Show REMARKS so 44 44 by ily IC elder eider ider lder george A smith tabernacle jan Tan 3 isas sa I 1 I 1 I 1 REROUTED BV lif 43 D WATT i we have listened to a very interesting course of instructions which if treasured up in our hearty hearts and properly practiced practised must do us all good it is of the utmost importance to our Nv elfare welfare in the kingdom of the most high that A we commence and learn to govern ourselves and a hd when this lesson is learned then we are prepared to govern other others s unless we ave can govern ourselves we ave are unprepared to be governed in the way that the kingdom of gc god is to be ruled and directed which is to be upon a principle of common co consent n sent it is not that a majority shall rule but that the people bhail shall be agreed and when ahen all the people are agreed as s touching any one thin thing I 1 in the kingdom of 0 god no power can resist it the world look upon us as though we were tyrannized over because they do not know the principles upon which we act in all our conferences feren ces and counsels this people should act as a unit udit and have done so to a greater extent han ihan any other people that have existed on the e earth arih for a great many centuries this has astonished even republicans it is astonishing to many men to think that a people can all be agreed and I 1 have read professedly learned illustrations of republicanism which declare that it is attended with great danger for the people all to be united there is danger of thir th thi ir being united lest they oppress somebody that is themselves I 1 in n conversation la last st winter with ex govern orlane of oregon I 1 then a delegate in con gress on this princ principle ipie I 1 told him of an election which occurred in 0 one e of our new counties where when the office of sheriff was vacant and by accident there were two candidates and a close contest he said that is an evidence of civilization if every person in a family can learn to be governed over pad ped there will be no difficult difficulty vin in that family and if every person in in a ward can learn to covern govern overn and control themselves there will be po no difficulty in that ward for the human mind J is s 0 constituted that this principle cannot carinda be learned only by the observance of he the principles of the gospel of jesus christ now there is no other people upon the face of the earth that could livid live ill in these valleys and cultivate and irrigate the soil as we do they have so little control of their dispo disposition and of their temper they would kill each other with their hoes over the water ditches there could not be two tio three or forty owners in a water ditch without fighting it takes pretty good saints to get ilet along with water ditches in a dry time and not quarrel k when this people live as they should the there will be no disposition in them to quarrel one with anc another ther if anything is wrong they will be ready to submit that wrong to be made straight by those who understand it better than they do if an any misunderstanding arises it can cai easily be Uj adjusted but with our views prejudices and traditions we ave are all the time struggling with ourselves and our own peculiar notions notion every everk person has in their own brain a series of ideas planted from early youth which they consider to be right and it is a v very ely hard bard matter for us to relinquish these deeply implanted traditions which in nine cases a out but of ten are not right now fron tile the early history of this church almost every man every elder or member that has undertaken to study or practice law was in a very short time on the high road to apos tac dand yand jand destruction and everi everl every member of this church who has undertaken to practice law as a profession bession has gone neckband neck and heels to the devil what ahat what is the reason of this they take up the opinions opinion soi of men that wrote perhaps hundreds of years ago and lay them down as a standard drive them down as stakes and then tie themselves to them and they are immediately in a peck measure their minds are contracted to the circumference of a peck measure and they are a good deal in the condition that a gentleman was by the name of silly who kept a tavern there was an eminent presbyterian minister called on him by the name of peck silly thought be he would joke the minister before the company at the dinner table and says to him mr bair peck I 1 believe it takes two pecks to make a half bushel yes sir but it only takes one silly to make a fool so it only just take sone of those mormon lawyers to inake make a fool instead of taking up the subject as it exists and enquiring what is right or wrong they adopt the gentile mode of undertaking to carry a point right or wrong and no elder eider of israel can undertake to carry a point right or wring just or i unjust in jid jud at and stand up and d defend vf end injustice falsehood and corruption without losing the epif spirit it of god and it only takes one fuch such a man to make a fool tool trace over the history of apostates and you will find that in almost every instance that they lay down a standard rule that is to say thus far we vewis ivill boand go and no further for instance we ave wil wi wll 1 l take the bible book of mormon and doctrine and covenants and sa say bry y concerning them they are true the rule and guide of oft our faith and practice they are the law we must abide and we must go no further and so their light is blown out although these books are true and tb ere are many good instructions in them by which we ave may learn the way wa y of life yet the very moment we tie ourselves to them and say we will receive nothing more from that thap moment our light ia is extinguished 0 and WP ve are inside the peck measure go back to th the early history his kory lory of the christian irlich ch hand band and you find the very moment