Show AT A MORMON conference A welsh critic writes it up for ilis newspaper the following is taken from the cardiff and south wales whip I 1 recently attended a mormon conference at which apostle geo teasdale president of tho european mission waa present and was surprised at the eloquence of some of the speakers whom I 1 was assured were only working men from utah the address delivered by elder roberts was particularly good and with a view to making my readers acquainted with mormon eloquence I 1 give an akitomo below referring botho manner in which their doctrines had been received he had said elder roberts a great deal of charity for those who refused to receive the message they were endeavoring deavo ring to communicate to them ho was not at all surprised that they thought them presumptuous in preaching the gospel as they did forty years ago choir fathers went to the western wilds of america and took up their abode 1000 miles from the frontier of civilization in a coun try many difficulties to contend with in making this desolate region habitable by mau and in wrestling with these difficulties they had had little time for building schools and colleges the result had been that the men who had been called to preach the gospel to the world wore plain uneducated and uncultured what could the world bo expected to say to such men could they wonder that the world should regard the rough untutored men who came to civilized countries crowded with colleges and churches to preach a restored gospel as presumptuous looking at it naturally was it surprising that they should be laughed at especially when it was borne in mind that tho mormon elders had been unjustly accorded a terrible reputation he was considerably sider ably encouraged to know that their work was not without a parallel his mind went back as he thought of tho worlds intolerance to that period in the worlds history nineteen centuries aso when the government of bome hold universal sway over the civilized world tho romans had their schools of philosophy their teachers of rhetoric and were altogether a fine proud nation but in the midst of all their refinement in the midst of all their education in the midst or all their philosophy a poor uncultured man a reputed carpenters sn in the arts or the sciences appeared n th air midst and preached to them the great massacre of god god had chosen the weak things of the earth in tho ie days and what he bad done ago he today to day lir ff f f t ho was taking to himself the weak things of the earah and commissioning them tj go forth and bear witness to the world they the elders of mormonism were commissioned as they were to preach the word of god and they devoted themselves to his service for DO other reward than the joy they experienced in being his servants they bad left tho association of their wives and children and had given ap their various occupations in order that they might preach to the children of men the gospel of god when their work was done they would return to their homes and would once more devoto themselves to tho occupations they had loft the hearts of the people were steeled against them they were not received with world they had to contend with fierce opposition they had to meet the frowns of the un believers and submit to the hatred of their fellow men they knew they would have to struggle against all this before they left their bomea but they were content to sacrifice their comfort and face the scorn and contempt of the world in their humble attempt to propagate the truth of the divine word because they imea that god had spoken from heaven and had restored his everlasting gospel upon earth |