{"collection":"scripture-revelation","full_text_available":true,"graph_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/api/page/gutenberg_56685/graph","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/page/gutenberg_56685","id":"gutenberg_56685","license":"Public Domain (US)","rights_basis":"gutenberg_metadata_copyright_false","source":"gutenberg","source_url":"https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/56685","summary":null,"tags":["Category: Novels","Category: Religion/Spirituality","Latter Day Saints","Latter Day Saints -- Fiction","Salt Lake City (Utah) -- Fiction"],"text":"Produced by the Mormon Texts Project\n(http://mormontextsproject.org), with thanks to Renah\nHolmes.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nMR. DURANT\n\nOF\n\nSALT LAKE CITY,\n\n\"THAT MORMON.\"\n\n\nBY BEN. E. RICH.\n\n\n\"God attributes to place No sanctity, if none be thither brought By men\nwho there frequent.\"--MILTON\n\n\nSALT LAKE CITY:\nGEORGE Q. CANNON & SONS CO.,\nPRINTERS\n1893.\n\n\n\nPREFACE.\n\nMormonism is a subject which has been handled by many authors. Some\nhave written in its favor, with prayerful hearts, seeking the guidance\nof the Holy Spirit as their honest convictions were recorded; while\nothers have declared against the Mormons and the man who was the\ninstrument, in the hands of God, of founding their faith. A few of the\nlatter class have been honest in their attacks, believing, perhaps,\nthat they were doing the Lord's will in opposing it; but the majority\nhave been actuated by hatred in all they have said on the subject.\n\nThe author of this work has endeavored to present, in plain and simple\nwords, the faith of the Latter-day Saints, with a desire to aid and\ninterest the young men of Mormondom, who have had no missionary\nexperience, and to fit them to make known their belief to the nations\nof the earth, should they be called upon for that purpose.\n\nIf this book shall benefit them, and give others a better conception of\nthe Latter-day Saints and their religion, the object in publishing it\nwill have been attained.\n\n                                                      THE AUTHOR.\n\nOGDEN, February, 1893.\n\n\n\nCONTENTS.\n\nCHAPTER I.\n\nTHE OLD AND THE NEW.\n\nThe Changes In the Sunny South, since the War. Hospitality of the\nSoutherner. His Traits of Character. Politics and Religion. Purpose of\nthe Description.\n\nCHAPTER II.\n\nA NEW ARRIVAL IN THE TOWN.\n\nThe Town of Westminster. Harmony Place, the Hotel of the Marshalls.\nGuests and their social Methods. Mr. Charles Durant, the New Arrival\nfrom the West. Introduction to the Family and Visitors.\n\nCHAPTER III.\n\nNEW ACQUAINTANCES AND AN AGREEABLE DISCUSSION.\n\nAn Evening on the veranda. A Variety of Subjects Discussed. Politics\nand Religion. Christian America. Do People Practice their Religious\nProfessions? Priests Addicted to Money-getting rather than to\nSoul-getting. The Stranger Interested. Proposed Discussion. Search\nafter Truth. A Quotation from the Prayer Book. A Difference Concerning\nthe Godhead. Erroneous Conception of God. Oneness of the Father and the\nSon. Three Separate Identities, United as One in all Things. Character\nof Each. A God with Body, Parts and Passions. Mysteries Explained.\n\"Good Night.\"\n\nCHAPTER IV.\n\nGAINING AND LOSING FAVOR.\n\nEntirely at Home. Another Evening on the Veranda. The Reverend, the\nStranger, and Churches. The Baptism of Christ. Baptism by Immersion.\nNecessity of this Ordinance. The Savior's Example. Who are True\nChristians? Laying on of Hands. The Reverend Retires from the Argument.\nContinued Discussion. The Gospel and its Necessity. Men must Answer\nfor their own Sins. The Double Effect of the Atonement of Christ.\nConditions of Salvation. A Definition of Faith. First Step Alone Is not\nSufficient for Salvation. Scripture Explained. Romans, Chapter X. The\nStranger's Errand.\n\nCHAPTER V.\n\nFURTHER DISCUSSION OF THE FIRST PRINCIPLES.\n\nThe Second Step that should be Taken by the Convert to Christianity.\nTrue Repentance, its End and Aim. Forgiveness of Sin, How obtained.\nMode, Meaning, and Significance of Baptism. Who are fit Candidates for\nthis Ordinance? Little Children exempt. What shall we do to be saved?\nThe Answer of Paul. The Holy Ghost, How conferred. The Signs Following.\nConditions of Salvation named. \"Show Me Where True Christians Live.\"\nWho is authorized to Baptize? The Need of Authorized Officers. A\nSign of the True Church. Teachers must be called of God \"The Falling\nAway\" Foretold. Christians turned Heathen, The Gospel to be restored.\nProphecies Concerning this Event. The Restoration through Revelation to\nMan. Promises to the Believer. A Lecture Arranged for.\n\nCHAPTER VI.\n\nTRUTH AGAIN DEFEATS FALSEHOOD.\n\nA Pleasant Conversation. Missionary Hymn. Perfect Happiness, True\nEnjoyment, How Obtained. The Medium Course, Sensible Christianity. The\nReverend Once More. His peculiar Surprise. \"Are You from Salt Lake\nCity?\" The Stranger is a Latter-day Saint, or Mormon. A Discomfited\nMinister. Some Falsehoods Exposed. The Articles of Faith.\n\nCHAPTER VII.\n\nDurant's Experience in Westminster. His Labors. Meeting in the Town\nHall. Sincere Congratulations. Fears of a Mob.\n\nCHAPTER VIII.\n\nTHE PROPHET JOSEPH'S STATEMENT.\n\nOnce More on the Veranda. Answering Questions. Information from the\nRight Source. Complete Statement of the Early Rise and Progress of the\nChurch of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, by the Prophet, Joseph\nSmith. The Book of Mormon. The Testimony of Three Witnesses. And also\nthe Testimony of Eight Witnesses. Concerning the Restoration of the\nGospel. Striking Illustration. Departure from Westminster.\n\nCHAPTER IX.\n\nTHAT MORMON AGAIN.\n\nA New Member of the Marshall Family. Meeting an Esteemed Friend. A\nDelayed Breakfast. A Promised Return. Anxious to Meet the Missionary.\nEffect of the Elder's Testimony. Danger of Being converted to\nMormonism. An Informal Meeting Place.\n\nCHAPTER X.\n\nTHE MISSIONARY'S RETURN.\n\nOnce More with his Friends. Experience While Away. Account of a\nTerrible Mobbing. Peculiar Feelings Attending the Formation of New\nFriendships. Opportunity to introduce a New Principle. The Doctrine of\nPre-Existence. A Beautiful Poem. Proofs from the Scriptures. The Truth\nis Reasonable. A Walk through the Village. \"The World my Home.\"\n\nCHAPTER XI.\n\nA PLEASANT INTERVIEW.\n\nAn Evening Gathering. Remarks on the Faith of the Latter-day Saints.\nWhat they Believe. A Literal Resurrection. The Teachings of Jesus and\nthe Scriptures on this Subject. Illustrations. Now Accepted Facts were\nOnce Incomprehensible. Great Truths Yet Unrevealed. The story of the\nSilver Cup. Death-bed Repentance. The Repentant Malefactor did not go\nto Heaven with the Savior. The Subject explained. Where and What is\nParadise? Preaching to Departed Spirits. Baptism for the Dead. The\nWelding Link Between the Fathers and their Children. Testimony of a\nProphecy Fulfilled. Organization of the Church of Christ. The Holy\nPriesthood. Officers of the Melchisedek and the Aaronic Priesthoods.\n\nCHAPTER XII.\n\nA BAPTISM AND A CONVERSATION ON MARRIAGE.\n\nImportance of Baptism. Necessity of Earnest Preparation. Form of the\nOrdinance Given. Quotations Showing the Gathering to be In Strict\nHarmony with the Bible. The Marriage Covenant is Eternal. The Union of\nAdam and Eve. What is meant by Marriage as Ordained of God? Necessity\nof Authority.\n\nCHAPTER XIII.\n\nABOUT THE MORMONS.\n\nA Trip to Utah. Consideration that Led the Mormons to Settle that\nTerritory. The Death of the Prophet Joseph, How it Occurred. Its Effect\non the Saints. How Brigham Young Became Leader of the People. The\nExodus from Nauvoo. Testimony of Historians. Good by. Off for the West.\nArrival in Salt Lake City. A Happy Meeting. A Doctrinal Sermon.\n\nCHAPTER XIV.\n\nMR. BROWN'S LETTER TO THE MARSHALLS.\n\nThe Great West. Along the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific. By the\nDenver & Rio Grande over the Rockies. Scenes Along the Line. Over the\nWasatch into Utah. Delightful Views. Area, Population and Resources\nof the Territory. In Salt Lake City. The Tabernacle and the Temple.\nEcclesiastical Divisions. Natural Attractions. Education. A Living\nFaith. Fair Minded People. President Wilford Woodruff. Greetings.\n\nCHAPTER XV.\n\nCONCLUSION.\n\nA Word Before we Separate. Important Questions. \"What if the Message\nbe True.\" \"Read, Listen, Investigate.\" \"Know this, that Every Soul is\nFree.\"\n\nAPPENDIX.\n\nWHAT BRIGHAM YOUNG SAID.\n\nQuotations from the Sermons of President Brigham Young.\n\n\n\nMR. DURANT OF SALT LAKE.\n\n\n\nCHAPTER I.\n\nTHE OLD AND THE NEW.\n\nThere are few if any cities or towns of any consequence in the vast\nterritory known to poesy as the Sunny South, that do not speak in\nevery street corner, in almost every building, and even through the\nindividuals themselves, of the wondrous changes wrought by the great\ncivil war. Those who knew that Sunny South before the sanguinary\nstruggle, and have since looked upon it, will most readily appreciate\nthe force of this statement; while those who have not seen it, need\nonly be told that where villages existed then, now thriving towns\narise, or bustling municipalities; elegant mansions have supplanted log\nhuts or other indifferent abodes of men; the railway has displaced the\nstage coach for all time; newspapers abound where before these were\nalmost unknown, and--greatest boon of all--the auction block, whereon\nhuman merchandise was publicly vended, exists only as a memory which\nitself is rapidly vanishing before the pressure of modern progress and\na better civilization. In one respect at least, however, there has been\nlittle, if any, change, and that is in regard to the best feature of\nall among the many that are commendable in the true Southerner--the\nstranger or wayfarer is received with the same unaffected hospitality\nas of yore, and is at liberty, within reasonable limits, to avail\nhimself of all the conveniences and enjoyments of whatever home he may\nfind himself the guest.\n\nNotwithstanding their hospitality, the people of the South are usually\ndisposed to be suspicious of strangers until well acquainted with them,\nand they are overly watchful, jealous and even irritable when once\na real or fancied cause for vigilance arises. Inheriting traditions\nand propensities which are inseparable from the climate and the race,\nthey brook no interference with their peculiar views, and anything\nsavoring of intolerance or bigotry concerning a cherished Southernism\nis summarily suppressed if it can be; apart from this, it matters\nlittle what the visitor believes or practices in a general way. In\npolitics they incline largely one way, possibly for the reason that\nto do otherwise would, as they look upon it, threaten them with the\ndomination of the black race, and this of all things they will not\nhave, no matter by what means it is prevented. In religion they are\nprotestant with heavy leaning towards the Baptist doctrines, not always\nfree from narrowness, yett fairly tolerant--many evincing a willingness\nto listen, and demanding a right to believe or disbelieve, as their\njudgment may dictate.\n\nThose who are unacquainted with the situation would be inclined to say\nat this point. What a grand field for missionary work! And so it is;\nbut the great mistake of supposing that the South is deficient in the\nmatter of Christian endeavor or ecclesiastical institutions, must not\nbe made. Far from that! On the contrary, perhaps religious feeling is\nmore generally diffused, guarded, and defended as herein expressed,\nthan in any other section of the civilized world; but it is not of the\nkind from which riots and persecutions grow for no other reason than\nthat it is opposed.\n\nThere is much else south of the imaginary dividing line of North and\nSouth that might be spoken of to interest, but which will not be\nreferred to except incidentally in the succeeding chapters. What we\nhave said is for the purpose of giving only so much of a description of\nthe country and people as is necessary to make our little narrative,\nthe incidents of which are laid there, more easily understood. As this\nbook deals principally with actual occurrences, and people in real\nlife, such a foundation seems to be entirely proper.\n\n\n\nCHAPTER II.\n\nA NEW ARRIVAL IN THE TOWN.\n\nA town pleasantly situated in the south-western part of Tennessee, the\nname of which for the present shall be Westminster, was at the time of\nwhich we write one of the most cosmopolitan places imaginable for its\nsize--that is, for a southern town. It contained probably two thousand\nregular inhabitants, but these were constantly augmented, it being at\ntimes a rallying point for tourists from every clime, and the temporary\nabode of men who, in the aggregate, during a season, came well-nigh\nrepresenting every shade of opinion, if not every phase of character.\n\nA quiet little hotel, or perhaps it would be better to say a residence,\nwith accommodations for a limited number of guests, was situated near\nthe outskirts, and so pleasant in all respects were the location,\nsurroundings and appointments, that its name, Harmony Place, did not\nseem at all inappropriate. In two important respects it was unlike\nany other hostelry in the town--there was no bar, and the guests all\nhad an air of respectability in keeping with the house itself. It was\nkept by a planter, in ordinary financial circumstances, whose name\nwas Marshall; he was assisted in his duties by a colored roustabout\nof uncertain ancestry, a circumscribed present, and a future wholly\nundefined. Mr. Marshall's wife, and daughter Claire, did their part\nby generously entertaining the visitors. There were at the time of\nwhich we write three guests--a lawyer named Brown, who had established\nhimself at Westminster; a doctor calling himself Slocum, who was\ngiving the town a trial with a view to locating in it if the patronage\nwarranted; and a tourist whose name was given as Reverend Fitzallen,\nand whose object seemed to be the pursuit of health, pleasure and\ninformation, and incidentally, the dissemination of the gospel\naccording to his faith. Naturally, with so limited a circle of patrons,\neach having been there for some length of time, the associations all\naround were more like those in a family than such as exist between\nlandlord and guests. An evening in the parlor with everybody but the\nEthiopian present, the daughter singing to her own accompaniment on the\npiano, while the doctor turned the music for her, was often enjoyed,\nand there was rarely if ever a discordant circumstance to mar the\nserenity of these occasions.\n\nIt was early in September, 189--, the most enjoyable part of the year\nin Westminster. A man, who was readily distinguishable from the\ntown-folk, not only by his strange face but by his attire, and by that\nindescribable air which appears the more plainly the more a stranger\ntries to discard or conceal it, made his way leisurely to the gate\nfronting Harmony Place, and continued his way up the walk leading to\nthe door. He was met by Mrs. Marshall and informed, in response to his\ninquiry, that he could obtain lodgings there. The colored man took\nthe guest's valise and led the way to a room on the second floor.\nAfter washing himself and brushing off the dust from his clothes, the\nstranger reappeared in the sitting room, and taking up a paper waited\nthe announcement that refreshments were ready, which was not long in\ncoming.\n\nHe was somewhat above medium height, well proportioned, not unusually\nwell dressed, but still appeared presentable in good society, and had\na countenance which, while not decidedly handsome, was regular and of\nthat caste which attracts attention; his voice was quite pleasant, his\nnatural conversational faculty proved to be good, and he was so well\nfortified with current facts and all the pleasantries of the day, that\nbefore the meal was over he was quite in harmony with the hostess, who\nwas not only happy to answer any question he asked, but look advantage\nof every opportunity to propound queries for herself. Within an hour\nfrom the time of arrival, the new guest seemed to be nearly as well\nacquainted as if he had been an inmate of the house for a month at\nleast. This ability of rapidly forming acquaintance is very rare; and\nparticularly in the case of travelers, no amount of money or graces can\nrecompense its absence. Those who possess it do not need an extended\nreference to its usefulness to be made aware thereof, while those who\nare not in possession of it can never be made fully to understand its\nvalue by means of cold type and white paper.\n\nThe landlady has learned the name of the latest arrival before the\nreader has--it is Charles Durant, aged thirty, and he comes from\nthe West--a rather indefinite abiding place to those of us who are\nresidents of, or are familiar with, that division of our country. It\nis satisfactory, however, to a majority of our eastern and southern\nbrethren who have never placed feet upon the shores of the Missouri,\nor crossed its waters, and who seem to entertain a vague idea that\nWesterners all come from one place, and are all alike in most respects.\n\nLater in the day Durant took a stroll through the suburbs of the town,\nand returning was introduced to Mr. Marshall, to the guests, as they\nappeared one by one, with all of whom he was soon on the most cordial\nterms, and finally to the young lady, the sole representative on earth\nof her devoted parents, who, being twenty years of age, as pretty as\na dream, well informed, and altogether attractive, was not likely to\nbear their name much longer, albeit at this time reveling in \"maiden\nmeditation, fancy free.\"\n\nIt was truly an interesting circle and the interest did not abate in\nthe least by reason of the latest arrival.\n\n\n\nCHAPTER III.\n\nNEW ACQUAINTANCES AND AN AGREEABLE DISCUSSION.\n\nThe evening of the first day that marked the stranger's advent into\nWestminster saw the entire _personnel_ of Harmony Place on the veranda;\nthe new moon smiled benignly upon them, the evening was cool and\nthe \"ripe harvest of the new-mown hay\" gave to the air a \"sweet and\nwholesome odor.\" One subject after another was taken up, discussed and\ndisposed of, or at least laid aside to give way to some other, and in\neach and all of them our hero (for such we may as well commence to\nrecognize him) took a part, and exhibited a fund of information and\nan aptitude of presentation which gave him the preference without a\ncontest whenever he chose to speak. This became more and more frequent\nas the night wore on, for there was no disguising the fact that he was,\nlike the others, already one of the household. If any one of the party\nwondered what it was that he had come for, how he expected to get it,\nor how long he was to stay, the conjecture never found expression; for\nthey all experienced so much of general satisfaction in hearing him,\nand took such genuine pleasure in his word-painting of western scenes\nand events, that they were all willing to have him stay indefinitely.\nHe was literally chosen as one of their number without opposition, and\nthe mere matters of detail regarding his purposes might be left to the\nfuture or be entirely undiscovered; he was now decidedly the architect\nof his own fortune so far as retaining the good will of that little\ngroup was concerned.\n\nThe conversation proceeded from point to point until the topics of the\nquiet gathering assumed more the aspect of an intellectual _melange_\nthan anything else; the Sepoy rebellion made way for the Dakota\nblizzard, the signal failure of the first laying of the Atlantic cable\nwas shelved to make place for Webster's artistic destruction of Dr.\nParkman, and Cromwell's career of conquests and crimes was followed\nby a brief discussion of the science and practice of silver mining.\n(Variety and scope enough, surely!) It must be noticeable that the two\nsubjects which agitate us nationally and sometimes locally more than\nany others--politics and religion--had so far escaped; they had not,\nhowever, been unthought of, and presently the latter was begun by the\nminister saying:\n\n\"Representing to some extent as I do, the church, I am compelled to\nadmit that in the matters of organization, discipline and places of\nworship, America is thoroughly Christianized. Look at the profusion\nof church buildings wherever you go. To me such rivalry is gratifying\nin the extreme, representing as it does the highest type of good\ncitizenship.\"\n\n\"I partially concur with you,\" said the lawyer, \"and yet I belong to no\nchurch at all--do not, in fact, endorse Christianity as a department of\ncivilized life.\"\n\n\"Why, how is this?\" said Fitzallen, \"I thought nearly everybody in this\ncountry must be orthodox to some extent at least.\"\n\n\"Not so with me, I assure you,\" the other replied, \"and the strangest\npart of it is that my 'peculiar views,' as you may call them, are\nnot the result of neglect or indifference, but are rather caused\nby investigation and the peculiar explanations, or rather lack of\nexplanations, of those who make the dissemination of religious views\ntheir calling.\"\n\n\"In other words you are an unbeliever.\"\n\n\"Exactly.\"\n\n\"Not totally, I trust.\"\n\n\"Oh, not necessarily. The creeds which base, or profess to base, their\ntenets upon the Bible do not, as it appears to me, live up to their\nprofessions, and the clergy--meaning no offense whatever--are more\naddicted to money-getting than to soul-getting. That there may be\nsalvation and a Supreme Judge who provides it is to me simply like the\ntraditional Scotch verdict--not proved.\"\n\nThe stranger from the west was listening to all this with the air of\none deeply interested. It was as if an opportunity which he desired,\nbut had not expressed himself concerning, had come, and he was not at\nall reluctant about replying when questioned as to his own views. It\ncame when the churchman, after announcing his determination to \"labor\"\nwith the infidel, turned to the new-comer and said:\n\n\"I do not know whether you would be for or against me in such a work,\nbut coming from what we of the East are prone to regard as the land\nwhere restraints are not severe, I fear you might be disposed to assist\nhim rather than me.\"\n\n\"Well, gentlemen,\" said Durant, \"this topic interests me, and while I\nand my opinions are unknown to you all, still I will, if agreeable,\nendeavor to throw some light upon the subject at present, and will seek\nto do more in that direction hereafter if favored with an opportunity.\nI am a believer in religion, laying claim to a testimony from above,\nand still I often find myself opposed by ministers; they are generally\nthe very persons who are foremost in opposing me on every side, strange\nto say.\"\n\n\"I cannot imagine why this should be the case,\" said Fitzallen, \"if you\nare as you state, a true believer in Christ and have a testimony of\nHim.\"\n\n\"It may seem strange to you, at which I do not wonder. But I am afraid\nI am delaying the work you have planned for Mr. Brown's welfare. If\nyou will permit me to ask a few questions during your conversation\nwith him, I may be able to take a general part in it before it closes,\nprovided, however, that should we differ upon any religious views, it\nwill be in a friendly and pleasant manner.\"\n\n\"Oh, certainly,\" said the churchman, \"I am sure it will be a pleasure\nto me to have you join in our conversation as you see fit, and I do not\ndoubt that Mr. Brown and the other gentlemen will look upon it in the\nsame way.\"\n\nThe entire party here expressed approval of the proposed discussion,\nand the lawyer said:\n\n\"I have not the slightest objections, and will be glad to have all the\nlight possible thrown upon the different doctrinal points that I do not\nbelieve, and mainly because of which I am not at present a member of\nany Christian church.\"\n\n\"Then, Mr. Brown,\" said Fitzallen, \"let us commence our voyage in\nsearch of eternal truth. What particular part of the Christian faith\nappears to you as being most difficult to understand?\"\n\n\"I confess there are many. However, let us commence with one of the\nprinciples of your belief. I will refer to some of the literature of\nthe Church of England. The first article of religion contained in the\nChurch of England Prayer Book is: 'There is but one living and true\nGod, everlasting; without body, parts or passions; of infinite power,\nwisdom and goodness; the maker and preserver of all things, both\nvisible and invisible; and in the unity of this Godhead there are three\npersons of one substance, power and eternity,--the Father, Son and the\nHoly Ghost.' According to this, then, your belief is that the Father,\nSon and Holy Ghost are one person, without body, parts or passions.\"\n\n\"You have certainly quoted correctly from the prayer book; I fail to\nsee anything wrong with that. What fault have you to find with it?\"\n\n\"None whatever if you really believe it, because there does not seem\nto me much variance in our conclusions if you believe in such a God as\nthis; I can not conceive of a just God who has neither body, parts nor\npassions. So far as the Bible is concerned, I fail to see from what\npart of that book you obtain such a conclusion.\"\n\n\"Well, Mr. Brown, using your own language, 'so far as the Bible is\nconcerned,' let us do as Isaiah commands, go 'to the law and to the\ntestimony,' (Isaiah viii: 20) and I will soon convince you that the\nBible plainly sets forth the fact that the Father and the Son are one.\nIn fact, Jesus Himself declares that He and His Father are one. (John\nx: 30.) Is this not true?\"\n\n\"Excuse me,\" said Durant, \"but is it not more reasonable for us to\nbelieve He meant that He and His Father were united in all things as\none person?--not that they were actually one and the same identity?\"\n\n\"Certainly not,\" said the reverend, \"our Savior meant just what He said\nwhen He declared that He and His Father were one.\"\n\n\"I must certainly differ from you,\" said the stranger, \"for He also\nasked His Father to make His disciples one, even as He and the Father\nwere one, as you will see by reference to John xvii: 20 and 21, and by\nyour argument it must have been His wish for those disciples to lose\ntheir separate and distinct identities. I am afraid you are not making\na very favorable impression on Mr. Brown's mind.\"\n\n\"Stranger,\" said Mr. Brown, \"your view of the case, I must confess,\nappears to be very reasonable. Looking at it from any other standpoint\nwould not be in accord with sound reason.\"\n\n\"Let me ask,\" said the preacher, \"did not Jesus say, 'He that hath seen\nme, hath seen the Father?'\" (John xiv: 9.)\n\n\"Yes,\" said the westerner, \"for as Paul says, 'He was in the express\nimage of His (Father's) person,' (Heb. i: 3), and this being the case\nJesus might well give them to understand that when they had seen one\nthey had seen the other. When Jesus went out to pray, He said, 'O, my\nFather, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless, not\nas I will but as Thou wilt.' (Matt, xxvi: 39.) Now then, to whom was\nour Savior praying? Was He asking a favor of Himself?\"\n\n\"Oh, no; He was then praying to the Holy Spirit.\"\n\n\"Oh, then by such admission you have separated one of the three from\nJesus, for in the beginning you declared that the three were one; and\nnow that we have one of the three separated from the others, let us\nsee if we can separate the other two. In order to do this, I refer\nyou to the account of the martyrdom of Stephen. While being stoned to\ndeath he looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and that Jesus\nwas standing on the right hand of God. (Acts vii: 55.) Would it not be\nrather difficult for any person to stand on the right hand of himself?\nAnd in order to prove further that Jesus is a separate person from the\nFather, we will examine into the account of His baptism. On coming up\nout of the water, what was it that lighted upon Him in the form of a\ndove?\" (Matt iii: 16.)\n\n\"We are told it was the Spirit of God.\"\n\n\"Exactly! And whose voice was it that spoke from the heavens, saying,\n'This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased?' (Matt. iii: 17.)\nNow, mind you, there was Jesus, who had just been raised from the\nwater, being one person, the Holy Ghost which descended from above\nand rested upon Him in the form of a dove, making two personages; and\ndoes not the idea strike you very forcibly that the voice from heaven\nbelonged to a third person? And then, again, I will draw your attention\nto--\"\n\nThe churchman was getting warmed up. Said he: \"These are things which\nwe are not expected to understand; and, my young friend, I would advise\nyou to drop such foolish ideas, for--\"\n\n\"Excuse me. Did you say 'foolish ideas'? Why, my dear sir, we are told\nin the Bible that, 'This is life eternal, that they might know thee,\nthe only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.' (John xvii:\n3.) Therefore, it should be our first duty to find out the character\nand being of God. You say we are not expected to understand these\nthings, while the Bible says these are what we must understand if we\ndesire eternal life. It also says we can understand the things of man\nby the spirit of man, but to understand the things of God we must have\nthe Spirit of God; and as you profess to be one of His servants, you\nare supposed to be in possession of the necessary Spirit to understand\nthe true and living God, also Jesus Christ whom He sent. You say God\nhas no body; did our Savior have one? If so, then His Father had one,\nfor I have just proved by the words of Paul that Christ was in the\nexpress image of his person. (Heb. i: 3.) Jesus appeared in the midst\nof His disciples after His resurrection, with a body of flesh and\nbones, and called upon His disciples to satisfy themselves on this\npoint by touching Him; for, says He, 'a spirit hath not flesh and bones\nas ye see me have.' (Luke xxiv: 39.) Then He called for something to\neat and He did eat (verses 42, 43), and with this body of flesh and\nbone He ascended into heaven and stood, as Stephen says, on the right\nhand of God. (Acts vii: 55.) Now, if He has no body, what became of the\none He took away with Him?\"\n\n\"This is nonsense! You know that God is a spirit, and I think we would\nbetter not delve too deeply into matters which we are not permitted to\ncomprehend.\"\n\n\"Pray, listen a while longer, for I have yet more to say in regard to\nwhat you call nonsense, although if it be such, I must insist that\nit is Bible nonsense. You say God is a spirit; does that prove He\nhas no body? We are also told we must worship Him in spirit. Am I to\nunderstand from this that we must worship Him without a body? Have\nyou a spirit? Yes. Have you also a body? Yes. Were you made in the\nimage of God, body and spirit? So says the good old Bible. Man was\ncreated in the image of God. (Gen. i: 26, 27.) Then God has a body,\nand, consequently, must have parts. Moses talked with Him face to face,\nas one man talks with another (Ex. xxxiii: 11), arid he also saw His\nback parts. He promised (Num. xii: 8) to speak with Moses mouth to\nmouth. We are told in the fifth chapter of Deuteronomy that He has a\nhand and arm. The Psalm (cxxxix: 16) tells us He has eyes, and Isaiah\n(xxx: 27) says he has lips and a tongue. John describes His head, hair\nand eyes. (Rev. i: 14.) And, as for passions, we are told in the Bible\nthat He has love, wrath, and is a jealous God. Are these not parts and\npassions? My dear sir, it would appear that all who believe in the\nscriptures must conclude that they are parts and passions, and that the\nCreator is a God after whose likeness we are made.\"\n\n\"Well, I had no idea when I commenced this conversation with Mr. Brown\nthat I was to find such an antagonist in yourself. One would naturally\ncome to the conclusion that you had made the Bible a study.\"\n\n\"Thank you, you do me honor. I confess I have as a Christian studied\nthe record; in fact, at a very early age my parents required me to\ncommit and remember a very important verse in that good old book. It is\nfound in the fifth chapter of the gospel according to St. John, being\nthe 39th verse, and reads as follows: Search the scriptures, for in\nthem ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of\nme.\"\n\n\"That is certainly proper, but I must again warn you against plunging\ninto mysteries which we cannot understand.\"\n\n\"But Peter tells us that 'no prophecy of the scripture is of any\nprivate interpretation' (II. Peter i: 20), and these are the things\nwhich we should seek for information upon; for lack of explanation by\nthe ministers upon these points is, to a great extent, the cause of\nmany persons being in Mr. Brown's frame of mind today.\"\n\n\"You are scarcely complimentary, and if your assertion be correct,\nperhaps it would be better for me to withdraw and leave Mr. Brown in\nyour hands.\"\n\n\"I beg your pardon, my dear sir,\" said Durant, \"I meant not to offend,\nI assure you, and intended only to be in earnest; I will endeavor to be\nmore careful during the rest of the conversation.\"\n\nThe lawyer, who was decidedly impressed at this juncture, dispelled\nwhat might have been a painful silence by saying:\n\n\"Well, I declare, things have taken a very peculiar turn, I seem to be\nout of the fight altogether. But I want to say this, I have heard more\nthat appears to be reasonable from you, Mr. Durant, regarding these\nmatters than ever before in my life, and I must also admit that if my\nearly teaching on religious matters had been as reasonable, I almost\nbelieve I might have been a Christian.\"\n\nAs it was getting late Mr. Marshall here \"put in a word,\" saying:\n\n\"It is now getting quite late and perhaps all would like to retire; if\nso, I will conduct you to your rooms.\"\n\n\"No,\" said Mr. Brown; \"we must not go to bed yet a while. I never was\nreligiously interested before in my life, and I wish to listen to\nfurther discussion between these two.\"\n\nThe new-comer was more than willing; but being somewhat fatigued\nhimself, and realizing that possibly there might be a sense of\nweariness in some of the others, he deemed it best not to continue for\nthe time being, although asked to do so. He then made a suggestion,\nwhich was unanimously agreed to: that the subject be taken up on the\nfollowing evening in the same place; and so, with mutual expressions of\nregard and a kind \"good night\" all around, the party dispersed for the\nnight.\n\n\n\nCHAPTER IV.\n\nGAINING AND LOSING FAVOR.\n\nThe western man had not intended to make a stay at the little home\nhostelry where he was quartered, and where he had became so thoroughly\ningratiated all at once. His mission required a frequent \"change\nof base\" and constant action; but he realized that nothing was\noccurring which was so greatly at variance with his general purpose\nas to materially change it, and that, a nucleus for possible future\nengagements having been established, he might as well remain where he\nwas until called elsewhere. Already he was on the best of terms with\nall, even with the \"colored citizen,\" and he was disposed to make\nhimself entirely at home, as all hands were willing to have him do.\n\nThe time for the adjourned meeting on the veranda came and not only\nwas a quorum present, but all of the party were there, besides two or\nthree neighbors who had learned something of what was taking place.\nAfter a few formalities had been engaged in, the discussion was opened\nby Durant suggesting to Fitzallen that it was a little singular that\ntwo men believing in, and upholding, the same good book should find\nanything to dispute about; such things did happen, however, and perhaps\nit was as well, since by free discussion error was eradicated and truth\nmade plain.\n\nThe preacher then asked a question which must seem to the reader to\nhave been too long delayed--\"May I ask of what church you are a member?\"\n\n\"Certainly,\" said the westerner; \"but before answering, will you tell\nme what church edifice that is to the east of us?\"\n\n\"That is the Wesleyan church.\"\n\n\"And the one a short distance below here?\"\n\n\"That is the Episcopalian.\"\n\n\"What other churches are there in this place?\"\n\n\"Oh, there are the Baptist, the Catholic chapel, and the quarters of\nthe Salvation Army, so called.\"\n\n\"Is that all?\"\n\n\"Yes, I believe so, and I think enough, unless we have omitted naming\nyours.\"\n\n\"You certainly have, for the church of which I am a member you have\nfailed to mention at all.\"\n\n\"Indeed? And what is it?\"\n\n\"The Church of Jesus Christ, sir. Don't you think it would be well if\nHe also had a church in your midst?\"\n\n\"Why, my friend, they all belong to Him.\"\n\n\"Is it possible? I certainly have no recollection of hearing you even\nmention His name in connection with any of them.\"\n\n\"You may not have heard His name, but they are all, yes, even the\nparading and noise-making Salvation Army, engaged in His service.\"\n\n\"Then why not bear His name?\"\n\n\"It is a case in which the name need not be connected with the object,\nand still the service rendered and the objects aimed at are all for\nHim, as certainly all who engage in the calling of Christianity\nbelieve, and as those who practice in the ministry instruct.\"\n\n\"Let us see how this is. Your church members believe in the Lord Jesus,\naccept the word of God as an exposition of His principles, as well as a\ncommand to them, and the ministers instruct them accordingly. Is that\nso?\"\n\n\"It is.\"\n\n\"Then I am to understand that all these churches and communicants\nuphold and practice baptism by immersion as set forth in, and enjoined\nby, the scriptures.\"\n\n\"No; that is to say, some do, and some do not.\"\n\n\"What is the probable proportion?\"\n\n\"Oh, I could not say as to that.\"\n\n\"Do not you and the majority of the others accept of other forms of\nbaptism and in many cases of none at all?\"\n\n\"Yes.\"\n\n\"Does not that depart from the teachings of the Bible and the example\nset by Christ Himself?\"\n\n\"Not necessarily.\"\n\n\"Did not He go down into the waters of baptism and receive immersion at\nthe hands of John the Baptist?\"\n\n\"Yes.\"\n\n\"And did not the injunction go forth which forms the very corner-stone\nof His own Church--of Christianity--'Repent and be baptized?'\"\n\n\"Yes; but He did not say that of necessity all were to be immersed.\nThe Bible is fertile in parables and much that is said is left to the\nintelligence of the reader for interpretation.\"\n\n\"By the same authority I have warned you already against 'private\ninterpretations.' However, we need not rest the case entirely upon\nthat. Take up your Bible at your leisure and examine well all accounts\ngiven of cases where this ordinance was performed, and you cannot\nhelp admitting that baptism by immersion was the only way in which\nthe ancients accepted that principle. You will see that the word of\nGod _commands_, in unequivocal language, the ordinance of baptism\nby immersion, and His Son set us the example by going down into the\nwaters. Therefore, those who do not perform this have no claim upon\nthe Savior's name, for they obey not His Father's words nor His own\nexample.\"\n\n\"You would hold, then, that those who do not conform literally to such\nexample are not Christians.\"\n\n\"They may believe in Christian conduct and practice righteousness\nwithin a certain sphere; they may be upright and just in their dealings\nand their hearts may be filled with love for their race, but they\ncannot establish rules of conduct for themselves and claim to act in\nthe authority and name of Christ. He has set the pattern and it is for\nthem and for us to follow.\"\n\n\"I never heard such strange reasoning before, and it reminds me of a\nfact upon which I have often dwelt--that sophistry and logic may both\nrest upon the same foundation, not, however, accusing you of dealing in\nsophistry or claiming that in all respects my words have been those of\nlogic. Now, to follow your theme further in the same vein and employing\nprecisely your method of arriving at conclusions--those who do not, for\ninstance, practice the laying on of hands for the healing of the sick,\nor for the casting out of real or imaginary devils, who do not, for\nexample, subscribe to all the superstitions and resort to the practices\nenjoined by the Bible--which practices must have had reference to a\ntime in which the domain of science was so limited that it could not\neven comprehend the present--that all such people, I say, are also\noutside the pale of Christianity are pagans, infidels, in fact?\"\n\n\"You state part of the proposition correctly enough, but your\nconclusion is unjust--unjust because not a natural outgrowth of the\npremises stated, and also unjust because containing a reflection.\"\n\n\"I meant no reflection at all.\"\n\n\"So I may readily believe. Now, a man may be entirely outside the\npale of practical, or if you prefer it, modern Christianity and still\nbe neither a pagan nor an infidel; while he may be inside it and not\npractice the things spoken of, by means of which he would be as much at\nvariance with the requirements of our Father and Savior, perhaps, as\nthe others named, and none of them be of necessity bad people, or among\nthose wholly condemned.\"\n\n\"Then you believe in the actual practice of laying on of hands as well\nas of baptism by immersion?\"\n\n\"Assuredly I do.\"\n\n\"And practice it, perhaps?\"\n\n\"Whenever necessary, yes.\"\n\n\"Well, for fear you may not wish to try it here, and it is nearly bed\ntime, I will relieve you of one of the 'devils,' and the power of\n'casting out' can be held in reserve for some future occasion.\"\n\n\"My dear sir, you do us both injustice. No one would put you in such a\ncategory, and it is not a part of the work of a Christian to come into\na circle as I have and engender harsh feelings, far from it.\"\n\n\"Oh, no matter. We might talk again at another time, when I may be\npleased to continue our remarks, but not tonight as I only intended\nremaining a short time, having an important engagement which I was\ncompelled to make since I saw you last evening; so, if you will excuse\nme, I will wish you all good evening.\"\n\nAnd so saying, the churchman, in not a very pleasant mood, withdrew.\n\nSaid Brown: \"Stranger, I am somewhat familiar with the doctrines of\ndifferent Christian societies, and from the way you expressed yourself\nregarding the personality of God, I would like very much to hear your\nviews regarding other differences. If the rest of your views are as\nreasonable as these you have given expression to, I should like very\nmuch to hear them, and you can now proceed without interruption. Do you\ndiffer from these ministers very much in other principles?\"\n\n\"I am afraid the difference on many very important principles is just\nas great as the difference concerning the personality of God. But if\nyou really desire to go with me in this search after the kingdom of\nGod, and the others are willing, I assure you it will give me great\npleasure.\"\n\nUnanimous approval was expressed at once, and Mr. Brown continued,\nsaying:\n\n\"I never before had as great a desire in this direction, and must\nconfess that my curiosity has become quite aroused.\"\n\n\"Then,\" said Durant, \"we will take King James' translation of the Holy\nScriptures as the law book, and 'Seek ye first the kingdom of God' for\nour text; and if we should discover before we have finished that the\nteachings of men differ greatly from the teachings of Christ, I will be\nsomewhat justified in saying that religionists have 'transgressed the\nlaws, changed the ordinance, broken the everlasting covenant.'\" (Isaiah\nxxiv: 5. Jeremiah ii: 13.)\n\n\"Very well,\" said Mr. Brown, \"I will proceed,\" and obtaining the family\nBible he continued: \"And should your assertions prove correct, it might\nperhaps account for the increase of infidelity, and it might also cause\nothers as well as myself to stop and consider. Now, then, to the 'law\nand the testimony.' Give me the chapter and verse, that I may know you\nmake no mistake.\"\n\nThe doctor then for the first time took part, saying: \"I am also\nbecoming very much interested, and think I shall join you with my\nBible. Let us all come into the circle.