JUNE 1947
VOLUME 50 NUMBER 6 tfTUIN WSTASE CUAIANTEED SALT LAKE CITY 1. UTAH
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A PAGE FROM THE FLAME FAMILY SCRAPBOOK
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JUNE 1947
353
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354
THE IMPROVEMENT ERA
«l
lWUHMR5P>
By DR. FRANKLIN S. HARRIS, JR.
"Touring the war Great Britain found *"^ that annual weeds in onion fields could be well controlled by spraying with a sulfuric acid solution of up to fourteen percent. The cylindrical onion leaves are upright and waxy so that the spray runs off or does not penetrate, while the weed leaves are usually flat and in a horizontal plane without the waxy protection.
*..''.•:■'••'•••:' ',
A GIANT super calculator machine has *"* been built at the University of Pennsylvania with the name of Elec- tronic Numerical Integrator and Com- putor, or ENIAC for short. An all- electronic, thirty-ton giant with nearly 18,000 vacuum tubes fitted into one hundred feet of panels, it can do all sorts of mathematical chores. This machine, which can multiply a five- figure number by another equally long number five hundred times and get the answer in a second, for its first real problem worked out a one hundred man-year computing job in two weeks.
Agricultural relations with Latin *"* America are being improved by shipping ten Guernsey heifers by air from New Jersey to Colombia, to be followed by about five hundred more to be used as seed stock. Cultural ties are to be strengthened by a five-year archeological project undertaken by the United Fruit Company in Guatemala to restore ancient ruins. The first proj- ect is at Zaculeu, one-time capital of the Mam Maya kingdom.
"VTakima City, Washington, named * for the Indian tribe, was incorpo- rated in 1879. The Northern Pacific Railway placed its station on a site four miles northwest of the town, whence the town moved in 1884, after consider- able controversy. The entire town of one hundred buildings was moved on rollers and skids, the hotel and some stores doing business en route. This new site changed its name from North Yakima in 1918 to Yakima, and Yak- ima became Union Gap.
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Cixty to ninety percent reduction in *r tooth decay by the use of vitamin K in chewing gum was obtained in tests at Northwestern University Dental School.
T)enicillin has been mixed with ice T cream so that it can be given by mouth instead of by a hypodermic in- jection.
JUNE 1947
1947
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LETTUCE SALAD
The month of June and a garden of roses . . . they are as inseparable in your thoughts of summer as is a crisp lettuce salad and a plate of savory Saltines by Purity. They go together!
For light, nourishing, warm-weather meals, serve easy -to -prepare soups and salads with fresh, flaky Saltines.
PURITY B ISCUITC6MP ANY «
S ft L T L M K &
355_
^Jke L^c
over
AFTER traveling al- most numberless miles of desert reaches, the Pioneers still had to make their way over untraveled mountains and through uncharted canyons. Wagons that had sunk hub deep in sand now had to ride upon hastily construct- ed roads, chopped and chiseled through trees and stone. Yet the faith and courage of the Pioneers remained undaunted. And in their wagon circles at night they had fun, dancing and singing, cementing through rec- reation their belief in each other as well as in their religion.
The painting of Echo Canyon by William H. Jackson was adapt- ed to cover use by Hal Rumel and O. L. San- ders. Permission to use the painting was granted by Dr. How- ard R. Driggs, to whom Mr. Jackson presented the original.
*
Editors
George Albert Smith
John A. Widtsoe Managing Editor
Richard L Evans Assistant Managing Editor
Doyle L. Green Associate Editor
Marba C. Josephson
General Manager
George Q. Morris Associate Manager
Lucy G. Cannon Business Manager
John D. Giles Editorial Associates
Elizabeth J. Moffitt Albert L. Zobell, Jr. Harold Lundstrom National Advertising Representatives Edward S. Townsend,
San Francisco and
Los Angeles Dougan and Bolle,
Chicago and
New York
Member, Audit Bureau of Circulations
.Change of Address:
Fifteen days' notice re- quired for change of ad- dress. When ordering a change, please include address slip from a recent issue of the maga- zine. Address changes cannot be made unless the old address as well as the new one is included.
QmpMiifibra
JUNE 1947
VOLUME 50, NO. 6
"THE VOICE OF THE CHURCH"
Official Organ of the Priesthood Quorums, Mutual Improvement
Associations, Department of Education, Music Committee, Ward
Teachers, and Other Agencies of the Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints
Jke (Ldltord J-^aae The Story of a Generous Man George Albert Smith 357
U hurcn ^jreatured
President George Albert Smith's First Mission for the
Church - Preston Nibley 358
A Major Responsibility.. Ezra Taft Benson 361
A Letter from Brigham Young Donald M. Bruce 363
Era Centennial Campaign Sets New Record
John D. Giles 364
Honor Awards for Scoutmasters and Senior Leaders .... 370 Westward with the Saints, Journal of Horace K, Whitney. .371 How the Desert Was Tamed— Part VI ...John A, Widtsoe 372
Wyoming — Pathway of the Mormon Pioneers to Utah
Hazel Noble Boyack 374
To Brigham Young— A Tribute William E. Berrett 381
To Help a Neighbor _ ...Roscoe W. Eardley 388
June Highlights in Church His- ^ Priesthood: Melchizedek 394
tory 376 Aaronic 396
Dear Gleaner 380 No-Liquor-Tobacco Column.. ..394
The Church Moves On 382 Ward Teaching -.397
Special featured
Democracy and Religion in Czechoslovakia ..Olga K* Miller 366
Centennial Award Winners 377
The Spoken Word from Temple Square.. ..Richard L* Evans 378
Let's Talk It Over Mary Brentnall 385
Handy Hints 392
Cook's Corner, Josephine B.
Nichols 393
Centennial Events 414
Exploring the Universe, Frank- lin S. Harris, Jr. 355
These Times, G. Homer Dur- ham --- 360
On the Bookrack 390
Homing: Confidence on File, Phil Hannum 392
Your Page and Ours 416
C^ditoriaid
M Men, Gleaner Girls, Noblesse Oblige!— John A* Widtsoe 384 The Least Ordained Harold Lundstrom 384
^toriei, J^oetru
Hole in the Rock — Chapter VI Anna Prince Redd 368
Frontispiece 353 Poetry Page 391
Together, Inez Clark Thorson 362 A Prayer, Thomas D. Hunt....397 Caution, O. F. Ursenbach 380
(J&IH L^entennCa
AN enlarged July is- sue of the Era will carry special features to indicate one hun- dred years of progress in the Church since the Pioneers first entered Salt Lake valley. An especially stimulating article, "The Educa- tional Level of the Lat- ter-day Saints," has been prepared as well as such articles as "Science Confirms the Word of Wisdom," "Marriage and the Mormon Family,"
"Latter-day Proph- ecies Fulfilled," "A Promise and Its Ful- filment." A special message from the First Presidency is also in- cluded. Many eminent- ly qualified writers will appear in this issue, in- cluding Dr. John A. Widtsoe, Dr. Harold L. Snow, Dr. George Stewart, Dr. Milton R. Hunter, Marba C. Jo- sephson, and Anna Prince Redd.
Some four color pic- tures in the body of the magazine as well as a beautifully illustrated two-page map will add to the value of this special edition. The regular features will also appear, suitably adapted to the centen- nial theme.
*
Executive and Editorial Offices:
50 North Main Street, Salt Lake City 1, Utah. Copyright 1947 by Mu- tual Funds, Inc., a Cor- poration of the Young Men's Mutual Improve- ment Association of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. All rights reserved. Subscrip- tion price, $2.00 a year, in advance; 20c single copy.
Entered at the Post Office, Salt Lake City, Utah, as second-class matter. Acceptance for mailing at special rate of postage provided for in section 1 103, Act of Oc- tober 1917, authorized July 2, 1918.
The Improvement Era is not responsible for un- solicited manuscripts, but welcomes contributions.
All manuscripts must be accompanied by suffi- cient postage for delivery and return.
356
THE IMPROVEMENT ERA
THE STORY OF A GENEROUS MAN
Dm j-^mdiaent Lfeorae bribed S^mith
ONE day on the street I met a friend whom I had known since boyhood. I had not visited with him for some time, and I was interested in being brought up to date concerning his life, his problems, and his faith, therefore I invited him to go to a conference in Utah County with me. He drove his fine car (the make of car I was driving- had n6t been received into society at that time ) . He took his wife, and I took mine.
At the conference, I called on him to speak. I did not know what it might do to him, but I thought I would take a chance. He made a fine talk. He told of his trips to the East, how he explained the gospel to the people he met, and how grateful he was for his heritage. He stated that his opportunities in the world had been magnified and multiplied because his father and mother had joined the Church in the Old World.
As we drove home, he turned to me and said: "My, this has been a wonderful con- ference. I have enjoyed it."
I thought to myself he was like one of our sisters who came home from fast meeting and said to her family: "That is the best meeting I ever attended."
One of the daughters said: "Well, Mother, who spoke?" And then her mother replied, "I did."
I thought he had enjoyed it because he himself had participated. I was glad he had. Then he said: "You know I have heard many things in this conference, but there is only one thing that I do not understand the way you do."
I said: "What is it?"
"Well," he said, "it is about paying tith- ing."
He thought I would ask him how he paid his tithing, but I did not. I thought if he wanted to tell me, he would. He said: "Would you like me to tell you how I pay my tithing?"
I said, "If you want to, you may."
"Well," he said, "if I make ten thousand dollars in a year, I put a thousand dollars in
the bank for tithing. I know why it's there. Then when the bishop comes and wants me to make a contribution for the chapel or give him a check for a missionary who is going away, if I think he needs the money, I give him a check. If a family in the ward is in distress and needs coal or food or clothing or anything else, I write out a check. If I find a boy or a girl who is having difficulty getting through school in the East, I send a check. Little by little I exhaust the thousand dollars, and every dollar of it has gone where I know it has done good. Now, what do you think of that?"
"Well," I said, "do you want me to tell you what I think of it?"
He said, "Yes."
I said: "I think you are a very generous man with someone else's property." And he nearly tipped the car over.
He said, "What do you mean?"
I said, "You have an idea that you have paid your tithing?"
"Yes," he said.
I said: "You have not paid any tithing. You have told me what you have done with the Lord's money, but you have not told me that you have given anyone a penny of your own. He is the best partner you have in the world. He gives you everything you have, even the air you breathe. He has said you should take one-tenth of what comes to you and give it to the Church as directed by the Lord. You haven't done that; you have taken your best partner's money, and have given it away."
