SETTLEMENT OF THE SAINTS IN MISSOURI--THEIR ERRORS--REPROOFS AND
WARNINGS.
On the 4th of August, 1831, a conference was held among the Colesville
saints, at the house of Joshua Lewis, in Kaw Township; and about this
time a number of revelations were given in which the Lord made known
his will to his servants and gave his reasons for calling them to
Missouri. Those reasons were:
1. That the Lord's servants might give to him a witness of their
obedience;
2. That they might have the honor of laying the foundation of Zion;
3. That they might bear record in all their travels hereafter, where
the city of Zion shall stand;
4. That the testimony of these things might go forth from "the city of
the heritage of God." [A]
[Footnote A: Doc. & Cov. Sec. 58:1-13]
The Lord commanded the saints to purchase lands in Jackson County,
to the extent of their ability; and for the better accomplishment of
this object, Sidney Gilbert was appointed agent for The Church. Having
accomplished these things, the elders, except Edward Partridge and a
few others whom the Lord appointed to settle permanently in Missouri,
were commanded to return to their homes, bearing record by the way of
what had been revealed.
The saints and elders who remained in the land of Zion began the work
of building up permanent homes. They had arrived too late to raise
crops that season, but they cut hay for their cattle, and prepared some
ground for cultivation. The fall and winter were occupied in building
log cabins; but with all their industry they were not able to provide
shelter for all. Through that long, cold winter the saints cheerfully
submitted to all kinds of inconveniences, such as several families
living in an open, unfinished log room, without windows, and nothing
but the frozen ground for a floor. Their food consisted chiefly of beef
and a little bread, made of coarse corn meal, manufactured by rubbing
the ears of corn on a tin grater. The spirit of peace, union and love,
however, was in their midst, and at their prayer meetings, and in their
family worship, they were blessed with many seasons of refreshing from
the presence of the Lord.
Thus the winter of 1831 passed away.
As soon as the churches scattered abroad learned that the Lord had
revealed the place where the city of Zion was to be built, preparations
to purchase inheritances absorbed the minds of the faithful; and money
was sent to The Church agent from all quarters to buy lands. Edward
Partridge had been appointed the bishop in Zion, and it was made
his duty to divide unto the saints their inheritances.[B] As early
as February, 1831, the Lord had said that those who loved him would
remember the poor, and consecrate of their property to sustain them,
for inasmuch as they did it to the poor, they did it unto him; and that
which was consecrated to the poor, should be imparted to them with a
deed and a covenant that could not be broken. Moreover every man was to
be made a steward over his own property.[C]
[Footnote B: Doc. & Cov. Sec. 57:7.]
[Footnote C: Doc. & Cov. Sec. 42:29-35.]
This law of consecration and stewardship was as follows: Every
man was to consecrate his property to the bishop of The Church
without reserve, with a covenant that could not be broken; and then
from this consecrated property receive an inheritance from the
bishop--sharing equally with his brethren, according to his family and
circumstances--this inheritance being deeded [D] to him by the bishop;
which inheritance then became his stewardship, upon which he was to
improve according to the measure of wisdom he possessed. Every man is
to be independent in the management of his stewardship. By every man
consecrating his property to the bishop, and then receiving back as his
stewardship only sufficient for his support, there was a surplus left
in the hands of the bishop to be placed in the Lord's storehouse. Then
if in the management of his stewardship a man obtained more than was
needful for his support, it, too, was put into the Lord's storehouse,
and that, as well as the surplus first named, was to be used in
giving inheritances to the poor; and in assisting the brethren in the
improvement of their respective stewardships, as should be appointed by
the high council of The Church, and the bishop and his counselors.[E]
And thus the saints were to be made equal in temporal things as well as
in things that are spiritual.[F]
[Footnote D: Doc. & Cov. Sec. 51:4.]
[Footnote E: Doc. & Cov. Sec. 42:33, 53-55.]
[Footnote F: Doc. & Cov. Sec. 78.]
The hearts of the saints in Zion were made glad in the spring of 1832
by a visit from their youthful Prophet and Sidney Rigdon, both of whom
had suffered much for the truth's sake, during the winter that had just
past, at the hands of a furious mob in Ohio.
At the time the mobbing referred to occurred, the Prophet was living
at the house of a Brother John Johnson, Sen., (usually called "Father
Johnson" by Joseph and the saints), in the little town of Hiram,
Portage County, Ohio, about thirty miles from Kirtland. Before removing
to that place, the Prophet's wife had taken two children (twins) to
rear, their mother, the wife of a Brother John Murdock, having died
when the children were a few days old. Emma Smith received them when
they were nine days old, and at the time of the event to be related
they were eleven months old.
