| Show for the 14 deseret evening sews news IES les OF THE esth mee hee MEETING ri im AND riest ANNUAL MEETING or THE FEMALE RELIEF SOCIETY ry OF teye teil wand WAUD S REPORTED BY MRS L D ALDER UNION HALL WA ward RD f thursday feb IS 1869 J het ket met in in accarda accordance i nee nce with adjournment r present acting president of this stake of zion G B wailace wallace elders I 1 doremus geo lunford dunford iun Jun ford A merrill also Si sister sterE E B R snow show with several of of the presidents and officers of other so defies in the city after singing and prayer the minutes of the preceding pree prec edin meeting also aiso the first annual report of the society were read by the secretary and accepted the following is a copy of the first annual Ie leport lepont port pont this society was partially organized on Thu thursday niday evening feb the so clety now fully organized i is s composed of one two coun selfors selI sell ors bis secre beare secretary tary and treasurer sixteen teachers or visiting committee and their thair president with one counsellor and secretary rya a board of appraisers composed of four members and one hundred dr ed and nd seventy me members niters the financial dinan finan cial clai condition of the society is as follows received in donations during the fiscal 2 Vy ear ending feb 1869 CAS oas ciss 40 Fro provisions visions and 1 dise disc i r cash from parties partle selven sylven given by the society 40 in orders and merchandise 2690 26 90 total 1 I sa amount disbursed in behalf of the needy balance in treasury cash so store orders 1250 1350 12 50 merchandise total 32 Y articles manufactured by the society Bed quilts 14 56 ads carpet 42 ads jeans jehns 22 ars of pants 33 ars of socks 8 suits of clothes paid for childs tuition 10 00 have at command in lumber for building purposes 00 the teachers or visiting committee by request of the then came forward and reported the condi tion of their respective blocks and also brought forward what donations had been contributed since the preceding meeting after appropriate remarks and instructions from elders A merrill I 1 doremus geo BW hwallace B silace wallace acting president of this stake of zion op geo morris hyde and sister S M kimball sister E B R snow made the following remarks 1 I hae have ha e often thought that unless we had bad more to do than what it seemed possible sible sibie for us to accomplish we should not perform all that we might it is ah lessing to us that we at times are brought into circumstances which are calculated to bring into exercise every power and faculty which we possess it is true it may not seem very desirable for the time being but it has aten dency to strengthen and develop our abilities and prepare us for greater usefulness ful fui ness we have been instructed that each ou one e of us in our organization is en dowed with the germs of every faculty y requisite to constitute a god or go goddess addess these little ones in their mothers arms havethe have bave the germs of all the capabilities which we exhibit and what constitutes the difference between them and ourselves why a lack of development in them and this development requires cultivation energy and perseverance er severance the organization of the demale female relief belief society SO clety places the sisters in positions to bring into exercise and thus develop all of our faculties thus in doing good to 0 others therb we berle berie benefit fit ourselves in bles sing thou shar shau be blest and those who do the most roost good will be most blest my sisters bisters let iet ua so cultivate ourselves that we may be capable of doing much rea good oda we are the daughters of our heavenly enly eniy father and our position as saints of the most high la is at the head of the world let us try to realize our responsibilities and bud honor our position it is a delicate thing for us sisters to act in an organized capacity our brethren are accustomed to m move in organized bodies we are not and we need a great deal of the spirit andnis and wa wis dom of god to direct us although W we J should meet with difficulties let us never feel discouraged but move forward in the path of dut yand through the blessing of god and the encouragement of our brethren hr ethren we shall surmount every obstacle when sou you see one step bere bene yuu you take iland do gotwalt to see where is the next if we ive see one step stepi it is not for us to stand still until we see the way clear in the distance but move forward and the way will be opened before us step by y step this is a principle goj god god requires us to make the effort and thus prove our faith and trust in him and th then e nile he is sure to extend his aid we have a gratify gratifying in 9 illustration of this principle here before us sister bieh bich reports that bro rich donates 50 00 worth of lumber to this society if the society had not made a move in the direction of preparing to build this liberal donation would not have been made this society has already done much god has been with you my sisters or you could not have accomplished what you have you have also had the faith and prayers of the first presidency and of your bishop this organization is a portion of the holy priesthood and stands in the same relation to the i that th atthe the society which was p organized ra r a nihed iii in nauvoo by joseph smith stood to him and arid the idea of the society acting in opposition to the bishop is not only preposterous but an impossibility in all its movements it acts in accordance with his counsel and the moment it takes a step aside from this it ceases to exist in its proper order and the spirit of the institution is withdrawn but I 1 am not in