Remarks by President Brigham Young, delivered in the Old Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, January 12th, 1868.

I feel happy for the privilege of again speaking to the Latter-day Saints in this city; and I am also happy for the privilege of being a member of this Church. In this I am exceedingly blessed, and I can say of a truth, that my soul drinketh of that “river, the streams whereof shall make glad the city of God, the holy place of the tabernacles of the Most High.” I am full of peace by day and by night—in the morning, at noon, and in the evening, and from the evening until the morning. I am extremely happy for the privi– lege of living with those who are seeking to do the will of God. We are gathered together in the tops of these mountains for the express purpose of building up Zion, the Zion of the last days, the glory of which was seen by the prophets of the Almighty from the days of old. “And they shall call thee,” says Isaiah, “The city of the Lord, The Zion of the Holy One of Israel.” “The Lord shall be unto thee an everlasting light, and thy God thy glory.” We are removed far away from those who bore rule over us and oppressed us, and who deprived the Saints of their constitutional rights. The Lord has led His people to a land where they can enjoy as much liberty as they are disposed to live for. There is no oppression here; there is no people on earth who have as few encumbrances upon their spiritual and temporal rights as the Latter-day Saints in these mountains. We have all liberty, yet we are not at liberty to do wrong in this community, and have it sanctioned, although many do wrong, which wrongs are in many cases overlooked and forgiven.

The law of liberty is the law of right in every particular—that is, if we understand it to mean the privilege of doing anything and everything to promote the peace, happiness, and well-being of mankind, whether in a national, State, Territorial, county, city, neighborhood, or family capacity, with a view to prepare them for the coming of the Son of Man, and to have a place in the presence of their Father and God. Shall we say that we enjoy this law of liberty to the fullest extent? We do, in fact, and no power can deprive us of it. We have a good and wholesome government, when it is administered in righteousness and equity, and its laws scrupulously obeyed; and it guarantees to all their political, religious, and social rights. We have the privilege of worshipping God according to the dictates of our own consciences, and according to the revelations of the Lord Jesus Christ. It is true our consciences are formed more or less by circumstances and by the effects of early teachings, until we enter upon the stage of action for ourselves. Parental influences upon the growing organization of the unborn infant have much to do in giving character to conscience. But we always have the privilege of answering a good conscience. We have the privilege of praying as many times a day as we please; we have the privilege of praying from morning until evening and from evening until morning without anyone to molest us. We have the privilege to meet in a congregational capacity in our great public meetinghouses, or in our ward meetinghouses, to attend to our sacraments and fasts, and there to tarry, when we are thus assembled, as long as we please without any restrictions whatever.

There are circumstances in which it would be right to restrict a person even in prayer and worship. For instance, if a man should hire another to work for him so many hours a day, for which he agrees to pay him so much, the employed is thereby bound by the conditions of the agreement to work the number of hours stipulated, that he may justly collect his pay, for he is not paid for praying, nor for holding religious meetings and religious conversations with his fellow workmen. If this may be called a restriction upon the free exercise of religion, it is a just one, for the restriction itself becomes a religious duty in order that mistaken notions of religious freedom may be corrected. In such a case we would not say that a person is in the least degree abridged in the free exercise of his religious privileges, but rather, by keeping him to a faithful observance of his agreement, he is made to exemplify one of the foremost principles of true religion—namely, honesty. If a man has sufficient to supply his wants, and the wants of those who depend upon him, and can, without infringing upon the rights of others, afford to pray all the day long and then all the night long, he is free to do so.

A great many instances might here be introduced to illustrate wherein men should not be permitted to do as they please in all things; for there are rules regulating all good societies and the business intercourse of men with each other, which are just and righteous in themselves, the violation of which cannot be countenanced either by civil or religious usages. It is not the privilege of any man to waste the time of his employer under any pretence whatever, and the cause of religion, good government, and humanity is not in the least degree advanced by the practice, but the contrary is really the case. Men should be abridged in doing wrong; they should not be free to sin against God or against man without suffering such penalties as their sins deserve.

I have looked upon the community of the Latter-day Saints in vision and beheld them organized as one great family of heaven, each person performing his several duties in his line of industry, working for the good of the whole more than for individual aggrandizement; and in this I have beheld the most beautiful order that the mind of man can contemplate, and the grandest results for the upbuilding of the kingdom of God and the spread of righteousness upon the earth. Will this people ever come to this order of things? Are they now prepared to live according to that patriarchal order that will be organized among the true and faithful before God receives His own? We all concede the point that when this mortality falls off; and with it its cares, anxieties, love of self, love of wealth, and love of power, and all the conflicting interests which pertain to this flesh, that then, when our spirits have returned to God who gave them, we will be subject to every requirement that He may make of us, that we shall then live together as one great family; our interest will be a general, a common interest. Why can we not so live in this world? This people have been gathered together for a further purpose than to prepare them to be one in the faith of the doctrine of Christ, to be one in the proclamation of the Gospel in all the world; to be one in our obedience to the ordinances of the house of God. All this we could have done in the different countries from whence we have been gathered out. We could have lived and died there, as many have, in faithfulness to the spiritual requirements of our religion, if the Lord had not had in view a great spiritual and temporal purpose in gathering His people from the four winds. The order of God among men is not complete without a gathering. Hence Jesus says—“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not.” And because they would not be gathered and avail themselves of the great blessings consequent upon it, their house was left unto them desolate, etc.

We are gathered together expressly to build up the kingdom of God. We are not gathered together to build up the kingdom of this world. The voice of God has not called us together from the uttermost parts of the earth to build up and enrich those who are diametrically opposed to His kingdom and its interests. No, but we are gathered together expressly to become of one heart and of one mind in all our operations and endeavors to establish Christ’s spiritual and temporal kingdom upon the earth, to prepare for the coming of the Son of Man in power and great glory.

When the everlasting gospel is preached by the power of the Holy Ghost, the minds of those who are honest and worthy of the truth are opened, and they see the beauty of Zion and the excellence of the knowledge of God which is poured out upon the faithful. Such men and women have seen in the revelations of the Spirit that God would gather His people even before the gathering was taught to them by the servants of God; and they understood the great object of the gathering, they saw that the people of the Lord could not be sanctified while they remained scattered abroad among the nations of the Gentiles. When the people first receive the Spirit you may ask what you will of them, and they will yield it in a moment; their submission to God and the counsels of His servants is almost complete. They are ready to give their substance, their houses and lands, they are ready to leave all and follow Christ; they are ready to leave their good, comfortable, happy homes, their fathers and their mothers, and their friends; and some have left their companions and their children for the gospel’s sake, and all this because of the vision of eternity which has been opened to their minds so that they beheld the beauty of Zion, and they sacrifice all to gather to the home of the Saints.

We have been assembled together from among all nations to be corrected in our lives and manners, and for purification before the Lord. We have come up to these mountains through trials and tribulations and perplexities, and what do we see when we come here? The fatigues of the journey have proved and tried the souls of many, so that they have faltered in their faith; the light of the Spirit within them has become darkened and the understanding benighted. They look for perfection in their brethren and sisters, forgetting that in the vision of the Spirit they saw Zion in her perfection and beauty, and that this state must be obtained by passing through a strict school of experience. When they arrive here they find the people like themselves, subject to many weaknesses of the flesh, and some giving way to them every day. The great majority of the people are apt to lose the Spirit they at first possessed through the cares of the world and the many afflictions they pass through in gathering together from the distant nations of the Gentiles, and through looking for perfections in others which they do not find and which they themselves do not possess. Notwithstanding this there exists no other community so dissimilar in their education and training, and yet so agreed in theological and civil polity as we are.

What does the Lord want of us up here in the tops of these mountains? He wishes us to build up Zion. What are the people doing? They are merchandising, trafficking and trading. I wish to view them as they are and where they are. Here is a merchant—“How much have you made this year, 1867?” “I have made sixty thousand dollars.” “Where did you get it? Did the merchants in the east or the west give it to you?” “No.” “Who did give it to you?” I answer that this poor people, the Latter-day Saints, who have gathered together in their penury, have put this means into the hands of the merchant. He has got it from a people, a great number of whom have been helped here by the means of others; and when they get a dime, a dollar, ten dollars, they carry it at once to the merchant for ribbons, artificials, etc., making him immensely rich. We all have our pursuits, our different ways of supplying ourselves with the common necessaries of life and also its luxu– ries. This is right, and the possession of earthly wealth is right, if we follow our varied pursuits, and amass the wealth of this life for the purpose of advancing righteousness and building up the kingdom of God on earth. But how easy it is to wander from the path of righteousness. We toil days and months to attain a certain degree of perfection, a certain victory over a failing or weakness, and in an unguarded moment, slide back again to our former state. How quickly we become darkened in our minds when we neglect our duties to God and each other, and forget the great objects of our lives.

The purpose of the Lord is to get the Saints together, and then preach to them the doctrines of the kingdom of God by the voices of His servants, and it is the duty and the privilege of all His people to conform to them in their lives, in all their daily pursuits, until they became one in all things, in every day’s operations in life, for the obtaining of our bread and meat and clothing of every description, being one in the exercise of our ability in gathering together the various comforts of life around us, sustaining ourselves and the household of faith, and still being kind to the stranger. The Lord has not called us here to make our enemies rich by giving to them our substance for considerable less than it has cost us to produce it from the elements. They would use that means for our destruction. This course is against the mind of the Holy Spirit, against the mind of the angels who watch over us, against the commandments of the Almighty, against the mind of every faithful and true Latter-day Saint, and against the cause of God and truth. As Elder Orson Hyde has said, I would that all the inhabitants of the earth would repent of their evil ways and become righteous, and then work the works of righteousness all their days.

As Latter-day Saints it is our business, morning, noon, and night, all the day long, all the week long, all the month long, all the year long, and all our life long, to sustain those who sustain the kingdom of God. Does not the religion which we have embraced incorporate everything which is in heaven and earth and under the earth? Yes, if there is a truth among the ungodly and wicked it belongs to us, and if there is a truth in hell it is ours. Everything that will produce good to the people is within our religion. With our religion we have embraced all good, but we have not engaged to sustain the powers of Satan and the kingdoms of this world. We have left them and engaged to sustain the good—the wine and the oil—until we become one, and act as with one voice in maintaining every temporal and spiritual interest of the political kingdom of our God on earth, whose officers shall be peace and whose exactors shall be righteousness. Our judges will be of our own selection, who will deal out justice and righteousness to the people. We are looking forward to this state of things. We expect to see the day when there will be none in our midst but those who are for God and truth and who are valiant for His kingdom on earth. As the Prophet has said—“Thy people also shall be all righteous; they shall inherit the land forever, the branch of my planting, the work of my hands, that I may be glorified.” We are longing for this state of things, then why not begin to work for it today? Why not commence the work today by ceasing to do evil, by ceasing to give strength to the hand which would pierce us through with many sorrows? Why not begin today by sustaining those who will sustain the kingdom of God? This is my text for the Latter-day Saints, and I wish it to be constantly held before them until they exemplify it in their lives, by becoming of one heart and of one mind in all things in righteousness and holiness before the Lord.

To observe the Word of Wisdom is nothing more than we ought to have done over thirty years ago. Touching this matter, I tell the people the will of God concerning them, and then they are left to do as they please in obeying it or not. It is a piece of good counsel which the Lord desires His people to observe, that they may live on the earth until the measure of their creation is full. This is the object the Lord had in view in giving that Word of Wisdom. To those who observe it He will give great wisdom and understanding, increasing their health, giving strength and endurance to the faculties of their bodies and minds until they shall be full of years upon the earth. This will be their blessing if they will observe His word with a good and willing heart and in faithfulness before the Lord.

I am talking to the bishops continually almost, giving them instruction and advice, but it is hard for them to get the people to be guided by them. Now, for example, we will take the least ward in the city, and suppose the people all consent to be guided and controlled by the word of the Lord in all things, to be faithful in their labor and in the discharge of every duty, being economical, prudent, and industrious in all their labors, taking care of everything, abstaining from the use of spirituous liquor, tea, coffee, and tobacco, etc., also to let doctors alone, and faithfully abide the word of the Lord relating to the sick, manufacturing what they need to wear, and raising what they need for food; saving their dollars as they happen to get them by the sale of some of their products, sustaining themselves in all things, wanting only what they can produce in the country from the elements and the labor of their hands—suppose, I say, they were to take this course, three years would not pass away before the people of that ward would be able to produce everything they need in life. Thus, by a union of purpose and a concentration of action, that little ward would soon be able to buy out their neighboring wards, who would persist in pursuing the opposite course; and perhaps fifteen years would not pass away before this prudent ward would be able to buy out and own this whole city, if they continued to do as they were desired to do, and the rest of the wards pursued their own way. I pray my brethren the Bishops, the Elders, the Seventies, the Apostles, yea, every man and woman and child who has named the name of Christ to be of one heart and of one mind, for if we do not become of one heart and mind we shall surely perish by the way.

Before I close my remarks I will again remind my brethren and sisters that we have a duty to perform in sending for our brethren and sisters who are in foreign lands. We wish to gather them together. As to whether they will stick to the faith after they are gathered I know not, neither do I care. It is better to feed nine unworthy persons than to omit feeding one who is worthy among the ten. So it is with clothing the needy and sending for the poor. They must have the same opportunities for salvation that we have, for the neglect of which they will be held accountable in the day of judgment as we will also be. Let us send for the poor. We are doing consi– derable, though we are not doing as much as we should do. If I could only have power sufficient with God I think I should accomplish the desire of my heart in this matter and that of my brethren and sisters. We do desire to have our friends relieved from their bondage, and brought to these valleys of the mountains to share with us the blessings we enjoy. It would be a blessing to the poor if we could only exercise the faith that Elijah had in the case of the widow’s meal and cruse of oil, that the little we do get for the emigration of the poor may accomplish, under the blessing of God, much more than is natural for us to expect from it. If we can only obtain faith to multiply the means we do get, we may make a little reach out so far as to accomplish the desires of our hearts.

May God bless you. Amen.

Remarks by President Brigham Young, delivered in the Old Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, December 29th, 1867.

It is said that short visits make long friends, and short sermons perhaps make interesting meetings. I am sure this is the case sometimes. I am thankful for the privilege of being instructed, and of meeting with a people who manifest by their lives a desire for improvement. I am thankful that we have the privilege of meeting in this tabernacle from Sabbath to Sabbath. Last Sabbath I referred to the meager congregations that generally attend in the morning, and today I really expected to see every seat in this house occupied. I cannot think that the people are sleigh riding, for there is no snow; neither can I conclude that they are in the canyon, for the roads cannot be traveled. I do not think that they are fishing at this season of the year; neither can they all be in attendance at Sabbath schools. Then what are they doing? Are they praying, resting, sleeping, or wasting their time in frivolous and unprofitable employment? We are happy to see large congregations of the Saints in the afternoons. This is the only public meetinghouse in which meetings are held in the morning and afternoon on the Sabbath day in this city. The people of Great Salt Lake City make to one point to attend meeting in the morning and afternoon, unlike the people of the large cities of the world. I have seen them go to meeting in some of those cities, and I cannot compare them to anything that will describe them as they appeared to me better than the inhabitants of an ant hill. They run in all directions, the Methodists jostle against the Baptists, and the Baptists against the Presbyterians, and the Presbyterians against the Quakers, &c.

Let the people come to meeting, and hear what is said, and if any of you are not instructed to your satisfaction, be so kind as to send up a card to the stand, intimating your desire to speak, and we will give you an opportunity of doing so, to display your wisdom; for we wish to learn wisdom and get understanding.

We are in a great school, and we should be diligent to learn, and continue to store up the knowledge of heaven and of earth, and read good books, although I cannot say that I would recommend the reading of all books, for it is not all books which are good. Read good books, and extract from them wisdom and understanding as much as you possibly can, aided by the Spirit of God, for without His Spirit we are left in the dark. I have very frequently urged upon the people to live so that they can enjoy the spirit of revelation, even that intelligence which proceeds directly from heaven—from the fountain of all intelligence. Do this people live so? Yes, measurably. We improve slowly, and as brother George A. Smith has said, we do not improve fast enough. I acknowledge that this people are improving, and I am proud of it. When I address the throne of grace in prayer, I am happy to be able to thank God that the Latter-day Saints are striving to order their lives correctly before Him. I am pleased, I am happy, I am full of comfort, of joy, of peace, because of the progress this people are making; and yet I see how easy it is for a person to slide backward, and get into darkness and blindness of mind. We are prone to wander, and do that which our inclinations bid us do; like the boys with their sleds, we go up hill very slowly, but rush quickly down again. We are too apt to be slow to learn righteousness, and quick to run in the ways of sin. The adversary of our souls is constantly watching to decoy us from the path of truth and duty to God, until we become reckless in our disobedience to His commandments and to the counsels of His servants. There is one path—one line to follow to obtain and continue in the love and light of the Lord, which is, as it were a compass to direct the Saint to the haven of safety, and it will not vary, for its directions are sure.

We have many duties to perform, and a great work is before us. We have Zion to build up, and upon this we are all agreed, but we differ more or less respecting the modus operandi for we wish, in the majority of instances to follow the dictates of our own inclinations. We do this too much for our good. If the people will live so as to be directed continually by the light of the Spirit of the Lord, they never will go much astray. In many instances our anxieties, our desires, and our wills are so great that we actually plead with the Lord to allow us to bend duty a little particle for the purpose of accomplishing what we wish. We are pleased to do this, and to do evil also, hence “man is born to trouble as the sparks fly upward.” We are very prone to wander. Let the people watch themselves lest they take a course that will lead them into darkness, and they know not the things of God, and be left to believe a lie instead of the truth. What is that which turns people away from this Church? Very trifling affairs are generally the commencement of their divergence from the right path. If we follow a compass, the needle of which does not point correctly, a very slight deviation in the beginning will lead us, when we have traveled some distance, far to one side of the true point for which we are aiming. When men take upon themselves strength, depending upon their own wisdom, light, and knowledge, saying—“I am right, and I care not what anybody else says;” and, “I will do thus and so on my own responsibility,” asking no odds of God and His servants. “If I wish to go to the north, south, east, or west, or follow this or that employment, or pursue this or that course to obtain the necessaries of life, it is my affair, and I cannot see that any other man has anything whatever to do with it.” I say, if we thus arrogate to ourselves strength, wisdom, and power, and think that we can judge for ourselves in all things independent of God and His servants, then are we liable to be led astray. Every man and woman who walks in the light of the Lord can see and understand these things for themselves; but through our anxiety, and over desire to have our own way, we often swerve and turn to the right or to the left of the true line of our duty. How often have we sealed blessings of health and life upon our children and companions in the name of Jesus Christ and by the authority of the Holy Priesthood of the Son of God, and yet our faith and prayers did not succeed in accomplishing the desires of our hearts. Why is this? In many instances our anxiety is so great that we do not pause to know the spirit of revelation and its operations upon the human mind. We have anxiety instead of faith. When a man prophecies by the power of the Holy Ghost, his words will be fulfilled as sure as the Lord lives; but if he has anxiety in his heart, it swerves him from the thread of the Holy Gospel, from the true thread of revelation, so that he is liable to err, and he prophesies, but it does not come to pass, he lays his hands upon the sick, but they are not healed. It is in consequence of not being completely molded to the will of God. Do we not realize that this is so? And do we not realize that we should constantly strive to live in the counsel and light of God day by day, and hour by hour? If we do this we shall certainly make sure to ourselves a celestial inheritance.