Nothing of unusual importance had occurred in Hiram since the Prophet's
arrival. He had occupied his time in the revision of the Bible that
he had been commanded to make, and in holding public meetings in the
evenings and on the Sabbath day. Here, too, he received a number
of revelations, among them the one called the "Vision," [G] which
describes the different degrees of glory to which men may attain in the
future life.
[Footnote G: Doc. & Cov. Sec. 76.]
A number of men, however, had apostatized from the truth and left The
Church; among them one Ezra Booth, formerly a Methodist minister. He
had been converted on seeing a person healed of an infirmity of many
years' standing, and, as is so frequent in such cases, he required a
constant succession of miracles to keep him in The Church. "But when,"
as the Prophet remarks in stating his case, "he actually learned that
faith, humility, patience, and tribulation were before blessing, and
that God brought low before he exalted; that instead of the Savior's
granting him power to smite men and make them believe (as he said he
wanted God to do with him), he found he must become all things to
all men, that he might peradventure save some; and that, too, by all
diligence, by perils, by sea and land, as was the case in the days of
Jesus"--when he found this was the course the servants of God must run,
he was disappointed and turned away from the faith and The Church. So,
too, did one Simonds Rider, and also Eli Johnson, Edward Johnson, and
John Johnson, Jr.
This by way of introducing the matter, the rest is as related by the
Prophet himself:
On the 25th of March, 1832, the twins before mentioned, which had
been sick of the measles for some time, caused us to be broke of our
rest in taking care of them, especially my wife. In the evening I
told her she had better retire to rest with one of the children, and
I would watch with the sickest child. In the night she told me I had
better lie down on the trundle bed, and I did so, and was soon after
awakened by her screaming _murder!_ when I found myself going out of
the door in the hands of about a dozen men, some of whose hands were
in my hair, and some hold of my shirt, drawers and limbs. The foot of
the trundle bed was towards the door, leaving only room enough for the
door to swing. My wife heard a gentle tapping on the windows which she
then took no notice of, (but which was unquestionably designed for
ascertaining whether we were all asleep), and soon after the mob burst
open the door and surrounded the bed in an instant, and as I said,
the first thing I knew I was going out of the door in the hands of an
infuriated mob. I made a desperate struggle as I was forced out, to
extricate myself, but only cleared one leg, with which I made a pass
at one man and he fell on the door steps. I was immediately confined
again, and they swore by God they would kill me if I did not be still,
which quieted me. As they passed around the house with me, the fellow
that I kicked came to me and thrust his hand into my face, all covered
with blood, (for I hit him on the nose,) and with an exulting hoarse
laugh, muttered, "Gee, gee, God damn ye, I'll fix ye."
They then seized me by the throat, and held on till I lost my breath.
After I came to, as they passed along with me, about thirty rods from
the house, I saw Elder Rigdon stretched out on the ground whither they
had dragged him by the heels. I supposed he was dead.
I began to plead with them, saying, "you will have mercy and spare
my life, I hope?" To which they replied, _"God damn ye, call on yer
God for help,_ we'll show ye no mercy;" and the people began to
show themselves in every direction; one coming from the orchard had
a plank, and I expected they would kill me and carry me off on the
plank. They then turned to the right and went on about thirty rods
further--about sixty rods from the house and thirty from where I saw
Elder Rigdon, into the meadow, where they stopped, and one said,
"Simonds, Simonds," (meaning, I supposed, Simonds Rider,) "pull up his
drawers, pull up his drawers, he will take cold." Another replied,
"a'nt ye going to kill 'im, a'nt ye going to kill 'im?" A group of
mobbers collected a little way off, and said: "Simonds, Simonds, come
here;" and Simonds charged those who had hold of me to keep me from
touching the ground (as they had done all the time), lest I should
get a spring upon them. They went and held a council, and as I could
occasionally overhear a word, I supposed it was to know whether it was
best to kill me. They returned after awhile, when I learned they had
concluded not to kill me, but pound and scratch me well, tear off my
shirt and drawers, and leave me naked. One cried, "Simonds, Simonds,
_where's the tar bucket?"_ "I don't know," answered one, _"where 'tis,
Eli's left it."_ They ran back and fetched the bucket of tar, when one
exclaimed, _"God damn it, let's us tar up his mouth;"_ and they tried
to force the tar paddle into my mouth; I twisted my head around so
that they could not; and they cried out, _"God damn ye, hold up yer
head and let us give ye some tar."_ They then tried to force a vial
into my mouth and broke it in my teeth. All my clothes were torn off
me except my shirt collar; and one man fell on me and scratched my
body like a mad cat, and then muttered out: _"God damn ye, that's the
way the Holy Ghost falls on folks."_
They then left me and I attempted to rise, but fell again; I pulled
the tar away from my lips, so that I could breathe more freely, and
after awhile I began to recover, "and raised myself up, when I saw two
lights. I made my way towards one of them, and found it was Father
Johnson's. When I had come to the door I was naked, and the tar made
me look as though I was covered with blood, and when my wife saw me
she thought I was all mashed to pieces, and fainted. During the affray
abroad, the sisters of the neighborhood had collected at my room. I
called for a blanket; they threw me one and shut the door: I wrapped
it around me and went in.
