A Discourse by President Heber C. Kimball, Delivered at the Special Conference in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, August 13, 1853.

The preaching we have had by brother Joseph Young, is the kind I love. It is very unlike the mixed up preaching of the world; but it is music to my ears; there are no jars nor discord when we hear the sounds of the glorious Gospel of the Son of God. It matters not to me what kind of an instrument it is played on, it is music to me and to you; but if you will tear in pieces the best and most perfect thing on the earth, it will not look well in that condition.

The Gospel and plan of salvation that I have embraced, is music to me; it is sweet to my body, and congenial to my spirit; and it is more lovely than anything else I have ever seen since I have been in the world. I love it, and that is why I love this people better than any other people on God’s earth, because there was never a better people, that is, I am speaking of the majority of them; but if you take them as a whole, I do not know that you can find any worse—that is, there are some that will compare with the worst in the world for sin and wickedness.

As brother Joseph said, so say I—Do not fear anything this side of hell, or that is in the east, west, north or south. I do not fear it any more than I do that the sun will fall from its position in the heavens, if this people will do just precisely as they are told. You know I preach upon this a great deal. The world considers it to be quite ridiculous for us to be of one heart, and of one mind. It is this union among those who are faithful “Mormons” that makes the world afraid of us; they fear us because we differ from the world. In the United States and in the old countries, they are divided into six or seven hundred different religious denominations, all disagreeing with each other; besides political and a thousand other kinds of divisions and differences, such as whiggery, democratism, socialism, which, in short, may all be summed up under the term, Devilism. This is not the policy of the Latter-day Saints. Jesus says, if you are not one, you are not mine. Let the Christian world who profess to believe in Jesus Christ, and in his Father, and in this book, the Bible, note that passage, “Except ye are one, ye are not mine.”

There is more oneness in this people, than in any people that ever lived upon the earth. There was not that oneness in the days of Jesus, that there is now, and I suppose there never has been since the days of Enoch. Because there was such a oneness among the people of Enoch, and they could not continue to be one, and live with the people in the same world, God took them and their city with a part of the earth to Himself, and they sailed away like one ship at sea separating from another.

Jesus says, “Except ye are one, ye are not mine.” And yet the Christian world take a course to justify themselves in division, in strife, in animosity, in quarreling, in envy, in jealousy, in war and bloodshed. And yet they say they are one: I say THEY LIE. A man that says it, lies to me, and he lies to God. I say this to all the world, and to those who are passing through the city as emigrants; if you profess to be disciples of Christ, and have hatred to us in your hearts, I say you lie; in the name of the Lord God Almighty I say it. Do you not think He will sustain me in it? Yes, and all His faithful followers will too; and those who desire to be the disciples of Christ and to be one, will gather together.

I referred to the days of Jesus; was there that union then, that might have been? Jesus said to the disciples, when the people turned away from him, “Will ye also go?” This he said to the Twelve. Many of the disciples forsook him. Even Peter, the chief Apostle, turned away from him when he was in the greatest trouble, and denied him with cursing and swearing.

In this day and age of the world, we profess to be one. Jesus said then, how often would I have gathered you together as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, but ye would not. He will do so now if you will let him; he will gather us together from the four quarters of the earth—I mean the Saints, the honest in heart, the elect of God; that they may become one, and lay aside their selfishness, their bickering, their murmuring and complaining, and everything of this nature.

If a man wants my ox, let him come and tell me so, and he shall have it; he need not quarrel with me about it; and if he robs me of it, I want him to enjoy the stolen property, if he can; for I will not quarrel about the foolish things of this world, for they will soon decay, and return to their mother earth, as you and I will.

Now, brethren and sisters, I will say to the emigrants who are passing through this city, and to the world at large, that it is our intention to become perfectly one in heart and mind. Have those who have separated themselves from this people prospered? They may have prospered for a season; but by and by they become like a limb that is severed from the tree; they wither and vanish away; and all such will continue to do so from this time henceforth and forever. It is just as much impossible for a people to exist that withdraw from this Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, as it is for a limb of a tree to live when it is severed from the body of the tree. Of this I am positive, because I know it. So I will say concerning the world and all the sects and denominations and kingdoms of the world, that oppose this work and people of God, they will wither in due time likewise, and they cannot help themselves.

When brother Joseph Smith lived, he was our Prophet, our Seer, and Revelator; he was our dictator in the things of God, and it was for us to listen to him, and do just as he told us. Now that appears very absurd in the eyes of the world; but they all say, if they had lived in the days of Peter, Moses, or Jesus, they would not have done as the people in those days did to them; but at the same time they would take their lives if they could, and do just like them.

We are the servants of God; we have been called of God through the ministry of that holy Prophet Joseph Smith, who received his authority through the ministry of holy angels. Now he was just as true a Prophet as Moses was, or as any Prophet that has ever been upon the earth; and we are just as much the authorized servants of God, as the Apostles and disciples in the days of Jesus Christ were, and I know it. And I bear testimony of it to the United States, and to the nations of the world. They say they do not believe it. What do I care whether they do or not? I know it, and God requires me to bear testimony of it, to be valiant in testimony to the truth of this work, and to preach the Gospel, and to lay before my brethren their duty.

Brother Joseph is gone, and now brother Brigham Young, the Governor of the Territory of Utah, is our Prophet, our leader, our Revelator; and it is for me and you to listen to him with all diligence, the same as we would listen to Joseph were he alive. Brother Brigham is his successor; his word is sacred; and if you do not observe it, it will not be well, and there is where I fear for you, brethren. I do not fear so much for myself as I do for you, because it will go hard with you, if you disobey his advice. There will many of you turn from the faith; you will turn your backs to us, and some will be guilty of shedding innocent blood, if you are not aware. This will be the result of apostasy. When that spirit attacks you, you will be led to do as other apostates have, who have turned from the Church of Christ.

Judas, when he lost the faith, received the power of the devil, and betrayed the Son of God into the hands of murderers. Joseph Smith in like manner was betrayed into the hands of wicked men, who took his life. He was betrayed by apostates, by men whom he once loved when they were in our midst, and had the Spirit of the Lord. We also would have been slain, if they could have got hold of us; but they were afraid to touch us; they knew it would be certain death to the man who lifted his heel against us. Just so now. I have got my old Gospel preparation laid up drying, preparing himself for action. Do I fear? No. I do not fear anything that lives on the earth, or that is in hell; Indians or anything else never will disturb us, the Saints, from this time to all eternity, if we will do precisely as we are told.

I do not speak of these things to establish myself as a Prophet, but I know what I say; I know you will prosper, and live in peace in the mountains of the Great Salt Lake, and be perfectly independent. You will have food and raiment, houses and lands, flocks and herds, and everything your hearts can desire, that there is in heaven and on earth, if you but do as you are told. If you will do this, you will think my words are very profitable to you, whether I am a Prophet or not. I am not saying anything but what my President has said time and time again. You will live in peace, and God will be your defense; and you will increase in knowledge, in power, in grace, and in every good thing that you can think of, or mention. I have said often, you may go and write blessings for yourselves, and insert every good thing you can think of, that is in heaven or on the earth, and it will all come to pass on your heads, if you do right.

What do I care for what the world says? I care no more about it than I do for the squawking of a goose. It is none of their business if I have a mind to be a Saint, and keep the commandments of God; and as you have heard it said, so say I—the time will come in which you will dwell in peace and safety; and when the time comes that you will go back to Jackson County, you will be independent, and live without any opposition at all. Can the Lord do it? Yes. All the people are in His hands, and He can turn the nations as I can an obedient horse. They are governed and controlled by the Almighty as much as we are. What can they do against us? Why nothing whatever, but if we do not do right they will be a scourge in the hands of God to scourge us, just as the Indians are at this time. There never would have been a disturbance if this people had done as they were told.

I am not speaking of the people in this city any more than of the people of other settlements. To my certain knowledge there is not a settlement in these mountains but were instructed by brother Brigham to build good forts and live in them; and on these conditions alone were volunteers permitted to go out and make new settlements.

Have any of them built forts? Tell of one settlement, if you please, excepting they commenced one in Iron County which remains unfinished yet. The Indians are now upon us, and our brethren are scattered off, three, four, and five families in a place, away off in this and in that direction, exposed to the Lamanites. They have been called into the city that they might be safe, and they are now teasing us, and wanting to go back again, and live in those exposed locations without a fort.

The Lord has made the Lamanites—the Indians, a scourge; but if this people will turn to and do just as they have been told, their wrath will be turned away in a short time, but not until the Lord God sees that this people are determined to do right. Upon the same principle that my wrath would be turned away from a child that repented under the rod of correction, so will the Lord’s wrath be turned away from His children when they repent, and go and do what they are told. A spirit of compassion seizes me the moment I see a repenting child; so it is with our heavenly Father. But the most of parents, when they tell their children to do a thing, and happen to give them a little slap on the ear for disobedience, the next moment they are saying, “O my dear child, I am sorry, let me give you a piece of bread and butter.” Our Father in heaven does not do so, until he sees contrition of heart in His children, for their wrongs.

We live in the days of Prophets, Apostles, High Priests, and servants of God who have the Priesthood upon them, and I know it. Gentlemen, I have been a member of this Church near 23 years, and passed through the whole of the difficulties in Kirtland, Ohio, and Missouri. When brother Brigham and myself and others, with our families, left Kirtland to go to Missouri with Joseph Smith, we had to lie with our firelocks by our side. When we arrived in Missouri, the devil contrived to raise the armies of the wicked against us there; and all the Elders and male members that could be counted from the western boundaries of Missouri to Nova Scotia, were not more than 205 men. We went up to Missouri to reinstate our brethren who had been driven out of Jackson County. We went up near 1,000 miles with our firelocks in our hands. Was there any fear in us? No. It never entered into our hearts, from the day we started to the time we returned again. I never saw the time but I could whip out twenty of the best men on earth.

I had a spirit on me as much superior to this earth, as the earth is superior to the degraded spirits of the wicked that dwell on its face. It was the Spirit of the Lord that stood by me, and diffused strength into my body, and into my limbs, until the very hair of my head felt all alive. Did they fear us in that upper country? Yes, they ran as though they were never going to stop in the world. We felt perfectly able to clear out that country to Nova Scotia, and we could have done it with 205 men, if the Lord God had commanded us, as the Gideonites did in days of old. Yes; 205 men, with the Spirit and power of God upon them, and their faces shining like the sun, it cannot be told what they could accomplish; neither can we form any conception of it.

Let us be as one person from this time henceforth, and do not let us suffer ourselves to become cold and stupid, but be Saints all the day long; and we shall build up the kingdom of God, and be prospered in all things we set our hands to do.

These are a few things I wanted to say; still there are many more things of great importance to us if we will only listen to them. One is, take care of your grain; for it is of more worth to you than gold and silver. I know you will see harder times before another harvest, than you have seen this season. Do you believe it? Did they believe it last year, when there were 15,000 bushels of wheat in the Tithing Office? No. When brother Brigham said the same thing last spring, to stir up the people to be careful of their grain, they said, “O no, brother Brigham, we cannot surely come to such scarcity as you foretell; look at the storehouse, it is full.” How much was there in the storehouse this harvest? There is not one bushel of grain of any kind, and I do not know that there will be.