We have gathered the best people from among the nations of the earth, and yet we are not so good as we should be. Why are we not as good as we should be? Because we have eternal light and knowledge here, and no person is deprived of the privilege of asking and receiving of God for himself, but we do not all avail ourselves of this great privilege. We are not like others who are called by men to go on missions to the world, we are called of God, and carry with us true credentials, not the credentials of Paul, Peter, or any of the old Apostles and servants of God, who used them a thousand years ago, but we have the living oracles and the Holy Priesthood restored in our day, giving authority to men in the nineteenth century as in days of old. Having this authority, and these great advantages, we should be better than anybody else. We have believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, we have received in our faith the fullness of the gospel, we have yielded obedience to God’s commandments, obeyed the ordinances of His house, receiving them in our faith and practice, and these we have received through apostles and prophets, called of God, in our own age, as was Aaron. These blessings and callings the Almighty has revealed in this as in all ages for the benefit of finite beings, that through obedience to the gospel, eternal life in the presence of God might be brought upon all who endure to the end in righteousness. By obeying the ordinances of God, mankind glorify God, but if they do not obey Him, they do not detract one particle from His glory and power. Although all His children should wander from the holy commandments, God will be glorified, for they are left to choose for themselves, to choose death instead of life, darkness instead of light, pain instead of ease, delight, and comfort. This liberty all beings enjoy who are created after the likeness and image of God, and thus they become accountable for their own actions. The commandments of God are given to us expressly for our benefit, and if we live in obedience to them we shall live so as to understand the mind and will of God for ourselves, and concerning ourselves as individuals. This is a subject upon which a great deal can be said, but I shall not follow it at this time.

I exhort my brethren continually to live so that they may have the light of the Holy Spirit in them, to know their duty, and when they know their duty fully it will be to follow truly those whom God has placed over them to lead them as a community, as a people, as a kingdom of God; it will be to obey the counsel that is given them from time to time. What does the man who understands the spirit of his religion believe with regard to his own affairs, with regard to his life, with regard to his business transactions, &c.? He believes that it is his privilege to be dictated by the constituted authorities of the church of God and the spirit of revelation in all things in his mortal life. There is no part of his life that he will consider exempt from the guidance and dictation of the Priesthood of the Son of God.

We wish the Latter-day Saints to meet at their respective houses, erected for that purpose, on the day appointed for a fast, and take with them of their substance to feed the poor and the hungry among us, and, if it is necessary, to clothe the naked. We expect to see the sisters there; for they are generally first and foremost in deeds of charity and kindness. Let the hearts of the poor be made glad, and let their prayers and thanksgiving ascend unto God, and receive an answer of rich blessings upon our heads. I think I told you last Sabbath that I would mention this subject again today.

If you would be healthy, wealthy, full of wisdom, light and knowledge do all you can for the kingdom of God. I expect that there are brethren who are well to do, who can command their thousands, who consider that their business crowds them this year, and they do not see how they can give anything for the gathering of the poor Saints. I have a word of consolation for such. You, merchants, mechanics and farmers; yea, everyone; let me console you, and say to you, keep your money, and pay your debts, and buy your teams, and your farms, and your goods. You think I am speaking to you ironically. Well, I acknowledge to you that I am. You keep all, and do not apply one dollar for any purpose outside of your business, and I will promise you, in the name of the Lord, that you will be poorer than you would have been if you had given of your substance to the poor. Do you consider these hard words? They are true words. The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof, the gold and the silver are all his; and he throws up the precious metals to view whenever he pleases, and when he pleases he sends his messengers to hide them in the bowels of the earth, beyond the reach of man. He also closes the eyes of wicked gold hunters, that they cannot see them; but they walk over them, and leave them for the righteous to gather in the due time of the Lord. Now, you who think that you must keep your means and that you cannot spare a portion to gather the poor another year, remember that you will not get rich by so doing. You may ask what I am going to do? I am going to get rich, for I calculate to give considerably more to gather the poor than any other man; because I want to be richer than any other man. I want more, because I believe I know what to do with it better than most of men.

These are a few words of consolation to the brethren who wish to keep their riches, and with them I promise you leanness of soul, darkness of mind, narrow and contracted hearts, and the bowels of your com– passion will be shut up, and by and by you will be overcome with the spirit of apostasy and forsake your God and your brethren.

I see around me a great people. Joseph Smith was called of God, and sent to lay the foundation of this latter-day kingdom. He presided over this people fourteen years. Then he was martyred. Since that time your humble servant has presided over and counseled this people; he has directed the Twelve Apostles, the Seventies, the High Priests, and every quorum and department of the Melchizedek and Aaronic Priesthoods, guiding them through the wilderness where there was no way into a dry, barren land. For the space of twenty-four years he has watched over their interests, holding at bay their enemies, teaching them how to live, and redeem this country from the barrenness and desolation that have, for many generations, made it unfit for the habitation of man. What man or woman on the earth, what spirit in the spirit world can say truthfully that I ever gave a wrong word of counsel, or a word of advice that could not be sanctioned by the heavens? The success which has attended me in my presidency is owing to the blessings and mercy of the Almighty. Why I have referred to this is to show you that I realize the importance of obeying the words of the Lord, which he gives through his acknowledged servants. When revelation is given to any people, they must walk according to it, or suffer the penalty which is the punishment of disobedience; but when the word is, “will you do thus and so?” “It is the mind and will of God that you perform such and such a duty;” the consequences of disobedience are not so dreadful, as they would be if the word of the Lord were to be written under the declaration, “Thus saith the Lord.”

Now, I say to the people, will you gather the poor? To the Elders I say, will you carry the Gospel to all the world? Blessed are they who obey when the Lord gives a direct commandment, but more blessed are they who obey without a direct commandment. For it is written: “It is not meet that I should command in all things; for he that is compelled in all things, the same is a slothful and not a wise servant; wherefore he receiveth no reward. Verily I say, men should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and do many things of their own free will, and bring to pass much righteousness; For the power is in them, wherein they are agents unto themselves. And inasmuch as men do good they shall in no wise lose their reward. But he that doeth not anything until he is commanded, and receiveth a commandment with a doubtful heart, and keepeth it with slothfulness, the same is damned.” I say this that you may understand that I feel just as patient, and just as kind towards the Latter-day Saints as a man’s heart can feel, and am careful to take every precaution in directing their steps to the possession of eternal life in the presence of God that none may be lost. My course is not to scold, but to persuade and entreat the people to do their duty, holding before them the reward of faithfulness. It requires all the care and faithfulness which we can exercise in order to keep the faith of the Lord Jesus; for there are invisible agencies around us in sufficient numbers to encourage the slightest disposition they may discover in us to forsake the true way, and fan into a flame the slightest spark of discontent and unbelief. The spirits of the ancient Gadiantons are around us. You may see battlefield after battlefield, scattered over this American continent, where the wicked have slain the wicked. Their spirits are watching us continually for an opportunity to influence us to do evil, or to make us decline in the performance of our duties. And I will defy any man on earth to be more gentlemanly and bland in his manners than the master spirit of all evil. We call him the devil; a gentleman so smooth and so oily, that he can almost deceive the very elect. We have been baptized by men having the authority of the holy Priesthood of the Son of God, and consequently we have power over him which the rest of the world do not possess, and all who possess the power of the Priesthood have the power and right to rebuke those evil spirits. When we rebuke those evil powers, and they obey not, it is because we do not live so as to have the power with God, which it is our privilege to have. If we do not live for this privilege and right we are under condemnation.

I know that the Bishops in this Church are improving, and are better men, and they should lead and dictate their Wards still better than they do.

It may be asked, should not brother Brigham lead the people better? No doubt he should. Will you hearken to one little saying? I can say, follow me as I follow Christ, and everyone of us is sure to go into the celestial kingdom of our God, God being our helper. Can all the Bishops say this? I think not in every case. But are they improving? They are and that is not all, they will continue to improve, and they will become wise leaders of the people. They should be fathers to their Wards. They are looked upon as such by the people; and their example has its effect for better or for worse, and they should be foremost in every good word and work, to be successful in leading the people into the celestial kingdom of God.

Here is a great people, and we have called upon them to contribute of their substance to gather the poor Saints from abroad another year. It is now nearly three months since we commenced to call upon them for means to apply in this way. Means for this purpose does not come in so readily as we think it should. Now, I will mention a single circumstance in this city to show you that there is money in the country. One mercantile house in this city traded in one month forty-one thousand dollars. If one house can sell this amount of goods in a month, surely we can gather considerable for so laudable a purpose as the gathering of our poor brethren and sisters to a place where they can be fed and clothed, and taught further in the things of God. Yet, for all this, we are improving as a people; but do we serve God with a perfect heart and a ready and willing mind? We do not. If the Latter-day Saints will put into my hands one-twentieth part of the means that go into the hands of their enemies, I think we can gather up every poor saint there is in the old country. Will they do this? I do not expect they will. My brethren are willing to go and preach the gospel in all the world. I would like to see them just as willing to assist in gathering them home. The kingdom of God is the safest institution on earth in which to invest means. We are citizens of His kingdom and members of His church, and we realize that we have to suffer all things for the gospel, but it will make us richer than we can possibly be in any other work. May God bless you. Amen.

Remarks by President Brigham Young, delivered in the Old Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, December 8th, 1867.

The subject of salvation is one which should occupy the attention of the reflecting among mankind. Salvation is the full existence of man, of the angels, and the Gods; it is eternal life—the life which was, which is, and which is to come. And we, as human beings, are heirs to all this life, if we apply ourselves strictly to obey the requirements of the law of God, and continue in faithfulness. The first object of our existence is to know and understand the principles of life, to know good from evil, to understand light from darkness, to have the ability to choose between that which gives and perpetuates life and that which would take it away. The volition of the creature to choose is free; we have this power given to us.

We have reason to be thankful more than any other people. We have no knowledge of any other people on the face of the earth who possess the oracles of God, the priesthood, and the keys of eternal life. We are in possession of those keys, and, consequently, we are under greater obligations, as individuals and as a community, to work righteousness. I hope and trust we will continually manifest before the Lord that we appreciate these blessings. There is no question but every person here who seriously reflects upon his own existence, his being here, and the hereafter which awaits him, must many times feel that he comes short of doing all the good for which our Father in heaven has brought us forth. This I conclude from my own experience. Every mind that thinks deeply upon the things of time and eternity, sees that time, which we measure by our lives, is like the stream from the mountains which gushes forth, yet we cannot tell from whence it comes, nor do we know naturally where it goeth, only it passes again into the clouds; so our lives are here, and this we are certain of. We do know that we live and that we have the power of sight. We do know and can realize that we possess the faculty of hearing. We can discern between that which we like and that which we dislike. Give a child candy and it is fond of it, it wishes more; but give it calomel and jalap, and it turns from it with loathing. It has the power of discerning between that in which it delights and that in which it does not delight. It can taste, smell, see, and hear. We know we are in possession of these faculties. This life that you and I possess is for eternity. Contemplate the idea of beings endowed with all the powers and faculties which we possess, becoming annihilated, passing out of existence, ceasing to be, and then try to reconcile it with our feelings and with our present lives. No intelligent person can do it. Yet it is only by the spirit of revelation that we can understand these things. By the revelations of the Lord Jesus we understand things as they were, that have been made known unto us; things that are in the life which we now enjoy, and things as they will be, not to the fullest extent, but all that the Lord designs that we should understand, to make it profitable to us, in order to give us the experience necessary in this life to prepare us to enjoy eternal life hereafter.

These principles are before us. We are now acting upon them. We feel to exhort ourselves and our fellow beings, not only those who have embraced the gospel, but all mankind, to hearken to the words of truth and wisdom, to hearken to the still, small voice that whispers to the conscience and understanding of all living beings according to the knowledge and wisdom which they possess, instructing them in right and wrong, entreating them, wooing them, beseeching them to refrain from evil. There is not a person so sunk in ignorance but has that principle in him teaching him that this is right and that is wrong, guiding him in the way that he will not sin a sin unto death. Can we realize this? Yes. There are many who possess the spirit of revelation to that degree that they can understand its operations upon the creature, no matter whether they have heard the gospel preached or not, nor whether they are Christians, Jews, or Mahommedans. They are taught of the Lord, and the candle of the Lord is within them, giving them light.

This principle we are in possession of, and it should be nourished and cherished by us; it is the principle of revelation, or, if you like the term better, of foreseeing. There are those who possess foreknowledge, who do not believe as we believe with regard to the establishment of the Kingdom of God on the earth. Take the statesman, for instance; he has a certain degree of knowledge with regard to the results of the measures which he may recommend, but does he know whence he derives that knowledge? No. He may say: “I foresee if we take this course we shall perpetuate our government and strengthen it, but if we take the opposite course we will destroy it.” But can he tell whence he has received that wisdom and foreknowledge? He cannot. Yet that is the condition of the statesmen in the nations of the earth. If the philosopher can gaze into the immensity of space, and understand how to fashion and make glasses that will magnify a million times, that knowledge comes from the fountain of knowledge. A man of the world may say: “I can foresee, I can understand, I can frame an engine, make a track, and run that engine upon it, bearing along a train of loaded cars at the rate of forty, fifty, or sixty miles an hour.” Another may say: “I can take the lightning, convey it on wires, and speak to foreign nations.” But where do they get this wisdom? From the same source where you and I get our wisdom and our knowledge of God and godliness. Realizing these things, I look upon my brethren and sisters, and ask what manner of persons ought we to be? We are apt to think wrong and to speak wrong. Our passions will rise within us, and without reflection the organs of speech are put in motion and we utter that which we should not speak. We have feelings which we should not have, and we neglect the great and glorious principles of eternal life. We are groveling, of the earth earthy. We look after the things of this life, are attached to them, and it is hard for us to see and understand the final result of things, even though we have the spirit of revelation.

What will be the final result of the restoration of the gospel, and the destiny of the Latter-day Saints? If they are faithful to the priesthood which God has bestowed upon us, the gospel will revolutionize the whole world of mankind; the earth will be sanctified, and God will glorify it, and the Saints will dwell upon it in the presence of the Father and the Son. We need to exert our powers, and call forth all the ability within us, and put into requisition every talent that God has given us, to bring about this glorious result, to bear off this Kingdom, and see that the gospel is preached to all the inhabitants of the earth. This is our duty and calling. It is obligatory upon us to see that the House of Israel have the gospel preached to them; to do all that is in our power to gather them to the land of their fathers, and to gather up the fulness of the Gentiles before the gospel can go with success to the Jews. We are under obligations to establish the Zion of our God upon the earth, and establish and maintain its laws, so that the law of the priesthood of the Son of God may govern and control the people.

Go into the world, among the inhabitants of the nations of Christendom, whether Infidels, Episcopalians, Baptists, Methodists, Presbyterians, or people of any other religious sect, and tell them plainly that the law of God is going to be the law of the land, and they would be terrified, they would fear and tremble. But tell them that the law of liberty, and equal right to every person, would prevail and they could understand that, for it is according to the Constitution of our country. To do the greatest good to the greatest number of the people is the principle inculcated in it. But tell them that the law of Zion will be the law of the land, and it grates upon their ears, they do not like to hear it. Many have read with regard to the effects of Catholicism, when it exercised great power among the nations, and the thought of any church getting such a power strikes a terror to them. That church professed to be the church of God upon the earth, and some dread similar results to those which attended that. Supposing the early Christians had not departed from the truth, but had retained the keys of the kingdom, there never would have been a man put to the test with regard to his religious faith. If an Infidel had abused a Christian, it would have been stopped, and the wrongdoer would have been compelled to cease his violence, but no religious test would have been applied. The law of right would have prevailed. Some suppose that when the Kingdom of God governs on the earth, everybody who does not belong to the Church of Jesus Christ will be persecuted and killed. This is as false an idea as can exist. The Church and Kingdom of God upon the earth will take the lead in everything that is praiseworthy, in everything that is good, in everything that is delightful, in everything that will promote knowledge and extend an understanding of truth. The Holy Priesthood and the laws thereof will be known to the inhabitants of the earth, and the friends of truth, and those who delight in it, will delight in those laws and cheerfully submit to them, for they will secure the rights of all men. Many conclude, from reading the history of various nations, that Catholicism never granted any rights to any person, unless he would believe it as he was required to believe. But it is not so in the Kingdom of God; it is not so with the law nor with the Priesthood of the Son of God. You can believe in one God, or in three gods, or in a thousand gods; you can worship the sun or the moon, or a stick or a stone, or anything you please. Are not all mankind the workmanship of the hands of God? And does he not control the workmanship of His hands? They have the privilege of worshipping as they please. They can do as they please, so long as they do not infringe upon the rights of their fellow beings. If they do well they will receive their reward, and if they do ill they will receive the results of their works. You and I have the privilege of serving God, of building up Zion, sending the gospel to the nations of the earth and preaching it at home, subduing every passion within us, and bringing all subject to the law of God. We have also the privilege of worshipping Him according to the dictates of our own consciences, with none to molest or make us afraid.

