,,an ,,interesting ,,account ,,of       
,,several ,,remarkable ,,visions1  ,,and
 ,,of ,,the ,,late ,,discovery ,,of     
,,ancient ,,american ,,records4    ,by  
,o4 ,,pratt1 ,,minister ,,of ,,the      
,,gospel4    ,,third ,,american         
,,edition4    ,,new-,,york3  ,,joseph   
,w4 ,,harrison1 ,,printer1  ,no4 #dfe   
,,pearl-,,street4 #ahdb4                
,,transcriber',s ,,note    ,this edition
 was based off scans of the above-noted 
edition1  available at ,archive4org4    
,the original uses some slightly odd    
,english  orthography--for example1     
unusual comma placement and an instance 
of  using 'was' where 'were' appears to 
be correct4 ,in such cases1 the         
original has been maintained4 ,obvious  
printer's errors 7intructed for         
instructed1 brethern for brethren1 and  
perhaps three similar errors7  and some 
unmatched quotation marks have been     
corrected as seemed  reasonable4 ,email 
tomnysetvoldgmail4com with corrections  
or to  participate in proofreading of   

similar early books of ,the ,church of  
,jesus ,christ of ,latter-,day ,saints4 
,,facts ,,in ,,relation ,,to ,,the      
,,late ,,discovery ,,of ,,ancient       
,,american ,,records4    ,mr4 ,joseph   
,smith1 jun4 who made the following     
important discovery1  was born in the   
town of ,sharon1 ,windsor county1       
,vermont1 on the #bc;d  ,december1 a4 d4
 #ahje4 ,when ten years old1 his        
parents1 with their  family1 moved to   
,palmyra1 ,new-,york2 in the vicinity of
 which he  resided for about eleven     
years1 the latter part in the town of   
,manchester4 ,cultivating the earth for 
a livelihood was his  occupation1 in    
which he employed the most of his time4 
,his advantages  for acquiring literary 
knowledge1 were exceedingly small2      
hence1 his  education was limited to a  
slight acquaintance with two or three of
  the common branches of learning4 ,he  
could read without much  difficulty1 and
 write a very imperfect hand2 and had a 
very limited  understanding of the      

ground rules of arithmetic4 ,these were 
his  highest and only attainments2 while
 the rest of those branches1 so         
universally taught in the common        
schools1 throughout the ,united         
,states1 were entirely unknown to him4  
,when somewhere about fourteen  or      
fifteen years old1 he began seriously to
 reflect upon the  necessity of being   
prepared for a future state of          
existence2 but how1  or in what way1 to 
prepare himself1 was a question1 as yet1
  undetermined in his own mind4 ,he     
perceived that it was a question of     
infinite importance1 and that the       
salvation of his soul depended upon  a  
correct understanding of the same4 ,he  
saw1 that if he understood  not the way1
 it would be impossible to walk in it1  
except by chance2  and the thought of   
resting his hopes of eternal life upon  
chance1 or  uncertainties1 was more than
 he could endure4 ,if he went to the    
religious denominations to seek         
information1 each one pointed to its    

particular tenets1 saying--,this is the 
way1 walk ye in it2 while1  at the same 
time1 the doctrines of each were in many
 respects1 in  direct opposition to one 
another1 ,it also occurred to his mind  
that  ,god was the author of but one    
doctrine1 and therefore could           
acknowledge but one denomination as his 
church1 and that such  denomination must
 be a people1 who believe and teach that
 one  doctrine1 7whatever it may be17   
and build upon the same4 ,he then       
reflected upon the immense number of    
doctrines1 now in the world1  which had 
given rise to many hundreds of different
 denominations4 ,the  great question to 
be decided in his mind1 was--if any one 
of these  denominations be the ,church  
of ,christ1 which one is it8 ,until he  
could become satisfied in relation to   
this question1 he could not  rest       
contented4 ,to trust to the decisions of
 fallible man1 and build  his hopes upon
 the same1 without any certainty1 and   
knowledge of his  own1 would not satisfy

 the anxious desires that pervaded his  
breast4  ,to decide1 without any        
positive and definite evidence1 on which
 he  could rely1 upon a subject         
involving the future welfare of his     
soul1  was revolting to his feelings4   
,the only alternative1 that seemed to   
be left him1 was to read the            
,scriptures1 and endeavor to follow     
their  directions4 ,he1 accordingly     
commenced perusing the sacred pages of  
the ,bible1 with sincerity1 believing   
the things that he read4 ,his  mind soon
 caught hold of the following           
passage2--,if any of you lack  wisdom   
let him ask of ,god1 that giveth to all 
men liberally1 and  upbraideth not2 and 
it shall be given him4--,james i4 #e4   
,from this  promise he learned1 that it 
was the privilege of all men to ask ,god
  for wisdom1 with the sure and certain 
expectation of receiving  liberally2    
without being upbraided for so doing4   
,this was cheering  information to him2 
tidings that gave him great joy4 ,it was

 like a  light shining forth in a dark  
place1 to guide him to the path in      
which he should walk4 ,he now saw that  
if he inquired of ,god1 there  was not  
only a possibility1 but a probability2  
yea1 more1 a  certainty1 that he should 
obtain a knowledge1 which1 of all the   
doctrines1 was the doctrine of ,christ2 
and1 which1 of all the  churches1 was   
the church of ,christ4 ,he therefore1   
retired to a secret  place in a grove1  
but a short distance from his father's  
house1 and  knelt down1 and began to    
call upon the ,lord4 ,at first1 he was  
severely tempted by the powers of       
darkness1 which endeavored to  overcome 
him2 but he continued to seek for       
deliverance1 until  darkness gave way   
from his mind2 and he was enabled to    
pray in  fervency of the spirit1 and in 
faith4 ,and while thus pouring out his  
soul1 anxiously desiring an answer from 
,god1 he1 at length1 saw a  very bright 
and glorious light in the heavens above2
 which1 at first1  seemed to be at a    

considerable distance4 ,he continued    
praying1 while  the light appeared to be
 gradually descending towards him2 and  
as it  drew nearer1 it increased in     
brightness and magnitude1 so that1 by   
the time that it reached the tops of the
 trees1 the whole wilderness1  for some 
distance around was illuminated in a    
most glorious and  brilliant manner4 ,he
 expected to have seen the leaves and   
boughs of  the trees consumed1 as soon  
as the light came in contact with them2 
but1 perceiving that it did not produce 
that effect1 he was  encouraged with the
 hope of being able to endure its       
presence4 ,it  continued descending     
slowly1 until it rested upon the earth1 
and he  was enveloped in the midst of   
it4 ,when it first came upon him1 it    
produced a peculiar sensation throughout
 his whole system2 and  immediately1 his
 mind was caught away1 from the natural 
objects with  which he was surrounded2  
and he was enwrapped in a heavenly      
vision1  and saw two glorious           

personages1 who exactly resembled each  
other in  their features or likeness4   
,he was informed that his sins were     
forgiven1 ,he was also informed upon the
 subjects1 which had for some  time     
previously agitated his mind1 viz4--that
 all the religious  denominations were  
believing in incorrect doctrines2 and   
consequently1 that none of them was     
acknowledged of ,god1 as his  church and
 kingdom4 ,and he was expressly         
commanded to go not after  them2 and he 
received a promise that the true        
doctrine--the fulness  of the gospel1   
should1 at some future time1 be made    
known to him2  after which1 the vision  
withdrew1 leaving his mind in a state of
  calmness and peace1 indescribable4    
,some time after having received  this  
glorious manifestation1 being young1 he 
was again entangled in  the vanities of 
the world1 of which he afterwards       
sincerely and truly  repented4    ,and  
it pleased ,god1 on the evening of the  
#bast of ,september1 a4 d4  #ahbc1 to   

again hear his prayers4 ,for he had     
retired to rest1 as  usual1 only that   
his mind was drawn out in fervent       
prayer1 and his  soul was filled with   
the most earnest desire1 to commune with
 some  kind messenger1 who could        
communicate to him the desired          
information  of his acceptance with     
,god1 and also unfold the principles of 
the  doctrine of ,christ1 according to  
the promise which he had received in    
the former vision4 ,while he thus       
continued to pour out his desires       
before the ,father of all good1         
endeavouring to exercise faith in his   
precious promises2 on a sudden1 a light1
 like that of day1 only of a  purer and 
far more glorious appearance and        
brightness1 burst into the  room4       
,indeed1 the first sight was as though  
the house was filled with  consuming    
fire4 ,this sudden appearance of a light
 so bright1 as must  naturally be       
expected1 occasioned a shock or         
sensation visible to the  extremities of