* * * * * * * *
My friends spent the night in scraping and removing the tar, and
washing and cleansing my body; so that by morning I was ready to be
clothed again. This being Sabbath morning, the people assembled for
meeting at the usual hour of worship, and among those came also the
mobbers, viz.: Simonds Rider, a Campbellite preacher and leader of the
mob; one McClentic, son of a Campbellite minister; and Pelatiah Allen,
Esq., who gave the mob a barrel of whiskey to raise their spirits;
and many others. With my flesh all scarified and defaced, I preached
to the congregation as usual, and in the afternoon of the same day
baptized three individuals.
It was during this visit to Missouri in the spring of 1832, that Joseph
was acknowledged by The Church and Priesthood in Zion, "President
of the High Priesthood." It was on the occasion of this visit, too,
that he sought to so "organize The Church that the brethren might,
eventually, be independent of every incumbrance beneath the celestial
kingdom, by bonds and covenants of mutual friendship and mutual love."
[H]
[Footnote H: History of Joseph Smith. Millennial Star Vol. 14, p. 162.]
In a revelation given July, 1831, W. W. Phelps had been appointed a
printer unto The Church in the land of Zion. Accordingly a press and
type were purchased, and in June, 1832, the first number of a monthly
paper was issued, called the _Evening and Morning Star._ This was the
first periodical published by The Church. According to its prospectus
it was to be a messenger of truth; a harbinger of peace and good will;
to bring good tidings of great joy to all people, but more especially
to the house of Israel scattered abroad, telling them that the day of
their redemption was near; to proclaim the ensign to which all nations
must come, in order to worship God acceptably; to declare that goodness
consists in _doing_ good, not merely in teaching it; and to show that
all men's religion is vain without charity; and as the paper was to be
devoted to the great concerns of eternal things, and the gathering of
the saints, it would leave politics, broils, the gainsayings of the
world, and many other matters for their proper channels.[I]
[Footnote I: Millennial Star Vol. 14:146-8.]
So rapidly did the saints gather to Zion during this summer that the
_Star_ for November reported eight hundred and thirty souls in the
new settlements. The Lord had blessed them both with food and with
raiment, and there was plenty in Zion. A feeling of insubordination,
however, existed among the brethren of the priesthood. Seven high
priests had been appointed to preside over the affairs of The Church
in Zion, viz., Oliver Cowdery, W. W. Phelps, John Whitmer, Sidney
Gilbert, Edward Partridge, Isaac Morley and John Corrill. These
brethren, with the common consent of the several branches comprising
The Church in Missouri, were to appoint elders to preside over the
respective branches, and attend to all the affairs of The Church in
that land. But a number of those high priests and elders who went up
to Zion, ignored the authority of the seven who were placed there to
preside, and began setting some of the branches in order without being
appointed to do so; and it resulted in some confusion. Others who went
there sought to obtain inheritances in some other way than according to
the laws of consecration and stewardship; and these things, together
with jealousies, covetousness, light-mindedness, unbelief, and general
neglect to keep the commandments of God, enkindled the displeasure of
the Almighty against Zion and her inhabitants.
This state of affairs coming to the knowledge of the Prophet Joseph,
through his correspondence with the leading elders in Zion, he wrote
a letter to the saints in Missouri, severely reproving them for their
neglect to keep the commandments of God; and as the communication
is full of prophecy of those calamities which eventually befell the
Church, I quote it entire:
KIRTLAND, January 11, 1833.
