Show FROM THE missionary FIELDS southwestern states mission st john kansas june 9 1898 kansas conference of the southwestern states mission convened at st jqhn john june 3rd ard ath and ath elder james L nielson president of the conference presiding there were present of the elders from zion wm T jack pral dent of the mission louis E iverson son F L copening james L nielson P W dunyon H W noble wm stillman D W stone J P anderson H et 14 white S B hazen J J larkin ad D M nelson geo N atkinson C F hulet wm burton F C fuller C W goodliffe Good liffie H TT russell E C winn glnn and D L miller also sister F 3 IA copening who arrived in the mission field april she being among the first sisters to be called and set apart to this great work moderate good health and an excellent spirit prevailed r ailed throughout the entire con w terence ce although our public meet F inga were w re not attended as numerously yas aw we would have wished on account of a the busy season an enjoyable time was R had the sermons were short and many compliments were cassed ased on the musical feature of our conference ido arence this is an accomplish fi nent that is to of often ten neglected by the Ry ayoung ung oung men of zion we believe that st janne person should suggest that all young men be encouraged to join choirs in their respective wards and d develop their vocal talent elders imbo 0 can sing will rarely lack friends glat at our priesthood meetings the el edw each give favorable reports of ir labors for the past six months and inoke ke 0 of f the many manifestations of kb goodness of the lord to them eby their faith had been strength bed and their ir deter determination to further fis is purposes in the earth had be fame more intense an interesting fea atre re of this meeting was the report saven ven by sister copening of her la with sister ida mrs ro in company of this city who is also ailt faithful heui conscientious member of the church these two sisters had been ap anted to canvas the of st john holding gospel conversations distria lae tracts and to form the acquaint ice of the people inviting the children r ur nr sunday school and the parents come to our meetings their report wed owed favorable progress of the one red and twenty six families visited reported only two had refused them halt It tance they were received kindly r the majority and many warm re lasts jt s TO 0 call again one hundred and fity five tracts were distributed and one gospel conversations had the biter r part of which were with peo with I 1 whom our elders could never the e privilege to explain the gos t seems that our sisters who are ea 4 to labor in the lords vineyard supply the missing link and beje e an important factor in getting restored 1 stored gospel before all the people the e earth before the glorious advent i we tue V messiah A tte the elders in the missi mission dr generally erene Lene rally in good health full of the spirit their labors with every indication they are boins good faithful ser your brother WILLIAM T JACK bart arkansas conference bradford arkansas 1 16 conference has come and gone gonrand jand and 1 Y abe elders of the east arkansas oon con lwft oe have returned to their fields SS sore jor determined that ever to do jetty y in the g service of the lord teem of truth and bringing christ t it was unquestionably the best conference we ever attended never did we see the power of god nor the spirit of revelation so plainly manifested and some thing that never can he be forgotten it seemed that we were prepared to received it for we had fasted and prayed to the lord dord to know his will concerning us and to have his spirit poured out upon us and upon the people and when it came we were almost overcome with joy it was a testimony that we will always be thankful for could our friends in zion see such a noble band of brethren actuated by such an abiding faith and filled with such love for each other for their fellow men and the cause of god they would not it seems to me entertain a doubt as to the divinity of the cause we represent elder william T jack president of the southwestern states mission was in attendance and we were greatly stimulated by his kind and loving words of counsel and instruction that flowed as a stream of inspiration from his lips at the close of one of our meetings in which he occupied most of the time several came forwald and sald said that it was just what they wanted to know elder jack was accompanied by elders joseph J richardson and byron H allred ailred late of the cherokee conference and now on their way to kansas to labor these brethren have greatly distinguished themselves as missionaries through their humility faith and dill diligence they are able to carry with them an influence that has great weight with the elders and the people their visit was much appreciated our conference was all the more interesting te from the fact that we were able to hold it in a meeting house of our own the elders each contributed a few dollars towards the erection and the building was done principally by elders brown and peterson several of our friends assisted us by way of hauling lumber etc we would make special mention of T M chapman sam cooper and E S ferguson As the elders have done considerable preaching in this neighborhood the first principles