I am now going to preach you a short sermon concerning our temporal duties. My sermon is to the poor, and to those who are not poor. As a people, we are not poor; and we wish to say to the Bishops, not only in this city, but through the country, “Bishops, take care of your poor.” The poor in this city do not number a great many. I think there are a few over seventy who draw sustenance from the General Tithing Office. They come to the Tithing Office, or somebody comes for them, to draw their sustenance. If some of our clever arithmeticians will sit down and make a calculation of the hours lost in coming from the various parts of the city to the Tithing Office, and in waiting around there, and then value those hours, if occupied in some useful employment, at twelve and a half cents each, every eight of them making a dollar, it will be found that the number of dollars thus lost by these seventy odd persons in a week would go far towards sustaining them. We have among us some brethren and sisters who are not strong, nor healthy, and they must be supported. We wish to adopt the most economical plan of taking care of them, and we say to you Bishops, take care of them. You may ask the question, ‘“shall we take the tithing that should go to the Tithing Office to support them, or shall we ask the brethren to donate for that purpose?” If you will take the time consumed in obtaining the rations drawn by them out of the General Tithing Office—for every person who is not able to come must send someone for them—and have that time profitably employed, there will be but little more to seek for their sustenance. Get a house in your Ward, and if you have two sisters, or two brethren, put them in it, make them comfortable, find them food and clothing, and fuel, and direct the time now spent coming to this Tithing Office wisely in profitable labor. Furnish the sisters with needles and thread to work at sewing, and find something for them to do. Take those little girls who have been coming to the Tithing Office, and have them taught to knit edging, and tidies, and other kinds of knitting, and make lace, and sell the products of their labor. Those little girls have nimble fingers, and it will only take a little capital to start them at such kinds of work. Where you have brethren who are not strong enough to saw and split wood, or do some kind of outdoor labor, agree with some chairmakers to have his chairs bottomed, and get rushes, and set the brethren to bottoming the chairs. If you cannot get that for them to do, procure some flags or rushes, and let them make foot-mats, and sell them, but do not ask too high a price for them; do not ask a dollar or two dollars each for them, for one can be made in an hour or two. And if the market should get stocked with them, get some willows and have willow baskets made, and you can scarcely stock the market with them, for they wear out almost as fast as they can be made. In the spring have these brethren sow some broom-corn—they will enjoy working a little out of doors in the nice spring weather—and then in fall they can make brooms with the corn. By pursuing this course a Bishop will soon be able to say, “I have accomplished a good work; the brethren and sisters whom I had to help are now in a condition to help themselves.” And in a short time, if their labor and time are wisely employed, you can build for them the finest house in the ward. You may call it a poorhouse if you choose, though it should be the best house in the ward, and there its inmates can enjoy themselves, the younger ones can be taught music, and thus a source of enjoyment be created, as well as being taught in various kinds of profitable employment, and the lives of all be made a blessing to themselves, they being in the enjoyment of happiness and comfort. You may think that I am painting a fancy sketch, but it is practicable, and those are places I intend to visit by and by.

Now, Bishops, you have smart women for wives, many of you; let them organize Female Relief Societies in the various wards. We have many talented women among us, and we wish their help in this matter. Some may think this is a trifling thing, but it is not; and you will find that the sisters will be the mainspring of the movement. Give them the benefit of your wisdom and expe– rience, give them your influence, guide and direct them wisely and well and they will find rooms for the poor, and obtain the means for supporting them ten times quicker than even the Bishop could. If he should go or send to a man for a donation, and if the person thus visited should happen to be cross or out of temper for some cause, the likelihood is that while in that state of feeling he would refuse to give anything, and so a variety of causes would operate to render the mission an unsuccessful one. But let a sister appeal for the relief of suffering and poverty, and she is almost sure to be successful, especially if she appeals to those of her own sex. If you take this course you will relieve the wants of the poor a great deal better than they are now dealt by. We recommend these Female Relief Societies to be organized immediately.

Another thing I wish to say. You know that the first Thursday in each month we hold as a fast day. How many here know the origin of this day? Before tithing was paid, the poor were supported by donations. They came to Joseph and wanted help, in Kirtland, and he said there should be a fast day, which was decided upon. It was to be held once a month, as it is now, and all that would have been eaten that day, of flour, or meat, or butter, or fruit, or anything else, was to be carried to the fast meeting and put into the hands of a person selected for the purpose of taking care of it and distributing it among the poor. If we were to do this now faithfully, do you think the poor would lack for flour, or butter, or cheese, or meat, or sugar, or anything they needed to eat? No, there would be more than could be used by all the poor among us. It is economy in us to take this course, and do better by our poor brethren and sisters than they have hitherto been done by. Let this be published in our newspapers. Let it be sent forth to the people, that on the first Thursday of each month, the fast day, all that would be eaten by husbands and wives and children and servants should be put in the hands of the Bishop for the sustenance of the poor, I am willing to do my share as well as the rest, and if there are no poor in my ward, I am willing in divide with those wards where there are poor. If the sisters will look out for rooms for those sisters who need to be taken care of, and see them provided for, you will find that we will possess more comfort and more peace in our hearts, and our spirits will be buoyant and light, full of joy and peace. The Bishops should, through their teachers, see that every family in their wards, who is able, should donate what they would naturally consume on the fast day to the poor.

You have read, probably, that we are starting the school of the prophets. We have been in this school all the time. The revelations of the Lord Jesus Christ to the human family is all the learning we can ever possess. Much of this knowledge is obtained from books, which have been written by men who have contemplated deeply on various subjects, and the revelations of Jesus have opened their minds, whether they knew it or acknowledged it or not. We will start this school of the prophets to increase in knowledge. Brother Calder commences tomorrow to teach our youth and those of middle age the art of bookkeeping and impart to them a good mercantile education. We expect soon to have our sisters join in the class and mingle with the brethren in their studies, for why should not a lady be capable of taking charge of her husband’s business affairs when he goes into the grave? We have sisters now engaged in several of our telegraph offices, and we wish them to learn not only to act as operators but to keep the books of our offices, and let sturdy men go to work at some employment for which by their strength they are adapted, and we hope eventually to see every store in Zion attended by ladies. We wish to have our young boys and girls taught in the different branches of an English education, and in other languages, and in the various sciences, all of which we intend eventually to have taught in this school. Tomorrow evening we shall commence our course of lectures on theology. To that class I have invited a few, but not many. I believe I have invited the First Presidency, the Twelve Apostles, Bishop Hunter and his Counselors, the first seven presidents of Seventies, the Presidency of the High Priests’ quorum, the Presidency of this Stake of Zion, the High Council, the Bishops and their Counselors, and the City Council. A few more will be invited, enough to fill the room. I wish us to profit by what we hear, to learn how to live, to make ourselves comfortable, to purify ourselves, and prepare ourselves to inherit this earth when it is glorified, and go back in the presence of the Father and the Son.

God bless you. Amen.

Remarks by President Brigham Young, delivered in the Old Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, November 17th, 1867.

We have great reason to be thankful for the blessings we enjoy as individuals and as a people. There is no other people on the earth, that we have any knowledge of, who are blessed to the same extent as this people called Latter-day Saints. If we are blessed more than others, we should be more thankful than others. The blessings and bounties of the Lord upon us are bestowed according to our faithfulness and obedience to the requirements made of us. We have seen times in our history as a people, that if the hand of God had not been immediately over us, we must have perished. But to secure His blessings the Lord requires the strict obedience of His people. This is our duty. We obey the Lord, Him who is called Jehovah, the Great I AM, I am a man of war, Eloheim, etc. We are under many obligations to obey Him. How shall we know that we obey Him? There is but one method by which we can know it, and that is by the inspiration of the Spirit of the Lord witnessing unto our spirit that we are His, that we love Him, and that He loves us. It is by the spirit of revelation we know this. We have no witness to ourselves internally, without the spirit of revelation. We have no witness outwardly only by obedience to the ordinances.

About the time I was preparing myself to embrace the gospel, there were great reformation meetings, and many professed to be converted. Those were very stirring times. The cause of religion was the great topic and theme of conversation, and preachers were full of zeal to bring souls to Christ through repentance and faith in His name. I recollect very distinctly that if I permitted myself to speak in any of their meetings, the spirit forbade me mentioning or referring to the testimony of Jesus, only in a superficial way. A few who believed in the everlasting gospel which had been revealed through Joseph, the prophet, testified in their meetings that they knew by the spirit of revelation that God had done thus and so, and they were hooted at immediately by those reformers. If I spoke at all in their meetings, I had to guard every word I uttered, lest I should offend those who professed to understand the gospel of life and salvation, but who did not. Gradually we broke through this fear, and ventured to utter the sentiments of our hearts, in faith before God, delivering that to the people which the Lord had revealed to us. Such is the condition of the professed religious portions of Christendom today. They refuse to receive the testimony of Jesus through revelation from His spirit; but they believe in the mutterings, whisperings, and rappings of low, foul, degraded spirits, who delight to lead astray rather than to guide to the truth. They “Seek unto them that have familiar spirits, and unto wizards that peep, and that mutter; should not a people seek unto their God for the living to the dead?” Unless we are willing to be guided by the revelations of the spirit of the Almighty, by obeying and living up to the principles of His gospel, we are as apt to believe one thing as another, and to be influenced by, and follow the dictations of a bad spirit as a good one. We have the same testimony as the faithful followers of the Lord Jesus had anciently.

The scriptures made use of by Elder George A. Smith this morning, show the way in which the former Saints became the sons of God. “But as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name.” Who did receive Him and believe on His name? Did the Jews as a nation? No. Did the Gentiles as nations? No. A few Jews and a few Gentiles only received Him and believed on His name. When the gospel was preached to the Jews and to the Gentiles, a few had ears to hear, eyes to see, and hearts that understood by the spirit of revelation; they believed the sayings of the Savior, and received the Lord Jesus Christ as the promised Messiah. It is written, “The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do; for what things soever He doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise. For the Father loveth the Son, and sheweth him all things that himself doeth.” Again, it is written, “For I have given unto them the words which thou gavest me.” The disciples believed the words of the Savior, and proved to Him and to His apostles that they were sincere and honest in their belief. Thus they were entitled to the spirit of revelation through their obedience. They asked and they did receive, “not the spirit of bondage again to fear, but the spirit of adoption, whereby we cry Abba, Father. The spirit itself bearing witness with our spirit that we are the children of God.” While the same Holy Spirit, or comforter, becomes the testimony of Jesus to all true believers, “He will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment;” for in the days of the Savior many who did not receive the gospel were pricked in their hearts, and they did perish, although convinced of its truth. And so it is today; wherever the gospel is preached by the Elders of this Church many are pricked in their hearts, and they testify in their own conscience that it is from heaven, and yet they will not receive the gospel, and perish in their sins. They smother the spirit of conviction within them, and go into greater darkness than before. “Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God.” When a man or woman anciently renounced the Jewish religion, or any of the sects of it that then existed among the Jews, forsaking every mode of worship excepting that which Jesus introduced, it was regarded as a sufficient testimony that they were honest—that they were born of God—and all the sincere and honest believers received the testimony of Jesus, which is the spirit of prophecy, and received power to become His sons.

I think, however, that the rendering of this Scripture is not so true as the following, namely: “But as many as received Him, to them gave He power to continue to be the sons of God.” Instead of receiving the gospel to become the sons of God, my language would be—to receive the gospel that we may continue to be the sons of God. Are we not all sons of God when we are born into this world? Old Pharaoh, King of Egypt, was just as much a son of God as Moses and Aaron were His sons, with this difference—he rejected the word of the Lord, the true light, and they received it. For “this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men love darkness rather than light, because their deeds are evil.” Then we receive not the gospel that we may become the sons of God, but that we may remain the sons of God without rebuke. Inasmuch as all had apostatized, they had to become the sons of God by adoption, still, originally, all were the sons of God. We receive the gospel, not that we may have our names written in the Lamb’s book of life, but that our names may not be blotted out of that book. “For,” saith the Lord, “He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment, and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life.” Why? Because he had overcome through his faithfulness. My doctrine is—that there never was a son and daughter of Adam and Eve born on this earth whose names were not already written in the Lamb’s book of life, and there they will remain until their conduct is such that the angel who keeps the record is authorized to blot them out and record them elsewhere. These are my views on that intricate point, but we are satisfied to use this Scripture as it is rendered by our translators.

I now wish to make an application of this to our own day. By what means shall the people of this generation become the sons and daughters of the Almighty? By believing on the Lord Jesus Christ? Yes. How shall they know that they believe in Him? By yielding obedience to the gospel as it is revealed to us in this generation, at the same time believing in all that has been revealed to others until now, concerning the children of men, the character of God, the creation of the earth, the ordinances of the Lord’s house, the oracles of truth—believing in all things that have been revealed to mankind from the time that the Lord first began to reveal His will to them. Now, we say to the people of the nineteenth century, and we speak the truth and lie not, whosoever believes that Joseph Smith, Jun., was a prophet sent of God, and was ordained by Him to receive and hold the keys of the Holy Priesthood, which is after the order of the Son of God, and power to build up the kingdom of God upon the earth, to gather the house of Israel, to guide all who believe and obey to redemption, to restore that which has been lost through transgression—whosoever believes this, believing in the Lord, and obeying His commandments to the end of their lives, their names shall not be blotted out of the Lamb’s book of life, and they shall receive crowns of glory, immortality, and eternal life. This is for the nineteenth century, for the generation of people now living, and who lived thirty or thirty-seven years ago. I am not now preaching to a congregation of unbelievers, but to the Saints; and I now say to you, Saints, and to the unbelievers, that all who reject the gospel, who despise the principles of life and salvation that have been delivered to us, they must taste of the second death if they do not repent. There may be some, however, who are so ignorant that repentance is yet left for them. This is the gospel that we preach, the testimony which we send forth to the world, inculcating strict obedience to the requirements of heaven, which is expected from all who embrace this gospel. For example, Joseph, the prophet, said to the Colesville branch, “sell your farms.” So he said to other branches, “gather up and let us go to the Ohio,” and they went, and from the Ohio to Missouri. Before we went to the Ohio, Oliver Cowdery, Peter Whitmer Jun., Parley P. Pratt, and Ziba Peterson started in the fall of 1830 to visit the land where the Center Stake of Zion was afterwards located. When Joseph went up he located the city. Those who had farms and stores were instructed to sell out, to forsake all, to give to the poor, and to impart of their substance to sustain this elder, clothe another elder, and to send another on his mission, which they did, and up they got, and to the Ohio and to the Missouri they moved. What other people would have done this? They are not to be found in Christendom. While in Missouri they moved from county to county, and then back east into Illinois; for, thus said the Lord, through the prophet Joseph, return to Illinois, and there the prophet was killed. Then the word of the Lord to us was: gather up my people, and flee to the mountains, and hide yourselves, and there wait until you shall see the hand of the Lord made bare, and the wrath of the Almighty poured out upon the wicked nation that has consented to the death of my prophets. Impart of your substance, was the word of the Lord to them, and who were there in all those trains of Saints that did not impart of their substance? When we left Missouri we covenanted before the Lord that we never would cease our endeavors until the last man, woman, and child should be brought out of Missouri to Illinois who wanted to be moved. A few tarried in Missouri and apostatized. When the persecuted and driven Saints reached Illinois, the word of the Lord through the prophet Joseph was—gather up to Commerce, which was afterwards named Nauvoo. We did not lose sight of one Saint in Missouri, and gave our means to gather out the last and least Saint that would leave. When the word came—“gather to the mountains from Nauvoo”—we agreed before we left that city that we would use our means and our influence to gather the last Saint to the mountains. I have sent, time and time again, to inquire if there was a Saint in Nauvoo who wished to be gathered to these mountains. If there are any, let them come, for we have means and teams to bring them. This proves that we have kept our covenants. Now the word of the Lord is go forward—press on. The kingdom of God is onward and upward. The proof of this declaration is before me today.

Who believes Joseph Smith to be a prophet? These my brethren and sisters who are now sitting before me. They entertain no doubts on this subject. They may sometimes be tempted and tried, and neglect their prayers, until they hardly know whether “Mormonism” is true or untrue. The cares of the world, we know very well, flood in upon them; but let me tell you one thing—and I want you to seriously remember it—if you are in darkness, and have not the spirit of prayer, still do not neglect your prayers in your families in the morning. You, fathers and husbands, get down on your knees, and when the cares of this world intrude themselves upon your devotions, let them wait while you remain on your knees and finish your prayers. Brother Daniel D. Hunt’s blessing over a dinner in Missouri, when he and Benjamin Clapp first met, is a very good prayer for us all. It was: “O, Lord, save us from error.” If you can say no more than this very short but comprehensive prayer, go down upon your knees and say it. When you have labored faithfully for years, you will learn this simple fact—that if your hearts are aright, and you still continue to be obedient, continue to serve God, continue to pray, the spirit of revelation will be in you like a well of water springing up to everlasting life. Let no person give up prayer because he has not the spirit of prayer, neither let any earthly circumstance hurry you while in the performance of this important duty. By bowing down before the Lord to ask Him to bless you, you will simply find this result—God will multiply blessings on you temporally and spiritually. Let a merchant, a farmer, a mechanic, any person in business, live his religion faithfully, and he need never lose one minute’s sleep by thinking about his business; he need not worry in the least, but trust in God, go to sleep and rest. I say to this people—pray, and if you cannot do anything else, read a prayer aloud that your family may hear it, until you get a worshipping spirit, and are full of the riches of eternity, then you will be prepared at any time to lay hands on the sick, or to officiate in any of the ordinances of this religion. I do not recollect that I have seen five minutes since I was baptized that I have not been ready to preach a funeral sermon, lay hands on the sick, or to pray in private or in public. I will tell you the secret of this. In all your business trans– actions, words, and communications, if you commit an overt act, repent of that immediately, and call upon God to deliver you from evil and give you the light of His spirit. Never do a thing that your conscience, and the light within you, tell you is wrong. Never do a wrong, but do all the good you possibly can. Never do a thing to mar the peaceable influence of the Holy Spirit in you; then whatever you are engaged in—whether in business, in the dance, or in the pulpit—you are ready to officiate at any time in any of the ordinances of the House of God. If I commit an overt act, the Lord knows the integrity of my heart, and, through sincere repentance, He forgives me. Before Joseph’s death he had a revelation concerning myself and others, which signified that we had passed the ordeal, and that we should never apostatize from the faith of the holy gospel; “and,” said Joseph, “if there is any danger of your doing this, the Lord will take you to Himself forthwith, for you cannot stray from the truth.” When men and women have traveled to a certain point in their labors in this life, God sets a seal upon them that they never can forsake their God or His kingdom; for, rather than they should do this, He will at once take them to Himself. Probably this is so with many of the elders who are taken from us, and over whom many ignorantly mourn. I say, to God give thanks, for who knows but that had they lived there might have been trials to pass through which they could not overcome. It is all right, blessed be the name of the Lord.

