Central States Mission Report

I feel very grateful, my brethren and sisters, for the privilege of meeting with you in this conference. I have felt greatly blessed in listening to the instructions of our brethren and to the reports that have been given, as well as the beautiful testimonies that have been borne of the goodness of our Father in heaven to His children here upon this earth. We feel blessed in our labors in the Central States mission. That mission embraces the states of Kansas and Missouri, and all of the states south of them to the Gulf of Mexico. The people who reside in those states are, as a rule, broad and liberal, warm hearted, and they accord to our Elders many privileges that are necessary for them to have in order to carry on the work of the Lord. In the cities of St. Louis, Kansas, St. Joseph, and many other cities in that mission, the men who have been elected to office accord to our Elders the same privileges that are enjoyed by ministers of other religious denominations; and in some cities, where the ordinances are against street preaching, we have found, in going to the mayor and chief of police, that though it was necessary for them to deny us the privileges we asked for because of these ordinances, they have treated us most courteously. The governors of some of these states whom I have met have excellent ideas of the Latter-day Saints, of whom they speak well, and they admire the courage that this people has manifested in the development of the great arid west. The Elders in that mission travel, as a rule, without purse or scrip, following the revelation of the Lord given through the Prophet Joseph Smith; and it is not a common thing for our Elders to go hungry or thirsty, nor to sleep out of doors, but their wants are supplied by the good people of those states. I want to say too, my brethren and sisters, that all of the ministers who are in that mission are not bitter opponents of the Latter-day Saint Elders. I have met a number of broad-minded, fair men who wear the cloth. They have been at our conferences at some places, and we have given them the privilege of speaking, and they have spoken good words concerning the Mormon people. On one occasion a very prominent minister advised the people to open their doors to Mormon Elders. Now I feel that it is much better for us to look at the good in men, than to always be seeking for something that is not good. I believe it is better to speak of that which is uplifting in our fellows, than of the little weaknesses that we all give way to at times. I am one of those who believe that the world is getting better. I do not believe for one moment that this work which our Father in heaven has established is a failure, and if you could convince me that the world is not getting better, I should be apt to think that the work of the Lord was a failure. I do not mean to say, but what the wicked are getting more wicked, because I believe that to be true; but in a general way I have reached the conclusion, from seven years' experience as a missionary, that the effect of the teachings of the servants of the Lord, the distribution of millions of books and pamphlets treating upon the principles of eternal life, the labors of your sons and daughters in the homes of the people, are all having their effect to plant the principles of truth in the hearts of the people, and to turn mankind unto works of righteousness. More than once in my experience I have had great, strong men come to me and tell me of their past lives, and take counsel from me. I have seen those men break down and cry like children. Then I have followed the course of those men, and though they did not unite themselves with this Church, I have observed that their lives have been purer and better in every way than they were before. In years past, when writers for papers and magazines have described the "Mormon" Elder, they have generally described him as a man with long hair, of uncouth appearance, uneducated, ignorant, and rough in his address. I am pleased to learn that this is changing. A number of papers that I have seen within the last few years have described the "Mormon" Elders as well educated, of pleasing address, bright and intellectual young men. And when I have seen these testimonies concerning your boys who go out into the world, I have thought that even the enemies of the work of the Lord have borne witness, though unwittingly, to the power that there is in this Gospel for the uplifting of mankind. ¶

The headquarters of the Central States mission are in Kansas City. That city is located in Jackson county, Mo. -- the land that we have looked forward to all our days as the place which the covenant children of our Father in heaven should redeem; a spot that is sacred to all Latter-day Saints. Let me say to you, my brethren and sisters, that the people of that country are changing very agreeably in their sentiments toward this work and people. Prominent men of the State of Missouri would welcome the Latter-day Saints if they should go back there today, and in my opinion it will not be a great many years until the work of our Father in heaven will open up in that land and the way be prepared for the building of that beautiful temple and for the redemption of that land, which our Father has said should be redeemed by His people through purchase. In thinking over the preparation that is essential to be made for that great work, I have wondered if we were preparing ourselves individually to do something toward it. What is the preparation that is essential? There is a revelation contained in the Doctrine and Covenants, in Section 105, and in that the Lord gives the information that His children who will engage in that work must learn to live the laws of the celestial kingdom. One of the laws of the celestial kingdom is to be honest and true with our fellows, to be honorable in all our dealings and associations, and to have our hearts devoted to eternal principles. I take it that a man or a woman who is not in that condition, is not very well prepared to assist in the establishment of the eternal principles of righteousness in a part of the land where Satan has been determined that the work of God should not be performed. ¶

I have advised our young men in that mission to give some attention to the temporal conditions that surround them in their missionary labors, to visit the factories and the industrial institutions that are in the way of their travels, to study the farming interests, and to give attention to the growth of the country generally, so that when they return to their homes they may not only show themselves as strong spiritual characters, but they will also have ideas that can be applied in a temporal way for the benefit of the work of the Lord. Since I have been here on this visit, I have been riding out a little over the country in the Utah Stake of Zion, and I have become more fully convinced than ever that this is an essential part of our work; for on every hand I see opportunities for industrial development that are lying dormant. I see waste upon the farms of the people; I see the fruit going to waste by the thousands of bushels, while we are importing into this State tens of thousands of dollars worth of canned goods. On a farm that I arranged for the purchase of the other day, I saw upwards of two thousand bushels of peaches going to waste, and I thought then, if our brethren had united and expended a little means, all that could have been saved, and employment could have been given to many of our young men and women, which would have helped them very materially in securing the means necessary to enable them to attend one of our great schools in the State during the coming winter. I cannot help it, brethren and sisters, if my mind runs upon temporal as well as spiritual things, for I believe that both are essential. And so we are striving to direct the minds of our boys in the mission field along these lines, though not by any means neglecting the spiritual things of the kingdom. We advise them to observe, and to study, so that when they come home they may have some ideas that can be applied practically for the good of their brothers and sisters. ¶

Now, may the Lord bless you. May His spirit be with you forever. I know that this is the work of the Lord. I know that Christ is the Savior of the world. I know that Joseph Smith was raised up by our Father in heaven to establish this work upon the earth in the latter days. This is my testimony to you in the name of Jesus our Lord. Amen. ¶