There has been a great quantity thrashed out this harvest, but little of it has come into the public store, and the hands on the public works are obliged to live. If you go into the joiner’s shop, it is almost left desolate. If you go into the machine shops, and into the mason’s shop, they are the same; and yet there are thousands of bushels being thrashed out and ground into flour, and sold for from seven to ten dollars per hundred weight to the world—the emigrants who are passing through here yet—and at the same time the business on the public works stopped for want of it.

Brethren and sisters, please to look at this; you know I am telling you the truth, which is every day exhibited before your eyes.

The public ground here has to be enclosed before we can put forth a hand to build a Temple to the name of our God; and you are ready to feed everybody else under the heavens but the workmen. Have you turned from the Lord your God, and forgot His purposes? Think of it, you farmers!

I do not know but I am wearying the brethren, but these things were on my mind, and I have got a back load of them yet; I see them, and reflect upon them in my heart. O Lord God, what will become of us? Have the people forgotten thee and thy purposes, with the Holy Priesthood upon them—with the sacred ordinances of God’s house upon them? Now think of it, brethren and sisters. There is enough, and we need never want bread; but if we do not take the right course, we are sure to see sorrow, and the greatest you have ever seen. Some of you never saw any in your lives. Those who were never without bread, and clothing, and good houses to dwell in, murmur the worst; and those who never had any troubles and trials since they have been in this Church, or since they have been on the earth, are the most ready to complain. This may appear strange doctrine to you, but you know it is true.

As to getting rich, why bless your souls, is not the earth the Lord’s and the fulness thereof? Are not the gold and precious metals in the mountains, in the dells, and in the cliffs of the earth, all the Lord’s? He created all; and the human family, with all the treasures of earth, are in His hand. They all belong to the Lord our God, and we are His people if we do His will. Are we not heirs to all these riches? Certainly we are; every son and daughter of Adam, who loves the great Father of our spirits and His Son Jesus Christ, and obeys the Gospel, and listens to him whom God has delegated as an Apostle and Prophet to counsel His people, I tell you that all this treasure is theirs, and the devils cannot help themselves. I am just as sure of it as I am that the sun will rise and set tomorrow. Do you believe it, brethren and sisters? Do you know it? Yes, you know it. Now if you ever expect to enjoy it, you have got to live for it, as individuals, independent of any other man or woman. You have got to live as independent Saints, and obey the will of God independently as it is taught, and laid before you from time to time. All that wish to be delivered from the scourge, and from afflictions, will have to rise up and do right to their God, and to each other, not as a Conference merely, but as a people, as the Saints of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I am not going to command you to do it; but my advice is for you to do it. Rise up now, and do just as you are told, and you will see happy times.

I know there is a greater desire in this people for things that perish, for theatrical performances and dancings, than there is for the public interests of the Kingdom of God. Well, let us be Saints indeed, and show to the world that we are for God and for none else.

Among some people in the world it is popular to be a Christian; and among another class it is not popular; but it is popular with me to be a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints; and then it is popular for me to do the will of the Holy Spirit.

A single man can accomplish more with the power of the Spirit of God, than this whole people can, if they will not do right. Do I fear anything? No; but if I have to bow down to the chastening rod, as I have already done many times in this Church, I will do it like a man of God. I have been driven five or six times, and yonder are my habitations, and they may rot there. And so have some of you been driven in like manner; and some of you never had one thing to trouble you in your lives. I am now well off; but if I have got to come to it again as I have in former times, I will round up my back to the burden, and make it as tough as a piece of sole leather, to bear what shall be laid upon me manfully, or else I will die. I have no fears upon that ground at all; but my prayers are, by night or by day, for the Lord to take me from the earth, rather than I should sin against Him, or against my brethren, or against our President Brigham Young. I have known him 30 years, and he and brother Joseph Smith have been comrades together; and better men never lived on the earth than they are; and you may tell the kings and rulers of the earth this, and the nations over which they preside, if you please. The reason why we would rather have him to be our Governor than any other man, is because he is the best man we are acquainted with.

I have lived in the State of New York, town of Bloomfield, Monroe County, right in the heart of the country where the ancient Lamanites, and other veterans, destroyed each other, root and branch; where the Book of Mormon was discovered in the hill of Cumorah. From among those rich hills the people are flocking to these mountains. Why? Because this is the richest place in the world.

The country adjacent to the Sweet Waters has actually become a rich gold mine. Talk about gold! The Lord can change any of the elements into gold as easy as He could change the water into wine.

I suppose I had better bring my disjointed remarks to a close. I feel first-rate; I feel like a soldier of Christ, like a man of God. I feel sometimes that I could take one of those mountains, and handle it as I could a football. Bless your souls! If you will only do as the Lord tells you through His delegated agent, who gives you the voice of God and the wisdom of God, I am not troubled at all. The question is asked many times, “Has brother Brigham got the Urim and Thummim?” Yes, he has got everything; everything that is necessary for him to receive the will and mind of God to this people. Do I know it? Yes, I know all about it; and what more do you want? That is true, gentlemen; I am one of his witnesses in the last days, and to bear testimony of the truth of “Mormonism.”

I say to the Saints, do not look upon us as perfect beings; notwithstanding, if you are perfect yourselves, then look for it in us, and not until then. If any of you are perfect, we want you to come here that we may see such beings, and know how to model ourselves after you; just as I take a piece of clay and shape it after another model more beautiful still.

Some of you think you have passed through awful tribulations in leaving your mothers and friends. I was glad when I got away from mine, because they persecuted me, and lied about me, and persecuted my brethren; so I was glad to get away from them. But they will see the day when they will be glad to come to brother Heber, and say, “Let me black your boots, clean your horse, or drive your carriage,” &c.

You talk about carriages; good heavens! I am just as sure of enjoying these blessings as I am of enjoying anything on this earth. If you do not believe it, read that book (the Bible), which speaks about the armies of heaven, and about horsemen and chariots, and men armed with swords, and all kinds of instruments of music; it is all spoken of in this book, and we will enjoy it, while those who seek our destruction, and all sinners, will go to hell.

All this enjoyment of the good things of heaven and earth will come by a separation of the righteous and the wicked. There was a time when an eruption took place in heaven, and Michael and his armies arose, and cast out the rebellious portion of the angels from heaven. Don’t you think they got tired of contention, and broils, and tumults? Yes, so they universally agreed to cast it out. We will get tired of it too, in these last days, and we will make a separation between Saint and Sinner. The Sectarian priests have written and preached about forty years ago, and have proved to their readers, and to their hearers, that there would be a separation, and the sheep would be placed on the right hand and the goats on the left; I suppose the goats mean those that are not good for much, they bear no wool.

I guess I had better stop speaking. May the Lord God bless you forever; and may union, peace, righteousness, and salvation be with you forever and ever. Amen.

By President Heber C. Kimball, Delivered on the Southeast Corner Stone of the Temple at Great Salt Lake City, after the First Presidency and the Patriarch had laid the Stone, April 6, 1853.

O God, the Eternal Father, in the name of thy Son Jesus Christ of Nazareth, we ask thee to look upon us at this time in thy tender mercy. Thou beholdest that thy servants, Brigham and his Council, have laid the Chief Corner Stone of a holy House, which we are about to erect unto thy name. We desire to do it with clean hands and pure hearts before thee, and before thine holy angels.

We thank thee that we are permitted to live in the flesh, and have a place upon thy footstool, and partake daily of the bounties thy hand bestows, for thou art our Father, and Jesus Christ is our Elder Brother.

Inasmuch, O Lord, as we desire to erect a House to thy name, that if it seemeth thee good to come and take up thine abode on the earth, thou mayest have a place to lay thy head, we pray thee to assist us to erect it in purity before thee, and the Heavenly hosts.

We ask thee to help us so to conduct ourselves, that all the holy Prophets, the angels of Heaven, with thee and thy Son, may be engaged continually for our welfare, in the work of salvation and eternal lives. Bless us in this attempt to glorify thee. Bless this portion of the earth we dwell upon—even these valleys of the mountains, which we have consecrated unto thee. Cause them to bring forth the productions of the soil in rich abundance. Bless the seeds that are placed therein by thy servants and handmaidens. And inasmuch as they are disposed to do thy work, and erect a Temple to thy name, which is their fixed purpose and determination; let the heavens be gentle over them. May the earth be sanctified for their good, and the seeds they throw into it yield to them an hundred fold in return. We pray thee to bless such men and women—may the blessings of the Almighty richly attend them, and multiply them in their families, in their herds and flocks, in strength and in health, in salvation, and in eternal lives.

We also pray for those who do not feel favorably disposed to thy work—may thy blessings not attend them, but may they go backward and not forward, may they wither and not increase, and may the strength that they might have received, through their faithfulness to thy work, be multiplied and divided amongst these thy servants, who are determined to keep thy commandments, and sanctify their affections unto thee.

Look upon thy servant Brigham, O Lord, and let thy Holy Spirit rest mightily upon him this day, and from henceforth. May he live to dictate the erection of thy house, see the Topstone brought on with rejoicing, and administer the keys of salvation and eternal life unto his brethren therein. Bless his Council in common with him, may they live to a good old age, and glorify God in all their days; may they never want for food and raiment, for fathers and mothers, for wives and children, and for the power of thy Spirit to inspire them, and those thou hast given them.

Pour out thy Spirit upon thy servants, the Twelve Apostles; may thy power abide upon them, to qualify them for the responsible calling unto which thou hast called them. Also, in connection with them, let thy Spirit rest upon the Quorums of the Seventies, the High Priests, the Bishops, the High Council, the Elders, Priests, Teachers, and Deacons; and upon every faithful member of thy Church in these valleys of the mountains, and in all the world.

Now, O God, we dedicate this Stone to thee. May this spot be holy, and all that pertaineth to it. And inasmuch as there shall be an enemy, or a person that are evil disposed towards thy house, and they shall endeavor to lay snares for the feet of thy people, may they be caught in their own net, be overwhelmed in their own dilemma, and have no power nor influence in the least to hurt thy Saints from this time henceforth and forever. May the power of the mighty God of Jacob fortify thy servants, enabling them to execute righteousness before thee the Lord our God.

Hear us, O Lord, for we dedicate this, the Southeast Corner Stone unto thee, praying that it may sleep in peace, be preserved from decay, for it is the Chief Corner Stone of the House we shall rear to thy name. May the same blessings attend the other three Corner Stones, and all the works thy servants shall set their hands to do, from this time henceforth and forever.

Bless the architect, the superintendent, the foremen of the various departments, and all the laborers that shall raise a hand, or move a thing for the erection and perfection of this thine house; and provide for them, their wives, their children, and all that pertains unto them, that they may want for no good or necessary thing, while they are engaged in thy service, and from this time henceforth and forever.

