Conference Address

My beloved brethren and sisters, this is a very exalted position for me to be placed in, and I consider it a great honor to stand before so large an audience of Latter-day Saints. I hope I shall be able to make you hear, as my voice warms up, and I trust, under the influence of the Spirit of the Lord, that I may be inspired to say something that will be of benefit to you and to myself. ¶

I testify to the goodness of our Heavenly Father in thus permitting to be with us the presidency of the Church, and especially our beloved President, Joseph F. Smith. He informed you this morning, so I will take the liberty of thanking the Lord on that account, that though his spirit was willing, his flesh was somewhat weak. I rejoice that, notwithstanding this, he is with us today and his voice has again rang out in the hearing of the Latter-day Saints, testifying of the divinity of the great work that he and his brethren are engaged in. I believe with all my heart, yea I know that he testified of a verity and truth, that he did not know of having ever betrayed a trust or broken a pledge to his fellow-men. I testify that I believe every word of his testimony, for I have been acquainted with him since he was a very young boy. My acquaintance has never lapsed since that time, that is, there is no time during that interim in which I have not been familiar with his daily walk and conversation. I rejoice' also, in the testimonies given by the other members of the presidency of the Church. I think the prospects are assuring, for the Latter-day Saints today. For the blessings of the Lord that are poured out upon the people without measure, I rejoice exceedingly. ¶

I had the pleasure of being in Arizona, a very few weeks ago, in the Saint John Stake and in the Saint Joseph Stake of that great country. I think I had not visited the saints in that district for nearly ten years. I found that I was with old friends and acquaintances as of yore, and they welcomed me, with my fellow laborer, Elder George F. Richards. They gave every attention to us and to our exhortations that we could ask for. I am pleased with the progress they are making for Arizona is a great country, and sometime, I trust, in the near future, it will be one of our sister states. They are entitled to statehood, in my opinion, as much as any other community in this great nation. While there we had the pleasure of dedicating a new schoolhouse, or a new addition to the Latter-day Saints' Academy, and I must acknowledge that the institution is a credit to the people who live in that land. It is a very fashionable institution, in the way that all the people desire to send their children there for educational purposes. I think it is strictly a Mormon institution, as it is called, yet there are many people not of our faith who endorse the methods of education there adopted, to that degree that they send their children to the academy. ¶

A few days ago, I had the pleasure of going to the National Irrigation Congress in Colorado, in the city of Pueblo. The traveler, in getting off at the depot of that city, is not favorably impressed with the appearance of the town, for there is nothing to be seen from the depot platform, with the exception of that building and a hotel or two nearby, not first class, however, but common hostelries or inns, and a few saloons. But, as you go up the street, east, and turn north, you come to the city itself, and it is a very beautiful little city, let me assure you, of about fifty thousand inhabitants. They have a park established, and in it are growing beautiful shade trees of almost every class and kind, as well as flowers and grass plentifully. In the midst of that was the building, in which we held our congress, called the Mineral Pavilion. I assure you that between eight and ten hundred delegates assembled in that building, who were earnest and able exponents and educators in the matter of irrigation, and the redemption of the arid soils of the west. ¶

Ex-Governor Adams read quite a lengthy paper, and in the very beginning he referred to the settlement of Utah by Brigham Young and his band of pioneers, with fervor and with a very excellent spirit, and with excellent remarks in regard to that great pioneer and the saints being entitled to credit as the first exemplars in irrigation, of all this great western country in these latter times. He stated that nothing had been introduced in this form prior to the time of the pioneers, when they began this irrigation system in the valley of the Great Salt Lake, just below this temple block, a few squares away. ¶

During the same time, probably, that the water was running on to the first furrows planted with seed of grain and potatoes, President Young came up to this part of the flat, and standing upon this ground said, "Here we will build the temple of our God." The inspiration of that hour has come down through the years, and to that degree has it been felt that, as some have said, the Latter-day Saints are admirable because they are not only a praying people, a God-fearing people in their way, but they are a working people who believe in combining their faith with their works. Hence, today, we not only call attention to the promise made by Brigham Young, but we see the result in the temple as it stands in all its excellence and beauty for the admiration of the human family, and, more especially, for the admiration of those who believe in the ordinances of the Lord's house. ¶

My brethren and sisters, I realize that the work of the Lord is progressive ; hence we establish these great schools of which you have heard today, where the Latter-day Saint children are educated not only in a system of general education for the business of daily life, accumulation for the comfort of home, family and friends, but they are educated also in the fear of the Lord. The Spirit of the Lord giveth them understanding, as they have unfolded to them the plan of life and salvation, in a direct and proper manner, taking for study the text books of the Church, in a series of order and progression. When they are graduated from the scientific department, the business department, and the literary department, they have, with that general education, a knowledge of the gospel, grounded into their hearts and souls, as an understanding that will remain with them while life lasts. Hence, they leave the Church schools with a testimony of the Lord Jesus Christ burning in their bosoms. ¶