May the Lord bless you. Amen.

Remarks by President Brigham Young, delivered in the Old Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, November 3rd, 1867.

I will, in the commencement of my remarks, take up a subject upon which much has been said in the pulpit and in the chimney corner. It is regarding the Spirit of the Lord manifesting His will to His children. There is no doubt, if a person lives according to the revelations given to God’s people, he may have the Spirit of the Lord to signify to him His will, and to guide and to direct him in the discharge of his duties, in his temporal as well as his spiritual exercises. I am satisfied, however, that in this respect, we live far beneath our privileges. If this is true, it is necessary that we become more fervent in the service of God—in living our religion—and more truthful and honest with one another, that we be not slack in the performance of any duty, but labor with a right good will for God and truth. If this people, called Latter-day Saints, live beneath their privileges in the holy gospel of the Son of God, are they justified in every respect before Him? They are not. If we do not live in the lively exercise of faith in the Lord Jesus, possessing His Spirit always, how can we know when He speaks to us through His servants whom He has placed to lead us? It was observed here this morning, by one of the brethren, that he never attempted to perform a duty required of him unless the Spirit manifested to him beforehand that he would be justified in doing it. Now, let me ask, how many of you know, by the manifestation of the Spirit of revelation, that the Lord has whispered to His servants the necessity of this people observing the Word of Wisdom? Some submit to it, and say that it is right, because their President says so; but, how many of the Saints have received the manifestations of the Spirit to themselves that this is the will of God? Again, how many know by the Spirit of revelation that they should contribute of the substance the Lord has given to them to gather home the poor Latter-day Saints from Europe? Many may have received a testimony from the Holy Spirit that this is their duty, but there may be one-half of the community who have not received such a manifestation. Now, is it the duty of those who have not lived so as to enjoy the Spirit of revelation, as others do, to perform this labor of love and charity, the same as those who have received the Spirit of revelation, to witness to them that it is right? We think that it is. I can call to mind revelations which the Lord delivered to His servant Joseph, that when they were written and given to the people there would not be one in fifty of the members of the Church who could say that they knew, by the revela– tions of the Lord Jesus, that they were of the Lord; but they would have to pray and exercise faith to be able to receive them, and in some instances some apostatized in consequence of revelations that had been given. This was the case when the “Vision” was given through Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon.

At that time there was not as many in the whole Church as there is in this congregation. Yes, many forsook the faith when the Lord revealed the fact to Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon, as He did to His ancient Apostles, that all would receive a salvation except those who had sinned a sin unto death, of which the Apostle John said—“I do not say that ye shall pray for it.” I prayed and reflected about it, and so did others. I became satisfied that, when a revelation came to Joseph for the people to perform any labor or duty, it was their privilege to go to with their might and do it collectively and individually, not waiting for the manifestations of the Spirit to me, but believing that the Prophet knew more than I knew, that the Lord spoke through him, and that He could do as He pleased about speaking to me. This is a close point; but I will tell you what is right, what is the duty of the Latter-day Saints, unless they can, by undeniable proof, show that the word of the Lord has not come through the President, they have no right to hesitate one moment in performing the duties required of them. This is the way I understand revelation. It is the privilege of the Latter-day Saints to know and understand the mind and will of God concerning them; yea, it is even the privilege of the wicked world to know this. The Spirit of the Lord bears witness to all people according to the faith, honesty, and humility which dwell in the individual who hears and in those who administer the word. In a great measure it depends upon this with regard to the witness of God to them. It is hard, however, for people to understand these things. The intelligence we possess is from our Father and our God. Every attribute that is in His character is in His children in embryo. It is their duty to improve and develop those attributes; and it is, consequently, necessary to pay strict attention to every requirement of Heaven, that we may better understand the mind and will of God concerning us and our duty. If we will live so as to enjoy the Spirit of revelation, we may know concerning ourselves and those we preside over.

If the people are ready and prepared to receive the word of the Lord continually, it can be given to them. An elder may declare the truth philosophically, and the light of Christ may kindle up the candle of the Lord within those who hear him, and they see, understand, and are convicted of its truth, although the elder who preaches it to them may himself be void of the Spirit of revelation. Again, a man may preach to a people whose ears are closed, and their hearts hardened against conviction, they will not believe the gospel, yet the man who testifies to them may be full of the power of God. For example, we will say, here is a man on the right or the left, who declares that he cannot perform this or that duty unless he receives a witness to himself, direct from the Lord, that He requires the duty at his hands. Upon what principle has he the right to question any requirement made by the constituted authority of God on the earth? Is he entitled to any such right? He is not. He is not entitled to the right of bringing up any argument in his own mind, as to the right or wrong of it, or to in any way remonstrate against any requirement the Lord has made of him through His servants. He is under obligation to obey, whether the Spirit of the Lord gives him a manifestation or not. When the authorities call for so many loads of rock to be hauled for the Temple, should every man wait to know by direct revelation to himself whether he should draw rock or not? Or should all acknowledge the call as the word of the Lord to us, and promptly and willingly obey? When we asked the brethren to build this New Tabernacle, did they wait to get a revelation to themselves before they commenced the work? No; but while they were engaged in that work, when they knelt down to pray before the Lord, His Spirit was with them, and it justified the act. And so will it be with every duty that is required of this people, if they perform the same in faith before God. Our beloved brother did not speak as he meant. He will be understood to mean simply this: If a requirement is made of this people, it is their privilege to have a testimony that it is of God. This is what I mean, and it is what my brother meant who spoke this morning. I wish now to say a few words to the Bishops. It is a common saying, “as with the priest so with the people.” I will change that a little, and say as are our bishops so are the people. We have said much to the people with regard to laying up provisions to last them a few years. This is our duty now; it has been our duty for years. How many of our bishops have provisions laid up for one year, two years, or seven years? There may be a few bishops who have got their grain laid away to last their families a year, but the great majority of them have not. The people do, or should look to their bishops for example. Each bishop should be an example to his ward. If the bishop of a ward lays up wheat to last his family a year, two years, or seven years, as the case may be, his neighbors on the right and on the left will be very apt to do the same; they will very likely build good bins and try to fill them. But I need not talk much about this. Do you ask me if I have wheat laid up? Yes, I have it all the time. I have been furnishing this tithing office in part with my own flour for the building of the New Tabernacle, and I calculate to furnish it still. I have so many hundreds of people to feed, it cannot be expected that I can save much; yet I have enough laid by to last my family for years.

I wish now to refer to what was said this afternoon regarding this people’s knowledge. I think of this frequently. It is said by our enemies that the Latter-day Saints are an ignorant people. I ask all the nations of Christendom if they can produce a people, considering all the circumstances, who are better educated in all the great branches of learning than this people, as a people. Many of them have been brought from poverty, and have been placed in comfortable circumstances in these mountains, where they have been taught how to get their living from the elements, and to become partially self-sustaining. How much do you know among the nations? Can you make an axe helve? “Yes,” and so can we, and make an axe to fit it, and then we know how to use it. We can make a hoe handle and a hoe to fit it, and then we know how to hoe the ground with it. Can we make a plough? Yes, and know how to use it as well as any people on the earth. We can make every agricultural implement, and can use it. We can make a cambric needle; and we can make the steam engine and vessel to carry it. We can direct the lightning, and make it our servant, after Franklin showed us how; and the philosophers of the day are as dependent on his discoveries as we are. We have all the improvements that have been made in the arts and sciences, and know how to use them to our advantage. We can make boots and shoes for the sturdy, plodding agriculturist in the field, and for the delicate lady in the parlor, and we know how to make the leather as well as others do. We can read the Bible and understand it, and our lexicographers can make dictionaries. Wherein, then, are we more ignorant than others? We have good mechanics, good philosophers, good astronomers, good mathematicians, good architects, good theologians, good historians, good orators, good statesmen, good school teachers, and we can make a good prayer and preach a good sermon. I heard a very sensible prayer the other day at camp Wasatch. In the prayer were these words—that “the militia might be enabled to keep their guns bright and their powder dry.” We know how to make cloth, how to make it into garments, and wear it; we know how to provide for ourselves, how to protect ourselves, and we ask nobody to help us but God our heavenly Father. Then, wherein are we so woefully ignorant as some people make us out to be? We know how to build houses, and can make the furniture to furnish them; we know how to plant gardens, set out orchards, and plant vineyards. We know how to raise all kinds of vegetables, fruit, and grain, and everything else that will flourish in this latitude. Wherein are we ignorant?

We may not be able to get out a great burst of words, which mean nothing, as many of the preachers and reverend divines abroad can. They speculate a great deal about walking the golden streets of the New Jerusalem, and about going into the presence of God to sing psalms forevermore, but when they are asked seriously where they are going when they leave this earth, they are unable to tell you. If you ask them what they are going to do in the next existence, when the labors of this word are ended, they are still in the dark. You may ask them where God lives, and they do not know—they say in heaven; but where is heaven? They do not know. If you ask them what He looks like, still they do not know. Some have gone so far as to say that He dwells beyond the bounds of time and space, and is seated on a topless throne, being Himself without body, parts, and passions. Numerous are the wild speculations of religionists regarding God and His habitation. We can instruct the world on these matters; wherein are we ignorant? We know and read history; we understand the geography of the world, the manners, customs, and laws of nations. Our astronomers describe to us the geography of the heavens, measure the distances between the earth and the sun, moon, and planets. We have learning to speculate on all these works of God, and revelation unfolding reliable knowledge on many of the wonders of the heavens. Now, wherein are we more ignorant than other people? Is it because we believe the Bible, which declares that man is made in the likeness and image of God, that He has ears to hear our prayers, eyes to see His handiwork, a stretched-out arm to defend His people, and to make bare to punish the wicked nations of the earth? Wherein are we ignorant? We understand the laws of domestic and civil government; we know how to conduct ourselves like men of sense, like gentlemen and Christians; we understand natural philosophy and medicine; and are satisfied of the emptiness of the vain philosophy of the world. If believing and knowing what we do constitute ignorance, then let us be ignorant still, and con– tinue in the way which will lead us to the perfection of knowledge which the world call ignorance.

Now, let me say to you, it is our imperative duty to use a portion of our substance to send for our poor brethren and sisters who are still back in the old countries. May the Lord bless you. Amen.

Remarks by President Brigham Young, delivered in Tooele City, August 17th, 1867.

I desire to say much to the people, but I fear I shall have to deny myself the satisfaction, unless I am strengthened of the Lord. I will present before you a few things with which I am more particularly impressed. I desire you to hearken to that which has been said during the session of this Conference, and to that which may yet be said during the continuation of our meeting.

We can enjoy the blessings of heaven, or we can deprive ourselves of that enjoyment. Intelligent beings have the power to exercise their free will and choice in doing good, equally as much as in doing evil. All have the privilege of doing evil if they are disposed so to do, but they will always find that the wages of sin is death. The Latter-day Saints, by their righteousness, can enjoy all the blessings which the Lord has promised to bestow upon His people, and they can, by their unrighteousness, deprive themselves of the enjoyment of those blessings. We, for instance exhort the Saints to observe the Word of Wisdom, that they may, through its observance, enjoy the promised blessing. Many try to excuse themselves because tea and coffee are not mentioned, arguing that it refers to hot drinks only. What did we drink hot when that Word of Wisdom was given? Tea and coffee. It definitely refers to that which we drink with our food. I said to the Saints at our last annual Conference, the Spirit whispers to me to call upon the Latter-day Saints to observe the Word of Wisdom, to let tea, coffee, and tobacco alone, and to abstain from drinking spirituous drinks. This is what the Spirit signifies through me. If the Spirit of God whispers this to His people through their leader, and they will not listen nor obey, what will be the consequence of their disobedience? Darkness and blindness of mind with regard to the things of God will be their lot; they will cease to have the spirit of prayer, and the spirit of the world will increase in them in proportion to their disobedience until they apostatize entirely from God and His ways.

This is no new or strange thing that you are required to do. Thirty-five years ago we were called upon to reform in our lives, by giving heed to the same Words of Wisdom; and if any man comes to you and tells you that you must have a little tea and a little coffee, by the same rule he may urge you to take a little tobacco and a little intoxicating liquor, or a little of any other substance which is hurtful to man. This destroys their claim and right to the spirit of revelation, and they go into darkness. There is not a single Saint deprived of the privilege of asking the Father, in the name of Jesus Christ, our Savior, if it is true that the Spirit of the Almighty whispers through His servant Brigham to urge upon the Latter-day Saints to observe the Word of Wisdom. All have this privilege from the apostle to the lay member. Ask for yourselves.

We are called to be Saints, to be the chosen people of the Lord Almighty, to be the saviors of the children of men, to gather the house of Israel, and save the house of Esau. Are we trifling with our high and holy calling before the Lord? Are we trifling away our precious time? If we are, we are trifling with our salvation. Then hearken, O ye Latter-day Saints, and hear the Words of Wisdom which the Lord has given unto you. It is written: “For the children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light.” There is a just reason for this saying. But the Latter-day Saints who hearken to the words of the Lord, given to them touching their political, social, and financial concerns, I say, and say it boldly, that they will have wisdom which is altogether superior to the wisdom of the children of darkness, or the children of this world. I know this by the revelations of the Lord Jesus Christ, and by the results of my own actions. They who have hearkened to the counsels given to them in temporal matters, have invariably bettered their condition temporally and spiritually. The day has gone by in which the people of God are to be trodden under foot by their enemies, in which they are to be poor outcasts to wander in sheepskins and goatskins, etc., but they had better continue to do that, and dwell in the caves of these mountains, and dress as the Indians do, than to forsake their God and their religion. Who is there among this people who cannot handle the things of this world without loving them in preference to the things of God? If there is such a person, I pray God to make him or her poor. Some among us are so foolish as to lift up their heels against the Almighty as soon as He blesses them sufficiently to make them a little comfortable and independent. This is lamentable. It is a disgrace to humanity to suffer the paltry things of this mortality to decoy away our affections from God and turn them to the beggarly elements of this world.

If you observe faithfully the Word of Wisdom, you will have your dollar, your five dollars, your hundred dollars, yea, you will have your hundreds of dollars to spend for that which will be useful and profitable to you. Why should we continue to practice in our lives those pernicious habits that have already sapped the foundation of the human constitution, and shortened the life of man to that degree that a generation passes away in the brief period of from twenty-seven to twenty-nine years? The strength, power, beauty, and glory that once adorned the form and constitution of man have vanished away before the blighting influences of inordinate appetite and love of this world. Doubtless we are about the best looking people today upon this footstool, and about the healthiest; but where is the iron constitution, the marrow in the bone, the power in the loins, and the strength in the sinew and muscle of which the ancient fathers could boast? These have, in a great measure, passed away; they have decayed from generation to generation, until constitutional weakness and effeminacy are bequeathed to us through the irregularities and sins of our fathers. The health and power and beauty that once adorned the noble form of man must again be restored to our race; and God designs that we shall engage in this great work of restoration. Then let us not trifle with our mission, by indulging in the use of injurious substances. These lay the foundation of disease and death in the systems of men, and the same are committed to their children, and another generation of feeble human beings is introduced into the world. Such children have insufficient bone, sinew, muscle, and constitution, and are of little use to themselves, or to their fellow creatures; they are not prepared for life, but for the grave; not to live five, six, eight, and nine hundred years, but to appear for a moment, as it were, and pass away. Now, when a person is fifty years of age he or she is considered an old man or an old woman; they begin to feel decrepit, and think they must feel old, appear old, and begin to die. Premature death is in the marrow of their bones, the seeds of early dissolution are sown in their bodies, they feel old at fifty, sixty, and seventy years, when they should feel like boys of fifteen, sixteen, and seventeen. Instead of feeling decrepit at those years they should feel full of strength, vigor, and life, having attained to early maturity, prepared now to enter upon the duties of a long future life, and when two hundred years have been attained, they should then feel more vigorous than the healthiest of men do in this age at forty and fifty years.

Let me assure you, my friends, that there does not exist another people in all the world who will take good counsel as readily as the Latter-day Saints do. All men are free to do right or to do wrong, to take good advice or reject it, to pursue the path that leads to eternal life, or to go down to death their own way. I am as independent in praying, and living a righteous life, as I would be if I were to violate the laws of God and man. This is my philosophy with regard to the human mind. We have cried to the nation of the United States, and to other nations for over a third of a century, saying, the wages of sin is death. Every man and woman who wishes to forfeit their right to the tree of life have the privilege of doing so. The nation that kills the prophets of God in any age must expect to reap cursings instead of blessings, unless it speedily repent. Judgment must begin at the house of God first, and we are perfectly willing it should. In 1857 they sent an army to Utah to annihilate “Mormonism,” but the scourge with which they intended to overwhelm this people has come upon their own heads, and the end is not yet. I told General Thomas L. Kane, that friend to humanity, when he visited us in 1857, that the coming of that army was the entering wedge to split the Government of the United States in pieces, and that soon. He, of course, could not see how this could ever be. They then were in great prosperity, and were going to annex the whole continent and neighboring islands, and so continue to annex until the whole world should take shelter under our national banner. He only saw this from a political standpoint, basing his expectations of such grand results upon the goodness of the Constitution and laws. I acknowledged to him that we have the best system of government in existence, but queried if the people of this nation were righteous enough to sustain its institutions. I say they are not, but will trample them under their feet. I told General Kane that the Government of the United States would be shivered to pieces. Will this Government ever be restored to its former peace and tranquility, and the institutions thereof ever be main– tained and honored? If they are, it will be by this people. Everything they are doing at present in Congress is only calculated to widen the breach, and alienate and destroy every vestige of love and affection that may yet be existing; and this they will continue to do until they have severed the last tie and worked out the entire destruction of the Government. They think they are doing the best that can be done. Many of them are honorable men, and would do good to the nation if they knew how. The results of their acts will be dissolution, strife, war, and bloodshed, until they are wasted away. The Lord will waste away the wicked as He said He would. A curse will come upon them to the third and fourth generation, saith the Lord Almighty, if they repent not, and refrain not from their sins. There is no likelihood of their doing this.