the least anticipating such an event you have a president and councillors who have learned by many years of experience to respect and be guided by the authorities placed over them yet I 1 feel to say to you be careful move cautiously yet with energy er I 1 feel to congratulate you on your success you have done much you have donated liberally and you have disbursed as liberally I 1 trust that in the ensuing year the demands on your treasury will not be so heavy as in the pm past t and ad I 1 by the way I 1 wish to caution my sisters a little with regard to sympathy our sympathies as well as every other emotional feeling require cultivation ti this I 1 have learned by practical experience 1 could not believe that any person would solica charity unless really needy and I 1 had been many times imposed upon bedore before I 1 dared to question my sympathies but I 1 learned wisdom from the things isuf 11 itis your duty and province as a society for the relief or of the poor to make yourselves fully acquainted with the circumstances of those who solicit your aid I 1 have known instances of people being supported by charity when they had large boxes stored with jewelry ac do not hesitate to inform yourselves the really real I 1 v needy will not dissemble neither wiil wil they brink shrink from investigations you need the tile wisdom wi adom of god to direct you in these matters thab that you may neither withhold from the destitute nor unnecessarily drain your treasury each member of the society should study to know her place and honor herself by filling it honorably and all move forward foica rd like lile machinery thatis thab that is perfect in all its parts let no one overstep her mark or in the least crowd against another For instance ifould say to the teachers or visiting committee it is for you to visit your respective blocks to ascertain the circumstances of those those you visit and report to the proper authorities whose province it is to olea clea deal deai lout out or administer as ds shall be dequis requisite I 1 ite and if this principle shall be carried out in every department the society will move on like cibek eldek work we must learn to act from principle not from feeling we often have occasion to put the tho bit upon our feelings and with a strong curb of restraint keep them under proper control for through this channel the tempter will seek to stir up jealousies and envies check every feeling of this nature we may at times think we have not received due respect from this or that one but let us ever remember that it is better to suffer wrong than to do brongil wrong I 1 let us act nobly as becomes sain saints so of god and daughters of abraham and ever bear in mind that the greatest and noblest are the most condescending this is our branch there are many branches but they all constitute one female relief belief society as it was organized by joseph smith let each member realize her responsibility and seek to make the society honorable by being honorable herself let us be humble bumble and cherish the spirit of god th that at we i may increase in wisdom and and knowledge that we may attain to true and noble womanhood that we ma may y become what we were in the beginning created to behelp mates to our br brethren ethreD according to instructions by the proc klaz HAZ phet joseph at the time of its first organization this society is designed to be a relief to the bishop and elders of israel in administering to the poor you have already aided your your bishop a and n d lessened his cares and every labor that comes within the province of woman devolves upon the female relief society in a recent address by prest young before the female belief society of the ward he established a broad platform ilat Slat form and pointed out an extensive nield field eld eid or fields of labor almost too much it might seem to be accomplished in this generation I 1 desire fervently that we all may grow better day by day that when the faithful shall be called out as we have been instructed they will be we may be of the number my sisters you have my blessing and my prayer is that we may have gra ce to overcome evil with good have power to withstand temptation attain to the faith of the ancients and obtain victory over everything that opposes us in our way to the celestial kingdom sister Z D young expressed her satisfaction in what she bhe had seen and heard she shel spoke very encouragingly to the sisters and exhorted them to continue and increase in faithfulness and to be united that they may have power with god sister M T smoot and B smith followed with encouraging and comfort ling words M A hyde said baid 1 I am thankful for the encouragement we have received from our brethren I 1 and also our sisters who have met with us today to day when we were organized one year ago I 1 thought that a weaker vessel than myself could not be found I 1 almost felt to shrink from the position to which I 1 was called and although I 1 have succeeded beyond my expectations I 1 feel my weakness yet I 1 realize idealize that we have been greatly blessed as a society the sisters have been very energetic and have cheerfully responded to every call they have contributed liberally and done much and although crowded with cares labors and responsibilities bili ties aside from those connected with the society they have been punctual to every duty and have gladdened many hearts my sisters I 1 thank you all that we have done clone has been through the faith and prayers of our bre brethren thren arid and our union and perseverance with us i it t has been all union the meeting then adjourned benediction by elder george morris MRS 2 MELINDA N HYDE prest mrs L D aldersen ALDER ander see sec |