We dedicate ourselves unto thee, with our wives, our children, our flocks, and our herds, with all the settlements and possessions that pertain to thy people in these valleys of the mountains. And all the praise and the glory we will ascribe to the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen.

A Discourse by President Heber C. Kimball, Delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, Nov. 14, 1852.

The hymn which has been sung, I think, is a very appropriate one, and if we can all put it in practice, if we all say we will commence to do it from this day, I imagine that we have created a heaven already in our own minds. If we would forsake everything that is unrighteous, that creates sorrow and misery in this world, you will all admit that I and you would be at once in possession of a heaven of happiness.

The discourse we have heard from brother Taylor was a rehearsal of a great many things we have passed through, that is, many of us. Those who have passed through these things have appreciated them, and they are actually in possession of more knowledge and experience than those who have not passed through them. Still, we find, in the course of our experience, that many think they have more experience, and know more and comprehend more, than their neighbors. However, I will let time suffice to give them an experience in that matter—time is necessary to bring it about. I have said it many times, that I had no doubt that every man and every woman would, perhaps, get all the experience they wanted. And as for this people, I do not say to what they can be brought; but sometimes I have thought, or had my doubts, whether or no the majority of them will take a course to keep peace in our midst, and secure to us continually the comfort and consolation we now enjoy.

The majority of you enjoy greater blessings this day than you ever did in your lives. I have traveled over a great portion of the earth in days that are past. I have seen the sorrows of the world. I have seen this people, or many of them, very poor, and penniless. I have dwelt in England, and a part of the time in London, and established the Gospel there, when I have lived upon my two penny loaves per day, with a glass of water. You that have come from there, know what kind of a thing a penny loaf is; there certainly is not that substance existing in it that there is in a piece of good solid bread the breadth of my three fingers; it is not all bread, but it is a mixture, a combination of other fixings, something like their milk in London, which they make from chalk; so if any of you are destitute of milk cows, I am telling you how you can make milk. I speak of these things because I have experienced them. I want to know if there are any people brought to that, in this community? Do you live as poor and as penniless as you did there? No, you do not. There are many here that did live there and they have now their abundance, and they eat so much here that they are almost disabled, their minds are not so active, and this is the cause many times they are not to be found in this hall—they eat so much, they are under the necessity of going to bed, not to rest themselves, but to rest the food they have taken. This is too much the case. If I take food in the afterpart of the day, it is disagreeable for me to speak in the afternoon; it is hard and laborious. When you go from this place and return to your homes, you eat so much, that when you return here again, those that do, you are as void of receiving intelligence and the Spirit of the Lord God as a stone. This I know to be true; that is, with many of that portion that do return. There is nearly one-half of this congregation who disable themselves, and are obliged to go to bed to rest their food, on the Sabbath afternoon. I am not speaking of this thing as though it is practiced here any more than it is in the whole world. You do not train your bodies, and cultivate your minds, in eating and drinking, in partaking of the fruits of the earth; your lives are wasted away, not in a useful manner, but in a very useless manner. You throw away your lives. I could prove it to you very easily if I had you in a place where I knew who you were. I know I cannot teach here, and come upon little matters, that, nevertheless, are important to be known. Why? Because it would be considered ridiculous. What did brother Brigham say here one day, when he was speaking upon the works of the human family, and that they would have to give an account of their works? Said he, “It is ridiculous for me to recount their works, or speak them before any public assembly.” So you would consider, many of you, that the holy order of God, or what I would say to you, is ridiculous; on the other hand, many of you would consider it the most consistent. But allow me to say, that your salvation and exaltation depend upon what you consider indelicate for a man to speak in a public congregation.

Brethren, there is not anything I fear, sisters, there is not anything I fear, in this world, but that we shall prosper, and dwell upon the earth, and continue in the Valleys of the mountains, and never be removed, that is, if we will be faithful, and do as well as we know how, and follow the dictates of the Holy Spirit of God, and of him and his brethren who preside over us. If we do this, we never shall be overcome. These things have been talked about many times, and I might split my lungs, and my brethren might do the same, unto some people in the world; for the more you talk to them, the more light that is revealed to them, the less they seem to appreciate it. If they do seem to appreciate it, they do not obey it, they do not walk in the path marked out; but they will receive instructions from day to day, and enter into the most solemn obligations, before God and angels, that they will observe them, but before they get home they forget them. Is not this true, gentlemen? Is it not true, ladies? I will tell you my feelings plainly about these matters. I wish to God that this people would do as they are told, as brother Taylor has said today. You know what my belief is, and I am satisfied it is the belief of every person here. Many are willing to eat and drink, wear clothing, and lie down to sleep, and they think they are going to be ushered into the Kingdom of God by that portion of men and women that are faithful. This is a mistake, gentlemen and ladies. If you do not cultivate yourselves, and cultivate your spirits in this state of existence, it is just as true as there is a God that liveth, you will have to go into another state of existence, and bring your spirits into subjection there. Now you may reflect upon it, you never will obtain your resurrected bodies, until you bring your spirits into subjection. I am not talking to this earthly house of mine, neither am I talking to your bodies, but I am speaking to your spirits. I am not talking as to people who are not in the house. Are not your spirits in the house? Are not your bodies your houses, your tabernacles or temples, and places for your spirits? Look at it; reflect upon it. If you keep your spirits trained according to the wisdom and fear of God, you will attain to the salvation of both body and spirit. I ask, then, if it is your spirits that must be brought into subjection? It is; and if you do not do that in these bodies, you will have to go into another estate to do it. You have got to train yourselves according to the law of God, or you will never obtain your resurrected bodies. Mark it! You do not think of these things, you only think of today. If you can pass along today, it is all right, thinking that brother Brigham, brother Heber, brother Willard, and the Twelve, with brother Joseph at our head, will lead you all into the celestial world. We cannot do it. Why? Because Justice sits at the door, and will not admit a single soul until he has paid the uttermost farthing. Do you think we can pass you in there clandestinely? If you do, you will find justice sitting at the door, and she will require justice at your hand, and mercy will claim all that is due to her, but mercy will not rob justice, not one writ, neither will justice rob mercy; they are united together, just as much as the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost ever were. As brother Brigham said here, if you sin against God, you have got to satisfy Him; and if you sin against Jesus Christ, you have got to make confession to Jesus, and He and the Father can forgive you; and if you sin against the Holy Ghost, you have got to satisfy the Holy Ghost, for neither the Father nor the Son can forgive that sin. Is not that good law? That is the law of Deseret, gentlemen. And when you sin against brother Brigham, will the Father forgive you? No: you have got to ask forgiveness of brother Brigham. And when you sin against me, you have got to seek forgiveness of me, before you get it from the Father. You have got to repent of your sins, and turn unto the Lord your God, with full purpose of heart, and cease your murmuring and complaining, that you may be forgiven.

I could not get a company here last Conference, I could not get one solitary vote for a man to preside over a company, of murmurers. You cannot organize ten murmurers in this whole city; for if you can get them together, they cannot agree, and that is the difficulty.

I will tell you what will be good for us, and it will bestow upon us all the luxuries of this life, of heaven and earth. You are talking about heaven and about earth, and about hell, &c.; but let me tell you, you are in hell now, and you have got to qualify yourselves here in hell to become subjects for heaven; and even when you have got into heaven, you will find it right here where you are on this earth. When we escape from this earth, we suppose we are going to heaven? Do you suppose you are going to the earth that Adam came from? That Eloheim came from? Where Jehovah the Lord came from? No. When you have learned to become obedient to the Father that dwells upon this earth, to the Father and God of this earth, and obedient to the messengers He sends—when you have done all that, remember you are not going to leave this earth. You will never leave it until you become qualified, and capable, and capacitated to become a father of an earth yourselves. Not one soul of you ever will leave this earth, for if you go to hell, it is on this earth; and if you go to heaven, it is on this earth; and you will not find it anywhere else. Is it not hard to bring these truths home to you. I tell you I am at home now, and I am in heaven; but the heaven I have to enjoy is the heaven I make myself. Do you know it? Well, if this be the case, which you will probably all admit, for it will be the case with me, it will be the same with you, and you cannot help yourselves—I want to know if you have any peace at home, in your families, only what your wife and children make? You have not. If you make peace and a heaven in your habitations, then you are in heaven, both you and your families. Now suppose we apply this principle to the house of every man in Israel, who is a father of a family, and they all agree they will make heaven at home, and after that they all conclude to come together and make a general heaven. But the first place to begin to make a heaven, is to make it at home, and then we will club together, and conclude to have it all over. Do you understand my logic? Do you, brother Hyde? [Elder Hyde, “Yes, sir.”] These are my feelings.

Now let us go to work, every one of us, and pull together, and put means into the hands of the Trustee-in-trust, pay up our tithing, and then if we have a surplus which we do not want to put out to usury now, put it in the hands of the Trustee-in-trust. Go to work, not only next spring, but now make preparations, and let us build a temple. What say you? I do not want you to say yes, unless you calculate to do it, but, as brother Joseph used to say, “Yankee doodle do it.” Now go to work, and do the thing right up, and when next fall comes to pass, let us see the walls of the temple erected, and the roof on it. What say you? It is just as you say. No one man has the capacity and power to do it himself, but if you say it, and you will do it, there will be a temple next fall, with a roof upon it. Do you believe it? You do. You nod your heads; come, nod them a little lower still; none of your half winks here, but whole winks or nothing. We can do it just as easily as I have built a little house on the corner there. How do you feel, brethren? Do you feel, do it? Don’t you say yes, or give me a half wink, without meaning it; but, as the girls say, give me a whole heart or nothing. I do not want you should have my heart, and I do not want you should have the hearts of my brethren, because if you have their hearts, they will do nothing for God or His cause. You know I talk just as I have a mind to, when I get up to talk here. Do you consider it sensible, that we go to work, and rear a temple to the name of the Lord, and have the roof on it next fall? Say? None of your half winks to me again; is it not reasonable to say, it cannot be done unless you do it?

It is necessary to unite and cultivate the hearts of this people together, more than anything else. The subject of building a temple alone will not do it, or your means; but to bring this to a focus, your hearts must be where your treasure is. If you place your treasure in the temple, your hearts must be there, they are wherever you place your treasure. The Scripture says so, and so say I. I am a servant of God, a man of truth, and President Young is my brother, my leader, and governor, and shall be forever and ever, and you cannot unhorse me if you try, and we will unhorse the whole of you if you do not do right. Shall we go to work, and build a temple, and a wall around it? Now, gentlemen, if we do it at all, we have got to commence the work, and continue to progress in it until we have completed it. You must put your means and labor in it. How many hands do we see here on the public works weekly? Why there is scarcely a man to be seen, except regularly employed hands. Do not talk to me about doing a thing, when you do not do it. As brother Hyde said, it is punctuality that will save you. The Lord said, through Joseph, in the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, that a covenant breaker never could be saved. You never can be saved, only in truth and faithfulness to God, and those whom He has appointed and selected to govern the affairs of His Church on the earth. Now, you say, “Brother Kimball, you talk rather barefaced, the Gentiles will hear you.” That is what they dread. Bless your souls, we want they should hear it more and more and more, until the kingdom of our God brings under subjection every kingdom in the world. Can we do it; gentlemen and ladies, upon any other principle than by being one? Tell me if any of you have got an argument to prove to the contrary? I know you have not got it; if you have, I am ready for it today.

