Show 1 1 1 1 I 1 I 1 DISCOURSE 1 1 by president brigham young tonne Taber tabernacle macle february Peb ranry 1855 I 1 I 1 I 1 il I 1 1 11 1 1 HEAD BY EUER ruo fAa iKAs I 1 it 1 f I 1 I 1 bothum ni SISTERS Si snits AM FRIENDS wear we ara ar a people le believing la iii the provi dences of of G Godi b and acknowledging ck no wl ed di IA IMS s hand andin in 99 with no fr onida to t M day I 1 I 1 r W wr are re a people whose rise and progress from the beginning h has as been the work of god our heavenly father which in hie wisdom he lids has sabir proper pr to comi commence nence for at the re establishment of I 1 his kingdom upon the theearta earth t t still fm furth ther I 1 we believe that the lord has been bean preparing that when he should bring forth 4 hiff jer that ax w he hen the set time t should fully caroe e there might ir light be bb a place upon his footstool sufficient liberty of conscience should eist east that thai his saints might dwell in ili peace beaw under ander the broad f panoply pailo ply of constitutional law and equal rights in this view we consider that oat the denof men of the re were were the almighty to throw shackles of the mother government with her established rel religion 1 1 I 1 I 1 n bof this cause were adams jefferson franklin 1 1 aklin washington Washing fon alid aad io host or of others inspired to deeds of resistance to I 1 the acts of the king of gr great at britain who might also have been led to those SM dres dessive sive acts for ought we know to bring to pass tho the purposes of god aithus in thus establishing a new government upon a principle of greater freedo i a basis of self government allowing the free exercise of religious worship I 1 it was ahe voice of the lord inspiring all those worthy anon who bore influence in those trying only to go forth in batt lebut to eker exercise ciss wisdom in council fortitude courage and endurance in the tented field as welt well as a s subsequently S abse 4 bently to in form and adopts adopt those wise and efficient measures which secured to t themselves hem belv a s a and p d a u c e e d irig generations 5 e n era t lons tile the blessing of a free and independent t I 1 I 1 government I 1 I 1 I 1 this government so formed has been blessed by the almighty until she spreads her sails in evy every sealand dud her power is felt in evry land the american government is second to none nona ift id the world worlden din in influence and power and far be fore all other salt liberal and free institutions under its benign influence filet poor down trodden masses mass of the old world can find an asylum where they can enjoy tiie the blessings blessing of peace and freedom no matter to what castel caste or religious sect they belong orare disposed bed to favor or whether chev are ara disposed to favor favo any rany or nonen none tall atall it was wa in id this government formed by men aien inspired inspire dof of god although at atthe the time they knew it no tafter etwas it was firmly established in the seat of power and lOAnce where liberty of conscience and the free eter exercise elso ol 01 prel rel giono worships worship were a funda monta mental I 1 pim ciple guaranteed in the constitution with all the feelings traditions I 1 and sympathies of the that t the ae lord sent forth his angello reveal the truths trudis of heaven lineave as asim in Z I 1 i times past even ai as in ancient days this should 1 have been hailed as grei greatest test blessing which could have been bestowed upon any nation kindred red tongue or people jl it should have been received with hearlson hearts hearl of gratitude and glad and aard thanksgiving I 1 I 1 budias but as it was in in the tha days of our savior so awaa it la ia the advent of tills this now new dispensation it was not vuth the notions traditions and pre conceived ideas idea of the american people the messenger ngor did not cometo come to an 04 emi eminent awn t divi divina ne of ally of chiso so called Orthodoxy he Wt did not adopt their interpretation of the holy Scrip scriptures tares abd tbd lord did not flot come with the armies of heaven in po power and great glory nor send his with ought else than thear the truth a th of 0 f heaven t to communicate to the meek the lowly thi youth of hamble origin the sincere enquirer after I 1 berthe tha the knowledge of god but he ha did send his augel to this same obscure person joseph smith jr T ali who after afterwards became a F prophet Se seer erand and revelator and informed him that he be should not j join flin any ally of the religious sects of the day for they were all wrong that they were following the precepts of men instead of tile tho load jesus that he had bad a work for him to perform inasmuch as I 1 lie he should prove faithful before him 1 i no sooner was this made ado known and publish ed abroad and aind people began to liste aa and obey the heave heavenly illy summons than opposition began to ra rage ge and the people evenin a it this ii s f favored a v ored I 1 landbo and he gan to persecute persecutor their and friends fob fbi entertaining religious Apiu opinions ions differing ing from their OWR own I 1 I 1 I 1 pause now to ask hd not joseph smith a right light to establish a differentia dufer differ enta new rel gion and form of worship in this government every