 the body4 ,it was1 however1 followed   
with a calmness  and serenity of mind1  
and an overwhelming rapture of joy1 that
  surpassed understanding1 and1 in a    
moment1 a personage stood before  him4  
,notwithstanding the brightness of the  
light which previously  illuminated the 
room1 yet there seemed to be an         
additional glory  surrounding or        
accompanying this personage1 which shone
 with an  increased degree of           
brilliancy1 of which he was in the      
midst2 and  though his countenance was  
as lightning1 yet it was of a pleasing1 
innocent1 and glorious appearance2 so   
much so1 that every fear was  banished  
from the heart1 and nothing but calmness
 pervaded the soul4    ,the stature of  
this personage was a little above the   
common size of  men in this age2 his    
garments was perfectly white1 and had   
the  appearance of being without seam4  
,this glorious being declared himself to
 be an ,angel of ,god1 sent  forth1 by  
commandment1 to communicate to him that 

his sins were  forgiven1 and that his   
prayers were heard2 and also1 to bring  
the  joyful tidings1 that the covenant  
which ,god made with ancient ,israel    
concerning their posterity1 was at hand 
to be fulfilled2 that the  great        
preparatory work for the second coming  
of the ,messiah1 was  speedily to       
commence2 that the time was at hand for 
the gospel1 in  its fulness1 to be      
preached in power to all nations1 that a
 people  might be prepared with faith   
and righteousness1 for the ,millennial  
reign of universal peace and joy4    ,he
 was informed1 that he was called and   
chosen to be an instrument in  the hands
 of ,god1 to bring about some of his    
marvellous purposes in  this glorious   
dispensation4 ,it was also made manifest
 to him1 that  the ,american ,indians   
were a remnant of ,israel2 that when    
they first  emigrated to ,america1 they 
were an enlightened people1 possessing a
  knowledge of the true ,god1 enjoying  
his favor1 and peculiar blessings  from 

his hand2 that the prophets1 and        
inspired writers among them1  were      
required to keep a sacred history of the
 most important events  transpiring     
among them2 which history was handed    
down for many  generations1 till at     
length they fell into great wickedness2 
the most  part of them were destroyed1  
and the records1 7by commandment of     
,god1  to one of the last prophets among
 them17 were safely deposited1 to       
preserve them from the hands of the     
wicked1 who sought to destroy  them4 ,he
 was informed1 that these records       
contained many sacred  revelations      
pertaining to the gospel of the kingdom1
 as well as  prophecies relating to the 
great events of the last days2 and that 
to  fulfil his promises to the ancients1
 who wrote the records1 and to          
accomplish his purposes1 in the         
restitution of their children1 c4  they 
were to come forth to the knowledge of  
the people4 ,if faithful1  he was to be 
the instrument1 who should be thus      

highly favored in  bringing these sacred
 things to light2 at the same time1     
being  expressly informed1 that it must 
be done with an eye single to the  glory
 of ,god1 that no one could be entrusted
 with those sacred  writings1 who should
 endeavor to aggrandize himself1 by     
converting  sacred things to unrighteous
 and speculative purposes4 ,after giving
  him many instructions concerning      
things past and to come1 which would  be
 foreign to our purpose to mention here1
 he disappeared1 and the  light and     
glory of ,god withdrew1 leaving his mind
 in perfect peace1  while a calmness and
 serenity indescribable pervaded the    
soul4 ,but1  before morning1 the vision 
was twice renewed1 instructing him      
further1 and still further1 concerning  
the great work of ,god1 about  to be    
performed on the earth4 ,in the morning 
he went out to his  labour as usual2 but
 soon the vision was renewed--the ,angel
 again  appeared2 and having been       
informed by the previous visions of the 

night1 concerning the place where those 
records were deposited1 he  was         
instructed to go immediately and view   
them4    ,accordingly1 he repaired to   
the place1 a brief description of which 
shall be given1 in the words of a       
gentleman1 by the name of ,oliver       
,cowdery1 who has visited the spot4     
,as you go on the mail-road from        
,palmyra1 ,wayne county1 to             
,canandaigua1 ,ontario county1          
,new-,york1 before arriving at the      
little  village of ,manchester1 say from
 three to four1 or about four miles     
from ,palmyra1 you pass a large hill on 
the east side of the  road4--,why ,i say
 large1 is because it is as large1      
perhaps1 as any in  that country4       
,the north end rises quite suddenly     
until it assumes a level with the  more 
southerly extremity2 and ,i think ,i may
 say1 an elevation higher  than at the  
south1 a short distance1 say half or    
three-fourths of a  mile4 ,as you pass  
towards ,canandaigua1 it lessens        

gradually1 until  the surface assumes   
its common level1 or is broken by other 
smaller  hills or ridges1 water-courses 
and ravines4 ,i think ,i am justified in
  saying1 that this is the highest hill 
for some distance round1 and ,i  am     
certain that its appearance1 as it rises
 so suddenly from a plain  on the north1
 must attract the notice of the         
traveller as he passes  by4--,the north 
end1 which has been described as rising 
suddenly  from the plain1 forms a       
promontory without timber1 but covered  
with  grass4 ,as you pass to the south1 
you soon come to scattering timber1  the
 surface having been cleared by art or  
wind1 and a short distance  further     
left1 you are surrounded with the common
 forest of the  country4 ,it is         
necessary to observe1 that even the part
 cleared1 was  only occupied for        
pasturage2 its steep ascent1 and narrow 
summit not  admitting the plough of the 
husbandman1 with any degree of ease or  
profit4 ,it was at the second mentioned 

place1 where the record was  found to be
 deposited1 on the west side of the     
hill1 not far from the  top down its    
side2 and when myself visited the place 
in the year  #ahcj1 there were several  
trees standing--enough to cause a shade 
in  summer1 but not so much as to       
prevent the surface being covered with  
grass--which was also the case when the 
record was first found4    ,how far     
below the surface these records were    
7anciently7 placed1 ,i  am unable to    
say3 but from the fact that they have   
been some fourteen  hundred years       
buried1 and that1 too1 on the side of a 
hill so steep1  one is ready to         
conclude1 that they were some feet      
below1 as the  earth would naturally    
wear1 more or less1 in that length of   
time4 ,but  they1 being placed towards  
the top of the hill1 the ground would   
not  remove as much as at two-thirds1   
perhaps4 ,another circumstance would    
prevent a wearing of the earth2 in all  
probability1 as soon as timber  had time

 to grow1 the hill was covered1 and the 
roots of the same  would hold the       
surface4 ,however1 on this point1 ,i    
shall leave every  man to draw his own  
conclusion1 and form his own            
speculation4 ,but  suffice to say1 a    
hole of sufficient depth was dug4 ,at   
the bottom of  this was laid a stone of 
suitable size1 the upper surface being  
smooth4 ,at each edge was placed a large
 quantity of cement1 and into  this     
cement1 at the four edges of the stone1 
were placed erect four  others2 their   
bottom edges resting in the cement1 at  
the outer  edges of the first stone4    
,the four last named1 when placed erect1
  formed a box2 the corners1 or where   
the edges of the four came in  contact1 
were also cemented so firmly that the   
moisture from without  was prevented    
from entering4 ,it is to be observed1   
also1 that the  inner surfaces of the   
four erect or side stones1 were smooth4 
,this  box was sufficiently large to    
admit a breastplate1 such as was used   

by the ancients1 to defend the chest1   
c41 from the arrows and  weapons of     
their enemy4 ,from the bottom of the    
box1 or from the  breastplate1 arose    
three small pillars1 composed of the    
same  description of cement used on the 
edges2 and upon these three  pillars    
were placed the records4--,this box1    
containing the records1  was covered    
with another stone1 the bottom surface  
being flat1 and  the upper crowning4    
,when it was first visited by ,mr4      
,smith on the  morning of the #bb;d of  
,september1 #ahbc1 a part of the        
crowning stone  was visible above the   
surface1 while the edges were concealed 
by the  soil and grass1 from which      
circumstance it may be seen1 that       
however deep this box might have been   
placed at first1 the time had  been     
sufficient to wear the earth1 so that it
 was easily discovered1  when ,once     
directed1 and yet1 not enough to make a 
perceivable  difference to the          
passer-by4--,after arriving at the      

repository1 a  little exertion in       
removing the soil from the edges of the 
top of the  box1 and a light pry1       
brought to his natural vision1 its      
contents4  ,while viewing and           
contemplating this sacred treasure with 
wonder and  astonishment1 behold6 the   
,angel of the ,lord1 who had previously 
visited him1 again stood in his         
presence1 and his soul was again        
enlightened as it was the evening       
before1 and he was filled with the      
,holy ,spirit1 and the heavens were     
opened1 and the glory of the ,lord      
shone round about and rested upon him4  
,while he thus stood gazing and         
admiring1 the ,angel said1 ,look6 ,and  
as he thus spake1 he beheld the  ,prince
 of ,darkness1 surrounded by his        
innumerable train of  associates4 ,all  
this passed before him1 and the heavenly
 messenger  said1 ,all this is shown1   
the good and the evil1 the holy and     
impure1  the glory of ,god1 and the     
power of darkness1 that you may know    

