Allegiance to God, Country, and State

Allegiance to God, to country, and to the state. — Importance of instruction and proper example at home. — Folly and sin of indulgence in smoking and drinking. — Prosperity and abundant employment. — Possess homes and become landowners. — Dry farming advocated. — Practise economy in prosperous times. — Bad men greatest enemies of the Church. ¶

My dear brethren and sisters : The feeling that is in my heart at the present time I fear I cannot express to you just as I would like to do. I have partaken of the spirit of this conference; I have enjoyed every word that has been uttered ; I endorse the testimonies of the faithful brothers who have spoken ; and I hope and trust that the same spirit may guide my remarks that attended them. ¶

"I am not ashamed of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation." I am not ashamed of my brethren and sisters, and I am proud of the achievements of this people in the past, in establishing themselves here and building up this commonwealth. I am not ashamed of my country, nor her institutions, and I love the Stars and Stripes. I am not ashamed of dear Utah, nor of Salt Lake City. I am not ashamed, of the principles that have been revealed by God to His people in this dispensation. I hope and trust that so long as I have breath I never shall do aught to bring reproach either upon the people of God or the state in which I was born. While I acknowledge that my first duty is to God, I also acknowledge that my allegiance and duty to my country and to my State is paramount over all earthly affairs. I wish to say that my duty to God, my love for Him, does not conflict with my love for and duty to my country. It does not conflict with the love I have for the brethren here ; nor with the love that is in my heart for the people of God. It only gives me greater power, strength, and a desire to love all mankind. I have no desire in my heart other than to do the will of God, keep His commandments, uphold, and sustain my country and her institutions. ¶

My brethren and sisters, it seems to me that this is a time when we should place our homes in order. We cannot, by public speaking, always reach the boys and girls. Those who preach and teach in the Sunday School, in the wards and stakes, or even at the general conferences, reach but a limited number of them ; and I plead with you, you fathers and mothers who are here, to watch closely the children God has given you. Commence at home and be yourselves their instructors. You have a power over your children for good, I hope. I assure you that if you do not teach your children properly yourselves, others will teach them, and more than likely it will be by an influence that will bring sorrow to them and disgrace to you. ¶

In the early history of the Church, when it had been organized scarcely two years, God gave a revelation to His prophet Joseph Smith, to which I desire to call special attention. It was given to the Latter-day Saints, and is commonly known as the Word of Wisdom. It has been referred to here by Brothers Lyman and Clawson, and I wish to add some comments on the same subject. It is a simple law, revealed for the temporal welfare of the people, given for the weakest as well as the strongest of God's children. I want to read it to the people here today, and then perhaps submit some remarks. It is found in Section 89 of the Doctrine and Covenants : ¶

"A Word of Wisdom for the benefit of the Council of High Priests, assembled in Kirtland, and Church ; and also the saints in Zion. To be sent greeting — not by commandment or constraint but by revelation and the word of wisdom, showing forth the order and will of God in the temporal salvation of all saints in the last days. ¶

"Given for a principle with promise, adapted to the capacity of the weak and the weakest of all saints, who are or can be called saints. ¶

"Behold verily, thus saith the Lord unto you, in consequence of evils and designs which do and will exist in the hearts of conspiring men in the last days, I have warned you, and forewarn you, by giving unto you this word of wisdom by revelation. ¶

"That inasmuch as any man drinketh wine or strong drink among you, behold it is not good, neither meet in the sight of your Father, only in assembling yourselves together to offer up your sacraments before Him. ¶

"And behold, this should be wine, yea, pure wine of the grape of the vine, of your own make. ¶

"And again, strong drinks are not for the belly, but for the washing of your bodies. ¶

"And again, tobacco is not for the body, neither for the belly, and is not good for man, but is an herb for bruises and all sick cattle, to be used with judgment and skill. ¶

"And again, hot drinks are not for the body or belly. ¶

"And again, verily I say unto you, all wholesome herbs God hath ordained for the constitution, nature, and use of man. ¶

"Every herb in the season thereof , and every fruit in the season thereof ; all these to be used with prudence and thanksgiving. ¶

"Yea, flesh also of beasts and of the fowls of the air, I, the Lord, have ordained for the use of man with thanksgiving; nevertheless they are to be used sparingly. ¶

"And it is pleasing unto me that they should not be used only in times of winter, or of cold, or famine. ¶

"All grain is ordained for the use of man and of beasts, to be the staff of life, not only for man, but for the beasts of the field, and the fowls of heaven, and for wild animals that run or creep on the earth. ¶

"And these hath God made for the use of man only in times of famine and excess of hunger. ¶

"All grain is good for the food of man, as also the fruit of the vine, that which yieldeth fruit, whether in the ground or above the ground. Nevertheless, wheat for man, and corn for the ox, and oats for the horse, and rye for the fowls and for swine, and for all beasts of the field, and barley for all useful animals, and for mild drinks, as also other grain. ¶