_Brother Wm. W. Phelps:_
I send you the Olive Leaf which we have plucked from the tree of
Paradise, the Lord's message of peace to us; for though our brethren
in Zion indulge in feelings towards us which are not according to
the requirements of the new covenant, yet we have the satisfaction
of knowing that the Lord approves of us and has accepted us, and
established his name in Kirtland for the salvation of the nations;
for the Lord will have a place from which his word will go forth, in
these last days, in purity, for if Zion will not purify herself, so as
to be approved of in all things, in his sight, he will seek another
people; for his work will go on until Israel is gathered, and they
who will not hear his voice must expect to feel his wrath. Let me say
unto you, seek to purify yourselves, and also the inhabitants of Zion,
lest the Lord's anger be kindled to fierceness. Repent, repent, is the
voice of God to Zion; and strange as it may appear, yet it is true,
mankind will persist in self-justification until all their iniquity
is exposed, and their character past being redeemed, and that which
is treasured up in their hearts be exposed to the gaze of mankind. I
say to you (and what I say to you, I say to all), hear the warning
voice of God, lest Zion fall, and the Lord swear in his wrath, "The
inhabitants of Zion shall not enter into my rest."
The brethren in Kirtland pray for you unceasingly, for, knowing the
terrors of the Lord, they greatly fear for you. You will see that the
Lord commanded us, in Kirtland, to build a house of God, and establish
a school for the prophets; this is the word of the Lord to us, and
we must, yea, the Lord helping us, we will obey; as on conditions
of our obedience he has promised us great things; yea, even a visit
from the heavens to honor us with his own presence. We greatly fear
before the Lord lest we should fail of this great honor, which our
Master proposes to confer upon us; we are seeking for humility and
great faith lest we be ashamed in his presence. Our hearts are greatly
grieved at the spirit which is breathed both in your letter and that
of Brother G----'s; the very spirit which is wasting the strength of
Zion like a pestilence; and if it is not detected and driven from you,
it will ripen Zion for the threatened judgments of God. Remember, God
sees the secret springs of human action, and knows the hearts of all
living.
Brother, suffer us to speak plainly, for God has respect for the
feelings of his saints, and he will not suffer them to be tantalized
with impunity. Tell Brother G----that low insinuations God hates; but
he rejoices in an honest heart, and knows better who is guilty than
he does. We send him this warning voice, and let him fear greatly for
himself, lest a worse thing overtake him; all we can say by way of
conclusion is, if the fountain of our tears is not dried up, we will
still weep for Zion. This from your brother who trembles for Zion, and
for the wrath of heaven which awaits her if she repent not.
JOSEPH SMITH, JUN.
P. S.--I am not in the habit of crying peace, when there is no peace,
and, knowing the threatened judgments of God, I say, Woe unto them
that are at ease in Zion; fearfulness will speedily lay hold of the
hypocrite. I did not expect that you had lost the commandments, but
thought from your letters you had neglected to read them, otherwise
you would not have written as you did.
It is in vain to try to hide a bad spirit from the eyes of those who
are spiritual, for it will show itself in speaking and in writing, as
well as in all our other conduct. It is also needless to make great
pretensions when the heart is not right; the Lord will expose it to
the view of his faithful saints. We wish you to render the _Star_ as
interesting as possible, by setting forth the rise, progress and faith
of our Church, as well as the doctrine; for if you do not render it
more interesting than at present, it will fall, and The Church suffer
a great loss thereby.
J. S.
A council of high priests at Kirtland also appointed Hyrum Smith and
Orson Hyde to write a letter of reproof and warning, in which they
cried, "Repent! repent! or Zion must suffer, for the scourge and
judgment must come upon her." The whole of this communication, however,
is likewise so full of prophetic warning to the saints in Zion that I
consider it too important to be omitted, and hence give it _in extenso:_
KIRTLAND MILLS, GEAUGA COUNTY, OHIO,
January 14, 1833.
_From a conference of twelve High Priests, to the Bishop, his Council,
and the inhabitants of Zion:_
Orson Hyde and Hyrum Smith being appointed by the said conference to
write this epistle in obedience to the commandment, given the 22nd and
23rd of September last which says: "But verily I say unto all those
to whom the kingdom has been given, from you it must be preached unto
them that shall repent of their former evil works, for they are to
be upbraided for their evil hearts of unbelief; and your brethren in
Zion, for their rebellion against you at the time I sent you."
Brother Joseph, and certain others, have written to you on this
all-important subject, but you have never been apprized of these
things by the united voice of a conference of those high priests that
were present at the time this commandment was given.
