| Show MUTUAL improvement oon CON the fifth semiannual semi annual conference of the young mens mu mutual tuai improvement associations was held in the salt lake labe I ake abe assembly hall wednesday evening october ath 1880 present on the stand of the general wilford woodrun rum rut joseph F smith and moses thatcher apostle geo Q cannon president geo goo teasdale george goddard and junius P F wells meeting called to order by the general superintendent prayer by president george teasdale ito boll of stakes called responded to by eleven representatives elder gea gfa Q CANNON expressed his pleasure at meeting with the young men and women of f zion he fie desired to say to the young men that to succeed as latter day saints they must in their youth live the principles they profess be latter day saints in practice as well as in faith he urged the youth of both knef to 9 refrain from the of vick tick vickus vicious us appetites saying any person derives more pleasure from the restraint of appetites for smoking drinking liquor tea and coffee etc than from their indulgence I 1 have found that true hal happiness can eau only be attained by living living a righteous lire life elder MOSES thatcher said I 1 know of or no nield field where intelligent missionary labor guided by the s spirit ii of god can be performed to apt better effect than among the youth of our people if we spent as much time and means to labor among them as we do among strangers in the world tile the result iam lam I 1 am constrained i to believe would be of gi greater ter good than in the world but I 1 have observed that many who are perfect perfectly y willing 0 to go abroad on missions I 1 to travel many miles to proclaim drocea im the truth to an infidel world are averse to going a little out of their way to turn the steps of the youth at home from the paths of temptation if the children of the saints have the same instruction that we give to the people of the world without mon money ey or price I 1 will venture to say that not one out of ten will turn from the truth after once tasting the joys of a testimony elder WILFORD WOODRUFF bore testimony to the remarks already made the lord raised up this work through the prophet joseph smith who labored for its establishment establishment and predicted many things all of which thus far have been fulfilled and there is no doubting the fact that all that remains will be in due time I 1 have witnessed the progress of this work for many years I 1 and have gone through the trials and experiences perien ces of early times and when I 1 see ee this people today to day numbering a hundred and fifty thousand I 1 see the band hand of god among them I 1 feel interested in the youth bemuse because I 1 look to them to bear off this work in triumph many of the older authorities thorit thorl ties les have passed away joseph is gone brigham is gone and others are fol foi following lowin when I 1 think of the hardships they and many of us have llave passed through traveling without purse or scrip shouldering our knapsacks leaving families families and friends for fhe the truths sake I 1 sometimes am led to exclaim where oh gid are the children of the prophets who have the stamina to sh shoulder the responsibility of the hin kin adom an anad d bear it off as their fathers kap have done yet they are here before and around me in the tile rising gen generation gration to them it will be gleveri and god will preserve among them those that will sustain his work I 1 want to see the young men and women instructed aright we are arc responsible for this and should do all in our power to train them in the P principles ri of righteousness I 1 would like ilke 1 e to see the name of every young man in israel enrolled in tho the young mens antens associations and every lady a member of their associations that they may all be gaining in intelligence telli and learning of the things thing of god I 1 hope they will heed the counsels of their elders and avoid temptation this people were ordained before they were born to come forth in this generation and do the work they are doing I 1 would rather not live another hour than to live so lone lonc long iong that I 1 should lose the fellowship of f the saints of god or be estranged from the spirit of OU our r religion I 1 have an anxiety about these associations they are doin doln doing a good work in preparing young me men for the field that is before them I 1 was never called to perform a mission in my life but what I 1 was glad of it t after I 1 got through 0 no matter what the circumstances were before going or while I 1 was away we have adopted some general instructions to the associations which bruther brother junius F wells will now read lr instructions of the general su perin to the officers and members of the young vens mens mutual improvement I 1 mp rove wenc went associations assoria eions throughout the church As the season for resuming your winter work is approaching we deem it an opportune time to Is issue 8 lie ule some general instructions in relation to the future working of the associations that will tend to systematize your efm eff morts efforts and to revive and sustain a proper interest in the cause of mutual improvement among ca the young first in relation to membership the associations should be composed of young men running to neither extreme as to their age young