The destruction of property and life during the war has been enormous; but I am satisfied that the destruction of the love of virtue—the love of every exalted principle of honor, and of political and social government—has been greater, comparatively, than the destruction of property and life. Religious societies abound in the nation. Although it never was more wicked than at the present time, it is strange to say that it never was more religious in profession. Religion is the ruling power. The conscience of the masses in regard to religion, to politics, and social life is molded from the pulpit. In my early life I was acquainted with ministers of the sects of the day, and am satisfied that many of them lived honorably in their families, praying, and desiring, and seeking for guidance from on high. While on the other hand, to my certain knowledge, many of them encouraged a practice which today exists to an alarming extent, and which is openly and shamelessly acknowledged as a necessity of the age. To check the increase of our race has its advocates among the influential and powerful circles of society in our nation and in other nations. The same practice existed forty-five years ago, and various devices were used by married persons to prevent the expenses and responsibilities of a family of children, which they must have incurred had they suffered nature’s laws to rule pre-eminent. That which was practiced then in fear and against a reproving conscience, is now boldly trumpeted abroad as one of the best means of ameliorating the miseries and sorrows of humanity. Infanticide is very prevalent in our nation. It is a crime that comes within the purview of the law, and is therefore not so boldly practiced as is the other equally great crime, which no doubt, to a great extent, prevents the necessity of infanticide. The unnatural style of living, the extensive use of narcotics, the attempts to destroy and dry up the fountains of life, are fast destroying the American element of the nation; it is passing away before the increase of the more healthy, robust, honest, and less sinful class of the people which are pouring into the country daily from the Old World. The wife of the servant man is the mother of eight or ten healthy children, while the wife of his master is the mother of one or two poor, sickly children, devoid of vitality and constitution, and if daughters, unfit, in their turn, to be mothers, and the health and vitality which nature has denied them through the irregularities of their parents are not repaired in the least by their education. A great proportion of the leading men of our nation have sprung from wealthy and influential families, have been reared and educated in the midst of circles where the vices of the age flourish the most vigorously, destroying moral force and the love of truth and virtue, making education and refinement mere cloaks to cover sins of the blackest dye. The great majority of that class of persons appear in society as polished gentlemen, whose suavity of manners would deceive, if it were possible, the very elect. They have been educated in our seminaries of learning, and this class of men are now seeking to denude the Constitution of the United States of all its protective and saving powers.

Why all this? They killed the Prophet. The mob that collected at Carthage, Illinois, to commit that deed of blood contained a delegation representing every State in the Union. Each has received its blood stain. In the perpetration of this great national sin, they acted upon their own free volition which God implanted within them, as much so as if they had been willing to hearken to the advice of the Prophet and his friends when they showed them how to preserve the nation from destruction, how to do good to all, and how to introduce every holy principle that is calculated to bless and exalt a people. But, said they, “we will not hearken to the counsels of this man;” for, like the Jews of old, they were afraid if they let him live he would take away their place and nation. They not only feared the principles which he taught, but they feared the increasing numbers which followed him; they feared that if they let him alone he would incorporate in his religion all the religion there is that is good for anything, or that is according to the Bible, and all the honest, truthful, and virtuous of the nation, they feared, would follow him; and they feared that thereby they would be deprived of their rich emoluments and livings, so they concluded to get rid of him by slaying him. In killing the Prophet Joseph Smith, they did not kill “Mormonism,” and they cannot kill it unless they kill all the “Mormons,” for if they leave a single Latter-day Saint living he will cry to the people to repent of their sins and return to the Lord, and the Lord will work with him to gather the righteous, build up His kingdom, build up Zion, and establish Jerusalem no more to be thrown down. Well, they will go on their way, and we will go on ours. If they had hearkened to the counsel of Joseph Smith, this nation would have had no wars; there would have been no division in the Government, but it would have gone on in harmony and prosperity. So this people if they will take the counsels which the Lord gives to them through His servants with regard to their grain, and prepare for all contingencies to which they are subject in this mountainous country, we shall never see a famine; but if we neglect this counsel, refusing to hearken to good advice, we shall, by taking this course, bring distress upon ourselves and upon all who depend upon us for a subsistence. Let us pursue a course to preserve ourselves and avert every calamity. This we can do. It is not necessary for calamity to come upon us, if we will only take a course to prevent it. According to present appearances, next year we may expect grasshoppers to eat up nearly all our crops. But if we have provisions enough to last us another year, we can say to the grasshoppers—these creatures of God—you are welcome. I have never yet had a feeling to drive them from one plant in my garden; but I look upon them as the armies of the Lord, and with them it is easy for Him to consume a great nation. We had better lay up bread instead of selling it to strangers, and thus avoid a great calamity that otherwise might overtake us. If the people refuse to hearken to this timely counsel they will commit a great error. Good actions always result in blessings. The history of the people of God in all ages testifies that whenever they have listened to the counsel of heaven they have always been blessed. All this people are satisfied that they will be more blessed to hearken to good counsel than not to do so.

Instead of doing two days’ work in one day, wisdom would dictate to our sisters, and to every other person, that if they desire long life and good health, they must, after sufficient exertion, allow the body to rest before it is entirely exhausted. When exhausted, some argue that they need stimulants in the shape of tea, coffee, spirituous liquors, tobacco, or some of those narcotic substances which are often taken to goad on the lagging powers to greater exertions, but instead of these kind of stimulants they should recruit by rest. Our artificial wants, and not our real wants, and the following of senseless customs subject our sisters to an excess of labor. To supply these wants—to get a ribbon, an artificial flower, this, that, and the other gewgaw, rather than substantial necessaries—our farmers sell their wheat. Work less, wear less, eat less, and we shall be a great deal wiser, healthier, and wealthier people than by taking the course we now do. This whole Yankee nation eat so much, and so many good things, that they are always poor in their bodily habit; now and then only you will see a fleshy person among them; it is also the case with the people of the southern portion of the nation. It is difficult to find anything more healthy to drink than good cold water, such as flows down to us from springs and snows of our mountains. This is the beverage we should drink. It should be our drink at all times. If we constantly drink even malt liquor made from our barley and wheat, our health would be injured more or less thereby. It may be remarked that some men who use spirituous liquors and tobacco are healthy, but I argue that they would be much more healthy if they did not use it, and then they are entitled to the blessings promised to those who observe the advice given in the “Word of Wisdom.” Some few persons who have been addicted to the use of hot drinks, &c., have reached the age of eighty, eighty-three, and eighty-four years, but had they not been addicted to such habits of living they might have reached the age of a hundred or a hundred and five years.

We profess to be Saints of the Most High. We are the children of that Being who lives in the heavens, who is filled with all intelligence, and possesses all power. We cannot be prepared to dwell with Him unless we instruct our minds and sanctify ourselves in all things. I am happy to see our children engaged in the study and practice of music. Let them be educated in every useful branch of learning, for we, as a people, have in the future to excel the nations of the earth in religion, science, and philosophy. Great advancement has been made in knowledge by the learned of this world, still there is yet much to learn. The hidden powers of nature which give life, growth, and existence to all things, have not yet been approached by the wisdom of this world. There exists around us, in the works of God, an everlasting variety—no two leaves, no two blades of grass are alike. Natural philosophy, so far as known, marks these phenomena of nature, and reveals her wonders, but is incapable of revealing the modus operandi of the production. All this is veiled in impenetrable mystery to mortals. It is information which cannot be approached by science and philosophy known to man; it can only be reached through the revelations of the Almighty, the Great Author of Nature’s work. Great perfection has been attained in the application of important discoveries to the wants and necessities of mankind. I can, in a moment, transmit my wishes to the east, and in a few minutes to the city of London. Great perfection has been attained in the art of telegraphy, yet there is much more to be learned, and the same may be said of the power of steam, and its application to the wants of mankind. While the wonders of art and science in the present age astonish us, yet there was much useful knowledge possessed by the an– cients which is lost to us. One little simple art that they understood was that of tempering copper and making it equal to our finest tempered steel.

Let the children in our schools be taught everything that is necessary with regard to doctrine and principle, and then how to live; and let mothers teach their daughters regarding themselves, and how they should live in their sphere of existence, that they may be good wives and good mothers. Let the sisters study economy in the labor and management of their homes. I am satisfied that more than one-half of the labor that is done in our houses can be saved by a judicious exercise of thought and good judgment. Then be wise in these things, and we shall not need tea and coffee, or any other stimulant stronger than our natural food. I say, God bless you, and I bless you in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

Remarks by President Brigham Young, delivered in the Bowery, Great Salt Lake City, June 30th, 1867.

We have heard good instruction and good news from our brethren in the south and in the east, and we hear good news concerning Zion. But this is not good to the world, for Zion and the spirit of Zion are not loved by the wicked. There is good news, and it may be summed up by saying that God is carrying on His work most admirably. He has commenced His work in the last days, for the last time; and into this work He will gather all things. We are here in these mountains. Accidentally? Perhaps so. If we had Brother George A. Smith to tell the story, he would say we came here because we were obliged to come, and we stay here because there is no other place to which we can go. We have built cities in this mountainous region, because there was no other place where we could do so. We have not got through with our work here yet. The people have hardly commenced to realize the beauty, excellence, and glory that will yet crown this city. I do not know that I will live in the flesh to see what I saw in vision when I came here. I see some things, but a great deal more has yet to be accomplished. We go abroad and preach to the people and gather them home to Zion, and it appears to be the feelings of a great many that when they get here they have done all that the Lord requires of them—their mission is out, and they are then ready to go and work for themselves. I heard of one man who came here twenty years ago, who stayed a few years and got more property than he ever had before, then sold it, and went to California, feeling and believing that he had worked long enough for the Lord, and that henceforth he would work for himself. The last I heard of him he was in poverty, distress, and disgrace. Loved of the Lord? No; if the Lord did not hate him, he did not love him. Angels did not love him, Saints did not love him, and the devil despised him, as he does all apostates.

On this particular point I said a little a Sunday or two ago. I will now take the liberty of saying a little more. If there is a despicable character on the face of the earth, it is an apostate from this Church. He is a traitor who has deceived his best friends, betrayed his trust, and forfeited every principle of honor that God placed within him. They may think they are respected, but they are not. They are disgraced in their own eyes. There is not much honesty within them; they have forfeited their heaven, sold their birth– right, and betrayed their friends. What will the devil do with such characters? Will he have them in his kingdom? Yes, he will be obliged to, because he is an apostate himself. He apostatized from the Celestial Kingdom, and was thrust down to hell. Yet, when apostates get to his kingdom, he will say—“I do not like you, for you are just as mean as I am. I was a traitor and a liar, and I am yet. I despise myself and every character that betrays his trust.” That is all I wish to say on that point. Let apostates go.

A word now to the Elders of Israel, especially to the young elders. There are a great many young men born and brought up in this Church, and if they do not go to the nations of the earth to preach they are not, therefore, obliged to make shipwreck of their good education and the faith they have received. Brother Pitkin was talking about young men being ruined through acquiring bad habits and forming bad associations here. If we had sent such young men to preach they would, in all probability, have disgraced themselves and the cause; for I am satisfied that if any man or woman, old or young, wished to be honest, upright, truthful, and virtuous, there is no community on the face of the earth that honors and seeks to promote every holy principle to such an extent as this does. Do you know it? If you do not, just go into the world and mingle with the people, and you will soon find it out.

If there are any ladies and gentlemen present who have not joined the Church, I wish to say a few words to them. Are men or women honest with themselves and their God when they refuse or neglect to search diligently to know the truth of the latter-day work? I could not be, with the sensibility God has blessed me with. A man or woman desirous of knowing the truth, upon hearing the gospel of the Son of God proclaimed in truth and simplicity, should ask the Father, in the name of Jesus, if this is true. If they do not take this course, they may try and argue themselves into the belief that they are as honest as any man or woman can be on the face of the earth; but they are not, they are careless as to their own best interests. Before I heard the gospel I searched diligently to know and understand whatever could be learned among the sectarians respecting God and the plan of salvation. It was so with the majority of the Latter-day Saints. But very little can be learned among Christian professors; they are ignorant about God and His kingdom, and the design He had in view in the formation of the earth and peopling it with His creatures. The Christian world are deficient in these matters; and many among them who believed the Bible was true have felt this, and Martin Luther, John Calvin, John Wesley, and other great Reformers and revivalists have felt this, and have had the spirit of conviction upon them that God was going to reveal something or other to His creatures. My brother Joseph once said to me (and we were both Methodists at the time), “Brother Brigham, there is not a Bible Christian in the world; what will become of the people?” For many years no person saw a smile on his countenance, in consequence of the burden of the Lord being upon him, and realizing that the inhabitants of the earth had all gone out of the way and had turned every man to his own views. I am not speaking now of the world morally, but of their ignorance of the gospel of the Son of God and of the way to be saved in the celestial kingdom of our Father. There was not a Bible Christian on the face of the earth who was known to us. I cannot say what is to be found in the frozen regions of the north, or a little beyond; if any nook or corner among the icebergs contains an Apostle, I do not know it, but I suppose none have been able to find one. No people on this earth had the Priesthood of the Son of God at their command or within their grasp, and there was no delegation from God to the children of men.

Now, we come proclaiming that the Lord has spoken from Heaven, and has sent His angels to administer to the children of men. If you ask “where is my proof?” my reply is, I am a witness. Have we any more witnesses? Yes, here is this whole people. What else has brought them together? Do you think they have been gathered for the sake of making money, or for raising a political kingdom? Try it, you statesmen and philosophers, and see if you can gather a people together as we came here. How did we come here? We came comparatively naked and barefoot, driven from our homes into these mountains, robbed of our horses and cattle, and our houses rifled by mobs. Were we sustained by any government? Did England put forth her hand to sustain us, or did France donate anything for the assistance of this poor people? No, not anything. Did the Government of the United States? No, but I will tell you what they did do—they imposed a trifling tax upon us. When they were at war with Mexico they said, “Now, you Mormons are going into the wilderness, but we will prove whether you are loyal or not—we want five hundred of your men.” Did we give them? Yes, we took the men from their wagons, from their aged fathers and mothers, their wives and children, and they went to fight the battles of the United States. Who helped us here? The Lord Almighty, and He has fed and clothed and sustained us, and given us the ability to gather around us the comforts of life. And now we declare that the principles we preach are the principles of the gospel of the Son of God, and no man nor nation beneath the Heavens can contradict or confute what I say. And here are my witnesses—some few thousands in this congregation, who would rise and testify by the power of the Holy Ghost that this is the gospel of life and salvation. Can men and women be honest who let this pass by as a thing of nought, and say—“These poor despised ‘Mormons’ and their religion are not worthy of our notice, they are beneath our dignity and refinement.” Stop! Pause and think! Do you know what refinement is? Do you know what belongs to honor and greatness? If you do, you will never make use of such expressions. Those who are honorable will honor their being, and prepare according to the best of their ability and knowledge, and the revelations God has given, to preserve their existence and identity, and to dwell forever in the presence of the Father and the Son. Every person who is honorable and loves truth will do this. I do not want men to come to me or my brethren for testimony as to the truth of this work; but let them take the Scriptures of divine truth, and there the path is pointed out to them as plainly as ever a guideboard indicated the right path to the weary traveler. There they are directed to go, not to Brothers Brigham, Heber, or Daniel, to any apostle or elder in Israel, but to the Father in the name of Jesus, and ask for the information they need. Can they who take this course in honesty and sincerity receive information? Will the Lord turn away from the honest heart seeking for truth? No, He will not; He will prove to them, by the revelations of His Spirit, the facts in the case. And when the mind is open to the revelations of the Lord it comprehends them quicker and keener than anything that is seen by the natural eye. It is not what we see with our eyes—they may be deceived—but what is revealed by the Lord from Heaven is sure and steadfast, and abides forever. We do not want the people to rely on human testimony, although that cannot be confuted and destroyed; still, there is a more sure word of prophecy that all may gain if they will seek it earnestly before the Lord. This is to my friends or my enemies who do not believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and in the gospel which He has revealed in these days. Now, mark my words, if you are honest to yourselves you will inquire as to its truth. You are invited to inquire, and it is your duty to do so, of the Father in the name of Jesus, if these things are so. “Well,” say a great many, “when Jesus was on the earth he wrought miracles.” Very true, and have we not done so? You read all the history of the world, laying aside the Book of Mormon containing the history of the people who once inhabited this continent, and you cannot produce anything that will compare with the labors of this people in these mountains. Everything is thrown into the shade when compared with it. Have we any witnesses with regard to the healing of the sick by the power of God? Plenty of them. “O,” say you, “we do not know anything about that.” We do not want you to know anything about it until you learn for your– selves. Miracles, or these extraordinary manifestations of the power of God, are not for the unbeliever; they are to console the Saints, and to strengthen and confirm the faith of those who love, fear, and serve God, and not for outsiders. When Jesus was spoken to with regard to miracles, he said, “An evil and an adulterous generation seeketh after a sign, and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the Prophet Jonas,” and this principle is as true with regard to individuals as to generations. Here is the truth—God has spoken from the heavens, calling upon the inhabitants of the earth to repent, and we call upon them to repent. Is there anything immoral or in the least unchristianlike in this? Not in the least. We also call upon all men to be baptized for the remission of their sins. Is this a heresy, is it immoral or unchristianlike? No, everybody will agree that it is not in the least. Then we say to all, if you have been in the habit of lying, stealing, or committing any sin whatever, do it no more, but live righteously and godly as long as you stay on the earth. Who can complain of this?

