be with all people that fight against the great latter-day work; for, saith the same Prophet, “they shall be visited of the Lord of hosts with thunder and with earthquake, with great noise, with storm and tempest, and the flame of devouring fire.” It will be a day not of destruction by a flood of waters, but by various judgments, ending with the flame of devouring fire, which will sweep the earth, and destroy the wicked out of it. Behold the day will come, and is close at hand, when Malachi’s prophecy will be fulfilled, that shall burn as an oven; when all the proud and they that do wickedly shall become as stubble, and they shall be burned up, saith the Lord of hosts. That day shall leave them neither root nor branch. No branches of the wicked left, no roots left among the nations, but the earth, and all the fulness thereof, will be given into the hands of the Saints of the Most High, as was predicted by Daniel the Prophet, that “the kingdom and the dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heavens, shall be given into the hands of the Saints of the Most High. A King shall reign in righteousness in those days and his name shall be the Lord of Hosts, Jesus of Nazareth, the great Messiah. The King of kings and Lord of lords will reign over the nations in those days, as he now reigns king of Saints. And behold this is the preparatory work. This book that has now come forth will be sounded among the various nations and kingdoms of the earth. They who hear the words thereof, and repent of their sins, and turn away from all unrighteousness, and will receive the fulness of the everlasting gospel, will be gathered together, and the sons and daughters of God will come from the ends of the earth, even every one that is called by his name.

We might go on still further, but this is sufficient for the time being. Amen.

Redemption of Zion, etc.

Orson Pratt

Discourse by Elder Orson Pratt, delivered in the Twentieth Ward Meeting House, on the Evening of Sunday, February 7, 1875. Reported by David W. Evans.

I will read the third paragraph of a revelation that was given in 1834. It commences on page 292 of the Book of Doctrine and Covenants.

“But verily I say unto you, I have decreed that your brethren which have been scattered shall return to the land of their inheritances, and build up the waste places of Zion; for after much tribulation, as I have said unto you in a former commandment, cometh the blessing. Behold, this is the blessing which I have promised after your tribulations, and the tribulations of your brethren; your redemption and the redemption of your brethren, even their restoration to the land of Zion, to be established no more to be thrown down; nevertheless, if they pollute their inheritances, they shall be thrown down, for I will not spare them if they pollute their inheritances. Behold, I say unto you, the redemption of Zion must needs come by power; therefore, I will raise up unto my people a man, who shall lead them like as Moses led the children of Israel, for ye are the children of Israel, and of the seed of Abraham, and ye must needs be led out of bondage by power, and with a stretched out arm: and as your fathers were led at the first, even so shall the redemption of Zion be. Therefore let not your hearts faint, for I say not unto you as I said unto your fathers, mine angel shall go up before you, but not my presence; but I say unto you, mine angels shall go before you, and also my presence, and in time ye shall possess the goodly land.”

It is many months since I met with the people here in this Ward. I recollect when I was here last I partly promised to say something about the redemption of Zion. What I may be able to communicate to you in relation to that great event, regarded as of so much importance by this people, I am unable to say. I may not be able to throw upon the subject any special information more than what you are already in possession of. All that any of us know, and all that we possibly can know in relation to the future is that which God in his mercy reveals. The Lord understands the future as well as the past and the present, and his Spirit understands that which is to come, and the promise is that that Spirit shall be given to us through the prayer of faith, so that we may be able to comprehend in some measure the things of the future. The promise of the Savior to the ancient Apostles was, that when the Spirit of truth should come he should guide them into all truth, and show them things to come. That same Spirit, imparted to the servants of God in the 19th century of the Christian era, is just as capable of opening up the future, lighting up the mind of man and showing him events that are to take place, as it was the first year after the crucifixion of Christ, on the day of Pentecost, or in any other former age of the world—it is the same from eternity to eternity, and it is just as needful for us, as Latter-day Saints, to know the things of God, as it was for the former-day Saints to know them. The great and important thing with us is to exercise sufficient faith before the heavens, that God may pour out the spirit of prophecy upon us. The same faith will procure the same blessings, and the spirit of prophecy was considered by the ancient Apostles as one of the best gifts, far greater than the gift of tongues or than the gift of interpretation of tongues. It was a spirit that was given for the edification of the Saints of the living God, and the same spirit is promised to all his servants who live faithful before him.

I well recollect, when I was but about nineteen years old—forty-four years last fall—that believing Joseph Smith to be a Prophet, and being led by the Spirit, I went a journey of two hundred miles to visit him. I well recollect the feelings of my heart at the time. He inquired of the Lord, and obtained a revelation for your humble servant. He retired into the chamber of old Father Whitmer, in the house where this Church was organized in 1830. John Whitmer acted as his scribe, and I accompanied him into the chamber, for he had told me that it was my privilege to have the word of the Lord; and the Lord in that revelation, which is published here in the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, made a promise which to me, when I was in my youth, seemed to be almost too great for a person of as humble origin as myself ever to attain to. After telling in the revelation that the great day of the Lord was at hand, and calling upon me to lift up my voice among the people, to call upon them to repent and prepare the way of the Lord, and that the time was near when the heavens should be shaken, when the earth should tremble, when the stars should refuse their shining, and when great destructions awaited the wicked, the Lord said to your humble servant—“Lift up your voice and prophesy, and it shall be given by the power of the Holy Ghost.” This was a particular point in the revelation that seemed to me too great for me ever to attain to, and yet there was a positive command that I should do it. I have often reflected upon this revelation, and have oftentimes inquired in my heart—“Have I fulfilled that commandment as I ought to have done? Have I sought as earnestly as I ought to obtain the gift of prophecy, so as to fulfill the requirement of heaven?” And I have felt sometimes to condemn myself because of my slothfulness, and because of the little progress that I have made in relation to this great, heavenly, and divine gift. I certainly have had no inclination to prophesy to the people unless it should be given to me by the inspiration and power of the Holy Ghost; to prophesy out of my own heart is something perfectly disagreeable to my feelings, even to think of, and hence I have oftentimes, in my public discourses, avoided, when a thing would come before my mind pretty plain, uttering or declaring it for fear that I might get something out before the people in relation to the future that was wrong. But still, notwithstanding all this, there is one thing that I have endeavored to do, and that is, to inform my mind as far as I could by reading what God has revealed to both ancient and modern Prophets, in relation to the future, and if I have not had many important prophecies and revelations given directly to myself, I certainly have derived great advantage and great edification from reading and studying that which God has revealed to others; and hence most of my prophesying throughout my life, so far, has been founded upon the revelations given to others.

We are told that Zion—this people, the Latter-day Saints, are called Zion—shall be redeemed and restored to the lands of their inheritances, and in consequence of this promise made to us by the Lord, many of us have felt much anxiety to know when the Lord would fulfill this great revelation, and some perhaps who were little boys and girls when it was given, and now grey headed—for it is about forty-two years since—have not considered or reflected much about what God has promised to do with, or what blessings he has promised to bestow upon, this people. In their family prayers they have heard their fathers pray to the Most High to remember Zion and to redeem Zion, and to restore his people to the lands of their inheritances, and perhaps some of them have reflected upon the subject. Some may have thought it was merely a form of prayer which their fathers had learned, without any expectation of anything of the kind taking place, and they have felt careless about it, knowing nothing about whether Zion was ever to be redeemed or not. But those who have reflected upon the subject, and who have made it a matter of prayer and of deep study, in order to know the times and the seasons, and the mode in which God would bring to pass this great event, have been full of hope, expectation and desire, and their constant prayer has been, before the family altar and in the public congregations, that the redemption of Zion might be brought about soon.

We are promised that after much tribulation comes the blessing. The Lord says—“I the Lord have decreed a certain decree that my people shall realize, that after their tribulations they shall be redeemed, and restored to the lands of their inheritances.” Little did we suppose when we were driven out from Jackson County, the place where God has promised to give his Saints their inheritances, and in the regions round about, that nearly half a century would pass over our heads before we would be restored back again to that land. This long period of tribulation, and the dispersion from our homes and inheritances, have been the cause perhaps of a great many going down to the grave without having the opportunity and privilege of returning to participate in the blessings that were promised. Now, it would be a source of comfort and consolation to those who are still living, to whom this promise was made, if they could be assured in their own minds that they would live here in the flesh to behold that day. But let me say a few words in relation to this. We need not expect, from what God has revealed, that a very great number of those who were then in the Church and who were driven, will have the privilege of returning to that land. We need not expect anything of the kind. “Why not?” inquires one. Because the Lord informs us that but a few of those who were then driven out should stand to receive their inheritances. We read this, or indications thereof, in several revelations, the language being something like this—“You shall be persecuted from synagogue to synagogue, and from city to city, and but few shall stand to receive their inheritances.” Now if a great portion of those who were driven out should live and they should be restored back again, they might afterwards say—“This does not seem to agree with the revelation, here are pretty much all that were driven out.” But this will not be the case. When you come to count up, a few years hence, those who were driven forth from that land, you will find that there will be very few indeed; there will, however, be some out of that number, but only a very few. There will be some that will live to behold that day, and will return and receive their inheritances, they and their children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren, according to the promise.

We have a special promise in relation to that land given to us as Latter-day Saints, a promise which I believe I have formerly repeated in this house. It was first given on the 2nd day of January, 1831, at a general conference of pretty much all the Saints who lived in the State of New York, held in the house where the Church was first organized. The revelation was given in their presence, written by a scribe as the sentences fell from the mouth of the Prophet Joseph. Among the great things then made known was the following—“I hold forth and deign to give to you greater riches, even a land of promise, a land upon which there shall be no curse when the Lord shall come; and this is my covenant with you, that I will give it unto you and unto your children after you, for an everlasting inheritance; and you shall possess it in time and possess it again in eternity, never more to pass away.” If there are any strangers here I will say, for their information, that this is the reason why we call that land a land of promise. And though we have been deprived of it, now for upwards of forty years, some of us hold deeds for portions of it which we purchased, paying our moneys to the United States officials, who sold it to us at the government price, but we were not permitted to live upon the lands thus purchased. You may think this rather a curious thing in this great American republic, one of the most liberal governments on the face of the whole earth; but if it is a strange thing it is known as the truth to thousands and tens of thousands that we were dispossessed of our inheritances. The land is still there, but it is occupied by those who do not own it.

Inquires one—“Why were you driven from that land?” I might answer you by repeating the words of our enemies, for they have published their reasons for driving us from our homes. One reason was that we pretended to speak in tongues, which was considered a mortal offence against religionists. This was one accusation that they brought against us, as you will find in their published declarations, in which they pledged their lives, their property and their sacred honor to dispossess us of our homes.

Another accusation was that we professed to heal the sick. What a terrible crime it was for a man to lay his hands on sick persons and ask the Lord to heal them, and then if the Lord healed the sick they should not be worthy to keep their land, but should be driven from their homes and be deprived of their property!

Another reason was that, besides believing in the gifts of speaking in tongues and healing the sick, we assumed to foretell future events. They did not like that at all. To think that people should believe in that part of the Gospel in the 19th century was too much for our enemies, and they said—“We can not have such people in our midst, to corrupt our morals, and to introduce the old-fashioned religion that is taught in the New Testament. We have a religion that does away all these things, it does not believe in the order of things that the New Testament sets forth, and you pretend that this New Testament religion is to be enjoyed in our day; our wives and children must not be corrupted by it.”

These were the main reasons for driving us, as set forth in their published programme. I did not know, in those days, that it was a crime for the Latter-days to believe in this part of the New Testament; I really thought that, in our country, the Constitution guaranteed to us the privilege of believing the whole of the New Testament as well as a part; but it would seem to be otherwise, for forty years have passed away and we are still disfranchised so far as our property is concerned. We have appealed to the United States government to bestow upon us our rights as American citizens. Have they done it? Oh no; they have referred us, however to those persons who drove us out of the State, supposing that they would have the magnanimity to restore to us our rights. Who ever heard of murderers, robbers and thieves turning round and restoring that to their victims of which they had plundered them? I scarcely ever heard of such an instance; there may be some few instances in history, but they are very rare, in which a person will repent and try to restore fourfold. The United States Government told us that we must appeal to those who had murdered, robbed and driven us from our homes, for the redress we sought. But we have had the revelation of the Lord pretty well fulfilled—“You shall be persecuted from city to city and from synagogue to synagogue, and but few shall stand to receive their inheritances.”

We were driven from Jackson County, in the State of Missouri, in the Fall of the year 1833, and three or four months after that event the revelation was given from which I have read this extract, promising that, after much tribulation, we and our children after us should be restored to the lands of our inheritances.

Have we had much tribulation? Yes. Look at the many times we have been driven since that revelation was given. We were driven out of Clay County, then out of Kirtland, in Geauga County, now called Lake County, Ohio; and after that we were driven from Caldwell County, from Davies’ County, Ray County, and several other surrounding counties in the State of Missouri, and finally expelled from the State, leaving a great many thousand acres of land for which we hold the deeds to the present day. After that we settled in the State of Illinois, in Nauvoo. We were there but a few years when the Prophet, his brother and several others were killed, and again we were driven, and finally there was a treaty made with this people. Now, whoever heard of one part of the United States making treaties with another part of the United States? Or who ever heard of the people in one part of the country making a treaty with the people in another part? That treaty was in words like this—“You must leave all the States of the Union, you must not stop this side the Rocky Mountains, you must go beyond the Rocky Mountains; if you will do this you may depart in peace, but we will take your houses and lands and occupy them without remuneration, we will not pay you for them; but if you can get away without selling your property and you will agree to go beyond the Rocky Mountains you may have the privilege of going, otherwise we will kill you.”

What were the crimes of which we were accused in the various places from which we were expelled? If any of our people had been guilty of breaking the laws it was in the power of our enemies to bring us before their courts of justice, for in all these places they held all the civil offices in their own hands. But they very well knew that, so far as the laws of the country were concerned, they could not reach this people. Why? Because we were not guilty of the transgression of any of their laws.

When we were driven from Nauvoo there were some unable to leave—poor, feeble and sick; Nauvoo was a kind of a sickly place and a great many people were sick there and many of the sick, infirm and poor had to be left behind, being unable to leave with the main body of the Saints. We walked over the Mississippi river on the ice and wandered and wallowed about in the snowdrifts of Iowa with our teams and wagons, but these poor people could not get away in time. The mob were very anxious to come in possession of our property, and hence after the main body got out one or two hundred miles from Nauvoo, where there were no inhabitants, cut off from all resources, and unable to obtain any information from our poor brethren, the mob was so anxious to get the property of which they had forcibly deprived us, that they attacked the city with cannon and musketry, and finally drove these poor people out and compelled them to cross the river, where a great many of them perished. Were not these tribulations? Yes, and they were all foretold years before they came to pass. “After much tribulation comes the blessing, and this is the blessing which I, the Lord God, have promised unto you, that after your tribulation you shall be redeemed and be restored again to the lands of your inheritance.”

Since our arrival in these mountains we have had a hard time here. We have had a land such as no other people would ever have pretended to occupy. It was once considered the most dreary, desolate, barren place on the face of all North America, a land where it was supposed that no human being could subsist, or in which if he undertook to subsist by the labor of his hands by cultivating the earth, he would perish. But by hard labor and perseverance we have made ourselves comfortable homes in what was formerly a desert, and the Lord has been very favorable to us and really has blessed us far beyond anything we could have anticipated when coming here, and he has caused that the seasons should be very fruitful as a general thing; and this land, which appeared so desolate, barren, parched up and so full of drouth, has become a fruitful land, and the Lord has fulfilled many and many a prophecy recorded in Isaiah and the Psalms of David in relation to making the desert blossom as the rose and making it like the garden of the Lord. It is thus prophesied, and that it has been fulfilled no one can dispute, who will reflect and realize for a moment what the Lord has done since we came here to this land. When the pioneers reached here, in July, 1847, we went out to what is now termed Black Rock, over beyond the first point of the western mountains; we went into the lake to bathe, and we could walk up to that rock, the water being several feet below the dry ground on which we walked to get to it. What do you now behold? Ten feet of water over that ground on which we walked. The Lake, since then, has been continually rising, until ten or twelve feet of water have been added to it. We might naturally have supposed that it would have fallen that much instead of rising. Why? Because the waters, which before then had been continually emptying into the Lake were withheld from it and used to irrigate the soil and evaporated again into the heavens. This, according to natural appearances, would have a tendency to lower the streams; but with all the use of the waters and of the streams for the irrigation of crops, &c., there has been a continual rise in the Lake. We read numerous prophecies referring to the last days, in which it is said that the wilderness should be like the Garden of Eden, and that the desert should be made to blossom as the rose, that it should blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing, and that they should have songs of melody, thanksgiving in the desert, &c. I might quote you numerous chapters in Isaiah and in the Psalms of David, relating to this subject, but I have not time, I want to pass along to some other points.

Notwithstanding all these favors and blessings since we came here, we have had to wear ourselves out, so great has been the labor we have had to perform. We could not go out before breakfast and cut and haul a load of wood, as we could in Jackson County; we could not go out and get in one day three or four loads of logs and poles to fence our farms as we could in places where we formerly resided. But we had to expend an immense amount of labor, and a great deal of capital and means was expended in working roads up into these difficult rugged kanyons in order to get timber for building and fencing purposes, and for fuel. Then we had to stop up of nights to take the little amount of water allotted to each man or family, for it was necessary to husband it as economically as possible in order to bring our crops to maturity. This excessive labor has worn many out, and sent them to untimely graves. It is a marvel to me that we have been able to build school houses and educate our children in any degree, especially when considering the vast labor that has been required of them, for as they began to grow up and ought to have been at school, they have had to be in the mountains herding sheep, or at work irrigating the soil; and under all these multiplied difficulties, it is certainly astonishing beyond measure, that the people throughout all the settlements of Utah Territory have been able to build school houses and to educate their children, but the feeling, on the part of both parents and children, has been to acquire as good an education as possible under the circumstances. Would any other people have accomplished this? No. Had any other people come to this desert wild and undertaken to cultivate the soil they could not have done it, they would have broken up; there would not have been union enough among any class of people on the face of the American continent to accomplish what the Latter-day Saints have accomplished in reclaiming the desert. Others would have fought over the water and thousands of other things, where this people have been peaceable and quiet, and subject to good order.

Having now brought the people down to the present period, and having seen the fulfillment of ancient and modern prophecies, literally before our eyes, the question now is, What prophecies to be fulfilled in the future relate to this people and to the great events which must take place when Zion is redeemed? I will endeavor to point out some things that must take place before Zion is redeemed, besides the tribulations which we have endured. One thing which I will name is contained in the Book of Mormon, in the teachings of Jesus. It is a matter which directly concerns the Saints, and something which they must fulfill and accomplish before the redemption of Zion. I will read the passage. The words it contains are the words or our Lord and Savior after he had risen from the dead, and when he descended from heaven upon this American continent, and taught the Israelites who dwelt on this land. The passage I refer to commences with the second paragraph of the 7th chap. of the book of Nephi, pages 464 and 465 of the Book of Mormon. It reads as follows:

“And now it came to pass that when Jesus had spoken these words, be said unto those twelve whom he had chosen, ye are my disciples;”—this did not mean the twelve Apostles chosen at Jerusalem, but the twelve chosen by our Savior on this American land—“and ye are a light unto this people, who are a remnant of the house of Joseph. And behold, this is the land of your inheritance; and the Father hath given it unto you. And not at any time hath the Father given me commandment that I should tell it unto your brethren of Jerusalem; neither at any time hath the Father given me commandment, that I should tell unto them concerning the other tribes of the house of Israel, whom the Father hath led away out of the land. This much did the Father command me, that I should tell unto them, that other sheep I have, which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold and one shepherd. And now because of stiff-neckedness and unbelief, they understood not my word: therefore I was commanded to say no more of the Father concerning this thing unto them. But, verily, I say unto you, that the Father hath commanded me, and I tell it unto you, that ye were separated from among them because of their iniquity; therefore it is because of their iniquity that they knew not of you. And verily, I say unto you again, that the other tribes hath the Father separated from them; and it is because of their iniquity, that they know not of them,”—that is the ten tribes. “And verily, I say unto you, that ye are they of whom I said, other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd. And they understood me not, for they supposed it had been the Gentiles; for they understood not that the Gentiles should be converted through their preaching; and they understood me not that I said they should hear my voice; and they understood me not that I said that the Gentiles should not at any time hear my voice; that I should not manifest myself unto them, save it were by the Holy Ghost. But behold, ye have both heard my voice, and seen me; and ye are my sheep, and ye are numbered among those whom the Father hath given me.

“And verily, verily, I say unto you, that I have other sheep, which are not of this land; neither of the land of Jerusalem; neither in any parts of that land round about, whither I have been to minister. For they of whom I speak, are they who have not as yet heard my voice; neither have I at any time manifested myself unto them. But I have received a commandment of the Father that I shall go unto them”—these other sheep he is now speaking of were the ten tribes whom he visited after he had visited the people on this land—“and that they shall hear my voice, and shall be numbered among my sheep, that there may be one fold, and one shepherd; therefore I go to shew myself unto them. And I command you that ye shall write these sayings, after I am gone, that if it so be that my people at Jerusalem, they who have seen me and been with me in my ministry, do not ask the Father in my name, that they may receive a knowledge of you by the Holy Ghost, and also of the other tribes whom they know not of, that these sayings which ye shall write, shall be kept and shall be manifested unto the Gentiles,”—that is, they should come forth in the latter days, manifested unto the Gentiles as it has been to this great nation—“that through the fulness of the Gentiles, the remnant of their seed who shall be scattered forth upon the face of the earth, because of their unbelief, may be brought in, or may be brought to a knowledge of me, their Redeemer. And then will I gather them in from the four quarters of the earth, and then will I fulfill the covenant which the Father hath made unto all the people of the house of Israel.

“And blessed are the Gentiles, because of their belief in me, and of the Holy Ghost, which witnesses unto them of me and of the Father. Behold, because of their belief in me, saith the Father, and because of the unbelief of you, O house of Israel, in the latter day shall the truth come unto the Gentiles, that the fulness of these things shall be made known unto them. But wo, saith the Father, unto the unbelieving of the Gentiles, for notwithstanding they have come forth upon the face of this land, and have scattered my people, who are of the house of Israel; and my people who are of the house of Israel have been cast out from among them, and have been trodden under foot by them; and because of the mercies of the Father unto the Gentiles, and also the judgments of the Father upon my people, who are of the house of Israel, verily, verily, I say unto you, that after all this, and I have caused my people who are of the house of Israel, to be smitten and to be afflicted, and to be slain, and to be cast out from among them, and to become hated by them, and to become a hiss and a by word among them.”—Has that been fulfilled? Have the Indians been hated? Have they been cast out and trodden under foot? Have they been despised? The people who are acquainted with the history of the Indians can answer this question.—“And thus commandeth the Father that I should say unto you at that day when the Gentiles shall sin against my Gospel”—that is the Gospel contained in this book which he promised to bring forth unto them—“and shall be lifted up in the pride of their hearts above all nations, and above all the people of the whole earth,”—you can judge whether this is true or not so far as the American nation is concerned—“and shall be filled with all manner of lyings, and of deceits and of mischiefs, and all manner of hypocrisy, and murders, and priestcrafts, and whoredoms, and secret abominations; and if they shall do all those things, and shall reject the fulness of my Gospel, behold saith the Father, I will bring the fulness of my Gospel from among them.”

Now here is a point which I wish to speak upon and explain before I go on to the next sentence, which has a bearing upon something which we have yet got to do. The Lord has told us in this saying that if the Gentiles should not believe in this book—the fulness of the Gospel—and should be lifted up in their pride above all nations, and be filled with all manner of lyings, mischiefs, whoredoms, abominations and every kind of evil, that he would bring the fulness of his Gospel from among them. I wish to state that when I read this in 1830 it was a great mystery to me. Recollect this was written and printed before there was any Latter-day Saint Church in existence, and yet here was a prophecy that the Lord would bring the fulness of his Gospel from among the Gentiles if they did not receive it. When the Lord commanded us to go up and settle in Jackson County I thought to myself—“Well, if we build up a great city here, according to that which is predicted in the Book of Mormon, we shall be right in the midst of the Gentiles, and how will it be possible for that prophecy ever to be fulfilled?” It was a mystery to me, I could not see it. I knew it was true, for God had given me a witness and evidence that I knew as well as I knew that I lived that that book was true; but yet I could not understand how the Lord would bring the fulness of his Gospel from among the Gentiles if we were going to be permitted to build up a city in Jackson County, Missouri, and stay there. But some seventeen years after the rise of this Church circumstances rolled round by which the Lord fulfilled this prophecy in taking the main body of the people from among the Gentiles. Not voluntarily altogether, for we did not all feel perfectly willing to leave our houses. We had been driven four times before from lands and homes, and we did not really feel willing to leave; but still, rather than be shot down and mobbed, as many of our people had been, we concluded to move the fifth time, and we did so because we were obliged to, but little did we think then that we were fulfilling a prophecy in the Book of Mormon, such a thought had not entered into our hearts. But we were brought out west here to these mountains, and I do not know of another place on the face of this vast continent where we could have been so completely isolated from the Gentiles, the wicked who had rejected the Gospel, as we were by coming out en masse to this land. “If the Gentiles shall sin against the fulness of my Gospel, behold, saith the Father, I will bring the fulness of my Gospel from among them.” It was done, the prediction was fulfilled to the very letter. You might have passed through the land there for hundreds and hundreds of miles, from city to city, and inquired for an Elder who had authority to baptize for the remission of sins and to build up the Church and kingdom of God, and the answer would have been—“There is no such person here.” “Where are they?” “They have gone away beyond the Rocky Mountains,” more than a thousand miles away from civilization as they called it. When we got here and again searched the prophecies we found that the Lord had been as good as his word, and had literally fulfilled that which he had spoken concerning taking his Gospel from the midst of those who had sinned against and rejected it.