\"\n\n\"All right, we will examine the Gospel of Jesus Christ from the\nBible, principle by principle. In order to have a clear understanding\nconcerning this, it will be necessary for us to go back to the days of\nour Father Adam. Through the transgression of our first parents, death\ncame upon all the human family, and mankind could not, of themselves,\novercome the same and obtain immortality. To substantiate this, see\nfirst, second and third chapters of Genesis, Romans 5th chapter and\n12th verse, and I. Corinthians 15th chapter and 21st and 22nd verses.\nBut in order that they should not perish, God sent His Son Jesus Christ\ninto the world to satisfy this broken law and to deliver mankind from\nthe power of death. (John iii: 16; Romans v: 8; John iv: 9.) And as\nall became subject to death by Adam, so will all men be resurrected\nfrom death through the atonement of Christ (I. Cor. xv: 20-23; Rom.\nv: 12-19; Mark xvi: 15, 16), and will stand before the judgment seat\nof God to answer for their own sins and not for Adam's transgression.\n(Acts xvii: 31; Rev. xx: 12-15; Matt. xvi: 27.) Am I right as far as I\nhave gone?\"\n\n\"Yes,\" said the doctor, \"I have been following you with your\nquotations, and find them correct. Proceed.\"\n\n\"Then I have proved one of the principles of some of the so-called\nChristians incorrect, for they do not believe that the wicked will\nhave the same chance of resurrection as the righteous. Jesus Christ\ndid not die for our individual sins, only on condition that we conform\nto the plan He has marked out, which will bring us a remission of our\nsins. The only way we can prove that we love Him is by keeping His\ncommandments (John xiv: 15); therefore, if we say we love God and keep\nnot His commandments, we are liars and the truth is not in us. (I.\nJohn ii: 4.) I think I have proved to your satisfaction that there is\nsomething defective with their understanding of the attributes of God,\nand I think I can prove also that they do not keep His commandments.\nChrist has given us to understand two things which you must remember\nwhile on this search after the 'kingdom of God.' First, that we must\nfollow Him; secondly, that when He left His disciples He was to send\nthem the Comforter that would lead them into all truth; therefore we\nmust follow Christ and accept all the principles which were taught by\nHis disciples while in possession of the Holy Spirit, though it should\nprove the world to be in error.\"\n\n\"Thus far your arguments are reasonable, also in accordance with Holy\nWrit; and as there is no other name given us except Jesus Christ\nwhereby we can be saved (Acts iv: 12), you may now lay before us the\nconditions; but give us chapter and verse, as I said before, that we\nmay know you speak correctly.\"\n\n\"We will now examine into the conditions; but first remember that God\ndoes not send men into the world for the purpose of preaching contrary\ndoctrines, for this always creates confusion, and God is not the author\nof confusion, but of peace. (I. Cor. xiv: 33.) Paul has said, if any\nman teach another gospel let him be accursed. (Gal. i: 8, 9.) The first\ncondition is this: To believe there is a God (not the kind mentioned\nin the English prayer book), but the God that created man in His own\nimage, and to have faith in that God and in Jesus Christ whom He has\nsent.\n\n\"Go on,\" said the party in concert.\n\n\"Well,\" continued Durant, \"the kind of faith required is that which\nwill enable a man, under all circumstances, to say, 'I am not ashamed\nof the gospel of Christ; for it is the power of God unto salvation.'\n(Rom. i: 16.) This is the kind of faith by which Noah prepared an ark;\nby which the worlds were framed; by which the Red Sea was crossed as\non dry land; by which the walls of Jericho fell down; it was by this\nfaith that kingdoms were subdued; righteousness was wrought; promises\nwere obtained, and the mouths of lions were closed. (Heb. xi: 32,\n38.) This faith comes by hearing the word of God (Rom. x: 14), and\nthe lack of this faith, and the absence of prayer and fasting, caused\neven the apostles to be unsuccessful on one occasion in casting out\ndevils. (Matt. xvii: 14, 20.) No wonder, then, that without faith it is\nimpossible to please God. (Heb. xi: 6.) Faith, then, is the first grand\nand glorious stepping-stone to that celestial pathway leading towards\nthe eternal rest. The more we search into eternal truth, the more we\ndiscover that God works upon natural principles. All the requirements\nwhich He makes of us are very plain and simple. How natural that the\nprinciple of faith should be the primary one of our salvation! With\nwhat principle are we more familiar? Faith is the first great principle\ngoverning all things; but great and grand as it is, it is dead without\nworks. (James ii: 14-17.) We must not expect salvation by simply having\nfaith that Jesus is the Christ, for the devils in purgatory are that\nfar advanced (James ii: 19.) In fact if you will read the entire second\nchapter of James you will see that faith without works is as dead and\nhelpless as the body after the spirit has taken its departure. It is\nutter folly to think of gaining an exaltation in His presence unless\nwe obey the principles He advocated (Matt. vii: 21), for no one speaks\ntruthfully by saying he is a disciple of Christ while not observing His\ncommandments. (John viii: 31.) In fact, the only way by which man can\ntruthfully say he loves Jesus Christ is by keeping His commandments.\"\n(John xiv: 12-21.)\n\n\"Is it not recorded in Holy Writ,\" said the doctor, \"that if we believe\nin the Lord Jesus Christ we will be saved?\"\n\n\"You have referred to the words used by Paul and Silas to the keeper\nof the prison. These disciples were asked by this keeper what he\nshould do to be saved, and was assured, as you have quoted, 'Believe\non the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.' Then\nthe disciples immediately laid before them those principles which\nconstituted true belief, and not until this man and his house had\nembraced the principles taught by these disciples were they filled with\ntrue belief and really rejoiced. (Acts xvi: 81-33.) You see by this\nexample that we must not deceive ourselves by thinking that we can be\nhearers of the word only and not doers.\" (James i: 22,23.)\n\n\"But, friend,\" said the lawyer, \"here is a passage found in the tenth\nchapter of Romans, which, in my opinion, will be extremely hard for you\nto explain. The passage referred to reads as follows: 'If thou shalt\nconfess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart\nthat God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.' Now,\nthen, it looks to me as if salvation is here promised through faith\nalone. How do you explain it?\"\n\n\"Very easily. Let us thoroughly examine this passage in all its\ndifferent phases. In the first place, this letter was written by\nPaul to individuals who were already members of the church. They had\nrendered obedience to the laws of salvation, and having complied\nwith those requirements were entitled to salvation providing their\ntestimony remained within them like a living spring; and in order\nthat they should not become lukewarm, Paul exhorted them to continue\nbearing testimony of the divinity of Christ, and not let their hearts\nlose sight of the fact that God had raised His Son from the dead, and\ninasmuch as they kept themselves in this condition, salvation would be\ntheirs. This is the only sensible view one can take of this passage.\nUnquestionably, Paul was speaking to sincere members of the church,\nwho had been correctly initiated into the folds of Christ, not aliens\nliving 1800 years after.\"\n\n\"That appears to be correct, and is satisfactory; but further on in\nthe same chapter we find this expression: 'For whosoever shall call\nupon the name of the Lord shall be saved.' It appears to me here that\nreference is not made to those who had embraced the gospel and those\nwho had the faith, but salvation is made general to whomsoever shall\ncall upon the name of the Lord.\" (Rom. x: 13.)\n\n\"Exactly, but the next verse gives an explanation so simple that none\ncan fail to understand it: 'How, then, shall they call on Him in whom\nthey have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they\nhave not heard, and how shall they hear without a preacher? So, then,\nfaith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.' In other\nwords, if there is faith, there have been works, and having true faith,\nno person will remain in that condition without complying with further\nworks of salvation to which that faith urges him.\"\n\n\"I see, I see,\" said Brown, the others remaining silent, but\ninterested; \"you are right, but I never looked at the matter in that\nway before.\"\n\n\"Now, then, ladies and gentlemen,\" said Durant: \"I maintain as before\nstated, that faith is the first principle of the gospel leading to\nsalvation, but it will not bring us to the top of the glorious gospel\nladder without the other principles.\"\n\n\"Well, suppose we accept this as the first round in the gospel ladder,\nwhere will we find the second?\"\n\n\"To explain this question involves, perhaps, some little time, and as\nit must be near the 'witching hour' of midnight, I would not care to be\nresponsible for extending the sitting beyond, or even up to, that time.\nTo give this information is, in some measure, my errand among you, and\nif desired I shall be pleased to meet with you again. Before leaving I\nhope to be able to address the citizens publicly, and will do so if a\nsuitable place can be obtained.\"\n\nBoth the doctor and the lawyer were disposed to remonstrate against\nadjournment, and there seemed to be none who were not willing to\nremain and hearken unto that which to them was somewhat in the nature\nof an awakening, notwithstanding, as stated, it was growing late,\nand the exercises had been purely colloquial. It might be mentioned\nthat only the more important parts of the conversation have been\nproduced here--for the reproduction of everything in the nature of\nmere colloquy, the auxiliary questions, answers and suggestions,\nwould make this a large book instead of a small one. Besides, the full\nconversation would be no more interesting for the particular object to\nwhich this book is devoted than would the matter reported.\n\nThe visitors took their departure with evident regret, albeit their\ninterest in the occasion was more attributable to unsatisfied curiosity\nthan to concurrence in all that the stranger had said.\n\n\"He can talk Bible by the yard,\" said one.\n\n\"Yes, and show what it means better than a regular minister,\" said\nanother.\n\n\"He said he had a mission among us,\" chimed in a third; \"I wonder what\nit can be?\"\n\nThe parting on the veranda was one in which friendly feelings prevailed\nall around, and the meeting on the morrow, when the second of the\ngrand fundamental principles of the gospel was to be explained, seemed\nuppermost in every mind.\n\n\n\nCHAPTER V.\n\nFURTHER DISCUSSION OF THE FIRST PRINCIPLES.\n\nThe audience had increased in numbers when the time for the continuance\nof the gospel exposition arrived. Rev. Fitzallen was not present; he\nhad an engagement elsewhere, was the word he left; but his absence was\ncompensated for by the presence of two or three others.\n\nBut little time was spent in formality, and a beginning was effected by\nour legal friend saying:\n\n\"Mr. Durant, you closed last night with a definition of the first\nprinciple in the series of steps to be taken by the convert to\nChristianity, with a promise that tonight we should have the second\nexplained. Will you now proceed to fulfill the promise?\"\n\n\"Most willingly, if it is desired.\"\n\nUnanimous approval was at once manifested, and the western man\nproceeded.\n\n\"The second follows the first, just as naturally as the second step\nfollows the first when a child learns to walk. When faith in God is\nonce created, the knowledge that we have at some time, perhaps many\ntimes during our lives, done things displeasing to Him, naturally\nfollows immediately, therefore repentance makes its appearance as\nthe second principle of the gospel. When John came preaching in the\nwilderness, as the forerunner of Christ, his message to the people\nwas, 'Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.' (Matt. iii:\n2.) When Jesus came into Galilee preaching the gospel of the kingdom\nof God, it was with a message calling them to repentance. (Mark i:\n15.) When He chose His disciples and began sending them forth, it was\nto call mankind to repentance. (Mark vi: 7-12.) When He upbraided the\ncities wherein the most of His mighty works were done, it was because\nthey repented not. (Matt. xi: 20.) True repentance is that which will\ncause him who stole to steal no more; that which will keep corrupt\ncommunications from our mouths; that which will cause us to so conduct\nour walks through life as not to grieve the Spirit of God; that which\nwill cause all bitterness, wrath, anger, and evil speaking to be put\naway from us, and will make us kind one to another, tender-hearted and\nforgiving even as God for Christ's sake has forgiven us. (Ephesians\niv: 28-32.) When he who has committed a sin shall commit it no more,\nthen he has repented with that Godly sorrow which worketh repentance\nto salvation, and not with the sorrow of the world, bringing with it\ndeath. (II. Cor. vii: 10.) When a sinner repents with such repentance\nmore joy is found in heaven than over ninety and nine just persons who\nneed no repentance. (Luke xv: 7.) This, then, ladies and gentlemen, is\nthe second round in the gospel ladder according to the plan given us\nby the Master, and without it, faith is of no substantial consequence\nwhatever.\"\n\n\"Your reasoning is both logical and just,\" said Brown, \"and no one can\nfind fault with those doctrines. This world of ours would certainly\nbe more pleasant if these teachings were followed, and when a person\nis filled with that kind of faith, and has truly repented with such\nrepentance, it must be manifest that he is entitled to salvation.\"\n\n\"But he must not stop at that,\" the speaker went on, \"there are other\nprinciples just as important, just as necessary, for him to obey. If\nI am in possession of enough faith to convince me that I have sinned\nagainst you, and the knowledge of this causes me sincerely to repent, I\nmust not and cannot rest until I am satisfied I have your forgiveness\nfor the wrong. So it is with sinning against God and His laws; He has\nmarked out the path of repentance and it is our duty to follow that\ndivine way until we arrive at the sacred altar of forgiveness. Sin must\nbe forgiven before it can be wiped out, and God in His wisdom selected\nand placed in His Church water baptism, as spoken of last night, for\nthis purpose. It is a means whereby man can receive forgiveness of sin.\"\n\n\"And do you really believe that baptism brings forgiveness of sin?\"\nqueried the lawyer.\n\n\"Certainly, provided, however, honest faith and sincere repentance go\nbefore it, and the ordinance is administered in the proper way by one\nwho is endowed with divine authority; otherwise I believe it is of no\navail whatever.\"\n\n\"It seems to me you surround the principle of baptism with more\nsafeguards than anyone else of whom I have ever heard. Why so?\"\n\n\"Perhaps I do, and yet it should not be the case. Every principle of\nthe gospel should be well and carefully protected, and the failure\non the part of man to do this is the main cause of so many different\nso-called plans of salvation existing among us today, when there should\nbe only one true and perfect plan, as found in the days of Christ.\"\n\n\"You are certainly giving me ample information on religious conditions.\nIt does seem strange that there should be so many different roads,\nleading, as is claimed, in one direction. I declare, I never thought of\nthat before.\"\n\n\"Well, we will try to cover all those points before we finish. Let\nus examine this principle. Let us see if the idea of water baptism\nappears reasonable. The Lord has wisely and kindly selected this form\nof ordinance for the remission of sins. It was with this object in view\nthat John advocated the principle. (Mark i: 4.) Peter promised it on\nthe day of Pentecost. (Acts ii: 38.) Saul also received aid to arise\nand have his sins washed away. (Acts xxii: 16.) And so it was taught by\ndifferent disciples as a means whereby God would forgive sins.\"\n\n\"And as you have already stated, there are various modes of baptism\namong different sects. What is your method?\"\n\n\"The only correct form, as stated before, is that explained in the\nBible. Baptism was performed anciently by immersion, in fact no other\nmode was thought of until centuries after the day of Christ. The word\nbaptize is from the Greek _baptizo_ or _bapto_, meaning to plunge or\nimmerse, and such noted writers as Polybius, Strabo, Dion Cassius,\nMosheim, Luther, Calvin, Bossuet, Schaaf, Baxter, Jeremy Taylor,\nRobinson, and others, all agree that with the ancients immersion, and\nno other form, was baptism. The holy record itself explains the mode\nso plainly that even a wayfaring man might understand. John selected\na certain place on account of there being much water. (John iii: 23.)\nChrist Himself was baptized in a river, after which He came up out of\nthe water. (Mark i: 5-10.) Both Philip and the eunuch went down into\nthe water (Acts viii: 38, 39), and Paul likens baptism to the burial\nand resurrection of Christ, dying from sin, buried in water, and a\nresurrection to a new life. (Rom. vi: 3-5.) Jesus declares that a man\nmust be born of the water as well as of the spirit. (John iii: 5.) By\nbeing immersed we are born of the water, and we cannot liken baptism\nto a birth when performed in any other way. How mankind can accept any\nother form, in the face of all these facts, is more than I can account\nfor. I think enough has been said to show that I am correct in my views\nregarding the object and mode of baptism, so now let us enquire who are\nproper subjects.\"\n\n\"Why, all who have souls to save, I suppose,\" said the doctor.\n\n\"Yes, providing they have obeyed the two principles, already mentioned;\nthat is, faith and repentance; for Christ commanded His apostles to\nteach before baptizing. (Matthew xxviii: 19 and 20.) The candidate\nmust believe before he can be baptized. (Mark xvi: 16.) Before Philip\nbaptized the people of Samaria they believed the Gospel as he taught\nit. (Acts viii: 12.) When the eunuch asked for baptism at the hands\nof this same disciple, Philip answered: 'If thou believest with all\nthine heart, thou mayest.' (Acts viii: 37.) All persons, then, who are\ncapable of understanding, are fit subjects for baptism as soon as they\nbelieve and have repented. None are exempt, not even was Cornelius of\nold who was so generous that a report of his good deeds reached the\nthrone of God. His prayers were so mingled with faith that they brought\ndown an angel from heaven; yet through baptism alone was it possible\nthat he could gain membership in the fold of Christ. (Acts x.) We\nsee, then, that all, except little children, are proper subjects for\nthis ordinance, providing, as stated, they have faith, and have truly\nrepented of their sins.\"\n\n\"And do you claim that little children are exempt?\" said the doctor.\n\n\"I do; baptism is for the remission of sins, and little children, being\nfree from sin, are of necessity exempt.\"\n\n\"I do not see how you make that doctrine accord with the teachings of\nthe Bible. Did not Jesus say, 'Suffer little children to come unto me?'\"\n\n\"He did, but instead of administering the ordinance of baptism unto\nthem, He took them in His arms and blessed them, declaring at the\nsame time that they were pure and free from sin like unto those who\nwere in the kingdom of heaven. A little child is free from sin, is\npure in heart, humble and merciful, in fact is the great example of\ngoodness which Christ points out for us to follow. (Mark x: 13-16.)\nThis ordinance, then, is for people who are old enough to embrace it\nintelligently, not for children who cannot understand its significance,\nand who already belong to the kingdom of heaven.\n\n\"We have now examined three of the fundamental principles of the\ngospel of salvation. There is one more that I wish to touch upon,\nafter which we will discuss a subject that is of more interest to\nyou, perhaps, than any of these. The principle which I wish to speak\nof now, is the gift of the Holy Ghost, which in olden times always\nfollowed the embracing of the principles we have discussed, and when\nonce received brought with it some of the gifts of the gospel. When the\nfirst sermon was delivered after the crucifixion of Christ, at the time\nwhen the apostles were endowed with power from on high, a multitude\nof people were pricked in their hearts, and asked Peter and the rest\nof the apostles what they should do. Peter undertook to answer this\nall-important question, and so far as authority to do so was concerned,\nwe must admit that he, of all men at that peculiar time, was fully\ncapable, for he was in possession of the keys of the kingdom of God\nbestowed upon him by Christ Himself. He was the chief apostle and, with\nhis brethren, had been endowed with power from above. Therefore, he,\nmore than any minister of our day, occupied a place that enabled him to\nanswer correctly, and with authority.\"\n\n\"You are stating the case properly, but what did he tell them?\" queried\nthe interested man of law.\n\n\"His answer is found in the second chapter of Acts, beginning with the\n38th verse. You will observe that as soon as he discovered that they\nhad faith, he immediately taught them repentance, then baptism for the\nremission of sins, and followed these doctrines with a promise of the\ngift of the Holy Ghost.\n\n\"Yes, commencing at the verse mentioned it says: 'Then Peter said unto\nthem, Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus\nChrist for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the\nHoly Ghost. For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to\nall that are afar off, _even_ as many as the Lord our God shall call.'\"\n\n\"But how were they to receive the Holy Ghost?\"\n\n\"By the laying on of hands. When Peter went down into Samaria for the\npurpose of bestowing this gift on those whom Philip had baptized, he\ndid it by the laying on of hands. (Acts viii: 17.) Ananias conferred\nit upon Paul in the same manner (Acts ix: 17), and Paul did the same\nin the case of those who were baptized at Ephesus (Acts xix: 2-6); and\nwhen people received this birth of the Spirit (John iii: 5), they also\nreceived the promised blessings; they were entitled to the signs which\nHe promised would follow; for said He, 'These signs shall follow them\nthat believe; in my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak\nwith new tongues; they shall take up serpents; and if they drink any\ndeadly thing it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick\nand they shall recover.' (Mark xvi: 17, 18.) We have now discovered\nthe conditions: faith, repentance, baptism for the remission of sins,\nand the laying on of hands for the reception of the Holy Ghost, with\nthe promise of Christ that the signs will follow. Can you tell me now,\nwhich of all these different denominations has the gospel of Jesus\nChrist? Or as Wesley has questioned in one of his hymns which we may\nwith profit quote in full: 'Show me where true Christians live.'\"\n\n  \"Happy the souls that first believ'd,\n  To Jesus and each other cleav'd,\n  Joined by the unction from above,\n  In mystic fellowship of love.\n\n  \"Meek, simple foll'wers of the Lamb,\n  They liv'd, and spake, and thought the same;\n  They joyfully conspir'd to raise\n  Their ceaseless sacrifice of praise.\n\n  \"With grace abundantly endued,\n  A pure believing multitude;\n  They all were of one heart and soul,\n  And only love inspir'd the whole.\n\n  \"Oh, what an age of golden days!\n  Oh, what a choice, peculiar race!\n  Wash'd in the Lamb's all-cleansing blood,\n  Anointed kings and priests to God.\n\n  \"Where shall I wander now to find\n  Successors they have left behind?\n  The faithful, whom I seek in vain,\n  Are 'minish'd from the sons of men.\n\n  \"Ye diff'rent sects, who all declare,\n  'Lo, here is Christ,' or 'Christ is there!'\n  Your stronger proofs divinely give,\n  And show me where true Christians live.\"\n\n\"You must remember, my friend, that the signs were only given in order\nto establish the church in the day of the apostles, but now they are\nabrogated and are no longer needed.\"\n\n\"'To the law and to the testimony,'\" replied Durant \"and give me\nchapter and verse to substantiate the assertion you have just made.\"\n\n\"If you will read the 13th chapter of the 1st Corinthians, you will\nlearn that 'whether there be prophecies they shall fail, and whether\nthere be tongues they shall cease.'\"\n\n\"If you will take pains to read the two verses following, you will see\nthat 'we know in part, and we prophesy in part. But when that which\nis perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away.'\nMy friend, instead of this quotation proving that these things are\ndone away, it establishes the assertion that they shall remain until\nperfection shall come. Surely no sane man will say that we have come to\nperfection.\"\n\n\"I have understood that these gifts were no longer needed. This\ncertainly is the conclusion the ministers of the day have come to.\"\n\n\"But this is not surprising to me, for this good old Bible declares\nthat the time will come when the people will turn from sound doctrine\nto fables.\" (II. Tim. iv: 4.)\n\n\"I must admit that you have convinced me that baptism is a necessity,\nand when I am baptized, the ordinance will be performed in the proper\nmanner,\" said the doctor.\n\n\"I am pleased to learn that, but I may have another surprise for you\nyet. May I ask, who do you intend shall baptize you?\"\n\n\"My minister, I suppose; why?\"\n\n\"If the words of the Bible be true, there may be a doubt as to whether\nyour minister is authorized to baptize you.\"\n\n\"Do you mean to prove that these men, ministers of the gospel, have\nno authority to officiate in that ordinance? I wonder what you will\nundertake next, but proceed, for I am now prepared for surprises.\"\n\n\"I assure you, my dear sir, I only wish to refer to a few doctrines\nfrom the Bible which are necessary to be understood by you in order\nthat you may obtain eternal life. Thus far we have only examined the\nfirst principles of the gospel, but now we will speak of the officers\nwhom Christ placed in His Church, and learn by what means men receive\nauthority to act in the name of God. Paul tells us that God has placed\n'first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers, after which\ngifts of healing,' etc. (I. Cor. xii: 28), and says the work is built\nupon the foundation of apostles. (Eph. ii: 20.) He furthermore declares\nthat these officers have been placed in the Church for the work of the\nministry, and to remain until we all come to a knowledge of the truth.\n(Eph. iv: 11-13). Have all mankind come to a knowledge of the truth? If\nnot, why has the church dispensed with the officers that God placed in\nit for the purpose of bringing all to a unity of the faith? Paul tells\nus that these officers were placed in the Church to keep us from being\ntossed to and fro and carried about by every wind of doctrine which is\ntaught by man. (Eph. iv: 12-14.) At the present time, when men declare\nthat they have no need of apostles or prophets, they are divided,\nand subdivided, and in fact carried about by every doctrine that is\npromulgated--as Paul saw that they would be, if inspired apostles and\nprophets were not found to lead them. In losing these officers, the\nChurch lost her authority, together with all her gifts and graces,\nand the so-called Christian churches today are disrobed of all her\nbeautiful garments; and even those who pretend to defend her are crying\nout that her gifts, graces and ordinances are useless in this age of\nthe world. Did Christ establish the true order or did He not? We say He\ndid, and would ask, has any man a right to change it? And if any man\nor even an angel from heaven should alter it in the least, will he not\ncome under the condemnation that Paul uttered when he said: 'Though\nwe or an angel from heaven preach any other gospel unto you than that\nwhich we have preached unto you, let him be accursed?' (Gal. i: 8.)\nChrist placed these officers and the ordinances in the Church for the\nperfection of the Saints; and any one teaching contrary to this is a\nperverter of the gospel, and an anti-Christ in the full meaning of the\nword. The difference between the true Church of Christ on the one hand,\nand the Catholic Church, with all her posterity composing the whole\nprotestant world on the other hand, amounts to this: one had apostles,\nprophets, etc., who led the Church by inspiration or by divine\nrevelation; while the others have learned men to preach learned men's\nopinions; have colleges to teach divinity instead of the Holy Ghost;\ninstead of preaching the gospel without hire, their ministers must have\nlarge salaries each year, and they are not certain of the doctrines\nwhich they teach, when they should be in possession of the gifts of\nknowledge, prophecy and revelation. Now then in what church do we find\napostles and prophets?\"\n\nThe doctor replied, \"There are none; but you must remember there must\nbe a preacher, for 'how shall they hear without a preacher?'\" (Rom. x:\n14.)\n\n\"And in the next verse he asks, 'How shall they preach except they be\nsent?' This same apostle says that no man is to take the honor unto\nhimself, but he that is called of God as was Aaron. (Heb. v: 4.) Aaron\nwas called by revelation (Ex. iv: 14-17); hence we see that no man\nis to preach the gospel except he be called by revelation from God.\nAs I said, instead of men being called by revelation as the Bible\ndeclares they should be in our day they argue that God has not revealed\nHimself for almost eighteen hundred years. Go and ask your minister\nif he has been called by revelation, and he will tell you that such\nmanifestations are not needed now, which assertion I think will prove\nto you that he has no authority to baptize for the remission of sins.\"\n\n\"But did not Jesus say, 'Go ye into all the world and preach the\ngospel?'\"\n\n\"He did; but was He talking to modern ministers then? When He gave His\napostles authority to preach, did that give all men who feel disposed\nto take the honor unto themselves, the same authority? He gave His\napostles to understand that they had not chosen Him, but He had chosen\nthem (John xv: 16); but in this day men reverse the condition. Then\nagain, He sent His servants into the world to preach His gospel without\npurse or scrip. (Luke x: 4.) Paul says his reward is this, 'That when I\npreach the gospel I may make the gospel of Christ without charge, that\nI abuse not my power in the gospel.' (I. Cor. ix: 18.) Now, go and ask\nyour minister if he does the same, and I think you will find that he\nmust have a salary.\"\n\n\"Then what has become of the gospel?\" said the lawyer.\n\n\"Paul says that the coming of Jesus Christ will not be, save there\nbe 'a falling away' (II. Thess. ii: 3), and that 'in the last days\nperilous times shall come.' (II. Tim. iii: 1.) People 'will not endure\nsound doctrine,' but will 'heap to themselves teachers having itching\nears, and shall turn from the truth to fables (II. Tim. iv: 3, 4),\nand will have a form of godliness but will deny the power thereof.\n(II. Tim. iii: 5.) Peter also says these false teachers will make\nmerchandise of the souls of men. (II. Peter ii: 1-3.) They are doing\nso by demanding a salary for preparing sermons to tickle the people's\nitching ears. (Micah iii: 11) says, their heads judge for reward, their\npriests teach for hire, and their prophets divine for money, yet they\nlean upon the Lord and say, is not the Lord among us? Now, my friends,\ndo not the different sects of the day present us with a literal\nfulfillment of all these sayings? Have they not transgressed the laws,\nchanged the ordinance and broken the everlasting covenant? (Isaiah\nxxiv: 5.) John Wesley in his 94th sermon, referring to the condition of\nthe church after it had departed from the right way and lost the gifts,\nsays: 'The real cause why the extraordinary gifts of the Holy Ghost\nwere no longer to be found in the Christian Church was because the\nChristians were turned heathens again and had only a dead form left.\"\n\n\"It would appear, then, that God has forsaken mankind and left us\nwithout any hope,\" said Mr. Marshall.\n\n\"No, he has not; but this falling away, is the result of mankind\nforsaking God, by changing His gospel and departing from its teachings,\nas I have already shown. But He has promised, through his servants,\nthat there would be a dispensation when He would gather together all\nthings in Christ (Eph. i: 10), and would restore all things which He\nhas spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began.\n(Acts iii: 20, 21.) This dispensation was called the dispensation\nof the fullness of times. (Eph. i: 10.) Daniel, who received, by\nrevelation, the interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar's dream, saw what\nwould take place in the latter times, when the God of heaven would set\nup a kingdom. (Dan ii: 44.) John, the revelator, while on that desolate\nisland, Patmos (some ninety years after Christ), saw how this gospel\nwould be restored: namely, that an angel would bring it from heaven\n(Rev. xiv: 6), and Christ says it 'shall be preached in all the world\nas a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.' (Matt.\nxxiv: 14.) As God is always the same, and has but one plan for the\nredemption of the human family, we may expect to see the same gospel\nwith like promises preached in a similar way. Where do we find it as\nit existed anciently? But as it was in the days of Noah, so shall it\nbe also in the days of the coming of the Son of Man. (Matt. xxiv: 37;\nLuke xvii: 26, 27.) Noah was sent by the Lord to foretell the coming\nof the flood, but the people rejected his testimony, in fact, whenever\nGod has revealed His mind and will to man in days gone by, the world,\ninstead of receiving the same, have rejected the message and said all\nmanner of evil concerning the prophets, and in many instances have\nkilled them, as was the case with Christ Himself. Now then, my friends,\nwe are living in the dispensation of the fullness of times, when God\nis gathering together all things in Christ. An angel has come from\nthe heavens and brought the everlasting gospel, and on the 6th day\nof April, 1830, God--through revelation to man organized the kingdom\nspoken of by Daniel, in the exact pattern of the kingdom as it existed\nin the days of Christ, with apostles and prophets, and since that day\nthe servants of God have been traveling through the world preaching the\nsame, as a witness that the end will soon come. They call upon mankind\nto exercise faith in God our eternal Father, and in His Son Jesus\nChrist, also to repent of, and turn from their sins, and be baptized by\none who has been called of God by revelation, and receive the laying\non of hands for the bestowal of the Holy Ghost. As servants of God\nthey then promise that the convert shall know of the doctrine, whether\nit be of God or man (John vii: 17); and, furthermore, that the signs\nwhich followed the believers in the days of the ancient apostles will\nfollow the believer at the present time, for the same cause will always\nproduce the same effect. My friends, as a servant of God, I call upon\nyou to obey these principles and you shall have the promised blessings.\"\n\nThe doctor said: \"Much that you say is convincing, some of it excites\ncuriosity, and all is entertaining. I will now announce that the Town\nHall has been obtained for Saturday night and as that involves a little\nlonger stay than you intended, I suggest that a collection be taken and\nturned over to you.\"\n\n\"I beg you, do nothing of that kind,\" said the missionary. \"If the hall\nis free, the lecture shall be also; and I can doubtless spend the time\npleasantly enough till then.\"\n\n\"Very well, if that is your pleasure. There will be such an attendance\nas this town has rarely seen, I promise you.\"\n\nAnd then after a few pleasantries in the usual vein, and a general\n\"good night,\" the party separated just as the clock struck twelve, each\nin the best humor.\n\nIn view of the coming lecture it was mutually agreed that the veranda\ngatherings should be discontinued for the present at least.\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VI.\n\nTRUTH AGAIN DEFEATS FALSEHOOD.\n\nThe meeting was to be held in the Town Hall on Saturday, and in the\nmeantime our missionary busied himself variously, but devoted part of\nthe time in getting his lecture arranged and in refreshing his memory\non the topics upon which he wished to speak. When not thus employed\nhe took strolls about the country, or engaged in pleasant bits of\nconversation with his acquaintances, and with others whom he happened\nto meet on the way. He was such a favorite at the Marshall mansion\nthat the people there were always pleased to have him express a wish\nfor anything, in order that it might at once be gratified; but such\nexpressions were very rare and confined to the scope of his actual\nrequirements.\n\nOn Friday afternoon he engaged in a pleasant discussion with Mrs.\nMarshall on some scriptural topic. Missionaries all understand the\npower of song, Mr. Durant was no exception, so at one point he sang one\nof his hymns:\n\n  \"How the light from Zion's mountain\n    Clears the mists of error's age:\n  Clarified in ray and fountain,\n    How its truths our fears assuage!\n\n  \"Tempest-tossed, we still are certain\n    Life is but a pleasant span.\n  Hope has painted every curtain\n    Pictured in the gospel plan.\n\n  \"Once again to every nation,\n    Jesus opens wide the door;\n  Here are truths that bring salvation,\n    Preached and practiced as of yore.\n\n  \"Joyful tidings to the people\n    From the perfect courts on high;\n  Sweetest chimes from tower and steeple\n    Ring: Redemption's drawing nigh.\n\n  \"Shine, thou light, with doubled splendor,\n    Spread thy soothing, restful rings,\n  Till the sun of Zion, tender\n    Rise, with healing in his wings!\"\n\nThe daughter was an interested listener, and at the close broke in\nwith--\"It seems to me that there is no such thing as perfect happiness\nafter all. We are always being disappointed in relation to some hope or\ndesire, and when we engage in that which affords pastime or amusement,\nthere is invariably a penalty following. Is not this true, Mr. Durant?\"\n\n\"I could scarcely dispute with a lady, even if there were grounds for\nit,\" said he, gallantly.\n\n\"But I prefer you would,\" she said, \"because you appear to know all\nabout these things and I desire to learn. Why is it, for instance, that\nafter enjoying myself greatly at a dance or other late entertainment,\ninjured nature afterward cries out for revenge, and takes it? So with\nall things it seems to me. The pleasure experienced in meeting a dear\nfriend is beclouded by the knowledge that there must be a parting\nsoon; and death is ever near as if to remind us of the fact that life,\nhappiness, honor, wealth, youth, are all fleeting and unsubstantial.\"\n\n\"Very true.\"\n\n\"Why Claire,\" said her mother, \"you are becoming a regular pessimist.\nSurely at your age there is no need to borrow trouble about death or\nanything else.\"\n\n\"I do not borrow it, mamma, it comes. Pain follows pleasure, sorrow\ntreads upon the heals of happiness, and misfortune is the constant\nattendant of fortune. There is, as I said, no perfect happiness, so it\nseems to me.\"\n\n\"Pardon me,\" said the missionary, \"but you did not finish your\nsentence. Shall I do so for you?\"\n\n\"O, by all means,\" replied the girl with eager delight.\n\n\"Well, then,\" he continued, \"doubtless what you meant to say was that\nthere is no such thing as perfect happiness in either the contemplation\nor realization of things which in themselves are fleeting and\nunsubstantial--that is, the things of the world. Every movement of the\nmachinery of a steamer, for instance, creates friction, which in turn\nindicates an eventual breaking down, and so it is with all temporal\nthings; thus we cannot rely upon them for permanent good, and in\naddition they are constantly subjecting us to peril.\n\n\"It is impossible to create perfect results out of imperfect\nconditions; therefore, there can be no complete or unbroken happiness\ncome out of earthly surroundings, for the reason that all such things\nare changeable and fleeting. And yet there is such a state as perfect\njoy unclouded and endless.\"\n\n\"But not in this life, as you yourself have shown.\"\n\n\"Yes, in this life.\"\n\n\"I thought you referred to this life as uncertain and ephemeral and as\nsuch curtailed or extinguished its own joys.\"\n\n\"That is true, also. But yet endless and supreme delight is to be found\nin it.\"\n\n\"Where and how, pray?\"\n\n\"In observing principles and practicing truths which lead to\nimmortality, and which confer upon us the title-deeds to homes where\npains and penalties are unknown, where all is peace, contentment and\nlove.\"\n\n\"Oh, yes, I did not think of that.\"\n\n\"In such enjoyment there is no alloy. More than that; the more it is\nengaged in, the more enjoyable it becomes; it does not cloy, we cannot\nbecome surfeited; the more we devote our attention and effort to it the\ngreater the desire we have to continue and to increase our experience.\nThis is that perfect happiness with which nothing else can compare.\"\n\n\"But would you have us dispense with all pleasures--with the refined\nindulgences, the innocent pastimes and the intellectual recreations\nwhich lighten our burdens at least for the time being, and have us\nparticipate in sacred things only? Should there be no buoyancy of\nspirit, no diversion, no relaxation, in order that there might be no\npenalty as the result of indulgence?\"\n\n\"Why, what an--pardon me--absurd idea! Of course you do not advance it\nseriously and should therefore be free from criticism. Rather than that\nsuch a rule of conduct as you have suggested is the proper one, it is\nalmost as bad as that in which amusement alone prevails. The medium\ncourse, which enables us to enjoy all that is properly enjoyable in\nits appropriate season, and still does not cause us to loose sight of\nthe great aim and end of existence, is the right one. We should let\nour pastimes be the incidents in our career, not the objects of it;\nthus they lighten our burdens, and, for the time being, dispel some of\nthe shadows that cross our pathway, whereas, if made the purpose of\nliving--the only things to be considered--they become burdensome and\neven sinful.\"\n\n\"Then the devout Christian may be happy and jovial without being less a\nChristian, on account of that?\"\n\n\"Yes, indeed. More--it is pleasing to our Father for His children to be\nlight-hearted, so long as their pleasures are proper and are enjoyed in\nmoderation. The people from among whom I come enjoy themselves as much\nas other people do, but do not overlook their devotions, and above all\nthey remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.\"\n\n\"That seems to me,\" said Mrs. Marshall, \"to be a sensible form of\nChristianity. Why, a person, according to your faith, can be profoundly\nreligious and yet deny himself no proper amusement.\"\n\n\"Most decidedly; that is our belief and practice.\"\n\n\"It seems to me I would like to be a member of your Church,\" said the\ngirl, artlessly, at which interesting stage of the conversation, Rev.\nFitzallan entered, who greeted the party stiffly, his brow having a\ndistinct frown as he looked at the westerner.\n\n\"Pardon me,\" said the Clergyman, after a few commonplaces had passed,\n\"but we 'gather wisdom by the wayside,' and I have just acquired some\ninformation from that source concerning our friend here from the wilds,\nand as it surprised me, I thought it might equally surprise the rest of\nyou, himself included, perhaps.\"\n\nEvidently the churchman had been engaged in the questionable calling of\npicking up stray scraps of gossip here and there, containing as usual\nsome truth mixed with much error. There was obviously trouble ahead.\n\n\"Anything concerning me is not apt to be of sufficient consequence to\nbe very interesting,\" said Mr. Durant, \"and having already stated all I\nthought worth saying about myself and my errand, there can be little or\nnothing that is surprising, I am sure.\"\n\n\"Is it not a fact that you are from Salt Lake City?\"\n\n\"It is.\"\n\n\"It is! Why you never informed us of this and yet you have been\nassociated with us several days.