,,scraps ,,of ,,biography4 ,,tenth ,,book ,,of ,,the ,,faith-,,promoting ,,series4 ,designed for the ,instruction and ,encouragement of ,young ,latter-day ,saints ,,juvenile ,,instructor ,,office4 ,salt ,lake ,city4 #ahhc ,copyright applied for at the ,office of the ,librarian of ,congress1 at ,washington1 ,d4 ,c41 by ,a4 ,h4 ,cannon4 ,,preface4 ,there is a gradually increasing interest among the young of this people for reading and study4 ,it is now the ambition of nearly every son and daughter of the ,saints to become well educated4 ,parents1 also1 are more deeply interested in the intellectual growth of the youth4 ,thus we are gradually ascending to a higher plane1 and our influence is being felt in a more extended sphere4 ,the desire1 however1 to place matter in the hands of the young for reading and study1 should not cause parents to be less careful in the selection of books4 ,truth expands the mind and quickens the understanding1 while fiction dulls the perceptions and impairs the memory4 ,the acquisition of the one is a source of joy to the possessor1 while the constant perusal of the other unfits a person for the study of that which endures4 ,that truth is the foundation of all righteousness1 and that righteousness is what we desire1 no person among this people will deny4 ,hence our anxiety to teach the child from its earliest infancy the principle of the gospel4 ,in order to assist in this great work of teaching the gospel principles1 we have been led to publish the ,,series of which this book forms a part4 ,whether or not our endeavors have met with any success1 we leave for others to say1 but we can safely state that all who have read these little works cannot but realize the fact that ,truth is stranger than fiction4 ,that these ,,scraps ,,of ,,biography may help to instil the great principle of faith in the minds of the rising generation is the earnest desire of ,,the ,,publisher4 ,,contents4 ,,sketch ,,of ,,an ,,elder',s ,,life4 ,,chapter ,i4 ,birth and ,parentage of ,elder ,john ,tanner--,himself and ,two ,children are ,bitten by a ,mad ,dog--,they are ,healed--,he ,becomes ,wealthy--,afflicted ,with ,unknown ,disease--,physicians ,fail to ,cure ,him--,mormon ,elders ,visit ,him--,he is ,converted--,is ,miraculously ,healed--,goes to ,kirtland--,freely ,gives ,money for the ,benefit of the ,church--,his ,elder's ,certificate4 ,,chapter ,,ii4 ,receives ,blessings in ,temple--,assists ,with ,kirtland ,bank--,starts for ,missouri--,his ,daughter ,dies--,is ,attacked by ,mob--,nearly ,murdered--,retained as a ,prisoner--,released--,removes to ,iowa--,receives the ,prophet's ,blessing--,goes to the ,rocky ,mountains--,loses ,his ,property by ,fire--,thrilling ,indian ,adventure--,at ,death's ,door--,remarkable ,escape--,his ,death4 ,,incidents ,,of ,,experience4 ,,chapter ,i4 ,account of ,my ,ancestors--,my ,birth--,remarkable ,vision--,its ,effect ,upon ,those ,who ,heard of ,it--,my ,father and ,grand-,father ,become ,interested in ,reading the ,scriptures--,my ,grand-,father's ,prophecy--,his ,dislocated ,shoulder ,replaced by the ,power of ,god--,my ,grand-,father's ,vision and ,death--,mormon ,elders ,visit the ,neighborhood--,i ,go to ,hear ,them ,preach--,believe ,their ,doctrines--,my ,father ,opposed to the ,elders4 ,,chapter ,,ii4 ,my ,covenant ,with the ,lord--,my ,sister ,desires ,baptism--,my ,brother's ,threat--,visit of ,hyrum ,smith--,my ,sister ,baptized--,i ,break ,my ,covenant--,my ,father's ,dream--,my ,baptism--,exhortation to the ,young--,spiritual ,gifts ,received--,meeting ,disturbed by ,mobs--,after ,talking to ,them ,they ,become ,quiet and ,leave the ,place--,some of the ,mob ,join the ,church--,the ,leader of the ,mob ,dies ,suddenly--,mobbings ,cease4 ,,chapter ,,iii4 ,ordained to the ,priesthood--,invited to ,preach--,i ,make ,up a ,sermon on my ,way--,sermon ,apparently a ,failure to ,me--,my ,hearers ,satisfied ,with ,it--,abused by a ,baptist ,minister--,he ,desires a ,sign--,a ,sign ,promised and ,fulfilled--,blessings ,received in the ,kirtland ,temple--,words of the ,prophet ,joseph--,their ,fulfilment--,an ,incident in ,missouri--,literal ,fulfillment of a ,prediction ,uttered by ,joseph ,smith--,his ,patriotism--,strange ,phenomenon--,its ,effect4 ,,chapter ,,iv4 ,a ,case of ,palsy ,healed--,its ,effect on the ,people--,mr4 ,bridge's ,unbelief--,the ,case of ,widow ,cade--,she is ,partially ,cured by ,faith--,tempts the ,lord and ,dies--,i am ,called on a ,mission to ,europe--,terrible ,sea-storm--,the ,prayers of the ,elders are ,heard and the ,winds ,cease--,we ,arrive ,safely in a ,badly-,shattered ,ship4 ,,chapter ,v4 ,i ,go to ,switzerland--,god's ,power ,manifested in ,my ,behalf--,a ,prophecy ,fulfilled--,condition of the ,swiss ,mission--,where ,elders were ,expelled ,evil ,spirits ,take ,possession--,karl ,g4 ,maeser ,writes ,me a ,letter--,i ,return it1 ,thinking it is a ,ruse to ,entrap ,me--,i ,receive it ,again-- ,brother ,maeser's ,faith and ,baptism--,elders ,partake of ,poisoned ,food--,are ,restored to ,health--,my ,mission ,ends4 ,,newel ,,knight',s ,,journal4 ,,chapter ,i4 ,my ,birth and ,parentage--,my ,father's ,business--,he ,employs ,joseph ,smith1 ,jun4--,character of this ,youth--,i ,start in ,business for ,myself--,my ,health ,compels ,me to ,change ,occupation--,joseph ,smith1 ,jun41 a ,constant ,visitor at ,my ,house--,he ,relates ,his ,experience--,his ,statements ,leave no ,room for ,doubt in ,me--,he is ,bitterly ,persecuted4 ,,chapter ,,ii4 ,joseph ,smith's ,perseverance--,organization of the ,church--,joseph ,smith ,visits ,me--,his ,own ,account of ,his ,visit--,he ,asks ,me to ,pray--,i ,refuse--,i ,go to the ,woods and ,try to ,offer up ,prayer--,am ,attacked by a ,devil--,curious ,actions while thus ,afflicted--,the ,prophet ,casts the ,devil ,out--,the ,spirit of ,god ,shows ,me ,glorious ,things--,this ,miracle ,witnessed by ,many ,persons4 ,,chapter ,,iii4 ,i am ,baptized--,first ,conference of the ,church--,remarkable ,visions--,the ,prophet ,visits the ,colesville ,branch--,holds ,meeting--,persecution ,begins--,a ,presbyterian ,preacher ,tries to ,mislead ,my ,sister-in-law1 but ,fails--,baptisms--,mob ,gathers--,joseph ,arrested by a ,constable--,wicked ,men ,lie in ,ambush for ,him--,he is ,delivered from the ,mob by the ,constable--,his ,unjust ,trial--,he is ,acquitted4 ,,chapter ,,iv4 ,joseph's ,second ,arrest--,cruelty of ,his ,guard--,his ,trial--,i1 with ,others1 am ,called as a witness--,chagrin of ,prosecuting ,attorney--,eloquence of ,joseph's ,lawyers--,the ,constable ,begs ,joseph's ,forgiveness for ,his ,cruel ,conduct--,he ,delivers the ,prophet from the ,hands of the ,mob--,the ,acquittal--,at ,my ,house ,our ,leaders are ,again ,persecuted--,their ,escape--,names of ,our ,leading ,opponents4 ,,chapter ,v4 ,i ,visit ,joseph at ,harmony--,revelation ,concerning the ,sacrament --,persecutions at ,harmony--,the ,brethren ,visit ,me--,god ,blinds the ,eyes of ,their ,enemies--,the ,prophet ,moves to ,fayette--,false ,revelation--,bogus ,stone--,false ,doctrine ,overcome--,hyrum ,smith ,visits ,me--,i ,labor in the ,ministry with ,him--,my ,aunt's ,affliction--,remarkable ,manifestation of ,god's ,power4 ,,chapter ,,vi4 ,sidney ,rigdon's ,conversation--,third ,conference of the ,church--,the ,saints ,commence to ,gather--,an ,accident--,my ,aunt's ,dream--,its ,fulfillment--,missouri ,chosen for a ,gathering ,place--,my ,mother's ,wish--,reflections on the ,past and ,present--,temple ,site ,located--,labors ,commence--,the ,first ,death4 ,,chapter ,,vii4 ,my ,appointment--,a ,visit from ,joseph--,according to ,joseph's ,promise1 ,my ,wife ,bears ,me a ,son--,new ,revelations--,my ,aunt ,overcome by the ,evil ,one--,she ,misleads ,many--,her ,anguish and ,restoration4 ,,chapter ,,viii4 ,mr4 ,pixley's ,bitterness--,our ,enemies ,make ,plans for ,our ,overthrow--,their ,resolutions--,our ,printing ,office ,destroyed--,brethren ,tarred and ,feathered--,our ,appeal to the ,governor--,his ,advice--,saints ,driven--,unexpected ,engagement--,several ,killed and ,wounded4 ,,chapter ,,ix4 ,mc,carty's ,case--,justice ,denied ,us--,the ,sufferings of the ,saints--,the ,brethren ,disarmed--,joseph's ,opinion of ,governor ,boggs--,correspondence ,between the ,state ,officials and ,our ,people--,our ,petition to the ,governor4 ,,chapter ,x4 ,court in ,jackson ,county--,officers ,awed by a ,mob--,zion's ,camp--,mob ,meeting--,a ,man ,stabled--,campbell's ,horrible ,fate--,god ,interposes in behalf of ,zion's ,camp--,the ,cholera--,i ,go to ,kirtland--,my ,labors ,there --,return to ,clay ,county4 ,,chapter ,,xi4 ,saints ,move to ,caldwell ,county--,persecutions ,begin ,anew--,captain ,bogart and ,his ,mob--,the ,battle--,hawn's ,mill ,massacre--,colonel ,hinkle's ,treachery--,the ,brethren ,imprisoned4 ,,chapter ,,xii4 ,i ,move to ,commerce--,no ,safety for the ,saints--,john ,c4 ,bennett's ,wickedness--,threats of the ,mob--,we ,start for the ,west--,death of the ,author4 ,,sketch ,,of ,,an ,,elder',s ,,life4 ,,chapter ,i4 ,,birth ,,and ,,parentage ,,of ,,elder ,,john ,,tanner--,,himself ,,and ,,two ,,children ,,are ,,bitten ,,by ,a ,,mad ,,dog--,,they ,,are ,,healed--,,he ,,becomes ,,wealthy--,,afflicted ,,with ,,unknown ,,disease--,,physicians ,,fail ,,to ,,cure ,,him--,,mormon ,,elders ,,visit ,,him--,,he ,,is ,,converted--,,is ,,miraculously ,,healed--,,goes ,,to ,,kirtland-- ,,freely ,,gives ,,money ,,for ,,the ,,benefit ,,of ,,the ,,church--,,his ,,elder',s ,,certificate4 ,elder ,john ,tanner1 son of ,joshua and ,thankful ,tanner1 and grandfather of ,apostle ,f4 ,m4 ,lyman1 was born ,august #aeth1 #aggh1 in the state of ,rhode ,island4 ,at the age of thirteen years his parents moved to ,greenwich1 ,washington county1 ,new ,york1 where1 at the death of his father1 who was a farmer1 he took charge of the business and settled his father's estate4 ,early in the year of #ahjj1 he married ,tabitha ,bently1 by whom he had a son1 ,elisha1 born ,march #bcrd1 #ahja4 ,the mother died on the #ith of the following month4 ,he afterwards married ,lydia ,stewart1 by whom he had nine children1 eight sons and one daughter4 ,one evening in #ahjh1 when he returned home from his work1 he found that two of his children had been bitten by his dog1 which had gone mad1 and in attempting to confine the dog1 he also was bitten on the calf of the leg4 ,realizing immediately that he had no time to lose1 he grasped a pair of sheep-shears1 and cut out the affected parts and filled the wound with salt4 ,he thus succeeded in saving his own life2 and1 with the aid of a prescription he obtained1 was also successful in curing his children4 ,in the ,spring of #ahah1 he moved with his large family to ,north ,west ,bay1 where a son and daughter were born4 ,in #ahbc he moved into the town of ,bolton1 and here1 in #ahbe1 he had another son born1 but in ,may of that year his wife1 ,lydia1 died4 ,he then married a third wife1 ,eliza ,benwick1 by whom he had four sons4 ,at this time1 notwithstanding all the care1 labor and expenditure of raising his numerous family1 he had acquired wealth1 and had become a man of much influence1 was extensively known and universally respected4 ,his name was synonymous with benevolence1 honesty and integrity4 ,in the mysterious dispensations of ,providence1 a terrible calamity was appointed him in the form of a painful disease1 which1 according to the most consummate human skill1 was incurable1 and entirely unknown to the medical faculty4 ,his left leg from the thigh down was covered with black sores1 through which the muscles of the limb1 having formed into hollow tubes1 or pipes1 projected outward to the surface1 out of which1 matter was constantly oozing4 ,he had employed seven of the most eminent physicians in the country1 but all their efforts were unavailing2 the last one1 ,dr4 ,black1 frankly told him that he could run up a heavy bill for medical attendance2 but1 said he1 you are beyond the reach of medicine1 and ,i can do you no good6 ,for six months ,mr4 ,tanner had neither let his diseased limb hang down nor his foot touch the floor1 but was obliged to keep the leg in a right angle with his body1 resting it on pillows placed on some object directly in front of him4 ,and yet1 with all his bodily suffering1 his mind was active and his noble1 generous heart1 ever sympathizing with his fellow-man1 beat with untiring zeal for the welfare of humanity4 ,feeling assured that he must soon die1 he sought opportunities for doing good4 ,he had a vehicle so constructed that he could move himself from place to place without assistance4 ,in the fore part of ,september1 #ahcb1 a notice was circulated in the place where he lived1 that two ,latter-day ,saint ,elders would preach on a certain evening1 at a place specified1 not far from ,mr4 ,tanner's residence4 ,he hailed the announcement with delight4 ,it afforded him an opportunity 7he thought7 of doing an immense amount of good4 ,he was conversant with the ,bible and felt himself amply qualified to battle with heresy1 especially that of the ,latter-day ,saints1 and by doing so1 he could confer lasting benefit on his fellow-creatures4 ,that was his aim and such his anticipations when the appointed evening arrived4 ,he seated himself in his locomotive and wended his way to the meeting1 feeling confident that he could silence the so-called ,mormons1 whom he sincerely supposed were imposters2 but long before the two ,elders1 who were ,simeon and ,jared ,carter1 finished their discourses1 a wonderful change had come over the mind of ,mr4 ,tanner1 and when they closed the evening services1 he invited them to his home4 ,that evening a new era dawned upon his existence4 ,after spending the evening in earnest conversation1 when the clock struck the hour of eleven1 he told the missionaries he was ready to be baptized1 but that it would not be possible for him to receive the ordinance4 ,they asked him1 ,why not8 ,he said on account of his lameness1 as he had not put his foot to the floor for the last six months1 and could not possibly do it4 ,one of the ,elders asked him if he did not think there was power enough in the gospel of ,jesus ,christ anciently to heal all manner of diseases1 to which he replied in the affirmative4 ,he was then asked if he did not think that the same cause produced the same effect in all ages1 and if there was not sufficient power in the gospel to heal him4 ,mr4 ,tanner replied that such a thought had not occurred to him1 but he believed that the ,lord could heal him4 ,elder ,jared ,carter then arose and commanded him in the name of ,jesus ,christ to arise and walk1 when1 to use his own expression1 ,i arose1 threw down my crutches1 and walked the floor back and forth--back and forth1 praising ,god1 and ,i felt as light as a feather4 ,that same night he walked three-quarters of a mile to ,lake ,george1 and was baptized by ,simeon ,carter1 and walked back1 giving thanks to ,god1 for his complete restoration to health4 ,as soon as the ,word of ,wisdom was made known to him1 he quit the use of tobacco1 tea1 coffee and also the use of liquor1 and never used them again during the remainder of his life4 ,in the ,spring of #ahcd he fitted out his two sons1 ,john ,j4 and ,nathan and sent them up to ,kirtland1 where they joined ,zion's ,camp and went up to ,missouri1 with team1 wagon and a first class outfit4 ,a little later in the season he fitted out seven families1 and sent them to ,kirtland or to ,missouri4 ,in the ,fall of the same year he sold two large farms and two thousand and two hundred acres of timber land1 preparatory to moving to ,missouri in the coming ,spring4 ,about the middle of ,december he received an impression by dream or vision of the night1 that he was needed and must go immediately to the ,church in the ,west4 ,he told his family of the instruction he had received and forthwith made preparations for the start1 while his neighbors1 with deep regret at what they considered an insane purpose1 tried their utmost to dissuade him2 but he knew the will of ,god in the present crisis and nothing could deter him from doing it4 ,on ,christmas day he commenced his journey with all his earthly effects1 and in the dead of ,winter traveled the distance of five hundred miles1 to ,kirtland where he arrived about the #bjth of ,january1 #ahce1 on the ,sabbath4 ,on his arrival in ,kirtland1 he learned that at the time he received the impression that he must move immediately to the ,church1 the ,prophet ,joseph and some of the brethren had met in prayer-meeting and asked the ,lord to send them a brother or some brethren with means to assist them to lift the mortgage on the farm upon which the temple was being built4 ,the day after his arrival in ,kirtland1 by invitation from the prophet1 he and his son1 ,sidney1 met with the ,high ,council1 and were informed that the mortgage of the before mentioned farm was about to be foreclosed4 ,whereupon he loaned the prophet two thousand dollars and took his note on interest1 with which amount the farm was redeemed4 ,he loaned to the ,temple ,committee1 ,hyrum ,smith1 ,reynolds1 ,cahoon and ,jared ,carter1 thirteen thousand dollars in merchandize at cost prices in ,new ,york1 and took their note for the same4 ,this amount1 and that loaned to the prophet1 were not included in his liberal donations to the building of the temple1 from time to time4 ,he also signed a note with the ,prophet ,joseph and others for thirty thousand dollars for goods purchased in ,new ,york1 in which he had no pecuniary interest4 ,the foregoing is substantial proof of his confidence in the prophet and in the validity and importance of the work he had embraced4 ,here follows a copy of his ,elder's certificate3 ,,to ,,whom ,,it ,,may ,,concern4--,this certifies that ,john ,tanner has been received into this ,church of the ,latter-day ,saints1 organized on the sixth day of ,april1 in the year of our ,lord1 one thousand eight hundred and thirty1 and has been ordained an ,elder1 according to the rules and regulations of said ,church1 and is duly authorized to preach the gospel agreeably to the authority of that office4 ,from the satisfactory evidence which we have of his good moral character1 and his zeal for the cause of righteousness1 and diligent desire to persuade men to forsake evil and embrace truth1 we confidently recommend him to all candid and upright people1 as a worthy member of society4 ,we therefore1 in the name1 and by the authority of this ,church1 grant unto this our worthy brother in the ,lord1 this letter of commendation as a proof of our fellowship and esteem2 praying for his success and prosperity in our ,redeemer's cause4 ,given by the direction of a conference of the ,elders of said ,church1 assembled in ,kirtland1 ,geauga county1 ,ohio1 the third day of ,march1 in the year of our ,lord one thousand eight hundred and thirty-six4 ,f4 ,g4 ,,williams1 ,clerk4 ,,joseph ,,smith1 ,,jr41 ,chairman4 ,,chapter ,,ii4 ,,receives ,,blessings ,,in ,,temple--,,assists ,,with ,,kirtland ,,bank--,,starts ,,for ,,missouri--,,his ,,daughter ,,dies--,,is ,,attacked ,,by ,,mob--,,nearly ,,murdered--,,retained ,,as ,a ,,prisoner--,,released--,,removes ,,to ,,iowa--,,receives ,,the ,,prophet',s ,,blessing--,,goes ,,to ,,the ,,rocky ,,mountains--,,loses ,,his ,,property ,,by ,,fire--,,thrilling ,,indian ,,adventure--,,at ,,death',s ,,door--,,remarkable ,,escape--,,his ,,death4 ,when the temple was finished he participated in its dedication4 ,he also took part in the solemn assembly and the glorious gifts and manifestations of that memorable occasion4 ,he received his washings and anointings in that1 the first temple of ,god built by ,his direction in this dispensation4 ,with his characteristic energy1 he put forth his best efforts to assist the prophet in sustaining the ,kirtland ,bank1 and for that object he purchased much of its paper2 but there was a ,judas under the counter1 and the bank went down in spite of all their efforts4 ,those who had struggled hardest and invested most were the greatest losers1 and ,elder ,tanner was one of the foremost1 and was completely crippled financially4 ,just at that time an outside pressure in the form of religious persecution had become so unendurable that the ,saints had to leave ,kirtland and seek homes in the ,west2 and ,elder ,tanner1 with a journey of one thousand miles before him1 found himself not only destitute of means but also in debt4 ,yet his courage and ability were equal to the emergency4 ,through the blessing of ,god he had acquired one large fortune and he knew that ,god lived1 and that he was ,his servant4 ,but he had a large family depending on him1 and a long journey was before him4 ,the necessity of the occasion prompted1 and faith in ,god inspired1 him4 ,in ,april1 #ahch1 he fitted up with a turnpike-cart1 a borrowed wagon1 one horse of his own and three borrowed ones1 twenty dollars in cash and a keg of powder to pay expenses1 and started for ,missouri with his family--eleven persons in all4 ,when the money and powder were spent1 they were under the necessity of appealing to the benevolence of the inhabitants on the road for buttermilk and sometimes for other food to sustain life4 ,he had two children1 a son and a daughter1 born in ,kirtland4 ,one of these1 a lovely girl1 died on this tedious journey1 which was to ,elder ,tanner the greatest trial of that time4 ,on his arrival in ,missouri1 in conversation with a friend of his1 after narrating the hardships1 privations and many of the most trying circumstances of the journey1 he said1 ,well1 if others have come up easier1 they have not learned so much4 ,this expression is characteristic of ,elder ,tanner's very happy faculty of drawing sunshine from the darkest cloud and honey from the most bitter herb4 ,he acknowledged the hand of ,god in all things1 knowing that ,he overrules all things for good to those who keep ,his commandments4 ,he arrived in ,far ,west on the #crd of ,july1 and there he and his sons went to work4 ,he paid up his debts1 and had sufficient means on hand to meet the demands and exigences of life4 ,in the ,autumn of #ahch1 he and his son ,myron went to a mill about nine miles from the town1 and when starting for home1 the state militia in the form of a mob came upon them4 ,he told ,myron to run and take care of himself1 which he did by crawling under a large pile of clearing brush1 and was not discovered by the mob1 which1 however1 came upon ,elder ,tanner4 ,one of the mobbers1 snapped his gun at this brave man1 but it refused to go off4 ,he then took hold of the muzzle and struck him over the head with the breach of the gun1 cutting a large ugly gash4 ,this blow would probably have killed him1 had it not been for his heavy felt hat1 the double thickness of which caught the blow first4 ,this attempt at murder was made by ,captain ,myer ,odell4 ,elder ,tanner was taken and held prisoner two or three days1 wearing his bloody clothes1 and stubbornly refusing to wash the blood from himself4 ,he kept his team and wagon1 and they let him go out upon his word of honor to take a wounded man to his family1 after which1 he returned to their custody and redeemed his word4 ,at this time the ,prophet ,joseph was sentenced to be shot1 but ,general ,doniphan protested1 and withdrew his men4 ,on the day when the execution was to have taken place1 the ,saints laid down their arms1 and some of the prisoners1 among whom was ,elder ,tanner1 were released4 ,during the militia raid just referred to1 he lost very heavily as quite a number of his stock were stolen4 ,as soon as he was set at liberty from mob custody1 he went to work getting things together preparatory to leaving the state in obedience to the gubernatorial order1 and on the third day of ,march1 #ahci1 started with his family and his sons' families for ,illinois4 ,he arrived in ,new ,liberty about the first of ,april1 where he stopped one year to recruit1 and was much prospered in his efforts4 ,about the middle of ,march1 #ahdj1 he again gathered his effects and moved within four miles of ,montrose1 ,lee county1 ,iowa1 where his daughter1 ,sariah1 was born1 ,july1 #ahdj4 ,here he opened cultivated a large farm1 plowing two hundred and fifty acres1 and about two hundred acres he used for pasture4 ,he enclosed all this by a good fence4 ,in this place he lived and prospered six years4 ,at the ,april conference in #ahdd1 he was called on a mission to the ,eastern ,states4 ,before starting1 he went to ,nauvoo1 where he saw the ,prophet ,joseph1 and1 meeting him on the street1 gave him his note of hand for the two thousand dollars loaned in ,kirtland1 ,january1 #ahce1 to redeem the temple land4 ,the ,prophet asked him what he wanted done with the note4 ,elder ,tanner replied1 ,brother ,joseph1 you are welcome to it4 ,the ,prophet then laid his right hand heavily on ,elder ,tanner's shoulder1 saying1 ,god bless you1 ,father ,tanner2 your children shall never beg bread4 ,he aided very materially in the building of the ,nauvoo ,temple1 from the commencement until its completion2 and after it was dedicated he received therein his endowments1 sealings and second anointing4 ,in the ,spring of #ahdf1 he sold his farm at a nominal price and journeyed to the ,rocky ,mountains with the ,saints who were compelled to leave ,nauvoo1 the ,city of ,joseph4 ,he started about the middle of ,may and joined the westward-bound stream of ,latter-day ,saints in their memorable exodus from ,illinois4 ,he also paid for the removal of two families besides his own1 up to ,council ,bluffs4 ,on the #afth of ,july1 he fitted out two of his sons and sent them with the ,mormon ,battalion into ,mexico to fight the battles of our country4 ,on the herd-ground of the ,saints1 at a point north-west of ,winter ,quarters1 he herded the stock for the whole camp of ,israel1 for three months4 ,after trials in journeyings--and in losses and hardships in various forms1 he had to be tried by fire4 ,about the middle of ,january #ahdg1 his house and three wagon boxes with covers1 used for sleeping rooms1 supplies of provisions and groceries1 and most of the wearing apparel1 were destroyed by fire4 ,nothing was saved but beds