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- Herausgeber: Charles River Editors
- Kategorie: Geisteswissenschaft
- Sprache: Englisch
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Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2018
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THE LIGHTS AND SHADOWS OF MORMONISM
J.F. Gibbs
PAPHOS PUBLISHERS
Thank you for reading. In the event that you appreciate this book, please consider sharing the good word(s) by leaving a review, or connect with the author.
This book is a work of nonfiction and is intended to be factually accurate.
All rights reserved. Aside from brief quotations for media coverage and reviews, no part of this book may be reproduced or distributed in any form without the author’s permission. Thank you for supporting authors and a diverse, creative culture by purchasing this book and complying with copyright laws.
Copyright © 2015 by J.F. Gibbs
Interior design by Pronoun
Distribution by Pronoun
TABLE OF CONTENTS
PREFATORY AND PERSONAL
PERSONAL
CHAPTER I
CHAPTER II
CHAPTER III
CHAPTER IV
CHAPTER V
CHAPTER VI
THE BOOK OF MORMON HISTORICAL SYNOPSIS JAREDITES
NEPHITES AND LAMANITES
ZARAHEMLAITES
CHRIST VISITS NEPHITES
CHAPTER VII
CHAPTER VIII
CHAPTER IX
CHAPTER X
CHAPTER XI
CHAPTER XII
CHAPTER XIII
CHAPTER XIV
CHAPTER XV
THE PROPHET AND PARTY GO TO CARTHAGE—WEAKNESS, IF NOT COWARDICE, OF GOVERNOR FORD—JOSEPH AND HYRUM SMITH ASSASSINATED—JOHN TAYLOR BADLY WOUNDED
JOSEPH F. SMITH
THE PROPHET JOSEPH SMITH—HIS CHARACTER
CHAPTER XVI
CHAPTER XVII
CHAPTER XVIII
CHAPTER XIX
CHAPTER XX
CHAPTER XXI
CHAPTER XXII
CHAPTER XXIII
CHAPTER XXIV
CHAPTER XXV
LEGITIMATE RESULT OF DOCTRINE OF UNQUESTIONING OBEDIENCE AND BLOOD ATONEMENT—PERSONNEL OF ASSASSINS—SCENE OF THE MASSACRE—DETAILS OF THE CRIME
CHAPTER XXVI
CHAPTER XXVII
CHAPTER XXVIII
CHAPTER XXIX
CHAPTER XXX
CHAPTER XXXI
CHAPTER XXXII
CHAPTER XXXIII
CHAPTER XXXIV
CHAPTER XXXV
CHAPTER XXXVI
CHAPTER XXXVII
CHAPTER XXXVIII
CHAPTER XXXIX
CHAPTER XL
CHAPTER XLI
CHAPTER XLII
CHAPTER XLIII
CHAPTER XLIV
CHAPTER XLV
(From the “Salt Lake Herald.”)
“BALDWIN’S VIEWS
“REID OF SANPETE
“JUDGE JUDD SPEAKS
“KING’S ABLE ADDRESS
“JUDGE M’MILLAN
“JUDGE H. H. ROLAPP
“DR. ELLEN B. FERGUSON
“RAWLINS FOR COURAGE
“TRUST THE PEOPLE
“ROBERT SLOAN
“SAMUEL KING
“MRS. ELLEN JAKEMAN
“CHARLES BALDWIN
“JUDGE POWERS
“DAVID EVANS
CHAPTER XLVI
CHAPTER XL VII
CHAPTER XLVIII
CHAPTER XLIX
SENATE
HOUSE
CHAPTER L
CHAPTER LI
CHAPTER LII
CHAPTER LIII
CHAPTER LIV
CHAPTER LV
CHAPTER LVI
CHAPTER LVII
AWAKENING OF THE PROPHETS
PROPHETS AND WHISKEY RING IN POLITICAL DEAL
The Lights and Shadows of Mormonism
By
J.F. Gibbs
PREFATORY AND PERSONAL
THE INITIAL THOUGHT IN CONNECTION with the writing of this volume was to assemble the evidences relating to the political perfidy of the Mormon “prophets,” and to make a brief statement of the political incidents in Utah from 1890 to 1909.
The underlying motive was to prove that the continuous asseverations of the Mormon press and speakers to the effect that the prophets were not in politics are absolutely false.
The falsehoods uttered and diligently circulated throughout the United States, and testified to under oath by the prophets during the “Smoot” investigation, relative to the non-interference of the Mormon leaders in politics, were so interwoven with their treachery in the matter of polygamy, that one phase of the subject could not be discussed without trenching upon the other.
To make the subject intelligible to those unacquainted with the true inwardness of the Mormon theo-political imperium in imperio, an explanatory foundation was necessary. Every effort to find a starting place short of the very beginning of the system was fruitless. But a consecutive history of the rise and growth of Mormonism, no matter how condensed, would be too voluminous for the objective subject-matter of the work. It was therefore decided to discuss only those high-lights of the subject which bear more directly on the political aspect of Mormonism, and to introduce sufficient general details to keep the story intelligibly consecutive.
In the matters of construction and diction, it is cheerfully conceded that the following pages are not bomb-proof to Mormon criticism. But the entire Mormon hierarchy, their servile tools and professional liars, are challenged to disprove the truth of the evidences of their unparalleled duplicity, and the legitimacy and justice of the conclusions and criticisms.
PERSONAL
There are always legitimate questions arising in the minds of readers of a work like this, as to the personality of the author, his antecedents, his reliability, his opportunities for investigating the subject with which he deals, and the motive which impelled him to undertake the work. That those very natural questions may be answered, the following is cheerfully and respectfully submitted:
I was born in 1845, in Nauvoo, Illinois. My father, William Gibbs, was born in Vermont. My grandfather, Josiah Gibbs, was a veteran of the war of 1812.
My mother, Eliza Dana, was a daughter of Francis Dana, son of Francis Dana, of Massachusetts.
During 1845, father aided in completing the carpenter work on the Mormon temple at Nauvoo, and assisted in defending the city from the mob that subsequently expelled the Mormons from Illinois.
