Prophetic Statements
Brigham Young
I am now going to ask a question of both Saint and sinner. I think I might venture to make the question a national one. Is it good for man to use ardent spirits? In my remarks I shall confine myself, for a while at least, to this subject, without referring to other traits in the character of the children of men. Is it good for the people in the States of Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, or we will say in all the eastern States—the old bay States, away down in Yankee land—to drink and be drunken? I say is it good for us Yankees to drink and be drunken? We have said not, and the time has been, and I do not know but that it continues to this day, when parties carried in their pockets little tin canteens made to represent Bunyan’s novel—The Pilgrim’s Progress, or a small Bible, and those who had them were thought to be preachers. But when they got into a suitable place up went the cup and down went the whisky.
Now is this good? I ask this question of the people of the eastern States, and then come to the middle States, to the western States, to the Southern States, and finally, the whole United States, is it good for men to drink and be drunken? Is it good to use liquor? Is it a benefit to the People? Saints, what say you? Shall I answer the question for you? If I do, I shall say that it is better to let ardent spirits entirely alone than to use them, and that people are better off without liquor than with it.
Now I will refer to the customs which prevailed in this city when it was inhabited by Latter-day Saints only. Pass through the streets here then, and would you see a man intoxicated from day to day, week to week, month to month, or from one year’s end to another? No, I do not suppose a drunken man was ever seen in the streets of this city until strangers came along and demanded, through necessity they said, that liquor be sold, that a house be kept where they could obtain that which there were in the habit of using. I might carry this a little further and touch upon our moral status in other points. Year after year passed away—perhaps twelve or fifteen years—after we came here, and if any families were sick they could send a child, any time in the night, two, three, four or half a dozen blocks, to tell Sister Jones that mother was sick, and Sister Jones could go to the house of the patient, and cross and re-cross, and go over the city a thousand times a night if necessary and never be interrupted or disturbed, or have a question asked, unless the child or Sister Jones wanted to be helped across a ditch for example. Then, if a man was going to or returning from the canyon, or was going to, or returning home from, business, say any time between 9 at night and 5 in the morning, and a brother, sister or child wanted assistance, there was a hand ready, and the word was—“Yes, I will help you across this bad place, get into my wagon and ride across this slough, the streets are not worked, the road is wet and it is bad passing, I will take you where you want to go. Where are you going?” “To Sister Smith’s, she is sick and wants assistance,” and they would pass along. Was there a grogshop in this city then? Not one. Was there a place where liquor was sold? Not one, unless it was where it was necessary to make up a little medicine. Compare that with the present status of this city. Is it dangerous now for a woman to pass around this temple block after dark? Yes, she may expect to be grabbed by some ruffian and treated like a brute. Is it dangerous for a man to pass around here in the night? Yes, he may expect somebody or other to put his arm around his neck and stop his breath until another one can rob him. . . .
I ask all the Latter-day Saints, do you like the condition here at the present time? Do you like to walk here in the evening or in the day time, and see and hear what you are forced to see and hear? Do you like to pass these grogshops, or to enter these gambling hells and other mischievous places and see what their inmates are doing? I am going to make my wishes known to you without regard to the feelings of any who may blame me for making these remarks, and I would that I had all the Latter-day Saints who live in this city before me this afternoon. But as they are not here I shall probably ask the bishops and teachers to learn what I want to find out. My brother has been speaking of law. You know that civilized nations are governed by law. This nation is governed by law. There are just as good and wholesome laws in this city, Territory and Government as can be found, probably, in any country on the face of the whole earth. In carrying out these laws it is our privilege, to magnify ourselves as individual citizens, as a community of men and women dwelling together in a town or city, to sign a petition to the City Council to shut up every bar or groggery there is in this city. Others, who wish to keep these grogshops, and to keep them open morning, night, Sundays and every day in the week have the privilege of getting up a remonstrance. But the man or woman who professes to be a Latter-day Saint who would refuse to sign a petition to have this drunkenness stopped, has very little right to the name, it would be hard to take their measurement as Saints. I carry in my pocket a rule on which the inches are divided into a hundred parts. Such a rule would be necessary, in my opinion, to measure the standing of those professing to be Saints who would refuse to sign a petition to stop drunkenness. You may differ from me in your opinion, and you have a perfect right to, and I have the same right to differ from you; but it is my opinion that the man or woman whose name is upon our records as a Latter-day Saints, who would fellowship what we see and have to endure here all the time, is a very poor Saint. I have some notion to ask you whether you like these things, and who among you will sign a petition to the City Council to stop them. I must explain here that the evils we see in our city are the result of the acts of men who, through administrators of the law in various capacities, instead of sustaining the laws, say, “Sell liquor as much as you please, pay no attention to the City Council, disregard the laws of this city and Territory, ride over and trample them under your feet, and break whatever law the City Council may make.” This is what our administrators of the law say, and to this cause only can be attributed whatever of crime and defiance of law we see manifested here.