There is one thing which I am now about to read which has not yet been fulfilled, and which we must fulfill before Zion is redeemed. I will read it—“Behold, saith the Father, I will bring the fulness of my Gospel from among them, and then I will remember my covenant which I have made unto my people, O house of Israel, and I will bring my Gospel unto them.” Now then, we are here in this land, the house of Israel are scattered all around us, some in the great basin, some in Arizona, some in Idaho, some in Colorado, some in Montana, some in one place, some in another; I refer to the American Indians, all remnants of Joseph and belonging to the house of Israel. They have become very degraded in consequence of the apostacy and wickedness of their ancient fathers. This people—the Latter-day Saints, before they can ever return to build up the waste places of Zion and receive their inheritances in Jackson County, Missouri, have got to exert themselves to bring the remnants of Joseph to a knowledge of the truth. We have not made any very great exertions in this direction unto the present time. The Lord has given us time since he brought the fulness of the Gospel from among the Gentiles to lay a foundation so that we could commence this missionary work in behalf of and among the remnants of Joseph. We have got the foundation laid, we have succeeded in building many cities, towns, villages, &c., for some four hundred miles north and south; we have got our farms fenced and our water ditches dug, and we have begun to prosper in the land, so that now, I think, is the time for us to wake up our minds in relation to the scattered remnants of the house of Israel.” “Behold, then I will remember my covenant which I have made unto my people, O house of Israel, and I will bring my Gospel unto them.”

It seems that the Lord is working among that people, and that he is determined this prophecy shall be fulfilled whether we take it in hand or not. What do my ears hear? What do we all hear? Messengers are visiting these wild tribes in the basin, and in the regions round about hundreds of miles apart. These messengers come to them, and they speak in their own language in great plainness, and tell them what to do; they tell them to repent of their sins and to be baptized for the remission thereof; tell them also to cease roaming over the country and to cultivate the land; tell them to go to the Elders of this Church and receive the ordinances under their hands.

Who are these messengers? Read the Book of Mormon and you will find what God promised to do for the remnants of Joseph fourteen hundred years ago, about the time that most of them were becoming wicked and corrupt. The Lord said when their record should come forth in the latter days that he would send his messengers to them, and among these messengers he mentioned three persons who lived some eighteen hundred years ago, three of the Twelve who were chosen on this land. The Lord made a promise to these three that they should administer, as holy messengers in the latter days, for and in behalf of the remnants of the house of Israel, which should fall into a low and degraded condition in consequence of the great wickedness and apostacy of their ancient fathers; that they should be instruments in his hands in bringing these remnants to the knowledge of the truth. We hear that these messengers have come, not in one instance alone, but in many instances. Already we have heard of some fourteen hundred Indians, and I do not know but more, who have been baptized. Ask them why they have come so many hundred miles to find Elders of the Church and they will reply—“Such a person came to us, he spoke in our language, instructed us and told us what to do, and we have come in order to comply with his requirements.”

Perhaps you may inquire—“May not this great work, the redemption of these Indian tribes, take place after we have returned to our inheritances?” No doubt but what there will be a great work transpire among the Indians after we do return; but let me say to you that there will also be a great work performed among them before we return to receive our inheritances and before the redemption of Zion. In order to prove this I will read what Jesus has said further on this subject. After having foretold a great many things that should transpire in the latter days our Lord and Savior also spoke of that portion of the Gentiles which would repent and receive this book called the Book of Mormon, and he makes the following promise unto them—“If they will repent and hearken unto my words, and harden not their hearts, I will establish my Church among them.” This the Lord has done, and the Church now numbers over a hundred thousand right here in this great desert. “I will establish my Church among them, and they shall come in unto the covenant and be numbered among those of the remnant of Jacob unto whom I have given this land for their inheritance.”

A great many have desired to know what this means. Are you Mormons going to be numbered with them and wander about with them in these mountains? Are you going to hunt as they hunt, and lead a wild, nomadic, vagabond life as they do? No. What is the meaning of it then? The meaning of it is this—the Lord God made a promise to the forefathers of the Indians, about six hundred years before Christ, that all this continent should be given to them and to their children after them for an everlasting inheritance; and he made a promise also by the mouth of Nephi, one of the first colonists who came from Jerusalem, some twenty-four hundred years ago, that, when the Gentiles in the latter days should come forth upon the face of this land and receive the records of the descendants of those ancient colonists, they should be numbered with the remnants of Jacob in the inheritance of the land. Not numbered with them to come down to their foolish, degraded, wicked, warlike customs, but numbered with them in the inheritance of the land.

Another thing mentioned in prophecy is that they, “the Gentiles, shall assist my people, the house of Israel, the remnant of Jacob, and also as many of the house of Israel as shall come, that they may build a city, which shall be called the New Jerusalem; and then shall they assist my people, who are scattered upon all the face of the land, that may be gathered in unto the New Jerusalem; and then shall the power of heaven come down and be in the midst of this people, and I also will be in their midst. And then shall the work of the Father commence, at that day, even when this Gospel shall be preached among the remnant of this people. Verily I say unto you, in that day shall the work of the Father commence among all the dispersed of my people.”

What I wish to call your special attention to now, so far as these sayings are concerned, is this—the Latter-day Saints in these mountains never can have the privilege of going back to Jackson County and building that city which is to be called the New Jerusalem, upon the spot that was appointed by revelation through the Prophet Joseph, until quite a large portion of the remnants of Joseph go back with us. Now then, here is a work for us, and we have no need to pray the Father to return us to Jackson County until that work is done. We can pray to the Father, in the name of Jesus, to convert these Indian tribes around us, and bring them to a knowledge of the truth, that they may fulfill the things contained in the Book of Mormon. And then when we do return, taking them with us, that they shall be instructed not only in relation to their fathers and the Gospel contained in the record of their fathers, but also in the arts and sciences. They will also be instructed to cultivate the earth, to build buildings as we do, instructed how to build Temples and in the various branches of industry practised by us; and then, after having received this information and instruction, we shall have the privilege of helping them to build the New Jerusalem. The Lord says—“They,” the Gentiles, who believe in the Book of Mormon, “shall assist my people, the remnant of Jacob, that they may build a city, which shall be called the New Jerusalem.” Now, a great many, without reading these things, have flattered themselves that we are the ones who are going to do all this work. It is not so; we have got to be helpers, we have got to be those who co-operate with the remnants of Joseph in accomplishing this great work; for the Lord will have respect unto them, because they are of the blood of Israel, and the promises of their fathers extend to them, and they will have the privilege of building that city, according to the pattern that the Lord shall give. Do not misunderstand me, do not think that all the Lamanite tribes are going to be converted and receive this great degree of education and civilization before we can return to Jackson County. Do not think this for a moment, it will only be a remnant; for when we have laid the foundation of that city and have built a portion of it, and have built a Temple therein, there is another work which we have got to do in connection with these remnants of Jacob whom we shall assist in building the city. What is it? We have got to be sent forth as missionaries to all parts of this American continent. Not to the Gentiles, for their times will be fulfilled; but we must go to all those tribes that roam through the cold regions of the north—British America, to all the tribes that dwell in the Territories of the United States, also to all those who are scattered through Mexico, and Central and South America, and the object of our going will be to declare the principles of the Gospel unto them, and bring them to a knowledge of the truth. “Then shall they assist my people who are scattered on all the face of the land, that they may be gathered in to the New Jerusalem.”

Will not this be a great work? It will take a good while to gather all these tribes of South America, for some of them will have to come from five to eight thousand miles in order to reach the New Jerusalem. This will be quite a work, and yet we shall have to perform it after the city is built.

What then? After they are all gathered, “then shall the powers of heaven come down and be in the midst of this people, and I also will be in your midst.” Now I do not say that this will be a period after his second coming in the clouds of heaven, but I believe that it will be a coming prior to that time, when he comes to manifest himself to all the nations and kindreds of the earth. It will be a fulfillment of that saying in the Psalms of David—“Give ear, O shepherd of Israel, thou that leadest Joseph like a flock. Stir up thy strength and come and save us.” He is called, in a peculiar manner, the shepherd of Israel. This is what is meant also in the blessing of Jacob upon the twelve tribes of Israel, or more especially upon the tribe of Joseph. You recollect he called up his twelve sons to bestow upon them his last prophetic blessing. He told them that he would inform them what should take place in the latter-days. Joseph, he said, is a fruitful bough by a well, whose branches run over the wall. As much as to say that the descendants of Joseph would be so numerous that they would not all stay on the old homestead near Jerusalem, but some of them would run over the wall, that is, go to some other place. “The archers have sorely grieved him, they have shot at him and hated him, but his bow abode in strength, and the arms of his hands were made strong by the hand of the mighty God of Jacob; from thence is the Shepherd, the Stone of Israel.”

Now who can explain and tell us what this means? Can any of the wise commentators of the day? Can any of those who have studied theology all their life-time, tell us why it is from Joseph that the Shepherd, the Stone of Israel is to be made manifest? Says one—“It cannot have reference to his birth, because Jesus descended from Judah, instead of Joseph, out of the loins of Judah, through the lineage of David. He is the Lion of the tribe of Judah.” Why then this peculiar saying of the old Prophet Jacob, about the tribe of Joseph, that from thence is the Shepherd, the Stone of Israel, if he was not born of Joseph, and did not descend through that tribe? This is a very curious kind of a saying. But he will be made manifest in the character of a shepherd, and that shepherd will lead Joseph as a flock, and he will stir up his strength and will save the house of Joseph. But it will be in his own time and way. First, a remnant will be converted; second, Zion will be redeemed, and all among the Gentiles who believe will assist this remnant of Jacob in building the New Jerusalem; third, a vast number of missionaries will be sent throughout the length and breadth of this great continent, to gather all the dispersed of his people in unto the New Jerusalem; fourth, the power of heaven will be made manifest in the midst of this people, and the Lord also will be in their midst, in the character of a shepherd, and he will lead Joseph as a flock, and he will instruct and counsel them personally as he did their ancient fathers in the days of their righteousness.

This is what we must look for—these are the things that must be fulfilled, and for which we must seek and pray in an understanding manner. Not asking God to redeem Zion before he has redeemed a portion of the remnants of Joseph; not asking God to establish this people upon their inheritances in Jackson County, until the other things are fulfilled in their order, and in their times and seasons.

Perhaps some may inquire—“Have you any idea, brother Pratt, how we will be redeemed when we have accomplished this work you have spoken of?” Not much, I do not pretend to have a great deal of understanding upon the subject; but there are some few things revealed, some of which I read to you at the commencement of my remarks. Speaking of the redemption of this people, the Lord says—“Behold I will raise up a man like unto Moses.” This did not mean Joseph Smith, he was already raised up and was among us. He was the one who received that revelation; he was the one who brought to light the Book of Mormon, and translated it by the inspiration of the Holy Ghost. But the Lord, who understands the end from the beginning, saw that when his work was completed, he would be taken away, and that another would be raised up. When this was first given I used to inquire, in my own mind, whether it meant Joseph, and I got it into my heart that Joseph, perhaps, would lead us until he became a very old man; I was in hopes all the time that such would be the case. I, like many others, did not seem to understand that this was a prediction of the future.

When Joseph was taken away, and our beloved brother, President Young, was appointed to take the lead, and received the keys and the power of the holy Priesthood that had been conferred upon Joseph, I was in hopes that he might be the man, and I still have a lingering hope that such may be the case. But he is now becoming aged, and how long the Lord will bless us with his presence I do not know, but this much I do know, that either he will be preserved, or that some other personage will be raised to fulfill that prophecy. “Behold I say unto you, the redemption of Zion must needs come by power, therefore I will raise up unto my people a man who shall lead them like as Moses led the children of Israel, for ye are the children of Israel, and of the seed of Abraham, and ye must needs be led out of bondage by power, with an outstretched arm, and as your fathers were led at the first, even so shall the redemption of Zion be.”

It seems then that this people, at some future time in their sojourn here in this land, may possibly be in bondage greater than they are at the present time. I try to hope for the best, and to think that the bondage we are in and have been in for years, in consequence of the efforts of those who are striving to take away our rights as American citizens, and to trample us down in the dust; I say I have been in hopes that that would be all the bondage that was meant here in this prophecy, but I do not know but what there may be a greater signification to these words. I do not know what the purposes of the Lord are in relation to this particular thing. It may be that we shall have our rights completely taken from us; it may be, if we do not live sufficiently faithful before the Lord, that he will yet bring us into still greater tribulation than that which we have hitherto had. It may be that we shall yet be in bondage like the Israelites in the land of Egypt; for the Lord has said that, when this man should be raised up, he would redeem his people by power out of bondage, and they should be led as their fathers were led at the first. Says the Lord—“I say not unto you as I said unto your fathers—‘mine angel shall go before you, but not my presence’—but I say unto you that mine angels shall go before you, and also my presence.” It was, in ancient days, a great calamity to Israel, when the Lord sware in his wrath that he would not go up in their midst, but that he would send an angel before them. Why did the Lord do this? Because of the wickedness and stiffneckedness of that people. He had redeemed them out of the land of Egypt, and they would not hearken to the words of Moses, they would not obey the voice of the Lord, but they stiffened their necks and hardened their hearts against the counsels that they received, and for this reason the Lord was under the necessity of leading them for forty years in the wilderness, considering them unworthy to go into their choice and promised land, and he sware an oath that all of that company—hundreds of thousands—who had come out of the land of Egypt, from twenty years old and upward, except Joshua and Caleb, should not enter into the Land of Promise, so great was their wickedness; and he fulfilled his word. So provoked was he on one occasion at their rebellion, that he threatened to consume them in a moment, but Moses plead with the Lord to spare his people, lest the people around about should say that the Lord could not bring his people into the Promised Land. Moses said—“Remember thy covenant which thou didst make with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, our fathers, that they and their seed should have this land for an everlasting inheritance.” “No,” said the Lord, “I can raise up seed unto you Moses, that you may go in and possess the land.” “No,” said Moses, “remember that ancient covenant, that thy people may not be deprived of their inheritance;” and the Lord finally concluded to hearken to the voice of Moses, and to let them go into the land. But said he—“My presence shall not go up with you, lest I break forth upon you in my wrath, and you be consumed in a moment, but I will send an angel with you.”

In these last days, in redeeming his people from bondage he has told us in plain words, that his angel should go before us and also his presence; and as, in the deliverance of Israel in ancient times the waters were divided and plagues sent forth upon the Egyptian nation, it would not surprise me at all if there should be similar power manifested in the redemption of Zion. There may be a few individuals go to prepare the way, to purchase a little more land and get things in order; but when that is accomplished, this people as a body will return to that land, the Lord going with them.

In ancient times, so long as the Lord did continue with Israel, he manifested his glory over their camp by a cloud by day; and whenever the cloud arose they followed it, and wherever it rested, there they pitched their tents and remained until the cloud moved again, when they again journeyed on. Now, if Zion is to be redeemed after the same manner, you need not be surprised if the Lord God should let his glory, in the form of a cloud by day and the shining of a flaming fire by night, be over all the camp of Zion. This is what I look for; perhaps I am a little enthusiastic, but it is really what I look for and expect; and when the Lord says that his presence shall go with us, I expect he will be in the midst of this people as he was in the midst of ancient Israel until they rejected him from their midst.

Did he converse with them in the wilderness before he left them?

Yes, he talked with them out of a burning cloud in the burning mount, he spoke in their ears by the voice of a trump, and sounded in the ears of all the house of Israel the ten commandments, and they all, men, women and children, heard it. Do I look for similar manifestations of God’s power and presence when Zion is redeemed? I do. He may not come down upon any mountains, but he will converse with this people as audibly to men, women and children, as he did in ancient times. Zion must needs be redeemed by power, with an outstretched arm, the angel of the Lord going before the camp of this people, and they will return, and a remnant of the Lamanites with them to build up the city of Zion in Jackson County.

How about our inheritance when we get back there, our farms, &c.? We need give ourselves no uneasiness about that, there will be no speculation, no grabbing in those days; no one to say—“I am going to take up all the land round about so that I can speculate with it in selling it to my brethren.” No such thing as this, not a solitary soul among all the Latter-day Saints will receive an inheritance in this way. Another person is to come for the special purpose of dividing to the Saints their inheritances. “Behold,” saith the Lord God, “I will send one mighty and strong, clothed with light as with a garment, whose bowels shall be a fountain of truth, who shall utter words, eternal words, and who shall divide to the Saints their inheritances by lot.”

Have you read this revelation? It was published in the fourteenth volume of the “Millennial Star,” and it has been published in other publications. Says one—“If the inheritances of the Saints are to be apportioned by lot, a good man, perhaps, will be put off with the poorest inheritance, and some not so good will get some of the best, it is all haphazard.” Oh no, we find that lots cast by divine appointment in ancient times were cast upon a principle which designated the very thing which the Lord desired. How was it on a certain occasion about casting lots to discover the transgressor among all the hosts of Israel? A certain man had taken a gold wedge, and the people had been forbidden to take it. No one knew anything about it, but the transgressor, and he hid it in the earth. Lots were cast and the lot fell upon a certain tribe, it did not designate the man at first; they cast lots again, and it fell upon a certain portion of that tribe; they cast lots again, and it fell on a certain family, and finally it fell on a certain man in that family, and being called up, it proved that he was the very man among all the hundreds of thousands of Israel. Now here was a casting of lots by divine appointment, and the Lord, who orders all these things well, caused the very thing to be revealed according to his own mind. And when the lots are cast for this people to receive their inheritances, the Lord will so order it that every man will be rewarded according to his works, and that too by lot, however great the miracle may be.

Now I have told you about all I know, so far as it is revealed, concerning the redemption of Zion. There is one little thing, however, that I wish to name—that there will be quite a company of us before the redemption of Zion. Saith the Lord, in a certain revelation—“Let mine army become very great, and let it become sanctified before me, that they may be as fair as the sun, as clear as the moon, that their banners may be terrible unto all the nations of the earth.” We learn from this declaration of the Lord, that before Zion is redeemed we are to be quite a numerous people; and this agrees with what is in the sixtieth chapter of Isaiah—“A little one shall become a thousand, and a small one a strong nation.” That is our destiny. However much our enemies may howl, whatever may be our future tribulations, the Lord God has decreed that Zion shall become a strong nation, that the armies of Israel shall become very great, and not only very great, but they will be sanctified before him, and there will be such a power made manifest in their midst, that their banners will be terrible to all the nations of the earth. They will not be terrible because we outnumber the nations, but this terror of Zion which will be among the nations, will be because of the power of the great Jehovah that will be manifested in their midst, something that the nations will discern and understand; and when telegraphic dispatches are sent forth to the most distant parts of the earth, it will be said—“Who can stand before the armies of Zion? Behold, the Lord God is with them as a cloud by day, and as a pillar of fire by night.” Fear will seize upon the nations of the earth, and the banners of Zion will be terrible.

These are some few things pertaining to the redemption of Zion. I would to the Lord that we were righteous enough to know a few more! There are a great many things that I would like to know about the redemption of Zion that I do not know, and I presume that you also would like to know them. But what the Lord has revealed is very plain when connected together; and when we reflect upon it, it is astonishing to us to think that in our day the Lord has decreed to perform such a great work in the midst of the earth. It will be astonishing to us when the time comes for the Lord to gather in, from every part of this great continent, these poor, miserable, degraded Lamanites, that his servants may have power over them in order to bring them to civilization. It looks impossible to us, but remember that that is the day of the Lord’s power, and that then will be fulfilled the saying in the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, that the Spirit of the Lord shall be shed forth upon the hearts of those who are ordained to that power; that every man among these remnants of Joseph will hear the Gospel in his own tongue, by the power of the Holy Ghost shed forth upon those who are ordained unto this power. There is such a saying as that in the Book of Covenants, and when that day comes the Lord God will work mightily by signs, wonders and miracles in various ways that will have an influence over these remnants of Joseph to convert them and bring them to a knowledge of the truth, that the prayers of their ancient fathers, and of the Prophets and Elders who once dwelt on this American continent, may be fulfilled upon their heads.

I do not know that I have done justice to the subject of the redemption of Zion; if I have not it is because I do not sufficiently understand it. I do not know that I know anything in relation to the matter only what God has revealed. I have had no vision, no revelation in relation to that particular subject; yet I know, from what has been revealed to me, that these things are true, and that, in their times and seasons, every jot and every tittle thereof will be fulfilled. Amen.

Second Coming of Christ, etc.

Orson Pratt

Discourse by Elder Orson Pratt, delivered in the Fourteenth Ward Assembly Rooms, Salt Lake City, Sunday afternoon, February 28, 1875. Reported by David W. Evans.

I will read a passage with which the Latter-day Saints, especially, are familiar—“All ye inhabitants of the world and dwellers on the earth, see ye, when he lifteth up an ensign on the mountains; and when he bloweth a trumpet hear ye.” This is the third verse of the 18th chapter of the prophecies of Isaiah.

All people who have any confidence in the Old and New Testaments, and who have read the pages of the Bible, are expecting certain great and important events to transpire upon the earth; they look for an entire change to come over the nations, and also for a universal kingdom to be established on the earth never to be overthrown. These things are so clearly predicted in the prophecies of the holy Prophets, that I believe all who profess any faith in the Bible are looking for something of this kind to take place. All who believe in the New Testament believe that the Son of God, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, is to come, not as he did formerly, in a meek and lowly manner, born in a manger, hated, derided, buffeted and spit upon, and finally crucified by the hands of wicked men, but that when he comes again, it will be in very great majesty and glory, accompanied by all the armies of heaven and by the Saints of all dispensations, who will be raised from the dead at that important time, and who will be caught up into the clouds and come with him. All people who believe in the New Testament believe that such an event as this has got to transpire. Those who believe in the Old Testament, and discard the New, believe that there has to be a great change come over the inhabitants of the earth and over the whole of this creation. The Old Testament speaks of the day of the Lord, when the sun will be darkened, when the moon and the stars will refuse to shine, when the Lord will punish the wicked for their wickedness, when sinners will be swept from the face of the earth, and when there will be none but the righteous left. It is believed that a day will come, when the wicked among the inhabitants of this globe will be burned as stubble, and when there will be neither root nor branch left of the proud and of them that do wickedly. So that believers in both the Old and New Testaments, or in either of them, are expecting that such a great and terrible event will come. But very few, however, of the inhabitants of our globe have taken into consideration the great preparatory work for this grand change; they have not searched the Scriptures in regard to how this work is to be accomplished, and who the persons will be who will be ready and prepared to abide that day; how that great change will come, and what the signs of it will be they know not, and yet the Bible is very plain and full in relation to these matters.

The words of our text communicate to us the knowledge that a proclamation is to become so conspicuous at that day, that all the inhabitants of the world and dwellers on the earth will be required to see and understand, when the Lord commences this work, when he lifts up an ensign on the mountains. I suppose that a great many have been looking for the Lord to do something, but in what portion of our globe he would commence his work they did not know. There are some few, who have searched the Bible diligently, who have been looking for the kingdom of God to be set up on the earth in the latter times, never to be destroyed. Some have supposed that the kingdom that was built up by the early Christians, some eighteen hundred years ago, was that kingdom predicted by the Prophet Daniel. Others, not being able to reconcile the ideas communicated by Daniel on this subject, have looked forward to a day when there should be, literally, a kingdom established on this earth by the power of God in fulfillment of the prophecy of Daniel. Those who have believed, or tried to believe, that the ancient Christians constituted that kingdom, have been at a loss as to how it could exist broken up into a thousand fragments, a thousand different classes of people with as many different faiths clashing one with another. They have said in their hearts—“Is this the kingdom of God, where there is no union?” Some two hundred millions of the human family professing Christianity, and yet contending one with another about their doctrines and principles, one believing a doctrine and another condemning that doctrine and believing something directly different. Another discarding both these doctrines and believing in something else, and so on, until inextricable confusion is the result. They have looked upon the babel thus created as something so different from the nature of that kingdom predicted by the ancient Prophets, that they have been unable to reconcile the idea in their own minds that it could possibly be the kingdom of God.

Suppose that we quote the passage in the second chapter of Daniel, in regard to the setting up of God’s kingdom. It is there said that Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon, had a dream, which portrayed before him all the kingdoms of the earth for many generations, under the similitude of a great image, whose head was of gold, breast and arms of silver, belly and thighs of brass, legs of iron, and feet part of iron and part of potter’s clay. Besides the image he, in his dream, beheld something entirely distinct therefrom, and forming no part nor portion of it, cut out of the mountains without hands. It was called a stone from the mountains, which smote this great image, representing the kingdoms of the world, upon the feet, and when the feet were smitten all the other kingdoms crumbled to pieces, and they were carried away before the force of this little stone like the chaff of the summer threshing floor, and no place could be found for them; but the stone that smote the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth.

Now, ancient Christianity, or, in other words, the kingdom which God set up eighteen hundred years ago, did not accomplish the prediction or fulfill that which was spoken by Daniel; neither was that kingdom which was then set up at a time when this great image had been completed. No feet nor toes of the image were yet formed when the ancient kingdom of God was set up on the earth. It is true that Nebuchadnezzer, and the Babylonish kingdom over which he ruled, representing the head of gold, had existed. The Medes and Persians, who succeeded him, had existed, and they represented the breast and arms of silver; the Macedonians or Grecians existed, representing the third kingdom that bore rule over all the earth; the great Roman empire had begun to exist, but it was not yet divided in its two legs of iron as it was several centuries after Christ. The feet and toes of the image were not yet formed, but it will be noticed, by the testimony of Daniel, that when that stone, cut out of the mountain without hands, that is, without the hand of human wisdom; when that should be cut out and should commence its rolling forth from the mountain, the very first attack that it should make would be on the feet and toes of the image.

The ancient kingdom of God could not do this, for the reason that the feet and toes on the two legs of iron were not yet in existence, and hence that kingdom did not represent the one that Daniel spoke of, though the kingdom then set up was the kingdom of God, but not the one that was to bear rule over all the earth, as predicted.

Another reason why that kingdom was not the one spoken of by Daniel is this—the kingdom spoken of by the ancient Prophet, that was to be set up by the God of heaven, was never to be destroyed, but it should break in pieces all other kingdoms and should stand for ever, and never be left to another people. Did the kingdom commenced by Christ and his Apostles fulfill these predictions? No. Why not? Because it was predicted both by Daniel and by John the Revelator that the kingdom which was to be built up in the days of Christ’s first coming, instead of prevailing against the kingdoms of the world, was to be overcome. It was written concerning that kingdom that war should be made upon it by the powers of this world, and that they should prevail and overcome it. Not so with the latter-day kingdom—that never can be overcome or prevailed against.

Was the prophecy of John and Daniel, concerning the former day kingdom being overcome, fulfilled? Yes. Certain powers arose and made war upon that kingdom, and spread forth their doctrines and principles until all nations became drunk with the wine of the wrath of the fornication of that great ecclesiastical power. Instead, then, of the kingdom of God overcoming the nations, it was overcome and banished from the earth.