\"\n\n\"Indeed! May I ask you, Mrs. Marshall, and you, Miss Marshall, what\npart of the country our friend here comes from?\"\n\nThe ladies did not know.\n\n\"Indeed! Why sir, you have been associated with this family several\nweeks, and yet they do not know what particular point you came from.\nPerhaps like myself, you were never asked.\"\n\n\"This is evasion,\" said the now thoroughly excited churchman. \"There is\nno place in my district possessed of such peculiar conditions as would\nplace one of its inhabitants under suspicion because of them.\"\n\n\"Nor in mine either, that I know of,\" calmly rejoined Durant.\n\n\"Is not Salt Lake City the headquarters and residence of a class of\npeople known as Mormons who hold exclusive sway there?\"\n\n\"No, sir.\"\n\n\"That is what I have heard.\"\n\n\"Surely, I am not accountable for what you have heard. There are a\ngreat many Mormons in Salt Lake, and just as many that are not Mormons;\nit is the headquarters of the Church as you suggest, but its members\nare not in exclusive sway there.\"\n\n\"How can that be?\"\n\n\"No matter about the means; the fact itself is what concerns us.\"\n\nThe churchman was discomfited and measurably confused; he was compelled\nto change his course.\n\n\"You told us,\" said he, \"that you were an advocate of the Church of\nJesus Christ; should there not be a suffix in these words--Latter-day\nSaints?\"\n\n\"That is correct.\"\n\n\"And is not 'Mormonism' its other name?\"\n\n\"No, it has no other name. It is called 'Mormonism' by nearly every one\nnot connected with it, and yet that is not a proper designation.\"\n\n\"Then to yourself you are a 'Latter-day Saint,' and to the world you\nare a 'Mormon?'\"\n\n\"That is it exactly.\"\n\n\"Strange that we should be kept in ignorance of it so long.\"\n\n\"I have answered every question fairly and in addition have stated\neverything necessary to a full explanation of my cause and myself. If\nthe doctrine I teach be true--and it has stood all tests so far--can\nyou find nothing more than a name to oppose it?\"\n\n\"I hope sir, you do not accuse me of innuendo?\"\n\n\"I accuse you of nothing.\"\n\n\"Come now,\" said Mrs. Marshall, \"do not be too earnest.\"\n\n\"Well, madam,\" said Rev. Fitzallan, \"I thought my services in this\nconnection would be received graciously and thankfully. As they are not\nI occupy the position of an intruder and will take my leave.\"\n\n\"Not on my account, I hope,\" said Mr. Durant. \"If there is an intruder\nhere it is I, and it would be my duty to depart.\"\n\n\"You must not go under such circumstances,\" said Mrs. Marshall.\n\nThe girl's looks seconded her mother's words, and the irate churchman\npermitted his passion to overcome his judgment.\n\n\"Excuse me,\" he said, \"but I will take my leave. Under the\ncircumstances my presence must be altogether unwelcome. I have heard of\nthe fascinating character of some of the features of Mormonism, and the\npersuasiveness of those who advocate it. Violation of the laws of God\nand man by practicing polygamy is one of the seductive usages of that\ncreed, I believe.\"\n\n\"Your belief is erroneous, then,\" said Durant.\n\n\"Whatever my people may have believed in the past as to the correctness\nof doctrines taught by the Bible and the prophets of old, they now obey\nthe laws of the land in which they live.\"\n\n\"Marvelous! I have heard otherwise. I have even taken the pains to\nbring with me a newspaper which I received from a traveler, and in\nwhich information of a different character is obtained. It is published\nin Salt Lake City and should be correct. Here is part of a sermon\ndelivered by a Mormon Bishop; and here an account of several arrests\nfor violating the law against polygamy and kindred offenses, while an\neditorial in the same paper comments strongly on the deception and\nfalsity pervading the Mormon people. There must be a mistake somewhere.\"\n\n\"No, there is no mistake at all, but much falsehood and\nmisrepresentation. It is true that since the law against polygamy was\nenacted there have been many prosecutions of members of our Church\nchiefly because of their inability instantly to sever the happy\nassociations of a lifetime which had been formed before the law went\ninto effect, or their lack of exact knowledge as to what the law\nrequired of them. It was a difficult, I may say an impossible matter,\nfor them to break away entirely from a part of their families and never\ngo near them, to give a word of counsel, or it may be hurriedly to\nembrace the little ones from whom the law had separated them. When thus\nfound they have been apprehended, tried, convicted and punished, often\nwithout an effort to defend themselves. The Bishop named by the paper,\ndoes not, and never did exist, and the sermon referred to was never\ndelivered, as the same paper has been compelled to admit on several\noccasions; and the editor's views, or rather sayings, are the words of\na man whose chief interest in the community is to fan the flames of\ndiscord so that his nefarious business may prosper. His statements are\nutterly and entirely false.\"\n\nAfter these remarks the reverend went to his room, and shortly\nafterward took his departure.\n\n\"I don't like the Mormons at all, and I'm just sorry you're one,\" said\nthe girl.\n\n\"I too, am somewhat opposed to that peculiar religion, but it does seem\nto me, after hearing you, that my dislike arises more from prejudice\nthan from anything else,\" said the mother.\n\n\"I have here a card containing the articles of our faith from which you\nmay learn that we are not so evil as we are represented to be.\"\n\n    We believe in God, the Eternal Father, and in His Son, Jesus\n    Christ, and in the Holy Ghost.\n\n    We believe that men will be punished for their own sins, and not\n    for Adam's transgression.\n\n    We believe that, through the atonement of Christ, all mankind may\n    be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel.\n\n    We believe that these ordinances are: First, Faith in the Lord\n    Jesus Christ; second, Repentance; third, Baptism by immersion for\n    the remission of sins; fourth, Laying on of Hands for the Gift of\n    the Holy Ghost.\n\n    We believe that a man must be called of God, by \"prophecy, and by\n    the laying on of hands,\" by those who are in authority, to preach\n    the gospel and administer in the ordinances thereof.\n\n    We believe in the same organization that existed in the primitive\n    church, namely: apostles, prophets, pastors, teachers, evangelists,\n    etc.\n\n    We believe in the gift of tongues, prophecy, revelation, visions,\n    healing, interpretation of tongues, etc.\n\n    We believe the Bible to be the word of God, as far as it is\n    translated correctly; we also believe the Book of Mormon to be the\n    word of God.\n\n    We believe all that God has revealed, all that He does now reveal,\n    and we believe that He will yet reveal many great and important\n    things pertaining to the Kingdom of God.\n\n    We believe in the literal gathering of Israel and in the\n    restoration of the Ten Tribes, That Zion will be built upon this\n    continent. That Christ will reign personally upon the earth, and\n    that the earth will be renewed and receive its paradisiacal glory.\n\n    We claim the privilege of worshiping Almighty God according to the\n    dictates of our conscience, and allow all men the same privilege,\n    let them worship how, where, or what they may.\n\n    We believe in being subject to kings, presidents, rulers and\n    magistrates, in obeying, honoring and sustaining the law.\n\n    We believe in being honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous,\n    and in doing good to all men; indeed we may say that we follow the\n    admonition of Paul, \"We believe all things, we hope all things,\"\n    we have endured many things, and hope to be able to endure all\n    things. If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report,\n    or praiseworthy, we seek after these, things.--_Joseph Smith_.\n\nWith this Durant took from his pocket the card, and handing it to Mrs.\nMarshall, said:\n\n\"Examine it at your leisure.\" And without more adieu he was gone,\nleaving the ladies in reflective mood.\n\nMr. Marshall received the news regarding Durant, in silence; perhaps he\nhad suspected, or even knew already, that the stranger was a \"Mormon.\"\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VII.\n\nA TRIUMPH AND AN ESCAPE.\n\nThe afternoon preceding the night on which Charles Durant was to\nappear before the public in the Town Hall of Westminster to place the\nplan of salvation before the people, and bear his testimony to the\neternal truth, was wearing slowly away. By this time his name was on\neverybody's lips, and nearly all knew him. As he walked abroad some\nwould pass him with a frown, some with a gaze of curiosity, rarely one\nwould smile, and less frequently still would he receive a pleasant\n\"good-day.\" If he had delighted in notoriety, here was certainly a\nfield in which he might enjoy that to the full limit of his desire;\nbut he wanted nothing of the kind. He was filled with the spirit of\nhis calling which was to spread the truth and labor unto the salvation\nof men; and neither the insults of the insolent nor the frowns of\nopponents could turn him aside from that purpose. He bore within\nhis breast the realization of an upright purpose, together with the\ncertainty of a reward to come. What were threats and annoyances to\nhim? And yet he sought not persecution that a cheap martyrdom might\nbe gained; perhaps if warned of a personal danger, in obedience to a\nnatural impulse, he would have shunned or gone around it, but never to\nthe sacrifice of one jot or tittle of principle.\n\nHis experience of less than a week in Westminster had been sufficient\nfor a volume of much greater proportions than this little publication,\nand yet enough of it is noted here to give a fair idea of what\ntranspired. In that time our hero, a comparative stranger, had become\nwell-settled and was welcome in an honorable household, and this\nwithout deception or any special effort to please; he had dethroned the\ndemon of infidelity in one good man's heart when a skilled churchman's\nefforts in that direction only threatened to perpetuate the evil; had\ncaused another good man, indifferent to gospel measures, to become\nactively interested; had defeated the churchman spoken of, on his own\nground, and had shown in an unmistakeable manner the fallacy of his\ndoctrine, and finally, had brought this showy patron of religion to\nutter discomfiture without desiring, intending, or trying to annoy him\nin any way; had set the family named and several of their neighbors to\nthinking as they had never thought before; and now, as a special favor\nwas to address the town people in their chief public building. The Town\nHall was filled to overflowing, and when Durant entered and walked\nslowly up to the platform, it is perhaps needless to say he was the\nobserved of all observers. There were some feelings of surprise when\nMr. Brown, the (late) infidel, arose to introduce the speaker of the\nevening; he announced before doing so that the lecture would consist\nof an exposition of the groundwork, and some advanced principles of\nthe gospel as laid down in the Bible. \"Nothing will be left to be\nconjectured or surmised,\" he said; \"the speaker is familiar with the\nsubject and is capable of doing it justice. I speak advisedly, having\nheard him before. I ask your earnest and respectful attention, and now\npresent to you Mr. Charles Durant, of Salt Lake City.\"\n\nNotwithstanding the sacredness of the occasion, there was a burst of\napplause when the speaker arose. Before him, on a table, were the Bible\nand two or three other books. He entered upon his subject at once,\nfirst explaining the principles of faith, repentance and baptism,\nciting the Holy Book in support of his arguments, and making every\nprinciple plain and lucid as he proceeded. In as extended a manner as\nhe could, within the time at his disposal, he developed the philosophy\nand practice of true Christianity from the beginning to the present\ntime, leaving no salient point unmentioned, and no stone marking the\nway, unturned. He occupied two hours, and there was not a listener but\ngladly would have remained that much longer. The impression made was\ndeep; as to whether or not it was lasting, that depended largely upon\nthe individuals themselves.\n\nThe lawyer and the doctor and the Marshalls came forward and grasped\nthe speaker's hand extending sincere congratulations. The preacher\nwas absent. As they left the room, people could be heard making such\nremarks as--\"Well, that is mighty sound reasoning no matter where it\ncomes from;\" a few asked to be introduced and one of these, an old\nlady, said in a low voice, \"You spoke the truth, I know it; God bless\nyou!\"\n\nAs soon as he could make his way to Durant's side, the negro, Caesar,\nsaid hurriedly--\"You want to look a little out as you go home; I heard\na lot of fellers down the lane talking, and they said they would fix\nthat Mormon.\"\n\nA spontaneous exclamation of surprise and disgust came from the little\nparty of which Durant was the center. However, it was left to the\nlawyer to engage in explosiveness, and he did it in a manner which left\nno doubt of what he would do in an emergency. It was finally decided\nthat he and the doctor should lead the way homeward, with the Marshall\nfamily, our guest, a neighbor and the negro, following leisurely after.\nThe improvised mob was soon encountered and the interview was stormy\nfor awhile, but before the party in the rear reached the spot, the\ntumult was quieted down considerably. The lawyer knew every one in the\nparty and if any violence was offered to the stranger, he would make\nit his personal business to see that every one of them answered to the\nlaw. This, coupled with milder and more persuasive methods, had its\neffect, and one by one the rioters dispersed, at least for the present.\nMr. Durant and his friends walked home without being assaulted by so\nmuch as an unpleasant exclamation though he fully expected trouble from\nthe first; but he determined to continue his labor as he had begun,\nleaving the result to Providence.\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VIII.\n\nTHE PROPHET JOSEPH'S STATEMENT.\n\nPerhaps it was the force of habit as well as the impelling power of\ndesire that caused the group, with whom we are now so familiar, again\nto assemble at the place made somewhat memorable by recent events--the\nverandah fronting the Marshall mansion. All the persons hitherto named,\nexcepting, of course, the minister, were present; that gentleman had\nnot only taken his departure from the house, but doubtless from the\ntown also.\n\nIt was Sunday evening, the weather was perfect, all things seemed\nconducive to harmony, and a most pleasurable occasion, it being perhaps\nthe last they would enjoy together. The doctor and lawyer were so\nanxious to begin the conversation that they could scarcely wait for all\nto be seated; they desired to improve the opportunity, and learn what\nthey could of other principles of the missionary's faith.\n\n\"Mr. Durant,\" finally said the doctor, \"we have listened with much\npleasure to different conversations with you since your arrival and\nthese have awakened a lively interest within us, and as there is\nnothing to prevent this evening, we thought it would not be at all\nunpleasant to you to spend an hour or so in answering what to us\nappears to be some very important questions concerning the faith of the\nso-called Mormons.\"\n\n\"I assure you it will be pleasant to me, indeed. I am here for that\npurpose, and the more questions I have an opportunity to answer, the\nbetter and more successfully will I perform my duty. Could I read your\nthoughts and know what you desire explained, I assure you nothing would\nbe left untold; but this not being the case, I rely upon you to make\nenquiries and will request that you keep nothing back, and I will be\nhonest in giving any information that I am capable of imparting.\"\n\n\"I am now inclined to believe,\" said the doctor, \"after our experience\nwith you, that, like most of the good people of this nation we have\nbeen in possession of only one side of the question regarding your\npeople. Never having heard, from your standpoint, the claims of Mr.\nJoseph Smith, the founder of your Church, in regard to his being a\nprophet, we would be pleased to learn what he said on this question.\"\n\n\"This is a frankness which I appreciate very much. As a general\nthing, the majority of the people, when desirous of knowing anything\nconcerning us, are prone to ask any other person on earth than a\nMormon. They do not seem to think for a moment that we ourselves might\nbe able to place them in possession of the most reliable information on\nthe subject. Joseph Smith's claim to being divinely inspired to open up\na new dispensation of the gospel, is here given in his own statement so\nthat you will be getting it direct from the fountain head.\"\n\n\"By all means, read it,\" said two or three in concert; \"there will then\nbe no room for misrepresentation.\"\n\n\"Joseph Smith has made the following statement regarding the subject,\"\ncontinued Durant:\n\n    \"Owing to the many reports which have been put in circulation by\n    evil designing persons in relation to the rise and progress of the\n    Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, all of which have been\n    designed by the authors thereof to militate against its character\n    as a Church, and its progress in the world, I have been induced\n    to write this history, so as to disabuse the public mind, and put\n    all inquirers after truth in possession of the facts as they have\n    transpired in relation both to myself and the Church so far as I\n    have such facts in possession.\n\n    \"In this history I will present the various events in relation to\n    this Church, in truth and righteousness, as they have transpired,\n    or as they at present exist, being now the eighth year since the\n    organization of the said Church.\n\n    \"I was born in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and\n    five, on the twenty-third day of December, in the town of Sharon,\n    Windsor County, State of Vermont. My father, Joseph Smith, senior,\n    left the State of Vermont, and moved to Palmyra, Ontario (now\n    Wayne) County, in the State of New York, when I was in my tenth\n    year. In about four years after my father's arrival at Palmyra,\n    he moved with his family into Manchester, in the same County of\n    Ontario. His family consisted of eleven souls, namely: my father,\n    Joseph Smith, my mother, Lucy Smith (whose name previous to her\n    marriage was Mack, daughter of Solomon Mack), my brothers Alvin\n    (who is now dead), Hyrum, myself, Samuel Harrison, William, Don\n    Carlos, and my sisters Sophronia, Catherine, and Lucy,\n\n    \"Some time in the second year after our removal to Manchester,\n    there was in the place where we lived an unusual excitement on\n    the subject of religion. It commenced with the Methodists, but\n    soon became general among all the sects in that region of country;\n    indeed the whole district of country seemed affected by it, and\n    great multitude united themselves to the different religious\n    parties, which created no small stir and division amongst the\n    people, some crying, Lo, here, and some, Lo there; some were\n    contending for the Methodist faith, some for the Presbyterian,\n    and some for the Baptists'. For notwithstanding the great love\n    which the converts for these different faiths expressed at the\n    time of their conversion, and the great zeal manifested by their\n    respected clergy, who were active in getting up and promoting\n    this extraordinary scene of religious feeling, in order to have\n    everybody converted, as they were pleased to call it, let them\n    join what sect they pleased: yet when the converts began to file\n    off, some to one party, and some to another, it was seen that\n    the seemingly good feelings of both the priests and the converts\n    were more pretended than real, for a scene of great confusion and\n    bad feeling ensued priest contending against priest, and convert\n    against convert, so that all the good feelings one for another, if\n    they ever had any, were entirely lost in a strife of words, and a\n    contest about opinions.\n\n    \"I was at this time in my fifteenth year. My father's family was\n    proselyted to the Presbyterian faith, and four of them joined\n    that church, namely, my mother, Lucy, my brothers Hyrum, Samuel\n    Harrison, and my sister Sophronia.\n\n    \"During this time of great excitement, my mind was called up to\n    serious reflection and great uneasiness; but though my feelings\n    were deep and often pungent, still I kept myself aloof from all\n    those parties, though I attended their several meetings as often\n    as occasion would permit; but in process of time my mind became\n    somewhat partial to the Methodist sect, and I felt some desire to\n    be united with them, but so great was the confusion and strife\n    among the different denominations, that it was impossible for a\n    person, young as I was, and so unacquainted with men and things, to\n    come to any certain conclusion who was right, and who was wrong. My\n    mind at different times was greatly excited, the cry and tumult was\n    so great and incessant. The Presbyterians were most decided against\n    the Baptists and Methodists, and used all their powers of either\n    reason or sophistry to prove their errors, or, at least, to make\n    the people think they were in error. On the other hand the Baptists\n    and Methodists, in their turn, were equally zealous to establish\n    their own tenets and disprove all others.\n\n    \"In the midst of this war of words and tumult of opinions, I often\n    said to myself, What is to be done? Who of all these parties are\n    right? Or, are they all wrong together? If any one of them be\n    right, which is it, and how shall I know it?\n\n    \"While I was laboring under the extreme difficulties, caused by the\n    contests of these parties of religionists, I was one day reading\n    the Epistle of James, first chapter, and fifth verse, which reads,\n    If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth unto\n    all men liberally and upbraideth not, and it shall be given him.\n    Never did any passage of scripture come with more power to the\n    heart of man than this did at this time to mine. It seemed to enter\n    with great force into every feeling of my heart. I reflected on\n    it again and again, knowing that if any person needed wisdom from\n    God, I did; for how to act I did not know, and unless I could get\n    more wisdom than I then had, would never know; for the teachers\n    of religion of the different sects understood the same passage so\n    differently as to destroy all confidence in settling the question\n    by an appeal to the Bible. At length I came to the conclusion that\n    I must either remain in darkness and confusion, or else I must do\n    as James directs, that is, ask of God. I at length came to the\n    determination to ask of God, concluding that if He gave wisdom to\n    them that lacked wisdom, and would give liberally and not upbraid,\n    I might venture. So, in accordance with this, my determination to\n    ask of God, I retired to the woods to make the attempt. It was\n    on the morning of a beautiful, clear day, early in the spring of\n    eighteen hundred and twenty. It was the first time in my life that\n    I had made such an attempt, for amidst all my anxieties I had never\n    as yet made the attempt to pray vocally.\n\n    \"After I had retired into the place where I had previously designed\n    to go, having looked around me and finding myself alone, I kneeled\n    down and began to offer up the desires of my heart to God. I had\n    scarcely done so, when immediately I was seized upon by some power\n    which entirely overcame me, and had such astonishing influence\n    over me as to bind my tongue so that I could not speak. Thick\n    darkness gathered around me, and it seemed to me for a time as if\n    I were doomed to sudden destruction. But exerting all my powers to\n    call upon God to deliver me out of the power of this enemy which\n    had seized upon me, and at the very moment when I was ready to\n    sink into despair and abandon myself to destruction, not to an\n    imaginary ruin, but to the power of some actual being from the\n    unseen world, who had such a marvelous power as I had never before\n    felt in any being. Just at this moment of great alarm, I saw a\n    pillar of light exactly over my head above the brightness of the\n    sun, which descended gradually until it fell upon me. It no sooner\n    appeared than I found myself delivered from the enemy which held me\n    bound. When the light rested upon me, I saw two personages, whose\n    brightness and glory defy all description, standing above me in\n    the air. One of them spake unto me, calling me by name, and said\n    (pointing to the other), 'THIS IS MY BELOVED SON, HEAR HIM.'\n\n    \"My object in going to enquire of the Lord, was to know which\n    of all the sects was right, that I might know which to join. No\n    sooner, therefore, did I get possession of myself, so as to be\n    able to speak, than I asked the personages who stood above me in\n    the light, which of all the sects was right (for at this time it\n    had never entered into my heart that all were wrong), and which\n    I should join. I was answered that I must join none of them, for\n    they were all wrong, and the personage who addressed me said that\n    all their creeds were an abomination in his sight; that those\n    professors were all corrupt. They draw near to me with their lips,\n    but their hearts are far from me; they teach for doctrine the\n    commandments of men, having a form of godliness, but they deny the\n    power thereof.\n\n    \"He again forbade me to join with any of them; and many other\n    things did he say unto me which I cannot write at this time. When I\n    came to myself again, I found myself lying on my back, looking up\n    into heaven.\n\n    \"Some few days after I had this vision, I happened to be in company\n    with one of the Methodist preachers who was very active in the\n    before mentioned religious excitement, and conversing with him on\n    the subject of religion, I took occasion to give him an account\n    of the vision which I had had. I was greatly surprised at his\n    behavior; he treated my communication not only lightly, but with\n    great contempt, saying it was all of the devil, that there were no\n    such things as visions or revelations in these days; that all such\n    things had ceased with the apostles, and that there never would be\n    any more of them.\n\n    \"I soon found, however, that my telling the story had excited a\n    great deal of prejudice against me among professors of religion,\n    and was the cause of great persecution, which continued to\n    increase; and though I was an obscure boy, only between fourteen\n    and fifteen years of age, and my circumstances in life such as to\n    make a boy of no consequence in the world, yet men of high standing\n    would take notice sufficient to excite the public mind against me,\n    and create a hot persecution, and this was common among all sects;\n    all united to persecute me.\n\n    \"It has often caused me serious reflection, both then and since,\n    how very strange it was that an obscure boy of a little over\n    fourteen years of age, and one, too, who was doomed to the\n    necessity of obtaining a scanty maintenance by his daily labor,\n    should be thought a character of sufficient importance to attract\n    the attention of the great ones of the most popular sects of the\n    day, so as to create in them a spirit of the hottest persecution\n    and reviling. But strange or not, so it was, and was often a\n    cause of great sorrow to myself. However it was nevertheless, a\n    fact that I had had a vision. I have thought since, that I felt\n    much like Paul when he made his defense before King Agrippa, and\n    related the account of the vision he had when he saw a light and\n    heard a voice, but still there were but few who believed him;\n    some said he was dishonest, others said he was mad, and he was\n    ridiculed and reviled: but all this did not destroy the reality\n    of his vision. He had seen a vision, he knew he had, and all the\n    persecution under heaven could not make it otherwise; and though\n    they should persecute him unto death, yet he knew and would know\n    unto his latest breath that he had both seen a light and heard a\n    voice speaking to him, and all the world could not make him think\n    or believe otherwise.\n\n    \"So it was with me; I had actually seen a light, and in the midst\n    of that light I saw two personages, and they did in reality speak\n    unto me, or one of them did; and though I was hated and persecuted\n    for saying that I had seen a vision, yet it was true; and while\n    they were persecuting me, reviling me and speaking all manner of\n    evil against me, falsely, for so saying, I was led to say in my\n    heart, Why persecute for telling the truth? I have actually seen\n    a vision, and who am I that I can withstand God? Or why does the\n    world think to make me deny what I have actually seen? For I had\n    seen a vision. I knew it, and I knew that God knew it, and I could\n    not deny it, neither dare I do it; at least I knew that by so doing\n    I would offend God and come under condemnation.\n\n    \"I had now got my mind satisfied so far as the sectarian world was\n    concerned, that it was not my duty to join with any of them, but\n    continue as I was until further directed; I had found the testimony\n    of James to be true, that a man who lacked wisdom might ask of\n    God, and obtain and not be upbraided. I continued to pursue my\n    common avocations in life until the twenty-first of September, one\n    thousand eight hundred and twenty-three, all the time suffering\n    severe persecution at the hands of all classes of men, both\n    religious and irreligious, because I continued to affirm that I had\n    seen a vision.\n\n    \"During the space of time which intervened between the time I\n    had the vision, and the year eighteen hundred and twenty-three\n    (having been forbidden to join any of the religious sects of the\n    day, and being of very tender years, and persecuted by those who\n    ought to have been my friends, and to have treated me kindly,\n    and if they supposed me to be deluded to have endeavored, in a\n    proper and affectionate manner, to have reclaimed me), I was\n    left to all kinds of temptations, and mingling with all kinds of\n    society, I frequently fell into many foolish errors, and displayed\n    the weakness of youth, and the corruption of human nature,\n    which I am sorry to say led me into divers temptations, to the\n    gratification of many appetites offensive in the sight of God. In\n    consequence of these things I often felt condemned for my weakness\n    and imperfections; when on the evening of the above mentioned\n    twenty-first of September, after I had retired to my bed for the\n    night, I betook myself to prayer and supplication to Almighty\n    God, for forgiveness of all my sins and follies, and also for a\n    manifestation to me, that I might know of my state and standing\n    before him; for I had full confidence in obtaining a divine\n    manifestation, as I had previously had one.\n\n    \"While I was thus in the act of calling upon God, I discovered a\n    light appearing in the room, which continued to increase until the\n    room was lighter than at noonday, when immediately a personage\n    appeared at my bedside, standing in the air, for his feet did\n    not touch the floor. He had on a loose robe of most exquisite\n    whiteness. It was a whiteness beyond anything earthly I had ever\n    seen; nor do I believe that any earthly thing could be made to\n    appear so exceedingly white and brilliant; his hands were naked,\n    and his arms also, a little above the wrist; so also were his feet\n    naked, as were his legs, a little above the ankles. His head and\n    neck were also bare. I could discover that he had no other clothing\n    on but this robe, as it was open, so that I could see into his\n    bosom.\n\n    \"Not only was his robe exceedingly white, but his whole person\n    was glorious beyond description, and his countenance truly like\n    lightning. The room was exceedingly light, but not so very bright\n    as immediately around his person. When I first looked upon him I\n    was afraid, but the fear soon left me. He called me by name and\n    said unto me that he was a messenger sent from the presence of\n    God to me, and that his name was Moroni. That God had a work for\n    me to do, and that my name should be had for good and evil among\n    all nations, kindreds, and tongues; or that it should be both good\n    and evil spoken of among all people. He said there was a book\n    deposited, written upon gold plates, giving an account of the\n    former inhabitants of this continent, and the source from whence\n    they sprang. He also said that the fullness of the everlasting\n    Gospel was contained in it, as delivered by the Savior to the\n    ancient inhabitants. Also that there were two stones in silver bows\n    (and these stones, fastened to a breast plate, constituted what is\n    called the Urim and Thummim,) deposited with the plates, and the\n    possession and use of these stones was what constituted Seers in\n    ancient or former times, and that God had prepared them for the\n    purpose of translating the book.\n\n    \"After telling me these things, he commenced quoting the prophecies\n    of the Old Testament. He first quoted part of the third chapter of\n    Malachi, and he quoted also the fourth or last chapter of the same\n    prophecy, though with a little variation from the way it reads in\n    our Bibles. Instead of quoting the first verse as it reads in our\n    books, he quoted it thus: 'For behold, the day cometh that shall\n    burn as an oven, and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly,\n    shall burn as stubble, for they that come shall burn them, saith\n    the Lord of Hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor\n    branch.' And again, he quoted the fifth verse thus: 'Behold I will\n    reveal unto you the priesthood by the hand of Elijah the prophet,\n    before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord.' He\n    also quoted the next verse differently: 'And he shall plant in the\n    hearts of the children, the promises made to the fathers, and the\n    of hearts the children shall turn to their fathers; if it were not\n    so, the whole earth would be utterly wasted at His coming.'\n\n    \"In addition to these, he quoted the eleventh chapter of Isaiah,\n    saying that it was about to be fulfilled. He quoted also the third\n    chapter of Acts, twenty-second and twenty-third verses, precisely\n    as they stand in our New Testament. He said that prophet was\n    Christ, but the day had not yet come when they who would not hear\n    His voice should be cut off from among the people, but soon would\n    come.\n\n    \"He also quoted the second chapter of Joel, from the twenty-eighth\n    to the last verse. He also said that this was not yet fulfilled,\n    but was soon to be. And he further stated, the fullness of the\n    Gentiles was soon to come in. He quoted many other passages of\n    scripture, and offered many explanations which cannot be mentioned\n    here. Again, he told me that when I got those plates of which he\n    had spoken (for the time that they should be obtained was not\n    yet fulfilled) I should not show them to any person, neither the\n    breastplate with the Urim and Thummim, only to those to whom I\n    should be commanded to show them; if I did I should be destroyed.\n    While he was conversing with me about the plates, the vision was\n    opened to my mind that I could see the place where the plates were\n    deposited, and that so clearly and distinctly, that I knew the\n    place again when I visited it.\n\n    \"After this communication, I saw the light in the room begin to\n    gather immediately around the person of him who had been speaking\n    to me, and it continued to do so, until the room was again left\n    dark, except just around him, when instantly I saw, as it were,\n    a conduit open right up into heaven, and he ascended up till he\n    entirely disappeared, and the room was left as it had been before\n    this heavenly light had made its appearance.\n\n    \"I lay musing on the singularity of the scene, and marveling\n    greatly at what had been told me by this extraordinary messenger,\n    when, in the midst of my meditation, I suddenly discovered that\n    my room was again beginning to get lighted, and in an instant, as\n    it were, the same heavenly messenger was again by my bedside. He\n    commenced, and again related the very same things which he had\n    done at his first visit, without the least variation, which having\n    done, he informed me of great judgments which were coming upon the\n    earth, with great desolations by famine, sword, and pestilence,\n    and that these grievous judgments would come on the earth in this\n    generation. Having related these things, he again ascended as he\n    had done before.\n\n    \"By this time, so deep were the impressions made on my mind, that\n    sleep had fled from my eyes, and I lay overwhelmed in astonishment\n    at what I had both seen and heard; but what was my surprise when\n    again I beheld the same messenger at my bedside, and heard him\n    rehearse or repeat over again to me the same things as before, and\n    added a caution to me, telling me that Satan would try to tempt\n    me (in consequence of the indigent circumstances of my father's\n    family) to get the plates for the purpose of getting rich. This\n    he forbade me, saying that I must have no other object in view in\n    getting the plates but to glorify God, and must not be influenced\n    by any other motive but that of building his kingdom, otherwise\n    I could not get them. After this third visit, he again ascended\n    up into heaven as before, and I was again left to ponder on the\n    strangeness of what I had just experienced, when almost immediately\n    after the heavenly messenger had ascended from me the third time,\n    the cock crew, and I found that day was approaching, so that our\n    interviews must have occupied the whole of that night, I shortly\n    after arose from my bed, and, as usual, went to the necessary\n    labors of the day, but, in attempting to labor as at other times, I\n    found my strength so exhausted as rendered me entirely unable. My\n    father, who was laboring along with me, discovered something to be\n    wrong with me, and told me to go home. I started with the intention\n    of going to the house, but, in attempting to cross the fence out\n    of the field where we were, my strength entirely failed me, and I\n    fell helpless on the ground, and for a time was quite unconscious\n    of anything. The first thing that I can recollect, was a voice\n    speaking unto me, calling me by name; I looked up and beheld the\n    same messenger standing over my head, surrounded by light, as\n    before. He then again related unto me all that he had related to me\n    the previous night, and commanded me to go to my father, and tell\n    him of the vision and commandment which I had received.\n\n    \"I obeyed, I returned back to my father in the field and rehearsed\n    the whole matter to him. He replied to me that it was of God, and\n    to go and do as commanded by the messenger. I left the field and\n    went to the place where the messenger had told me the plates were\n    deposited, and owing to the distinctness of the vision which I had\n    had concerning it, I knew the place the instant that I arrived\n    there. Convenient to the village of Manchester, Ontario County, New\n    York, stands a hill of considerable size, and the most elevated of\n    any in the neighborhood. On the west side of this hill, not far\n    from the top, under a stone of considerable size, lay the plates,\n    deposited in a stone box; this stone was thick and rounding in the\n    middle on the upper side, and thinner towards the edges, so that\n    the middle part of it was visible above the ground, but the edge\n    all round was covered with earth. Having removed the earth and\n    obtained a lever, which I got fixed under the edge of the stone,\n    and with a little exertion raised it up; I looked in, and there\n    indeed did I behold the plates, the Urim and Thummim, and the\n    breastplate as stated by the messenger. The box in which they lay\n    was formed by laying stones together in some kind of cement. In the\n    bottom of the box were laid two stones crossways of the box, and on\n    these stones lay the plates and the other things with them. I made\n    an attempt to take them out, but was forbidden by the messenger,\n    and was again informed that the time for bringing them forth had\n    not yet arrived, neither would arrive until four years from that\n    time; but he told me that I should come to that place precisely in\n    one year from that time, and that he would there meet with me, and\n    that I should continue to do so, until the time should come for\n    obtaining the plates.\n\n    \"Accordingly as I had been commanded, I went at the end of each\n    year, and at each time I found the same messenger there, and\n    received instruction and intelligence from him at each of our\n    interviews, respecting what the Lord was going to do, and how and\n    in what manner his kingdom was to be conducted in the last days.\n\n    \"As my father's worldly circumstances were very limited, we were\n    under the necessity of laboring with our hands, hiring by day's\n    work and otherwise as we could get opportunity; sometimes we were\n    at home and sometimes abroad, and by continued labor were enabled\n    to get a comfortable maintenance.\n\n    \"In the year 1824, my father's family met with a great affliction,\n    by the death of my eldest brother, Alvin. In the month of October,\n    1825, I hired with an old gentleman, by the name of Josiah Stoal,\n    who lived in Chenango County, State of New York. He had heard\n    something of a silver mine having been opened by the Spaniards,\n    in Harmony, Susquehanna County, State of Pennsylvania, and had,\n    previous to my hiring with him, been digging, in order, if\n    possible, to discover the mine. After I went to live with him he\n    took me among the rest of his hands to dig for the silver mine, at\n    which I continued to work for nearly a month without success in\n    our undertaking, and finally I prevailed with the old gentleman to\n    cease digging after it. Hence arose the very prevalent story of my\n    having been a money digger.\n\n    \"During the time that I was thus employed, I was put to board with\n    a Mr. Isaac Hale, of that place; it was there that I first saw my\n    wife (his daughter) Emma Hale. On the 18th of January, 1827, we\n    were married, while yet I was employed in the service of Mr. Stoal.\n\n    \"Owing to my still continuing to assert that I had seen a vision,\n    persecution still followed me, and my wife's father's family were\n    very much opposed to our being married. I was therefore under the\n    necessity of taking her elsewhere, so we went and were married at\n    the house of Squire Tarbill, in South Bainbridge, Chenango County,\n    New York. Immediately after my marriage, I left Mr. Stoal's and\n    went to my father's and farmed with him that season.\n\n    \"At length the time arrived for obtaining the plates, the Urim and\n    Thummim, and the Breastplate. On the 22nd day of September, 1827,\n    having gone, as usual, at the end of another year, to the place\n    where they were deposited, the same heavenly messenger delivered\n    them up to me with this charge, that I should be responsible for\n    them; that if I should let them go carelessly or through any\n    neglect of mine, I should be cut off; but that if I would use all\n    my endeavors to preserve them, until he, the messenger, should call\n    for them, they should be protected.