the in christ christana Chri stand and his apostles wre were pr presented 1 to the world men be began hegan an to speculate Z tw I 1 and philosophise philo sophise on am them and to distribute them 1 nto into dif different parts and speculate on them adopting their own wisdom for tile the avis wisdom of god instead of observing strictly the original principles of salvation and keeping the light always blazing keeping the spirit of revelation always burning keeping the spirit of truth the lamp of light and communications from the almighty continually flowing floi Ing hay hey they adopted a little of th that at they had bad received which suited their vain notions notional saying we hag bag have enough and upon this we will build the b e very ery moment that revelation to this c lurch church I 1 through our prophet and presidency ceases to be communicated uto unto us and we adopt any series of books whether the writings of joseph or the writings of any other man or all the writings and revelations that ever have been given and say this much we receive and no more then we ave are as dead as the lifeless cor corpse se we cut off the channel of revelation I 1 and the light and the communication between I 1 us and eternal happiness vre vie cut asunder the thread of haht and we are in in darkness and adrift at sea without a compass to guide us like any other religious 0 denomination hence it is that we bear testimony of the fullness of the gospel and of the priesthood conferred upon joseph smith and conferred upon our prophet and president brigham young and all the au aut hories horles of isreal in their sphere and in their standing and position I 1 know that this priesthood is is true and is is the authority by which we can claim and obtain through god this burning light until th the day dawn and thedac the dav day star arise now if I 1 cod cou could id not get up here and bear testimony that we ave are led by the power powen and instruction of tile the spirit of prophecy by the spirit of the almighty by bv a prophet called of god ordained and chosen to instruct teach and lead us you would never hear my volpe voige voice in your midst but that li light bt never nev nei er can call be put out it ag isi with the church and god has set his hand band at the present time to establish his bis kingdom saints will so live and so exert themselves es that they can preserve the purity of the holy priesthood among among them the work would be left to other people there is no opportunity fora for a half anva way y place it is is impossible men alen may think thinh they can lie a little blaspheme a little get drunk a little or do a thousand other mean things lust just a little and yet be the servants of gob god goa but if we ave would inherit the biesan blessings s of the priesthood if we ave would stand in the presence of the almi aimi almighty stand upon mount zion and inherit the blessings of a glorious celestial dominion we have got to be clean wl we e must cleanse our selves put away our bur follies and be prepared to stand united A A great many peo people pa e have wondered why lather gather it was that it was necessary for the saints to gather together to mether wether the fact is the human mind is 13 so weak so susceptible of false impressions impressio rs that while the people of god were scattered in in the nations of the earth to come in contact with all the corruptions corrupt ions prejudices and traditions of the world it was literally impossible bl e for the human mind to resist these pressures but by bringing our firebrands fire brands from every part of the world gathering them from every nation kindred tongue and people and placing them together in in one mighty heap and exercising lit ill ourselves with diligence to cast out everything that is not right nevert by y doin doln doing this we kindle a afire hire fire that can never be ext extinguished in dished this is is the tha work of god and zu the servants of god that are called to precide preside over ov er us are the messengers of the most high and they have the light and the power it matters not whether we live to behold it in this life or not that light i h t will i 11 triumph and all those who live humble and keep the commandments of 61 god will triumph also this is my testimony we jve need not fear the nations of the earth we need not fear the armies of tife the gentiles from the very vary hour that the light be began befanto ganto to shine all the world has been trying to put it 0 out ut but the more they try to extinguish it the bri brighter h ter it will shine and ana it will avill blaze and burn and arid it will go forth ald and avill will consume out of our midst all those that work iniquity and zion will be established in its pur purity ity do more to be thrown down it is is no use to be discouraged or alarmed we may have to sacrifice some f our habits some of our comforts and some necessaries I 1 but then it will wake ua us up to supply our own wants if our enemies should stop the importation of goods de deprive rive us of the means of exporting all the goald gold and silver we call can ac cumm we ave will retain it among amon ourselves and turn in in and produce for ourselves the ile greatest grea grga test sermon that ever has been preached in these mountains in in aid of home manufactures was that preached by by gen johnston when he told the merchants on blacks fork if they undertook to carry their goods to salt lake he would set their trains on fire file inthey f they will keep their traps away w vve ave e will produce our own and then we w e will have hav e them and they will avill be our own and we will be independent and we avill fulfill the commandment given given to the church through joseph let all thy tb y garments be plain and heir their beauty the beauty of the work of thine own hands may alay god bless us and an enable us to do right in in all things is is my prayer in the name of jesus christ amen I 1 |