Show f for this paper AMONG THE F Y another rood good time in has been had bad for some weeks the saints conference had been in the very busily engage engaged d in making conference which birns tirns tir ns tor for a christmas convened on saturday december 1804 1894 at atte te adap uni a kaoi pa situated about two miles distant from palmerston north which is one of the many cities of new zealand really picturesque invitations to attend had been extended the saints of the heretaunga Hereta unga to to conference and in response elders W VA F and T J obrien in in company with with about twenty five good saints stewed stepped from the cars to the platform of the depot at te at about five the aist dinst p m on friday president wm gardner arrived at the time he be having come direct from same auckland to attend the conference 11 in the evening saints from all parts of the conference arrived and after the usual evening services a time of had the saints of making was s speechmaking speech bech te pe extending a welcome to their visitors and they in return making appropriate replies the first mee meeting ting of the conference saturday beginning at two was held on p m there were present the named elders from zion follo following w ing president wm gardner M C nielson james S abbott E 0 best H C jex W F and T J obrien with about one hundred and fifty maori saints Sain tri elder 1 S abbott first addressed the meeting he was much pleased to meet with so many and particularly from the heretaunga Hereta so to see so many unga conference present we had met for a and he knew that all good food purpose present would try to make this an enjoyable time reported the several branches in this conference as being in a fairly good condition some good work had recently been done here among the outsiders and it was the desire of the elders to continue pushing them he hoped that all out among would enjoy this meeting together in a conference capacity tamati Nga toto a native elder then spoke upon the evils by which we are daily surrounded and exhorted all to pray pra y without ceasing for strength to resist them gave a glowing account of the condition of affairs in the mahia conference to which he belongs brother W F president of the heretaunga Hereta unga conference then addressed the S saints eints dwelling upon the enany privileges and blessings which we as saints enjoy hoped that when our savior comes again we will be prepared domeet to meet him Pene amme amine a native elder spoke upon the necessity of continuing in good works unto the end there is a work for all to do and the time allotted totted al while it is amply sufficient is yet not too long Whak apau a native elder spoke poke for some time upon church organization at 8 p m meeting again convened and the opening remarks were made by likera te koro native who bore a faithful testimony and quoted much scripture in support of his remarks he was followed by elder T 1 obrien who exhorted all to faithfulness said if we were destroyed it would be be cause we had not kept the co commandments mm nand nichai and aiwas natives native sN each spoke lor for a short time president gardner then greeted the saints he was much pleased with the good spirit manifest thus far in this con clerence le rence as also was he proud to know that some bad come from such a distance hoped that all would make good resolves for the new year and that all who made good resolutions would perform them without fail lie he was pleased to be able to say that the good work is progressing here as well as in other parts of the vineyard sunday december meeting convened at to 10 a in m the speakers were elder E 0 best Matai tau te rangi kaaea and arepa alepa maki all of whom made very encouraging remarks elder best leading out upon the necessity of leading pure lives and the others following lowing lol for the most part upon the same subject at p m on account of there being in the near vicinity a goodly number oi of english speaking saints a meeting for their special benefit was held after the singing of the hymn the spirit of Gods godlike litte a fire is burning etc prayer was offered by elder T J obrien then the hymn arise my soul arise was sung and the sacrament administered elder M C neilson was the first speaker he took up the irth chapter of romans and commented upon it at some length said that his heart was full ot of joy at this meeting and that he knew the spirit of god was in au our r midst there are moments in a mission arys life when he feels almost to complain that the work is but slowly progressing but when he sees a number of those whom he has had the privilege of in strutting ting and counseling with that feeling is is no m more bore speaking of the blessings in 8 that were in store for the faithful el elder ter neilson said that should we not obtain them it will be because we do not serve god with full purpose of heart we would do well to remember the words of joshua when he said As for me and my house we will serve the true and living god president gardner then spoke for one hour upon the apostasy and the mentora tion ot the gospel and in conclusion ex hooted all to live pure and holy and useful lives so that in the end it might be said of us well done thou good and faithful faith lul servant we must ask ourselves the question