Now, the sermon which I design preaching to the ladies comes right before me. It is said—“If it were not for your obnoxious doctrine of plurality of wives we could believe in the rest very well.” It is not that. That is not the touchstone at all, but it is because our wives and daughters cannot be seduced; it is because this people are strictly moral, virtuous, and truthful. Now, taking the history of creation as given by Moses, let me ask the question—“Mother Eve, did you not partake of the forbidden fruit, as also did Adam, and thus bring sin and iniquity into the world?” “O, yes,” says mother Eve. Then, why cannot you bear the affliction of it? Why not say—“If I was the cause of bringing evil into the world, I will firmly bear all that God puts upon me, and maintain His word and His law, and so work out my salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God working within me?” I ask this question of you, mother Eves, everyone of you. If you are not sanctified and prepared, you ought to be sanctifying and preparing yourselves for the blessings in store for you when it will be said of you, this is Eve. Why? Because you are the mother of all living. You might as well prepare first as last. If you wish to be Eves and mothers of human families you ought to bear the burden. But you say this is cruel. No, it is not cruel at all. Is there a passion in man that he cannot subdue for the sake of the gospel of salvation, that he may be crowned with glory, immortality, and eternal lives? Shame on the elder who, if duty calls, cannot go and preach the gospel until he winds up his earthly career and never permit a female to kiss him. I do not wish to say much upon this subject, but I say, woe to you Eves if you proclaim or entertain feelings against this doctrine! Woe to every female in this Church who says, “I will not submit to the doctrine that God has revealed.” You will wake up by and by and say, “I have lost the crown and exaltation I might have gained had I only been faithful to my covenants and the revelations which God gave. I might have been crowned as well as you, but now I must go to another kingdom.” Be careful, O, ye mothers in Israel, and do not teach your daughters in future, as many of them have been taught, to marry out of Israel. Woe to you who do it; you will lose your crowns as sure as God lives. Be careful! “Well,” but say you, “these men, these elders of Israel, have it all their own way.” That is not so, and we are not going to have it all our own way, unless our way is to do just right. And the man and woman who set up their will against the providence of God, will be found wanting when accounts are squared. They will have to say, “the summer is past, the harvest is ended, and we have not received our crowns.” Will you think of this, sisters, you who are not married as well as you who are? I have a good many daughters, but it would be better for every one of my daughters, and for every female in this Church, to marry men who have proved themselves to be men of God, no matter how many wives they have, than to take these miserable characters who are running around here. For myself, I desire to please God, whether it is ever to see another wife or child while I live or not. Have I proved it? Yes, God, the heavens, and the Saints know it. When Joseph called upon me and my brethren here, we were always ready. We made it a point ever to be ready to leave fathers, mothers, sisters and brothers, wives and children to go and preach the gospel to a perishing world, and save as many as would hearken to our counsel. We have proved this years ago. We have been willing to leave all for the sake of the gospel, and therein the Lord has made us rich. But who is going to complain about it?

I want the daughters of Israel, both old and young, to remember that part of my sermon intended especially for them; and I want our friends who come here, who are not of us, to hear what the Latter-day Saints have to say. If we have the words of eternal life for you, and you will not receive them at our hands, we want you to be left without excuse. The Lord has spoken from the heavens; He has sent His delegation to the earth, and He has commissioned men on the earth to preach this gospel and to bring people into the Church. If they disobey they must take the consequence; it is they and the Lord for it. As we have always told them, the gospel of Jesus which we believe and preach, which they call “Mormonism,” is the doctrine of life and salvation, and if they do not believe it, they can pray to the Lord and ask Him for knowledge. All this they can do if they please. We do our duty in telling them what they should do, and the result is with them and their God. May God bless you. Amen.

Discourse by President Brigham Young, delivered in the Bowery, Great Salt Lake City, June 23rd, 1867.

The Latter-day Saints believe in the doctrine that was taught by the prophets, by Jesus, and by his Apostles. Much has been said and written concerning the Church that was organized in the days of the incarnation of the Savior, and there has been a great deal of speculation as to the faith of that Church and the doings of its members. To tell what this religion, which we call the gospel of salvation, comprises, would require more than a lifetime. It would take more than our lifetime to learn it, and if it were learned by us we should not have time to tell it. In it is incorporated all the wisdom and knowledge that have ever been imparted to man, and when man has passed through the little space of time called life, he will find that he has only just commenced to learn the principles of this great salvation. In the early days of the Christian Church we understand that there was a good deal of speculation among its members with regard to their belief and practice, and the propagation of these speculative ideas created divisions and schisms. Even in the days of the Apostles there was evidently considerable division, for we read that some were for Paul, some for Apollos, and others for Cephas. The people in those days had their favorites, who taught them peculiar doctrines not generally received and promulgated. The Apostles had the truth, and thought that they were so established in it in their day that they really had the power to unite the Church together in all temporal matters, as Jesus prayed they might be, but they found themselves mistaken. Have we any proof of this? Yes; you recollect reading that the Apostles assembled themselves together to break bread and to administer; and they did administer from house, and from congregation to congregation, the words of life and the ordinances of the gospel. They thought they had power to make the people of one heart and one mind with regard to temporal things, and that they could amalgamate the feelings of the people sufficiently to organize them as one family. And the people sold their possessions and laid the price at the Apostles’ feet, and they had all things in common. There is no doubt that this is a correct doctrine, and can be practiced to the benefit of a community at large, if believed and understood. But who has got the doctrine; who has eyes to see, ears to hear, and a heart to believe? Who has the authority and the capability to organize such a society? The Apostles thought they had, but when Ananias and Sapphira fell dead because they had lied, not only to man but to the Holy Ghost, in saying they had laid their all at the feet of the Apostles when they had only laid part there, a great fear fell upon the people, and they dispersed. Have we any history that the people ever assembled in a like capacity afterwards? I think you cannot find it. After the days of the Apostles, when the Council of Nice was called, they then and there determined what they considered to be correct and scriptural and what they would lay aside, but that sure word of prophecy which Jesus had shed forth into the hearts of those who believed on him seemed to be so mixed up and interwoven with darkness and unbelief, that they could not come to understanding and receive the full testimony of Jesus. So the old Christians lived, and so they spent their days down to the days of the Reformation.

If we have eyes to see, we can un– derstand at once, the difficulties that the Apostles had to encounter. If the people had lived according to the gospel that was delivered to them, the Apostles would have had power to accomplish a great deal more than they did, although there can be no doubt but they were mistaken with regard to the time of the winding up scene, thinking it was much nearer than it really was, and they might have made mistakes in other respects. Many of the difficulties they had to encounter, we are not troubled with. We have not only the sure word of prophecy delivered in the days of the Apostles, but we actually have that surer word of prophecy delivered to us through the Prophet Joseph, that in the last days the Lord would gather Israel, build up Zion, and establish His kingdom upon the earth. This is a more sure word of prophecy than was delivered in the days of the Apostles, and is a greater work than they had to perform.

The few hints that I have dropped clearly show, I think, to all who are acquainted with its history, how these schisms and divisions have been introduced into the Christian world. For more than seventeen hundred years the Christian nations have been struggling, striving, praying, and seeking to know and understand the mind and will of God. Why have they not had it? Can you tell me why it is there has not been a succession of the Apostleship from one to another through all these seventeen centuries, by which the people might have been led, guided, and directed, and have received wisdom, knowledge, and understanding to enable them to build up the Kingdom of God, and to give counsel concerning it until the whole earth should be enveloped in the knowledge of God? “O, yes, it was the apostasy.” Very true, if it had not been for those schisms such might not have been the case. I have taken the liberty of telling the Latter-day Saints in this and other places something with regard to the Apostles in this our day. It is true that we have a greater assurance of the Kingdom and the power of God being upon the earth than was possessed by the Apostles anciently, and yet right here in the Quorum of the Twelve, if you ask one of its members what he believes with regard to the Deity, he will tell you that he believes in those great and holy principles which seem to be exhibited to man for his perfection and enjoyment in time and in eternity. But do you believe in the existence of a personage called God? “No, I do not,” says this Apostle. So you see there are schisms in our day. Do you think there was any in the days of the Apostles? Yes, worse than this. They were a great deal more tenacious than we are.

We have another one in the Quorum of the Twelve who believes that infants actually have the spirits of some who have formerly lived on the earth, and that this is their resurrection, which is a doctrine so absurd and foolish that I cannot find language to express my sentiments in relation to it. It is as ridiculous as to say that God—the Being whom we worship—is principle without personage. I worship a person. I believe in the resurrection, and I believe the resurrection was exhibited to perfection in the person of the Savior, who rose on the third day after his burial. This is not all, we have another one of these Apostles, right in this Quorum of the Twelve, who, I understand, for fifteen years, has been preaching on the sly in the chimney corner to the brethren and sisters with whom he has had influence, that the Savior was nothing more than a good man, and that his death had nothing to do with your salvation or mine. The question might arise, if the ancient Apostles believed doctrines as absurd as these, why were they not handed down to after generations that they might avoid the dilemma, the vortex, the whirlpool of destruction and folly? We will not say what they did or did not believe and teach, but they did differ one from another, and they would not visit each other. This was not through the perfection of the gospel, but through the weakness of man.

The principles of the gospel are perfect, but are the Apostles who teach it perfect? No, they are not. Now, bringing the two together, what they taught is not for me to say, but it is enough to say this, that through the weaknesses in the lives of the Apostles many were caused to err. Our historians and ministers tell us that the church went into the wilderness, but they were in the wilderness all the time. They had the way marked out to get out of the wilderness and go straightforward into the Kingdom of God, but they took various paths, and the two substantial churches that remain—a remnant from the apostles, that divided, are now called the Holy Catholic Church and the Greek Church. You recollect reading in the Revelation of John what the angel said to John, when he was on the Isle of Patmos, about the Seven Churches. What was the matter with those Churches? They were not living according to the light that had been exhibited. Do the Latter-day Saints live according to the light that has been exhibited to them? No, they do not. Did the ancient saints live according to the revelations given through the Savior and written by the Apostles, and the revelations given through the Apostles, and left on record for the Saints to read? No, they did not. We may say there is some difference between the days of Jesus and the Apostles and these days. Then, Jesus said, “Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature;” proffer this gospel to all the inhabitants of the earth. That was a day of scattering and dispersion for those who believed in the Savior. When we come to discriminate between the former and the Latter-day Saints we shall find there was a little difference in their callings and duties, and in many points that we may say pertain to our temporal lives. Not in the doctrine of baptism, the laying on of hands for the reception of the Holy Ghost, nor in the gifts of the gospel. There is no difference in these things, but there is a difference in regard to the temporal duties devolving upon us. In those days the command was “Go to the nations of the earth;” in these days it is “Come from the nations of the earth.” Do you not see the difference? Read the revelations in the Book of Doctrines and Covenants given through Joseph, and you will find that the burden of the gathering of the House of Israel, the building up of Zion, and the sanctifying of the people, and the preparing for the coming of the Son of Man is upon the elders of this church.

Soon after the death of Jesus the word He gave to His Apostles was to go and preach the gospel to the nations, that all might be benefited thereby; but now, it is to gather up the House of Israel, and the fulness of the Gentiles, and bring them home to Zion, and to the lands of their fathers, that they may receive their inheritances on the lands given to them of the Lord in ancient days. So you see there is some difference between the duties and callings of the Saints in former and in latter days. When the Lord called upon Joseph he was but a boy—a child, only about fourteen years of age. He was not filled with traditions; his mind was not made up to this, that, or the other. I very well recollect the reformation which took place in the country among the various denominations of Christians—the Baptists, Methodists, Presbyterians, and others—when Joseph was a boy. Joseph’s mother, one of his brothers, and one, if not two, of his sisters were members of the Presbyterian Church, and on this account the Presbyterians hung to the family with great tenacity. And in the midst of these revivals among the religious bodies, the invitation, “Come and join our church,” was often extended to Joseph, but more particularly from the Presbyterians. Joseph was naturally inclined to be religious, and being young, and surrounded with this excitement, no wonder that he became seriously impressed with the necessity of serving the Lord. But as the cry on every hand was, “Lo, here is Christ,” and “Lo, there!” Said he, “Lord, teach me, that I may know for myself, who among these are right.” And what was the answer? “They are all out of the way; they have gone astray, and there is none that doeth good, no not one.” When he found out that none were right, he began to inquire of the Lord what was right, and he learned for himself. Was he aware of what was going to be done? By no means. He did not know what the Lord was going to do with him, although He had informed him that the Christian churches were all wrong, because they had not the Holy Priesthood, and had strayed from the holy commandments of the Lord, precisely as the children of Israel did. They were the children of promise, of whom the Lord had said—“They shall be called by my name, and I will save them;” and for generations he had striven to do so. When pursued by the hosts of Pharaoh He had delivered them from Egyptian bondage; He had destroyed the Hittites and other heathen nations, and had given them possession of the land of Canaan, and in every way had tried to bless them; yet they would not be blessed, and in the Prophet Isaiah’s writings we read that they had transgressed the laws, changed the ordinances, and broken the everlasting covenants. Do you think the Gentile Christian nations have rebelled? I know they have. Take, for instance, the sayings of Jesus of Nazareth, the Savior of the world, as found in this book—the Bible. He commanded His Apostles to go to all the world and preach the gospel to every creature, and he that believeth and is baptized shall be saved. How many methods of baptism were practiced in those days? Just as many as there were saviors—one. How many methods of laying on of hands for the Holy Ghost? One. How many methods of obtaining the spirit of prophecy and the gifts of healing and the discerning of spirits? One. One God, one faith, and one Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and one only. Well, the Apostles went and preached this gospel, yet one would vary a little on one point, and another on another, and those who took the gospel and ran here and there would introduce items of doctrine that were altogether imaginary. Do we find any curious ideas advanced in our day? Yes, I can relate a circumstance that I once heard myself, from one of the first elders in this church. He was preaching to the people on the principle of adultery, and told them that, according to the law of the Lord, whosoever commits adultery shall have his blood shed. But the idea striking him that millions had committed this crime whose blood had never been shed, he thought this could not be correct, and so to improve it he said if their blood was not shed in this life it would be in the resurrection. What an absurdity! There is no blood there. Flesh and blood cannot inherit the Kingdom of God. Does not this show to you how these little things will creep into the Church? Have we the power and authority and the method of detecting every such error? We have. Do you know what they are? Some of you do, and if you do not I shall not tell you today. But we are in possession of the means by which to detect every error that comes into the church, and to decide satisfactorily on every point, and to decide what is and what is not true.

The gospel is a fountain of truth, and truth is what we are after. We have embraced the truth—namely, the gospel of the son of God. Its first principles are to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, to repent of our sins, then go down into the waters of baptism for the remission of our sins, and have hands laid upon us for the reception of the Holy Ghost, which will lead us into all truth. If there are any of my friends or enemies here who do not know what “Mormonism” is, I am telling them. We believe in God our Father. This leads me right to another point that I have not much time to talk about. I recollect preaching once in the old bowery with regard to our Father and God, the Being we worship and whom we think so much of. There was a Baptist minister present; he was staying at my house. He was a kind, friendly man, and was on his way to the gold mines. He was sitting beside me. I wanted to leave him in a puzzle. I would not tell him, but brought him right to the point, and there left him. When we got home, said he, “Oh! brother Young, you came right to the point exactly, and I did pray that you might tell us what kind of a being God is.” I replied, “I left you in a puzzle on purpose for you to guess it. You have read it frequently, and you can hardly read the Bible at all without reading precisely what kind of a being our Father is.” Said he, “I am not aware that I know anything about it.” I asked him if he could tell me what kind of a being Adam was. “Oh! Adam was a man like I am.” I asked him if he believed in the history of the creation, as given in Genesis by Moses, for if he did he would find that God said to His associates, “Let us go down and make man in our own image and likeness.” He believed the history given by Moses, and had read the passage to which I referred. “Then,” said I, “you must believe that Adam was created in the exact image of the Father.” He had never thought of that in his life. I told him I had read that many times to Christians and to Christian ministers, but they would not believe what was in the Bible. Says Jesus, “Whosoever has seen me has seen the Father.” He is the Being the Latter-day Saints worship; He is a man-God. Can you get a better term than that—a God-man? It is said that Jesus is the only begotten of the Father. It is strange that people cannot understand it, but they cannot unless they are told. How can we know unless we are told, and how can we tell the people unless the Lord tells us to do so? Faith comes by hearing the word of God declared, and this must be declared by those having authority. This character whom we serve is God, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ and the Father of our spirits, if the Apostle tells the truth; if he has not, who can correct him unless they have a revelation from the heavens? I have had a great many ministers tell me that I must understand that spiritually. I have told them that I read and understood it just as it was, and if it was not right, and they could give the correct meaning (which it was impossible for them to do without revelation), they were under condemnation before the Lord if they did not do so. That would stop them.

Our Lord Jesus Christ—the Savior, who has redeemed the world and all things pertaining to it, is the only begotten of the Father pertaining to the flesh. He is our elder brother, and the heir of the family, and as such we worship him. He has tasted death for every man, and has paid the debt contracted by our first parents. What about this? I am not going to tell this, for I have a few more ideas with regard to the Christian world that I wish to lay before you. Why have they wandered so far from the path of truth and rectitude? Because they left the Priesthood and have had no guide, no leader, no means of finding out what is true and what is not true. It is said the Priesthood was taken from the Church, but it is not so, the Church went from the Priesthood, and continued to travel in the wilderness, turned from the commandments of the Lord, and instituted other ordinances. There are a great many churches that do not believe in ordinances at all, and there are some called Christians who do not believe in the blood of the Savior, and that he, himself, was nothing more nor less than a good man. If they believe in the baby resurrection, or that a person who had committed adultery would have his blood shed in the resurrection, it would be just as consistent as to believe what they do believe. These ideas are all wrong.

The Christian world struggled on until the days of the Reformation. But what of the Reformation? Nothing, only it shows that there were some few among them who had courage to come out against the orthodox principles ordained, published, and proclaimed by the Priests. They had an idea in their minds that the Lord was going to do something for the people, but they could not tell what. There was a spirit upon them that prompted them to declare against the wickedness of those professing to be Christians. Did they profess to know enough to take the truth and leave the error? No; down to the days of my youth the Christians did not know any better than to renounce any doctrine that the Church believed from which they came. This is more or less the case with every denomination on the face of the earth. Some who call themselves Christians are very tenacious with regard to the Universalians, yet the latter possess many excellent ideas and good truths. Have the Catholics? Yes, a great many very excellent truths. Have the Protestants? Yes, from first to last. Has the infidel? Yes, he has a good deal of truth; and truth is all over the earth. The earth could not stand but for the light and truth it contains. The people could not abide were it not that truth holds them. It is the Fountain of truth that feeds, clothes, and gives light and intelligence to the inhabitants of the earth, no matter whether they are saints or sinners. Do you think there is any truth in hell? Yes, a great deal, and where truth is there we calculate the Lord has a right to be. You will not find the Lord where there is no truth. The devil had truth in his mouth as well as lies when he came to mother Eve. Said he, “If you will eat of the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, you will see as the gods see.” That was just as true as anything that ever was spoken on the face of the earth. She did eat, her eyes were opened, and she saw good and evil. She gave of the fruit to her husband, and he ate too. What would have been the consequence if he had not done so? They would have been separated, and where would we have been? I am glad he did eat. I am glad the fruit was given to mother Eve, that she ate of it, and that her eyes were opened, and that my eyes are opened, that I have tasted the sweet as well as the bitter, and that I understand the difference between good and evil.

