Show 1 REMARKS IF U IR S on the death of eoder elder ezra T emson benson by president GEORGE A SMITH delivered in me new tabernacle salt make jake city sep oth ath 1869 REPORTED BY DAVID IV evans EVAS we have listened to a very interesting address the circumstances of which are calculated to produce in our oun lasting reflections it appears to have bee been n the fate of man mandof those M men who lid iid have received the loly holy apostles ap to die as martyrs I 1 rejoice that in n ubia generation one at least of the quorum of the tho twelve apostle apostles has been permitted to die a nato natural iral death the blood of david W patten and parey P pratt cries from the ground for vengeance elder benson died in the harness laboring to fulfill fulfil his hia duties id in the midst of his friends the office and calling of the apo apostleship rests upon many individuals we have been told that it was through this office joseph smith laid the foundations of this church his martyrdom and that of his brother hyrum were crowns upon their heads to prepare them for that exaltation which their services to the worlds worl das servants of god and apostles of jerus jesus arist hr sealed upon them it was wasi my design to say a few words in relation to the personal history of bf elder benson it may be considered unnecessary after the rem remarks irks of zelda woodruff when god called his apostles alesin in ane days of the savior andallo and also aiso in the present dache day he did not settle a sal ary upon their heads hebald he said baid to them goi go without purse or scrip and preach the gosp gospel eland elaud aud and preach it freely to all nations kindreds tongues and people jw ini this way elder benson hast has traveled through many countries av laboring and t toiling forthe spread of bf the work when tho the saints were driven froni front missouri Mip landed helpless and penniless p in im quincy liik JUs he wis waa liv arg there ther he rd their sufferings I 1 an and heard gy their thein testimony he lid nasr lva soon droba ordained hed bed an elder eider and zaid went gent fo rth to piea plea preach cb ile he p reached preached ahr throughput t the tee states he re belted a good deala abuse and many insults atit buc but ha cRin continued linued to labor after tho the death of the prophet he was appointed to 6 preside in the eastern states stales which he did dora for a seasons he labored upon tho the temple at nauvoo that tempie temple god ud had commanded us ul ti to build and aad which W we 8 erected meted under circumstances of poverty and priya privation tion alon gheri ghenn the dri jeh ieh fedin nauvoo elder eldr was adiong the firs first to journey in this thia diree ia boring with untiring zeal to mage maie maka make the roads and build the bridges across the wilderness through the stafe state of ibba there being only a skirting of settlements on orf the east side about abbitt fifty miles mils wide widd while on that journey the latter latler day saints established ley several sey eral farms in the wilderness and put in some thotis thousands ands of acres of grain for the benefit bf those who might come after and abad those who were ware unable to fo proceed further elder benson nanson was left atosie at one of these settlements called cille d mount pisgah plegh to act abt aa as assistant president edt u soon after the apostasy apo stagy of elder john E pago page elder benson was called to fill his hia place iu in the quorum of the twelve his first mission was to the eastern cities he left the saints in a destitute condition on the indian ianda landa in the omaha cour cout country itry about or miles from any point where they could obtain supplies after the they had been driven from their homes in in illinois Illino 4 elder benson went on a mission to the est east to prove the people and to see what they thiry would do for the thu e children of god in this extreme strait her hel visit visited ed uin tin cinnoti cin nati pittsburg philadelphia new york boston abid many other cities and laid before the people the condition condit lon loh of the latter day saints this was an unpleasant duty but it had bad to be performed or we could not i nse use in iu judgment against them bro benson performed it manfully he visited the mayors aud and leading men of these great cities buthod but had be he gone to spitting splitting rails with his ow own n hands during the winter he ihl ibi might have earned more money and more bread brea d and food for the hungry than was donated in the principal cities of this christian land and than was donated altogether alto getner if we w except the donations of three personal frien friends dg id 16 the s spring ring rink of 1847 he with the pioneers p lo 10 commended commenced the journey to this place lade 1166 the he rodd had had to besought be sought bought out we ah had bad ad no plot piot I 1 ot or guide we duade made a about ba lt even seven iund hundred red miles milea of new road to arrive aril arll veat at this spot passing over isom some four bundled miles of trappe trappers iray iral trail where teams had passed before As soon as we arii aril arrived ved here it became necessary for to go back to meet the emigration as we were aware that six hundred wagons wagon were on the road elder benson a and nd 0 P rockwell performed f his thEs duly only and they went alone four fofar hundred hundred miles across a desert in id nn an indian country before they met the advance of the emigration to impart td bothem them the glad news that aspot ascot a spot nad had been wen found where the standard of zion ba could iid ild be raised aud where there wasa was a prospect