Show SERMON by PRESIDENT BRIGHAM TOUNG YOUNG bowery aug angust gmt 31 1856 BY nv G D WATT I 1 appear before you to bear my testimony to the truth of mormonism 1 that joseph smith jun was a prophet called of god and that he did translate the book boole of mormon by the gift and power of the holy ghost this same testimony all can bear who have received and continue to retain the spirit of the gospel we are happy to hear from our brethren who have returned from the fields ci their labor it rejoices our hearts and we like to see their faces I 1 know how they feel when they return home for I 1 have felt many times in returning to the saints as though the privilege of beholding their faces was a feast to overflowing flowingly my koui soul soul soui has been full I 1 rejoice olce oice all the time and I 1 can understand why lr br clinton has rejoiced so exceedingly it is because the lightning and thunder are in him and because he gave vent to his feelings bro robins callin calling has been different of such a nature that the li lightning r and thunder in him have lain dormant to a certain degree and he has not enjoyed himself so well as he would had he been been sent solely to preach and build up churches let me reduce this to your understandings right here in our midst many who gather from foreign lands who have undergone all the toil toll labor and hardship thai that it is possible for their nature to sustain on their journey after they arrive in these valleys begin to sink in their spirits neglect their duties and in a little time do not know whether mormonism is true or not take the same persons and keep them among the wicked and they will preserve their armor bright but it has become dull and rusty here this is the cause of so banys leaving these valleys the seas are so calm and the vessel is wafted wafred over them so smoothly and in a manner so congenial to the f feelings of the people that they forget c that they are in zions ship this is the m main maln a in reason of so banys leaving for the states california and other places send those persons amon among 11 their enemies among those who will oppose mormonism Alor monism 1 among those who will oppose the truth and let them be continually persecuted and they will know verv very very quickly whether they are mormons cormons Mor mons or not f or they must go to the one side or the other but the condition ridi tion of or society here and the feelings of the people are so different from those of the uie wicked I 1 that many glide smoothly along forget their heir i religion rand and ana their god and finally think P that this is is not the place for them and go away I 1 will now state that I 1 am thus far perfectly satisfied with the labors of the brethren who have returned from their missions this season and have come on anthe the stand today to day and at other iother times I 1 am highly gratified with the doings and labors of those elders with regard to br john taylor I 1 will say that be he has one of the stron strongest est intellects of any man that can be found heis hels a powerful powei ful fui man he is a mighty man and we may say that he is a powerful editor but I 1 will use a term to suit myself and say that he is one of the strongest editors that ever wrote concerning his financial abilities I 1 have nothing to say those who are acquainted with the oe matter know how hoi the 1 mormon has been sustained we te sent br taylor and other brethren with him m to start that paper without purse or scrip and if they had not accomplished that object we should have known that they did not trust in n their god and did not do their duty let me mp call your reflections to the days of joseph oseph here are some of the twelve here are the ie seventies and high priests and members of the high council and several who have been yeen icon long iong ion lon in the church did any of you ever receive iky any any support from the church while on your r our missions in the days of jf joseph were you tou rou all to answer you would say that you do not know the time I 1 came into this church in the th e spring of 1832 previous to my being baptized I 1 took a mission to canada at my own ex expense ense and from rom the time that I 1 was wal 5 baptized baptize et until the day of our sorrow borrow and affliction at the mar adom of joseph and hyrum no summer passed massed over my head but what I 1 was gravelin traveling and preaching and the only thing I 1 ever received from the church during during over twelve years and the only means that were ever div en n me by the prophet that I 1 now recollect was in 1842 when br joseph sent gent me the half of a small pig that the brethren had brou brought bt to him I 1 did not ask him for it it weighed weigh d 93 pounds rounds and that fall previous to my receiving hat that bat half of a pig br vr H 11 C kimball alq and myself were engaged all the ibe time in pricing property that came in on tithing and we were also aiso so engaged in gathering tithing and I 1 had an old id saddle valued at two dollars presented to me and br heber was credited two dollars in the w church books for one days services by br villard willard richards who was then keeping those looks br lieber heber said blot that out for I 1 dont ont want IV it I 1 think it was crossed out and so was the