Discourse

The remarks which have been made during this conference by the various speakers have been accompanied, as I have no doubt all present feel by the testimony of the Spirit of God. The Lord is with His people and He gives unto them, when they are living aright, the testimony of His Holy Spirit, by means of which they can know the voice of the true Shepherd, and are able to distinguish the servants of God by their teachings and by the spirit that accompanies their words. We have been told that it is not the privilege of a few to have this testimony alone, but of all who enter into covenant with God, to receive for themselves a knowledge concerning the principles which are taught them. ¶

In our conferences as well as at all our meetings there should be the plainest talk to the people, inspired by the Spirit of God. Not only should a spirit of counsel and instruction rest upon those who address us, but, if needs be, the spirit of warning and reproof. We have had reproofs administered to us at this conference concerning our methods of life and our habits; and shall the Latter-day Saints take offense at the plainness of these exhortations? No. Whenever the Saints are in the position that they cannot submit to reproof and warning, they are indeed in need of chastisement at the hands of God Himself. Blessed are those who have men in their midst who dare to tell them the truth, however unpleasant that truth may be. There never has been a day within my knowledge when the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has been without men who had the courage to do this. Brother Joseph Smith was terrible in his rebukes to the people; so was President Brigham Young and other servants of God; and it is necessary that this should be the case. It is not man’s wisdom that has governed or directed the affairs of this Church, but the wisdom of Almighty God manifested through his chosen servants. ¶

Some remarks were made here yesterday in the nature of a warning concerning the increase of wealth in our midst, and the speaker quoted poetry in order to illustrate his views. I myself also thought of two lines which were somewhat applicable: ¶

Ill fares the land, to hastening ills a prey, ¶

Where wealth accumulates and men decay. ¶

The speaker referred to the dangers attending the increase of wealth and luxury among us; and it is well in this solemn conference for us to take this important subject into careful consideration. We cannot shut our eyes to the fact that a stream of wealth is flowing into the midst of the Latter-day Saints. There are probably widows in this congregation who have hitherto been accustomed to go out gaining their livelihood who are now worth thousands of dollars; and working men, in like manner, find the property of which they are possessed valued at thousands of dollars. What a wonderful change is this! Now the question presents itself to us at this particular time: “What shall we do with this superabundance of wealth which has so quickly come into our possession?” In the Book of Doctrine and Covenants there are more revelations given in the early history of this Church upon this point than upon any other that now suggests itself to my mind. I think a careful examination of the early revelations given to the Prophet Joseph will reveal this fact—that the Lord operated upon his mind, giving him instructions for the members of His Church respecting temporal matters more than anything else. ¶

The Church has been organized only a few months when the Prophet’s mind was exercised on this subject. Scarcely had the Saints left New York and gone to Ohio than the Lord inspired him and gave him revelations concerning the Church’s temporal affairs. We have heard that wealth is a good thing under certain circumstances—that there is no impropriety in a people being rich, because in ancient days the men of God were rich, and yet were His faithful servants. This is true, but I would like to draw the earnest attention of my brethren to the consideration of this subject. Wealth will never be dangerous to the Latter-day Saints if equally distributed. But if it shall create class distinctions among us—if it shall lift one class above the other, and give one portion of our community advantages which are not enjoyed by the rest, then instead of its being a blessing to us there will be great danger of its becoming a snare. ¶

This Gospel was revealed to bless the poor, to save the honest in heart among all nations. One of our brethren spoke yesterday about certain classes of society not having been reached by us, and being heretofore unacquainted with our principles. If, however, they have not known about us, it is because they have closed their eyes and shut their ears. We have pleaded in vain with the rich, while the poor, the humble, the meek and the lowly have been gathered together. I made it a practice during my missions not to pass the house of a rich or prominent man, without going in and telling him the message of the Lord Jesus Christ. ¶

The revelations of which I have spoken, contained in the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, have for their object among other things the elevation of the poor. A law given to this Church concerning surplus property was that it should be consecrated to the Lord,--that it should be placed in the hands of the proper authorities to be distributed among those in need belonging to the Church. That law was called the United Order, but the Saints failed to comprehend it; they failed to carry it out practically. Some of them broke their covenants and God pronounced judgment upon them. The result was that the United Order was broken up and the property assigned to those who were members, as a stewardship. After awhile the servants of God asked a question concerning tithing. The reply came that the people should first give a tenth of their property and one-tenth of their increase from that time forward. That was the last law written, upon this subject. ¶

I often hear the remark while traveling among the Latter-day Saints, “I wish we could have a United Order among us; it would be so delightful if we could live in that Order.” In many instances this has been prompted by the best of feeling; but those who ask it do not comprehend the sacrifices which it would entail. We cannot enter into such an order suddenly. There must be a preparation for it. ¶

What shall be the course for us to pursue in the present circumstances? Is there faith enough among us to put our surplus means into a treasury fund? We have many great and important duties to perform connected with the work of God. There is a constant cry for means in every direction today. If the Church held under its control a million of dollars this sum could be easily expended in works which would be of the greatest benefit. For instance we have established Church schools in almost every county in this Territory, and attempts are being made to educate all our children at Church schools, academies, or seminaries. There is also some talk of establishing a Stake of Zion in Palestine. Means are required for that also. Besides this, manufactories are needed in our midst to give employment to this people, to sustain the men, women and children who belong to this Church. I feel that this is an opportune time to consider all these things. I should fear, indeed, the accumulation of wealth among us if it were to be kept in the hands of a few. ¶

We have been threatened as a people with disfranchisement in Utah Territory, and some even say that this is likely to occur. Already there are bills introduced into Congress proposing to take the right of franchise from the Latter-day Saints, regardless of their practices. But I have contemplated this with a good deal of complacency. It has had no terror for me, although I think it would be a terrible outrage; one of the worst things that could be done by a government like ours, because it would stand unparalleled at least in modern times. I have, however, never liked the distinction of one class of our people having the franchise while another has been deprived of it. I have thought that it would lead to serious results sooner or later unless carefully guarded against, and this Gospel will never accomplish its mission until the inequalities have disappeared from among us. ¶