and a portion of the bedding4 ,but his noble mind and the persevering energies of his nature seemed superior to misfortune2 and in the ,spring he assisted in fitting out the ,pioneers for their journey to the ,rocky ,mountains1 opened up another farm and raised a good crop4 ,in the ,summer of #ahdg1 ,elder ,tanner had a thrilling adventure with ,indians4 ,the following account of the marvelous circumstance is from the journal of ,jane ,grover 7afterwards ,sister ,stewart74 ,she says1 ,one morning we thought we would go and gather goose-berries4 ,father ,tanner 7as we familiarly called the good1 patriarchal ,john ,tanner7 harnessed a span of horses to a light wagon1 and1 with two sisters by the name of ,lyman1 his little grand-daughter and ,i1 started out4 ,when we reached the woods we told the old gentleman to go to a house which was in sight1 and rest1 while we picked the berries4 ,it was not long before the little girl and ,i strayed some distance from the others1 when1 suddenly we heard shouts4 ,the little girl thought it was her grandfather1 and she was going to answer1 but ,i prevented her1 thinking it might be ,indians4 ,we walked forward until within sight of ,father ,tanner1 when we saw he was running his team around4 ,we thought it nothing strange at first1 but as we approached1 we saw ,indians gathering around the wagon1 whooping and yelling as others came and joined them4 ,we got into the wagon to start1 when four of the ,indians took hold of the wagon1 and two others held the horses by the bits1 and another came to take me out of the wagon4 ,i then began to be afraid as well as vexed1 and asked ,father ,tanner to let me get out of the wagon and run for assistance4 ,he said1 ,no1 poor child1 it is too late6' ,i told him they should not take me alive4 ,father ,tanner's face was as white as a sheet6 ,the ,indians had commenced to strip him4 ,they had taken his watch and handkerchief1 and while stripping him1 were trying to pull me out of the wagon4 ,i began silently to appeal to my ,heavenly ,father4 ,while praying and struggling1 the ,spirit of the ,almighty fell upon me1 and ,i arose with great power1 and no tongue can describe my feelings4 ,i was as happy as ,i could be4 ,a few moments before1 ,i saw worse than death staring me in the face1 and now my hand was raised by the power of ,god1 and ,i talked to those ,indians in their own language4 ,they let go the horses and wagon1 and stood in front of me while ,i talked to them by the power of ,god4 ,they bowed their heads and answered yes' in a way that made me know what they meant4 ,father ,tanner and the little girl looked on in speechless amazement4 ,i realized our situation4 ,their calculation was to kill ,father ,tanner1 burn the wagon1 and take us women prisoners4 ,this was plainly shown to me4 ,when ,i stopped talking1 they shook hands with all of us and returned all they had taken from ,father ,tanner1 who gave them back the handkerchief1 and ,i gave them berries and crackers4 ,by this time the other two women came up and we hastened home4 ,the ,lord gave me a portion of the interpretation of what ,i had said1 which is as follows3 ,i suppose you ,indian warriors think you are going to kill us4 ,don't you know the ,great ,spirit is watching you1 and knows everything in your hearts8 ,we have come out here to gather some of our ,father's fruit4 ,we have not come to injure you3 and if you harm us1 or injure one hair of our heads1 the ,great ,spirit will smite you to the earth1 and you shall not have power to breath another breath4 ,we have been driven from our homes and so have you4 ,we have come out here to do you good and not to injure you4 ,we are the ,lord's people1 and so are you2 but you must cease your murders and wickedness4 ,the ,lord is displeased with it and will not prosper you if you continue in it4 ,you think you own all this land1 this timber1 this water and all these horses4 ,you do not own one thing on earth1 not even the air you breathe4 ,it all belongs to the ,great ,spirit4' ,in the latter part of ,june1 #ahdh1 ,elder ,tanner fitted up five teams and wagons1 and with eighteen months' provisions1 started for ,salt ,lake1 celebrating the #dth of ,july1 on the ,elk ,horn4 ,between ,wood ,river and ,laramie a six year old grand-son fell from the tongue of a wagon loaded with about #c1ejj pounds4 ,both wheels passed obliquely over his bowels1 and he died in twenty minutes4 ,with the exception of this sad accident1 the journey was prosperous1 and he arrived in ,salt ,lake ,valley on the #agth of ,october1 and located in ,south ,cottonwood4 ,in the ,autumn of #ahdi1 he was afflicted more or less with rheumatism1 which continued to increase on him till the first of ,january1 #ahej1 when he was confined to his bed and suffered severely until the #acth day of ,april1 when he died the death of the righteous4 ,he was the father of twenty children1 and has left an example worthy of imitation by his numerous posterity and by the youth of ,zion everywhere4 ,,incidents ,,of ,,experience4 ,,by ,,daniel ,,tyler4 ,,chapter ,i4 ,,account ,,of ,,my ,,ancestors--,,my ,,birth--,,remarkable ,,vision--,,its ,,effect ,,upon ,,those ,,who ,,heard ,,of ,,it--,,my ,,father ,,and ,,grand-,,father ,,become ,,interested ,,in ,,reading ,,the ,,scriptures--,,my ,,grand-,,father',s ,,prophecy--,,his ,,dislocated ,,shoulder ,,replaced ,,by ,,the ,,power ,,of ,,god--,,my ,,grand-,,father',s ,,vision ,,and ,,death--,,mormon ,,elders ,,visit ,,the ,,neighborhood--,i ,,go ,,to ,,hear ,,them ,,preach--,,believe ,,their ,,doctrines--,,my ,,father ,,opposed ,,to ,,the ,,elders4 ,i am a descendant of ,job and ,mary ,tyler1 which said ,job ,tyler was born in ,wales or ,england1 about the year #afai1 or #afbj1 and emigrated to ,america about #afdj1 some ten years after the landing of the pilgrim fathers on ,plymouth ,rock4 ,my emigrant ancestor1 ,job ,tyler1 settled in ,andover1 ,massachusetts1 where he raised a family of four sons and several daughters4 ,i descended from ,moses ,tyler1 the oldest son of ,job and ,mary4 ,the town of ,andover having been burned and the records destroyed1 ,i have only tradition1 which is rather vague1 for much of the early history of my family4 ,enough1 however1 is known to show that several eminent lawyers1 ministers1 officers and soldiers of the war of the revolution were among them4 ,my father1 ,andrews ,tyler1 was in the fourth generation from ,job and ,mary4 ,he was born at ,boxford1 adjoining ,andover4 ,his father1 ,nathaniel ,tyler1 served as a lieutenant in the continental army in the revolutionary war4 ,my grand-father with his family removed from ,boxford1 ,mass41 to ,herkamer county1 ,new ,york1 where my father1 ,andrews ,tyler1 married ,elizabeth ,comins1 daughter of lieutenant and regimental quartermaster1 ,john ,comins1 ,jr41 in the year #ahjf1 to whom were born eleven sons and one daughter4 ,i was born in ,sempronious1 ,cayuga county1 ,new ,york1 on the #bcrd of ,november1 #ahaf4 ,about the year #ahbj1 or early in #ahba1 ,i had a remarkable vision1 which1 after sixty-one years have passed away1 is as vivid in my recollection as the scenes of yesterday4 ,i had occasion to rise from my bed about midnight4 ,suddenly the room was filled with a brilliant light1 brighter than the noon-day sun4 ,i looked into the fire-place only to discern a few smouldering coals covered with ashes4 ,i gazed upon everything visible in the house4 ,all seemed natural except that the light gave things a brighter hue4 ,i looked over head to an opening between two loose boards or planks where my father usually kept his saw1 auger and other small tools4 ,there ,i beheld a hand and wrist which were nearly transparent1 with a wrist-band whiter than the pure snow4 ,i called to my mother1 who awoke at the second call and inquired what ,i wanted4 ,i asked who was in the chamber1 and was told there was no one there1 and that if there had been ,i could not have seen him in the darkness4 ,i replied it was not dark4 ,on my stating that it was lighter than day-light1 and that ,i could see to pick up a pin1 ,i was told to go to bed1 which ,i did1 when the vision closed1 and it was so dark ,i could not see my hand before me1 although ,i held it close to my face4 ,on relating the vision to my mother next morning1 she wept like an infant1 and said3 ,o1 my child1 ,i fear you are not long for this world4 ,i1 however1 began to amend from that time and soon recovered from a chronic ailment1 and was soon quite well4 ,the news of the vision soon spread abroad1 and was much exaggerated4 ,as is natural1 our house was thronged with visitors1 and ,i had to relate the vision over and over again4 ,the conclusion was that ,i would either die1 or the ,lord had a great work for me to do4 ,it was predicted that ,i would become a preacher of the gospel4 ,this was then considered about the greatest work in which mortals could engage4 ,in #ahbc1 my father1 with his family1 moved to ,springfield1 ,erie ,co1 ,pa41 where his father and some other relatives had previously gone4 ,about this time my father and grand-father became unusually interested in reading the scriptures and talking about them to their neighbors4 ,one day my father happened to open to ,mark1 #afth chapter1 #afth and #agth verses4 ,after reading them several times carefully he said1 ,there is not a true believer in the world1 as the promise was that the signs spoken of should follow those who believed4 ,he showed the passage to several ministers1 mostly ,methodists1 and argued with them4 ,the more he argued the more convinced he was that the gospel was not on the earth1 and he was able to confound the most learned divines1 although he was quite illiterate4 ,my grand-father also had the same views and he prophesied that he would die1 but my father would live to see the true church organized with all the apostolic gifts and blessings4 ,for this cause much unfavorable comment in the neighborhood was indulged in1 and my grand-father was often asked1 usually in a derisive way1 why he did not have his dislocated shoulder1 which had been out of place for some thirty years1 replaced by the power of faith4 ,he argued that it would be done if he had sufficient faith4 ,one morning he came from his bed room and told my father's family1 with whom he lived1 that the ,lord had revealed to him that1 ,whereas physicians had said your shoulder could not be set ,he would let them know it could be done1 for ,he would do it ,himself4 ,my father replied that if the ,lord had given him such a revelation it would be so1 for ,he could not lie4 ,he1 however1 was rather incredulous1 notwithstanding he had been advocating the doctrine of miracles for some time4 ,it happened1 not long afterwards1 that while my grand-father was lying in his bed at the dawn of day1 thinking quietly of the blessings of ,god to him1 his shoulder slipped into place with a snap that he thought might have been heard for a distance of one or two rods4 ,previous to this he carried his arm in a sling most of the time and could not raise his hand to his head1 but from that time it was as limber as the other and had its full strength4 ,this was a testimony that could not be impeached4 ,outside of the family1 however1 it was looked upon as a mere accident2 but the previous revelation to my grand-father convinced the family that it was done by the power of ,god4 ,this was in #ahbg1 and in #ahbi my grand-father died4 ,after my grand-father was taken with his last illness1 he told my parents that an angel appeared to him clothed in white1 and told him he would not recover1 for his sickness was unto death4 ,ten days later he died4 ,to save ridicule1 however1 this vision was kept secret and only told me afterwards by my mother4 ,the true church of ,christ was not then on the earth 7,february1 #ahbi71 nor had such an occurrence been heard of by us at the time4 ,although the ,father and the ,son had appeared to ,joseph ,smith some years previously1 we had not heard of the vision4 ,the vision of my grand-father seemed so strange that my parents hardly knew whether to attribute it to imagination or a reality1 as they could not question his sincerity1 he having always been strictly reliable4 ,i have never doubted1 however1 his having had the vision4 ,he walked half a mile to bid my parents good by1 although in poor health4 ,on parting1 my grand-father wept like a child1 and said1 ,this is the last time ,i shall over visit you while ,i live4 ,my father continued his researches of the scriptures1 and found that everything he read confirmed his views4 ,he never allowed a traveling minister to leave the neighborhood without an argument if he could avoid it1 and his arguments were in no instance refuted4 ,in the ,spring of #ahcb1 ,elders ,samuel ,h4 ,smith and ,orson ,hyde1 of the ,church of ,jesus ,christ of ,latter-day ,saints1 came to our neighborhood and held a few meetings4 ,elder ,smith read the #bith chapter of ,isaiah at the first meeting and delineated the circumstances of the coming forth of the ,book of ,mormon1 of which he said he was a witness4 ,he knew his brother ,joseph had the plates1 for the prophet had shown them to him1 and he had handled them and seen the engravings thereon4 ,his speech was more like a narrative than a sermon4 ,elder ,hyde made a few closing remarks and appointed another meeting4 ,at the close of the first meeting my father1 as his custom was1 sprung his usual question about the spiritual gifts and was quite surprised to hear ,elder ,smith say1 ,that is our doctrine1 and we have those gifts in our ,church4 ,this meeting was held in the house of ,mr4 ,joseph ,hartshorn1 one of our neighbors4 ,at the close of the meeting ,i picked up the ,book of ,mormon1 which they had left lying on the table1 and began to read the preface in relation to ,martin ,harris losing #aaf pages of the original manuscript4 ,when ,i had read as far as a quotation from a revelation1 now found in the ,book of ,doctrine and ,covenants1 my brother1 ,william1 took the book out of my hands and closed it1 remarking that good people said it carried with it a spirit of witchcraft1 which caused those who read it to be bewitched and join the ,mormon church4 ,i was then over fifteen years of age and my brother1 who was next older than myself1 was in his eighteenth year4 ,he was wild and sometimes profane1 especially when angry1 and ,i was quite taken by surprise to hear him quote what good people said1 as previously ,i had never heard him speak of them1 except in derision4 ,the last words ,i read where so riveted upon my mind that ,i sometimes feared there was some truth in the remark about the book being bewitching4 ,the words were1 ,i will show unto them 7the wicked who had designed to change the manuscript in case ,joseph re-translated it7 that my wisdom is greater than the cunning of the devil4 ,before leaving the place the ,elders baptized three persons4 ,my father soon became a bitter enemy4 ,i believed every word of the first discourse referred to previously1 but dared not make my belief known because of my youth and the bitterness of my father4 ,he admitted that the ,mormon doctrines were true1 but claimed that the members of that church had adopted them to cover up a fraud4 ,all classes of people joined in the cry1 ,beware of false prophets who come to you in sheep's clothing1 etc1 telling ridiculous stories about ,old ,joe ,smith walking on the water1 pretended miracles1 angels being caught1 etc4 ,the stories were about the same as those which the ,elders now have to refute4 ,,chapter ,,ii4 ,,my ,,covenant ,,with ,,the ,,lord--,,my ,,sister ,,desires ,,baptism--,,my ,,brothers' ,,threat--,,visit ,,of ,,hyrum ,,smith--,,my ,,sister ,,baptized--,i ,,break ,,my ,,covenant--,,my ,,father',s ,,dream--,,my ,,baptism--,,exhortation ,,to ,,the ,,young--,,spiritual ,,gifts ,,received--,,meeting ,,disturbed ,,by ,,mobs--,,after ,,talking ,,to ,,them ,,they ,,become ,,quiet ,,and ,,leave ,,the ,,place--,,some ,,of ,,the ,,mob ,,join ,,the ,,church--,,the ,,leader ,,of ,,the ,,mob ,,dies ,,suddenly--,,mobbings ,,cease4 ,there was no human being to whom ,i dared make known the fact that ,i believed in the teachings of the despised ,mormons4 ,i had1 however1 for some time been in the habit of engaging in secret prayer1 and now1 in this hour of trial1 ,i went to my place of secret resort and poured out my soul to the ,lord and made covenant with ,him that in case my only sister would believe and be baptized ,i would go with her4 ,i soon learned that she1 like myself1 had believed the work from the beginning and was resolved to be baptized at the first opportunity4 ,she was then in service at one of our neighbors4 ,when she came home on a visit father asked her if what he had heard1 that she intended to join the ,mormons1 was true4 ,she answered that she believed they were right and felt it her duty to join them4 ,he remonstrated until he saw that her mind was bent on being baptized at the first opportunity4 ,he then said1 ,if you do join them1 you must never darken my door afterwards4 ,still her resolution was unchanged4 ,my older brothers told her they would shoot any ,mormon ,elder who dared to baptize her4 ,thus matters continued for several months1 during which time ,i continued praying1 not only for my sister1 but for my parents and brothers1 although my mother said but little either way4 ,about ,december1 #ahcb1 ,elder ,hyrum ,smith1 brother to the prophet1 came to our neighborhood4 ,my father told him that his daughter1 who was present1 was bent on being baptized into his church1 stating at the same time1 that the ,elder who baptized her would do so at his peril4 ,the ,elder quite mildly remarked in substance as follows3 ,mr4 ,tyler1 we shall not baptize your daughter against your wishes4 ,if our doctrine be true1 which we testify it is1 if you prevent your daughter from embracing it1 the sin will be on your head1 not on ours or your daughter's4 ,this remark pricked him to the heart4 ,he began to think that possibly the ,mormons were right and he was wrong4 ,he therefore decided to counsel his daughter in the matter and then permit her to exercise her free agency4 ,he would thus relieve himself of any responsibility4 ,his remarks to my sister were to the effect that if this new religion was true1 it was the best religion in the world1 but1 if false1 it was the worst4 ,these men1 said he1 know whether it is true or false1 but ,i do not4 ,he wished her to reflect upon all these things before making a move in the matter4 ,she replied that she had weighed them long ago and believed it to be her duty to be baptized4 ,he took her on an ox-sled to ,lake ,erie1 a distance of two miles1 where1 after a hole was cut through three feet of solid ice1 she was baptized and confirmed into the ,church by ,elder ,hyrum ,smith4 ,but where was the writer who had covenanted with the ,lord to go with his sister in case she was baptized8 ,he remained at home1 a broken-hearted1 bashful boy1 without stamina enough to come out and confront a wicked world4 ,soon after1 my grand-father appeared to my father in a dream1 and told him that this was the people he prophesied of while living1 and my parents were baptized4 ,then my persecuting brothers followed4 ,when the last named went into the water ,i stood on the shore1 feeling as though my ease was almost hopeless4 ,i had twice failed to keep my covenants with the ,lord and now the third promise was about to be broken4 ,at this juncture my father1 who knew nothing of my covenants1 observing that ,i looked downcast1 stepped to my side and asked what was the matter4 ,i was speechless and could not utter a word4 ,i had been studying how ,i could ever have a heart to call upon the ,lord again4 ,how could ,he trust me further8 ,on my father asking if it was not hard for my sister1 parents and brothers to leave me1 ,i broke completely down and wept aloud4 ,my father then for the first time told me ,i could be baptized if ,i wished4 ,i1 however1 waited until the next ,wednesday1 this being on ,sunday4 ,during the interval1 however1 ,i plead with the ,lord to forgive me of my sin of covenant-breaking2 and when ,i came up out of the water1 not before1 did ,i feel that ,he had answered my prayers1 and that all my sins were pardoned4 ,this was on the #afth day of ,january1 #ahcc4 ,i was a little over sixteen years of age4 ,i hope my young readers will keep their covenants with the ,lord and not have the sorrow of heart ,i had4 ,it was so intense that ,i question very much whether ,i could survive the same length of time with my present infirmities of age4 ,i had not the advantages of the present period4 ,i had only what ,i had learned from reading the ,bible4 ,i had only heard perhaps from two to four gospel sermons and those mainly by young ,elders4 ,i do not mention this fact in justification of my course1 yet ,i do believe that the ,lord was more merciful towards me than ,he would have been if ,i had had the advantages that the people have now1 especially those of our young people who have kind parents who are ,latter-day ,saints to encourage and lead them along in the right way4 ,one kind word of invitation and persuasion on the part of my parents at a proper time would have removed all obstacles1 and been hailed as a heavenly boon4 ,i desired to break the fetters which seemed to bind me4 ,here let me exhort all parents to do all they can to encourage their children to be baptized at eight years of age1 and much earlier to pray1 ask a blessing on the food1 and attend the primary meetings and ,sabbath schools4 ,at and prior to the time of my serious convictions1 of which ,i have spoken1 such institutions and encouragement would have been prized above all earthly things4 ,i did attend a ,methodist ,sabbath school1 the only one ,i knew anything about2 but at the tender age of fifteen years ,i was better versed in the true interpretation of the scriptures than the teacher4 ,but attending ,sabbath school kept me out of the company of wicked boys1 and had a tendency to teach me a reverence for the ,sabbath day4 ,after ,i was baptized1 however1 ,i never attended the ,methodist ,sabbath school any more1 although it was desired that ,i should4 ,my teachers said ,i was always honest and truthful1 and they believed ,i was sincere in my religion1 and if ,i would continue to attend their ,sunday school ,i would see my error4 ,they believed ,i had been converted1 and that when ,i got a few years older ,i would be called to preach the gospel1 and would be the means of saving many souls4 ,i admitted having been converted and that ,i knew my sins were forgiven1 and further testified that obedience to ,mormonism1 so-called1 was what had brought peace to my soul2 and the nearer ,i lived to it1 the more of the peace of the ,holy ,spirit ,i felt4 ,the gift of prophecy was poured out upon me4 ,i also received the gift and interpretation of tongues4 ,but what then and ever since has seemed to me the greatest gift ,i received was to speak easily and fluently in my own language4 ,this was the first gift ,i received4 ,it came upon me in great power4 ,a few months after my baptism several leading ,elders from ,kirtland1 ,ohio1 were about to be dragged from our school house by a mob who had assembled to tar and feather them4 ,when the ,elders and others failed to stop them from disturbing the meeting1 ,i stepped upon a form or bench and began to talk to the people4 ,five minutes had not elapsed when1 aside from my voice1 a pin dropping upon the floor might have been easily heard4 ,after ,i had spoken about ten or fifteen minutes the mob left the house1 and1 after consulting outside a few moments1 retired1 and we had a good meeting4 ,this circumstance had gone out of my mind until about #ahdi1 while stopping over night at the house of a brother named ,brim4 ,alfred ,o4 ,brim1 who was one of the mob1 called my attention to it1 and asked me if ,i knew that they had a keg of tar and a feather bed in the carriage in which they came to the meeting4 ,i replied that ,i did not think ,i ever heard of it4 ,he said they brought the tar and the feathers with the full intent to use them on the ,elders1 but they were so surprised at the power with which ,i spoke that they knew ,i was helped by some invisible spirit4 ,they had known me since ,i was seven years old1 and were satisfied that ,i had not made up the speech1 and that ,i was not capable of doing so4 ,they decided that it must be of the ,lord or of the devil4 ,of this they could not be the judges1 not1 as they said1 having the discerning of spirits4 ,hence one of them suggested that lest they be found fighting against ,god1 they had better retire4 ,all agreed to it and they left4 ,brim and several of his brothers afterwards joined the church1 and were at one time prominent tanners in ,salt ,lake county1 ,utah4 ,dr4 ,rion1 an eminent physician of ,springfield1 who1 ,i believe1 was the leader1 it was said1 died instantly of apoplexy1 some time after1 while sitting in his chair4 ,i never heard any more talk of mobbing in that neighborhood4 ,thus the ,lord made use of a humble1 unlearned boy to break up a spirit of mobocracy which had existed for some months1 and saved ,his servants from cruel treatment and possible death4 ,,chapter ,,iii4 ,,ordained ,,to ,,the ,,priesthood--,,invited ,,to ,,preach--,i ,,make ,,up ,a ,,sermon ,,on ,,my ,,way--,,sermon ,,apparently ,a ,,failure ,,to ,,me--,,my ,,hearers ,,satisfied ,,with ,,it--,,abused ,,by ,a ,,baptist ,,minister--,,he ,,desires ,a ,,sign--,a ,,sign ,,promised ,,and ,,fulfilled--,,blessings ,,received ,,in ,,the ,,kirtland ,,temple--,,words ,,of ,,the ,,prophet ,,joseph--,,their ,,fulfillment--,,an ,,incident ,,in ,,missouri--,,literal ,,fulfillment ,,of ,a ,,prediction ,,uttered ,,by ,,joseph ,,smith--,,his ,,patriotism--,,strange ,,phenomenon--,,its ,,effect4 ,on the #dth day of ,august1 #ahcd1 ,i was ordained to the lesser ,priesthood under the hands of ,lorenzo ,wells1 who at the time presided over the branch4 ,within less than a month1 ,i was invited to bring an ,elder with me and preach in ,mercer ,co41 ,pa4 ,i sent an appointment1 but1 being unable to get an ,elder to accompany me1 ,i resolved