one must mast admit ha badT bis was WA ays bield sacred for lupori it was based tile religious huei liberty ly of every citizen of he republic it was a privilege 9 e hold sacred in tho the bosom of of 0 people no invade afia to choly h oly pr pre e no legislator nor ventured to obstruct the freo free exe exercise roise thereof how then thea should it he be ei esteemed teemed an all object worthy of persecution that joseph smith vie fie man called of god to perr perform orina a work in restoring the gospel of salvation unto the children of men and his followers true believers in ili his divine mission should attempt to exercise the same privilege had sacred by all others of every name nama nature and description crip tion and equally so by them why should lie and his followers be de barred the privilege of woi shipping god according to the dictates of their cou consciences sciences legally they cannot and I 1 will further state that legally they have not no whenever illa iron hand of oppression and persecution has f olen fallen upon this people our op posers have broken their own laws sett set at defiance and tram trampled plad underfoot under foot every principle of equal tight rights 0 justice and liberty found written in ili that rich legacy of our fu fathers TWE OF 0 THE UNITED STATES j 11 i I 1 whenever popular fury jias hm beba bee directed against us no power in aba government has been i found potent enough ao affords protect protection iori and what is detill more astonishing honorable enough to yield redress nor auy effort succeeded ded yi au bringing to justiS 9 those individuals who had perpetrated pet rated such fearful crimes no the murdena murd the assassin the mic dy plunderer and engh highway py a robber roam unmolested and mingle unquestioned in the baclet society ly of tile the rulers of the land the they y pa pass sa audre and repass re pass as current rp caa producing no jar inthe in the sensibilities of refinement refi u ent no odium 1 in in the atmosphere in which they move I 1 I 1 lask I 1 ask you yoh fri friends ends how li ia etnis are not our religious religions centime sentiments ants as sacred ad to us as to any other portion of the community and not beahe be the duty du t y ai asell wy 11 is as the pride of every ety I 1 american A eltia citizen I 1 a to extend that provision I 1 of the constitution to us which he claims for or aih A elf ski I 1 and is not that sacred i instrument I 1 aud broken as much in debarring baud aad excluding this people I 1 from it its 4 arville privileges ge abts rights arld and blessing 4 I 1 nela 11 e 11 I 1 I 1 I 1 0 19 r mil it would be tf if f your rights ts and privileges MW thus invaded no gentlemen we have bro akeia lie laws our glorious conson guarantees unto us all that we claim under its broad I 1 sao fo folds ds jn in as obvious nobilous meaning and intents we are safe aud and can always rejo rejoice iee iu in peace all that we have ever claimed or wish to on the part of V the government Covern ment is the just administration of the go powers and privileges of the national compact I 1 it is not our acts neither our intentions that the tha people or tile the government are afraid ottom borcom 4 1 plain 04 but their own evil isings concerning us as in our oar first settlement in missouri it was said by our enemies that we intended to tamper with the slaves not that we had bud any idea of the kind for such a thing never entered our minds we duew that the children of ham were to be the 1 erva its of servants and no power under heaven could hinder it so long as the lord should per mit them to welter under the curse and those were known to ao be our reig remigious ious views concerning t hem misrepresentation of our enemies found willing ears in those prejudiced against us and we were driven from our homes in consequence of the fears of the people aud and tile prejudice which had been raised against us as in consequence thereof again in missouri in the early part of hiir our history the fears of the people and government W were aroused because wy they not we said that it was I 1 our intention to tamper with the indians therefore we must not be allowed to exist in their vicinity and again the alarm was sounded and we were driven from our homes plundered mobbed some come killed and all this not for any crime which we had committed but for fear we might commit one I 1 again it was industriously circulated that we were going to declare our independence not that wp w had bad or intended to dp do so absurd a thing yet aby anything thing iio no matter how absurd seemed chent excuse to startle the fears of tile the community and they began to drive plunder rob burn our houses and lay waste our fields and this was called mormon monnon disturbances and the aid or of the government was avas invoked to quell insurrection moman troubles 1 and turbulent mormons cormons Mor mons and although it was found necessary as they st stale ate to drive missouri arid and tile frontiers to prevent us from tampering with the slaves quid and indians yet it was found equally ne lie evi sary teu ten years afterwards when we were a hundred to one ar af that time to drive us from the vevy vei y midst of the indians as unworthy of any other society F fears ear of W what hat we might ilo do with ille indians