In the spring of 1847 father moved to Mt. Pisgah, Iowa, where he remained four years and then moved to Alden, McIIenry county, Illinois. It was in Alden that the austere “schoolmarms” of those early days “birched” into me the rudiments of the three “r’s.”
In 1857 father and his family “crossed the plains,” following up the Mormons, and arrived in Salt Lake City in September, a few days after the perpetration of the atrocious Mountain Meadows massacre.
In January, 1858, father joined the general “retreat” before “Johnston’s army,” and the following spring returned to Salt Lake City where he worked at carpentry.
In 1859 father entered the employ of President Brigham Young and helped build the famous Salt Lake Theatre. It was at that time that I began my apprenticeship to the carpenter’s, trade.
In 1861 President Young sent father down to his “Forest” farm, four miles south of the city, where, during 1861 and 1862, he built a large farm house for the President.
On Saturdays we were sure of a visit of from one to a half dozen of President Young’s girls, who made it a rule to be at the farm whenever convenient. Those products of plural marriage were perfect speciments of healthful, robust girlhood, full of romping, joyous life, and, withal, pure, guileless and unsophisticated. My acquaintance with the girls soon ripened into a strong and lasting friendship. I soon became an apparently welcome visitor to President Young’s “Lion House” residence, and more especially to the apartments of “Aunt” Zina D. H. Young, whose gentleness of nature endeared her to every one who had the pleasure of her acquaintance. I soon learned to love her as a second mother, and today her sweet personality is one of the cherished memories of my life.
As a boy can be acquainted with a man, I knew President Young, who, barring his unyielding and inexplicable fanaticism, was “every inch a man.” During nearly two years father and I were once-a-week night guards, under the direction of “Uncle” Joseph Schofield, at the Lion and Beehive residences of President Young.
In 1863 father moved to Fillmore, Millard county, one hundred and fifty miles south of Salt Lake City. Millard was one of the “cow” counties, and I soon added “broncho-busting” to my other limited accomplishments.
In 1864 father took me with him to Adamsville in Beaver county, where we built a rude air-pumping apparatus for an iron furnace or smelter. We were then near the scene of the Mountain Meadows massacre, and there were then living in Beaver City, several men who participated in that terrible affair. And I yet vividly remember the expression of hopeless dejection which characterized their appearance and movements. Our employer, a Mr. Stewart, had in his possession a brindle cow which was pointed out to me as one of the survivors of the four hundred head of cattle taken from the emigrants. One of the employees on the Stewart ranch at Adamsville was a man named “Nate” Dodge, from southern Utah, who was familiar with the details of the massacre. He appeared to take delight in pouring the horrid story into my ears, and in singing a lot of doggerel composed on the massacre, and which began as follows: “In splendor from the mountains some thirteen wagons came.” Night after night I listened to the story until it burned into my memory. And with what Charley Fancher had told me in the early summer of 1858, I knew that white men were the leaders in the massacre and that wholesale lying was being resorted to in order to shield the guilty. I did not, however, then know the relationship that existed between the doctrine of unquestioning obedience, the law of blood-atonement and the “reformation” which was still being impressed upon the Latterday Saints. Subsequently I visited the “Meadows” and camped on the ground where those one hundred and twenty betrayed men, women and children were butchered in obedience to the orders of the presiding priesthood of Iron county. Notwithstanding the massacre was a legitimate subject of discussion, and a result of the doctrine and policy just mentioned, there was merely a bare reference to it in the first draught of this story. The details were so appalling that I hesitated because of the dislike to being charged with appealing to the passions of the public. However, for reasons not necessary to state, I was induced to give the uncolored facts of the massacre which will be found in Chapter XXV.
In 1866 I was out on two expeditions against Chief Black Hawk and his band who had ravaged the northern part of Millard county, killed a man and boy and driven off several hundred head of cattle and horses.
In 1867 I was “called” on a mission to England where I remained a little over two years. In the matter of broadening my views of life and salvation, that mission was a godsend to me.
On my return I began the study of geology, then read Darwin’s works, and later on began an enthusiastic study of Herbert Spencer’s synthetic philosophy. Very naturally that line of study did not strengthen my faith in “exclusive” salvation.
But I staggered along and hugged to my soul the thought that I could “harmonize” many of the doctrines of Mormonism with the teachings of science.
Thus it went on until the “division” on political lines in 1891. Then my real trouble with the prophets began. As the years went by their double-dealing and treachery first incensed, then disgusted me, until my former respect for them was transformed into contempt and loathing. As a country editor, I opposed the presence of prophets in politics, and did all I could to discredit their work, which continued without abatement.
In 1906 I joined the American party, and occasionally broke into the newspapers with some rather bitter criticisms of Joseph F. Smith and others of the political prophets.
In March, 1907, the twenty-first quorum of seventy cited me to trial for my fellowship on the charge of “apostasy,” based on “general neglect of duty” and on my “public utterances regarding President Joseph F. Smith and others of the church leaders.” My quorum disfellowshipped me, and the “high-council” of the Millard stake of Zion completed the program by excommunication. It served me right; I had been an apostate from the day when, in 1871, I first resented the domination of the Mormon priesthood in politics.
During the fifty-one years in which I have intimately associated with the Mormon people, I have seen all the lights and shadows of Mormonism; I have partaken of the good there is in it, and have drunk to the very dregs of its bitterness. But there is no feeling, other than that of kindness toward a people whose only fault is unquestioning credulity.
And now for the motive for the publication of this book.
After I had been excommunicated, I began a careful study of the so-called “revelations,” and of the early history of Joseph Smith and of the church which he founded. Except as to the Book of Mormon, I had taken little interest in them since my mission in England. Months were consumed in a close and unbiased investigation. Those things which appealed to me as truths during my boyhood, became glaringly inconsistent under the analysis to which I subjected them, and I was surprised that I had not theretofore discovered the thinly disguised deception. The new verdict was arrived at by a process of reasoning. It was the operation of a mature mind versus the impressions of childhood.
The past fifteen years have been largely devoted to fighting the political encroachments of the prophets on the civil rights of the people. And the remainder of my life, so far as may be practicable, will be devoted to combating the Mormon swamp light on a broader plane than that of its political phase.