I am perhaps trespassing upon your time and patience; well, I do not care whether I am or not, you seem to sit very easy notwithstanding. It is not very cold; though your faces appear rather blooming; your eyes are bright and your spirits look cheerful. I do not think you are cold; you never saw a man or a woman have the blues yet, but they looked black, and their flesh looked blue, like the green fly. I have got the start of you, for I have on a great coat. I have not spoken in public for some time, and I did not know if ever I should again, my lungs are so injured by speaking in private meetings.

What do you say now, casting away the blues and everything of this kind, what do you say about going to, ye Bishops, with your several wards, after this day—tomorrow morning, with light hearts, and cheerful spirits, and glad countenances, to prepare for the erection of a temple to the name of the Almighty. We want to get stone on the ground, and other preparations are necessary to be made, to lay the foundation for this work. What do you say? I will have no half winks, neither will I call a vote without you go it as the heart of one man. What do you say, brethren and sisters? Will you say, “Yankee doodle do it?” If you do, say aye. [All said, “Aye.“]

There, Bishops, I will deliver up the meeting into your hands.

An Address by President Heber C. Kimball, Delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, Oct. 9, 1852, at the General Conference.

The subject President Young wished me to speak of is in regard to our temple, which we shall soon commence to build—what course we shall take, and what kind of materials it shall be built of; whether we shall build it of the stone that is got in the Red Butte Canyon, or of adobies, or of the best stone we can find in these mountains. For instance—at Sanpete there is some splendid stone; and inasmuch as we intend to build a house unto the Lord for Him to accept, for His angels to come to as ministers to give instructions, I can feel, myself, as though we are perfectly able to build one, of the best kind of materials, from the foundation to the tip top. We are able, and we have strength and union, and we have bone, and marrow, and muscle, and we are able to commence it next year.

I merely present these things for the brethren to consider and reflect upon. We can go to work and make an adobie house, and lay the foundation of stone from Red Butte, and then we can plaster it outside, and make it like the Tithing office. I would like to see something pretty nice, something noble, and some of the most splendid fonts that were ever erected. I know for a certainty that our President is perfectly able to give us the design of this contemplated house, and all other necessary instructions. What we need is to receive those blessings that we all want, and this must be felt more, especially by those who have come in this present season. These blessings are just as necessary for those who go South, as for those who go North, it makes no difference. They will all, however, get their blessings, and enjoy their privileges in obtaining those things. We have plenty of time, and there is no particular hurry, but it is for every man to walk up to his duty in the time being, and then when tomorrow comes, walk up to it tomorrow, and so let us do all we can, for we have got considerable over one thousand years to work, and when we have worked one thousand years, there will be another, and another, and we shall be at work to all eternity. There is no end to our work for the living and for the dead. Let us try and be active to do whatever we find to do today.

Let the brethren go and get farms, and locate themselves, and raise good fields of grain, that they can bring in the firstfruits of the earth. This is what is required to be done at the present time. Take this course, brethren, and then everything you possess will prosper, and you will be abundantly blessed. It is just as necessary to be engaged in one thing, as it is in another. It takes many kinds of materials to build a house, so it requires all kinds of materials to build another earth like this, it requires the same kinds of materials to make one man as it takes to make another. But let us try to temper ourselves according to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and the plan of salvation.

We will bring up a few comparisons. Now supposing brother Tanner goes into the shop, to make a scythe, and he takes the materials necessary for the formation of that scythe, is he dictated to by it, as to how he shall mold it and fashion it? Would you have the scythe rise up and say—Brother Tanner, what do you do so for? Why do you strike me on the back? Well, it is just as ridiculous for you to undertake to dictate to President Young, or those whom he sets to work. It is not for you to dictate to them. Upon the same principle, supposing I have a lump of clay which I put upon my wheel, out of which clay I want to make a jug; I have to turn it into as many as 50 or 100 shapes before I get it into a jug. How many shapes do you suppose you are put into before you became Saints, or before you become perfect and sanctified to enter into the celestial glory of God? You have got to be like that clay in the hands of the potter. Do you not know that the Lord directed the Prophet anciently, to go down to the potter’s house to see a miracle on the wheel? Suppose the potter takes a lump of clay, and putting it on the wheel, goes to work to form it into a vessel, and works it out this way, and that way, and the other way, but the clay is refractory and snappish; he still tries it, but it will break, and snap, and snarl, and thus the potter will work it and work it until he is satisfied he cannot bring it into the shape he wants, and it mars upon the wheel; he takes his tool, then, and cuts it off the wheel, and throws it into the mill to be ground over again, until it becomes passive (don’t you think you will go to hell if you are not passive?), and after it is ground there so many days, and it becomes passive, he takes the same lump, and makes of it a vessel unto honor. Now do you see into that, brethren? I know the potters can. I tell you, brethren, if you are not passive you will have to go into that mill, and perhaps have to grind there one thousand years, and then the Gospel will be offered to you again, and then if you will not accept of it, and become passive, you will have to go into the mill again, and thus you will have offers of salvation from time to time, until all the human family, except the sons of perdition, are redeemed. The spirits of men will have the Gospel as we do, and they are to be judged according to men in the flesh. Let us be passive, and take a course that will be perfectly submissive.

What need you care where you go if you go according to direction, and when you get to Coal Creek, or Iron County, be subject to that man who is placed there to rule you, just the same as you would be subject to President Young, if you were here, because that man is delegated by this Conference, and sanctioned by this people, and that man’s word is law. And so it is with the Bishops; they are our fathers, our governors, and we are their household. It is for them to provide for their household, and watch over them, and govern and control them; they are potters to mold you, and when you are sent forth to the nations of the earth, you go to gather the clay, and bring it here to the great potter, to be ground and molded until it becomes passive, and then be taken and formed into vessels, according to the dictation of the presiding potter. I have to do the work he tells me to do, and you have to do the same, and he has to do the work told him by the great master potter in heaven and on earth. If brother Brigham tells me to do a thing, it is the same as though the Lord told me to do it. This is the course for you and every other Saint to take, and by your taking this course, I will tell you, brethren, you are on the top of the heap. We are in the tops of the mountains; and when the stone shall roll down from the mountains, it will smash the earth, and break in pieces everything that opposes its course; but the stone has to get up there before it can roll down.

We are here in a happy place, in a goodly land, and among as good a people as ever the Lord suffered to dwell upon the face of the earth. Have I not a reason to be proud? Yes, I am proud of the religion of Christ, I am proud of his Elders, his servants, and of his handmaids, and when they do well I am prouder still. I do not know but I shall get so proud, that I shall be four or five times prouder than I am now.

I want a vote from the congregation concerning the temple, whether we shall have it built of the stone from Red Butte, or of adobies, or timber, or of the best quality of stone that can be found in the mountains. It is now open for discussion.

Our temple block is 600 feet square, and according to the number of people that compose the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we are able to build a temple that size, and do it easier than we built a temple at Kirtland. I put the motion which is before you, that we build a temple of the best materials that can be furnished in the mountains of North America, and that the Presidency dictate where the stone and other materials shall be obtained; and that the Presidency shall be untrammeled from this time henceforth and forever. I want every brother, sister, and child to vote one way or the other. All in favor of this motion raise your right hand. [It was unanimous.]

An Address by President Heber C. Kimball, Delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, October 8, 1852.

Brother John Young said he felt as though he wanted to talk; I told him to open his mouth wide, and he would be very apt to pour out something. What he has said, and what President Young has said before him, today, is verily true. I felt a flow of good feelings while he was speaking, and this I feel all the time while sitting under such teachings. The ideas advanced are so plain and simple, it seems to me as though every person possessing a sane mind, when they leave this house, or when they go home from this Conference, will do right, will determine in their hearts to do as they are instructed. If they will do this, it is well with them.

There are a great many who have the idea, that the time will come when we shall be broken up as a people. Do I fear any such thing? No, I do not fear anything. I fear nothing that is in heaven, or that is upon the earth. I do not fear hell nor its combinations; neither hell, nor the devil, nor any of his angels, has power ever me, or over you, only as we permit them to have. If we permit the devil to have power over us, and we are seduced by him, and we crouch down under his power, then he will have dominion over us. Upon the same principle, we let sin have power over us, but it has no power over us unless we subject ourselves to it.

I think and reflect much upon these principles, and I wish to God, that you, my brethren, the Elders of Israel, when you go home from this place, would treasure up the counsel that you have received, that you would nourish and cherish it in your hearts, then you never would be unfruitful nor walk in darkness, nor be left to murmur, complain, and find fault.

When I proposed to the brethren of the complaining class, that they be organized into a building committee, I wish you to understand, that I had not heard anyone murmur, but I heard there were some. I was rather inclined, however, to believe that those who told it were the ones that murmured, but they wanted to throw it off from their own shoulders, and make it out that somebody else was complaining. I do not believe you were, brethren. I do not believe we can raise material enough to organize a company of such characters. I do not believe you are going to murmur, but I believe you will go to and do as you have been told. I want you to do so, I know the blessings you will obtain in so doing.

Go and take up some good farms, but do not take up too much, as a great many in this place have done, they have taken up from one hundred to one hundred and fifty acres, and have then undertaken to put in 50 acres of wheat, when they could not attend to the half of it. Be cautious in this matter, put in no more seed than you can manage, and improve all the land you do take in, and be faithful to God, and I know that He will bless the land for your sakes, and He will bless you abundantly, and He will bless your increase, and He will bless your wheat, and your corn, and everything that pertains to you.

I have spoken about these things many times. There is nothing impossible with God, but He will not do anything that is contrary to His law, and that is not according to his designs. I have said, many times, if you only have faith, and listen, and put works with your faith, doing as you are told, it is not impossible for a hen to lay two eggs per day. To prove this, I have sheep in this valley, and so have other people, that have had four lambs this year, and we have over thirty lambs now of the second crop. I have seldom heard of such a thing in my life. This is quite a testimony to bear, but I can prove it to be true, now, on the spot, if it is necessary. The sheep have brought forth the second crop of lambs. That is a great curiosity, but it is true, and has taken place here under our immediate notice, and some of the sheep that have been so prolific belong to me.

This is not contrary to my faith; we are the children of Israel, and it is for us to be faithful, and listen to the will of heaven, and to the man that presides over us, and to his associates, for they will not teach you anything only what he sanctions; you need not be afraid, for if I should teach wrong doctrine or principle, here is the authority to correct me, that this people may have correct views. Well, inasmuch as we are the children of Israel, we are bound to prosper, if we continue in the goodness of God, and walk in His precepts; if we do not, it will be with us as it was with the children of Israel of old, our burdens will become hard to bear; but I believe ourselves, our flocks, our herds, our crops, and everything that pertains to the earth which we inhabit, will greatly multiply and increase. These are my feelings, and this is my faith all the time—I have no other.