\n\n    \"I soon found out the reason why I had received such strict charges\n    to keep them safe, and why it was that the messenger had said,\n    that when I had done what was required at my hand, he would call\n    for them; for no sooner was it known that I had them, than the\n    most strenuous exertions were used to get them from me; every\n    stratagem that could be invented was resorted to for that purpose;\n    the persecution became more bitter and severe than before, and\n    multitudes were on the alert continually to get them from me if\n    possible; but, by the wisdom of God, they remained safe in my\n    hands, until I had accomplished by them what was required at my\n    hand; when according to arrangements, the messenger called for\n    them, I delivered them up to him, and he has them in his charge\n    until this day, being the 2nd of May, 1838.\n\n    \"The excitement, however, still continued, and rumor, with her\n    thousand tongues, was all the time employed in circulating many\n    tales about my father's family and about myself. If I were to\n    relate a thousandth part of them, it would fill up volumes. The\n    persecution, however, became so intolerable that I was under\n    the necessity of leaving Manchester, and going with my wife to\n    Susquehanna County, in the State of Pennsylvania; while preparing\n    to start (being very poor, and the persecution so heavy upon us,\n    that there was no probability that we would ever be otherwise),\n    in the midst of our afflictions we found a friend in a gentleman\n    by the name of Martin Harris, who came to us and gave me fifty\n    dollars to assist us in our afflictions. Mr. Harris was a resident\n    of Palmyra Township, Wayne County, in the State of New York, and\n    a farmer of respectability. By this timely aid was I enabled to\n    reach the place of my destination in Pennsylvania, and immediately\n    after my arrival there I commenced copying the characters of the\n    plates. I copied a considerable number of them, and by means of the\n    Urim and Thummim I translated some of them, which I did between the\n    time I arrived at the house of my wife's father in the month of\n    December, and the February following.\n\n    \"Some time in this month of February, the aforementioned Mr. Martin\n    Harris came to our place, got the characters which I had drawn off\n    the plates, and started with them to the city of New York. For what\n    took place relative to him and the characters, I refer to his own\n    account of the circumstances as he related them to me after his\n    return, which was as follows--\n\n    \"'I went to the city of New York, and presented the characters\n    which had been translated, with the translation thereof, to\n    Professor Anthon, a gentleman celebrated for his literary\n    attainments. Professor Anthon stated that the translation was\n    correct, more so than any he had before seen translated from the\n    Egyptian. I then showed him those which were not yet translated,\n    and he said that they were Egyptian, Chaldaic, Assyric, and Arabic,\n    and he said that they were the true characters. He gave me a\n    certificate certifying to the people of Palmyra that they were true\n    characters, and that the translation of such of them as had been\n    translated was also correct. I took the certificate and put it into\n    my pocket, and was just leaving the house, when Mr. Anthon called\n    me back, and asked me how the young man found out that there were\n    gold plates in the place where he found them. I answered that an\n    angel of God had revealed it to him.\n\n    \"'He then said unto me, 'Let me see that certificate.' I\n    accordingly took it out of my pocket and gave it to him, when he\n    took it and tore it to pieces, saying that there was no such thing\n    now as ministering of angels, and that if I would bring the plates\n    to him, he would translate them. I informed him that part of the\n    plates were sealed, and that I was forbidden to bring them; he\n    replied, 'I cannot read a sealed book.' I left him and went to Dr.\n    Mitchell, who sanctioned what Professor Anthon had said respecting\n    both the characters and the translation.'\n\n    \"On the 15th day of April, 1829, Oliver Cowdery came to my house,\n    until when I had never seen him. He stated to me that having been\n    teaching school in the neighborhood where my father resided, and my\n    father being one of those who sent to the school, he went to board\n    for a season at his house, and while there, the family related to\n    him the circumstances of my having the plates, and accordingly he\n    had come to make inquiries of me.\n\n    \"Two days after the arrival of Mr. Cowdery, (being the 17th of\n    April,) I commenced to translate the Book of Mormon, and he\n    commenced to write for me.\n\n    \"We still continued the work of translation, when, in the ensuing\n    month, (May, 1829,) we on a certain day went into the woods to\n    pray and inquire of the Lord respecting baptism for the remission\n    of sins, as we found mentioned in the translation of the plates.\n    While we were thus employed, praying and calling upon the Lord, a\n    messenger from heaven descended in a cloud of light, and having\n    laid his hands upon us, he ordained us, saying unto us, '_Upon you,\n    my fellow-servants, in the name of Messiah, I confer the Priesthood\n    of Aaron, which holds the keys of the ministering of angels, and\n    of the gospel of repentance, and of baptism by immersion for the\n    remission of sins; and this shall never be taken again from the\n    earth, until the sons of Levi do offer again an offering unto the\n    Lord in righteousness_.' He said this Aaronic Priesthood had not\n    the power of laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost, but\n    that this should be conferred on us hereafter; and he commanded us\n    to go and be baptized, and gave us directions that I should baptize\n    Oliver Cowdery, and afterwards that he should baptize me.\n\n    \"Accordingly we went and were baptized--I baptized him first, and\n    afterwards he baptized me--after which I laid my hands upon his\n    head and ordained him to the Aaronic Priesthood, and afterwards he\n    laid his hands on me and ordained me to the same Priesthood for so\n    we were commanded.\n\n    \"The messenger who visited us on this occasion, and conferred this\n    Priesthood upon us, said his name was John, the same that is called\n    John the Baptist in the New Testament, and that he acted under\n    the direction of Peter, James, and John, who held the keys of the\n    Priesthood of Melchisedec, which Priesthood, he said, should in\n    due time be conferred on us, and that I should be called the first\n    elder and he the second. It was on the 15th day of May, 1829, that\n    we were baptized and ordained under the hand of the messenger.\n\n    \"Immediately upon our coming up out of the water, after we had\n    been baptized, we experienced great and glorious blessings from\n    our Heavenly Father. No sooner had I baptized Oliver Cowdery than\n    the Holy Ghost fell upon him, and he stood up and prophesied many\n    things which would shortly come to pass. And again, so soon as I\n    had been baptized by him, I also had the spirit of prophecy, when,\n    standing up, I prophesied concerning the rise of the Church, and\n    many other things connected with the Church and this generation\n    of the children of men. We were filled with the Holy Ghost, and\n    rejoiced in the God of our salvation.\n\n    \"Our minds being now enlightened, we began to have the scriptures\n    laid open to our understandings, and the true meaning of their\n    more mysterious passages revealed unto us in a manner which we\n    never could attain to previously, nor ever before had thought of.\n    In the meantime we were forced to keep secret the circumstances of\n    our having been baptized and having received the Priesthood, owing\n    to a spirit of persecution which had already manifested itself in\n    the neighborhood. We had been threatened with being mobbed, from\n    time to time, and this, too, by professors of religion. And their\n    intentions of mobbing us were only counteracted by the influence of\n    my wife's father's family (under Divine Providence,) who had become\n    very friendly to me, and who were opposed to mobs, and were willing\n    that I should be allowed to continue the work of translation\n    without interruption; and therefore offered and promised us\n    protection from all unlawful proceedings as far as in them lay.\"\n\n\"Have you any further proofs to offer respecting the divine\nauthenticity of this book you refer to?\"\n\n\"Yes, we have evidence sufficient to establish its divinity beyond\ndoubt, before any impartial court on earth. I will read you from one\nof our books the voluntary testimony of witnesses who have not; been\nimpeached, as follows:\n\n    THE TESTIMONY OF THREE WITNESSES.\n\n    \"Be it known unto all nations, kindreds, tongues, and people unto\n    whom this work shall come, that we, through the grace of God the\n    Father, and our Lord Jesus Christ, have seen the plates which\n    contain this record, which is a record of the people of Nephi, and\n    also of the Lamanites, their brethren, and also of the people of\n    Jared, who came from the tower of which hath been spoken; and we\n    also know that they have been translated by the gift and power of\n    God, for his voice hath declared it unto us; wherefore we know of a\n    surety that the work is true. And we also testify that we have seen\n    the engravings which are upon the plates; and they have been shewn\n    unto us by the power of God, and not of man. And we declare with\n    words of soberness, that an angel of God came down from heaven, and\n    he brought and laid before our eyes, that we beheld and saw the\n    plates, and the engravings thereon; and we know that it is by the\n    grace of God the Father, and our Lord Jesus Christ, that we beheld\n    and bear record that these things are true; and it is marvellous\n    in our eyes, nevertheless the voice of the Lord commanded us that\n    we should bear record of it; wherefore, to be obedient unto the\n    commandments of God, we bear testimony of these things. And we know\n    that if we are faithful in Christ, we shall rid our garments of the\n    blood of all men, and be found spotless before the judgment-seat\n    of Christ, and shall dwell with him eternally in the heavens. And\n    the honor be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost,\n    which is one God. Amen.\n\n    OLIVER COWDERY, DAVID WHITMER, MARTIN HARRIS.\n\n\"Can you give us any other evidences respecting this record?\"\n\n\"Yes, here is also the testimony of eight additional witnesses, who\ndeclare they saw the plates.\"\n\n    AND ALSO THE TESTIMONY OP EIGHT WITNESSES.\n\n    \"Be it known unto all nations, kindreds, tongues, and people unto\n    whom this work shall come, that Joseph Smith, Jun., the translator\n    of this work, has shown unto us the plates of which hath been\n    spoken, which have the appearance of gold; and as many of the\n    leaves as the said Smith has translated, we did handle with our\n    hands; and we also saw the engravings thereon, all of which has the\n    appearance of ancient work, and of curious workmanship. And this we\n    bear record with words of soberness, that the said Smith has shown\n    unto us, for we have seen and hefted, and know of a surety that the\n    said Smith has got the plates of which we have spoken. And we give\n    our names unto the world, to witness unto the world that which we\n    have seen; and we lie not, God bearing witness of it.\n\n    CHRISTIAN WHITMER, HIRAM PAGE, JACOB WHITMER, JOSEPH SMITH, SEN.,\n    PETER WHITMER, JUN., HYRUM SMITH, JOHN WHITMER, SAMUEL H. SMITH.\n\n\"There is one point,\" said Brown, \"upon which I would like to hear\nfurther: it is the restoration, before mentioned. If these things are\ntrue, then the gospel was not upon the earth at the time of Joseph\nSmith's birth, and, as you will admit, the Church was organized in the\ndays of Christ and left on the earth when He ascended on high: the\nquestion then arises, how the Gospel was it taken from the earth?\"\n\n\"Let me give you another quotation from the Bible on the subject,\" said\nthe Elder. \"'From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of\nheaven suffereth violence; and the violent take it by force.' (Matthew\nxi: 12.) By parity of reasoning where would our own government be\nif subjected to similar treatment? Suppose, that instead of Christ\nbeing crucified, it were the President, that the Cabinet instead of\nthe Apostles were murdered, the Congress and not the Seventies were\nscattered to the four winds, and our citizens were subjected to the\nfate of the Saints of old in being driven beneath the earth--what would\nthen remain of our nation? It exists now proudly and gloriously, and\nhas existed for more than a century, but such treatment would leave\nit to future generations as only an incident in history that is, it\ncame, it nourished and it passed away, just as did the true religion\nin the early days; and it might again, also like the true religion, be\nrestored, even as the Roman Empire rose, fell and rose again.\"\n\n\"I understand.\"\n\n\"If you have no objections, I would like to read to you the words of\na wise man on this subject, which will illustrate my meaning in a\nmuch clearer way than it is possible for me to express it myself. The\nquotation is not long and you will all especially my legal friend--see\nthe force of his argument. He uses these words:\n\n\"'Now, in order to come at this subject in plainness, let us examine\nthe constitution of earthly governments in regard to the authority\nand laws of adoption. We will say, for instance, the President of the\nUnited States writes a commission to A. B., duly authorizing him to\nact in some office in the government, and daring his administration,\ntwo gentlemen from Europe come to reside in this country, and being\nstrangers and foreigners wishing to become citizens, they go before\nA. B., and he administers the oath of allegiance in due form, and\ncertifies the same, and this constitutes them legal citizens, entitled\nto the privileges of those who are citizens or subjects by birth. After\nthese things A. B. is taken away by death, and C. D., in looking over\nhis papers happens to find the commission given to A. B., and applying\nit to his own use, assumes the vacant office; meantime, two foreigners\narrive and apply for citizenship, and being informed by persons\nignorant of the affairs of government that C. D. could administer the\nlaws of adoption, they submit to be administered unto by C. D., without\nonce examining his authority; C. D. certifies of their citizenship,\nand they suppose they have been legally adopted, the same as the\nothers, and are entitled to the privileges of citizenship. But, by and\nby, their citizenship is called into question, and they produce the\ncertificates of C. D.; the President inquires, 'Who is C. D.? I never\ngave him a commission to act in any office, I know him not and you are\nstrangers and foreigners to the commonwealth, until you go before the\nlegally appointed successor of A. B., or some other of like authority,\nwho has a commission from the President direct in his own name.' In the\nmeantime C. D. is taken and punished according to law, for practicing\nimposition, and usurping authority which was never conferred upon him.\nAnd so it is with the kingdom of God. The Lord authorized the Apostles\nand others, by direct revelation, and by the spirit of prophecy, to\npreach and baptize, and build up His church and kingdom; but after\nawhile they died, and a long time passed away; men reading over their\ncommission, where it says to the eleven Apostles, 'Go ye into all the\nworld and preach the gospel to every creature,' etc., have had the\npresumption to apply these sayings as their authority, and, without\nany other commission, have gone forth professing to preach the gospel,\nand baptize, and build up the church and kingdom of God; but those\nwhom they baptize never receive the same blessings and gifts which\ncharacterized a Saint, or citizen of the kingdom, in the days of the\nApostles. Why? Because they are yet foreigners and strangers, for the\ncommission given to the Apostles never commissioned any other man to\nact in their stead. This was a prerogative the Lord preserved unto\nHimself. No man has a right to take this ministry upon himself, but he\nthat is called by revelation, and duly qualified to act in his calling\nby the Holy Ghost.\"\n\n\"You give us abundance of authority, as well as your own testimony and\nevidence,\" said the doctor. \"You have developed a wide and profound\nsubject for our consideration, and for one I regret that we cannot at\nonce hear you out, that is, go to the end of the subject with you,\nand know all that you are in possession of in regard to it. Right or\nwrong, one thing is plainly manifest--that you convey a philosophy each\npart of which is so reasonable, consistent and harmonious with every\nother part, and with the ground-work itself, that he who doubts must\nquestion himself as to why he doubts. And now, let me ask, will it not\nbe practicable for you to remain another day?\"\n\n\"While it would give me, personally, the greatest pleasure to do so,\nit must be remembered that I am not performing this work for my own\nindividual gratification. The field is a broad one, and just think how\nsmall a portion of it I would be able to cover should I give way to my\npresent inclinations and remain unduly long in places where everything\nis so pleasant as here. No, I must go, but hope to return to this\nregion again.\"\n\n\"Well, of course you understand your own affairs best, but you are\nmaking such headway here that I hoped it might be desirable for you to\ncontinue to the end.\"\n\n\"So it would but for the reasons stated. My train departs at 11 o'clock\ntomorrow, and I must fill the appointments I have made.\"\n\n\n\nCHAPTER IX.\n\nTHAT MORMON AGAIN.\n\nSome months had passed away since the Elder took his departure from\nWestminster, and during this time his name had been on everybody's\nlips, both for good and evil. The principles advanced by him had taken\nsuch root in the minds of many that it seemed impossible for them to\nlay the doctrine aside. Among this class were the Marshalls, who, by\nthe way, had increased their family by the addition of a son-in-law,\ntheir daughter Claire having, as was anticipated, changed her name from\nMarshall to Sutherland.\n\nHerbert Sutherland was a rising young man of Westminster, well and\nfavorably known to most of the people. He had for several years been\nvery much attached to Miss Marshall, and, as the love was mutual, of\ncourse no one appeared surprised in the least when the wedding took\nplace. Joy, and promise of an unclouded life, seemed to be the portion\nof the young couple.\n\nBreakfast had been waiting for over an hour for Mr. Marshall, and\nhis good wife had become almost impatient when the gate opened and\nhe entered, saying to his wife, \"You must overlook this delay, as I\nhave been detained at the station. While passing, I noticed a familiar\nfriend and could not resist the temptation of spending with him the\nforty minutes given for transferring baggage, even when aware that the\ndetention kept you and the breakfast waiting.\"\n\n\"Well I declare,\" said Mrs. Marshall, \"you must have met a very\nesteemed friend indeed, to have remained so long at the expense of so\nmany.\"\n\n\"Who was it, papa?\" remarked Claire; \"it's no use asking us to guess,\nfor you know we are not Yankees enough for that.\"\n\n\"One would imagine you had been in the presence of a number of\nfriends,\" said Mr. Sutherland, \"judging from the pleased expression on\nyour face.\"\n\n\"Well, why not tell us who it was?\" said Mrs. Marshall.\n\n\"It was one whose visit with us was very short, but whose name has been\nmentioned since scores of times,\" Mr. Marshall answered; \"and now we\nwill go to the dining room, and, in the meantime, I will tell you what\nmy conversation was with Mr. Charles Durant, of Salt Lake City, our\nMormon friend.\n\n\"I had learned that he promised while here to visit you again,\"\nremarked Mr. Sutherland, \"and is it possible, he has been so near and\nyet failed to keep his promise? I did not think this of Mr. Durant,\nfor, while I have not had the pleasure of his acquaintance, I had\nformed a very good opinion of him from remarks made by others, and was\nin hopes of seeing him myself some day.\"\n\n\"And so you shall,\" answered Mr. Marshall, \"I tell you he has not\nforgotten. He is on his way home, it is true, but has taken a trip up\nthe country for a few days, and intends visiting us when he returns.\"\n\n\"That's better,\" said Sutherland; \"I do not wish to miss what you\npeople claimed was a treat to you.\"\n\nWith this the family adjourned to the dining room, where Mr. Marshall\nacquainted them with all the facts received from Mr. Durant. He had\nperformed his work to the entire satisfaction of the president of the\nSouthern States Mission, and had been given a leave of absence to\nreturn home; but he had received word while _en route_ that some Elders\nhad been terribly beaten by a band of fanatics. He was instructed to\npay his fellow laborers a visit, and administer to their wants before\ncontinuing his homeward journey. While he had in view a pleasant visit\nwith the Marshalls, he could not think of enjoying the same before\nperforming a duty to the brethren in distress. He would be with the\nMarshalls in a day or two and would then remain some days in their\ncompany.\n\n\"He has promised,\" said Mr. Marshall, \"to answer all the questions we\nhave been accumulating for him, and will be pleased indeed to have as\nmany of our neighbors spend the evening with him as we are willing to\ninvite.\"\n\n\"Exactly what Herbert has been wishing for,\" exclaimed Claire, \"knowing\nso well that Mr. Durant and the Mormon gospel doctrines have made a\ndeep impression on us, he has been very anxious to converse with this\nmissionary.\"\n\n\"Yes,\" answered Sutherland, \"if all I have heard from you is correct,\nthen I am surprised that this peculiar people are despised to such\nan extent. The principles you have explained to me, as received from\nhim, are logical and good, and Mr. Brown tells me they have had such\nan influence with him, that nothing short of a visit to Salt Lake City\nwill satisfy the longing he has to study the Mormon question as he\ndesires; and as for Claire, why she has gone over her Bible and marked\nthe passages quoted by the Elder, until the Sacred Book looks like a\nChinese record.\"\n\n\"And better than that,\" exclaimed his young wife, \"I have committed\nthe most of them to memory, and should he desire an assistant, I\ncan surprise not only him but all of you with my knowledge of those\nprinciples. I realize how much happiness God has given me in this\nworld, and how much I should endeavor to please Him, and have therefore\ndevoted more time to reading His word than ever before, and, strange\nto say, I have found passages quoted by Mr. Durant whenever I have\nread, and the verses marked in my Bible seem to lead to something else\nthat he has said. His testimony is so deeply rooted in my heart that I\nalmost believe his people will yet be my people, and his faith will be\nmy faith.\"\n\n\"Why, Claire,\" said her mother, \"if you are not careful, you will be a\nMormon before you are aware.\"\n\n\"And should you become one,\" said her husband, \"think of your many\nfriends, and the opinions they will have of you.\"\n\n\"Well, I haven't joined the Mormons yet,\" said Claire; \"but if I do,\nit will be because I believe them to be right; and if I have your good\nwill, Herbert, and that of papa and mamma, what care I for the opinions\nof others?\"\n\n\"Well said,\" answered Herbert, with a smile; \"but we will see if we\ncannot 'corner' your missionary, get him into an argumentative jail, if\nyou please, from which it will be difficult or impossible for him to\nescape. Should he be able to make the gospel he teaches as plain and as\nreasonable as the doctrines that are set forth in the tracts which he\nleft here, I can see no reason why any earnest, sincere searcher after\nknowledge cannot adopt that gospel as a living truth.\"\n\nIt was agreed, thereupon, that when the promised telegram from Durant\nshould be received, giving the date of his arrival, the neighbors\nwere to be invited, and the large dining room would be turned into an\ninformal meeting place where the principles of the gospel, as believed\nin by the Mormons, could be further explained. This was accordingly\ndone.\n\n\n\nCHAPTER X.\n\nTHE MISSIONARY'S RETURN.\n\nElder Charles Durant returned to Westminster just ten days after the\ntime of his meeting with Mr. Marshall, at the station. He was heartily\nwelcomed by the family, and being comfortably seated at the dinner\ntable, the conversation naturally drifted to a detailed account of\nhis experience since his first visit. His labors had been divided\nsomewhat in two or three different states. He had met with many kinds\nof people, and with a variety of treatments, since leaving the home of\nthe Marshalls; he made many friends as well as a few enemies, but had\nendeavored to perform his work in a way to meet the approbation of that\nBeing who had commissioned him to spread His word among the children\nof men. Having performed his work to the satisfaction of those under\nwhom he labored, he was, as previously stated, released therefrom, for\na time at least, and had commenced his journey towards the land of his\nbirth, where dwelt his loved ones, when the telegram reached him from\nthe president of the Mission to the effect that several Elders had been\nmobbed in a neighboring county, and asking that he visit his brethren\non his way home, as stated before.\n\nAfter the meal, the family adjourned to the sitting room when the\nmissionary was requested to give an account of the mobbing of the\nElders whom he had just visited.\n\nHe said that they had been laboring for several months holding meetings\nwherever they could get an opportunity, and had succeeded in obtaining\nthe permission of the trustees to hold their meetings in a schoolhouse\nthey being solicited to hold religious services by the people, and\nexplain the gospel to them.\n\nA family named Brooks expressed a desire to be baptized, and the Elders\nhad consented to perform the ordinance on a fixed day, according to\ntheir custom, and in conformity with the plan of salvation as pointed\nout by Christ, the early Apostles, and by John the Baptist who baptized\nopenly in the river Jordan, and near \"Aenon near to Salim because there\nwas much water there.\"\n\nAt the appointed time the ordinance was performed, a number of persons\nbeing present who came for the purpose of sneering at the rite, and\nmaking sport of its sacredness, which they did, but which the Elders\npaid only little attention to, being accustomed to the jeers of the\nwicked. On the same evening there was a pleasant association at the\nresidence of the newly-baptized family, the time being spent in singing\nsacred songs, and in conversation. Retiring at 9 o'clock, leaving their\nbedroom door open owing to the heat, they were at 11 o'clock rudely\nawakened, ordered to get up, to accompany a mob of about fifteen men to\nthe woods.\n\n\"You are a pretty-looking lot of fellows,\" said one of the Elders as he\ncounted them, and glanced at their masked faces.\n\n\"What do you consider the Savior would think of your mission, if He\nwere here? Why do you disturb the slumbers of the peaceful citizens at\nnight, thus hideously masked? If we have transgressed any law, we are\namenable; take us before your magistrates, and we will answer to any\ncharge you may prefer.\"\n\n\"We don't want you to preach any more in this locality,\" said one of\nthe masked men.\n\n\"Then the best way to stop us is to induce the people to cease\nattending our meetings.\"\n\nAt this juncture the inmates of the house were alarmed, and Mr. B. came\nin, taking a glance at each of the disturbers.\n\nA voice on the outside was heard to cry: \"Captain! captain! enough\nsaid, enough said.\"\n\nThe mob then withdrew, and the Elders retired again, still leaving the\ndoor unlocked. They remained there the following day, but subsequently\nspent some time visiting friends in other districts. In the course\nof two weeks they returned to the same place. On their way thither,\nthere were a few who hurled insults at them, but to this they paid\nno attention. They arrived at Mr. Brooks' house at 5 o'clock in the\nevening where they met companions, and where the time was spent in\nspeaking of the gospel, singing hymns, and in conversing upon a variety\nof subjects concerning Utah and her people. No signs of disturbance\nappeared, save an occasional ominous bark of the house dog.\n\nThe Elders retired with sweet recollections of home, to be roughly\nawakened at 2 o'clock at night, by the harsh cry of \"Surrender.\" They\nwere surrounded by a horde of ruffians, armed with guns, pistols and\nclubs; and in the most blasphemous language, were ordered to get up,\nthe mobbers in the meantime brandishing their weapons in the faces\nof the Elders. Not obeying orders as rapidly as the mob wished them\nto, they were each (there being four of them), seized by two of the\ncowards, one on either side, dragged from their beds in an inhuman\nmanner, and marched along the road, an eighth of a mile, dressed only\nin their thin summer night-clothing. Resistance was impossible, and\nthe attempt of the proprietor of the house to assist them was met with\ncurses, a blow across the forehead, with the exclamation: \"If you show\nyour head out of this house before 6 o'clock tomorrow morning, we will\nkill you.\"\n\nThe train marched on, the vilest curses and the blackest oaths being\nuttered against them that mortals can express. There was no charge\npreferred against them, and they said: \"If we have broken any law, take\nus before the courts,\" but the only reply was:\n\n\"We are law enough for you.\"\n\nWhat was to be their fate, they knew not, until the mob began cutting\nand trimming limbs of trees from four to six feet long, having ugly\nknots. Soon the Elders were ordered to bend over a fallen log about\ntwo feet through, when their doom was made plain to them. They were\nterribly whipped, receiving lash after lash upon their backs without\na question being asked, or an opportunity being afforded to appeal\nfrom this inhuman treatment. Occasionally they raise to say a word,\nbut are immediately thrust down again by some of the mob using pistols\nor clubs. In this way three received severe scalp wounds. The woods\nresound with the lashes and the groans of the tortured; thirty-five\nstripes have been laid upon them, when they are requested to leave\nthe country. Too faint to comply, their hesitancy is construed as a\nrefusal, and they are once more belabored with redoubled fury, causing\nthem to cringe beneath the cruel beech-limbs wielded by a sturdy fiend\nweighing over two-hundred pounds. Fifty stripes each, they received,\nand yet they had injured no man! How terrible! but it was all for the\nsake of the gospel. Finally after such torture, they were released,\nupon promising to leave the country the next day.\n\nThey returned to their friend and brother! but in what a lacerated\ncondition. They found him sitting in the door bleeding from his wounds.\nThey dressed each other's wounds as best they could, then lay down in\ntroubled rest till morning, when they departed to the place where Elder\nDurant met them, perhaps never to return.\n\nWhile rehearsing not only his own experience but that of his wounded\nbrothers, no one listened with more marked attention than Claire's\nhusband. From the moment he was introduced to Durant, at the depot,\nthey became very much attached to each other, and, as expressed by Mr.\nSutherland, it seemed as if they had always been acquainted.\n\nLater, while these two were conversing upon the veranda, Mr. Sutherland\ninterrupted the Elder by asking: \"How do you account for the peculiar\nfeelings attending the formation of new friendship, Mr. Durant? Have\nyou not noticed that upon many occasions when introduced to a person,\nyou feel as well acquainted as if you had known him for years?\"\n\n\"Yes,\" replied Elder Durant, \"I have noticed it often, and have\nfrequently wondered if occasions where such feelings are manifested\nwere really the beginning of acquaintance.\"\n\n\"I have certainly been very much impressed with this sensation at times\nwhen I have been absolutely certain of its being the first meeting,\"\nreplied Sutherland; \"for instance, to be frank, it is the case with\nyou. I am certain beyond question that you and I have never met\nprevious to this day, and yet I followed you while giving the account\nof your labors and the troubles of your brethren, with as much interest\nas if you were my own brother; and I have felt all day long that we\nhave always been acquainted.\"\n\n\"Mr. Sutherland,\" said the Elder, \"who knows but before now we have\nbeen better acquainted than you are with any gentleman in your village,\nand that we have merely forgotten our former associations together?\"\n\n\"I do not understand your meaning,\" said Sutherland, \"I am certain we\nhave never seen each other before, and consequently I cannot comprehend\nyour idea when you intimate that perhaps we have been well acquainted.\nYou came from the West, while I have always lived here, where you have\nnever dwelt except during your former visit to Mr. Marshall's home, and\nhow, therefore, can it be possible for us ever to have met before?\n\n\"I do not claim for an instant that such is the case, Mr. Sutherland,\nbut the idea afforded me such a splendid chance to open a conversation\nupon a principle believed in by my people, that I could not resist the\nopportunity of saying what I did, and, as you say you are desirous of\nlearning all you can about our views upon religious principles, you,\nyourself, gave me a thought, serving as a text, for dwelling upon one\nof the most important of these.\"\n\n\"If that is the case, I am very glad. What is the principle?\"\n\n\"You know that all Christians believe that after death there is life?\"\n\n\"Of course, or why should they take the pains to prepare for death? But\nwhat has that to do with having met you before?\"\n\n\"Neither that nor what I am going to say has anything whatever to do\nwith it, but, Mr. Sutherland, if it is reasonable for you and me to\nbelieve we shall live after death, why should it be unreasonable for\nus also to believe that our spirits existed before the birth of our\nearthly tabernacles? There is certainly something connected with the\nintelligence of man that should appeal to us as if to say that the\nspirit is older than the body, and emanated from a more exalted place\nthan this earth of ours.\"\n\n\"Why, Mr. Durant,\" exclaimed Sutherland in astonishment, \"I never heard\nsuch a doctrine as that.\"\n\n\"Let me ask, have you ever read the Bible to any great extent?\"\n\n\"Yes, I have always been a lover of the Divine Record, and have spent\nmany hours in its perusal.\"\n\n\"I am glad to hear this, and I think, as we proceed, you may\nchange your mind regarding never having heard such a doctrine as\npre-existence. You will perhaps admit that while reading, you failed\nto understand fully what you read. As an introduction to this grand\nand glorious principle, let me read a beautiful poem I have here from\nthe pen of one of the gifted women of Utah; she is dead now, and the\nintelligent spirit, sent from God to dwell in her earthly tabernacle,\nhas been recalled by the Being who sent it, or, as the Bible declares,\n'has returned to God who gave it.' Her name was Eliza B. Snow Smith,\nand that name, as well as this poem, will live while time endures:\"\n\n  \"O my Father, thou that dwellest\n    In the high and glorious place!\n  When shall I regain thy presence,\n    And again behold thy face?\n  In thy holy habitation,\n    Did my spirit once reside?\n  In my first, primeval childhood,\n    Was I nurtured near thy side?\n\n  \"For a wise and glorious purpose\n    Thou hast placed me here on earth,\n  And withheld the recollection\n    Of my former friends and birth;\n  Yet oft-times a secret something\n    Whispered, You're a stranger here;\n  And I felt that I had wandered\n    From a more exalted sphere.\n\n  \"I had learned to call thee Father,\n    Through thy Spirit from on high;\n  But, until the Key of Knowledge\n    Was restored, I knew not why.\n  In the heavens are parents single?\n    No; the thought makes reason stare!\n  Truth is reason; truth eternal\n    Tells me, I've a mother there.\n\n  \"When I leave this frail existence,\n    When I lay this mortal by,\n  Father, mother, may I meet you\n    In your royal court on high?\n  Then, at length, when I've completed\n    All you sent me forth to do,\n  With your mutual approbation\n    Let me come and dwell with you.\"\n\n\"That is one of the most beautiful compositions I have ever listened\nto, Mr. Durant. The words appear to carry a strange conviction with\nthem. Can it be true? and if so, are we here as school children, sent\nby exalted parents, to become acquainted with sorrow in order to\nunderstand happiness?\"\n\n\"Either this is the case, or else our faith in a hereafter is a\nmyth. You prove to me that our birth is the commencement of the\nintelligence of man, and you also convince me that death is its end.\nBut we have enough given in the scriptures to convince us that birth\nis not the beginning, and likewise that death is not the end. Christ\nsaid He came forth from the Father (John xvi: 28), and it was His\nprayer that the glory which He had before coming would be His when He\nreturned. (John xvii: 5.) In His teachings to His Apostles He must\nhave familiarized them with this exalted principle of pre-existence,\nfor upon one occasion they came to Him with a question, concerning a\nblind man: 'Who did sin, this man or his parents, that he was born\nblind?' (John ix: 2.) Surely had this been a foolish question, Christ\nwould have corrected them, but He answered them in a manner leading\nus to understand that it was a principle firmly believed in by them\nall; and comprehending this, as certainly they did, they, more than\nour generation, could intelligently lisp the prayer taught them by the\nMaster: 'Our Father who art in heaven.' Our Divine Record says that\nGod is the Father of the spirits of all flesh (Num. xvi: 22), in whose\nhand is the soul of every living thing (Job xii: 10); and we find in it\nthat when death comes, the spirit of man will return to God who gave\nit. (Eccl. xii: 7.) Job was asked by the Lord where he was when the\nfoundation of the earth was laid (Job. xxxviii: 3-7), and the Almighty\ndeclared He not only knew but ordained Jeremiah to be a prophet\nbefore his earthly birth. (Jer. i: 5.) From these passages, and many\nothers that might be cited, it should be very easy for Christians to\nunderstand that there is a natural and a spiritual body.\" (I. Cor. xv:\n44.)\n\n\"Mr. Durant,\" said Sutherland, \"whether this principle is true or\notherwise, it cannot be gainsaid that you have scripture to support it.\"\n\n\"Why should we not have, Mr. Sutherland? It is truth, and it is only\nnatural that the truth should appear reasonable. As quoted, God asks\nJob: 'Who laid the corner stones of this earth, when the morning stars\nsang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy?' (Job xxxviii:\n7.) Now I sincerely believe that we were there, that we helped to\ncompose that large congregation of sons of God, and that we _did_\nshout for joy at beholding the time approaching when we also would\nhave the privilege of visiting an earth where our Father would give us\nan opportunity to become possessed of bodies which should eventually\nbe eternal abiding places for our spirits; that when we came to this\nschool we should have our judgments taken away, or, in other words,\nthat all recollection of our former existence should be withdrawn, in\norder that we might be able to use the greatest gift of all, which is\n'free agency,' to do good or evil and become to a certain extent Gods\nin embryo, and then when we returned home from this school our Father\ncould reward us, his children, according to our works.\"\n\n\"Your explanation carries with it conviction. I have been very much\ninterested and desire to talk further with you on this subject, but\nfear I am doing you an injustice by requiring you to speak so much. I\nmust not forget that the neighbors are coming in tonight, and I should\ntherefore not weary you.\"\n\n\"You need not fear, I assure you: I have been talking now upon these\nprinciples for two years; it is my mission, and I am well pleased to\nfind people who are willing to hear.\"\n\n\"I am very anxious to listen, I can assure you,\" replied Mr.\nSutherland. \"Let us walk through the village, you can view our\nimprovements, and perhaps shake hands with many whom you met when here\nbefore; we might then return in time for supper, and rest awhile before\nour evening chat.\"\n\nThis proposition was agreed to, and taking their hats, the two men went\nout. The first person met on the ramble was our medical friend, who,\nlearning of Mr. Durant's intended return, was hastening to the Marshall\nresidence to welcome him. The greeting which the young missionary\nreceived from his true and lasting friend was unaffected and sincere,\nmeaning more than language can express. Questions and answers regarding\nthe missionary's trip, and matters, which to the general reader would\namount to mere commonplace, were exchanged by the conversation, and\nmust have been interesting to them, for it was continued during the\nwhole of what proved a very long walk.\n\n\"I begin to feel quite like a resident here,\" said the Elder, \"though,\nperhaps, I ought to say that my acquaintance is not the only cause for\nthat feeling, for I try to be at ease wherever I go.\"\n\n\"And succeed I should say. If your experience elsewhere has been\nanything like that at Westminster.\"\n\n\"Yes, indeed, and in so doing I find no little comfort in the words of\nan eminent man who is classed as a 'pagan,' an agnostic, and so on,\nbut who, I verily believe, was as much a Christian at heart as most of\nus certainly much more so than many who engage in the promulgation of\nChristianity as a profession: 'The world is my home, and humanity my\nkindred.'\"\n\nBy this time they had reached the home of Mr. Marshall, and after\nsupper, preparations were made for the evening gathering.\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XI.\n\nA PLEASANT INTERVIEW.\n\nIn the evening Elder Durant not only had the pleasure of meeting\nall his old friends of the previous visit, but was honored with the\npresence of a large number of persons whom he had not seen before. Some\nof them had attended the meeting he held in the Town Hall on his first\nvisit, while others had only heard of him through the Marshalls.\n\nWhen all were comfortably seated in the large dining room, Mr.\nSutherland by way of introducing the missionary to his new friends,\nsaid:\n\n\"My friends and neighbors, we have assembled here this evening for the\npurpose of listening to Mr. Durant on the religious faith of a people\nwho claim to have the keys of a new dispensation committed to them.\nIf their claim is correct, then it is of the utmost importance to the\nwhole human race. If God has indeed spoken from the heavens, it is\nthe duty of His children to listen; on the other hand, if this claim\nof the Mormons be founded on a myth, then it is our duty to do all in\nour power to disprove their declarations, and deny that they have any\ndivine commission whatever to proclaim the principles of salvation.\nYou who have the privilege of listening to him will know whether his\narguments are sound and scriptural, or otherwise; and can therefore\nexercise the right, which you all have, of judging for yourselves. We\nwill, therefore, ask our friend from the valleys of the West to give\nus, in as few words as possible, an outline of what Mormonism teaches,\nafter which all may act with the utmost freedom in asking questions\nupon anything the gentleman may say, or upon any principle believed in\nby his people. Now, Mr. Durant, we are anxious to hear you, and you\nwill find us attentive listeners.