My own time and money have been spent in the compilation of the facts and in the preparation of the subject-matter of the following pages. One trusted friend has been consulted from time to time on the fitness of some of the material. And, therefore, whatever of criticism, or of condemnation of the work, may be made, should fall on me, and me alone.
With sincere friendship for the Mormon people, but with inexpressible contempt for their “prophets,”
I am respectfully,
Josiah Francis Gibbs.
Salt Lake City,
March 15th, 1909.
CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
WHEN THE REVOLUTIONARY FATHERS ADOPTED the Constitution of the United States they believed that the safeguards which they had reared between the respective spheres of civil and religious activities would be ample for all time. The province of each of those moral forces was so clearly and sharply denned that it was thought no serious clash could be possible. And the religious forces of those years were such that the Fathers were justified in their belief.
Notwithstanding the safeguards which were thrown around the civil rights of the people, the Government of the United States is today confronted by a religio-political force which, if not sternly rebuked, rather than encouraged as it is, will become a problem of such complexity and magnitude as will tax the wisdom and strength of the Government to solve.
Even now the conflict between the civil and religious forces has become acute in the States of Utah and Idaho. With stealthy persistence this theo-civil power is creeping over the States of Wyoming, Nevada and Colorado, and is now the dominant political force in the Territories of Arizona and New Mexico, which, in time, will be forced into the Union by that same ecclesiastical power which, by political intrigue, is compelling recognition in the Senate of the United States, and through that body is rapidly assuming a position of power under the protection of the Federal Government.
The conflict in Utah and Idaho is the most unique and unequal struggle of modern times.
On the religious side of the controversy is the Mormon church, which, under alleged divine authority, arrogates the right to control its adherents temporally as well as spiritually. And in political matters the large majority of the devotees to Mormonism, believing as they do in the specially divine origin of their religion, yield unquestioning obedience to the slightest wish, expressed or implied, of the fifteen “prophets, seers and revelators” who constitute the especially inspired governing body of the church.
On the civil-rights side of the controversy in Utah is the local American party composed of fully 20,000 men and women of nearly all political and religious creeds, races and color. Boiled down, the American party has but two planks in its platform.
The first, and more important, is opposition to the political rule of the Mormon prophets. The second is unyielding opposition to the perpetuation of plural marriages, and to the continuation of sexual crimes, “under the color of polygamous marriage.”
Before proceeding with the subject-matter of the following pages it will be well to more definitely introduce the peculiar organization which is the subject of such wide-spread interest and discussion.
Joseph Smith, the founder of so-called “Mormonism,” died many years ago, but the remarkable religious system which he established exists and continues to exert a singularly powerful influence on human thought and action.
From six members which comprised the full strength of its organization on the 6th day of April, 1830, the “Church of Latter-day Saints” has increased to fully one-half million souls in this year of our Lord, 1909.
Seemingly immovably intrenched in this inter-mountain country, the Mormon church is supreme in its control of local industrial, social, and political matters. Its singularly perfect organization through which messages may be quickly transmitted from the fountain-head to the most obscure members residing in the remotest hamlets of its ecclesiastical empire, constitutes a matter of self-felicitation to the Mormon leaders, and an almost impregnable barrier to the assaults of its opponents. Add to its compact organization the fact that the counsel, or advice, of its chief prophet, seer and revelator is absolute and final, and the other fact, that all devout members recognize such counsel, direct or implied, as being the voice of the very Eternal, and we have an organization so complete in its centralization of power that its existence within a republic constitutes at once an anomaly and a menace.
The spirit and essence of its governmental policy may be clearly understood from the following terse rule laid down by the present chief prophet of the church:
“The fact of the matter is, when a man says, ‘You may direct me spiritually, but not temporally,’ he lies in the presence of God; that is, if he has got intelligence enough to know what he is talking about. “From sermon by President Joseph F. Smith, in Provo. See Deseret News of May 20th, 1896.
By the exercise of the absolute power enunciated in the above quotation, and the unquestioning alacrity with which the Saints obey, the politics of Utah and Idaho is completely dominated by the Mormon priesthood, and men rewarded or punished according to the measure of their servility or independence. And through the Representatives and Senators from the States of Utah. Idaho and Wyoming, as already indicated, the Senate of the United States is being controlled in the interest of the religious system founded by Joseph Smith, “the Prophet,” as he is affectionately and reverently called by Latter-day Saints.
Such, in briefest form, are the secular results of Joseph Smith’s brief span of life. And the advocates of, as well as the opponents to, the peculiar religio-political system of which Joseph Smith was the founder will do themselves and the world a signal service by a critical study of the well-established laws of heredity and environment in their application to the seemingly inexplicable career of the “Nineteenth Century Prophet.”
Those advocates of Joseph Smith’s system, those who are capable of analytical reasoning, will discover in those laws a solution of all that is mysterious and seemingly supernatural in the remarkable achievements of their prophet. And by the application of those laws the opponents of the claimed supernatural gifts of Joseph Smith will be relieved from the necessity of further groping in the darkness of hypothesis for untenable solutions for the existence of the Book of Mormon upon which the entire fabric of Mormonism was builded.
To the discussion of the questions hereinbefore indicated, the following pages will be devoted.
CHAPTER II
A FOREWORD AND EXPLANATION
SINCERE AND INTELLIGENT MEN AND women have often asked the writer, knowing him to have been a life-long member of the Church of Latter-day Saints, “Why is it that the labors of the various Christian missionaries among the Mormon people in Utah are so barren of results?” An answer to that very natural query will now be attempted.
The wondrous provisions of Nature for the existence and progress of men and women on this earth have impressed the great truth on nearly every mortal that a Supreme and Intelligent Power must have foreknown and provided for the subsistence, happiness and progress of human beings; that the world with all its utility and beauty “could not have come by chance.” Our remote ancestors sensed the presence of Infinite Power in the lightning’s flash, and heard His voice in the peals of thunder and in the rush and roar of the winds. To them, the Infinite Power was material. The human form and brain constituted the highest form of life and intelligence. Hence, in order to bring God nearer to them, and to propitiate His favor, they fashioned from wood and stone rude and grotesque images of human beings and worshipped them as representatives of the Mysterious Power they so clearly sensed in all the phenomena of Nature. It was realism against idealism.