We, therefore, Orson and Hyrum--the committee appointed by said
conference to write this epistle--having received the prayers of said
conference, that we might be enabled to write the mind and will of God
upon this subject, now take up our pen to address you in the name of
the conference, relying upon the arm of the great Head of The Church.
In the commandment alluded to, the children of Zion were all, yea,
even every one, under condemnation, and were to remain in that state
until they repented and remembered the new covenant, even the Book of
Mormon, and the former commandments, which the Lord had given them,
not only to say but to do them, and bring forth fruit meet for the
Father's Kingdom; otherwise there remaineth a scourge and a judgment
to be poured out upon the children of Zion; for "shall the children of
the kingdom pollute the holy land? I say unto you, nay!"
The answers received from those letters which have been sent to you
upon this subject, have failed to bring to us that satisfactory
confession and acknowledgment, which the spirit of our Master
requires. We, therefore, feeling a deep interest for Zion, and knowing
the judgments of God that will come upon her except she repent, resort
to these last and most effectual means in our power to bring her to a
sense of her standing before the Most High.
At the time Joseph, Sidney and Newel left Zion, all matters of
hardness and misunderstanding were settled and buried (as they
supposed), and you gave them the hand of fellowship; but afterwards
you brought up all these things again, in a censorious spirit,
accusing Brother Joseph in rather an indirect way of seeking after
monarchial power and authority. This came to us in Brother Carroll's
letter of July 2nd. We are sensible that this is not the thing Brother
Joseph is seeking after, but to magnify the high office and calling
whereunto he has been called and appointed by the command of God, and
the united voice of this Church. It might not be amiss for you to call
to mind the circumstances of the Nephites, and the children of Israel
rising up against their prophets, and accusing them of seeking after
kingly power, etc., and see what befell them, and take warning before
it is too late.
Brother Gilbert's letter of December 10th has been received and read
attentively, and the low, dark, and blind insinuations which were in
it were not received by us as from the fountain of light, though his
claims and pretensions to holiness were great. We are not unwilling
to be chastened or rebuked for our faults, but we want to receive it
in language that we can understand, as Nathan said to David, "Thou
art the man." We are aware that Brother G----is doing much and has
a multitude of business on hand, but let him purge out all the old
leaven, and do his business in the spirit of the Lord, and then the
Lord will bless him, otherwise the frown of the Lord will remain
upon him. There is manifestly an uneasiness in Brother Gilbert, and
a fearfulness that God will not provide for his saints in these last
days, and these fears lead him on to covetousness. This ought not to
be, but let him do just as the Lord has commanded him, and then the
Lord will open his coffers, and his wants will be liberally supplied.
But if this uneasy, covetous disposition be cherished by him, the Lord
will bring him to poverty, shame and disgrace.
Brother Phelps' letter of December 15th, is also received, and
carefully read, and it betrays a lightness of spirit that ill becomes
a man placed in the important and responsible station that he is
placed in. If you have fat beef and potatoes, eat them in singleness
of heart and boast not yourselves in these things. Think not,
brethren, that we make a man an offender for a word; this is not the
case; but we want to see a spirit in Zion, by which the Lord will
build it up; that is the plain, solemn, and pure spirit in Christ.
Brother Phelps requested in his last letter that Brother Joseph should
come to Zion; but we say that Brother Joseph will not settle in Zion
until she repent and purify herself and abide by the new covenant, and
remember the commandments that have been given her, to do them as well
as to say them.
You may think it strange that we manifest no cheerfulness of heart
upon the reception of your letter; you may think that our minds are
prejudiced so much that we can see no good that comes from you, but
rest assured, brethren, that this is not the case.
We have the best of feelings, and feelings of the greatest anxiety
for the welfare of Zion; we feel more like weeping over Zion than
rejoicing over her, for we know that the judgments of God hang over
her, and will fall upon her except she repent, and purify herself
before the Lord, and put away from her every foul spirit. We now say
to Zion, this once, in the name of the Lord, Repent! repent! awake,
awake, put on thy beautiful garments, before you are made to feel the
chastening rod of him whose anger is kindled against you. Let not
Satan tempt you to think we want to make you bow to us, to domineer
over you, for God knows this is not the case; our eyes are watered
with tears, and our hearts are poured out to God in prayer for you,
that he will spare you, and turn away his anger from you.
