MR. E. KENT KANE

MR. E. KENT KANE ¶

President Smith and friends of the Church of Latter-day Saints, I am pleased to be here because I feel that there exists between your people and mine a deep and ancient friendship that as far as I am concerned at least will continue until the end of my life. I have never had the obligation nor the privilege to address a religious gathering before and I must confess that I am like the man who just said he had waited some years to address you; except that I would almost wait some years to get out of having to address you here now. ¶

I suppose there are some of you here who may desire to hear what I have to say, but I dare say a lot more of you would just like to get a look at me and see what sort of a looking person I am. I am not much to look at. But I have a slight compensation for it, because as I look out over this audience I don't see so many Clark Gables out there, either. ¶

I feel a little handicapped to come before you after so many distinguished speakers who have covered practically every conceivable subject upon which I might desire to remark — even, I think, the subject of my grandfather would be covered by Mr. Evans better than I could. If he should succeed in reconciling all the facts of that very unusual character, then he should be given the Utah prize for literary dexterity, and I hope some of the eminent educators I see down front will award it to him. It will be quite a job but I believe he is the man to do it and I will do what I can to help him. ¶

Coming here before you I feel a good deal as they have described St. Paul as coming before the men of Athens. He said, "Ye men of Athens . . . etc., I perceive ye are very religious." I used to fee! that the word "religious" was the only important one, but now I see that as the old lady said the emphasis was on the wrong syllable. I had the emphasis on the wrong syllable and it was the fact that it was the men of Athens who were very religious that impressed Paul. ¶

It is impressive to look over this vast audience and to see to what extent the religion of your Church is a religion of men. I am afraid there are a lot of churches that would perish entirely if it were not for the fact that their religion reposes today almost entirely in the hands and hearts of the mothers. And yet I can't believe that the battles of the Lord are to be fought entirely by the distaffs but I thing it takes the good strong arms of the men of any religion such as I see before me here to fight those battles with a good firm hold upon the sword of the spirit. ¶

Your religion is strong, but yet it seems odd to you that though there are so many of you here and though I have always been friendly to the Mormons, that I was 35 years of age before I so much as set eyes on a Mormon. However, I started right, for the first Mormon I ever saw was President Frank Evans back in Pennsylvania and the very first one I saw in Utah was the President of the Church, my honored friend Heber J. Grant. I cannot give you a testimonial such ¶

as some of the men who have preceded me have given you here, but in one sense I can give you perhaps at last something as an outsider who has had the good fortune to come and observe with a friendly, if not an understanding heart. ¶

I was trained in the law and one of the things that they taught us was that they should not take too seriously self-serving declarations made by persons in their own behalf, but that an admission by an outsider against his own interest was to be given great weight in the law. And I must say that I, an outsider, have been greatly impressed with the sincerity and achievement of the people of this Church that I have seen here. ¶

Yours is a singing religion and I believe that words of religion dissolved in music soak into the human soul better than any other way. A good hymn is a good spiritual tonic to a sick or frightened soul. What singing I have seen here among the Mormons, you seem to need no books. It is as if when you open your mouths to sing the spirit entered in. ¶

Yours is a joyous religion. I don't see very many sissies in your religion and there haven't been any since the time of the Prophet Joseph Smith. One of the gentlemen here this morning told me his father could remember when the prophet was the best wrestler in the whole group with which he traveled and would throw down all contenders just as George Washington, father of our country, was the champion boxer in, Virginia in his day. ¶

Yours seems to be a growing religion and that is a wonderful thing. You are not static. You are not frozen to one position. Once for a political speech I had occasion to see if I could find any of the original writings of Christ. After I looked I could only find one place that Christ ever wrote anything and then he stooped down and wrote with his finger on the ground and we don't have the record of what he wrote. But what he said was: "Let him that is without sin cast the first stone." ¶

Now we know that Jesus Christ was a scholar because he disputed with the priests in the temple. We know that he could read and write. Therefore we must, as sensible people, if not lawyers, conclude that it would have been easy for him to put his entire doctrine in writing. When he did not *do that we may assume it was because he did not do so deliberately. So that new situations might be met by new things and that churches such as yours may freely hold the belief that new revelations may be granted when new crises arise. For it would have been a simple thing for Jesus Christ to have written the entire text of his gospel and had it saved from destruction by the powers of heaven, which he could easily have done. ¶

Yours is a family religion. I heard a gentleman say something about backsliders among the young. For three years in this last war I was a division officer in the Navy and I have a cousin with the same name who for five years was an artillery colonel. We were talking about it the other day and we both agreed that some of the ¶

MR. E. KENT KANE ¶

very finest men that we had in our commands in the service were from the Mormon Church and that they were by all odds the cleanest. I don't know what they do elsewhere, but I do say that those I saw in the naval service were very creditable members of your congregation. And I want to add that it was not always as easy as it would have been in Salt Lake during conference week. ¶