Well, I will tell you there was quiet in the car for some time. We rode on to Salt Lake City and talked about other things.
About a month after that I met him on the street. He came up, put his arm in mine, and said: "Brother Smith, I am paying my tithing the same way you do." I was very happy to hear that.
Not long before he died, he came into my office to tell me what he was doing with his own money.
JUNE 1947
357
II
The beginning of October 1891, found the two missionaries, George Albert Smith and Wil- liam B. Dougall, Jr., at Paragoonah, in Iron County, Utah. The -weather was cold, and there was a light fall of snow on the ground which pre- saged an early winter.
October I, 1891, was Sunday, and the two elders attended fast meet- ing. The following is from the diary, written that day:
Arose at eight forty-five feeling first rate. Snow had fallen in the night. The morning clear. Went to fast meeting. Spoke to the few young men who had been asked to come. . . . Expect to go to Parowan in a few min- utes. Cloudy and looks like storm. Studied most all day. Went to Parowan in an open wagon, the weather bitter cold. Stood up most of the way. Arrived at Brother Ol- lertson's home just at dark. Was kindly received.
The night was cold, and in the morning there was a heavy frost on the ground. The diary continues:
Last night was very cold; a heavy frost on the ground this morning. Arose after a good night's rest. Took a walk and saw Aunt Mary and family. They are nearly all sick. Aunt Mary has got a baby boy. The folks here at Brother Ollertson's have got two little children like Clare and Sib. Helped Brother Ollertson to make a grain bin. Broke my watch chain. Got a letter from Louis Wells and a telegram from Father. Studied most all day. Called at Brother Adams to hear Wilb play the piano.
"Aunt Mary" that George Al- bert writes about was his father's sister. She was born at Parowan in 1852, shortly after her distinguished father, George A. Smith, led a col- ony to southern Utah to open up that vast area for settlement. As a young girl she was married to Peter A. Wimmer. She became the mother of eight children.
George Albert mentions the fact that his companion "Wilb" went to the home of Brother Adams to play the piano. I have learned from the brother and sisters of Elder Dougall that he was a very accomplished pianist and at one time thought of following music as a career. But now he was a missionary and was enjoy- ing that experience.
The diary continues :
Parowan, October 3, 1891. Arose at eight o'clock. The weather quite cold. The sky bright and clear. . . . Read one hundred and seventy-five pages. Called with Wilb
358
Ljeome ^^rlbert J^willki
FIRST MISSION
at the telegraph office, also at Sister West's and Aunt Mary's. My eyes feel a little weak. Wilb and myself are both well. Had a good time chopping wood. Would like to be at home as usual.
October 4, 1891, was Sunday, and the elders attended the meetings at Parowan.
Arose at eight o'clock. . . . Went to the Sunday School as usual. Spoke to the school. Invited to speak in the afternoon. Went to meeting and spoke thirty-five min- utes. A meeting was appointed for the eve- ning. We called at the home of Sister West. Maggie not at home. . . . Left just at dark for meeting; got lost and got to meet- ing just on time. Had a fine meeting; a good attendance. Spoke forty-three min- utes. . . .
The diary continues:
Parowan, October 5, 1891. Arose at eight o'clock. . . . Took some clothes to Aunt Mary's. Went to the telegraph office and telegraphed to Mother and got an answer. . . . Went with Brother Dougall in a cart to fill an appointment at Paragoonah. We had a fine time. The house was full. I lectured on the divinity of the Bible.
The brethren returned to Parowan late at night. The next entry is dated there, October 6.
Arose at seven thirty and took a little ex- ercise. . . . We took our lists of names and started out; I found three out of ten but will see the rest. . . . Wilb feels all right. We ate dinner with the West family and a good one it was too. Held a meeting in the evening and talked thirty-five minutes. Wrote to Don and George Hansen.
Parowan, October 7, 1891. Arose at seven fifteen. ... I stood on the ground where Brother Ed Dalton was shot by Thompson. Wrote to Lew Peck. . . . We were tendered a sociable by the Young Ladies' Association of Parowan. We met quite a crowd of young folks. Brother Ollerton makes it as pleasant as he possibly can. Retired at one o'clock.
Parowan, October 8, 1891. Arose at nine o'clock, feeling pretty well. Bid the folks good-bye. Left for Summit with the fun- niest outfit. The off horse was a little brown mare, about as big as an Indian pony. The other horse was a sorrel and as lazy as they make them. He was a little
WILBY DOUGALL
At the time of his marriage November 18, 1896.
He was 27 years of age.
larger than the mare. The harness was at one time leather, but it is patched with rope now, and looks like hard times. The wagon is a hard looking affair and the bed is twisted so that it looks like it is tipping off. We cut quite a grotesque figure, poking along with an umbrella over us — one horse willing to pull the load and the other horse willing that she should. We found that Bishop Dalley was away, but we met his father who asked us to come and take din- ner with him. We did so and found that it was a birthday of the bishop's wife. . . , Held a meeting in the evening which was well attended. Brother Heybourne came to meet us. We all stayed at Joseph Dalley's. Wrote to Mother and Brother Bourne.
Summit, October 9. Arose at eight fifteen. . . . We started with Brother Charles Hey- bourne for Cedar, behind a pair of cayuses, one of them wild. Arrived at Cedar at twelve ten. . . . We went to the telegraph office but no word was there for us. Wrote to Lucy and Louis. Called on the bishop and counselors of the Y.M.M.I.A. Saw Sister Mary Ann Lunt and Brother George Wood. Is Lucy sick?
Cedar City, October 10, 1891. Arose early and was pleased to find a letter from Lucy on the table. Had breakfast and started to take a walk. ... I had seventy-five names to call on, which I did before four o'clock. We had dinner at five o'clock. Wrote to E. Tanner, L. M. Smith
THE IMPROVEMENT ERA
Dm [-^reiton r libtey
tL CHURCH
and L.E.W. [Lucy Emily Woodruff.] Had a fine meeting in the evening. One hundred and six present.
Cedar City, October 11, 1891. Went to Sunday School. Talked to the Primary and after the school went to meeting and listened to Brother McAllister of St. George. . . . Met some young folks at Brother Webster's. Had a good meeting. Spoke thirty minutes.
Cedar City, October 12, 1891. Arose and went to the post office. Got a letter from Lucy. Read my letter as soon as I got it and got my hands quite cold. Was more
HARRIET RICHARDS DOUGALL Wife of Wilby Dougall
than pleased to learn that Lucy is well again. Took a long walk and got some specimens of flint. Was introduced to Sis- ter Williams at the home of Brother Urie, where some books were kept to which I desired access. Wrote to Joseph West, and I don't think he will be able to read it. Had dinner with Brother Daniel Pendleton and it was splendid. Spent the evening at the home of Thomas Taylor, Wilb playing the piano, etc., had a pleasant time. Received a box of grapes from John Batty. No charges, . . .
Cedar City, October 14, 1891. Arose at seven o'clock. Drank some lye water. [This
JUNE 1947
no doubt refers to the river water at Cedar. ] Started for Kanarra at eleven forty-five ar- riving at two thirty. We went all over town but nobody invited us in. We were accompanied by Brother Charles Hey- bourne. At last a man asked us to put our team up which we gladly accepted. Took a walk to the mouth of the canyon. The water was splendid. The best means for a natural reservoir is here afforded that I ever saw. Large cliffs of solid rock open into a little valley, the distance between the opening being about fifteen feet. I felt free here in the canyon and offered up a prayer in my heart to my Heavenly Father for his kindness to his people in every way. A walk back to town where the horses were watered and the wild one of the two kicked Brother Heybourne on the hip. We seem to be the means of breaking wild horses in this country. We sat around on the fence and store's steps but no one invited us in. Finally the bishop came home and as he passed gave us an invitation to go home with him. We did not accept but found that a meeting had been called for seven thirty. We then went to Brother Roundy's where our horses were and went in the house. . . . Went to meeting. Their meetinghouse burned last February so they met in a pri- vate house. A few people came, about thirty. We organized the association, and Brother Heybourne spoke about fifteen min- utes, Wilb thirty, and I talked ten min- utes. After meeting, Brother Griffin asked me to go home with him which I did and took Wilb with me, Brother H. going with the bishop. The Church bell here is a cow bell.
After remaining over night in Kanarra, the missionaries journeyed back to Cedar.
Kanarra, October 15, 1891. Arose at eight thirty and found a plate of nice grapes on the table waiting for us. I ate of them quite heartily. . . . We met Brother Beebee, bishop of Virgin. . . . We started for Cedar. A man stopped us to ask a question; we tried to start but the horses concluded to stop. We sat there laughing when all at once they started to run, rear, and kick, but we got to Cedar all right. Washed in lye water. Wrote L.E.W. and Frank in answer to letters received. . . . We were the guests at a pleasant party gotten up in our behalf. Had a peculiar experience in Tucker. Everybody treated me well. Was asked to play the harmonica but refused. Spoke a few words of appreciation. Arrived home tired out. Telegraphed to Mother.
^The brethren now received a call from Brother Maeser, the son of Karl G. Maeser, to return to Miners- ville.
Cedar City, October 16, 1891. Arose at eight o'clock feeling pretty well. Got a postal from R. Maeser. Packed my grip for Minersville. Bid some of our friends good-bye. Started for Minersville in very pleasant company with a good team. We were stopped by Brother George Wood as we were leaving and I was given a specimen of iron ore. . . . Singing and funny anecdotes were the order of the day. . . . We turned out of the road on the dug-way to let Brother Wood's folks pass and as it was quite steep we nearly tipped over. The horses were wild and had to be watched all the time. We got to our destination just at dark. Brother Walker welcomed us. . . .
Minersville, October 17, 1891. Arose at seven thirty. . . . Took a walk up town. Bid our friends good-bye as they started for Cedar. Called on Brother Dotson. Saw Brother J. R. Rawlins. He is next to the oldest living member of the Church. Called at Sister Baker's and got a drink of good well water. Notified a few people of meet- ing. Most of the young men are away from home. . . .
Minersville, October 18, 1891. Arose at eight o'clock after trying to keep my part- ner covered up for five hours. . . . Bid Broth- er Maeser good-bye; took a walk; went to Sunday School. Spoke to the Sunday School a few moments. Would like to see Lucy for a few moments or longer. Expect a letter at Beaver. People seem a little offish someway. Bishop's little boy took a tumble in a tank of water today and was taken out feet first. He is only three years old. The tank is six feet deep and full of water. . . . Was invited to spend the eve- ning at Mrs. Marshall's. Had a fine meet- ing at two o'clock, the Methodist minister being present.