"And all saints who remember to keep and do these sayings, walking in obedience to the commandments, shall receive health in their navel, and marrow in their bones. ¶

"And shall find wisdom and great treasures of knowledge, even hidden treasures ; "And shall run and not be weary, and shall walk and not faint; "And I, the Lord, give unto them a promise, that the destroying angel shall pass by them, as the children of Israel, and not slay them. Amen." ¶

My brethren and sisters, I have been traveling in many parts of our state during the last few months, and I have listened to reports made at our quarterly conferences that indicate to me that this simple law, which was given as a means of temporal salvation to the people — for the very weakest of the saints — is certainly not being obeyed as fully as it should be. It is reported that some of the men in our communities indulge in smoking and drinking. If a man visits saloons, how can he expect to exert an influence that will keep boys, who may be a little wayward perhaps, from such places. I think it is very foolish indeed, and shows great weakness of character, for men to say that they are induced to go to those degrading places ; men generally go where thev want to, and where they feel at home. If a man wants to attend conference and has a desire in his heart to do so, he generally finds some way to accomplish it, and attends because he feels that it is the proper place; the instructions and influences are what he enjoys. On the other hand, a man who goes to a saloon and spends any of the means God has provided him with for the support of his wife and children, wrongs himself and them. The man who follows such a course cannot retain the confidence and respect of the people. ¶

My brethren and sisters, I hope and trust that every one of you will watch over the children that God has given you, teach them to love their home. Make it truly a home and not simply a stopping place, and see that the influence therein is such that your children would rather spend their leisure time at home than anywhere else on earth. Make it so pleasant that their companions are anxious to come there, because when they do come they feel an influence of love and peace, and consequently have a desire to return and associate with the children who live in such agreeable surroundings. ¶

Teach your children how to pray, and urge them to never neglect their prayers. Teach them to be kind and considerate. Find out whether or not they are truthful, and if they are trying to live according to the laws of God. It is difficult for the mother or father to do these things unless they themselves are living up to the principles they advocate. Therefore, my brethren and sisters, I pray you that you will begin immediately— if I have not done so in the past — to exert such an influence over your children, and all the youth of Zion, that they will become honorable, truthful and God-fearing men and women. ¶

While attending a conference in Box Elder County, the other day, I heard a report from one of the bishops that gave me a great deal of joy, and I heard a similar report in one of our southern counties. It was this : that not a boy between the ages of twelve and twenty-one used tobacco or liquor in any form. I would to God that such a report could be made concerning every boy and man in every ward in all the Church ! ¶

I had a man come to me, the other day, and complain of how hard it was for him to maintain his family. When Brother Clawson was speaking of the bounteous harvest in Box Elder County, I did not know but we would all feel like moving to Brigham City, to share in the wonderful prosperity attending the people there. Brigham City is only one of the many prosperous communities in the State. The other night, going home on the train, I met the man who supplies boxes for the packing of fruit, and I did not realize, until then, that Provo was shipping more fruit than Brigham City. He told me he had just sold four car-loads of boxes, making a total of twenty-five car-loads for Provo alone. I asked him how many car-loads of fruit is represented by a car-load of boxes, and he said ten, which would make 250 car-loads of fruit shipped from that point alone. Again, in the same County, nearly one hundred thousand tons of beets are ready to be harvested and shipped to the sugar factory. Most of these great productions of orchard and farm are raised by the people and the children of the Latter-day Saints. As I thought of these conditions, I could not understand how it was that this man, whom I mentioned first, could complain that it was hard for him to get along. Why, there is work on all sides. But, I soon learned the reason of his difficulty in supporting his family ; and I said to him : "John, you will never get along while you spend the time and money that you do in sucking cigarettes," for this was his pastime, from morning until night. I asked him how much he smoked each day. He said he smoked a number of cigarettes, not mentioning the number, and a few cigars, and told me it cost him twenty-five cents each day. Here was a poor man smoking, and wasting the money that should go to provide for his family ; aye, worse, he was also wasting and weakening his physical strength. I advised him to stop smoking, and take that 25 cents daily and use it for the benefit of his wife and children. Twenty-five cents a day means $1.75 a week, enough to buy a pair of shoes for a child each week in the year. I went on and figured with him what it would amount to each year if he would save it, and what the interest would be, and how easy it would be for him, or anyone else, while the prosperous times are on, to put a little money away for a rainy day. ¶