There are many things in the last letters of Brothers G----and
P----that are good, and we esteem them much. The idea of having
"certain ones appointed to regulate Zion, and traveling elders have
nothing to do with this part of the matter," is something we highly
approbate, and you will doubtless know before this reaches you, why
William E. McLellin opposed you in this move. We fear there was
something in Brother Gilbert when he returned to this place from New
York last fall, in relation to his brother William, that was not
right. For Brother Gilbert was asked two or three times about his
brother William, but gave evasive answers, and at the same time he
knew that William was in Cleveland; but the Lord has taken him. We
merely mention this that all may take warning to work in the light,
for God will bring every secret thing to light.
We now close our epistle by saying unto you, the Lord has commanded
us to purify ourselves, to wash our hands and our feet, that he may
testify to his Father and our Father, to his God and our God, that
we are clean from the blood of this generation; and before we could
wash our hands and our feet we were constrained to write this letter.
Therefore, with the feelings of inexpressible anxiety for your
welfare, we say again, Repent, repent, or Zion must suffer, for the
scourge and judgment must come upon her.
Let the bishop read this to the elders that they may warn the members
of the scourge that is coming, except they repent. Tell them to read
the Book of Mormon and obey it; read the commandments that are printed
and obey them: yea, humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God
that peradventure he may turn away his anger from you. Tell them that
they have not come up to Zion to sit down in idleness, neglecting the
things of God, but they are to be diligent and faithful in obeying the
new covenant.
There is one clause in Brother Joseph's letter which you may not
understand; that is this, "If the people of Zion did not repent, the
Lord would seek another place and another people." Zion is the place
where the temple will be built, and the people gathered, but all
people upon that holy land being under condemnation, the Lord will cut
them off, if they repent not, and bring another race upon it that will
serve him. The Lord will seek another place to bring forth and prepare
his word to go forth to the nations, and as we said before, so we
say again, Brother Joseph will not settle in Zion, except she repent
and serve God, and obey the new covenant. With this explanation the
conference sanctions Brother Joseph's letter.
Brethren, the conference meets again this evening to hear this letter
read, and if it meets their minds, we are all agreed to kneel down
before the Lord, and cry unto him with all our hearts, that this
epistle, and Brother Joseph's, and the revelations also, may have
their desired effect, and accomplish the thing whereunto they are
sent, and that they may stimulate you to cleanse Zion, that she mourn
not. Therefore, when you get this, know ye that a conference of
twelve high priests have cried unto the Lord for you, and are still
crying, saying, Spare thy people, O Lord, and give not thy heritage
to reproach. We now feel that our garments are clean from you and
all men, when we have washed our feet and hands according to the
commandment.
We have written plain at this time, but we believe not harsh.
Plainness is what the Lord requires, and we should not feel ourselves
clear, unless we had done so: and if the things we have told you be
not attended to, you will not long have occasion to say, or to think
rather, that we may be wrong in what we have stated. Your unworthy
brethren are determined to pray unto the Lord for Zion, as long as
we can shed the sympathetic tear, or feel any spirit to supplicate a
throne of grace in her behalf.
The school of the prophets will commence, if the Lord will, in two
or three days. It is a general time of health with us. The cause of
God seems to be rapidly advancing in the eastern country; the gifts
are beginning to break forth so as to astonish the world, and even
believers marvel at the power and goodness of God. Thanks be rendered
to his holy name for what he is doing. We are your unworthy brethren
in the Lord, and may the Lord help us all to do his will, that we may
at last be saved in his kingdom.
ORSON HYDE. HYRUM SMITH.
N. B.--We stated that Brother Gilbert knew that William was in
Cleveland last fall when he was in Kirtland. We wrote this upon the
strength of hearsay: but William being left at St. Louis, strengthened
our supposition that such was the fact. We stated further,
representing this matter, or this item, than the testimony will
warrant us. With this exception the conference sanctions this letter.
These words of reproof and warning had the effect of awakening in the
hearts of the saints the spirit of repentance. A solemn assembly was
called at which a sincere and humble repentance was manifested. A
general epistle to The Church authorities in Kirtland, bearing date of
26th of February, 1833, was adopted at a conference of the saints in
Zion, expressing their repentance, and desires to keep the commandments
of God in the future. This was satisfactory to the brethren in
Kirtland; and the Lord said in a revelation given the 8th of March,
that the brethren in Zion _"began"_ to repent; and that the angels
rejoiced over them. Still there were many things with which the Lord
was not well pleased, and he said that he would contend with Zion, and
plead with her strong ones, and chasten her until she overcame.[J]
[Footnote J: Doc. & Cov. Sec. 90:32-36.]