Perhaps some may inquire—“Do you believe, then, that the Christian Church has been so overcome that it has not existed on the earth?” That is what we believe, that is one of the principles taught by this people during the last forty-four years of the existence of this Church. Says one—“You have no charity.” Yes, we have charity just as far as the Lord God permits us to have charity; but we have not charity sufficient to call darkness light, nor the doctrines and creeds of men the doctrines of heavens. We have not charity sufficient to say that that which is organized by human wisdom is of God, or that the traditions and commandments of men can be substituted for those of God. Charity does not lead us to make these assertions. Perhaps you may inquire—“What evidence have you then, that the kingdom of God was overcome, besides the predictions that you have quoted?” We have this evidence—in the kingdom of God there were always inspired Apostles. There is no testimony in this sacred volume, the New Testament, that the kingdom of God ever existed without Apostles in it. Where are your Apostles inspired of God, modern Christendom? Where have they been for the last seventeen centuries of the Christian era? If you had had Apostles during that time they would have continued to exercise the functions and gifts of Apostles: they would have received revelation from heaven, and those revelations would have been just as sacred as the revelations that were given to the first twelve Apostles, and it would have been just as necessary to have them compiled in the sacred canon as to compile the revelations of those who lived in the first century of the Christian era. This, then, is a testimony and a very important one too, that the kingdom that was set up anciently did not continue, but was overcome, so much so that Apostles had no existence on the earth, and they have not had for many long centuries of darkness that are passed and gone.

Recollect now, that in the New Testament order of things, given for the organization of the true Christian Church, Paul says—“God hath set in the Church first, Apostles, secondarily Prophets,” &c. Take away, then, this first officer of the Church, and say that no Apostles are needed to inquire of God and receive revelations, and you do away with the foremost and most essential member in the kingdom of God from what you call the Christian Church. “Secondarily Prophets.” Who does not know that for seventeen centuries past the Christian world so-called has not believed in any prophecy, that is the foretelling of future events, or in inspiration from heaven? Who does not know that all new revelation has been discarded, not only by the great mother Church, called the Roman Catholic, but by the Greek Catholics, and also by all her descendants, her daughters, the various Protestant sects? They have all denounced everything in the shape of new revelation. But the kingdom or Church of God never did, and it never can, exist without inspiration and new revelation, without inspired Apostles and Prophets; therefore this, besides the predictions that I have named, proves to every person who believes in the sacred text that the kingdom of God has not been upon the earth for a long period of time.

We might go on and show other reasons why it has not been upon the earth. In order for the kingdom of God to be upon the earth there must be a continuation of authority. Says one—“Authority for what?” Authority to administer its ordinances. Where that authority ceases the sacrament can not be administered; where that authority ceases no person can administer baptism, or the laying on of hands for the baptism of fire and the Holy Ghost. In fact, where that authority ceases all the ordinances of the kingdom of God cease. Says one—“Have they not had the Christian ministry among the Roman Catholics, among the Greek Catholics, and among all the Protestants who have dissented from those two ancient Churches?” Yes, they have had a ministry, but has that ministry had divine authority? That is the great question to be determined. If they have had divine authority, then the kingdom of God has existed on the earth just as long as that authority has existed; if they have not had divine authority, the kingdom of God upon the earth ceased when that authority ceased. How are we to determine this? Says one—“Determine it by the standard, the holy Scriptures.” In appealing to them we find that Paul says—“No man taketh this honor unto himself, save he be called of God as was Aaron.” Every person who has read the Old Testament Scriptures, knows that Aaron was called by immediate and direct revelation in his day. He was not called by revelation that was given several hundred years before he was born, to Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Isaac or Jacob; he was not called by some commission that was given in former generations, but by direct revelation in his day. Can no person, then, take this ministry to himself, unless he is called the same as Aaron was called? So says Paul. Have any of these ministers, among all these so-called Christian denominations, been called by new revelations? If they have they deny their own words, for they have incorporated in their disciplines, creeds and articles of faith that the sixty-six books contained in the Old and New Testament are all the revelations that God has ever given to man. Is that so? Let us search these sixty-six books and see if any man that lived in the second century of the Christian era is mentioned therein, or in the third or fourth, or in any succeeding century down to this day. Has any man in the Christian world from the days of the ancient Apostles down to this time been called by name to the ministry? If so, that will alter the case. But I find that this ancient compilation of revelations does not mention by name a solitary individual who has dwelt on the earth for the last seventeen hundred years, hence none of them have been called by ancient revelation; and, in order to be called, according to the declaration of Paul, as Aaron was, they must be called by new revelation.

Says one—“Stop, that will not do, the very moment that we admit new revelation, we say that the canon of Scripture is not full, and that will lead us right in opp[o]sition to all the declarations and traditions of our fathers, therefore we will not take that ground, and we will not say that we have been called by new revelation as Aaron was.” How will you get around it, then? Says one—“I think that we can get authority from this good old book, though our names are not mentioned therein as being called as Aaron was, by direct revelation.” Well, let us examine. What authority do you think you can get from this ancient record? Says one—“You turn to the last chapter of Mark. It is there written that Jesus said unto his eleven disciples, after he rose from the dead—‘Go ye into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature.’” Indeed! Does that call you? Did it call Paul, Timothy or Titus? Did it call any other person that lived even then, except the eleven to whom Jesus spoke? No, it did not; every other person who received any call had to receive it by new revelation. Even then, in that age, a commission given to eleven men did not commission the twelfth. A commission given to those eleven men did not commission any Christian minister who lived in the first century of the Christian era. Hence we find in the 13th chapter of the Acts of the Apostles that there were certain prophets in the Christian church at Antioch—do not be astonished, professed Christians, that there were prophets in the Christian church at Antioch—“And the Holy Ghost said unto them,” prepare yourselves for hearing a new revelation—“separate unto me Barnabas and Saul unto the work of the ministry to which I have called them.” Here then was a new revelation for Barnabas and Saul in relation to their ministry and calling. But could they undertake their ministry by virtue of some old commission given prior to their calling? No. Timothy, who lived contemporary with the ancient Apostles, was not called by virtue of a commission given to the eleven, neither was he called by virtue of a commission given to Paul and Barnabas; but he was called as the Apostle Paul has declared in his epistle to Timothy—“Neglect not the gift which is in thee, which was given thee by the spirit of prophecy, and by the laying on of the hands.” What! Did Timothy live in the day of Prophets, and when Prophets could find out in relation to his calling, and lay their hands upon him and set him apart to the work of the ministry unto which God had called him? Yes, and so with all the rest, and no man can take this honor to himself, save he be called of God as was Aaron.

God is a very consistent being; he does not do things at haphazard, but he is very orderly in his work, and everything in his kingdom is consistent and according to law. That is the way the Lord works. He is far more consistent than the political governments of our day; and even they, with all their imperfections, would never be so unwise as to receive a foreign minister simply because some other foreign minister had been called. Supposing that a man from Great Britain should go to Washington, and should declare to the President of the United States, and to the various authorities of the government there—“I am a minister plenipotentiary, I have authority from the British Government to transact whatever business it may have to transact with the Government of the United States.” “Very well,” say the President and those associated with him at the head of the Government, “let us see your credentials.” “My credentials!” says this man. “Bless you, I have not any new commission. The authorities of Great Britain have not said anything to me about being sent to represent them in the United States, but nevertheless I have authority to act as their minister.” “Well, what is the nature of your authority? pray tell us.” “Why,” says he, “having access to some old documents I found, in searching them over, that there was a man called about fifty or sixty years ago to act in this nation as minister plenipotentiary for Great Britain.” “What has that to do with you?” say those who are questioning him. Says he—“I did not suppose that I needed any new commission, so I just took this old document and put it in my pocket, I thought it would authorize me to act as minister because one that is dead and gone acted by virtue of the authority it conferred.” What do you suppose our Government would think of such a minister? Don’t you think they would regard him as a little insane, or beside himself? They certainly would. Do you suppose that God has less wisdom than our general Government? Do you suppose that he lets things run at random? Or does he have a system to his kingdom? If our Government would not receive a man on an old commission given to a person dead and gone, why should it be supposed that the Lord is so inconsistent as to say that Tom, Dick and Harry, and all the world, or part of it, were called to be ministers because a commission was given to eleven men some eighteen hundred years ago? Why, that commission did not authorize any but those to whom it was given; and to my mind it looks supremely ridiculous for any person to claim that he is commissioned to preach and to administer the ordinances of the Gospel, because eleven men received authority to do so eighteen hundred years ago.

Says one—“You are very uncharitable.” Can’t help it; if that is uncharitable, I will confess that I am uncharitable, and I cannot help it; though I believe that true charity leads us to believe things that are reasonable, consistent, and in accordance with the word of God, and that I try to do. However numerous my own imperfections may be, it is my real desire, and has been from my youth to the present time, to be consistent. These are some reasons, among a multitude that might be named, why we, as Latter-day Saints, believe that the kingdom of God which was set up in ancient days has had no place on the earth for some seventeen centuries past, so far as the eastern continent is concerned. The kingdom of God was set up in ancient America, and it existed until between three and four centuries after Christ, consequently when we say that it has not existed upon the earth for upwards of seventeen centuries past, we have reference particularly to the nations of the east.

Says one—“That is an awful condition for our earth to be in to have no Christian Church upon it for so long a period. Can not help it. If it is a woeful condition, it is necessary for us to search the Scriptures in order that we may learn if God ever intends to alter this order of things, and if he ever intends to again establish his kingdom upon the earth. Daniel, in his prophecy, has informed us that such will be the case. He saw the time when that great event would take place. He saw the four great kingdoms which should bear rule over all the earth. The fourth great power which bore rule over the world was the great Roman Empire, which was represented by the two legs of the great image which he saw. And as the world grew older this empire was divided, and the various kingdoms which sprang therefrom became so weakened that they were represented, not by iron altogether, but by iron mixed with miry clay. They had not the strength of former kingdoms, and they are the kingdoms of modern Europe and the Republic of America, which has been built up by people who have come over to the American continent, and have established one of the wisest and best governments upon the face of the whole earth, but yet not established altogether after the order of the kingdom of God.

All these modern kingdoms as you now behold them, the Scandinavians, for instance, in the north, and the Germans, Italians, Swiss, French, the Spaniards and Austrians, and all other kingdoms representing Christendom, have grown out of the great Roman Empire, which once had dominion over all these lands, and they were represented by the feet of the image spoken of by the Prophet Daniel.

It is comparatively an easy task to locate the kingdoms represented by the various portions of the completed image. The head of gold we may place away in Asia, representing the Babylonish Empire, with Nebuchadnezzar at its head. Next the Medes and Persians, represented by the breast and arms of silver; their location was also in Asia, running partially into Europe. Then came the Macedonians and Greeks, represented by the belly and thighs of brass; and finally the Romans, represented by the legs of iron. Thus we can locate the great image, with his head in Asia, his feet reaching over here to the western continent, all of them governments of human institution instead of having been organized by divine authority; they have all been organized without having a direct “Thus saith the Lord” in relation to the matter.

By and by the time came when, in the providence of God it became necessary to set up his kingdom on the earth. How is it set up? Is it cut out of the mountain with hands, that is, with human wisdom alone? Oh no, the Lord spake; the Lord sent his angel; the Lord gave commandment from the heavens; the Lord informed his servants how to organize his kingdom; the Lord fulfilled that which he spoke by the mouth of the ancient Apostles; the Lord sent that angel which he promised that he would send in the 14th chapter of the Revelations of St. John. What did he send that angel for? To restore the Gospel of the kingdom. “Then you mean to say that the kingdom of God can not be established without the Gospel being sent, do you?” Yes. “But,” says one, “have we not got the Gospel in this good book of ours, the Bible?” We have a history of it But can you and I embrace it? No I have already proved that we could not be baptized, and baptism is one of the first essential ordinances to become citizens of the kingdom of God. I have also shown that we can not legally partake of the sacrament, because it requires a divinely authorized person to administer it. We can not have hands laid upon us for the baptism of fire and the Holy Ghost, because that requires God’s ministers to administer it, and the Lord would not pour out the Holy Ghost through an unauthorized minister. Hence you see, however much we might read the history of the Gospel as preached in ancient times, and the history of the organization of the ancient church, it could not do us any good so far as receiving the ordinances is concerned. It is true that we might be benefited by observing the moral principles taught therein, and being moral, virtuous, upright and just before all men; but to become citizens of the kingdom of God requires divine authority, and therefore it was necessary that we should have something more than a mere history of the Gospel, and that something was, and must be, authority sent down from heaven. This is what John predicted. I will quote the passage for the benefit of strangers, for our people are familiar with it, even our Sunday school children understand it. The passage I refer to is contained in the 6th verse of the 14th chapter of Revelations. It reads as follows—“And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting Gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, kindred, tongue and people.” Accompanying this message of the everlasting Gospel brought by an angel were these remarkable words—“Fear God and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come.” That is the eleventh hour, the last time that he will send laborers to labor in his vineyard. When he sends these last laborers to prune his vineyard for the last time, he communicetes [communicates] the message of the everlasting Gospel by an angel sent from heaven. Not for one people or one nation only, but to be preached to every nation, tongue and people that dwell upon the earth.

This alone, if I had not brought any evidence or testimony to prove that the kingdom of God has been done away from the earth, this alone proves it. If there had been any people on the face of this wide world of ours, who had the Gospel, it would have been unnecessary to send an angel from heaven with it. If there had been in any part of the earth a people who had the everlasting Gospel, and authority to administer its ordinances, do you suppose that an angel would have been sent from heaven to restore that Gospel? Such a supposition is unreasonable. All we would have had to do, would have been to find them and to have them to administer baptism, the laying on of hands and the other ordinances of the Gospel unto us, and then to have ordained us to the work of the ministry. But no; so completely had the world of mankind apostatized that no authority existed; no kingdom or Church of God, no voice of revelation, no Prophet or inspired man among all the nations, hence God sent his angel in our day, and here I hold in my hands a book of between five and six hundred pages, containing the everlasting Gospel as it was taught on this continent by the risen Savior eighteen hundred years ago, Jesus, after he had finished his ministry and burst the tombs at Jerusalem, came to this western hemisphere of ours, and chose twelve disciples and ordained them and sent them forth to preach the Gospel among the inhabitants of this land. Those men went forth and organized the Church, and the doctrines and Gospel which Jesus administered on this continent were recorded in this book. When the angel came from heaven he brought this book to light. He did not reveal it to the great and learned of the earth, or to those who were wise in their own eyes, but he found a farmer’s boy between fourteen and fifteen years of age, and set him to do this work, and it has come forth, and the Gospel is revealed.

But there is one thing I wish to state now very pointedly, that though this angel brought forth the everlasting Gospel and revealed it by the Urim and Thummim to Joseph Smith, the unlearned farmer’s boy, yet that did not authorize Joseph Smith to baptize you or me; it did not authorize him to lay hands upon me nor you for the gift of the Holy Ghost; it did not authorize him to administer the Lord’s supper; it merely revealed the fulness of the everlasting Gospel through him for the benefit of every people, nation, kindred and tongue of our globe. “Well,” says one, “if he could not baptize you, how were you first baptized?” I answer that the Lord was consistent, and that when he sent this everlasting Gospel by his angel, he did not forget, when the work was translated by the Urim and Thummim, to again send an angel from heaven to ordain individuals by the laying on of hands to administer the ordinances of the Gospel, and to call them as Aaron was called, by new revelation. Angels were sent down from heaven, and the Apostleship was conferred, that same authority which Peter, James and John and the rest of the Apostles held in ancient days was conferred, and many others were called and the Church was organized, not by the wisdom of man and by his cunning and craft, but everything, even to the very month and day on which it should be organized was revealed of God from heaven, and no person was called to the work of the ministry, only by revelation. The Apostleship was conferred by revelation, and the work began and spread forth, and the people began to believe in this everlasting Gospel, and the Church was organized again with inspired Apostles and Prophets, according to the ancient pattern.

It may be said—“This is a very high pretension.” We do not pretend this thing of ourselves; all the glory is unto God. He sent the Gospel, he restored the everlasting Priesthood and Apostleship, and to him be all the glory. He bestowed these blessings; we received them and we feel thankful for them. And in connection with the restoration of the Priesthood, and the kingdom—for God calls it his kingdom—in the midst of this people, though they may be hated, persecuted, driven time and time again, and finally driven into these mountain wilds, yet the kingdom is here, it is not overcome: God’s kingdom is here and it will endure forever, for that is the prediction of Daniel.

Is this an appropriate place for the kingdom, away up in this mountain region, so isolated from all the nations? We are not so isolated but what we can fulfill the prediction given in ancient times through John; not so isolated but what this Gospel, which was sent by an angel from heaven, can be published to all the nations of the earth. Look at what has been already accomplished, during the short period of its existence. Forty-five years have not rolled over our heads since we were organized with only six members. What has God done since then in rolling forth his work? He has sent missionaries by hundreds, not only to the inhabitants of the various States of this Union and to those of British America; but he has sent them by hundreds to foreign lands. They have lifted up their voices in the midst of the British nation, among the Welsh, the Scotch, the Irish, among the Scandinavians of the north, among the Germans, among the French, the Swiss, the Italians, among the Hindostanese and the inhabitants of South Australia and New Zealand, and various islands of the sea; and from the midst of these various peoples a hundred thousand souls have been gathered to these mountains, whence the kingdom of God—the stone cut out of the mountains—is to roll forth, until it fills the whole earth. We did not come here with the idea of fulfilling that prophecy. I doubt whether there was scarcely one among us, when we were driven here, who entertained the idea that this was the appropriate place for the kingdom of God. It is true, we had read in Daniel that the stone should be cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it should accomplish the great work that God had decreed, in filling the whole earth. We had read this, but did we realize it when our enemies cannonaded us from our lands and homes in the States? While living there we were driven time after time, and finally were driven to these mountains; and before leaving, our enemies made us enter into an agreement that we would not stop short of the Rocky Mountains, and that we would go even beyond the summit of the Rocky Mountains. Said they—“You must do this or we will kill you. We have killed your Prophet and some of your best men, and we have robbed and driven you four or five times; and now, this time, we will not suffer you to stop within our borders, you must go beyond the Rocky Mountains.” We started because we were obliged to; we got here; and now we are becoming quite a people. But what was the object of our enemies in driving us here, into what was termed the Great American desert? They no doubt thought that if we once got here, we should surely perish, for they supposed that no human being could ever gain a livelihood by cultivating the earth in this desert. The only inhabitants it then contained was a few Indians, who lived by digging roots, and catching and drying crickets, and grasshoppers and rattlesnakes, with now and then a rabbit; and these Indians would, once in a while, be able to partially clothe themselves with rabbit skins. Our enemies thought—“If we can only get the ‘Mormons’ into that desert, that will be the end of ‘Mormonism.’”

We are here, what have we done, with the blessing of the Lord and his multiplied kindness and mercies upon us? We have found that God has blessed the land and blessed the exertions of his people. He has blessed them in building up many cities, towns and villages, for some four hundred miles in extent, in the very heart of these great interior mountains of America. He has blessed us in erecting several hundred schoolhouses; he has blessed us in reclaiming the desert, and with many blessings that might be named. All praise be to him! He it is who has sent rains upon this burnt and parched-up soil. When we came here, Salt Lake was twelve feet lower than it is now. We took all these little streams and turned them on to our land, and according to all natural supposition, the waters of Salt Lake would have become lower and lower. Why? Because all these streams were cut off from entering it. But instead of becoming lower and lower, we find that, after taking stream after stream, and rivulet after rivulet to irrigate our crops, God has actually sent rains from the heavens in such abundance that Salt Lake is now about twelve feet higher than when the pioneers came here in 1847.

Is there anything said about this desert in prophecy? Yes. You can find many prophecies in Isaiah, David’s psalms, and other Prophets, predicting that, about or near the time of the coming of the Lord, “the wilderness and the solitary place shall be made glad for them.” That the “desert shall rejoice and blossom as the rose; it shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing.” Isaiah further says that “the Lord shall comfort Zion; he shall comfort all her waste places, he shall make her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of the Lord; joy and gladness shall be found therein, thanksgiving and the voice of melody.” Also that he would “cause springs of water to break out in the desert, and that the parched ground should become pools of living water.”

How is it brethren? I appeal to you who are acquainted and were here in 1847? Many of you know that, in places where there would be a little spring then, about sufficient to water half an acre, now there is water enough to water land sufficient to sustain several hundred families. This is a literal fulfillment of the prophecy which says that “the parched ground shall become pools of living water.”

Now let us come more directly to the words of our text. I had almost forgotten the text. “All ye inhabitants of the world, and dwellers on the earth, see ye, when he lifteth up an ensign upon the mountains, and when he bloweth a trumpet hear ye.” It seems then that God is going to lift up an ensign upon the mountains. What do you mean by an ensign? According to the definitions given by our lexicographers an ensign is a kind of a standard to which people rally and around which they gather. The Lord is going then, to lift up an ensign on the mountains, and it is to be so wonderful in its nature, something of so much importance that not part of the people are required to understand it; but in the language of Isaiah, “all ye inhabitants of the world,” all nations, languages and kindreds are required to see, when the Lord lifts up an ensign on the mountains: “When he bloweth a trumpet hear ye.” What kind of a trumpet? The trumpet of the Gospel, that which takes the Gospel to all these nations, calling upon them to flee out of their own lands. Gather out from the nations, come together in one, go up into the mountains where the kingdom of God is established for the last time. What for? To escape the judgments and tribulations which must come upon the nations of great Babylon.

There is an indication in prophecy where these mountains, in which this ensign is to be raised, are located; the Lord has not left us in the dark concerning this matter. Let us read the first verse of the chapter from which our text is taken. “Woe to the land shadowing with wings, which is beyond the rivers of Ethiopia. All ye inhabitants of the world, and dwellers on the earth, see ye, when he lifteth up an ensign on the mountains; and when he bloweth a trumpet hear ye.” I will also read the fifth and sixth verses—“For afore the harvest, when the bud is perfect, and the sour grape is ripening in the flower, he shall both cut off the sprigs with pruning hooks, and take away and cut down the branches. They shall be left together unto the fowls of the mountains, and to the beasts of the earth; and the fowls shall summer upon them, and all the beasts of the earth shall winter upon them.”

It seems, then, that the Prophet saw in vision a land that seemed to represent two great wings, and a land, too, that was beyond the rivers of Ethiopia, from where the Prophet delivered this prophecy. Palestine, the land where Isaiah dwelt when he delivered this prophecy, was northeast from Ethiopia, and he speaks of a land shadowing with wings beyond the rivers of Ethiopia. We have not any map in this room, or we might point out how the two divisions of the continent of North and South America resemble two great wings, connected together at the Isthmus. I scarcely ever look at the outlines of the two divisions of this continent as depicted on a map, without being reminded of the wings of a bird; and I presume that when Isaiah, in vision, saw this western continent, it made the same impression upon his mind, and, as he did not know what name would be given to the continent of America, he had no better way to give expression to his ideas, than to call it the land shadowing with wings, in other words, having the appearance of huge wings, and that it would be beyond the rivers of Ethiopia, from where he dwelt. If you trace the maps, and pass through the land of Ethiopia, where could you find a land the outlines of which so much resemble the wings of a bird, as the land of America? I do not know of any. And it seems that this land so described, had a woe pronounced upon it. “For afore the harvest, when the bud is perfect, and the sour grape is ripening in the flower, he shall cut off the sprigs with pruning hooks and take away and cut down the branches. They shall be left together unto the fowls of the mountain, and to the beasts of the earth: and the fowls shall summer upon them, and all the beasts of the earth shall winter upon them.” This is an awful judgment to come upon that land beyond the rivers of Ethiopia.

But first, before this judgment is to come upon the wicked of that land, the Prophet speaks of a message, or something that should concern all the inhabitants of the world and the dwellers on the earth, showing that the people will, in God’s mercy, be warned before these awful judgments come; showing, also, that after the raising of the ensign on the mountains, the inhabitants of this western continent will be among the first to experience these terrible judgments.

The harvest is said to be the end of the wicked world; and if it is so, “afore the harvest,” that is, before the final end comes he will visit the inhabitants of the land shadowing with wings, beyond the rivers of Ethiopia with judgments that are terribly severe, that will cause them to lie by hundreds and thousands unberied [unburied], from one end of the land to the other, to be meat for the fowls of the air and the beasts of the earth. Why? Because the judgments will be swift, giving no time for burial.

Inquires one—“Do you really believe that such judgments are coming upon our nation?” I do not merely believe, but I know it, just as well as I knew, twenty-eight years before it commenced, that there would be war between the North and the South. We knew that by a revelation which God gave through his servant Joseph Smith, twenty-eight years before the war of the rebellion commenced; and it was published in the languages of various nations years and years before the war was inaugurated, and it took place precisely according to the words of the Prophet, and it began in the very locality specified in the revelation, namely, South Carolina. We know that these judgments are coming with the same certainty that we knew concerning the war of the rebellion.

But there will be a chance to escape from these judgments for all who are willing to gather to the place of refuge which God has appointed in the mountains; all people can rally and gather to that place if they wish to do so. This is spoken of in many places. Let us turn to the fifth chapter of Isaiah, and see what is said there, concerning the ensign. In the 26th verse we read—“And he will lift up an ensign to the nations from afar, and will hiss unto them from the ends of the earth; and behold they shall come with speed swiftly.” An ensign for the nations lifted up from afar! Isaiah, where were you, when you delivered that prophecy? In Palestine. What land would be far off from Palestine, where you resided? I think this American continent would be about as far off as almost any portion of the globe.

When the Lord commences this message it will be sent from the nation “afar off” to the ends of the earth; and there will be a gathering connected with it, of that people who shall come with speed swiftly. The Prophet probably did not know the nature and power of steam in the days to which he referred, and that the gathering would be effected by means of steamboats and railroads; but he did understand that there would be some very swift method of conveyance. He did not understand the meaning of railroads, and many things connected with them, for they are a modern invention, and the in terms used in designating them are also of modern origin. But he saw in vision that people should come with speed swiftly from the ends of the earth, when the Lord should hiss unto them. He, of course, described the events he saw in the best language at his command. In his sixty-second chapter, Isaiah says—“Go through, go through the gates; prepare the way of the people; cast up, cast up the highway; gather out the stones; lift up a standard for the people. Behold, the Lord hath proclaimed unto the end of the world. Say ye to the daughter of Zion, Behold, thy salvation cometh; behold his reward is with him, and his work before him.” It seems then that he did describe something about making these railroads. “But,” inquires one, “what did he mean by saying ‘go through, go through the gates?’” I do not know. Probably he did not understand what a tunnel was in those days, but when he saw in vision a long train of cars, without any animal power to draw them, dart into the mountain, and emerge on the opposite side of the mountain, I do not know that he could describe it in any better language than by saying—“Go through, go through the gates;” and then, when he wanted to represent the smoothness of the railroads, I do not know that he could do it any better than by saying—“Cast up a highway, gather out the stones,” etc.