As knowledge progressed and became differentiated and systematized the theretofore inexplicable natural phenomena were reduced to the simple law of cause and effect. When astronomers clearly proved that our earth, instead of being the central globe of the Universe, is merely an atom in the limitless domain of organized matter, and that each sun and world is subject to exact laws in its organization and motion, the necessity for special acts of “creation,” and “guiding spirits” for the stars was banished from the thoughts of intelligent men and women. The gradual unfolding of the grandeur of the Universe, while not eliminating the belief in God as the Ultimate Power in a grander and profounder mystery, moved Him further away from the mental grasp of mortals.
Minds not trained to logical and consecutive reasoning have not kept pace with the achievements of scientific research. They have failed to grasp the grander and nobler thought, that the perfection of species, rather than individuals, is the object for which Nature, or Nature’s God, is persistently working. The curse of selfishness has not yet been banished from the hearts of men to the extent that they can “do good for goodness’ sake” to sow that others may reap; to labor for the ultimate perfection of the race. For that reason they are struggling for immediate personal benefits in this life, and exaltation over their fellows in the life hereafter. They fail to grasp the sublime truth that in defiance of their selfish and exclusive salvation creeds, the Inscrutable Power is ever forcing the race upward to higher planes of existence, in which all the church are doing a magnificent work.
So-called “Mormonism,” as the reader will understand as the system is unfolded, is a bid for personal and exclusive salvation and exaltation. Add to those inducements the natural correlation of pure materialism and we have a combination of doctrines that appeal with irresistible force to a certain order of minds.
CHAPTER III
BELIEF IN DREAMS, VISIONS AND MIRACLES ARE DOMINANT TRAITS OF CHARACTER—JOSEPH SMITH’S ANCESTRY
LUCY MACK SMITH, THE MOTHER of Joseph Smith, was a woman of unusual strength of character, unquestioned piety and of an intensely visionary mental organization. A study of her portrait, given herewith, will enable the critical reader to understand that Joseph Smith inherited his peculiar mental traits from his maternal rather than from his paternal ancestry. And it is timely to here state that the subject-matter of this chapter, so far as it relates to the incidents in the formative period of the Prophet’s life, are from the “History of the Prophet Joseph” by his mother, Lucy Smith.
Soloman Mack, the father of Lucy, was very likely of English extraction. He participated in the war of the Revolution and was in every sense a typical and patriotic American. He was deeply religious, and in a brief memoir of his experiences during the war for Independence referred his many escapes from death to the interposition of the Almighty.
Of Soloman Mack’s family of four sons and four daughters, the personality of but two of them, Jason and Lucy, will be of special interest to the reader, except that all of the family were intensely devotional and inclined to dreams and visions.
In a letter, June 30th, 1835, to his brother, Soloman Mack, Jason wrote as follows:
“My Dear Brother Soloman: You will, no doubt, be surprised to hear that I am still alive, although in an absence of twenty years I have never written to you before. But I trust you will forgive me when I tell you that, for most of the twenty years, I have been so situated that I have had little or no communication with the lines, and have been holding meetings, day and night, from place to place; besides, my mind has been so taken up with the deplorable situation of the earth, the darkness in which it lies, that, when my labors did call me near the lines, I did not realize the opportunity which presented itself of letting you know where I was. And, again, I have designed visiting you long since, and have annually promised myself that the succeeding year I would certainly seek out my relatives, and enjoy the privilege of one pleasing interview with them before I passed into the Valley and Shadow of Death. But last, though not least, let me not startle you when I say, that, according to my early adopted principles of the power of faith, the Lord has, in His exceeding kindness, bestowed upon me the gift of healing by the prayer of faith, and the use of such simple means as seem congenial to the human system; but my chief reliance is upon Him who organized us at the first, and can restore at pleasure that which is disorganized.
“The first of my peculiar successes in this way was twelve years since, and from nearly that date I have had little rest. In addition to the incessant calls which I, in a short time, had, there was the most overwhelming torrent of opposition poured down upon me that I ever witnessed. But it pleased God to take the weak to confound the wisdom of the wise. I have, in the last twelve years, seen the greatest manifestations of the power of God in healing the sick, that, with all my sanguinity, I ever hoped or imagined. And when the learned infidel has declared with sober face, time and again, that disease had obtained such an ascendency that death could be resisted no . longer, that the victim must wither beneath his potent arm, T! have seen the almost lifeless clay slowly but surely resuscitated, and revive till the pallid monster fled so far that the patient was left in the full bloom of vigorous health. But it is God that hath done it, and to Him let all the praise be given.
“I am now compelled to close this epistle, for I must immediately start on a journey of more than one hundred miles, to attend to a heavy case of sickness; so God be with you all. Farewell!
“JASON MACK.”
The letter quoted is useful only in that it throws important light on the profoundly religious traits that so completely dominated the family from which the modern Prophet inherited his strongest characteristics. The evident sincerity of Mr. Mack in his sorrow because of the “deplorable condition of the world,” and his confidence in “healing by the prayer of faith,” is singularly like the testimonies borne by all the elders of the Church of Latter-day Saints. Indeed, Jason Mack’s healings of the sick began seven years prior to the organization of the Latter-day church by his nephew, “Joseph the Prophet.”
Reference has heretofore been made to the intensely “religious” nature of Lucy Mack, who married Joseph Smith, Sr., and who, subsequently, became the mother of Hyrum, Sophronia, Joseph the Prophet, Samuel H., Ephraim, William, Catherine, Don Carlos and Lucy.