princ prine ples of the gospel were not dwelt upon very much during conference the restoration of the gospel the necessity necess ty of apostles and prophets the divine mission of the prophet joseph smith and the office of the holy ghost as aa a witness of truth were the leading subjects treated by the speakers akers and each theme was creditably handled each bore a powerful testimony of the truth of these principles As might have been expected where so much of the power of god Is manifested it would awaken a corresponding exertion by the powers of dark ness As we were singing the second hymn in our last meeting the house was attacked with a volley of eggs A littile excitement was created at the time but it soon subsided atil until the meeting was over next day there was quite a stir st among the people and no doubt the ruffians were surprised to find so little sympathy on their side through the indefatigable efforts of a few of out friends the guilty parties were dincov erett and they were made to see what we could do with them if we would but we decided to forgive them they seem to be ashamed of themselves now on sunday the dinst we had the privilege of organizing the first sunday school in this part odthe mission interest was shown and w we e have great faith that it will be a success with such bright prospects before us in this vicinity we confidently hope hop through th ehg blessings of the lord to build up a a good branch of the church the following elders now compose the east arkansas conference john H peterson richard R D brown sidney rust ashted taylor herbert W webster orson folkman n M grow hosmer M markham Mark haan leander li clifford elmer L penrod charles M malin james W welsh peter M hixson and geo E wilkins quite an array of bright young men who will no doubt be a power for good among the people elders folkman malin taylor and welsh have been sent to the cita of little rock to open up the work there elders peterson and brown remain here to take charge of the sunday school and direct the labors of the elders and saints in different parts of the conference JOHN H PETERSON president I 1 manitoba mission brandon conference june 15 1898 the e ma manitoba isoba mission like all other new fields is gaining ground slowly As the people are so prejudiced it Is 19 almost impossible to get a hearing in the month of december we were favored with a visit from elder C 0 card of hardston Oard ston who while with us organized a conference known as the brandon conference with brandon as aa headquarters and elder W S baxter as president under elder card elder A G barber having been released to return home some time previous anac on ac count of having weak lungs we bervi were assigned our fields of labor as an follows elders A M merkley and james Q G stuart at souris a small village 24 miles southwest of brandon elders prank frank may and S A johnson at min kin 35 miles north of Bran donand elders W S baxter and your correspondent Pon lent at the headquarters of f the conference bacr ea t pair of elders holding meetings once a week all winter with a very small attendance XU in brandon we have a nice large hall carpeted and seated with chairs we pay 75 per year it seems that the manitoba climate does not agree with people who are subject to lung complaints pla ints as two of our elders have been obliged to return home on that account elder S A johnson was compelled to 4 leave us in the month of march elder baxter accompanied him but returned the latter part of april since that time we e have been anxiously looking for other elders to make our foro force stronger some places we have had bad to abandon on account of elders ing tb the mission emission we are holding thre and four meetings a week in the country school houses which are betters better Ms dt tended than those in the towns as the ie country people seem to think for themselves more than thoe those who are visited more ofton often by our opponents some months ago elder johnson and musett were traveling in our usual way elsif ing the people distributing tracts and 4 ga explaining the gospel to them leaving friends one morning we traveled ten ty miles without anything to eat we called on a great many people but were obliged to sleep in a straw stack aa at such times there is great comfort in the words of christ to his apostles aples remember the word that I 1 sald said unto ato you the servant to is not greater than his lord if they have persecuted me they will also alo persecute you EDWARD LEAVITT cleft in germany it was nearly christmas time laft yew year while I 1 was performing duties in the dresden confer conference eUM many that a letter came cirit froam bib quarters in bern that I 1 had been appointed to cologne on the rhine it was a new field and I 1 was instructed to try and open up a new branch there on the 3rd ard of january 1 I left the beautiful city of dresden and after one day in leipsic and another in frankfort arrived at my destination on the ath brother karl behle a very earnest honest and energetic young man met me at the station he was the only member of the church in that large city of inhabitants for about three years ever since he had received the gospel he had waited and worked and hoped that something might be done for the goread of the truth there but his