Colonization and Manual Labor

Brethren and sisters, in standing before you this morning I assure you I feel very dependent upon the spirit of the Lord to give me utterance. Without that spirit I feel that it would be unprofitable for me and my brethren to occupy the short time allotted to us in conference, where there is so much to be spoken of and so much business to be transacted pertaining to this great people. Therefore I pray that the Lord may bring to my memory some things that I have had upon my mind, and which I desire to speak a few words upon. I will read a portion of the 58th section of the Book of Doctrine and Covenants: ¶

"26. For behold, it is not meet that I should command in all things, for he that is compelled in all things, the same is a slothful and not a wise servant; wherefore he receiveth no reward. ¶

"27. Verily I say, men should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and do many things of their own free will, and bring to pass much righteousness; ¶

"28. For the power is in them, wherein they are agents unto themselves. And inasmuch as men do good they shall in nowise lose their reward. ¶

"29. But he that doeth not anything until he is commanded, and receiveth a commandment with doubtful heart, and keepeth it with slothfulness, the same is damned." ¶

These are the words of the Lord unto this people through the Prophet Joseph Smith, and they are applicable to us at this time. As a people, I believe that when the prophet of God stands before us and says "thus saith the Lord," we all feel in our hearts that he is speaking the mind and will of God. However united we may be in this respect and in other duties that devolve upon us, we are not as united as we ought to be. ¶

I hold that the Latter-day Saint who goes out from the crowded cities, takes up a portion of mother earth, and seeks to establish a home upon that piece of ground, is just as much engaged in the building up of Zion and in the work ¶

of the Lord as they who go out into the world to preach the Gospel of the Lord Jesus. For our spiritual salvation would not amount to very much if it were not coupled with our temporal salvation. We have the battle of life to contend with, as well as the battle for salvation in the world to come. I feel that there is not altogether the united effort among the people of the Lord that there ought to be in our colonization matters. I deprecate the tendency that appears to be increasing among the young Latter-day Saints to rather earn a livelihood in an easy manner, by the use of the pen at the bookkeeper's desk, or the use of the scissors behind the dry goods counter, than to go out and assist in the great colonization that devolves upon this people. I do not feel that it is the duty of the Latter-day Saints to seek their own ease. The man who chooses a life of ease rather than one which will bring himself and his muscle in conflict with the sterility of the soil, does not develop within his heart the love of God as much as does the pioneer who goes forth with a desire to build up Zion materially. It is true, we are not all fitted for the same avocations in life, but I have noted in traveling among the people who are the colonizers of today that in many instances their sons and daughters have a desire to make an easy living. They do not desire to stay on the farm and to labor as their fathers and mothers have done. They lose sight of the fact that brains can be used in the colonization of new countries and in the cultivation of the soil as well as in callings to be found in the city. It is true, that in any avocation in life there is always room at the top; but it is not easy for young men and women to come in from the country and make a good living in the cities. Very often we find them, after they have labored five or ten years, without a home and without anything laid up for their future welfare. They may have had a pretty easy time of it; they may have been able to take advantage of the theatres, the pleasure resorts, etc., but they have not made any material advancement. It is my firm belief that if this spirit prevails among the young Latter-day Saints, it will only be a matter of a generation or two until our ¶

people will be the employed and not the employers. There should be a spirit instilled into the hearts of those who attend the Colleges of the Latter-day Saints, at any rate, to create employment, rather than to seek employment. We have learned by experience that it amounts to but very little to go out into the world and preach the Gospel of the Lord Jesus to the people, and then bring them to these cities where they are not able to gain for themselves a livelihood. Very often bad results have arisen from this condition. There should be as great a desire to possess the earth and to become employers as there should be to go out and preach the Gospel. I do not know the reason of it, but it almost appears as if the young people of today abhorred the thought of using the hammer or the plane, or becoming connected with any business that entails hard work. The desire appears to be to make a living by the head, and not with the body and brain combined. I feel that this is wrong, for in time it will create a one-sided education. It seems to me that now is a good time to urge upon the fathers and mothers to teach their sons and daughters that farm life and the life of the colonizer and pioneer is not all drudgery, but that there are many advantages connected with it. The days of colonizing by this people are by no means past. ¶

There are vast tracts of land which I believe the God of Heaven has kept in reserve for this people. They only wait the diversion of the streams from their natural courses to transform them into thrifty farms and settlements. I believe that for a long time to come this country will furnish to our people places where the climate is good, where there is an abundance of water and land, where they can make good homes for themselves, and where, after a few years of hard labor, they will be able to give employment to others. They will not always have their "nose on the grindstone," nor will they be under the necessity of walking the streets and begging employment of other people. There is scarcely a day passes, when I am in the city, but some one comes to me who desires employment, or better employment than he already has. ¶

A great many of those who are employed in this city at the present time are spending more than they are making. It may be partially on account of extravagant habits that we have acquired in the last few years. But it is nevertheless a very unsatisfactory situation. Where people are busily engaged and have plenty to do, they are generally contented. If we will labor each day so that at the end of the day we can feel that we have accomplished something, we are able to lie down at night and partake of the God-given rest that comes to a tired body. But, as I have stated, very often the desire is to avoid this kind of life, and to shun labor which would soil our hands. This is not the spirit of the latter-day work. If our people do not take advantage of the vast tracts of land that are around us, and make Latter-day Saint homes thereon, we will ultimately find ourselves surrounded by a people not of us, who will possess the earth and take advantage of these opportunities that we are allowing to pass by, apparently unheeded. I believe that it is a righteous desire for a Latter-day Saint to wish to possess some of God's earth; and mothers and fathers can do much better with their children, so far as rearing them in the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ is concerned, upon the farm, where they can furnish them employment, than in the crowded cities, where they might have to walk the streets without employment and have nothing to occupy their minds but evil. There are many young Latter-day Saints today being led away in this manner, and I believe that one cause of this is the fact that we are neglecting as a people to make use of the soil, the streams of water, and the elements which surround us. ¶

My brethren and sisters, these are things that it would be well for us to consider. I feel that the Latter-day Saints need more blacksmiths, more mechanics, more colonizers, more young men and young women who are not afraid to go out and battle with the elements, and take advantage of the opportunities which God has placed within our reach, as our fathers and mothers have done. It has made good men and good women of them. They engaged in occupations that today are ¶

considered undesirable, but they are better men and women than we are. We ought to desire to build up the material Zion; and while we may not be commanded in these things, we should, as the revelation which I have read says, be willing to do many things of our own free will and choice. ¶

Where our people have gone forth in organized bodies, in accordance with counsel, to settle up new countries, they have been able to accomplish much. But where they have gone without the advice of their Bishop, or without the knowledge of the President of their Stake, they have contended one with another, have been disunited, and in almost every instance have made a failure of their canals and their colonization in general. Where, however, they have followed the counsels of the servants of the Lord they have been prospered, they have become a wealthy and industrious people, and their sons and daughters have become men and women of muscle and brain. ¶

May God grant that we may improve in respect to some of these things; that we may be a people who will keep constantly in view the necessity of union; that we may seek to support one another materially as well as spiritually; that we may desire to build up one another and thus build up the kingdom of God; that we may eliminate the spirit of selfishness from our hearts, and that we may grow and increase in ¶

the knowledge of God and his purposes. This is my prayer in the name of Jesus. Amen. ¶