The first definite spiritual manifestation received by the mother of the Prophet was in Randolph, Vermont, in the year 1802., Mrs. Smith had been stricken with consumption, superinduced by a severe attack of fever, and her life was despaired of by her family and physician. While in that critical condition Mrs. Smith says:
“When I was meditating upon death, in this manner, my visitor (a Methodist. exhorter), left; soon after which my husband came to my bed and took me by the hand, and said, ‘Oh, Lucy! You must not die! The doctors have given you up; and all say you cannot live!’ I then looked to the Lord, and begged and pleaded with Him to spare my life, in order that I might bring up my children, and be a comfort to my husband. My mind was much agitated during the whole night. Sometimes I contemplated heaven and heavenly things; then my thoughts would turn upon those of earth my babes and my companion.
“During this night I made a solemn covenant with God, that, if He would let me live, I would endeavor to serve Him according to the best of my abilities. Shortly after this, I heard a voice say to me: ‘Seek and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. Let your heart be comforted; ye believe in God, believe in me. ‘In a few moments my mother came in, and looking upon me, she said, Lucy, you are better.”
Quoting further from Mrs. Smith’s history of “Joseph the Prophet”:
“From my anxiety of mind to abide the covenant which I had made with the Lord, I went from place to place, for the purpose of getting information, and finding, if it were possible, some congenial spirit who could enter into my feelings, and thus he able to strengthen and assist me in carrying out my resolutions.
“I heard that a very devout man was to preach the next Sabbath in the Presbyterian church; I therefore went to meeting, in the full expectation of hearing that which my soul desired the Word of Life.
“When the minister commenced speaking, I fixed my mind with deep attention upon the spirit and matter of his discourse; but after hearing him through, I returned home, convinced that he neither understood nor appreciated the subject upon which he spoke, and I said in my heart that there was not then upon earth the religion which I sought. I therefore determined to examine my Bible, and, taking Jesus and His disciples for my guide, to endeavor to obtain from God that which man could neither give nor take away.”
Notwithstanding Mrs. Smith’s implied doubt as to the genuineness of the then existing churches, she adds:
“At length, I considered it my duty to be baptized, and, finding a minister who was willing to baptize me, and leave me free in regard to joining any religious denomination, I stepped forward and yielded obedience to this ordinance; after which I continued to read the Bible as formerly, until my eldest son had attained his twenty-second year.”
From Randolph the Smith family returned to Tunbridge, Vermont, where Joseph Smith, Sr., owned a farm which he subsequently sold to meet a deficit created by an unfortunate speculation in the former town. While residing in Tunbridge Mrs. Smith had another vision, which, aside from its interest as an alleged supernatural manifestation, has an important bearing on the early life of the founder of Mormonism, and is, therefore, given in full with the prefatory remarks by Mrs. Smith:
“While we were living in the town of Tunbridge, my mind became deeply impressed with the subject of religion; which, probably, was occasioned by my singular experience during my sickness at Randolph. I commenced attending Methodist meetings, and in order to oblige me, my husband accompanied me; but when this came to the ears of his oldest brother, he was so displeased, and said so much in regard to the matter, that my husband thought it best to desist. He said that he considered it hardly worth our while to attend the meetings any longer, as it would prove of but little advantage to us; besides this, it gave our friends such disagreeable feelings. I was considerably hurt by this, yet I made no reply. I retired to a grove not far distant, where I prayed to the Lord in behalf of my husband that the true gospel might be presented to him, and that his heart might be softened so as to receive it, or, that he might become more religiously inclined. After praying some time in this manner, I returned to the house, much depressed in spirit, which state of feeling continued until I retired to my bed. I soon fell asleep, and had the following dream:
“I thought that I stood in a large and beautiful meadow, which lay a short distance from the house in which we lived, and that everything around me wore an aspect of peculiar pleasantness. The first thing that attracted my special attention in this magnificent meadow, was a very pure and clear stream of water, which ran through the midst of it; and as I traced this stream, I discovered two trees standing upon its margin, both of which were on the same side of the stream. These trees were very beautiful, they were well proportioned, and towered with majestic beauty to a great height. Their branches, which added to their symmetry and glory, commenced near the top, and spread themselves in luxurious grandeur around. I gazed upon them with wonder and admiration; and after beholding them a short time, I saw one of them was surrounded with a bright belt, that shone like burnished gold, but far more brilliantly. Presently, a gentle breeze passed by, and the tree encircled with this golden zone, bent gracefully before the wind, and waved its beautiful branches in the light air. As the wind increased, this tree assumed the most lively and animated appearance, and seemed to express in its motions the utmost joy and happiness: If it had been an intelligent creature, it could not have conveyed, by the power of language, the idea of joy and gratitude so perfectly as it did; and even the stream that rolled beneath it shared, apparently, every sensation felt by the tree, for, as the branches danced over the stream, it would swell gently, then recede again with a motion as soft as the breathing of an infant, but as lively as the dancing of a sunbeam. The belt also partook of the same influence, and, as it moved in unison with the motion of the stream and of the tree, it increased continually in refulgence and magnitude, until it became exceedingly glorious.
“I turned my eyes upon its fellow, which stood opposite; but it was not surrounded with the belt of light as the former, and it stood erect and fixed as a pillar of marble. No matter how strong the wind blew over it, not a leaf was stirred, not a bough was bent; but obstinately stiff it stood, scorning alike the zephyr’s breath, or the power of the mighty storm.
“I wondered at what I saw, and said in my heart, ‘What can be the meaning of all this?’ And the interpretation given me was, that these personated my husband and his oldest brother, Jesse Smith; that the stubborn and unyielding tree was like Jesse; that the other, more pliant and flexible, was like Joseph, my husband; that the breath of heaven which passed over them, was the pure and undefiled gospel of the Son of God, which gospel Jesse would always resist, but which Joseph, when he was more advanced in life, would hear and receive in his whole heart, and rejoice therein; and unto him would be added intelligence, happiness, glory, and everlasting life.”
JOSEPH SMITH, SR.
Joseph Smith, Sr., the father of Joseph the Prophet, was of English extraction. His ancestors were among the earliest settlers of New England. His was a somewhat easy-going, pliant disposition such as could be easily moulded by the superior intelligence, and stronger will of his wife. And that such influence was successfully exerted is amply proved by even a casual analysis of his wife’s story. That his brother Jesse, in strength of character, was the opposite and mentally superior is clearly shown in the last paragraph, just quoted, of Mrs. Smith’s vision, and in the alacrity exhibited by the father of the future Prophet in joining his wife in the matter of dreams and visions.