hereafter the two powers1 and never be  
influenced or overcome by that  wicked  
one4 ,behold1 whatsoever enticeth and   
leadeth to good and to do  good1 is of  
,god1 and whatsoever doth not1 is of    
that wicked one4 ,it  is he that filleth
 the hearts of men with evil1 to walk in
 darkness1  and blaspheme ,god2 and you 
may learn from henceforth1 that his ways
  are to destruction1 but the way of    
holiness is peace and rest4 ,you  cannot
 at this time obtain this record1 for   
the commandment of ,god is  strict1 and 
if ever these sacred things are         
obtained1 they must be by  prayer and   
faithfulness in obeying the ,lord4 ,they
 are not deposited  here for the sake of
 accumulating gain and wealth for the   
glory of  this world2 they were sealed  
by the prayer of faith1 and because of  
the knowledge which they contain1 they  
are of no worth among the  children of  
men1 only for their knowledge4 ,on them 
is contained the  fulness of the gospel 
of ,jesus ,christ1 as it was given to   

his people  on this land2 and when it   
shall be brought forth by the power of  
,god1  it shall be carried to the       
,gentiles1 of whom many will receive it1
  and after will the seed of ,israel be 
brought into the fold of their          
,redeemer by obeying it also4 ,those who
 kept the commandments of the  ,lord on 
this land1 desired this at his hand1 and
 through the prayer  of faith obtained  
the promise1 that if their descendants  
should  transgress and fall away1 a     
record should be kept1 and in the last  
days come to their children4 ,these     
things are sacred1 and must be  kept so1
 for the promise of the ,lord concerning
 them must be  fulfilled4 ,no man can   
obtain them if his heart is impure1     
because  they contain that which is     
sacred4 99 99 99 ,by them will the ,lord
  work a great and marvellous work2 the 
wisdom of the wise shall become  as     
nought1 and the understanding of the    
prudent shall be hid1 and  because the  
power of ,god shall be displayed1 those 

who profess to  know the truth1 but walk
 in deceit1 shall tremble with anger2   
but  with signs and with wonders1 with  
gifts and with healings1 with the       
manifestations of the power of ,god1 and
 with the ,holy ,ghost1 shall  the      
hearts of the faithful be comforted4    
,you have now beheld the  power of ,god 
manifested1 and the power of ,satan2 you
 see that there  is nothing desirable in
 the works of darkness2 that they cannot
 bring  happiness2 that those who are   
overcome therewith are miserable2       
while1 on the other hand1 the righteous 
are blessed with a place in  the kingdom
 of ,god1 where joy unspeakable         
surrounds them4 ,there they  rest beyond
 the power of the enemy of truth1 where 
no evil can  disturb them4 ,the glory of
 ,god crowns them1 and they continually 
feast upon his goodness1 and enjoy his  
smiles4 ,behold1 notwithstanding  you   
have seen this great display of power1  
by which you may ever  be able to detect
 the evil one1 yet ,i give unto you     

another sign1  and when it comes to pass
 then know that the ,lord is ,god1 and  
that  he will fulfil his purposes1 and  
that the knowledge which this record    
contains will go to every nation1 and   
kindred1 and tongue1 and people  under  
the whole heaven4 ,this is the sign2    
when these things begin to  be known1   
that is1 when it is known that the ,lord
 has shown you  these things1 the       
workers of iniquity will seek your      
overthrow4  ,they will circulate        
falsehoods to destroy your reputation2  
and  also will seek to take your life2  
but remember this1 if you are  faithful1
 and shall hereafter continue to keep   
the commandments  of the ,lord1 you     
shall be preserved to bring these things
 forth2  for in due time he will give   
you a commandment to come and take      
them4 ,when they are interpreted1 the   
,lord will give the holy  priesthood to 
some1 and they shall begin to proclaim  
this gospel and  baptize by water1 and  
after that they shall have power to give

 the  ,holy ,ghost by the laying on of  
their hands4 ,then will persecution     
rage more and more2 for the iniquities  
of men shall be revealed1 and  those who
 are not built upon the ,rock will seek 
to overthrow the  church2 but it will   
increase the more opposed1 and spread   
farther and  farther1 increasing in     
knowledge till they shall be sanctified1
 and  receive an inheritance where the  
glory of ,god will rest upon them2  and 
when this takes place1 and all things   
are prepared1 the ten  tribes of ,israel
 will be revealed in the north country1 
whither they  have been for a long      
season2 and when this is fulfilled will 
be  brought to pass that saying of the  
prophet1--and the ,redeemer shall  come 
to ,zion1 and unto them that turn from  
transgression in ,jacob1  saith the     
,lord4 ,but1 notwithstanding the workers
 of iniquity shall  seek your           
destruction1 the arm of the ,lord will  
be extended1 and you  will be borne off 
conqueror if you keep all his           

commandments4 ,your  name shall be known
 among the nations1 for the work which  
the ,lord  will perform by your hands   
shall cause the righteous to rejoice and
  the wicked to rage2 with the one it   
shall be had in honour1 and with  the   
other in reproach2 yet1 with these it   
shall be a terror1 because  of the great
 and marvellous work which shall follow 
the coming forth  of this fulness of the
 gospel4 ,now1 go thy way1 remembering  
what the  ,lord has done for thee1 and  
be diligent in keeping his commandments1
  and he will deliver thee from         
temptations and all the arts and        
devices of the wicked one4 ,forget not  
to pray1 that thy mind may  become      
strong1 that when he shall manifest unto
 thee1 thou mayest  have power to escape
 the evil1 and obtain these precious    
things4    ,we here remark1 that the    
above quotation is an extract from a    
letter  written by ,elder ,oliver       
,cowdery1 which was published in one of 
the  numbers of the ,latter ,day        

,saints' ,messenger and ,advocate4      
,although many more instructions were   
given by the mouth of the angel  to ,mr4
 ,smith1 which we do not write in this  
book1 yet the most  important items are 
contained in the foregoing relation4    
,during the  period of the four         
following years1 he frequently received 
instruction from the mouth of the       
heavenly messenger4 ,and on the  morning
 of ,september #bb1 a4 d41 #ahbg the    
angel of the ,lord delivered  the       
records into his hands4    ,these       
records were engraved on plates1 which  
had the appearance of  gold4 ,each plate
 was not far from seven by eight inches 
in width and  length1 being not quite as
 thick as common tin4 ,they were filled 
on  both sides with engravings1 in      
,egyptian characters1 and bound         
together in a volume1 as the leaves of a
 book1 and fastened at one  edge with   
three rings running through the whole4  
,this volume was  something near six    
inches in thickness1 a part of which was

 sealed4  ,the characters or letters    
upon the unsealed part were small and   
beautifully engraved4 ,the whole book   
exhibited many marks of  antiquity in   
its construction1 as well as much skill 
in the art of  engraving4 ,with the     
records was found a curious instrument1 
called  by the ancients the ,urim and   
,thummim1 which consisted of two        
transparent stones1 clear as crystal1   
set in the two rims of a bow4  ,this was
 in use1 in ancient times1 by persons   
called seers4 ,it was an  instrument1 by
 the use of which1 they received        
revelations of things  distant1 or of   
things past or future4    ,in the mean  
time1 the inhabitants of that vicinity1 
having been  informed that ,mr4 ,smith  
had seen heavenly visions1 and that he  
had  discovered sacred records1 began to
 ridicule and mock at those  things4    
,and after having obtained the records1 
while proceeding home  through the      
wilderness and fields1 he was waylaid by
 two ruffians1  who had secreted        

themselves for the purpose of robbing   
him of the  same4 ,one of them struck   
him with a club before he perceived     
them2  but being a strong man1 and large
 in stature1 with great exertion he     
cleared himself from them1 and ran      
towards home1 being closely  pursued    
until he came near his father's house1  
when his pursuers1 for  fear of being   
detected1 turned and fled4    ,soon the 
news of his discoveries spread abroad   
throughout all those  parts4 ,false     
reports1 misrepresentations1 and base   
slanders1 flew1 as  if upon the wings of
 the wind in every direction4 ,the house
 was  frequently beset by mobs and      
evil-designing persons4 ,several times  
he  was shot at1 and very narrowly      
escaped4 ,every device was used to get  
the plates away from him4 ,and being    
continually in danger of his  life1 from
 a gang of abandoned wretches1 he at    
length concluded to  leave the place1   
and go to ,pennsylvania2 and1           
accordingly1 packed up  his goods1      

putting the plates into a barrel of     
beans1 and proceeded  upon his journey4 
,he had not gone far1 before he was     
overtaken by an  officer with a         
search-warrant1 who flattered himself   
with the idea1  that he should surely   
obtain the plates2 after searching very 
diligently1 he was sadly disappointed at
 not finding them4 ,mr4 ,smith  then    
drove on1 but before he got to his      
journey's end1 he was again  overtaken  
by an officer on the same business1 and 
after ransacking  the waggon very       
carefully1 he went his way1 as much     
chagrined as the  first1 at not being   
able to discover the object of his      
research4  ,without any further         
molestation1 he pursued his journey     
until he came  to the northern part of  
,pennsylvania1 near the ,susquehannah   
river1 in  which part his father-in-law 
resided4    ,having provided himself    
with a home1 he commenced translating   
the  record1 by the gift and power of   
,god1 thro' the means of the ,urim and  