had by tins this lime subsided and fears of something else that we might hereafter do if left to remain in peace wid and a desire to plunder accomplished our exodus exode from illinois perhaps however in III this last case our enemies might have entertained some fears that if we were permitted to remain unmolested the blood thirsty assassins who killed OUT our beloved prophet aas d patriarch joseph and hyrum who ho inhumanly massacred while ro reposing posing under the pledged faith of tile state for their protection and safety might no not t be permitted to remain bed in their guilt As in the ease case of af file t ne indians upon the frontier this also was a false conclusion for if ever a people p ae would have been justified in redress redressing inK their own wrongs and could have done so with impunity it was at the time of this horrible mui murder der but they proved to the world by their quiet and peaceable demeanor that they had no such in twi tiou but this was far margotte forgotten gotte a and in less than a year and a half we were again ledour houses arid and grain stacks burned and our brethren shot down in the glare of the light thereof while attempt ting to save a pittance to drive starvation not from the doors nor the tents for there were none of either but from tile the famishing hearts of their social circle ol of their wives arid and children and again was the aid of the government invoked to quell the so called Mormon disturb inces arid and still wo we see the newspapers teeming with these and the like epi bets Turbulent cormons mormons Mor mons what shall be done with these turbulent cormons mormons Mor mons is the cry from one end of the union to the other in III the name of heaven what have we done to excite etche tile the fears of any people or government I 1 that the sound bound of war and blood must eternally ha be kept ringing iu in our ears I 1 answer nothing it is the same as before in the pase case of tampering with the slaves and indians a certain fearfulness that if we wa are not looked to driven plundered of our homes and possessions slain and massacred as before that we may do something they have not yot yet to my knowledge defined precisely what r have riot not this people ably evinced fri friendly adly feelings disposition arid and patriotism towards the government by ivory every act arid and proof c I 1 which can call be given by any people perm perin it me to draw your attention for a moment to a few facts iu in relation to rals raising irig the battalion for the mexican war when the storm cloud of persecution lowered down upon us on oil every side when every avenue was closed against us our leaders treacherously betrayed and slain by the authorities of the government in ill which we lived and no hope of relief could penetrate through tiie the thick darkness and gloom which surrounded us on every side no voice was raised in our behalf and the general government was silent to our appeals when we had been insulted and abused all the day long by those in aut authority bority requiring us to give up our arms and by every other act of iii sult and abuse which the prolific imagination of our enemies could devise to test as thay they said our patriotism which requisitions be re complied with on our part and whon when we were finally compelled to flee for the preservation of our lives and the lives of our wives and children to ito the wilderness I 1 ask had we not reason to feel that hat our enemies were in the tha ascendant that even evea the government by their silent were also in favor of our destruction had we not net I 1 ask some reason to consider them all both the people and the government vern ment alike our enemies and when in addition to all this filid nd while fleeing from our enemies another test of fidelity and patriotism was contrived by them for our destruction arid and acquiesced in by the ilia government through the agency ef a distinguished politician who evidently sought and thought lie ha had planned our overthrow and total annihilation consisting of a requisition from the war department to furnish a battalion of ef five hundred men to fight under their officers and for them hem in the war then existing with mexico I 1 ask again could we refrain from considering both people arid and government our most deadly foes look a moment at our situation and the circumstances under which this requisition was made we were migrating we knew kitow not whither except that it was our intention to go beyond the reach of our enemies I 1 I 1 we had no homes save our wagons and tents and no stores of provisions and clothing but had I 1 to earn our daily bread by leaving our fam ries in isolated locations for safety and going among our enemies to labor were we not even before this cruel requisition was made unmercifully borne down by oppression and persecution past endurance by any other community but under these trying circumstances we were required to turn out of our traveling camps of our most efficient men leaving the old the young yo u the women upon the hands of the residue to t take Z e care of and support aud in case we refused to comply with so unreasonable a requirement we were to be deemed enemies to the government and fit only for the slaughter look also at the proportion odthe of alie number |