We should teach our children righteousness, if we would raise them up in the way of the Lord, as it is spoken in the Book of Mormon. Let mothers teach their children as they were taught then. Three thousand of those men are worth more than one hundred thousand not raised as they were. They had faith that they should never fall in battle, because their mothers taught them so. Although there was much of their blood shed, yet not one of them fell. That was the result of proper instructions being given them by their mothers. Mothers, I wish you would wake up and act in your office and calling, as well as the brethren. It is their calling to go and preach the Gospel, build up the kingdom of God, and establish righteousness, and it is for you to be stewards at home, and attend to the things that they leave behind, and to get wisdom and knowledge in all these things pertaining to your duty.

When I heard brother Brigham preaching here today, and laying things of worth before us, I felt greatly to rejoice, and I believe you felt as I did, and as though they never would be eradicated from your minds, but that you would treasure them up in your hearts. We have not a great while to stay on the earth, if we live to the full age of man. We must all die, sooner or later, as it regards our earthly tabernacles, but our spirits will continue to live forever. If they go to a state of happiness, they will be happy; and if they go to a state of misery, they will be miserable. You all know this as well as I do, then why do you not live accordingly? I presume you will.

A great many things of this kind have been laid before the brethren who have come from England, and from the States, and from different nations of the earth. They will hear many more things taught here in addition to what they have heard in Old England. They could hear nothing there, except the first principles of the doctrine of Christ; but since they have come here it is all let out, that is, a great many things; the bird is let out of the cage, and they have it before them to read and reflect upon; it is the truth, it is the word of God, and the revelations of Jesus Christ, which were revealed to brother Joseph and others.

As to the power and authority invested in brother Brigham, do I doubt it? Have I the least hesitation as to his calling as the President of this Church? No, no more than I have that God sits upon His throne. He has the same authority that brother Joseph had. That authority was in the Twelve, and since brother Joseph stepped behind the veil, brother Brigham is his lawful successor. I bear testimony of what brother Joseph said on the stand at Nauvoo, and I presume hundreds here can bear witness of the same. Said he, “These men that are set here behind me on this stand, I have conferred upon them all the power, Priesthood, and authority that God ever conferred upon me.” There are hundreds present this day who heard him utter words to that effect, more than once.

The Twelve had then received their endowments. Brother Joseph gave them the endowments, and keys and power were placed upon them by him, even as they were placed upon him by Peter, James, and John, who ordained him. That is true, gentlemen, because they held the Apostleship last, and had authority to confer it upon him, or any whom the Father had chosen. Brother Joseph called and ordained the Twelve Apostles of the last days, and placed that power upon them. Five of those men who received that authority from under his hands are now living. Have I any doubt? Why, no. I know all about it, I am a witness of this Gospel, of the order and power of the Priesthood, and of the organization of this Church from the beginning. I glory in it, I glory in this Gospel, I know it is like a root out of the dry ground, it neither has form nor comeliness to this world, it is against them every way, and they will run against it and snag themselves. You know a root out of dry ground has many snags or sharp points to it, and they stick out many ways; so the people run against a snag when they run against this work, or against the servants of the Most High. I know, as well as I know that I live, that every man that fights against it will be damned. I know it, and am bearing testimony to what I know, gentlemen, and you may know it just as well as I do. This Gospel, this kingdom, this Church, and this people, are the pride of my heart, I have no pride in anything else. I have pride to see this work roll forth, and turn over the kingdoms, and break in pieces the nations of the earth. I know that every man and woman, every nation and king that oppose it, will wither like a limb that is severed from a tree.

Now there are a great many people that have broken off from this Church, we will not mention names, but have they not withered? Yes, and so will you if you turn away from it, and if you refuse to obey the counsel that is given to you, you will wither away like a limb that is cut off from an apple tree, or the grass that is mown down when the sun strikes it. We are the people of God, and we cannot prosper upon any other principle than to cleave together, to cleave to His work, to amalgamate our feelings in one, and nourish the all-powerful principle of union, all feeling a general interest for the public welfare.

As President Young has said, this is the household of faith, this is his house, and this is his people, and he is our leader, our Governor, he is our Prophet, and he is our Priest. As I have said in other places and in other meetings, when speaking to the Elders, when they are sent from this place, they are sent forth by the shepherd that God has stationed here; he is the head shepherd that is visible on earth, under the direction of Joseph, and he sends forth the Elders as shepherds to gather up the lost sheep of the house of Israel, and bring them home to put them into the fold. I have said that you have no business to make a selection of any of these sheep, or to make a choice of them, or make any covenant with them, until they are brought home and placed in the fold, and then if you want a sheep or two, ask the shepherd for them, and if you choose a sheep without taking this course you will get your fingers burnt. Why? Because they are his sheep—mark it. How would you like it, were I to go and take one of your sheep without permission, would you ever think of such a thing? One is just as right as the other. You will learn these things by and by. I would rather have my head laid upon a block, and severed from my shoulders, than ever make a proposal to any woman living upon the earth and marry her, unless I had permission from the chief shepherd. That tells it. I do not know that you can all understand me, but those who have their eyes open understand it. I only hint at these things, that you may be careful of the course you take.

Well, then, he that will not provide for his own household is worse than an infidel, and hath denied the faith. If this is brother Brigham’s household, I belong to him, and it is my household. Well, then, provide for it, provide for Israel first, and when they have got enough, then let others have it. Do not let others have the bread until Israel, the household of faith, are provided for. Do you understand it, brethren? If you do, say aye. [Aye.] All say aye for Israel.

Now we are going to stick together. Those that have come in here are like clay brought from different parts of the earth—it is taken out of the bank and thrown into the mill, and the mill has been grinding it until it has become pliable and passive; then we send out the Elders to bring in a fresh supply of new clay, and it is thrown into the mill, where it has to become passive, and thus the mill keeps grinding and grinding, and mixing that which is thrown into it. As soon as you are passive others come in.

It keeps us thrashing all the time. The reapers go forth, and bind up the wheat and draw it in, and thus we keep throwing in new wheat all the time, and we shall never get the floor empty, but we must thrash and thrash until we are worn out, and others will come up and continue it. Did you ever see them thrash in country towns in England? It is something like that. We are passing through the mill, and we have got to be thrashed and cleaned up, and the chaff has to be separated from the wheat in passing it through the fanners. There are three ends to this mill in the mountains, where the chaff goes out. Brother Brigham does not grind any in his mill, without first passing it through the smut machine; so we have got to pass through the smut mill, before we are fit to be thrown into the hopper to be ground.

We must be passive as clay in the hands of the potter. The potter takes the passive clay, and molds it into numerous shapes; he can make it into a milk pan, or into a crock, or into a cup, or a jug, and from that into ten thousand shapes; he does everything according to his own pleasure, and as the Master Potter has told him to shape it. If the Master gives him a pattern, he must mold according to that pattern; it would make him busy indeed if he were to work according to every pattern. We must work according to the Master’s pattern. If we take this course there will be no trouble. Go forth, then, upon your farms, sow your grain, and when you get your sheep, they will have two litters a year, but if you do not do right you shall have none. Does not God love to bless those who appreciate His blessings? Yes, just as much as a kind father loves to bless his son. Our Father in heaven is much more willing to bless us than we are to bless each other.

Let us remember these things in which we have been instructed. And let us take hold of that wall when the Conference is over, and put it round this block this winter, so that next spring we may fill it up with shrubbery of all kinds, and decorate it, and prepare it for future purposes. And let us build up a temple with diligent hands. I have helped to build up two temples, and have had my endowments in them, and in other places; but to have an endowment that is proper and consistent, is to have it in a temple that has been built and consecrated to that purpose. Now go to, and get your farms, and bring in the firstfruits of the earth, the first things you raise; bring them in here and commit them into the hands of the Bishops. Remember that, and you shall have an endowment, and shall be greatly blessed with that blessing you have not room to contain, if you only appreciate it We want these things to roll on, God’s work to prosper, and His kingdom to be built up, and the work of God to spread to all the nations of the earth.

Do I fear the world? I do not fear them, I never did fear them, and I have seen enough of their stuff. I have been driven with the rest of my brethren from the United States and from my native home, but what do I care for it? My kindred are there, but they do not believe the Gospel, nor the revelations of Jesus Christ; they believe in the spiritual knocking, and nearly all the world are going into it, and receiving revelations for themselves from the regions of despair. It used to be with them, “Old Joe Smith, an old gold digger,” but all are digging gold now, and all are getting revelations, but they did not believe a word from him. He was a Prophet of God, and they cannot help themselves. They slew him, and that nation has got to smart for it, and it will be as much as the Saints can do to gather out of it. If they stay there, they will not gather from there; it is necessary to gather the wheat, and put it into the barn; if it is left out, the storms will come and actually waste or destroy it.

Let us be stirring and moving the principles of life and salvation forward in every rightful and possible way. I do not care what I am told to do, if it were to take an adobie and turn it over 500 times a day; if I am doing the will of God, if I am doing the will of him who sent me to do it, it is none of my business nor yours. It is for us to do that which we are told to do. You need not trouble yourselves about brother Brigham, nor about brother Heber, nor about the Twelve; brother Brigham will attend to them, and then, if they live faithful, will judge you and your children, and the nations of the earth, and those that are dead. Don’t you judge those men—that is for brother Brigham to do; if we need thrashing, he is capable of thrashing us, it is none of your business; and we will sit down and bear it like good fellows, and not move our tongue; if it should move, we will take it between our teeth, and give it a nip, and say, “Stay there, you little fellow.” As for the Twelve, and brother Brigham, and brother Willard, they are all men of God; and there never were better men than the Twelve that live in these last days—better men never lived. [A voice in the stand, “True.“] It is true, and I know it. Every soul of them can be prepared in two days to go to the nations of the earth, if we say so. You have got to be so too, brethren and sisters; you have got to learn to be subject to the Priesthood, as well as these brethren, and your children must learn the same lesson, and then you will be molded into vessels of honor, but you cannot be molded into vessels of honor except you be subject. You potters know it, if you have worked at the potter’s business as I have.

I love to talk about these things. I love the Saints, they are the pride of my heart. As for the world; its gold or silver, or anything that pertains to it, my heart is not upon it, but upon this Church and kingdom, and it never will be overcome, worlds without end. [A voice in the stand, “Amen.“] Although we may be scattered to the four quarters of the earth, we will gather again, never to be removed any more, henceforth and forever. Amen.

A Discourse by President Heber C. Kimball, Delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, October 7th, 1852, at the General Conference.

