Show r SYD SYDNEY NEY dec president aeo oeo A smita smith I 1 dear brothe brother r I 1 again avail myself of the op opportunity opportune t y afforded me by the outgoing mont monthly h ay mail to write you a few lines to let you know where I 1 am and what I 1 am doing in my last I 1 informed you of my arr arrival ivalon on my mission and what I 1 had done up to that time I 1 will now give you a brief history of my doings since then to the present having organized branches where opportunity offered in the colony of Victor set things in order according to my understanding in the spirit of my calling I 1 proceeded to sydney in the colony of new now south wales there thero I 1 found those who had been and still called themselves latter day saints in a a scattered and disorganized condition having a name to live kut but were dead I 1 went round ana and visited fi sited about half a dozen famil families ies tes and invited them to a meetings to tat be held at the house of a brother hamed named nicholls on sunday afternoon dec 19 1869 about a i alf dozen persons met but there was such a want of union and such bitter hitter animosities that I 1 almost despaired dis paired and should have left them for fairer fields and pasti pastures ires new had it not been revealed to me by the spirit of prophecy that I 1 should succeed I 1 therefore appointed another meeting for sunday afternoon dec 26 1569 for the purpose of putting to them in the form of a resolution the necessity of rebaptism we met the resolution was put one of the elders present said it had been suggested that it should be left to the private judgment of each saint to be re baptised baptized or to retain his or her place in the church without it as the they y should think proper to this I 1 0 objected bj acted i and the resolution affirming t the he necessity of baptism rebaptism re yas fas was carrie carried d unanimously in the evening we had another meeting I 1 spoke on obedience to authority and gathering to zion after which an elder who was not present in the afternoon buti but had been mado acquainted with the object of the meeting and invited to attend excused himself for his absence on the plea that he had attended the funeral of an acquaintance he objected to the resolution relative to rebaptism baptism re said he did not think IL i u necessary upon this one sister slater the ehe the wife of an elder who had held the office of president of the branch declared she would never be re baptised baptized seeing that the devil was pretty busy stirring up the spirit of discord and opposition and fearing that tile the meeting might terminate in a d disagreeable isa ree able abie scene I 1 rose to my feet and told them that when I 1 was set apart to this mission by the on of the hands of the authorities author ties in zion I 1 received power from on high that had brought that power with me over sea and land into their midst that I 1 knew as long as I 1 clyed my religion and magnified my calling that power would continue with me I 1 said I 1 did know that baptism rebaptism re I 1 should be on hand next bunday sunday morning to baptise or re baptise all who might require e it repenting of their sins audil and in the afternoon would organize such into fato a branch of the church of jesus christ christof of latter day saints theaon the consequence of this decided action as I 1 have reason to believe will be the rebaptism of nearly all the old members and some new candidates from their records I 1 gathered that they have met but once aa as a branch since the year 1859 1659 so that it will be seen they have been virtually disorganized and demoralized for a period of over ten years now if baptism rebaptism re be bp not necessary under the above circumstances I 1 am at a loss to know under what circumstances it would become necessary I 1 have written the above just as it occurred nothing extenuating nor setting down aught in malice that you may be able to judge of my action as correctly as if you had been present god is my witness I 1 had no other motive for insisting on baptism rebaptism re than the building up of the kingdom of our god and their salvation in it I 1 have deemed it right to be thus explicit to you as I 1 am the only elder from utah in all the australian and new zealand colonies necessitating necessitation several thousand miles of travel a aad and 1 I to show you the difficulties I 1 have and may still have to contend with and to ask your faith and prayers on behalf of myself and the work in which I 1 am engaged I 1 shall also thankfully receive and faithfully obey any noy counsel you may from time to time in your wisdom think proper to give me dear sir I 1 find fina by the australian papers and also aho from a letter that I 1 have seen that a miss geraldine warden has been paying you a professional visit at aa a vocalist she has written a letter to her father here speaking very highly of our people the old gentleman aa as soon as he heard of my arrival sent for me and showed me the letter he told me that when I 1 saw brigham young I 1 was to bo be sure to return him a fathers hearty thanks for the kindness his daughter had received I 1 told him that our loved president in common with all good saints did right kight because it was right irrespective of thanks this ladys letter so far aa as it relates to our people has been published in all the he victoria newspapers and has created quite a favorable impression please convey my sincere love and ind faithful obedience to our loved president I 1 should have written to him but believing that the onerous duties of his office gave him letter reading and work enough without being troubled with my ungainly scrawl of bad writing I 1 1 ug bad grammar bammar and worse spelling I 1 spare tim nim the infliction i while I 1 impose it on you because I 1 believe you will feel some interest in one who was set apart under your own hands and more especially as you counseled me to correspond with you and aud as you have such a keen relish for the ridiculous notwithstanding your high benevolence you will be able abie to have a good I 1 laugh aug at my composition and at the same time sympathize with the matter contained in it I 1 hope I 1 have made out a good excuse for writing to you instead of our oun president 1 I 1 mustleat somebody know how I 1 am getting along I 1 pray god our father to bless you with health strength long life and great reat happiness ana ancl may you be endowed bowed with wisdom from on high to counsel the saints both at home and abroad abroad that by obedience we may be built up in our most moat holy faith and finally together find an abundant entrance into the celestial kingdom of our god which ismy continued prayer in the name of jesus our redeemer amen obediently yours in the new and everlasting covenant ROBE nobe robert EGBERT BEAUCH amr AMP DOLLING hoytsville march 31 1870 editor deseret neton neten U dear sir bir knowing the interest which you and others take in the spread and increases increase ine inc of knowledge among the tho children in zion we thought a few brief notes from our school aou would ld not be uninteresting we have a school of between 50 and 60 scholars although somewhat irregular in attendance As school books we use websters elementary spellers wilsons Wil wll sons readers Pinne binne and aud analytical anly grammars and rays bays arithmetic 2nd and and ard 3rd at our recent examination the questions were answered readily and correctly the recitations singly and in concert were creditably performed last summer the school was dismissed on account of the small pox this winter it s progress has been somewhat retarded in consequence of various chil ehll childrens drenis diseases however we have ili ell in some of our juvenile classes those who did not know a letter in the spring of 69 and part of them not yet five years yeara old who can without embarras ment answer every question in the speller from twe the analysis of sounds to the end of abbreviations they have also learned thoroughly rays bays first mental arithmetic and can parse quite fluently in Pinne Pin neos primary we say this not boa stingly but for the ea en coura gement of other children in zion and to the wise in the east wo we would say that they are the children of poly gadist ga mists and we fear not a comparison i including elud ng ages and time spent in school with th the e blessing of heaven the continued approbation of parents and trustees we expect to have higher branches taught in the school ere long the first division of the exercises exercises were concluded with singing select and appropriate pieces under the direction of miss sarah A brown other divisions of the time were spent in danci dancing Dg songs recitations etc to the amusement an and d satisfaction of all present at one interval of the music a new electrical machine was brought forward a large circle was formed and those who desired it felt to their hearts content the thrilling impulse ct of tho power of electricity on the human system reminding us of the power which carries carried intelligence on wires from ogean ocean to ocean across the american Arne rican continent wo close for the prel present ent Respect respectfully funy runy E S HOYT J P LEE lne teachers |