,thummim2 and being a poor writer1 he   
was under the necessity of  employing a 
scribe1 to write the translation as it  
came from his  mouth4    ,in the mean   
time1 a few of the original characters  
were accurately  transcribed1 and       
translated by ,mr4 ,smith1 which1 with  
the  translation1 were taken by a       
gentleman by the name of ,martin        
,harris1  to the city of ,new-,york1    
where they were presented to a learned  
gentleman1 by the name of ,anthon1 who  
professed to be extensively  acquainted 
with many languages1 both ancient and   
modern4 ,he examined  them2 but was     
unable to decipher them correctly2 but  
he presumed that  if the original       
records could be brought1 he could      
assist in  translating them4    ,but to 
return4 ,mr4 ,smith continued the work  
of translation1 as his  pecuniary       
circumstances would permit1 until he    
finished the unsealed  part of the      
records4 ,the part translated is        
entitled the ,book of  ,mormon1 which   

contains nearly as much reading as the  
,old ,testament4    ,in this important  
and most interesting book1 we can read  
the history  of ancient ,america1 from  
its early settlement by a colony who    
came  from the tower of ,babel1 at the  
confusion of languages1 to the          
beginning of the fifth century of the   
,christian era4 ,by these records  we   
are informed1 that ,america1 in ancient 
times1 has been inhabited by  two       
distinct races of people4 ,the first1 or
 more ancient race1 came  directly from 
the great tower1 being called           
,jaredites4 ,the second  race came      
directly from the city of ,jerusalem1   
about six hundred  years before ,christ1
 being ,israelites1 principally the     
descendants of  ,joseph4 ,the first     
nation1 or ,jaredites1 were destroyed   
about the time  that the ,israelites    
came from ,jerusalem who succeeded them 
in the  inheritance of the country4 ,the
 principal nation of the second race1   
fell in battle towards the close of the 

fourth century4 ,the remaining  remnant1
 having dwindled into an uncivilized    
state1 still continue to  inhabit the   
land1 although divided into a 'multitude
 of nations1' and  are called by        
,europeans1 the ,american ,indians4     
,we learn from this very ancient        
history1 that at the confusion of       
languages1 when the ,lord scattered the 
people upon all the face of  the earth1 
the ,jaredites being a righteous people1
 obtained favour in  the sight of the   
,lord1 and were not confounded4 ,and    
because of their  righteousness1 the    
,lord miraculously led them from the    
tower to the  great ocean1 where they   
were commanded to build vessels1 in     
which  they were marvellously brought   
across the great deep to the shores of  
,north ,america4    ,and the ,lord ,god 
promised to give them ,america1 which   
was a very  choice land in his sight1   
for an inheritance4 ,and ,he swore unto 
them  in his wrath1 that whoso should   
possess this land of promise1 from  that

 time henceforth and forever1 should    
serve him1 the true and only  ,god1 or  
they should be swept off when the       
fulness of his wrath should  come upon  
them1 and they were fully ripened in    
iniquity4 ,moreover he  promised to make
 them a great and powerful nation1 so   
that there  should be no greater nation 
upon all the face of the earth4         
,accordingly1 in process of time1 they  
became a very numerous and  powerful    
people1 occupying principally ,north    
,america2 building large  cities in all 
quarters of the land2 being a civilized 
and enlightened  nation4 ,agriculture   
and machinery were carried on to a great
 extent4  ,commercial and manufacturing 
business flourished on every hand2 yet  
in consequence of wickedness1 they were 
often visited with terrible  judgments4 
,many prophets were raised up among them
 from generation to  generation1 who    
testified against the wickedness of the 
people1 and  prophesied of judgments and
 calamities which awaited them1 if they 

did not repent1 c4 ,sometimes they were 
visited by pestilence and  plagues1 and 
sometimes by famine and war1 until at   
length 7having  occupied the land some  
fifteen or sixteen hundred years17 their
  wickedness became so great that the   
,lord threatened1 by the mouth of  his  
prophets1 to utterly destroy them from  
the face of the land4 ,but  they gave no
 heed to these warnings2 therefore the  
word of the ,lord  was fulfilled2 and   
they were entirely destroyed2 leaving   
their  houses1 their cities1 and their  
land desolate2 and their sacred  records
 also1 which were kept on gold plates1  
were left by one of  their last         
prophets1 whose name was ,ether1 in such
 a situation1 that  they were discovered
 by the remnant of ,joseph1 who soon    
afterwards  were brought from ,jerusalem
 to inherit the land4    ,this remnant  
of ,joseph were also led in a miraculous
 manner from  ,jerusalem1 in the first  
year of the reign of ,zedekiah1 king of 
,judah4  ,they were first led to the    

eastern borders of the ,red ,sea2 then  
they  journeyed for some time along the 
borders thereof1 nearly in a  south-east
 direction2 after which they altered    
their course nearly  eastward1 until    
they came to the great waters1 where1 by
 the  commandment of ,god1 they built a 
vessel1 in which they were safely       
brought across the great ,pacific       
,ocean1 and landed upon the western     
coast of ,south ,america4    ,in the    
eleventh year of the reign of ,zedekiah1
 at the time the ,jews  were carried    
away captive into ,babylon1 another     
remnant were brought  out of ,jerusalem1
 some of whom were descendants of       
,judah4 ,they landed  in ,north         
,america1 soon after which they         
emigrated1 into the northern  parts of  
,south ,america1 at which place they    
were discovered by the  remnant of      
,joseph1 something like four hundred    
years after4    ,from these ancient     
records1 we learn that this remnant of  
,joseph1  soon after they landed1       

separated themselves into two distinct  
nations4 ,this division was caused by a 
certain portion of them being  greatly  
persecuted1 because of their            
righteousness1 by the remainder4  ,the  
persecuted nation emigrated towards the 
northern parts of ,south  ,america1     
leaving the wicked nation in possession 
of the middle and  southern parts of the
 same4 ,the former were called          
,nephites1 being  led by a prophet whose
 name was ,nephi4 ,the latter were      
called  ,lamanites1 being led by a very 
wicked man1 whose name was ,laman4 ,the 
,nephites had in their possession a copy
 of the ,holy ,scriptures1 viz4  the    
five books of ,moses1 and the prophecies
 of the holy prophets1  down to         
,jeremiah1 in whose days they left      
,jerusalem4 ,these scriptures  were     
engraved on plates of brass1 in the     
,egyptian language4 ,they  themselves   
also made plates1 soon after their      
landing1 on which they  began to engrave
 their own history1 prophecies1 visions1

 and  revelations4 ,all these sacred    
records were kept by holy and righteous 
men1 who were inspired by the ,holy     
,ghost2 and were carefully  preserved   
and handed down from generation to      
generation4    ,and the ,lord gave unto 
them the whole continent1 for a land of 
promise1 and promised1 that they1 and   
their children after them1  should      
inherit it1 on condition of their       
obedience to his  commandments2 but if  
they were disobedient1 they should be   
cut off  from his presence4 ,and the    
,nephites began to prosper in the land1 
according to their righteousness1 and   
multiplied and spread forth to  the     
east1 west1 and north2 building large   
villages1 cities1  synagogues1 and      
temples1 together with forts1 towers1   
and  fortifications1 to defend          
themselves against their enemies4 ,and  
they  cultivated the earth1 and raised  
various kinds of grain in abundance4    
,they also raised numerous flocks of    
domestic animals1 and became a  very    

wealthy people2 having in abundance     
gold1 silver1 copper1 tin1  iron1 c4    
,arts and sciences flourished to a great
 extent4 ,various  kinds of machinery   
were in use4 ,cloths of various kinds   
were  manufactured4 ,swords1 scimitars1 
axes1 and various implements of war     
were made1 together with head-shields1  
arm-shields1 and breastplates1  to      
defend themselves in battle with their  
enemies4 ,and in the days of  their     
righteousness1 they were a civilized1   
enlightened1 and happy  people4    ,but1
 on the other hand1 the ,lamanites1     
because of the hardness of  their       
hearts1 brought down many judgments upon
 their own heads2  nevertheless1 they   
were not destroyed as a nation2 but the 
,lord ,god  sent forth a curse upon     
them1 and they became a dark1 loathsome1
 and  filthy people4 ,before their      
rebellion1 they were white and          
exceedingly fair1 like the ,nephites2   
but the ,lord ,god cursed them in  their
 complexions1 and they were changed to a

 dark color1 and they  became a wild1   
savage1 and ferocious people2 being     
great enemies to  the ,nephites1 whom   
they sought by every means to destroy1  
and many  times came against them1 with 
their numerous hosts to battle1 but     
were repulsed and driven back to their  
own possession1 not1 however1  generally
 speaking1 without great loss on both   
sides2 for tens of  thousands were very 
frequently slain1 after which they were 
piled  together in great heaps upon the 
face of the ground1 and covered with  a 
shallow covering of earth1 which will   
satisfactorily account for  those       
ancient mounds filled with human bones1 
so numerous at the  present day1 both in
 ,north and ,south ,america4    ,the    
second colony1 which left ,jerusalem    
eleven years after the  remnant of      
,joseph left that city1 landed in ,north
 ,america1 and  emigrated from thence1  
to the northern parts of ,south         
,america2 and  about four hundred years 
after1 they were discovered by the      