The brethren have heard considerable about going south; and I know there is considerable feeling manifested upon this matter. There are a great many persons in this valley, who are working against this operation; I mean fathers and mothers, brothers and sisters, and other relations. Nearly all of these persons have city lots, and they propose to divide them with the emigrants, rather than that they should leave the city; and at the same time take one hundred and fifty or two hundred dollars out of their brethren’s pockets for that which cost them little or nothing; so they have a certain object in view in persuading people to stay in the city. These things have a strong tendency to bind the brethren here. There are also many other things that have the same tendency. They reason among themselves, saying, “If we go to Iron County, or to Millard County, we shall perhaps lose our blessings, our sealings, and our endowments, and many other privileges;” and conclude to stay here for the purpose of obtaining these things. I will tell you that stay here for this purpose, you will not get your blessings as soon as those will who go and settle where they are counseled. For none of you can have these blessings until you prove yourselves worthy, by cultivating the earth, and then rendering to the Lord the firstfruits thereof, the firstfruits of your cattle, of your sheep, and of all your increase. This is how I understand it. Now go and get farms for yourselves while you can.

Those brethren in Iron County, and those that are still at Coal Creek, pretty much all of them, are ironmongers; they were the first to go into the iron and coal business and leave their farms. There are somewhere in the neighborhood of two hundred acres of land under cultivation in those valleys, that you can have the privilege of purchasing, or of cultivating for the time being, until you can make farms for yourselves. In the city of Manti, half of the houses are vacant; there are houses enough empty there to accommodate fifty or a hundred families. In Iron County also there are similar advantages.

Fillmore City, in Millard County, is situated in a very extensive valley. I think we travel, as we are going to Iron County, somewhere in the neighborhood of fifty or sixty miles, and then it extends west far beyond the power of the eyes to see; the fact is, we can see no distant mountains at all in some directions; and there are numerous rich valleys that are connected or which communicate with this, on to Iron County. Millard County we wish to make strong and powerful, for there is the center of the government of the State of Deseret, and where the governor and his associates, some time in the future, will dwell part of the year. There will be a building erected there for the use of the general government of this State and for the general government of the Church and kingdom of God. Then why need you be afraid of the result of anything that is best for you to do? Let grandfather, grandmother, brother or sister, have no influence over you to turn you aside from your duty.

If brother Brigham is not of more consequence to you than your brother or sister, or father or mother, or anything else that pertains to this life, I would not give much for your religion. If you will reflect for a moment, and let the Spirit of the Lord—the spirit of revelation, have place in your bosoms, so that you can foresee the future events which we are approaching, and let your minds expand by the power of the Holy Ghost, you will not hesitate one moment to go to these valleys.

We have no wish to get rid of the Saints, but the counsel that is given them to go and settle those places, is for their best interest, and for the upbuilding of the kingdom of God.

You have arrived safely in this valley, by the providence of God, from Old England, where it rains almost every day, and where they have to keep the lamps lit, sometimes, in order to pass through the streets safely in the day time. Often, when I was there, I had to sit and read in the day time by candle light; and we very seldom durst go out without an umbrella, for if we did, we were sure to get soaked to the skin before we returned. It is not so in this country; and the further you go south, the higher the valleys are, until you go over the rim of the Great Basin, about sixty miles, down to the Rio Virgin. As soon as you get there, you are where it is summer all the year round; but we do not wish you to go there until you are appointed to go. We want you to go where you are sent, for you cannot get your endowments until you have proved yourselves—that is what we intend; it is the mind of brother Brigham, the President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and the Prophet of God, who holds the keys of life and salvation pertaining to you, and me, and all the world—not a soul is excepted, neither man, woman, nor child; they all belong to him; for he is the Prophet, he is our Priest, our Governor, even the Governor of the State of Deseret.

I think more of the things that pertain to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, or the kingdom of God, than I do of these little petty territorial matters. I presume if the brethren in this Conference will go into these valleys, and grow wheat, raise cattle, and other products of the earth, and then give one-tenth of all their increase into the Lord’s storehouse; and one-tenth of all they have got now, we shall be able to set to immediately, and build a temple, and finish it forthwith, and abandon the idea of the Church building houses for individuals, to get a few dollars here and there to carry on the public works. Let us attend to the Church matters, and rear that wall round the Temple block as soon as possible, and apply the Church funds to this purpose, instead of putting them into the hands of a few individuals, that would perhaps pay one hundred dollars, or turn in a yoke of cattle, and say, “Build me a house, and then let the Church pay the difference.” They will pay so much, and perhaps the rest of it is sucked out of the vitals of the Church. This is afflicting the Church; it cannot carry this burden, but must and will throw it off, and use the tithing in building a temple, a baptismal font, storehouses, and such things the Church has need of. I do not know whether you have any desire to have a temple built or not. Have you reflected upon it, that we may go to with our might, our means, our substance, and with all we have to build a house to the Lord, to build fonts, that we can attend to the ordinances of salvation for ourselves, our children, our fathers, and mothers, both living and dead? What do you say? If you say we shall do so, raise your right hands. (All hands were up.) It is clear that they will have a temple, brother Brigham.

Now if you will take hold together, and do as you have been told, and go and people those rich valleys, except those who have been counseled to stay here, for if they are wanted here, it is necessary they should stay here; you shall be blessed. Gather up your substance, and go and make farms for yourselves, that you can raise from two hundred to three thousand bushels of wheat next summer. We have been in those valleys two or three times on exploring expeditions, and we are going again next fall, over the mountains, down into the lower world, if the Lord will. We shall thus travel back and forth, and live about as much in one place as in another; for the future we shall keep on the move, going to and fro, and shall never be easy; we never want to be, nor that you should, until the kingdom of God prevails over this earth. We will fill up these mountains, take up the land, and, as they used to say in the States, “become squatters,” and we will become thicker on the mountains than the crickets ever were.

If you can once break up the ranks of the crickets, it breaks up their calculations, and under such circumstances they never will undertake a war upon your crops. In like manner we have to become one, and build a Temple, that we may learn the principles of oneness more fully, to prepare for all things to come, that when we become fixed for war, we may whip out all the enemies of truth, and never yield the point, neither man, woman, nor child that is in Israel.

As for murmurers and complainers and faultfinders, we want to give them some employment, and we shall attend to that part of the business before long. After meeting we will lay the thing before them, and all the murmurers, and complainers, and faultfinders, &c., we want they should raise their right hand to do some good. If they want to vote, we will appoint a meeting at the Council House directly after Conference, and organize them into companies, and appoint a building committee to build brother Brigham a house, and the person who murmurs the worst shall be the President. We will give him the same right which we gave to Father Sherwood; but it was a tie between him and Zebedee Coltrin which should preside; but Father Sherwood’s tongue being more limber, he whipped out Coltrin, and got the Presidency. We will organize a company of males and females, for we calculate to give females an office in that company, and they shall be upon an equal footing with the men. Now there’s a chance for you women who seek to be equal with your husbands. This is sticking to the text brother Brigham gave yesterday. But I believe I will stop speaking for the present.

Delivered by President Heber C. Kimball, September 23, 1852, on the Death of Sister Mary Smith, Relict of the Martyred Patriarch Hyrum Smith, and Who Departed this Life at the Residence of President Kimball, September 22, 1852.

I wish to make a few remarks, on this solemn occasion, in regard to sister Mary, and in regard to what brother Brigham has said, which is perfectly congenial to my feelings.

As it regards sister Mary Smith’s situation and circumstances, I have no trouble at all, for if any person has lived the life of a Saint, she has. If any person has acted the part of a mother, she has. I may say she has acted the part of a mother, and a father, and a Bishop. She has had a large family, and several old people to take care of, and which she has maintained for years by her economy and industry.

One thing I am glad of, and I feel to rejoice in the providence of God that things have been as they have. She came here sick on the Sabbath, eight weeks ago last Sunday, for me to lay hands upon her. She was laid prostrate upon her bed, and was not able to recover afterwards. I felt as though it was a providential circumstance that it so happened. She always expressed that she knew the thing was dictated by the Lord that she should be placed here in my house, though accidentally. She probably would not have lived so long, had she been where she could not have had the same care. On Tuesday evening, eight weeks and two days since, she came here sick; from that time until her death she was prayerful and humble. I have never seen a person in my life that had a greater desire to live than she had, and there was only one thing she desired to live for, and that was to see to her family; it distressed her to think that she could not see to them; she wept about it. She experienced this anxiety for a month previous to her death, and she wept and prayed that the diseased place might be opened.

She was never left alone, after she became sick. My family, and brother Brigham’s family, and others, waited upon her all the time. She had every attention paid to her, that ever was paid to a sick person. This she expressed, herself, times and times again. Sister Thompson has been here ever since sister Mary was taken sick, and she paid every attention to her. I say, with regard to my family, if ever there were good feelings shown to any person, they have manifested them to her, so also have brother Brigham’s family, and others who live around here. I will say so much in their behalf, and for the consolation of the friends of the departed.

I am thankful to the Lord God, that I have had the privilege, with my family, to do Mary a kindness; it is a consolation to me. Do I regret it? No. I never regret a good deed that I have done in my life. If I regret anything, it is that I have not the ability to do more good.

Let us do all the good we can. Show all the kindness we can to the world, to both Saint and sinner, to all upon the face of the earth, and I know we shall receive our reward for every good and for every evil work we do, but I do not want to be rewarded for anything but that which is good. May God grant me life, that it may be spent for the good of this people, and for the comfort and consolation of brother Brigham. God forbid I should ever grieve his feelings, and the Spirit of God, from this time forth, that when I die I may depart in peace, to mingle with those who have gone before me.

I know sister Mary has departed in peace; she has gone home. I never heard her murmur against brother Brigham in my life, nor against me. If I went to see her, it was well; if not, it was all the same. She has come to see me, sometimes once, and sometimes twice a week. When I have seen her, I have said to her, I have no time to come and see you, Mary, therefore you must come and see me. She never considered it too much trouble to come and see me and her brethren. I am satisfied she desired to live for the benefit of her children. I know she has given them good counsel, and if they will follow it they will never be in trouble. I feel well towards them, and towards all present, and, in fact, I have nothing against any being upon the face of the earth. I feel to rejoice, I am comforted, and I feel to praise the Lord God; and when I have done my work, I will go to my brethren, and be with those I have associated with from the beginning. Why I believe it, is, because I have an assurance for myself, which is like an anchor, and taketh hold of that which is within the veil. I shall land safe; this is my feeling, and I have no other desire in my heart, nor ever had from the first day I enlisted into this Church. I never had any wish, but to do that which is right all the time. Considering the character of my calling, connected as I am and have been with the Prophet, Apostles, and Patriarchs of Jesus Christ, and with holy men of God, I do not consider that anything else but doing right is the character of such a man, it is the nature of his calling and office to be an Apostle, and issue forth the light and truth of God, from this time henceforth and forever. These are my feelings, brother Brigham, all the time. [President Brigham Young, “I know it.”] When I eat and when I drink, when I go out and when I come in, my prayer is, and feelings are, to do right; and I am glad I did right to sister Mary, and took care of her, and that my family had the pleasure of nourishing her; the satisfaction this gives me, is worth more to me than a hundred thousand dollars. Do I believe they know it in heaven? Yes, as much as you do. I want to live all the time in righteousness, as I know that God sees me and all the works of His hands. When we see as He sees, and comprehend as He comprehends, it will be by the same powers and keys that we are known to Him. I rejoice exceedingly before God, that I am a Latter-day Saint, that I am a “Mormon” Elder in Israel, for what I know, and for what I have seen and passed through; it is worth more to me than gold and silver, or precious stones; what I have passed through has given me an experience, and I praise the Lord God that I am a member of the house of Israel, and one of the elect of God; and I shall dwell with you in eternity, and I know it.