saddle for I 1 did not want it even lad had it been given to me these were the only articles lever never received in the days of joseph BO so far as I 1 recollect I 1 have chave traveled and preached and at the same sustained my family by my labor and economy if I 1 borrowed one hundred dol lars ars or fifty or if I 1 had five dollars it almost universally went into the hands of br joseph to 0 pay lawyers fees and to liberate him from the tle tie power of his enemies so far as it would jo fave gave 0 hundreds and hundreds of dollars that I 1 ave managed to get to borrow and trade for I 1 have handed over to joseph when I 1 came home that Is the way I 1 got help and it was aas pas good for me it learned me a great deal though I 1 had learned before I 1 heard of mormonism to take care of number one for vor me to travel and preach without purse or scrip was never hard I 1 never saw the day I 1 never was in the place nor went into a house hou se when I 1 was a alone I 1 one ohe or when I 1 would take the lead and do t the h e talking but what I 1 could get all I 1 wanted iwanter though r I 1 have been with those who would ta take k e the lead and be mouth and been turned out of doors a great many times and could not get a nights lodging but when I 1 was waa mouth I 1 never was turned out of doors I 1 could make the acquaintance of the family and sit and sing to them and chat with them an and they would feel friendly towards me and and wh when n they learned that I 1 was a 11 fordon elder it was as after I 1 had gained their good feelings elings fe when the brethren were talking about starting a 3 press in new york and how it has been upheld I 1 did wish to relate an incident in my experience in company with several of the twelve I 1 was sent to england in 1839 we started from home without purse purse or scrip and most of the twelve were sick and those who were not sick when they started were sick on themay the way to ohio 01 aio alo br taylor was left to die by the ther road toad roadside oad side sideby by old father coltrin though he did not die I 1 was not able to walk to the river not so far as across this block no not more than half as far I 1 had to be helped to the river in order to get into a boat to cross it this was about our situation I 1 had not even an over coat I 1 took a smil quilt from the trundle bed and that served for my over coat while I 1 was traveling to the state of new york when I 1 had bad a coarie coarse satt inet over coat given to tome me thus we went to england to a strange land to sojourn among among stran strangers ers 0 when we reached englant england we de signed designed to start a paper but we had not the first penny to do it with I 1 had enough to buy a hat and pay my mk passage to preston for from the time I 1 left home ome I 1 had worn an old cap which my wife made out but of a pair palt of old pantaloons but the most of us were entirely destitute of means to buy even any necess sary article we went to preston and held our conference and decided that we would publish a paper br parley P pratt craved the privilege of editing it and we granted him the privilege ioe ife we also decided to print three thousand 8 hymn books though we had not the first cent to begin with and were we re strangers in a stran strange C e land we appointed br woodruff to I 1 herefordshire Hereford shire and I 1 accompanied him on his journey to that place I 1 wrote to br pratt for information about his plans and he sent me his prospectus which stacey stated that when he had bad a sufficient number of subscribers and money enough in hand to justify his publishing the paper he would proceed with it how long iong we might raight have waited for that I 1 know not but I 1 wrote to him to publish two thousand 8 papers and I 1 would woul d foot the bill I 1 borrowed two hundred and fifty fifth pounds of sister jane benbow one hundred aundre of br thomas kin eln kington kinton ton and returned to manchester where N we ve printed three thousand hymn books and five thousand books of mormon and issued two thousand Mil mii millennial lenial stars monthly and in in the course of the summer printed and gave away rising of sixty thousand tracts I 1 also taid daid paid from five to ten dollars per week for my board oard and hired a house for br willard richards and his wife who came to manchester and sustained them and gave sixty pounds to br P P spratt to bring a his wife from new YO york r ic I 1 also commenced the emi emigration ration in that year I 1 was there one year and sixteen days with my m brethren the twelve and during that time I 1 bought ought all my clothing except one pair of pantaloons which the sisters gave me in liverpool soon after I 1 arrived there and which 4 L really needed I 1 told the brethren in one of m my atje discourses that there was no need of their if begging for if they needed any thing the sisters could understand that the sisters L took the hint and the panta pantaloons I 1 were forthcoming 1 I 1 paid three hundred and eighty dollars to get the work started in london and when I 1 arrived home in nauvoo I 1 ow owed ed no person one barth farthing OT br kington received his pay from the books b 0 s that were printed and sister benbow who started to america the same y year a r left names enough of her friends to