,,anthon ,l4 ,,skanchy    ,a ,,brief    
,,autobiographical  ,,sketch of the     
,,missionary  ,,labors of a ,,valiant   
,,soldier ,,for ,,christ                
,,translated ,,and ,,edited ,,by  ,,john
 ,a4 ,,widtsoe  #aiae        ,image     
captioned ,,bishop ,,anthon ,l4         
,,skanchy4  ,born1 ,trondhjem1 ,norway1 
,sept4 #ag1 #ahci2 died ,logan1 ,utah1  
,april #ai1 #aiad4        ,anthon ,l4   
,skanchy    ,a ,brief ,autobiographical 
,sketch of  the ,missionary ,labors of a
  ,valiant ,soldier for  ,christ        
,translated and ,edited  by  ,,john ,a4 
,,widtsoe  #aiae        ,,contents      
,i4 ,early ,years    ,,ii4 ,i ,accept   
the ,gospel    ,,iii4 ,i ,go on ,my     
,first ,mission    ,,iv4 ,missionary    
,labors in ,nordland and ,finmarken     
,v4 ,again ,before the ,courts    ,,vi4 
,how ,i ,spent the ,winter in ,nordland 
,,vii4 ,the ,lord ,sends ,me ,money and 
,more ,friends    ,,viii4 ,i ,am        
,released from ,my ,first ,mission      
,,ix4 ,i ,labor in ,aalesund    ,x4 ,i  

,preside in ,christiania    ,,xi4 ,the  
,land of ,zion    ,,xii4 ,my ,third     
,mission    ,,xiii4 ,my ,fourth ,mission
    ,,xiv4 ,quiet ,years of ,home       
,service    ,,xv4 ,my ,fifth ,mission   
,,xvi4 ,the ,last ,word    ,,xvii4 ,the 
,sixth ,mission    ,,xviii4 ,the ,end of
 the ,journey        ,,introduction     
,the missionary labors of the elders of 
the ,church of ,jesus ,christ of        
,latter-day ,saints would form a most   
interesting chapter in the history  of  
human endeavor4 ,every experience seems 
to have fallen to the lot of  ,mormon   
missionaries1 who have labored under    
every clime and among  all classes and  
races of people4 ,taken1 by a sudden    
call1 from the  home1 workshop1 field1  
store or office1 they have gone out at  
their own  expense1 with no special     
training in speaking or argument1 to    
teach to  all the world a system of     
eternal truth1 against which mighty     
forces  have ever been arrayed4 ,the    
third generation of this volunteer army 

is  now carrying the gospel over the    
face of the earth1 and the vigor of  the
 work is unabated4    ,the plain1       
unstudied sketch herewith presented of a
 few of the  missionary experiences of  
an elder who spent a third of his long1 
mature life in foreign missionary       
service can be duplicated by hundreds   
of the missionaries of the ,church4     
,simple and straightforward these       
sketches are2 yet1 between the lines1   
may be read every human emotion1  from  
the highest exaltation of spirit to the 
darkest despair4 ,it would  be well if  
many such missionary lives could be     
published for the  encouragement of all 
who desire to battle fearlessly for     
righteousness4    ,bishop ,anthon ,l4   
,skanchy died on ,april #ai1 #aiad1     
after a lingering  illness of several   
years4 ,in the midst of the pain of this
 sickness  he wrote these sketches1     
chiefly of his early mission when he had
 the  privilege of opening the gospel   
door in the beautifully majestic land   

of the midnight sun1 and of bringing    
hundreds into the ,church4 ,he wrote  in
 his mother tongue1 which he loved so   
well4 ,the eloquent directness1  as well
 as the severe repression of feeling1   
characteristic of the  northern people1 
are on every page4    ,a few weeks      
before his death4 ,bishop ,skanchy      
entrusted his manuscript  to me1 to do  
with it as ,i might see fit4 ,he hoped  
that1 somehow1 his  experiences might   
strengthen the testimonies of others4   
,the missionary  instinct was strong    
within him4 ,i have rendered it freely  
into ,english1  and1 while in so doing  
it has lost its peculiarly eloquent     
flavor1 ,i  hope it has not wholly lost 
its power for good4 ,i should greatly   
love  to fulfil the wish of the noble   
author of these sketches1 who was the   
instrument in the hands of ,god of      
bringing to the family to which ,i      
belong1 and to me1 the priceless gift of
 an understanding of the gospel4        
,that thousands of such strong men as   

was ,anthon ,l4 ,skanchy could and  do  
find a life's satisfaction in the       
gospel1 in spite of the hardships  and  
contempt they must endure1 is a strong  
testimony of the inherent  vitality of  
the message of the ,prophet ,joseph     
,smith4    ,,logan1 ,,utah              
,anthon ,l4 ,skanchy    ,a ,brief       
,autobiographical ,sketch of the        
,missionary ,labors of a ,valiant       
,soldier for ,christ    ,,translated    
,,and ,,edited ,,by ,,john ,a4          
,,widtsoe4    ,if any of my friends     
should interest themselves in reading   
parts of  my life's history1 of my      
missions especially in the northern     
parts of  ,norway1 they may do so in    
this short report1 and they may depend  
upon  it that what is here written is   
the truth4        ,i4 ,,early ,,years4  
,i1 ,anthon ,l4 ,skanchy was born in    
,trondhjem1 ,norway1 ,september #ag1    
#ahci1  the seventh child of ,elling    
,lornsen ,skanchy and ,mina ,ansjon4 ,my
 father  was a sea-faring man1 well     

known1 and much sought after as a pilot 
in  northern ,norway4 ,he1 as many other
 sea-faring men of that day1 became     
addicted to strong drink1 and           
consequently1 though he earned well1    
there was poverty in the home4 ,my dear 
mother was compelled to work  both day  
and night to keep the children1 who     
numbered seven in all4    ,from the time
 ,i was eight years old1 ,i had to work 
and earn something  for the family4 ,my 
boyhood was spent by the water1 where   
the great  fjord comes in from the      
ocean4 ,the shore was low and level1 and
 great  sand-spits ran out into the     
water4 ,there the water ebbed and flowed
  every six and one half hours1 through 
a distance of eight or ten feet4  ,when 
the water was low1 we could go out to   
the sand-spits into the  fjord1 and     
there ,i used to fish with one hundred  
hooks on my line1  baited with sand     
worms4 ,the line was left on the sand1  
with the end  secured1 and after fifteen
 hours1 the water again was low and the 

lines  lay in the dry sand with the fish
 that had been caught by the hooks4     
,the fish thus caught furnished some    
means to the support of the family4  ,as
 ,i grew a little older ,i was employed 
by a fisherman1 who owned his  own boat1
 and with him learned how to fish4 ,i   
also worked between times  in the rope  
factory1 where ,i later became          
apprenticed and learned the  trade well4
    ,the school naturally was neglected1
 and ,i was there only once in a  while4
 ,when ,i was thirteen years old ,i     
began1 however1 to see the  necessity of
 taking proper hold of my schooling1 and
 determined to use  my whole time in the
 attempt to win back what ,i had lost4  
,my mother  could not earn all the      
necessaries of life for me and herself1 
and  during this period ,i learned to   
know the gnawings of hunger and the     
effects of hunger upon my system4 ,a    
young school boy as ,i was could not    
grow and develop without proper and     
sufficient food4 ,those days ,i can     

never forget4 ,my mother had a little   
house of three rooms1 built on  rented  
ground4 ,in a little garden around the  
house she raised potatoes  with which to
 pay the larger part of the rent on the 
land4 ,because of  broken health and the
 weakness of my aged father1 he had been
 compelled  to quit the sea-faring life1
 and had journeyed to his oldest son who
  lived far up in ,nordland4 ,there my  
father resided until his death4    ,i   
gave all my time to schooling during    
three years4 ,i was determined to  win  
back what ,i had lost1 and my interest  
was centered on the school1  and as a   
result ,i made good progress4 ,among    
other things ,i was taught  the         
,lutheran religion1 and we had regular  
lessons in the history of  the ,bible1  
and explanations of the events and      
doctrines found in both  the ,old and   
the ,new ,testaments4 ,these books on   
,bible history we were  obliged to learn
 by heart1 and ,i learned my lessons    
well4 ,this became  a good foundation   

for me in the practice and preaching of 
my dear  religion of the future and1    
through this knowledge of the ,bible1 ,i
  learned to understand a little of the 
,lord's dealings with the children  of  
men1 which became a great blessing and  
relief to me in the mission  field and  
at home4    ,after three years of school
 work ,i was confirmed1 with a very good
  grade1 in the ,lutheran church4 ,i had
 worked now and then in the  rope walks 
and had become greatly interested in    
this work4 ,i then  apprenticed myself  
to a rope factory1 the owner of which   
was ,t4 ,h4  ,berg4 ,i was permitted to 
remain at home with my mother1 and      
received  about #a4ab a week for my     
support in return for my service4 ,this 
was pretty good1 and occasionally ,i    
earned something extra between  times4  
,as ,i remained at home it was possible 
for me to have a little  more liberty   
than ,i would have had1 had ,i remained 
with the other  apprentices in the      
household of the master4    ,since ,i   

had now left the school1 in which ,i had
 been so intensely  interested1 ,i      
became possessed of a kind of melancholy
 which led me  to seek the ,lord and to 
study religion more closely4 ,i went for
 help  to the ,lutheran priest who had  
confirmed me1 and he loaned me several  
books on religion and other books       
containing much useful information1  in 
which ,i interested myself for some     
time4 ,nevertheless1 ,i found no        
satisfaction as a result of my reading2 
in fact1 ,i hardly knew what ,i  was    
reading4    ,one ,sunday1 in the summer 
of #ahfj1 ,i went to the church located 
a short  distance beyond the city4 ,a   
little valley lies by the side of the   
main  road4 ,i went into this valley1   
under some trees1 and bent upon my knees
  and prayed to the ,lord with a loud   
voice4 ,immediately came a moment of    
great exaltation1 but followed quickly  
by a voice which spoke to me in  a      
contemptuous tone3    ,what is wrong    
with you8 ,what do you want8 ,you come  

here and bend upon  your knees as a     
child2 you1 who have learned your       
profession so well2  you1 who have so   
many friends1 and have so much honor and
 respect6 ,are  you not ashamed8        
,under the influence of this voice ,i   
began to feel almost ashamed of  myself1
 and of what ,i was doing4 ,presently1  
however1 ,i broke through  the mist1 and
 was given power to rebuke the evil     
spirits and to compel  them to draw     
back4 ,then a great joy rested upon my  
soul4 ,i prayed for  light4 ,from that  
time on1 ,i felt as free as a bird in   
the air4    ,in the fall of #ahfj1 ,i   
finished my apprenticeship4 ,in         
accordance  with the contract1 ,i       
received my last year's pay1 #ad2 a suit
 of new  black clothes2 new shoes2 a    
silk velvet hat of the best kind1 and1  
in  the evening1 a splendid dinner4 ,it 
was customary at the end of the         
apprenticeship to do a piece of work as 
a proof that the business had  been     
thoroughly learned4 ,i was required to  

make a long rope1 used by  ships in     
measuring the number of knots traveled  
per hour4 ,i made such a  rope1 and it  
was accepted as very good by the        
shipping committee4 ,after  my          
apprenticeship was over ,i was offered  
work in the same factory1 but  with the 
difference that ,i was to receive the   
pay of a master workman4  ,in those days
 there was great traffic in rope1       
because wire cables had  not yet been   
introduced1 and there was much building 
and travel of  ships in the city of     
,trondhjem4        ,,ii4 ,i ,,accept    
,,the ,,gospel4    ,my uncle ,cornelius 
and his wife1 who owned a house in the  
city1 a  short time before had been     
baptized into the ,church of ,jesus     
,christ  of ,latter-day ,saints1 by the 
brothers ,dorius1 who were the first    
missionaries in the northern part of    
,norway4 ,i visited this aunt and       
presented her with a clothes line which 
,i had made4 ,my aunt was a well  spoken
 lady1 very fervent in her faith1 and   

she immediately began to  bombard me    
with ,mormonism4 ,in fact1 she lent me a
 lot of tracts  and ,scandinavian ,stars
 for me to read4 ,these ,i began to     
read1 and  compared what ,i read with   
the ,bible4    ,i had my own room in our
 home and spent all my spare time in the
 study  of the ,bible and the ,mormon   
books4 ,i soon borrowed more gospel     
literature and studied it1 with the     
,bible1 both day and night1 and  prayed 
to ,god for aid and guidance in the     
investigation4 ,the testimony  that ,i  
had the truth came to me more strongly1 
until1 as it were1 ,i  became           
transformed both in body and spirit     
through the saving message  of the      
gospel4    ,in those days1 many kinds of
 spirits made themselves known1 but this
  had no influence upon me1 for ,i had  
seen even the evil one in the days  that
 ,i attended school4 ,this may sound    
peculiar1 but ,i have1 in truth1  seen  
with my material1 eyes1 evil spirits in 
different appearances1 and  under such  

varying conditions that ,i am absolutely
 convinced of their  existence among us4
 ,both good and evil spirits are among  
us even here  in the valleys of the     
mountains4 ,i am ever grateful to the   
,lord that  he has permitted me to see  
and hear such things1 as they have been 
of  great use to me in my life's        
journey4 ,when ,i investigated the      
gospel  ,i established an unspeakable   
faith in the apostle's counsel that the 
,saints should seek after spiritual     
gifts4 ,i have the same faith and       
conviction today4    ,i reflected much  
upon the message that had come to me1   
without saying  much to any one4 ,there 
was a missionary in ,trondhjem1         
,thomasen1 by  name1 from ,christiania1 
a well informed and talented man2 also  
another  named ,john ,dahle1 from       
,bergen4 ,these missionaries conducted  
meetings  among the ,saints1 but ,i did 
not visit their meetings1 for ,i was    
very  retiring in my disposition4       
,meanwhile my oldest sister1 ,mrs4      