ladies should not be admitted as members of these associations they have an organization of ther their own to which they should belong clr an tim the bm haye oath adm ted them in the past in the approaching pro aching achino season they should erae era e their names from the rolls that our organization may indeed be what it purports to be according to the original instructions of president young meetings each association should so far as practicable commence to hold regular week weekly y meetings in the months of october octoba er in each y year yean ear ean when officers should be chosen and sustained and continue them until may when a vacation may be taken until the following october at these meetings which are for instruction st we desire to introduce sy systematic 9 exercises upon a plan that we have under consideration and will make arrangements to present before tile tiie asso associations clatious clat ions lons durin during the present season once a month the associations should hold a conjoint meeting with the young ladies associations at which a varied order of exercises may be rendered for fon or tb the e amusement and entertainment bf the people invited to attend quarterly conferences of the associations ciati clat ions lons ons should be held in each stake at such times as the stake authorities of the priesthood may ap appoint point at these conferences reports from the several associations should be given and the general and stake officers sustained the superintendents ten dents should inform the general officers of the times of their conferences that the latter may attend them when convenient at the time of the semiannual semi annual conferences of the church general meetings of the associations will be called in october to hear verbal reports and instructions and in april to p present resent the annual statistical report of f the entire organization stake superintendents should s send end in their annual reports to the general secretary on the blanks supplied by the of april of each year whenever a change occurs in the office of president president ident of any association the stake take ires gres superintendent should be notified and whenever a vacancy occurs in the stake super tendencies word should be sent to the general officers that proper steps may be taken to preserve our organization with effective officers at work in all its branches libraries we have called to our assistance a library committee of three to whom the secretary or librarian of each association is requested to immediately report a list of all the books in their respective libraries the general supervision of the association libraries preparing lists of suitable books arranging for their purchase and distribution trib ution etc will devolve upon this committee whom all associations should consult when about to lay jay the foundations for libraries arle arie s or to purchase additional books for those already in existence missionary labor the inter missionary labor of the associations should be con continued linued as fis in the past visitors from irom one association attending the meetings of another each alternate week not to occupy all the time in preaching but to observe the exercises ot of the meeting and to speak during the time usually a allotted lot for testimony bea bearing as they in may ay be requested b by v the president presidents s appointments will issue from us from time to time of missionaries instructed to labor with the asso clatious clat ciati ions lons ons and to explain the genera general order of exercises we wish them to adopt entertainments and lechtur lectures es we ve recommend the associations to assume wherever agreeable to the local authorities the management rn ra gement of entertainments the giving of concerts dancing parties etc all of these should be of a character r in harmony with our work of mutual improvement and to tore tone reflect the progress of our organization public lectures upon timely and appropriate ad prop subjects should be arranged for forand and given under the he t auspices of the associations at such times as may bo be convenient and agreeable during the winter season the contributor this magazine as the organ of the associations should be sustained by them and the young people its ob object eject being tore to reflect ct their progress 0 and to record their improvement WILFORD WOODRUFF josfpit F SMITH MOSES Ti lATCHER general tendency of the Y nyi M I 1 A elder eldr then presented the general ofil officers cers as follows all of whom were unanimously sustained wilford woodruff general superintendent in I 1 joseph Josep liF F smith moses thatcher counselors counselor F 9 har dy and rodney 0 badger assistants william S burton treasurer heber heberd J grant secretary joseph F smith john R park and joseph H felt library committee the contributor as the organ of the Young mens and young 11 ladies mutual improvement associations the tile following lowing fol lol persons were called and sustained as missionaries to travel and labor with the and to introduce systematic among 0 them wm win S burton heber J grant I 1 milton mllton H hardy rodney C badger joseph A west edward H ander Auder anderson son sOD anson V call F wells george C ambert lambert I B F cummings jr john T caine jr john IV taylor after singing the doxology the meeting was dismissed by elder joseph a F smith |