The next entry reveals that the missionaries journeyed to the town which George Albert, in his humor- ous way, designated as Pancake. They hitched a ride "on a load of wheat."
Minersville, October 19, 1891. Arose at seven thirty. Had a light breakfast. Left on a load of wheat for Pancake, Brother Walker being teamster. Stopped after a tedious ride of four hours at our destination, being directed to Sister Kelly's home. We left our grips and started out to find the president. Had dinner with him, salt rising bread. I feel rocky. Gave notice of a lec- ture in the meetinghouse. Weather fine. This is the town of towns. The town proper is on the north side of Beaver river. About twenty families living there. Log houses of one and two rooms abound here, but in the town some brick houses are seen. Sage- brush and greasewood as high as the head are found in all the side streets. Had a meet- ing and gave a lecture in the schoolhouse. ( To be continued)
359
^THBUI
By DR. G. HOMER DURHAM
Director of the Institute of Government, University of Utah
Qn April 13, 1862, John Taylor W (1808-1887) rose in the stand to speak in the Salt Lake Tabernacle. Said he: "We are now struggling and ex- pect to have to struggle for our reli- gious, social, and political rights." Al- most eighty-five years later, to the day, J. Edgar Hoover appeared before a committee of the United States House of Representatives and made a state- ment which indicates that eternal vigi- lance is indeed the price of liberty. The occasion for the Federal Bureau of In- vestigation chief's remarks was the current concern over communism in America. Said he, "The best antidote to communism is vigorous, intelligent, old-fashioned Americanism with eternal vigilance."
IUTr. Hoover said that the actual num- ber of American communists is unknown because "there are many actu- al, members who because of their posi- tion are not carried on party rolls." He did suggest, however, that real com- munist influence penetrates the follow- ing select groups:
1. "Ministers of the gospel"
2. Teachers who "under the guise of academic freedom can teach our youth a way of life that eventually will de- stroy: the sanctity of the home, . . . faith in God, . . . and . . . our revered Con- stitution"
3. Labor groups — some of whom are "infiltrated, dominated, or saturated with the virus of communism."
]M"ew York state, says Mr. Hoover, leads in the number of enrolled party members (30,000), followed by California (8,553); Illinois (6,500); Ohio (3,838); Oregon (3,654); Wash- ington (2,752); New Jersey (2,487); and Michigan (2,135). The communist Daily Worker boasts 74,000 members on the rolls. But, continues the United States official, "What is important is the claim of the communists themselves that for every party member, there are ten others ready, willing, and able to do the party's work. Herein lies the great- est menace of communism. For these are the people who infiltrate and cor- rupt various spheres of American life." As a result, the test of communist in- fluence is its ability to infiltrate. "In this connection," says J. Edgar Hoover, 360
"it might be of interest to observe that in 1917 when the communists overthrew the Russian government there was one Communist for every 2,277 persons in Russia. In the United States today there is one communist for every 1,814 persons in the country."
Communists are prolific letter-to- the-editor writers; they persistently seek radio channels; Hollywood and the film industry have been effectively "used"; with five percent of a union's membership, the union can be con- trolled; foreign language and racial groups have been a special communist target for the past eighteen months; the government has been "infiltrated"; the former "Young Communist League" now called "American Youth for Democracy," and numerous other "front" organizations exist; all were re- ported to Congress in Mr. Hoover's address.
What to do? Mr. Hoover's recom- mended action is "eternal vigilance." He is opposed to driving this "fifth column" underground, but wants it kept in the open. Knowing this, the "com- mies" will obviously blend their ac- tivities with the protective coverage of, quite probably, such names as "Ameri- cans United for Peace by Eliminating the Communist Menace!" How be vigilant?
JV^odern men are not saved, nor can be, in ignorance of political mat- ters.
Said John Taylor eighty-five years ago: "In a political point of view we have had doubts. . , . However, as we have progressed the mist has been re- moved, and . . . the elders of Israel be- gin to understand . . . that it is as much their duty to study correct political principles as well as religion, and to seek and know and comprehend the social and political interests of man, and to learn and be able to teach that which would be best calculated to pro- mote the interests of the world."
Perhaps a little more "study of cor- rect political principles" by more people would be worth while in these times.
True principles will abide, while all false principles will fall with those who choose and cleave to them. — Brigham Young
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THE IMPROVEMENT ERA
^
MAJOR •
RESPONSIBILITY
IN June 1830 Samuel Harrison Smith trudged down a country road in New York state on the first official missionary journey in the Church in this dispensation. He had been set apart by his brother Proph- et. This first missionary traveled twenty-five miles that first day with- out disposing of a single copy of the new and strange book which he car- ried on his back. Seeking lodging for the night, faint and hungry, he was turned away — after briefly ex- plaining his mission — with the words: "You d — d liar, get out of my house. You shan't stay one min- ute with your books."1 Continuing his journey, discouraged and with heavy heart, he slept that first night under an apple tree.
So began, in the most inauspicious way, the missionary work of the Dis- pensation of the Fulness of Times, through the restored Church, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Nearly one hundred and seven- teen years have come and gone since that first humble missionary set out to carry the message of salvation to a confused world. In fulfilment of the first of three all-important God- given mandates, this great work has gone forward through the years un- abated. It is a dramatic chapter in the history of a peculiar people. But in all the annals of Christendom there is no greater evidence of cour- age, willingness to sacrifice, and un- bounded devotion to duty. Men, women, and children — all have joined in this heroic effort with no hope of material reward.
These ambassadors of the Lord Jesus Christ, as they firmly believe themselves to be, have trudged through mud and snow, swum riv- ers, and gone without the common necessities of food, shelter, and clothing, in response to the call. Voluntarily fathers and sons left homes, families, and jobs to go to
^ucy Mack Smith, History of the Prophet Joseph, 1902 edition, p. 153.
JUNE 1947
£ju L^lder C^zra Uaft i5en5on
OF THE COUNCIL OF THE TWELVE
"Get out of my house. You shan't stay one minute with your books!"
all parts of the world, enduring great physical hardship and unre- lenting persecution. Families have been left behind — often in dire straits — willingly laboring the hard- er to provide means for "their mis- sionary." And through it all there have been a joy and satisfaction which have caused families at home to express gratitude for special bless- ings received, and the missionaries invariably to refer to this period as "the happiest time of my life."
Tt has been estimated that more than fifty thousand full-time mission- aries have served the Church since 1 830, to say nothing of the thousands of local men andwomen who have performed valiant missionary service at home, numbering currently more than two thousand in the organized stakes of Zion. These faithful emis- saries, who have gone abroad, have
expended from forty-five to sixty million days of missionary effort at a cost, through loss of personal in- come and expense for living, of more than two hundred twenty-five to three hundred million dollars — and this does not include any costs of transportation to and from or in the field, costs of administration at home or abroad, nor expense of local mis- sionary service.
Probably no group of people of comparable size in all the world have made such a freewill offering to the spread of righteousness — and this from people who are not wealthy and who, in addition, are expected to contribute one tenth of their interest annually to "the work of the Lord," according to the ancient-modern law of the tithe.
Why? What is it that brings forth
such sacrifice of time, means, and
(Continued on page 362)
361
A MAJOR RESPONSIBILITY
{Continued from page 361 ) the comforts and sweet associations of home?
Is it not the burning conviction that God has again revealed himself to man on the earth, re-established his Church with all the gifts and blessings enjoyed in former days, and committed his Holy Priesthood again to men with authority to ex- ercise it for the blessing of his chil- dren? Yes, without doubt, it is the personal testimony of the divinity of this great latter-day work, faith in the commands which have been given in this and all past dispensa- tions regarding the purposes of the Almighty, and our responsibility as his covenant children, the knowl- edge that God lives and loves his children, and the conviction that it is our mission to build and save men everywhere.
From the days of Father Adam to the days of the Prophet Joseph Smith and his successors, whenever the priesthood has been on the earth, a major responsibility has been the preaching of the saving eternal principles of the gospel — the plan of salvation. Father Adam taught these things to his own children. (Pearl of Great Price, Moses 5:12.) Con- sider Noah's long years of mis- sionary effort and the preachings of all the ancient prophets, {ibid., 8: 1 6-20. ) Each in his day was com- manded to carry the gospel message to the children of men and call them to repentance as the only means of escaping pending judgments. The Master made crystal clear the great mission of his ancient apostles to "Go ye therefore, and teach all na- tions. . . ." (Matthew 28:19.)
In the early visits of the resur- rected Moroni to the Prophet Joseph Smith, it was emphasized that the Prophet's name would be known for good or evil throughout the world, and that the new volume of scripture and the restored gospel message, which it contained, would be carried to the entire world
... by the mouths of my disciples, whom I have chosen in these last days. (D. &. C. 1:4.)
"IVflORE than a year before the Church was organized, the Lord revealed through the Prophet that "a marvelous work is about to come forth among the children of 362
men," and that the field was "white already to harvest." (ibid., 4:1, 4.) The early converts were charged with the burden of the responsibility as follows:
Therefore, O ye that embark in the service of God, see that ye serve him with all your heart, might, mind and strength, that ye may stand blameless before God at the last day. (ibid., 4:2.)
They were counseled ever to
. . . remember that it is not the work of God that is frustrated, but the work of men. {ibid., 3:3.)
In consoling, confidence-inspiring words, the Lord admonished them to
. . . fear not, little flock; do good; let earth and hell combine against you, for if ye are built upon my rock, they cannot prevail. . . . Look unto me in every thought; doubt not, fear not. (ibid., 6:34, 36.)
These early elders were cautioned that
... no one can assist in this work except he shall be humble and full of love, {ibid., 12:8.)
TOGETHER
By Inez Clack Thorson
Jt takes God's care and kindness, * The sunshine and the rain, The soil, the plow, the tiller, To grow a field of grain.
And we in God's great vineyard, In bright and stormy weather, Can never reap a harvest Unless we work together!
And yet they were given such con- vincing assurance that the thought of failure never entered their hearts. As testimonies of the truth of the mission of the Prophet Joseph were borne in upon their hearts, they often asked the Prophet to inquire of the Lord as to "that which would be of most worth" unto them. The answer came clear and unequivocal:
And now, behold, I say unto you, that the thing which will be of the most worth unto you will be to declare repentance unto this people, that you may bring souls unto me, that you may rest with them in the kingdom of my Father, (ibid., 15:6.)