With the casting up of this highway a proclamation was to be made. How extensive? In one region of country? Oh, no. “Behold, the Lord has proclaimed unto the ends of the world, behold thy salvation cometh, his reward is with him, and his work before him.” What else? “They shall call them the holy people.” What people? Why, the people that should lift up the standard spoken of in the preceding verse. Lift up a standard for the people, prepare the way for the people; behold they shall call thee the redeemed of the Lord; thou shalt be called, sought out, a city not forsaken. Jerusalem was not sought out, neither has it been a city not forsaken. Every one knows that Jerusalem was in existence before Joshua led the people into the land of Canaan, it was an ancient city among the heathen before it was conquered and taken possession of by the house of Israel. And every one knows that Jerusalem was to be forsaken for a good many centuries before the generation should come that this proclamation should be made, or this highway should be cast up, or the ensign should be raised upon the mountains, when the people should be called a holy people, the redeemed of the Lord, called, sought out, a city not forsaken, etc.

I can bear testimony, so can a great many other men, that when we came here in the summer of 1847, and sought out this city, the headquarters of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we sought it out by the Spirit of the Lord, the Spirit of revelation which rested upon us, and we were guided by that Spirit. We did not lay out a little narrow tract of land, half a mile square, but understanding the purposes of God in some measure, we laid out this city with broad streets, and extended it over an area of several square miles, and as you see it at the present time. Why did we take this course? Because we knew by the Spirit of God that rested upon us, the great work that the Lord our God intended to accomplish herein the midst of the desert. We knew that he would gather his people from the various nations and establish them here in Zion, as a standard or ensign to the nations, that as many as would might gather here before the judgments should come. Read the 11th chapter of Isaiah about this same ensign. “It shall come to pass in that day that the Lord shall set his hand again the second time to recover the remnants of his people, which shall be left, from Assyria, and from Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea. And he shall set up an ensign for the nations, and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth.”

Before Judah and the ten tribes of Israel could ever be gathered an ensign has to be lifted up for the nations. Not for Judah and Israel alone, but for the nations afar off, for the Gospel has been restored for the benefit of the Gentiles—every nation, kindred, tongue and people—as well as for the benefit of the dispersed tribes of Israel.

So far the work has progressed, so far the Lord our God has stretched forth his hand to establish his kingdom upon the earth. But what is the destiny of this kingdom? Read the Prophets; hear what Daniel says. He saw the kingdom of the latter days, which, in its commencement, was like a stone cut out of the mountains without hands, become a great mountain and fill not only the American continent, but the whole earth. What else does Daniel say? “And the kingdom, and the dominion and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heavens shall be given into the hands of the Saints of the Most High, for his kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and it shall stand forever.”

It seems then that this is the destiny of this kingdom. If you want to know the destiny of the nations of our globe, it is this—one government, one kingdom, not half a dozen empires, republics, and this, that and the other governments, but one kingdom, everlasting in its nature, will have dominion over the whole of our globe. But are you not committing treason to preach in this way? If such predictions mean treason, perhaps it would be well enough for some of our good judges to get out an indictment against the Prophet Daniel and other ancient Prophets, and bring them up and try them, and see if they are treasonable characters or not. We are preaching their words; and if it is treason to preach the Bible, would it not be a good plan to burn it up, and not have such things for the people to read and preach about? But if we have the liberty in this glorious land of ours, to believe the Bible and the prophecies it contains, have we not also the liberty to tell them from that good Book what is going to take place on the face of the earth? I think so. And I have, this afternoon, as simply as I know how, in the simplest language I have at my command, endeavored to convey to your judgments and understandings that which God has spoken by the mouths of his ancient Prophets, that you may know what he is now doing, and what he intends to do until the consummation determined upon is performed upon all the face of the earth, and the elect gathered out from the four winds of heaven. Amen.

Man is the Offspring of God, etc.

Orson Pratt

Discourse by Elder Orson Pratt, delivered in the Sixteenth Ward Assembly Rooms, Salt Lake City, Sunday afternoon, March 14 1875. Reported by David W. Evans.

I will read a few paragraphs which you will find recorded in the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, commencing near the middle of the second paragraph of a revelation given December 27, 1832:

“In that he comprehended all things, that he might be in all and through all things, the light of truth; which truth shineth. This is the light of Christ. As also he is in the sun, and the light of the sun, and the power thereof by which it was made. As also he is in the moon, and is the light of the moon, and the power thereof by which it was made. As also the light of the stars, and the power thereof by which they were made. And the earth also, and the power thereof; even the earth upon which you stand.

“And the light which now shineth, which giveth you light, is through him who enlighteneth your eyes, which is the same light that quickeneth your understandings; which light proceedeth forth from the presence of God to fill the immensity of space. The light which is in all things; which giveth life to all things; which is the law by which all things are governed; even the power of God who sitteth upon his throne, who is in the bosom of eternity, who is in the midst of all things.”

We will now pass on to the ninth paragraph of this same revelation, given through Joseph Smith the Prophet:

“All kingdoms have a law given; and there are many kingdoms; for there is no space in the which there is no kingdom; and there is no kingdom in which there is no space, either a greater or lesser kingdom. And unto every kingdom is given a law; and unto every law there are certain bounds also and conditions.

“All beings who abide not in those conditions are not justified; for intelligence cleaveth unto intelligence; wisdom receiveth wisdom; truth embraceth truth; virtue loveth virtue; light cleaveth unto light; mercy hath compassion on mercy, and claimeth her own; justice continueth its course, and claimeth its own; judgment goeth before the face of him who sitteth upon the throne, and governeth and executeth all things; he comprehendeth all things, and all things are before him, and all things are round about him; and he is above all things, and in all things, and is through all things, and is round about all things; and all things are by him, and of him, even God, for ever and ever.

“And again, verily I say unto you, he hath given a law unto all things by which they move in their times and their seasons; and their courses are fixed; even the courses of the heavens and the earth, which comprehend the earth and all the planets; and they give light to each other in their times and in their seasons, in their minutes, in their hours, in their days, in their weeks, in their months, in their years; and these are one year with God, but not with man.

“The earth rolls upon her wings, and the sun giveth his light by day, and the moon giveth her light by night, and the stars also giveth their light, as they roll upon their wings in their glory, in the midst of the power of God. Unto what shall I liken these kingdoms, that ye may understand? Behold, all these are kingdoms, and any man who hath seen any or the least of these, hath seen God moving in his majesty and power. I say unto you, he hath seen him; nevertheless, he who came unto his own was not comprehended. The light shineth in darkness, and the darkness comprehendeth it not nevertheless, the day shall come when you shall comprehend even God; being quickened in him and by him. Then shall ye know that ye have seen me, that I am, that I am the true light that is in you, and that you are in me, otherwise ye could not abound.

“Behold, I will liken these kingdoms unto a man having a field, and he sent forth his servants into the field to dig in the field; and he said unto the first, go ye and labor in the field, and in the first hour I will come unto you, and ye shall behold the joy of my countenance; and he said unto the second, go ye also into the field, and in the second hour I will visit you with the joy of my countenance; and also unto the third, saying, I will visit you; and unto the fourth, and so on unto the twelfth.

“And the lord of the field went unto the first in the first hour, and tarried with him all that hour, and he was made glad with the light of the countenance of his lord; and then he withdrew from the first that he might visit the second also, and the third, and the fourth, and so on unto the twelfth; and thus they all received the light of the countenance of their lord; every man in his hour, and in his time, and in his season; beginning at the first, and so on unto the last, and from the last unto the first, and from the first unto the last every man in his own order, until his hour was finished, even according as his lord had commanded him, that his lord might be glorified in him, and he in him, that they all might be glorified.

“Therefore, unto this parable will I liken all these kingdoms, and the inhabitants thereof; every kingdom in its hour, and in its time, and in its season; even according to the decree which God hath made.

“And again, verily I say unto you, my friends, I leave these sayings with you, to ponder in your hearts with this commandment which I give unto you, that ye shall call upon me while I am near; draw near unto me and I will draw near unto you; seek me diligently and ye shall find me; ask and ye shall receive; knock and it shall be opened unto you; whatsoever ye ask the Father in my name it shall be given unto you, that is expedient for you; and if ye ask anything that is not expedient for you, it shall turn unto your condemnation.

“Behold, that which you hear is as the voice of one crying in the wilderness—in the wilderness, because you cannot see him—my voice, because my voice is spirit; my spirit is truth; truth abideth and hath no end; and if it be in you it shall abound.

“And if your eye be single to my glory, your whole bodies shall be filled with light, and there shall be no darkness in you, and that body which is filled with light comprehendeth all things. Therefore sanctify yourselves that your mind become single to God, and the days will come that you shall see him; for he will unveil his face unto you, and it shall be in his own time, and in his own way, and according to his own will.”

I have read these sayings from a revelation given a little over forty-two years ago, to that youth, called Joseph Smith, a farmer’s boy. Do they sound like the ravings of a madman? Do they sound like something that was invented or composed by the wisdom of man, or do they sound like the truth? Joseph Smith was not a learned man, he had to work for his living when he was a lad; and when God called him and gave these revelations through him he had not studied any more than the generality of the young men who now sit in this congregation, and probably not near as much. Yet these words were given to him, and they contain information and knowle[d]ge far beyond that which you will find recorded in the writings of the learned, information expressed so simply that a common mind can, in some degree, grasp it, and yet so sublime and so great that when we come to investigate its depths, it requires greater powers and greater understanding than what man naturally possesses.

We are told, in the part of the first paragraph that I read, that God is in the sun of our firmament, that he is the light of the sun, and that he is the power of the sun by which it was made. We are also told that he is in the moon, and that he is the light of that heavenly luminary, and the power by which it also was made. We are also told that God is in the stars, those worlds so distant from ours, those great centres around which, no doubt, millions on millions of opaque bodies revolve as our planets revolve around our central body, the sun; that he is in those stars, that he is their light, and the power by which they are governed; or to come home directly to our earth, he is in the earth, and is the power and light and glory that is attached to the elements of our globe.

This would seem to exhibit before us the nature of that Being whom we worship. We worship him because of his glory, greatness, goodness, justice, mercy, knowledge, and wisdom. We worship him, because he has the power to govern and control the universe, and because he has commanded us so to do. He is a personage; and we are told that in the beginning man was created in his image. We are also told that we are his sons and his daughters, that we were begotten by him, before the foundation of this world; that we are his offspring, as much so as the little children in this room are the offspring of their parents. Seeing then, that he is a personage and that we are in his image, we can form some idea of the general outlines and resemblance of that personage, but can we form an idea of the intelligence that he possesses? We have but a very limited idea of that. He comprehends all things, all things are before him, all things are round about him, and he is the great and supreme Governor of all the works of his hands.

We are told that the same light which shines from the sun, from the moon, and from the stars, is the same light that quickens the understandings of the children of men. But who is there in this congregation, or upon the face of the earth, that can tell how that light operates in quickening the understandings of men? It is the same light by which you are enabled to see each other, and surrounding nature. The light that proceeds forth from all these heavenly luminaries, with very great velocity, is the same light that quickens the understanding. Do you know how that is done? I do not; yet this is what God has revealed. He is the light that is in all things. Do you or I comprehend how that light is connected with all things? No. These are lessons which we have got to learn in the future, when we ascend in that scale of knowledge and intelligence now possessed by celestial beings. How long it will be before we comprehend these things I know not. How our capacities may hereafter be enlarged, I know not; how they will be developed and quickened so as to comprehend all these great truths and principles, I know not; but we are told in this revelation that the light that quickens the understandings of the children of men, and lighteth all things is one and the same and that it is also the life of all things. What are we to understand by this? Have we life? Yes, we certainly have. Where did we obtain this life? When was it created or made? There is a revelation upon this subject which says that intelligence, or the light of truth, was not created, neither indeed can be. Is it then eternal? Yes. Then this light that shines is eternal in its nature is it? Yes, because it is the same light that gives life to all things. Did our spirits, that have power to think and to reason, have life before the foundation of the world? Yes And what gave them this life? The elements, composing our spirits were eternal; they were never created, neither indeed can be; they existed from all eternity, and were, at a certain period, combined or organized in the form of our spirits; and hence the pre-existence of man before the world was made.

This same light which gives us life, and without which we could not abound, proceeds forth from the presence of God to fill the immensity of space. Can we get away from it? No; for it fills all the intermediate spaces between world and world, between one system and another, and between universe and universe; “and there is no space in which there is no kingdom, and there is no kingdom in which there is no space;” hence, this being the case, all eternity, as far as your minds can possibly stretch, is filled with kingdoms, and with this power of God, this light which is the life of all things, and the law by which all things are governed.

Perhaps you may ask me why I dwell on this mysterious subject? I answer, why did the Lord dwell upon it forty-two years ago, if he did not want us, in some measure to understand it? Would he speak at random? Would he give a revelation without expecting that the people would ever try to understand it? If the Lord wished us to understand something, and condescended to reveal something, why should we, after forty-two years of experience, think that we are stepping over our bounds in trying to approximately comprehend what the Lord desired us to understand, in some measure, forty-two years ago? It is an old sectarian whim and notion, to suppose that we must not try to understand revelation. You know that when they come to something in the divine records which they do not understand, they will say—“Oh, the Lord never intended us to understand that, that is a mystery, we must not search into these things, they are mysteries.” Just as though the Lord would reveal something that he never intended or wished the human family to understand. Saying nothing about the Deity, it would be an act of foolishness on the part of a man to attempt a revelation of something that he never intended his fellow-men to understand. The Lord is more consistent than man; and if he reveals anything, he surely intends that thing to be for the profit and edification of the pure in heart.

I was going to say that we had dwelt too long on baptism for the remission of sins. But no, we should still retain that in our remembrance. Not leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, we ought to go on to perfection. I believe that King James’s translation of that passage says—“Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection.” But the translation given by the inspiration of the Holy Ghost, through the Prophet of the Lord puts in the little word not. “Therefore not leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection.” I do not want the people to leave baptism, or to cast from their minds, and forget the first principles of the doctrine of Christ; but, on the contrary, you should always retain them in your memories. When you repented you did a good work; retain that good work in your minds. When you were baptized for the remission of your sins, through the ministration of a servant of God divinely authorized, you did a good work; retain that in your minds, do not leave that principle. When you had hands laid upon you for the gift of the Holy Ghost, and that was confirmed upon you, you were obedient to one of the principles of the doctrine of Christ; do not leave that, but retain it in your minds. Do not suppose, however, that those first principles are the only ones to be learned; do not become stereotyped in your feelings, and think that you must always dwell upon them and proceed no further. If there be knowledge concerning the future; if there be knowledge concerning the present; if there be knowledge concerning ages that are past, any species of knowledge that would be beneficial to the mind of man, let us seek for it, and that which we can not obtain by using the light which God has placed within us, by using our reasoning powers, by reading books, or by human wisdom alone, let us seek to a higher source—to that Being who is filled with knowledge, and who has given laws to all things and who, in his wisdom, goodness, justice and mercy, controls all things according to their capacity, and according to the various spheres and conditions in which they are placed.

When we reflect upon this subject, the query naturally arises in our minds—if he has given a law unto all things and has set bounds and conditions to every law which he has given, will it hurt any intelligent being to learn concerning those laws as far as he possibly can? I think not. To illustrate this, let us suppose that a learned man, by years of research and study, has discovered many of the great laws of nature, and that he has a family of children growing up, do you think that he would be displeased with his children because they had a curiosity and a desire to know something in relation to that which their father understood? No, you say, he would be pleased to see the intellectual faculties and powers of his children expanding, and to hear them inquiring about this, that, and the other thing, with which he was perfectly familiar, but of which they were ignorant. Furthermore, if it would be pleasing to a father to hear his children making such inquiries, would it not be still more pleasing to him to impart useful information unto them? You reply, “Oh yes, nothing would delight me more than to impart useful instruction to my children, and to aid them in developing their mental powers.” Well, that is just the way our heavenly Father feels in relation to his children. Anything that would be for our good to know—and all knowledge is for our good if we make a right use of it—he is willing to impart, if we but seek unto him in a proper and acceptable manner. Let us then keep all the commandments, and laws, and conditions which God has appointed for us to keep. It is our right and privilege to knock, and we have the promise that it shall be opened to us; to seek, and when we do seek, to do so with the expectation of finding. In this way we may receive more and more information and knowledge, concerning the things of God, and the works of his hands. There are many things that we can learn, already within our reach, without any special and direct revelation, that is, when I say special revelation, I mean without the Lord revealing directly by a vision, the ministration of an angel, or by direct words, as he revealed many things to the ancient revelators, seers, and Prophets. There are a great many things that we can learn independently of these direct revelations; but still we need the help of the Lord, in some measure, in our researches, to learn anything; we need the influence of the Spirit of God to quicken the light that is within us, for light cleaves to light, and the Spirit of God is light, and it cleaves unto the light that enters into the composition of the spirit of man; and when we keep his commandments the Lord is ever ready and willing to quicken the judgment, inform the mind, and lead us along in our thinking and reflecting powers, that we may have power to understand a great many truths, without his coming out and saying—“Thus saith the Lord.”

There are a great many truths which might be revealed to me in words which I should not be able to understand; that is, a law of nature might be revealed to me in words, but I could not understand the principle involved therein after it was thus revealed. For instance, I could reveal a great many things to school children in words, which they could not possibly comprehend. I could give them a revelation that would take them perhaps two or three years deep study to comprehend, and yet it could be printed in a very few words. Just so with the Lord—he could reveal in a few words, a principle to us which it would take us years of study and reflection to understand. Suppose, for illustration, we take the principle of force or gravitation, by which things fall to the earth, and by which the planets are held in their orbits, and do not fly away from the great central luminary of our system—the sun. We will suppose that we know nothing about this law of force, called gravity, and that some man among us should get a direct revelation, expressing that law; if he had never studied sufficiently to understand the nature of these words, the very words that he would receive would be incomprehensible to himself. For instance, the law of gravity is expressed, in the words of Sir Isaac Newton, as follows—“Every particle of matter in the universe attracts every other particle with a force varying indirectly as its mass, and inversely as the square of its distance from every particle.” Now supposing that law had been given to Newton, or to the world, and that there had been no knowledge of mathematics among men, what would they have understood about the law? They might have said—“There is a formula which comprehends the law of the force of the universe;” but what would they know about it? If, however, they understood the terms used, they would know how the force varied at different distances from the attracting or gravitating body. That is the real revelation; it is not the words. A thousand things might be revealed to this congregation, but if merely revealed in words, they perhaps would not know anything about them. We must understand the nature of the thing, the nature of the idea comprehended in any law in order to have it a revelation to us; words are nothing but signs of ideas; if the ideas are not understood, the words will be a mystery.

When we undertake to investigate the laws which govern the various departments of nature, we are investigating the laws of God. Says one—“Do you mean to say that the law of gravitation, which was discovered by Sir Isaac Newton, by which all the bodies in the universe are held in their proper position, is a law of God?” Yes. If he has given this law of force to all bodies, then it is one of his laws, and all who study that law study one of the laws of God. To illustrate this still more familiarly to the minds of the congregation, we will say—here is brother Kesler, who, I presume has been teaching school in this house. Perhaps he has some students in algebra, and perhaps in geometry; then, perhaps he has many scholars who know nothing about these things. Now suppose that brother Kesler should call up a class, the members of which know nothing whatever of the sciences I have named, and should express certain rules in algebra to them, would that be a revelation to that class? It would in words, but what would they comprehend about it? Not a thing; it would be as dark as midnight. There are the words in which the rules are expressed, but could the students in that class put those algebraic rules into operation? No, a process is necessary in order to enable these children to understand the revelation, and that process is one of slow growth, mastered a little to-day, a little to-morrow, and a little the next day, and by and by, in one or two years, they would probably comprehend the algebraic revelation given to them so long before in words. It is so with arithmetic, with grammer [grammar], geography and almost any branch of science taught in our common schools or universities. No wonder then, to me, that Paul in speaking of a man, who was caught up to the third heavens, said he saw things that were not lawful to be uttered, that could not be uttered; for if he had undertaken to utter them, he would have uttered something that the people could not possibly comprehend, until they had learned previous principles. Such a man might tell about certain laws which prevail in heaven, and certain glories which he saw there, but yet, unless the people to whom such things were told had placed themselves in a position to have the Holy Ghost, or the visions of heaven opened to their minds, the words uttered would not be a revelation to them, for it would be altogether beyond their powers to comprehend.

The revelation which Sir Isaac Newton obtained concerning the forces of the universe, has been developed from his day until the present time. The whole learned world of mathematicians have brought all their faculties and powers to bear upon this one little law which I have expressed to you, and have they got through with it? Oh no, it is just beginning to unfold to them some of the common phenomena of the universe, and that is about all. In about a century hence, if the Lord should spare the world, and men make as much advance in these matters as they have done in the century past, this law, there is no doubt, will be carried out into a great many channels and branches that we know nothing about now. Says one—“If it requires so much study on the part of the learned world to unfold and comprehend this one law, it is discouraging to think that there are perhaps hundreds of other laws as intricate as this to investigate before it is possible to come to an understanding of them.” We need not be discouraged upon this subject; for if we do the best we can according to the position in which we are placed, and the opportunities which we have, we do all that the Lord requires; and by and by we shall be placed in a condition in which we can learn much faster than we can now. We need not be discouraged. Perhaps the man who, under a sense of discouragement, gives up and does not make the best of his present limited opportunities, will be limited hereafter in the life to come, and will not be allowed to progress very fast, because of his laziness and his want of desire, courage and fortitude to pursue certain channels of knowledge that were opened up to him here in this life. But when we see individuals not only willing to receive some few of the simple principles of the Gospel of Christ, but are willing to press onward towards perfection as far as opportunities present themselves, we may rest satisfied that they will be honored of the Lord according to their diligence, perseverance, fortitude and patience in striving to understand the laws which he has given to all things.

We might, if we had time, point out a great many other laws. The law of light, for instance, and the law of the velocity of light, or the manner in which light is permitted to go from world to world, and in touching upon these and similar subjects we should be describing to you the power, wisdom, greatness and majesty of the Creator, who has constructed all these things according to law, and all of them are governed by his laws. It would seem almost impossible to untutored minds, if we were to tell them that a motion could be transferred from world to world at the rate of one hundred and eighty-five thousand miles every second of time. Wonderful. We almost start back at the declaration, and almost doubt the possibility of the velocity thus indicated. But incredible as it may seem to the uneducated, it is a certain thing; it does not rest upon the imaginations of the children of men; it is just as certain that light travels at nearly that rate from one creation to another, as it, is that men can time the speed of horses with a watch held in their hands, and the most ignorant will admit that it is perfectly easy to do that. Well, it is just as easy to demonstrate the velocity of light, and it has been done not only by one law, but by many laws; not only by one phenomenon, but by many phenomena, and it is a thing that cannot be disputed by those who have investigated and are capable of understanding the methods of demonstration that have been given.

What causes this immense velocity, and who constructed the great etherial medium that intervenes between all worlds, by means of which a jar can be carried from world to world with that immense velocity? It was God, that Being who is said to be in all things, not by his person, but by his Spirit and his agency. He constructed this great medium so that it should communicate vibrations or jars, from world to world at that rapid rate.

We see an illustration, on a small scale, here on the earth, in connection with our atmosphere. Who constructed this atmosphere and gave it its elasticity, and all its principles and powers, by which sound is communicated from place to place at a very rapid rate? God. He constructed all these things. Sound, we are told, flies at the rate of ten hundred and ninety feet in a second. How does it travel with that velocity? Do the particles from a sounding body—for instance a bell that is ringing—travel all that distance? Oh no, it is merely the vibration, or wave that is sent through the great mass of the atmosphere, from the sounding body to the organ of the ear; and it is sent at the rate of speed I have mentioned—over one-fifth of a mile in a second—and we call that very rapid velocity; but what is it compared with a hundred and eighty-five thousand miles a second.

When you study all these things you are learning lessons concerning God. He it is who has thus organized all these materials of nature, has given them their properties, endowed them with their elasticities, placed them in certain proportions; or, as one of the inspired writers says—“He has weighed the mountains in a balance.” Everything is adjusted in the best possible manner, to carry on his operations throughout the great universe which he has constructed. But I do not wish to dwell lengthily upon these subjects; of more importance than all these laws which govern the materials of nature, are the intelligent beings who inhabit these creations. God, in constructing these materials into creations and worlds, has done it for a wise and noble purpose. The great purpose that he had in view was the intelligent beings who should occupy these creations. No law was given to our earth and its materials, or to the planets, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune and the various asteroids, merely for the sake of giving laws; but the Lord had a useful design in view, namely to add to his own glory and to the happiness of millions of his sons and daughters who should come to people these worlds I have named, that they might be prepared to be redeemed from their fallen condition, as the people of this creation are to be redeemed from theirs.

Inquires one—“Do you mean to say that other worlds have fallen as well as ours?” Yes, man is an agent; intelligence cannot exist on any other principle. All beings having intelligence must have their agency. Laws must be given, suited and adapted to this agency; and when God sends inhabitants on various creations he sends them on the great and grand principle of giving them an opportunity to exercise that agency; and they have exercised it, and have fallen. Is there anything revealed to prove that other worlds have fallen as well as ours? Oh yes, read some of the other revelations. I might quote you one which now occurs to my mind, given through the Prophet Joseph Smith, revealing anew that which was formerly revealed to Enoch, before the flood, concerning the vastness of the creations of the Almighty, and many other things. After speaking of these innumerable creations, Enoch exclaims—“Thou hast taken Zion to thine own bosom out of all the creations thou hast made.” Why should the Lord take Zion from all these creations? Because all of their inhabitants were not worthy. The very expression shows that there were only a few on each of these creations that he could denominate Zion. You know what Zion means: it means the pure in heart, and only a few could be selected from each of all the creations which have been made, as worthy to be taken to his own bosom as a Zion. Does not that show that they have fallen? If they had not transgressed, but had always been obedient, the Lord, as an impartial Being, would have redeemed all the inhabitants of these creations and taken them all to his own bosom. But it seems that only a few had the privilege of being gathered into the bosom of God.