to go alone4 ,the distance was about fifty miles4 ,on the way ,i preached in my mind the greatest sermon ,i ever had preached1 and perhaps greater than ,i have ever been able to preach since4 ,this sermon1 of course1 ,i intended to preach when ,i reached my destination4 ,the arguments would be irresistible4 ,when ,i arrived1 ,i sang1 opened the meeting by prayer1 sang again1 and read my text1 but the sermon--alas1 it was gone1 and ,i would have given everything ,i possessed to have been back home4 ,this was the first gospel sermon ever preached in the neighborhood1 for although my made-up sermon was gone1 ,i made an effort to teach the people the way of life4 ,i read a great many passages of scripture on the first principles of the gospel1 making brief comments on each as ,i could think of but little to say4 ,after occupying perhaps three quarters of an hour1 and1 as ,i supposed disgusting every one1 ,i brought the meeting to a close with a faint hope1 and a very faint one1 too1 that ,i would be invited to speak again4 ,in that case ,i would plead with the ,lord to forgive me for making up a sermon beforehand and help my future efforts1 and the people would not be so much disappointed1 after all1 if ,i could have an opportunity to redeem myself4 ,no sooner was the meeting closed than the people gathered around me and requested me to preach at their houses1 and1 ,i believe1 four out of the remaining evenings of the week were engaged in much less time than it has taken me to write it4 ,while walking towards the residence of my friend ,i saw a thicket of underbrush not far from our path4 ,to it ,i retired and poured out my soul to the ,lord to forgive me my folly and aid me in the future4 ,while seated at the dinner table1 my friend remarked3 ,well1 ,daniel1 you had nearly all the big men of the county1 from the county seat1 to hear you1 and what do you think they said about your preaching8 ,i was ashamed to answer that ,i expected they would set it down as a fruitless effort to deceive the people1 and felt badly hurt that he should ask me such a question in company4 ,i1 however1 put on as bold a front as ,i could1 and simply answered that ,i did not know4 ,in this case ,i learned that man's thoughts were not always as the ,lord's thoughts1 for the rule is1 that when the ,elder satisfies his own feelings1 the hearers are pleased and edified2 yet1 in this case1 the rule was reversed4 ,my friend and former neighbor informed me that the learned judge and lawyers inquired of him where ,i had graduated1 adding that they never heard a man quote so much scripture to prove his doctrines and apply it so well4 ,in fine1 it was the greatest sermon they ever heard4 ,now1 my young friends1 it was not ,i that had preached a great sermon4 ,i am sure it was not2 for to this day ,i look upon it as one of my weakest efforts at preaching4 ,it being only my fourth trial1 ,i think you will come to a similar conclusion4 ,the fact was1 when ,i read to them the holy scriptures the ,spirit of the ,lord rested upon them1 although they knew it not1 and opened their eyes to see and understand the truth4 ,this is what is meant by the scripture1 ,how shall they hear without a preacher1 and how shall he preach except he be sent8 ,the ,lord sends ,his servants to preach the gospel1 and a portion of ,his ,spirit rests upon those who hear1 and they are born again to see the kingdom of ,god1 preparatory to being born of water and of the ,spirit1 to enter into it4 ,the first birth is being converted from error to truth1 being able to see clearly that it is truth4 ,the second is the immersion in water for remission of sins1 and the laying on of hands for the gift of the ,holy ,ghost4 ,before leaving the neighborhood a learned ,baptist minister by the name of ,peters1 arose at the close of a meeting held in a private house and abused me in a shameful manner1 frothing at the mouth4 ,i replied briefly to all that was worth answering1 and he was confounded4 ,he subsequently came to my lodgings1 and we sat and conversed on the principles of the gospel until after midnight4 ,like others of his spirit1 he was desirous of having a sign4 ,i finally told him ,i would give him a sign1 which was that1 if he did not speedily repent and be baptized for the remission of his sins1 the judgments of ,god would overtake him4 ,he left me with a downcast look4 ,he doubtless expected that ,i would hunt up some sick person and heal him4 ,about three weeks afterward my friend came to our place on a visit and informed me that my prediction was literally fulfilled4 ,the learned ,mr4 ,peters1 who boasted of being proficient in three dead languages1 had been thrown from a horse1 and crippled for life4 ,the last ,i heard of him he was a helpless1 imbecile pauper4 ,i had the inestimable blessing of receiving my endowments in the temple at ,kirtland1 being anointed a priest after the order of ,aaron4 ,it would be impossible for me to describe all the blessings bestowed upon the different quorums of the priesthood4 ,some saw angels1 others saw the horses and chariots of ,israel4 ,some spoke in tongues and others predicted many of the great calamities that are now befalling the nations1 such as pestilence1 war1 famine1 tornadoes1 etc4 ,all felt that they had a foretaste of heaven4 ,in fact1 there were several weeks in which we were not tempted of the devil2 and we wondered whether the millennium had commenced4 ,at or near the close of the endowments1 the ,prophet ,joseph addressed us4 ,among other things he said3 ,brethren1 for some time ,satan has not had power to tempt you4 ,some have thought that there would be no more temptation4 ,but the opposite will come2 and unless you draw near to the ,lord you will be overcome and apostatize4 ,a few months later1 four of the ,apostles were cut off from the ,church for apostasy1 and the standing of one or two others was very doubtful4 ,numbers from other quorums also fell away and were cut off4 ,brief descriptions of the ,missouri persecutions have been published at different times4 ,if a detailed account of the mobbings the ,saints endured while in ,missouri were to be published it would make a large volume4 ,i will mention one prophecy among the many predictions of the ,prophet ,joseph ,smith that was literally fulfilled4 ,during the persecutions in the fall of #ahch1 one of the brethren happened to be a stranger in ,richmond1 ,ray ,co41 ,missouri1 a distance of some thirty or forty miles from ,far ,west1 in ,caldwell county1 where the ,saints dwelt4 ,about sundown he saw men loading guns into a carriage1 and learned that they were to be taken that night to the mob in ,daviess county1 to fight the ,mormons4 ,he feigned to be traveling in the opposite direction1 and took a circuitous route to ,far ,west1 but did not arrive there until about eight o'clock the next morning4 ,he related what he had seen of the actions of the mob1 and a call was immediately made for ten volunteers to accompany ,captain ,allred1 of the militia1 to intercept and take the arms4 ,to do this we had about twenty miles to ride across a trackless prairie1 to reach the road leading from ,richmond to ,daviess county1 where the mob was quartered4 ,the man with the guns had a good1 smooth road1 free from rocks or obstructions of any kind1 and1 to all human appearance1 might have reached his destination before we obtained the news of his having the arms4 ,when all were mounted1 the ,prophet ,joseph said to ,brother ,allred1 ,i want you to ride as fast as your horses can carry you1 7pointing the direction1 that he might not reach the road in rear of the carriage7 and you will get those arms4 ,these last words inspired faith in the little band1 and even the horses did not seem to become weary4 ,when we neared the road1 we cast our eyes towards ,richmond1 and at a distance of about half a mile we discovered a black-covered carriage standing in the road1 without any team attached to it4 ,on nearing it1 we saw that it was empty4 ,we examined and found that one of the axles was newly broken in two4 ,here was the carriage described1 but where were the guns8 ,we soon discovered a trial in the high grass where something heavy had been dragged from near the carriage4 ,we followed this trial a short distance and found a wooden box1 containing seventy-four ,united ,states yaugers4 ,while consulting how to get them to the town1 we looked in the direction of the mob and discovered two men coming1 about as fast as they could drive1 in a lumber wagon4 ,when they discovered us1 supposing us to be mobs1 they swung their hats and shouted hurrah6 two or three times1 and our little troop responded in the same way4 ,they got very near before they discovered their mistake4 ,brother ,allred directed the teamster to drive along side of the box4 ,he then told the two men to get out and put it into the wagon1 and then follow him4 ,we returned the way we came1 and reached our destination about sundown1 when1 after the guns were taken from the wagon1 the men and team were released4 ,the prediction of the prophet was fulfilled1 and the long-range guns1 which were the best then known1 designed for our destruction1 were in our hands4 ,joseph1 knowing that the guns were government property1 sent a dispatch immediately to notify ,general ,atchinson and ,colonel ,doniphan of ,clay county1 what had been done4 ,they directed that the arms should be delivered over to them1 they pledging their honor that they should not be used against our people4 ,the prophet's patriotism would not allow him to retain government property1 although it had been obtained by our enemies for our destruction4 ,if this was not a test of loyalty ,i fail to see an opportunity where a test could be given4 ,i will relate one incident which occurred during the exodus of the ,saints from ,missouri3 ,on the #acth of ,february1 #ahci1 about two o'clock in the afternoon1 an object was seen flying diagonally across our road1 apparently about two hundred yards in front of us4 ,to me1 at first sight1 it had the appearance of a large prairie hawk4 ,it assumed the form of a fish to ,brother ,stephen ,m4 ,st4 ,john1 and it appeared differently to others during the less than one minute it was in sight4 ,it was seen all over the state1 and the people were considerably frightened1 fearing that it was a forerunner of some terrible calamity1 which would befall them for their unjust and inhuman treatment of the ,mormons4 ,the result was that we were more kindly treated during the remainder of our exodus from the state4 ,,chapter ,,iv4 ,a ,,case ,,of ,,palsy ,,healed--,,its ,,effect ,,on ,,the ,,people--,,mr4 ,,bridges ,,unbelief--,,the ,,case ,,of ,,widow ,,cade--,,she ,,is ,,partially ,,cured ,,by ,,faith--,,tempts ,,the ,,lord ,,and ,,dies--,i ,,am ,,called ,,on ,a ,,mission ,,to ,,europe--,,terrible ,,sea-,,storm--,,the ,,prayers ,,of ,,the ,,elders ,,are ,,heard ,,and ,,the ,,winds ,,cease--,,we ,,arrive ,,safely ,,in ,a ,,badly ,,shattered ,,ship4 ,while traveling and preaching in the state of ,mississippi1 in #ahda or #ahdb1 ,i was invited to remain all night with a ,mr4 ,john ,knight1 who was prostrate with the palsy1 and had been in that condition for several weeks4 ,this man was an infidel although his family belonged to the ,methodist church4 ,being called upon to pray1 before going to bed1 ,i remembered the afflicted head of the family4 ,when the prayer was ended he said1 that as ,i was praying for him1 a warming influence such as he had never felt before1 extended down his palsied side4 ,after ,i had tarried over a few nights with him1 he desired to receive the ordinance of the laying on of hands4 ,i called in two other ,elders1 and we explained to him that should he be healed and then refuse to obey the gospel he would incur a great responsibility4 ,he finally agreed that if he ever was so far relieved as to be able to get to the water he would be baptized4 ,at this time he had lain upon what is termed a cricket1 or tribet1 for about six or eight weeks4 ,his left side and limbs were powerless4 ,when he desired to be turned over it was done by pulling a blanket1 kept under him for that purpose4 ,there lived in that vicinity a ,methodist preacher by the name of ,bridges4 ,like many of his class1 he persecuted the ,saints1 never forgetting to demand a sign4 ,in his public discourses he would say1 ,let the ,mormons heal old man ,knight and we will all believe on them4 ,but we did not propose to tempt the ,lord by asking a sign to gratify the curiosity of a wicked man4 ,we1 however1 anointed the palsied side1 according to ,mr4 ,knight's request1 and laid our hands upon him1 and when the palsey was rebuked he straightened the afflicted arm while our hands were yet upon him4 ,i now had to go out in my district and fill appointments which ,i had made2 but when ,i returned at the end of two weeks1 ,i learned that ,mr4 ,knight had walked nearly half a mile and had been baptized4 ,a goodly number of others had also been baptized1 and we organized a branch of the ,church with ,samuel ,l4 ,gully 7known as ,lieutenant ,gully1 in the history of the ,mormon ,battalion71 as presiding ,elder4 ,all apostatized shortly afterwards excepting ,elder ,gully and a few others who had believed and were anxious to get baptized before this remarkable case of healing occurred1 thus proving the truth of the revelation which says1 ,those who seek signs shall have signs1 but not unto salvation4 ,even the man who received this manifestation of ,god's power went back to the beggarly elements of the world1 although he still bore testimony to the fact that he was healed1 but said he did not know whether ,joseph ,smith was a true prophet or an imposter4 ,but what of ,mr4 ,bridges8 ,this wicked preacher1 when reminded of his own sayings in regard to believing if shown a sign1 answered that the old man had been playing the possum all the time1 and that there had been nothing the matter with him4 ,playing the possum1 simply means pretending to be sick when one is well4 ,the proverb is derived from an animal known as the opossum4 ,it is something larger than a common domestic cat1 and when pursed by dogs or men will lie upon the ground and feign itself dead4 ,thus the preacher pretended to believe ,mr4 ,knight feigned his illness to palm off a ,mormon deception1 although he had been prostrated some time before he knew anything about the ,latter-day ,saints1 or they of him4 ,during my travel1 ,i often stopped with a widow woman by the name of ,cade4 ,she had two sons living with her1 one a widower1 the other a bachelor2 all where friendly and had some little faith4 ,this lady1 whom ,i should judge was about seventy years of age1 had a wen1 or growing tumor1 on her throat about the size of a hen's egg4 ,on one of my calls she requested me to administer to her for the removal of this tumor4 ,i complied with her request1 and in half an hour afterwards the lump was half gone4 ,i left her with the swelling still going down2 but my story ends badly1 for after ,i was gone1 ,satan tempted her sons to believe that the virtue was in the olive oil with which she was anointed4 ,this view weakened her faith and the healing power departed from her4 ,her sons went to the store and purchased a bottle of oil1 similar to that which ,i had anointed her with1 but to no effect4 ,the circumstance was related to a physician of the neighborhood1 who told the family that what had happened to her was simply the natural effect of the oil in softening the tumor2 that it could only be cured by being taken out with surgical instruments2 that he could remove it without difficulty and prolong her life1 but it would eventually prove fatal unless removed4 ,she consented to have the doctor try his skill on her1 and she died under the operation4 ,there were not a few1 even among outsiders1 who attributed her death to tempting the ,lord4 ,that their conclusion was correct1 ,i think none of my young readers will doubt4 ,i always felt sorry for her1 as she was a kind-hearted1 good woman1 but was deceived by the persuasion of others4 ,her sons always regretted what they had done1 but never joined the ,church4 ,had her faith continued in the ,lord she would doubtless have been entirely healed in a very short time and lived to glorify ,god for a number of years4 ,thus we see that ,his anger is kindled against those who do not acknowledge ,his hand in all things4 ,i hope no one who reads this little book will be guilty of tempting the ,lord as this woman did1 or fail to acknowledge ,his hand in all things4 ,even in losses1 sickness or death in our families ,his hand should be acknowledged1 and all will be sanctified for our good in the end4 ,at the ,spring conference1 in #ahec1 ,i was called on a mission to ,europe1 with a number of others4 ,while crossing the ocean1 when about two hundred miles from ,liverpool1 we encountered1 what the captain said1 was the severest storm he had experienced during thirty years of sea-faring life4 ,there were seven ,elders on board the ,english sail ship1 ,ashburton4 ,when the storm became the most severe only four could be got together4 ,we had taken second cabin passage1 and1 of course1 had a room with bunks in which to sleep4 ,to this room ,elders ,charles ,r4 ,dana4 ,israel ,barlow and myself repaired1 leaving ,brother ,thomas ,colburn outside to watch and tend the door while we prayed and rebuked the raging wind and boisterous sea4 ,we had but just commenced to pray when the door of the ventilator of our room flew open and let a large stream of water upon us4 ,brother ,barlow sprang upon one of the upper bunks and closed the door and held it to its place while ,brother ,dana and myself continued the prayer4 ,by this time the ship had come so near capsizing that a bottle of ink being open and standing over one door-post1 which was about six feet high1 emptied its contents upon the opposite post about one and a half feet from the door sill1 making an angle1 by actual measurement1 of over fifty degrees1 which was just about as far as she could go without capsizing4 ,just at this juncture the wind was rebuked by the servants of the ,lord1 and so sudden was the reaction that the ship creaked from stem to stern and we did not know but what she might fall to pieces4 ,but the main damage done was to lose her sails and cause the yard-arm to fall and break the ship-carpenter's leg4 ,the cargo was shiped to one side so that she could not run level during the remainder of the voyage4 ,we had on board1 among other passengers1 a ,presbyterian temperance lecturer1 with whom we had had many arguments on the use of the spiritual gifts1 he taking the view that they were done away because no longer needed4 ,his berth was on the opposite side of the ship4 ,before the prayer was closed and the door opened1 he stood trembling with excitement outside ,no sooner was the door opened than he exclaimed hastily and in an excited manner1 ,havn't you been praying8 havn't you been praying8 ,on ,elder ,dana inquiring why he asked that question1 he nervously answered1 ,i thought you had2 the wind stopped blowing so suddenly4 ,during the remainder of the journey1 whenever there was more than a gentle breeze of wind1 this man and his friends were sure to find their way to our cabin1 as though they thought1 if all the balance of the ship sank1 our side would float all right4 ,this is one of the many incidents that might be cited to show that our enemies are not sincere in opposing our doctrines4 ,i firmly believe that many people who hear the gospel preached have an inward conviction of its truth2 but the love of riches and popularity with the fear of their friends deserting them and the frowns of the world1 in many instances1 cause their love to grow cold and they smother their convictions and become our enemies4 ,on this subject the ,lord has said1 ,every ear shall hear and every heart shall be penetrated4 ,i think both occur at the same time2 that there may be a time in the future when they will feel it much stronger1 when it is too late to benefit them1 ,i also admit2 for they will even seek death and not be able to find it4 ,among the passengers was a young man1 son of an ,irish widow1 who lived in ,dublin1 ,ireland4 ,becoming consumptive1 he went to ,new ,york for his health4 ,growing worse1 he decided to return and die in the land of his fathers1 and have a tender mother's care to soothe his last hours4 ,but1 alas1 when the land-breeze struck him1 the night before we sighted land1 he expired1 and was buried in the sea4 ,we sailed along at the rate of about ten miles per hour until about seven o'clock in the evening when the sky was suddenly darkened by a thick fog1 a contrary wind arose and simultaneously with it a brig struck our ship's stern1 took off her helm or rudder1 got tangled in her rigging and took off her top-mast and top-sail and damaged her generally4 ,the brig's rudder was also taken away by our ship1 and she was so damaged that her captain asked permission to lash her to our ship1 but our captain replied that his ship was so badly damaged that he dared not allow it4 ,a wail went up from the little craft that they would all go to the bottom4 ,they were soon out of our sight4 ,the wind and fog continued1 and ,captain ,williams1 of the ,ashburton1 lay drunk in his cabin1 most of the time4 ,there was but one man on board who understood the channel in which we were sailing4 ,and he was mate of another vessel of the same line 7the ,black ,ball71 which sailed previous to ours4 ,he was on a spree when his ship left ,new ,york1 and1 although an excellent officer1 could not be induced for love or money to go on board until he had had it out4 ,being over his drunken spree he entered our ship1 the control of which1 during our last calamity1 was intrusted entirely to him4 ,our only method of guiding the ship was by a rope tied to the corner of the main sail and pulling it from one side to the other4 ,to do this required the assistance of all the passengers and for three days and nights we barely escaped being dashed to pieces on the rocks which abounded all around us4 ,finally we succeeded in landing in ,belfast harbor4 ,here we left our ship waiting repairs and took steamer for ,liverpool1 where we arrived a few hours later4 ,the brig we came in contact with was wrecked on the coast of the ,isle of ,man1 but no lives were lost4 ,during my stay in ,england1 which was less than a year1 there were many cases of healing and other incidents of interest occurred1 but such things being usual with all the ,elders ,i need not rehearse them4 ,,chapter ,v4 ,i ,,go ,,to ,,switzerland--,,god',s ,,power ,,manifested ,,in ,,my ,,behalf--,a ,,prophecy ,,fulfilled--,,condition ,,of ,,the ,,swiss ,,mission--,,where ,,elders ,,were ,,expelled ,,evil ,,spirits ,,take ,,possession--,,karl ,g4 ,,maeser ,,writes ,,me ,a ,,letter--,i ,,return ,,it1 ,,thinking ,,it ,a ,,ruse ,,to ,,entrap ,,me--,i ,,receive ,,it ,,again--,,brother ,,maeser',s ,,faith ,,and ,,baptism--,,elders ,,partake ,,of ,,poisoned ,,food--,,are ,,restored ,,to ,,heath--,,my ,,mission ,,ends4 ,in the fall #ahed1 ,i was sent to ,switzerland1 to take charge of the ,swiss and ,italian missions2 the ,french and ,german missions were subsequently added4 ,here was fulfilled a prediction spoken in tongues by a ,sister ,more1 in the tenth ,ward1 of ,salt ,lake ,city1 the year before ,i was called on my ,european mission4 ,i was at the time going on crutches1 with a broken leg1 and having but little hope of ever being able to walk4 ,the leg was badly fractured1 and by getting out of place and having to be reset caused the bones to be very slow in knitting together4 ,it was about seven months before ,i could bear any weight upon my broken limb4 ,while in this condition1 ,i went on my crutches to a little prayer meeting in a private house1 there being no public meeting house then built in the ward4 ,in going to the meeting1 my worst fears of always being a cripple had loomed up before me like a great mountain1 and1 like ,jonah1 ,i felt that it was better for me to die than to live4 ,this was a weakness in me1 of course1 but so it was4 ,after the meeting was opened1 ,sister ,more arose and began to speak in tongues4 ,she addressed her remarks to me1 and ,i understood her as well as though she had spoken the ,english language4 ,she said3 ,your leg will be healed1 and you will go on a foreign mission and preach the gospel in foreign lands4 ,no harm shall befall you1 and you shall return in safety1 having great joy in your labors4 ,this was the substance of the prophecy4 ,it was so different from my own belief and the fears of many others that ,i was tempted not to give the interpretation1 lest it should fail to come to pass4 ,the ,spirit1 however1 impressed me and ,i arose1 leaning upon my crutches1 and gave the interpretation4 ,not long afterwards ,i was told in a dream what to do to strengthen my fractured limb1 and it began to receive strength immediately1 and in the short space of about one week ,i dispensed with my crutches and walked with a cane4 ,although ,switzerland was a republic1 the people were not prepared for a free government4 ,after a few months1 most of the ,american and ,english ,elders were banished1 and the work devolved mainly on the native ,elders1 and even they were sometimes cast into prison4 ,on one occasion1 a zealous youth1 whom ,i had directed to be ordained a ,priest1 took some tracts printed in the ,german language to distribute among the people4 ,he left one with an invalid woman who had been several years confined to the house4 ,she believed1 and asked to be administered to that she might be healed1 in order that she could be baptized4 ,i sent an ,elder to learn whether she wanted a sign or whether she was sincere4 ,if found sincere and humble1 he was to administer to her by anointing her with oil and laying his hands upon her4 ,he found that she believed with all her heart4 ,he attended to the ordinance and went a distance of about four miles to stay over night4 ,the next morning she walked all that way to be baptized4 ,among the remarkable incidents in the ,swiss mission is the fact that after the ,elders were driven out