Great promises were made to these early missionaries. They were told that "... the worth of souls is great in the sight of God" (ibid, 8:10) and that if they
. . . should labor all your days in crying repentance unto this people, and bring, save
it be one soul unto me, how great shall be your joy with him in the kingdom of my Father! (ibid., 18:15.)
and that if many souls were con- verted, their joy would be multiplied accordingly. All these and many other glorious promises were made even before the Church was formal- ly organized, April 6, 1830.
"pOLLOWiNG the organization, men and women were baptized and worthy brethren ordained to the priesthood and set apart to cry re- pentance and to deliver the message of the restored gospel. Even greater promises were embodied in the rev- elations which followed, many of which referred in no uncertain terms to the solemn responsibility resting upon the restored Church to preach the word. In the fall of that same year came the word of the Lord through the Prophet as follows:
For verily, verily, I say unto you that ye are called to lift up your voices as with the sound of a trump, to declare my gospel unto a crooked and perverse generation. For behold, the field is white already to harvest; and it is the eleventh hour, and the last time that I shall call laborers into my vineyard, (ibid., 33:2, 3.)
The Lord made it plain to these humble ambassadors that they were "... preparing the way of the Lord for his second coming," and that the time was soon at hand that he should "... come in a cloud with power and great glory." (ibid., 34 :6, 7.)
In referring to the "eleventh hour, and the last time that I shall call laborers into my vineyard," the Lord made it clear that this is the last dispensation and a period foreor- dained from the beginning not to be overcome by the powers of evil. This, too, was most reassuring to these early elders. And yet at times, then, as now, all were not fully faith- ful. Some failed to use effectively the talents with which the Lord had blessed them "because of the fear of man." With these the Lord register- ed his displeasure because they would not open their mouths and proclaim his word.
. . . wo unto such, for mine anger is kindled against them, (ibid., 60:2.)
The fearful, however, were the exception, and, as the work ad- vanced, the promises made to these ( Continued on page 398 )
THE IMPROVEMENT ERA
_^ LETTER/
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ovivia
By DONALD M. BRUCE
Brigham Young seemed to pos- in St. Louis on October 20, 1858.
sess an amazing faculty for This was his second trip to the
expressing his personal feel- states that year. It was during the
ings in writing. This is aptly shown time when the United States troops
in the many excellent articles which were occupying some of the com-
he wrote during his period of Church leadership, but even a better exam- ple of this faculty is in the many let- ters he wrote to friends and busi- ness associates and which he dictated to a scribe. It is my good fortune to possess a number of letters which he wrote to my great-grandfather, Horace S. Eldredge. Most of these letters were written in the late 1850's and the early 1860's to Grandfather Eldredge while he was in the Eastern States on Church business.
Perhaps one of the more startling facts about these letters, is that each one, as well as containing an object lesson, contains a wealth of cheer- fulness and humor. The ability to include all these things in his writ- ings, makes these letters very inter- esting reading even to a layman who has no knowledge of the background of the Church. To anyone knowing the history of the territory of Utah and the struggle of the Saints in those early years, these letters hold a "gold mine" of information and interesting data.
Many of Horace S. Eldredge's trips to the East were made under the direction of Brigham Young, carrying bills of lading and orders to fill in the East for the benefit of the Saints in Utah. During these many trips, he acted as general Church agent, and as such was in charge of many companies of con- verts that made their way across the plains to their land of Zion. It was on one of these treks that a company he directed, consisting of seventy- two wagons and other outfits, made the trip in seventy-two days. This is considered to be the fastest time ever made by a company of that size.
"HPhe letter reproduced in part here, was written to Elder Eldredge
JUNE 1947
munities of the Saints. This letter was written on blue paper, with a heavy weave, and evidently a good linen content. The ink is still dark
HORACE
S.
ELDREDGE
and is very well preserved consider- ing the letter is almost ninety years old.
It is interesting to note that in this letter Brigham Young deals very much with his desire to have the territory of Utah become a part of the Union. The fact that he men- tions the power of the press to bring unfavorable comment against the Saints, and his attempts to turn the power of the newspapers to our fa- vor, through the writings of Brother George Q. Cannon, show how far- sighted this great leader was.
I-Tis relating of the slaying of a brother in the line of his duty as a policeman, and his outcry against the unfair persecution of the brethren, is typical of his letters. Perhaps strikingly outstanding in this letter is the statement, "How long must we submit to having our best citizens shot down with im- punity? This is the civilization, the Christianity that our enemies would fasten upon us."
This is a typical letter of Brigham (Concluded on page 400)
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A LETTER FROM BRIGHAM YOUNG, WRITTEN BY A SCRIBE
363
T
"Ihe spirit of the Mormon pio- neers still lives. Their descend- ants still rally to the appeals of their leaders.
The Improvement Era Pioneer Centennial subscription campaign, still another "greatest campaign in Era history" not only sent the Era subscription lists to the highest point in history in home subscriptions, but
ERA L^ent
enievinia
t a
awiDaian
also contributed more widely to mis- sionary effort than ever before.
With interest at high pitch from the first week of the campaign, it grew in intensity to the end, spurred
paia
By JOHN D. GILES
BUSINESS MANAGER
on by the pioneer centennial and the unique and timely incentives to max- imum effort.
,.,..,.,.,.
SOUTH LOS ANGELES President John M. Iverson; Y.M.M.I.A. Su- perintendent Owen B. Robinson; Y.W.M.I.A. President Hortense
Steed.
LONG BEACH President Virgil H. Spongberg; Y.M.M.I.A. Superintendent William C. Lund; Y.W.M.I.A. President Luella S. Barnes; Y. M. M. I. A. "Era" Director Clay A. Miller; Y. W. M. I. A. "Era" Director Ruth Lindquist.
UNION President C. Lloyd Walch; Y.M.M.I.A. Su- perintendent Marion N. Stoddard; (no photo available) Y.W.M.I.A. President Mrs. Pearl Bruce; Y. W. M. I. A. "Era" Director Julia Hiatt.
MARICOPA President Lorenzo Wright; Y.M.M.I.A. Su- perintendent Rulon T. Shepherd; Y.W.M.I.A. President Lucille R. Taylor; Y.W. M. I. A. "Era" Director Helen E. Coleman.
CHICAGO President John K. Ed- munds; Y.M.M.I.A. Su- perintendent Wayne C. Durham; Y.W.M.I.A. President Marjory Cot- tarn; Y.M.M.I.A. "Era" Director James E. Brad- ley.
LOS ANGELES President Wilford G. Edling; Y.M.M.I.A. Su- perintendent J. Grant Brazier; Y.W.M.I.A.
President Erma Nielson; Y.M.M.I.A. "Era" Di- rector Dr. Ira L. Hurst (no photo available).
PHOENIX President James Rob- ert Price; Y.M.M.I.A. Superintendent Wallace E. Broberg; Y.W.M.I.A. President Ethel Peter-
WEBER President Frank C. Simmons; Y.M.M.I.A. Su- perintendent Harm De- Boer; Y.W.M.I.A. Pres- ident Emily Shurtliff; M.I. A. "Era" Directors Mr. and Mrs. Ernest Mower.
MINIDOKA President J. Melvin Toone; Y.M.M.I.A. Su- perintendent Spencer W. Toone; Y.W.M.I.A. Pres- ident Vanda Fairchild; M.I.A. "Era" Directors Carl S. George, and Zella Williams.
OGDEN President Laurence S. Burton; Y.M.M.I.A. Su- perintendent Merrill W. Bird; Y.W.M.I.A. Presi- dent Lynette Taggart; M.I.A. "Era" Directors Taylor Cannon, James H. Bischoff, Beth Oborn.
SAN BERNARDINO President Joel G. Sedgwick; Y.M.M.I.A. Superintendent Henry Isaksen; Y. W. M. I. A. President Evelyn Hen- dry.
BLACKFOOT President Joseph E. Williams; Y.M.M.I.A. Superintendent Orson Packham; Y.W.M.I.A. President Annis Call; "Era" Directors Tom Hemming and Mary Hemming.
IDAHO FALLS President William G. Ovard; Y.M.M.I.A. Su- perintendent Paul Ahl- strom; Y.W.M.I.A. Pres- ident Blanche Wood; Don Mortimer, Y.M. M.I.A. "Era" director; Mrs. Robert Egbert, Y.W.M.I.A. "Era" di- rector.
CACHE
President William W. Owens; Y.M.M.I.A. Su- perintendent Joseph Morgan, Jr. (no photo available); Y.W.M.I.A. President Carmen Fred- erickson; Herbert R. Weston, Y. M. M. I. A. "Era" director; Viola H. Squires, Y. W. M.I . A. "Era" director. JUAREZ
President Claudius Bowman; Y. M.M.I A. Superintendent Dr. E. LeRoy Hatch (no photo available); Y.W.M.I.A. President Ella R. Farns- worth; Bryant R. Clark, Y.M.M.I.A. "Era" direc- tor; Rita S. Johnson, 'Era" di- photo avail-
Y.W.M.I.A. rector (no able).
SAN FERNANDO
President David H. Cannon; Y.M.M.I.A. Su- perintendent Carl M. King; Y.W.M.I.A. Pres. Elaine C. Beers; Rex Marsh, M.I.A. "Era" director.
SAN DIEGO
President Wallace W. Johnson; Y.M.M.I.A. Superintendent Grant B. Hodgson; Y.W.M.I.A. President Kay Calder; M.I.A. "Era" directors Harrison Benner and Virginia Benner.
BEN LOMOND President William Ar- thur Budge; Y.M.M.I.A. Superintendent Earl J. Rhees; Y.W.M.I.A. Pres- ident Addis Thomas; M.I.A. "Era" Director Melvin Swensen.
SAN FRANCISCO President J. Byron Barton; Y.M.M.I.A. Su- perintendent Ira Som- en; Y.W.M.I.A. Presi- dent Veda S. Bramwell: Y.W.M.I.A. "Era" Di- rector Dorothy Hay- mond.
EMIGRATION President George A. Christensen; Y.M.M.I.A. Superintendent J. Verne Taylor; Y. W. M. I. A. President Matilda Ger- rard; M.I.A. "Era" Di- rectors Reuel J. Alder, and Vida Fox Clawson.
SETS NEW RECORD... *!££?&
Leaders at the finish of the cam- paign were determined only after very thorough checking. The final results were big surprises to many. Lieutenant general of the Camp of Israel for the pioneer centennial year is South Los Angeles Stake. Trail- ing near the bottom for most of the year, the thoroughly-organized and enthusiastic stake in the southland began a steady march to the top in March and crowded from leadership Long Beach which has to its credit one of the most consistent and effec- tive campaigns in the entire Church.
