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Show W 08 S 0-MXN,' EXP X) N E K T. 2 7?' than (o bo misrepresented,' and leave ven-- geance unto God.who lias said, "Vengeance is mine, and I will repay,"- - For this pur-lomy sisters, we have met together to se, express our. feelings and to plead our own cause. The' following address was then read by Mrs. Bathsheba W. Smith : It is somewhat surprising that we, who are the traorepresentatlvbs of ;the women of Utah, having in connection with our husbands,' assisted in redeeming tlieso once desert valleys, "should fee called tof assemble to ;vlndicate ourselves againt;misreprc- seritations made by ' our Christian sisters, ' those who have arrived here at so lat e a date and fpr so difforen t ah object. W e Were driven from our homes to seek refuge someWhCroclse,' for the testimony of Jesus and the word they came pecausewe loved God are herel-and the principles of righteousness, "coun all' things as dross for the excellency of the knowledge of God, who had revealed Himself in our day; hopihgjthat far away from a professed Christianity we might live i n peace and worship Him rwH6 had no highly favored 'tis, andt live in' accordance with thoso principles which alphe lead to endless lives. As a legal citizen of this great republic, I enter my most feryenl pro-. , 6tjCt6tfe-$h6y:kti$wyh- -- y We t-I- ng , Hhestgainsti crusade founded Congress has no on misrepresentations. right to interfere with-ou- r most sacred religion. As well might that honorable body legislate against baptism by immersion aa against plurality of wives. God has revealed these principles',' and they must be sustained. -- With our own free con-seour husbands take more wives, and our Joy, around our when children crown sacred family altars ' we bow the knee and supplicate our Heavenly Father's blessing on our household, and rejoice in his divine favor as legitimate wives with,; honorable children. Ve regard pur husbahds as men of true virtue and integrity," who take upon themselves so great a responsibility in honoring the laws of God, and we bear them up in our faith and secret prayers, Let our sisters in the United States know this, and instead of seeking special legislation to infringe upon our liberties, let them rather take the honorable part and protect us In our rights, and thus make for themnt selves a nobler record. Sister Zlna D. Young delivered the following extemporaneous speech: The, ladies of Utah whose intelligent faces I now look upon I Could I have had a vision of so grand a spectacle 40 years ago, when as,a church, few in numbers, we were .struggling (or an existence on the earth, I question,, whether I then could have be-- 0 1 loved in y eyes, nor could, I then have thought that God hail prepared so great a blessing, that I should behoVd so goodly a number of intelligent ladies whohave had the privileged being baptized into Christ, of putting on Christ, counting, it no robbery with .God tO ?bo heirs and Joint heirs with his Son Jqsus.j; It was for this' you and jl found a resting place in these, valleys, or tle mountains, which, as, , .'has .been was' not then United ' States soil.remarked,. The incidents of, our coming, here in the manner we did the fatigue, 'suffering from cold and hunger as, well jthotho as, heartrending scenes through which we passed, hayo often been; penned, Bbt 1 Ohl nono fin xeaize them, or, appreciate Tully our feelings, whed contemplating'those early experiences, . but Ubpse who , nave .passed through them. Those scenes have , pui-.po- se , r -- " passed; but we are sometimes reminded of them, especially when croppings of the same spirit are witnessed in those who oppose U3 in our rights, which prompted those who forced upon us our sufferings. The principle of, our holy religion that Is assailed is one that lies deep in my heart. Could I ask. tho heavens to listen;, could I beseech the earth to be still, and the brave men who possess the spirit of:a Washington to hear what I am about to say I I am the daughter of a Master Mason! I am the widow of a Master Mason, who, when leap6lF Carthage jail ing, from the windows made bullets the Masonic with pierced sign of distress, but, gentlemen, (addressing the representati ves of .the pres3 that were present) those 'signs were not heeded except by tho God of heaven. That man, the prophet of the Almighty, massacred without mercy! Ho Is now with those who are crying, "Wait a little longer, until the blood of your brethren, the martyrs, is shed." Applause. Sisters, this is the li first "IpvVutlerance to this fact, but I thought I could trust my soul to say it on this occasion, and I say it now in the fear of Israel's God, and I say it In the presence of these gentlemen, and I wish my voice could be heard by the whole brotherhood of Masons throughout our prond land. That institn t ion I honorl . If. its principles were practised and strictly adhered to, would there be a trespass upon virtue? No indeed. Would the honorable wife or daughter be intruded on with impunity? Nay verily. Would that the ladies of America, with the honorable Mrs. Hayes at their head ; would that the Congress of the United of our nation, "could States, the produce a balm for the many evils which exist in our land through the abuse