,martha  ,hagen1 had investigated the   
gospel and was baptized4 ,shortly       
afterward  ,i also became so strongly   
convinced of the truth of ,mormonism    
that  ,i went to ,elder ,thomasen and   
asked to be baptized4 ,in the evening of
  the #afth of ,january1 #ahfa1 ,i was  
baptized at ,trondhjem1 under a most    
pleasant influence4    ,after my        
baptism1 ,i presented myself at one of  
the meetings of the  ,saints4 ,it was   
the first time that ,i had attended4    
,some of the faithful  old sisters      
doubted my sincerity1 since ,i had not  
before attended  their meetings2        
moreover1 it was looked upon as a wonder
 that a young  man1 like myself1 could  
face the persecution sure to follow the 
acceptance of a religion so despised as 
was ,mormonism4 ,at that time  there    
were few young men in the ,church4 ,it  
was soon proposed that ,i be  ordained  
an elder4 ,i felt1 however1 that ,i was 
not possessed of the  power and         
information to receive so high a        

calling1 and ,i asked that  the         
ordination be postponed for some time4  
,in a later meeting it was  suggested   
again that ,i should be ordained to the 
priesthood1 and ,i was  then ordained an
 elder in the ,church of ,jesus ,christ 
of ,latter-day  ,saints4 ,immediately   
afterwards ,i was called to assist the  
missionaries4    ,trondhjem1 at that    
time1 was notoriously the headquarters  
of ,mormon  persecution4 ,the           
authorities had gone to the extreme4    
,they had arrested  and severely        
punished some of our sisters because    
they had left the  legal church of the  
land and had accepted ,mormonism1 and   
had been  baptized into this new        
,church4 ,among the sisters so punished 
were ,marit  ,greslie and ,mrs4 ,olsen1 
two sisters who later came to ,logan and
 were  married to respectable men2 also 
,lena ,christensen who later came to    
,salt ,lake ,city4 ,these sisters were  
imprisoned and sentenced to five  days' 
imprisonment with a diet of only bread  

and water4 ,i was also  called to the   
court house at the trial and had to     
answer many questions  put to me by the 
chief of police4 ,several of the        
questions were of such  a nature that ,i
 did not feel under any obligation to   
answer them1 which  did not bring the   
chief into the best of humor4 ,as a     
result1 the police  chief promised me   
that he should not forget me4 ,he was   
very bitter in  his feelings towards the
 ,saints4    ,mormonism from that time  
on1 became my guiding star4 ,with great 
interest ,i accepted the call to help in
 bearing testimony of the  truthfulness 
of the gospel1 and in visiting the      
,saints in the city  and its            
surroundings4 ,all this time ,i         
continued my work in the rope  factory1 
owned by ,mr4 ,berg1 under whom ,i      
served my apprenticeship4 ,he  was a    
religious man1 a dissenter who had some 
time before left the  ,lutheran church  
and now belonged to a local sect4 ,while
 my master and  ,i walked up and down   

the rope walk together spinning hemp1   
,mormonism  became the theme of the day1
 during weeks and months4 ,by this time 
,i  had acquired many of the principles 
of the gospel as taught in the  tracts  
of ,orson ,pratt and ,parley ,p4 ,pratt1
 and ,i was enabled thereby to  continue
 day after day our interesting          
discussion4    ,after ,i had joined the 
,church1 since it was very difficult to 
rent  a house where meetings could be   
held1 the missionaries secured the      
largest room in my mother's house4 ,the 
missionaries lived there1 and  conducted
 their meetings there for several years4
 ,many times the house  was bombarded by
 mobs1 and my mother had to go and talk 
to the people  in order to disperse     
them4 ,after a year or so1 the          
persecution quieted  somewhat and life  
became more peaceful4 ,the missionaries 
had1 as it  were1 a home with my mother1
 and many enjoyable meetings were held  
in  my mother's house4    ,after a time 
my mother also made herself acquainted  

with the gospel1  and developed a faith 
in it1 but was not baptized4 ,on many   
occasions1  during the persecutions1 she
 went out in her garden and preached    
,mormonism to the restless crowd of     
people standing in the street and       
around the house4 ,she was well         
acquainted with the ,bible1 and at once1
  when an editor was present in the     
crowd1 he wrote down the principles     
that she declared to the crowd1 and     
printed them in his paper as the        
remarkable speech of an old woman4 ,she 
had a good singing voice and  went often
 to the houses of our neighbors where   
she sang songs from our  hymn book4 ,the
 missionaries remained in my mother's   
house1 and loved  her1 during many      
years1 even after ,i returned from my   
first mission to  ,nordland and         
,finmarken in the northern part of      
,norway4    ,several were baptized at   
,trondhjem4 ,several changes occurred   
among the  missionaries1 and at one time
 we were in charge of a local elder1 who

  gave us good counsel and guidance4    
,later we received as our missionary1   
,hans ,a4 ,hansen from ,christiansand1  
who was sent to ,trondhjem to care  for 
the new branch there4 ,this man later   
became my counselor in the  bishopric of
 the sixth ward of ,logan4    ,i secured
 frequently at this time leave of       
absence from the factory  for a week or 
two at a time1 in order to accompany the
 missionaries on  their visits to the   
surrounding districts1 such as          
,stordalen1 ,indhered1  ,seldo1         
,borseskogen4 ,in this manner ,i learned
 to know something of  the different    
conditions that a ,mormon elder has to  
meet4 ,often1  though he had money1 we  
could not secure the privilege of buying
  food1 or a place in which to sleep1   
simply because we were ,mormons4        
,nevertheless1 we were of good faith1   
though we were many times utterly       
exhausted by the long distances that we 
had to cover on foot1 without  proper   
food4 ,these experiences were of a kind 

to give us greater  preparation for our 
important work as messengers carrying   
the glad  tidings of the gospel to the  
people4 ,we felt much interested in our 
labors1 especially since we had the joy 
of seeing some of the fruits of  them4  
,thus passed the first two years of my  
membership in the ,church4        ,,iii4
 ,i ,,go ,,on ,,my ,,first ,,mission4   
,early in the spring of #ahfc ,i was    
called to be present at the  conference 
to be held in ,christiania4 ,i resigned1
 immediately1 my  place in the rope     
factory4 ,according to law1 six weeks'  
notice had to  be given when a person   
resigned from steady employment2 but if 
,i was  to reach the conference on time1
 ,i had to leave at once1 for at that   
time there was no railroad between      
,christiania and ,trondhjem4 ,i was1    
therefore1 obliged to tell the owner of 
the factory that ,i had to leave  in one
 week4 ,this was a hard nut for him to  
crack1 especially since he  had the law 
on his side4 ,i told him that ,i was    

going to the conference1  law or no law1
 and that ,i was going to be there on   
time4 ,he finally  gave in to my        
request1 and even offered to meet me in 
the morning of  my departure to bid me  
goodbye1 and promised to send an        
apprentice to  carry my satchel to the  
city limits4    ,on the morning of my   
departure1 the master came1 according to
 his  agreement1 and brought with him an
 old school teacher1 connected with  the
 church1 as ,i supposed for the purpose 
of driving ,mormonism out  of me4 ,their
 plan did not materialize2 our          
discussions were carried on  in a       
friendly way1 and at last they bade me  
goodbye1 and gave me their  best wishes 
for my future4 ,the apprentice came and 
carried my satchel  through the city4   
,thus ,i left my native city1 to begin  
the many years  of missionary service4  
,a ,swedish rope-maker was also on his  
way to ,christiania1 and we1  therefore1
 traveled together4 ,we traveled on     
foot1 along the country  roads1 the #cej

 miles that separate ,trondhjem from    
,christiania4 ,this  was early in the   
month of ,march4 ,the roads were        
difficult to travel  for there was much 
snow4 ,moreover1 neither of us knew the 
conditions  and short cuts of the roads4
 ,we had snow shoes along with us1 which
  made our journey more rapid in places 
where they could be used4 ,on we        
traveled1 day after day2 along the      
valleys1 over the hills1 now in  heavy  
drifted snow1 now where the road was    
bare from the heavy winds4    ,in the   
course of our journey1 we finally had to
 climb ,dovre mountain1  the highest    
divide in ,norway4 ,the mountain side   
was covered with  drifted snow1 and it  
was exceedingly difficult to walk there4
 ,one  evening we reached the station   
known as ,grievestuen1 the first station
  north of ,dovre mountain1 and spent   
the night there on nearly the  highest  
point of the mountain4 ,this is far     
above the tree line1 and  no dwelling   
houses are found so far up on the       

mountain4 ,the next day  we crossed the 
mountain1 for the first time for me1    
though it was not  to be my last4 ,that 
day we undertook1 as usual1 almost too  
much of a  day's journey1 for we        
traveled almost fourteen miles through  
the heavy  drifted snow1 to the second  
station from the one in which we had    
spent  the night4 ,darkness overtook us4
 ,the road was filled with drifted      
snow1 and in our worn-out condition we  
were in danger of giving up and         
remaining in the snow throughout the    
night4 ,i had in my pocket a small      
bottle of camphor drops of which we took
 a drop now and then4 ,this  seemed to  
help us1 and at length1 we reached the  
station4    ,the next morning we walked 
ten or twelve miles downward into the   
beautiful and well-known ,guldbrands    
,valley4 ,some days later we reached    
the beautiful city of ,lillehammer1     
which lies at the end of the great  lake
 of ,mjosen4 ,ships here take passengers
 to ,eidsvold2 but1 when we  arrived1   

the lake was still covered with ice and 
we had to continue  our foot journey    
twenty-eight miles farther4 ,at last we 
reached the  town of ,gjevig1 where we  
journeyed by ship to ,eidsvold1 the     
railroad  terminus1 where we boarded the
 train immediately1 and found ourselves 
in ,christiania the same day4 ,the long 
walk was ended4    ,on the evening of my
 arrival1 the conference began1 in the  
large hall  in ,storgaden4 ,elder       
,rasmus ,johansen was president1 and the
 brothers  ,dorius were also there4 ,i  
felt like one who has just escaped from 
a  prison--glad and happy4 ,we had a    
good time together4 ,nearly all of the  
missionaries and our local elders were  
there4 ,during this conference ,i  was  
called to go to ,nordland on a mission1 
and ,i received my commission  from     
,president ,rasmus ,johansen4 ,i suppose
 few of those present knew  anything    
about ,nordland at that time4    ,soon  
after the conference1 ,i began1 alone1  
my long tramp of #cej miles1  northward1

 to my native city of ,trondhjem4 ,on   
the return journey1  however1 ,i took a 
somewhat different route1 through       
,osterdalen4 ,on  this trip1 also1 ,i   
had to walk across a great mountain and 
as ,i was  not acquainted with the      
conditions1 it was night before ,i came 
down  from the mountain1 into the       
nearest village4 ,the people had all    
gone to  bed4 ,i knocked on the door of 
one of the houses4 ,who is there8 asked 
someone4 ,a stranger who has come over  
the mountain1 said ,i4 ,no1 he  can get 
no entertainment here1 said a woman1    
briskly4 ,hold on1 said  a man4 ,a man  
who has walked over the mountain alone  
at this time of  night needs rest4 ,i   
have been out myself and know what it   
means4 ,he  dressed himself1 opened the 
door1 put good food on the table1 made  
my  bed1 and said1 ,help yourself4 ,this
 man was one of the many who has        
secured1 for himself1 a reward4         
,image captioned ,,missionary           
,,certificate ,,of ,,bishop ,,anthony   