receive ft the h e two hundred and and fifty pounds which was paid them notwithstanding I 1 held her agreement that she had given it to the church we left two thousand five hundred dollars worth of books in the office paid our passages home and paid about six hundred dollars to emigrate migrate the poor who were starving to death besides giving awa the sixty thousand tracts and that too though I 1 had not a sixpence when we first landed in iii preston and I 1 do not know that one of the twelve had I 1 could not help thinking that if I 1 could accomplish com that much in england in that poor hard country it could not be much of a job for f or a inan manuto lo 10 establish a paper in new york I 1 thought that to be one of the smallest things that could be I 1 could make money at it we sent br george Q cannon one of br taylors nephews to california over a year ago last spring to print the boa boz of mormon in the hawaiian language ile he has printed a large and handsome edition of that book has large pu published a weekly anstee aper paper and paid for it has paid for the press and the type and paid his board and clothing bills though he had not a farthing to start with that is he went without purse and scrip so far as I 1 know as did also ars drs bull and wilkie who went with him it is one of the them smallest labors that I 1 could think of to establish a paper and sustain it in st louis new york philadelphia boston or any of the eastern cities I 1 wish wi sh to say this much for the information of those who think it h a great task to establish and sustain a gap japer laper e q though I 1 am not aware that any of the r re eth thren re n think so I 1 will relate another incident which occurred during our journey to england br george A smith accompanied me to new york city and we had not money enough to pay the last five miles fare we started from new haven in a steam boat and when we left the boat I 1 hired passage in the 7 stage tame tage to new york the captain of the steam b boat 0 at happened to be in the same stage when we left the coachi coach said to the captain will you have the kindness to pay this gent lemans passage and mine I 1 had had no conversation with him during the day only anly in interchanging the common and usual com compliments li but when we left him he greatens gree greeted tens us cordially and said that he had paid our stage fare with the greatest pleasure and shook our hands as heartily as a brother sa saying ing may ay god go d bless and prosper you in your labors fabors 22 in five minutes we were in the house with parley P pratt who had moved to that city the fall before As soon as those of the twelve who were appointed on that mission to england came in we concluded that we would not go among the branches but seek out and preach to those who had not had a an n opportunity for hearing the gospel accordingly we separated and went into many parts of the state of new york long island and new jersey and some went into the city of philadelphia after we had got through with the regular meetings we proposed to ti the brethren if any of the them m wished to have meetings in their private houses auses and would tell us when and where that we would meet with them it was not more than a week or ten days before we had been in fifty different places in in new york city and the surround surrounding ng country and those who came to hear us invited their nei nel neighbors and thusie thus we preached and baptized an and T soon fathered gathered means enough to defray the expense OF of our passage to england principally from those who were the fruits of or our own labors though the people in the states are daily becoming be c g more hardened against the truth yet if I 1 was in new york this day and it was my business to be there I 1 would not be there long before I 1 would have many elders preaching through different parts of that city I 1 would woul have them preaching in the english danish french german anly anty and other languages and soon would have elders dispersed all over the state and would raise up new friends elou enough h to sustain me that is if th the J e lord would help heip me and if he did not I 1 would leave that is the way we have traveled and preached bat now we doa do a great deal for our missionaries for they gather money on tithing t and ask me to credit such and such a man so s 0 much on tithing this course tends to shut up ever eyer every av avenue denue for business here we V e do not receive cash on tithing from abroad because our missionaries are so liberal and feel so rich that they gather every dollar that can be scraped up and then come here and have it credited to such and such individuals on tithing without handin handing over the money this course hedges up the work at head quarters did I 1 have that privilege no never and men should noi not have it now if a taper paper should be published brethren ought to have ave wisdom enough to sustain themselves and the raper caper paper and they can do it I 1 do 0 not wish to find fault with our missionaries but many of them now live on cream and short cake butter honey light biscuit and sweetmeats sweet meats while we had to take tadd the butter milk and potatoes that kind of fare was g good aad od enough for us but now it is short cake and cream light |