,nephites1  as we stated in the         
foregoing4    ,they were called the     
people of ,zarahemla4 ,they had been    
perplexed  with many wars among         
themselves2 and having brought no       
records with  them1 their language had  
become corrupted1 and they denied the   
being  of ,god2 and at the time they    
were discovered by the ,nephites they   
were very numerous1 and only in a       
partial state of civilization2 but  the 
,nephites united with them1 and taught  
them the ,holy ,scriptures1  and they   
were restored to civilization1 and      
became one nation with  them4 ,and in   
process of time1 the ,nephites began to 
build ships near  the ,isthmus of       
,darien1 and launch them forth into the 
western ocean1  in which great numbers  
sailed a great distance to the          
northward1 and  began to colonize ,north
 ,america4 ,other colonies emigrated by 
land1  and in a few centuries the whole 
continent became peopled4 ,north        
,america at that time1 was almost       

entirely destitute of timber1 it  having
 been cut off by the more ancient race1 
who came from the great  tower1 at the  
confusion of languages2 but the         
,nephites became very  skilful in       
building houses of cement2 also much    
timber was carried by  the way of       
shipping from ,south to ,north ,america4
 ,they also planted  groves and began to
 raise timber1 that in time their wants 
might be  supplied4 ,large cities were  
built in various parts of the continent1
  both among the ,lamanites and         
,nephites4 ,the law of ,moses was       
observed  by the latter4 ,numerous      
prophets were raised up from time to    
time  throughout their generations4     
,many records1 both historical and      
prophetical1 which were of great size1  
were kept among them2 some on  plates of
 gold and other metals1 and some on     
other materials4 ,the  sacred records1  
also of the more ancient race who had   
been destroyed1  were found by them4    
,these were engraved on plates of gold4 

,they  translated them into their own   
language1 by the gift and power of      
,god1 through the means of the ,urim and
 ,thummim4 ,they contained an           
historical account from the creation    
down to the ,tower of ,babel1 and  from 
that time down until they were          
destroyed1 comprising a period of  about
 thirty-four hundred1 or thirty-five    
hundred years4 ,they also  contained    
many prophecies1 great and marvellous1  
reaching forward to  the final end and  
consummation of all things1 and the     
creation of the  new heaven and new     
earth4    ,the prophets also among the  
,nephites prophesied of great things4   
,they  opened the secrets of            
futurity--saw the coming of ,messiah in 
the  flesh--prophesied of the blessings 
to come upon their descendants in  the  
latter times--made known the history of 
unborn generations--  unfolded the great
 events of ages to come--viewed the     
power1 glory1  and majesty of ,messiah's
 second advent--beheld the establishment

 of  the kingdom of peace--gazed upon   
the glories of the day of               
righteousness--saw creation redeemed    
from the curse1 and all the  righteous  
filled with songs of everlasting joy4   
,the ,nephites knew of the birth and    
crucifixion of ,christ1 by certain      
celestial and terrestrial phenomena1    
which1 at those times1 were  shown forth
 in fulfilment of the predictions of    
many of their  prophets4                
,notwithstanding the many blessings with
 which they had been  blessed1 they had 
fallen into great wickedness1 and had   
cast out the  saints and the prophets1  
and stoned and killed them4 ,therefore1 
at  the time of the crucifixion of      
,christ1 they were visited in great     
judgment4 ,thick darkness covered the   
whole continent4 ,the earth was         
terribly convulsed4 ,the rocks were rent
 into broken fragments1 and  afterwards 
found in seams and cracks upon all the  
face of the land4  ,mountains were sunk 
into valleys1 and valleys raised into   

mountains4  ,the highways and level     
roads were broken up and spoiled4 ,many 
cities  were laid in ruins4 ,others were
 buried up in the depths of the earth1  
and mountains occupied their place4     
,while others were sunk1 and  waters    
came up in their stead1 and others still
 were burned by fire  from heaven4      
,thus1 the predictions of their prophets
 were fulfilled upon their  heads4      
,thus1 the more wicked part1 both of the
 ,nephites and ,lamanites  were         
destroyed4 ,thus1 the ,almighty executed
 vengeance and fury upon  them1 that the
 blood of the saints and prophets might 
no longer cry  from the ground against  
them4    ,those who survived these      
terrible judgments1 were favoured with  
the  personal ministry of ,christ4 ,for 
after ,he arose from the  dead--finished
 his ministry at ,jerusalem1 and        
ascended to heaven1 he  descended in the
 presence of the ,nephites1 who were    
assembled round  about their temples in 
the northern parts of ,south ,america   

,he  exhibited to them his wounded      
hands1 side1 and feet--commanded the    
law of ,moses to be                     
abolished--introduced and established   
the ,gospel  in its stead--chose twelve 
disciples from among them to administer 
the same--instituted the                
sacrament--prayed for and blessed their 
little children--healed their sick1     
blind1 lame1 deaf1 and those who  were  
afflicted in any way--raised a man from 
the dead--showed forth  his power in    
their midst--expounded the scriptures   
which had been  given from the beginning
 down to that time1 and made known unto 
them  all things which should take place
 down until ,he should come in his      
glory1 and from that time down to the   
end1 when all people1 nations1  and     
languages shall stand before ,god to be 
judged1 and the heaven1  and the earth  
should pass away1 and there should be a 
new heaven and  new earth4 ,these       
teachings of ,jesus were engraved upon  
plates1 some  of which are contained in 

the book of ,mormon2 but the greater    
part  are not revealed in that book1 but
 are hereafter to be made manifest  to  
the saints4    ,after ,jesus had        
finished ministering unto them1 he      
ascended into  heaven2 and the twelve   
disciples whom he had chosen1 went forth
 upon  all the face of the land1        
preaching the gospel2 baptizing those   
who  repented1 for the remission of     
sins1 after which they laid their  hands
 upon them1 that they might receive the 
,holy ,spirit4 ,mighty  miracles were   
wrought by them1 and also by many of the
 church4 ,the  ,nephites and ,lamanites 
were all converted unto the ,lord1 both 
in  ,south and ,north ,america2 and they
 dwelt in righteousness above three     
hundred years2 but towards the close of 
the fourth century of the  ,christian   
era1 they had so far apostatized from   
,god1 that he suffered  great judgments 
to fall upon them4 ,the ,lamanites1 at  
that time1 dwelt  in ,south ,america1   
and the ,nephites in ,north ,america4   

,a great and terrible war commenced     
between them1 which lasted for  many    
years1 and resulted in the complete     
overthrow and destruction of  the       
,nephites4 ,this war commenced at the   
,isthmus of ,darien1 and was  very      
destructive to both nations for many    
years4 ,at length1 the  ,nephites were  
driven before their enemies1 a great    
distance to the  ,north1 and            
,north-east2 and having gathered their  
whole nation  together1 both men women1 
and children1 they encamped on and round
  about the hill ,cumorah1 where the    
records were found1 which is in the     
,state of ,new-,york1 about two hundred 
miles west of the city of  ,albany4     
,here they were met by the numerous     
hosts of the ,lamanites1  and were      
slain1 and hewn down1 and slaughtered1  
both male and  female--the aged1        
middle-aged1 and children4 ,hundreds of 
thousands  were slain on both sides2 and
 the nation of the ,nephites were       
destroyed1 excepting a few who had      

deserted over to the ,lamanites1  and a 
few who escaped into the south country1 
and a few who fell  wounded1 and were   
left by the ,lamanites on the field of  
battle for  dead1 among whom were       
,mormon and his son ,moroni1 who were   
righteous  men4    ,mormon had made an  
abridgment1 from the records1 of his    
forefathers1  upon plates1 which        
abridgment he entitled the ,book of     
,mormon1 and1  7being commanded of      
,god17 he hid up in the hill ,cumorah1  
all the  sacred records of his          
forefathers which were in his           
possession1  except the abridgment      
called the ,book of ,mormon1 which he   
gave to  his son ,moroni to finish4     
,moroni survived his nation a few years1
 and  continued the writings1 in which  
he informs us1 that the ,lamanites      
hunted those few ,nephites who escaped  
the great and tremendous battle  of     
,cumorah1 until they were all destroyed1
 excepting those who were  mingled with 
the ,lamanites1 and that he was left    

alone1 and kept  himself hid1 for they  
sought to destroy every ,nephite who    
would not  deny ,christ4 ,he furthermore
 states1 that the ,lamanites were at war
  one with another1 and that the whole  
face of the land was one  continual     
scene of murdering1 robbing1 and        
plundering4 ,he continued  the history  
until the four hundred and twentieth    
year of the  ,christian era2 when1 7by  
the commandment of ,god17 he hid up the 
records in the hill ,cumorah1 where they
 remained concealed1 until by  the      
ministry of an angel they were          
discovered to ,mr4 ,smith1 who1 by  the 
gift and power of ,god1 translated them 
into the ,english language1  by the     
means of the ,urim and ,thummim1 as     
stated in the foregoing4    ,after the  
book was translated1 the ,lord raised up
 witnesses to bear  testimony to the    
nations of its truth1 who1 at the close 
of the  volume1 send forth their        
testimony1 which reads as follows3      
,,testimony ,,of ,,three ,,witnesses4   

