| Show REMARKS by E elden elder ider lder geo A smith nowery bowery may mas 31 1857 BY GEO D WATT it is with the greatest pea pleasure sure surd brethren and sisters that I 1 have the privilege ot your faces and of hearing tile the olce oice voice testimony and narrative of our wort worthy by president Brigha mYoung it is not easy for me to find language tu to describe my iny feelings and to express my gratitude to my heavenly heaven y father and arid to my brethren end alid sisters for the preservation pie of my life ard and for the privilege I 1 enjoy among you on the present occasion I 1 went abroad and have been absent a little more than one year and one month to per perform forin a mission which was new to me ete ile depending pending upon the faith of the saints and the blessings of pf the almighty that hat th their faith and my own exertions I 1 might accompli the work I 1 started out to do but it came out a good deal like tile the fishermen in the HIP days of our savior who toiled all night arid and caught nothing still it has been to me a school of experience as I 1 have had a chance to behold something of the manner and have observed a little of the principles the honor and tile the integrity which rule tile tiie actions of the federal government of our great and glorious ubi union oil oll it is generally ger brally considered in the world that hat t truth uth bears away the tile victory it was in fact laid down by g seme of the ancient prophets that such was I 1 leally eally the case things have llave changed a little now a days but it is an age of improvement emelia if a man tells the truth he be stands no rio earthly chance cliance whatever hp h lias has got to lie and mix so touch lie with the truth that it will ilide hide it almost entirely or he be cannot receive e any credit whatever hatcher so it it Is is to a great extent and instead of truth governing the world at the present time lies and fa falsehood govern it as far as I 1 have observed it will be recollected when I 1 left the valle valie valley vailey there was a great scarcity of pro provisions we vie were on liace alf bif ration and very veri verv frequently not half we were vi ere making tile the best estimate we could to stretch out flour until unil hanest harvest and picking up everything we iv e aoud to sustain ourselves until the glorious dav day of harvest should khouli coin coln such was the tile case ct e wah with a great reat real many of w ua and tose those who had provisions visions were dividio git out to those who had lad none by fay tile the spoon full foll it they had a spoonfuls spoon full fuli they divided it and if they had hay two they ayere divid ii ilg 11 g thi and this condition condi condl lon ion of affairs was proving to tile hie world that brotherly love arid and affection affied tion existed x i ted here unheard of and unknown in in the history of mankind except in m deseret Deai get Tet for fora a whole people to be so straightened for provisions provi sons and arid al at the same time lime not a sol soi tall taly tail pelson perish of starvation or want 1 I sa such a thing ahn g isain is heerd beerd of in the hi tory of mankind when this was wag fairly commencing I 1 went away awa it was understood in in tile the states that we were all starving to deah deall when I 1 got down here there I 1 oid old told them I 1 was as short t of provisions as anybody an body elie eise arid consequent consequently had hall acme doin where they had something lo 10 eat I 1 went away from here bere weighing pounds at the he tithing office airl an i not being well fed at that hat a and id falling off ff considerably during durino tile the last year jear pre previous violis to goilo away when I 1 got down to the slates sates where the ca climate did not agree with my burgi I 1 spent a good share hare of the winter in in doing doug some of tile the tallest coughing of any man nan I 1 lanng ivi ivl ing how however ever even I 1 fatted batted up 0 o considerably isider ably and got pot to be quite a decent looking chap cl ap when I 1 lefa left lef st louis I 1 weighed pounds I 1 thought I 1 was coing going home in in fine 0 order r r but ut behold ard 10 it all my missouri and eastern beef I 1 had gatli galli gat gal gathered hered ered shook off on oil he the plains ani I 1 found myself the thep then apor poi noi lean meagre man mai yon you on see aee before vou when I 1 got pot to the of olace effice the other ilay day I 1 was about seven pounds lighter than when I 1 went wenta away awny way wiy and I 1 expect I 1 have made that up tip s since nce nee I 1 have lave lla ila e pot got hoine home my health has greatly improved sinae since I 1 lett left the misouri missouri river river with my decreasing weight I 1 am very thankful that the lord lias has preserved me and arid returned me again to your midst the therewa news which you 5 ou probably plo pio bably have bave received is 13 unimportant bough though you have haie received very little for tile the last six SIK minth mc nth for yon you y on know uncle sam is poon poor 0 or antl anil not able to earry carry rry his mails malls arid and the vii iii winten winter ten ter has hag been very bay bar bardana hayd hard dand and the he circum circumstances stan ces have been such that he be could guld not even send sen out messages or anything but tile hie livers rivers all run the same bame way they did when I 1 was there before and anti they run in in about the same direction railroad Ral road colli collisions s lons ions steamboat