Says one—“There is another thing I would like to have explained, about the parable you have read. ‘Behold, I will liken these kingdoms unto a man having a field, and he sent forth his servants into the field to dig in the field; and he said unto the first, go ye and labor in the field, and in the first hour I will come unto you, and ye shall behold the light of my countenance.’ And he said unto the second in the same manner, and unto the third, and so on unto the twelfth. And when they had fulfilled certain conditions, their Lord comes unto them, and they are made glad with the light of his countenance, during their hour. After he has visited the first, he visits the second, then the third, and so on until the twelfth, each man in his own order, according to his time and season. Now what does all this mean?” The Lord wanted to represent these kingdoms so that we could understand what he desired to impart, and he gave it as a parable, in order to assist our weak comprehensions to understand something about Mercury, Venus, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and others of the various worlds that he has formed. Says the interrogator—“I do not comprehend this idea of the Lord’s withdrawing from one and going to another.” In order to comprehend this let us come back to our own globe. Do we not expect that the Lord will, by and by, come and visit us and stay a little while, about a thousand years. Yes, and then we shall be made glad with the joy of the countenance of our Lord. He will be among us, and will be our King, and he will reign as a King of kings and Lord of lords. He will have a throne in Zion, and another in the Temple at Jerusalem, and he will have with him the twelve disciples who were with him during his ministry at Jerusalem; and they will eat and drink with him at his table; and all the people of this globe who are counted worthy to be called Zion, the pure in heart, will be made glad by the countenance of their Lord for a thousand years, during which the earth will rest. Then what? He withdraws. What for? To fulfill other purposes; for he has other worlds or creations and other sons and daughters, perhaps just as good as those dwelling on this planet, and they, as well as we, will be visited, and they will be made glad with the countenance of their Lord. Thus he will go, in the time and in the season thereof, from kingdom to kingdom or from world to world, causing the pure in heart, the Zion that is taken from these creations, to rejoice in his presence.

But there is another thing I want you to understand. This will not be kept up to all eternity, it is merely a preparation for something still greater. And what is that? By and by, when each of these creations has fulfilled the measure and bounds set and the times given for its continuance in a temporal state, it and its inhabitants who are worthy will be made celestial and glorified together. Then, from that time henceforth and for ever, there will be no intervening veil between God and his people who are sanctified and glorified, and he will not be under the necessity of withdrawing from one to go and visit another, because they will all be in his presence. It matters not how far in space these creations may be located from any special celestial kingdom where the Lord our God shall dwell, they will be able to see him at all times. Why? Because it is only the fall, and the vail that has been shut down over this creation, that keep us from the presence of God. Let the vail be removed, which now hinders us from beholding the glory of God and the celestial kingdom; let this creation be once perfected, after having passed through its various ordeals, after having enjoyed the light of the countenance of our Lord, in our hour and in our season, and let all things be perfected and glorified, and there will be no necessity for this vail being shut down.

Says one—“Do you mean to say, then, that there is a faculty in man, that he can behold the Lord and be in his presence, though millions on millions of miles distant, on another creation?” Yes, just as easy as we can behold one another here in this room. We shall then see as we are seen, and know as we are known, and there will be a perfect redemption. In this way all the creations that are redeemed can enjoy the continued and eternal presence of the Lord their God. I mean those who are made celestial, not those who are in the lower orders, who are governed by telestial laws, but those who are exalted to the highest degree of glory, those who will be made kings and priests, those who have kept celestial law, obeyed celestial ordinances, and received the Priesthood which God has ordained, and to which he has given power and authority to administer and to seal on earth that it may be sealed in heaven. The people who are thus glorified are said to be taken into the bosom of the Almighty; as Enoch says—“Thou hast taken Zion from all these creations which thou hast made, and thy bosom is there,” &c. He does not mean that the Lord God is right within a few rods of every individual; this would be an impossibility, so far as the person is concerned; but he means that there is a channel of communication, the privilege of beholding Zion, however great the distance; and the privilege of enjoying faculties and powers like this is confined to those high and exalted beings who occupy the celestial world. All who are made like him will, in due time, be able to see, to understand and to converse with each other though millions and millions of miles apart. With all the imperfections of the present state men have invented means by which they can converse with the inhabitants of the uttermost parts of the earth. We may sit down in our chimney corners and converse with the people in Asia, England, France, and in the four quarters of the globe; we can bid each other “good night,” or “good day,” as the case may be; and if man with all his imperfections can do this by using some of the gross powers and materials of nature, why may not that God who has power to control and govern all these materials, so organize and construct the machinery of the universe that we may be able to communicate intelligence a distance of millions on millions of miles in the twinkling of an eye, so that, according to the words which are revealed, we may be considered to be in his own bosom, where we can converse with him, see him, hear him, &c.

Time will not permit me to pursue this matter any further. Some of the items of this subject occurred to my mind a little while before I came into the house. I have been in the habit of preaching a great deal in the 13th and 14th Wards, where many strangers attend who wish to hear about our doctrines. But having a congregation of Saints before me to-day, I thought I would touch upon things that are revealed in the Book of Doctrine and Covenants. It contains many ideas that are great and grand in the extreme, and which are calculated in their nature to inspire every faculty of the soul of man with desires to know and comprehend more of the things of God.

May God bless you. Amen.

Congress and the Saints, etc.

George Q. Cannon

Discourse by Hon. George Q. Cannon, delivered in the Fourteenth Ward Assembly Room, Salt Lake City, Sunday afternoon, March 28, 1875. Reported by David W. Evans.

If I were to consult my natural feelings this afternoon, I should sit and listen to some one else speak rather than give utterance to any of my own feelings. But I do not suppose that this would be satisfactory to anybody else, at least to most of the Saints, and especially to Bishop Taylor, I therefore rise to say such things as shall be suggested to me by the Spirit of the Lord on this occasion.

To one who has been absent for a long time from home, the privilege of mingling with one’s brethren and sisters, those of the same faith, who have the same views, and who are laboring for the same objects, the privilege of returning and associating with them is very delightful, at least it is so to me, and it takes away from me whatever disposition I might have under other circumstances to speak. My feelings, upon returning after a lengthy absence from home, have seemed to me entirely too big for utterance; I could not command language to give proper expression to them. Where one is at home all the time, this, probably, will not be appreciated.

During my absence I have enjoyed excellent health and I have had a good deal of peace; in fact I may say, as it will probably be satisfactory to many to know, that I have enjoyed myself far better than I could have expected. There has been a very different feeling in Washington during this last session of Congress from that which prevailed during the first session, that is so far as we are concerned. There has been a greater feeling of liberality, a disposition to look upon the people of Utah more as fellow-citizens than, I think, was manifested during the first session of this Congress. There were times during the first session when it seemed to me that it required all the faith and energy that I could muster to resist that oppressive feeling which probably, many who are here, have experienced when they have been brought in contact with a strong feeling of opposition. It is more of a spiritual feeling, a feeling that appeals to the spiritual senses, than anything that I could describe of a physical character. There were times during the first session when that feeling was very strong, especially during the pendency of the McKee, Poland and other bills framed for the express purpose of giving our enemies power over us. But I had comparatively little or none of that feeling during the last session; although, as you are doubtless aware, so far as I myself was concerned, my seat seemed to be in greater peril during last session than it was the first session. A portion of the Committee on Elections reached a conclusion upon my case, a technical majority of the members of the committee present having adopted a resolution to exclude me from my seat. They varied the language usually adopted on such occasions to make it, I suppose, not hurt so badly, by calling it exclusion instead of expulsion. But notwithstanding this was the case, and it might be said that I stood in greater peril personally, I enjoyed myself much better, and there was greater liberality and a greater disposition manifested to deal justly and fairly with us who live in this Territory. Whether this feeling was the result of last Fall’s elections or not I will not say. You who are politicians can judge for yourselves. I suppose that every one who has democratic inclinations or proclivities will be very apt to attribute this change of feeling to the fact that the democrats obtained some victories last Fall. But whatever the cause was, the fact is as I have stated; and as it is a matter, doubtless, of some interest to all of you, and it is not contrary to our views to talk, on a Sunday, about matters that pertain to our temporal salvation, because our temporal and spiritual salvation are so intimately blended that they may be said to be inseparable, of course I do not think it improper to allude to it.

My feelings respecting us as a people, at the present time, outside of what I see at home, are of a more cheerful and hopeful character than I have had cause to indulge in for years. There are some things at home which if I were to look at them very closely, would discourage me in some respects, because I think that we are far from being what we ought to be; and you know our views on these subjects are that we cannot expect much prosperity, for ourselves or for the cause with which we are identified, so long as we ourselves are not in a position to warrant the bestowal of that prosperity upon us. Believing, as we do, that God our Eternal Father is at the foundation of this work, and that his providence is over it and controlling all things for its good, we, of course, cannot imagine that he is going to give any very great prosperity to this cause, or to us as a community unless we are in a position to be benefitted thereby; he is not going to bestow blessings upon us that will injure us, and which, instead of proving advantageous, would prove destructive to us. On this account I have entertained some doubts concerning our future since I returned home, as the result, probably, of very partial observation, however, for I have had very limited opportunities of seeing or of judging correctly about this. But to have a great degree of prosperity, there should be more faith manifested by us, more union, more love, and more of those graces which ought to adorn the character of the Latter-day Saints.

But I think there is a bright and very encouraging future for us as a people. In Congress, as I have said, there has been a greater disposition than has been manifested for years, to accord to Utah her rights. There has been a feeling, which some have taken pains to foster, that the best means that a Federal official could take to obtain office, and then to retain it after he had obtained it, was to declare war among the people in whose midst he was sent to act. This has actually been the policy that has been adopted by some in this Territory for years, and, judging from their actions, the idea has been that no better passport to favor with the Administration could be urged than the fact that an official was inimical to the people and was laboring strenuously to destroy them and their religion; and every man holding office, who has not adopted this policy has been placed under a ban, and has been made to feel that he stood in jeopardy. The result has been antagonism and hostility between classes when there should have been union; in fact, where there was already too great a disposition for it to exist naturally, it has received encouragement from those who have had this feeling; and a great many in high places, legislators and others, have seemed to think that in passing laws it was only necessary to know that they were designed to operate in Utah, to receive their sanction, without caring any thing about the nature of the laws themselves. Hence the favor with which were received such bills as Cullom’s, McKee’s, Frelinghuysen’s and others which have been introduced into Congress, intended to operate exclusively in Utah.

During this last session I heard the enquiry made, when a bill was introduced—“Is it intended for Utah alone?” and many members were ready to jump to their feet and oppose it because it was so intended. This was a marked change, and I could not but notice it. The patience which the Latter-day Saints have manifested now for four or five years in the midst of the judicial difficulties which have environed them, has been productive, of good effects abroad, it has, in my opinion, produced a reaction in the public mind. Many persons have become familiar with the actual condition of affairs here, and their sympathies have been awakened by what they have heard, and they have felt disposed to do what they could in a quiet way to relieve us from these difficulties; and if we continue to exercise patience and longsuffering in the future as we have in the past, there is no doubt in my mind about the results. It is our duty to do this. It is a duty made incumbent upon us by our religion to be patient, forbearing, and long-suffering, and if we encourage these feelings in ourselves and in our children, putting our trust in God, relying upon him continually, there is no doubt in my mind as to what the result will be. Men may point the finger of scorn at us and ridicule us because of our religion; but if we are true to its principles, if we abide in the faith which God has revealed unto us, we can afford to submit to all of this obloquy, and everything of that character. It will pass away and be forgotten, but the virtues which we possess will endure and have their effect.

It has afforded me the greatest pleasure to speak about the condition and management of affairs in this Territory. I could point with a great deal of pride to the fact that we were a lightly taxed people, probably as lightly taxed as any community within the confines of the Union; that we were out of debt that Salt Lake City had, at the last report, a goodly sum in its treasury besides, nearly an equal amount in assets; that every other municipality in the Territory was in the same condition; that our county organizations were free from debt; that the Territory itself did not owe a dollar in any form, but had a large amount to its credit. This speaks volumes to a great many people, especially to men acquainted with government, and who, themselves, live in the midst of tax-oppressed communities, groaning under public debts created by unwise and dishonest officials. They could appreciate facts of this kind, and they bore volume’s of testimony respecting the good order and wisdom that have characterized the operations of those who have had charge of public affairs in this Territory.

Another thing to which my attention was called a great many times, was the grasshopper scourge with which Utah had been visited so frequently. A great many had inquiries to make on the subject. Kansas, Nebraska, and part of Iowa were afflicted with grasshoppers this last season, and the people were exceedingly desirous to obtain legislation in their behalf—they wanted Congress to relieve them by sending seeds and by giving them pecuniary assistance! Tales of distress came by every mail to members of Congress, in which the writers plead piteously with them to have Congress extend aid to the sufferers, as you have doubtless seen in the papers, particularly in the New York Tribune, which had a column daily containing the names of Sunday School children, servant girls, widows, and other persons who had contributed their mites to help the sufferers in the districts ravaged by the grasshoppers in the States I have named. Knowing that Utah had been afflicted by grasshoppers, a good many came to me to enquire how we had got along, and it was a great source of satisfaction to me to be able to say that notwithstanding some of our settlements had suffered from the devastations of grasshoppers five years in succession, there had been no clamor, and that no begging appeal had gone up or out from Utah to other portions of the United States, although many of our settlements had their entire crops destroyed years in succession. I distinctly remember that Wellsville, in Cache Valley had its crops destroyed five years, while scarcely a settlement in the Territory escaped a visitation of this kind three years in succession.

All these things, when mentioned, called forth admiration. Men would say—“There must be something very peculiar about your organization to enable you to manage these things so well. Were not your people overwhelmed with debt, their farms all mortgaged?” “No.” “How did you sustain yourselves?” “Well, we believed in assisting each other; and if our people lived in a State like Kansas or Nebraska they would be too proud to call for help from the rest of the nation because their crops had been destroyed one year. We believe in helping ourselves; we believe in laboring and in asking the blessing of God upon our labors, and in putting our trust in him, believing that he will sustain us, and thus far he has done so.”

I allude to these things because they are of public interest. So far as our admittance into the Union is concerned, it is generally acknowledged, I believe, among the members of the Senate and House of Representatives, that Utah was fully entitled to statehood, and that it ought to have a state government. And, gentlemen would say—“ If it were not for your peculiar institution, you would be admitted readily.” “No,” I remarked, “you mistake, sir; it is not that, there is something more than that. I know that the general opinion is that it is our system of marriage which prevents Utah from being admitted as a State, but it is a mistake, if we did not believe in that there would be something else.” This they would be loth to admit, but many admitted so far as the elements of a State were concerned, in having a substantial footing in the land and being wedded to the soil, in having developed the resources of the country, agricultural and mineral, and in establishing manufactures, that Utah, with her railroads and other improvements is ahead of every other Territory. But, as I have said, the idea was that we were scarcely fit to be admitted because of our “peculiar institution.” I occasionally remarked when talking on this subject to members of Congress—“You are determined to make what you call ‘the peculiar institution’ of Utah of national importance; you commit, according to my views, a great blunder by so doing. Suppose there is one out of every ten among the people of Utah connected with polygamy—some think that is a high estimate—and that there are one hundred and fifty thousand people in Utah, and some think that is a high estimate also, that would make fifteen thousand people in Utah Territory who are either polygamists or connected with polygamy. Now think of it, here you are the representatives of forty millions of people, and by your action in a national capacity you uplift the practices of fifteen thousand people from obscurity and give them a national importance in the eyes, not only of our own country, but in the eyes of Europe. Does it seem statesmanlike that the practices of fifteen thousand people should be made so prominent?” You talk to men in that strain, and many would say—“Certainly, it is folly, we ought to leave it to the arbitrament of time;” but there were others who thought it was comparable to slavery. But slavery was the practice of eleven millions of people at the time of the rebellion, hence there is no comparison between them. But it seems as though, in the providence of God, men are determined to give this an importance to which it is not entitled, if the number of those who practice it be taken into account. It seems that men are determined to make it public, to advertise it, and have it known.

But notwithstanding all these things we are gaining influence. There is no people to-day on this continent of our numbers who attract so much attention, and concerning whom there is so much interest felt as the people of Utah. So also with the delegate from Utah Territory; he has always been one of the members to whom strangers have been most desirous to be introduced. This has been the case from the time of the first delegate, and I do not think the interest has lessened of late. So that, not only are the people objects of interest, but everything connected with them and their history, and notwithstanding all that is said about us we are growing in influence in the nation, and it has surprised me to see how widely our influence is spreading, and how many channels it occupies and how wide its ramifications extend throughout the nation. How difficult it is to strike us a blow without hitting somebody else! How difficult it is to do anything inimical to us without others feeling that they will be injured by that action! This has surprised me wonderfully this past winter, and in fact this past two years. I have seen the growth of the influence of this people and its increase in many directions. Many acknowledge while they deprecate it. Of course this has caused me to rejoice more than I can tell. I have felt that God’s hand has been with us as a people. I felt so during the first session. The passage of the Poland bill, in its present form, was to me one of the most wonderful manifestations of Providence I ever beheld; that which has occurred this last session has been equally so, because I have believed that I could see the hand of God in it all; I believed that his providence was over us; I believed that the prayers of this people, offered continually unto the Lord, were heard and answered by him. A very prominent gentleman remarked to me one day—“Mr. Cannon, it is wonderful how you retain your seat, it surprises me, one would think you would have been ousted long ago, considering the efforts which have been made.” I made some remark in reply, and, the conversation continuing I remarked, calling him by name—“There are over a hundred thousand people in Utah Territory praying for you members, and for me, and they are a sincere people, and their prayers are heard.” Said he—“I do believe that is the case.” It may seem a trifling thing, in these days of unbelief, to think that God hears and answers prayer; but it has been a great satisfaction to me all the time to tell my fellow-members that we were a praying people, and that God was being supplicated by you to avert every blow.

It is something refreshing at this time in the midst of the unbelief of men to meet with a man who believes that God lives, and that he hears and answers prayer. You would be surprised to find how few such men there are in this world, especially in public life. The belief in God, that he exists, that he takes any cognizance of human affairs, and that he hears and answers prayer is almost extinct; it is a rare thing to find a man who entertains it. Yet men do not ignore God entirely, but they deny his interposition in human affairs. On this point we stand out in marked contrast with every other people. We believe that God’s providences are over all, that not a hair of our head falls without his notice, that not even a sparrow can fall to the ground without his being aware of it, and that he hears and answers prayer when we supplicate him in faith in the name of Jesus for those things that we need; and we have this lesson to teach. I believe that the day is not far distant when there will be a reaction in this respect. There is at the present time a determination, apparently, to swing to the extreme of infidelity; but I look for a reaction. I believe that the example, teaching and influence of the Latter-day Saints will be attended with good effects. I think it is the duty of every one, not offensively, not in a manner to disgust, but in a proper, wise manner, to endeavor, as far as possible, to inculcate by example and by precept faith in God and in the efficacy of prayer to him.

Of course there were times when inquiries would be made respecting our belief, and many persons scarcely think that we believe in Jesus Christ and in the Bible. Some have the idea that we are a sort of heathen; or, in other words, that we have discarded everything connected with Christianity. Others have no definite ideas in regard to our belief, their minds being fully occupied with the marriage system of the “Mormons,” they having heard of that and not much else, and they suppose that we do not believe in anything but marrying and living in polygamy. When you converse with men of intelligence, who have any comprehension of truth, and relate to them our views, they acknowledge that we are a different people to what they imagined. I have remarked when in conversation upon our principles that if the gratification of licentiousness were our object, we could do that in a much more popular and in a much cheaper manner than the way we have adopted. I told them that it was only necessary to follow the example of some public men and we should get along without any difficulty, and there would be no fault found with us at all. Many would acknowledge that this was true if the object we had in view was the gratification of sensuality. But wherever I have had the opportunity, I have endeavored to impress those with whom I have conversed with the idea that we regarded men and women guilty of immoral practices as being guilty of the worst possible crime next to shedding blood. I have said that we regard murder as the greatest crime in the sight of God, and that next to that we look upon unchastity and unvirtuous actions. This has created some surprise, but it is a lesson that we have yet to teach mankind on this point, and I trust that we shall be true to our principles.

I have heard, since I returned, and in fact I heard it before, that there is a disposition on the part of some to yield to the temptations that surround us, young men and young women falling away and being guilty of unchastity, young men going to billiard saloons, gambling saloons, drinking saloons, indulging in the habits of smoking and swearing; and not only young persons but men of mature years. I am surprised at it. I am surprised that Latter-day Saints should have so little strength of character, and so easily yield to these wicked influences. Do you think that anybody respects a man who takes a course of this kind? Certainly not, yet there are some who think they gain respect by so doing. Let me say to you that a wicked man, a man who is unchaste and unvirtuous, has no respect for a man who is like himself. A man who is profane will admire a man who will not indulge in profanity. You never saw a man who was a drunkard and who indulged in the use of intoxicating drinks who did not admire the man who refrained from their use. He may banter and ridicule him, but in his secret soul he admires him; and so it is with all evil habits, and I would not give a fig for a Latter-day Saint who could not in the midst of all these temptations, be sincere and true to his convictions and live the religion that God has revealed to him; such men are not worthy of the name, and sooner or later they will lose the name and their standing and place in the Church. I know, so far as my experience has gone, that men respect sincerity. Men despise Latter-day Saints who do not act consistently with the principles they profess, while, whatever a man’s religion may be, he will command respect in proportion as he clings to and honors the principles which he professes, under all circumstances under which he may be placed.

The Lord is working with us as well as with the nation, and I feel sure he will cleanse from our midst everything that is impure and ungodly. I expect that we shall have ordeals that will cleanse everything of this character from our midst, and that everything that can be shaken will be. In former days we had mobs to contend with, and other difficulties that were trying to the faith of the people, and those who were not grounded on the rock fell by the way. If they could be frightened, or if threats or difficult circumstances could affect them or their faith, why, of course, they dissolved their connection with the Church. But I rather think the day of mobs has gone by. We certainly have been led to expect that the time will come when we shall be delivered from the power of mobocracy. What then will be the means of trying the people? Probably prosperity, good circumstances, the increase of wealth, the effects of which are far more trying on a people than poverty. The influences which attend wealth and comfortable circumstances will probably have the same effect on the people in cleansing from our midst that which is unsound, as mobocracy and the difficult circumstances connected with it had in former days. But I never expect to see the day when the Latter-day Saints will be free from influences which will test their fidelity to God, and be a means of removing from their midst that which is unworthy to be associated with his Church. That is my feeling, and has been for a long time, and I believe that God is causing us to pass through these circumstances expressly to test, prove and try us, and see whether we will be true to him or not.

He has revealed to us the everlasting Gospel; the everlasting Gospel! the truth as it is contained in this book (Bible); he has taught us what to do in order to gain favor in his sight. How many of you who are here to-day have seen the time in your early life when, if you could have known that God would bestow upon you the gifts of his Holy Spirit as they were enjoyed in ancient days by his servants, you would not have felt as though you could travel the earth over to obtain such precious blessings? I suppose there are scores in this congregation to-day who have had such feelings, they have felt as though it would be the greatest boon that could be bestowed upon them to have the gift of the Holy Ghost, and the various gifts thereof that were bestowed upon and enjoyed by the ancient Saints. God has bestowed these blessings upon us; he has revealed unto us the truth; he has shown unto us how we can obtain a remission of our sins, and in accordance with his word delivered eighteen hundred years ago by his Son Jesus and by his Apostles, that if we believe in Jesus, if we repent of our sins and are baptized for their remission, we shall receive the Holy Ghost.

These blessings have been promised to and bestowed upon us; the Church has been organized in its ancient purity and simplicity, with Prophets, Apostles, Teachers, Pastors, Evangelists and all the officers which existed in ancient days. Is not this a blessing which people should appreciate? This has been given unto us, and we have been guided by the spirit of revelation and prophecy. There has not been one moment since I have known this Church that we have not had revelation to guide us, and it has been all of a character that we could understand. It has not been some man who was operating over the people, speaking in muttered tones as an oracle to the people, so that they could scarcely comprehend what he meant; but it has been in plainness and simplicity, so that every man and every woman in this Church has been appealed to to go and ask God for themselves, and they have had an opportunity of knowing for themselves concerning the truth of the doctrines taught and of the counsel that has been given. This constitutes the great strength of his work, and how we ought to appreciate the blessings which God has bestowed upon us in this respect.

Now if we were left without any testimony of our own, and had to receive the ipse dixit of some man in authority, and to act blindly upon that, it would be very different, it would require a much greater degree of faith than we have to exercise at the present time. But how was it in the days of Joseph? Was there a doctrine taught which was not accompanied by the testimony of the Spirit to the minds of the people? Certainly not. How has it been in the days of the Prophet Brigham? It has been the same. When the servants of God proclaimed that God had established his Church, that he had restored the everlasting Priesthood and its ordinances, they were told to go and ask God for themselves, and they had an opportunity of testing the truth of that which was taught unto them, and there was no chance for imposture.