Other officers of the Camp of Is- rael whose positions were deter- mined by the results of their efforts in the pioneer centennial campaign, in order, are as follows: colonel, Long Beach; major, Union; major, Maricopa; captain 1st 100, Chicago; captain 2nd 100, Los Angeles; cap- tain 1st 50, Phoenix; captain 2nd 50, Weber; captain 3rd 50, Mini- doka; captain 4th 50, Ogden; captain 1st ten, San Bernardino; captain 2nd ten, Blackfoot; captain 3rd ten, Idaho Falls; captain 4th ten, Cache; captain 5th ten, Juarez; cap- tain 6th ten, San Fernando; captain 7th ten, San Diego; captain 8th ten, Ben Lomond; captain 9th ten, San Francisco; captain 10th ten, Emigra- tion; captain 11th ten, Shelley; cap- tain 12th ten, Pasadena; captain 13th ten, Portland; captain 14th ten, Mt. Ogden; captain 1 5th ten, Rigby; captain 16th ten, Inglewood.
All stakes named above will be awarded centennial campaign cita- tions in the M.I.A. June conference at the session on Thursday morning June 12. By way of explanation it should be said that the Camp of Israel was the designation given to the original Mormon Pioneers under the leadership of President Brigham Young that "crossed the plains" from Winter Quarters on the banks of the Missouri River to the valley of the Great Salt Lake in 1847.
The same designation was taken for the army of descendants and friends of the pioneers in the cur- rent Improvement Era campaign. This campaign was designated as the Pioneer Centennial Campaign. Thus the leader in this campaign is desig- nated as lieutenant general of the
JUNE 1947
Camp of Israel, and the twenty-five stakes next in order were given the titles used for the corresponding
{Continued on page 410)
i&dion
r forth, L^entral ~2)tate6 re/i Jrd j-^reiiaent or ^Llon 6 L^amp
SHELLEY President J. Berkeley Lar- sen; Y. M.M.I. A. Superintend- ent Afton Croft; Y.W.M.I.A. President Louie Millar; Mr. and Mrs. Walter Christensen, stake "Era" directors.
PASADENA President William F. Pettit; (no photo available); Y.M. M.I.A. Superintendent O. Spencer Robinson; Y.W.M.I.A. President Althea Robinson; Ethel Burk, stake "Era" di- rector.
PORTLAND President George L. Scott; Y. M.M.I. A. Superintendent Cordon T. Ballantyne; Y.W. M.I.A. President Thora Paul- son; Mr. and Mrs. Loftis Shef- field, stake "Era" directors.
MT. OGDEN President Earl S. Paul, Y.M. M.I.A. Superintendent Ross H. McCune; Y.W.M.I.A. Presi- dent Cleone R. Eccles; Mrs. Myrtle Blair, stake "Era" director.
RIGBY President George Christen- sen; Y.M.M.I.A. Superintend- ent Norris Fullmer; Y.W. M.I.A. President Drucilla W. Sauer; M.I.A'. "Era" Directors Orrin Jeppson, and Muriel L. Clement.
INGLEWOOD President Alfred E. Rohner; Y.M.M.I.A. Superintendent Stanford W. Bird; Y.W.M.I A. President Eha D. Cusworth; M.I.A. Stake "Era" Directors E. J. Sorensen, and Anne Burnett.
NORTH CENTRAL STATES President William L. Kill- pack; "Era" Directors Harold S. Coleman, Ruhn R. Price, Betty Jo Clutf, and Phyllis Redmond.
SOUTHERN STATES President Heber Meeks; Evelyn Cockrell, Y.W.M.I.A. supervisor.
TEXAS-LOUISIANA President Glenn G. Smith; Josephine Meiners, Y.W. M.I.A. supervisor.
NORTHERN STATES President Creed Haymond; Sarah Marie Orme, Y.W. M.I.A. supervisor.
DEMOCRACY aJ RELIGION
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Famous Kartstejn Castle of Emperor Charles the Fourth. In the background on a small clearing the Czechoslovakia n land was dedicated to the preaching of Mormonism in 1928.
It will be our endeavour to see, that this constitution and all the laws of our country be kept in the spirit of our his- tory as well as in the spirit of those modern principles, embodied in the idea of self-determination, for we desire to take our place in the family of nations, as a member at once cultured, peace- loving, democratic, and progressive. (Preamble to Czechoslovakian Consti- tution.)
IN the heart of the European con*- tinent lies the little republic of Czechoslovakia. One of a group of Slavic nations, its primary signifi- cance to Latter-day Saints is that it was the first of them which opened its doors to the teachers of the re- stored gospel, the Mormon mission- aries.
Czechoslovakia is often called the nation of Huss, Komensky, and Masaryk. To explain the profound influence these three men had in 366
Czechoslovakia, it is necessary to look back into the pages of history. Czechs made their first appearance in Europe in the fifth century when, under the leadership of a wise man, "Czech," they settled the fertile and beautiful valleys in the middle of Bohemia, the western part of present Czechoslovakia.
Christianity was introduced into the country from the East in the ninth century by both Greek Ortho- dox and Roman Catholic churches, and it was embraced fervently.
During the period when some of the clergy lived contrary to the teachings of Christ and their church, one of their group in the capital city of Prague, a well-educated, fluent chaplain named John Huss (1369- 1415), sought to correct the prev- alent corrupt mode of living and governing of the mother church. He
m
had lived a simple life in which even his worst enemies could find no re- proach. In a very mild but ardent manner he would attack the immoral and corrupt mode of living of the clergy and exhort them to repent and follow the example set by Christ. He soon attracted a large following not only among the plain people of Prague but also from the ranks of the nobility. Even the queen was his regular listener, coming to his chapel accompanied by the captain of her guards, Jan Zizka.
TSJaturally Huss' preaching aroused the wrath of his fellow clergymen. When his opponents be- gan to attack him, he had to look for
THOMAS G. MASARYK
support in the scripture and in the book of the theologians. He found his greatest support in the writings of his contemporary, John Wyclif. Thus Huss showed in himself out- standing traits of Czech character: reasonability, and lack of desire for abstract thinking. Huss did not speculate on generalities. He and his followers were not attracted by subtleties of the philosophy of the religion, but rather by its other aspects — the morality and doctrine
THE IMPROVEMENT ERA
CZECHOSLOVAKIA &(%.*■**.
EDITORIAL NOTE
AS our missionaries return to Czech- oslovakia, they are being wel- comed into a country noted for its centuries-old struggle for freedom.
On July 24, 1 929, when the mission was dedicated by Dr. John A. Widtsoe, then president of the Eu- ropean Mission, six missionaries be- gan their labors. There were then just three members of the Church in that country. Before the second world war there were more than one hun- dred and fifty Saints and twenty-three full-time missionaries. Present Church records indicate only one hundred and ten members, but with the Czechoslovak heritage for religious freedom, great strides should be made in this mission. This article tells some of the reasons why.
for a practical life. This trait is still preserved in Czech character and should make any Czech who will listen to the message of the restored gospel very receptive indeed.
Huss was trusted with the position of rector of the Charles University in Prague where he instigated some commendable reforms in educational as well as national affairs. He, how- ever, soon gained for himself the disfavor of the Catholic hier- archy and several times was repri- manded and ordered to retract his teachings. This he refused to do, until the whole Czech nation was the subject of the wrath of the Pope himself, and Huss was called to a church council in Constance to an- swer for his heretical teachings. In spite of the warnings of his follow- ers, Huss went, carrying a paper of safe conduct from the German em- peror. The court of Constance was short. Huss was asked to retract his teachings against the Catholic clergy. He stated humbly that he would gladly do so if he were shown in the scriptures where he was wrong. The court sentenced him to death by burning at the stake on the shores of Lake Constance. The last words of John Huss were, "The
THE BRIDGES OF PRAGUE
JUNE 1947
truth prevails" — a slogan which was later adopted almost universally by Czechs in their undertakings. And the influence of Huss has not been limited to Czech lands.
'"The death of John Huss created a great storm in Bohemia among his followers. Notes of protest streamed from poor and rich to the church council as well as to the Ger- man emperor, whose letter of safe conduct to Huss had proved worth- less. People in Bohemia, who until then had merely listened to Huss' sermons, now endorsed his teachings as their life's philosophy and many of the clergy adopted his ideas. All this of course caused further wrath of the Pope and the surrounding Catholic countries to be showered upon Czech "heretics," until several crusades were organized to wipe out the Czech thorn in the side of Eu- rope. Huss' followers, under the leadership of Jan Zizka formed an army to defend not only the religious organization but also the country.
Thus, the movement, initiated to reform the life of the clergy, changed into a national reformation.
Huss' followers organized the Bohemian Brethren, adopted the chalice as the emblem of their flag, and began to educate their people. They believed that true democracy and Christian living could survive only among people well-informed. Their coeducational schools, situ-
ated in so-called example communi- ties, were the marvel of all foreign visitors who dared come among ac- cused heretics and visit their schools.
""The two centuries following Huss' death were the most glorious in Czech history. Opposed by most of Europe for adherence to protestant- ism and condemned by the Pope, the Czechs had to rely on their own in- genuity in governing, defending, and sustaining their country. Their lit- erature set an example of beautiful Czech language for centuries. The Bible was translated and published in Czech, and many textbooks for schools were written. Kings were elected from among the ranks of nobility, and the country enjoyed prosperity to a high degree. The Catholic clergy together with the neighboring monarchs of the same faith tried for years to break the in- fluence of the Bohemian Brethren, but violence, force, cunning, and threats could not make the Czech people turn from Huss' teachings.
Rome finally won by spreading dissent, dividing the Brotherhood, and finally conquering the nation by the sword. She set up as rulers the Austrian dynasty of German origin — the Hapsburgs. Results were dis- astrous. The teachings of the Bohemian Brethren were condemn- ed, as was also the entire Czech na- tional consciousness. By imperial (Concluded on page 398)
■ ill
367
SYNOPSIS
IN 1879,' the call came to the settlers of Cedar City to open a new Indian mission in southern Utah. Sage Treharne Jones, whose life was closely knit with that of her son, Kumen, knew all too well that she could not go with him into this new country. Mary Nielsen Jones, Rumen's wife, was reluctant to leave the comforts of Cedar City for the new frontier, but she knew that she would go.