And it requires no supernatural discernment to discover in the following visions the whence and wherefores of a religious system that has continued to be an enigma to the people of all civilized nations:
“FIRST VISION OF JOSEPH SMITH, SENIOR—THE BOX—SECOND VISION—THE TREE AND THE SPACIOUS BUILDING
“After selling the farm at Tunbridge, we moved only a short distance, to the town of Royalton. Here we resided a few months, then moved again to Sharon, Windsor county, Vermont. In the latter place, my husband rented a farm of my father, which he cultivated in the summer, teaching school in the winter. In this way my husband continued laboring for a few years, during which time our circumstances gradually improved, until we found ourselves quite comfortable again.
“In the meantime, we had a son whom we called Joseph, after the name of his father; he was born December 23rd, 1805. I shall speak of him more particularly by and by.
“We moved thence to Tunbridge. Here we had another son, whom we named Samuel Harrison, born March 13th, 1808. We lived in this place a short time, then moved to Royalton, where Ephraim was born, March 13th, 1810. We continued here until we had another son, born March 13th, 1811, whom we called William.
“About this time my husband’s mind became much excited upon the subject of religion; yet he would not subscribe to any particular system of faith, but contended for the ancient order, as established by our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and his Apostles.
“One night my husband retired to his bed, in a very thoughtful state of mind, contemplating the situation of the Christian religion, or the confusion and discord that were extant. He soon fell into a sleep, and before waking had the following vision, which I shall relate in his own words, just as he told it to me the next morning:
“I seemed to be traveling in an open, barren field, and as I was traveling, I turned my eyes towards the east, the west, north and the south, but could see nothing save dead, fallen timber. Not a vestige of life, either animal or vegetable, could be seen; besides, to render the scene still more dreary, the most death like silence prevailed, no sound of anything animate could be heard in all the field. I was alone in this gloomy desert, with the exception of an attendant spirit, who kept constantly by my side. Of him I inquired the meaning of what I saw, and why I was thus traveling in such a dismal place. He answered thus: ‘This field is the world, which now lieth inanimate and dumb, in regard to the true religion, or plan of salvation; but travel on, and by the wayside you will find on a certain log a box, the contents of which, if you eat thereof, will make you wise, and give unto you wisdom and understanding.’ I carefully observed what was told me by my guide, and proceeding a short distance, I came to the box. I immediately took it up, and placed it under my left arm; then with eagerness I raised the lid, and began to taste of its contents; upon which all manner of beasts, horned cattle, and roaring animals, rose up on every side in the most threatening manner possible, tearing the earth, tossing their horns, and bellowing most terrifically all around me, and they finally came so close upon me, that I was compelled to drop the box and fly for my life. Yet, in the midst of all this I was perfectly happy, though I awoke trembling.’
“From this forward, my husband seemed more confirmed than ever, in the opinion that there was no order or class of religionists that knew any more concerning the Kingdom of God, than those of the world, or such as made no profession of religion whatever.
“In 1811, we moved from Royalton, Vermont, to the town of Lebanon, New Hampshire. Soon after arriving here, my husband received another very singular vision, which I will relate:
“ ‘I thought,’ said he, ‘I was traveling in an open, desolate field, which appeared to be very barren. As I was thus traveling, the thought suddenly came into my mind that I had better stop and reflect upon what I was doing, before I went any further. So I asked myself, ‘What motive can I have in traveling here, and what place can this be?’ My guide, who was by my side as before, said, ‘This is the desolate world; but travel on.’ The road was so broad and barren, that I wondered why I should travel in it; for, said I to myself, ‘Broad is the road, and wide is the gate that leads to death, and many there be that walk therein; but narrow is the way, and strait is the gate that leads to everlasting life, and few there be that go in thereat.’ Traveling a short distance further, I came to a narrow path. This path I entered, and when I had traveled a little way in it, I beheld a beautiful stream of water, which ran from the east to the west. Of this stream, I could see neither the source nor yet the mouth; but as far as my eyes could extend I could see a rope, running along the bank of it, about as high as a man could reach, and beyond me, was a low, but very pleasant valley, in which stood a tree, such as I had never seen before. It was exceedingly handsome, insomuch that I looked upon it with wonder and admiration. Its beautiful branches spread themselves somewhat like an umbrella, and it bore a kind of fruit, in shape much like a chestnut bur, and as white as snow, or, if possible, whiter. I gazed upon the same with considerable interest, and as I was doing so, the burs or shells commenced opening and shedding their particles, or the fruit which they contained, which was of dazzling whiteness. I drew near, and began to eat of it, and I found it delicious beyond description. As I was eating I said in my heart. ‘I cannot eat this alone. I must bring my wife and children, that they may partake with me.’ Accordingly, I went and brought my family, which consisted of a wife and seven children, and we all commenced eating, and praising God for this blessing. We were exceedingly happy, insomuch that our joy could not be easily expressed. While thus engaged, I beheld a spacious building standing opposite the valley which we were in, and it appeared to reach to the very heavens. It was full of doors and windows, and they were all filled with people, who were very finely dressed. When these people observed us in the low valley, under the tree, they pointed the finger of scorn at us, and treated us with all manner of disrespect and contempt. But their contumely we utterly disregarded. I presently turned to my guide, and inquired of him the meaning of the fruit that was so delicious. He told me it was the pure love of God, shed abroad in the hearts of all those who love Him, and keep His commandments. He then commanded me to go and bring the rest of my children. I told him that we were all there. ‘No,’ he replied, ‘look yonder; you have two more, and you must bring them also.’ Upon raising my eyes, I saw two small children, standing some distance off. I immediately went to them, and brought them to the tree; upon which they commenced eating with the rest, and we all rejoiced together. The more we ate, the more we seemed to desire, until we even got down upon our knees, and scooped it up, eating it by double handfuls. After feasting in this manner a short time, I asked my guide what was the meaning of the spacious building which I saw. He replied, ‘It is Babylon; it is Babylon, and it must fall. The people in the doors and windows are the inhabitants thereof, who scorn and despise the Saints of God because of their humility.’ I soon awoke, clapping my hands together for joy.’
