On the 25th of December, 1832, Joseph Smith received a remarkable
revelation in regard to war. I will read an extract:
"Verily, thus saith the Lord concerning the war, that will shortly
come to pass, beginning at the rebellion of South Carolina, which
will eventually terminate in the death and misery of many souls.
The days will come when war will be poured out upon all nations,
beginning at that place. For behold the Southern States shall be
divided against the Northern States, and the Southern States will
call on other nations, even the nation of Great Britain, as it
is called, and they shall also call upon other nations, in order
to defend themselves against other nations, and thus war will be
poured out upon all nations." (Doc.& Cov., Sec. 304.)
In a communication which was written a few days later to N. C. Seaton,
editor of a paper published in Rochester, N.Y., the Prophet wrote:
"I am prepared to say by the authority of Jesus Christ that not
many years shall pass away before the United States shall present
such a scene of bloodshed as has not a parallel in the history of
our nation." (_Historical Record_, page 406.)
I will refer to another prediction on the same subject, which was made
by Joseph Smith in Carthage, Ill., two days before he was martyred. A
number of the officers of the troops, then stationed in Carthage, and
other persons curious to see Joseph, visited him in his room. Joseph
asked them if there was anything in his appearance which indicated that
he was the desperate character his enemies represented him to be. The
answer was:
"No, sir; your appearance would indicate the very contrary, General
Smith, but we cannot see what is in your heart, neither can we tell
what are your intentions."
{99} Joseph replied:
"Very true, gentlemen, you cannot see what is in my heart, and you
are therefore unable to judge me or my intentions; but I can see
what is in your hearts, and will tell you what I see. I can see you
thirst for blood, and nothing but my blood will satisfy you. It is
not for crime of any description that I and my brethren are thus
continually persecuted and harassed by our enemies; but there are
other motives, and some of them I have expressed, so far as relates
to myself; and inasmuch as you and the people thirst for blood, I
prophesy, in the name of the Lord, that you shall witness scenes of
blood and sorrow to your entire satisfaction. Your souls shall be
perfectly satiated with blood, and many of you who are now present
shall have an opportunity to face the cannon's mouth from sources
you think not of; and those people that desire this great evil upon
me and my brethren shall be filled with regret and sorrow because
of the scenes of desolation and distress that await them. They
shall seek for peace and shall not be able to find it. Gentlemen,
you will find what I have told you to be true." (_Historical
Record_, page 563.)
On the 17th of December, 1860, nearly 28 years after the above
revelation on war was given, its fulfilment commenced, for on that
day a convention assembled in Charleston, S. C., which, after three
days' deliberation, passed a resolution to the effect that the union
hitherto existing between South Carolina and the other States, under
the name of the United States of America, was dissolved. This was the
beginning of the rebellion. By the 1st of February, 1861, six other
States had followed the example of South Carolina and withdrawn from
the Union, and a new government was formed under the name of The
Confederate States of America. Not only was South Carolina the first
State to commence the rebellion, but here also, as if to cause a double
fulfilment of Joseph's prophecy, on April 12, 1861, the first gun was
fired from a Confederate battery against Fort Sumter standing at the
entrance to Charleston harbor.
The ruinous war that followed is a matter of history. The Union losses
alone, according to the report of the Provost-General, amounted to
280,397 men, who were either killed outright in battle, or who died
subsequently of wounds or diseases, not counting the thousands who were
crippled and maimed for life. The loss on the side of the Confederates
was about the same. Truly, as Joseph predicted, the United States
never witnessed such a scene of bloodshed before. The losses in the
revolutionary war, in the war of 1812, and in the war with Mexico in
1846 were only small affairs compared with this last and terrible war
of the rebellion, so accurately predicted by the Prophet Joseph Smith.
This prediction alone and its literal fulfilment should be sufficient
to convince every reasonable man {100} and woman who will take pains to
investigate the subject thoroughly, that Joseph, indeed, was a prophet
of the Living God.