President John Taylor called Silas Smith, Kumen Jones, and George Brigham Hobbs as president, Indian interpreter, and chief scout for the expedition. Others were called from Parowan and Paragoonah to supple- ment those already chosen from Cedar City. ....The way had been charted when the ad- vent of Bishop Andrew Schow and James Collett of Escaiante made a new route seem advisable to many of the group. Reaching Forty Mile Spring, a rude encampment was established, and Silas Smith with George Hobbs' concurrence selected scouts to push ahead to learn the best route. George Hobbs asked that Stanford Smith go, but Silas said that Stanford was needed desperately on the road crew. Kumen Jones, George Lewis, and William Hutchings were selected to go with Hobbs. Their report was dishearten- ing, even George Hobbs stating, "It is formidable country. . . . But I think we can get through."
Chapter VI
No SOONER was the meeting ad- journed than the company fell into disordered groups, ges- turing and talking excitedly. "Blan- ket ropes!" the men cried. If the scouts couldn't walk down the crack, what could be done with wagons! Were they to be lowered zigzag over the cliffs, too? And their women and children, their stock and their 368
HOLE IN THE
ROCK
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prince Kedd
goods? Only ten miles east from the river — little more than a mile a day! Was this the "easy sailing" they had been promised, from the river to San Juan? Were they to fail before they had really begun? Why hadn't Silas said something at the meet- ing? Why hadn't he given them something to hang on to?
The wiser ones, catching the hysterical note that was sweeping the crowd, went about with calm, reasoning solutions, urging the peo- ple to go to their camps and wait for further word. Time enough to turn back when they had to, they said, and gradually a semblance of order was restored.
"Silas and George will talk half the night," Stanford Smith said to Arabella, as they went to their wag- on. "But by morning they will know what is to be done. We'll not turn back!"
Arabella was proud of his loyalty. His faith, she knew, would always be unshaken, but she had caught the note of envy in his voice, and it fed the ache in her heart. If only there was some way that she could make George and Silas see the daily, un- acknowledged, discontent that Stan- ford felt! But there was nothing she could do. Stanford would be furious if she even intimated that he was dis- satisfied with his position in the camp. He didn't even know that he was, himself. People could go on all their lives, doing things they dis- liked doing, and get satisfaction from it, too — simply because they were needed where they were. That was Stanford. And, looking at it honestly, she knew that it bothered her more than it did him. To her. it was comfortingly clear that Kumen had not found a way to get the com-
pany through to San Juan, neither had George Hobbs, nor George Lewis, nor William Hutchings. Stanford might have done! Stanford had said the company would not turn back, and that was enough. Perhaps being a "bulwark," as Mary had called him, would have its own reward.
HPhe next morning, when the camp awoke, there sat Bishop Schow and James Collett, proudly display- ing a new, brightly painted boat. They told everyone they thought the four scouts had not found the best crossing for the company, so, with their boat, they had come to help explore for a new route.
"You have come at an opportune time," Silas Smith said in answer to their proposition. "I'll assign the same four scouts to go with you, for we are determined to go on."
This second attempt, however, was but little more effective than the first. In searching for the mouth of the San Juan River- — which they hoped to find, and then navigate the river to Montezuma — they struck heavy rapids in the Colorado and were forced to turn back. Strapping their packs on their backs, they climbed the east wall of the river to explore. A baldheaded landscape was their only discovery, and after ten days of futile tracking, trying to head the maze of canyons that veined the country in every direc- tion, they were forced to return and report.
Undaunted by this second fail- ure, Silas then ordered out a third scouting party, assigning seven other men to the original group, making eleven. He chose his first counselor, Piatt De Alton Ly- man, Charles E. Walton, Sr., who had joined the company in Brother Lyman's party, and five of the main company — John Robinson, Joseph Barton, Cornelius Decker, Samuel Rowley, Bishop Nielson's son, Jo- seph, and Samuel Bryson.
THE IMPROVEMENT ERA
Taking two wagons as far as the run — one for supplies and one for carrying the boat — these scouts, proceeding as the other two groups had done, except that they took a southeasterly instead of an easterly direction, explored for several days. They crossed and re- crossed box canyons, and finally reached a broad mesa above the San Juan River, about six miles east of its mouth. But this only added to their disappointment, for the river was hemmed in by towering, per- pendicular cliffs that defied descent. The river, gleaming in the sun, its water a silver line that seemed no wider than a man could jump, flowed placidly between its grass-bordered banks.
"It is grand beyond description!" Piatt Lyman gazed upon the river in fascination. "This is the kind of country that gets in a man's blood!"
George Hobbs looked at the new counselor with swift appreciation and knew that in him he had an ally.
"How much longer can we traipse up and down this baffling river without going back to camp for food?" Piatt Lyman asked.
"Until tonight," George answer-
ed. "Our party is too large, Brother Lyman. Too many men have too many opinions. I figure we had bet- ter get back to our boat and tie up at the Hole in the Rock by mid- night."
"Too many opinions — " Piatt's eyes narrowed in thought. "Yes. We had better go back and report."
Py the tenth day of the scout's ab- sence the road crews had built a road from Forty Mile Spring to within three miles of Fifty Mile Spring. Riding out to inspect their progress, Silas voiced his hearty approval. "Keep this up, boys, and brimstone can't stop us!" He looked thoughtfully to the east, "I'll ride out to see if the scouts are coming in," he said.
"Well, tell 'em to get a move on!" the men called after him. "What's the use of a road if there's not any- body to use it?"
Use it, indeed. The lines deepened to form a frown in the leader's face. Why he kept on building the road, he didn't know. It looked like they'd never need a mile of it.
Silas spurred ahead until he was out of sight, then he slowed to a
JUNE 1947
s4$£.<)iwk
walk, and finally stopped his horse. He didn't like the looks of the clouds, nor the feel of the air. And he didn't know why he was so sure that the scouts were coming in. Neither did he know why he was so sure that they had failed to find a way through. He just knew it, and took no time to argue it to himself. His whole concern was what to do about it.
When at last he saw the scouts coming, dragging back in an un- even, sagging line, he gouged the spurs into his horse and went to meet them. "Where's Hobbs?" he asked, seeing at a glance that George was not there.
"He's behind, riding by him- self," Kumen Jones answered. "You'd better join him, Silas."
"I will." Silas shook hands with each man that came up, talked a lit- tle with his counselor, and went on to meet Hobbs.
In a few minutes the scouts were in sight of the road crew. A wel- coming shout greeted them.
"They'll not be so glad to see us when they hear what we've got to say," George Lewis muttered. "I hate to tell them we failed."
"I don't hate to tell 'em!" one of the others cried. "It's time they knew what's what. When they learn that we didn't get as far east as the first bunch did, they'll be right glad to turn their backs on this venture. I only hope we get out of here before the snow flies!" He looked at the clouds, whipping his tired team for one brush of speed that would bring him even with the road crews. "Whoa! Hi, there, snails!" he yelled, pulling up his team. "You might as well drop them instruments of tor- ture. We're goin* home!"
There was an exclamation of dis- belief.
"Honest to man!" he yelled. "Hop in if you want a ride!" He laid the whip to his team again and clattered away.
There was a second of indecision, then tools were flung to the ground, and there was a scramble to get into the wagon. Those who could not climb into the back of it, threw their bedrolls into their own wagons and went to Forty Mile Spring as fast as horseflesh could take them. Only ttiree men were left in camp — the Perkins brothers and Stanford Smith.
{Continued on page 402) 369
HONOR AWARDS
for S^coutmadterd ana S^enior oLeaaert
THE general superintendency of the Young Men's Mutual Improve- ment Association is inaugurating this year a new honor certificate plan for all scoutmasters and Senior Scout leaders in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Each scouting leader is required to complete a leadership program, correlating the spiritual phases of scouting with the standards and practices of the Church.
For each succeeding year after the first, and up to the fifth year, the leader qualifying as an "efficient leader" will receive gold seals to place on the first certificate (pictured below). These seals are imprinted "General Superin- tendency, Y.M.M.I.A. Scout Leaders Honor Award." There is a place for the year to be printed upon the certifi- cate just underneath each seal. When a leader has qualified for any five years, he will receive a special "five year seal" and certificate.
The purpose of this program is not only to spiritualize further the program, but also to keep scouting-trained lead- ership on the job for a longer period of time. There is no greater calling in the Church than working with the youth of the Church!
The Y.M.M.I.A. general superin- tendency and the scouting committee of the Church, send congratulations to the leaders qualifying for the 1946-47 honor certificates:
Scoutmasters :
Nevada: Kelly Harrison, Sidney Simp- son; Idaho: John Keith Hirschi, Ferrell E. Nielsen, George Shiozawa; California: Lorenzo A. Richards, Dean Devenish, Arthur V. Anderson, Thomas Mawson, Hal Greer, Charles N. Green, Milton N. McCoy; Wyoming: Bill Dillon, Jr., Paul Black, Nash Welch, Wilford A. Mower, John Mc- Intire; Utah: Harry L. Bodell, Royal L. Lund, Vern Dunn, Joe Brubaker, LaMar Busath, John Lambert, Maurice A. Jones, Bennie Woodmansee, Malcom B. Ellingson, Claude E. Collier, Jr., Robert Gehring, Jay Bone, Clyde D. Glad, Orville R. Graham.
Senior Scout leaders:
Nevada: Richard Thomas, Henry C. Conrad, Phil Carter; Idaho: James R. Bag- well, Vernon I. Walker, John L. Parker, D. Herman Maughn; Utah: Loren E. Millett, Clyde R. Robinson, Dick Evans, Dean S. Webber, N. Enos Heward, Kay L. Flin-
370
ders, Eldon M. Watson, Bruford S. Rey- nolds, R. Glenn Harris; California: Fred Struiksma, Gilbert M. Allred.
Honor Certificate Requirements for 1947-48
Scoutmasters Performance Check Sheet for 1947-48
1 . Boy Leadership Program
I have met with the bishopric in regular meetings of the ward youth leadership com- mittee and have carried out my part of the Church program to reach all boys with all programs.
2. Churchwide Campaign for Non-use of Liquor and Tobacco
I have had a personal conference with each Scout in my troop encouraging him al- ways to observe the Word of Wisdom.
I have definitely promoted the acquiring of the merit badge in personal health by all eligible Scouts.
3. A Promotion Program
I use suitable impressive exercises in my troop when new boys from the Primary join the troop.
I have made regular contacts with the Primary officers to keep in touch with boys who are about to become Scouts.