I want every Latter-day Saint to own and keep his home. If you have no home, get one ; have a roof over your head, and then don't mortgage it ; don't sell it. You brethren who live in the southern section of the State, where there are large tracts of arid land unappropriated— called the waste lands of the State — secure what you can of this land. If you own a farm of this character now, hold it ; the time will come when the granary of our State will be in locations now uncultivated. Today dry farming is only just begun. What was the condition, a few years ago, in Juab county. I see Brother Grace of Nephi before me ; ask him what success he has had with dry farming. There is no one in Juab County today but would say that God has blessed them, and blessed that soil ; yet it was only a few years ago that the people were trying to get away from there. They wanted to sell their homes because there were not sufficient irrigated farming lands to sustain them and their families ; but today what do we find? Fields of hundreds of acres of the very choicest kinds of grain, yielding last year — one of the dryest seasons — 35 bushels to the acre, and this year almost the same amount, all grown on dry farm land. Scientific dry farming, with the different modes of properly treating the soil, and the various processes that are being adopted, will make the waste places of today blossom and bring forth grain to feed the people of this State hereafter. Now, brethren, I want you to go home and tell your people to hold their land. Don't sell your inheritance in Zion. ¶

I wish to say that while the good times are here, and men can obtain good wages, save some of your earnings ; for good times are like the ebb and flow of the ocean — they come and go. You mark my word, just as sure as the Lord lives there will be a change, and I hope and trust that the people of the Latter-day Saints will be prepared for the change when it comes. Prosperous times are when the foundation of failures are laid. During prosperous times men reach out further than they ought to ; they go beyond safe investments, and borrow money for all kinds of wildcat ventures. I say to you, now that money is plentiful, and your credit is so good that you can borrow money on your own signature, or with the signature of a friend added, I hope and trust you will use judgment and not go beyond your ability to pay. Keep out of debt. Don't go into debt at all, unless you have absolute security back of it, and unless it is for the purpose of controlling some land purchase, or some business that you know you are absolutely safe in going into. I wanted to say that much, my brethren and sisters, in relation to debt. I desire to say also that one very good way to save and keep out of debt — for the Latter-day Saints at least — is to obey that simple law of God before alluded to, the Word of Wisdom. ¶

I have been reading lately some statistics showing the amount of tobacco, cigars, and liquors of all kinds, that came into this State last year, and I was dumbfounded to note the amount. I have not the time this morning to read them to you ; but think of fifty carloads of tobacco coming into the State of Utah in one year ! Of course, the great bulk of it is consumed by other people ; but I hope and trust that I may live to see the day when it will all be consumed by others than the Latter-day Saints. I have heard men say : "Well, it doesn't hurt me to smoke, and I have plenty of money to pay for it." There is not a man in the world that ever did use it who was not hurt physically, and, do you know, I have an idea that it weakens a man morally. Yield to the violation of this simple law, and it will be easier to yield to the violation of other laws. The first step taken in the path of error is not generally serious, and is commonly called folly; but if you take the first steps, you are liable to go farther and be overtaken in greater wrongs. That is not all, think of the example you set. Even if you have no children yourselves, you should not set a bad example before the children of the Latter-day Saints. I ask of you, my brethren and sisters, to think of this, study it. ¶

Now, my brethren and sisters, I pray you to guard and teach your children, and while all the influences from the outside are trying to win them away from the Gospel of Jesus Christ, let your loving care and example be exercised to keep them steadfast in the faith. There are men whose hearts are filled with hatred, who try to influence our children, and embitter them against the leaders of the Church. If they are successful in getting even a doubt implanted in their minds, if you fathers and mothers do not bring an influence to bear that will overcome it, it will bring sorrow to you and a spiritual death and sorrow to them. But, I have faith in the children of the Latter-day Saints ; in the boys and girls who have been born under the everlasting covenant. I feel confident they will tread the path that has been followed by their fathers and their mothers. I love the father and mother that gave me life, and I marvel at times at the sacrifices they made for the sake of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I pray God that He will give me strength, and that He will give every boy and girl, born of mothers and fathers who have been true and loyal members of the Church, the strength to stand nobly by them and by the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and I have faith that they will do so. If you will call the attention of your boys and girls to the character of the men who are sustained as the authorities of this Church, how they live, what their aims are, and the love they have for mankind, and then direct their attention to the lives of those who are trying to bring disgrace upon this people, they cannot help but note the contrast I know that if our young people were informed of the true character and lives of many of those who are striving to tear down this work, they would not follow them. It seems to be the rule that, when a man becomes immoral and corrupt, he also becomes a bitter enemy of the Church, and the lower he gets the more bitterness he develops. ¶

My brethren and sisters, let us be loyal and true to the covenants we have made with God, and to His Church. Let us uphold and sustain the men who preside over the Church, and be loyal and true to them. In like manner let us be loyal and true to our State, and her interests, to our country and its institutions, and, above all, to God who gave us life; it is He whose hand is steadying the ark of Zion. God bless you, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. ¶