,l4 ,,skanchy4  ,this certificate1      
issued in #ahfc1 bears the endorsement  
of different  police officers1 under    
date of ,nov4 #b1 #ahfc2 ,june #aj1     
#ahfd2 and ,may #bd1  #ahfe4    ,i came 
finally to the city of ,roros1 where    
many of my family lived1  and to whom ,i
 bore my testimony4 ,at last ,i reached 
,trondhjem where ,i  secured work again 
in the rope factory1 and where ,i worked
 during two  weeks1 in order to earn    
enough to buy a steamer ticket to the   
place  assigned to me for my missionary 
labors4 ,at that time1 the missionaries 
were sent out without purse or scrip1   
and depended entirely upon the  promises
 of the ,lord4        ,,iv4 ,,missionary
 ,,labors ,,in ,,nordland ,,and         
,,finmarken4    ,the #bgth of ,may1     
#ahfc1 ,i took passage with the         
steamship ,prince  ,gustaf1 and with    
,god's mercy of eternal salvation before
 me1 ,i bade  my dear mother goodbye4   
,with joy in my heart ,i went out to    
carry the  message of the everlasting   

covenant1 to preach the gospel and to   
battle  for the cause of truth4    ,the 
first island ,i visited was ,degoe4 ,it 
lies off ,helgeland4 ,there  ,i bore my 
testimony to the people1 and distributed
 books and tracts  wherever ,i went4 ,i 
then traveled to ,harstad1 from there to
 ,qvarfjorden  where there was a family 
who belonged to the ,church1 and then   
along  ,kadsfjorden where there also was
 a family belonging to the ,church4     
,then came numerous long visits among   
the many deep fjords and sounds  of     
which ,nordland mainly consists1 and    
upon the islands1 most of which  are    
thickly peopled4 ,i traveled by boat1   
sailship or steamship1 as  opportunity  
offered4 ,i tramped from island to      
island1 over mountains  and valleys1    
visited houses and fishing districts1   
and had opportunity  to bear my         
testimony before many people4 ,i visited
 nearly all of the  inhabited islands1  
fjords and sounds in ,nordland4 ,there  
,i met many  kinds of people1--priests  

and school teachers1 and many people    
well  versed in the ,bible4 ,the people 
in ,nordland seemed to me to be better  
posted on the ,bible than in any other  
place in ,norway4 ,the few ,saints  whom
 ,i found scattered on the different    
islands were visited1 but1  soon after  
,i reached there1 two families who      
belonged to the ,church  emigrated to   
,zion1 namely ,pollov ,israelsen1 and   
,peter ,hartvigsen4 ,my  greatest       
interest and joy was my mission work2   
this ,i can truthfully  say4            
,nordland begins several miles north of 
,trondhjem1 where the ,atlantic  ocean  
crowds in and follows the ,norwegian    
coastline northward and  washes the old 
steep rocks of the shore1 until the     
famous ,north ,cape is  reached1 a few  
miles from the widely known city of     
,hammerfest4 ,hundreds  of tourists from
 various nations visit this place every 
summer4 ,here  they may see the midnight
 sun circle around the horizon1 through 
two  long months of summer4 ,after we   

leave ,north ,cape the coast line draws 
north-east and east to south1 until the 
great ,atlantic ocean surrounds         
,norway's northern1 barren and          
fjord-furrowed coast4 ,this part of     
,norway  is called ,finmarken4 ,the     
country is here very barren4 ,no        
vegetation1  excepting grass1 is found1 
and the population1 chiefly ,finns and  
,lapps1  live on the mountains and care 
for their great herds of reindeer1 or1  
they live on the islands and fish from  
season to season4 ,fishing1 as is  well 
known1 is the life-blood of ,norway's   
industrial existence4 ,i give  these    
facts because this great mission field  
is little known1 even now1  in our      
,church history4    ,i was called to go 
on a mission to ,nordland1 which        
includes many cities  such as ,namsos1  
,bodo1 ,harstad1 and ,tromso4 ,the last 
mentioned city  lies #hge miles north of
 ,trondhjem1 and ,vardo1 the most       
distant of the  cities lies #a1djj miles
 north of ,trondhjem4 ,this vast        

territory was1  therefore1 my mission   
field4 ,in this field only ten souls    
belonged to  the ,church at the time ,i 
came there4 ,these few had been baptized
 by  ,elder ,ola ,orstend who was the   
captain of a trading ship1 and who later
  became postmaster in ,cottonwood1     
,utah4    ,the people in that part of   
the land did not always deem it proper  
for me to preach ,mormonism and to      
administer the ordinances of  the       
,church4 ,consequently1 during the time 
,i spent in that country1  ,i was       
arrested seven times1 carried over land 
and sea in boats and  steamers as a     
prisoner1 tried in various places1 and  
was sentenced  to imprisonment six      
times4 ,the first time ,i was given six 
days  imprisonment with only bread and  
water for food4 ,this was in the city   
of ,tromso4 ,in the prison ,i had to    
mingle with thieves and murderers4  ,i  
was assigned a little room in the attic 
with a tiny window in the  east1 and a  
hard bed hanging by hinges on the wall  

so that it might be  dropped down when  
it was to be used and lifted again when 
not in use1  so that there would be some
 room for me in which to move about4 ,a 
tiny  table and a tiny bench constituted
 the furniture4 ,i had a small piece  of
 sour1 coarse bread1 and all the water  
,i desired1 every twenty-four  hours4   
,the cause of my sentence was illegal   
religious activity4    ,when ,i had     
earned my freedom1 and was let out of   
the prison1 ,i began  again to bear my  
testimony among the people and to       
distribute books and  to hold meetings1 
and to baptize those who were converted 
to the saving  message4    ,the tracts  
that ,i distributed found their way to  
many of the honest in  heart4 ,i heard  
at one time of a man far away in        
,finmarken who desired  much to see and 
speak with an elder4 ,he had read       
something in some of  our books that had
 reached him4 ,i had then just come out 
of the prison  in ,tromso4 ,i bought a  
ticket on a steamer to a station known  

as ,hasvig1  on the east side of the    
great island of ,soro4 ,he who desired  
to meet  an elder of the ,church lived  
in ,ofjorden1 west of the island1 nearly
  thirty-five miles away1 over great    
mountains and morasses4 ,since ,i had   
never been in this place1 ,i wondered if
 ,i could find my way to it4 ,the  only 
road was that made by the goats as they 
traveled back and forth  between the    
watering and feeding places4 ,the       
steamship was to arrive in  ,hasvig at  
two o'clock in the morning4 ,it was the 
#afth day of ,september4  ,i was the    
only deck passenger on the ship4 ,as the
 night went on ,i  became very anxious  
about the manner of my reaching my      
destination1  and when all was quiet on 
board ,i went forward on the ship1 bowed
  before the ,lord and prayed to him1 in
 whose service ,i was traveling1  to    
guide my footsteps and to care for me on
 this particular task4 ,i  became       
surrounded by a great light and a voice 
said to me1 ,be of good  courage4 ,you  

are not alone4 ,whatever is necessary   
will be given you4 ,i  cannot describe  
how happy ,i felt4    ,at two o'clock in
 the morning the steamboat whistled and 
we stopped at  the station of ,hasvig4  
,there was no landing place there at    
that time1  so the postmaster came out  
with a boat to deliver and receive the  
mail4  ,i was the only passenger he     
brought away4 ,he asked me where ,i came
 from  and where ,i was going4 ,i told  
him and he invited me immediately to go 
with him to his office4 ,he said1 ,my   
housekeeper has always a cup of  coffee 
ready for me when ,i am up at night to  
get the mail4 ,afterwards  he went down 
with me to the shore and took me to a   
freight boat which  was about to travel 
up the fjord the way ,i was going4 ,the 
postmaster  asked those in the boat to  
take me with them as far as they went1  
and  told me it was best for me to begin
 my foot journey at the place the  boat 
would stop4 ,i continued with the boat  
to ,sorvar1 which we reached  at ten    

o'clock the next forenoon4 ,great       
fishing districts are located  there4 ,i
 had been up all night1 and ,i was very 
tired4 ,a fisherman whom  ,i met asked  
me to go with him to his place and he   
would make some  coffee for me1 for he  
understood that ,i was tired4    ,as my 
strength returned to me ,i began to bear
 my testimony to them4  ,after an hour's
 time1 one of the many who had gathered 
to listen to  me1 invited me to go with 
him to his house for dinner1 after which
 he  took a boat and rowed me across the
 sound4 ,on this journey our time  was  
occupied in explaining questions which  
he directed to me4 ,he was  very much   
interested4 ,after we crossed the sound 
he hired a boat and we  rowed up to the 
head of the fjord4 ,here we found       
shelter for the night  with a family of 
,laps4 ,when they heard where ,i was    
going1 one of the  ,lap women said she  
knew the road well and offered to go    
with me and to  show me the road over   
the mountains1 about seven miles4    ,we

 reached ,ofjorden1 my destination1     
early in the afternoon and was  welcomed
 by the man who had desired to see a    
,mormon elder4 ,this man1  for some     
time1 had held a position similar to    
that of probate judge1  but had resigned
 his position and was now living quietly
 and was being  cared for by a          
housekeeper4 ,it was peculiar that the  
man who had heard  me speak on the      
island1 and who had rowed me across the 
sound1 had  followed me the whole       
distance4 ,i held a meeting with them   
and spoke  to them the whole day of my  
arrival and the day after4 ,my friend   
the  fisherman returned1 at last4 ,the  
day afterward ,i baptized the old       
probate judge2 later his housekeeper was
 baptized1 and at last the ,lap  woman  
who had acted as my guide over the      
mountain was baptized4 ,when  this had  
been accomplished the ,lap woman guided 
me back straight over  the mountain1 to 
,hasvig where ,i had left the steamship 
early in the  night just a week         

previously4 ,the vision that ,i had had 
on the deck of  the ship that night had 
been literally fulfilled4 ,everything   
that was  necessary had been given me4  
,i felt very grateful to the ,lord for  
his  fatherly care and guidance during  
the week4    ,afterward ,i visited the  
huts of the ,laps on the shore and slept
 one  night with them4 ,they received me
 with much kindness1 invited me to eat  
with them and desired much to listen to 
what ,i had to tell them4 ,i held  a    
meeting with them and sang for them4    
,they all felt well1 as did ,i  also4   
,v4 ,,again ,,before ,,the ,,courts4    
,i had a sister five years older than   
myself who was not in the ,church1  but 
was a private teacher in the family of  
,mr4 ,miller1 a merchant in  ,kovaaen1  
about one hundred seventy-five miles    
south of ,tromso4 ,mrs4  ,miller was    
slightly related to the ,skanchys4 ,at  
one time ,i had been  kept in prison in 
,tromso during twenty-one days1 waiting 
for a session  of the court at which ,i 