for preaching the doctrine of direct revelation1 strange noises were heard in people's houses1 especially in the city of ,zurich1 from which place all foreign ,elders had been banished4 ,the noises consisted of rapping upon cupboards1 tables1 dishes and other like things4 ,the ,saints were not troubled with them1 but they became so frequent that they created great excitement among the outside people4 ,elder ,john ,bar wrote to me to know what it meant1 and asking if it was of the ,lord1 and1 if so1 why did it not visit the ,saints8 ,i answered that the people had rejected revelation from the ,lord1 and banished the ,elders who taught inspiration4 ,that it was known in ,america as spirit-rapping1 and that it would probably take definite shape soon4 ,soon after circles were formed around tables1 and the rapping in other places ceased4 ,i believe this was the first introduction of ,spiritualism into the cantons1 and1 so far as known1 in ,europe1 and was similar to the first in the ,united ,states made known to the ,fox girls of ,new ,york4 ,thus1 my young readers will perceive that these false spirits and other delusions follow the rejection of the gospel4 ,about this time1 ,i received a letter1 inquiring about the ,saints and their doctrines1 from ,karl ,g4 ,maeser1 a professor of theology in ,dresden1 in ,saxony4 ,in consideration of the excitement and desire on the part of many of the police authorities to trap the ,elders2 ,elder ,chislett and myself looked upon it as a snare to entrap us4 ,i returned the letter without answer4 ,no sooner had ,i dropped it into the letter box than a strong feeling came over me that the man might be an honest enquirer after truth4 ,on telling this to ,elder ,chislett1 he said if such be the case the door would be closed4 ,i answered1 ,no1 that letter will return4 ,he said1 ,no2 you may get another1 but the same letter will never come back4 ,i repeated1 ,if he is an honest enquirer after truth that letter will return1 and ,i will accept it as an evidence of sincerity4 ,elder ,chislett said1 ,if it does return ,i will set you down as a prophet4 ,on receipt of his returned letter1 ,professor ,maeser forwarded it to ,elder ,john ,van ,cott1 at ,copenhagen4 ,as ,elder ,van ,cott knew ,i was presiding over the ,german mission1 he mailed the letter to me1 explaining that he had directed the professor to me1 as he was doing nothing in the ,german language1 and he believed him to be an honest inquirer after truth4 ,i answered ,professor ,maeser's letter1 and he wanted to know more4 ,i sent him ,german publications3 he believed them all and said during an approaching vacation he would come to ,geneva1 a distance of about six hundred miles1 and be baptized4 ,thinking this might be an opening to establish the gospel in the heart of ,germany1 where it had not been preached for about eighteen hundred years1 ,i wrote and told the professor that if there was free toleration of religion perhaps ,i might send an ,elder to preach the gospel to others as well as to instruct him further in its principles4 ,he wrote1 in answer1 that no religion1 except the ,lutheran1 was allowed to be taught1 and that was the national religion4 ,he thought1 however1 that as all persons who took up their abode in the kingdom had to make known their business1 an ,elder might go under the guise of a teacher of the ,english language4 ,on my informing him that ,i apprehended such a policy might draw a class around him who would be liable to betray him to prison and banishment1 and as ,i had an ,elder under my charge who had some knowledge of the ,german language1 ,i asked him whether it would not be better that his object be known to be to complete his education in the same4 ,simple as this suggestion was1 it struck him with great force4 ,knowing that ,i was unacquainted with their laws and customs and that he had been taught them from childhood1 in fact1 was a leading teacher among his fellows1 he referred to this fact and said he could see the wisdom of the ,lord in it1 and it was another evidence to him that the ,latter-day ,saints were ,his people1 and he would be exceedingly glad if ,i could send an ,elder to baptize him4 ,an important duty now devolved upon me which was to inform the learned professor that our ,elders1 like the ancient disciples1 traveled and preached the gospel without purse or scrip1 and1 if an ,elder was sent1 he would have to sustain him free of charge4 ,most men of his type would have spurned such a proposition4 ,not so with this humble servant of the ,lord4 ,in his reply he said3 ,if you send an ,elder1 my house shall be his house1 my table shall be his table1 all ,i have shall be his as well as mine4 ,apostle ,franklin ,d4 ,richards1 president of the ,european mission1 who had recently arrived in ,geneva from ,liverpool1 on hearing this letter read1 immediately decided to send ,elder ,william ,budge1 who was then in ,england1 having been banished from ,zurich1 a prominent ,swiss canton4 ,on ,elder ,budge's arrival1 he was reported as a gentleman from ,england1 having come to complete his education in the ,german language1 which was1 of course1 one part of his mission4 ,he was instructed to confine his labors principally to the professor and his family1 and to baptize none until he had further instructions4 ,president ,richards now decided to visit ,italy1 where there were a few ,saints in the ,waldensian valleys under the presidency of ,elder ,samuel ,francis4 ,these ,saints were very poor1 and the most of them lived very hard4 ,some of them having to subsist five months in the year on roasted chestnuts1 and1 perhaps1 a little sheep's or goat's milk1 without any other food1 having to winter in stables in order to receive warmth from the animals in the absence of fuel4 ,brother ,richards was accompanied by ,elders ,wm4 ,h4 ,kimball1 ,john ,l4 ,smith1 ,john ,chislett1 and myself4 ,about the time of our arrival one of the native brethren had by mistake eaten poison mushrooms1 taking them for the variety often used as food in that country4 ,he reeled as he walked to a chair1 or stool1 to receive the ordinance of laying on of hands4 ,president ,richards rebuked the poison1 and he recovered4 ,shortly afterwards an outsider collected some of the same variety1 which were cooked1 and the man with his wife and children1 died through eating them4 ,shortly after our return from ,italy1 ,president ,richards and ,elder ,kimball repaired to ,dresden1 the capital of ,saxony1 where they were heartily greeted by ,elder ,budge and ,professor ,karl ,g4 ,maeser4 ,they remained a few days1 during which time ,president ,richards baptized the professor and eight others1 and organized a branch of the ,church1 with ,brother ,maeser as presiding ,elder4 ,when the authorities learned to their satisfaction that he had joined the ,church of the ,saints they not only dropped him from his position1 but banished him from the kingdom4 ,of his standing and usefulness among the ,saints but little need be said4 ,his charge of the ,brigham ,young ,academy at ,provo1 and the blessings accruing to the youth of ,zion1 are too well known and appreciated to require any eulogy from me4 ,suffice it to say1 that ,i had felt that ,i was doing but little good beyond filling a plain duty in responding to the call to go on a mission from ,england to ,switzerland4 ,i refer to this incident to encourage the young ,elders who read this little book to not feel discouraged because they do not baptize as many as some others4 ,i hope they will not feel that they are not being useful on that account4 ,i baptized none personally while on that mission of about three and a half years1 and yet1 although ,i suffered much affliction and persecution1 ,i look back upon it as one of the happiest times of my life4 ,,newel ,,knight',s ,,journal4 ,,chapter ,i4 ,,my ,,birth ,,and ,,parentage--,,my ,,father',s ,,business--,,he ,,employs ,,joseph ,,smith1 ,,jun4--,,character ,,of ,,this ,,youth--,i ,,start ,,in ,,business ,,for ,,myself--,,my ,,health ,,compels ,,me ,,to ,,change ,,occupation--,,joseph ,,smith1 ,,jun41 ,a ,,constant ,,visitor ,,at ,,my ,,house--,,he ,,relates ,,his ,,experience--,,his ,,statements ,,leave ,,no ,,room ,,for ,,doubt ,,in ,,me--,,he ,,is ,,bitterly ,,persecuted4 ,i was born ,september #acth1 #ahjj1 in ,marlborough1 ,windham county1 ,vermont4 ,my father's name was ,joseph and my mother's maiden name was ,polly ,peck4 ,my father moved into the state of ,new ,york1 when ,i was nine years of age1 and settled on the ,susquehanna river1 near the bend in ,chenango county1 town of ,bainbridge1 and stayed there two years4 ,he then moved down the river six miles into ,broome county1 town of ,colesville1 and there remained nineteen years4 ,my father owned a farm1 a grist-mill and carding machine4 ,he was not rich1 yet he possessed enough of this world's goods to secure to himself and family1 not only the necessaries1 but also the comforts of life4 ,his family1 consisting of my mother1 three sons and four daughters1 he raised in a genteel and respectable manner1 and gave his children a good common school education4 ,my father was a sober1 honest man1 generally respected and beloved by his neighbors and acquaintances4 ,he did not belong to any religious sect1 but was a believer in the ,universalian doctrine4 ,the business in which my father was engaged often required him to have hired help1 and among the many he from time to time employed was a young man by the name of ,joseph ,smith1 ,jun41 to whom ,i was particularly attached4 ,his noble deportment1 his faithfulness and his kind address1 could not fail to win the esteem of those who had the pleasure of his acquaintance4 ,one thing ,i will mention1 which seemed to be a peculiar characteristic with him in all his boyish sports and amusements2 ,i never knew any one to gain advantage over him1 and yet he was always kind and kept the good-will of his playmates4 ,i continued to live with my father until ,i was twenty-five years old1 or nearly so2 and on ,june #gth1 #ahbe1 ,i married a respectable young lady1 by the name of ,sally ,coburn4 ,her health was rather delicate4 ,she had long held an honorable position in the choir of one of the most respectable churches in the vicinity2 her father was a musician1 and spent much of his time from home1 which threw a heavy burden upon her mother in raising the family2 this1 however1 she bore with much patience4 ,on leaving my father ,i went a few miles distant and put in operation a carding machine1 but ,i soon sold it1 and afterwards became engaged in running a grist-mill4 ,during this time my wife gave birth to a child1 which did not live and her sufferings were very great4 ,i found my health was gradually declining1 and was advised to leave the mill1 as it did not agree with my constitution to work in it4 ,i had no taste for farming1 so ,i continued in the mill business until the physician told me ,i had the consumption1 and he thought my case doubtful4 ,i applied to a skillful ,indian doctor1 from whom ,i obtained some relief1 but was obliged to change my business1 and ,i moved back to ,colesville1 near to where my father lived4 ,in settling up my business affairs ,i suffered a heavy loss1 and this1 with the expenses incurred by my sickness1 considerably reduced my pecuniary affairs4 ,but ,i was not discouraged1 for all my labor prospered in my hands1 and ,i again entered into business4 ,my oldest brother4 ,nahum1 was married1 and lived close at hand2 also my sisters ,esther and ,anna1 with their husbands ,william ,stringham1 and ,freeborn ,demill1 so that ,i was happy1 not only in the society of my father's immediate family1 but also of many relatives who lived in the same vicinity4 ,peace1 prosperity and plenty1 seemed to crown our labors1 and indeed we were a happy family1 and my father rejoiced in having us around him4 ,during this time we were frequently visited by my young friend1 ,joseph ,smith1 who would entertain us with accounts of the wonderful things which had happened to him4 ,it was evident to me that great things were about to be accomplished through him--that the ,lord was about to use him as an instrument in ,his hands to bring to pass the great and mighty work of the last days4 ,this chosen instrument told us of ,god's manifestations to him1 of the discovery and receiving of the plates from which the ,book of ,mormon was translated1 of his persecutions for the gospel's sake1 and many other items of his eventful life4 ,so honest and plain were all his statements that there was no room for any misgivings with me on the subject4 ,besides1 ,i found by reading and searching the ,bible1 that there would be a great falling away from the gospel as preached and established by ,jesus and ,his apostles1 that in the last days ,god would set ,his hand again to restore that which was lost4 ,then why should any one persecute this boy8 ,i could not4 ,yet1 to my certain knowledge1 many did2 and those who professed to be preacher's of the gospel1 were often his vilest persecutors2 and notwithstanding they all professed to doubt the reality of his having the plates of which he had spoken1 yet so eager were they to get them from him1 that it was only by the ,lord1 or a kind angel1 warning him from time to time of the pursuit of his enemies1 that he was enabled to preserve the sacred records4 ,in fact1 it seemed very much like it was with ,joseph and ,mary1 the mother of ,jesus1 being warned of ,god to flee from place to place1 to save the young child2 so has ,joseph ,smith been warned many times1 and then barely escaped his pursuers4 ,of this ,i can bear a faithful testimony4 ,,chapter ,,ii4 ,,joseph ,,smith',s ,,perseverance--,,organization ,,of ,,the ,,church--,,joseph ,,smith ,,visits ,,me--,,his ,,own ,,accounts ,,of ,,his ,,visit--,,he ,,asks ,,me ,,to ,,pray--,i ,,refuse--,i ,,go ,,to ,,the ,,woods ,,and ,,try ,,to ,,offer ,,up ,,prayer--,,am ,,attacked ,,by ,a ,,devil--,,curious ,,actions ,,while ,,thus ,,afflicted--,,the ,,prophet ,,casts ,,the ,,devil ,,out--,,the ,,spirit ,,of ,,god ,,shows ,,me ,,glorious ,,things--,,this ,,miracle ,,witnessed ,,by ,,many ,,persons4 ,joseph persevered1 and the ,lord raised up friends who aided him in the great work of translating and printing the record which the unsealed part of the sacred plates contained4 ,the title given to the book being ,,the ,,book ,,of ,,mormon4 ,on the sixth day of ,april1 #ahcj1 by revelation and commandment from ,god1 a ,church was organized1 called1 ,the ,church of ,jesus ,christ1 which consisted of only six members1 viz41 ,joseph ,smith1 ,jun41 ,oliver ,cowdery1 ,hyrum ,smith1 ,peter ,whitmer1 ,jun41 ,samuel ,h4 ,smith1 and ,david ,whitmer4 ,on ,sunday1 ,april #aath1 #ahhj1 the first public discourse1 preached by a ,latter day ,saint1 was delivered by ,oliver ,cowdery1 at the house of ,peter ,whitmer1 ,sen4 ,during the same month the prophet honored me with a visit1 during which time ,i received a great manifestation1 one long to be remembered1 and in order that my children may know how the ,lord has dealt with me ,i will make this extract from ,joseph ,smith's history4 ,during this month of ,april ,i went on a visit to ,mr4 ,joseph ,knight1 of ,colesville1 ,broome ,co41 ,n4 ,y41 with whom and his family ,i had been previously acquainted1 and of whose name ,i have made mention as having been so kind and thoughtful towards us1 while translating the ,book of ,mormon4 ,mr4 ,knight and his family were ,universalists1 but were willing to reason with me upon my religious views1 and were as usual friendly and hospitable4 ,we held several meetings in the neighborhood1 we had many friends1 and some enemies4 ,our meetings were well attended1 and many began to pray vocally to ,almighty ,god1 that ,he would give them wisdom to understand the truth4 ,among those who attended our meetings regularly1 was ,newel ,knight1 son of ,joseph ,knight4 ,he and ,i had many serious conversations on the important subject of man's eternal salvation2 we had got into the habit of praying much at our meetings and ,newel had said he would try and take up his cross1 and pray vocally during meeting2 but when we again met together he rather excused himself4 ,i tried to prevail upon him1 making use of the figure1 supposing that he should get into a mudhole1 would he not try to help himself out8 and that we were willing now to help him out of the mudhole1 he replied that provided he had got into a mudhole through carelessness1 he would rather wait and get out himself than have others help him1 and so he would wait until he should get into the woods by himself1 and there he would pray4 ,accordingly he deferred praying until the next morning1 when he retired into the woods2 where 7according to his own account afterwards7 he made several attempts to pray1 but could scarcely do so1 feeling that he had not done his duty1 but that he should have prayed in the presence of others4 ,he began to feel uneasy1 and continued to feel worse both in mind and body1 until upon reaching his own house1 his appearance was such as to alarm his wife very much4 ,he requested her to go and bring me to him4 ,i went1 and found him suffering very much in his mind1 and his body acted upon in a very strange manner4 ,his visage and limbs were distorted and twisted in every shape and appearance possible to imagine2 and finally he was caught up off the floor of the apartment and tossed about most fearfully4 ,his situation was soon made known to his neighbors and relatives1 and in a short time as many as eight or nine grown persons had got together to witness the scene4 ,after he had thus suffered for a time1 ,i succeeded in getting hold of him by the hand1 when almost immediately he spoke to me1 and with great earnestness requested of me1 that ,i should cast the devil out of him1 saying that he knew he was in him1 and that he also knew that ,i could cast him out4 ,i replied1 if you know that ,i can1 it shall be done1 and then almost unconsciously ,i rebuked the devil2 and commanded him in the name of ,jesus ,christ to depart from him2 when immediately ,newel spoke out and said that he could see the devil leave him and vanish from his sight4 ,this was the first miracle which has been done in this ,church1 or by any member of it1 and it was done by ,god1 and by the power of godliness2 therefore let the honor and the praise1 the dominion and the glory1 be ascribed to the ,father1 ,son1 and ,holy ,spirit1 forever and ever1 ,amen4 ,the scene was now entirely changed1 for as soon as the devil had departed from our friend1 his countenance became natural1 his distortion of body ceased1 and almost immediately the ,spirit of ,god descended upon him1 and the visions of eternity were opened to his view4 ,he afterwards related his experience as follows3 ,i now began to feel a most pleasing sensation resting upon me1 and immediately the visions of heaven were opened to my view4 ,i felt myself attracted upwards1 and remained for sometime enwrapt in contemplation1 insomuch that ,i knew not what was going on in the room4 ,by and by ,i felt some weight pressing upon my shoulder and the side of my head2 which served to recall me to a sense of my situation1 and ,i found that the ,spirit of the ,lord had actually caught me up off the floor1 and that my shoulder and head were pressing against the beams4' ,all this was witnessed by many1 to their great astonishment and satisfaction1 when they saw the devil thus cast out1 and the power of ,god and ,his ,holy ,spirit thus made manifest4 ,as soon as consciousness returned1 his bodily weakness was such that we were obliged to lay him upon his bed and wait upon him for some time4 ,as may be expected1 such a scene as this contributed much to make believers of those who witnessed it1 and1 finally1 the greater part of them1 became members of the ,church4 ,,chapter ,,iii4 ,i ,,am ,,baptized--,,first ,,conference ,,of ,,the ,,church--,,remarkable ,,visions--,,the ,,prophet ,,visits ,,the ,,colesville ,,branch--,,holds ,,meeting--,,persecutions ,,begin--,a ,,presbyterian ,,preacher ,,tries ,,to ,,mislead ,,my ,,sister-,,in-,,law1 ,,but ,,fails--,,baptisms--,,mob ,,gathers--,,joseph ,,arrested ,,by ,,constable--,,wicked ,,men ,,lie ,,in ,,ambush ,,for ,,him--,,he ,,is ,,delivered ,,from ,,the ,,mob ,,by ,,the ,,constable--,,his ,,unjust ,,trial--,,he ,,is ,,acquitted4 ,,during the last week in ,may ,i went on a visit to ,fayette and was baptized by ,david ,whitmer4 ,on the first day of ,june1 #ahcj1 the first conference was held by the ,church4 ,our number consisted of about thirty1 besides many others who came to learn of our principles1 or were already believers1 but had not been baptized4 ,having opened the meeting by singing and prayer1 we partook of the emblems of the body and blood of our ,lord ,jesus ,christ4 ,a number were confirmed who had lately been baptized1 and several were called and ordained to various offices in the ,priesthood4 ,much good instruction was given1 and the ,holy ,ghost was poured out upon us in a marvelous manner4 ,many prophesied1 while others had the heavens opened to their view4 ,it was a scene long to be remembered4 ,i felt my heart filled with love1 with glory1 and with pleasure unspeakable4 ,i could discern all that was going on in the room and a vision of futurity also suddenly burst upon me1 and ,i saw1 represented1 the great work1 which1 through the instrumentality of ,joseph ,smith1 was to be accomplished4 ,i saw the heavens opened1 ,i beheld the ,lord ,jesus ,christ seated at the right hand of the ,majesty on ,high1 and it was made plain to my understanding that the time would come when ,i should be admitted into ,his presence1 to enjoy ,his society for ever and ever4 ,such scenes as these were calculated to inspire the hearts of the ,saints with joy unspeakable1 and fill us with awe and reverence for that ,almighty ,being1 by whose grace we had been called and made the happy partakers of such glorious blessings as were poured out upon us--to find ourselves engaged in the very same order of things as were observed and practiced by the holy apostles of old4 ,to realize the importance and solemnity of the great work which had fallen upon our young friend ,joseph1 and to witness and feel with our natural senses the like glorious manifestations of the power of the ,priesthood1 the gifts and blessings of the ,holy ,ghost and the goodness and condescension of a merciful ,god unto such as obey the everlasting gospel of our ,lord ,jesus ,christ1 combined to create within us sensations of rapturous gratitude and inspire us with fresh zeal and energy in the cause of truth1 and also to confirm our faith in ,joseph ,smith being the instrument in the hands of ,god to restore the ,priesthood again to man on earth and to set up the kingdom of ,god1 which shall never more be overcome4 ,soon after conference ,joseph ,smith the ,prophet1 accompanied by his wife1 ,oliver ,cowdery1 ,john ,whitmer and ,david ,whitmer1 came to ,colesville to make us a visit4 ,there were many in our neighborhood who believed1 and were anxiously waiting for an opportunity to be baptized4 ,meeting was appointed for the ,sabbath1 and on ,saturday afternoon we erected a dam across a stream which was close by1 with the intention of baptizing those who applied on ,sunday1 but during the night a mob collected and tore away the dam4 ,this prevented us from attending to the ordinance of baptism that day4 ,it was afterwards ascertained that the mob had been instigated to this act of molestation1 by certain sectarian priests of the neighborhood1 who began to think their craft was in danger1 and took this plan to stop the progress of truth4 ,the sequel will show how determinedly they prosecuted1 their opposition1 as well as to what little purpose in the end4 ,the ,sabbath arrived1 we held our meeting1 ,oliver ,cowdery preached1 others bore testimony to the ,book of ,mormon1 the doctrine of repentance1 baptism for the remission of sins1 and the laying on of hands for the gift of the ,holy ,ghost1 etc4 ,in the audience were those who had torn down the dam4 ,they seemed desirous of giving us trouble1 but did not until after the meeting was dismissed1 when they immediately commenced talking to those whom they considered our friends1 to try to turn them against us and our doctrine4 ,among those present ,i will mention the case of one young lady--,miss ,emily ,coburn1 my wife's sister4 ,the ,rev4 ,mr4 ,shearer1 a divine of the ,presbyterian faith1 who had considered himself her pastor1 understanding that she was likely to believe our doctrine1 came to labor with her a short time previous to our meeting4 ,he spent some time without being able to persuade her against us1 and then endeavored to have her leave her sister's house1 and go with him to her father's1 who lived ten miles distant3 for this purpose he had recourse to stratagem1 he told her that her brothers were waiting for her at a certain place and wished her to go home with them4 ,he succeeded thus in getting her a little way from the house1 when seeing that her brothers were not waiting for her1 she refused to go farther with him4 ,he thereupon took her by the arm and tried to force her along2 my wife1 her sister1 was soon with them1 and the two women being one too many for him he was obliged to sneak off without accomplishing his errand1 after all his labor and ingenuity4 ,nothing daunted1 however1 he went to her father1 and represented something to him1 which induced the old gentleman to give him a power of attorney4 ,thus armed he returned1 and as soon as our meeting was out on the ,sunday evening1 he served process upon her1 and immediately carried her off to her father's residence4 ,all his labor was in vain1 however1 for the said ,emily ,coburn in a short time afterwards was baptized and confirmed a member of the ,church4 ,early on ,monday morning we were on the alert1 and before our enemies were aware of it1 ,oliver ,cowdery proceeded to baptize ,emma ,smith1 ,hezekiah ,peck and wife1 ,joseph ,knight and wife1 ,william ,stringham1 ,joseph ,knight ,jun41 ,aaron ,culver and wife1 ,levi ,hall1 ,polly ,knight and ,julia ,stringham4 ,but before the baptism was entirely