are we ready to meet the savior when he shall come meeting was closed by singing W we e thank thee 0 god for a prophet t 1 I benediction by brother H C jex at 8 p m meeting was opened by singing and prayer the first speaker i was elder eider H C lex jex who spoke through an interpreter president gardner advised us to keep our records clean for according to our works are we to be judged te native said we must follow in the path our savior trod if we would be saved Tami hana native told us to teach the word by precept and by example for that was the only way to salvation Ho romona te native dwelt for a short time upon the restoration of the gospel president gardner made a lew few remarks upon the duties of presidents of branches etc monday december at to 10 a a meeting was opened by singing and prayer the speakers were riua kalepa and president gardner the remarks were all instructive tive and edifying at p m meeting again convened when the speakers were in order as follows hori hod kaaea denare amaru dopera and patara all of whom were very earnest in their remarks exhorting us to faithfulness and to endeavor to keep ourselves pure and spotless before god in the evening a testimony meeting was held at which twenty four saints bore each a faithful testimony after this meeting the visitors were all requested to remain until after christmas a proposition which met with a very general good feeling and was accepted without debate A program of exercises had been previously arranged to be rendered on christmas day together with sports for which about twenty five prizes had been provided at xo to a m the saints were all assembled in the spacious meeting hous ewhen the following program was successfully rendered song brother best jex abbott obrien and patara recitation katie armstrong maori song two maori sisters music best and jex song sweet hour of prayer wm win gardner speech A mission arys aim W F song my mother in law T J obrien maori song tamati Nga toto tato song annie emma and esther armstrong maori song trini irmi comments wm win gardner immediately after the program we sat down to a dinner that simply beggars description geese fish mutton and eel are some of the meats while as for plum pudding jam tarts arts tapioca oranges lemon lemonade adt etc etc they were truly there in abundance I 1 only wish I 1 could tell you how the house was decorated with ferns and ornamental shrubs but it is more than is within my power to tell so we will pass on to the sports they consisted of foot racing raci ng high j bumping the weight and so on for the men while for the small mail boys anti and the ladies there were appi appropriate rop prizes for numerous contests taken all in all it was truly a time of rejoicing in in very deed and the te saints deserve very great credit for their faithfulness in preparing for the great event while to those who came from afar to attend conference it can truly be said well done the weather was simply delightful during the five days of conference as indeed it has been for some weeks past on wednesday today we separate te for our respective homes and fields of labor each going with a feeling of determination to live nearer to go god in the future while it is quite safe to say that the conference at te will long be remembered and spoken of as one of the most enjoyable times in the live ives of all who were present T J OBRIEN clerk of the conference in reflecting upon pon zion and her ber interests te rests I 1 thought U a lew few lines concerning Waira rapa would be of interest I 1 there tore fore write briefly concerning the same that the saints in zion may know as to its welfare and that a few of the lords servants are still laboring there As to its progress the same may be gleaned by perusing the following at the last fast april conference con terence held in new zealand an additional elder was appointed to this district for F european ur labor thus enabling the two already here to devote the greater portion of their time and labors to the maori peo file pie as well as assisting their new among europeans 1 during 1 the past months the work of spreading the everlasting gospel has been energetically pushed by all realizing as we do that a great work lies before us and that the time is short to perform that duty which is to warn all mankind that the gospel has been restored and of gods judgments which are so near yea even at our doors in my travels among both races here I 1 notice especially among the white race a marvellous marcellous marv ellous change that has taken place to the effect that the spirit of persecution has almost entirely ceased which is in fulfillment fulfilment of the prophecy made on the first day if I 1 recollect right ot of the dedication of the salt lake temple I 1 note with pleasure the change yet I 1 feel sad at heart in seeing the spirit of indifference manifested so much among the children of men still I 1 have hopes that many will soon awaken and behold themselves in their own light and the position they occupy before it is too late to embrace the true principles there is another matter which upon reflection gives me joy even all the saints of god I 1 believe viz that many parents who have children are beginning to see the folly ot of infant baptism and possess a desire to have their offspring