“We moved, as before-mentioned, to the town of Lebanon, New Hampshire. Here we settled ourselves down, and began to contemplate, with joy and satisfaction, the prosperity which had attended our recent exertions; and we doubled our diligence, in order to obtain more of this world’s goods, with the view of assisting our children, when they should need it; and, as is quite natural, we looked forward to the decline of life, and were providing for its wants, as well as striving to procure those things which contribute much to the comfort of old age.
“As our children had, in a great measure, been debarred from the privilege of schools, we began to make every arrangement to attend to this important duty. We established our second son, Hyrum, in an academy at Hanover; and the rest, that were of sufficient age, we Avere sending to a common school that was quite convenient. Meanwhile, myself and companion were doing all that our abilities would admit of for the future welfare and advantage of the family; and were greatly blessed in our labors.
“But this state of things did not long continue. The typhus fever came into Lebanon, and raged tremendously. Among the number seized with this complaint were, first, Sophronia; next Hyrum, who was taken while at school, and came home sick; then Alvin; in short, one after another was taken down, till all the family, with the exception of myself and husband, were prostrated upon beds of sickness.
“Sophronia had a heavy siege. The physician attended her eighty-nine days, giving her medicine all the while; but on the ninetieth day, he said she was so far gone, it was not for her to receive any benefit from medicine, and for this cause he discontinued his attendance. The ensuing night she lay altogether motionless, with her eyes wide open, and with that peculiar aspect which bespeaks the near approach of death. As she thus lay, I gazed upon her as a mother looks upon the last shade of life in a darling child. In this moment of distraction, my husband and myself clasped our hands, fell upon our knees by the bedside, and poured out our grief to God, in prayer and supplication, beseeching Him to spare our child yet a little longer.
“Did the Lord hear our petition? Yes; He most assuredly did, and before we rose to our feet, He gave us a testimony that she would recover. When we first arose from prayer, our child had, to all appearance, ceased breathing. I caught a blanket, threw it around her, then, taking her in my arms, commenced pacing the floor. Those present remonstrated against my doing as I did, saying, ‘Mrs. Smith, it is all of no use; you are certainly crazy; your child is dead.’ Notwithstanding, I would not for a moment, relinquish the hope of again seeing her breathe and live.
“This recital, doubtless, will be uninteresting to some: but those who have experienced in life something of this kind are susceptible of feeling, and can sympathize with me. Are you a mother who has been bereft of a child? Feel your heartstrings, and then tell me how I felt with my expiring child pressed to my bosom! Would you, at this trying moment feel to deny that God had ‘power to save to the uttermost all who call on Him?’ I did not then, neither do T now.
“At length she sobbed. I still pressed her to my breast, and continued to walk the floor. She sobbed again, then looked up in my face, and commenced breathing quite freely. My soul was satisfied, but my strength was gone. I laid my daughter on the bed, and sunk by her side, completely overpowered by the intensity of my feelings.
“From this time forward Sophronia continued mending, until she entirely recovered.”
Forming, as it does, the very basis of the superstructure of Mormonism, the subject-matter of the preceding portions of this chapter should be thoroughly understood.
In the letter from Jason Mack to his brother Soloman, the idea that the world was in the grasp of spiritual darkness and wickedness is easily discerned. While not so clearly defined, the impression is persistent that Jason Mack believed that the churches and the representatives of Christ were powerless to check the “deplorable” conditions then existing. And, while somewhat indefinite, the inference is justified that the “most overwhelming torrent of opposition” to Jason Mack’s miraculous healings by the “prayer of faith” came from the ministers of the various churches, and that, in the estimation of Jason Mack, all of the churches were wrong, and that he alone was the accepted servant of God. Indeed, the spirit of exclusiveness, in the gift of healing, manifested by Jason Mack, has been voiced thousands of times by missionaries of the Mormon church in their sermons, in letters to their families, and to the church authorities.
In the vision of the two trees by the mother of the Prophet there is distinctly foreshadowed the restoration of the Gospel with all its primitive miraculous gifts and powers; that Joseph Smith, Sr., would receive it, but his brother Jesse would not. In fact, “Mother” Smith, as she was subsequently affectionately called by members of the future church, antedated her son, “the Prophet,” many years in blazing the trail for the advent of the “dispensation of the fullness of times.” Indeed, the impress of her strong mental traits and unconquerable spirit entitle her to the term “Founder of Mormonism,” rather than to her visionary son, “the Prophet,” who merely followed in his mother’s footsteps and built on the foundation laid by her.
CHAPTER IV
JOSEPH SMITH, THE YOUTH—HIS ENVIRONMENT—MATERIALISM—OTHER DOCTRINES AS NATURAL SEQUENCES
SUCH WAS THE ENVIRONMENT WITHIN which the young Prophet, Joseph Smith, received his first impressions of the intimate relation of man to his Maker. To his young and plastic mind there was nothing intangible or remote in the existence or personality of God. From the hour that his mind first grasped the realities of life, Joseph Smith listened to recitals of visions received by his parents and ancestors. .From the silence of the unknown the voice of Deity had called to his parents. The veil that, for centuries, had hidden the profound mysteries of the future life had parted, and his parents had seen and talked with immortals. Important truths, withheld from less favored mortals, had been freely communicated, and in contradistinction to the darkness, ignorance, strife and confusion of the rest of the world, his, indeed, was a family truly favored of the Lord.
This familiarity with the Creator of the Universe no doubt suggested to the youthful Prophet the first thought of materialism and the definite personality of the deity that, in future years, had so marked an influence in fusing his followers into a compact and homogeneous mass. When the sense of such nearness of God had been established by frequent visions and communications, as were claimed by the Smith family, it would have required no special revelation to firmly impress on the mind of Joseph Smith the unyielding faith that “God is a being of body, parts and passions.” And from that belief there would naturally and logically be developed those other fundamental doctrines of Mormonism, to wit: That God has the form of man; that he has a wife (or wives) and that they, in compliance with the natural law of increase, are the father and mother of souls of men and women, or the doctrine of the pre-existence of spirits. The doctrine of the fatherhood and motherhood of those exalted personages suggested that other prominent Mormon doctrine of “celestial” marriage between immortals.