finished1 the mob began to collect again4 ,we retired to my father's house1 and the mob1 which numbered about fifty surrounded the house1 raging with anger1 and apparently wishing to commit violence against us4 ,so violent and troublesome were they1 that the brethren were obliged to leave my father's house and they succeeded in reaching mine4 ,the mob who soon found where they had gone1 followed them and it was only by great prudence on our part and help from our ,heavenly ,father that they were kept from laying violent hands upon us4 ,a meeting had been appointed for the evening to confirm those who had been baptized in the morning4 ,the time appointed had arrived1 and our friends had nearly all collected together1 when1 to our great surprise and sorrow1 the constable came and arrested ,brother ,joseph ,smith1 ,jun41 on a warrant charging him with being a disorderly person1 and of setting the country in an uproar1 by preaching the ,book of ,mormon4 ,the constable soon after he had arrested ,joseph1 told him that the plan of those who had got out the warrant for his arrest1 was to get him into the hands of the mob who were now lying in ambush for him1 and that he1 the constable1 was determined to save ,joseph from them1 as he found him to be a different person to what he had been represented4 ,this proved true1 for they had not proceeded far from the house1 when the wagon in which ,joseph and the constable were riding1 was surrounded by the mob1 who seemed only to await some signal from the constable1 but to their great discomfiture1 he gave the horses the whip and was soon out of their reach4 ,as the constable was driving briskly along1 one of the wagon wheels came off1 which accident left them almost in the hands of the mob1 who had pursued them closely4 ,but the constable was an expert man and managed to get the wheel on again1 before the mob overtook him1 and soon left them in the rear once more4 ,he drove on to the town of ,south ,bainbridge1 ,chenango county1 where he lodged ,joseph in an upper room of a tavern2 and in order that all might be safe for himself and ,joseph1 he slept1 or laid during the night with his feet against the door1 and kept a loaded gun by him1 7,joseph occupied a bed in the same room7 and declared that if they were unlawfully molested he would fight for ,joseph1 and defend him to the utmost of his ability4 ,on the following day a court was convened for the purpose of investigating the charges which had been made against ,joseph ,smith1 ,jun4 ,on account of the many scandalous reports which had been put in circulation1 a great excitement prevailed4 ,my father1 ,joseph ,knight1 ,sen41 did not let pass this opportunity of doing all in his power to assist this persecuted boy4 ,he went to two of his neighbors4 ,james ,davidson and ,john ,reid1 ,esqs41 respectable farmers who were well versed in the laws of their country1 and retained them in behalf of ,joseph during his trial4 ,the trial commenced among a crowded multitude of spectators1 who generally seemed to believe ,joseph guilty of all that had been alleged against him1 and1 of course were zealous to see him punished for his crimes4 ,among the many witnesses called up against ,joseph1 was one ,josiah ,stoal1 a gentleman for whom ,joseph formerly worked4 ,he was examined as follows3 ,question--,did not the prisoner1 ,joseph ,smith have a horse from you8 ,answer--,yes4 ,q4--,did he not go to you and tell you an angel had appeared unto him1 and told him to get the horse from you8 ,a4--,no2 he told me no such thing4 ,q4--,well1 how did he get the horse from you8 ,a4--,he bought it from me the same as any other man would do4 ,q4--,have you had your pay8 ,a4--,that is not your business4 ,the question being repeated1 the witness replied1 ,i hold his note for the price of the horse1 which ,i consider as good as the money1 for ,i am well acquainted with ,joseph ,smith1 ,jun41 and know him to be honest1 and1 if he wishes1 ,i am ready to let him have another horse on the same terms4 ,mr4 ,jonathan ,thompson was next called and examined4 ,question--,has not the prisoner1 ,joseph ,smith1 ,jun41 had a yoke of oxen of you8 ,answer--,yes4 ,q4--,did he not obtain them from you by telling you that he had a revelation to the effect that he was to have them8 ,a4--,no2 he did not mention a word of the kind concerning the oxen2 he purchased them the same as any other man would4 ,after several more similar attempts the court was detained for a time in order that two young ladies1 daughters of ,josiah ,stoal1 with whom ,joseph had at times kept company1 might be sent for1 in order if possible1 to elicit something from them which could be made a pretext against ,joseph4 ,the young ladies came1 and were each examined as to his character and conduct in general1 but in particular as to his behavior towards them in public and private2 they both bore such testimony in ,joseph's favor1 as to leave his enemies without a cause for complaint4 ,several attempts were made to prove something against ,joseph1 and even circumstances which were alleged to have taken place in ,broome county were brought forward4 ,but these ,joseph's lawyers would not admit against him1 in consequence of which his persecutors managed to detain the court until they had succeeded in obtaining a warrant from ,broome county4 ,this warrant they served upon him at the very moment he had been acquitted by the court4 ,,chapter ,,iv4 ,,joseph',s ,,second ,,arrest--,,cruelty ,,of ,,his ,,guard--,,his ,,trial--,i1 ,,with ,,others1 ,,am ,,called ,,as ,a ,,witness--,,chagrin ,,of ,,prosecuting ,,attorney--,,eloquence ,,of ,,joseph',s ,,lawyers--,,the ,,constable ,,begs ,,joseph',s ,,forgiveness ,,for ,,his ,,cruel ,,conduct--,,he ,,delivers ,,the ,,prophet ,,from ,,the ,,hands ,,of ,,the ,,mob--,,the ,,acquital--,,at ,,my ,,house ,,our ,,leaders ,,are ,,again ,,persecuted--,,their ,,escape--,,names ,,of ,,our ,,leading ,,opponents4 ,the constable who served this second warrant upon ,joseph had no sooner arrested him1 than he began to abuse him2 and so heartless was he1 that1 although ,joseph had been kept all day in court without anything to eat since the morning1 he hurried him off to ,broome county1 a distance of about fifteen miles1 before allowing him to eat4 ,the constable took him to a tavern1 where were gathered a number of men1 who used every means to abuse1 ridicule1 and insult him4 ,they spit upon him1 pointed their fingers at him1 saying1 ,prophesy6 prophesy6 and used their utmost ability to pain and torment his mind2 and thus did they imitate those who crucified the ,savior of mankind1 not knowing what they did4 ,the tavern was but a short distance from ,joseph's own house2 he wished to spend the night with his wife1 offering to give any bail desired1 for his appearance2 but this was denied him4 ,he applied for something to eat4 ,the constable ordered him some crusts of bread and some water1 which was the only fare he received that night4 ,at length he retired to bed2 the constable made him lie next to the wall1 he then laid himself down1 threw his arms around ,joseph1 as if fearing that he intended to escape2 and in this not very agreeable manner was ,joseph compelled to spend the night4 ,next day he was brought before the magistrate's court of ,colesville1 ,broome county1 and placed on trial4 ,his friends and lawyers were again at his side1 and his former persecutors were arrayed against him with the rage and fury of demons visible upon their countenances1 and manifested in their actions4 ,many witnesses were again examined1 some of whom swore to the most palpable falsehoods1 just as those had done who appeared against him the previous day4 ,but they contradicted themselves so plainly that the court would not admit their testimony4 ,others were called who showed by their zeal that they were willing to prove anything against him1 but all they could do was to tell some things they had heard somebody else say about him4 ,they proceeded for a considerable time in this frivolous and vexatious manner1 when finally ,i was called upon1 and examined by ,lawyer ,seymour1 who had been sent for specially for this occasion4 ,one lawyer1 ,burch1 was also retained on the prosecution1 but ,mr4 ,seymour seemed to be a more zealous ,presbyterian1 and seemed more anxious and determined that the people should not be deluded by any one professing godliness and not denying the power thereof4 ,as soon as ,i had been sworn1 ,mr4 ,seymour proceeded to interrogate me as follows3 ,question4--,did the prisoner1 ,joseph ,smith1 ,jun41 cast the devil out of you8 ,answer4--,no1 sir4 ,q4--,why1 have you not had the devil cast out of you8 ,a4--,yes1 sir4 ,q4--,and had not ,joseph ,smith some hand in it being done8 ,a4--,yes1 sir4 ,q4--,and did he not cast him out of you8 ,a4--,no1 sir1 it was done by the power of ,god1 and ,joseph ,smith was the instrument in the hands of ,god on this occasion4 ,he commanded him to come out of me in the name of ,jesus ,christ4 ,q4--,and are you sure it was the devil8 ,a4--,yes1 sir4 ,q4--,did you see him after he was cast out of you8 ,a4--,yes1 sir1 ,i saw him4 ,q4--,pray1 what did he look like8 7,here one of the lawyers on the part of the defense told me ,i need not answer that question74 ,i replied3 ,i believe1 ,i need not answer you that question1 but ,i will do it if ,i am allowed to ask you one1 and you can answer it4 ,do you1 ,mr4 ,seymour1 understand the things of the ,spirit8 ,no1 answered ,mr4 ,seymour1 ,i do not pretend to such big things4 ,well1 then1 ,i replied1 it will be of no use for me to tell you what the devil looked like1 for it was a spiritual sight and spiritually discerned1 and1 of course1 you would not understand it were ,i to tell you of it4 ,the lawyer dropped his head1 while the loud laugh of the audience proclaimed his discomfiture4 ,mr4 ,seymour now addressed the court and in a long and violent harrangue endeavored to blacken the character of ,joseph1 and bring him in guilty of the charges preferred against him4 ,messrs4 ,davidson and ,reed followed on ,joseph's behalf4 ,they held forth in true colors the nature of the prosecution1 the malignity of intention1 and the apparent disposition of the prosecution to persecute their client1 rather than to do him justice4 ,they took up the different arguments that had been brought forward by the lawyers for the prosecution1 and having shown their utter futility and misapplication1 they proceeded to scrutinize the evidence which had been adduced1 and each in his turn thanked ,god that he had been engaged in so good a cause1 as that of defending a man1 whose character stood so well the test of such a strict investigation4 ,in fact1 these men1 although not regular lawyers1 were1 upon this occasion1 able to put to silence their opponents1 and convince the court that ,joseph ,smith1 ,jun41 was innocent4 ,they spoke like men inspired of ,god2 while those who were arrayed against ,joseph1 trembled under the sound of their voices1 and shook before them as criminals before the bar of justice4 ,disappointment and shame were depicted on the faces of the assembled multitude1 who now began to learn that nothing could be sustained against ,joseph4 ,the constable1 who had arrested ,joseph1 and treated him in so cruel and heartless a manner1 came forward and apologized and asked his forgiveness for the ill-treatment he had given him1 so much was this man changed that he told ,joseph the mob had resolved1 if the court acquitted him1 that they would take him1 tar and feather him1 and ride him on a rail2 and further1 that if ,joseph wished1 he would lead him out another way1 so that he could escape in safety4 ,after all the efforts of the people and court to sustain the charges brought against ,joseph proving an entire failure1 he was discharged and succeeded in making good his escape from the mob through the instrumentality of his new friend1 the constable4 ,it was truly a source of great joy to us to know that ,joseph was once more out of the hands of his persecutors4 ,after a few days the prophet1 accompanied by ,oliver ,cowdery1 came to my house1 intending to confirm those who had been baptized4 ,these servants of ,god had scarcely arrived when the mob began to collect1 and so violent were they1 that it was thought best for ,joseph and ,oliver to make their escape lest they should suffer at the hands of our enemies4 ,they left without taking any refreshment1 the mob closely pursuing them1 and it was ofttimes as much as ,joseph and ,oliver could do to escape them4 ,however1 by traveling all night1 excepting a short time when they were forced to lie down and rest themselves under a tree1 alternately watching and sleeping1 they managed to get beyond the reach of their pursuers4 ,thus were they persecuted because of their religious faith1 in a country1 whose constitution guarantees to every man the right of worshiping ,god according to the dictates of his own conscience2 and by men1 too1 who were professors of religion1 and zealous to shield themselves under the broad folds of our glorious constitution1 though they could so wantonly deny it to others4 ,i will here name a few of the most forward instigators of this unhallowed persecution4 ,cyrus ,mc,master1 a ,presbyterian of high standing in his church4 ,he at one time told ,joseph personally that he considered him guilty1 without judge or jury4 ,the celebrated ,dr4 ,boyington was another1 also a ,presbyterian4 ,and a young man by the name of ,benton1 of the same religious faith1 swore out the first warrant against ,joseph4 ,i will say1 however1 that amid all our trials1 that the ,god who delivered ,daniel and the three ,hebrew children1 and preserved them upon the earth in spite of all their persecutors1 preserved the ,prophet ,joseph from suffering death1 at the hands of those who were his sworn enemies1 and who did all in their power1 both in private and public1 to destroy him4 ,the ,lord who well knew our weak state1 blessed us1 by giving us ,his ,holy ,spirit to comfort our hearts1 so that our faith in the restoration of ,his gospel to man on the earth1 through the instrumentality of ,joseph ,smith1 ,jun41 remained firm and unshaken4 ,,chapter ,v4 ,i ,,visit ,,joseph ,,at ,,harmony--,,revelation ,,concerning ,,the ,,sacrament--,,persecutions ,,at ,,harmony--,,the ,,brethren ,,visit ,,me--,,god ,,blinds ,,the ,,eyes ,,of ,,their ,,enemies--,,the ,,prophet ,,moves ,,to ,,fayette--,,false ,,revelation--,,bogus ,,stone--,,false ,,doctrine ,,overcome--,,hyrum ,,smith ,,visits ,,me--,i ,,labor ,,in ,,the ,,ministry ,,with ,,him--,,my ,,aunt',s ,,affliction--,,remarkable ,,manifestation ,,of ,,god',s ,,power4 ,in the beginning of ,august ,i1 in company with my wife1 went to make a visit to ,brother ,joseph ,smith1 ,jun41 who then resided at ,harmony1 ,penn4 ,we found him and his wife well1 and in good spirits4 ,we had a happy meeting4 ,it truly gave me joy to again behold his face4 ,as neither ,emma1 the wife of ,joseph ,smith1 nor my wife had been confirmed1 we concluded to attend to that holy ordinance at this time1 and also to partake of the sacrament1 before we should leave for home4 ,in order to prepare for this1 ,brother ,joseph set out to procure some wine for the occasion1 but he had gone only a short distance1 when he was met by a heavenly messenger1 and received the first four verses of the revelation given on page #ach1 of the ,doctrine and ,covenants 7new edition71 the remainder being given in the ,september following at1 ,fayette1 ,new ,york4 ,in obedience to this revelation we prepared some wine of our own make1 and held our meeting1 consisting of only five persons namely1 ,joseph ,smith and wife1 ,john ,whitmer1 and myself and wife4 ,we partook of the sacrament1 after which we confirmed the two sisters into the ,church1 and spent the evening in a glorious manner4 ,the ,spirit of the ,lord was poured out upon us4 ,we praised the ,god of ,israel and rejoiced exceedingly4 ,about this time the spirit of persecution began to manifest itself against us in the neighborhood where ,joseph lived1 which was commenced by a man of the ,methodist persuasion who professed to be a minister of ,god4 ,and so crafty was he1 that he succeeded in influencing ,mr4 ,hale1 father-in-law to ,joseph1 so that he would no longer give him protection1 although he had promised to do so4 ,brother ,joseph intended visiting the ,saints at ,colesville on ,saturday the #bast of ,august1 and on my return1 arrangements were made for the brethren and sisters to meet on that day1 if possible1 without letting our enemies know anything about it4 ,but ,brother ,joseph was prevented from keeping his engagement on this occasion1 but wrote a letter in which he explained the cause of his not coming3 the conveyance in which he intended to make the journey did not arrive from the west2 and the distance was too great to walk4 ,he exhorted the ,saints1 in a very excellent letter to remain faithful and true to ,god1 and prophesied that the wrath of ,god should soon overtake their wicked persecutors4 ,on the #bith1 however1 ,brothers ,joseph and ,hyrum ,smith1 and ,john and ,david ,whitmer came to fill the before-mentioned appointment to hold meeting and to confirm those who had been baptized in ,june previous4 ,as they well knew the hostilities of our enemies in their quarter1 and also knowing it was their duty to visit us1 they called upon our ,heavenly ,father in mighty prayer that ,he would grant them an opportunity of meeting with us2 that ,he would blind the eyes of their enemies that they might not see1 and that on this occasion they might return unmolested4 ,their prayers were not in vain4 ,a little distance from my house they encountered a large company of men at work upon the public road1 among whom were found some of our most bitter enemies who looked earnestly at the brethren but not knowing them1 the brethren passed on unmolested4 ,that evening the ,saints assembled together and were confirmed1 and partook of the sacrament4 ,we had a happy meeting1 having much reason to rejoice in the ,god of our salvation1 and sing hosannas to ,his ,holy name4 ,next morning the brethren set out on their return home1 and although their enemies had offered a reward to any one who would give information of their arrival at our place1 they got clear out of the neighborhood1 without the least annoyance1 and arrived home in safety4 ,it was not long1 however1 after the brethren had left us1 when the mob began to collect together and threatened and abused us in the most shameful and disgusting manner during the remainder of the day4 ,soon after this ,i took my team and wagon to ,harmony to move ,joseph and his family to ,fayette1 ,new ,york4 ,mr4 ,whitmer having heard of the persecutions which had been raised against ,joseph in ,harmony1 had invited the prophet to go and live with him4 ,about the last of ,august1 ,joseph arrived at ,fayette amid the joy and congratulations of friends and brethren4 ,our business affairs did not suffer materially although we had met with so much opposition and persecution1 and we were still able to live and aid the work of ,god4 ,after arranging my affairs at home1 ,i again set out for ,fayette1 to attend our second conference1 which had been appointed to be held at ,father ,whitmer's1 where ,joseph then resided4 ,on my arrival ,i found ,brother ,joseph in great distress of mind on account of ,hyrum ,page1 who had managed to get up some dissension of feeling among the brethren by giving revelations concerning the government of the ,church and other matters1 which he claimed to nave received through the medium of a stone he possessed4 ,he had quite a roll of papers full of these revelations1 and many in the ,church were led astray by them4 ,even ,oliver ,cowdery and the ,whitmer family had given heed to them1 although they were in contradiction to the ,new ,testament and the revelations of these last days4 ,here was a chance for ,satan to work among the little flock1 and he sought by this means to accomplish what persecution failed to do4 ,joseph was perplexed and scarcely knew how to meet this new exigency4 ,that night ,i occupied the same room that he did and the greater part of the night was spent in prayer and supplication4 ,after much labor with these brethren they were convinced of their error1 and confessed the same1 renouncing the revelations as not being of ,god1 but acknowledged that ,satan had conspired to overthrow their belief in the true plan of salvation4 ,in consequence of these things ,joseph enquired of the ,lord before conference commenced and received the revelation published on page #adj of the ,doctrine and ,covenants1 wherein ,god explicitly states ,his mind and will concerning the receiving of revelation4 ,conference having assembled1 the first thing done was to consider the subject of the stone in connection with ,hyrum ,page1 and after considerable investigation and discussion1 ,brother ,page and all the members of the ,church present renounced the stone1 and the revelations connected with it1 much to our joy and satisfaction4 ,the sacrament was then administered1 a number were confirmed1 many were ordained1 and a great variety of ,church business was transacted4 ,during this time we had much of the power of ,god manifested among us and it was wonderful to witness the wisdom that ,joseph displayed on this occasion1 for truly ,god gave unto him great wisdom and power1 and it seems to me1 even now1 that none who saw him administer righteousness under such trying circumstances1 could doubt that the ,lord was with him1 as he acted--not with the wisdom of man1 but with the wisdom of ,god4 ,the ,holy ,ghost came upon us and filled our hearts with unspeakable joy4 ,before this memorable conference closed three other revelations besides the one already mentioned were received from ,god by our prophet1 and we were made to rejoice exceedingly in ,his goodness4 ,soon after this conference ,brother ,hyrum ,smith1 wife and family came to ,colesville1 to live with me1 but most of his time1 as also that of my own1 was spent in the villages around1 preaching the gospel wherever we could find any who would listen to us1 either in public or private4 ,a few believed and were baptized1 among whom was ,emer ,harris1 brother to ,martin ,harris1 who proved to be a useful laborer in the vineyard4 ,many raged and persecuted us1 doing all in their power to stop the progress of the work4 ,but we moved steadily ahead1 putting our trust in the ,lord ,god of heaven4 ,on the #adth of ,october1 ,brother ,hyrum ,smith and ,i held a meeting at my uncle ,hezekiah ,peek's4 ,brother ,hyrum had great liberty of speech1 and the ,spirit of the ,lord was poured out upon us in a miraculous manner4 ,there was much good instruction and exhortation given1 such as was calculated to encourage and strengthen the ,saints in this their infantile state4 ,at this meeting1 four persons came forward and manifested their desire to forsake all1 serve their ,god in humility1 and obey the requirements of the gospel4 ,after the close of the meeting1 ,brother ,hyrum and myself intended going to spend the night with one of the brethren who lived a short distance from my uncle's1 but as we were ready to start1 the ,spirit whispered to me that ,i should tarry there at my uncle's all night4 ,i did so1 and retired to bed1 where ,i rested till midnight when my uncle came to my room and desired me to get up1 saying he feared his wife was about to die4 ,this surprised me1 as she was quite well when ,i went to bed4 ,i dressed myself1 and having asked my ,heavenly ,father to give me wisdom1 and power to rebuke the destroyer from the habitation1 ,i went to the room where my aunt lay4 ,she was in a most fearful condition2 her eyes were closed1 and she appeared to be in the last agonies of death4 ,presently she opened her eyes and bade her husband and children farewell1 telling them she must die for the redemption of this generation1 as ,jesus ,christ had died for the generation in ,his day4 ,her whole frame shook1 and she appeared to be racked with the most exquisite pain and torment2 her hands and feet were cold1 and the blood settled in her fingers2 while her husband and children stood weeping around her bed4 ,this was a scene new to me1 and ,i felt she was suffering under the power of ,satan--that was the same spirit that had bound and over-powered me at the time ,joseph cast him out4 ,i now cried unto the ,lord for strength and wisdom that we might prevail over this wicked and delusive power4 ,just at this time my uncle cried aloud to me1 saying3 ,o1 ,brother ,newel1 cannot something be done8 ,i felt the ,holy ,spirit of the ,lord rest upon me as he said this1 and ,i immediately stepped forward1 took her by the hand1 and commanded ,satan1 in the name of the ,lord ,jesus ,christ1 to depart4 ,i told my aunt she would not die1 but that she should live to see her children grown up2 that ,satan had deceived her1 and put a lying spirit in her mouth2 that ,christ had made the only and last atonement for all who would believe on ,his name2 and that there should be no more shedding of blood for sin4 ,she believed and stretched forth her hand1 and cried unto me1 and ,satan departed from her4 ,after laboring for some time in this vicinity1 we returned to my home1 found our wives well and in the enjoyment of the ,spirit of the ,lord4 ,we also found ,brother ,orson ,pratt awaiting us1 who had been called by the prophet to labor with us in the ministry4 ,,chapter ,,vi4 ,,sidney ,,rigdon',s ,,conversion--,,third ,,conference ,,of ,,the ,,church--,,the ,,saints ,,commence ,,to ,,gather--,,an ,,accident--,,my ,,aunt',s ,,dream--,,its ,,fulfillment--,,missouri ,,chosen ,,for ,a ,,gathering ,,place--,,my ,,mother',s ,,wish--,,reflections ,,on ,,the ,,past ,,and ,,present--,,temple ,,site ,,located--,,labors ,,commence--,,the ,,first ,,death4 ,,brother ,,oliver ,,cowdery had been called by revelation to go with ,parley ,p4 ,pratt1 ,ziba ,peterson and ,peter ,whitmer1 ,jun41 to preach to the ,lamanites4 ,parley ,p4 ,pratt had belonged to the same church as ,sidney ,rigdon1 and had been sent by his sect on some business to ,new ,york state1 and while