When the Lord called upon His servant Joseph, after leading him along for years until he got the plates, from a portion of which the Book of Mormon was translated, “By and by,” said he, “you are going to organize my church and establish my kingdom. I am going to have a church on the earth. All these churches you have inquired about are wrong; they have truth amongst them, but not the Priesthood. They lack a guide to direct the affairs of the Kingdom of God on the earth—that is the keys of the priesthood of the Son of God.” This tells the story. We possess the Priesthood. The Lord sent John to ordain Joseph to the Aaronic Priesthood, and when he commenced to baptize people he sent a greater power—Peter, James, and John, who ordained him to the apostleship, which is the highest office pertaining to the Kingdom of God that any man can possess on the face of the earth, for it holds the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven, and has power to dispense the blessings of the kingdom. This priesthood is that which the Christian world do not possess, for they have taken leave of the kingdom and the priesthood. Joseph bestowed this priesthood upon others, and this Church possesses it and its power, which enables us to detect all error, and to know what is true.

There are other things I wanted to talk about, not pertaining to the Kingdom of God on the earth, but to the faith of this people before God, but I shall leave this for the present, as I feel that I have talked as long as is prudent for me. May the Lord God of Israel bless you, is my prayer, in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Discourse by President Brigham Young, delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, June 16th, 1867.

These words—“If ye are not one ye are not mine”—are the words of the Savior, through the prophet Joseph, and given to us. This is a principle about which you have heard bro. Robert Williams say a good deal in his way of talking. His mind is like the minds of a great many, both in this Church and out of it, with regard to temporal things. If they had the privilege of dictating the affairs of this people, or of any other, they would divide the substance of the rich among the poor, and make all what they call equal. But the question would arise with me at once, how long would they remain equal? Make the rich and the poor of this community, or of any other, equal by the distribution of their earthly substance, and how long would it be before a certain portion of them, would be calling upon the other portion, for something with which to sustain themselves? The cry would soon be—“I have no bread, no house, no team, no farm; I have nothing.” And in a very few years, at the most, large properties would thus pass from the hands of such individuals, and would be distributed among those who know how to accumulate wealth and to preserve it when accumulated. We should be one, there is no doubt of that, but the very men and women who would take the property of the rich and dispose of it to their own advantage, would spurn from their presence and disregard every word of counsel given by those who know how to accumulate and preserve, and they would say, “We know as much as you, and we can dictate our own affairs.” So they can, until they make themselves poor and have to be helped by others.

The capacity of the inhabitants of the earth to dictate their temporal affairs, is a matter that has occupied a certain portion of my time and reflection. Now, politically, we as a government enjoy the extent of the franchise granted to us by our Constitution, and that is all we can ask for; but who knows and understands how to dictate and guide in wisdom for the benefit of the whole community? Very few. And take the inhabitants of the earth from first to last, there is not one man in ten, neither is there one in twenty, and probably not one in forty, who is capable of guiding himself through life, so as to accumulate the necessaries and comforts of life for himself and family, and go to the grave independent, leaving a comfortable living for his wife and family, with instructions to enable them to pass through life judiciously, wisely, and prudently. Politically and financially there is not one man in forty capable of pursuing the course I have indicated. Then in a moral point of view, take our young men, who are easily operated upon, do they know how to guide their steps so that a good life may crown their last days? No, they do not. Do the young ladies know the course to take to preserve themselves in honor? They do not, any more than the young men. They have to be watched like an infant running around the house, that knows no better than to take the carving knife or fork and fall upon it and put out its eyes. And it is so with the middle aged as well as with the young—they have to be looked after and cared for. And when this people become one, it will be one in the Lord. They will not look alike. We will not all have grey, blue, or black eyes. Our features will differ one from another, and in our acts, dispositions, and efforts to accumulate, distribute, and dispose of our time, talents, wealth, and whatever the Lord gives to us, in our journey through life, we will differ just as much as in our features. The point that the Lord wishes to bring us to is to obey His counsel and observe His word. Then everyone will be dictated so that we can act as a family. Then if br. Robert wanted a pair of boots, pants, a coat, or a hat, or a dress for his wife or child, he could have it, but only in the order of God, and not until he can be dictated by the Priesthood.

I am talking with regard to our temporal affairs—of being so dictated, guided, and directed, that every man’s time and talents will amount to all he could wish and desire. Are the Latter-day Saints in this situation? Partially so. Can they be dictated? Yes, in some things. You take these very men and women who want to make us all equal, and they tell us that we are covetous, because we have horses, carriages, houses, lands, and money. Have the poor got greedy eyes? Are they covetous and penurious? I shall go a little too far if I am not careful. I must guard myself, because the Lord has chosen the poor of this world. But what kind of poor? Now the poor may be divided into three classes. In the first, place there is the Lord’s poor, of which you may pick up one here and another there, one in a city, two in a family. Is there any other kind? Yes, you come across a certain class that may be called the Devil’s poor. Is there any other class? Yes, there is another class, who, long before I ever mentioned them, were denominated poor devils. Hence we have the Lord’s poor, the devil’s poor, and poor devils.

We have plenty of men in this community whom we have gathered from England, Scotland, France, Germany, and the islands of the sea. They have believed the truth and received it, and we have sent for them here that they may live their religion. But if Jesus tells the truth, there is a certain class of people who receive the truth without the love of it. When such characters gather—and there are plenty of them here—they would just as soon fellowship, deal, and associate with, and hold in close communion the poor miserable sharks that follow us, as they would with the best Saint here, and they do not know the difference. Why is this? Because, although they have embraced the gospel and know it is, true, they have not received the spirit of Christ.

When we come to the doctrines that we preach, as contained in the Bible, and lay them before the people, the whole Christian world cannot gainsay a word of them. I have read many and many a time out of the prophecies, and the sayings of the Savior and His apostles that the Bible contains, until they who lis– tened have got up and declared they would hear no more from that wicked book, believing it to be the Book of Mormon. Priests and deacons have declared they would hear no more from that vile record. I have said, “Does not this agree with your faith and feelings?” “No, it does not, and if we had it in our houses, we would take the tongs and put it in the fire.” “Well,” I have replied, “the book I have been reading from is the Holy Bible, the Old and New Testaments, translated by order of King James.” But they did not know what those records contained. When we come to the doctrines contained in this book the Christians cannot gainsay them; they are struck dumb and silent as night, or rage in anger. Truth overcomes error, and when it is set before the people, the honest receive it. I wonder if there are any elders here who ever had a minister, deacon, or so-called Christian say to them, “If you will perform such and such miracles I will believe.” I have had that said to me a great many times; it always shocked me. I would say to them: “You have not read the Bible, I think.” “Oh, yes, we have,” they would say, “we are Bible scholars.” “Well, then, I will ask you a question. Did you ever read in your Bible anything like this—’A wicked and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign, and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas?’” “We do not know that we ever did.” I would turn to the passage and show it to them. Still, men have believed because they have seen a miracle wrought. They cannot withstand that by argument, because they see the truth mathematically demonstrated. Do such characters endure? No; they come here and then turn away from their God, from the angels, from the holy prophecies of the Lord Jesus, from their brethren and benefactors who brought them here from the land of oppression, where they could not own so much as a chicken, and where almost all they could get was a morsel of bread. Yet they come here and turn away from their brethren and the covenants they have made, and are traitors to God and heaven, and to the good in the heavens and on the earth. Are there men who came here in this way who have got rich? Yes, there are men now in this city who came here poor, naked, and barefoot, and willing to take a spade and go a ditching for me, or for anybody else who would furnish them a little bread, and now they are rich. They have made their wealth out of this people who constitute the kingdom of God, and they are using it to build up the kingdom of the devil. What are we to say to them? I would say, let them alone severely. The man who will apostatize from the truth, forsake his God and his religion, is a traitor to everything there is in heaven, earth, and hell. There is no soundness, goodness, truth, or virtue in him; nothing but darkness and corruption, and down to hell he will go. This may grate on the delicate ears of some, and they may think it is a pretty hard sentence, still it is true.

When apostates in this city or Territory crave your gold, silver, fine flour, and your substance, refuse them. Tell them they have the same privilege to earn bread that you have, and if they will work for and earn it, like honest men and women, they are free to do so, but not to pluck it from the pockets of the honest and poor. Let the Latter-day Saints give their substance to men who will pay their tithing, help to support the elders in their preaching to us, donate to the families here whose husbands and fathers have gone to preach the gospel to the na– tions, and let the apostates alone. If I were to ask you honestly and sincerely, and in the character of a Christian, and then a little stronger, in the name of the Lord God of Israel, will you let apostates alone and trade with them no more, what would the Saints say?

How many of the Latter-day Saints would say—“I would as soon trade with this man as that man, or spend my money in this store as in that store, even though they pay tithing, and do good with their means?” Those men and women in whom this feeling exists must get rid of it, or they will not be numbered with those who are of one heart and of one mind. Now, remember that! I will promise those who feel in their hearts that they would sooner trade with an apostate or with a corrupt outsider, than with a brother, if the former would sell them a shawl a dollar cheaper, and persist in such a course of things, that they will never enter in at the strait gate, nor be numbered with those who are sanctified and prepared to enjoy the celestial presence of God our Father and of Jesus the Redeemer. I promise you this in the name of the Lord God of Israel.

You may say it is hard that I should dictate you in your temporal affairs. Is it not my privilege to dictate you? Is it not my privilege to give this people counsel to direct them so that their labors will build up the Kingdom of God instead of the kingdom of the devil? I will quote you a little Scripture, if you wish, the words of an apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ to me. You may think that I saw him in vision, and it was a vision given right in broad daylight. Said he—“Never spend another day to build up a Gentile city, but spend your days, dollars, and dimes for the upbuilding of the Zion of God upon the earth, to promote peace and righteousness and to prepare for the coming of the Son of Man, and he who does not abide this law will suffer loss.”

That is a saying of one of the apostles of the Lord Jesus Christ. He said it to me. Do you want to know his name? It is not recorded in the New Testament among the apostles, but it was an apostle whom the Lord called and ordained in this my day, and in the day of a good portion of this congregation, and his name was Joseph Smith, junior. These words were delivered to me in July, 1833, in the town of Kirtland, Geauga County, State of Ohio. The word to the elders who were there was: “Never, from this time henceforth, do you spend one day or one hour to sustain the kingdoms of this world or the kingdoms of the devil, but sustain the Kingdom of God to your uttermost.” Now, if I were to ask the elders of Israel to abide this, what would be the reply of some amongst us? The language in the hearts of some would be—“It is none of your business where I trade.” I will promise those who feel thus that they will never enter the celestial Kingdom of our Father and God. That is my business. It is my business to preach the truth to the people, and it will be my business by and by to testify for the just and to bear witness against the ungodly. It is your privilege to do as you please. Just please yourselves; but when you do so, will you please bear the results and not whine over them.

It is the way with thousands and thousands, when they burn their fingers they will turn round and complain of somebody else, when they themselves are the only ones to blame. How natural is it for some to endeavor to blame others for the troubles their own follies have induced! It is a trick of the devil. You never see Saints take this course. When they do wrong they do not try to lay the responsibility on their neighbor, or on some brother or sister. The Saint is ready to acknowledge his fault, to bear the responsibility, and to kiss the rod and reverence the hand that corrects him. But you hear those who are not Saints continually complaining. It is so, to a great extent, with our newcomers. When they come here they look for perfection. They say this is Zion. And so it is; but if we go to the Scriptures we shall find that the Zion of God is composed of the pure in heart. Brethren and sisters, have you Zion within you? If Jesus Christ is not in you, the apostle says, “then are ye reprobates.” If the Zion of God is not within the bosom of you who profess to be Latter-day Saints take care that you are not reprobates. Be careful that no man takes advantage of you, leads you astray, and causes you to leave the Church and Kingdom of God, apostatize, and go down to hell. If you have Jesus and the Kingdom of God within you, then the Zion of God is here.

Our brethren and sisters, when they gather here, are apt to find fault and to say this is not right and that is not right, and this brother or that sister has done wrong, and they do not believe that he or she can be a Latter-day Saint in reality and do such things. The people come here from the east and the west, from the north and the south, with all their traditions, which impede their progress in the truth and are difficult to lay aside. Yet they will pass judgment on the acts of their brethren and sisters. I want to ask who made them the judges of the servants and handmaidens of the Almighty, who, shoulder to shoulder, have borne off this kingdom for more than a third of a century? Thousands upon whom the yoke of Christ has rested so long, and who have borne off the kingdom, are judged and found fault with, by some who probably were baptized last summer or but a short time ago. You know that this is so, you are witnesses to the truth of what I am saying, for you hear it yourselves. Now, who are they who will be one with Christ? If I were to tell the truth just as it is, it might not be congenial to the feelings of some of my hearers, for truth is not always pleasant when it relates to our own dear selves. You take some of those characters to whom I have referred today, who want us all to be of one heart and of one mind, and they think we cannot be so unless we all have the same number of houses, farms, carriages, and horses, and the same amount in greenbacks. There are plenty in this Church who entertain such a notion, and I do not say but there are good men who, if they had the power, would dictate in this manner, and in doing so they would exercise all the judgment they are masters of, but let such characters guide and dictate, and they would soon accomplish the overthrow of this Church and people. This is not what the Lord meant when He said: “Be ye of one heart and of one mind.” He meant that we must be one in observing His word and in carrying out His counsel, and not to divide our worldly substance so that a temporary equality might be made among the rich and the poor.

You take these very characters who are so anxious for the poor, and what would they tell us? Just what they told us back yonder—“Sell your feather beds, your gold rings, earrings, breast pins, necklaces, your silver teaspoons or tablespoons, or anything valuable that you have in the world, to help the poor.” I re– collect once the people wanted to sell their jewelry to help the poor; I told them that would not help them. The people wanted to sell such things so that they might be able to bring into camp three, ten, or a hundred bushels of corn meal. Then they would sit down and eat it up, and they would have nothing with which to buy another hundred bushels of meal, and would be just where they started. My advice was for them to keep their jewelry and valuables, and to set the poor to work—setting out orchards, splitting rails, digging ditches, making fences, or anything useful, and so enable them to buy meal and flour and the necessaries of life.

A great many good men would say to me—“Br. Brigham, you have a gold ring on your finger, why not give it to the poor?” Because to do so would make them worse off. Go to work and get a gold ring, then you will have yours and I will have mine. That will adorn your body. Not that I care anything about a gold ring. I do not have a gold ring on my finger perhaps once in a year.

You who are poor and want me to sell that ring, go to work and I will dictate you how to make yourselves comfortable, and how to adorn your bodies and become delightful. But no, in many instances you would say—“We will not have your counsel, we want your money and your property.” This is not what the Lord wants of us.

There was a certain class of men called Socialists, or Communists, organized, I believe, in France. I remember there was a very smart man, by the name of M. Cabot, came over with a company of several hundreds. When they came to America they found the City of Nauvoo deserted and forsaken by the “Mormons,” who had been driven away. They set themselves down there where we had built our fine houses, and made our farms and gardens, and made ourselves rich by the labor of our own hands, and they had to send back year by year to France for money to assist them to sustain themselves. We went there naked and barefoot, and had wisdom enough, under the dictation of the Prophet, to build up a beautiful city and temple by our own economy and industry without owing a cent for it. We came to these mountains naked and barefoot. Are you not speaking figuratively? Yes, I am, for it was only the figure that got here, for, comparatively, we left ourselves behind. We lived on rawhide as long we could get it, but when it came to the wolf beef it was pretty tough. We lived, however, and built a fort, and built our houses inside the fort. Then we commenced our gardens, we planted our corn, wheat, rye, buckwheat, oats, potatoes, beets, carrots, onions, parsnips, and we planted our peach and apple seeds, and we got grapes and strawberries, and currants from the mountains. The seeds grew, and so did the Latter-day Saints, and we are here today.

I am not infrequently asked the question—“What induced you to come to this desert sterile country?” Sometimes my answer is—“We came here to get rid of the so-called Christians.” This is somewhat of a stumbling block to them; they do not know how to understand it. They could understand it if they had been with us and had seen the Methodists, Baptists, and Presbyterians leading on the mob to rob, plunder, and destroy, as I have seen them. Do you think we came here of our own choice? No; we would have stayed in those rich valleys and prairies back yonder if we could have had the privilege of inheriting the land for which we had paid the government our gold and silver, but we could not, so we came here because we were obliged to. And now we are gathering, gathering. Did you ever read in the New Testament that the Kingdom of Heaven in the last days would be like a net cast into the sea which should gather all kinds—the good and the bad? If this is not a proof to the inhabitants of the earth that this is the Kingdom of God, why there is abundance of other evidence to prove it. But this is one true evidence to all the inhabitants of the earth—we are gathering the good and the bad of all kinds. The good, I expect, will improve until they are gathered into the garner, and the bad will be cast away, thrust overboard.

Now, I want to come back to a subject upon which I have already touched. I want to hit somebody or other. Will you remember it? Never, from this time henceforth and forever, sustain a man, men, a people, a community, or anybody that operates against or forsakes the Kingdom of God. Do you know what I call them, or have you forgotten what I said about the poor of this world? The Lord has chosen them, it is true, but He has not chosen the devil’s poor nor the poor devils. They who forsake or operate against the Kingdom of God are what I call poor, miserable devils. That is a harsh expression, especially to come from the pulpit, but I built this stand to say just what I pleased in it. Who among the people of the world can dictate for themselves? They want to be talked to, guided, directed, pampered, and caressed like little children. This people also do. How many are there here who, if they had stayed in their native land, would ever have owned a chicken or a sixpence, who have now a good house, farm, garden, orchard, and a car– riage to ride in? There are hundreds.

Shall I make an application of this? If you please I will. The Lord owns the heavens and the earth, all things are His, and He delights to give them to His children, and He would much sooner that they should enjoy the good things of the earth than that they should not do so, if they would use them for the accomplishment of His purposes. It would cheer and comfort His heart to see all the Latter-day Saints combined in their efforts to promote His kingdom instead of promoting the kingdoms of this world. But we are but children, and the Lord is merciful, gracious, and long-suffering to His people and to all the inhabitants of the earth. We are all His children—saint or sinner, it makes no difference. Every son and daughter of Adam and Eve that ever came on this earth is the offspring of that God who lives in the heavens whom we serve and acknowledge. How merciful He is to His children! To see the wicked flourish like a green bay tree, and see the nations of the earth that oppose Him, set at naught all His counsel and will have none of His reproof, and spurn His servants, yet see how merciful He is to them. But let me say that the time is now at hand when the chastening hand of the Almighty will be upon the nations of the earth. He has commenced His work. Through His kind providences He has ordained that it should commence here where it commenced in the morning of creation. On this continent He will wind up His work; from here He will send the gospel of Jesus Christ to the uttermost parts of the earth, and woe to the nation that rejects it, and that persecutes and slays His servants; they will have to pay the debt.

