I am very grateful for the

I am very grateful for the teachings of this conference, and the few moments that I shall occupy, I desire that the words I may say may be in harmony with the spirit of the conference and the teachings that we have received. ¶

I have listened with a great deal of interest this morning to the testimonies of our brethren who have spoken to us the sensible and practical suggestions concerning our duties as Latter-day Saints. I sometimes think that if the Latterday Saints could put into practice in their lives a very small percentage of the instructions that we receive, from time to time, from the servants of the Lord, there would not be very much the matter with us. I was especially impressed yesterday morning with the opening discourse of President Smith, wherein he was pointing out to us as members of the Church our duties, not only in the Church but as citizens of this great government of which we form a part, and he called our attention to the crisis that is now confronting this nation and the trying experiences we are having, and he tried to impress upon the Latter-day Saints their duties to God and as citizens. I was reminded by the remarks of President Smith, that good citizenship and loyalty to the government does not consist altogether in wearing the uniform. President Smith called our attention to some of our temporal affairs as Latter-day Saints. He endeavored to encourage us in the cultivation of the soil, and I, being a farmer, the proposition interested me more perhaps than it would some others. I have always been engaged in the occupation of tilling the soil. I was impressed with the counsel of President Smith, and we know that the most serious thing that is now confronting the nations that are engaged in this deadly conflict is the question of providing food for the people, not a question of winning battles in the western part of France and other places, but it is a question of feeding the armies, and it is a question of feeding the people, producing things that are necessary to sustain life. And so seriously have our brethren viewed this question that they have offered through the Trustee-in-Trust from the funds of the Church, a reward for the quorums of the lesser priesthood, and other organizations of the ward and of the priesthood, that they may enter into contest, to see which organization or quorum of priesthood can produce the greatest amount of food upon a small tract of land. If I remember right, there is a reward of $1,000 offered by the Church for the Church organization that can produce the greatest number of bushels of wheat on a tract of five acres of land, a reward of $500 for the next greatest number of bushels, and I believe a third prize of $250. And similar prizes are offered to the organizations that can produce the most bushels of marketable potatoes on an acre of land. These things should stimulate. They should not only stimulate us to endeavor to secure these prizes — of course there is always pride in the contest for superiority, — but it seems to me it should impress us with the fact that the Prophet of the Lord has admonished us to be industrious, to cultivate the waste corners of our farms, to more intensely prepare our soil, look after our crops, give attention to the proper seasons of planting, and the selection of the soil, and everything that goes to increase the products of the soil, so that we may aid in this great work of feeding humanity. Now you know we have become, in a measure, the allies of some of those Euporean nations. If we are not their allies we have become engaged ¶

in the great conflicts that they are engaged in, and their troubles will be our troubles, and we should see to it that we partake of the spirit of good citizenship, and we should hearken to the counsel that is given to us by our leaders. ¶

Our brethren have said this morning that in the counsel of the servants of the Lord lies the path of safety. Now I need not dwell upon that, because the Latter-day Saints are thoroughly converted to it. If "Mormonism" stands for anything, it stands for good citizenship, loyalty and right government, and we can only be loyal by taking these things seriously because we know not today what tomorrow may bring. Some of those who are the best informed, some of those who believe they know the most about it, predict some very startling surprises for us, and we do know, my brethren and sisters, that we are confronted with a crisis that this nation has never been confronted with before. ¶

Now let us assume the responsibility that belongs to us as Latterday Saints. Not all of us will wear the uniform; not all of us will go to the front ; but many of our boys, many of our young men. will enlist in the army, will respond to the call of the President of the United States, and they will go to the front and fight the battles of this country, shoulder to shoulder with the young men of other states. And there may be a place for us ; there may be a need for older men, we cannot tell. I am reminded of the patriotism of our brother, B. H. Roberts, and of his willingness to serve his country, of his desire to go out and encourage the young men in their duties as citizens. Now, my brethren, let us observe the ¶

counsel that is given us by the Prophet of the Lord, and by the brethren whose right it is to counsel with us, and let us live our religion. Brother McKay yesterday delivered to us a powerful discourse on the necessity of observing the Word of Wisdom, that we might not bring down the standard of manhood among the Latter-day Saints. Our brother who has just sat down has spoken to us about the minimum death-rate and the maximum births among the Latterday Saints, and I can bear witness with him, that there is a minimum of divorces amongst our people who are married in the temple. They seem to be impressed with that sacredness of marriage, to the end that they are not so likely to become dissatisfied, not so likely to murmur, and they are impressed with the divinity of that eternal marriage covenant. ¶

Now, my brethren and sisters, let us remember our responsibilities. Let us observe the Word of Wisdom. Let us not destroy the manhood of this Church by engaging in habits of dissipation, the drinking of liquor, the use of tobacco, the taking of tea and coffee and engaging in those things that the Lord has said are not good for us ; and if We will do this, we will be blessed. We need not fear the outcome. We need not take any concern as to this crisis. We can face the future with that degree of confidence and assurance that the Lord is with us, and that we are his people. He has guided and directed the affairs of this Church and this people from the very beginning, and I have all the confidence in the world that the Lord will not desert us, if we do not desert the Lord. ¶

This is a great and a mighty work ¶

that we are engaged in. It has for its purpose the saving of our souls, the rendering of service for the saving of the souls of others, and if we shall be faithful and true to the covenants that we have made with the Lord, it will be well with us. I trust that we may have the disposition to keep the commandments of the Lord and hearken to the counsel that is given us from time to time. I realize that this is a great conference. It has been an occasion when our brethren, the servants of the Lord, have felt more concern for the salvation of the Latter-day Saints than usual. We have received so many good instructions concerning our duties, and those things that we ought not to do, those things that we ought to leave alone, and also those things that would be good for us to do ; and if we will hearken and let our spirits enter into this work, we shall be blessed. May God grant that we may have a disposition to do this, I pray, in the name of Jesus. Amen. ¶