I have assigned older Scouts from the troop to assist the Primary guide leader train boys in the Tenderfoot requirements.
4. Reading Course Book
Sequoya, by Catherine Cate Coblentz I have read this book.
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I have definitely promoted the reading of this book by the Scouts of the troop.
5. Theme Project
I' have used the program as outlined in the Scout Supplement for 1947-48 as sched- uled.
6. Camping
I have followed the instructions as printed in this Scout Supplement regarding proper observance of Sunday in camp.
7. Advancement
I have made sure that all Scouts have been checked, before advancing from rank to rank, in the requirements of duty to God.
Senior Leader Honor Certificate Requirements for 1947-48
1 . Youth Leadership Program
I have met with the bishopric in regular meetings of the ward youth leadership com- mittee and have carried out my part of this Church program to reach all boys with all programs.
2. Churchwide Campaign for Non-use of Liquor and Tobacco
I have had a personal conference with each Senior Scout in my unit, encouraging him always to observe the Word of Wis- dom.
I have definitely promoted the acquiring of the merit badge in personal health by all Senior Scouts.
No Senior Scout has represented my unit in interstake athletic contests who, to my knowledge, is a user of tobacco or alco- hol.
3. Carry-on Exercises
I have made regular contacts with the Boy Scout leader in my ward to keep in touch with boys who are about to become Senior Scouts.
Impressive exercises are conducted for every new Senior Scout who becomes af- filiated with my unit.
4. The Rounded-out Man
I have used the material in the M.I.A. (Concluded on page 399)
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THE IMPROVEMENT ERA
WESTWARD wltk the Saints
EXCERPTS FROM THE HITHERTO UNPUBLISHED JOURNAL OF
^J^rorace ~J\. \AJhitne
1
ONLY KNOWN PICTURE OF ORSON K. WHITNEY
Part III
Tuesday the 1st of June [1847] — Beautiful morning; the sun rose cloudless and beautiful — We started this morning at 9, still traveling over a desert, sandy road, and pursuing a W. N. W. course — we stopt at 1 1 a.m. near the river to bait [feed the horses], having come 4}/2 miles — There is a little ravine here into which we turned our horses as the grass in it is quite green and luxuriant — We again started at 1 p.m. traveling over nearly the same kind of ground, interspersed here and there with shrubs & encamped at 34 Past 6 p.m. on the banks of the river, in a semi-circle, opposite Ft. Laramie, having come 12 miles. This is situated in an extensive val- ley, apparently \\/2 miles from the river, environed on all sides, except that next the river, by a lofty range of bluffs, while in the distance can be seen to the s. west, the dusky outlines of the "Black Hills," tower- ing far above the surrounding scen- ery— Not having visited the Fort I am not able at this time to give a description of it, but Porter, who went over and returned this evening, says that it is built in an oblong shape, of dirt & surrounded by a wall, being connected therewith on
JUNE 1947
the inside — There are here at this time 18 men composing the inhabi- tants, mostly Frenchmen. ... At this plaice the river is divided into 2 branches, one running each side of the fort in an eastern direction — the one running on the south side is called the Laramie fork of the Platte — Just as we arrived here, 2 brethren came from the Fort to visit us — - They had come here from Pueblo 2 weeks since — they had been (three families of them) 15 days on the journey, having come with ox teams, a distance of 250 miles. . . . They further told us that the soldier brethren at Pueblo, who went there as invalids, had mostly recovered from their sickness & were intending to start from there the 1st of June to come to this place, join our body and proceed on the journey with us to the west. The brethren spoken about are Robert Crow and his son-in-law, whose name I did not learn. They had managed to winter their cattle on dry grass, at Pueblo. . . . About 3 weeks ago a band of Crow Indians came to the Fort & took all the horses
away belonging to the inhabitants — This was done in the day time im- mediately before the eyes of the guard they had on watch at the time, who of course could not resist them, they being so numerous. . . . Presi- dent Young called the captains of 10s together this evening, to impart to them the nature of the business tomorrow, which was that 2 men should be selected out of each 10, to act as a standing guard, to watch the cattle, etc., while we remain here. . . . We found wood in abundance at this place as it is growing on all sides. . . . By my computation the distance between us and Winter Quarters is 540J/£ miles.
Wednesday, the 2nd. Pleasant morning and bids fair to be a warm day — The Twelve and some others went over the river this morning to make arrangements to procure the ferry boat — Thomas Brown, Orson and F. Pomeroy went out of our ten to guard cattle this forenoon & I alone this afternoon, Orson having gone to the Fort. While out I noticed ( Concluded on page 407 )
Fort Laramie, Wyoming, as it appeared about the time of the pioneer journey, 1847
371
DENTENMIHL
HOW THE DESERT WAS TAMED
V
\ n
H oLesson for ^Jodau and *Jt
Part VI Chapter 10 — Self-Government
The pioneers were a heterogeneous group. They had come from many countries, and had different backgrounds of culture. Yankees, Southerners, British, and Scandina- vians made up the bulk of the people. There were others, a few, from the whole civilized horizon.
It had been so, even from the organization of the Church. Visitors, noting the mixture of people, marveled at the peace in Mormon communities. Joseph Smith was asked how he managed to govern such a variety of person- alities. His answer was prompt and decisive: "I teach the people correct principles, and they govern themselves." (John Taylor, Journal of Discourses, 1 0 : 57-58. )
The principle implied in this reply governed the pioneers in all their affairs.
It was understood that they had gathered in the valleys of the Rocky Mountains to worship God according to the restored and revealed gospel of Jesus Christ. The doctrine of that gospel was their supreme law, and under it they dealt with every issue of life. Human laws were instituted to secure order in temporal affairs, and to' satisfy non-Mor- mon emigrants who were building upon the foundations laid by the pioneers.
Among the pioneers, a true democracy ruled. The officers of the Church were nomi- nated by superior officers, thus the evils of of- fice seeking was eliminated. But, the people accepted or rejected the nominations. Later, at regular stated intervals, these officers, from Brigham Young to the least in importance, were again presented to the people for a sus- taining vote. If a person failed to be sus- tained, he could not act; and in fact was auto- matically deprived of his office.
That this was not a perfunctory matter is well known. On several occasions Brigham Young, as the President of the Church, made nominations which were not accepted by the people, and other nominations were therefore made. The will of the people, under God, ruled the Church. The law of free agency among men must not be abrogated in the least degree.
372
omorrow
Therefore, the following episode could happen: Bishop E. T. Woolley had, in the opinion of those presiding over him, made some minor administrative errors. Brigham Young attended a meeting in Bishop Wool- ley's ward, and took occasion to rebuke the bishop. Then he added, in substance: "Now, don't go and apostatize because of that which I have said here this evening." Bishop Wool- ley answered with emphasis, "No, President Young, I will not apostatize, for this Church is just as much mine as it is yours." That answer was the key to the self-government of the pioneers.
Tt is a mistaken understanding of pioneer
history, to hold that the Church leaders were dictators. By some unfriendly and un- informed writers, Brigham Young has been held to be a tyrant in dealing with his people. Nothing could be further from the truth. Strong men have strong convictions; but among the pioneers the restraint from the will of the people was always felt. If the people followed their leaders, it was because they desired to do so, not because of any coercion.
This democracy in government was empha- sized by the fact that such officers as the Church needed were drawn from the rank and file of the people. There was no class professionally trained for the ministry, no clergy in the usual sense; all worthy men held the priesthood and might be called to serve for an indefinite period in a Church office. Thus, the shoemaker around the corner might be the bishop of the ward in which the banker resided. There was a democracy in leadership scarcely known elsewhere. But, the positions were not for life. Changes in office occurred. Thus, many would have the privilege and ex- perience that accompany administraitve la- bors. The government of the pioneers was a real democracy.
Back of this form of government lay trust in one another. When men learn to believe in their neighbors, the way to community suc- cess is well laid, and may be easily traveled.
Nevertheless, the people were held closely together by administrative organization. Ter- ritorially the Church was divided into "stakes" — few in number in the early years. Each stake in turn was divided into wards, the ultimate units of the fully organized
THE IMPROVEMENT ERA
By 2>r. JoL ^4, Wdk
i5oe
i COUNCIL OF > TWELVE
Church, perhaps eight or ten in each stake. The stakes were presided over by presidents, each assisted by two counselors. Each ward had a bishop with two counselors. Within this skeleton organization everything needed for the welfare of the people was accomplished.
It was of course understood that those sus- tained for official positions, were under the obligations of conforming to the regulations of the Church. The right of the free agent, were he a member of the Church, could not be used in upsetting the beliefs or practices which had been officially accepted by the people at large.
Under these arrangements an ease in gov- ernment developed which had scarcely ever been seen before. Men were told to come and go. They were "called," but they always had the right to say yes or no.
This participation by the people in their government was really a form of self-gov- ernment, in which all restraint came from the gospel law. It had an effect upon every man in his private affairs. He had to learn to gov- ern himself. The doctrine of self-government built strong characters in all their affairs.
The place of woman among the pioneers illustrates the rights of all members of the Church and of the state. When the pioneers entered the Salt Lake valley, much freedom was denied woman in the United States. Her position of dependence on the man was every- where understood. Yet the pioneers found time, amidst their pioneer toil, to give women full political suffrage. Thus it happened that a pioneer woman, Seraph Young, was the first woman in the United States to cast law- fully a ballot on a political issue.
It was these principles that made for a harmonious development of the affairs of the pioneers, though the settlements were far apart, and the people, of many origins.
This sense of personal freedom coupled with personal responsibility, made the con- quest of the desert more easy of accomplish- ment. To the spirit of self-government may be traced some of the best in the story of the conquest of the Great Salt Lake basin.
It may be that future conditions in the world will depend upon the acceptance or rejection of the type of self-government that brought victory to the pioneers.
JUNE 1947
Chapter 1 1 — The Source of Power
'T'he accomplishments of the pioneers were epoch-making. They were victorious over desert difficulties and hardships. The con- quest was made possible by the use of the simple, well-understood principles already discussed. The principles were as threads woven into a pattern of beauty.
A main question remains, however, to be answered. The principles leading to success in the pioneer endeavors were not new. They had long been known, in many ventures, yet only occasionally had they been put into prac- tice. What cementing power held the pio- neers together, and brought them to the suc- cessful use of these conquering principles? Why did they really remain in the desert, when gold beckoned in California, and when humid lands, more easily cultivated were to be had in the East?