\"\n\nThe Elder arose and in a few well-chosen words expressed his thanks to\nthe Marshalls for their kindness, as well as to Mr. Sutherland, and\nall his friends who had taken an interest in him. He was pleased to\nanswer questions pertaining to his faith, and with all sincerity bore\ntestimony that the Mormons were less understood by the people of this\nand other nations than any other sect in Christendom. Their mission is\none of \"peace on earth and good will to man,\" not withstanding they had\nbeen represented as having objects quite the reverse.\n\nTheir faith teaches the reason why man is here in this probation;\nwhence man came, and whither he goes, after his departure by death. It\nteaches that the destiny of man is mighty, that his exaltation is to be\ngreat; that what man is, God once was; that what God is, man can be.\n\n\"Mormonism teaches men to believe in God, the Eternal Father, and in\nHis Son Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost, who bears record of them\nforever.\n\n\"As a people, we believe that all mankind, through the transgression\nof our first parents, were brought under the curse and penalty for\ntransgression; but that through the atoning sacrifice, sufferings,\nand death of Jesus Christ, all are to be redeemed from any effects of\noriginal transgression; that 'as by the offense of one, judgment came\nupon all men unto condemnation; even so, by the righteousness of one,\nthe free gift came upon all men unto the justification of life.' (Rom.\nv: 18.)\n\n\"We believe that little children are innocent, and not under\ntransgression; that they are incapable of obeying any law, not\nunderstanding good or evil; and Jesus says, 'Of such are the kingdom of\nheaven;' but then, when they arrive at the years of maturity, and know\ngood from evil, and are capable of obeying or disobeying law; if they\nthen transgress, they will be condemned for breaking a known law.\n\n\"We believe that no man will be condemned for not obeying a law that\nhe does not know; and that consequently millions of the human family\nwho have never heard the gospel, are more blessed than those who have\nhad that privilege, and have refused to accept it; that mankind will be\njudged according to the deeds done in the body.\n\n\"We believe in the sufferings, death and atoning sacrifice of our Lord\nand Savior Jesus Christ, and in His resurrection and ascension on high,\nand in the Holy Ghost, which is given to all who obey the gospel.\n\n\"We believe, first, it is necessary to have faith in God, and that,\nnext, it is necessary to repent of our sins to confess and to turn away\nfrom them, and make restitution to all whom we have injured, as far as\nit is in our power.\n\n\"We believe that the third necessity is to be baptized by immersion in\nwater, in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, 'for remission\nof sins,' and that this ordinance must be performed by one having\nauthority, or otherwise it is of no avail.\n\n\"The fourth is, to receive the laying on of hands, in the name of Jesus\nChrist, for the gift of the Holy Ghost; and this ordinance must also\nbe administered by the Apostles or the Elders, whom the Lord Jesus has\ncalled to lay on hands, nor then is it of any advantage except to those\npersons who have complied with the before-named three conditions.\n\n\"We believe that the Holy Ghost is the same now, as it was in the\napostolic days, and that when a church is organized, it is its\nprivilege to have all the gifts, powers and blessings which flow from\nthe Holy Spirit:\n\n\"'Such, for instance, as the gifts of revelation, prophecy, visions,\nthe ministry of angels, healing the sick by the laying on of hands in\nthe name of Jesus, the working of miracles, and, in short, all the\ngifts mentioned in the scriptures, or enjoyed by the ancient Saints.'\nWe believe that inspired apostles and prophets, together with all the\nofficers as mentioned in the New Testament, are necessary in the Church\nin these days.\n\n\"We believe that there has been a general and awful apostasy from the\nreligion of the New Testament, so that all the known world have been\nleft for centuries without the church of Christ among them; without a\npriesthood authorized of God to administer ordinances; that every one\nof the churches has perverted the gospel, some in one way and some in\nanother. For instance, almost every church has ignored the doctrine of\n'immersion for the remission of sins.' Those few who have practiced\nit have abolished the ordinance of the 'laying on of hands' upon\nbaptized believers for the gifts of the Holy Ghost. Again the few who\nhave practiced the last ordinance have perverted the first, or have\ndenied the ancient gifts, powers and blessings which flow from the\nHoly Spirit, or have said to the inspired apostles and prophets, we\nhave no need of you in the body. Those few, again, who have believed\nin, and contended for, the miraculous gifts and powers of the Holy\nSpirit, have perverted the ordinances. Thus all the churches preach\nfalse doctrines and distort the gospel, and instead of having authority\nfrom God to administer its ordinances, they are under the curse of\nGod for corrupting it. Paul says (Gal. i: 8), 'Though we or an angel\nfrom heaven preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have\npreached unto you, let him be accursed.'\n\n\"We believe that there are a few sincere, honest and humble persons who\nare striving to do according to the best of their understanding, but,\nin many respects, they err in doctrine because of false teachers and\nthe precepts of men, and that they will receive the fullness of the\ngospel with gladness as soon as they hear it.\"\n\n\"We believe in the Bible, Book of Mormon, and in living and continued\nrevelation; but we also believe that no new revelation will contradict\nthe old.\n\n\"The gospel in the Book of Mormon is the same as that in the New\nTestament, so that no one who reads it can misunderstand its\nprinciples. It has been revealed by the angel to be preached as a\nwitness to all nations, first to the Gentiles and then to the Jews,\nthen cometh the downfall of Babylon. Thus fulfilling the vision of\nJohn, which he beheld on the Isle of Patmos, (Rev. xiv: 6, 7, 8), 'And\nI saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting\ngospel to preach unto them that dwell upon the earth, and to every\nnation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, saying with a loud voice,\nfear God and give glory to Him, for the hour of His judgment is come;\nand worship Him that made the heaven and earth, and the sea and the\nfountains of water.' And there followed another angel saying, 'Babylon\nis fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations\ndrink of the wine of the wrath of her fornications.'\n\n\"Many revelations and prophecies have been given to this Church since\nits rise, which have been printed and sent forth to the world. These\nalso contain the gospel in great plainness, and instructions of\ninfinite importance to the Saints. They also unfold the great events\nthat await this generation, the terrible judgments to be poured forth\nupon the wicked, and the blessings and glories to be given to the\nrighteous. We believe God will continue to give revelations by visions,\nby the ministry of angels, and by the inspiration of the Holy Ghost,\nuntil the Saints are guided into all truth.\n\n\"We believe that wherever the people enjoy the religion of the New\nTestament, there they enjoy visions, revelations, the ministry of\nangels, etc. And that wherever these blessings cease to be enjoyed,\nthere they also cease to enjoy the religion of the New Testament.\n\n\"We believe that God has established His church in order to prepare\na people for His second coming in the clouds of heaven, in power and\ngreat glory; and that then the Saints that are asleep in their graves\nwill be raised and reign with Him on earth a thousand years.\n\n\"We believe that great judgments await the earth on account of the\nwickedness of its inhabitants, and that when the gospel shall have been\nsufficiently proclaimed, if they reject it they will be destroyed;\nthat plagues, pestilence and famine will be multiplied upon them; that\nthrones will be cast down, empires overthrown, and nations destroyed;\nthat when the Spirit of God ceases to restrain the people, the world\nwill be full of blood, carnage and desolation; that peace will be taken\nfrom the earth and from among all people, religious and irreligious. It\nshall be as with the people, so with the priest, etc.\n\n\"We believe that the Lord will gather His people from among all nations\nunto a land of peace, and give them pastors after His own heart, who\nshall feed them with knowledge and understanding, and they shall be the\nonly people upon the earth that shall not be at war with one another.\n\n\"We believe that the Ten Tribes of Israel, with the dispersed of\nJudah, shall soon be restored to their own lands, according to the\ncovenants which God made with their ancient fathers, and that when this\ngreat work of restitution shall take place, the power of God shall be\nmade manifest in signs, and wonders, and mighty deeds, far exceeding\nanything that took place in the exodus from Egypt. Jerusalem will be\nrebuilt, together with the glorious temple, and the Lord shall visit\nHis Saints in Zion. In that day the name of the Lord shall become great\nunto the ends of the earth, and all nations shall serve and obey Him,\nfor the wicked shall have perished out of the earth.\n\n\"We believe in all principles of truth that have been revealed; in all\nthat are now being revealed, and are prepared to receive all that God\nwill reveal.\n\n\"We believe that the gospel, now being preached by the Latter-day\nSaints, is to call the honest in heart out of Babylon, that they\npartake not of her sins nor receive of her plagues.\n\n\"We believe in morality, chastity, purity, virtue and honesty, and wish\nto promote the happiness of our fellow-men.\"\n\nThe Elder's words were listened to with marked attention. He expressed\na willingness to answer questions, and a desire to have as many asked,\nconcerning the religious principles believed in by his people, as the\nlisteners were pleased to propound.\n\n\"Mr. Durant,\" said Sutherland, when the former was seated, \"I have not\nonly listened to all you have said with the greatest interest, but have\ntaken pleasure in reading the tracts left while on your former visit,\nand whether your faith is correct or otherwise, it will be a difficult\ntask to disprove any of your arguments by the Sacred Record. I wish to\nask you a few questions regarding some of the principles you have not\ntouched upon, and which I understand to be a part of your faith. I am\ninformed that you believe in a literal resurrection of the body? Is\nthis correct?\"\n\n\"Certainly,\" answered the Elder promptly. \"How could we lay any claim\nwhatever to a Christian belief in the resurrection unless we believed\nin a literal resurrection?\"\n\n\"Well you certainly would not be compelled to believe in a literal\nresurrection in order to lay claim to having a Christian belief in that\nprinciple, for all Christians are surely not believers in it.\"\n\n\"All true Christians must follow Christ's teachings regarding this\nprinciple as well as all others, or else how can they be considered\ntrue Christians? Christ is the resurrection and the life. (John xi:\n25.) He was also the first fruits of the resurrection. (Acts xxvi:\n23.) He, therefore, is our great pattern. We know He was put to death\n(Matt. xxvii: 50); that His body was laid in the tomb (Matt. xxvii:\n60); that when His friends visited that tomb the body was gone; that\nan angel declared that the body had been resurrected (Matt. xxviii:\n6); that He appeared to His apostles with the body which had been\ncrucified, even bearing the prints of the cruel nails in His hands, and\nthe marks of the spear in His side, and to satisfy Thomas, He asked to\nbe handled that no mistake might be made regarding its being a literal\nresurrection of the same body He had before the crucifixion (John xx:\n27, 28). This was the resurrection of our Master, and inasmuch as He\nhas commanded us to follow Him, why should ours not be the same?\"\n\n\"But you will admit that if Christianity is true and Christ is really\nthe Savior, that there is a great difference between His resurrection\nand that of those who have died since. His body had only just been\ninterred; there had not been sufficient time for it to decay in the\ngrave, and He was God Himself, while the bodies of others decay, and\nare scattered, in some cases at least, to the four winds,\" answered\nBrown.\n\n\"How about the statement regarding the resurrection of others, who,\nthe scriptures declare, came forth from their graves at the time of\nChrist's resurrection? (Matt. xxvii: 52.) They certainly must have\nslumbered for a long time.\"\n\n\"I cannot understand,\" said Brown \"how it could be possible for a\nliteral resurrection of the body to occur after decay had taken place,\nand the body had returned as dust to the earth.\"\n\n\"Mr. Brown,\" the Elder said, \"you will candidly admit that there are\nmany things now accepted as truths which at one time seemed to you\nincomprehensible?\"\n\n\"No doubt, I do,\" answered Brown.\n\n\"Yes, you do, most decidedly: For instance, when you first learned of\nthe wonders of the telephone, you could scarcely credit them; when you\nwere informed that you could converse with a friend who stood miles\naway, you not only doubted, but perhaps disbelieved, yet you doubt no\nlonger, for your eyes have seen, and your ears have heard. Is not this\ntrue?\"\n\n\"It is; what the eye has seen or the ear has heard, one must certainly\nbelieve. But is not that a vastly different proposition?\"\n\n\"Not at all; you are only less familiar with the methods or principles\nupon which the resurrection depends, that is all. When we have more of\nthe intelligence of heaven, and can understand more regarding the great\nprinciple by which the resurrection is brought about, it will appear\nsimple enough. God permits a ray of intelligence to come from heaven;\nit reaches the mind of man, it gives us knowledge of the telegraph,\nby which our messages flash from nation to nation in the twinkling of\nan eye, and opens to our understanding many other wonders of modern\nscience. We may not understand fully how it is done, but we know it is\naccomplished, and we therefore believe what we once disbelieved.\n\n\"Another ray reaches us, and we have an understanding of the telephone,\nthe phonograph, the electric cars; and through the effects of these\ndiscoveries, we open our eyes in wonderment! Yet these flashes of\nintelligence are nothing compared with the mighty fire of wisdom in the\nheavens from whence these originate. They may be new to us, but are\nthoroughly understood by Him who sent them. They are all gifts from the\nFather of our spirits, and only small gifts at that, compared with what\nHe has in store for us.\"\n\n\"How can you imagine for an instant,\" exclaimed Mr. Sutherland, \"that\nit can be possible for all the particles of our bodies to be gathered\ntogether again after they have been scattered?\"\n\n\"I do not, and cannot pretend to, answer this question. It will require\nmore intelligence than I have, to answer it. But this I firmly believe;\nthat no particle, that is, none of the component parts, of my body\nwill ever go to make up the body of anything else, except perhaps for\na time, and that it matters not whether my body be burned or permitted\nto decay and return to mother earth, every particle will be collected\nand brought together again, at the time of the resurrection which will\nbe literal in every sense of the word. Let me relate a little anecdote\nwhich illustrates my position.\n\n\"A person had received, as a birthday gift, a beautiful silver cup from\na friend. This cup was prized very much, not only on account of its\nbeauty, but because of the love the receiver had for the giver. In a\nshort time the one making this present was called away, the cold hand\nof death was laid upon him.\n\n\"Then the cup increased a hundred fold in value to the owner, and\nnothing could influence him to part from it. Years afterward, the\nowner of the present carried it to the place where he was employed,\nfor the purpose of exhibiting it to a fellow workman. During the day,\nin passing the shelf where it rested while he was engaged in moving\nsome valuable goods, he carelessly knocked the cup from the shelf,\nand it fell into a vessel of fluid. Thinking at the moment that the\nvessel contained nothing but water, the owner waited until his arms\nwere released from the valuable load they contained, before seeking\nto remove the cup from the place into which it had fallen. When he\nreturned, he found, to his sorrow, that his cup had disappeared. Upon\ninvestigation, imagine his sorrow, when he discovered that the vessel\ncontained nitric acid instead of water, and that the cup had been\neaten up by the fluid. He thought of how he had valued that keepsake,\nhow much he revered the memory of the giver, and how foolish he was\nto bring the prize from his home that morning. At this moment, his\nemployer happened along, and noticing his grief enquired for the cause.\nAfter listening to the poor man's story, and learning that the cup was\nmade in a neighboring town, he rather startled the sorrowing man with\nthis remark: 'Don't feel bad, my man, I promise, you shall again have\nyour cup.'\n\n\"The workingman, thinking his words meant that he should receive the\namount of its real value, or another cup, explained that it was not its\ncost, neither would another cup fill its place. It was the loss of this\nparticular article, which came from the hands of a friend who had since\ndied, that caused him grief.\n\n\"'Never mind, I say, whether you believe my words or not, I promise,\nand will make good that promise, that you shall again have your cup,\nand it shall be made of the same identical silver, having the same\nform, and being composed of nothing but the same metal. I don't mean\nthe same kind, but the very same silver you dropped into that fluid.'\n\n\"And with this he took a few hand fulls of common salt, flung them into\nthe liquid, and there formed in the solution a white solid; this he\nremoved, dried and heated in a crucible, and the result was a lump of\nsilver of the highest lustre.\n\n\"'Now, you see,' said the kind-hearted man, 'how easy it is to restore\nwhen you understand the method by which it is done. All the silver\ncomposing that cup of yours is now in my hands. How easy it is for me\nto have it remoulded in the same moulds! and who will say you have not\nthe same cup resurrected from the grave?'\n\n\"Can you not understand,\" said Durant, \"that this laborer was in\nthe same condition as the poor mortals who are in painful ignorance\nof the way and means by which the resurrection will take place? And\nyet how simple when once understood. The cup had been buried in that\nworld of liquid, it had dissolved and had been scattered throughout\nthe world in which it was buried, and to a person unacquainted with\nthe laws governing such things, was lost forever. If man, who is as\na babe compared with God in intelligence, could resurrect a cup from\nthat little world, do you not think it possible for God, who is the\nfountain-head of intelligence and power, to restore your body after it\nhas been scattered through out this little world of ours? And as the\nrestoring of that cup appeared very simple to that laboring man, so I\nbelieve the resurrection of the body will appear very simple to us when\nwe are on the other side, and fully understand the laws, methods and\npowers which govern the restoration.\"\n\nAt this moment a Mr. Williams, who had been a very attentive listener\nduring the entire evening, arose and said: \"Mr. Durant, to all\nappearances you have proved every argument made with some quotation\nfrom the Bible; your mode of reasoning appears very logical, but I have\nhere a passage which seems to conflict with the argument that baptism\nis positively essential to salvation.\"\n\n\"If so,\" answered the Elder, \"I will be pleased to listen. Really, if\nyou have found an argument, from the sayings of Christ or His apostles,\nwhich promises salvation without baptism, you have certainly made a\ngreat discovery.\"\n\n\"Well, I think the discovery has been made,\" answered Williams, \"and\nit seems strange that a gentleman who has made the Bible as much of a\nstudy as you have, has never been able to comprehend it.\"\n\n\"Thanks, but now for the argument; do not build your hopes too high,\nperhaps you misunderstand your own reading of the Sacred Record.\"\n\n\"Well, that remains to be seen. You have disclaimed all belief in\ndeath-bed repentance bringing salvation, and you are, as well, a\ndisbeliever in salvation without baptism. Now to the law and the\ntestimony once more. Examine the account of the crucifixion, as\nrecorded in Luke 23rd chapter, beginning with the 39th verse. Christ\nupon that occasion had a male factor on either side of Him; one railed\non Him saying, 'If though be Christ, save thyself and us,' while the\nother, being filled with repentance and being converted, rebuked his\ncompanion in sin and implored the blessed Redeemer: 'Lord remember me\nwhen thou comest to thy kingdom.' Christ, witnessing the repentance of\nthis malefactor, even at the last moment of his life, presented him\nwith the gift of salvation before giving up the ghost: 'Verily I say\nunto thee, today shalt thou be with me in paradise.' These were the\nwords used by the Captain of our salvation; the promise was granted\nwithout baptism, and he was carried to heaven with our Savior; and\nyet in the very face of this testimony you proclaim the doctrine that\nwithout baptism salvation cannot be obtained.\"\n\n\"Christ did not offer that malefactor salvation on that occasion,\nneither was he carried to heaven with the Redeemer. I desire to\nconvince you, Mr. Williams, if you will accept the statement in the\nBible, and I believe you will, that Christ did not go to His Father\nuntil some time after this, and that the paradise referred to is not\nthe haven of salvation that we all hope to reach.\"\n\n\"Mr. Durant, if you convince me of this, I will have nothing more to\nsay,\" replied Mr. Williams.\n\n\"Very well, then, pay strict attention to the words you have just\nquoted which contain the promise that in your opinion insures the\npenitent malefactor entrance to the presence of the Father: 'Today\nshalt thou be with me in paradise.' Three days after these words were\nspoken, we discover Mary weeping as she bowed down at the sepulcher\nwhere Christ's remains had been deposited, and upon recognizing her\nLord, who stood by her side and addressed her, she received this\ncommand, 'Touch me not, for I am not yet ascended to my Father.' Rather\na strange and startling declaration for the Savior to make, was it not,\nwhen the promise to the thief, made three days previously was to the\neffect that upon that day they should both be in His presence?\"\n\n\"Why, Mr. Durant,\" exclaimed Claire, \"I can't understand it at all; He\ndid certainly make the promise, and yet from His words, spoken three\ndays after, it appears that He had not yet been to His Father. Can it\nbe that one of our Savior's promises has really fallen to the ground\nunfulfilled?\"\n\n\"Not in the least, Mrs. Sutherland; it is merely another one of those\ncases where we read but fail to understand. 'The letter killeth but\nthe Spirit giveth life,' you know. Christ kept His word with the\nmalefactor, and He also spoke truthfully to Mary. He and the sinner\nundoubtedly went on the day mentioned to paradise, but the great\nmistake, made by many, lies in believing that paradise is heaven.\"\n\n\"Well, if paradise is not heaven, what is it? If they went to some\nother place, where is that place?\" exclaimed Mr. Williams. \"I believe\nit was heaven.\"\n\n\"I do not doubt your statement for a moment. Prof. A. Hindercoper, a\nGerman writer, says: 'In the second and third centuries every branch\nand division of the Christian church, so far as their records enable us\nto judge, believed that Christ preached to the departed spirits.' This\nis in harmony with the belief of the Latter-day Saints, as well as in\nharmony with the Bible. Peter speaking upon this subject answers your\nquestion by saying: 'For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the\njust for the unjust, that He might bring us to God, being put to death\nin the flesh, but quickened by the spirit: by which also He went and\npreached unto the spirits in prison; which sometimes were disobedient,\nwhen once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while\nthe ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved\nby water.' Christ undoubtedly understood that His mission would not\nend with His crucifixion, but as He finished His mission to mortals\nby opening to them the gospel gates, it would be the beginning of His\nmission, for a similar purpose, with those on the other side of the\nvail, and realizing that His mission there would begin immediately upon\nHis release here, and that the malefactor would meet him there, He\nmade the promise mentioned: 'Today shalt thou be with me in paradise.'\nPeter declares that they were visited and preached to in order that\nthey might be judged according to man in the flesh, but live according\nto God in the spirit. (I. Peter iv: 6.) Bishop Alford, speaking of\nthe declaration made by the chief apostle, said: 'I understand these\nwords (I. Peter iii: 19) to say that our Lord in his disembodied state,\ndid go to the place of detention of departed spirits, and did there\nannounce his work of redemption; preach salvation in fact, to the\ndisembodied spirits of those who refused to obey the voice of God when\nthe judgment of the flood was hanging over them.\"\n\n\"That seems reasonable, and it has given me a pew idea and something to\nconsider,\" said Williams, \"but how about the ordinances you claim are\nnecessary for all? How can those who did not hear the gospel before\nthey died, receive the ordinances?\"\n\n\"Now we believe that those who embraced the gospel in the spirit world\nwill be saved; and believe with the scriptures that a vicarious work\nmust be performed for them by the living. This doctrine was evidently\nunderstood by the saints in the days of the apostles. Paul informs us\nthat the first gospel ordinance of all dispensations, baptism, was\nadministered by proxy among the former-day Saints. While teaching the\nCorinthian saints about the resurrection, (I Cor. xv: 29) he asks them:\n'Else what shall they do which are baptized for the dead, if the dead\nrise not at all?' in other words, of what use is baptism for the dead,\nif there is no resurrection? showing that the doctrine of baptism\nfor the dead was evidently neither new nor strange to the people to\nwhom the apostle was writing. Christ died for the dead as well as the\nliving: \"For to this end Christ both died, and rose, and revived, that\nhe might be the Lord both of the dead and the living.\" (Rom. xiv: 9.)\n\n\"But do you mean that living persons shall be baptized for the dead?\"\n\n\"Certainly. Before the great day of the Lord shall come 'that shall\nburn as an oven, and when all the proud, yea and all that do wickedly\nshall be stubble; and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith\nthe Lord of Hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch,'\n(Mal. iv: 1,) an important event is to take place, as we learn from\nthe same prophet, verses 5 and 6: 'Behold I will send you Elijah the\nprophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord;\nand he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the\nheart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth\nwith a curse.' The coming of Elijah, to inaugurate this great work must\nevidently be to some one who is prepared to receive him. His mission,\n'to turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of\nthe children to their fathers' is very comprehensive, and pertains to\nthe whole family of Adam, there being no discrimination between the\nliving and the dead, between those who have lived in the past and those\nwho shall live in the future. There must be a welding link between the\nfathers and their children, and that welding link is baptism for the\ndead. We testify that Elijah has come; that he appeared to Joseph,\nthe seer, and Oliver Cowdery, in the Kirtland Temple, on the 3rd of\nApril, 1836, and said: 'Behold, the time has fully come, which was\nspoken of by the mouth of Malachi, testifying that he (Elijah) should\nbe sent before the great and dreadful day of the Lord come to turn the\nhearts of the fathers to the children, and the children to the fathers,\nlest the whole earth be smitten with a curse. Therefore, the keys of\nthis dispensation are committed into your hands, and by this ye may\nknow that the great and dreadful day of the Lord is near, even at the\ndoors.' Ordinances for the salvation of the dead require temples, or\nsacred places, especially constructed for their administration; for\nthis reason, we build temples, and also, that we may perform other\nordinances for the dead and the living.\"\n\n\"I have heard that the organization of your Church is unusually\ncomplete. How is it organized?\" asked one of the visitors present.\n\n\"It is organized on the foundation of Apostles and Prophets. We\nhave therefore various quorums of these in the Church organized by\nrevelation for the efficient and harmonious performance of church\nduties. There is the First Presidency, chosen from those who hold the\nHigh Priesthood and Apostleship, consisting of a President and two\ncounsellors. The duty of the President is to preside over the whole\nChurch, and he is sustained by the whole people as a seer, a revelator,\na translator, and a prophet.\"\n\n\"What is meant by Priesthood? You must have two Priesthoods then, as\nyou speak of the High Priesthood, indicating there must be a lower one?\"\n\n\"The Church is governed by the Holy Priesthood, which is divided into\ntwo grand heads the Aaronic or lesser and the Melchisedek or higher.\n\n\"The Melchisedek Priesthood, so called because Melchisedek was such a\ngreat High Priest, and also to avoid the too frequent use of Jehovah's\nname, as this Priesthood was formerly called after the order of His\nSon,--holds the right of presidency, to receive revelations from heaven\nand to enjoy the spiritual blessings; while the Aaronic Priesthood, so\ncalled because it was conferred upon Aaron and his seed forever, holds\nthe keys of the ministering of angels, and to administer in the outward\nordinances of the Church. The offices of the Melchisedek Priesthood\ninclude Apostles, Seventies, Patriarchs or Evangelists, and Elders, and\nthe Aaronic Priesthood includes Bishops, Priests, Teachers and Deacons.\n\n\"Next to the quorum of the First Presidency is the Twelve Apostles,\nthen the High Council, the Seventies, the High Priests, the Elders, and\nthe quorums of the Lesser Priesthood.\n\n\"Each calling has its own duties to be performed, and the organization\nis such that one does not come in conflict with the other.\"\n\nThe company now parted for the evening, each hoping that an opportunity\nmight be given to hear the Elder again.\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XII.\n\nA BAPTISM AND A CONVERSATION ON MARRIAGE.\n\nIt will be remembered that on the evening of Mr. Durant's speech in the\nTown Hall at Westminster, an old lady came to him at the close of the\nmeeting and whispered a \"God bless you\" to him. The truths uttered by\nhim had made a deep impression upon her and were working to bear fruit.\nShe had now made application to be baptized, convinced, as she was, of\nthe truths of the gospel, and that this servant of God was authorized,\nby direct calling from Him through revelation, to perform the solemn\nceremony. It was agreed, therefore, that the baptism should take place\non an afternoon some time before the day of his departure to his home\nin the West.\n\nHe made it a point to obtain a conversation with the lady, and show\nto her the importance of the step she was about to take. It is no\nsimple or indifferent affair. It is a contract with God, fraught with\nwonderful results, to the person who makes it, that will either lead to\nrich blessings or to condemnation. When one man makes a contract with\nanother, the breaker of such a contract must be willing to suffer the\nignominy attending his deceit. In baptism, the subject makes a solemn\nvow with his Creator, and, rising from the waters in which he is buried\nin the likeness of the death of Christ, he should thenceforth walk in\nnewness of life, and should not serve sin. He is made free from sin,\nand becomes a servant to God, he has his fruit unto holiness and the\nend is everlasting life. (Romans vi.)\n\nThe earnestness of the new convert's faith and repentance was inquired\ninto, and it was pointed out to her that she should prepare herself to\nreceive the testimony of the Spirit, which is made known to different\nindividuals in different ways not always by unusual manifestations, but\nfrequently by the calm self-consciousness of peace that comes from a\nperformance of righteous acts, in which the Spirit bears witness with\nour spirit that we are the children of God, heirs and joint heirs with\nChrist. We must not look for approval from friends, relatives or people\nof the world, in taking this step, but be prepared to suffer with\nChrist that we may be also glorified with Him, and exclaim with Paul:\n\"I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to\nbe compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.\" (Rom. viii:\n18.) Like Christ, one must bear the cross upon the lone way, full of\nhope, confidence and zeal, knowing that the end is everlasting life.\n\nHaving said this much, and given many other incidental instructions,\nthat would thoroughly impress the new convert with the sacredness and\nimportance of the step about to be taken, Mr. Durant, members of the\nMarshall family, and a number of strangers, anxious to witness the\nceremony, made their way, on a pleasant afternoon, to a beautiful wood\nwhere a stream wound its clear, slow waters in fantastic forms to empty\ninto one of the large rivers. The autumn tints, the sun casting its\nwarm influence to the earth through the gray atmosphere, the rustle of\nthe wind in the falling leaves, and the beauty of nature all around,\nmade the scene grand and romantic. Some who had gone along to make\nsport of the \"Mormon baptism,\" were awed into strange silence by the\nbeauty of the scene, and by the solemnity and scripture-like simplicity\nof the ceremony. After a word of prayer had been offered, in which Mr.\nDurant invoked the blessings of God upon the ordinance about to be\nperformed, and asked that all disturbing spirits might be banished, he\ntook the lady by the hand and waded with her out into the water, and,\nin the stillness which followed (those upon the shore unconsciously\nremaining uncovered), he was heard to say, as he held the old lady's\nhands in his left, and raised his right hand into the air: \"Julia\nHoward, having been commissioned of Jesus Christ, I baptize you in the\nname of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.\"\n\nThen he immersed her in the water, and both came forth again out of the\nwater.\n\nThe company soon dispersed, and upon arrival at her home, the new\nconvert was confirmed, she preferring this to having that ordinance\nperformed upon the water's edge, which is frequently done. Mr. Durant\nplaced his hands upon her head, and by virtue of his calling and\nauthority, confirmed her a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of\nLatter-day Saints, and, in the manner of the apostles of old, bestowed\nupon her the gift of the Holy Ghost which he promised should be a light\nto her all her days.\n\nThe Elder was about to leave, having welcomed the new member and\ncongratulated her upon the step she had taken, when he was somewhat\nsurprised by a remark she made in which she expressed a desire to\ngather with the Saints.\n\nThe spirit of gathering had already rested upon her, and he explained\nto her the importance of this principle of the gospel. The Father\ndesires that His children shall be gathered in unto one place where\ntheir hearts shall be prepared against the day when tribulation and\ndesolation shall come upon the wicked. The Psalmist referred to this\nsubject and exclaimed: \"Gather my Saints together who have made a\ncovenant with me by sacrifice.\" (Ps. 1: 5.) Isaiah, looking to the\nfuture, saw that in the last days the mountain of the Lord's house\nshould be established in the tops of the mountains to which all nations\nshould go. (Isaiah ii: 2.) Here the Lord was to give them one heart,\nand make an everlasting covenant with them. (Isaiah xxxii: 37-44.)\nAnd in that day the Lord should set His hand again the second time\nto recover the remnants of His people. (Isaiah xi: 11-16.) John, the\nrevelator, saw this time, and heard a voice from heaven saying: \"Come\nout of her [Babylon] my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins\nand that ye receive not of her plagues.\" (Rev. xviii: 4.) It was,\ntherefore, in strict accordance with the scriptures that she should\nhave the desire to gather, as well as that the Saints should have an\nassembling place where they might learn to walk in the paths of God\nmore strictly than in the world. There are ordinances, too, to be\nperformed in the holy temples, for the living and the dead, that cannot\nbe done elsewhere. It is not well, however, that this act of gathering\nshould be considered thoughtlessly and in haste, but rather with\ndeliberation and careful forethought.\n\nIn the conversation, Elder Durant had incidentally remarked, that\nmarriage was not only for time but also for all eternity. The newly\nwedded couple, Mr. and Mrs. Sutherland, who had remained to witness the\nconfirmation, were naturally interested in this, and the subject was\nfurther inquired into by them.\n\n\"What is the belief of the Latter-day Saints in relation to marriage?\"\nsaid Mr. Sutherland.\n\n\"We believe,\" said Durant, \"that marriage is ordained of God, and is\nbinding for eternity, when properly performed by a servant of God\nhaving authority.\"\n\n\"Then it would appear that you believe in the family relation\ncontinuing throughout eternity?\"\n\n\"Certainly, why not? Everything that is done by the Lord receives the\nimpress of eternity. That being the case, marriage, being sanctioned\nand ordained of Him, is also eternal if performed by one having power\nas the ancient apostles had, to bind on earth and it should be bound in\nheaven. It then becomes a work of God, and, as the Preacher exclaims:\n'I know that whatsoever God doeth it shall be forever; nothing can be\nput to it, nor anything taken from it.' (Eccles. iii: 14.) Can you\nthink of anything more comforting than that the loving ties formed in\nthis world are to endure through out the ages of eternity?\"\n\n\"It is certainly more pleasant than to dwell upon a union that shall\nlast only 'till death do you part;' but what proofs have you that your\nview of the matter is correct?\"\n\n\"In the first marriage that was ever performed, when the Creator joined\ntogether Adam and Eve as the parents of the human race, we have no\nrecord of its being done to last only 'till death do you part,' and\nwe do not learn that He set any limit to the continuance of their\nmarriage relations. Why should we doubt that the gift of Eve to Adam,\nwas designed to be eternal? They were married before the Fall, before\ndeath came into the world. They were eternal beings not subject to\ndeath; death was not considered when God gave her to be his companion\nand helpmeet. Why then should we conclude that death should void the\ncontract or separate them any more than that it should destroy the\nspirit? If their spirits could be restored with resurrected bodies,\nwhy should not the eternal work of God in joining them as one remain\nunbroken? The whole second chapter of Genesis breathes the spirit of\neverlasting union between Adam and Eve. In the eighteenth verse we are\ntold by the Lord that, 'it is not good that the man should be alone.'\nAdam, the man, was created an eternal being, and when God said that\nit was not good for him to be alone, we must conclude it was not good\nthat he should be alone in immortality; so the Lord gave him Eve for\nno particular period of his life, but evidently, as she was also an\neternal being, to be his wife forever the union to last as long as they\nshould last eternally.\"\n\n\"That seems reasonable, and it is a pleasant hope you have,\" said\nClaire.\n\n\"With us it is more than a hope; it is knowledge. There are other\npassages of scripture which bear upon the inseparable connection\nbetween man and wife, in marriage as ordained of God. Paul (Eph. v: 22)\nsays: 'The husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head\nof the Church.' Christ remains forever the head of the Church, and even\nso the husband remains the head of the wife eternally.\"\n\n\"What do you mean by saying 'in marriage as ordained of God?' Is not\nall marriage ordained of Him?\" said Mr. Sutherland.\n\n\"By marriage as ordained of God, I mean marriage performed in the\nway He has appointed, by a man whom He has authorized to act in His\nstead. What man does of himself, without authority from God, must be\nlike him limited to this life. Now, like the authority to baptize,\nthis authority to marry in the way God has ordained, must come by\nrevelation from Him, for no man can take these honors to himself. To\nfind this authority, we must look for it among a people who believe in\nrevelation, and not among churches who declare that the heavens are\nsealed, and that no further revelation is necessary.\"\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XIII.\n\nABOUT THE MORMONS.\n\nThe day upon which the Mormon Elder was to leave his missionary field\nto return to his home in the mountains, was rapidly approaching. Mr.\nBrown, the lawyer, had become so interested in the missionary and his\npeculiar people that this gentleman determined to accompany him to\nUtah, to see for himself what he had heard so much concerning.\n\nOn the evening before their departure, all the old friends were\ngathered at the Marshall residence, or hotel, and quite naturally the\nconversation turned to the contemplated trip to Utah, and from that to\nthe motives which led the Mormons to settle in that territory.\n\n\"What were the considerations that led to the settling of Utah by the\nMormons?\" asked one of the members of the little company.\n\n\"Persecution by their enemies was the primary cause,\" said the Elder.\n\"After the death of the Prophet Joseph, they were driven from their\nhomes in Nauvoo, and hence sought a new abiding place in the West.\"\n\n\"How did the death of Joseph, the Prophet, occur?\" asked Mr. Brown.\n\n\"He was murdered in cold blood by masked men. You understand that\nall innovations on existing conditions have been opposed from time\nimmemorial. The gospel has particularly been combatted in all ages,\nas its history amply illustrates. The people of their time did not\ntolerate Christ and His apostles, and ceased not persecuting them as\nlong as they lived upon the earth. They were all at last put to death.\nThe truths which the Latter-day prophet taught were the same as were\nexpounded by the Savior and his followers, and opposition to these came\nas naturally as that a similar cause produces a similar effect. The\nprophet was finally martyred for the testimony which he bore. He had\nbeen brought continually before the courts which, however, could prove\nno guilt against him, for he was innocent of any other offense than\nthat of preaching the gospel of Christ, and bearing his testimony that\nthe God of heaven had again spoken to man. Some three days previous to\nhis assassination, he went to the city of Carthage, in Illinois, Nauvoo\nbeing then the abiding place of the Saints, to deliver himself up to\nthe pretended requirements of the law. The governor of the state had\npledged his word, as the chief executive, that the prophet should be\nprotected, but no effort was made to fulfill this pledge, and so Joseph\nand his brother Hyrum were shot in Carthage jail, on the 27th of June,\n1844, by an armed mob, composed of about two hundred persons who had\npainted themselves black.\"\n\n\"Did this murder of their prophet have the effect of discouraging the\nSaints, or rather, did they feel disposed to abandon the cause for\nwhich they had so far battled?