Your president has very kindly referred to my grandfather here and I feel in a sense that I could call your president my "cousin" because his great-grandfather called my grandfather his "brother" and he called him such in the opening words of a blessing which he as the patriarch of this Church, conferred upon my grandfather. I have that blessing at home. It was written in the handwriting of one Wilford Woodruff and it lay in a book with locks on, where my grandfather placed it, for nearly one hundred years. So there was no chance of it being tampered with because my father, to my knowl-, edge never saw that blessing during his entire life time. I myself was the young vandal who broke open the locks when I inherited it and I am glad I did. ¶

And again I give you an outside testimony that to my own knowledge that blessing conferred by his grandfather was carried out by events to the letter and in detail. Now as a lawyer I know you will say that it could have been a "coincidence." So it could. But it would have had to have been a whole series of "coincidences" and a whole series of "remarkable coincidences" and when you get that sort of thing built up you have established circumstantial evidence and as the great Thoreau once observed "circumstantial evidence can sometimes be very convincing as when you find a (brook) trout in the milk." I don't believe it was "circumstantial evidence" or a coincidence. I believe that that prophecy was literally fulfilled. ¶

My mother never was as much to talk about religion as my father, but my mother had a couple of sayings she used to say often. She believed the Lord helped best those that tried to help themselves and she also used to say that the Lord loveth a cheerful giver. And when I came out here to Utah I saw how your people believed that the Lord was your shepherd. You have created your own green pastures where there were none and brought in your own running waters when you could find none to walk by. I read how the women of this Church had at one time prepared a table in the presence of your enemies from the food that their husbands had wrenched from these deserts. You tried to help yourselves and you were cheerful givers. I saw that the Lord had restored your souls. I could not help but observe that here in Utah I had beheld the works of the Lord made manifest. ¶

Now Lord, thou who hast been our dwelling place in all generations before ever these mountains were made or earth received her form, we pray thee Lord to look down on these thy people. Stretch forth thine arm to the uttermost corners of the earth and the isles of the sea to protect and encourage the children of this Church who ¶

are out on missions and may they set a good example not only of what Christian members of this Church do but also of what good Americans can be when away from home. ¶

That ends what I have to say, and now may the Lord watch between me and thee while we are absent one from another. ¶

I am sure we have all been delighted to hear from Mr. Kane. We are glad that he feels like he wants to belong to the family. I shall take him in (laughter). I think he will discover that he has a lot more relatives here who could call him brother, so he will have no difficulty in being at home with us. We are more than grateful for his grandfather, and we are glad that his grandson could come here and be with us today. ¶

We have been celebrating for nearly a year. It has been a time of pleasure and recreation, and I am satisfied that had our pioneer forebears been here they too would have gladly joined with us. The year is passing now, and the centuries are before us. The best tribute that we who are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints can pay to those who are on the other side will be to honor God and keep his commandments and by so doing honor those whose names we bear. In this way we will increase our own happiness and provide opportunity for joy for those who follow after us. ¶

Our Great Responsibility

We will receive the blessings of the Lord if we will only remember that since we are the children of God, our responsibility is greater than any other people. No other church has the responsibility that is upon this Church because the Lord has given to us a commandment to go into all the world and preach the gospel unto every creature so that ¶

He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned. (Mark 16:16.) ¶

So it is not merely a question of living our short lives in comfort; if we expect to enjoy eternal happiness in the celestial kingdom, we must earn it by doing our best to bring as many of our Father's children to live with him as we possibly can. ¶

God has been good to us. No people in the world have more reason to be grateful than we. Here under the shelter of this roof we can well pour out our souls to him who is the Author of our being and remember with love those, who under his watchcare, made it possible for us to enjoy the things that we now have. ¶

Manifesto Issued

On October 6, 1890, in this Tabernacle the people were assembled in conference. The Church had been harassed and abused, and property had been escheated by the government. Many had been imprisoned for what they believed. Upon that occasion the President of the Church, Wilford Woodruff, among other things, delivered this message to us here: ¶

Inasmuch as laws have been enacted by Congress forbidding plural marriages, which laws have been pronounced constitutional by the court of last resort, I hereby declare my intention to submit to those laws, and to use my influence with the members of the Church over which I preside to have them do likewise. ¶

That is a part of the Manifesto, ¶

After that had been read, Lorenzo Snow, the man who later succeeded Wilford Woodruff as President of the Church, said: ¶

I move that, recognizing Wilford Woodruff as the President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and the only man on the earth at the present time who holds the keys of the sealing ordinances, we consider him fully authorized by virtue of his position to issue the Manifesto which has been read in our hearing and which is dated September 24th, 1890, and that as a Church in General Conference assembled, we accept his declaration concerning plural marriages as authoritative and binding. ¶