Many think that the people called Latter-day Saints are a deluded, ignorant set, led by cunning priestly leaders, who exercise power over them because of their shrewdness and ability, and that the people are a blind herd led at the will of these shrewd deceivers. We know that this is not the case. We know that the most frequent appeals that have been made to the Latter-day Saints have been to investigate for themselves and to know for themselves. When we started out from Illinois and traveled over these plains, were we following President Young because he said, “Come on?” Were we striking out blindly into the wilderness, hoping that he would find some place, and trusting to his sagacity and shrewdness? Certainly not, that was not the feeling; but every Latter-day Saint who crossed the Mississippi river, who was indeed a Latter-day Saint, had a testimony that he or she was going in a direction that God was leading, and when night came each was as confident that he was in the path that God required him to walk in as ever the children of Israel were when led out of Egypt. When I look back at those days, and consider the circumstances that surrounded the people, I wonder and am astonished at the faith, calmness and confidence they manifested. When the crickets came down from the mountains in 1848, and devoured nearly the entire crops, I can not recall now any murmuring, or expressions of distrust, fear or apprehension, but there was a calmness and serenity of feeling among the people which, when I reflect upon now, surprises me. Then I was but a youth and had no responsibilities, but I have had responsibilities since then, and I have wondered how men having wives and children and the care of a great people resting upon them, as our brethren had who were here then, could maintain their equanimity in the midst of those circumstances. Yet throughout this valley there was not a murmur or expression of distrust, and if there were fears indulged in they were not publicly expressed. So it has been all the time. God has been bearing testimony to the Latter-day Saints by his Holy Spirit, giving unto them evidence which has been of a most satisfactory character; and every man and woman, boy and girl, ought to live so that they will have this testimony within them, that they may know concerning the doctrine and the counsel that is given; that when President Young speaks, we may know for ourselves whether it is from God or not, and when any other teacher among us speaks, we may know whether the doctrine he advances is from God or not; and so that, if necessary, we could go to the stake, and have no doubts on the subject. Or, like Daniel of old, be cast into the den of lions and have no fears; or, like the three Hebrew children, be cast into a fiery furnace. We pray that God will restore to us the faith once delivered to the Saints, and this is the kind of faith they had, and it sustained them in the midst of all their trials and afflictions. And men and women have had this faith who have not had the fulness of the Gospel as we have; thousands of them, in what are called the dark ages, suffered the most painful deaths for the sake of their religion; and they were sustained by the consciousness that they were doing that which God required at their hands, that they were living up to the light of truth as far as they had it. And now, living with the facilities and opportunities that we have, we ought to have still greater faith and power, and be able to endure far more for the sake of this great truth, for I tell you, my brethren and sisters, it is one of the most inestimable of blessings, it is beyond all price, the knowledge which God has given to us, that he hears and answers prayer. To think that in the midst of affliction, when you are harassed and oppressed, when your family probably is sick, and you are surrounded by circumstances which human aid cannot relieve, there is a Being, all powerful in heaven, who is near at hand, to whom you can offer your supplications and make your appeals, with a certainty that he will hear and answer them. What is there to compare with it in value on the face of the earth? Who would not give all they have to have that knowledge? Who would not be stripped of everything they hold valuable, so far as earthly possessions are concerned, for the sake of such knowledge as this?

This is the knowledge that you have. If you have obeyed the Gospel in sincerity, every one of you should have in your heart, no matter what your circumstances may be, or what difficulties and trials you may be called upon to pass through, the knowledge that you have an abiding Friend who will hear and answer your prayers, and will never desert you. I delight to bear testimony that God does hear and answer prayer, that he will bless and deliver those who put their trust in him. And I wish that all of us would cultivate more of this spirit, and teach it to our children. We hear about infidelity increasing. Why does it increase? Because men and women do not live so as to know that God lives. That is the reason. If they were to live in close communion with him, there would be no chance for infidelity to increase; but the fact that they do not thus live causes that increase. We should teach our children to pray to and to have faith in God. If we do this we shall see good effects flow therefrom: faith will increase in the land and will spread abroad, and we shall be the means in the hands of God of raising up a people who believe in him, and who, if necessary, would go to the stake to show their faith in the truth of their doctrines.

That God may bless you, my brothers and sisters, and help you to overcome everything that is evil, is my prayer in the name of Jesus. Amen.

The Saints Have the Priesthood, etc.

Daniel H. Wells

Discourse by President Daniel H. Wells, delivered at the Forty-fifth Annual Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in the New Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, on Tuesday morning, April 6, 1875. Reported by David W. Evans.

To-day we have met together, as is our custom on the 6th day of April, according to appointment, in commemoration of the day on which the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was organized. We are professed Latter-day Saints, and have been called forth in this age of the world to be co-workers with our Father in heaven in bringing to pass his purposes and establishing his kingdom upon the earth, to be the recipients of the authority of the holy priesthood, to stand in holy places and to administer in the ordinances of the house of God, that once again upon this earth his authority and kingdom may be established, and holy and righteous principles and the institutions of high heaven have a place. We are the honored instruments, or may be so, of being co-workers with God, and he will through us his servants, his children, bring to pass his purposes if we will let him. This is a great, glorious and holy calling, and it is a happy thing for us to be born in a day and generation when these things are coming forth, for we can thus have part and lot in this matter. It is no joke or phantasy, no matter of mere enthusiasm, to rise in one’s mind for a few days, weeks or months and then dissipate away into thin air; but it is our high duty and privilege, as long as we live, to bear off these principles that have been revealed, and to sustain and uphold the institutions of heaven, and that authority through and by which the mind and will of God our Father are made known unto us upon the earth.

This work commenced small. Great and glorious instructions were given to a few in the commencement, and through the blessing of the Almighty they have been sent forth to the nations of the earth and, in obedience thereunto, a great people, in comparison with what the church was originally, have gathered to these mountains, and the work of the Lord has continued to grow and increase, taking root downward and bearing fruit upward. It is true that many have undertaken to run the gospel race and have faltered and fainted by the wayside, still the work has progressed and has been onward and upward until the present time; and during the forty-five years of its existence upon the earth this church and kingdom has never seen a day or an hour that it has not been growing and becoming greater in the earth, in numbers as well as in intelligence, for the stream of light from heaven has not been withdrawn or cut short, but has continued to flow to the minds of the children of men, bearing testimony to the hearts of the honest, and elevating them in the scale of human existence. I take pleasure in bearing this testimony, knowing that it is true, and also knowing that the great desire among God’s people here in Zion is to sustain and bear off the principles of truth and righteousness in the earth.

We are here for this express purpose, and to avoid the evils and judgments which are abroad in the earth. Are the judgments of God abroad in the earth? They are, and the word of the Lord to his Saints is—“Come out of her, O my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, that ye receive not of her plagues.” This was spoken centuries ago, but it is specially applicable to us, and to the work of God in the last days. But if we do not divest ourselves of the sins of the world, have we any assurance that we shall escape the plagues and judgments of the almighty? By no means. We gather up to these mountains that we may not be partakers of her sins. This is the appointed place where God can work with his people on the earth; and in order that he may be able to do so effectually it is necessary that we divest ourselves of every evil, stand before God blameless, and become united as the heart of one man in sustaining the cause of Zion. The responsibility of building up this kingdom rests in a manner upon us, who have taken upon us the name of the Most High. We have gathered together that we may build Temples to his holy name, wherein we may receive the blessings of time and eternity, both for the living and the dead. It becomes us, then, to enquire how we may best set ourselves about this great work; we must find out the design of our Father concerning us, and to do this we must have communication with him, and we must live so that we can have the Holy Spirit to direct our minds, and to qualify us the better for the performance of the duties which devolve upon us The channel has been opened between the heavens and the earth by which we may learn the mind and will of our Father concerning us. But when we have learned that it is our business to go to and unflinchingly carry out and accomplish that which he requires of us according to our best skill and ability.

Is it necessary that we should obey the principles of the gospel, which we are told is the power of God unto salvation? I think that no one will deny that. We must repent, we must be baptized for the remission of sins, receive the administration of hands for the reception of the Holy Ghost, and then go on with the light of the Spirit, having received the testimony of the truth of the work, and maintain that work against every opposing obstacle. What is a man good for who flies the track the very moment an obstacle presents itself in his way? Such a man will not obtain salvation and exaltation in the presence of God; he who does that must be unflinching in the path of duty.

Is God ever going to establish his kingdom and bring to pass his purposes on the earth? All believers in Christianity say so, and they all pretend to believe it; but when will it be? As soon as the Lord Jesus finds a people who are willing to take upon them his name, and will follow him through evil as well as through good report, and who, if need be, will even go to death in the maintaining of the principles of truth upon the earth. Just as soon as he finds a people who will be united and will not sift their ways to strangers, but will hold that which he bestows upon them for him and for his kingdom, will he establish that kingdom upon the earth. What right has a Latter-day Saint, who has taken upon himself the name of God and has enlisted under King Emmanuel’s banner, to strew the blessings he receives from God to the wicked. Are they given to him for that purpose? No, they are given him to use for the building up of the kingdom of God upon the earth. It is said, and we profess to believe it, that the kingdoms of this world are to become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and that that kingdom and its fulness shall be given to the Saints of the Most High. It is not to be given to the wicked, or to a people who will hand it over to the wicked as fast as the Lord hands it over to them. We may as well learn this lesson to-day as at any other time. The blessings of the Lord are not bestowed upon the Latter-day Saints to be placed by them in the hands of the wicked. When could the Lord establish his purposes with a people who will act in that way? Never in the world. The time will come and is now hastening when the people of God will not be a dependent people, that is, dependent upon the outside world; of course they will always be dependent upon the Lord, but the day will come when they, under the blessing of heaven, will be an entirely self-sustaining people, and the Lord is ready and willing, as he ever has been and ever will be, to sustain the efforts of his people in this direction. They must put forth their hands to be self-sustaining, and then the blessings of the Almighty will attend them even more abundantly.

The Lord has, from time to time, through his servants, given forth a line of conduct or principle for us to be guided by, so that we may become more united than we have been hitherto; and while it may be said that we are slowly approaching that point, we are far from having advanced in the principles of unity to the fullest extent, and hence we cannot realize the blessings that will accrue when that unity which the Lord desires to see among his people is fully established. But we have commenced, and we can work in that direction, and it is our bounden duty to do so; and the farther we progress the more will his blessings be multiplied towards us; and if we continue in the path marked out for us by the Almighty through his servants, we shall ultimately attain to a fulness This is the way I understand it.

We have come up here to be taught in his ways that we may walk in his paths. Men should not mark out paths for themselves to walk in, they are not capable of doing so. You may say that this infringes upon man’s agency and independence; but it makes no difference what may be said or thought of this, it is true, and we need only look abroad in the world to see the difficulties which beset the people on every hand to find ample confirmation of this statement. Are the people satisfied with the paths they have marked out for themselves? No, nowhere on the face of the earth. There is one whose guidance we need, he is wiser than we are, for he has passed through all the ordeals and trials of a lower estate, and has gained an experience far beyond the experience of men, and he is now willing to lead and guide his children here on the earth if they will only allow him to do so. But men generally think they know best themselves, they are not willing to be guided by the God of heaven, they give the preference to the paths marked out by themselves. Are their own counsels the best? No, they are not, and the Latter-day Saints ought to know it by this time. A great many of them do know it; some do not, but I trust that they will, and that they will continue to learn and progress in these things, until they know beyond all question that God’s way is the best, and that it is not only superior to man’s way, but that there is no other by which men and women can build up a community which will be wise, virtuous and happy, and by which the resources of the earth may be developed and the elements used so as to best promote the general good. God’s way is as much better than man’s way, as the heavens are higher than the earth.

There is no true principle, no true philosophy, no good thing that comes from any source except that which I have been speaking of. No matter through whom, or by whom it comes to the children of men, it has emanated from that source—from God our Father. Then why can we not implicitly trust him, and put our faith and confidence in him? We may rest assured that he will withhold no good thing that will prove beneficial to us. He never did and he never will reveal a thing to the children of men but what, if it can be carried out according to his design, will prove an advantage and a blessing to them. Men may undertake to change that which God has revealed, and try to make it mean something else; but it is folly to do so. In taking this course they go into by and forbidden paths, and, being then without the light of truth, they are compelled to grope their way.

Now, what is necessary in building up the kingdom of God on the earth? We are not talking about building up his kingdom in some far-off realm, away

“Beyond the bounds of time and space

Where human mind can never trace

The Saints’ secure abode,”

as our sectarian brethren sing about. I do not understand this to be the work of the Saints of God upon the earth at all. I understand that the kingdoms of this world are to become the kingdoms of our Lord and his Christ, just so soon as the God of heaven finds a people who will be obedient to his law. Well, what is necessary then? Why, in the first place there must be a people to govern, and a king to rule over them. It takes that much anyhow to constitute a kingdom. The people must have a place to dwell. They must have land, streams of water, valleys, mountains, ranges, grass, timber, rock, canyons and everything we find here on the earth, the elements with which it is covered and surrounded, and which are found in its depths in order to obtain a sustenance. All these things are necessary in any kingdom. The people want houses to live in, orchards for fruit, also vegetables; they want land susceptible of irrigation and cultivation, cattle, horses, carriages, wagons, vehicles to transport things in and to do business. All these things are necessary in building up the kingdom of God. There must also be schools, Temples and cities built to the name of the Most High, according as he shall direct. It is necessary to build Temples that we may attend to the ordinances for those who have gone before, for millions of them have lived according to the best light they had, and they were moral and exemplary all the days of their lives, and did all the good they could. Without Temples they could not have the privilege and opportunity of being officiated for in the ordinances of the Gospel of salvation devised by our Father in heaven before the world was organized. This plan of salvation was devised before this earth was organized and made habitable for the children of men to dwell on, away in the eternities back, “when the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy,” if you know when that was. We have to obey that plan of salvation here in our earthly probation in order that we may have the privilege of going back into the presence of God. We need not go to tinkering that plan of salvation, for we cannot make it any better if we do. The world have been doing so ever since men came to dwell upon the earth. But I do not see that they have done anything to improve it. God’s plan of saving his sons and daughters stands just the same to-day as it was in the beginning, and it will continue so through a never-ending eternity. I am not aware that God ever asked us here to help to devise a plan for our own salvation, I never heard of any such thing. He had the right to do it himself and he did it, and it is for mankind to receive it if they choose to do so; and if they do choose so to do it is nobody’s business, they have that power if they have a mind to; and other people have a right to believe in and embrace man-made systems and to hold on to them if they choose to do so, and it is none of our business any more than it is theirs if we choose to obey the plan the Lord has revealed. We are on an equal footing in regard to this matter, and all we ask is hands off and show us fair play, the same as we are willing to extend unto you, that is all. We have a right to ask and demand that, and to maintain it, and we expect to do it.

But we who have embraced the principles of truth, should we not begin to divest ourselves of some of our notions and ideas, and go to and build up the kingdom of God more perfectly? In our hearts and feelings we desire to do it, but our traditions, to which we cling with such tenacity, sometimes prevent us from coming quite up to the mark, and we do not advance in this direction perhaps quite as fast as we should do. The line is marked out; the Lord through his servants is continually showing us the way, but I sometimes think that we are slow coming to it. We should become more self-sustaining. We have been drifting in the wrong direction for the past few years. It is necessary for us to turn a short corner and drift in a direction that will make us self-sustaining. If we do this we shall become more independent and more closely united, and in a short time we shall find that it will be the path of prosperity. It is a matter of good political economy for any community to become self-sustaining; and not only to raise and manufacture what they need for their own use, but also some for exportation. Then the balance of trade will be in their favor. But I do not care whether it is the people of Utah, Colorado, Wyoming, the United States, England, or any other community or nation, political economy says that they must export more than they import, or the balance of trade will be continually against them, and any country or community in that position will be drained of the circulating medium, and will be more or less impoverished thereby. If a community wishes to become wealthy, it must manage to produce not only all it needs for the wants of its own members, but also to partially supply some of the wants of its neighbors. This is sound philosophy and political economy in any community, and particularly so with the Latter-day Saints. We have the elements around us, from which with our own industry and economy all our wants can be supplied in abundance, if our labor is applied in the right direction, which can only be done by laboring unitedly and according to the counsel that may be given us by the Lord through his servants. By taking this course we can produce almost everything necessary for our own consumption and a great deal to export.

We have commenced in this order, and some of our settlements have progressed more than others; and I am glad to believe that we are drifting in the right direction. I hope to see this work continue, and can promise the blessing of the Almighty upon those who will persevere therein. They will succeed if they are wise and do as they are told, and they will be blessed of the Lord and will come off victorious.

These things are worthy of our attention, they constitute part of the building up of the kingdom of God on the earth. It is a material kingdom, and not something ethereal that we cannot comprehend nor have any part or lot in. It involves our everyday life, labor and duty, just as we pass along; it is not beyond our reach, but is right within the purview of our ability to accomplish to a certain extent. We cannot jump at a single leap to its fulness; but the small wedges break the big rock. Drill the holes here and there, then put in the wedges and tap them lightly, and after awhile these taps will break the big rock in two. That is the way the Lord has worked with this people. We commenced small, went in at the small end of the horn, and we are bound to come out at the big end, we cannot come back through the same channel. Here we are, a spectacle before the heavens and before the world, a handful of Latter-day Saints. What shall we do? Pursue that suicidal policy in regard to sustaining ourselves that is calculated to impoverish us and to make us depend upon our enemies, those who would only be too glad to see us overthrown, wasted away and destroyed? No, no! Latter-day Saints, we will not take any such a course as that, not if we know it. Well, let us be careful and learn what is the proper course to take and take it, that we may grow, increase in wealth, in numbers, and in every good and perfect thing that the God of heaven is willing to bestow upon us. Let us beautify the earth, bring forth from the elements those things which are necessary for our subsistence; work, be industrious, live prudently, economically, and walk in the path that the God of heaven marks out for us. Then we shall be successful; then the blessings of the Almighty will flow unto us abundantly, and we shall have great cause to rejoice continually in the name of the Holy One of Israel. We have done this to a certain extent as we have passed along, and according to our faithfulness we have received the blessings, and beyond our expectations, for we could not have expected as much as we have received. We may go on still more gloriously if we will be more faithful.

May the God of heaven bless us and help us to see the path marked out for us to walk in, and thus help us to be faithful and diligent, and put away our own devices and traditions that we have inherited from the fathers, inasmuch as they are wrong, and we have been led to see that wrong, and our judgments convinced concerning the work of the Almighty. Let us put away these things that are of no profit, and seek to that which is good, which comes from above, and which is for our own best interests here, and for our eternal welfare in the world to come. That we may do this unitedly, as the heart and voice of one man, is my prayer in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

Education Necessary, etc.

Orson Hyde

Remarks by Elder Orson Hyde, delivered at the Forty-fifth Annual Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in the New Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Tuesday afternoon, April 6, 1875. Reported by David W. Evans.

I do not know that I ever beheld a more pleasing sight than that which I behold here to-day. So many children, of both sexes, most of them born in this Territory, assembled here to offer up a song of praise to God our heavenly Father. To hear their childish voices chime in with the voices of those who are older and more experienced, is really something that I admire, and intelligence cannot refrain from doing so.

I am pleased at the opportunity that is offered me on this occasion. I do not expect to detain you any length of time. Be this, however, as the Spirit of the Lord may direct. I listened to some very excellent remarks in the former part of the day, and I will say that if the loaf has been broken by more able and competent hands than mine, it will not be unbecoming in me to try and gather up some of the fragments, that we may enjoy the whole.

Here, perhaps, are some five thousand of the rising generation before me who, in future time, will become actors upon the stage of life. How important it is that their characters be formed so as not only to reflect honor upon their parents, but also upon the cause of Zion in which we are engaged. How beautiful it is to see the rising generation growing up in intelligence, and in good will and kindness one toward another. As our settlements spread to the east, west, north and south, a certain element appears therein which some of you may understand and recognize by the name of modern civilization. This element, which seems to be un-congenial with the spirit of purity, righteousness and integrity, has reached down as far as our place, and it seems that nothing will satisfy it short of saloons, grog-shops, whisky-holes, and other concomitants of modern civilization. I want to say to our young friends—avoid these dens as you would avoid the source of pestilence, keep far away from them, and betake yourselves to learning. No doubt you do, but there are some, perhaps, who do not to the extent that they might. Instead of being in the streets of a night, making unearthly noises, as some do, seemingly under the influence of modern civilization, keep at your homes, study your books, and spend your time in improving your minds. Sometimes, when preaching in different parts of the Territory, while the congregation were listening to the words that were being spoken, I have seen our little boys in the streets playing at ball, or engaging in other recreations, and while such a course has been innocent on their part, it has been an evidence to me that they have not received that attention and instruction from their parents which I consider parents owe to their children; and while the parents would seek to enjoy the words of life themselves, they have seemed to be thoughtless with regard to the whereabouts of their children. This being the case, it is necessary that we pay more particular attention to our children, and to know that they are at the house of God. To be sure, children can not profit by every word that is spoken, their minds are not capacious enough to comprehend every idea that may be advanced; but every once in a while, a word will take root in their hearts, and grow, and this will enable them the more readily to appreciate and understand that which they may hear in the future.

I realize that, as a parent, I have not been so faithful and diligent in this respect as I should have been, and I feel that I am far from being a proper example to my brethren and sisters; but sometimes when I have been about to open the meetings and have seen that all my children were not there, what have I done? I have left the stand, gone into the streets and found my boys, and brought them in and seated them in the congregation, that they might not set an unworthy example before others. Not only so, but sometimes when I have gone to bed at an early hour and, after having had a nap, I have waked up about the usual bed time and found my boys not at home, I have got up and gone into the streets in search of them, and have searched until I have found them and brought them home.

I feel that, as parents, we cannot bestow too much attention upon those who are rising up to inherit our responsibilities and to bear off the kingdom in the eyes of all the nations of the earth. I know that I come short of my duty in this respect, but I am trying to fulfill it in this as well as in many other directions, and I can not rest, either day or night unless I know where my children are, and what they are doing. By following the dictates of this feeling I have been able, under the blessing of God, to rejoice in the society of my children, both morning and evening, and to know where they are; and I have proved that they will learn to respect the wishes of their parents, and now I have the pleasure to hear them say—“Father, may I go out to such a place to-night?” and they will set one hour or two hours. I reply, “Yes, if you will go nowhere else, and behave yourselves and make no disturbance in the streets, go, and God bless you, but return at the time you say. I will sit up until you come home, then we will have prayers together before we go to bed.” It is very pleasing to me to call my wives and children together in the morning and to spend a few minutes in giving them a few words of kindly instruction. I have practiced it until it is as much of a pleasure to me as it is to eat my breakfast when I have a good one, and I feel lost without it. I say to this requirement and to that requirement—Stand aside until I discharge this duty. I do not make these remarks because I wish to show myself any better than anybody else; but if there is any blessing or benefit, brethren and sisters, to be derived from what I have said you are abundantly welcome to it, and to act upon it, or something similar to it that your own better wisdom may devise, but do not neglect to cultivate the tender minds of your children.

It is good to have Sabbath schools; they are a source of amusement and recreation as well as of mental and intellectual improvement and development. But is this all that is necessary and needful? Our day schools should not be neglected. What are we here for but to raise up children and endow and qualify them for future usefulness? Says one—“It costs so much to keep up schools.” It costs some persons something to do it, then there are others who let a school bill be about the last one they pay, and after having availed themselves of the labors of a teacher for the benefit of their children they allow him to go unrewarded until his ambition sinks within him, and he concludes to go to some other business, and thus we deprive ourselves of the best class of school teachers, and we have to put up with persons of second or third rate ability. We ought to employ the best talent that can be procured as school teachers. I have been through the world considerably, one time and another, but I have never yet seen a city in which a good educational system was maintained in which the people suffered in character or prestige, or where poverty was increased in consequence thereof; but it has added to their influence and prestige and improved their morals, and surely if heaven will thus prosper the efforts of parents to educate their children there is no reason why we should not go into it a little stronger than we do.

Perhaps you who dwell in this city are far in advance of those who dwell in other parts of the Territory—my remarks are more particularly intended for us country people, who do not live in the full blaze and refulgence of intelligence, but away yonder in the corners, on the outskirts and in the by-places, for I know that many among us do not pay that attention to education that we should do. Suppose that in a coming day we come up before our heavenly Father and say—“Father, thy pound hath gained ten pounds, or five pounds,” as the case may be. “I have acquired so much and have laid it up in store.” Another one says—“Father, I have here those whom thou gavest me, and have lost none of them; they are all here. I have no gold or silver, but I have gems, in the persons of these children; they are bright and intelligent, and are calculated to radiate society wherever they are. I have bestowed everything upon them which I could command to improve and elevate them, and I have withheld no opportunity from them.” I am inclined to the opinion that the latter would receive much more commendation than the former, though he heaped together millions, especially if his children were not educated.

“But,” says one, “I am poor and can not do it.” Well, so far as my experience has gone, those who are willing and determined to educate their children generally find the means to do it, while those who complain of poverty, as a general thing, make poverty the scapegoat to bear of their unwillingness to teach and instruct their children, or to put them in the way of instruction. Now brethren, what shall we do? I would suggest to all parents—I do not mean those in this city particularly, for I am not called to instruct with regard to these things here, yet if any are disposed to be benefited by my remarks, even in this city, I have not the least objection; but I would suggest to all parents that it is our duty, when we employ a good teacher to keep his heart whole, and his spirit up by paying him what we agree to pay him, and pay it before he starves to death or is forced to go away and engage in some other occupation. If you have got a good teacher, keep him, at almost any price, to educate your children. Suppose a man had forty children—some have as many as that—and they were all well trained and educated, how much honor would that reflect upon the father, upon the mother, and upon the community in which they dwell? Would it not be a cause of pleasing remark to the intelligent so far as they were known? Most assuredly. Well, now then, brethren and sisters, pay the teacher. We think a good deal of a horse or a span of horses, and they are animals given to us by Providence for our comfort and convenience; but to turn them out, after working, without food or care would certainly be cruel on our part. And to employ teachers and then not reward them so that they can feed and clothe themselves certainly reflects no honor upon any community; and I say that if we care for our teams, we certainly ought to care for our teachers, and pay them according to agreement; then their ambition is kept up to the highest pitch and they feel inspired; but if we subject them to the inconvenience of earning their wages three or four times by collecting small sums from one and another, they become discouraged and are finally compelled to turn their attention to some other vocation.

Brethren and sisters, these are important matters. Our children are entrusted to our care and management, and unless we do our best to cultivate and improve them, have we any right to be the agents in bringing their spirits from the realms of day to earth and then neglect them? Are we justified in doing this? It seems to me not, it seems to me that we are not doing our duty towards them.

Our enemies reproach us and our children on account of our alleged ignorance and general inferiority. Be this as it may, there was not intelligence enough in the “big tent” nor in the Rev. Dr. Newman to make headway against the small amount of knowledge that exists here in the Mormon community. Act as we may and do what we will, we cannot satisfy the accusers of our brethren. The name of their accusations is Legion; and we are not disposed to make any great effort to satisfy them. It is ourselves and our God that we labor to satisfy—by no means ignoring the friendly hints of all honorable men.