that we at last might enjoy bur religion in peace he ue continued meeting the camps until gehad impart imparted 34 these glad tid ings ingato fc the w whole hole hoie of the emigrating companies com a fides he then returned after wards he went with the pioneers to whiter winter quarters and remained there durinzi durinko that year in 48 in company compan y with eider elder orson hyde and myself been appointed to preside he renah remained ined in the to assist in fitting out the emigration in 1 49 in i company with the r rear e ar division of the emigration he crossed the plains with his hia family an incident on this journey i is s worth narrating he was taken violent violently lysick sick siek and his family and friends gave him up for they had lost all nil hope of his recovery the fifty with which I 1 traveled were gerein in the rear ehme came up o encampment I 1 found him in this position t X called upon the Saint saints sto to holdia hold hoid a prayer meet leng and arr they fasted and prayed for him I 1 took sonie some bome of ther thia elders eiders on to onelda the in the neighborhood and we besought the lord with all our powers to fo heal him he was healed aa as if by magic and he was able to pursue the journey reaching the valley with his bis family in the fall of he hemli henas iwas a senator of the state of deseret an organization which governed this territory for three years previous to the organization of the territory of utah he was sent to develop the county and bull bulitt t the first saw and grist mills therel there antt antl did much to improve the county and afterwards represented it in assembly oly ely subsequently ibn the commencement of settlements in ca cache chie clie valley he went and labored for ahe the ibe development of the settlements making however in the meantime a mission to the states to assist the emigration and and a mission to europe while on the latter he labored jn n great britain antl and sea scandinavia n din ain av in ift the development of settlements in cache valley he was among the brn t t to rund saw and grist mills there he fie alsor asor organized a regiment of militia afi n that county there being then mapy many hostile bands of indiana indians living in the vicinity he was elected colonel of that regiment and the regiment increasing until it became a he be of course became its brigadier general the brigade now con and is probably one of tite tito strongest in the territory i elder benson was elected from that place to represent i in the legislative council the dist district brict including cache and aud bear lake val vai valleys leys leyo this position he has baa hebi fora forg for fon everal several years he was elected at the last election for the next ensuing two years he was a man exceedingly zealous in the performance perform aice alce of his dutle dudes 1 and like the ancient apostles labored without purse or scrip by his gigantic exertions in ill business at home maintaining his family besides 0 these mi missions and discharging every other ca cail call it made upon him about four years ago retook betook he took a mission to the sandwich islands landd la his escape from a watery grave while attempt attempting in 9 to land there thery being very remarkable that was the last time he went beyond the limits of the territory when the ory was raised from one end of the territory to the other we must put through the pacific railroad benson farr west formed an association for grading two hundred miles of the central contral road they labored under many disadvantages to accomplish their contract during the winter and when the road was completed I 1 am sorry to say aay that they who had promised to pay up immediately the work vork was done failed to fulfill fulfil their agreements and the they are yet indebted to benson and C company pany or thereabouts this failure on the part of the railway company involved elder benson in serious pecuniary difficulties which should have been closed up six months ago and probably produced a worry and vexation which may have hastened his death though it is said that on the day of his deatline death he was remarkably well and dud seemed to be in the enjoyment of very fine spirits and good prospects I 1 am thankful that he died in the harness having done his duty manfully which should be inscribed upon his tombstone tomb lomb stone and that no wicked man had the pleasure of spilling his blood as in the case of joseph and hyrum david patten parley P pratt an and a other martyrs we rejoice in the blessing and privilege of freedom of thought and freedom of opinion and in the right to administer the ordinances of the gospel when we built the temple at nauvoo we built a font expressly for the baptism of thedeas the dead it was built after the fashion of the seal of king solomon it was a beautiful place standing upon its twelve oxen but when the mob had succeeded in driving the saints a baptist minister got possession of the temple and broke the horns from the oxen and otherwise marred them mashed up the thel font and rendered the place as general kane says in his historical address I 1 too noisome for any man to abide in it and finally consumed the temple to ashes we thank god that we enjoy the freedom of the constitution which illch guarantees the right and the liberty to worship god as we wo please we thank him for fok this privilege and that our apostles can lie down and die dle in the midst of their friends and not be murdered it is a change in our history thank god for it may the blessings of israels Israel lq god be upon you and peace dwell and abide with you is my prayer in the name of JE sestus jestis Us amen |