I heard Brother McMurrin's allusions to the Religion class. I am reminded of that class by a saying of old Father Jacob, when he laid his hands upon the head of the boy Joseph ; he said, "The archers have shot at you with their arrows, but your bow has abode in strength." So it is with our Religion class. Some have criticised it severely, and reckoned it, I believe, from their expressions of more or less disrespect, a non-essential in the Church. Let me tell you it is just as essential as is the Sunday School, or the Mutual Improvement, or any other auxiliary organization. I was about to say it is of primary importance for our young children — and I will say that. It is of primary importance that our little children begin their religious education when they ¶

can easily learn the principles of the gospel, in connection with the secular learning and schools. I am reminded now of a very pretty story in regard to a religion class school, and I will tell it to you. I think I have told it in other congregations. A little boy and a little girl, going to the district school, were invited by some kindly person interested in their welfare — for they were of Latter-day Saint parentage — to attend the Religion class exercises on Friday or Saturday afternoon. They went to the school, and became constant attendants. One evening the little boy and girl sat at the table where their father was reading, and their mother was plying her needle for the benefit of the household. All at once, the little boy leaned across the table and whispered to his mother : "Mamma, ask papa if we may have family prayers, tonight. If he says yes, I would like to pray for the family." The mother turned to the father, who was reading his paper, and said : "Willie would like to have family prayers with us tonight." "Well," the father replied in a careless tone, "I don't care. If Bill wants to pray, let him pray." So, with this almost grudging consent the little boy knelt down. He pulled his little sister's frock, and she knelt down beside him. Before he began his prayer, he looked up at his mother beseechingly and pulled her apron, as much as to say, "Come with us ;" and she knelt down with the children, and the little boy prayed. The next night, the same privilege was asked again, and the little girl led in prayer. This continued for several evenings, and finally the mother was asked to pray. She did pray ; for, although family prayers had been a forgotten pleasure and blessing in that household, yet she was easily reminded by the faith of her little children what a blessing it was to have family prayers renewed. So the mother prayed. The next night came around, and the father sat seemingly indifferent, reading his paper as usual, but when prayer-time approached, just before going to bed, the father looked up suddenly from his paper, threw it down upon the table, and said to the mother : "Ask Willie" — he didn't say "Bill" this time, but he said, "Ask Willie when it will be my turn to pray." You see the bars went down absolutely, the bars that had been placed so securely by the power of the adversary, through neglect by the head of the house ; but all bars were down now, and from that time that family became a praying and devout family. ¶

My brethren and sisters, there is no organization in the Church of Christ that is unnecessary. The Lord does not give unnecessary revelations. He does not require work from His children that is unnecessary, but He requires of them to accept His laws, to accept and to receive His commandments, and in good and honest hearts, with full purpose, carry out those commandments and keep those laws. Those are the requirements. ¶

I must say that while I have been away from home, for the last few weeks, to those places I have mentioned, and I have mingled with many people, many men of strong opinions and fervent desires, in the way of accumulating and benefiting themselves, and their neighbor after, I have heard nothing but praise for our people. We have been commended among these men of education, men that have opinions of their own in regard to developing the country and its great needs and interests, meeting the same in an effectual and scientific manner, in the redemption of arid soils, the planting of trees, and the growing of grain and fruits to the fullest extent, to make our new West, if possible, superior to the great East in its productions for the benefit of the human family and of the race occupying these great United States. I have not heard any of them speak disrespectfully of the Latter-day Saints since I have been away ; but all have had a good word for Utah and her laboring people who are with them, helping to redeem the great West and are solving the problems of bringing these arid soils into cultivation, where homes by the thousands can be planted for the people of the overcrowded cities of the East and their posterity. ¶

My brethren and sisters, Joseph Smith was a true Prophet of God. Brigham Young had the same inspiration, and when the mantle of leadership fell upon him, he like the Prophet Joseph, pointed to the West for a refuge, for a home for the Latter-day Saints ; hence our gathering to these mountains. It is according to the revelations of the Lord both by ancient and modern prophets, that we are here today in fulfillment of those great prophecies. I say to you that the organization of the Church is as near complete as it ever has been, and in better and more prosperous condition than I have ever known it to be, and I have been acquainted with the organizations of the Church for a great many years. I want to say, today, that I have in my heart the most sincere and deepest regard and veneration for our leaders, and for ¶

those elders, apostles, and presidents who devote their time and service to finding out and applying the best means and methods for educating the youth of Israel and bringing them up to a standard that shall be envied by all the nations of the earth. You mothers are not only mothers of children, in the ordinary sense of the word, but you are becoming the mothers of heroes, mothers of those who will be great in the sight of the Lord and in the sight of the people of the world. Our children are being educated not only for the benefit of themselves and their families after them, but they are being educated to carry the gospel to the uttermost parts of the earth, to preach the Lord Jesus Christ, crucified for the sins of the world, that He might be their Redeemer in very deed, and teaching the people the truths of the gospel as revealed through the prophet Joseph Smith, and proclaimed by those who have followed him in the presidency of the Church. ¶

My brethren and sisters, may the Lord bless you forever. May your coming to conference be a blessing to you and to your children and to your families whom you have left at home. May His blessing be upon you while you are here, and, when you return, that no evil or accident may happen to any of you, but that you may go in peace to your homes, near-by or distant, carrying with you the spirit of testimony, that has been so prevalent in this conference. May the blessing and favor of the Lord attend you and your children, and your families everywhere, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. ¶