,be it known unto all nations1 kindreds1
 tongues1 and people1 unto     whom this
 work shall come1 that we1 through the  
grace of ,god the     ,father1 and our  
,lord ,jesus ,christ1 have seen the     
plates which contain     this record1   
which is a record of the people of      
,nephi1 and also of     the ,lamanites1 
their brethren1 and also of the people  
of ,jared1 who     came from the tower  
of which hath been spoken2 and we also  
know that     they have been translated 
by the gift and power of ,god1 for his  
voice     hath declared it unto us1     
wherefore1 we know of a surety1 that the
     work is true4 ,and we also testify 
that we have seen the engravings        
which are upon the plates2 and they have
 been shown unto us by the     power of 
,god1 and not of man4 ,and we declare1  
with words of     soberness1 that an    
angel of ,god came down from heaven1 and
 he brought     and laid before our     
eyes1 that we beheld and saw the plates1
 and the     engravings thereon2 and we 

know that it is by the grace of ,god the
     ,father1 and our ,lord ,jesus      
,christ1 that we behold and bear record 
that these things are true2 and it is   
marvellous in our eyes1                 
nevertheless1 the voice of the ,lord    
commanded us that we should bear        
record of it2 wherefore1 to be obedient 
to the commandments of ,god1     we bear
 testimony of these things4 ,and we know
 that if we are     faithful in ,christ1
 we shall rid our garments of the blood 
of all men     and be found spotless    
before the judgment seat of ,christ1 and
 shall     dwell with him eternally in  
the heavens4 ,and the honour be to the  
,father1 and to the ,son1 and to the    
,holy ,ghost1 which is one ,god4 ,amen4 
,,oliver ,,cowdery1     ,,david         
,,whitmer1     ,,martin ,,harris4       
,,and ,,also ,,the ,,testimony ,,of     
,,eight ,,witnesses4       ,be it known 
unto all nations1 kindreds1 tongues1 and
 people1 unto     whom this work shall  
come1 that ,joseph ,smith1 ,jr41 the    

translator of     this work1 has shown  
unto us the plates of which hath been   
spoken1     which have the appearance of
 gold2 and as many of the leaves as the 
said ,smith has translated1 we did      
handle with our hands2 and we also      
saw the engravings thereon1 all of which
 has the appearance of     ancient work1
 and of curious workmanship4 ,and this  
we bear record     with words of        
soberness1 that the said ,smith has     
shown unto us1 for     we have seen and 
hefted1 and know of a surety1 that the  
said ,smith     has got the plates of   
which we have spoken4 ,and we give our  
names     unto the world1 to witness    
unto the world that which we have seen2 
and we lie not1 ,god bearing witness of 
it4       ,,christian ,,whitmer1        
,,jacob ,,whitmer1     ,,peter          
,,whitmer1 ,jr4     ,,john ,,whitmer1   
,,hiram ,,page1     ,,joseph ,,smith1   
,sen4     ,,hyrum ,,smith1     ,,samuel 
,h4 ,,smith4    ,also1 in the year      
#ahbi1 ,mr4 ,smith and ,mr4 ,cowdery1   

having learned the  correct mode of     
baptism1 from the teachings of the      
,saviour to the  ancient ,nephites1 as  
recorded in the ,book of ,mormon1 had a 
desire  to be baptized2 but knowing that
 no one had authority to administer     
that sacred ordinance in any            
denomination1 they were at a loss to    
know how the authority was to be        
restored1 and while calling upon the    
,lord with a desire to be informed upon 
the subject1 a holy angel               
appeared--stood before them--laid his   
hands upon their heads--ordained        
them--and commanded them to baptize each
 other1 which they accordingly  did4    
,in the year #ahcj1 a large edition of  
the ,book of ,mormon first  appeared in 
print4 ,and as some began to peruse its 
sacred pages1 the  spirit of the ,lord  
bore record to them that it was true1   
and they  were obedient to its          
requirements1 by coming forth1 humbly   
repenting  before the ,lord1 and being  
immersed in water1 for the remission of 

sins1 after which1 by the commandment of
 ,god1 hands were laid upon  them in the
 name of the ,lord1 for the gift of the 
,holy ,spirit4    ,and on the sixth of  
,april1 in the year of our ,lord one    
thousand eight  hundred and thirty1 the 
,church of ,jesus ,christ of ,latter    
,day  ,saints1 was organized1 in the    
town of ,manchester1 ,ontario ,county1  
,state of ,new-,york4 ,some few were    
called and ordained by the spirit of    
revelation and prophecy1 and began to   
preach and bear testimony1 as  the      
spirit gave them utterance2 and although
 they were the weak  things of the      
earth1 yet they were strengthened by the
 ,holy ,ghost1  and gave forth their    
testimony in great power1 by which means
 many  were brought to repentance1 and  
came forward with broken hearts and     
contrite spirits1 and were immersed in  
water confessing their sins1  and were  
filled with the ,holy ,ghost by the     
laying on of hands2 and  saw visions and
 prophesied4 ,devils were cast out1 and 

the sick were  healed by the prayer of  
faith1 and laying on of hands4 ,thus was
 the  word confirmed unto the faithful  
by signs following4 ,thus the ,lord     
raised up witnesses1 to bear testimony  
of his name1 and lay the  foundation of 
his kingdom in the last days4 ,and thus 
the hearts of  the saints were          
comforted1 and filled with great joy4   
,in the foregoing1 we have related the  
most important facts concerning  the    
visions and the ministry of the angel to
 ,mr4 ,smith2 the discovery  of the     
records2 their translation into the     
,english language1 and the  witnesses   
raised up to bear testimony of the same3
 we have also  stated when1 and by whom 
they were written2 that they contain the
  history of nearly one half of the     
globe1 from the earliest ages after  the
 flood1 until the beginning of the fifth
 century of the ,christian  era2 that   
this history is interspersed with many  
important  prophecies1 which unfold the 
great events of the last days1 and that 

in it also is recorded the gospel in its
 fulness and plainness1 as it  was      
revealed by the personal ministry of    
,christ to the ancient  ,nephites1 ,we  
have also given an account of the       
restoration of the  authority in these  
days1 to administer in the ordinances of
 the  gospel2 and of the time of the    
organization of the church2 and of the  
blessings poured out upon the same while
 yet in its infancy4    ,we now proceed 
to give a sketch of the faith and       
doctrine of this  ,church4    ,first1 we
 believe in ,god the ,eternal ,father1  
and in his ,son1 ,jesus  ,christ1 and in
 the ,holy ,ghost1 who bears record of  
them1 the same  throughout all ages and 
for ever4    ,we believe that all       
mankind by the transgression of their   
first  parents1 and not by their own    
sins1 were brought under the curse and  
penalty of that transgression1 which    
consigned them to an eternal  banishment
 from the presence of ,god1 and their   
bodies to an endless  sleep in the dust1

 never more to rise1 and their spirits  
to endless  misery under the power of   
,satan2 and that1 in this awful         
condition1  they were utterly lost and  
fallen1 and had no power of their own to
  extricate themselves therefrom4    ,we
 believe1 that through the sufferings1  
death and atonement of ,jesus  ,christ1 
all mankind1 without one exception1 are 
to be completely and  fully redeemed1   
both body and spirit1 from the endless  
banishment and  curse to which they were
 consigned1 by ,adam's transgression1   
and that  this universal salvation and  
redemption of the whole human family    
from the endless penalty of the original
 sin1 is effected1 without  any         
conditions whatsoever on their part2    
that is1 that they are not  required to 
believe1 or repent1 or be baptized1 or  
do any thing else1  in order to be      
redeemed from that penalty2 for whether 
they believe  or disbelieve1 whether    
they repent or remain impenitent1       
whether they  are baptized or           

unbaptized1 whether they keep the       
commandments or  break them1 whether    
they are righteous or unrighteous1 it   
will make  no difference in relation to 
their redemption1 both soul and body1   
from the penalty of ,adam's             
transgression4 ,the most righteous man  
that  ever lived on the earth1 and the  
most wicked wretch of the whole  human  
family1 were both placed under the same 
curse1 without any  transgression or    
agency of their own1 and they both1     
alike1 will be  redeemed from that      
curse1 without any agency or conditions 
on their  part4 ,paul says1 ,rom4 v4    
#bh1 ,therefore1 as by the offence of   
one1  judgment came upon ,,all men to   
condemnation2 even so1 by the           
righteousness of one1 the free gift came
 upon ,,all men unto the  justification 
of life4 ,this is the reason why ,,all  
men are redeemed  from the grave4 ,this 
is the reason that the spirits of all   
men are  restored to their bodies4 ,this
 is the reason that all men are         