could be tried4 ,at last ,i was sent by 
steamship  to ,kovaaen1 where a court   
was to be held4    ,we left ,tromso     
about ten o'clock in the evening4 ,there
 were many  passengers on board1        
especially on the deck4 ,it was one of  
the mild1  beautiful summer nights of   
,nordland4 ,the steward who had my      
ticket and  was supposed to take care of
 me desired to have a little fun with   
the  ,mormon preacher1 but apparently he
 made a wrong calculation1 for when  he 
attacked me with improper words1 ,i     
talked back to him so loudly that  the  
captain on the bridge came running down 
to the steward and took  him by the coat
 collar and put him under arrest1 saying
 that he had no  right to make life     
disagreeable for a prisoner4 ,the       
steward remained  under deck as a       
prisoner during the whole day4    ,at   
once1 as a result of this episode1 ,i   
was surrounded by all the  passengers on
 the deck1 and as ,i stood on one side  
of the deck the  little ship began to   

tip4 ,the captain very politely asked me
 to stand  in the middle of the deck4 ,i
 felt then that ,i had a good           
opportunity  to preach and to answer the
 questions that might be put to me4 ,the
  people again gathered about me1 and ,i
 stood there and defended the  cause of 
truth from twelve o'clock at night until
 five o'clock in the  morning4 ,at that 
time a lady of the first class came to  
me and offered  me something to eat4    
,this food strengthened my body4 ,thus1 
in my life's  experience1 ,i have been  
occupied a whole night in battling for  
the  cause of truth4 ,on this occasion  
,i felt that ,i was not alone1 but that 
,i was powerfully supported by the ,lord
 and his influence4    ,at seven o'clock
 in the morning we reached our          
destination1 and two of  the civil      
authorities came on board4 ,they both   
greeted me1 as ,i had  long been        
acquainted with them4 ,at eight o'clock 
we reached the place  where the court   
was to be held4 ,the courthouse was on a

 little hill  rising abruptly from the  
fjord4 ,mr4 ,nordrum1 the court clerk1  
and his  deputy went at once into the   
house which was occupied as a dwelling  
house1 and where the family were eating 
breakfast4 ,mr4 ,nordrum was a          
liberal-minded man and he said to ,mrs4 
,miller1 ,have you a comfortable  room  
that we can have1 as we have a prisoner 
along with us8    ,what8 said the lady1 
a nice room for a prisoner8    ,yes1 he 
answered4 ,it is no ordinary prisoner4  
,it is the ',mormon'  preacher1         
,skanchy4    ,my sister1 who was        
standing by the table1 heard this and   
almost  fainted4 ,she left the table and
 went weeping down to the shore where ,i
  was standing1 threw her arms about my 
neck1 kissed me1 and cried again4  ,all 
this was done to the great surprise of  
my fellow passenger1 the  lady who so   
kindly gave me a bite to eat earlier in 
the morning4 ,this  lady soon heard that
 ,i was her brother4 ,this also brought 
tears from  the lady1 who said1 ,i would

 give a great deal if ,i had such a     
brother1  for he has been on the        
battlefield all night and has won a     
victory4    ,all this occurred on       
,sunday morning4 ,i was given a good    
breakfast in a  large1 well-furnished   
room in the building4 ,the court clerk  
came to my  room1 greeted me in a       
friendly way1 and told me that my       
hearing should  be the first one so that
 ,i could be released early4    ,at     
eight o'clock ,monday morning1 ,i was   
called into the court room  where ,i was
 examined concerning my great crime     
against the ,norwegian  law1 namely1    
that ,i had freely preached the         
doctrines of the ,bible and  performed  
the ordinances of the gospel which      
should be done only by  the ,lutheran   
priests who were paid for so doing4 ,the
 court clerk1 ,mr4  ,nordrum1 of whom ,i
 have spoken1 felt well towards the     
,mormons and  treated them with much    
respect1 but he was obliged1 of course1 
to do  his work in accordance with the  

laws of the land4 ,the only judges who  
were after us were those who wanted to  
make a reputation for themselves  by    
persecuting the ,mormons4    ,this      
bitter trial was similar to the many    
others to which ,i had been  subjected4 
,upon the request of the court1 ,i bore 
a long testimony to  the truthfulness of
 ,mormonism1 all of which was written   
down in the  records of the court4 ,all 
of it was read to me again1 so that ,i  
might  correct it1 if ,i so desired1    
before it became a permanent part of the
  court records4 ,i thought this was not
 so bad1 as my testimony had been       
written into the official records each  
time that ,i had been before the        
courts4 ,as a result a great deal of    
,mormonism stands recorded in the       
official records of northern ,norway1 as
 a testimony against the unjust         
persecutions to which the servants of   
the ,lord have been subjected4    ,my   
case now went to a superior officer for 
his consideration1 and ,i was  set free 

until such time as he might pronounce   
judgment upon me4 ,the  day after1 the  
clerk of the court1 ,mr4 ,nordrum1      
offered to take me on  my journey with  
him1 in a large row boat which belonged 
to the city4  ,it would be at least a   
week before the steamer arrived4 ,the   
boat had  four men as rowers4 ,the clerk
 and ,i sat at the back of the boat on a
  comfortable bench1 and during the     
eight hours of the trip discussed  the  
gospel4 ,we came during the day to a    
large island which was densely          
populated and there1 in accordance with 
my wishes1 ,i was set on land4  ,on this
 island ,i took up my work with much    
satisfaction1 and continued  it from    
island to island4    ,i will say here   
again that my mission work was of       
greatest interest  and joy to me4 ,when 
,i saw the fruits of my work1 as ,i took
 the honest  in heart to the water's    
edge and there baptized them1 ,i felt   
that it  was the most glorious work any 
mortal could perform4 ,no sacrifice     

seemed too great1 for ,i felt as if my  
whole system was swallowed up in        
,mormonism4    ,the experiences which ,i
 won by my work in ,nordland1 the long  
journeys  by land and water1 the        
sacrifices and the suffering ,i had to  
endure1  such as hunger and loss of     
sleep1 will always remain in my memory1 
and they were no doubt for my good4 ,i  
learned on this mission great  lessons1 
and the ,lord be praised therefor4      
,,vi4 ,,how ,i ,,spent ,,the ,,winter   
,,in ,,nordland4    ,i continued my work
 until late into the fall and early     
winter1 as  long as ,i could find the   
people at home4 ,when winter opened1    
most of  the able-bodied men voyaged to 
the fishing districts and worked there  
throughout the winter4 ,especially did  
the fishermen gather in the  famous     
fisheries of ,lofoten1 where thousands  
of men and boats assembled  each winter 
while the women1 children and the aged  
remained home on the  islands4 ,at that 
season so much snow falls that it is    

almost impossible  to travel from place 
to place4    ,i was in considerable     
distress1 for ,i hardly knew what a poor
  missionary could do during the winter 
to perform his duties and to  measure up
 to the responsibilities that had been  
placed upon him and be  true to his     
call4 ,this great problem filled my     
thoughts4 ,i presented  the matter to   
,him in whose service ,i had been       
called4 ,the result was  that ,i        
obtained the testimony that ,i should go
 wherever ,i could find  people and work
 with them just as far as ,i could4     
,consequently1 ,i  started out for the  
fisheries where the men gathered for the
 winter4    ,first ,i went to the island
 of ,hatsel1 and from there to a place  
near  ,lofoten1 in the midst of the wild
 ocean1 and hired out to one of the     
fishermen1 the owner of a large boat4   
,there were six of us in the boat1  and 
during the winter we fished with all our
 strength in the great  ,atlantic       
,ocean4 ,an old house stood on the      

shore1 at a point known as  ,qualnes1 in
 which the fishermen lived during the   
fishing season4 ,twelve  men1 six from  
our boat and six from another1 lived in 
the large1 one  room of the cabin4 ,here
 we cooked and slept2 but it went pretty
 well4    ,as ,i was quick1 strong1 and 
endured the sea without becoming sick1  
,i  felt that ,i never needed to take a 
place inferior to any of the other  men4
 ,my associates were raw1 uncultured    
seamen4 ,i thought to myself1  ,here is 
something for me to do4 ,i went out     
among the great rocks  that littered the
 coast and had my prayers and communions
 with the  ,lord4 ,soon ,i acquired     
influence over the men and began to     
teach them to  refrain from their       
fearful swearing and cursing1 which they
 continued  from morning until evening4 
,they all knew that ,i was a ,mormon    
preacher4 ,our captain was the first to 
stop swearing2 then the others1  and    
finally they developed a very great     
respect for me4 ,whatever ,i  said1 they

 accepted as being right4 ,in the end   
they developed such a  love for me that 
when the fishing season was ended1 and  
,i bade them  farewell1 tears came into 
their eyes4 ,this was the first winter  
of my  first mission1 and the first     
winter that ,i spent as a fisherman on  
the  wild ocean4    ,from the fisheries 
,i sailed to the island of ,hatsel where
 my winter's  captain lived1 and visited
 for a short time with him and his      
family4 ,i  received my #cd for the     
winter's work1 and went joyfully on my  
way1 to  continue my mission over the   
country4        ,,vii4 ,,the ,,lord     
,,sends ,,me ,,money ,,and ,,more       
,,friends4    ,the second summer of my  
mission was used chiefly in preaching to
 the  fishermen4 ,i traveled from island
 to island1 from shore to shore1 over   
mountains and valleys1 and ,i won       
numerous friends4 ,many were baptized   
and more were left with a testimony4 ,i 
was arrested1 of course1 and on  one    
occasion was given eight days' solitary 

confinement with only bread  and water  
to eat4 ,in the fall my means had all   
been consumed1 and the  snow water ran  
in and out of my boots4 ,i succeeded in 
borrowing about  five dollars from a    
friend1 who was not in the ,church1 and 
that put me  in tip-top shape again4 ,on
 my journey ,i secured many subscribers 
for  the ,scandinavian ,star1 which also
 helped to spread the gospel4    ,the   
second winter came1 and ,i received a   
letter from ,captain ,christian         
,hansen1 with whom ,i had labored the   
preceding winter1 asking me to  report  
at his home the first of ,january1      
#ahfe4 ,it was about the middle  of     
,december that one of the brethren who  
took a boat and rowed me  into          
,gosfjorden1 whence ,i could walk over a
 mountain1 about fourteen  miles1 until 
,i would be opposite the island which   
was my destination4  ,the country here  
was very wild and open1 and had great   
chasms running  through it4 ,it was very
 easy for a person to become hopelessly 

lost in  a maze of wonderful natural    
phenomena4 ,i bade my good brother      
goodbye  by the ocean side2 he gave me  
explicit instructions for my guidance4  
,i was to go in a straight line         
southward1 and ,i would reach my        
destination4 ,as much snow lay on the   
ground1 ,i took a pair of skis and      
carried my clothes and books in a       
satchel on my back4    ,within five     
minutes after starting1 the air became  
filled with snow1  so that ,i could not 
discover which was south or north4 ,to  
go back was  impossible1 for no one     
lived by the fjord2 the boat had gone   
back1  and ,i stood alone in the        
solitary1 mountainous wilderness4       
,however1  this did not frighten me1 for
 ,i felt that ,i was directed by the    
,lord4  ,i turned about to get the      
direction ,i had taken in the beginning1
 and  then sighted ahead1 as best ,i    
could1 in the same direction to some    
bush  or other natural object4 ,this ,i 
repeated1 over and over again1 and in   

that fashion ,i traveled the whole      
fourteen miles in the midst of a        
terrific snow-storm4 ,the snow was so   
soft that my skis sank down in it  until
 ,i was in the snow almost up to my     
knees1 and ,i could hardly see  the end 
of my skis1 as ,i brought them out of   
the snow4 ,naturally1 my  progress was  
slow4    ,night came and darkness       
overtook me1 but for me there was light1
  nevertheless4 ,at nine o'clock that   
night ,i reached the shore4 ,it was  joy
 to take the skis from my feet and walk 
on the sand among the great  rocks4 ,i  
saw a house on the shore about a mile   
away4 ,i went in there  and asked for   
lodging4 ,i was so overcome by weakness 
from the hard  journey of the day that  
,i could scarcely speak4 ,the man in the
 house1  however1 understood what       
troubled me1 and placed me in a chair by
 the  warm stove2 then he took my boots 
from off my feet1 and brought me from   
the cellar a bowl of home-made malt     
beer4 ,after ,i had become warmed1 he   