there he heard1 and embraced the gospel1 was ordained an ,elder and immediately sent on this mission4 ,having been acquainted with ,sidney ,rigdon1 he called on him1 presented the ,book of ,mormon to him as a revelation from ,god1 and before these brethren moved on to the fulfillment of their mission1 ,sidney ,rigdon1 with a large number of the members of his church1 was baptized4 ,the success of these brethren was immense4 ,they preached in all the towns and villages on their road1 bearing a faithful testimony wherever they could be heard4 ,in ,december1 ,sidney ,rigdon visited ,joseph ,smith1 ,jun41 to inquire of the ,lord what he should do4 ,this was a very pleasant meeting1 and1 by the voice of revelation1 these brethren were called to labor together even from their first acquaintance4 ,a new year dawned upon us1 with everything around us bright and cheerful1 and the prospects a head such as to give us joy4 ,in the midst of persecution we rejoiced1 knowing that our ,god was with us1 and ,his great work would roll on1 and man could not stop its progress4 ,on the #bnd of ,january1 #ahca1 the third conference of the ,church assembled4 ,many of the ,saints came together from the region around1 and much good instruction was given4 ,the ,saints manifested unshaken confidence in the great work which they were engaged1 and all rejoiced under the blessings of the gospel4 ,considerable business was transacted for the ,church4 ,it was at this conference that we were instructed as a people1 to begin the gathering of ,israel1 and a revelation was given to the prophet on this subject4 ,having returned home from conference1 in obedience to the commandment which had been given1 ,i1 together with the ,colesville ,branch1 began to make preparations to go to ,ohio4 ,towards the latter part of ,january ,brother ,joseph ,smith and wife1 ,sidney ,rigdon and ,edward ,partridge started for ,kirtland1 ,ohio4 ,as might be expected1 we were obliged to make great sacrifices of our property4 ,the most of my time was occupied in visiting the brethren1 and helping to arrange their affairs1 so that we might travel together in one company4 ,having made the best arrangements we could for the journey1 we bade adieu to all we held dear on this earth and in the early part of ,april started for our destination4 ,we had proceeded but a few days on our journey1 when ,i was subpoenaed as a witness1 and had to go to ,colesville4 ,on arriving there it was very evident that this plan had been adopted by our enemies to add a little more to the persecutions already heaped upon us4 ,the whole company declined traveling until ,i should return4 ,soon after ,i left1 my aunt1 ,electa ,peek1 fell and broke her shoulder in a most shocking manner2 a surgeon was called to relieve her sufferings1 which were very great4 ,my aunt dreamed that ,i returned and laid my hands upon her1 prayed for her1 and she was made whole1 and pursued her journey with the company4 ,she related this dream to the surgeon who replied1 ,if you are able to travel in many weeks it will be a miracle1 and ,i will be a ,mormon too4 ,i arrived at the place1 where the company had stopped1 late in the evening2 but1 on learning of the accident1 ,i went to see my aunt1 and immediately on my entering the room she said1 ,o1 ,brother ,newel1 if you will lay your hands upon me1 ,i shall be well and able to go on the journey with you4 ,i stepped up to the bed1 and1 in the name of the ,lord ,jesus ,christ1 rebuked the pain with which she was suffering1 and commanded her to be made whole2 and it was done2 for the next morning she arose1 dressed herself1 and pursued the journey with us4 ,we arrived at ,buffalo without any further trouble1 where we were to take passage on board a sloop for ,fairport1 ,ohio4 ,but the wind blew from the lake and filled the harbor with ice1 so that we were detained nearly two weeks4 ,when we set sail on the lake1 the winds continued boisterous1 and the vessel was tossed about in such a manner that nearly all the company were sea sick1 which made it rather a disagreeable voyage4 ,we arrived safely1 however1 at our destination4 ,on our arrival it was advised that the ,colesville branch remain together1 and go to a neighboring town called ,thompson1 as a man by the name of ,copely had a considerable tract of land there which he offered to let the ,saints occupy4 ,consequently a contract was agreed upon1 and we commenced work in good faith4 ,but in a short time ,copely broke the engagement1 and ,i went to ,kirtland to see ,brother ,joseph1 and to attend conference1 which had been appointed to be held on the #fth of ,june1 #ahca4 ,conference convened4 ,the ,elders1 from various parts of the country where they had been laboring1 came in1 and the power of the ,lord was displayed in our midst4 ,a number were ordained to the ,melchizedek ,priesthood1 and the hearts of the ,saints rejoiced in the rich blessings bestowed upon them4 ,we now understood that this was not the land of our inheritance--the land of promise1 for it was made known in a revelation1 that ,missouri was the place chosen for the gathering of the ,church1 and several were called to lead the way to that state4 ,a revelation was also given concerning the gathering1 on the receipt of which we1 who constituted the ,colesville branch1 immediately set to preparing for our journey1 and on the third day of ,june1 ,i took passage with the ,colesville company at ,wellsville1 ,ohio1 and arrived at ,st4 ,louis1 ,mo41 on the #acth4 ,on the #ahth we took passage on the steamer ,chieftain for ,independence4 ,my mother's health was very poor and had been for a considerable time1 yet she would not consent to stop traveling2 her only1 or her greatest desire1 was to set her feet upon the land of ,zion1 and to have her body interred in that land4 ,i went on shore and bought lumber to make a coffin in case she should die before we arrived at our place of destination--so fast did she fail4 ,but the ,lord gave her the desire of her heart1 and she lived to stand upon that land2 where we arrived on the #beth of ,june4 ,this was the first branch of the ,church which had emigrated to the land of ,zion4 ,i found it required all the wisdom ,i possessed to lead the company through so long a journey in the midst of their enemies1 yet so great were the mercies and blessings of ,god to us1 that not one of us was harmed4 ,brothers ,joseph ,smith1 ,jun41 ,sidney ,rigdon1 ,martin ,harris1 ,edward ,partridge1 ,w4 ,w4 ,phelps1 ,joseph ,coe1 and ,a4 ,s4 ,gilbert and wife1 had started for ,missouri on the #aith of ,june1 and arrived at ,independence about the middle of ,july4 ,we were glad to find these brethren in good health and spirits1 and it was indeed a joy to meet them once more4 ,but our feelings can be better imagined than described1 when we1 found ourselves upon the ,western frontiers4 ,the country itself presented a pleasant aspect with its rich forests bordering its beautiful streams1 and its deep rolling prairies spreading far and wide1 inviting the hand of industry to establish for itself homes upon its broad bosom4 ,and this was the place1 where the ,lord had promised to reveal unto us where be built up1 established--where the ,new ,jerusalem should ,zion should be and our hearts went forth unto the ,lord desiring the fulfillment1 that we might know where to bestow our labors profit-ably4 ,we had not long to wait1 for during the month the ,lord gave a revelation to ,brother ,joseph1 designating the spot4 ,being no longer at a loss to know where the exact spot for the building of the temple and the city of ,zion was1 we immediately prepared for our labors4 ,on the #bnd day of ,august1 ,brother ,joseph ,smith1 ,jun41 the prophet of ,god1 assisted the ,colesville branch to lay the first log as a foundation for ,zion in ,kaw township1 twelve miles west of ,independence4 ,the log was carried by twelve men1 in honor of the twelve tribes of ,israel4 ,at the same time1 through prayer1 ,sidney ,rigdon consecrated and dedicated the land of ,zion for the gathering of the ,saints4 ,this was truly a season of joy and rejoicing to all the ,saints1 who took part in1 or witnessed the proceedings4 ,on the #crd of ,august the spot for the temple1 a little west of ,independence1 was dedicated in the presence of ,joseph ,smith1 ,jun41 ,oliver ,cowdery1 ,sidney ,rigdon1 ,edward ,partridge1 ,martin ,harris1 ,joseph ,coe1 and myself4 ,on the #dth1 the first conference held in the land of ,zion1 convened at the house of ,brother ,joshua ,lewis1 in ,kaw township4 ,the ,colesville branch was present1 and much good instruction was given1 and we felt to give thanks to that ,god who had brought us out of the land of our nativity and planted us in the land of ,zion4 ,on the #fth1 my mother died4 ,she quietly fell asleep rejoicing in the new and everlasting gospel1 and praising ,god that she had lived to see the land of ,zion and that her body would rest in peace1 after all the suffering she had endured from the persecutions of the wicked4 ,on the #gth1 ,brother ,joseph attended the funeral1 and addressed us in an impressive and consoling manner4 ,this was the first death that had occurred in this ,church in this land4 ,on the #ith1 in company with several ,elders1 ,brother ,joseph ,smith ,jun41 left ,independence to return to ,kirtland4 ,they went down the river in canoes4 ,,chapter ,,vii4 ,,my ,,appointment--,a ,,visit ,,from ,,joseph--,,according ,,to ,,joseph',s ,,promise1 ,,my ,,wife ,,bears ,,me ,a ,,son--,,new ,,revelations--,,my ,,aunt ,,overcome ,,by ,,the ,,evil ,,one--,,she ,,misleads ,,many--,,her ,,anguish ,,and ,,restoration4 ,the time now passed in our common labors1 in building houses1 plowing1 sowing grain1 and all other labors necessary to build up a new country4 ,we were not accustomed to a frontier life1 so things around us seemed new and strange and the work we had to do was of a different nature to that which had been done in the ,east4 ,yet we took hold with cheerful hearts1 and a determination to do our best1 and with all diligence went to work to secure food and prepare for the coming winter4 ,i had been appointed to preside over the ,colesville branch in this place4 ,we passed the ,winter in a tolerably comfortable manner4 ,our meetings were well attended1 the hearts of the ,saints were united1 and peace and happiness abounded4 ,on the #bdth of ,april1 #ahcb1 ,brother ,joseph ,smith visited us at ,independence1 and on the #bfth1 called a general council of the ,church4 ,business of much importance was transacted1 among which was the public acknowledgement by the ,church of ,joseph's true position as ,president of the ,high ,priesthood4 ,he had been ordained to that position in the previous ,january and now the right hand of fellowship was given him by the ,church in the capacity of its ,bishop4 ,the ,spirit and power of ,god were manifested in our midst1 and those who had difficulties1 settled them1 so that the blessings of the gospel flowed without restraint4 ,the brethren were full of good instructions1 and we felt ourselves renewed in spirit4 ,brother ,joseph did not forget his old friends of the ,colesville branch1 and he came the twelve miles to visit us2 we welcomed him heartily and were greatly rejoiced to see his face once more1 and to shake him by the hand4 ,he remained with us two days1 and returned on the #cjth to ,independence1 where he again sat in council with the brethren4 ,arrangements were made for printing the book of ,doctrine and ,covenants1 and the ,hymn ,book1 also for establishing a store by which the ,saints could be supplied with whatever they needed1 through the channels of the ,church4 ,it was also arranged that the ,saints in ,ohio should be supplied with stores in a similar manner4 ,this gave great satisfaction to the brethren generally4 ,on the #adth of ,october1 my wife bore me a son4 ,she had never before given birth to a living child1 and the doctors who had attended her before1 had said it was impossible that she should4 ,but ,brother ,joseph blessed her and said she should have the desire of her heart4 ,she never doubted the prophet's words1 and as soon as her son was born she desired him to be called ,samuel1 for she said she had asked him from the ,lord4 ,my wife soon recovered from her sickness4 ,brother ,joseph from time to time sent copies of revelations to me for the benefit of the branch over which ,i presided in common with all the ,saints in ,zion4 ,on reading one of these revelations to the branch1 my aunt of whom mention has been made1 arose and contradicted the revelation1 saying it must be taken in a spiritual light4 ,she went to such a length that ,i felt constrained to rebuke her by the authority of the ,priesthood4 ,at this she was angry1 and from that time sought to influence all who would listen to her4 ,the result was a division of feeling in the branch1 and her husband partook of her spirit until he became so enthusiastic1 that he went from branch to branch crying1 hosanna1 glory to ,god6 ,zion is redeemed6 and blessed is he that bringeth good tidings to the people6 ,sister ,peck at length began to feel the weight of what she had done1 but she could not recall it4 ,she seemed racked with great torment1 her mind found no rest1 until a burning fever brought her to a sick bed4 ,she sent for several of the ,elders to administer to her1 but found no relief4 ,at last she sent for ,p4 ,p4 ,pratt1 ,lyman ,wight and myself1 we laid our hands upon her and administered to her1 after which she looked up in despair and said she hoped ,i would deliver her from the awful state she was in4 ,her whole frame was racked with intense anguish while her mind seemed almost in despair4 ,brother ,parley said to me3 ,brother ,newel1 you must do something for her4 ,my soul was drawn out in pity for her1 yet ,i knew not what to do4 ,i felt impressed to call the branch together that evening4 ,when the meeting had been opened as usual1 ,i arose1 not knowing what to do or what to say4 ,after requesting the prayers and united faith of all present1 the ,spirit of the ,lord came upon me1 so that ,i was able to make plain the cause of ,sister ,peck's illness--that she had risen up in opposition to the ,priesthood which had been placed over that branch of the ,church1 and contradicted the revelations of ,god1 and that by the sympathies shown her1 a division of feeling had gained advantage over them1 until ,sister ,peck had fallen completely under the power of ,satan1 and could not extricate herself4 ,i told the brethren and sisters1 if they would repent of what they had done1 and renew their covenants one with another and with the ,lord1 and uphold the authorities placed over them1 and also the revelations which the ,lord had given unto us1 it would be all right with ,sister ,peck1 for this would break the bands of ,satan and make us free4 ,i had no sooner closed my remarks than with one united voice1 all came forward and agreed to do so4 ,i then went to ,sister ,peck1 and in the name of ,jesus ,christ1 and by virtue of the ,holy ,priesthood1 commanded the evil powers to depart from her1 and blessed her with peace and strength1 both of body and mind4 ,i then dismissed the meeting and told the family to go to bed1 and rest as usual1 and all would be well4 ,early the next morning ,i called to see her1 she stretched out her hand as soon as she saw me1 and said1 ,o1 ,brother ,newel1 forgive me6 ,i did not believe one word you said last night1 but when ,i awoke this morning ,i found ,i was not in hell4 ,her rejoicings were very great1 and union again prevailed with us1 and we all felt we had learned a lesson that would be of lasting benefit to us4 ,on the #fth of ,april1 #ahcc1 the ,church met together at the ferry on ,big ,blue river to celebrate the ,church's birthday4 ,this was the first celebration of the kind and the ,saints felt their privilege and enjoyed themselves in the worship of their ,heavenly ,father1 and praised ,his holy name4 ,the brethren returned to their homes renewed in spirit1 and rejoicing in heart4 ,such peace and happiness were not however1 to continue long without an interruption from our enemies1 for when the ,saints rejoice1 the devil is mad and his children and servants partake of his spirit4 ,this was proven in this instance1 for before this month had closed1 a most dreadful and diabolical spirit of persecution manifested itself all around us4 ,an immense mob collected together expressing a determination to drive us from our homes for they would not allow the ,mormons to live in their midst4 ,on hearing this news1 a number of the brethren met together and prayed to ,god to overrule the wicked designs of the mob meeting1 that they might not have power to agree upon their plans1 or to execute their wicked threats4 ,they broke up in a regular row1 and for time all was well4 ,as might be expected1 this caused considerable uneasiness among us1 and it required great wisdom and care on our part to keep the ,saints quiet1 and to keep them at their labors4 ,in the meantime the ,lord had given a commandment to ,zion to build a temple to ,his holy name4 ,,chapter ,,viii4 ,,mr4 ,,pixley',s ,,bitterness--,,our ,,enemies ,,make ,,plans ,,for ,,our ,,overthrow--,,their ,,resolutions--,,our ,,printing ,,office ,,destroyed--,,brethren ,,tarred ,,and ,,feathered--,,our ,,appeal ,,to ,,the ,,governor--,,his ,,advice--,,saints ,,driven--,,unexpected ,,engagement--,,several ,,killed ,,and ,,wounded4 ,while peaceful pursuits characterized the doings of the ,saints1 the mobocratic spirit of our enemies was but slumbering for a short time1 and the uneasy1 restless spirit of the people would occasionally manifest itself1 until1 at last1 in ,july it again burst forth4 ,the sectarian priests and missionaries around us were among the first to come out both secretly and openly against us4 ,among the more active of these was a ,mr4 ,pixley1 who did not content himself in slandering us to the people of ,jackson co41 but also wrote to eastern papers1 telling horrible lies about us1 with the evident intention of rousing a spirit of hatred against us4 ,his talk was of the bitterest kind1 his speeches perfectly inflammatory1 and he appeared to have an influence among the people1 to carry them with him in his hellish designs4 ,nor did he confine his actions to the white settlers1 but tried to stir up the ,indians against us1 and used every means in his power to accomplish his purposes4 ,his efforts were seconded by such men as ,reverends ,mc,coy1 ,fitzhugh1 ,bogard1 ,kavanaugh1 ,lovelady1 ,likens1 ,hunter and others2 and by their perseverance1 at last the public mind became so excited1 that on the #bjth of ,july a meeting was called and largely attended by not only the rabble of the county1 but also by men holding official positions4 ,a full account of this proceeding was published1 and it was stated among other imaginary evils that we were poor1 and that the members of our ,church who gathered from various places did not possess much of this world's goods1 which was1 apparently1 a crime in their estimation4 ,we were also accused of believing in the gifts and blessings of the ancient gospel4 ,other things were enumerated1 when it was resolved that no ,mormon shall in future move and settle in this county2 that those now here shall give a definite pledge of their intention to move out of the county within a reasonable time2 that the editor of the ,star be required forthwith to close his office and discontinue the business of printing in this county2 that the ,mormon leaders here are required to use their influence to prevent any further emigration of their distant brethren to this county1 and to counsel and advise their brethren here to comply with the above requisitions1 and that those who fail to do so1 be referred to those of their brethren who have the gift of divination and of unknown tongues to inform them of the lot that awaits them4 ,these resolutions were read1 considered and unanimously adopted4 ,it was thereupon agreed that a committee of twelve be appointed forthwith to wait on the ,mormon leaders1 and see that the foregoing requisitions be strictly complied with by them2 and upon their refusal1 that said committee do1 as the organ of this county1 inform them that it is our unwavering purpose and fixed determination1 after the fullest consideration of all consequences and responsibilities under which we act1 to use such means as shall endure their full and complete adoption1 and that said committee1 so far as may be within their power1 report to this present meeting4 ,the following gentlemen were named as said committee3 ,robert ,johnson1 ,james ,campbell1 ,col4 ,mores ,wilson1 ,joel ,f4 ,chiles1 ,hon4 ,richard ,fristoe1 ,abner ,t4 ,staples1 ,gad ,johnson1 ,lewis ,franklin1 ,russel ,hicks1 ,esq41 ,col4 ,s4 ,d4 ,lucas1 ,thomas ,wilson and ,james ,m4 ,hunter1 to whom was added ,col4 ,r4 ,simpson1 chairman4 ,after an adjournment of two hours1 the meeting again convened1 and the committee of twelve reported that they had called on ,mr4 ,phelps1 the editor of the ,star1 ,edward ,patridge1 the ,bishop of the sect1 and ,mr4 ,gilbert1 the keeper of the ,lord's storehouse1 and some others1 and that they declined giving any direct answers to the requisitions made of them1 and wished an unreasonable time for consultation1 not only with their brethren here1 but in ,ohio4 ,whereupon it was unanimously resolved by the meeting that the ,star printing office1 should be razed to the ground and the type and press secured4 ,which resolution was1 with the utmost order1 and the least noise and disturbance possible1 forthwith carried into execution1 as also some other steps of a similar tendency2 but no blood was spilled nor any blows inflicted4 ,the meeting then adjourned until the #bcrd instant1 to meet again to know further concerning the determination of the ,mormons4 ,in the meeting of the #bcrd another committee was appointed to wait upon our leaders and learn from them what course they intended to pursue4 ,at the meeting of this committee and our brethren it was stipulated that our people should leave the county before the #ast of ,january following1 and that those who were then on the way to ,zion should only remain sufficiently long to make a selection of another home4 ,in the minutes of their meetings the mob neglected to tell of the outrages inflicted on the persons of ,bishop ,partridge1 ,elder ,charles ,allen1 and others1 the two former of whom they took 7after demolishing the printing office7 to the public square1 and tarred and feathered them1 making at the same time the most horrid threats1 merely because they would not renounce their religion4 ,they have not told of the solemn covenant entered into by the mob1 wherein they pledged their lives1 their bodily power1 fortunes and sacred honors to drive the ,saints from ,jackson ,co4 ,they have not set forth the unholy combination entered into1 to lay waste and destroy the property of the ,saints1 and to drive them forth from their prosperous settlements which were being built up4 ,but all these things are known to ,god and many of the ,saints1 and although the participators fail to record these things1 they are written where it is beyond the power of men to erase them1 and where our enemies will one day hear them read4 ,in the latter part of ,september ,brothers ,hyde and ,gould came to us with counsel and instruction from ,brother ,joseph1 so that they might help us in our unpleasant circumstances4 ,it was decided to petition ,governor ,dunklin for redress and protection1 and ,brothers ,orson ,hyde and ,w4 ,w4 ,phelps were sent to ,jefferson city for that purpose1 bearing a document setting forth our grievances1 and giving details of the shameful proceedings of ,july4 ,the governor received these brethren courteously1 but gave them no answer at the time as the attorney general was absent4 ,he stated that he desired to maintain law and order in the state1 and was willing to do anything in his power to assist in the protection of the ,saints4 ,he subsequently wrote3 ,no citizen1 nor number of citizens1 have a right to take the redress of their grievances1 whether real or imaginary1 into their own hands2 such conduct strikes at the very existence of society1 and subverts the foundation on which it is based4 ,not being willing to persuade myself that any portion of the citizens of the state of ,missouri are so lost to a sense of these truths as to require the exercise of force1 in order to ensure respect for them4 ,after advising with the attorney general1 and exercising my best judgment1 ,i would advise you to make a trial of the efficacy of the laws2 the judge of your circuit is a conservator of the peace4 ,if an affidavit is made before him by any of you1 that your lives are threatened and you believe them in danger1 it would be his duty to have the offenders apprehended and bind them to keep peace4 ,justices of peace in their respective counties have the same authority1 and it is made their duty to exercise it4 ,take1 then1 this course2 obtain a warrant1 let it be placed in the hands of the proper officer1 and the experiment will be tested whether laws can be peaceably executed or not4 ,in the event that they cannot be1 and that fact is officially notified to me1 my duty will require me to take such steps as will enforce a faithful execution of them4 ,this communication comforted the hearts of the brethren1 for they felt they were not entirely left in the hands of the ruthless mob1 but that they would be protected in their rights4 ,they renewed their labors and felt to rejoice before their ,heavenly ,father4 ,in the meantime the brethren in ,independence retained four lawyers from ,clay ,co41 named1 ,wood1 ,reese1 ,doniphan1 and ,atchinson1 with a fee of one thousand dollars4 ,as soon as the mob heard of this they became very much enraged4 ,they disregarded the compact and assembled together vowing vengeance on all the ,mormons1 being determined that we should leave forthwith4 ,from the #cast of ,october until the #dth of ,november1 there was one continual scene of outrages of the most hideous kind4 ,the mob collected in different parts of the county and attacked