May God bless you forever, Amen.

An Address by President Heber C. Kimball, Delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, September 19, 1852.

Brethren and Sisters—I never saw the day in which I felt more thankful than I do at the present time, that the God whom I serve has given me the Spirit of truth. I have no desire in my heart to manifest anything, by my words or by my acts, only the truth.

There is not anything that has been revealed to me, since I came into this Church, but what I most assuredly know to be true. “Mormonism” is true, and we who have enlisted in this Church have enlisted in a good cause; and by continually obeying the truth to the end of our lives, it will lead us into the Celestial world; and I know that there is no other way to get there, only by the principle of obedience, and bringing our hearts to bear upon the truth, and to gauging our lives by it. I reflect many times upon these things, and am thankful that I know and possess the truth in a degree, still am aware that there are thousands of things before us which I have not yet attained to. The only way for us to be useful to one another is to take a course to build upon the principles of truth, and never to suffer ourselves to cultivate any but the principles of right.

I am satisfied that a man’s conduct has a great influence; it has an influence with the Saints and with the world. The world is in possession of the truth and of the Spirit of the Lord in some degree; as you have heard brother Brigham say a great many times, there is not an honest man or woman, who has heard the Gospel, but who has in a greater or less degree been influenced by that Spirit to believe it to be the truth—that Joseph Smith was a Prophet, an Apostle, a man sent of God to preach the Gospel. He was, whether they believe it or not. We live in a day and age of the world which we have talked about a thousand times, but do we fully realize it? We live in a day that the Apostles in the days of Jesus, and the Patriarchs, and thousands of holy men actually saw—they beheld the day we now live in, and anxiously desired to enjoy it in the flesh, but they died without that privilege. Are we not privileged with that day? Do we not live in the days of the Prophets and Apostles, in the days of Patriarchs and holy men? We do. I realize it, I reflect upon it, and desire that the people should reflect upon it, and diligently seek after the Spirit of truth—seek after the Holy Ghost, which is the Spirit of revelation, and it will reveal past things to you and show you things to come. Many times you reflect upon things, but are not certain whether they are correct or not, and by and by they will be revealed from this stand, the very things you had in your mind for years, and that the Spirit of God had shown to you, but you did not know how to organize and classify them, and judge of their truth. President Brigham Young is a Prophet, and can present doctrines to you, classify them, and set them in order; that is his office; and the Apostle has his office, which is to preach the Gospel in all the world, and organize the Church, and set it in order, to take the elements and combine them together.

Inasmuch as we are the Elders of Israel, the saviors of men, we should take a course to set an example that is worthy of imitation in our daily walk, conversation, and business transactions. While we were hearing from this stand last Sabbath concerning the course which some men took in keeping groceries, &c., I thought all men are not alike—have not all got strong minds, that it is the duty of every person never to introduce into or permit a thing to enter your houses that would have a tendency to allure the mind and lead it astray, but set a good example and do as you would wish to be dealt by.

A man who starts a drinking shop in the midst of this people, is introducing that which has a tendency to lead away men who are habituated to strong drinks from their youth up, and have so craving an appetite for them that they cannot let them alone if they are where they can be got.

Another thing, it does not suit my mind to believe that man to be a good man who would present anything to his neighbor that is calculated in its nature to be injurious. As we are the people of God, as “Mormonism” is true, and as we have enlisted under the banner of Christ the King, the Savior of the world, and as he taught the laws of his Father, we should do his will and keep his commandments as he kept the commandments of his Father, and never allow ourselves to do wrong, or act in any manner that would lead anyone astray.

But where a man does permit himself to do these things, I have no doubt that in process of time it will work together for good to those who love God and keep His commandments. We can see who is righteous, who is false, and who is true. Let us keep the commandments of God, and when we meet together, as we have this afternoon, and every afternoon, to partake of the Sacrament, let us pray that we may be strengthened in our bodies and spirits, that we may be filled with the same spirit, power, truth, and righteousness that dwelt in the bosom of Jesus, that we may cleave to the vine and partake of the same nourishment with it.

Let us all take a course to do right, and, if we all do right, there is no person here that will do wrong. I am aware that there will have to be a sifting, but would there be any necessity for it if the elements were pure? No. You can obtain pure sand here upon the public works, and with that you can make good tempered mortar, for the better it is tempered the better wall you can put up for your habitation. Temper the mortar and let the sand be clear of stone, roots, and every imperfect thing.

If this were the case the masons would have no use for the coarse screen to throw the sand against, nor for a fine sieve to separate the finer particles. It is just so with us. The Lord will keep sifting, and will prepare a riddle and sieve, that is, the devil will riddle you, and after that he will sift you. Did not the Savior tell one of his disciples that the devil desired to sift him as wheat is sifted? We have come together here, the wheat is gathered in from the four quarters ready for the thrashing and sifting. The world is called the field, and the reapers are going forth to reap and bind up the wheat, or children of the kingdom, into churches, and then draw them together from the four quarters of the earth. For what purpose? In order that the wheat may be thrashed, and after it is thrashed it must go through the fanning mill, and many of the kernels are blown out with the chaff. The heavier wheat drops down in the place prepared to receive it, and at the mill it has to go through the smut machine before it is ground, and after it is ground it has to go through a bolt.

At the far end of the bolt there are fans, into which the flour enters, then it keeps growing coarser and coarser, and then goes out the bran at the hind end. In this country we have got a thrashing machine that is fitted with three places; one for the chaff, another for the smut, and other foul articles, and a third to retain the wheat; hence they can go off south, in this way or that way, and some go after gold, and some after a better climate, for they do not like this climate, as they say the winters eat up the summers.

I am more than willing that all such should go, for if they all the time want to go there, let them go. We have got to be brought back into the presence of our Father in heaven, from whence we have fallen; and if we calculate on this we must pass through trials, suffering, and sifting. If you get thrashed, do not murmur. Brethren, let us take the right course, listen to the counsels we are blessed with and that we know to be right.

If you will not take the course the Lord has marked out, you might as well back out and go down to the regions of despair, to the gold regions, or where you please, but do not trouble us, we are bound to be Saints. We know that this work is true, and if you don’t know how to take a course that will bind you to it, plead with and ask God until you do get knowledge for yourselves, until you can bear the same testimony as we do. When you can do that, you will have favor with God, He will prosper you here and multiply His blessings upon us, until we are redeemed and prepared to enter into His glory, and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, and Joseph.

You know the revelation says that Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob entered into their glory and exaltation, and they have done this; you can sit down with them by taking the same course that they did. Let us cheer up, let us be comforted. We are comforted, we are blessed, and you feel just as good a spirit here as ever you felt in any place.

You who have lately come in, if you are not very careful, will get to murmuring and finding fault with us, and to think that we are not religious enough. I admit that I am not quite so sanctimonious as they are in London, but I believe that we have got something they have not, we enjoy something they do not. The feelings I enjoy, yield me pleasures that far exceed those derived from the mere luxuries of the world, and that is, to have dwelling in me the power of the Holy Ghost, to be honest, and as pure as a babe, as a lamb, or as an angel.

If you enjoy that condition, brethren and sisters, never be troubled about anything, about food, raiment, houses, lands, the devil, or any wicked person, and we will gain the victory, and become Kings and Priests to our God and to His Christ. If every individual will overcome for himself, he will be crowned. This Church and Kingdom will never fall, therefore let me hear about pure Saints and a pure plan of salvation. Let us observe the order of God, and every one be humble to that order and His authorities that preside over us. Let these Saints in the valleys of the mountains be subject to their officers, the people to their Bishops, and the Bishops to their rulers, and in this way we will move on with mighty power. As for the devil and the world, with its combined powers, if they are all arraigned against us, we have power with God to overcome them all.

In the days of Israel, we read that one chased a thousand and two put ten thousand to flight. The Lord would send an influence, perhaps a spirit rapping would get into their midst, and they would go to work and slay one another. Cannot the Lord do the same now? Cannot He turn over mountains, if we were followed up by enemies, and heap them upon them just as easy as I can turn over an apple? You need not borrow trouble about brother Brigham—he does right all the time. God is with him, angels are with him and round about him night and day. The wisdom of God is given to him, and it will supersede the wisdom of the world; I know this as well as I know that you are here this day.

The ungodly killed Joseph and Hyrum, but in so doing they furthered the work of God more than tenfold. Joseph laid the foundation, and left us to build the building, and when we are gone we will leave others, for it must be done. Do not be troubled, but do what you have been told today, and never take a course to trammel the First Presidency in their operations, but take off their shackles and burdens and carry them yourselves, for you have just as much physical strength as they have. There is scarcely a weakly man or woman here; then carry your own burdens. God bless you forever. Amen.

Remarks by President Heber C. Kimball, Delivered at a Special Conference held in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, August 28, 1852.

We have come together today, according to previous appointment, to hold a special Conference, to transact business a month earlier than usual, inasmuch as there are Elders to be selected to go to the nations of the earth; and they want an earlier start than formerly. There will probably be Elders chosen to go to the four quarters of the globe to transact business, preach the Gospel, &c.

I recollect reading in one of the revelations, in the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, where the Lord says—“If a man, inasmuch as he is an Elder, has a desire in his heart to preach the Gospel, he it is that is called to preach the Gospel.” On the other hand, the Scriptures, or some of the other revelations of God, say that “many are called, but few are chosen.” When a man has that desire in his heart, he is called; but, perhaps, not a great many will be chosen to go forth and preach the Gospel.

I suppose you are all aware, by the information that we have received from our brethren the Apostles, who have lately returned from foreign missions, that the work of God has commenced in many nations of Europe and upon the islands of the sea. Still there are many nations where the Gospel door has not yet been opened in a direct way. Though the foundation has been laid for the intro– duction of the Gospel among them, and indirectly the door has been opened to all nations—that is, it has been opened into the main room; still there are a great many adjacent rooms leading from that, that have yet to be opened with the smaller keys.

I want to say one thing before we proceed to the business of calling and setting apart those who have to go from this place to the nations this season. We have made a selection of a considerable number of Elders to leave home and go abroad. This may be repugnant to the feelings of some: they may think it is a hazardous undertaking. But at the same time, to go now is nothing to compare with going out to preach the Gospel fifteen years ago, when they had to go, not only without purse or scrip, but without any knowledge that there was a friend to take them by the hand when they arrived at their destination. Now they cannot go to any part of the world, scarcely, but they will find themselves among the Saints.