asked me to sit up to the table and eat4
 ,i did this in a great hurry4    ,this 
poor fisherman's home was the only house
 on this side of the  island4 ,after ,i 
had eaten1 the wife made the beds4 ,she 
put clean sheets  and pillow slips over 
a good straw mattress covered with an   
old boat  sail in the corner of the one 
room in the house4 ,after prayers1 it   
seemed that they knew who ,i was4 ,i was
 then made to sleep in their own  bed1  
while they slept on the straw bed made  
in the corner4    ,the next morning we  
had a modest breakfast1 and the man     
rowed me across  the sound to the next  
island1 and would not take the slightest
 pay  for what he had done4 ,i then     
walked across this island and found a   
man to ferry me across the next sound4  
,for this service the ferryman  demanded
 twenty-five cents4 ,this was the last  
money that ,i had4 ,i gave  him the     
money and he set me ashore on a sand    
ridge that jutted out  from the island  
into the water4 ,he immediately rowed   

back to his own  island4 ,there ,i      
stood1 alone1 penniless and in a strange
 place4 ,with  a heavy heart ,i gathered
 up my satchel and my coat and looked   
around  for my directions4 ,there1 as ,i
 looked1 by my side and on the sand1 lay
  a little pile of money in silver and  
copper coins1 totaling nearly a  dollar4
 ,i was so affected by this unexpected  
relief that ,i sat down on  a stone and 
wept for gratitude4    ,i wondered how  
this money had been left1 and came to   
the conclusion  that some fishermen had 
probably been selling fish among the    
neighboring islands and had placed the  
money that they received1 as is  very   
common1 in the bailing dipper of the    
boat2 on their way back they  had       
forgotten that the money was in the     
bailing dipper1 and in bailing  out the 
boat had thrown the money accidentally  
on the sand-ridge on  which ,i had      
landed4 ,however1 it had happened4 ,it  
was another testimony  to me that there 
is ,one high above us1 who sees and     

knows all things4  ,he knew1 no doubt1  
that ,i had paid out my last money1 and 
therefore  guided my boat so that ,i    
landed where this money had been lost4  
,i was  grateful to the ,lord4    ,i    
continued my journey from island to     
island1 and at last reached the  island 
of ,hasel1 where ,i was received warmly 
by ,captain ,christian  ,hansen and his 
wife4 ,this time he offered me a much   
better position in  the fishery than ,i 
had the previous winter4 ,i was to be   
with him during  ,january1 ,february and
 ,march4 ,he was to furnish the fishing 
apparatus  and my provisions1 and we    
were to divide equally the products of  
my  labor4 ,i agreed to this and we     
sailed away4    ,we lived this winter   
also in the old log house1 and all went 
fairly  well4 ,when the fishing season  
was ended1 and the account was to be    
settled1 ,i found that my share was     
about fifty dollars4 ,i paid my debts   
and continued my journeys again4        
,,viii4 ,i ,,am ,,released ,,from ,,my  

,,first ,,mission4    ,at last ,i came  
to the town ,vardo in ,finmarken1 the   
most distant city in  my field1 where ,i
 remained a few weeks4 ,while there ,i  
went out on the  ocean and fished4      
,instead of nets1 hooks and lines were  
used4 ,the whole  ocean was so filled   
with fish that it seemed as if it were a
 great pot  in which fish were boiled4  
,it was a common experience that heavily
  weighted fish lines could not get past
 the mass of fish4    ,on this trip ,i  
was arrested for preaching the gospel of
 ,christ and  brought by steamer to the 
city of ,hammerfest1 where sentence was 
pronounced on me2 and from there1 in    
another steamer to ,tromso where ,i     
spent ten days in prison on a diet of   
bread and water4 ,i learned many  things
 from these seasons of imprisonment4 ,i 
was a young man1 healthy  and strong1   
accustomed to moving quickly in my work1
 and ,i found that  this diet of bread  
and water did not agree with me2        
especially as ,i  was given a tiny piece

 of sour1 heavy1 dry1 coarse bread1     
about the  size of half of my hand1     
every twenty-four hours4 ,as the days   
went by  in prison1 ,i must confess that
 ,i became very hungry and that it      
caused  sleeplessness4 ,i was able to   
sleep about two hours each night1 and   
would awake weak and tired4 ,i dreamed  
usually that ,i was feasting on  an     
abundance of things to eat and drink and
 then would suddenly awake  hungry and  
weak1 dizziness and headache            
overmastering me4 ,i lay on my  hard bed
 hoping for the arrival of day because  
,i could then divert  my thoughts a     
little better4 ,these seasons of        
imprisonment tired me  severely4 ,none  
can fully understand it unless he has   
experienced it  himself4 ,it brought to 
my mind the words of the ,prophet       
,isaiah1 ,it  shall even be as when a   
hungry man dreameth1 and behold1 he     
eateth2 but  he waketh1 and his soul is 
empty3 or as when a thirsty man         
dreameth1  and behold1 he drinketh1 but 

he waketh1 and1 behold1 he is faint1 and
  his soul has appetite3 ,so shall the  
multitude of the nations be that  fight 
against ,mount ,zion4 ,i thought to     
myself that he who spoke those  words   
had undoubtedly had experience in it4   
,during the month of ,july1 in #ahfe1   
the third summer of my labors in        
,nordland1 ,i received my release from  
this mission1 from ,elder ,george  ,m4  
,brown1 who then presided over the      
,norway conference4 ,i wrote to  all the
 ,saints in ,nordland's branch to meet  
in the historical place  ,bjarkoe at a  
stated time4 ,all of the ,saints came to
 the meeting1 as  also strangers4 ,my   
sister in the flesh1 ,amelia1 came      
there1 also1 and  was baptized4 ,we     
partook of the sacrament together1 and  
for three or  four days we had a most   
enjoyable time4 ,at last1 then1 ,i bade 
farewell  to my brethren1 sisters and   
friends1 and to ,nordland with its many 
islands1 fjords and great and beautiful 
mountains1 forming a landscape  so      

brilliantly equipped that it does not   
stand second to any that ,i  have seen4 
,the impressions which became stamped   
upon my mind during  my mission up among
 the people of northern ,norway1 in the 
days of my  youth1 will never1 ,i       
believe1 leave me1 for one might learn  
more up  there than can be learned in a 
university4    ,before ,i leave this    
extensive and valuable mission field1 ,i
 will add my  modest judgment of this   
great and beautiful country1 with fjords
 and  sounds1 islands and high mountains
 covered with leafy trees1 reaching     
down to the shore1 with the background  
of high cliffs and barren  mountains1   
covered with patches of trees and moss1 
where the ,laps watch  their great herds
 grazing in the small mountain valleys4 
,all about1  are every kind of feathered
 life1 representing the birds of the    
ocean1  among which the eider duck is a 
prominent feature4 ,it seems as if      
,nature has here made attempt after     
attempt to invite wealth and beauty  to 

the children of men4 ,three months      
throughout the year the midnight  sun   
shines2 the great ocean teems with      
measureless wealth of food for  man4    
,wherever one turns there is something  
attractive to behold4 ,not  only is the 
eye pleased1 but the spiritual          
intelligence is touched  as well4 ,to me
 it was as if1 in this rugged nature1 a 
new world of  inspiration and           
introspection came from ,god1 who from  
the beginning had  organized the whole  
land4 ,no wonder that thousands visit   
summer after  summer this land of the   
midnight sun1 this wonderland4    ,i    
took passage homeward in a steamer under
 ,capt4 ,j4 ,s4 ,green1 a friend  of    
mine1 and a member of the ,church4 ,i   
was very grateful to the ,lord  for his 
fatherly care and protection over me    
during my honest labors  both on land   
and sea2 and though ,i felt myself a    
very humble and  imperfect messenger of 
the great and noble work1 ,i also felt  
that the  ,lord was satisfied with my   

work1 and that the honor belonged to    
him4 ,at  last ,i reached ,trondhjem and
 had the joy to greet my dear mother    
again1  together with my brethren1      
sisters and friends4 ,i remained a few  
days  with the missionaries1 who still  
roomed in my mother's house1 and held   
several meetings4 ,then ,i bade my      
mother farewell again1 and began my     
long walk to ,christiania1 and again had
 the opportunity of walking over  the   
,dovre mountain alone4 ,i reached       
,christiania in due season1 about  two  
and a half years after ,i set out on my 
mission4    ,image captioned            
,,latter-,,day ,,saints' ,,mission      
,,house1 ,,christiana1  ,,norway4       
,,ix4 ,i ,,labor ,,in ,,aalesund4    ,i 
was retained as a missionary1 but was   
now at liberty to go wherever  ,i       
wanted4 ,i said goodbye1 and journeyed  
on to ,guldbrands valley where  ,i      
thought there would be a good field for 
work1 as the whole valley is  thickly   
populated4 ,from there ,i went to ,roms 

valley and at last reached  ,aalesund4  
,in this city ,i found a sister whom ,i 
had baptized in ,nordland  and who was  
now married to ,mr4 ,myre1 a bookkeeper4
 ,as ,i was the first  elder who had    
visited this town1 ,i was greatly       
persecuted by the  minister1 ,mr4 ,buck1
 and by the police who were on my track 
every day4  ,nevertheless1 ,i won       
friends there and after a time baptized 
,mr4 ,myre4    ,just at this time ,elder
 ,christian ,folkman1 and the ,saints   
who were in  ,trondhjem1 invited me to  
spend the ,christmas season there1 and  
sent me  traveling money so that ,i     
could buy my steamship ticket4 ,i was in
 my  native city by ,christmas and had a
 most interesting time4    ,early in    
,january1 ,i returned by steamer to     
,aalesund1 to continue my  work4 ,when  
,i arrived ,i had only twelve cents1    
which was just enough  to pay the man   
who rowed me from the steamship and     
placed me on land  in the city4 ,i      
secured lodgings in the house of a      

master shoemaker1  ,nielsen1 who owned a
 large three-story house4 ,the police   
chief soon  came and ordered me to leave
 the city1 but when ,i told him ,i was  
paying  for my support1 and that ,i knew
 something about the ,norwegian law and 
his authority1 and that it did not      
extend so far as to drive me out  of the
 city1 he left me alone1 but commanded  
his force to keep a very  close watch   
over me4    ,image captioned ,,interior 
,,of ,,the ,,assembly ,,hall1           
,,latter-,,day ,,saints'  ,,mission     
,,house1 ,,christiania1 ,,norway4       
,then came the priest of the city1 the  
,mr4 ,buck formerly mentioned1 in       
company with one of the local merchants1
 and gave me considerable more  such    
information1 that if ,i conducted any   
meetings1 the doors of the  prison were 
ready to close behind me4 ,a few days   
afterward ,i went to  call on the       
priest1 but he saw me come and          
instructed his housekeeper  to tell me  
that he was not at home4 ,when ,i asked 

if the pastor was at  home1 she said1   
,no1 he is away4 ,as ,i knew that he was
 at home at  that time1 ,i warned the   
lady she should not tell an untruth to  
one of  the ,lord's servants4 ,she took 
my words to heart and told her folks    
what had happened4 ,it so happened that 
this lady was of very prominent         
parents1 and they immediately took their
 daughter home4 ,two days later1  one of
 the merchants greeted me1 and told me  
that this story of the  pastor's        
untruthfulness had spread over the city 
to the shame of the  pastor himself4    
,sometime after ,i had left ,aalesund1  
,i heard that this  minister1 ,mr4      
,buck1 had hung himself1 for what reason
 ,i did not learn4    ,then came the    
superior priest of the district and     
pressed upon my  landlord that he must  
drive me out of the house1 and not give 
home or  habitation to false prophets4  
,mr4 ,nielsen1 who had learned something
  of the gospel1 bore testimony in my   
behalf1 and then everything went  wrong4