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The vote to sustain the foregoing motion was unanimous. ¶

Practice of Plural Marriage Discontinued

That was the action of the Church at that time. The practice of plural marriage ceased because the government of the United States forbade it. Our Heavenly Father has always directed that we sustain the constitutional law of the land, and the Supreme Court being the highest authority had declared the law forbidding plural marriage was constitutional. ¶

From then until now, there has been little said by us, and now, after all these years, I would like to say that from that time on, approximately fifty years, there have been no plural marriages solemnized in violation of the laws of this land by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. ¶

Manifesto Still Binding

I mention this because, unfortunately, there are some people in the world who are still insisting that we no longer pay attention to the Manifesto, that it does not bind us now, and by that attitude some men and women are falling into adultery and committing a sin not only against the government of the United States, but also against the Church itself. And yet they say that because we are not talking about it, that we condone it. ¶

As President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I say we do not condone it. We desire our people to obey the law of the land in reference to marriage. If you hear anybody say that the leadership of the Church is not in harmony with the Manifesto of Wilford Woodruff as sustained by the Church, then you may know that he is mistaken. ¶

I regret that it is necessary to refer to this matter, but there are those who are going among the people encouraging the violation of the moral law. That is what they are doing, and if the Church of Jesus Christ stands for anything, it stands for morality, and so today, in the conclusion of this conference, I call your attention to this matter. ¶

A Blessed People

No people in the world are more greatly blessed than we. It is marvelous what our Heavenly Father has done for us. The Church grows, increases, and becomes stronger as the days come and go. ¶

We are permitted twice a year to assemble in this great building in a general conference and meet as we have been during the last three days to be instructed by our brethren. Here under the influence of the Spirit of the Lord we are taught to observe the laws of the land and to keep the commandments of our Heavenly Father. ¶

Now today I think we have reason to be grateful. There is trouble ahead. The world is sick and in a pitiable condition, and until the people repent of their sins and return to the true and living God, there will be no peace that will be worthy of the name. It is our duty to set the example; it is our duty to hold aloft the banner of truth. It is our duty to encourage our Father's other children to listen to his advice and counsel and so adjust things that wherever we are we will find the spirit of God burning in our souls and our influence will be for good. ¶

I pray that we may continue faithful. I congratulate those of you who are able to attend the conference at this time. I feel to bless the choir which has rendered such splendid music and the Relief Society Singing Mothers and others who have sung for us. I am grateful to them, and I pray the Lord to bless them and bless us all that we may be worthy not only to be members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, but also that we may be worthy to be called sons and daughters of the Living God, and seek to do his will and keep his commandments. ¶

Testimony

God lives. Jesus is the Christ. The land that we live upon, in all parts of this earth, belongs to him. We are only tenants here. He places us here with the opportunity to prepare ourselves for eternal happiness and promises us that in due time this world shall become a celestial kingdom. How wonderful it is for us to know that we have a chance to earn our place in that kingdom by following the advice ¶

and counsel that he gives us. If we continue to do that, happiness, satisfaction, and joy will be our reward. ¶

I know that God lives. I know that Jesus is the Christ. I know that Joseph Smith was a Prophet of the Living God, and that the gospel of our Lord is upon the earth. The power and authority of the priesthood are here, and if we will observe the advice that has been given to us, if we will honor him, who is the Author of our being, not only we but our children and children's children will also be among those whom God will bless throughout eternity. That is my testimony, and I bear that witness to you this day in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. ¶

We have already passed the hour for closing but before doing so I call attention to the fact that tonight at seven o'clock in this building will be held a Sunday School Union Meeting. All are invited to attend. Also, the Dutch conference will be held at 4:15 p.m. in the Barratt Hall, just after this meeting; the Scandinavian meeting the same hour in the Assembly Hall, ¶

The Tabernacle Choir will sing for us: ¶

"Hallelujah"- — (From "Messiah" by Handel) ¶

Brethren, as one who loves you I desire to bless you and pray our Father in Heaven to bless you, that you may go from this conference with a renewed determination to be all that He desires us to be and that you will radiate sunshine and good-will, peace and hope among those with whom you associate, and I bless you that joy may be your portion as long as you seek to do the will of our Heavenly Father, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. ¶

The choir music for this conference has been furnished, as you know, by the Tabernacle Choir and the Singing Mothers. The organists during the Conference have been Brother Asper and Brother Schreiner. Brother J. Spencer Cornwall has led the singing. I say again, we are grateful to them and to all that contributed to this conference that has been so delightful. Let us go to our homes with a renewed determination that we will be worthy of him in whose image we have been created. God bless you. Amen. ¶