accidents fires ahi ahl ani and fi freezing bezin 11 to death deal it are mst J as common as before and arid a little more so ani ang and another thing I 1 suppose you jou will be glad to learn the devils not dead brigham young t I 1 feel thankful for that 1 A great portion of the people have come to the he conclusion after having been a great many years considering the subject over that we are a very desperate set of fellows out heie here politicians are a little vexed for they do not know chatto w hat to do to with ils us they did not admit any territory into the union during this session of Congre congress sr though they did grant rant a permission perm slon sion graciously to Ir habitants inhabitants ts residing in the territory Tern tory of minnesota Mm neota to make a constitution I 1 have looked on 0 and arid taken items thought and reflected saw ara aaa art how it htwa was going waiting for an opportunity you know it was a very modest mission I 1 went down on I 1 went to washington to ask permission to enter me the union and I 1 did not want to go in in until I 1 saw a fair chance I 1 hated to ask and be refused admission I 1 have rejoiced very verv much at every particle of news that I 1 could receive from the he mountains I 1 received letters betteis flom from Preside president rit tit young and others of hers three four and sometimes six six months after they were wi watten itten when they did arrive they afforded me a great deal of pleasure and were a source of or rejoicing jo icing ng especially to learn that the saints wei wel were e sva sra waking ng up tip I 1 jonm on my y way here with the mail I 1 had bad the additional dit ional cause of rejoicing reo cine cing in in beholding that a great many sick persons whose lives bad had been dreadfully in in danger had bad been licky bicky enough to escape and by escaping the narrow chance of a hundred buti dred thousand deaths have been to to some peaceable land where they tha expect to enjoy them themselves selves but I 1 mis anist m is t say from the little observation I 1 had of them they were a sickly crowd and when they had bad an opportunity port unity they vomited freely and b by y that process would be able probably jo to keep along until they got pot d down own to the ails Alis missouri river river but we understand they are not agreed A part art of the party would relate their narrow escape their hails breadth deliverance and theother the other othen part would pronounce it all a lie not a word of truth in it one end of tile he par pay party ty would contradict what the other end of it would affirm if I 1 ever desired anything on the earth wilh with all my heart since I 1 came to the these thee e valleys it was that the lord would gather out ont of our midst all those that offend every time I 1 get met met a party I 1 felt like shouting glory calory 2 the work I 1 saw was going on and I 1 felt to rejoice I 1 did not go to washington putting my trust in man neither do I 1 come home putting 1 my trust in man the almighty bcd is at the tha be helm heim lm he rules his big people he governs and controls all men and lie can restrain the wicked at hi his pleasure bill let jet me tell you if the designs of the spirit of tile the devil that reigns 11 in the heart hearts S of I 1 the b e wicked against us prompting them to our onn destruction could ae b e executed we would be exterminated from the face of the earth but god limits their power and as long ions as they cannot gratify their whole desires just so long they may rage and foam but if you put any trust whatever in in man it you rely on the he arm of man to protect you I 1 you will be disappointed what protection have we ever had from the d day ay we commenced to preach the gospel to fhe tha present day we expect nothing but tile the arm arin of the almighty to protect his people let us therefore put our trust in him and just let the he devil howl how I 1 had llad a little serious conversation vi with ith captain smith at fort port kearney the verv very gentlemanly gentleman iv commander of that tort fort major wharton had bad nearly lost his big eye sight principally by watch watching lt g for the hostile cheyenne indians through throng a tiie tie tle spy glass and arid captain smith was acting commander I 1 enquired what is the condition of the hie dragoons stationed chete H ile lie replied they had about fifty horses but their hoofs had llad come off how maity malty have you yon that can do service if call il tl upon lie he said tile tiie they had llad about ten tell cr or twelve lil ill vil ill good condition but hut fresh horses were expected the company of hand band cart elders were an astonishment to everyld ody hat that saw them hern the tho traders or the I 1 road load say tha that f mules are no where by the side of them I 1 n ever never saw such a pretty sight in my life we had a meeting with them on clorse horseshoe shoe creek and a belfer belter set of men I 1 never saw and men that were c id N when vh e n I 1 was wag a boy hoy were as active as boys rolling oil on with their hand carts singing and rejoicing rejoicing perhaps peel haps when I 1 zet get some olliver opportunity I 1 may fe elfree without intruding on the time lime of others to speak more particularly on the till s that pertained to moy roy mission ilnay may the loid lold bless us and enable us to live and soberly and ad rise with wilh the ster S r of if the hie morning an and 1 I enjoy eternal glory is my prayer in t thenamae he naiia of jesus Chri christ stAmen amen |