\"\n\n\"It is very natural that they felt discouraged and that some wavered\nin their course, but the great majority were inclined to continue with\nunfaltering zeal in the work, because they knew for themselves that\nthe true gospel had been restored, and that they were engaged in the\nwork of God. And here let me remark that the strength of the Church\nconsists in the personal knowledge and testimony of the members. The\nSpirit of God fills each member with unfaltering faith, and he builds\nhis superstructure of religious belief on personal knowledge, imparted\nto him, by the power of the Spirit, through revelation. This testimony\nremains as long as the person lives uprightly and honorably before\nthe Lord, doing nothing to grieve it away. Instead of scattering and\nabandoning the Church, leaving it to die, as was expected and desired\nby its enemies, and which would doubtless have been the case if it\nhad not been divinely established, the people gathered strength and,\nthrough the assistance of God, and the leadership of Apostle Brigham\nYoung, forsook their homes in their beloved Nauvoo, crossed the\ntrackless plains, scaled the mountains, and in the midst of a desolate\nwilderness founded a commonwealth which has attracted the attention and\nthe admiration of the whole world.\"\n\n\"How did Brigham Young come to be the leader of the people?\" asked Mr.\nSutherland.\n\n\"He was the president of the Twelve Apostles, the quorum next in\nauthority to the First Presidency, upon whom naturally rested the\nkeys of the kingdom, upon whom, in fact, was conferred the power or\nauthority that the prophet had received from on high. Sidney Rigdon and\nothers sought the honor of leading the Church, but the Lord, through\nthe manifestations of His Spirit, chose Brigham Young for the place,\nas president of the Twelve Apostles, the people sustaining him by\ntheir vote, at a meeting held in the grove near the temple at Nauvoo,\non the 8th of August, 1844. He was afterwards, December, 1847, chosen\npresident of the whole Church. He felt the power of his calling, and\nmade preparations for the great exodus of the people to the West, which\nhad been considered during the lifetime of the prophet, but which was\nnow made absolutely necessary by the persecution of the enemies of the\nChurch. In 1845, anti-Mormon delegates from nine counties of Illinois\nmet, at Carthage, and demanded the removal of the Saints. The Council\nof Apostles agreed to their demands, knowing full well that there\nwas no alternative between exodus or extermination by massacre. In\nFebruary, 1846, the exodus began by the Saints crossing the Mississippi\nRiver, the remnant following on September 17th of the same year, and\nthe movement triumphantly continued, with interruptions, under severest\ndifficulties and hardships, until the pioneers, on July 24th, 1847,\nentered the valley of the Great Salt Lake. Something of the hardships\nwhich they endured, and of the magnitude of their undertaking, the\nhistorians have graphically pictured. Tullidge says:\n\n\"'The Mormons were setting out under their leader from the borders of\ncivilization, with their wives and their children, in broad daylight,\nbefore the very eyes of ten thousand of their enemies, who would have\npreferred their utter destruction to their 'flight,' notwithstanding\nthey had enforced it by treaties outrageous beyond description,\ninasmuch as the exiles were nearly all American born, many of them\ntracing their ancestors to the very founders of the nation. They had\nto make a journey of fifteen hundred miles over trackless prairies,\nsandy deserts and rocky mountains, through bands of war-like Indians,\nwho had been driven, exasperated, towards the West; and at last, to\nseek out and build up their Zion in valleys then unfruitful, in a\nsolitary region where the foot of the white man had scarcely trodden.\nThese, too, were to be followed by the aged, the halt, the sick and the\nblind, the poor, who were to be helped by their little less destitute\nbrethren, and the delicate young mother with her newborn babe at her\nbreast, and still worse, for they were not only threatened with the\nextermination of the poor remnant at Nauvoo, but news had arrived that\nthe parent government designed to pursue their pioneers with troops,\ntake from them their arms, and scatter them, that they might perish by\nthe way, and leave their bones bleaching in the wilderness. * * * In\nthe centuries hence, when the passing events of this age shall have\ntaken their proper place, the historian will point back to that exodus\nin the New World of the West, as one quite worthy to rank with the\nimmortal exodus of the children of Israel.'\n\n\"Bancroft says:\n\n\"'Of their long journey many painful incidents are recorded. Weakened\nby fever or crippled by rheumatism, and with sluggish circulation,\nmany were severely frostbitten. Women were compelled to drive the\nnearly worn-out teams, while tending on their knees, perhaps, their\nsick children. The strength of the beasts was failing, as there were\nintervals when they could be kept from starving only by the browse or\ntender buds and branches of the cottonwood, felled for the purpose.\n\n\"'At one time no less than two thousand wagons could be counted, it was\nsaid, along the three hundred miles of road that separated Nauvoo from\nthe Mormon encampments. Many families possessed no wagons, and in the\nlong processions might be seen vehicles of all descriptions, from the\nlumbering cart, under whose awning lay stretched its fever-stricken\ndriver, to the veriest makeshifts of poverty, the wheel-barrow or the\ntwo-wheeled trundle, in which was dragged along a bundle of clothing\nand a sack of meal all of this world's goods that the owner possessed.\n\n\"'On arriving at the banks of the Missouri, the wagons were drawn up in\ndouble lines and in the form of squares. Between the lines, tents were\npitched at intervals, space being left between each row for a passage\nway, which was shaded with awnings or a latticework of branches, and\nserved as a promenade for convalescents and a playground for children.'\n\n\"But it would be too long a story, to follow the exiles in their\nvicissitudes through the whole of their weary march across the\nuninhabited wilderness that lay between them and their future home,\nin the then wild valleys of the mountains, and to speak of their\nstruggles for existence after they arrived there. They passed through\nmany severe afflictions in building up the country and in settling the\nterritory. The crops were often destroyed by grass-hoppers, crickets,\nuntimely frosts, and drought, but in each difficulty, the Lord\noverruled circumstances for good and prospered the people, providing\nthe necessaries of life. Settlements were established at various points\nnorth and south of Salt Lake City, and the thrift of the people,\nseasoned with the blessings of God, soon caused cities and villages to\nspring up in all directions. President Young, himself, often went to\nseek locations for these sites, and was very frequently present when a\ncity or town was founded.\"\n\n\"Truly, a wonderful people with a strange and fascinating history. I am\nmore enthusiastic than ever in my determination to see them and their\ngathering place,\" said Mr. Brown.\n\nThe evening was far spent, and the company prepared to retire,\nafter the usual leave-taking on such occasions. They all wished the\nmissionary and Mr. Brown a pleasant journey. The parting was affecting,\nfor the people had learned to love the Elder, and he, in turn, had a\nstrong and living interest in them. Many missionaries can testify of\nthe binding influence such friends have upon their affections, and\npeople who have learned to love the Elders are frequently as loth\nto part with them as with members of their own families. This case\nwas no exception. Durant thanked them all for their kindness to him,\nand blessed them for their hospitality, expressing a desire to see\nthem gathered with the Saints, if God should open their hearts to an\nadoption of the gospel truths.\n\nEarly on the following morning, the Elder and Mr. Brown set their faces\nto the West, and with the present facilities for travel, expected soon\nto be in the land of the Mormons. As they passed over the vast plains,\nlarge rivers, rolling and rugged hills, and pleasant valleys, their\nconversation was often directed to the great difference between travel\nas the pioneers endured it, and as it is now enjoyed in the trains of\npalace coaches.\n\nOn a pleasant Saturday evening, after a four days' journey, they\narrived in Salt Lake City, where Durant met his family all feeling\nwell. The meeting between husband and wife and children, after such a\nlong separation, was happy in the extreme, and it was with thankful\nhearts that they kneeled by the family altar, praising God in fervent\nprayer for His kind mercies in preserving them to meet once more.\n\nDuring the afternoon of the next day, Sunday, they all attended\nmeeting, where an Elder delivered the following discourse, which Mr.\nBrown listened to with marked attention:\n\n\"MY BRETHREN, SISTERS AND FRIENDS:\n\n\"I am thankful for the privilege of speaking to you a short time this\nafternoon. I am anxious to explain, whenever opportunity affords, the\nnature of our faith.\n\n\"In this free country, where we congratulate ourselves in enjoying and\nallowing the greatest freedom to everybody, I presume we will, all of\nus, speaker and congregation, exercise the privilege of explaining and\nreflecting upon the things that may be said, so that our friends, I\ntrust, will leave us understanding a little more about the nature of\nour religion than when they came to the meeting.\n\n\"Our visiting friends have, doubtless, heard about the Latter-day\nSaints. They have had the opinions of men who have spoken in the\npulpits, and who have written books about the Mormons, and they, very\nlikely, have come here under certain impressions in regard to the\nMormons' faith.\n\n\"I am sorry to say that experience has taught me that the public\ngenerally have been deceived. I am gratified sometimes in listening to\nacknowledgements of this kind from those who have heard for themselves,\nand have thus been able to judge intelligently as to whether the\nreports which they have heard from our enemies are correct or not.\n\n\"It seems strange, but it is nevertheless true, that many people who\nwish to know the faith of the Saints go to their enemies to learn\nof them. I do not know whether our kind friends have thought of the\ninconsistency and injustice of such a course as this. If I wished to\nlearn what the Roman Catholics believed in, I do not think at present\nthat I would go to the Protestant Church to learn it; or if I wished\nto learn what any denomination of professing Christians believe, I do\nnot think it would be just for me to go to some other denomination to\nascertain it. In the first place, other churches might be led perhaps\nunwittingly, perhaps intentionally to misrepresent the faith of their\nneighbors, and I might be deceived through their misrepresentations.\nOn the other hand, there is no need of my going to any one church to\nlearn the faith of another people, because I can go just as easily to\ntheir own church to listen to their explanations, and thus be sure\nof getting information of their peculiar views, without trusting to\nthe misrepresentations of their neighbors. Now I submit that such a\ncourse as this is right; it is just, and accords with our impressions\nof a fair and just hearing and consideration from the parties most\ninterested, as to whether their faith be correct or not.\n\n\"Of course we have no disposition, as Latter-day Saints, even if we had\nthe power, to constrain any person to believe our doctrines. We have\nnot the power; we have not the disposition. We simply wish to explain\nthe nature of that religion of which we are ministers--laboring under a\nfeeling of anxiety to deliver the message with which we have been sent,\nthat our friends may have the privilege of receiving or rejecting it,\njust as they think proper.\n\n\"I approach the examination of this subject, because I believe that\nmany of our kind, honest, well-wishing friends--those who desire to\nserve God according to His will and pleasure--are under the impression\nthat there exists a confusion so general, and errors so prevalent, that\nreligion seems to be losing its hold upon the minds of the people.\nAnd, of course, we who have faith in God and in His revealed word, as\ncontained in the Old and New Testaments, deplore a state of things that\nindicates a departure from that respect and reverence which we wish\nto see existing and manifested on the part of the people towards the\nSupreme Being.\n\n\"What is the reason that people are becoming irreligious? What is the\nreason that people talk of sacred things lightly? What is the reason\nthat men who have heretofore been respected as ministers of religion\nare now little thought of? It is simply because the religions that\nare taught are losing their hold upon the minds and affections of the\npeople; because the religions that are taught do not supply the want\nthat men and women feel; because the word preached by most ministers\ncarries with it no power to convince people as to the truthfulness of\nthe doctrines that are presented, or the sinful condition of the people\nto whom they are taught.\n\n\"The present condition of the Christian world does not present that\nunion, that love, that we expect from the perpetuation of the doctrines\nthat Christ taught, and it is this fact, understood by many, that\nincreases their doubts and strengthens their objections to what is\ncalled 'Christianity.' The New Testament teachings lead us to expect a\nstate of unity in the Christian Church. The admonitions of the Apostles\nwere to the effect that the Saints in early days should be united\ntogether, that they should understand alike, that they should speak\nthe same things, that they should be of the same mind and of the same\njudgment. Such are the words of the Apostle, to be found in I. Cor. i:\n10.\n\n\"Now, my friends, does such a state of things exist around us in\nconnection with the Christian churches that we might expect from the\nnature of a perfect religion, introduced by Christ? Does there exist,\nat the present time, a state of things so perfect as to agree with the\nexpectations raised from the teachings of St. Paul in this scripture\nthat I have quoted? I think not. I am safe, I believe, in stating--and\nI think our friends are prepared to agree with me--that there does\nnot exist amongst the Christian denominations that unity and that\noneness of faith, peace, kindness and love which, by reading the New\nTestament, we might expect to appear amongst them as the true fruits of\nChristianity. And it is upon this I wish to make a few remarks before\nproceeding to explain to you, from the Bible, the nature of our faith.\n\n\"Of course the existence of a number of denominations called\n'Christian' cannot be denied. But we are told that all the Christian\nchurches exhibit to us one church; that if one denomination does not\nteach the whole perfect plan of religion revealed by the Lord Jesus\nChrist, all the churches put together do; although there may be\ndivisions existing amongst the members of these denominations. Unless\nwe accept this view we must object to Christianity on the ground\nthat we cannot find which of all the Christian denominations teach\nthe truth. Here is one church called Christian that teaches certain\ndoctrines, another more or less in its teachings contradicts them, a\nthird teaches doctrines that are in conflict with the other two, and\nso we might go through them all, and speak in like terms of those who\nthink honestly enough that they are serving God.\n\n\"Now, my friends, I will ask this question--First, Is it reasonable\nto suppose that God would sustain two distinct religious churches as\nHis churches? Is it reasonable to suppose that God would set up two\ndistinct religious bodies, the ministers of which teach different\ndoctrines? After learning from the Bible so much indicating the anxiety\nof God's inspired servants for a time of perfect unity, I say it is not\nreasonable to suppose it. And just so long as two distinct religious\nsystems exist, teaching different doctrines and preaching different\nprinciples, there exists a conflicting influence, divisions, feelings,\nperhaps very strong, if the difference in doctrine is very decided. If\nit is not reasonable, what are we to do? How can we account for such a\ncondition of things?\n\n\"This leads to the position we occupy. We want to know something more.\n\n\"Is it true that the bodies called 'Christian' at present represent\nthe Church of Christ? Or is it true that they have ignored some things\nbelonging to the perfect doctrine of Christ, and taken as their guide,\ntheir own conclusions in regard to what is right, which leads to this\ndivision of doctrine? How is it? But I will endeavor to show that it\nis unscriptural, as well as unreasonable, for us to receive different\nChristian bodies as the Church of Christ.\n\n\"I will direct your attention to a few passages from the word of God.\nJesus, when He sent the Apostles to preach in the first place, said\nto them, 'Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to every\ncreature.' Not _any_ system that might be termed a gospel. There\nwas no choice left to anybody. He spoke definitely in regard to the\ngospel plan, which He, the Son of God, came to the earth to set up.\nPaul, in the first chapter of Galatians, eighth verse, says, 'Though\nwe or an angel from heaven preach any other gospel unto you than that\nwhich we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.' Paul, one of\nthe Apostles, taught the gospel, the same gospel that Peter, James,\nJohn and others taught. They all taught the same system. And Paul\nsaid, in another place, that he went up, by revelation, to Jerusalem,\ntaking Barnabas and Titus with him, and communicated the gospel which\nhe preached among the Gentiles (Gal. ii: 1, 2), thus showing that he\ntaught the same thing everywhere. You see, Paul's words and practice\nshow that he did not admit of the least change or alteration from the\ngospel as taught by Christ, and preached by the Apostles to the people.\nIn another place it is said, 'Whosoever transgresseth and abideth\nnot in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God. He that abideth in the\ndoctrines of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son' (II. John\nix.), showing us that he taught strictly the necessity of abiding in\nthat form of doctrine which had at first been delivered. I quote these\npassages to show you that the gospel which Christ and the Apostles\nfirst taught was intended to be taught continually, without change, and\nthat none had a right, not even an angel from heaven, to preach any\nother gospel than that which had been delivered at the first.\n\n\"Do you agree with this? Because I am about to examine, in detail some\nof the doctrines that will readily show to you the difference between\nthe ministers of the true gospel and the ministers of the so-called\ngospel that is preached at the present time. But are you prepared to\ncome to the conclusion, with me, that it is the old gospel, Christ's\ngospel, the doctrines of the apostles that we ought to seek and follow,\nif we expect eternal life? Or do you think you are safe in following\nthe teachings of men, who have made great changes from such ancient\ngospel, with the following passage before you? \"If there come any\nunto you and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house,\nneither bid him God speed.\" (II. John 10th verse.) Do you think you can\nobtain God's blessing by being members of a church or churches that\nteach doctrines opposed to what Christ taught? How is this?\n\n\"'Well certainly,' says one--a Bible believer--'of course I wish to\nhave the religion of the Bible. I would like to have the religion\nof Christ. I do not admit of any departure.' This is right. This is\nconsistent. Of course if there is a question as to whether God has\nmade any change in His primitive faith, revealed through Christ, we\nshall consider it; for I am willing also to make a change if God has\nauthorized it. I am quite willing to accept any doctrine that God has\nrevealed from heaven for my salvation. I confess to you that I have no\ndisposition whatever to maintain private views or speculations which\nmay have been engendered on my own part through reflection. I wish the\ndoctrine of Christ, as Christ taught it, as the apostles taught it, and\nI will not, with the light that I possess, depart one particle from the\nletter and spirit of that ancient plan. And if there are any friends\nhere who have heard that the Elders of the Church of Jesus Christ of\nLatter-day Saints do not believe in the Bible, let them judge. There\nare no practices pleasing to God, or likely to bring His blessings\nupon the heads of the children of men, except those inculcated by Him,\nthrough His servants by the power of revelation from heaven, so that\nwe will not depart from the book. We will not teach doctrines that are\nopposed to this book, but we are prepared to show our friends, in the\nspirit of kindness, that doctrines opposed to those contained in this\nbook are displeasing to God, and are not calculated to bring peace and\nsalvation to the children of men.\n\n\"'But,' says one, 'what matters it whether we go this road that you\npoint out or some other? You know if we can get to heaven one way,\nis not that as good as another? We will try to illustrate this idea.\nIf a man wish to go to London, says the inquirer, may he not go the\nroad that leads towards the south, or a road that leads towards the\nnorth, as the case may be; what matters it so that he gets to London?\nIt would not matter in the least. He might go the road that led to\nthe north or that which led to the south, and by making a shorter or\nlonger journey, as the case might be, he might get to London. But you\nsee there is no parallel between this figure and the facts in regard\nto religion because there are not two ways to get to heaven. That is\nthe difference. There are two ways to get to London probably, perhaps\nmore, but you see there is only one way to get to heaven, so that when\nwe admit, as an illustration, a figure of this kind, we start with an\nerror and it leads us astray.\n\n\"The Bible speaks of one way. It speaks of two ways. It speaks of a\nbroad road that leads to destruction, and it speaks of a narrow way\nthat leads to eternal life. So you see there is only one way that leads\nto heaven, and if any one persuades us that the wide road will lead us\nthere, he deceives us, for there is only one way, and it is narrow. The\nBible is very plain upon this, because the doctrines are steadfast and\nsure, and the words are plain that there is but one way that leads to\nlife and glory. Now that is the way we want to find out.\n\n\"Jesus came, He said, to do His Father's will, not His own. He called\nApostles and ordained them, and He said, \"As I have been sent, so\nsend I you. Go and preach the gospel to every creature.\" That was\ntheir business. But He said, 'Tarry ye first in Jerusalem, until ye\nare endowed with power from on high.' Jesus called the Apostles.\nHe ordained them Himself. He instructed them personally, and He\ncommissioned them to preach the gospel to every creature. But He wished\nthem to tarry at Jerusalem until they received power from on high;\na certain gift which God had promised that they might be qualified,\nin every sense, to discharge the important duty devolving upon them,\nof administering words of salvation to a fallen world. The Apostles\ndid this. They gathered in Jerusalem. They were there on the day of\nPentecost, and whilst there, in the upper room, the endowment of which\nJesus spoke was given unto them. The Holy Ghost came upon them, in the\nupper room, as a mighty rushing wind, and it sat upon them as cloven\ntongues of fire. And, whilst under that influence, the Apostles who\nwere sent to preach the gospel, stood up, at least Peter did, as the\nmouth-piece of the rest, at that time to preach the gospel that Christ\nsent them to declare. Now, what was it? Let us lay a good foundation as\nwe proceed.\n\n\"Were they qualified to preach it? I do not think any Christian will\ndoubt it. If they were not prepared to teach the gospel of the Son of\nGod, then I would have no hope, my friends, of hearing it in this life.\nNever. Jesus Himself chose them. He ordained them; He instructed them,\nand after all this, as you will find in the 2nd chapter of the Acts of\nthe Apostles, 1st, 2nd and 3rd verses, they assembled in Jerusalem, and\nhad fulfilled unto them the promise of the Lord Jesus Christ, receiving\nthe endowment of which I have been speaking.\n\n\"I think that all my friends here are certainly prepared to accept the\nwords that Peter spoke, and acknowledge them to be true. What did\nPeter say? First, he preached Christ and Him crucified. You see the\npeople, who had gathered together on the day of Pentecost, were people,\nwho had no faith in Christ. They had rejected Him and His instructions.\nThey had been of those who persecuted Christ and the Apostles. They\nwere of those who had either personally or in their sympathies\nsustained the crucifixion of the Lord Jesus. Therefore, Peter, knowing\nthis, stood up and preached to them, first Christ and Him crucified,\nand he was successful. Who can doubt it? Peter, a servant of God,\nordained by the Son of God. Peter, upon whom the Spirit of God rested\nas tongues of fire, as the scriptures have it. This man stood up and\nargued the point, and explained about Jesus. And who can doubt the\nresult? I am sure we would have been disappointed if we had been told\nin the Bible that Peter was not successful. He was successful. Many\nbelieved on him, and the result of their belief was that they said,\n'Men and brethren, what shall we do?' (Acts ii: 37.) No wonder they\nasked that question. People who had either helped to crucify the Lord,\nor who had rejoiced when He was crucified, as many of them did, to be\nconvinced that that same Jesus whom they had assisted to crucify was\nindeed the Lord, the Christ; and when they were convinced of this they\ncried out, 'Men and brethren, what shall we do?'\n\n\"Peter was prepared to tell them. He had the very instructions that\nwere needed, and the words of Peter are applicable today, my friends,\nto you and to me, so far as we have not obeyed them.\n\n\"We are believers in Christ, I trust. We have fortunately made our\nappearance in this life, in the midst of a people who at least believe\nin the divinity of Christ, and we have received impressions favorable\nto this end; therefore the words of Peter, spoken to those who believed\nin the divinity of Christ, are applicable to us, and are the words of\nsalvation to us, if that ancient gospel is not changed. What were the\nwords? He says, 'Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of\nJesus Christ, for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift\nof the Holy Ghost.' (Acts ii: 38.)\n\n\"Was that the gospel? Yes, unless the Apostles disobeyed the\ninstruction of Christ, because they were sent to preach the gospel, and\nthey were endowed that they might preach it perfectly and represent\nGod, the Maker of heaven and earth, in the words and spirit by which\nthey presented it unto the people.\n\n\"Now, my friends, faith in Christ was the first principle of the\ngospel; repentance of sins was the second principle; baptism for the\nremission of sins was the third principle, and then the reception of\nthe Holy Ghost, by the laying on of hands, as taught by Peter on that\nday in Jerusalem. Is there any objection to this? 'None at all,' says\none, 'that is scriptural; we cannot object to it.' A Bible believer\ncannot object to it. But what is becoming of us if such doctrines are\nnot taught? 'Well,' says one, are they not taught?' No. 'Faith in\nChrist is taught,' and 'repentance of sins is taught,' although by some\npeople the latter is taught first, before faith in Christ. Some teach\nthat we must repent of our sins before we can have faith in Christ.\nThis is a mistake. We cannot possibly repent of sin committed, unless\nwe are convinced that we have committed the sin. We cannot repent of\nlaws broken, which Christ has taught through His Apostles unless we\nare first convinced that Jesus was divine, and had the authority to\nteach them; so that faith in Christ and His divine mission must be\nthe foundation of our practice as Christians. And the first effect\nthat faith in Christ produces, is repentance of the sins which we\nhave committed. So repentance is the second principle of the gospel.\nBut we differ a little more about the third principle. Just read your\nBible, and you will find that Peter taught baptism for the remission\nof sins (Acts ii: 38). Again, John the Baptist, who was the forerunner\nof Christ, baptized for the remission of sins (Mark i: 4). 'John was\nsent from God.' You will find this in the 1st chapter of the gospel\naccording to St. John, 6th verse. John himself said, in the 33rd verse\nof the same chapter, 'He that sent me to baptize with water, the same\nsaid unto me,' referring to the instruction he received from the Father\nregarding Christ. Both passages assert this, that John the Baptist was\nsent by God to baptize with water, and we are taught in the Bible that\nhe did teach the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins. That\nis just what we might expect. John was God's servant. So was Peter.\nThey both taught the same doctrine. John taught baptism, and Peter\ntold the people to be baptized every one of them. You will remember\nthe servant of God who was sent to speak to Paul, to instruct him just\nafter his conversion. He went to him, and when the scales fell from\nthe eyes of Paul, or Saul, this man of God said to him: 'Why tarriest\nthou? arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling upon\nthe name of the Lord' (Acts xxii: 16). Be baptized and wash away his\nsins? Yes. Now, that agrees exactly with the doctrine of Peter, and the\ndoctrine of John the Baptist. They were all three servants of God, and\nthey all taught the same doctrine, and those who heard and believed\nthat doctrine possessed the selfsame faith; so that so far as baptism\nis concerned, the ancient Saints did teach and practice the selfsame\ndoctrine--baptism for the remission of sins.\n\n\"I want to talk a little about this. One says, 'Well, I have always\nbeen taught that baptism was a doctrine of Christ anciently, but I have\nbeen under the impression that it was not necessary to salvation.'\nThat may be, my friends, we have been taught a great many things, and\ngood Christian people have believed a great many things that Christian\npeople have rejected since. But that is no reason why we should change\nthe Bible doctrine. The thing is right here. 'Well,' says one, 'I\nthought we were not able of ourselves to do anything to help to save\nourselves.' This requires proper understanding. If baptism brings the\nremission of sins, and baptism is not attended to by us, we cannot\nobtain the blessing. Certainly not. God gives us bread to eat, but He\ndoes not present it to us. A man sows seed in the ground and he sees\nto it and he harvests it and it is threshed and prepared and placed\nbefore us in the shape of flour, but we have no disposition to deny\nthat it is the gift of God. If it were not for God's goodness we should\nhave no bread. If it were not for the gift of God we could not attend\nto the ordinance that brings remission of sins. We have not power,\nof ourselves, to bring within our reach a single saving principle\nbelonging to the plan of eternal life. It is all God's free gift. It is\nall in consequence of His mercy, and His charity, and His goodness and\nlove, and pleasure manifested to us that we have any privilege at all\nthat will help to make us better, or that will bring us into His Church\nand kingdom and give us a right to say that we are really His children.\nThe fact that He has laid down ordinances, through which a remission of\nsins is brought to us does not warrant us in saying that we do it of\nourselves, and when people talk like this it is likely to deceive.\n\n\"Now, my friends, the Bible says, in the place I have quoted, that\nbaptism is for the remission of sins. Do we believe this? If we do, you\nknow, we must also come to the conclusion necessarily that we cannot\nhave a remission of sins without it. If God has placed the ordinance\nof baptism in His Church, as part of His divine system for a certain\npurpose, the object cannot be obtained without it. The means which\nGod reveals for certain purposes must be used. We cannot say, and it\nwould be unreasonable in us to say, that when God speaks from heaven\nin regard to any particular thing, we can ignore His advice when we\nplease and accept something that suits us. It is wrong, and it is this\ndisposition that has led to the present deplorable state of things.\n\n\"'Well,' says one, 'I have thought that baptism was for an outward sign\nof an inward grace, or of membership in the Church.' Another error, you\nsee! The Bible does not say anything about that. Of course the act of\na person embracing the principles of the gospel and becoming a member\nof the Church, may be a sign, but baptism was not set in the Church\nfor that purpose. It was taught in the Church and administered for the\nremission of sins and nothing else. And no man or woman can obtain a\nplace in God's kingdom, or enjoy His presence here or hereafter, unless\ntheir sins are washed away in baptism, as Paul's were washed away when\nhe accepted the advice of the good and inspired man, Ananias, who\ninstructed him.\n\n\"When I think of the importance of this offer which God has made, my\nheart is filled with thankfulness instead of a disposition to discard\nwhat He has taught. It is strange, and we can only account for it\non the ground of the waywardness of men naturally, to think that we\nwould attempt to do things in opposition to the will of God. Is there\na more important blessing offered to mankind than the remission of\nsins? Have we any hope of enjoying the glory of God in our present\nsinful condition? Surely not, for nothing sinful or unholy can enter\nthe courts of glory. Then if God has so put in His Church an ordinance\nfor the purpose of enabling us, like Saul, to wash away our sins,\nwhy not be prepared to receive it with joy instead of cultivating or\nencouraging a disposition to ignore it?\n\n\"Baptism for the remission of sins is the third principle of the gospel\nof Christ. Then comes the ordinance of the laying on of hands for the\ngift of the Holy Ghost. Peter says, on the day of Pentecost, to which\nwe have directed your attention, 'And ye shall receive the gift of\nthe Holy Ghost.' What did that consist of? The gift of God's Spirit.\nThe reception of God's power, a portion of His power. The reception\nof an influence which leads those who possess it near to God in their\nfeelings and in their faith. A feeling which produces not only that\ninward consciousness of acceptance with God as His son or daughter, but\na power which gives outward manifestations of its divinity. Jesus did\npromise to the apostles when he sent them out first, that 'These signs\nshall follow them that believe.' Here are His words, 'Go ye into all\nthe world and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth\nand is baptized shall be saved. He that believeth not shall be damned,\n_and these signs shall follow them that believe_.' The words of Christ,\nin the last chapter of Mark, 15th and following verses.\n\n\"'Well,' says one, 'you know we do not believe in miracles now. These\nsigns were miracles, but we do not believe in them now.' That may be,\nmy friends. This is the very reason why we are here, because there is\nsuch a great disbelief in the Bible; because there is a disposition to\nignore the Bible; because there is a disposition to ignore the promises\nof Christ; and we wish to show you the things that are denied; we wish\nto point out to you the doctrines our fathers have denied; that our\nteachers have denied, and we wish to show you that they are in the\nBible, the word of God, in the book which some have gone so far as to\nassert that we do not believe in. But is it true that the promises of\nGod were fulfilled anciently in regard to this matter? Yes! In the 19th\nchapter and 7th verse of the Acts of the Apostles, you will find an\ninstance related of the Apostles laying their hands on some that had\nbeen baptized, and they spake with tongues. This was one of the gifts\nthat was manifested, in consequence of their receiving that spirit\nwhich produced them. See also Mark 16th and 20th.\n\nYou must not consider that, in teaching these doctrines, we are\nadvancing something of ourselves, something new. If we were teaching\nnew doctrine you would have a right to call us to account and ask us\nfor the proof. We are teaching old doctrine. We are teaching the New\nTestament doctrines, instead of those of our Christian friends. We\nhave no spirit of enmity in the least degree, towards any living soul,\nand when we refer to the faith of our Christian friends remember, it\nis simply to make the difference between their views and ours more\ndistinct to you. I say instead of our friends calling us to account,\nit is the Latter-day Saints who have the right to come out and say to\ntheir Christian friends, 'See here, why do you deny signs which Christ\nsaid should follow believers? What believers did Christ speak about?\nWhy believers in His gospel, He taught us that these signs should\nfollow believers. Well then, if our Christian friends deny that, we\nhave the right to call them to account. If Christ said that these\nmiracles manifestations of Almighty power should follow the believers,\nI say what reason have you to deny it? The question is not now whether\nthe Latter-day Saints possess the power or not. The question at issue\nat present is not whether the teachers of the Church of England have\nthe power or not. The question is, Does Christ promise that power\nto believers in the gospel? I say He does, and I say that those who\ndeny that such powers should follow believers, teach that which is\ncontrary to the word of Christ and contrary to the facts that appeared\nin connection with the teachings and administration of the doctrines\nof Christ. So that it is not the Latter-day Saints that introduce a\nnew doctrine, and we say to our friends, Hear us, we beseech you. Hear\nthe message we have to deliver, for God has sent us to teach the old\nreligion, the religion of Jesus, the simple plan which was revealed\nfrom heaven in ancient days, to save the children of men.\n\n\"Peter said, on the day of Pentecost, speaking of the gospel and its\nattendant blessings, 'for this promise is unto you.' That is, to the\npeople who stood before him, 'to your children and unto all that are\nafar off even as many as the Lord our God shall call.'\n\n\"You see it was not confined to the members of the church in the first\nplace, as some would have us believe. The promise of the laying on of\nhands for the gift of the Holy Ghost was made to the children of those\nwho heard Peter, and to all who were afar off, even as many as the Lord\nour God should call. And if it be true that God is calling sinners to\nrepentance now, we should see the same power manifested today, that is,\nif we have the true gospel. There can be no doubt of this.\n\n\"Which will you have, my friends, the doctrine of the Bible or the\ndoctrines of men? If you accept the doctrines of the Bible you will\nhave to become Latter-day Saints, and of course that would be out\nof the question for a good many. But we cannot find these doctrines\nanywhere else, and that is a perplexity. What shall we do about them?\nWhen I am speaking to you I think of the position I occupied myself,\nwhen I heard the Latter-day Saints first. I went to their meeting, not\nexpecting to hear anything that would interest me by any means, but I\nheard the Bible doctrine taught. I could not deny it. I found I had\nbeen mistaken. I did not incline in my heart to fight against God,\nbut considerations came up. If I become a Latter-day Saint, people\nwill call me a Mormon. If I embrace these doctrines, my friends will\npoint at me the finger of scorn. If I become a Latter-day Saint my\ngood neighbors will say I am deceived and led astray, and that I have\nembraced a doctrine that is in opposition to the teachings of Christ.\nOf course these things flashed through my mind when I considered and\nread the Bible to ascertain positively whether these Mormons taught\nthe truth or not. I thought this--well! I have been religious for the\npurpose of making my peace with God, but I have been mistaken and led\nastray by men whom God had not sent to preach the gospel; but now I\nhave found the truth, the old promises relating to God's power, all\nthings as at the beginning, have been restored, and I have the promise\nof obtaining a place with the righteous, according to the mind and will\nof my Heavenly Father. Let friends say what they please, let them say\nI am deceived, but I believe this Bible is true. Let them say whatever\nthey may in regard to my faith; no matter. I thought of the time of\nChrist. They called Christ hard names; and of the Apostles they spake\na great deal of evil. In fact the Bible says they called them all\nmanner of evil, and although I expected my friends would denounce me,\nstill when I thought of what Christ had suffered, I was reconciled and\ninstead of fighting against God, I was willing to accept His doctrine,\nin order to obtain His blessings.\n\n\"I state to you my friends that since the day I entered this Church I\nhave rejoiced exceedingly. I have found proofs upon proofs. I have had\nreason to rejoice in consequence of the manifestations of God's power,\nconfirmatory of the doctrines, and I can say that the Church of Christ\nis set up, its doctrines are taught, its practices are practiced, its\npromises are fulfilled, and the evidences of its divine power are\nmanifested in the midst of this people.\n\n\"I would like to say a few words in regard to another point. I have\njust said that I had been taught a religion by men whom God _had not\nsent_. I would like to explain. You will excuse us if we seem to be\nvery extreme in our views. We have taken the liberty to teach you the\ntruth, just as we have it, and when we say something that comes in\ncontact with what you have received, excuse us. There is no bad feeling\nat all, or unfriendliness in the least. But we believe in persons\nbeing invested with the proper authority to preach the gospel. Paul\nsays, speaking of the authority of the Holy Priesthood, 'No man taketh\nthis honor unto himself, but he that is called of God as was Aaron.'\n(Heb. v: 4.) 'Faith cometh by hearing, and how can we hear without a\npreacher?' (Rom. x: 14-17. ) 'No man taketh this honor unto himself,\nexcept he be called of God as was Aaron.' Now that is very plain,\nand what does it mean? Simply what it says. That no man has a right\nto administer in the ordinances of religion except he be sent of God\nas was Aaron, for how can a man preach except he be sent? (Rom. x:\n15.) If that be admitted, of course the next question of importance\nis, How was Aaron sent? By turning to the history we have of God's\ndealing with Moses, in reference to the gathering of the Israelites,\nfrom Egpyt, you will find that God instructed Moses to call Aaron to\nbe his helper. (Ex. iv: 15, 16.) Here is the proof. No man can preach\nthe gospel simply because he feels inclined within himself to be a\npreacher. No man can preach the gospel--that is with God's approval and\nauthority--unless God commission him. God commissioned every one of his\npreachers in ancient times. He spoke from heaven. He directed those who\nheld this authority to call others. Christ called the Apostles as He\nwas called. His Father called Him; He called the Apostles, and He said,\n'As my Father hath sent me, even so send I you.' (St. John xx: 21). 'He\nthat receiveth you receiveth me; and he that receiveth me receiveth Him\nthat sent me.' The authority was here, you see. God called Moses; He\ninstructed Moses to call Aaron; so that Aaron stood exactly in the same\nrelation to God as did the Apostles; the latter being called of God the\nFather through Christ. That would be evident, because one whom God had\nauthorized to act as His servant was instructed by Him to call Aaron.\nNow, you observe, no man has a right to exercise the authority of the\npriesthood unless he is called of God as was Aaron.\n\n\"Are the preachers--those who commonly preach in connection with the\nchurches of the present day called of God as was Aaron? Or, in other\nwords, are they called by revelation from God? This is the question.