redeemed from their first banishment1   
and restored into the presence  of ,god1
 and this is the reason that the        
,saviour said1 ,john xii4 #cb1  ,if ,i  
be lifted up from the earth ,i will1    
draw ,,all men unto me4  ,after this    
full1 complete and universal redemption1
 restoration and  salvation of the whole
 of ,adam's race1 through the atonement 
of ,jesus  ,christ1 without faith1      
repentance1 baptism or any other works1 
then  all and every one of them1 will   
enjoy eternal life and happiness1  never
 more to be banished from the presence  
of ,god1 ,,if they  themselves have     
committed no sin3 for the penalty of the
 original  sin can have no more power   
over them at all1 for ,jesus hath       
destroyed  its power--broken the bands  
of the first death--obtained the victory
  over the grave1--delivered all its    
captives1 and restored them from  their 
first banishment into the presence of   
his ,father1 hence eternal  life will   
then be theirs1 ,,if they themselves are

 not found  transgressors of some law4  
,we believe that all mankind1 in their  
infant state are incapable of  knowing  
good and evil1 and of obeying or        
disobeying a law1 and that1  therefore1 
there is no law given to them1 and that 
where there is no  law1 there is no     
transgression2 hence they are innocent1 
and if they  should all die in their    
infant state1 they would enjoy eternal  
life1  not being transgressors          
themselves1 neither accountable for     
,adam's  sin4    ,we believe that all   
mankind1 in consequence of the fall1    
after they  grow up from their infant   
state1 and come to the years of         
understanding1 know good and evil1 and  
are capable of obeying and  disobeying a
 law1 and that a law is given against   
doing evil1 and  that the penalty       
affixed is a second banishment from the 
presence of  ,god1 both body and spirit1
 after they have been redeemed from the 
,,first banishment and restored into his
 presence4    ,we believe that the      

penalty of this second law can have no  
effect  upon persons who have not had   
the privilege1 in this life1 of         
becoming acquainted therewith2 for      
although the light that is in them      
teaches them good and evil1 yet that    
light does not teach them the  law      
against doing evil1 nor the penalty     
thereof4 ,and although they  have done  
things worthy of many stripes1 yet the  
law cannot be  brought to bear against  
them1 and its penalty be inflicted1     
because  they can plead ignorance       
thereof4 ,therefore they will be judged1
 not  by the revealed law which they    
have been ignorant of1 but by the law   
of their conscience1 the penalty thereof
 being a few stripes4    ,we believe    
that all who have done evil1 having a   
knowledge of the  law1 or afterwards1 in
 this life1 coming to the knowledge     
thereof1  are under its penalty1 which  
is not inflicted in this world1 but in  
the world to come4 ,therefore1 such1 in 
this world1 are prisoners1  shut up     

under the sentence of the law1 awaiting1
 with awful fear1 for  the time of      
judgment1 when the penalty shall be     
inflicted1 consigning  them to a second 
banishment from the presence of their   
,redeemer1  who had redeemed them from  
the penalty of the ,,first law4 ,but1   
enquires the sinner1 is there no way for
 my escape8 ,is my case  hopeless8 ,can 
,i not devise some way by which ,i can  
extricate myself  from the penalty of   
this ,,second law1 and escape this      
,,second  banishment8 ,the answer is1 if
 thou canst hide thyself from the       
all-searching eye of an ,omnipresent    
,god1 that he shall not find thee1  or  
if thou canst prevail with him to deny  
justice its claim1 or if  thou canst    
clothe thyself with power1 and contend  
with the ,almighty1  and prevent him    
from executing the sentence of the law1 
then thou  canst escape4 ,if thou canst 
cause repentance1 or baptism in water1  
or  any of thine own works1 to atone for
 the least of thy  transgressions1 then 

thou canst deliver thyself from the     
awful  penalty that awaits thee4 ,but1  
be assured1 ,o sinner1 that thou canst  
not devise any way of thine own to      
escape1 nor do any thing that will      
atone for thy sins4 ,therefore1 thy case
 is hopeless1 unless ,god  hath devised 
some way for thy deliverance2 but do not
 let despair  seize upon thee2 for      
though thou art under the sentence of a 
broken  law1 and hast no power to atone 
for thy sins1 and redeem thyself        
therefrom1 yet there is hope in thy     
case2 for he1 who gave the law1  has    
devised a way for thy deliverance4 ,that
 same ,jesus1 who hath  atoned for the  
original sin1 and will redeem all       
mankind from the  penalty thereof1 hath 
also atoned for thy sins1 and offereth  
salvation and deliverance to thee1 on   
certain conditions to be  complied with 
on thy part4    ,we believe that the    
first condition to be complied with on  
the part  of sinners1 is1 to believe in 
,god1 and in the sufferings and death   

of his ,son ,jesus ,christ1 to atone for
 the sins of the whole world1  and in   
his resurrection and ascension on high1 
to appear in the  presence of his       
,father1 to make intercessions for the  
children of  men1 and in the ,holy      
,ghost1 which is given to all who obey  
the gospel4    ,that the second         
condition is1 to repent1 that is1 all   
who believe1  according to the first    
condition1 are required to come humbly  
before  ,god1 and confess their sins    
with a broken heart and contrite spirit1
  and turn away from them1 and cease    
from all their evil deeds and  make     
restitution to all whom they have in any
 way injured1 as far as  it is in their 
power4    ,that the third condition is1 
to be baptized by immersion in water1   
in the name of the ,father1 ,son1 and   
,holy ,ghost1 for remission of  sins2   
and that this ordinance is to be        
administered by one who is  called and  
authorized of ,jesus ,christ to baptize1
 otherwise it is  illegal and of no     

advantage1 and not accepted by him2 and 
that it is  to be administered only to  
those persons1 who believe and repent1  
according to the two preceding          
conditions4    ,and that the fourth     
condition is1 to receive the laying on  
of  hands1 in the name of ,jesus        
,christ1 for the gift of the ,holy      
,ghost2  and that this ordinance is to  
be administered by the apostles or      
elders1 whom the ,lord ,jesus hath      
called and authorized to lay on  hands1 
otherwise it is of no advantage1 being  
illegal in the sight of  ,god2 and that 
it is to be administered only to those  
persons who  believe1 repent1 and are   
baptized into this church1 according to 
the  three preceding conditions4 ,these 
are the first conditions of the  gospel4
 ,all who comply with them receive      
forgiveness of sins1 and are  made      
partakers of the ,holy ,ghost4 ,through 
these conditions1 they  become the      
adopted sons and daughters of ,god4     
,through this process1  they are born   

again1 first of water1 and then of the  
spirit1 and  become children of the     
kingdom--heirs of ,god---saints of the  
most  ,high--the church of the          
first-born--the elect people1 and heirs 
to a  celestial inheritance1 eternal in 
the presence of ,god4 ,after  complying 
with these principles1 their names are  
enrolled in the book  of the names of   
the righteous4    ,they are then        
required to be humble1 to be meek and   
lowly in heart1  to watch and pray1 to  
deal justly2 and inasmuch as they have  
the  riches of this world1 to feed the  
hungry1 and clothe the naked1  according
 to the dictates of wisdom and prudence2
 to comfort the  afflicted1 to bind up  
the broken-hearted1 and to do all the   
good that  is in their power2 and       
besides all these things1 they are      
required to  meet together as often as  
circumstances will admit1 and partake of
  bread and wine1 in remembrance of the 
broken body1 and shed blood of  the     
,lord ,jesus2 and1 in short1 to continue

 faithful to the end1 in  all the duties
 enjoined upon them by the word and     
spirit of ,christ4    ,it is the duty   
and privilege of the saints thus        
organized upon the  everlasting gospel1 
to believe in and enjoy1 all the gifts1 
powers1  and blessings which flow from  
the ,holy ,spirit4 ,such1 for instance1 
as  the gifts of revelation1 prophecy1  
visions1 the ministry of angels  healing
 the sick by the laying on of hands in  
the name of ,jesus1 the  working of     
miracles1 and1 in short1 all the gifts  
as mentioned in  ,scripture1 or as      
enjoyed1 by the ancient saints4 ,we     
believe that  inspired apostles and     
prophets1 together with all the officers
 as  mentioned in the new ,testament1   
are necessary to be in the church in    
these days4    ,we believe that there   
has been a general and awful apostacy   
from the  religion of the ,new          
,testament1 so that all the known world 
have been  left for centuries without   
the ,church of ,christ among them2      