 ,i was not present1 but the two must   
have had a serious time  together4      
,in a few days came a letter from the   
superior priest to ,mr4 ,nielsen        
insisting that as ,nielsen was a        
respected man in the community1 in      
order to maintain his good name he must 
not any longer give me lodging4  ,mr4   
,nielsen was now in a tight place1 and  
he presented the matter to  me4 ,he did 
not want to turn me out1 yet he desired 
to favor the chief  priest of the       
district4 ,in fact1 so overcome was he  
that he cried4 ,an  evening or two later
 he received another letter from the    
pastor which  was even more insistent4  
,the morning after the receipt of the   
second letter1 ,i placed the whole      
matter before the ,lord1 and received my
 inspiration that if ,i would  call on  
the priest he would acknowledge the     
correctness of every  principle that ,i 
might present to him4 ,filled with joy1 
,i walked to  his home some two miles   
beyond the edge of the city4 ,i was     

courteously  invited into the office of 
the great man4 ,we had first a          
conversation  concerning the ,bible3    
then1 concerning the relation of        
,mormonism to  ,biblical doctrines4     
,questions were directed to me1 and ,i  
replied in the  spirit of truth that was
 present2 and he acknowledged the       
correctness  of every principle that ,i 
advocated4 ,for two hours we were       
together in  friendly conversation4 ,the
 battle was won2 and from that time on  
he  was especially kind and helpful to  
our missionaries who followed me4  ,the 
same day ,mr4 ,nielsen was informed by  
letter from the priest that  he could   
give me lodging as long as he liked1 and
 the priest further  stated that he had 
had a conversation with ,mr4 ,skanchy   
which convinced  him that he had been   
mistaken in his opposition1 but excused 
himself  by saying that it was the duty 
of his profession to oppose those who   
believed in any other religion than that
 supported by the state4    ,even after 

this1 ,i had a pretty hard time in      
,aalesund2 but after  several members   
had been brought into the ,church the   
work became  somewhat easier4 ,among    
others who were baptized at this time   
was ,mrs4  ,soneva ,torgesen1 the wife  
of a friendly ship captain4 ,this woman 
was a  true daughter of ,israel1 and did
 much good4 ,she had two small children 
whom ,i blessed4 ,the boy was instructed
 by his mother and is a faithful  elder 
in the ,church today4    ,in the spring 
of #ahfg1 at a conference held in       
,christiania1 ,c4 ,c4 ,a4  ,christensen1
 who had arrived from ,utah1 was        
assigned to preside in  ,norway4 ,i bade
 farewell to ,aalesund and began my     
journey up the valley  of the ,roms1    
over ,dovre mountain again1 and then    
down ,guldbrands valley  until ,i       
reached the little town of ,lillehammer1
 where we had a sister  in the gospel1  
,ellen ,buckwald1 who was employed in   
the household of  a ,mr4 ,revers1 a     
friend of our people4 ,to this house the

 elders were  invited whenever they came
 to the city1 and were treated there in 
the  very best manner4 ,i had many      
conversations concerning the gospel with
  this educated man4 ,the family did not
 want to part with ,ellen1 for she      
taught the children of the household    
,mormonism1 and used to pray1  even1 for
 ,brigham ,young as a leader of ,israel4
    ,i finally again came to            
,christiania1 and in the conference then
 held  was released from my second      
mission by the outgoing president4      
,x4 ,i ,,preside ,,in ,,christiania4    
,elder ,c4 ,c4 ,a4 ,christensen then    
took over the guidance of the ,saints in
  ,norway4 ,i was called to act as the  
president of the ,christiania branch    
which at that time had about #fjj       
members4 ,upon the receipt of this  call
 ,i felt my unworthiness in a very great
 degree4 ,there were many in  the       
congregation who had accepted the gospel
 long before ,i had1 many  of them older
 and more intelligent men and women1 but

 ,i prayed to my  ,god for wisdom and   
intelligence to be able to guide this   
great body  of people4 ,these prayers   
were heard and the ,lord blessed me     
mightily4  ,i gained the love and       
respect of the ,saints and with the     
fatherly  guidance of our respected     
,president1 ,c4 ,c4 ,a4 ,christensen1 ,i
 got along  very well4 ,many persons    
were converted and baptized into the    
,church  both in ,christiania and       
throughout the branches in the country  
as a  result of the visits of ,president
 ,christensen to the different branches 
and the meetings he held everywhere with
 the people4    ,as the children of the 
,saints in ,christiania were often      
persecuted in  school by the other      
children1 because their parents were    
,mormons1 ,i  decided to try to stop    
this unnecessary and improper           
persecution4 ,i  went to the chief of   
police1 one of our friends1 and         
counseled with  him as to what we would 
best do4 ,he advised us to petition the 

school  board1 the chairman of which was
 ,bishop ,arup1 for the privilege of    
establishing a school of our own1 and he
 suggested further that we  secure a    
number of well known names to this      
petition and offered to be  the first to
 sign it4 ,we delivered this petition to
 the bishop who was  a very courteous   
man4 ,after a couple of weeks the       
petition was granted1  on the condition 
that an officer of the school board     
should inspect  the school once a year  
to make sure that we were giving the    
right  training and maintaining proper  
discipline4 ,moreover1 in our school1   
the children should not be obliged to   
study the state religion or the  history
 of the ,bible4 ,we thought this a very 
great concession4    ,i was then        
appointed to take charge of this school1
 with ,sister  ,christina ,osterbeck as 
assistant4 ,the children were each to   
pay a  little1 as they could obtain the 
means1 for the expense of books1  and   
other supplies4 ,this was a fairly      

successful experiment4 ,the  officers of
 the school board also seemed satisfied 
with our work4 ,i  was permitted        
occasionally to make mission journeys   
into the district  surrounding          
,christiania4 ,some of these journeys1  
taken in the winter1  were very         
difficult4    ,in the summer of #ahfg1  
,i was sent to visit the town of        
,kongsberg and  ,numme valley1 where ,i 
had been before4 ,from the city of      
,drammen1 the  road leads through a     
great forest1 and then over a high      
mountain4  ,when ,i reached the top of  
the mountain the sun was setting in the 
west behind me1 and the shadow of the   
mountain was thrown miles and  miles    
over the forest below the mountain and  
covered the whole city of  ,kongsberg4  
,the magnificent beauty and vastness of 
this sunset from the  mountain top      
worked upon my feelings and ,i sought a 
place under a small  hill where1 with   
enthusiasm in my heart1 ,i kneeled      
before the ,lord  and opened my heart to

 him4 ,i prayed especially that he would
 lead my  footsteps1 guide me on my way1
 and help me find a place to stay that  
night1 for ,i had only a few cents left4
 ,at the close of my prayers1 it  seemed
 to me that ,i was surrounded by a holy 
influence4    ,i then began my descent  
of the mountain4 ,it was already dark   
when ,i  crossed the bridge over the    
river that flows near the city4 ,where  
was ,i  to go8 ,the houses of the city  
are built very near to each other4 ,when
  ,i reached the first block1 ,i turned 
to the right and walked around  it4     
,then ,i crossed the street and began on
 the next block4 ,at last1  ,i thought1 
,here is the place where ,i would better
 go in and knock4  ,but the answer of   
the ,spirit was immediately ,no4 ,i     
continued to  walk to the right around  
the blocks and after a while ,i thought1
 ,now  ,i will knock on the next door4  
,but again the voice whispered1 ,no4  ,i
 continued circling the blocks until ,i 
reached the eighth block4 ,as  ,i       

approached the middle of this block a   
voice whispered to me1 ,here  you are to
 enter4 ,i knocked on the door1 and a   
hearty1 ,come in was  the answer4 ,i    
stepped into the room and saw a man and 
his wife sitting  by a table1 playing   
dominos4 ,i noticed that they looked at 
each other  and smiled4 ,can ,i obtain  
lodging here tonight8 ,i said4 ,yes1    
said  the man and pointed to a door that
 led into a little bedroom1 in which    
were a table1 a candlestick ready to be 
lighted1 a bed1 a wash bowl and  other  
furniture4 ,the lady came in and lighted
 the candle and asked me  if ,i did not 
want something to eat4 ,i was very      
hungry and could have  eaten a good     
hearty supper1 but ,i told her1 if she  
pleased1 a little  bowl of bread and    
milk would be sufficient4    ,next      
morning at six o'clock1 ,i heard the man
 move about in the house4  ,as ,i       
learned later1 he worked in the national
 rifle factory1 and had  to be at work  
quite early in the morning4 ,after he   

had gone1 the lady  came into my room1  
placed a chair in front of the bed1 and 
placed  upon it a tray with food4 ,when 
she left1 ,i got up and ate this light  
breakfast with great appetite4 ,at eight
 o'clock the man came back for  his     
breakfast1 and ,i was called in and     
placed at the table4 ,there was  a      
little pause4 ,they looked at each      
other1 and ,i asked if they would       
permit me to bless the food4 ,the man   
said1 ,that is what we are waiting  for4
 ,i blessed the food1 and we began to   
eat4 ,then a very peculiar  conversation
 ensued4 ,you have not been here before8
 ,no4 ,who  brought you here last night8
 ,no one4 ,are you not a ',mormon'      
elder8  ,yes4 ,did you notice anything  
when you came in here last night8  ,yes4
 ,what was it you noticed8 ,i noticed   
that you looked at your  wife and smiled
 and she smiled back4    ,he then told  
me the story4 ,just before ,i knocked on
 the door1 they  both heard distinctly a
 voice which said1 ,here comes a servant

 of the  ,lord1 who desires lodging for 
the night4 ,take good care of him4 ,he  
continued1 ,the bed in which you slept  
last night has not been used  during the
 last six years4 ,the last person before
 you who slept there  was a ',mormon'   
elder to whom the room was rented out   
for a year4 ,when  he left1 most of the 
people he had baptized sold out and went
 to ,utah4  ,no ',mormon' has been here 
since4    ,i said to him1 ,i suppose    
then you know very well the teachings of
  ',mormonism4'    ,he said1 ,yes2 ,i   
believe that what is called ',mormonism'
 is the message  from ,god above4 ,i am 
not baptized1 and if ,i should go with  
you alone  this evening to be baptized  
it would be known in the factory        
tomorrow1  for those in charge there    
call upon their god from morning till   
evening1 and he can reveal to those who 
pray to him just as our ,god  revealed  
to us who would knock on our door last  
night4 ,then ,i would  receive my       
'walking papers' at once4 ,should ,i be 

baptized1 and then  lose my position1 my
 savings would possibly take me and my  
family to  ,zion1 but ,i have here at   
home an old father and mother who cannot
 help  themselves and ,i have not means 
enough to take them with me4 ,perhaps   
my faith is not strong enough1 or ,i    
should leave them in the hands of  the  
,lord1 for he provides for us all1 but  
,i cannot bear the thought of  bidding  
them farewell and leaving them alone4   
,these were his words4    ,i had a      
splendid mission journey through the    
,numme valley4 ,i met many  good and    
honest people4 ,as far as ,i know1 no   
missionary has been there  since that   
day4    ,image captioned ,,mission      
,,house ,,of ,,the ,,latter-,,day       
,,saints1 ,,at  ,,copenhagen1 ,,denmark4
        ,,xi4 ,,the ,,land ,,of ,,zion4 
,in the spring of #ahfh1 through the    
help of ,president ,c4 ,c4 ,a4          
,christensen1 ,i succeeded in borrowing 
enough means to emigrate to ,zion4  ,i  
had then been in the ,church a little   

more than seven years1 the first  two of
 which had been devoted in part1 and the
 last five wholly1 to  missionary       
service4 ,i married at this time1 ,anna 
,christina ,krogero1 an  assistant in   
the mission office1 who was a widow with
 four children4  ,after bidding farewell
 to the many ,saints in ,christiania1 we
 traveled  to ,copenhagen and thence to 
,liverpool1 where we boarded the        
sailship1  ,john ,bright1 which has     
carried many of our people across the   
ocean4  ,after a voyage of six weeks1   
mostly in the face of a strong headwind1
  we reached ,new ,york on the #aeth of 
,july1 #ahfh1 during a spell of very    
warm weather4 ,there were over #gjj     
immigrants in our company4    ,we spent 
a few days in ,new ,york and were then  
sent westward by railway4  ,the terminus
 of the railway was ,laramie1 which left
 about #fjj miles to  ,salt ,lake ,city4
 ,at ,laramie there was a company from  
,utah with horses  and mules to conduct 
the immigrants onward4 ,we were         

organized into  companies1 with ,hector 
,c4 ,haight as captain1 and we began our
 journey  over the plains along the     
banks of the ,sweetwater4    ,we reached
 ,salt ,lake ,city the first week in    
,september1 #ahfh1 after a  six weeks'  
march from ,laramie over the dry and    
warm plains1 immersed  in a cloud of    
dust from morning until night4 ,the     
children and the weak  mothers were     
allowed to ride in the wagons2 while all
 the men were  obliged to walk the whole
 distance in dust by day1 and keep watch
  against the ,indians at night4 ,we    
were pretty well supplied with meat1    
flour1 fruit and other food for our     
journey over the plains4 ,when we       
camped in the evening1 we cooked our    
food1 and made our bread4 ,all went     
fairly well4    ,at last we came to     
,emigration canyon1 and had our first   
glimpse of  ,salt ,lake ,city4 ,we were 
glad and grateful to our heavenly       
,father for  his fatherly care of us    
during our journey4 ,on arriving at the 

