Report on the California Mission

(President of California Mission.) As I remember reading the sacred scriptures, there was an husband man who invited all of his friends and kindred to a marriage feast. When the hour came for the meal to be served, he found none of them in attendance. Then he sent his servants out upon the byways and highways to constrain every man that passed by to come in to the wedding supper. I think, from the presence of this great crowd, that we are living in an age when the Gospel invitation to come to the marriage supper of the Lamb has been heard, and answered, by many friends and kindred, and also by many who are strangers to the cause. ¶

I rejoice in the work that the Latter-day Saints are performing in the world. I rejoice that many of the honorable of the earth are beginning to comprehend the fact that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is potent for good; that it is a power in the land; that in the genius of the Gospel there is life, durability, and stability. Many who have not been able to find satisfaction in any 'one of the creeds of the various churches, or in the dogmas of science, are beginning to comprehend this fact, that in the Gospel, which is preached by the Latter-day Saints, there is that which appeals to the heart and mind of man ; there is something ennobling in it, something uplifting and progressive; it has come to remain in the land. They feel a little of that which Apostle Clawson portrayed this morning in his address, when he told of the files, ranks, columns and battalions of the Priesthood, that such a force is irresistible; and the Gospel they preach must obtain. I have found, in my experience, some of the better class, many of the enlightened men of our state (California) — among the bankers, the railroad men, the doctors, and the laywers, many who have their eyes upon the economical aspect of Mormonism, and because of this, have accorded to me and my brethren, many privileges that otherwise would not have been ours. We feel, in a measure, that we are a preferred class among these men, having been invited to their clubs,given transportation over their lines, participated with them in some of their political and civic movements. This, I take it, not as a compliment to me or my brethren, but to the great body of the Latter-day Saints whose representatives we are. ¶

Just at this time there is a ferment of expectation upon the part of the people of the Coast in relation to the arrival of the great American fleet, and with that there is an undercurrent of feeling of unrest in relation to conditions as they obtain in the Far East. You know, perhaps, that' we have had some little trouble — so-called trouble — with the Japanese in our schools ; and there are those who are so pessimistic as to prophesy that, within two years from now,the City of Los Angeles and most of the coast towns of California will be patrolled by Japanese soldiers. This statement was made five weeks ago today, over the signature of one of the generals of the United States Army, who has been for the past five years in China, seeking the regeneration of the great Chinese Army. He gives his reasons for it, and I must confess that it appeals to me that such a thing might be possible under the conditions that he tells us of. "The proximity of the Philippines, of Hawaii, and of Alaska to the Flowery Kingdom, and the fact that they are preparing, no matter what the press says to the contrary, for something in the immediate future," is what he states. ¶

But I have a hope, I have an assurance in the words which God hath spoken, that this is a land of liberty, and that He will fight the battles of the peoples of this land. I remember what He said to one of the ancient prophets of this land, and I ask you to indulge me while I refer to it briefly. He is speaking of the day when Christ's Gospel shall again be taught among the children of men, and when the Jews will begin to believe upon His name. I was very much impressed yesterday by the prayer offered by Patriarch Joseph E. Taylor, praying for this people, the Hebrews. I have had the privilege of preaching the Gospel to some few of them. I associate almost daily with one who has the blood of that people in his veins, who is an able expounder and defender of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. We have had the privilege of baptizing a young man of that blood. Here is what the Lord says : ¶

"Behold, thus saith the Lord God: When the day cometh that they shall believe in me, that I am Christ, then have I covenanted with their fathers that they shall be restored in the flesh, upon the earth, unto the lands of their inheritance. ¶

"And it shall come to pass that they shall be gathered in from their long dispersion; from the isles of the sea, and from the four parts of the earth; and the nations of the Gentiles shall be great in the eyes of me, saith God, in carrying them forth to the lands of their inheritance. ¶

"Yea, the kings of the Gentiles shall be nursing fathers unto them, and their queens shall become nursing mothers ; wherefore, the promises of the Lord are great unto the Gentiles, for he hath spoken it, and who can dispute?" ¶

In California there are two Hebrew leaders of reform, who point with considerable pride to the fact that Jesus Christ was a Jew, who are looking forth to the time "when Christianity and Judaism shall be one, and when righteousness will cover the earth as the waters cover the mighty deep." Some of the kings of the earth have made solicitation of the Sultan of Turkey to permit the Hebrews to buy Palestine, and fix themselves again in the land of their fathers. The hearts of the Jews, as you know, are turned to that land, and conditions have been turned backward in a way, and they are coming into their own ; for they begin to believe in part in the ministry of Jesus Christ. Furthermore, in the day when this shall obtain, the Lord tells us of these things : ¶