without a  priesthood authorized of ,god
 to administer ordinances2 that every   
one  of the churches has perverted the  
gospel2 some in one way1 and some  in   
another4 ,for instance1 almost every    
church has done away  immersion for     
remission of sins4 ,those few who have  
practised it  for remission of sins1    
have done away the ordinance of the     
laying  on of hands1 upon baptized      
believers for the gift of the ,holy     
,ghost4 ,again1 the few who have        
practised this last ordinance1 have     
perverted the first1 or have done away  
the ancient gifts1 powers1 and          
blessings1 which flow from the ,holy    
,spirit1 or have said to inspired       
apostles and prophets1 we have no need  
of you in the body in these  days4      
,those few1 again1 who have believed in 
and contended for the  miraculous gifts 
and powers of the ,holy ,spirit1 have   
perverted the  ordinances1 or done them 
away4 ,thus all the churches preach     
false  doctrines and pervert the gospel1

 and instead of having authority  from  
,god to administer its ordinances1 they 
are under the curse of  ,god for        
perverting it4 ,paul says1 ,gal4 i1 #h1 
,though we1 or an angel  from ,heaven1  
preach any other gospel unto you than   
that which we have  preached unto you1  
let him be accursed4    ,we believe that
 there are a few sincere1 honest1 and   
humble persons1  who are striving to do 
according to the best of their          
understanding2  but1 in many respects1  
they err in doctrine1 because of false  
teachers and the precepts of men1 and   
that they will receive the  fulness of  
the gospel with gladness1 as soon as    
they hear it4    ,the gospel in the     
,book of ,mormon1 is the same as that in
 the ,new  ,testament1 and is revealed  
in great plainness1 so that no one that 
reads it can misunderstand its          
principles4 ,it has been revealed by    
the angel1 to be preached as a witness  
to all nations1 first to the  ,gentiles1
 and then to the ,jews1 then cometh the 

downfall of ,babylon4  ,thus fulfilling 
the vision of ,john1 which he beheld on 
the ,isle of  ,patmos1 ,rev4 xiv1 #f1   
#g1 #h1 ,and ,i saw1 says ,john1 another
 angel fly  in the midst of heaven1     
having the everlasting gospel to preach 
unto  them that dwell on the earth1 and 
to every nation1 and kindred1 and       
tongue1 and people1 saying1 with a loud 
voice1 ,fear ,god1 and give  glory to   
him1 for the hour of his judgment is    
come2 and worship him  that made heaven1
 and earth1 and the sea1 and the        
fountains of  waters4 ,and there        
followed another angel1 saying ,babylon 
is fallen1  is fallen1 that great city1 
because she made all nations drink of   
the  wine of the wrath of her           
fornication4    ,many revelations and   
prophecies have been given to this      
church since  its rise1 which have been 
printed and sent forth to the world4    
,they  also contain the gospel in great 
plainness1 and instructions of  infinite
 importance to the saints4 ,they also   

unfold the great events  that await this
 generation2 the terrible judgments to  
be poured forth  upon the wicked1 and   
the blessings and glories to be given to
 the  righteous4 ,we believe that ,god  
will continue to give revelations by    
visions1 by the ministry of angels1 and 
by the inspiration of the  ,holy ,ghost1
 until the saints are guided into all   
truth1 that is1  until they come in     
possession of all the truth there is in 
existence1  and are made perfect in     
knowledge4 ,so long1 therefore1 as they 
are  ignorant of any thing past1        
present1 or to come1 so long1 we believe
  they will enjoy the gift of           
revelation4 ,and when in their immortal 
and perfect state--when they enjoy the  
measure of the stature of the  fulness  
of ,christ--when they are made perfect  
in one1 and become  like their ,saviour1
 then they will be in possession of all 
knowledge1  wisdom1 and intelligence3   
then all things will be theirs1 whether 
principalities or powers1 thrones or    

dominions2 and1 in short1 then  they    
will be filled with all the fulness of  
,god4 ,and what more can  they learn8   
,what more can they know8 ,what more can
 they enjoy8 ,then  they will no longer 
need revelation4    ,we believe that    
wherever the people enjoy the religion  
of the ,new  ,testament1 there they     
enjoy visions1 revelations1 the ministry
 of  angels1 c4 ,and that wherever these
 blessings cease to be enjoyed1  there  
they also cease to enjoy the religion of
 the ,new ,testament4    ,we believe    
that ,god has raised up this church1 in 
order to prepare a  people for his      
second coming in the clouds of heaven1  
in power1 and  great glory2 and that    
then the saints who are asleep in their 
graves  will be raised1 and reign with  
him on earth a thousand years4    ,we   
believe that the nations are fast       
ripening in wickedness1 and that        
judgments1 fearful1 and terrible1       
speedily await them4 ,for the signs  of 
the times clearly betoken a general and 

universal convulsion4 ,the  ripening of 
the harvest--the decay of               
vegetables--the withering  leaves1 never
 indicated more clearly the approaching 
winter1 than the  signs of the times    
betoken approaching judgment4 ,the awful
 apostacy  of the ,christian ,world--the
 great corruptions that pervade all     
governments1 and the alarming wickedness
 of the present generation1  have       
engraved ,,universal ,,judgment1 ,,ruin1
 and ,,overthrow upon all the  kingdoms 
of this world4 ,a dreadful storm is     
gathering in every  region1 find will1  
ere long1 break forth with inconceivable
 fury upon  this guilty generation4     
,already the fearful tempest begins to  
rage4  ,the calm repose of ages is      
disturbed4 ,ancient and powerful        
monarchies  which have stood the test of
 centuries1 unmoved and unaltered1 are  
now fast crumbling to ruin4 ,kingdoms   
are in terrible commotion1  divided     
among themselves1 and each distracted   
with internal broils1  disorder1 and    

confusion4 ,the fountains of the nations
 seem to be  broken up4 ,the whole frame
 work of government is loosened and torn
  asunder4 ,every nation is alarmed and 
in consternation4 ,fearful  forebodings 
have seized upon ,politicians and       
,statesman1 ,kings and  ,rulers4 ,all   
are perplexed with dreadful anxieties1  
looking after  those things which are   
coming on the earth4    ,in the midst of
 all these commotions1 just as every    
government seems  to be on the very eve 
of crumbling to pieces1 and just as a   
thick  cloud of judgment seems to hang  
frightfully over all nations1 ready  to 
burst with awful fury upon their guilty 
heads--a voice of mercy  is heard4 ,an  
angel is sent forth from the eternal    
worlds4 ,truth  springs forth from the  
earth clothed with her native simplicity
 and  beauty4 ,messengers are called of 
,god1 and sent forth with a             
proclamation to all people1 requiring   
them to repent and obey the  same4 ,a   
way of safety for the meek of the earth 

is clearly pointed  out4 ,the kingdom of
 ,god is re-organized upon the earth1   
which alone  will stand secure and      
triumphant in the midst of the          
dissolution of  all earthly governments4
    ,thus1 dear reader1 we have laid    
before you a brief narrative of some  of
 the most important things transpiring  
in this generation--things  most firmly 
believed by the church of ,jesus ,christ
 of ,latter ,day  ,saints--things which 
have already been embraced by many tens 
of  thousands in our own native country4
 ,thousands also among other  nations   
are rejoicing in these tidings1 having  
received this message  with gladness4   
,never were mankind visited with a more 
important  message than the one which   
has now saluted the ears of mortals4 ,it
 is  a message that deeply concerns all 
people1 and calls for their most  candid
 and sincere investigation4 ,it is a    
message from the great  ,jehovah        
committed into the hands of mortals by  
holy angels sent forth  from his        

presence4 ,it is a message that will    
speedily penetrate the  darkest corners 
of the earth1 and enter into the palaces
 of ,kings1  while proud and haughty    
monarchs shall tremble at its power4 ,it
 is a  message which unveils the secrets
 of futurity1 and draws aside the       
curtains which hide the destinies of all
 countries and governments4    ,by the  
proclamation of this message1 ,judah    
shall be gathered from  their long      
dispersion--the tribes of ,israel be    
restored1 with power  and glory to their
 own lands--the remnant of ,joseph1 or  
the ,american  ,indians1 become         
civilized and enlightened1 and the      
,millennial reign  of universal peace   
and joy be ushered in4    ,and we now   
bear testimony to all1 both small and   
great1 that the ,lord  of ,hosts hath   
sent us with a message of glad          
tidings--the everlasting  gospel1 to cry
 repentance to the nations1 and prepare 
the way of his  second coming4          
,therefore1 repent1 ,o ye nations1 both 

,gentiles and  ,jews1 and cease from all
 your evil deeds1 and come forth with   
broken hearts and contrite spirits1 and 
be baptized in water1 in  the name of   
the ,father1 ,son1 and ,holy ,ghost1 for
 remission of sins1  and ye shall       
receive the gift of the ,holy ,spirit by
 the laying on of  the hands of the     
,apostles1 or ,elders of this church2   
and signs shall  follow them that       
believe1 and if they continue faithful  
to the end1  they shall be saved4 ,but  
woe unto them who hearken not to the    
message  which ,god has now sent1 for   
the day of vengeance and burning is at  
hand1 and they shall not escape4        
,therefore1 ,,remember1 ,o reader1 and  
perish not6