,tithing  yard1 in ,salt ,lake ,city1   
our captain was released4 ,i pitched our
 little  tent and remained there during 
eleven days awaiting an opportunity to  
go to ,cache ,valley where ,i had some  
,norwegian friends of earlier days4     
,that fall1 the grasshoppers visited    
,cache ,valley1 and all the crops  were 
destroyed1 so that there was not enough 
food to supply the needs  of the people4
 ,as ,i was responsible for a family ,i 
took my blanket on  my shoulder and     
walked over the mountains to ,salt ,lake
 ,valley in search  of work that would  
bring me a little money with which to   
buy bread  stuff1--the greatest need of 
my family at the time4 ,there was just  
then  a call for ,mormon boys to go out 
and do section work on the ,union       
,pacific ,railway4 ,i worked at this    
until the ,october ,conference at ,salt 
,lake ,city1 which ,i felt ,i must      
attend4 ,i was given free fare to ,salt 
,lake ,city1 upon my promise to return1 
as the railroad company wanted  the     

,mormons to continue the work on the    
road4 ,when the railroad was  laid to   
,corinne1 ,box ,elder ,co41 we were laid
 off1 and ,i went home to  ,logan the   
following night4    ,i rented a small   
log house1 in the ,logan ,fifth ward1   
and began to work  at once in the       
canyon1 cutting timber4 ,in this work ,i
 continued for  five years4 ,i took out 
logs for the house of ,apostle ,ezra ,t4
 ,benson1 in  exchange for which ,i     
obtained the city lot on which ,i later 
built my  residence4 ,i filled a        
contract to deliver to the ,utah        
,northern ,railroad  two thousand ties4 
,then ,i contracted to deliver to       
,brother ,micklesen  the timber for the 
grist mill in ,logan1 now known as the  
,central ,mills4  ,for this last        
contract ,i received six hundred pounds 
of flour4 ,i also  contracted with      
,alexander ,allen of ,newton and        
received as pay twenty  gallons of      
molasses4 ,i was now well off4 ,i could 
have bread1 with  molasses1 and this1   

indeed1 was my steady diet while ,i     
worked in the  mountains4 ,nevertheless1
 this work was very hard4 ,between      
times1 ,i  helped in the hay harvest1   
and thus earned some wheat and1 in fact1
 ,i  took hold of whatever work offered 
itself4    ,in the fall of #ahgc1 we    
began to build the ,logan tabernacle4   
,brother  ,charles ,o4 ,card was called 
to act as the superintendent and he     
called  me to assist him4 ,it was my    
special work to keep accounts and to    
collect donations with which to pay the 
workmen4 ,i measured and weighed  rocks1
 sand1 and other materials of           
construction1 brought in for the        
building1 and paid the workers in beef1 
vegetables1 and the variety of  things  
donated4 ,many beeves were brought in as
 donations1 so we tanned  the hides1 and
 began to manufacture shoes4 ,thus came 
the ,tabernacle  ,shoe ,shop and ,meat  
,shop in one building1 which we called1 
,our ,meat  ,market and ,our ,shoe      
,shop4 ,i labored nearly six years in   

this capacity4  ,in #ahgi1 ,i was       
ordained a ,high ,priest and set apart  
as a member of the  ,cache stake ,high  
,council4        ,,xii4 ,,my ,,third    
,,mission4    ,in #ahgi1 when the ,logan
 tabernacle was completed1 and we were  
at  work on the ,logan temple1 ,i was   
called1 at the ,october conference1  to 
go on a mission to ,scandinavia4 ,i left
 ,logan in ,november1 #ahgi1  and       
reached ,liverpool1 ,december #ab4 ,we  
had a rough voyage across the  ocean4 ,i
 was sent to ,frederickstad1 for a short
 time1 then to my native  city1         
,trondhjem1 in ,norway4 ,elder          
,ellingsen1 of ,lehi1 was there when  ,i
 arrived1 but in a couple of months he  
was released to return to  his home4 ,i 
then remained there alone to represent  
the gospel of the  everlasting covenant1
 but ,i harbored only gratitude to my   
heavenly  ,father4 ,i organized a choir1
 held meetings and preached the gospel  
with  all my might4 ,many were won to   
the truth4 ,those who did not enter the 

,church1 through baptism1 are good      
friends to our people1 and respect      
,mormonism with its doctrines and       
principles of salvation4 ,among many    
others1 ,i had the honor to baptize1 as 
a member of the ,church1 ,anna  ,c4     
,widtsoe4 ,her son1 ,john1 ,i had the   
joy to baptize after the family  arrived
 in ,utah4 ,our meeting place1 at that  
time1 was on what was known  as         
,mollenberg1 in a house belonging to    
,johnson who later settled in  ,logan4  
,the branch over which ,i presided      
extended far into ,northern ,norway4 ,i 
went frequently to the northern city of 
,namsos1 where ,i rented a hall  and had
 large meetings4 ,many were also brought
 into the ,church in that  place4 ,i    
made many friends in ,namsos1 and among 
the more influential1  a ,mr4 ,salvesen4
 ,he belonged to the aristocracy of the 
city1 but became  friendly to me and the
 cause ,i represented1 until he even    
offered me  one of his large halls for  
our gatherings1 in case the priest      

should  attempt to banish me4 ,mr4      
,salvesen1 with his two sons1 came to   
our  meetings4 ,once when the hall was  
crammed full1 he stood up before the    
congregation and testified to the truth 
of what ,i had said4 ,so much to  his   
honor6    ,i went from house to house   
and offered books and writings4 ,i did  
not  find much to eat1 but ,i was well  
satisfied and when ,i sold a few books  
,i could buy myself a little bread      
before ,i returned to my little room4   
,and a little bread with fresh water    
tasted really good6    ,by the early    
spring1 ,i had baptized1 in ,namsos1    
among others1 ,brother  ,hassing and his
 family1 who are yet living in ,salt    
,lake ,city4 ,before  ,i left ,namsos1  
,i organized a ,relief ,society so that 
the good sisters  could conduct meetings
 when ,i left4    ,in the spring of     
#ahhj1 ,i was called to attend the      
conference in  ,christiania4 ,after the 
conference1 ,i tried to find some of the
 brethren  and sisters of ,christiania  

whom ,i knew so well in earlier days4   
,some  ,i found1 and many had moved away
 to the distant valleys of ,norway4 ,i  
decided to find1 if ,i could1 the family
 of ,gunder ,johnson4 ,to do this1  ,i  
was obliged1 again1 to walk the full    
length of southern ,norway1 over  the   
,dovre mountain and down ,guldbrands    
valley and up and down other  valleys4  
,i found at last ,gunder ,johnson with  
his family4 ,i found that  they had had 
no opportunities for schooling1 nor for 
meetings1 for  several years1 but they  
had our books and the ,scandinavian     
,star1  which had been read and reread  
until the books were almost worn out4   
,they lived as the gospel demanded4 ,i  
remained with these friends about  two  
weeks1 held meetings1 and baptized all  
who would embrace the  doctrines taught 
by me4    ,during this visit1 in        
,guldbrands valley1 ,i had very great   
success4 ,the  whole community took     
sides with me1 until the priest came and
 broke up  my crowded meetings1 and     

warned the people against following     
teachers  of false doctrines6 ,this     
priest1 ,mr4 ,halling1 was well         
respected and  beloved of the people4   
,he edited a magazine called ,rich and  
,poor4 ,he  was good to the poor4 ,he   
lived only four miles from where ,i held
 my  meetings1 and ,i stayed with a     
friend near his home4    ,one day ,i    
called on this minister to discuss      
things with him1 but his  feelings were 
so bitter that he showed me the door    
several times1 and  at last took my hat 
and cane and threw them out4 ,as ,i left
 the house1  he spoke bitter1 hard words
 to me4 ,half a year later ,i came there
  again4 ,the priest had then become the
 chairman of the county court4 ,one  of 
his duties was to keep the country roads
 in good condition4 ,this  brought him  
in quite close contact with the people  
who all worked on  the roads4 ,i was    
told that on one occasion when he was   
supervising a  body of road workers1    
while they were all at lunch1 one of the

 men1  a friend of mine1 curious to know
 what the priest would say1 said1  ,i   
should like to know what became of that 
tramp ',mormon' preacher  that we had   
here a half year ago4 ,the priest       
immediately took up the  conversation   
and said1 ,that man was no tramp4 ,we   
were both angry when  we left each      
other1 but ,i would give much now if ,i 
could have that man  in conversation    
again4 ,this was his testimony that day1
 before a large  gathering of people4 ,i
 have now performed the endowment       
ordinances for  him in the temple1 and  
,i look upon him as a good man1 although
 he did  all he could to work against me
 and my beloved religion4    ,when ,i   
had been in the mission field something 
over three years1 ,i was  released4 ,i  
reached my home in ,logan late in the   
year1 #ahha4    ,image captioned ,,sixth
 ,,ward ,,meetinghouse1 ,,logan4        
,upon my return from my third mission1  
,i was called1 in #ahhb1 to take  charge
 of a district of the ,logan ,first     

ward1 as ,presiding priest4  ,after the 
,logan temple was dedicated1 this       
district was made a ward1  and ,i was   
ordained to be bishop of the ,logan     
,sixth ward1 on ,june #f1  #ahhd4 ,the  
many duties pertaining to this calling  
occupied my time very  completely for   
several years4        ,,xiii4 ,,my      
,,fourth ,,mission4    ,on ,october #aa1
 #ahhf1 ,i left ,logan for another      
mission to ,scandinavia4  ,upon my      
arrival in ,copenhagen ,i was assigned  
to labor in ,norway4 ,i  acted first as 
a traveling elder1 and in that capacity 
visited nearly  the whole of ,norway4   
,later ,i presided1 again1 at           
,christiania4 ,my  mission was filled   
with active labors1 and ,i believe much 
good was  accomplished4    ,in the year1
 #ahhh1 while ,i presided over the      
,christiania ,conference1  many were    
baptized into the ,church4 ,among them  
was ,brother ,koldstad  who afterwards  
became superintendent of the            
,christiania ,sunday school4  ,his wife 

seemed to be against the gospel1 but the
 ,lord1 who knows the  hearts of the    
children of men1 made manifest to her   
when she humbled  herself in prayer1    
that ,mormonism is a saving message sent
 by ,god  from the heavens4 ,it came    
about in this manner4    ,image         
captioned ,,interior ,,sixth ,,ward     
,,meetinghouse1 ,,logan4    ,my mission 
was nearly ended4 ,i had been away more 
than three years1 and  had been released
 to return home4 ,i spent the last days 
before leaving  ,christiania in bidding 
goodbye to the ,saints4 ,one evening ,i 
took the  train from the little village 
of ,lien1 where ,i had been visiting4   
,that  evening there was to be an       
important council meeting in            
,christiania1  at which ,i was to       
transfer the presidency of the          
conference to ,elder  ,o4 ,h4 ,berg1 of 
,provo1 now bishop of the ,provo ,fourth
 ward4 ,while the  cars were rapidly    
moving towards ,christiania1 ,i sat in  
one of the  compartments thinking of the