"But, behold, this land, saith God, shall be a land of thine inheritance, [speaking to the people of Nephi], and the Gentiles shall be blessed upon the land. ¶

"And this land shall be a land of liberty unto the Gentiles, and there shall be no kings upon the land who shall raise up unto the Gentiles." ¶

Why, men may say when this book came forth, in 1829, that John VI of Portugal had seated on the throne of Brazil his eldest son, Pedro. I grant you that, and therein I find a greater testimony of the truthfulness of what the prophet has here written, for he was not raised up from among the Gentiles of this land, but was brought from abroad. But we want to go further in the case, and see what became of him. ¶

"And I will fortify this land against all other nations ; "And he that fighteth against Zion shall perish, saith God; "For he that raiseth up a king against me shall perish, for I, the Lord, the King of heaven, will be their King, and I will be a light unto them for ever, that hear my words." ¶

This man, Dom Pedro I, was succeeded by Dom Pedro II, but, within my recollection, he had to abdicate his throne. Brazil was made a republic, and he returned to the fatherland, Portugal. Within the recollection of all of you, within the past few weeks, there has been the assassination of the King of Portugal, and of the Crown Prince, who were the descendants of John VI and his daughter Dona Maria, whom he set up to preside over that land (Portugal). The fate of that country today is trembling in the balance. A usurper is trying to undermine the throne, and conditions are very unsatisfactory to say the least, at this very day and hour. ¶

But more signally, perhaps, this prophecy was fulfilled in 1865-6, when Napoleon III sent one of his favorites, Maximillian, and "raised him up" to the people of this land, the Lamanites, as a king. It was while the North and the South were divided, in war and civil strife, that this thing was done. And the old world powers, England, France and Spain, thought that they could obtain from Mexico some of their claims, whilst the Federal Government of the United States had its hands full, and could do nothing to put into effect the so-called Monroe Doctrine. The Federal government protested, and Russia, in a compact made with that government, sent to New York harbor all of her battleships, which were to be turned over, in case of need, to the government of the United States. England withdrew her 10,000 troops, and so did Spain, but Napoleon was perverse for some time, and established this man as the Emperor of Mexico. Under the leadership of Juarez, the father of that country, and Diaz, the present President, the people were called to arms. Maximillian's forces were overcome and he was cast into prison. His lovely and devoted wife, Carlotta, went to the various Courts of Europe and plead for succor for her husband in this land of Mexico. When petitioning at the feet of the Pontiff of Rome, she went mad, and was consigned to a mad-house, and to this day does not know the sad fate of her husband, who was shot to death by the soldiery of Juarez. So this king, who was raised up like John of Portugal and his son, (John, you remember, died very soon after returning to Portugal, worn out with the troubles he had encountered in Mexico) and so Maximillian met his death; and he was the last of his line. Napoleon III, who had "set him up," was forced to flee to England, an exile from his country, with his empress and young prince, "Napoleon Bonaparte. This prince, who afterwards enlisted in the British service in South Africa, during the Zulu war, was ambushed, and killed by the Zulus, thus bringing an end to the house of Napoleon III. ¶

How signally has the Lord brought out the forces of this country victorious against overwhelming numbers and older countries. As an earnest of what the future will be, this tells me that we need not fear foreign oppression or foreign arm's. God hath established here the tree of Liberty, in this land of Joseph, that the nations of the earth might find shelter under its branches and eat of its fruit; for this is the land where God shall build His city, the New Jerusalem. ¶

This is the land from whence shall go forth the law of the Lord. From this land shall go forth His word by His ministers and ambassadors ; "and the power and the dominion and the greatness of his kingdom," says Daniel the Prophet, "shall be given to the people of the Saints of the Most High God," with whom our interests are identified. He has said, "I will fight the battles of the Gentiles of this land. I will fight the battles of this nation." So, you and I who have faith in this word, who have the precious pearl of great price in our possession, have no doubts, or misgivings, or perplexities in relation to what the future has in store for this land of Joseph. ¶

God bless you, my brethren and sisters, and enable you to do what is right, to maintain that which is true and just to all men, that the promises made to our fathers shall not fall to the ground, but that we may inherit all the glories that shall come to the people of God and to the people of this nation, is my prayer in the name of Jesus. Amen. ¶