It has been said that Brother Brigham has proffered his services to help stop the liquor traffic in this city. I will say, that is true, and I do it upon the principle of justice and truth, and within the bounds of our local laws, and in no other way; and if the inhabitants of this city are disposed to raise their voices and influence against the conduct we see here, and the City Council passes a law to stop the drunkenness and gambling, they will find us—the citizens—ready to sustain them by our faith and works. . . .
I leave it to the people of the United States, to all good citizens from the Atlantic to the Pacific, if it is not better to live without gambling and drunkenness than to have them in our midst? What would they say if they were to express an opinion on the subject? The leading portion of them would say, “Let us have sober, civil communities,” and they would rejoice to see the time when our Presidents, law-makers, and executors of the law would live continually with a sober, steady brain, able to judge, between right and wrong, and with willing hearts and steady hands administer the laws to this great nation in righteousness. Will we Latter-day Saints sign a petition to the Mayor and City Council to stop these evils entirely? (Congregation said, “Yes”). I will invite all, whether citizens or strangers, who are in favor of a people living a sober, steady life, to vote on this question, if they desire to do so. (The congregation voted unanimously in favor, by showing their right hands.) Does anybody want to vote against it? Is there a man who wants to lift his hand against seeing a sober, civil, industrious community that will work for what they need, instead of gambling, robbing and plundering for it? If there is a man, either in the church or out, present this afternoon, he is at liberty to make it manifest by the same sign. (No dissentient). . . .
Now that I have you minds, I want the bishops to ask the minds of the people of their wards on this subject, and see what they say. Let the wicked lie in wait and accuse and find fault with the Latter-day Saints as much as they please, but we go in for truth and righteousness, we go in for a civil community; we go in for honesty and not plundering our neighbors; we believe in laboring for what we want and accumulating honestly. I want the bishops to go and find out how many in their wards will sign a paper to the City Council, asking its members to pass a law for the suppression of liquor selling and enforce the present law against gambling. I am thankful that I have the privilege and am willing to put my name at the head of such a paper, for I am opposed to these things. At the present time it seems to be impossible for the City Council to license people to keep bars for the accommodation of strangers. They would be glad to do so, and would be reasonable with those who wanted them, but owing to circumstances it does seem that our citizens will be bound to stop the whole of it, or else let a few ride over every law enacted for the preservation of the peace and good order of the city.1
George Albert Smith
There are those among us today who have been blinded by the philosophies and foolishness of men. There are those who reject the advice and counsel of the man that God has placed at the head of this Church.
I am grieved as I stand here and think of the way we rejected the counsel of President Grant. And I don’t want to be counted among that ‘we’ for I was not—but there were those among us who rejected the advice of the President of this Church and voted to repeal the Eighteenth Amendment and approved of bringing intoxicating liquor back into our community and legalizing it. That action has increased our accidents and murders and thousands of the sons and daughters of America are losing themselves and are being debauched beyond the possibility of recovery.
Had we listened to the man who stands at our head and done our duty we woul not in this valley and other places be suffering from the distresses that have come upon us, at least, we would not be responsible for them.
People who haven’t very much information suddenly come along with a bright idea, and they suggest ‘this is the way’ or ‘that is the way,’ and although it is in conflict with the advice of the Lord some are persuaded to try it. The Lord has given safe advice and appointed the President of his Church to interpret that advice. If we ignore what he advises, as the President of the Church, we may discover that we have made a serious mistake.”
