"Go onward! lose not faith. Let the goodness of God support you,
and the beauty and fruitfulness of the work cheer you; and when you
are blest with success forget not the source whence all blessings
come."
Several years passed before my plans were matured. I reduced all to
writing. On one side of the page I noted my resolutions, with the means
of carrying them out; on the other side, every objection that could be
raised: on a third page I wrote down the answers. Every objection was
invited, every difficulty anticipated, and every detail thoroughly
weighed; nothing was thought too great or too insignificant.
I submitted the whole to my wisest councillors, and encouraged them to
speak their inmost thoughts. They were lost in admiration, but entreated
me to abandon my design. My life, they said, would be the penalty were I
to attempt to carry out any part of my projects.
Some said that the design would be beautiful as the subject of a poem--
as the aspiration of a great mind to arrive at an ideal perfection,
which could not however be realised until evil itself had ceased to
exist. That to attempt to move the Mestua Mountain[1] would be a task
not less hopeless: that I might as well endeavour to walk up our great
Cataract[2] without being engulfed in the sea of foaming waters! Not one
offered encouragement to proceed with the good work.
[Footnote 1: Supposed to be the largest and firmest of
mountains, which, since its first upheaving, has
resisted the inroads of our mighty seas, as well as the
most violent electrical disturbances of our world.]
[Footnote 2: See p. 44.]
Neither their arguments nor their prayers deterred me. I proceeded
cautiously, but with a resolution that feared not death.
Aware, however, of the deadly peril besetting me, I selected twelve men,
remarkable for wisdom in council and energy in action, on each of whom
in succession the authority should devolve if I were cut off. I
initiated them into my plans, and thus hoped that one devoted man would
always be ready to advance the good work.
Whilst providing for my death, I took measures for protecting my life
against any sudden outburst of fury. I turned my palace into a fortress,
that I might not be cut off in a moment of sudden unreasoning wrath,
that myself and my adherents might not be scoffed at as madmen, and my
plans for the good of all retarded, if not wholly frustrated. These
motives I proclaimed to the people.
The opposing obstacles were stupendous. I braved death in every shape. I
passed one mighty peril only to meet another more formidable, but
fearlessly stood every trial, and did not hesitate to act where danger
was greatest. Nothing appalled me. I never faltered from my resolves,
and after years of mighty struggles, my triumph was complete. I was
blessed and adored by all the people, small and great, and my name will
live in Montalluyah through all generations.
I gave Laws, and indicated the precautions to be taken to secure their
observance. I initiated discoveries. Inexhaustible stores of abundance
were called into existence, enriching the poor and making the rich happy
in their possessions. And the eventual result of the organization I
completed was the removal of the incentives to war, strife, avarice and
other evils, the triumph of good, and the moral and material well-being
of the community.
Amongst the many subjects to which I successfully devoted my attention
were:
The care and protection of Woman, the development of her capabilities
and graces, the preservation and increase of her beauty, Marriage and
its incidents.
The birth, growth, and education of the future Man and of the Mother of
Men; the enlarging and ennobling the moral and intellectual powers.
Preservation of health--prevention and cure of disease--prolongation of
Life, and augmentation of the faculties of appreciation and enjoyment.
The increase of our flocks and herds, and of other sources of supply for
the food of man. The discovery and creation of new means of sustenance
and the amelioration of the old.
The discovery of the properties of birds, beasts, fishes, insects,
reptiles, and creeping things, and their application to the service of
man.
The invention of new instruments, the enlargement of the powers of those
already known, the development of electrical and mechanical powers, and
the subjecting the workings of nature to the uses of man.
The care and protection in health and in sickness of the lower orders,
and of those whom nature had not qualified to take care of themselves.
Occupation for all, each according to his capabilities and the bent of
his genius, as ascertained and developed by education.
The government of the country; the enlargement and improvement of the
cities with a view to the health, comfort, and progressive elevation of
the community.