the ,saints in most of their settlements1 houses were unroofed1 others were pulled down1 leaving women and children1 and even the sick and the dying exposed to the inclemency of the weather4 ,men were caught and whipped or clubbed until they were bruised from head to foot1 and some were left upon the ground for dead4 ,the most horrid threats and imprecations were uttered against us1 and women and children were told1 with cursings1 that unless they left the country immediately they should be killed4 ,the brethren had to get together to protect themselves1 and they went from place to place to assist those who were threatened4 ,in some instances these parties1 when marching to the relief of their brethren1 were intercepted and flagrant outrages committed upon them4 ,things continued in this state until the #dth of ,november1 when the mob were hunting a small party of our brethren1 and breaking down1 and feeding upon our crops1 and otherwise destroying them4 ,while fifty or sixty were thus engaged1 about thirty of the brethren came upon them and a battle ensued4 ,as soon as the mob saw the brethren coming1 some of them called out1 ,fire1 ,g--d d--m ye1 fire6 and several shots were immediately fired into our party1 which were promptly returned1 when the mob fled1 leaving some of their horses in one of the corn fields1 and ,h4 ,l4 ,brazile and ,thomas ,linvill dead on the ground4 ,we also learned that several of their number were wounded4 ,we had two or three wounded4 ,one1 a young man named ,barber1 received a mortal wound2 he was the first man in this dispensation1 who was martyred for the truth's sake4 ,another1 ,philo ,dibble1 was wounded in the abdomen at the first discharge2 he was examined by a surgeon of great experience1 who had served in the ,mohawk war1 and he said he never knew a man to live who was wounded in such a manner4 ,the next day ,i went to see ,brother ,dibble1 and found the house where he lay surrounded by the mob4 ,i managed to get in1 and went to the bed2 two men came and seated themselves at the door2 as ,i looked upon ,brother ,dibble lying there in extreme agony1 ,i drew the bed curtains with one hand and laid the other upon his head1 praying secretly to our heavenly ,father in his behalf4 ,i then left1 as ,i did not wish to put myself into the power of the mob2 and the next day business took me some ten miles from the place1 were ,i met ,brother ,dibble making his escape from the county4 ,he told me that as soon as ,i placed my hand upon his head1 the pain and soreness seemed gradually to move as before a power driving it1 until in a few minutes it left his body4 ,he then discharged about a gallon of putrid matter1 and the balls and pieces of clothing which had passed into his body4 ,my mill was doing business for the people generally1 yet the mob was not disposed to let it escape their fury1 and we were obliged to guard it day and night4 ,on one occasion1 when two or three companies of the mob were in the neighborhood1 they sent two of their number as spies to learn our situation4 ,parley ,p4 ,pratt1 who was on guard at the mill1 on seeing them1 went and accosted them1 when one of the two raised his gun and struck ,brother ,pratt on the head1 cutting a large hole1 but ,brother ,pratt called to his men1 who took the two spies prisoners1 and disarmed them for the night1 but the next morning returned their arms to them1 and let them go without doing them any injury4 ,thus did we leave the result in the hands of the ,almighty4 ,,chapter ,,ix4 ,m',,carty',s ,,case--,,justice ,,denied ,,us--,,the ,,sufferings ,,of ,,the ,,saints--,,the ,,brethren ,,disarmed--,,joseph',s ,,opinion ,,of ,,governor ,,boggs--,,correspondence ,,between ,,the ,,state ,,officials ,,and ,,our ,,people--,,our ,,petition ,,to ,,the ,,governor4 ,the brethren at ,independence did their best to follow the advice given in the governor's letter4 ,they caught one1 ,mc,carty1 while in the act of breaking in the doors of ,gilbert and ,co4's store1 and throwing the contents into the street1 and went to issue a warrant against him2 but ,samuel ,weston ,esq41 would not issue it1 and ,mc,carty was freed4 ,he immediately turned around and sued ,brothers ,gilbert1 ,phelps1 ,mc,lellin and others for assault and false imprisonment and they were sent to jail4 ,several of the brethren then went to ,lexington to see the circuit judge1 while two others called on ,mr4 ,silvers1 who refused to issue a warrant1 for his craven heart feared the mob4 ,this he afterwards acknowledged4 ,the brethren who went to ,lexington were more successful4 ,they obtained a warrant after some delay1 but by the time they reached ,independence it was perfectly useless1 for the whole country was up in arms1 and all the ,saints could do was to protect their wives1 children and themselves from utter extermination4 ,the mob declared that no warrant should be served1 for they would kill the man that dared attempt it2 neither should there be any civil processes at law1 for those who dared commence them should die4 ,on one occasion when the brethren tried to issue a peace warrant1 and the justice of the peace refused1 the governor's letter was read to him when he replied1 ,i don't care a d--m for that4 ,thus were the courts of law closed against us1 and justice descended from her lofty seat to mourn in sackcloth and ashes4 ,but what more could be expected8 for at the head of the mob were found the judges1 lawyers1 justices of peace1 sheriffs and their deputies1 constables1 jail keepers1 and county clerk4 ,every attempt made by the brethren to obtain assistance enraged the mob to a greater degree1 and none could remain in their midst and feel that life was safe4 ,while ,brothers ,gilbert1 ,morely and ,corvill1 were being conducted back to jail by the deputy sheriff after meeting with the brethren and persuading them to leave the county1 a number of the mob overtook them1 and although the deputy sheriff told his name1 and the names of his prisoners and called on them in ,god's name not to fire1 yet two of them raised their guns and fired at ,brother ,gilbert1 the one snapping and the other missing fire4 ,this was caused by the rumor that had reached ,independence concerning the battle4 ,it was said that twenty of the mob had been killed and a number wounded1 the news flew through the county as on the wings of the wind1 and men who were peaceable before1 now rushed into ,independence determined to massacre the ,saints4 ,it was indeed a scene of wild confusion4 ,the next day the fury of the mob was in no way abated and the ,saints saw that their lives could be saved only by flight2 consequently men1 women and children fled from their homes1 some in one direction and some in another4 ,one large party of women and children1 protected only by six men wandered into the prairie south1 and their tracks could be followed by the blood stains on the ground1 the prairie grass had been burnt1 and the sharp stubble lacerated their uncovered feet1 cutting and wounding them in a terrible manner2 thus they wandered about for several days with nothing but the broad canopy of heaven to shelter them4 ,some went to the ,missouri river intending to cross over into ,clay county1 for they had already proven that the people in the adjoining counties were far from being their friends4 ,thus homeless1 and without means of taking much to sustain them did the whole ,church in ,jackson county flee before the mob1 and at night those who went to the river camped in the rain which poured down in torrents2 the frail mother1 the helpless infant1 the sick and the dying1 all alike without the means to shelter themselves from the storm4 ,one man by the name of ,bennett opened his house to a number of women and children who were making their way to the ,missouri4 ,while this was going on1 about one hundred of the brethren had volunteered to go to the protection of their brethren in ,independence4 ,when they had got within one mile of the place they halted and sent in to learn the situation of the mob4 ,they found that ,colonel ,pitcher had put himself at the head of the mob and called them the militia1 expecting by this stratagem to be able to better carry out the hellish plans of our enemies4 ,governor ,boggs1 also gave the mob his influence1 and indeed it was thought he was the grand moving spirit through the whole affair4 ,as the brethren in ,independence were not in the danger that was reported1 ,colonel ,wight thought it best to have his men remain in the woods around during the day4 ,by some means ,colonel ,pitcher heard of this arrangement4 ,he was both terrified and angry4 ,he1 however1 sent to the brethren and demanded their arms1 saying1 that it was intended to disarm both parties2 fifty-one guns1 one sword and one pistol were delivered up to him1 for although the brethren felt to resist the mob to the utmost in the defense of their wives and children1 this demand being made under the color of law1 it was complied with4 ,but no sooner was this known than the mob broke forth from the ranks of the pretended militia and were bolder than ever4 ,knowing that the ,saints were now without arms2 they rode through the country in small bands pillaging houses1 insulting women1 whipping men and threatening two-fold vengeance4 ,in the midst of this terrible excitement several of the leading ,elders offered themselves and their lives1 for their brethren if that would satisfy and let the rest remain in peace4 ,the answer was1 ,no2 but every one must die for himself4 ,i must not omit to mention one act of cruelty1 which1 if possible1 seems to surpass all others4 ,in one of the settlements were four families of very old men1 infirm and very poor4 ,they seemed to think that they would not be molested and so remained behind1 but no sooner did the mob learn of it1 than they went to their houses1 broke their windows and doors1 and hurled great stones into their rooms endangering their lives2 thus were these poor old men1 and their families1 driven before the ruthless mob in midwinter4 ,these men had served in the revolutionary war1 and ,brother ,jones had been one of ,general ,washington's body guard1 but this availed them nothing1 for they were of the hated people4 ,thus were all the ,saints compelled to flee into ,clay ,co41 where the sympathies of the people were extended towards them4 ,the ,colesville branch1 as usual1 kept together and formed a small settlement on the ,missouri bottoms1 building themselves temporary houses2 a few other families settled with us2 and the ,saints all around built themselves places of shelter for the ,winter4 ,but the scenes that were endured1 at the river side1 immediately after the flight1 beggars description4 ,yet the ,saints did not forget to return thanks unto ,almighty ,god for deliverance from the hands of their vile enemies and to seek ,his protecting care for the future--that ,he would soften the hearts of the people to whom they had fled1 that they might find among them something to sustain themselves4 ,although ,governor ,boggs did not come out and show himself openly in his true colors we have sufficient evidence that he sanctioned all the movements of the mob and even directed them4 ,he it was who put in motion the movements of ,july1 and continued his exertions until he had accomplished all his hellish designs4 ,as ,brother ,joseph said1 the great change that may appear to some1 in the views1 designs and craft of this man1 to rob an innocent people of their arms by stratagem1 and leave more than one thousand defenseless men1 women and children1 to be driven from their homes1 among strangers in a strange land is so glaringly exposed in the sequel that all earth and hell cannot deny that a baser knave1 a greater traitor1 and a more wholesale butcher1 or murderer of mankind ever went untried1 unpunished1 or unhung4 ,but ,governor ,dunklin was a gentleman and seemed disposed to do what was right4 ,brothers ,phelps1 ,gilbert and ,mc,lellin went into ,clay ,co4 and made affidavit of the outrageous scenes in ,jackson ,co2 and expressed the same to the governor who immediately ordered a court of inquiry to be held in ,clay county for the purpose of investigating the whole affair1 and meting out justice to all1 and the attorney general wrote to the counsel employed to prosecute the mob1 advising our people to organize themselves into regular companies and then apply to the governor for weapons of defense4 ,he was of the opinion that the governor would not only furnish us arms and ammunition1 but also troops to assist us in maintaining our rights1 if we would only make application therefore4 ,about the same time ,judge ,ryland also wrote1 on the authority of the governor1 to one of our counsel1 saying among other things that he was determined to investigate the causes of the recent disturbance and take steps to punish the guilty and screen the innocent4 ,in reply to these communications ,elder ,a4 ,s4 ,gilbert wrote to the governor of ,missouri as follows3 7,,confidential47 ,,liberty1 ,,clay ,,county1 ,nov4 #bith1 #ahcc4 ,dear ,sir--,yesterday ,i saw ,mr4 ,doniphan1 an attorney of this place1 who informed me that he saw the attorney general1 ,mr4 ,wells1 in ,saline county1 last ,saturday week and that ,mr4 ,wells had acquainted him with your intention of ordering a court of inquiry to be held in ,jackson county1 in relation to the late riotous proceedings in that county4 ,mr4 ,doniphan is of the opinion from the conversation he had with ,mr4 ,wells1 that said order will be suspended till a communication is received from our people1 or their counsel4 ,this is therefore to acquaint your excellency1 that most of the heads of our ,church had an interview yesterday on the subject of an immediate court of inquiry to be held in ,jackson county1 and by their request to me1 ,i hasten to lay before your excellency serious difficulties attending our people on an immediate court of inquiry being called4 ,our ,church was at this time scattered in every direction2 some in the new county of ,van ,buren2 a part in this county1 and a part in ,la ,fayette and ,ray counties4 ,some of our principal witnesses would be women and children1 and while the rage of the mob continues1 it would be impossible to gather them in safety at ,independence1 and that your excellency may know of the unabated fury with which the last remnant of our people remaining in that county are pursued at this time1 ,i here state that a few families1 perhaps fifteen or twenty1 who settled themselves more than two years ago on the prairie1 about fifteen miles from the county seat of ,jackson county1 had hoped from the obscurity of their location1 that they might escape the vengeance of the enemy through the ,winter1 consequently they remained on their plantations1 receiving occasionally1 a few individual threats1 till last ,sunday1 when a mob made their appearance among them2 some with pistols cocked and presented to their breasts1 commanding them to leave the county in three days1 or they would tear their houses down over their heads1 etc4 ,two expresses arrived here from said neighborhood last ,monday morning1 for advice and the council advised their speedy removal for the preservation of life1 and their personal effects4 ,i suppose these families will be out of the county of ,jackson this week4 ,in this distressed situation1 in behalf of my brethren1 ,i pray your excellency to await a further communication which will soon follow this1 setting forth among other things the importance of our people being restored to their possessions1 that they may have an equal chance with their enemies in producing important testimony before the court1 which the enemy are now determined to deprive them of4 ,trusting that your excellency will perceive the agitation and consternation that must necessarily prevail among most of our people at this day1 from the unparalleled usage they have received and many of them wandering at this time destitute of shelter4 ,an immediate court of enquiry called while our people are thus situated1 would give our enemies a decided advantage in point of testimony1 while they are in possession of their own homes1 and ours also2 with no enemy in the county to molest or make them afraid4 ,very ,respectfully1 ,your ,obedient ,servant1 ,a4 ,s4 ,gilbert4 ,to his ,excellency ,daniel ,dunklin1 ,jefferson ,city1 ,missouri4 ,i have seen and read the above letter1 and on reflection1 ,i concur entirely in the opinion therein expressed4 ,i also think that at the next regular term of the court1 an examination of the criminal matter cannot be gone into1 without a guard for the court and witnesses4 7,signed47 ,amos ,reese4 ,those mentioned in this letter as having been threatened on ,sunday the #bdth1 fled into ,clay county1 and encamped on the ,missouri river4 ,there were about one hundred and fifty men1 women and children4 ,we had sent reports of their proceedings to ,brother ,joseph ,smith and the brethren in ,kirtland1 but it appears that in some particulars they did not agree1 being given by different persons1 so ,brother ,joseph wrote seeking correct information1 and for documents4 ,he also sent comforting news to the ,saints reminding all that it is only through great tribulation1 that the blessings are received4 ,on the #fth of ,december1 a petition and letter were sent to ,governor ,dunklin asking for aid and protection4 ,we also asked that a court of enquiry might be established to investigate the whole matter and bring the offenders and law-breakers to justice4 ,we thus showed that we intended to maintain our rights to our inheritances1 so that if we should be deprived of them for any length of time1 the responsibility would not rest upon our shoulders4 ,the season was very severe and many persons suffered for the necessaries of life1 but we were not forgotten by ,god nor by our co-religionists in ,kirtland1 and the sympathies of the ,saints were like balm to our wounds4 ,we were soon pained with news that reached us from ,van ,buren county4 ,it seems that in the general flight of the ,saints some few families went south into ,van ,buren county and commenced to open and improve farms1 build houses1 etc4 ,they had taken their ,winter's provisions with them and thought to make themselves homes1 but the citizens rose up and without scarcely giving warning commenced to destroy all their stock and goods1 and these ,saints once more had to flee for their lives1 and seek refuge among their brethren1 who also were exiles4 ,,chapter ,x4 ,,court ,,in ,,jackson ,,county--,,officers ,,awed ,,by ,a ,,mob--,,zion',s ,,camp--,,mob ,,meeting--,a ,,man ,,stabbed--,,campbell',s ,,horrible ,,fate--,,god ,,interposes ,,in ,,behalf ,,of ,,zion',s ,,camp--,,the ,,cholera--,i ,,go ,,to ,,kirtland--,,my ,,labors ,,there--,,return ,,to ,,clay ,,county4 ,the year #ahcd opened upon the ,church1 in ,missouri1 with no flattering prospects4 ,the ,saints were scattered in every direction1 awaiting the action of the government and courts to settle their difficulties with ,jackson ,co4 ,on the #ast of ,january a conference was held1 ,bishop ,partridge presiding1 when everything possible was done to comfort the hearts of the distressed1 and to help them in their afflictions4 ,on the #ith ,brother ,gilbert wrote again to ,governor ,dunklin1 explaining the wishes and condition of the ,saints1 and suggested that the principal leaders of the ,jackson county mob be bought out1 as he thought it would help to bring about peace and give the ,saints re-possession of their lands1 house1 and property1 without the intervention of an armed force4 ,the governor answered this communication in a very gentlemanly manner1 and also gave his views in regard to the best method to pursue under the unpleasant circumstances4 ,in accordance with his instructions ,judge ,ryland proceeded to hold court in ,jackson county1 and as it was imprudent to call the witnesses1 or proceed with the investigation1 without a sufficient guard1 ,captain ,atchinson was called on for his company1 the ,liberty ,blues1 to do duty4 ,the brethren who were subpoenaed were met on the banks of the ,missouri by this company and guarded to about a mile from ,independence where they camped for the night4 ,so great was the excitement in ,jackson county1 that it was thought necessary to have more men1 and an order1 or requisition1 was made on ,col4 ,allen for two hundred more4 ,the mob made a bold stand1 and began to collect in bodies1 pledging themselves to the death1 that no arrests should be made1 but that they would defend each other to the last4 ,on the #bdth of ,february1 the brethren1 and their military escort went into ,independence and were quartered in the old store of ,s4 ,flomuoy1 where they were visited by the attorney general and the district attorney1 and told that all hope of a criminal prosecution was at an end4 ,thus were the officers of the civil law1 even when supported by the military1 awed by a mob1 and the great promises of the governor and ,judge ,ryland fell to the ground1 and the strong arm of justice became weak and fell powerless to her side4 ,our witnesses were cautioned not to go before the grand jury1 it being intimated that they might be in danger4 ,thus did these two men1 with the circuit judge acknowledge that mob violence was superior1 in ,missouri1 to both the civil and the military powers2 for it was not long before ,captain ,atchinson received word from ,judge ,ryland that neither he nor his men were wanted any longer in ,independence1 and the witnesses were marched off to the tune of ,yankee ,doodle1 to carry to their brethren the news that justice had taken her flight before the fury of the rabble1 and her ministers had not power to maintain her rights4 ,they must now look to a higher power for redress1 or bear their wrongs as best they can4 ,the mob continued their depredations wherever they could find an opportunity1 not sparing the aged nor the weak1 but abusing all alike4 ,father ,lindsay is mentioned as being driven from his home1 and then his house pulled down1 and its contents destroyed or stolen4 ,having seen that through the imbecility of the law1 or the secret connivance of its administrators1 there was no possible chance of obtaining redress1 and being protected in our rights1 it was next decided upon to petition the president of the ,united ,states1 in accordance with the revelation given to that effect4 ,an able document was drawn up and sent to that officer1 but it availed us nothing4 ,we also wrote to the governor1 asking him to issue an order to have our weapons1 of which we had been deprived in ,november last1 restored to us4 ,but1 notwithstanding the orders of the governor to ,colonels ,lucas and ,pitcher1 we never received our arms1 but they were taken and distributed among the mob4 ,our brethren in ,kirtland1 on hearing of our sufferings1 did all in their power to help us2 and immediately on receiving the revelation concerning the redemption of ,zion1 began to gather together young men and middle aged men to come to our relief4 ,we received the news of the coming of these brethren with much joy and thankfulness4 ,when the news got abroad of the movement1 the mob once more became infuriated4 ,they got together in large bodies1 armed and provided themselves with cannon4 ,hundreds from the surrounding counties volunteered to help them in case ,governor ,dunklin should attempt to restore us to our homes1 which he had said he would do as soon as enough of our brethren came together to enable us to protect ourselves in them4 ,in the midst of this intense excitement1 ,judge ,ryland called a meeting of the brethren1 citizens1 and the ,jackson county mob1 with a view of an amicable adjustment1 as he said1 of our difficulties4 ,on ,monday1 ,june #afth1 about one thousand citizens of ,clay county1 and a few from ,jackson county1 assembled in the court-house1 in ,liberty1 according to appointment4 ,judge ,turnham was appointed moderator1 or chairman4 ,judge ,ryland used his best endeavors to allay the angry feelings of the mob1 and to effect an adjustment of our difficulties in his own way1 but not to our satisfaction4 ,a document from our opponents was introduced by war speeches by ,s4 ,c4 ,owens and ,rev4 ,m4 ,riley1 who1 even in this meeting1 advocated the idea of driving us from ,clay ,co4 ,but ,gen4 ,doniphan and ,judge ,turnham defended the cause of right1 begging that the people of that county would not disgrace themselves in the manner4 ,jackson county had done2 but let the ,mormons remain in their midst and enjoy equal rights with them1 for1 he said1 they are good citizens1 and even better than many of the old settlers4 ,gen4 ,doniphan said3 ,the ,mormons have armed themselves1 and if they don't fight they are cowards4 ,i love to hear that they have brethren coming to their assistance1 greater love can no man show1 than he1 who lays down his life for his brethren4 ,but such was the excitement caused by this discussion that a row and fight appeared certain1 and many seemed to be preparing for it all over the room4 ,the confusion was increasing1 when somebody called into the room1 ,a man stabbed6 ,there was a sudden rush to the spot1 when it was found that a quarrel between two ,missourians had ended in one of them being severely wounded4 ,this broke up the meeting and gave the brethren a chance to state in writing why they could not accept the propositions offered4 ,at the meeting a report was circulated that an army of our brethren was coming to help us1 and to go into ,jackson county by force4 ,all kinds of strange stories were set afloat1 and a small party1 with ,owens and ,campbell at their head1 went directly to ,independence to collect an army to go and prevent their entering ,clay county4 ,campbell swore1 while adjusting his pistols in the holsters1 ,the eagles and turkey buzzards shall eat my flesh if ,i do not fix ,joe ,smith and his army1 so that their skins will not hold shucks1 before two days are past4 ,they sent word to ,richmond1 ,ray county1 and had their agents working in ,clay county1 intending to raise force sufficient to annihilate our brethren4 ,about two hundred volunteered in ,jackson1 seventy in ,clay1 and fifty