\nWe do not doubt the propriety of their being called in this way,\nbecause the Bible says they ought to be. Do our Protestant ministers,\nat the present time, profess to be sent of God as was Aaron? Is there\na minister connected with the Christian denominations of the present\nday who professes to be sent of God by direct revelation? Not one. It\ndoes not require any argument at all. They do not profess that they\nhave heard from God. They say that God has not spoken since the last\nbook of the New Testament was written. They say it is a sin, and they\nfind fault with the Latter-day Saints because we believe that God does\nspeak; that He has a right to speak; and it is necessary we should have\nHis approval and commission in order to qualify us to attend to the\nbusiness of His Church. So that our present Christian teachers do not\nprofess to be called of God as was Aaron. They deny all revelation at\npresent, or since the Bible was written.\n\n\"You know the ministers, among their other errors, receive pay for\npreaching. That is an innovation also. The ancient apostles, and\nseventies, and bishops, and so on, were not paid for preaching. But\nour present ministers are. The preachers of this Church, with whom I\nam connected, are not paid for preaching. They preach without money,\nwithout purse, and without scrip. Now the preachers of the present\nchurches make a business of preaching. They learn to be preachers.\nThey are brought up to be preachers in consequence of their parents\nor guides finding in this way a place where they may make a living.\nSuch ministers sometimes acknowledge one kind of revelation. Not\nthat God tells the people about His will, or that He manifests His\npower, but they sometimes tell us they have received a call from\none congregation to another. But there is one peculiarity about it,\nviz: the congregation that calls them is a congregation that almost\ninvariably offers them more money than the congregation to which they\nhave been attached. This is the only instance of any kind of revelation\nbeing acknowledged by our Christian teachers. God has not spoken,\nsay they, by inspired men, since the days of the ancient apostles.\nHe has not spoken directly to the church. He has not authorized a\nsingle man to preach, but sometimes a call is given from less money to\nmore. And though they are feeling full of love and affection for the\ncongregation with which they have labored for years, yet they are sorry\nand regret so much that that call must be heeded, which takes them from\namong their old friends to a new congregation. But, you see, the new\ncongregation offers the most money, and that cannot be disregarded.\n\n\"My friends, these are a few of the doctrines of the Church of Jesus\nChrist of Latter-day Saints. Are we displeased with anybody? No, not at\nall. All are at liberty to believe what they please. But we are placed\nunder obligations to deliver the message which God has sent. We say we\nare not solely dependent on the Bible, because God has sent the gospel.\nWe do not wish you to think that we regard the Bible lightly. Of course\nyou will have noticed, from our remarks, that this is not so. But we\nsay from the Bible alone we could not have discovered the true way of\nlife, any more than thousands of our friends have been able to do so.\nWhy millions of people have read the Bible but have not discovered some\nof these doctrines. They have been lead to preach the things contained\ntherein, and if they had discovered the doctrine, this Bible cannot lay\non hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost. That part of the work that is\nnecessary for man's salvation must be done by one whom God authorizes.\nTherefore the Bible alone is not sufficient. It contains the truth. It\nis the word of God. It contains the instruction of the apostles. But it\ndoes not contain the divine authority that is necessary to commission a\nman to baptize or administer in any ordinance pertaining to the house\nof God.\n\n\"Now, my friends, may God bless you. And my brethren and sisters, may\nthe Holy Spirit, which leads unto all truth, abide upon us, and may we\nwho have found the truth have a disposition to retain it. May we have\nthe moral courage to say, 'Let God be served. Let His truth be obeyed.'\nLet the Almighty be honored, and if other people choose to follow their\nown fancies, or the deceptions presented before them by men whom God\nhas not sent, as for us and our house, let us serve God.\n\n\"May God bless us, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.\"\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XIV.\n\nMR. BROWN'S LETTER TO THE MARSHALLS.\n\nMr. Brown soon became acquainted with a number of leading Mormon Elders\nwho in formed him more concerning the history of the peculiar people,\namong whom he was a visitor. The sights in and around the city were\nviewed by him, and he had time to inspect the most important buildings\nand places of interest. According to promise, he wrote a letter to the\nMarshalls giving some of his impressions of the country and the people,\nand his epistle is here reproduced in full:\n\nDEAR FRIENDS:\n\n\"I am at length in the land of the Mormons in the city of the Saints\nby the dead sea of America. I have been well received, and am pleased\nbeyond measure with what I have seen and heard.\n\n\"It is a wonderful West. Our country as a whole surpasses the\ninexperienced conception of Europeans, and places their cramped-up\ndistricts, and tiny, although beautiful nations, in the position of\nplay-things when compared with the vastness of America--rustic, rough,\nand rude as even its oldest places appear. Then what shall we say of\nthe wide West--until recently an unknown region--with its variety\nof natural wonders, its wild mountains, appalling peaks and lonely\nvalleys, industries, mines of wealth, gorges, streams, plains! It is\ngrand, notwithstanding its development is yet in its infancy. Its\npossibilities for future greatness are inconceivable even to the hardy\npioneer.\n\n\"We came over the Chicago Rock Island and Pacific Railway from Kansas\nCity, _via_ Denver. The State of Kansas, with its beautiful eastern\ncities, and its wonderful plains and new and thriving settlements in\nthe western part, was presented to our view from the comfortable palace\ncoaches of this well-equipped road.\n\n\"From Denver, where one sees the Rocky Mountains, cloven with fantastic\nravines, and horrible chasms, dressed with rough and shaggy woods,\nand capped with everlasting ice and snow, we proceeded to Pueblo,\nand thence over the Denver & Rio Grande Railway, to Grand Junction,\nColorado. It is no exaggeration to say that the mountain scenery\nalong this route is the most magnificent in the world; while the\nmid-continent region, which this road traverses, is doubtless the most\npicturesque portion of our country. Very appropriately, this road, with\nits western connection--the Rio Grande Western--has been named, 'The\nScenic Line.'\n\n\"Having passed Grand Junction, we soon enter Utah, and find ourselves\nin a country of bluffs, cliffs, wonderful formations, and deserts,\nwhich become wearisome in spite of the novelty of the scene. Nothing,\nhowever, could be more romantic than the worn battlements and rocky\ntablets, between which, for miles and miles, the road winds its way.\nNearing Castle Valley, we attained a higher level, where the cliffs\ncame nearer and were more precipitous, with the spaces between more\ngreen.\n\n\"We are climbing towards the heights of the Wasatch--the western\nbulwark of the Rockies just passed. Ahead is the Castle Gate, 'the most\ninspiring as a single object, of all the marvelous scenes between the\nplains and the Salt Sea.' We soon entered fairly into the Spanish Fork\nCanyon, the sides of which are neither rough nor cliff-bound, but,\nrather, are steep and rounded, covered with soft walls of greenery,\nand groves of aspen and oak. Nearing the valley, we beheld Mt. Nebo,\nover-topping other pyramids of the Wasatch range. Westward lies the\nvolcanic mountain ranges and the arid deserts of Utah and Nevada; but\nat our feet, stretches forth a lovely valley, with the fresh, clear\nwaters of the Utah Lake in the center.\n\n\"We passed on through miles of fertile farmland, and between us and the\npretty lake were fine meadows, upon which sleek herds were grazing. A\nsemi-circle of Mormon settlements lie at the feet of the encompassing\nhills, except upon the western side, where no water is found. Provo\nis the largest of the cities in this valley. A short ride, and we\ncrossed the summit of a low mountain range, separating the valley, we\nhad just passed over, from the the Great Basin. The train followed\nalong the Jordan river which empties the waters of the Utah Lake into\nthe Great Salt Lake. Salt Lake Valley lies before us, with the city of\nthe Saints, and the wonderful saline sea to the north, the peaks of\nthe Wasatch, to the north and the east; and about us, on every side,\nthe marks of industry, thrift and prosperity, set in a framework of\nsurprisingly beautiful scenery.\n\n\"The valley is extremely pretty when seen at the best season of the\nyear. In autumn, when Nature, by the early frosts, has delicately\ntinted the leaves with brilliant hues, the mountains and the hillsides\nare very attractive; the contrast between the vegetation of the hills\nand the colors of the valley, is an interesting feature in the panorama\nspread before the delighted observer.\n\n\"Utah contains a population of about 200,000; it has an area of 85,000\nsquare miles, much of which is mountains. The Great Salt Lake is about\nforty by ninety miles in size, and contains several islands. Fish\nabound in the numberless small streams that flow from and through the\npicturesque canyons of the Wasatch.\n\n\"The sterility of the country was removed by a system of irrigation\nfrom the mountain streams which fertilized the earth, causing it to\nyield in abundance, and to 'blossom as the rose.'\n\n\"When you remember the population and the area, it will readily\nappear that there is great room for more inhabitants, and yet it must\nbe remembered that only a small portion of the ground is fit for\ncultivation, the greater part being wild hills or sandy desert. The\nnumerous valleys are like fruitful oases in a wilderness of rugged\nmountains, which latter serve as reservoirs for the snows of winter,\nthat supply the summer rills with water.\n\n\"The valley, sometimes called the Great Basin, has an elevation of\nfrom four to five thousand feet, being surrounded and intersected by\nmountain ranges, which rise from five to seven thousand feet above the\nlevel of the basin. The Wasatch range extends along the east side of\nthe valley; at its western base is a narrow strip of land, the most\nfruitful in the Territory. In many other parts the soil is alkaline\nand sterile. In other districts there are fertile basins, with soil\nof good quality, yielding in places from fifty to ninety bushels of\ngrain to the acre. There are immense deposits of coal, iron, and other\nvaluable minerals, among them being gold, silver, copper, zinc, lead,\nsulphur, alum and borax. Salt works have been established in different\nplaces along the shores of the great lake, the water of which contains\nabout 16 per cent, solid matter, 97 per cent, of which is common salt.\nIn the chasms and ravines of the mountain streams are found cedar,\npine, quaking asp, oak and maple, but timber is difficult of access.\nThis, however, is compensated for by the immense deposits of coal in\nthe neighborhood, and in the Territory itself, and by the railroad\nfacilities the Territory now enjoys for shipping timber from Oregon and\nCalifornia.\n\n\"The hardships of early times, which are now well-known in history,\nhave given way to prosperity, and the hidden resources of the hills\nand dales are appearing to bless the children of the Mormon pioneer.\nThriving towns and cities extend from north to south, from east to\nwest, over the whole territory, and Mormon colonies are planted along\nthe Rocky Mountains, from Mexico in the south, to Canada in the north.\nTheir industry is proverbial; they view the building of cities, hamlets\nand villages as a divine call, taking hold of the often perilous labor\nwith the invincible determination born of religious zeal and duty.\n\n\"Salt Lake City has a population of about fifty thousand, but it must\nnot be understood that all these are Mormons. The tide of prosperity\nthat has come to this people, has brought with it thousands of citizens\nfrom all parts of the United States, until the population is as mixed,\nin a religious sense, as that of any of the states of the Union;\nchurches of all the Christian denominations, the halls of the agnostic,\nthe synagogue of the Jew, and the gathering place of the infidel, are\nalike represented.\n\n\"Among the buildings of interest, in Salt Lake City, is the tabernacle,\na remarkable edifice, and the great center of attraction. It was\ncompleted in 1870, is an oval-shaped building, with a major diameter\nof 233 feet, and a heighth of 70 feet, having a huge dome-shaped roof\nresting on pillars of sand stone. It seats about nine thousand people,\nand contains one of the largest organs in the world. Here services\nare held every Sabbath, when the Elders of the Church, leaders of the\npeople, instruct the gathered thousands in the religion which, to my\nmind, is the only scriptural on now preached, and certainly the only\none among them all having practical life and vitality. It contains the\ngerms of power that will leaven the whole religious world, scoff and\nderide as they may.\n\n\"The famous temple, erected at a cost of several millions, begun in\n1853, now nearly completed, is built of gray granite, with walls more\nthan six feet in thickness; It has a length of 200 and a width of 100\nfeet; the main walls rise to a height of 100 feet; there are three\ntowers and numerous minarets, on each end of the building, the center\neast tower being surmounted by a figure representing an angel blowing a\ntrumpet, proclaiming the restoration of the gospel in the latter days.\nThe cap-stone was placed on this tower, amid great rejoicing, in April,\n1892, when it was decided to finish the building, and dedicate it in\nApril, 1893, the occasion of the annual conference of the Church, which\nis also the anniversary of its organization (April 6th, 1830) in New\nYork State, with six members. This great building is of elegant design,\ngrand proportions and unique pattern, a marvel of beauty, strength and\nsolidity. Temples, of which there are several in the Territory--one\nin Logan, one in Manti, one in St. George--are designed for use in\nperforming holy ordinances for the living, and vicarious work by the\nliving for the dead, as you understand the faith of the Saints, and as\nElder Durant has often referred to and explained in his conversations\nwith you.\n\n\"A Stake is a division of the Church, presided over by a council of\nthree High Priests, and in Utah generally corresponds geographically\nto the division of counties, while in other states and territories, it\noften embraces larger districts. The stakes are divided into wards, in\neach of which a bishop and his two counselors exercise supervision.\nThese again are subdivided into districts where presiding Elders or\nteachers look after the interests of the Church members. There are\nthirty-three stakes of Zion, with something over three hundred wards.\nEach stake has a general assembly building, while each ward, besides,\nhas a structure for religious worship. The Assembly Hall, erected\nat a cost of $90,000, dedicated January 9th, 1882, erected near the\ntemple, is the meeting place for the Salt Lake Stake of Zion. Much like\na church in appearance, it is 120 by 68 feet in size, seating three\nthousand people, and is one of the most conspicuous buildings in the\ncity. The walls are built of rough-hewn granite taken from the same\nquarrie that has supplied material for the temple.\n\n\"There are many other fine buildings in the city, besides natural\nattractions, as, for instance, Garfield Beach, where bathing is the\npleasantest in America, the Hot Springs, the Warm Sulphur Springs, the\ngas wells, etc. There are seventy miles of electric street railway,\nand a hundred miles of streets. These avenues are 132 feet in width,\nhaving in many places rows of shade trees on either side. Salt Lake\nCity covers as large an area as many other cities with five times its\npopulation, and, excepting the business part, is largely composed of\nvillas.\n\n\"Other principal cities are Ogden, Logan and Provo. Ogden, thirty-seven\nmiles north of Salt Lake, is the railroad city of the territory, and\nshows the results of the thrift and industry of its inhabitants on\nevery side. Many beautiful natural attractions surround it--its warm\nsprings and rugged canyons being admired by all who see them.\n\n\"But I have not space in this already long letter to describe the\nmines, the manufacturing, industrial and commercial establishments\nwhich abound in this city and in the territory. Neither can I take\ntime to more than merely refer to the schools, public and private,\nand to the educational facilities of the people. It has often been\nasserted that the Mormons are opposed to education, but the schools in\nevery hamlet and city bear witness to the falsity of the assertion.\nNo territory or state of the Union, of equal age with Utah, has finer\nschool buildings, or is more advanced in matters of education, and to\nthe Mormons may be ascribed the honor of having built and heartily\nsupported the system that has made this possible.\n\n\"I see on every side among the Mormons, people who are honest in their\nconvictions, who have a living faith and put their faith and teachings\ninto practice, who are industrious and thrifty, kind to the poor,\nsober, virtuous. There are no signs of abject poverty anywhere in this\ncity, and much less among the hundreds of country settlements; idleness\nis discountenanced by the Mormons, until among them as a people there\nare no beggars, tramps or drones.\n\n\"A few more words, and I will not tire you with more this time. While,\nof course, I do not agree with all the doctrines of the Church, I\nconsider the people as a whole are fair minded, and broad in their\nviews. I have met the chief men of the Mormon Church, and have had a\nnumber of pleasant interviews with them. I find them men of grave and\nreverend demeanor, very religions in thought and deed, but not given\nto cant. They have not the sanctimonious airs that are so frequently\nnoticed in religious ministers. Wilford Woodruff is the present head\nof the Church, the fourth man who has occupied that position--his\npredecessors having been: Joseph Smith, Brigham Young and John Taylor.\n\n\"Mr. Woodruff is several years beyond four score, but is hale and\nhearty, very affable in manner and interesting in conversation. He is\na man of sturdy build, with a kindly, honest, intelligent face, and a\nmanner especially winning and agreeable. You know that I have contended\nthat the leaders of this movement were insincere, but when I met them\nand talked with them, when I marked the unwavering faith of that\ngood, venerable old man, I changed my mind. In some things, he may be\nmistaken, but he is an honest worshipper of God.\n\n\"I must not close without remembering Mr. Durant to you. He was\noverjoyed to find his family all well upon his arrival. During my stay\nin this territory, I have remained at his home a part of the time, and\nhave been very kindly treated.\n\n\"With love to all, I am your friend,\n\n\"WALTER T. BROWN.\"\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XV.\n\nCONCLUSION.\n\nKind reader, a word before we separate: if you are not a member of\nwhat is commonly called the Mormon Church, having read the foregoing\npages, you must certainly acknowledge that you know more concerning its\ndoctrines, from a Mormon standpoint, than you ever knew before.\n\nWe have tried to present to you, in a plain and very simple manner,\nsome of the first principles of our faith, the true gospel of Jesus\nChrist. What do you think of them? Will they, or will they not, stand\nscrutiny? It is left with you to answer, and as God has blessed you\nwith free agency, it is your privilege to judge and decide.\n\nDo not treat these doctrines indifferently, nor carelessly throw them\naside. Should they be true, the message is of the utmost importance to\nyou. Surrounded with so many proofs, the faith of the Latter-day Saints\nshould demand your further investigation.\n\nBooks, tracts, and sermons, in great numbers, and within easy reach,\nare at your command. Read, listen, investigate! Thousands have done so\nbefore, and bear testimony to having received a knowledge of the divine\ntruth, as herein presented.\n\nI part from you with the words of the poet true as any to be found:\n\n  \"Know this, that every soul is free,\n  To choose his life and what he'll be,\n  For this eternal truth is given,\n  That God will force no man to heaven.\n\n  \"He'll call, persuade, direct aright--\n  Bless him with wisdom, love, and light--\n  In nameless ways be good and kind,\n  But never force the human mind.\n\n  \"Freedom and reason make us men;\n  Take these away, what are we then?\n  Mere animals, and just as well\n  The beasts may think of heaven or hell.\"\n\n\n\nAPPENDIX.\n\nWHAT BRIGHAM YOUNG SAID.\n\nIt is not only a privilege, but a duty for the Saints to seek unto the\nLord their God for wisdom and understanding, to be in possession of the\nspirit that fills the heavens, until their eyes are anointed and opened\nto see the world as it really is, to know what it is made for, and why\nall things are as they are. It is one of the most happifying subjects\nthat can be named, for a person, or people, to have the privilege of\ngaining wisdom enough while in their mortal tabernacle, to be able to\nlook through the whys and wherefores of the existence of man, like\nlooking through a piece of glass that is perfectly transparent; and\nunderstand the design of the Great Maker of this beautiful creation.\nLet the people do this, and their hearts will be weaned from the\nworld.--Journal of Discourses Vol. I., p. 111.\n\nThis people are to the world an object of derision and hatred; to God,\nof care and pity.--J. of D. Vol. V., p. 350.\n\nThere is not a person in this community that can bring to mind or\nmention the time when I exhibited one particle of sorrow or trouble to\nthem. I calculate to carry my own sorrows just as long as I live upon\nthis earth; and when I go to the grave, I expect them all to go there,\nand sleep with me in silence.--Journal of Discourse, Vol I., p. 31.\n\nIf people act from pure motives, though their outward movements may not\nalways be so pleasant as our traditions would prefer, yet God will make\nthose acts result in the best good to the people.--J. of D. Vol. V., p.\n256.\n\nNo man can be exalted unless he be independent.--Journal of Discourses,\nVol. I., p. 111.\n\nThere are but few of us but what have been honored with as convenient a\nplace for a birth as was Jesus.--J. of D., Vol. IV., p. 131.\n\nYou remember reading in the last book of the New Testament, that\nin the beginning God cursed the earth; but did He curse all things\npertaining to it? No, He did not curse the water, but He blessed\nit. Pure water is cleansing it serves to purify; and you are aware\nthat the ancient Saints were very tenacious with regard to their\npurification by water. From the beginning the Lord instituted water for\nthat purpose among others. I do not mean from the beginning of this\nearth alone; and although we have no immediate concern in inquiring\ninto the organization of other earths that do not come within reach\nof our investigation, yet I will say that water has been the means\nof purification in every world that has been organized out of the\nimmensity of matter.--J. of D. Vol. VII., p. 162.\n\nThe blood will not be resurrected with the body, being designed only to\nsustain the life of the present organization. When this is dissolved\nand we again obtain our bodies by the power of the resurrection, that\nwhich we now call the life of the body, and which is formed from the\nfood we eat and the water we drink, will be supplanted by another\nelement; for flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God.--J. of\nD. Vol. VII., p. 163.\n\nIf we accept salvation on the terms it is offered to us, we have got to\nbe honest in every thought, in our reflections, in our meditations, in\nour private circles, in our deal, in our declarations, and in every act\nof our lives, fearless and regardless of every principle of error, of\nevery principle of falsehood that may be presented.--J. of D. Vol. V.,\np. 124.\n\nThere is no such thing as a man being truly rich until he has power\nover death, hell, the grave, and him that hath the power of death,\nwhich is the devil.--J. of D. Vol. I., p. 271.\n\nAll men should study to learn the nature of mankind, and to discern\nthat divinity inherent in them. A spirit and power of research is\nplanted within, yet they remain undeveloped.--J. of D. Vol. VII., p. 1.\n\nI am hated for teaching people the way of life and salvation for\nteaching them principles that pertain to eternity, by which the Gods\nwere and are, and by which they gain influence and power. Obtain that\ninfluence, and you will be hated, despised, and hunted like the roe\nupon the mountains.--J. of D. Vol. VII., p. 3.\n\nNever accuse a man or a woman of evil, until you find out the cause.\nNever judge by the outward appearance.--J. of D. Vol. V., p. 169.\n\nDo not get so angry that you cannot pray; do not allow yourselves to\nbecome so angry that you cannot feed an enemy.--J. of D. Vol. V., p.\n228.\n\nDo not offend God by not doing as He wants you to.--J. of D. Vol. V.,\np. 236.\n\nIf you could crowd an individual or a community into heaven without\nexperience, it would be no enjoyment to them. They must know the\nopposite; they must know how to contrast, in order to prize and\nappreciate the comfort and happiness, the joy and the bliss they are\nactually in possession of.--J. of D. Vol. V., p. 294.\n\nWe have to learn to submit ourselves to the Lord with all our hearts,\nwith all our affections, wishes, desires, passions, and let Him reign\nand rule over us and within us, the God of every nation; then He will\nlead us to victory and glory; otherwise He will not.--J. of D. Vol. V.,\np. 352.\n\nThere is only one thing to fear, and that is, that you will not be\nfaithful to the kingdom of God.--J. of D. Vol. V., p. 228.\n\nMy Christian brethren in the world say it is a piece of folly a species\nof extreme nonsense, to believe that water will wash away sins. It is\nno matter to me what they say; it is a commandment of the Lord; there\nis no mistake in it, it tells for itself. He says, Do thus and so, and\nyour sins shall be washed away. I care not how they are taken away;\nwhether an angel takes them to the Lord to get forgiveness, whether\nthey sink to the bottom of the stream, or float on the top, and be\nscattered to the four winds; He says, _Go into the water_ and be\nbaptized, and they shall be washed away; which is enough for me.--J. of\nD. Vol. I., p. 239.\n\nWhen the wicked have power to blow out the sun, that it shines no more;\nwhen they have power to bring to a conclusion the operations of the\nelements, suspend the whole system of nature, and make a footstool of\nthe throne of the Almighty, _they may then think to check, Mormonism\nin its course_, and thwart the unalterable purposes of heaven. Men may\npersecute the people who believe its doctrine, report and publish lies\nto bring tribulation upon their heads, earth and hell may unite in\none grand league against it, and exert their malicious powers to the\nutmost, but it will stand as firm and immovable in the midst of it all\nas the pillars of eternity.--J. of D. Vol. I., p. 88.\n\nThe time will come when the kingdom of God will reign free and\nindependent. There will be a kingdom on the earth that will be\ncontrolled upon the same basis, in part, as that of the Government\nof the United States; and it will govern and protect in their rights\nthe various classes of men, irrespective of their different modes of\nworship; for the law must go forth from Zion, and the word of the Lord\nfrom Jerusalem, and the Lord Jesus will govern every nation and kingdom\nupon the earth.--J. of D. Vol. V., p. 329.\n\nKeep your spirits under the sole control of good spirits, and they will\nmake your tabernacles honorable in the presence of God, angels, and\nmen. If you will always keep your spirits in right subjection, you will\nbe watching all the time, and never suffer yourselves to commit an act\nthat you will be sorry for, and you can see that in all your life you\nare clear. Do not do anything that you will be sorry for.--J. of D.\nVol. V., p. 328.\n\nThe Lord will not reveal all that we at times wish Him to. If a school\nmaster were to undertake to teach a little child algebra, you would\ncall him foolish, would you not? Just so with our Father; He reveals to\nus as we are prepared to receive.--J. of D. Vol. V., p. 330.\n\nThe philosophers of the world will concede that the elements of which\nyou and I are composed are eternal, yet they believe that there was a\ntime when there was no God.--J. of D, Vol. I, p. 5.\n\nYou will find that this probation is the place to increase upon every\nlittle we receive, for the Lord gives line upon line to the children of\nmen. When He reveals the plan of salvation, then is the time to fill up\nour days with good works.--J. of D., Vol. I, p. 5.\n\nWhen you embark to fill up the end of your creation, never cease to\nseek to have the Spirit of the Lord rest upon you, that your minds may\nbe peaceable, and as smooth as the summer breezes of heaven. Never\ncease a day of your life to have the Holy Ghost resting upon you.--J.\nof D., Vol, I, p. 69.\n\nWhen I have served my God and my brethren, when I have performed every\nact required of me, _until nothing remains to be done, but to lie down\nand rest_, to seek recreation, then it becomes my lawful privilege, and\nnot before.--Journal of Discourses, Vol. I., p. 112.\n\nIf you want to apostatize, apostatize, and behave yourselves.--J. of\nD., Vol. I, p. 84.\n\nThe duty of the mother is to watch over her children, and to give\nthem their early education, for impressions received in infancy are\nlasting. You know, yourselves, by experience, that the impressions\nyou have received in the dawn of your mortal existence, bear, to this\nday, with the greatest weight upon your mind. It is the experience of\npeople generally that what they imbibe from their mothers in infancy\nis the most lasting upon the mind through life. This is natural, it is\nreasonable, it is right. I do not suppose you can find one person among\nfive hundred who does not think his mother to be the best woman that\never lived. This is right, it is planted in the human heart. The child\nreposes implicit confidence in the mother, you behold in him a natural\nattachment, no matter what her appearance may be, that makes him think\nhis mother is the best and handsomest mother in the world.--J. of D.,\nVol. I, p. 67.\n\nI never passed John Wesley's church in London without stopping to\nlook at it. Was he a good man? Yes; I suppose him to have been, by\nall accounts, as good as ever walked on this earth, according to his\nknowledge. Has he obtained a rest? Yes, and greater than ever entered\nhis mind to expect; and so have thousands of others of the various\nreligious denominations.--J. of D., Vol. VII., p. 5.\n\nPersecution and hatred by those who love not the truth are a legacy\nbequeathed by the Savior to all his followers; for He said they\nshould be hated of all men for His name's sake. If we had ceased\nto be persecuted and hated we might fear; but the prospect is\nencouraging.--J. of D., Vol. VII., p. 42.\n\nWhen I hear persons say that they ought to occupy a station more\nexalted, than they do, and hide the talents they are in possession of,\nthey have not the true wisdom they ought to have. There is a lack in\nthem, or they would improve upon the talents given.--J. of D., Vol.\nVII., p. 162.\n\nTake a course to let the Spirit of God leave your hearts, and every\nsoul of you would apostatize.--J. of D., Vol. VII., p. 55.\n\nTruth is obeyed when it is loved. Strict obedience to the truth will\nalone enable people to dwell in the presence of the Almighty.--J. of\nD., Vol. VII., p. 55.\n\nWhen men come into this Church merely through having their judgments\nconvinced, they still must have the Spirit of God bearing witness to\ntheir spirits, or they will leave the Church, as sure as they are\nliving beings. The Saints must become one, as Jesus said His disciples\nshould be one. They must have the Spirit testifying to them of the\ntruth, or the light that is in them will become darkness, and they\nwill forsake this kingdom and their religion. I wished to bear this\ntestimony.--J. of D., Vol. VII., p. 55.\n\nThere will not be so many people that will go into that awful place\nthat burns with fire and brimstone, where they sink down, down, down to\nthe bottom of the bottomless pit, as the Christians say, not near so\nmany as the Christian world would have go there. That gives me great\njoy, notwithstanding all the perils and persecution we have suffered\nthrough the wickedness of the wicked. Liars, sorcerers, whoremongers,\nadulterers, and those that love and make a lie, will be found on the\noutside of the walls of the city; but they will never get into the\nbottom of the bottomless pit. Who will go there and become angels\nof perdition and suffer the wrath of an offended God? Those who sin\nagainst the Holy Ghost.--J. of D., Vol. VII., p. 144.\n\nThe eloquence of angels never can convince any person that God lives,\nand makes truth the habitation of His throne, independent of that\neloquence being clothed with the power of the Holy Ghost; in the\nabsence of this, it would be a combination of useless sounds.--J. of\nD., Vol. I., p. 90.\n\nEmbrace a doctrine that will purge sin and iniquity from your hearts,\nand sanctify you before God, and you are right, no matter how others\nact.--J. of D., Vol. IV., p. 78.\n\nEvery time you kick \"Mormonism,\" you kick it up stairs: you never kick\nit down stairs. The Lord Almighty so orders it.--J. of D., Vol. VII.,\np. 145.\n\nIf you want to see the principle of devilism to perfection, hunt among\nthose who have once enjoyed the faith of the holy gospel and then\nforsaken their religion. We have the best and the worst.--J. of D.,\nVol. VII,, p. 145.\n\nDarkness and sin were permitted to come on this earth. Man partook of\nthe forbidden fruit in accordance with a plan devised from eternity,\nthat mankind might be brought in contact with the principles and powers\nof darkness, that they might know the bitter and the sweet, the good\nand the evil, and be able to discern between light and darkness, to\nenable them to receive light continually.--J. of D., Vol. VII., p, 158.\n\nI will not say, as do many, that the more I learn the more I am\nsatisfied that I know nothing; for the more I learn the more I discern\nan eternity of knowledge to improve upon.--J. of D., Vol. VII., p. 162.\n\nThis American continent will be Zion, for it is so spoken of by the\nprophets. Jerusalem will be rebuilt and will be the place of gathering,\nand the tribe of Judah will gather there; but this continent of America\nis the land of Zion.--J. of D., Vol. V., p. 4.\n\nOne-third part of the spirits that were prepared for this earth\nrebelled against Jesus Christ, and were cast down to the earth, and\nthey have been opposed to him from that day to this, with Lucifer at\ntheir heard. He is their great General Lucifer, the Son of the Morning,\nHe was once a brilliant and influential character in heaven, and we\nwill know more about him hereafter.--J. of D., Vol. V., p. 55.\n\nIt is the man who works hard, who sweats over the rock, and goes to the\ncanyons for lumber, that I count more worthy of good food and dress\nthan I am.--J. of D., Vol. V., p. 99.\n\nChastisements are grievous when they are received; but if they are\nreceived in patience, they will work out salvation for those who\ncheerfully submit to them.--J. of D., Vol. V., p. 124.\n\nMourning for the righteous dead springs from the ignorance and weakness\nthat are planted within the mortal tabernacle, the organization of\nthis house for the spirit to dwell in. No matter what pain we suffer,\nno matter what we pass through, we cling to our mother earth, and\ndislike to have any of her children leave us. We love to keep together\nthe social family relation that we bear one to another, and do not\nlike to part with each other; but could we have knowledge and see into\neternity, if we were perfectly free from the weakness, blindness and\nlethargy with which we are clothed in the flesh, we should have no\ndisposition to weep or mourn.--J. of D., Vol. IV., p. 131.\n\nFirst reform in your moral character and conduct one towards another,\nso that every man and woman will deal honestly and walk uprightly with\none another, and extend the arm of charity and benevolence to each\nother, as necessity requires. Be moral and strictly honest in every\npoint, before you ask God to reform your spirit.--J. of D., Vol. IV.,\np. 61.\n\nIf we could see our heavenly Father, we should see a being similar\nto our earthly parent, with this difference: our Father in heaven is\nexalted and glorified. He has received His thrones, His principalities\nand powers, and He sits as a governor, as a monarch, and overrules\nkingdoms, thrones and dominions that have been bequeathed to Him, and\nsuch as we anticipate receiving. While He was in the flesh, as we are,\nHe was as we are.--J. of D., Vol. IV., p. 54.\n\nWhen we have done with the flesh, and have departed to the spirit\nworld, you will find that we are independent of those evil spirits. But\nwhile you are in the flesh you will suffer by them, and cannot control\nthem, only by your faith in the name of Jesus Christ and by the keys of\nthe eternal priesthood. When the spirit is unlocked from the tabernacle\nit is as free, pure, holy and independent of them as the sun is of this\nearth.--J. of D. Vol. IV,, p. 134.\n\nThe spirit of every man and woman that gets into the celestial kingdom\nmust overcome the flesh, must war against the flesh until the seeds of\nsin that are sown in the flesh are brought into subjection to the law\nof Christ.--J. of D., Vol. IV., p, 197.\n\nNatural philosophy is the plan of salvation, and the plan of salvation\nis natural philosophy.--J. of D. Vol. IV., p. 203.\n\nThere is no spirit but what was pure and holy when it came here from\nthe celestial world. There is no spirit among the human family that\nwas begotten in hell; none that were begotten by angels, or by any\ninferior being. They were not produced by any being less than our\nFather in heaven. He is the Father of our spirits, and if we could\nknow, understand and do His will, every soul would be prepared to\nreturn back into His presence. And when they get there, they would see\nthat they had formerly lived there for ages; that they had previously\nbeen acquainted with every nook and corner, with the palaces, walks\nand gardens; and they would embrace their Father, and He would embrace\nthem.--J. of D., Vol. IV., p. 268.\n\nThe kingdom of our God that is set upon the earth, does not require men\nof many words and flaming oratorical talents, to establish truth and\nrighteousness. It is not the many words that accomplish the designs of\nour Father in heaven; with Him it is the acts of the people more than\ntheir words.--J. of D., Vol. IV., p. 20.\n\nWe are placed on this earth to prove whether we are worthy to go into\nthe celestial world, the terrestrial or the telestial, or to hell.--J.\nof D., Vol. IV., p. 269.\n\nServe God according to the best knowledge you have, and lie down and\nsleep quietly; and when the devil comes along and says, You are not\na very good Saint, you might enjoy greater blessings and more of the\npower of God, and have the vision of your mind opened, if you would\nlive up to your privileges, tell him to leave; that you have long ago\nforsaken his ranks and enlisted in the army of Jesus, who is your\ncaptain, and that you want no more of the devil.--J. of D., Vol. IV.,\np. 270.\n\nThe spirit of truth will do more to bring persons to light and\nknowledge than flowery words.--J. of D., Vol. IV., p. 21.\n\nMany people are unwilling to do one thing for themselves in case of\nsickness, but ask God to do it all.--J. of D., Vol. IV., p. 25.\n\nI would rather be chopped to pieces at night, and resurrected in the\nmorning each day throughout a period of three score years and ten, than\nbe deprived of speaking freely, or be afraid of doing so.--J. of D.,\nVol. I., p. 364.\n\nA man never can be a polished scoundrel, until he can figure in\npolished society. It proves the truth of the saying, that it takes all\nthe revelations of God, and every good principle in the world to make a\nman perfectly ripe for hell.--J. of D., Vol. I., p. 362.\n\nLet the past experience be buried in the land of forgetfulness, if the\nLord will; but if this is done at all, it will be by showing kindness\ntowards us in the future. If they wish us to forget the past, let them\ncease to make and circulate falsehoods about us, and let all the good\npeople of the Government say,--\"_Let us do this people good for the\nfuture, and not try to crush them down all the day long by continuing\nto persecute them_.\"\n\nIf we are here by chance, if we happened to slip into this world from\nnothing, we shall soon slip out of this world to nothing, hence nothing\nwill remain.--J. of D., Vol. IV., p. 60.\n\nThe devil is just as much opposed to Jesus now as he was when the\nrevolt took place in heaven. And as the devil increases his numbers by\ngetting the people to be wicked, so Jesus Christ increases His numbers\nand strength by getting the people to be humble and righteous. The\nhuman family are going to the polls by and by, and they wish to know\nwhich party is going to carry the day.--J. of D., Vol. IV., p. 38.\n\nIf we are a company of poor, ignorant, deluded creatures why do they\nnot show us a better example?--J. of D., Vol. I., p. 365.\n\nIf children have sinned against their parents, or husbands against\ntheir wives, or wives against their husbands, let them confess their\nfaults one to another and forgive each other, and there let the\nconfession stop; and then let them ask pardon from their God. Confess\nyour sins to whoever you have sinned against, and let it stop there.\n\nIf you have committed a sin against the community, confess to them. If\nyou have sinned in your family, confess there.\n\nConfess your sins, iniquities and follies where that confession\nbelongs, and learn to classify your actions.--J. of D., Vol. IV., p. 79.\n\nNothing less than the privilege of increasing eternally, in every\nsense of the word, can satisfy the immortal spirit. If the endless\nstream of knowledge from the eternal fountain could all be drunk in by\norganized intelligence, so sure immortality would come to an end, and\nall eternity be thrown upon the retrograde path.--J. of D., Vol. I., p.\n350.\n\nGod is our Father, and Jesus Christ is our elder brother, and both are\nour everlasting friends.--J. of D., Vol. VII., p. 193.\n\nThe only true believers are they who prove their belief by their\nobedience to the requirements of the gospel.--J. of D., Vol. I., p. 234.\n\nA flock of sheep consisting of thousands must be clean indeed if some\nof them are not smutty.--J. of D., Vol. I., p. 213.\n\nThe gospel of salvation is perfectly calculated to cause division.\nIt strikes at the root of the very existence of mankind in their\nwickedness, evil designs, passions and wicked calculations. There is\nno evil among the human family, but at the foundation of which it\nstrikes effectually, and comes in contact with every evil passion that\nrises in the heart of man. It is opposed to every evil practice of\nmen, and consequently it disturbs them in the wicked courses they are\npursuing.--J. of D., Vol. I., p. 235.\n\nThe God Mr. Baptist believes in is without body, parts or passions. The\nGod that his \"brother Mormon\" believes in is described in the Bible\nas being a personage of tabernacle, having eyes to see, for he that\nmade the eye shall he not see? Having ears to hear, for his ears are\nopen to hear the prayers of the righteous. He has limbs that He can\nwalk, for the Lord God walked in the garden in the cool of the day. He\nconversed with His children, as in the case of Moses at the fiery bush,\nand with Abraham on the plains of Mamre. He also ate and drank with\nAbraham and others. That is, the God the Mormons believe in, but their\nvery religious Christian brethren do not believe in the God of Abraham,\nIsaac and Jacob, which is the God the Bible sets forth, as an organized\ncorporeal being.