of virtue, or could so legislate that virtue could be protected and cherished as the life which heaven has given us! We, in common with many a woman throughout our broad land, would hall with' joy the approach of such deliverance, for. such Is the deliver' " ance that woman needs. The principle of plural marriage is honorable, it is a principle of tho Gods it is heaven-born- . God revealed it to us, among other things, as a saving principle; we have accepted it as such, and we know it is of him for the fruits of it are holy. Worthy men and women of old practised it, even the Savior himself traces his lineage back to polygamic parents. We are proud of tho principle because we understand its trite worth, and we want our children to practise it, that through us a race of men and women may grow up possessing sound minds in sound bodies, who shall ""live to the age of a tree." Some of the ladies who have so recently come among us have thought fit to'band together, for what? If they truly want to benefit and bless their sex, let them direct their. labors among the many .unfortunate women ot the towns and cities frorn whence they" came. They cannot help Us, God alqne, can do that. And we are already blessed Hyith comfortable and happy homcsj fwi'tti? r Ijgh"ts 'arid privileges which they can neither give nor take from us. And Iwe j are blessed with husbands whom we have confidence 'In, and, we honor them as they honor their God. 'Ahd let mo tell you, my . there f of proof fin what we have done that we are sincere; The next speaker was Mrs. Hannah T. King, who read the following, written by . herself: V r I heard in my youth of the perfect freedom and the glorious liberty of America; of the uncounted wealth of her citizens; that there were no poor in America; that fraternity and equality .walked hand in hand; that her constitution was the most faultless thing on earth; that the finger of God was palpable in its formation; that the country produced almost spontaneously; its prospects grand and glorious; that her hills were mountains and her rivers seas; that the worship of the great Creator was freo and unbiased tp all, without any restric' tions, even though it were absurd, or thought to be so, still it was free, and all respected! For "this very freedom the "Mayflower" bore her 'jpreciou3 "freight of souls across th0.mighty Atlantic. Yes, the 3 . . -- tijnjjjn one grand idea that hero they might worship God accoiding to the dictates of their own individual creed and conscience. I was born free, and was an earnest, deep. thinking girl, and the glory of 1 6 i3 description became daguerrotyped on my young mind till the dream of my youth became a desire to visit this Eldorado and see for myself this glorious Young America! this, far renowned republic! But years passed, and the way did not open. I was married early-I- n life, and peace and plenty surrounded my habitation, my cup became full to overflowing, of good things. When I heard of a people who had risen up in this land which I had so poetized in iny own mind, and that they were called Latter-daSaints; my mind was brought to a focus upon the principles they ad vancetf; I consulted no one but my God I took my Bible and compared them .with the teachings of Jesus, and found they corresponded in every particular. The Elders told me that an angel had come and restored the everlasting Gospel in its purity again to the earth, that revelations had been given for the reorganization of God's church upon the earth, the door being that by which Christ himself entered when he was baptized by John the Baptist before entering upon his mission, etc., etc. 1 listened and obeyed; there were no inducements held ont of ecclesiastical honors, or cf a high position in society. No! but that probably my uame would be cast out as evil when 1 took upon myself the name of a disciple of Jesus, whose life was suffering and obecjierice! The )ovo of truth and the. Spirit Df !.Gpd;si6,d ine that this Church was according to pattern, in every particular, that Christ had laid down and established by his own example; I it, passing through the ' door Of baptism for the1, remission of my sins. And now tho way was topen for me to realjze tho dream of my youth, and becomo an Inhabitant of this freehand glorious country, that I had so often heard spoken of as, the refuge of the:iestitute, ahdtbe:,aii(i ptt the free! Then came; the astduridirignews that Jo'Revela-ta- r seph Smith the:rbphelt'Seer, of the Chtifch Christ, hadeen mas sacred 'fothis principlesl'as also his brother ' TT m:' t.'IA inuauui-bol- t!' a it: came use. nun j xi uyrmn wiin .'f"''l Whafln'Amgrlparthat iarid whose constitution guaranteed, to all of every sistersthere are many good and Intelligent y and clime among her; ieople ,J women in our land vhbwish their ed awak-enthe pursuit or happiness V ! Ala4 f J hiisbaiids were as honorable? as, ours, and frbmfy early dream!' Mi ifeyes were J that, they could tic to theirs .as Twe can to ' ... opened and X si W,- arid VW Xhat light had HO UUT come into the vorW, '"jbut' bareness was preVUti) Ills IU)C UUlrUIUW4UUO lJKJ ana our we love and ferred. To me. It acteoonly as atestimony chiiaren, religion, law-make- . rs y z : te , em-brace- . t if , ; . t.Ife,-libert- to-da- y -- - . d |