in ,ray counties1 and were to form a junction near ,fishing river ford4 ,their plans were all laid1 as they thought1 to enable them to accomplish their purpose1 but the ,lord interposed ,his strong arm1 for the preservation of our brethren1 and while the mob were crossing the river to the north side1 a squall met them on their return so that they were delayed2 some attempted to cross the river after dusk1 so great was their anxiety to be at their hellish work1 but when near the middle of the river the boat sunk1 and seven out of twelve men were drowned2 among them was ,james ,campbell1 who had made use of such a terrible oath in the day4 ,he floated down the river1 and1 lodging on some drift wood1 his flesh was eaten by the eagles and turkey buzzards2 thereby fulfilling his oath1 and feeling the vengeance of an offended ,god4 ,s4 ,c4 ,owens came near being drowned1 and was glad enough the next morning to make his way to ,independence4 ,those who had crossed the river the day before1 returned to join their companions in the morning1 and felt glad that they had escaped with their lives4 ,immediately around our brethren was the protecting hand of the ,almighty1 and at the approach of the mob from ,ray county1 a tremendous hail and thunder storm raged1 pelting them severely even to the cutting of holes in their hats2 their ammunition was perfectly soaked1 and they were glad enough to get back home4 ,during this time scarcely any hail fell in the camp of the brethren1 but all around them could be seen the work of destruction--limbs of trees were cut off by the storm1 and trees themselves were twisted like withes4 ,in the morning ,big ,fishing river had raised forty feet1 and our enemies said that ,little ,fishing river raised thirty feet in thirty minutes4 ,thus were our brethren preserved from their enemies4 ,on the night of the #bhth the cholera1 of which the brethren had been warned by the servant of ,god1 broke out in ,zion's camp4 ,about twelve o'clock cries and groans were heard from those who had been taken sick1 and they fell before the destroyer4 ,so violent were the attacks that in some instances those who were on guard1 fell with their guns in their hands2 and it was only by great exertion that we were able to take care of the sick and dying4 ,in the morning the camp was divided into small bands and dispersed among the brethren4 ,out of sixty-eight taken by the disease1 thirteen died1 among whom was ,a4 ,s4 ,gilbert4 ,the rest recovered1 for an effectual remedy was discovered1 namely1 to dip the patient in cold water1 or pour it copiously upon him4 ,this stopped the cramp1 purging and vomiting4 ,whenever this remedy was adopted in season it did not fail to cure4 ,we were indeed sorry to see our brethren who had come so far--one thousand miles--to our relief thus fall before the hand of the destroyer4 ,the ,summer passed without anything special transpiring4 ,the inhabitants generally manifested a kind feeling towards the ,saints2 yet1 owing to the exposure of the previous winter and the hunger and privation1 which the brethren had suffered1 many of them were afflicted with fever and ague4 ,i began to make preparation to go on my appointed mission to ,kirtland2 but it seemed as if a struggle had commenced4 ,both my wife and myself took the fever and ague1 also my aunt1 ,esther ,culver2 she was an aged woman1 whose husband had died previous to our exile from ,jackson county1 and whom ,i had taken into my family as she had no child to care for her4 ,on the #aeth of ,september1 ,sally1 my wife1 died2 truly she died a martyr to the gospel of our ,lord and ,savior1 ,jesus ,christ4 ,she was of a frail constitution1 and the hardships and privations she had to endure were more than she could survive4 ,a short time previously she had given birth to a son1 which had also died4 ,my health continued poor1 so that ,i could do but little work until the time had arrived for the ,elders1 who had been called to go to ,kirtland1 to start4 ,i made the best arrangements ,i could for the care of my little son ,samuel and aged aunt2 and in company with a number of my brethren1 got on board some canoes1 which we had got for the purpose1 and floated down the ,missouri river4 ,we traveled on the river by day1 and at night camped on its shore4 ,i was hardly able to walk when ,i started on this journey but my strength gradually increased4 ,when we had got far enough from those who were so bitterly prejudiced against the gospel1 that we could get a hearing1 we left our canoes and parted1 traveling two by two preaching the gospel to those who would listen to us4 ,i arrived in safety in ,kirtland1 in the ,spring of #ahce1 and commenced labor on the temple1 where ,i continued to work until it was finished1 and ready for the endowments4 ,on the #bdth of ,november ,i was united in the holy bonds matrimony with ,lydia ,goldthwait by the ,prophet ,joseph1 this being the first marriage ceremony that he ever performed4 ,i remained in ,kirtland until the temple was finished and dedicated4 ,i then received my anointings1 and was also a witness to the great manifestations of ,god's power in that sacred edifice4 ,on ,thursday1 ,april #gth1 #ahcf1 all things being ready1 ,lydia and ,i started for ,clay county4 ,brother ,hyrum ,smith let me have his horses to go to ,liverpool1 on the ,ohio river1 where we were intending to take passage on a steamer for our destination2 the roads were very muddy4 ,on the #ith in the afternoon it rained very hard1 and we stopped1 before night1 at a sectarian priest's1 who treated us with great politeness until in the evening while we were sitting with the family in the parlor1 in the course of conversation it was mentioned that we were ,mormons4 ,the family immediately left the room1 and the reverend gentleman politely informed us1 that if it had not been raining so very heavily1 he would have at once put us out of the house4 ,as it was we were introduced into the kitchen1 where we spent the night1 and early the next morning ,i got my horses in readiness1 paid my bill1 and bade this sectarian host adieu4 ,we traveled several miles1 when we came to a house1 were we got breakfast1 and were kindly treated4 ,soon after resuming our journey we found ourselves in deep water1 for the road was flooded for a long distance1 and it was with difficulty that ,i could pick out the way2 as ,i attempted to cross a bridge the logs rolled from under the horses1 and ,i was barely able to rescue them by detaching them from the wagon4 ,i then got ,lydia on one of the horses and took her across to dry land1 but had to leave the wagon for the night4 ,the water had abated by the #aath1 and we continued our journey to ,liverpool1 ,ohio1 where we were compelled to remain a few days4 ,we finally arrived in ,clay ,co4 on the #fth of ,may4 ,,chapter ,,xi4 ,,saints ,,move ,,to ,,caldwell ,,county--,,persecutions ,,begin ,,anew--,,captain ,,bogart ,,and ,,his ,,mob--,,the ,,battle--,,hawn',s ,,mill ,,massacre--,,colonel ,,hinkle',s ,,treachery--,,the ,,brethren ,,imprisoned4 ,when the ,saints were driven from ,jackson county1 the people of ,clay county kindly permitted us an asylum in their midst and many individual acts of kindness might be recorded in their favor2 but the more turbulent spirits among them began to stir up anger against us1 and the smouldering embers of persecution began to show signs of blazing forth again4 ,however1 there were many gentlemen who were desirous of peace1 and who tried to sooth and quell the spirit of mobocracy4 ,during ,june and ,july1 #ahcf1 meetings were held by our people as well as by those who desired our removal to some other locality1 and it was finally decided1 after due deliberation1 that the ,saints should again move4 ,this time the place of refuge chosen was ,caldwell ,co41 and immediately the exodus began4 ,my personal affairs were such that ,i could not move with the majority of the ,saints but was compelled to remain until ,february1 #ahch1 when ,i was able to leave ,clay ,co4 entirely free of debt1 and with a little means on hand4 ,i felt much gratified1 however1 at being able to greet the ,prophet ,joseph1 and several other brethren1 who arrived in ,far ,west with their families on the #adth of ,march following my arrival4 ,these brethren had come from ,kirtland to shelter themselves from the heavy storm of persecution that had set in upon them there1 and which was started by apostates4 ,the mob had followed them on the road1 armed1 and with murder in their hearts4 ,frequently the brethren had to hide themselves in their wagons1 their pursuers were so close upon them2 and on two or three occasions they were together in the same house4 ,once they remained all night in the same building with only a partition between them1 and the oaths and threats of their enemies could be distinctly heard4 ,late in the evening these fiends went into the room where the brethren were and examined them1 but although they were very well acquainted with the brethren1 they decided it was not them4 ,the ,saints were not1 however1 destined to remain long in peace in ,caldwell county4 ,their enemies who lived in the adjoining counties could not bear the idea of the ,mormons becoming prosperous and they therefore began to arouse public indignation against them4 ,every unjust act of which wicked men could conceive was perpetrated against us in the vain hope that we would retaliate on our opposers1 and thereby afford an excuse for extermination4 ,but we calmly submitted to the numerous indignities heaped upon us1 feeling that it was better to suffer wrong than to do wrong4 ,our people made many concessions to the mob in the hope of pacifying them1 but it was useless4 ,in this instance1 as in the ,jackson county mobbings1 the principal instigators were priests of various denominations4 ,on the #bdth of ,october1 ,captain ,bogart1 a ,methodist priest1 marched a company of men towards ,far ,west with the avowed intention1 to use his language1 of giving our city thunder and lightning before noon of the next day4 ,on receipt of this information from ,brother ,parson1 who had watched the movements of ,bogart1 and seen him camp on ,crooked river1 a company of seventy-five volunteers went out to disperse the mob1 and retake three prisoners1 whom the mob had kidnapped from their homes1 and to prevent the descent upon ,far ,west4 ,on the following morning about daylight sixty of the brethren reached the ford on the ,crooked river1 and dismounting their horses left them in charge of a few brethren1 and then went to look for the encampment4 ,the enemy watched the approach of the brethren1 and greeted them with a round of musketry4 ,as soon as the brethren saw the position of the enemy ,captain ,david ,w4 ,patten ordered a charge1 and the two parties engaged in a hand to hand fight1 when the enemy retreated1 and while pursuing them ,captain ,patten was mortally wounded1 two or three of the brethren were killed1 and ,bogart must have lost quite a number although he only reported one4 ,the report of this battle spread through the country and created quite an excitement4 ,rumors were afloat that ,bogart's company had been massacred1 and the whole country was in commotion4 ,this was followed on the #bgth by the infamous exterminating order of ,governor ,boggs4 ,before sufficient force could be collected to carry out ,gov4 ,bogg's instructions1 a party of men who had collected from ,daviess1 ,ray1 ,livingston1 ,carroll1 and ,chariton counties1 led by some of the principal men of those places1 made a descent upon ,hawn's ,mill1 where a company of our brethren and sisters were camped4 ,the enemy numbered two hundred and forty mounted men4 ,immediately on riding up they poured a volley from a hundred guns into our little band who had principally taken refuge in the blacksmith shop4 ,the massacre became general1 and but few escaped the fury of those inhuman wretches4 ,boys1 eight1 nine1 and twelve years old were murdered even while begging for mercy1 and a young lady1 while fleeing from the mob1 was shot through the hand1 and fell1 fainting over a log1 into which her would-be murderers lodged about twenty balls4 ,the mob now grew bolder and bolder1 and committed depredations upon the settlements in ,caldwell and ,daviess counties1 so that our people had to flee into ,far ,west from all quarters to save themselves4 ,many could not get into houses1 and had to take shelter in wagons1 tents1 and under bed-clothes1 and while in this situation we had a severe snow storm1 which rendered their sufferings intense4 ,on the #bith1 the news reached the city that a large number of troops had advanced into our county1 and committed great depredations4 ,it was thought advisable to send out a company of about one hundred and fifty men to ascertain the situation of affairs4 ,on the #cjth1 these troops showed themselves before the city1 and immediately the brethren flew to arms1 with the determination to defend their wives and children to the last extremity4 ,the troops withdrew to about a mile from the town and camped1 ,those who had been sent out were on the other side of the troops but came into the city about sundown1 in two parties4 ,these brethren without going to their homes joined the ranks of the brethren1 and assisted to barricade and fortify the town4 ,a white flag was sent by each party1 but judge our surprise1 when on enquiring their designs1 our flag-bearer was informed that they wanted three men out of our city1 and then they designed to massacre the rest4 ,the day following a flag was sent by the enemy1 and some of our brethren went and learned that they were commissioned by the chief executive1 and that their commission authorized them to exterminate the ,mormons en masse1 and they had three thousand troops to carry these orders into effect4 ,col4 ,hinkle went out to meet a flag of truce and secretly made arrangements to deliver up the ,church leaders to be tried and punished2 to have the property of the ,saints delivered over to pay the expenses of the expedition and the damage done to them1 and arranged that the ,saints should leave the state1 and their arms should be delivered up to the enemy4 ,in the evening the first step in this base treachery was taken4 ,col4 ,hinkle represented to ,brother ,joseph and others that the officers of the militia desired an interview in the hope that the matter might be settled without carrying out the exterminating order4 ,they complied with the request1 and were delivered up to the mob by ,hinkle1 and claimed as prisoners of war4 ,they were put into a small hollow square1 and strongly guarded2 and the enemy set up a most horrid yell1 and continued it for hours2 the noise was past description1 and had there been ten thousand wolves yelling for their prey it would not have been worse4 ,on the morning of ,november #ast1 ,hinkle took another step to carry out his nefarious designs4 ,the bugle sounded for the brethren to assemble1 armed and equipped4 ,every man went out well armed and was paraded and delivered over to the enemy4 ,the brethren were surrounded and required to surrender their arms1 and were then guarded all day while the rapacious soldiery went from house to house1 plundering1 pillaging1 and destroying1 and even driving many helpless women and children from their homes1 and committing deeds even worse than these in some instances4 ,a court martial was held by the officers and priests1 and without being heard in their own defense1 the brethren were sentenced to be shot on ,friday morning on the public square in ,far ,west1 in the presence of their wives and families4 ,at this imprecedented action ,general ,doniphan objected1 saying he would have nothing to do with such cold-blooded actions1 and he would draw off his brigade from the army4 ,this probably saved the lives of the prisoners1 as the sentence was changed and the prisoners were taken to ,independence1 ,jackson county4 ,the designs of the enemy were1 without doubt1 to destroy the brethren when they arrived there1 but the ,lord did not suffer it1 for their work was not yet finished4 ,they were thrust into prison and held until a demand was made by ,general ,clark to have them forwarded to ,richmond1 where they underwent a mock trial and were remanded to ,liberty jail to await a further investigation4 ,on ,november #fth1 ,general ,clark paraded the brethren at ,far ,west and delivered a most insulting speech1 requiring the fulfillment of ,col4 ,hinkle's stipulations in full1 and telling us to get out of the state as quickly as possible2 also that we need not look to see our prophet or his brethren any more who were in the hands of the militia1 for1 said he1 their fate is fixed1 their die is cast1 their doom is sealed4 ,although our arms had been taken from us and treaties made that we should remain in peace until the ,spring1 yet small parties of armed men1 were continually making incursions into ,caldwell county1 insulting our women1 driving off our stock1 and plundering wherever they could get a chance4 ,even life was not held sacred1 and ,brothers ,tanner and ,carey were grossly misused while prisoners1 the latter having his brains dashed out with a gun4 ,our persecutions did not abate in the least and it seemed as though all hell was aroused to do us injury4 ,the brethren confined in ,liberty jail after being subjected to the most terrible indignities during their six month's imprisonment1 finally succeeded in making their escape and soon joined the body of the ,saints4 ,,chapter ,,xii4 ,i ,,move ,,to ,,commerce--,,no ,,safety ,,for ,,the ,,saints--,,john ,c4 ,,bennett',s ,,wickedness--,,threats ,,of ,,the ,,mob--,,we ,,start ,,for ,,the ,,west--,,death ,,of ,,the ,,author ,again ,i prepared to leave my home and with my family gather to ,commerce1 which was the place that had been chosen for the future location of the ,saints4 ,some few families had already gone there and a nucleus of a ,mormon town had been formed4 ,i soon selected a piece of ground and commenced to build a home for myself1 but before many days had passed ,i was advised by ,brother ,joseph to assist in the erection of a flouring mill1 so that the ,saints might thereby be benefited4 ,i therefore ceased my own operations and began the new labor to which ,i had been assigned4 ,from that time until ,i left ,nauvoo with the ,saints to find a home in the barren wilds of ,western ,america1 ,i was engaged more or less in the building and working of grist and saw mills for the benefit of the ,saints4 ,sometimes ,i was without the necessaries of life1 being bereft of the food and clothing which my family needed2 sometimes ,i was surrounded by not only the necessaries but also the comforts of life2 sometimes ,i rejoiced in the society of my friends1 and sometimes enemies surrounded me1 seeking my destruction because of my religion4 ,but in the midst of these varied circumstances ,i never felt to doubt the truth of the gospel or the divinity of ,joseph ,smith's mission4 ,the persecutions of the ,saints in ,missouri soon began to be re-enacted in ,illinois1 where large numbers of our people had settled and built up the beautiful city of ,nauvoo4 ,our enemies of the former place would not allow us to enjoy peace in the latter1 but did everything in their power to arouse public indignation against us4 ,men who professed to be members of the ,church also turned away from the truth and sought to injure the work4 ,notable among this latter class was ,john ,c4 ,bennett4 ,he came to ,nauvoo and joined the ,church2 with considerable ostentation he brought himself before the people1 and seemed to enter into the work with a whole-heartedness which was quite commendable4 ,he was instrumental in obtaining the charter for ,nauvoo1 the legion and the university2 was elected mayor of the city1 major general of the legion1 and chancelor of the university4 ,he defended the ,prophet ,joseph by writing over the non de plume of ,joab1 general in ,israel1 and was altogether a popular man1 and run a rapid race4 ,but he was only an adventurer1 and his deeds of evil were eventually brought to light2 for no sooner had he attained to these responsible positions than he sought to use the influence they gave him to accomplish his evil designs1 and gave himself up to practices1 not only diabolical in themselves but ruinous to the souls of those he entrapped4 ,thus he brought great scandal upon the ,church1 by seeking to destroy the innocent and virtuous2 and when his acts were questioned by his intended victims he asserted that ,joseph taught and sanctioned such doings4 ,if his own assertions were not sufficient then he called on some of his tools--men he had in league with him--to bear testimony to his base lies4 ,in this manner his deeds were brought to light1 and then he used all his power to injure those whom he had before defended1 and sought to bring about a renewal of the persecutions4 ,through the instrumentality of persons of this class1 the sufferings of the ,saints were renewed4 ,many of the brethren were kidnapped from their homes and were abused in a most shameful manner1 while others suffered imprisonment on trumped up charges that could not be sustained in court4 ,one day the arrest of an apostate--,augustine ,spencer--for an assault on his brother1 ,orson1 was attempted in the neighborhood of ,brother ,joseph's home4 ,some trouble ensued and in the same ,charles ,foster attempted to shoot the prophet1 who was near at hand4 ,both he and ,higbee said they would consider themselves the favored of ,god if they could but kill ,joe ,smith4 ,thus was our leader in constant danger for the sake of his religion1 and from this time until his death1 the horrors of which are known to all1 on the #bgth of ,june1 #ahdd1 his life was one continued scene of trial1 hardship and persecution4 ,his followers found no rest from their oppressors2 they had no rights1 according to popular judgment1 that should be respected1 and after we had agreed to leave ,nauvoo and go to the ,rocky ,mountains1 the mob would not leave us unmolested so that we could arrange our business4 ,one man by the name of ,bostwick came to the city to warn ,amos ,davis and others living there1 but who did not belong to us1 to move their stores out of the place if they wanted to save them1 for1 said he1 this city shall be laid in ashes2 and ,brigham ,young shall be taken if ,i have to go to hell to raise troops enough to take him4 ,in this affair the ,lord overruled in behalf of ,his people1 for as this wicked man was returning to ,madison he fell through the ice and was drowned2 and as he was the leading man among our enemies around ,madison it put an end to their operations4 ,the troops of ,carthage1 with the ,united ,states marshall at their head1 were almost constantly in our city1 with warrants for the apprehension of the twelve and others of the brethren4 ,these warrants had been sworn out under false pretention1 being nothing else but malicious and vexatious proceedings4 ,but in vain did they search1 for the ,lord was our shield and our protector4 ,at one time these men attempted to search the temple1 but the glory of ,god was there1 and came upon them insomuch that they were glad to get out again4 ,surrounded by such circumstances the ,saints were glad to flee from their homes1 feeling that it was much better to be at the mercy of the elements than that of a ruthless mob4 ,those therefore1 who were able soon fitted themselves out and started to traverse the barren prairies in the west4 ,i was blessed of the ,lord insomuch that ,i was among the first to leave ,illinois in search of another home4 ,we had1 however1 scarcely got beyond the reach of our enemies before an improper spirit began to manifest itself among the ,saints caused by the actions of ,wm4 ,miller who was a bishop in the ,church4 ,his conduct finally became so improper that he was called up before the high council and was censured for his unrighteous deeds1 but this had scarcely any effect upon him1 and he did not heed the counsels of his brethren at all4 ,he finally returned to the companies that were behind us4 ,he shortly afterwards apostatized4 ,we were1 at this time1 in a country which was claimed by the ,indians1 and where law and restraints were unknown4 ,it was therefore necessary for us to use the utmost caution1 so as not to enrage the owners of the soil4 ,the ,pawnees1 ,poneas1 ,sioux and other ,indian tribes permitted us to pass through the country almost unmolested4 ,we sought their friendship and they gave it1 and many friendly meetings were held with our ,lamanite brethren4 ,brother ,knight's journal ends here1 his wife1 ,lydia1 adding the following3 ,on ,monday morning1 ,january #dth1 #ahdg1 ,brother ,knight1 whose health had been failing for some time1 did not arise as usual1 and1 on my going to him1 he said1 ',lydia1 ,i believe ,i shall go to rest this winter4' ,the next night he awoke with a severe pain in his right side1 a fever had also set in1 and he expressed himself to me that he did not expect to recover4 ,from this time until the #ajth of the month1 the ,elders came frequently and prayed for my husband4 ,after each administration he would rally and be at case for a short time and then relapse again into suffering4 ,i felt at last as if ,i could not endure his sufferings any longer1 and that ,i ought not to hold him here4 ,i knelt by his bed side1 and with my hand upon his pale forehead asked my ,heavenly ,father to forgive my sins1 and that the sufferings of my companion might cease1 and if he was appointed unto death1 and could not remain with us1 that he might be quickly eased from pain and fall asleep in peace4 ,almost immediately all pain left him1 and in a short time he sweetly fell asleep in death1 without a struggle or a groan1 at half past six on the morning of the #aath of ,january1 #ahdg4 ,his remains were interred at sun-set on the evening of the day he died4 ,it was the #crd of ,october1 #ahej1 before ,i had the privilege of entering the valley1 but my joy in arriving here has been unbounded4 ,transcriber's ,note ,some apparent errors in punctuation 7e4g4 missing quotation marks7 have been corrected as seemed appropriate4