It is a pleasure to preach the truth. I will say, to those who love to do the will of the Father, as it was with Jesus Christ; for says he, “Father, not my will, but thine be done;” I wish to know nothing but thy will, and that I will do until I spend my life. Did he not do this? He did. You require that same spirit and deter– mination to carry out the same purpose; and I beg and beseech of you, brethren, you that shall be chosen, when you are elected, to go, if you don’t live until you get to the United States; for when men are called and set apart to the ministry to go to the nations of the earth, if they refuse to go, it is death to them—that is, to their characters as faithful Elders in Israel: they go down and not up, backward and not forward. I merely speak of this from my own experience, for I have had one in this Church of upwards of twenty years. I was raised up as it were with the Prophet; I lived with him to the day of his death. As to our present Prophets and Elders, brother Brigham Young I have lived with, with him I have traveled, and with him I have suffered. I have ate and slept with him, and been by his side almost my whole life. I could say with propriety, and I can say it with truth, that Joseph Smith was a Prophet of God, a Seer, a Revelator, an Apostle of Jesus, and was ordained directly under the hands of Peter, James, and John; and he died a Prophet, and Hyrum died a Patriarch of Jesus—a father in Israel.

Brother Brigham Young is the successor of Joseph Smith; and a better man never lived upon the earth, nor ever sought the interest of this people more fervently from morning until night, and vice versa, than he has done. Did he not travel in the days of Joseph? He did, from the time he came into the Church until the death of Joseph; and so did I. Did we ever hesitate for one moment? No, not for a moment.

Jesus sought to do the will of his Father in heaven; so it was our duty to do the will of Joseph; and now it is the duty of us all to do the will of brother Brigham, for he reveals to us the will of God, which is his will. We will do his will as an Elder, as a Prophet, as an Apostle of Jesus Christ, holding the same keys that Peter of old held—the same that Joseph Smith held as an Apostle. You all believe this, don’t you, without an exception? Well, if this is your faith—if this is your determination, I want you should manifest it by raising your right hands, and saying Aye.

[A literal forest of hands was the result of this call, and the spacious hall trembled when a simultaneous “Aye” burst from the mouths of over two thousand persons.]

There it is, and it cannot be any other way.

I say to those who are elected to go on missions, Go, if you never return; and commit what you have into the hands of God—your wives, your children, your brethren, and your property. Let truth and righteousness be your motto; and do not go into the world for anything else but to preach the Gospel, build up the kingdom of God, and gather the sheep into the fold. You are sent out as shepherds to gather the sheep together; and remember that they are not your sheep: they belong to Him that sends you. Then do not make a choice of any of those sheep; do not make selections before they are brought home and put into the fold. You understand that. Amen.

An Address by President H. C. Kimball, Delivered in the Tabernacle, Great Salt Lake City, July 11, 1852.

I have been much interested with the principles that have been laid before us by brother Daniel Tyler. He is a man with whom I have been acquainted for many years, and I know him to be a good man. I can say truly that I have heard the Gospel presented before us this morning, as it is recorded in the New Testament.

You know that it is generally understood, and perhaps by many of the strangers who are present today, that we do not believe the Bible. That is a great mistake: we do believe it. I can say, as one of the Apostles of old said, and it is my advice and instruction to you—prove all things, and try all things, and hold fast to that which is good. As he exhorted you to prove these things, to investigate them, and reflect upon them, and prove the truth of that which is called “Mormonism,” let me tell you, gentlemen, the day will come, if you don’t do it, you will be sorry. Why? Because there is a future day that will determine these things.

It will be but a few years, perhaps not to exceed fifty, that not a person here this day will then be upon the earth. You will go into the world of spirits, to try the realities of another state of existence. What we have to do we must do in this state of existence, while in our tabernacles of flesh; and if we make good use of our lives, and of our bodies, and of our talents, it will be well with us; but if we do not, we have to give an account of the deeds done in the body. These bodies are given to you by the same Being that gave to me my body, and they are committed to you as a stewardship by that God who placed us here; and you have got to give an account of your stewardship, and the course you take. If you permit that tabernacle to become polluted, and if your spirit suffers your body to be contaminated with sin and corruption, you will have to make an atonement for it before you can get your redemption worked out. Gentlemen, mark it, for it is even so.

This is the Gospel which has been taught to us today, in a plain and simple manner, and in that simplicity that it was taught by Jesus Christ and his Apostles, and by many others who were ordained by them. The people profess to believe the Bible; the whole Christian world profess to believe that book—to believe that it is the Bible, but do they believe what is in that Bible? If they do, they don’t practice it. How many of you, my breth– ren and fellow travelers to eternity, how many times have you said in your day, and in your generation, and in your family circles, “If I could see one man practice that religion that was taught by Jesus and his Apostles, I would be a Saint.” I said it many times before I ever heard of “Mormonism,” and sought for these things, and wished for them, and prayed for them according to the knowledge I then had. But what did I know about God, or about the Gospel, by what I heard from the pulpits of the day?

I have been at the Methodists’ meeting many a time, and have followed up their protracted meetings, and sought for religion; and when people were converted to the faith of Methodism, I have seen the priest go to the water because some wished to be baptized in the water, but not because it was at all necessary. One would say I want to be sprinkled; another, I want to have the water poured upon me; and another, I want to be plunged. All right, says the minister, either of these is just as necessary as the other, for none of them are essential to salvation; we only attend to them to satisfy the candidate. Suppose the laws of the United States were made upon this principle, just to suit everybody’s fancy and notions, making laws for every one to do just as he pleased—what kind of laws would they be? What would you think of such a lawmaking department? Would you sustain it? Would you send to it a man, as a delegate, to represent your case, to make wholesome laws that would give every man his rights and privileges? I would not have such a law, but I would cast it out with those who made it.

God has one mode of saving men and women, and you cannot be saved upon any other principle than that which Jesus Christ taught, and I know it. I can say to this congregation, and to every other, which thing I have said in the United States and in Great Britain—except you receive the words of Jesus Christ, and those that are ordained and sent forth by him, you are just as sure of damnation as you are sure of dying, and I know it. These things are plain, and the Gospel that brother Daniel has spoken has been revealed in these last times. That light that was once extinguished by wickedness has been lit up again. The ancient Gospel is again revealed, and the Priesthood of the Son of God, and the Latter-day Saints have this power, and you cannot help yourselves. That is why we are here today, that is the reason why I am here today, in a land of peace and plenty, and a healthy location, with my brethren who have come here to find a good home. Don’t you find the people here peaceable, and kind, and affectionate, attending to their own business? Did you ever find a more peaceable place in your life, in the United States, or in England, or in any part of the world, than this? No, I defy you to find any more peaceable place than this. The reason we are here in these silent valleys is, because we could not have the privilege of worshipping God according to His requirements in our native country. Some of you may say, “I can scarcely believe that;” but, as sure as you live, I have been robbed and broken up six times before I came here, and was forced to leave my habitation, and my substance. It is there now, and they are welcome to it. I am not the only person who has suffered so, by a great many; and all because of my religion. We are looked upon as the worst kind of beings on the earth. Did you ever think of a wicked thing but what it was placed upon us.

Joseph Smith and his brother were killed in Carthage jail. Joseph Smith was a Prophet of God, and I know it. I am not testifying to this because I have believed it so long, but I knew it twenty years ago, just as well as I do now, and have testified of it to the nations of the earth. And what will be the consequences of this testimony? They that believe and are baptized shall be saved, and they shall receive the Holy Ghost under the hands of those who have due authority to confer that blessing; and if they go forward and are baptized with full purpose of heart, believing with all their soul, obeying the Gospel, being buried with Christ by baptism, they shall obtain the Holy Ghost.

On the day of Pentecost, when Peter proclaimed the Gospel, about 3,000 souls were added to the Church that day. How long did it take them to repent? No longer than they were willing to believe, and put away their sins, with a determination to forsake them, and not sin again.

I rejoice that I live in this day and age of the world; I rejoice that I have passed through what I have for the Gospel’s sake; but will it compare with what men passed through in the days of Jesus, who was hung upon a cross for his religion? He expired upon Calvary for his religion; they killed him as a false prophet, and even those of his own household did not believe in him; they also slew his Apostles, and those who believed in them. Don’t you suppose it was as degrading to them to believe in Jesus Christ, as for us to believe that Joseph Smith was a Prophet? He was a Prophet, and Jesus was the Son of God; and Hyrum Smith was a Patriarch, and a son of God, and I bear witness of it unto all men. Many feel to damn the “Mormons,” and call them everything that is evil—does it harm us? Does it affect our salvation in the least? No! The more patiently we bear it the greater will be our glory and exaltation. It is because of our religion that the people are in trouble.

In the United States they are trou– bled about it; in Great Britain, France, and Denmark, they are troubled about it. The priests of the day are stoutly crying, false Prophet, and delusion; and the invisible world are rapping, muttering, and peeping, and they are finding fault. They are at a loss to know what can be the matter. The invisible world are in trouble; they are knocking, and rapping, and muttering; and the people are inquiring of them to know concerning the things of God, and there is not a soul of them can tell them anything about the end of the world. They are in a dreadful situation; and in the city of Rochester, near where I used to live, the last information I received from there, there were 135 spiritual writers in that city. I have a brother-in-law there, who is a Presbyterian priest: he couldn’t inquire of God about future things, so he inquired of the spirits; but they could not tell him anything about the dead nor the living. They are just about as intelligent in their revelations as this world are in theirs. They are all in commotion—what is going to be done? I will tell you—God is going to make a short work upon the earth, and the invisible world are troubled about it. You do not doubt that, gentlemen; you who come from the United States can see that it is so; and the people are troubled in New York, and in many of the other States, so that they cannot rest, no not a day. They are in confusion, and so dispirited they know not what to do. The idea strikes me that the day of the Lord is approaching, and nearer than you think it is. You are here in quest of gold, but there is something here worth more than the glittering jewels of the earth. I say, let me serve God, and keep His commandments, and you may have the gold, and all the riches and wealth of the earth in welcome; I care nothing about it; for all you can take with you, when you leave this earth, is not much.

A dream that my own daughter had lately, comes forcibly to my mind. I will relate it. She dreamed that she was driven, and those that were with her, but they had a great many fine things in the earth, in the shape of furniture, gold and silver, and everything else; and she suffered in her feelings, because she was under the necessity of leaving all, and could not take anything out of the world with her. Finally she was permitted to take a white dress. I said to her, that is all we can take, in our shroud we shall be laid in the silent tomb. Naked we came into the world, and naked we shall go out of it, for dust we are, and unto dust we shall return. Can you help yourselves? If you can, you have more power than I have. I expect to be laid low, with all the human family, as was the Son of God, and I cannot help myself. I know your feelings; I have seen the day when I loved gold, and silver, and fine carriages, and fine horses, and the good things of this world; but I have lost those feelings, and may God ever continue to separate them from me, as far as the east is from the west; and let my affections be upon Him, and His kingdom, until I breathe my last breath. I know if I never go to the United States again, or to Great Britain, my skirts are clear from the blood of this generation. I have received nothing but ill wages for my labor from them; and if ever a man did his duty, I have done it to this generation. I have told you the truth, and whether you are in hell or in heaven you shall know that “Mormonism” is true, and what I and my brethren have told you this day is the Gospel of salvation. So may God have mercy upon you, and save you in His kingdom. Amen.