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Show LDS Church Leader Dies j I ! , i t. ti ' " , - l- ' , ' 1 " " i I I v i I i j PRESIDENT CLAVVSON Rudder Clawson, 86, president of the council of Twelve and se-cond se-cond in rank to President HetHr J. Grant in th: Church of Jesus ChrL:t of Latter-Day Saints, died Mon'iuy afternoon at his home in Salt Lake City, closing a lifetime life-time of church and community service. He had b"en ill since June 12 but had bei-n at his dc,k in the church office building almost daily until June 11. The venerable vener-able leader was loved by friends for his k'ren sense of humor and for the intimate touch he imparted impart-ed in his conversation. j According to precedent, the next member of the council in point of seniority, Georg? Albert Smith, will be chosen president of the council, and will become president presi-dent of the church in the event of a vacancy in that position. As a young man, Mr. Clawson; attracted wide attention for his j courage while a missionary in the j southern states. Hany elements at that time were bitterly hostile j toward the "Mormons." ! His missionary companion, Jo-: seph Standing, was murdered by an armed mob, yet young Mr. Clawson stood beside the body, looked into the muzzles of many guns pointed at his breast and bade the men "shoot." So im. pressed were the mobsters they i left the young churchman with his dead companion. Mr. Clawson brought the body back to Salt Lake City. Born March 12, 1857 in Salt Lake City, son of Hiram B. Claw-Mon, Claw-Mon, associate of both Joseph Smith and Brigham Young and who superintended building of and latrer managed the old Salt Lake ' theatre, and Margaret Gay Judd Clawson. Rudger Clawson saw at first hand virtually all the development devel-opment of the intermountaju empire. em-pire. ' He was educated in the Salt Lake City schools and attended the pioneer University of Deseret, now the University of Utah. Shortly Short-ly after leaving college and when only 18 years old, he became private pri-vate s-ecretary to John W. Young then president of the Utah Western West-ern Railway company. In this capacity he spent more than two years at the nation's business centers, principally New York City. On December 23, 1887 he was appointed president of Box Elder stake, remaining there until October Oc-tober 10, 1898 when he was made an apostle. Mr. Clawson served as counselor counsel-or to Lorenzo Snow in the church first presidency for a short period pe-riod in 1901 before Mr. Snow died. He presided over the European mission of the church, with headquarters head-quarters .in Liverpool, England, from 1910 to 1913. In 1925 he succeeded Anthon H. Lund as president of the council of twelve apostles. As an apostle he had traveled widely throughout the United States and portions of Canada and Mexico. Mr. Clawson married Lydia Spencer, daughter of Daniel Spencer, Spen-cer, first president of Salt Lake 'stake and a pioneer leader, March 19, 1883 in the old endowment house. He married Florence M. Dinwoodey in 1882 in Salt Lake City. He and his first wife later separated. Surviving are two sons: Hyrum B. Clawson and Lorenzo Snow Clawson, both of Salt Lake City; two daughters, Mrs. Gay C. Bond of Salt Lake City, and Mrs. Lydia C. Hoopes of Washington, Washing-ton, D. C; 13 grandchildren, four of whom are serving in the U. S. army; nine sisters, Mi's. Phebe C. Taylor, Mrs. Tessie Groesbeck, iMrs. Edna C. Tibbitts, and Mrs. Georgia C. Foote, all of Salt Lake City; Mrs. Ivie C. Greene of Long Beach, California; Mrs. Ruby Ru-by C. Godbe, Mrs. Lulu C. Young and Mrs. Alice C. Campbell, all of Salt Lake City, and Mrs. Josephine Jo-sephine Thompson of Washington, D. C, two brothers, Selden I. Clawson and Chester Y. Clawson, Claw-son, both of Salt Lake City. |