| Show VEDDER OS THE 3IORJIONS The Impressions Gained During a Brief Sc journ in Salt Lake To the Editor of the Standard Sir Up to yesterday morning I have been in Salt Lake city a week and during that time have seen much of the Mormon city and a beautiful city it is too with as nice people in it as it has ever been my good fortune to be associated with Last Sunday I attended at-tended service at the great Mormon taber naole where I saw seated over ten thousand people The speaking was interesting and tho music fine The organ is said to be next to the largest the world and was built in the city out of native woods and by native workmen The sounds from it are like distant dis-tant thunder though its tones are sweet and full of harmony I was very much impressed ana deeply interested in tho service that followed the beautiful music for the doctrne ofthe Mormon church is so much different to what I supposed it was They fully b e hove in God the Eternal Father and His Son Jesus CHrist and in the Holy Ghost ahd that men will be punished for their own sins and h tfor Adams transgression They believe tfiat through thoatonemont of Christ all mankind may be saved by obedience obedi-ence to the laws and ordinances of tho gospel gos-pel and that these ordinances are First faith in the Lord Jesus Christ second repentance re-pentance third baptism by immersion for the remission of sins fourth laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost They believe the Bible to be the word of God as far us it is translated correctly and that the Book of Mormon is the true word of God Ttteybellove in the literal gathering of IsraelI Israel-I and in the restoration of the ten tribes That r I Zion will bo built upon this continent and that Christ will reign personally upon this r I earth They claim the privilege of worshiping worship-ing Almighty God < according to the dictates of their conscience and allow all men the same privilege let them worship how where or what they may They believe in I being subject to kings presidents rulers and magistrates and in obeying honoring and sustainingtho law and in being honest true chaste benevolent virtuous and in doing good to all men That the Mormons are sincere in their religion there can be no I question That they are strictly honest there can be no doubt That they have I been slandered and abused I truly believe and that they are a persecuted people goes without saying Taey came here years ago when nothing but sagebrush and boulders I stood sentinels over worse than a desert waste a little band of footsore and weary pilgrims baited where now stanas this great monument of their early struggles Hero in this lonely and unfrequented almost solitary valley in the mountains they built houses expecting to be no farther pursued by their enemies Their only desire was to be left alone by themselves How they succeded needs none of my telling The founder of I I it all lies up yonder on the hill in an unmarked un-marked grave Hundreds of men here owe their great wealth and success in life to I I Brigham Young Evidences of his greatness great-ness can be seen on every hand and I be hove that in future generations his name will be handed dowu with all due honor I I and raverence as one of the greatest and I best men of his time Brigham Young left I I a large family of course He had nineteen I wives and it is said there are sixtyseven children of his in all He left them in comfortable com-fortable circumstances and most of them I ar big business men in dillerent parts of the territory His youngest daughter was married a few days since to a wealthy man of this city His favorite wife Amelia lives luxuriant style here and is a very I clever and worthy lady I had the honor of a very friendly visit and an interesting conversation with her that I shall never I forget The GarJo house built by Brigham I I Brig-ham Younc just before ho died is urobablv the finest residence in the city It is said that the houre was built expressly for Amelia and even now goes by the name of Amelias Castle but she does not reside there as she turned itover to tho church and it is now used as the homo of Wilford Woodruff president of the Mormon church and residing there with him are live or six old members one of whom is George Q Cannon ex member of congress They are all healthy fin lookIDg old gentlemen gen-tlemen and have large families indifferent I in-different places but according to the present law they can not live with them I and is is doubtful whether they are even permitted to see them Here they live I ulone by themselves a serene old bachelor bache-lor existence but their families are well provided pro-vided for and no doubt happy The unfinished I unfin-ished Temple here is a large and wonderful wonder-ful structure On what is called the front side over the great entrance on a smooth marble arch in the inscription in gold let ters Holiness of the Lord The House of the Lord Built by the Churchof Jesus Christ of Latterday Saints commenced April 01S53 completed I paid a visit to the little family church yard within is the grave of Brigham Young Over his list resting place there is only a large granite slab laying flat on the ground and with no lettering or marks upon it which was said to be his request The huge stone weighs seven tons six hundred and sixty pounds and around it is a high iron fence The size of the surface thestonois about four feet wide by nine feet long and the I fence just surrounds it Close by is a grave of one of his wives and further on is another of his wives and this one has a stone to mark it At the head of this is tho word Mother and beneath in small letters is Sacred to the memory of Eme line F Young wife of Pres Brigham Young born April 281S26 died August 1875 This is tho grave of his last wife and standing over it with me was her nephew R Wells secretary of the Cooperative Co-operative Wagon and Machine company who are our agents in Salt Lake city Hoping that I do not take up toomuch of your valuable space this week and having > t rt f i J more to say later on I remain very respectfully U re-spectfully yours GEO W VEDDER lloosiclt Falls N Y Standard SALT LAKE CITY Sept 28 |