--J. of D., Vol. I., p. 238.\n\nIt is a mistaken idea to suppose that others can prevent me from\nenjoying the light of God in my soul; all hell cannot hinder me from\nenjoying Zion in my own heart, if my individual will yields obedience\nto the requirements and mandates of my heavenly Master.--J. of D., Vol.\nI., p. 311.\n\nChildren have all confidence in their mothers; and if mothers would\ntake proper pains, they can instill into the hearts of their children\nwhat they please. You will, no doubt, recollect reading, in the Book\nof Mormon, of two thousand young men, who were brought up to believe\nthat, if they put their whole trust in God, and served Him no power\nwould overcome them. You also recollect reading of them going out to\nfight, and so bold were they, and so mighty their faith, that it was\nimpossible for their enemies to slay them. This power and faith they\nobtained through the teachings of their mothers.--J. of D., Vol. I., p.\n67.\n\nThat moment that men seek to build up themselves, in preference to the\nkingdom of God, and seek to hoard up riches, while the widow and the\nfatherless, the sick and afflicted around them are in poverty and want,\nit proves that their hearts are weaned from their God.--J. of D., Vol.\nI., p. 273.\n\nIt is as much as we can do to keep the Christians of the nineteenth\ncentury from cutting our throats because we differ from them in our\nreligious belief.--J. of D., Vol. VII., p. 165.\n\nIf I could net master my mouth, I would my knees, and make them bend\nuntil my mouth would speak.--J. of D., Vol. VII., p. 164.\n\nAll who live according to the best principles in their possession, or\nthat they can understand, will receive peace, glory, comfort, joy, and\na crown that will be far beyond what they are anticipating. They will\nnot be lost.--J. of D., Vol. VII., p. 192.\n\nI will not ask any person to embrace anything that is not in the New\nTestament until they have asked God if it is true or untrue, who will\nsatisfy them if they ask in faith nothing doubting.--J. of D., Vol. I.,\np. 244.\n\nDo not seek for that which you cannot magnify, but practice upon that\nwhich you have in your possession.--J. of D., Vol. VII., p. 239.\n\nIt would be as easy for a gnat to trace the history of man back to his\norigin as for man to fathom the first cause of all things, lift the\nveil of eternity, and reveal the mysteries that have been sought after\nby philosophers from the beginning. What, then, should be the calling\nand duty of the children of men? Instead of inquiring after the origin\nof the Gods instead of trying to explore the depths of eternities\nthat have been, that are, and that will be instead of endeavoring to\ndiscover the boundaries of boundless space, let them seek to know\nthe object of their present existence, and how to apply, in the most\nprofitable manner for their mutual good and salvation, the intelligence\nthey possess.--J. of D., Vol. VII., p. 284.\n\nThe being whom we call Father was the father of the spirit of the Lord\nJesus Christ, and He was also His father pertaining to the flesh.\nInfidels and Christians, make all you can of this statement. The Bible,\nwhich all Christians profess to believe, reveals that fact, and it\nreveals the truth upon that point, and I am a witness of its truth. The\napostles who were personally acquainted with Jesus Christ did know and\nunderstand what they wrote, and they wrote the truth.--J. of D., Vol.\nVII., p. 286.\n\nWhen the spirit leaves the body it goes into the spirit world, where\nthe spirits of men are classified according to their own wills or\npleasure, as men are here, only they are in a more pure and refined\nstate of existence.--J. of D., Vol. VII., p 288.\n\nSalvation is an individual operation. I am the only person that can\npossibly save myself.--J. of D., Vol. I., p. 312.\n\nThere is _not a truth on earth or in heaven that is not embraced in\nMormonism_.--J. of D., Vol. I., p. 244.\n\nI am here to testify to hundreds of instances of men, women and\nchildren being healed by the power of God through the laying on of\nhands: and many I have seen raised from the gates of death, and brought\nback from the verge of eternity; and some whose spirits had actually\nleft their bodies, returned again. I testify that I have seen the sick\nhealed by the laying on of hands, according to the promise of the\nSavior.--J. of D., Vol. I., p. 240.\n\nThere never was a time when there were not Gods and worlds, and when\nmen were not passing through the same ordeals that we are now passing\nthrough. That course has been from all eternity and it is and will be\nto all eternity.--J. of D, Vol. VII., p. 333.\n\nWhen you tell me that Father Adam was made as we make adobies, from the\nearth, you tell me what I deem an idle tale. When you tell me that the\nbeasts of the field were produced in that manner, you are speaking idle\nwords, devoid of meaning. There is no such thing in all the eternities\nwhere the Gods dwell; mankind are here because they are the offspring\nof parents who were first brought here from another planet, and power\nwas given them to propagate their species, and they were commanded to\nmultiply and replenish the earth.--J. of D., Vol. VII., p. 285.\n\nWe will round up our shoulders and bear up the ponderous weight, carry\nthe gospel to the uttermost parts of the earth, gather Israel, redeem\nZion and continue our operations until we bind Satan, and the kingdoms\nof this world become the kingdom of our Lord and His Christ, and no\npower can hinder it.--J. of D., Vol. I., p. 189.\n\nThe \"Mormon\" Elders will tell you that all people must receive this\ngospel the gospel of Jesus Christ, and be baptized for the remission\nof sins, or they cannot be saved. Let me explain this to you. They\ncannot go where God and Christ dwell, for that is a kingdom of itself\nthe celestial kingdom. Jesus said, \"In my Father's house are many\nmansions,\" or kingdoms. They will come forth in the first, second or\nsome other resurrection, if they have not been guilty of the particular\nsins I have just mentioned; and they will enjoy a kingdom and a glory\ngreater than they had ever anticipated. When we talk about people's\nbeing damned, I would like to have all understand that we do not use\nthe term \"damnation\" in the sense that it is used by the sectarian\nworld. Universal, salvation or redemption is the doctrine of the Bible;\nbut the people do not know how or where to discriminate between truth\nand error. All those who have done according to the best of their\nknowledge, whether they are Christians, Pagans, Jews, Mohammedans, or\nany other class of men that have ever lived upon the earth, that have\ndealt honestly and justly with their fellow beings, walked uprightly\nbefore each other, loved mercy, tried to put down iniquity, and done as\nfar right as they knew how, according to the laws they lived under, no\nmatter what the laws were, will share in a resurrection that will be\nglorious far beyond the conception of mortals.--J. of D., Vol. VII., p.\n288.\n\nDo you not know that the possession of your property is like a shadow,\nor the dew of the morning before the noonday sun, that you cannot have\nany assurance of its control for a single moment? It is the unseen hand\nof Providence that controls it.--J. of D. Vol. I., p. 114.\n\nNo person can be a saint, unless he receives the holy gospel, for the\npurity, justice, holiness, and eternal duration of it.--J. of D. Vol.\nI., p. 114.\n\nI will do the work the Lord has appointed unto me. You do the same and\nfear not, for the Lord manages the helm of the ship of Zion; and on any\nother ship I do not wish to be.--J. of D., Vol. I., p. 189.\n\nHow often to all human appearance, has this kingdom been blotted out\nfrom the earth, but the Lord has put His hand over the people, and it\nhas passed through and come out two, three and four times larger than\nbefore. Our enemies have kicked us, and cuffed us, and driven us from\npillar to post, and we have multiplied and increased the more, until we\nhave become what we are this day.--J. of D., Vol. I., p. 191.\n\nThe devil has put the whole world on the watch against us. It is\nimpossible for us to make the least move without exciting, if not all\nthe world, at least a considerable portion of it. They are excited at\nwhat we do, and strange to relate, they are no less excited at what we\ndo not do.--J. of D., Vol. I., p. 189.\n\nDo you suppose that this people will ever see the day that they will\nrest in perfect security, in hopes of becoming like another people,\nnation, state, kingdom or society? They never will. Christ and\nSatan never can be friends. Light and darkness will always remain\nopposites.--J. of D., Vol. I., p. 188.\n\nWhen evil is present with us, we must overcome it, or be overcome by\nit. When the devil is in our hearts, tempting us to do that which is\nwrong, we must resist him, or be led captive by him.--J. of D., Vol,\nI., p. 92.\n\nThe speculation I am after, is to exchange this world, which, in\nits present state, passes away, for a world that is eternal and\nunchangeable, for a glorified world filled with eternal riches, for the\nworld that is made an inheritance for the Gods of eternity.--J. of D.,\nVol. I., p. 327.\n\nDo the righteous of this people cause persecution to come upon\nthemselves? No, Do the principles of the gospel create prejudice and\npersecution against them? No. But it is the disposition of the wicked\nto oppose the principles of truth and righteousness which causes\nit.--J. of D., Vol. I. p. 186.\n\nTo saint and sinner, believer and unbeliever, I wish here to offer one\nword of advice and counsel by revealing the mystery that abides with\nthis people called Latter-day Saints; it is the Spirit of the living\nGod that leads them; it is the Spirit of the Almighty that binds them\ntogether; it is the influence of the Holy Ghost that makes them love\neach other like little children; it is the Spirit of Jesus Christ that\nmakes them willing to lay down their lives for the cause of truth, and\nit was that same Spirit that caused Joseph, our martyred prophet to lay\ndown his life for the testimony of what the Lord revealed to him.--J.\nof D., Vol. I., p. 145.\n\nI have nothing to fear in all the persecutions or hardships I may pass\nthrough in connection with this people, but the one thing, and that is\nto stray from the religion I have embraced and be forsaken by my God.\nIf you or I should see that day, we shall see at once that the world\nwill love its own; and affliction, persecution, death, fire and the\nsword will cease to follow us.--J. of D., Vol. I., p. 144.\n\nMoney is not real capital, it bears the title only. True capital is\nlabor and is confined to the laboring classes. They only possess it. It\nis the bone, sinew, nerve and muscle of man that subdue the earth, make\nit yield its strength and administer to his varied wants. This power\ntears down mountains and fills up valleys, builds cities and temples,\nand paves the streets. In short what is there that yields shelter and\ncomfort to civilized man that is not produced by the strength of his\narm making the elements bend to his will.--J. of D., Vol. I., p. 254.\n\nThough the enemy had power to kill our _prophet_, that is, _kill his\nbody_, did he not accomplish all that was in _his heart_ to accomplish\nin _his day_? He did to my certain knowledge, and I have many witnesses\nhere that heard him declare that he had done everything he could do--he\nhad revealed everything that could be revealed at _present_, he had\nprepared the way for the people to walk in, and no man or woman should\nbe deprived of going into the presence of the Father and the Son and\nenjoying an eternal exaltation if they would _walk in the path he had\npointed out_.--J. of D., Vol. I., p. 132.\n\nSo long as you are able to walk and attend to your business, it is\nfolly to say that you need ardent spirits to keep you alive. The\nconstitution that a person has should be nourished and cherished; and\nwhenever we take anything into the system to force and stimulate it\nbeyond its natural capacity, it shortens life. I am physician enough to\nknow that. When you are tired and think you need a little spirituous\nliquor, take some bread and butter, or bread and milk, and lie down and\nrest. Do not labor so hard as to deem it requisite to get half drunk\nin order to keep up your spirits. If you will follow this counsel, you\nwill be full of life and health, and will increase your intelligence,\nyour joy and comfort.--J. of D., Vol. VII., p. 337.\n\nAll I desire to live for is to see the inhabitants of the earth\nacknowledge God, bow down to Him, and confess His supremacy, and\nHis righteous covenant. To Him let every knee bow, and every tongue\nconfess, and let all creation say Amen to His wise providences. Let\nevery person declare His allegiance to God, and then live to it,\nsaying, \"As for me and my house we will serve the Lord. _As for me,\nand all I have, it is the Lord's, and shall be dedicated to Him all my\ndays_.\" If this can be done, happiness is here, angels are here, God is\nhere and we are wrapped in the visions of eternity.--J. of D., Vol. I.,\np. 94.\n\nThe principle opposite to that of eternal increase from the beginning,\nleads down to hell; the person decreases, loses his knowledge, tact,\ntalent and ultimately, in a short period of time is lost; he returns\nto his mother earth, his name is forgotten. But where, O! where is his\nspirit? I will not now take the time to follow his destiny; but here\nstrong language _could_ be used, for when the Lord Jesus Christ shall\nbe revealed after the termination of the thousand years' rest, He will\nsummon the armies of heaven for the conflict, He will come forth in\nflaming fire, He will descend to execute the mandates of an incensed\nGod, and amid the thunderings of the wrath of Omnipotence, roll up the\nheavens as a scroll and destroy death and him that has the power of it.\nThe rebellious will be thrown back into their native element, there to\nremain myriads of years before their dust will again be revived, before\nthey will be reorganized. Some might argue that this principle would\nlead to the reorganization of Satan, and all the devils. I say nothing\nabout this only what the Lord says, that when \"He comes He will destroy\n_death_ and him that has the power of it.\" It cannot be annihilated;\nyou cannot annihilate matter. If you could it would prove there was\nempty space. If philosophers could annihilate the least conceivable\namount of matter, they could then prove there was the minutest vacuum,\nor _empty space_ but there is not even that much, and it is beyond the\npower of man to prove that there is any.--J of D., Vol. I., p. 118.\n\nBecause of the weakness of human nature, it must crumble to the dust.\nBut in all the revolutions and changes in the existence of men, in\nthe eternal world which they inhabit, and in the knowledge they have\nobtained as people on the earth, there is no such thing as principle,\npower, wisdom, knowledge, life, position or anything that can be\nimagined, that remains stationary they must increase or decrease.--J.\nof D., Vol. I., p. 350.\n\nMen should act upon the principle of righteousness because it is right,\nand is a principle which they love to cherish and see practiced by all\nmen. They should love mercy because of its benevolence, charity, love,\nclemency and of all of its lovely attributes, and be inspired thereby\nto deal justly, fairly, honorably, meting out to others their just\ndeservings.--J. of D., Vol. I., p. 119.\n\nPractical religion is what we all need to prepare us to enjoy that\nwhich we have in our anticipations that which we hold in our faith.\nMerely the theory of any religion does people but little good. This\nis the great failing of Bible Christians, as they are called. They\nhave the theory of the religion of which the Bible testifies, but the\npractical part they spurn from them.--J. of D., Vol. IV., p. 341.\n\nAll those who wish to possess true riches, desire the riches that will\nendure. Then look at the subject of salvation where you will find\ntrue riches. They are to be found in the principles of the gospel of\nsalvation, and are not to be found anywhere else.--J. of D., Vol. I.,\np, 269.\n\nSuppose we say there was once a beginning to all things, then we\nmust conclude there will undoubtedly be an end. Can eternity be\ncircumscribed? If it can, there is an end of all wisdom, knowledge,\npower and glory all will sink into eternal annihilation.--J. of D.,\nVol. I., p. 353.\n\nWhich would produce the greatest good to man, to give him his agency\nand draw a vail over him, or to give him certain blessings and\nprivileges, let him live in a certain degree of light, and enjoy a\ncertain glory, and take his agency from him, compelling him to remain\nin that position, without any possible chance of progress? I say the\ngreatest good that could be produced by the all-wise Conductor of the\nuniverse to His creature, man, was to do just as He has done.--J. of\nD., Vol. I., p. 351.\n\nThe Lord does not thank you for your alms, long prayers, sanctimonious\nspeeches and long faces, if you refuse to extend the hand of\nbenevolence and charity to your fellow creatures, and lift them up, and\nencourage and strengthen the feeble, while they are contending against\nthe current of mortal ills.--J. of D., Vol. I., p. 245.\n\nThe Holy Ghost takes of the Father and of the Son and shows it to the\ndisciples. It shows them things past, present and to come. It opens the\nvision of the mind, unlocks the treasures of wisdom, and they begin to\nunderstand the things of God; their minds are exalted on high; their\nconceptions of God and His creations are dignified, and \"Hallelujah to\nGod and the Lamb in the highest,\" is the constant language of their\nhearts. They comprehend themselves and the great object of their\nexistence. They also comprehend the designs of the wicked ones, and\nthe designs of those who serve him; they comprehend the designs of the\nAlmighty in forming the earth and mankind upon it, and the ultimate\npurpose of all His creations. It leads them to drink at the fountain\nof eternal wisdom, justice and truth; they grow in grace and in the\nknowledge of the truth as it is in Jesus Christ until they see as they\nare seen, and know as they are known.--J. of D., Vol. I., p. 241.\n\nThe character of a person is formed through life, to a greater or less\nextent, by the teachings of the mother. The traits of early impressions\nthat she gives the child, will be characteristic points in his\ncharacter through every avenue of his mortal existence.--J. of D., Vol.\nI., p. 67.\n\nIt is necessary that we should be tried, tempted and buffeted to make\nus feel the weakness of this mortal flesh.--J. of D., Vol. I., p. 359.\n\nDirectly behind a frowning Providence oftentimes are concealed the\ngreatest blessings that mankind can desire.--J. of D., Vol. I., p. 198.\n\nI am at the defiance of the rulers of the greatest nation on the earth,\nwith the United States all put together, to produce a more loyal people\nthan the Latter-day Saints.--J. of D., Vol. 1., p. 361.\n\nAll there is of any worth or value in the world is incorporated in our\nglorious religion, and designed to exalt the minds of the children of\nmen to a permanent, celestial and eternal station.--J. of D., Vol. I.,\np. 341.\n\nI may have thousands of wealth locked up today, and hold checks for\nimmense sums on the best banking institutions in the world, but have\nI any surety that I shall be worth a cent tomorrow morning? Not the\nleast. The Lord Almighty can send fire and destruction when He pleases,\ndestroying towns and swallowing up cities in the bellowing earthquake.\nHe can set up kingdoms and make communities wealthy, and bring them\nto poverty at His pleasure. When He pleases, He can give them wealth,\ncomfort and ease, and on the other hand torment them with poverty,\ndistress and sore afflictions. Who can realize this? All the world\nought, and especially the Saints.--J. of D., Vol. I, p. 340.\n\nThe Lord Almighty can do His own work and no power of man can stay the\npotency of His wonder-working hand. Men may presume to dictate to the\nLord; they come to naught, but His work moves steadily forward.--J. of\nD., Vol. I., p. 198.\n\nWhen I cannot feed myself through the means God has placed in my power,\nit is then time enough for Him to exercise His providence in an unusual\nmanner to administer to my wants. But while we can help ourselves, it\nis our duty to do so. If a saint of God be locked up in prison, by\nhis enemies, to starve to death, it is then time enough for God to\ninterpose, and feed him.--J. of D., Vol. I., p. 108.\n\nIt has been, and is now, believed by numerous individuals, that the\nbrute creation, by increase in knowledge and wisdom, change their\nphysical or bodily organization, through numerous states of existence,\nso that the minutest insect, in lapse of time, can take to itself the\nhuman form, and _visa versa_. This is one of the most inconsistent\nideas that could be possibly entertained in the mind of man; it is\ncalled the transmigration of souls. It is enough for me to know that\nmankind are made to improve themselves. All creation, visible and\ninvisible, is the workmanship of our God, the Supreme Architect and\nRuler of the whole, who organized the world, and created every living\nthing upon it, to act in its sphere and order. To this end has He\nordained all things to increase and multiply. The Lord God Almighty has\ndecreed this principle to be the great governing law of existence, and\nfor that purpose are we formed. Furthermore, if man can understand and\nreceive it, mankind are organized to receive intelligence until they\nbecome perfect in the sphere they are appointed to fill, which is far\nahead of us at present. When we use the term perfection, it applies\nto man in his present condition, as well as to heavenly beings. We\nare now, or may be, as perfect in our _sphere_ as God and angels are\nin theirs, but the greatest intelligence in existence can continually\nascend to greater heights of perfection.--J. of D., Vol. I., p. 92.\n\nWe read in the Bible, that there is one glory of the sun, another\nglory of the moon, and another glory of the stars. In the Book of\nDoctrine and Covenants these glories are called telestial, terrestrial,\nand celestial, which is the highest. These are worlds, different\ndepartments, or mansions, in our Father's house. New those men,\nor those women, who know no more about the power of God, and the\ninfluences of the Holy Spirit, than to be led entirely by another\nperson, suspending their own understanding, and pinning their faith\nupon another's sleeve, will never be capable of entering into the\ncelestial glory, to be crowned as they anticipate; they will never be\ncapable of becoming Gods. They cannot rule themselves, to say nothing\nof ruling others, but they must be dictated to in every trifle, like a\nchild. They cannot control themselves in the least, but James, Peter,\nor somebody else must control them. They never can become Gods, nor\nbe crowned as rulers with glory, immortality, and eternal lives. They\nnever can hold sceptres of glory, majesty, and power in the celestial\nkingdom. Who will? Those who are valiant and inspired with the true\nindependence of heaven, who will go forth boldly in the service of\ntheir God, leaving others to do as they please, determined to do right,\nthough all mankind besides should take the opposite course. Will this\napply to any of you? Your own hearts can answer.--J. of D., Vol. I., p.\n312.\n\nSuppose the devil does tempt you, must you of necessity enter into\npartnership again with him, open your doors, and bid him welcome to\nyour house, and tell him to reign there? Why do you not reflect, and\ntell master devil, with all his associates and imps, to be gone,\nfeeling you have served him long enough.--J. of D., Vol. I., p, 323.\n\nIf true principles are revealed from heaven to men, and if there are\nangels, and there is a possibility of their communicating to the human\nfamily, always look for an opposite power, an evil power, to give\nmanifestations also; look out for the counterfeit.--J. of D., Vol.\nVII,, p. 240.\n\nWhen death is passed, the power of Satan has no more influence over a\nfaithful individual; that spirit is free, and can command the power of\nSatan. The penalty demanded by the fall has been fully paid; all is\naccomplished pertaining to it, when the tabernacle of a faithful person\nis returned to earth. All that was lost is passed away, and that person\nwill again receive his body. When he is in the spirit world, he is free\nfrom those contaminating and condemning influences of Satan that we\nare now subject to. Here our bodies are subject to being killed by our\nenemies our names to being cast out as evil. We are prosecuted, hated,\nnot beloved; though I presume that we are as much beloved here as the\nspirits of the saints are in the spirit world by those spirits who hate\nrighteousness. It is the same warfare, but we will have power over\nthem. Those who have passed through the vail have power over the evil\nspirits to command, and they must obey.--J. of D., Vol. VII., p. 240.\n\nOppression, persecution, afflictions, and other trials and privations\nare necessary as a test to all professing to be Saints, that they may\nhave an opportunity to witness the workings of the power which is\nopposed to truth and holiness.--J. of D., Vol. VII., p. 242.\n\nLet the spirit that comes from the eternal world, which at the outset\nis pure and holy, with the influence God gives to it, master all the\npassions of the body, and bring it under subjection to the will of\nChrist. That course makes us Saints.--J. of D., Vol. VII., p. 243.\n\nWhether a truth be found with professed infidels, or with\nUniversalists, or the Church of Rome, or the Methodists, the Church of\nEngland, the Presbyterians, the Baptists, the Quakers, the Shakers,\nor any other of the various and numerous different sects and parties,\nall of whom have more or less truth, it is the business of the Elders\nof this Church (Jesus, their elder brother, being at their head,) to\ngather up all the truths in the world pertaining to life and salvation,\nto the gospel we preach, to mechanism of every kind, to the sciences,\nand to philosophy, wherever it may be found in every nation, kindred,\ntongue, and people, and bring it to Zion. The people upon this earth\nhave a great many errors, and they have also a great many truths.\nThis statement is not only true of the nations termed civilized those\nwho profess to worship the true God, but is equally applicable to\npagans of all countries, for in their religious rites and ceremonies\nmay be found a great many truths which we will also gather home to\nZion. All truth is for the salvation of the children of men--for their\nbenefit and learning for their furtherance in the principles of divine\nknowledge.--J. of D., Vol. VII., p. 283.\n\nThe Latter-day Saints understand the Bible as it reads, but the\ngenerality of modern Christians disagree with us, and say it needs\ninterpreting. They cannot believe our Lord means what He says in the\n16th chapter of Mark, when He tells His Apostles to \"go into all the\nworld, and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth\nand is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be\ndamned. And these signs shall follow them that believe,\" etc. \"Now,\"\nsay they, \"we cannot believe that as it is written, but we have a\nvery pretty interpretation which suits us much better than the plain\ntext. And furthermore we have a sweeping argument that will destroy\nall your system from beginning to end, and prove there is to be no\nmore revelation.\" Let us look at the passage here referred to. John,\nwhile upon the Isle of Patmos, had a revelation which, he wrote, and\nhe concluded the same by saying, \"For I testify unto every man that\nheareth the words of the prophecy of this book, if any man shall add\nunto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written\nin this book; and if any man shall take away from the words of the\nbook of this prophecy, God shall take away His part out of the book of\nlife, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written\nin this book.\" When this book, the Bible, was compiled, it was selected\nby the council of Carthage from a pile of books more than this pulpit\ncould hold, which has been printed, and bound in almost all shapes and\nsizes, and called the Bible. John's revelation was one of the many\nbooks destined by that council to form the Bible. And the saying which\nwe have quoted, and which constitutes the sweeping argument of modern\nChristians against new revelation, only alludes to this particular\nbook, which was to be kept sacred, as the word of the Lord to John,\nand not to the whole Bible; nor does it prohibit the Saints in his\nday, or the Saints in any future time, from getting new revelation for\nthemselves. That is not all; if we turn to the writings of Moses, we\nfind the same sentiment, and almost the same language used. Moses says,\n\"Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye\ndiminish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the Lord\nyour God which I command you.\" So if such quotations are given with\nthe intent to shut the heavens, and put an end to all new revelation,\nthen the revelations given to prophets who arose after Moses, and the\nrevelations given to Jesus Christ and His Apostles, including John\nand his revelation on the Isle of Patmos, all amount to nothing, and\nare not worthy of our notice. This \"sweeping argument,\" when it is\nexamined, sweeps away rather too much; besides, John's gospel and his\nepistle to his bretheren were written after he wrote his revelation on\nthe Isle of Patmos; consequently he would destroy his own system; but\nit sets forth the ignorance and short-sightedness of those who have not\nthe testimony of Jesus, which is the spirit of prophecy.--J. of D. Vol.\nI., p. 242.\n\nLet us dedicate ourselves, our families, our substance, our time, our\ntalents, and everything we have upon the face of this world, with all\nthat will hereafter be entrusted to us, to the Lord our God; let the\nwhole be devoted to the building up of His kingdom upon the earth.--J.\nof D. Vol. I., p. 200.\n\nTeach your families how to control themselves; teach them good and\nwholesome doctrine, and practice the same in your own lives. This\nis the place for you to become polished shafts in the quiver of the\nAlmighty.--J. of D. Vol. I., p. 47.\n\nWhen a man is capable of correcting you, and of giving you light, and\ntrue doctrine, do not get up an altercation, but submit to be taught\nlike little children, and strive with all your might to understand.--J.\nof D. Vol. I., p. 47.\n\nWe believe the New Testament, and consequently, to be consistent, we\nmust believe in new revelation, visions, angels, in all the gilts of\nthe Holy Ghost, and all the promises contained in these books, and\nbelieve it about as it reads.--J. of D. Vol. I, p. 242.\n\nThe Millennium consists in this every heart in the Church and kingdom\nof God being united in one; the kingdom increasing to the overcoming\nof everything opposed to the economy of heaven, and Satan being bound,\nand having a seal set upon him. All things else will be as they are\nnow, we shall eat, drink, and wear clothing. Let the people be holy,\nand the earth under their feet will be holy. Let the people be holy\nand filled with the Spirit of God, and every animal and creeping thing\nwill be filled with peace; the soil of the earth will bring forth in\nits strength, and the fruits thereof will be meat for man. The more\npurity that exists, the less is the strife; the more kind we are to\nour animals, the more will peace in crease, and the savage nature of\nthe brute creation vanish away. If the people will not serve the devil\nanother moment whilst they live, if this congregation is possessed\nof that spirit and resolution, here in this house is the Millennium.\nLet the inhabitants of this city be possessed of that spirit, let the\npeople of the territory be possessed of that spirit, and here is the\nMillennium. Let the whole people of the United States be possessed of\nthat spirit, and here is the Millennium, and so will it spread over all\nthe world.--J. of D. Vol. I., p. 203.\n\nThe power which belongs to the true riches is gained by pursuing a\nrighteous course, by maintaining an upright deportment towards all men,\nand especially towards the household of faith, yielding to each other,\ngiving freely of that which the Lord has given to you, thus you can\nsecure to yourselves eternal riches; and gain influence and power over\nall your friends, as well as your enemies.--J. of D., Vol. I, p. 273.\n\nWere I to say to a son, The whole earth is in my hands to dispose of as\nI will: I can make you the sovereign of the universe--the possessor of\nthe gold, the silver, the mountains, the valleys, the rivers, the lakes\nthe seas, and all that float upon them and that live upon the face of\nthe whole earth; for it is mine to give to you, my son, if you will\nserve me one month faithfully; I require nothing of you that will give\nyou the least pain! all I require is strict obedience to my law. My son\nfaithfully serves me during twenty-nine days, and on the thirtieth day,\nfor the value of a straw, or for a mess of pottage he sells his right\nand title to all I had promised him. This comparison falls very far\nshort of showing the loss a Saint sustains when he turns away from his\nGod and his religion.--J. of D., Vol. VII., p. 133.\n\nAs long as the spirit and body hold together, my tongue shall be swift\nagainst evil, the Lord Almighty being my helper. Though it may be in\n\"Mormon\" Elders, among the people in or out of the Church, if they\ncome in my path where I can chastize them, the Lord Almighty being my\nhelper, my tongue shall be swift against evil; and if evil come, let\nit come. If for this my body shall fall, let it fall; when they have\ndestroyed the body, then they have no more that they can do; that is\nthe end of their power, and of the power of the devil on this earth;\nbut Jesus Christ has power to destroy both soul and body in hell.--J.\nof D., Vol. I., p. 42.\n\nWere I to make war upon an innocent people, because I had the power\nto possess myself of their territory, their silver, gold, and other\nproperty, and be the cause of slaying, say fifty thousand strong,\nhale, hearty men, and devolving consequent suffering upon one hundred\nthousand women and children, who would suffer through privation and\nwant, I am very much more guilty of murder than is the man who kills\nonly one person to obtain his pocket-book.--J. of D., Vol. VII, p. 137.\n\nThere is one virtue, attribute, or principle, which, if cherished\nand practiced by the Saints, would prove salvation to thousands\nupon thousands. I allude to charity, or love, from which proceed\nforgiveness, long suffering, kindness, and patience.--J. of D., Vol.\nVII., p. 133.\n\nIf a man drinks at the fountain of eternal life, he is as happy under\nthe broad canopy of heaven, without a home, as in a palace. This\nI know by experience. I know that the things of this world, from\nbeginning to end, from the possession of mountains of gold down to a\ncrust of johnycake, makes little or no difference in the happiness of\nan individual. The things of this world add to our natural comfort,\nand are necessary to susiain mortal life. We need these comforts to\npreserve our earthly existence; and many suppose, when they have\nthem in great abundance, that they have all that is needed to make\nthem happy. They are striving continually, and with all their might,\nfor that which does not add one particle to their happiness, though\nit may not add to their comfort, and perhaps to the length of their\nlives, if they do not kill themselves in their eagerness to grasp the\ngilded butterfly. But those things have nothing to do with the spirit,\nfeeling, consolation, light, glory, peace, and joy that pertain to\nheaven and heavenly things, which is the food of the everlasting spirit\nwithin us.--J. of D., Vol. VII, p. 135.\n\nDo not be so full of religion as to look upon every little overt act\nthat others may commit as being the unpardonable sin that will place\nthem beyond the reach cf redemption and the favors of our God.--J. of\nD., Vol. VII, p. 136.\n\nOur religion teaches us truth, virtue, holiness, faith in God and\nin His Son Jesus Christ. It reveals mysteries; it brings to mind\nthings past and present--unfolding clearly things to come. It is the\nfoundation of mechanism; it is the spirit that gives Intelligence to\nevery living being upon the earth. All true philosophy originates from\nthat fountain from which we draw wisdom, knowledge, truth, and power.\nWhat does it teach us? To love God and our fellow creatures, to be\ncompassionate, full of mercy, long-suffering and patient to the froward\nand to those who are ignorant. There is glory in our religion that no\nother religion that has ever been established upon the earth, in the\nabsence of the true Priesthood, ever possessed. It is the fountain of\nall intelligence; it is to bring heaven to earth and exalt earth to\nheaven, to prepare all intelligence that God has placed in the hearts\nof the children of men to mingle with that intelligence which dwells\nin eternity, and to elevate the mind above the trifling and frivolous\nobjects of time, which tend downward to destruction. It frees the mind\nof man from darkness and ignorance, gives him that intelligence that\nflows from heaven, and qualifies him to comprehend all things. This is\nthe character of the religion we believe in.--J. of D. Vol. VII., p.\n140.\n\nI say _shame_ on that man who will give way to his passions and use the\nname of God or of Christ to curse his ox or his horse, or any creature\nwhich God has made; it is a disgrace to him.--J. of D., Vol. I., p. 241.\n\nThat a man is willing to die for his religion is no proof of its being\ntrue; neither is it proof that a religion is false when one of its\nvotaries apostatizes from it.--J. of D., Vol. VII, p. 140.\n\nI may heap up gold and silver like the mountains; I may gather\naround me property, goods and chattels, but I could have no glory\nin that compared with my religion; it is the fountain of light and\nintelligence; it swallows up the truth contained in all the philosophy\nof the world, both heathen and Christian; it circumscribes the wisdom\nof man; it circumscribes all the wisdom and power of the world; it\nreaches to that within the veil. Its bounds, its circumference, its\nend, its height and depth are beyond the comprehension of mortals, _for\nit has none_.--J., of D., Vol. I., p. 39.\n\nIf you have gold and silver, let it not come between you and your duty.\nJ. of D. Vol. I., p. 202.\n\nWhen the breath leaves the body, your life has not become extinct;\nyour life is still in existence. And when you are in the spirit world,\neverything there will appear as natural as things now do. Spirits\nwill be familiar with spirits in the spirit world--will converse,\nbehold, and exercise every variety of communication one with another as\nfamiliarly and naturally as while here in tabernacles.--J. of D., Vol.\nVII., p. 239.\n\nIf we are faithful to our religion, when we go into the spirit world,\nthe fallen spirits Lucifer and the third part of the heavenly hosts\nthat came with him, and the spirits of wicked men who have dwelt upon\nthis earth, the whole of them combined will have no influence over our\nspirits.--J. of D., Vol. VII., p. 240.\n\nThe thrones and kingdoms of earth are frequently changing hands.\nAdventurers rise up or go forth and establish new governments, and in\na few short years they are cast down to give place to more successful\npowers. All earthly things are changing hands. The gold, the silver,\nand other property pass from my hands to yours, and from yours to the\nhands of others. Shame on a people that place their affections upon\nthis changing matter! Love God and the things that change not.--J. of\nD., Vol. VII., p. 337.\n\nThe child who has his father's razor, or any other article dangerous\nfor him to handle, and about the use of which he has no knowledge,\nwhen deprived of it, his trials are equal to ours, according to his\ncapacity. We seldom think of the trials of our little ones when we\nsay to them, you must not have this or that; you must do so and so to\nreceive my smiles and approbation; you must not think for a moment\nthat your judgment, wisdom, experience, and wishes are to be compared\nwith mine. Does not the Father of all living conduct Himself in this\nwise towards His children? He has revealed to us that He will prepare\nus for glory, for life eternal,--will preserve our identity forever,\nif we will be guided by him. But we must be obedient to him, for He\nunderstands more than we do. We should destroy ourselves if we were\nsuffered to take our own way; hence we are taught to suffer the Father\nto point out our path to an eternal duration hereafter, where our\npresent afflictions will appear as flimsy as the shadows of the morning\nthat flee upon the approach of day.--J. of D., Vol. VII., p. 275.\n\nIf a man is worth millions of bushels of wheat and corn, he is not\nwealthy enough to suffer his servant girl to sweep a single kernel of\nit into the firs; let it be eaten by something, and pass again into the\nearth, and thus fulfill the purpose for which it grew.--J. of D. Vol.\nI., p. 253.\n\nThe man who lays up his gold and silver, who caches it away in a bank,\nor in his iron safe, or buries it up in the earth, and comes here, and\nprofesses to be a Saint, would tie up the hands of every individual in\nthis kingdom, and make them his servants if he could.--J. of D., Vol.\nI., p. 253.\n\nIf I am not smart enough to take care of what the Lord lends me, I am\nsmart enough to hold my tongue about it, until I come across the thief\nmyself.--J. of D., Vol. I., p. 255.\n\nWhen I have gold and silver in my possession, which a thief may steal,\nor friends borrow, and never pay me back again, or which may take the\nwings of the morning, and I behold it no more, I only possess the\nnegative of the true riches.--J. of D., Vol. I, p. 266.\n\nIf this people will do as they are told, will live their religion, walk\nhumbly before their God, and deal justly with each other, we will make\nyou one promise, in the name of Israel's God, that you will never be\ndriven from the mountains.--J. of D., Vol. I., p. 319.\n\nIt is folly in the extreme for persons to say that they love God, when\nthey do not love their brethren.--J. of D., Vol. I, p. 297.\n\nSpeaking as the world view men and things, in the eyes of the vast\nmajority of mankind, the devil is the greatest gentleman that ever made\nhis appearance on this earth.--J. of D., Vol. IV., p. 347.\n\nI hope as I grow old, to grow wise. As I advance in years, I hope to\nadvance in the true knowledge of God and godliness. I hope to increase\nin the power of the Almighty, and in influence to establish peace and\nrighteousness upon the earth, and to bring all the sons and daughters\nof Adam and Eve, even all who will hearken to the principles of\nrighteousness, to a true sense of the knowledge of God and godliness,\nof themselves, and the relation they sustain to heaven and heavenly\nbeings.--J. of D., Vol. IV., p. 326.\n\nIt would be better if you and I never should have anything pertaining\nto this world, than to lose the spirit of the gospel and love the\nworld.--J. of D., Vol. IV., p, 342.\n\nThe difficulty with the whole world in their divisions and\nsubdivisions, is that they have no more confidence in each other than\nthey have in their God, and that is none at all.--J. of D., Vol. IV.,\np. 296.\n\nThere never was that necessity; there never has been a time on the face\nof the earth, from the time that the church went to destruction, and\nthe Priesthood was taked from the earth, that the powers of darkness\nand the powers of earth and hell were so embittered, and enraged, and\nincensed against God and godliness on the earth, as they are at the\npresent. And when the spirit of persecution, the spirit of hatred, of\nwrath, and malice ceases in the world against this people, it will be\nthe time that this people have apostatized and joined hands with the\nwicked, and never until then.--J. of D., Vol. IV., p. 327.","title":"Mr. Durant of Salt Lake City, \"That Mormon\"","tradition":"scripture-revelation","translated_text":null,"word_count":62954}