I feel thankful for this opportunity of bearing my testimony, and I bear my testimony that what is called “Mormonism” is the truth of God, and that the Lord is fulfilling his word in the last days. There are some very curious sayings in the Bible respecting John the Revelator, one, of which is—“If I will that he tarry until I come, what, is that to thee?” which led to the saying that that disciple was not going to die. But Jesus did not say that. Certain Nephites on this continent wanted to live to bring souls to Christ until he came. Their desires were granted to them, and they were permitted to live, or they had the promise that they should not pass behind the vail until the second coming of the Savior. Whether the saying of the old Prophet had anything to do with this matter I cannot tell, but he said—“Lord, they have digged down thine altars, killed thy Prophets, and I am left here alone, and they seek my life.” The answer of the Lord was—“I have reserved to myself seven thousand men who have never bowed the knee to the image of Baal.” Whether that has reference to any characters that were not to pass away, but that were to live and be witnesses in the earth and bring their testimony to a focus in the last days—the days in which we live—to make the truth of God blaze like the light of heaven upon all the world I cannot say, I do not know; but the Lord has not left himself without a witness, and some of you will no doubt recollect that, three or four years ago, I told the Saints in this Tabernacle that the testimony in favor of the truth of “Mormonism” would increase and that the source of evidence in its favor would multiply and grow stronger. Now we hear of a remarkable movement that has recently commenced among the Indians. Before proceeding further on this subject I will say that we have labored in our weakness among the Indians, trying to convert them from the error of their ways, and to persuade them to cease shedding blood, committing depredations on the white people, and to turn their attention to agriculture. I recollect going away up here to Snake River to visit a settlement that had been made there for the purpose of instructing the Indians in agriculture, and, if possible, to reclaim them from their disposition to steal and shed blood. I have also been to other places where similar efforts have been made; but we have not been able to accomplish much. I do not say that no good was done—perhaps some little good was done. But it seems that the time had not come for the means to be brought into requisition which Heaven had ordained to be used in the reformation of the Lamanites. For some time past, the Indians have been telling us very strange stories. They say that certain strange men have visited them and spoken to them, and have taught them what to do in order to be saved in the kingdom of God. Strange men have come to and talked with them perhaps an hour at a time, and while the Indians are looking at them they vanish out of sight, and they know not where they go. I do not know that it is so, but this is what the Indians declare and testify to, and I am a little inclined to believe that there is something in it, for you know the Apostle Paul, in speaking to his brethren, said—“Be not forgetful to entertain strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.” Perhaps one of these old men might come along in disguise, incog., not in his real character, and appear like any other man, clad as any other man, and stay over night with some of the brethren.

Some say that the “Mormons” have no Priesthood, power or authority from God; but if this be so why do these good old men who go to the Indians send them to the “Mormons” to be baptized? Why do they not send them to the Methodists? You have Methodists, Presbyterians, Episcopalians and Catholics right here in town, why do not these men who come to instruct the Indians tell them to go to some of these bodies to get baptized? It is singular that they should tell them to go to the Latter-day Saints. It is a good deal like the angel who told Cornelius to send to the house of one Simon a tanner, and call for Simon surnamed Peter, and he would tell him words whereby he and his house might be saved. Why send to Peter when Cornelius and his house lived among the Pharisees and Sadducees? Peter had the keys of the kingdom; the angel knew that, and said he—“Go to Peter and he will tell you words whereby you and your house can be saved.” These men say to the Indians—“Go to the “Mormons” and they will tell you words whereby you can be saved;” but if we had no Priesthood, no keys of the kingdom, no power to administer the ordinances of the Gospel, why should these old men, who declare that they are more than a thousand years old, and tell the Indians that their fathers were white and that they shall be if they only do as they are commanded, I say, why should these men tell the Indians to come to the Latter-day Saints? There is something singular about it. What can the world of mankind say to it? How can they meet it? I will tell you. It is a wave of evidence which, like a wave of the sea completely submerges everything on which it flows, it overturns every objection that the world can offer. God Almighty will vindicate his own cause—he has got the means prepared for that.

Now let me say to you, brethren and sisters, look well to these little children. Teach them good morals teach them, when you go to meeting, to go with you, and be sure that you do not stay behind just because you do not feel exactly the spirit of it. If you do not feel the spirit of it yourselves, feel it for the sake of your children, and bring them to the house of God that they may be taught and instructed. I recollect very well in early days, sometimes I heard a good and kindly word from a sectarian minister, there were no other ministers when I was a boy; but they sometimes spoke words in my hearing that I have not yet forgotten, they took root in my heart, and I still bear them in mind. I exhort you, brethren and sisters, to cultivate the morals of your children, for we are not going to stay here always; we shall be gathered with our fathers by and by, and these little ones will have to assume the responsibilities which we now bear. Hence I say qualify them for the positions which they will be called to fill in future. Teach them that which is good and right, and may the blessing of the Father rest upon you and upon all Israel, and may we live to see the truth of God triumph!

I feel thankful that God has heard our prayers. Says the Lord—“By this you may know whether God hears you, if you receive the things which you ask for.” If you receive the things you ask for, know ye that God has heard your prayers. Who is there among the Latter-day Saints who has not prayed for the removal of an unjust judge? If there are any who have not done it they ought to be turned out of the citadel. I believe you all have. Well, the Lord has heard our prayers in that respect, and not only so, but I will say, that if we were to pray against every official who is a bigot, a fool and an ass, the Lord would hear our prayers and turn him out no matter by what agency it is done. Let us try it. Never pray against a liberal, good man, whether “Mormon” or Gentile; if he is a fair and honest man, and is willing to live and let live, let him live just as long as God is willing to let him, and do not pray against him. But if he tries to overthrow and destroy us, or to withhold from us our rights, let the volume of our prayers ascend up to God for him, and if he does not hear from it some time I shall wonder. But he will hear from it, you may be assured of this. Why should we despair when the means of self-defence and self-protection are embedded in our own spirits, when we have the weapons right here? Not carnal weapons, not the sword, not the deadly rifle, but we have something more potent—the sword of the Spirit. This is our means of self-defense and self-protection, and let us use it. I have tried it. Not that I have any reason to boast, but I have great reason to be thankful to God my heavenly Father. I do know that when we want anything special, if we will make that a subject of continual pleading; if we will go into our closets and shut the door, and lay the matter before the God that made us, lay our hearts, as it were upon the altar and importune at his feet, in process of time he will hear us and avenge our wrongs, no matter what the wicked do or how much they may rage; and there is no subject on the face of the earth that is exempt from the influence of our prayers, high or low, rich or poor, noble or ignoble.

Let us exercise ourselves in this direction and teach our children to do the same. You know it is said that the religious world despair of converting us old Mormons, us old heads who are dyed in the wool; but they hope to convert our children by insidiously sending their missionaries to establish schools in our midst, by which they hope to entice and win their tender minds over to their side. That is the tack they are taking. Well, brethren and sisters, you do your duty toward your children pray for them morning and evening; instruct them by means of little short sermons every day, then you may turn them out to go to school if you like, as far as I am concerned, even to our friends of the sectarian world, and if they can exert a stronger influence than you with your prayers and instruction, and the parental tie that binds them to you, it will be something very singular, and I do not believe they can do it.

One young minister, a very kind, gentlemanly man, has appeared among us down in Sanpete. I have not a word to say against his morality or behavior, it is all very nice, and to all appearance he is a polished gentleman. He has spoken in several of our settlements, and, in his way, has endeavored to teach the people. Said I, on one occasion, to Bishop Peterson, “What did you think of that man’s sermon last night?” I did not happen to be there. Brother Peterson’s reply was—“So far as morality was concerned it could not be beat; but when you come to doctrine and principle he was entirely ignorant. Our little children know better.” In order that this minister might be properly posted with regard to some of our doctrines, I took the liberty of sending him the Deseret News, containing an excellent argumentative discourse by brother Orson Pratt. I did that for the purpose of informing his mind in reference to the arguments he would have to meet and controvert if he successfully prosecuted his labors in this country. I hope and I expect that he read it, for it certainly would not do anybody any harm to read it.

Brethren and sisters, I will not detain you longer. My remarks have perhaps been a little scattering, but scattering shot sometimes hit more birds than a rifle shot. Suffice it to say, you have my best wishes for your success and prosperity. May peace be with you, and God bless you and me, and the Twelve, and the servants of God with whom we have labored from the beginning; and may our lives be spun out as long as they tend to the honor and glory of God. And that we may obtain a mansion and crown in the realms of bliss, is my prayer in the name of Jesus. Amen.

The Gathering, etc.

Charles C. Rich

Remarks by Elder Charles C. Rich, delivered at the Forty-fifth Annual Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in the New Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Tuesday morning, April 6, 1875. Reported by David W. Evans.

I have been gratified this morning in listening to the instructions that we have received in relation to the principles of life and salvation. It is no doubt the desire of every individual to obtain eternal life in the kingdom of God. But to do this it is necessary that we hear and obey the commandments which he has given on this subject, as well as on the manner of building up this kingdom upon the earth. In every dispensation of God to man he has had purposes for his people to fulfill, and a labor for them to perform, and those purposes and that labor have not always been the same in every respect; but as far as the principles of eternal life are concerned, they have been and will be the same from all eternity to all eternity. When Noah was upon the earth he was required to build an ark; Enoch to build a city; the Prophets, in their several dispensations, had a labor to perform, varying somewhat according to the nature of the circumstances by which they and the people to whom they were sent were surrounded. The Apostles, chosen by the Savior, had to proclaim the everlasting Gospel to all the world, and the same may be said of the servants of God in our day. But in every dispensation those who have been willing to receive the everlasting Gospel have been required to sanctify themselves by living according to its precepts, that they might prepare themselves for the coming of the Lord.

As we have been told, the dispensation in which we are living is one of great importance—it is the dispensation of the fulness of times, in which all things which are in Christ will be gathered together, both those which are in heaven and those which are on the earth. The labor which is required of the Saints can not be performed short of their being gathered together, for it is absolutely necessary that they should, in all things, observe the commands of God in building up his kingdom here on the earth, which they could not do while in a scattered condition. The building up of the kingdom of God upon the earth, is a labor which will require all our time and attention, and our best efforts, and we have no time to idle away or to spend in foolishness, but our eyes should be continually single to the glory of God, and our efforts should be as the efforts of one man for the accomplishment of his purposes.

We meet together in Conference for the express purpose of taking these matters into consideration, and of being instructed in our duties and in the requirements made upon us by our heavenly Father in spreading forth his Gospel among the nations, that the honest in heart therein may hear and embrace them and be gathered out with the Saints, and thus have a better opportunity of accomplishing their mission upon the earth. I esteem such opportunities as the present as glorious, and as a means of great blessing to us all. How is it possible for us to build up God’s kingdom on the earth unless he directs our labors, and bestows upon us the influence and guidance of his Holy Spirit? It is not possible; and as the labor which he requires of us is of the greatest interest and importance to us, and indeed to all of the inhabitants of the earth, it behooves us to seek diligently unto him that we may become the honored instruments in his hands of building up his kingdom. This is no mere fancy or chimera on the part of the Latter-day Saints. We know that among the sects of the Christian world there is nothing certain about the life to come, or about their acceptance with God. The most they attain to in this respect is a mere hope—they hope they are accepted, and they trust their sins are forgiven; but with the faithful Latter-day Saints the case is very different—they know and can bear testimony by the gift and power of God that they are right in his sight; they know they have received the everlasting Gospel; they know that they are laboring in accordance with his mind and will, and they know that they are building up his kingdom here on the earth. This knowledge is a source of joy unspeakable to the Saints, and possessing it they can leave native lands, homes and possessions, parents, friends and everything they value and hold dear, if necessary, in order to perform and accomplish the labor which the Lord requires at their hands.

The principles which have been laid before us this morning in regard to our becoming a self-sustaining people, are plain and easy to be comprehended. They are self-evident to every reflecting mind, and are worthy of our earnest attention, for while we are dependent upon others for this, that and the other which is indispensable to our well-being and comfort, we can plainly see that our course is not only not the most advantageous to ourselves, but also that it is not the most pleasing to our heavenly Father, for in the revelations given by him in the early rise of this Church, his Saints were requested to pursue such a course in their home affairs as would make them self-sustaining. We have seen times in our experience here in this Territory, when it has been extremely difficult for us to obtain from abroad many things which we needed, and there is little doubt that we shall see such times again in the future; hence the very great necessity to adopt a policy in regard to temporal matters that will free us from the inconveniences that would arise in such a contingency, and that can only be done by producing as far as possible, according to our circumstances and the possibilities of our climate and Territory, everything that we need to sustain ourselves in comfort and convenience.

In the Gospel we find a remedy for every evil. A faithful observance of its principles will eventually free and deliver us from the consequence of every evil practice; and the principles of the Gospel we believe in are easy to adopt, and they are as applicable to a community as to an individual. We are told that in union there is strength; then, if as a community we will go to and, as the heart of one man, carry out the counsels of the servants of God, it will be easy for us to avoid any difficulties which we otherwise might have to encounter. A glance at matters abroad in the world will show the difficulties which the people everywhere have to contend with, and if we could trace them to their source, we should no doubt find that they arise through the absence of the principle of union; and one of the principal reasons of the great difference between us and them is, that we observe this principle much more generally and perfectly than they do, and hence we free ourselves from many of the difficulties and troubles under which they labor. This union will become stronger among us, in temporal as well as spiritual affairs, in proportion as we observe and keep the commandments and counsels of our heavenly Father. He has said that his Saints should become the richest of all people. But how will this be brought about? If we follow our former notions, and the notions of the world in general, what more can we do than they have done? We might say, simply, that we could bring about the very same result here as they have there; but that would not spread comfort and happiness, so far as temporal things are concerned, among the whole of his people, and hence if his promise unto us on this subject is ever fulfilled, it will only be by our following his counsel in all things.

How thankful we should be that we live in an age of the world when God is again willing to speak to his people, and to tell them what he requires of them! I say, what a blessing this is to the Saints, and to the whole world if they would receive it! But it is written that as it was in the days of Noah, so should it be in the days of the coming of the Son of Man. This was verily so—the people were not willing to hearken to him, they would not believe his testimony, neither would they receive his counsel. It is measurably so in our own times. The world at large manifest the same unwillingness to receive the counsel of heaven as they have done in any preceding age. But a few have been ready and willing to receive the testimony of the servants of God, and they have been gathered out from the nations for the express purpose of preparing themselves for the coming of the Lord, and to engage in the labor of building up his kingdom upon the earth, and also to do a work for the salvation of those who have gone before. Then it is for us as Latter-day Saints, to hearken to the voice of God, and to give diligent heed to all things which he has proclaimed to, and which he requires of, us in these days. If we take this course, his blessings, which have been bestowed upon us liberally in the past, will be dispensed more abundantly. In these things we have a right to rejoice, and as Saints of the Most High God we do rejoice in the knowledge of the fact that his hand has been over us from the day that the Church was organized with six members unto the present time. His hand has been visibly manifest in our behalf, and his blessings have been showered upon us, and we have been led by his power and dictated by his servants all the day long. If this had not been so, we should not have occupied the enviable position which we occupy to-day, our enemies would have overcome us long ago. But the outstretched arm of the God we serve has been over us, and his mercies and blessings have been freely bestowed upon us, and we have been sustained, and we shall be from this time forward. We have need to exercise faith; we have need to put our trust in him, and we have need to labor as he directs us. I presume that the feeling of all who have received a knowledge of the truth of the Gospel, is to do everything that the Lord requires of them, and that they will devote all their energies of body and mind to the building up of his kingdom here upon the earth.

That we may pursue this course and adopt this policy, and perform the labors that may be continually required of us, and ultimately be saved and exalted in the celestial kingdom of God, is my prayer in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Temporal Affairs, etc.

Brigham Young

Remarks by President Brigham Young, delivered at the Forty-fifth Annual Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in the New Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, on Wednesday afternoon, April 7, 1875. Reported by David. W. Evans.

There is a little matter of some importance to lay before the Conference, concerning those little insects that have done so much injury to our fruit the last two years. I mean what are called the codling moths. We had better go to work and see whether we can destroy them: and when we have done all we can, perhaps we may have faith that the Lord will rebuke the devourer. We wish to recommend the people who have orchards, in this county and throughout the valleys of the mountains, to meet together and enter into some arrangements and adopt such measures as will enable us to destroy these little pests. I recommend that brother Woodruff give out an appointment for a meeting of all who are engaged in raising fruit. Brother Woodruff is the President of the Deseret Agricultural and Manufacturing Society, and I should like for him and all interested in this subject to confer together and adopt such plans as they may think necessary and best to kill, not only the millers, but the worms before they become millers. They put me in mind of what I heard brother Kimball say, some years ago, at the time the revelation on celestial marriage was published. Brother Kimball got to talking upon celestial marriage, and he made a comparison; said he—“The cat is out of the bag; and that is not all—this cat is going to have kittens; and that is not all, those kittens are going to have cats.” Well, these worms make millers, and the millers make worms, and if we wish to get rid of them we must go to work and kill both of them off. I want to have arrangements made for destroying these insects before Conference adjourns, while the brethren are assembled here from the various parts of the Territory.

There is another item I wish to bring before this Conference, and especially before the brethren and sisters who have stock in Zion’s Co-operative Mercantile Institution. There was quite a number of them together on Monday last, and the desire universally expressed on that occasion was in favor of continuing the business. If we do, I have some propositions to make; and, as I suppose there are as many of the stockholders here this afternoon as were together on Monday, and perhaps a good many more, I will make them now. I propose to the brethren and sisters that we build a house to do our trading in, and that we own it and pay no rent. I also propose that we get clerks who will wait upon the people and do right; and then I propose that we go to that place and do our trading; and if we want a cent’s worth of candy, get it; if we want a dollar’s worth of maple sugar, and they have it, get it; and if we want five yards of calico, have clerks who will cut it off for the person who wants it and will pay for it.

Our brethren who are engaged in the retail trade may say—“You are going to make a retail store of this.” Yes, for ourselves and for all who will patronize it.

My proposition is that we build this store independent of the capital stock; we have none too much of that, and would rather add to it than not; and we will get our business settled up just as quickly as possible, and as fast as possible do our purchasing abroad upon a ready cash principle, without asking credit.

I have said, not only to my brethren here, but to our creditors in the city of New York, “If you have any dubiety or fears with regard to crediting this Institution, I am very much obliged to you for having them, and I hope and pray that you will never trust it any more.” I do not wish to injure the credit of the Institution, but I wish that we could not get anybody to trust us, but that we would do our trading altogether upon the ready money principle. We are perfectly able to do it, and could have done it from the beginning, if we had taken the course that we should have taken, and never asked credit, and never traded beyond our means. It is within my knowledge and the knowledge of thousands of this people that this institution has saved our community from one to three millions annually in prices. Our merchants have hearts that are too elastic, entirely too elastic; they are so elastic that they do not ask what they can afford to sell an article for, but they ask what they can get the people to pay; and as much as the people will pay, so much will the merchants take—a hundred, or a thousand per cent., if they can get it, and then thank God for their success. They put me in mind of some men I have seen who, when they had a chance to buy a widow’s cow for ten cents on the dollar of her real value in cash, would make the purchase, and then thank the Lord that he had so blessed them. Such men belong to the class of Christians referred to on one occasion by Charles Gunn; and, if you will excuse me, I will tell you what he said about them. He said that “hell was full of such Christians.”

Zion’s Co-operative Mercantile Institution has saved an immense amount of means to this community, and we wish to continue the business, hence I propose that we put up a building, and then, instead of paying somebody in New York, St. Louis, Sacramento or San Francisco, three, four, five, six or eight thousand dollars to insure it, that we insure it ourselves and save that money. I will tell you why; if another man can make money by taking my means and insuring my property, I certainly can save as much as he can make, consequently I keep my money and do not insure my property. I have about as many buildings as anyone in this Territory, and I never yet paid a dollar to insure one of them, or any of my property, or myself. My faith is to build a house so that it will not take fire; but when I ride round here and see stovepipes running through the roofs of houses and through wooden partitions, as many of them do, I do not wonder that we want fire companies. If I had the dictation of the building of a city there never would be any use for a fire company, and never any need to have an insurance company, but we need save all this clerk hire and the expense of keeping large offices. What a saving that would be to the people! Build your houses and your cities so that they will not take fire unless you purposely set them on fire. When we see an insurance sign over a door, and then read a list informing us that hundreds or thousands have insured, say in this city, then we may look for fires. Some will get their buildings insured as high as possible, and then they will accidentally take fire on purpose. Some of you recollect a circumstance which transpired here some years ago. Certain merchants got broken up with their pockets full of money, and they had a large amount of pork on hand, but they could not sell it. Finally they got it insured and stowed it away in a cellar belonging to brother Branch, who lived near to the Seventies’ Hall. The pork got on fire in the cellar and was burned up, and all the insurance in the world could not put out the fire, But the house would not burn, and how they could burn the pork without burning the house, was a mystery to me. Whether they got the insurance money I do not know. These are facts right before us, and ought to teach us a lesson.

If we call for the brethren and sisters who hold stock in the Institution, we shall expect them to meet together and decide with regard to building a house in which to do our trading.

I think we had better hold our Conference during the continuance of this wintry weather, and wait until it moderates before we adjourn to go home.

Self-reliance, etc.

Erastus Snow

Discourse by Elder Erastus Snow, delivered at the Forty-fifth Annual Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in the New Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Wednesday afternoon, April 7, 1875. Reported by David W. Evans.

If I can be heard I desire to make myself understood, for I have a few reflections to present to the people. I love this people, because I am persuaded that the very great majority of them are seeking after truth. We desire to improve and to pursue the path that will lead us onward and upward in the scale of being, to develop the powers within us that pertain to the Godhead, created as we are in his image, bearing in mind this injunction of one of the Apostles—“Let this same mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, when he found himself in the form of God, thought it no robbery to be equal with him.” No other people that I have any knowledge of upon the earth have such faith, such aspirations, such hope for the future as the Latter-day Saints possess, as is taught us in the sacred books of our holy religion, and as was taught us by the Prophet Joseph Smith, and which are manifested by the Holy Ghost in us. We look for greater things than any other people; and we must labor to develop within ourselves and within our children the gifts and powers that are within us, and which are embraced in our faith. Anything, therefore, that serves to stultify us in any wise tend downward rather than upward.

The subject of self-reliance was spoken of this morning, in our individual capacity and in our family relationships; yesterday brother Wells gave us some very excellent instructions, some beautiful truths, touching national or political economy, portraying the necessity that exists for nations, or communities like ours, becoming self-sustaining, self-reliant, and taking a course to be free from bondage and oppression and of being needlessly beholden to others, and, instead of letting our eyes wander to the ends of the earth, lusting after everything we see or hear of, educating and training ourselves to so curtail our wants that we can supply them by our own industry. What is true of nations and communities is true of individuals, and the principles applicable in one case are so in the other; and unless these principles are appreciated and applied in our individual and family capacity, they will not be in our larger national capacities. As communities, that which stands chiefly in our way is the pride of life—the natural ambition that is within us, which in and of itself is a godlike and noble principle, prompting us to go forward and to imitate those who are higher and further advanced than ourselves. It is this which stimulates nations, communities, families and individuals to improve. But there is a true line of demarcation which we should learn to tread, and, as far as in us lies, we should neither vary to the right hand nor to the left from that true line; if we do we shall receive the reward of our error.

To say that we are not mutually dependent upon each other, is to say that which is not strictly true; and I believe that our Father has organized us and society so that we should be mutually dependent, in order to cherish those principles of friendship, love, charity and brotherly kindness, and those noble social qualities that make us feel that we are one family, the children of one parent, and tending to one common end, and that we are in duty bound to work for each other as well as for ourselves. But the Lord requires no man or set of men to sacrifice themselves for others entirely, nor does he justify any man or people in leaning entirely upon others and doing nothing for themselves. In all the works of God we see this principle predominant. He has made ample provision upon this earth for all the inhabitants thereof to become self-sustaining, by using the bounties and gifts which he has bestowed upon them, and putting forth their hands and appropriating to their use the elements of life and prosperity with which they are surrounded; and though he permits the birds of the air and the fowls to prey a little upon our crops, and to pick the berries that grow in the mountains, yet even these have to arouse themselves from their nests and go in quest of their food, and all God’s creatures on the earth are required to exercise the powers and faculties they possess to avail themselves of the bounties which heaven has so plentifully placed upon the earth for their sustenance. Industry is required of us, and coupled with industry, frugality and economy, without which the rewards of industry are squandered and lost. Industry, frugality and economy are parts and portions of our faith and holy religion. We are dependent upon our Father and God for our being, and all our faculties; for the earth, our dwelling place, and the elements around us; but, in order to avail ourselves of these blessings, he requires us to use the faculties we possess, to be industrious, economical and prudent, and to exemplify that charity and brotherly love which pertain to our holy religion. The Lord has said that the idler shall not eat the bread nor wear the garments of the laborer. One of the rules of the United Order says—“Thou shalt pay thy brother for that which thou hast of him;” and those rules not only make it obligatory to pay or discharge our present indebtedness, as fast as in us lies, but henceforth to contract no debt beyond our ability to pay, or without having a reasonable prospect before us of fulfilling our engagements. These principles become necessary not only to be spoken of, but to be treasured and lived up to in order to preserve and maintain confidence between us as brethren, and to entitle us to the consideration of friends and brethren to assist us when our time of adversity shall come.

Those who are entitled either to free education, free meals, free clothing, or to be freely housed, entertained, comforted and blessed, are those who are industrious, prudent, frugal, using the faculties they possess, but who, through sickness, misfortune, or old age, are unable to minister to their own wants; or children of tender age who require the care of parents, friends or guardians. To all others it may be said—Bear your own burdens; and we may also quote the words of the Apostle Paul, when he says—“Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ;” also in another place the same author says—“Let every man bear his own burden.” Both are true and correct when we understand how to apply them correctly. Let all men and all women bear their own burdens according to their strength, and when that fails let somebody else take hold and help them and so fulfill the law of Christ. So let every father and mother begin the work of education with their offspring, and teach them to bear their own burdens at the earliest practicable day, and let them begin to learn and receive this practical education of which our President gave us such illustrations this forenoon, such an education, both physical and mental, as shall fit them for all the practical duties of life. Let no mother, in her misplaced sympathy and her love, and her anxiety to serve her offspring, wear herself needlessly out in waiting upon them when they are able to wait upon themselves; but make such provision as is necessary, which children are not able to make themselves, and teach them to wait upon and serve themselves, and also repay their father and mother for the labor bestowed upon them. Let them have a place for their hats, bonnets and clothing to be hung up in, and instead of going round the house after them, picking up their shoes and other things, take them and, if necessary, spank them, and make John understand that it is his duty to hang up his hat, and Sally to put her sunbonnet in its proper place. And when they want a drink, let them understand that there is the cup and there is the pump, and teach them to help themselves, and bring a drink to mother, instead of mother waiting upon them; and so commence and so continue that practical education. And when they are able to begin to hoe the potatoes and sow the onions, teach them how to do it instead of doing it all yourselves, and leaving them to lie in the shade or to run round the streets, wearing out shoe leather and learning mischief. If you are too old and feeble to take the lead in the performance of these several labors take your rocking chair into the shade under a tree somewhere, and sit and give directions and tell James or John what to do and how to do it.