I can make a just comparison between the nations of the earth and the children of Israel. Of all the hundreds of thousands who left Egypt, and who were over twenty years of age, who crossed the Red Sea, and traveled in the wilderness, two only were permitted to go into the land of Canaan. This was in consequence of their transgressions, and the Lord cut them off in the flesh that He might save them in the day of the Lord Jesus. So it will be with all the nations of the earth. Some few will be saved, but, to use scripture terms, very few will escape the punishment of the lake that burns with fire and brimstone. The Lord is merciful, but, when He comes to His Kingdom on the earth, He will banish traitors from His presence, and they will be sons of perdition. Every apostate who ever received this gospel in faith, and had the Spirit of it, will have to repent in sackcloth and ashes, and sacrifice all he possesses, or be a son of perdition, go down to hell, and there dwell with the damned; and those who persecute and destroy the people of God, and shed the blood of innocence, will be judged accordingly.

Now, if you will please to hearken and hear, you Latter-day Saints, do not spend another dollar with an apostate, neither in this city nor in any other. Will we purchase from outsiders? Yes, and call them ladies and gentlemen, because many of them are the friends of God if they did but know it. There are plenty in the world who want to be, but very few come here except these apostates, who would sap the fountain of the Kingdom of God, and destroy all that was virtuous and truthful on the earth, like many others who never come into the Church. Let them alone. Will you sell them your wheat? No, sir; if you do—but re– member you can do just as you please. I will not injure you, nor speak, nor even think evil of you, but my prayer will ever be—“O, God, the eternal Father, I ask Thee, in the name of Thy Son Jesus Christ, to save the righteous, and let the wicked and the ungodly go to their place and share the reward of their doings.” I will lift my heart to God in your behalf who feel to build up the kingdoms of this world. You say this is harsh. No, it is not, it is good policy, to say nothing about religion. Is it not good policy to trade with and support our friends? If you go to London, Paris, the German States, or even in America, do you ever hear a Catholic found fault with for trading at a store owned by a Catholic? And the same is true with regard to the Church of England, Methodists, or any other society. It is good policy and economy to sustain each other. Then why is it not so with the Latter-day Saints? It is so, and we will do it, so help us God. We are here because there was no other place on the face of the earth where we could go and be safe; but here we are all right, and here the Lord designs that we should stay. By and by we shall hear the locomotive whistle, screaming through our valleys, dragging in its train our brethren and sisters, and taking away the apostates. “Will not our enemies overslaugh us when we get the railroad?” No, ladies and gentlemen. Do you want to know what will take every apostate and corrupt hearted man and woman from our midst? Live so that the fire of God may be in you and around about you and burn them out. But if we mingle, fellowship, shake hands with, and think they are as good as anybody, the Lord says: All right; you may try it until you are tired. But the Lord has said that He will gather the pure in heart; they shall come by thousands, and “the chariots shall rage in the streets, they shall jostle one another in the broadways, they shall seem like torches, they shall run like the lightnings.” I do not know what the prophet referred to here unless it was one of those engines. But the Lord will gather up His people, and fill the land of Zion with those who love and serve Him, and will waste away the wicked and the ungodly.

I can say to you, Latter-day Saints, I will guide you in the way of truth if you will be guided, and I will tell you how to save yourselves spiritually and temporally.

May the Lord bless you. Amen.

Discourse by President Brigham Young, delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, May 26th, 1867.

If br. Hooper had accomplished his wish in saying just what he desired to say, would he not have been a superior man? He would. If he were to do so, he would be about the only man whom I know who could do so. I am happy to hear what I have heard from him in his speaking today, and in our communications one with the other. Since his return home it has pleased me more than anything else in the world concerning our Delegate to find that the spirit of faith, humility, and resignation to the will and providences of God, our Father, is increasing in him. This pleases me more than it would to learn that he had grown exceedingly rich; and, as we profess to be Latter-day Saints, I rejoice for myself and for his constituents that the spirit of the holy gospel is increasing in him from year to year. I do not say this to flatter br. Hooper; I am not the least concerned about it injuring him, for when a person sees things as they are, flattery and reproach are all the same to him, he sees no difference. If he finds that he is pleasing God and his brethren, he is exceedingly rejoiced, and feels an increase of humility and resignation. When a man is proud and arrogant, flattery fills him with vanity and injures him; but it is not so when he is increasing in the faith of God; and I can say of a truth, according to my understanding of the spirit of the gospel, that it grows as fast in Wm. H. Hooper as in any man I know. He came to this Territory, as he has said, seventeen years ago next month; he came as clerk to Ben. Holladay. We found him as he was, he found us as we were. We have lived together many years, and, notwithstanding his speculations, I learned years and years ago, through his honesty, uprightness, childlike feeling, and naturally humble, contrite spirit, that there was in him the germ of truth and salvation. Now he is our Delegate, and I am really proud of him, not to detract in the least from br. Bernhisel, for I am proud of him, too, as a true gentleman. Br. Hooper has been fervent in every labor placed upon him, and he has labored indefatigably; his tasks have been arduous, yet he has succeeded to my astonishment and his own. This is in consequence of his faith and integrity in the truth that he has embraced. We sent one delegate to Congress, who was baptized, confirmed, and ordained an elder, to my certain knowledge, for he was ordained under my hands, and when he got to Congress I understand he denied being a “Mormon.” But br. Hooper, every time he is asked if he is a Latter-day Saint, replies: “Yes, and I thank God that I am.” By this course he has won the battle, and he has obtained more than I could have anticipated. I am glad that I have this to say in his behalf. Now I will venture to say a little more, that William H. Hooper, from the period of his earliest recollection, never enjoyed that peace, quietness, and solid joy that he now possesses in the situation with which we have honored him, and that he has obtained by his submission to the providences of God and his faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. [Br. HOOPER: I never was so happy, nor enjoyed such good health in my life as now.]

Now, is not this encouraging? Why, just for the sake of passing through this life I would not fail of being a Saint for all the riches in this world. Talk about kings on their thrones! Is there one of them who feels safe and who can repose in quietness and security? Do you know one who can?

Take all the Emperors and great men of the world, who receive so much honor and homage, and what is their peace? It is sorrow. What is their joy? It is grief and sorrow. Are they safe? No, I think not; and I will say to my brethren and sisters that there is not a king, emperor, or potentate on the earth who begins to possess the joy, peace, and quietness that our delegate now experiences in returning to his constituents. I think not any of them, unless they enjoy the spirit of the holy gospel of the Son of God, though their subjects bow their knees to the ground and take off their hats to them to do them homage and honor, it is mere show, outward appearance; many of the people do not do these things from their hearts. This we very well know.

Br. Hooper has returned here to visit, mingle, and talk with the brethren and sisters, and to learn their feelings. I will say for his satisfaction, and for the satisfaction of my friends who live in this city and throughout the Territory, that I am perfectly satisfied with his labors. Has he been as indefatigable as we could wish? He has. Has he accomplished as much as we expected he could? More; and above all this, there is nothing so consoling and cheering to me as to find br. Hooper increasing in the faith of the holy gospel. I have heard expressions from his mouth since he came home that have been heart-cheering to me. Speaking of his business and of the hard times here, said he, “What is all this speculation, money, or property? It is nothing at all when compared with peace and the blessings of Heaven that we desire upon the people called Latter-day Saints, and their success in spreading the gospel and gathering the poor.” This is first and foremost in his heart, and this makes me cry Hallelujah, and thank God. I say this for br. Hooper.

I am now going to say a few words for myself with regard to my own situation and circumstances in the midst of this people, the joy and thankfulness that seem to surround the people and their leaders. The increase that is perceptible to those who live in the faith of the holy gospel is heart-cheering, comforting, and consoling, and is praiseworthy to the Latter-day Saints. To illustrate, I will refer to one item of our proceedings at Conference. While assembled there I told the people what my feelings were in regard to the Word of Wisdom. I said to them—“The Spirit signifies to me that we should cease drinking tea, coffee, and liquor, and chewing tobacco.” On our journey south I saw one old lady over eighty years of age drink a little coffee, and that was the only coffee I saw while from home. I think there was one of our sisters in the company who was sick one day, and she had a little tea; with this exception, from the time we left home until we returned, I did not see a drop of tea or coffee offered to the company. Is not this marvelous? Was there any command given to the people, or any coercion used towards them at Conference in relation to these things? Not the least in the world, and the strongest term I used was that “the Spirit signifies to me that this people should observe the Word of Wisdom.”

It has been said to me—“This reformation in the midst of the people is too hasty to be permanent.” I have replied—“I trust not; I have not been hasty in my reflections and considerations to honor the purposes and to do the will of God.” It is true that to illustrate the advantages that would accrue from our observance of the Word of Wisdom, I compared the abundance of means we should then possess with the scarcity now existing. Instead of being poor and needy, this would give us all we could ask, to assist our poor brethren and sisters abroad to emigrate to this country, to send our elders abroad to preach the gospel, and to furnish the means necessary to enable them to do without seeking assistance of those who are already so poor that they seldom have more than half enough to eat. There are many there who have grown to manhood and womanhood, who can say of a truth—“Never in my life did I have the privilege of eating what my nature desired or required.”

If we would observe the Word of Wisdom, and cultivate faith, economy, and wisdom, the Lord would add blessings to us so that we would have abundance to give our elders, that they need never be under the necessity of saying to this sister or that brother, “give me a breakfast or something to assist me on my way,” but they would have enough to provide for their own necessities, and something with which to assist the poor whom they might meet. When I was in the old country I never was under the necessity of asking a penny from any person, and for which I have been thankful a thousand times since in reflecting upon it. I believe the only alms I ever asked, or the only intimation I ever gave of being in need, was on Long Island, when on my way to England. The brethren there, or rather those who were brethren afterwards, gave me some money. When I got to England I had a few shillings left. While there the Lord put means into my hands, and after I was established in my office, I do not know that I ever went out without first putting into my pocket as many coppers as my hand could grasp, to give to the needy I met by the way, and I have fed and clothed many. I have been very thankful for this. But most of our elders, when they go to the old country, are under the necessity of obtaining assistance from the people. We should not suffer this, and if we, here, will observe the Word of Wisdom, there will be no need of their doing so in the future. Last week I received a note in which was enclosed three dollars from a sister; I cannot tell her name, for she did not give it. She said she had not drank any tea since Conference, and she had saved about three dollars, which she enclosed for me to do good with. I felt “God bless her,” and she will be blessed as sure as she lives.

Now, here are brethren on the right hand and on the left who, if they had observed my counsel and the Word of Wisdom in their economy and in their dealings, would have been worth hundreds of thousands today where they have not got a shilling. But you know when we exercise faith and influence to induce the people to take a certain course, they will not always be satisfied that the result will be as it is described, until, by experience, they learn the opposite. There have been times when we have let the people do as they had a mind to, without trying to restrain them by counsel, and when we had done so, and not sought with all the power we had to concentrate them in their dealings and in their faith, they have met with difficulty and come to want; but when we hold them together, and they take our counsel, they always have plenty. Thank the Lord we do not suffer for food, and I do not know anybody who suffers for raiment. We have plenty of feed, and we expect we shall have.

As I have not appeared before you since my return from the south until today, I will say a few words in relation to that. I designed coming to this Tabernacle last Sabbath, but my health would not permit me. I am here today, however, to present to you my heartfelt thanks for your faith and confidence in your leaders. When I returned home I saw an exceedingly delightful manifestation of the good feelings of the people. The greeting we received from thousands of children and grown people, who lined the sides of the streets, and the hundreds who came in carriages to meet us, was very gratifying. When I got home I felt perfectly peaceable, and not the least concerned about anybody coming to injure me. I am not like the monarchs of the world, although I have no doubt there are individuals who would like to throw me a little lead—I have had intimations to that effect—but I am not at all concerned. I am always prepared. I am always on the watch. If any man can creep on me, day or night, he must be exceedingly quick. Still, I am in the hands of God, and I have to acknowledge that I am not preserved by my own wisdom and watchfulness, but it is through the providences of God. The Lord raises up one here and pulls down another there. He brings forth kingdoms and empires, and He sets monarchs on their thrones through His providences and at His pleasure. The Lord has His eye upon all His creatures. His presence and His influence fill immensity. Understand, Latter-day Saints, I do not teach you the doctrine that the center of God is everywhere and His circumference nowhere. That is false doctrine and nonsense. But His influence, His power, His spirit fill immensity, and are around about all things, above all things, beneath all things, and through all things, and they govern and control all things, and He watches His creatures with that minuteness that not a hair of the head of even a wicked and ungodly man falls to the ground unnoticed. Now, permit me to say that through the providences of God, you and I are, I mean in our present condition.

Our delegate says he is not fearful of anything arising in this world to militate against this work and people, except it arises among ourselves. Now, for your consolation I want to say that we are not going to commit errors, wrongs, and sins that will disfellowship us from the heavens, cut us off from the Holy Priesthood, and cast us out. I have no such faith, not a particle of it. There will be a great many foolish ones, no doubt. If you and I live to see the time when the voice is heard, “Behold, the bridegroom cometh, go ye out to meet him,” we shall find many right in the midst of this people without oil in their lamps; no question of this. But as for believing that this people will apostatize (without having any allusion to what br. Hooper has said), I do not fear it, though, in reality, it is the only fear I ever had. I do not fear anything from God and holy angels, from the powers of darkness, nor from the powers of this world; the only things I ever feared were the discord, discontent, confusion, and apostasy in the midst of this people. Still, you and I are not going to apostatize, we will not apostatize. There are individuals among us who will, but they will be very few. Another thing that creates exceeding joy in my heart is, that when a person apostatizes from the truth, and becomes filled with darkness and unbelief, how anxious he is to get away from this poor, miserable, sterile, sage plain, where, as br. Hooper has said, the people have the privilege of getting up in the night to water their land. This is a matter of great joy to me, for it is one of the providences of God.

Speaking of the completion of this railroad, I am anxious to see it, and I say to the Congress of the United States, through our Delegate, to the Company, and to others, hurry up, hasten the work! We want to hear the iron horse puffing through this valley. What for? To bring our brethren and sisters here. “But,” says one, “we shall not have any money.” Yes, we shall, if you and I observe the Word of Wisdom, we shall have plenty of it. Now, let me extend that a little further than to tea, coffee, tobacco, and whiskey—that is, keep your flour here, and do not send it to Montana nor anywhere else, but keep it here and store it up, and your grain too. You flour speculators here, do you know what flour is worth a barrel in New York? It is worth twenty-two dollars. In my young days, when it reached ten or twelve dollars per barrel we thought we were all going to starve to death. It is worth eighteen dollars on the frontiers and twenty at St. Louis. But, again, with regard to this railroad; when it is through, even in ordinary times it opens to us the market, and we are at the door of New York, right at the threshold of the emporium of the United States. We can send our butter, eggs, cheese, and fruits, and receive in return oysters, clams, cod fish, mackerel, oranges, and lemons. Let me say more to you—do up your peaches in the best style, for they will want them. Their fruit trees are failing in the east. Right in the very land where the Book of Mormon came forth, and was translated by Joseph, there has not been an apple grown for this dozen years without a worm in the center, as I have been told by men who live there. The worm is in the center of all there is there, and it will canker and eat them until they are consumed. Wherever this work has been, and the powers of darkness have succeeded in driving the Priesthood, I can tell you that desolation and ruin, the abomination of desolation will follow. But where the Saints cultivate the soil, the Lord will bless it and cause it to bring forth. Let us be fervent, then, in all our labors, in producing fruits, grains, vegetables, and everything necessary to sustain life, for by and by it will be said—“We must send to Zion, or starve to death.” Do you believe it? I do not care whether anybody believes it or not, it makes no difference to me. I am a Yankee; I guess things, and very frequently guess right.

To the Latter-day Saints I say, live your religion. This is the cry all the time. Let us live our religion, be faithful, watchful, prayerful, keep the commandments of God, and observe His word. And now that we have commenced to observe the Word of Wisdom, never treat resolution with a cup of tea or coffee, for as sure as you treat resolution once, it will plead hard for a treat again. “But is not tea and coffee good medicine?” Yes, first-rate; but if you use it as medicine you will never use it for pleasure. Keep the Word of Wisdom, help the poor, feed the hungry, and clothe the naked. Never let it be said of the Territory of Utah that a poor person had to go to the second house for a morsel to eat. It never has been said. I never heard of a person going to the second house for something to eat, from the fact that he always got it at the first, no matter whether friends or foes, saints or sinners. It is for you and me to do good to all, and to bless all. As far as we have the ability and capacity, let us bless our fellow beings, preach to them the gospel of life and salvation, and treat them as our brethren, sisters, and friends, until they prove themselves otherwise.

Oh, what a blessing that I have been born! When br. Hooper was speaking about Mr. Beecher’s having said that it was the greatest misfortune that ever happened to man to be born, it proved to me positively that he (Mr. Beecher) had not the first glimpse of the importance of this life, the organization of the earth, or the destinies of the human family. It never entered his heart, and his mind never conceived the first principle of the design of the Almighty in forming the earth and peopling it. He is an eloquent orator, and pleases the people, but he cannot understand the ways of God. In this respect he is like the rest of the world. In my youthful days I have asked some of the smartest and most intelligent ministers America ever produced, if they could tell me one thing about God, and I have been mortified, ashamed, and chagrined when I found they could not. They could read the Bible, and if they had believed it they could have told me about Him just as well as about their brother or their father, but no, they could not tell the first thing. Neither had they the slightest idea with regard to the location of Heaven, hell, or the spirit world. I believe I have already told here about listening to one of the smartest of American preachers preach on the soul of man. When he had exhausted two hours on the subject, he finally wound up, in his eloquent style, by saying—“My beloved brethren and sisters, I must come to the conclusion that the soul of man is an immaterial substance!” Why, such a thing never did nor can exist. What could I learn from that man with regard to Heaven, earth, hell, man, the soul of man, a prior existence, a present or a future existence, more than just to eat and drink, like the brute beasts that are made to be taken and destroyed. I concluded that I would not give a farthing for all the religions that existed, and I found nothing to satisfy me, until I found the revelations that Joseph Smith received from Heaven and delivered to the people. I have spent time enough. May God bless you. Amen.