MEETING WITH JAMES TOWNSEND--DECIDE TO GO TO BANGOR--A LONG JOURNEY
THROUGH THE DEEP SNOW--CURIOUS PHENOMENON--REFUSED LODGING AT EIGHT
HOUSES--ENTERTAINED BY MR. TEPPLEY--CURIOUS COINCIDENCE--MR. TEPPLEY'S
DESPONDENCY--ARRIVAL AT BANGOR--RETURN TO THE ISLANDS--ADVENTURE WITH
THE TIDE.
On the 15th of February I again crossed to the North Island, and after
remaining there seven days visiting, we returned to Camden. Here I met
Brother James Townsend, who had just arrived from Scarboro.
I ordained Brother Townsend to the office of an Elder, and we concluded
to take a journey to Bangor, and offer the gospel to the inhabitants of
that city.
We undertook the journey on foot in the dead of winter, when the snow
was very deep, and the first day broke the road for seven miles to
Scarsmont. The day following, it being Sunday, we held two meetings,
preached the gospel to the people, and were kindly entertained.
On the evening of the next day we wallowed through snowdrifts for a
mile, to meet an appointment to preach in a school-house, and I got one
of my ears frozen on the way; but notwithstanding the severity of the
weather, we had quite a large and attentive audience. We also spent the
next two days with the people there and held meetings.
On the evening of the 21st of February, as we came out of the
school-house, a light appeared in the north-eastern horizon, and spread
to the west and soon rolled over our heads. It had the appearance of
fire, blood and smoke, and at times resembled contending armies. The
heavens were illuminated for the space of half an hour. It seemed at
times as though the veil was about to rend in twain and the elements
were contending with each other.
We looked upon it as one of the signs in the heavens predicted by the
prophets of old, as to appear in the last days. We were wading through
deep snowdrifts most of the time while witnessing this remarkable scene.
The following day we walked fifteen miles through deep snow to Belfast,
and, after being refused lodging for the night by eight families, we
were kindly entertained by Mr. Thomas Teppley.
There was an interesting incident connected with our stay at his house.
After eating supper, it being late in the evening, Mr. Teppley placed a
stand before me with a Bible upon it, asking me to read a chapter and
have prayers with them, he being a religious man.
I opened the Bible mechanically, when, the 25th chapter of Matthew
being the first to catch my eye, I read it, and, as I closed the book
Mr. Teppley turned to his wife and said, "Is not this a strange thing?"
Then he explained to us that he had just read that chapter and closed
the book when we rapped at the door, and he felt impressed to say,
"Walk in, gentlemen."
There is probably no other chapter in the whole book that would have
the same influence in causing any one to feed a person who professed to
be a servant of God, and asked for bread.
After becoming acquainted with his circumstances I thought it
providential that we were led to his house, for although he was a
professor of religion and a Methodist, he was in a state of despair,
believing he had committed the unpardonable sin.
However, I told him what the unpardonable sin was, and that he had not
committed it; but that it was a trick of the devil to make him think
so, in order to torment him. He then acknowledged that he went down
to the wharf a few evenings before, with the intention of drowning
himself, but when he looked into the cold, dark water he desisted and
returned home, and had said nothing previous to anyone about it.
I taught him the principles of the gospel, which proved a comfort to
him.
We spent the following day in visiting the people of Belfast, and in
the evening preached in a brick school-house, provided by Mr. Teppley,
and many wished to hear more from us.
We next visited Northport and Frankfort, holding meetings at both
places, and on the 1st of March, 1838, we entered Bangor, which at that
time had a population of ten thousand. This was my birthday, I being
thirty-one years of age.
I visited some of the leading men of Bangor, and they granted me the
use of the City Hall, where I preached to good audiences for two
successive evenings. This was the first time a Latter-day Saint Elder
had preached in that town. Many were anxious to learn more about our
principles, but our visits through all the towns from Thompaston to
Bangor were necessarily brief, owing to our appointments upon the
islands. It was like casting our bread upon the waters and trusting in
God for the result.
On the 5th of March we sailed from Penobscot for the Isle of Holt,
where I held a meeting on the following evening.
The next day I took passage on the mail boat for the North Island,
where I again had the privilege of meeting with the Saints for prayer
and praise before the Lord.
On my arrival I received a package of letters from friends abroad. One
was from Kirtland, and gave an account of the apostasy and tribulations
which the Saints were passing through. Joseph the Prophet and others,
with their families, had gone to Far West, and the Saints were
following them.
Brother Townsend returned home, and I was again left alone in the
ministry.
On the afternoon of the 22nd of March, Brother Sterrett and I,
accompanied by our wives, went several hundred yards from shore to a
sand bar (it being low tide), to dig clams. The ground near the shore
was very much lower than the bar we were on, and while we were all busy
digging clams and talking "Mormonism," the dashing of the waves of the
incoming tide against the shore suddenly made us conscious that we had
fifty yards of water between us and the shore.
The surf waves also added to our difficulty, and as we had no boat,
our only alternative was to cross our four arms, thus forming a kind
of arm-chair for our wives to sit upon, and carry them in turn to the
shore, wading through two-and-a-half feet of water.
By the time we got our wives and clams safely landed, the truth of the
maxim was firmly impressed upon our minds, that "Time and tide wait for
no man," not even for a preacher of the gospel.