Having imbibed the doctrine of a pure materialism in regard to the Universe, and to the inscrutable Power, that governs it, the foundation had been laid for the superstructure of the doctrine of the exaltation and infinite progress of those who yield obedience to the principles and rites of Mormonism, and which are so dear to the heart of each Latter-day Saint.
If God be a material being and have a wife, thought Joseph Smith, why, if men are material and become immortal, should they not also have “celestial” wives and become the fathers and mothers of spirits? Thus the doctrine of a “plurality of gods” became a legitimate sequence of that first thought of materialism suggested by the environment of familiarity with heavenly beings in which Joseph Smith was born and in which he grew to manhood.
The doctrines just enumerated were not grasped as a whole, but, one by one, were added in the gradual unfolding of the original doctrine of materialism. In subsequent years President Brigham Young added the capstone to the superstructure of materialism reared by the founder of Mormonism. In condensed form that doctrine may be truthfully stated as follows: Given infinite space and the existence and infinite diffusion of matter, we have a limitless field for the organization of infinitely distributed systems of suns and worlds. That, over each of those systems, and over each of those habitable worlds, is a god whose right to such inheritance has been secured by obedience to the principles of (1) Faith in the Lord Jesus; (2) Baptism by immersion for the remission of sins; (3) Repentance of sins; (4) Confirmation, or the laying-on of hands for the conferring of the Holy Ghost, and compliance with the law of “celestial” marriage or the “sealing” of a man and his wife for eternity. The belief of Latter-day Saints is that Adam and Eve, instead of being created, came from some celestial or glorified world, where they had reared a large family of spirits, to this earth. That because of “partaking of the forbidden fruit” Adam became mortal, and thereby became the parent of the “children of men” on this planet. Thus, Adam and Eve, his queen, have the right to rule over the destinies of this earth, and which furnished the warrant for Brigham Young’s terse and comprehensive epigram, that, “Adam is our Father and God, and the only God with whom we have to do.” That no carping Saint may deny this doctrine President Brigham Young is herewith quoted:
“Now hear it, inhabitants of the earth, Jew and Gentile, saint and sinner! When our father Adam came into the garden of Eden, he came into it with a celestial body, and brought Eve, one of his wives, with him. He helped to make and organize this world. He is Michael, the Archangel, the ANCIENT of DAYS! About whom holy men have written and spoken he is our FATHER and our GOD, and the only GOD with whom we have to do. Every man upon the earth, professing Christians or nonprofessing, must hear it and will have it sooner or later. They came here, organized the raw material, and arranged in their order the herbs of the field, the trees, the apple, the peach, the plum, the pear, and every other fruit that is desirable and good for man; the seed was brought from another sphere, and planted in this earth. The thistle, the thorn, the brier, and the obnoxious weed did not appear until after the earth was cursed. When Adam and Eve had eaten of the forbidden fruit, their bodies became mortal from its effects, and therefore their offspring were mortal.” “Journal of Discourses,” Vol. I, page 50, April 9th, 1852.
Such, in brief, are the doctrines that were evolved from the young Prophet’s first conception of materialism. And such, in part, are the doctrines taught by some modern scientific advocates of materialism.
The better educated of the Mormon missionaries, in advocating the “higher principles” of Joseph Smith’s religious system, urge that the young “Prophet was uneducated, and because of that, he was unable, without revelation from God, to propound doctrines that, subsequently, partially and vaguely, were endorsed by some scientific men.”
It is not the province of this volume to advocate any of the principles of Mormonism. The bare facts, pro and con, will be given, leaving the reader to form such conclusions as may be logically drawn from an unbiased statement of Mormon doctrine, the high-lights of the system’s history, and its practical workings within this Republic. And in the interest of fairness to the reader the per contra of the Mormon missionaries’ arguments will be given.
Joseph Smith was an exceptionally precocious youth, gifted with phenomenal conceptive and imaginative faculties. From his mother’s side of the family he inherited a strong devotional temperament, supplemented by admirable persistence of purpose and magnificent courage. The marked visionary quality of Lucy Smith’s mind was transmitted in an intensified measure to her son, Joseph.
In every sense he was a child of nature. His first impressions were that God was material and, as it were, always within easy hailing distance. His mother asserts there was nothing remarkable about his childhood. He was industrious and faithful in his work on the farm, and, withal, quiet and given to deep meditation. Nature, in her ever changeful moods, seemed to commune with him. The murmurings of the streams, the whisperings of the forests and the carolling of the birds were but gentle voices from the unseen manifestations of an invisible yet material existence. Like the first men who lived on this earth, Joseph Smith sensed the presence and power of the Infinite in the movements of the stars; in animate nature; in the roar of the tempest and in the hoarse drumming of thunder.
From a close study of Joseph Smith’s mental make-up, and the environment of his boyhood, and from traits of character developed in later life in which the law of cause and consequence was apparently totally ignored, there is seeming justification for questioning his mental, poise, but little for questioning his sincerity.
The foregoing brief effort to indicate the mental and spiritual status of Joseph Smith, Jr., in advance of his career, has been made for two principal reasons. First, the scope of this volume will permit only of the briefest extracts from his history, which prevents the reader from forming correct personal conclusions on the merits of the controversy between Mormon historians and the general public regarding the status of Joseph Smith as a prophet. Second, the foregoing restricted analysis will serve to aid the reader in obtaining a deeper insight into that which, otherwise, might be confusing and inexplicable. And, incidentally, may remove any preconceived prejudice relative to Joseph Smith having been a self-conscious imposter.
CHAPTER V
JOSEPH SMITH, THE PROPHET HIS FIRST VISION MORONI DELIVERS THE GOLD PLATES PERSECUTION
AFTER MANY MISFORTUNES, COMPRISING SICKNESS, loss of crops, etc., in Vermont and Pennsylvania, the Smith family removed to Palmyra, New York.