hopes had been comparatively in vain occasionally an elder came down the river from frankfort and made a cursory visit but that was all some two years ago two elders had labored there for four or five months but no headway could be made cologne to is intensely catholic there being of that faith there the streets are with very few exceptions narrow and very badly paved especially in the old part of the town the immense cathedral is the largest in ger many the new river harbor which I 1 will be completed this year is a very ve ry splendid affair costing several million of marks my health being poor I 1 could not pursue my labors as I 1 desired but the lord blessed our humble efforts there will doubtless be a good work done there this year I 1 was beleas released ed in april to return home and from a letter received since my ax arrival rIval I 1 learn that sider P F J stevenson has succeeded me we sailed from glasgow on the of may on the steamship anchoria and arrived home on the for the first few months of my mission I 1 labored as presiding elder in the dresden district at the beginning of the year 97 germany was divided into conferences and I 1 had charge of the dresden conference for a year when 1 was called to cologne H M WARNER june 23 1898 experience in the field lawrence june 21 1898 at the st john kansas conference which convened 3 4 6 of june elder ephraim C winn of st charles bear lake co idaho and myself were assigned to labor in douglas county kas ka being sent to the county seat A beautiful little cly city of inhabitants situated mostly on the southern banks anko of the kansas river this little city is the long on g known residential resIdent lat town lawrence lawrence is a city to a westerner of very beautiful surroundings around are numerous bluffs and mounds densely y covered with timber but before telling of at owe our appearance in this city I 1 will give a very brief account of our conference 0 although I 1 am in the topeka kansas conference a I 1 was at that time in the st ot john kansas conference there were present at the first priesthood meeting friday morning at 8 OC 22 elders including elder wm T jack and his assistants louis E iverson iverean and frank L copening during our three days priesthood meetings many very valuable instructions were given to the elders by elor elder jack and his assistants our conference president having visited during in the six months that tha thad had passed pair of elders in their respective ielda celb could tell exactly where to strike I 1 and aaa what point they were the most difficult in thus the instructions Instruct lona that were given will long be remembered b by the elders yot at only were the priesthood meet hn a times of exquisite pleasure but the public balc assemblages e r were as beneficiary OB the e others 7 th e rs sunday nd ma morning ning at 10 a m sunday school was opened and truly it seemed like being st at home once more to mingle with saints was very gratifying indeed sunday being the first sabbath in the month and the one set apart as fast day the meeting that convened immediately after sunday school wasi was a fast and testimony meeting to my idea this was as good a meeting as aa we had to hear the saints arise and testify to the truthfulness of the gospel of the divinity of the mission of joseph smith made each elders heart swell with fond emotion it seemed as if the thime theme expressed by the poet in these words how sweet to my soul is communion with saints was waa in the mind of every elder present and several in bearing their testimony with the rest could not help but speak of it it was the grandest experience I 1 ever had now our conference is over we look back upon it with feelings of regret that it last longer sunday afternoon elder dudley W stone addressed the saints and all present in a very clear and pointed manner in the evening a discourse was delivered by elder william T jack we had a good time at conference in many ways and the kindness of the people of st john will be long remembered by the elders p m monday june ath elder E C winn and myself were accompanied to the depot by some of the elders and saints in st john we bid them a tender farewell and we were off for our new conference and field of labor we arrived in lawrence at 4 minutes past 5 june 7 1898 we inquired for the best hotel in the city we went as directed and left our grips etc at the hotel we went into the city fasting and praying determined not to eat until we had gained permission to preach on the streets we met very nice men holding the city offices and got readily their consent to preach on the streets our first meeting was held on the hub clothing corner it was very hard the first night or so to open our hymn book to sing a hymn we wanted to sing then step out on the sidewalk and commence to io sing our first song was the time to is par far spent but in my desire to sing loud I 1 got it too high and by the time I 1 reached the point where the high notes are sung I 1 wished I 1 could sing bass we had dedicated the city and ourselves to the service of the lord and we were going to perform our duty since that time we have had very good success sometimes we are rejected but not hot very often yesterday june we had three rejected testimonies in succession we then retired to a quiet |