 business of the evening4 ,suddenly a   
voice  came to me1 telling me to go out 
to ,granlund1 where ,brother ,koldstad  
resided1 for a woman there had fasted   
and prayed to the ,lord that  ,elder    
,skanchy might visit her1 and she       
desired to accept the gospel in  which  
she had faith4 ,in my simplicity1 ,i    
believed the voice to be an  imagination
 of my soul1 and for about five minutes 
tried to convince  myself that such was 
the case4 ,i had very little time1      
because ,i had  to be in ,christiania   
before our council meeting began1 in    
order to get  things in order to deliver
 into new hands1 and the place the voice
  told me to go was in an opposite      
direction from the meetinghouse4 ,i     
felt that the ,lord knew that my service
 was in his cause1 and that the  council
 meeting was in his service4 ,soon1     
however1 the message came  again1 this  
time in a tremendous voice1 that ,i must
 go to ,koldstad's  home1 for a woman   
there had fasted and prayed to the ,lord

 that ,i might  come4 ,the voice was so 
commanding that ,i arose to my feet1 in 
the  car1 and ,i threw my right arm into
 the air1 and said1 ,yes1 ,lord1 ,i     
will go4 ,as soon as ,i reached the     
,christiania station1 ,i proceeded      
there4 ,with ,brother ,koldstad ,i found
 ,sister ,koldstad4 ,i told her that  ,i
 had received a message to meet there4  
,i felt greatly touched by the  ,spirit4
 ,she told me that she had fasted and   
prayed that ,i would come  to her home  
before ,i went away4 ,she told me       
further that she believed  all that ,i  
had taught1 and if ,i thought her       
worthy1 she would like  to be baptized  
before ,i left ,christiania4 ,she was   
determined that ,i  should baptize her  
the day following4 ,thus the ,lord      
dictates in his own  way to his         
children4 ,this revelation from our     
heavenly ,father was a  very great      
testimony to me1 and may be pleasing to 
all who believe in  spiritual           
manifestations4 ,many years after1 when 

we were all in ,zion1  ,i called on     
,sister ,anna ,c4 ,widtsoe and her      
sister ,lina ,gaarden1 and we  visited  
,sister ,koldstad in her home1 ,salt    
,lake ,city1 during one of the  annual  
conferences4 ,sister ,koldstad1 then and
 there1 explained to them  the manner of
 her conversion1 and that ,i had come to
 her in answer to  prayer4        ,,xiv4
 ,,the ,,quiet ,,years ,,of ,,home      
,,service4    ,from #ahhi1 the time of  
his return from his fourth mission1 to  
#aija1  when he went on his fifth       
mission4 ,bishop ,skanchy remained in   
,logan1  ,utah1 in pursuit of his duties
 as ,bishop of the ,logan ,sixth ,ward4 
,under  his direction1 the ward         
prospered2 the poor were well cared for2
 and a  good spirit pervaded all the    
organizations of the ward4    ,during   
this period1 also1 the longest in his   
life without foreign  missionary        
service1 ,bishop ,skanchy built up his  
material interests4  ,the lumber        
business which he had organized1        

flourished under his  care4 ,though he  
had sacrificed many years in spiritual  
service1 they  were fully made up to him
 in a material way1 during the periods  
that  he could give himself to his      
business interests4 ,he was always a    
good provider for his families1--they   
had comfortable homes1 and the  comforts
 of the day4 ,his personal gifts and    
charities to people in ,utah  and in the
 old countries1 have not been recorded1 
but they were large4  ,bishop ,skanchy  
loved the poor and afflicted1 and to    
their relief he  gave unstintingly of   
his time1 means and sympathy4           
,,xv4 ,,my ,,fifth ,,mission4    ,in    
#aija1 ,i was called by ,presidents     
,lorenzo ,snow1 ,george ,q4 ,cannon1 and
  ,joseph ,f4 ,smith to take charge of  
the ,scandinavian ,mission1 which then  
included ,denmark1 ,sweden1 and ,norway4
 ,i was set apart in the ,salt ,lake    
,temple1 ,april #b1 by ,president ,c4   
,d4 ,fjeldsted1 and ,i was especially   
commissioned to buy and erect for the   

,church1 mission houses in these  three 
,scandinavian countries4 ,i presented to
 the ,first ,presidency  the necessity  
of having ,c4 ,d4 ,fjeldsted accompany  
me as he was well  acquainted with      
,denmark4 ,this was permitted4 ,we had a
 pleasant voyage  across the ocean4     
,in ,copenhagen we bought the place     
where our mission house is now  erected4
 ,president ,fjeldsted was called home  
again and ,i remained to  arrange the   
matter4 ,i laid the foundation of the   
,copenhagen mission  house and dedicated
 the place together with the corner     
stone the #bnd of  ,march1 #aija4 ,the  
house itself was dedicated on the fourth
 of ,july1 #aija4    ,the next mission  
house was built the year afterwards on  
the same ground  that the old mission   
house had stood on in ,christiania4 ,the
 old house  had been built of poor      
materials and was in a dangerous        
condition4  ,we therefore took it down  
and sold the material by auction4 ,i    
then  contracted with architects and    

builders and the house was erected and  
finally dedicated the #bdth of ,july1   
#aijb1 after a great celebration4  ,the 
dedicatory prayer was offered by        
,president ,francis ,m4 ,lyman4    ,when
 these two countries had obtained their 
splendid houses1 we  turned our         
attention to ,sweden4 ,i went to        
,stockholm but found great  difficulties
 confronting me there1 since the        
,swedish law does not  permit strangers 
to buy building lots4 ,we were obliged1 
therefore1  to secure agents to act for 
us4 ,we bought1 at last1 a building lot 
in a very public place1 in an excellent 
district4 ,there we built a  large      
four-story building1 so arranged as to  
make it a worthy and most  beautiful    
place for presenting the gospel4        
,several smaller rooms in  the building 
can be rented out1 thus providing a     
small income4 ,this  mission house was  
dedicated the second of ,october1 #aijd1
 ,president  ,heber ,j4 ,grant offering 
the dedicatory prayer4 ,thus1 my mission

 time  was lengthened out so that ,i    
could remain until this house had been  
dedicated4    ,that ,i had my hands full
 on this mission1 ,i suppose everyone   
will  understand4 ,my work appeared to  
be satisfactory to the ,presidency of   
the ,church1 and as for myself1 ,i      
trusted that ,i could complete this     
responsible work with satisfaction to my
 own soul4 ,for the success that  was   
achieved ,i will continue to give       
gratitude to my ,father in heaven4  ,i  
owe to him all the praise and honor4    
,image captioned ,,stockholm1 ,,sweden1 
,,mission ,,house4    ,at the time that 
we erected our mission houses in these  
countries1  we contracted with a stone  
cutter1 by the name of ,peterson1 for an
  assembly room and a room for the      
elders1 in a dwelling house which he    
was erecting in ,frederickshavn1        
,denmark4 ,we also bought a house in    
,borups ,street1 in the city of ,aarhus1
 ,denmark1 in which we constructed  a   
baptismal font4 ,elder ,adam ,peterson1 

who was on a mission at that  time1 had 
great influence among the people of     
,aarhus1 and won many  friends1 which   
all helped4    ,image captioned         
,,interior ,,of ,,the ,,stockholm       
,,mission ,,house1 ,,looking ,,from     
,,the ,,gallery4    ,while ,i had charge
 of the ,scandinavian ,mission1 ,sister 
,anna ,c4 ,widtsoe  and her sister ,lina
 ,gaarden1 were called on a mission to  
,norway and  remained there for about   
four years4 ,these two sisters traveled 
over  ,norway1 from the extreme north to
 the extreme south1 and spared neither  
time nor money in order to bring before 
the people the gospel4 ,they won  honor 
and friends everywhere for the cause of 
truth4 ,they bore a great  testimony to 
the world1 which we hope will in time   
bear fruit4    ,image captioned         
,,interior ,,stockholm ,,mission        
,,house1 ,,looking ,,towards ,,the      
,,gallery4    ,brother ,h4 ,j4          
,christiansen was also called on a      
mission again1 at this  time1 and was   

chosen president over the conference in 
,copenhagen4 ,he  was born there1       
acquainted with the conditions1 and had 
the language  of ,copenhagen under      
complete control4 ,he gathered many     
friends for the  gospel cause4          
,,xvi4 ,,the ,,last ,,word4    ,i do not
 care to write more1 as most of my      
friends are acquainted with  the work   
that has been done in the mission field4
 ,what ,i have done here  at home has   
gratified me2 and the people here know  
my whole life4 ,now  ,i am on the sick  
list4 ,i have forgotten to take care of 
myself in my  desire to care for others4
 ,the ,lord be honored and praised from 
now  to eternity and forever4 ,amen4    
,the ,lord be merciful with us all and  
forgive our weaknesses and              
imperfections4        ,,xvii4 ,,the     
,,sixth ,,mission4    ,after ,bishop    
,skanchy had returned from his labors as
 ,president of the  ,scandinavian       
mission1 he entered again upon his      
duties in the bishopric  of the ,logan  

,sixth ,ward4 ,he rallied the people to 
his support1 and he  laid the           
cornerstone of a new ward chapel1 one of
 the handsomest in the  ,church4 ,this  
house is now completed4    ,on ,january 
#bc1 #aiaj1 after twenty-five years of  
service1 ,bishop ,skanchy  was honorably
 released from his position as bishop of
 the ,logan ,sixth  ward4 ,a little     
later he closed out such of his business
 interests as  required his daily active
 supervision4    ,on ,july #aa1 #aiaj1  
he went again to ,norway1 with his wife 
and younger  children1 to spend some    
time in gathering genealogical          
information for  his temple work4 ,this 
may be called his sixth mission1 for he 
went with  the authority of a           
missionary1 and did much good while     
away4    ,true to his love for the city 
of his birth1 ,trondhjem1 he took with  
him a large and expensive copy of       
,munkacsy's painting of ,christ  before 
,pilate1 executed by ,dan ,weggeland1 of
 ,salt ,lake ,city1 which  he presented 

to the branch1 and which now adorns the 
meeting hall in  ,trondhjem4    ,he     
returned to ,zion1 ,june #bb1 #aiaa2    
never again to leave it in the  flesh4  
,,xviii4 ,,the ,,end ,,of ,,the         
,,journey4    ,soon after ,bishop       
,skanchy returned from his last trip to 
,norway1 he  was seized with his last   
illness4 ,the evil preyed steadily upon 
him1  but his strong body and iron      
constitution could not be broken at     
once4  ,it took years for the disease to
 undermine his strength and reach the   
vital processes of his system4          
,during his long illness1 he composed   
the sketch now presented4 ,from  page to
 page it bears the marks of the physical
 sufferings which he  endured4 ,had he  
been in good health1 he would have told 
more of the  marvelous experiences of   
his long missionary life4 ,perhaps1     
however1 in  good health1 he would not  
have undertaken the work at all4        
,while withdrawn from active life by    
this lingering illness1 he also         

reviewed his own poems1 his favorite    
songs1 and the word of ,god that he     
loved4    ,bishop ,skanchy1 like all who
 live in close communion with spiritual 
things1 was much of a poet2 a lover of  
the fine arts1 painting and  sculpture1 
and an ardent worshiper of all natural  
beauty4 ,in his last  days1 though      
filled with physical pain1 he found the 
leisure for the  contemplation of the   
things of the spirit he loved so well1  
which he  had been denied in his active 
life4    ,ever did his thoughts go back 
to the land of the midnight sun1 in     
which  he was born2 where the gospel    
message found him1 and where1 in the    
full  strength of his youth1 he fought  
valiantly for the cause of truth1 and   
won hundreds1 yea1 thousands1 to the    
cause of eternal truth4    ,on ,sunday1 
,april #ai1 #aiad1 in his #geth year1   
his spirit returned to  the ,god he had 
served so well4 ,on the following       
,wednesday he was  buried from the      
beautiful chapel he had built4 ,many    

wept at his grave1  especially those who
 were poor in spirit or worldly goods1  
and whom  this noble man had loved and  
helped and raised up1 and brought into  
the  glorious light of truth4    7,,the 
,,end7        ,transcriber's ,note      
,this edition was based off scans       
available at ,archive4org  7see         
https3_/_/archive4org_/details_/anthonls
kanchybr#jjskan74  ,the ,harold ,b4 ,lee
 ,library at ,brigham ,young ,university
 supplied  the scans to ,archive4org2   
the original book was donated to the    
library by ,sidney ,sperry2 and it      
contained a dedication from  ,john ,a4  
,widtsoe1 reproduced above4 ,any minor  
typographical errors  in the original   
have been silently corrected4