This practical education has been before this people all the days of our lives; or I will say that our President and leader has kept prominently before us the great and important lessons of self-reliance. His doctrine has always been that the best way to relieve the poor is to show them how to help themselves. To continue to hand out your food and your substance to the beggar who comes to your doors without putting him in a position to help himself and to supply his own wants is to encourage him in folly and wickedness, and is throwing away the blessings of heaven which God has placed in your hands. Shall we not feed the hungry? Yes. Shall we not receive the stranger into our gates? Yes. If any come along who are weary, hungry, without money and need relief, shall we minister to their wants? Yes. Shall we feed them? Yes. Shall we give them rest? Yes. Warm them by our fires? Yes. Let them stay and rest themselves under our roof? Yes. How long? Until they are able to begin and do something to help themselves. And supposing, when they have stayed one night and had their suppers, and their breakfast next morning, then dinner, and supper again, and then stay another night, and finally, finding that they fare very well, they want to stop altogether, then we should say, “Here is a spade, go and dig that ditch,” or, “take this axe and cut that wood,” “take this team and haul a load of wood,” or put them to something by which they may use their powers and minister to their own wants; and if they demur at this then say—“Well, you can go without eating until you are willing to hoe the potatoes; you can go out and cut your own wood, make your own fires and camp where you please, you can not have shelter longer under my roof, the good things which God has given me are to bless and happify my fellowman, not to encourage vagrancy and idleness.”

These are no new principles before the Latter-day Saints. Our motto is “The Hive of Deseret,” and here is the place for the working bees, the place where they sting the drones to death. There has been a tendency with some of us for a few years past to try and live by our wits, or with as little physical labor as possible, and to watch the corners of the streets and various places for some advantage, or some way or other by which we may obtain something for nothing; and some succeed—they find some unsuspecting person ignorant of the value of things, and they obtain something for nothing, something that is valuable for that which possesses very little value. I speak not in reference to legitimate trading. There is a legitimate trade and traffic recognized by all right thinking men of the world everywhere. A legitimate interchange of commodities is profitable to all and makes all better off, and it is as necessary to the prosperity of any people as any other class of labor. In my present remarks I refer to that class the members of which, in common California parlance, are called bummers and hoodlums. Some among us have been in the habit of giving way to this spirit too much, and when the re-acting comes we are repaid for our folly. We are in the habit too, of allowing ambition to prompt us to make improvements and to build for ourselves convenient and tasteful habitations; to adorn our persons, and those of our families. This is all noble and good, but in our efforts in this direction some of us overreach ourselves, that is, we go beyond the means which are legitimately at our command. We run a little too fast and we stumble, and by and by we find that there is an accumulation of debts upon us.

The credit system has always seemed to me to be an evil to mankind in general. To the capitalists, who accumulate so much means that they can not take care of it, the credit system is a benefit, for they trust it to others to speculate upon, and so distribute it more or less through the community. In this respect the credit system may not be altogether without benefit to the world at large. But as for our community, composed mainly of laboring people, of comparatively small means, depending upon our industry, economy and frugality for all that we have and for all that we expect to have, I am persuaded that the credit system is and always has been a positive evil, though there may be even among us exceptional cases. But I am satisfied in my own mind that it is better for us to pay as we go, instead of obtaining credit from either brethren or strangers, and so endanger our freedom. We have done this too much, and in a great many instances our possessions are mortgaged to pay for our past follies. We have ceased to be free, we are in bondage, for debt is a yoke of bondage to all those who are brought under it, though some wear it much lighter than others. Some adopt the philosophy—“Let those worry whom I owe,” while others adopt the philosophy of worrying because they owe, and they are greatly troubled about procuring the means to pay their debts. It is for the benefit of this class I speak, the other class is to be shunned. Let those who are troubled about paying their debts take warning and, having once had their fingers in the fire, be careful about putting them in again; and let all who still have them in the fire, and feel the smart, be as prompt and diligent as possible in freeing themselves from this yoke of bondage, and discharging their debts. This credit system involves us all more or less. Our great mercantile institution, in attempting to supply the wants of this great community, is under the necessity of resorting to the common credit system of the commercial world; and our several co-operative associations in the settlements throughout the Territory wish to avail themselves of the same privileges, and ask for time. They want goods on credit. And then in our individual and family relationship we adopt the same principle, and we think it hard if our home merchants do not extend to us the same privilege; and the wife and child are teasing the husband and father for this, that and the other from the stores, whether he has the means to pay for it or not.

What is the remedy for all this? To my mind the proper remedy for this is for us to educate ourselves into the feeling that we can do without things until we are able to pay for them; that if we need a hat we will try and make one out of bamboo, straw, leaves, or imitate the Indians and use the covering that nature has provided for us. If we need shoes and can not pay for them, that we will patch up the old ones, or, if we can’t do that, we will find some buckskin, or go barefoot, for barefoot came we into the world, and it mattereth not whether we have any shoes when we go out. If our clothes are getting scarce, hunt up the old ones and patch them up and make them last until we have earned enough to buy some new ones.

But says the wife, or perhaps the husband, and if not they, then the sons and daughters—“Neighbor so and so has got a new bonnet, and my playmate yonder has got a new hat, and somebody else has a new pair of boots and I do not see why I am not just as good as they are;” and says the wife—“my children are just as good as the neighbors’ children, and if they can have new hats, shoes or clothing, mine shall, and if father has not the means to pay for them he must run in debt for them at the store.”

This is not the doctrine, or the system of education I would inculcate among this people, for it tends to bondage, and downward rather than upward, because it leads to dishonesty; for when we are in debt the tempter tempts us to resort to dishonorable, unrighteous means to free ourselves therefrom. And furthermore, if we will indulge in every lust of the eye and yield to the pride of life, and seek to gratify them beyond our legitimate means, the tempter prompts us to resort to lying, swindling, thieving and all manner of mischief to supply and gratify these wants. It is an old and truthful adage that honesty is the best policy. I would apply it to nations, communities and individuals.

In days of commercial prosperity, when capital is being diffused, and men of means use both capital and credit for great achievements, such as building railroads, towns, cities, factories, mills, etc., then is the time we are allured on to excesses. Prosperous times, high interest, big dividends and great bargains stimulate others to seek after the same things, and not unfrequently resort to unjustifiable means to acquire them. It is not best for us to go out into the mountains to hunt nuggets of gold; it is far better for us to go out and find a few raspberries, or a place to sow some onions or to plant some potatoes. These would supply our wants in a moderate way, without crazing our brain. But nuggets of gold turn the heads of many to leave their legitimate pursuit and follow a phantom. Nuggets of gold are not to be met with very often, and where one person finds one, ten thousand spend months hunting for them but never find one. But ten thousand might sow onions and plant potatoes and perhaps not more than one, unless through folly and neglect, would fail to reap the fruit of his labors. It is not great dividends that are going to make either the United Order, or any of our co-operative associations prosperous, permanent and successful, but honesty and straightforward business habits, and contentment with reasonable profits and rewards for our labors.

The last year or two has been a time of pecuniary stress, not only throughout this community, but more or less in all parts of the land, though perhaps the effects of the re-action of this overtrading is felt in this community after it has been felt and measurably overcome in the great central marts of commerce. This community, on the outskirts of this great credit system, is now feeling the pressure of that re-action. What should we do to afford relief? It is not to be expected that either our banks or our great trading institutions can bear this strain alone; they have not been brought into this condition by their own acts which they could have well remedied, it has been by the acts of this whole community in over-trading, over-living, exceeding their legitimate bounds in every respect, and the weight and strain of this re-action centres upon these great central institutions which we lean upon. They must not go down, for if they do we go with them, and we all suffer. We must commence to remedy the evil where the evil commenced, and that is at home, by retrenchment. Every man and every woman must pay their debts as soon as possible, and instead of hunting around for opportunities to contract new ones they must hunt around for means to pay their old ones, and let every dollar be used for that purpose before new debts are contracted; and do without the sugar, tea, coffee, boots, hats, bonnets, ribbons and clothing until the old scores are wiped out.

God bless you. Amen.

Man the Offspring of God, a Dual Being, etc.

John Taylor

Discourse by Elder John Taylor, delivered at the Forty-fifth Annual Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in the New Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, Thursday morning, April 8, 1875. Reported by David W. Evans.

We have met together, as is our wont, on this Conference occasion, to speak and to hear, to deliberate, to reflect, and to teach principles and doctrines that are calculated to benefit and bless, to comfort, cheer and direct the Saints of the Most High, here and throughout the world. But in our meetings, and in our teachings and instructions we need, to-day as much as we ever did, to be under the guidance and direction of the Almighty. There is no man living, and there never was a man living, who was capable of teaching the things of God only as he was taught, instructed and directed by the spirit of revelation proceeding from the Almighty. And then there are no people competent to receive true intelligence and to form a correct judgment in relation to the sacred principles of eternal life, unless they are under the influence of the same spirit, and hence speakers and hearers are all in the hands of the Almighty.

We are met together for the purpose of trying to benefit each other, old and young, and the generation that now lives, the generations that have lived, and those who will live hereafter; for there is something in the Gospel of the Son of God that is wide and expansive, and that extends to all circumstances and situations in life. It embraces the past, the present and the future, and in its principles we, both as individuals and as a community, are immediately interested; and so in fact are all the world, if they could only comprehend the situation. We occupy a peculiar position among the nations of the earth. Our faith and its doctrines and principles are different from those of any other religious body in many particulars; our prospects, our hopes of the future, and our ideas respecting man’s present and past differ very materially from the ideas on the same subjects which are entertained by other people. We are not the originators of the peculiar ideas that we believe in, or of the peculiar doctrines which we inculcate. We happen to live in an age of the world when, in the economy of God, certain principles have to be introduced for the accomplishment of his purposes, as a part of the great work he has been engaged in from the time before the world was framed or “the morning stars sang together for joy.” Certain events have to be brought about; certain circumstances have to transpire; certain doctrines have to be made known, that we may operate in our day with the Almighty in the accomplishment of his designs. The principles of salvation are not so narrow and contracted as some men suppose. God is not contracted in his ideas, feelings, or general dealings with the human family. The Scriptures say that “we are all his offspring,” no matter who we are, or when or where we lived upon the earth. God is the God and Father of all flesh, and consequently he feels interested in the welfare of all humanity, no matter of what age, clime, nation or people; and he has seen proper in the last days, in which we live, to reveal certain principles which were revealed in former ages to other peoples and under other circumstances; and as it was in former days, so in these—he has given these revelations to man for the accomplishment of his designs upon the earth; hence these revelations are of great importance, and while we are called to take an active part in bringing to pass certain events in the programme of the Almighty, we are as much dependent upon him for guidance, sustenance, intelligence and protection as any other people, and before we get through we shall find out that it is not in man to direct his own steps. We are all of us dependent, for all things, upon our heavenly Father. We are only an integral part of, and are operating in and with others, according to our intelligence, in our sphere, in the great plan which God organized before the world was, and in which all mankind, of all ages and nations, are deeply interested.

We talk about the Gospel of the Son of God, and there are many curious ideas and theories prevalent among mankind in relation to it. The Gospel is not something new, or that never existed until Jesus Christ came upon the earth; but it is an eternal principle, and it has a Priesthood associated with it which, like the Gospel itself, is without beginning of days or end of years. When God organized the world he had in his mind certain ideas and plans which he calculated to bring about in relation to the inhabitants who should live upon it; and the first great commandment that was given to them was to “be fruitful, multiply, and to replenish the earth, to have dominion over the beasts of the field, the fowls of the air, and everything that creeps upon the face of the earth.” Man was created in the image of God, and he was the offspring of Deity himself, and consequently made in his likeness; and being made in that likeness, he was a son of God, and the very object of his being planted upon the earth was that he might multiply. Why? That the spirits which had existed with their heavenly Father might have tabernacles to inhabit and become mortal, and, through the possession of these tabernacles and the plan of salvation, that they might be raised to greater dignity, glory and exaltation than it would be possible for them to enjoy without these; and hence, though a man was made a little lower than the angels, the time will come when he will be a little higher than many angels, for the Apostle says, in speaking of those who had received the Gospel, “Know ye not that ye shall judge angels?” God had a purpose, therefore, in the organization of this earth, and in the placing of man upon it, and he has never deviated one hair to the right or to the left in regard to man and his destiny from that time until the present. He is eternal and unchangeable, and so are his ideas in regard to the world that we inhabit and mankind who live upon it; and he has been seeking, from the commencement of creation to the present time, to benefit mankind, just as much as it was in his power to accomplish, consistent with certain laws governing and regulating the same, that he could not violate any more than we can.

There are certain ideas that men entertain pertaining to the world that we live in, that it is enough for them if they have only something to eat, drink and wear. These ideas, of a sensual nature, men seem to be governed by to a very great extent. Jesus, in his day, said to the people, and to his disciples especially—“Take no thought for the morrow, what ye shall eat, what ye shall drink, or wherewithal ye shall be clothed, for after all these things do the Gentiles seek.” That is the acme of their zeal, energy, struggles, perseverance and thought. “What shall we eat, what shall we drink, and wherewithal shall we be clothed?” Said Jesus—“Consider the lilies of the field they toil not, neither do they spin, and yet Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.” God takes care of the beasts and the fowls, the creeping things, and of everything that lives and moves upon the earth; he regularly provides for them their breakfast, dinner and supper, and if he did not do it they would have to go without. He provides for us also, and has taken care of us from our birth up to the present time, and we are not so independent as many of us think we are in very many particulars. Witness, for instance, our breathing. We breathe what we call the breath of life; is it by any action of ours? God made us and planted that principle within us, and sleeping or waking our lungs continue to play. There is something remarkable about it. I have sometimes gazed upon an old man, just on the verge of eternity, perhaps seventy, eighty, or ninety years of age, and I have watched the beating of his pulse, the drawing of the breath and the sight of the eye. His breath has been inhaled all the years of his life, not through any agency or volition of his own, but simply by the organism which God made and gave to him. Our pulse beats in the same way, from hour to hour, minute to minute, and our blood flows from the heart to the extreme parts of the system simply by the energy and vitality which God imparts. When we come to examine ourselves we are not so independent after all. What have we to do with the functions of digestion, and many other things connected with the human system? In God we live, in God we move, and from God we have our being, and let him withdraw the breath of life and the pulse stops beating, and in a short time we become helpless, inanimate clay. We are not very independent, we are all of us in the hands of God, and when he withdraws the vital power we go to decay.

God is watching over us, and he is watching over his people. We realize that we possess certain faculties and powers of mind, and these and the power of conveying them to the brain, or thought and reflection, comes from God; we are indebted to him for every power we have, and so are all the inhabitants of the earth; and as I have already said, he has been seeking to benefit the human family just as much as lay in his power, from the beginning until the present time.

The first thing was—“Multiply and replenish the earth.” Then, by and by, through the power of Satan, who I suppose was a necessary influence to be used, or he would not have been there, men’s minds got estranged from God, and every imagination of the thoughts of their hearts was evil and it was necessary that they should be cut off and that God should commence another seed, and that those men who lived at that time should not have the power to propagate their species in unrighteousness and entail misery upon their posterity. Why so? Because man is a dual being, possessed of a body and a spirit, having to do with time and eternity. Whether we think about and reflect upon, or believe it or not, it makes no difference. We existed before we came here; we exist here in another form from what we did then, and we shall live in another and different sphere when we leave here, whether we believe it or not; and no action of ours can alter it, and no matter what our thoughts and reflections on this subject may be, they will not change the course of the Great Jehovah in regard to man.

Well, when God found that the people were transgressing his laws continually, and that they were raising up a posterity who followed in the same path, to prevent justice being done to spirits unborn by those who were in the flesh, he cut them off and raised up another seed; and change has succeeded change, and God has dealt with nations and with individuals according to his wisdom for the best good of the human family. He raised up Abraham, and Moses; and by and by Jesus came to accomplish certain objects, and to restore the Gospel, which had been lost in consequence of transgression. Jesus preached the Gospel. Was it right? Yes. Why did it not continue? I do not know, but it did not continue, and the Prophets said it would not, and one of them prophesied that a certain power would seek to make war with the Saints of God, and that it would prevail against them, and that they would be given into his hands until a time, and times, and the dividing of a time. And then other events had to transpire, and other plans and principles had to be introduced, and by and by the time came for the restoration of the Gospel again, and Joseph Smith was raised up, and through him the revelations of God and the Priesthood were restored, the same Priesthood that Jesus had, and which existed upon the earth long before his day. There was nothing new about it. Why, Adam, before he left the earth, gathered his people together in the Valley of Adam-ondi-ah-man, and the curtain of eternity was unfolded before him, and he gazed upon all events pertaining to his descendants, which should transpire in every subsequent period of time, and he prophesied to them. He saw the flood and its desolating influence; he saw the introduction again of a people in the days of Noah; he saw their departure from the right path. He saw Abraham, Moses and the Prophets make their appearance and witnessed the results of their acts; he saw nations rise and fall; he saw the time when Jesus would come and restore the Gospel and when he would preach that Gospel to those who perished in the days of Noah; and in fact he saw everything that should transpire upon the earth, until the winding up scene. He was acquainted with the day in which we live and the circumstances with which we are surrounded. Many other men have possessed a portion of the same power, influence, knowledge and intelligence, and they have obtained it from the same source.

There have been many peculiar circumstances connected with the past history of mankind. Enoch, for instance, occupied a peculiar position in his day, before the flood, when the imaginations of the hearts of the people were evil. In that day God endowed men with the spirit of revelation and prophecy, and they went forth and proclaimed to the people the same Gospel that we are proclaiming now. And Enoch gathered together his people and they were taught of God by the everlasting Priesthood, which holds the keys of the mysteries of the revelations of God, and which has done so in every age of the world whenever it has existed. Those men were taught of God; but they could not stop the evil nor stem the march and progress of iniquity, but they could gather together those who would be obedient to the revelations of God, and they did gather them together, and Enoch and his city being perfected, and the world doomed to destruction, the Lord moved them out of the way, and the rumor went forth—“Zion is fled.” They were taken up out of the way of the world into the keeping of the Almighty. Then came the Flood, then came many other events, and finally Joseph Smith came, through whom God revealed the principles by which he governs the world. Joseph knew nothing about these things until the Lord revealed them. There was nothing particular about him, he was a man like the balance of us. But the Lord, for certain reasons of his own, I suppose, selected him to be his mouthpiece to the nations in this age of the world. Perhaps Joseph, as well as many others, was set apart to a certain office before the world was. Christ was the Lamb slain from before the foundation of the world. Abraham was set apart to his office, and a great many others in the same way; and Joseph Smith came to do his work.

What was that work? Why things seemed to be changed around in a great measure here from what they were in early days. God said to Adam—“Be fruitful and multiply and replenish the earth.” What does he say now? He says—“Build Temples! Build Temples!!” What for? “To accomplish certain purposes that I had in my mind before the world was; that you may operate for yourselves, that you may be instructed therein in the laws of life—the laws pertaining to your bodies and to your spirits; the laws pertaining to the living and the dead.” Principles in which all mankind that have ever lived or that ever will live are interested. The Lord took Lehi and his family, and planted them upon this continent, and they increased and spread abroad, and the Lord revealed unto them his law; and after Jesus left the Continent of Asia, he came here and organized his Church and made the people acquainted with the principles of truth, as he did on the other continent, only more so, for they had more light, revelation and intelligence here than there, and they lived in union and harmony here for more than two hundred years. They had all things in common one with another, and covetousness was in a great measure destroyed. The great secret of their success in this direction was that “they dealt justly one with another.”

Well, these various Priesthoods that have existed, and these Prophets that have lived, such for instance as Nephi, Alma, Lehi, Mahoni, Moroni, Mormon and others, were taught and instructed in the principles of life and the laws of God, and they have left their testimony on record, and we have it here, in the Book of Mormon. They administered here in time, and they are all administering in eternity, and they are operating and co-operating with us and with the Almighty for the accomplishment of his purposes upon the earth. We talk sometimes about co-operation; but the plan of salvation, if you please, is a grand Co-operative Scheme, as expansive as the heavens and as wide as eternity; it penetrates through all time, extends through all ages, and reaches men in every position, living or dead; they who have lived, we who now live, and they who will live hereafter are all working together in this grand co-operative plan, and we can not be made perfect without our progenitors, neither can they be perfected without us, and they are as much dependent upon us as we are dependent upon them. We can build Temples, they can not; it is not their province to administer in them at present, but it is ours, and we are called upon to do so. They are interested in our welfare, they are our fathers, we are their children; they are laboring there, we here, for our mutual salvation and exaltation in the kingdom of God. The plan of salvation is no isolated affair; it is not narrow and circumscribed like the man I have heard of, who prayed—“God bless me and my wife, my son John and his wife, us four and no more, Amen;” but it is as high as heaven, as deep as hell and as wide as the universal creation; it extends to the time that is past and to the eternities that are to come. The living and the dead so-called in Christ are all working for the accomplishment of the same great objects and purposes. Don’t you think that they, behind the vail, feel as much interested in the work as we do? Read the little glimpse given by John in the Revelations, where he speaks about the souls of those before the altar, who prayed day and night that he would avenge them of their adversaries; and again, when the time came when Babylon was cast down there was rejoicing among the angels in heaven. This gives us some faint idea of the feelings entertained by those on the other, side of the vail in relation to events here.

Don’t you think that Adam, the father of us all, feels interested in the welfare of his children? I think he does. Don’t you think that Enoch feels interested in the welfare of his people? I guess he does. Don’t you think that Noah does? Yes, and even some of the Prophets, in speaking about events in the future, tell of a time when Ethiopia shall stretch out her hands to God. Are they not all interested? Yes. Are not all of you interested in your posterity? Yes, you are. Does the Gospel show you how to take care of them? It does. Does it enable you to bless your posterity as Jacob did? It does, and to seal blessings upon their heads. Does it give you promises pertaining to the future? It does, pertaining to you and your posterity. And are not all of these men engaged with us in the same object? Yes, and they are just as much interested as we are, and ten thousand times more, because they know more; and they have been operating in the various ages, and when they were permitted they have come forth and communicated the will of God to man. And when Joseph Smith was raised up as a Prophet of God, Mormon, Moroni, Nephi and others of the ancient Prophets who formerly lived on this Continent, and Peter and John and others who lived on the Asiatic Continent, came to him and communicated to him certain principles pertaining to the Gospel of the Son of God. Why? Because they held the keys of the various dispensations, and conferred them upon him, and he upon us. He was indebted to God; and we are indebted to God and to him for all the intelligence that we have on these subjects. Who in this generation knew anything about Temples and their uses until Joseph revealed it? Nobody. Who knew anything about baptism for the dead until then? Nobody. Who knew anything about the past or the future? Why, when I commenced to preach this Gospel, years ago, it was enough to damn anybody to even mention the principle of revelation. In this enlightened age we were so far ahead of God that we could have a religion without him, and could go to heaven without him; we did not want any revelation from, or communication with, God. But the Gospel brings us into communication with God, and makes us one with him and with those who have operated before; and those holy men of God who have lived in the various ages feel interested in our welfare, and they are watching over us, and we are better taken care of than many of us think for. Many of us are careless, thoughtless, heedless, reckless, unbelieving and full of doubts and anxiety; but God has given his angels charge concerning us lest we should dash our foot against a stone. God’s bowels of mercy have been extended to us in spite of our waywardness, folly, weakness, corruption and imbecility.

We have an organization that was planned and ordained by the Almighty. We have the First Presidency—President Brigham Young, set apart by God to occupy the position that he does, and his Counsel. Who told men about such an organization as this? God. What did we know about it till then? Nothing. Who knew about the organization of the Twelve? Nobody. Who knew about an organization of High Priests? Nobody, yet they had them in various ages of the world, according to the record that we have. Who knew about an organization of Seventies, and of the various Quorums of the Priesthood, and the duties that should devolve upon them? Nobody. Who knew about the organization of Bishops? Nobody. Have they not got Bishops? Yes, but they are not in the right place, and they are not bishops, they call them so, but they are not bishops. I remember introducing brother Hunter to a gentleman in Provo. “Mr. So and So,” said I, “this is Bishop Hunter, our presiding Bishop here. In England you have your lords spiritual, but,” said I, “this is our lord temporal, and he attends to the affairs of our bread and cheese,” &c. But elsewhere their bishops are made spiritual officers, which Bishops were never intended for. Who knew anything about other organizations of the Priesthood that we have, such as Elders, Priests, Teachers, Deacons, and their various duties? Nobody. Where did this originate? With God. Where is the pattern? In the heavens. When will this Priesthood cease? Never. It originated with God, and when we get through with the affairs of time you will find just the same organization, the same Priesthood, the same power, the same principles that exist here. Why? Because the things which exist in the Church of God here are patterns of those which exist in the heavens. God said to Moses—“See that thou make all things according to the pattern that I showed thee in the mount.” The pattern that we have is a pattern of that which exists in the heavens, the organization of the Priesthood that will exist throughout eternity. And these are heavenly things committed to us in the flesh for our benefit, and for the benefit of the world that we live in. It is not to save or bless me or my family alone, or you and your family alone; but it is to bless and save all who will avail themselves thereof, who have ever lived, and all who live now or ever will live.

When the purposes of God in regard to the earth shall have been fulfilled, the earth will resume its former paradisiac glory, and go on to be celestialized. To help on this good time we are requested to introduce certain principles, and we have heard a good deal said about the United Order. Who would not want to be united with an order like this that I speak of? The order into which we are now requested to enter is a very, very, very little portion of the other, that is all; but as we show by our acts that we can not, or will not, be one in temporal things, how can we be one in spiritual things? Says Jesus—“If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how shall ye believe if I tell you of heavenly things?” But we do believe in these principles, and we are governed by them to a certain extent, and we are desirous to do what is right, and God desires to help us. What shall we do then? Why, keep his commandments, and obey the counsels of his servants, and esteem it a privilege to be one with them.

Continued on Page 1, Vol. 18.