blessed by the true servants of the lord gc according cording to the plan which was laid down by him let us hope that the time will soon come when the parents of those children will enter into the true fold to be under the protecting care of the good deven our lord jesus christ in this district there have been sixteen baptisms and thirteen children blessed during the past few months bright are the prospects of others who are at present investigating the gospel recently elder bradford of spanish fork and I 1 traveled into anew a new and strange part of the district commencing our journey with the intention of going into all the highways byways and add hedges to inform mankind of our mission and to lay before them the principles of life and salvation should they desire to listen we carried out the aforementioned as far as possible according to our limited knowledge of the country which we had obtained by questioning estion ing first maori then european Mur european though rough the journey our labors were greatly enjoyed occasionally some kind friend would invite us to remain over night other ti times imes we enjoyed the comforts of a maori sometimes we had the clear sky overhead the earth beneath was our bed on such occasions we would wrap up in our blanket sand soon be lost in the sweet slumbers of refreshing sleep after a long days travel the lord protected us s throughout and gave unto us an abundant portion of his holy spirit thus enabling us to be adequate for all duties we sincerely hope within our hearts that many good seeds have been sown sawn which will in due time take root in good ground to grow and bring forth fruit a hundredfold recently eldr eldir joe barrow of salt lake city and anc I 1 commenced laboring in a large town among europeans owing to persecutions no labor had been done there for the past ten years while we were engaged visiting among the inhabitants seeking after the honest in heart we soon became the object of attraction and comment it was not long before a notice was seen in the daily paper to the effect that two mormon elders were busily engaged in for their church it warned the inhabitants not to listen to the false doctrines presented by those mormons cormons Mor mons A day or so afterwards the effect of the notice was very plainly shown in so many no thank instead of accepting our tracts or listening as before still we are not discouraged realizing the adversary is ever near seeking to overthrow gods work which remains utterly impossible for him to accomplish comp com our semiannual semi annual conference was appointed at on the and of december for a month or so previous to above dates the maoris laoris have been busily engaged in gardening attending to the growing of potatoes cabbage peas beans and other vegetables for the welfare of the saints who should gather to the conference on such occasions it is customary lor for them to have an abundance of food tor for their visitors that they may have enjoyment temporally as well as spiritually on the aist and the saints travel ed to the place of conference coming from the furthermost parts of the district As the bell rang out announcing that it was time tor for our evening para kia prayer meeting those who had gathered could be seen wending their way to the meeting house bouse in glancing adver over the number of saints I 1 felt to rejoice in beholding so many of my maori br ethern and sisters who had assembled in response to the call which had been made of them at io 10 a m on the began what eventually proved to be a very successful conference elder george bowles pre president s ident of the Waira rapa district called the assemblage to order after singing hymn tera te ao maraer nut nui prayer was offered by aporo adoro Kune kumerow kumeroa Ku meroa roa singing hymn 55 1 I 1 konton e diaho ne elder bowles then arose greeting the saints who had arrived from the several parts of the district he desir desired td that the holy spirit of our lord might be poured down in abundance upon all to enable us to speak forth words of truth life and salvation he reported the condition of the district as a whole stating the labors which had been jac accomplished complis hed by the elders laboring therein elder toi te reported the le preore creore branch elder tames barrow the carleton Car teton branch elder puriri le maari and elder paralene Pa lui the branch As a whole the reports were very good a few of the members being a little weak owing to so many temptations surrounding them still we trust that they will soon throw of that weakness and become strong benediction by arapata arapatra le maari afternoon session commenced at 2 p sprayer mp m prayer rayer by pilipi le maari the sacrament was administered by elder paralene Pa tui and aporo adoro kumerow Ku meroe all partook of those sacred emblems with but one exception which spoke volumes in the fact that there were but few troubles existing among the saints elder lee bradford addressed the assemblage for a short time speaking in the maori tongue he dwelt upon the testimony of paul as to what the gospel was he desired that all would be firm and faithful to live lives as saints indeed elder jas barrow being ibeling called upon spoke upon the establishment of th the kingdom of god upon the earth in these last days he |