Show BOUND FOR THE ORIENT the writer of 0 f this left salt lake city four days day g in advance of the company of elders he should have started with on november 14 1888 thus allowing time to visit relatives in new york and new jersey at paris four of us parted three of us started for switzerland one of whom was bound for palestine and turkey the other myself was allowed by courtesy of president geo teasdale to stop over at nice france to call on other relatives not seen in eight or nine years among whom and friends I 1 1 spent one month so much time partly on account of interrupted steamship movement in paris and nice I 1 spent many long and late hours long winded ones they were explaining and demonstrating some of the principles of our religion I 1 found here ready for a little more truth a few persons of various beliefs especially spiritualists re be and those that follow somewhat theosophy psychology psychology astrology et etc among W whom om I 1 n had ad been educated four or five years and to which pe persons arso ns since my fellowship with the church of jesus christ of latter day saints I 1 had repeatedly imparted of my faint but compared to theirs great knowledge of the gospel by way of letters books pamphlets periodicals both for and against mormonism these I 1 either gave them or merely loaned for circulation of brother C W Pen roses CM mormon ormon doctrine being very short I 1 made a translation a year ago and also allowed it to go around but a prejudiced person calling it a pious imposition has destroyed it or holds it it so I 1 cant recover it as yet at least the rough 11 or first translation I 1 have however I 1 had hoped too fondly perhaps to see it in print lint through the assistance of a publisher elisher at paris a friend of my fattu father er a very free man but for Cc mormonism 11 not enough so prance france in general is I 1 think a sterile field for gospel harvesters but personally nall I 1 felt repaid rory for my bight slight endeavors as I 1 suppose I 1 relieved many dark prejudices and even caused a little healthy curiosity though perhaps a very little I 1 have been asked if strangers could pass in or out of the gates of utah alive without the consent of the chief of the church or the dan ites or if apostates were allowed to alpart depart alive etc and if the walls around utah are so many feet high other ideas such as these sometimes arise why do the mormons cormons Mor mons live all together in one great building or barracks why dont they have cities houses and farms like other nat nations on why do they keep their wives imprisoned in big ser or cola COB vents why dont they use horses oxen railroads and machinery to work instead of using their wives for that purpose why do they fortify then their towns unless to keep out gentiles and to keep the apostates or other entrapped strangers from getting out and giving it all away sometimes it is hard to dispel these ideas all at once some would believe the contrary and perhaps be disposed for more candid investigation if only some prompt denial oe be given satisfactory to their notions brother C B R savage was original and gra gracious cigus enough to present me at my departure with a large nicely assorted set of his notoriously well made extra size photographs of buildings the whole valley canyons etc all of utah these photographs bogra togra to hs in countries like europe and il the e orient where photography has not dot advanced as in america command attention for their beauty and lustre alone but for disabuse ing the minds of people holding such notions of utah as I 1 have related these views speak volumes more in ten minutes than hours of talk to me as a missionary they probably will be worth more than many times the money they would have cost had I 1 bought them the customs of france an and d italy the greater part of your readers are acquainted with italy advances very much in cleanliness and bigotry is on the decrease the climate of IV italy is nice enough I 1 will ki give v lo 10 ri a slight description of athens p i is its port or harbor f ten cents railroad fare from there brings one to athens the famed city of old greek history the present city clean but small is scattered among seven or eight hills or hillocks the population is said eaid to be the country folks and patriots dress in that style which in america is generally though erroneously called callea turkish it is really the middle age of greece and the modern armenian dress A red cap and tassel a shirt with wide sleeves ves vest wl with em embroidery rol er an and many buttons a heavy bundle shape belt filled with knives tobacco matchbox match box or flint and steel for lighting the cigarette a handkerchief a list fist full of corroded cooner coins some charms and odd bits of paper comb etc the pants axe are of caper that hat well known but not easil easily y described sort with three to five Y yards of extra cloth gathered in a loose maw mass just behind the knees a sort serf of upside down leg of mutton or rather crushed balloon arrangement the legs are sometimes partly bare and bronzed comet sometimes mes in tights the shoes are made to curl up in a long or horn at the end of each of which is a red r tassel or ball of wool the women dress unjust in just about the same style the european dress is worn by the king queen and the better and even aven middle class clam at the churches the people kiss and bump their heads about dreadfully on all the various images which are of silver gold plate wood etc making also between each particular act or of devotion or kiss three teree signs of the cross some even if they are to smoke a cigarette before lighting it make three crosses by sign religious tolerance seems to gain ground protestant iro roman catholic greek and russian catholic churches freemasons Free masons and jewish faiths are represented here the king is a protestant and I 1 am also told his wife Js is but he is under obligation to the national will or his constituency to baptize his children into the greek creed that the hel lenies or greeks may in the future have a truly greek monarch of one of his princes dinces ane ancient ent greek rulus ruins abound here the chief objects are the acropolis Akrop pa olis 1 is he ancient high place of athens at fiens tona lofty rock full of the ruins of the antique temples and palaces palace of the hellenic republic and empire destroyed fearfully by the turks at the capture of greece when the greeks though dying of hunger in this inaccessible fortress to discourage the turks from continuing the warfare and to come to terms with them made loaves of cheese from the milk of their women and sent to the turks to prove as it were that they had yet plenty of food to withstand the siege then there is the place where the apostle paul preached to the philosophers on mars hill in open air called where he spoke to them and the idlers of their superstition in worshipping wor shipping even at the altar of the unknown god etc see acts xvi 16 the prison cell where socrates pined forty days before he drank the poison hemlock rather than say there was not a god greater than the greek images of silver and gold besides these there are many immense rulus ruins of grand temples tribunals aqueducts markets dwellings etc scattered over the whole district which time will not allow me to describe the next steamer for alexandria egypt leaves here in five days there I 1 intend to go I 1 will pro probably babli visit the pyramid of gizea or choops if I 1 notice anything of much interest I 1 may drop an account of it to you to be disposed of as you see fit respectfully etc C U L ATHENS greece january 21 1889 |