It would have been an easy matter for them to have retraced their steps, as the western trails became more frequented. And gold has always drawn men to its source. But, they remained. That is the most significant part of the pioneer story.
Brigham Young's call to the people when Nauvoo was left behind, explains best why they were able to undertake the conquest of the desert: "Attention, the camps of Israel! I propose to move forward on our journey. Let all who wish follow me; but I want none to come unless they will obey the command- ments and statutes of the Lord. Cease, there- fore, your contentions and your backbiting, nor must there be swearing or profanity in our camps. Whoever finds anything must seek diligently to return it to the owner. The Sabbath day must be hallowed. In our camps, prayers should be offered both morning and evening. If you do these things, faith will abide in your hearts; and the angels of God will go with you, even as they went with the children of Israel when Moses led them from the land of Egypt." They were on the Lord's errand.
Four days after their arrival, in the Salt Lake valley, July 28, 1847, the site of the temple of the Lord was selected. Where Brig- ham Young that day thrust his cane into the soil is today the place of the cornerstone of the mighty building. It is a picture to stir human emotions. The valley lay bare. Not a human habitation was there. Age-old silence reigned. The pioneers had not yet a habita- tion for themselves. Their first act was to provide for a house of the Lord! Faith ruled in all they did.
(Continued on page 404)
/'
V
J
373
Wyoming-/?^
wa
ormon
The historic North Platte River near Torrington, Wyo- ming, as it looks at present.
Site of the Platte River crossing near Casper, Wyoming, where Mormon Ferry was built, June 1847.
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a mighty people, bound together by a religious ideal which they sought to cultivate and worship. The Mor- mon pioneers were to immortalize this roadway by undertaking the greatest trek in history. They were to add to its name, "Mormon Trail," and leave on the plains and moun- tain passes of Wyoming landmarks and shrines cherished today as an integral part of that historic march to Utah.
Along the route of this famous trail were natural barriers. The trail wound through arid wastes. Deep rivers blocked its course, and high mountain ranges rose like giants in its path. The heat of a mid- summer sun beat down with torrid intensity, and stifling dust beset the weary pioneers, but by the strength of their arms and the valor of their hearts, many of these difficulties were overcome. The trail witnessed many thousands of Latter-day Saints reach their destination in the valley of the mountains. It witnessed the rush of gold seekers to California,
From the Delaware Indian lan- guage Maughwauwama, Wyo- ming derives her name. It means "large plains." But the topography of this section also boasts some prominent mountain ranges. To the east rise the Black Hills, made dark by scrub cedar and pine. To the north stand the lofty Big Horns, so named because of the famed big- horn sheep that roam over the steep slopes. To the south and southwest extend the Laramie Range, among which rises Laramie Peak, a famous landmark of early emigrant days. Stretching westward, where land and sky seem to meet, are mountain peaks and passes of the Wind River, Teton, and Shoshone ranges. In- deed, with the happy intermingling of mountain and plain, beautiful valleys scooped out of boundless prairies, crystal streams that flow from their secret sources on some mountaintop to water a thirsty des- ert spot — it is little wonder that this virgin land of yesterday should hold a lure and enchantment for early trappers and explorers as they came west to map and eventually to guide 374
Some of the in- scriptions found on Register Cliffs, near Guernsey, . Wyo- ming.
the footsteps of those who were to follow.
Geography played a generous part also in giving to Wyoming some of the most famous trails and land- marks in history. It lay directly in the pathway of the vast tide of west- ward migration. Hence, east, west, north, and south, dim trails marked the land, but the road toward the set- ting sun was destined to become the most historic in the world, the Old Oregon Trail. Along this path, which later became a broad highway, the vista of the west opened its doors to trappers, explorers, missionaries, homeseekers, and there was to fol- low along its course the migration of
the march of an army to Utah, the hoofbeats of the pony express, and the rumblings of the stage coaches were heard along its course.
By the side of this famous route in Wyoming, favorite camp sites were founded. It is to these history spots of yesterday that we glance in retrospect and follow along with the Mormon pioneers as they made their way to the west.
"TpHE heyday of the fur trapper was drawing to a close. The beaver, that had represented the wealth of the western wilderness, was becom- ing scarce. Mountain men who had made that epoch famous, were, by
THE IMPROVEMENT ERA
Pi
Loneerd to
UtaL
necessity, turning to other pursuits. Time was ripe for the establish- ment of a fort to capture the trade in buffalo hides. The spot ideally fitted by nature for this venture was the converging of the North Platte and Laramie rivers in what is now east- ern Wyoming. Hence, in 1 834, two western men, Robert Campbell and William Sublette, erected the first fur trading post in what is now Wyoming. This fort was the begin- ning of what later became Old Fort Laramie, named in honor of Jacques la Ramie, a French-Canadian trap- per of the early 1 820's.
No other fortification on the west- ward trek enjoyed such a prolonged and interesting history as did this fur trader's post. Strategically lo- cated on the Oregon Trail, it was the only white settlement for hun- dreds of miles and became a verita- ble capital of this western wilderness. First as a fur trader's post, then as
By HAZEL NOBLE BOYACK
a military garrison, Fort Laramie served as an outstretched hand, giv- ing aid to parties destitute of food, camps stricken with the cholera. Weary travelers used it as a refuge to obtain a few days' rest, and to seek food and fresh stock for the unfinished journey. At its height of usefulness, Fort Laramie contained sixty buildings. All roads led through this gateway to the West. To the doors of the old fort, in
One of the deep- est cuts along the entire route of the Old Oregon Trail, near Guernsey, Wyoming.
"Old Bedlam," Fort Laramie, Wyo- ming. Built in 1849 and famous for its social life during the Fort's history.
Part of the cob- blestone wall, built by Latter-day Saints at Fort Bridger in 1855.
This monument stands at the base of Register Cliffs, south of Guernsey, Wyoming.
1847, came the vanguard of the Mormon pioneers to the Salt Lake valley. President Brigham Young and his company of 143 men, 3 women, and 2 children, had left Winter Quarters in April and had followed along the north bank of the Platte River. In the vicinity of Fort Laramie, they crossed the river and camped at the fort for three days. Elder Orson Pratt mounted the tower over the entrance and esti- mated the latitude and longitude of the fort. He also approximated the height of Laramie Peak that rose di- rectly west about forty miles. At the fort, blacksmithing was done and supplies purchased for the journey. For years the Latter-day Saints used the fort as a half-way station be- tween Salt Lake valley and the Mis- souri River. In 1890, the historic old
JUNE 1947
fort was abandoned as a military post and sold at auction. Not until 1938, by legislative action, did this historic shrine achieve the status of a national monument.
13 eyond the Old Fort, about a day's travel by ox team, rose Register Cliff, so named because of the many hundreds of. names inscribed on its chalk-like surface. This place was a popular camping ground. At the base of the cliff is a burial ground dedicated to "Unknown Pioneers' Graves." The waters of the tranquil North Platte flow gently by this spot, and on the banks of this stream near-by is a monument where once stood a pony express station.
Following along a gravel bed for a few miles, the Pioneers came to Warm Springs, a place where water about 70° F. gushes forth from a rocky cavern on the hillside. This spring was known as the "Emi- grants' Laundry Tub." Here camps were made while women took time out to do the urgent family wash- ings. This camp site is mentioned in the diaries of the Mormon vanguard company.
Another historic spot around
which much interest gathered was
{Continued on page 408)
375
sjvivie
^J^iahliahh
IN CHURCH HISTORY
In June 1829, Joseph Smith, Jr., re- moved from Harmony, Pa., to the home of Peter Whitmer, Sr., at Fayette, Seneca County, New York, where he resided until finishing the Book of Mormon translation.
Later this month, the Witnesses of the Book of Mormon were chosen. The Angel Moroni showed the plates to the Three Witnesses, and the Prophet showed them to the Eight Witnesses.
During the month of June 1829, Peter, James, and John restored the Melchize- dek Priesthood to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery.
The revelation (D. & C. 18) "mak- ing known the calling of Twelve Apos- tles in these last days" was received in June 1829.
The first conference of the Church was held at Fayette, in June 1 830. Here the Spirit was poured out in a miracu- lous manner.
The revelation now found in the first part of the Book of Moses in the Pearl of Great Price was received in June 1830.
Joseph Smith and about thirty other elders were called by revelation to go to Missouri and preach the gospel on the way, June 7, 1831. (D. &. C. 52.)
A revelation, showing the order of the Kirtland Stake of Zion, was re- ceived June 4, 1 833.
Early in the month of June 1837, Apostles Heber C. Kimball and Orson Hyde were set apart by the First Presi- dency of the Church to go on a mission to England. A few days later Willard Richards was called to accompany them. On the 13th, the trio, which had been joined by Joseph Fielding, left Kirtland on their missions to England. This was the first non-North American mission activity.
Forty-one Saints sailed from Liver- pool June 6, 1840, marking the begin- ning of the gathering from Europe.
At a general conference held in Man- chester, England, June 1, 1842, 8,265 officers and members of the Church were represented.
Addison Pratt baptized Ambrose Alexander, a white man, on the island of Tubuai, as the first convert to Mor- monism on the Pacific Islands, June 16, 1844.
The martyrdom of Joseph and Hy- rum Smith, the Prophet and the Patri- arch, took place June 27, 1844, at Carthage.
376
Amos Fielding who returned to Nau- voo during the month of June 1846, counted 902 westbound wagons in three days. By this, some idea may be formed of the number of teams on the road at that time.
Captain James Allen of the United States Army arrived at Mount Pisgah and had an interview with Elder Wil- ford Woodruff and President William Huntington and council June 26, 1846, relative to the formation of the Mor- mon Battalion. On the 30th, Captain Allen met President Young at Council Bluffs relative to this matter.
The Pioneers arrived at Fort La- ramie June 1, 1847. They were joined here by seventeen Mississippi Saints who had wintered at Pueblo.
Captain Brown's invalided detach- ment of the Mormon Battalion reached Fort Laramie June 16, 1847, and con- tinued westward the next day, intent upon catching the Pioneers.
The Pioneers crossed the South Pass of the Rockies June 27, 1847.
On June 28, 1847, the Pioneers met James Bridger who tried to discourage the Saints. He said that he would give one thousand dollars for the first ear of corn produced in the Salt Lake valley.
Henry W. Bigler and others of the Mormon Battalion, then stationed at San Diego, cleared the first yard for the molding of brick in California June 29, 1847.
Samuel Brannan, on his way from California, met the Pioneers at Green River June 30, 1847, with news from the Saints who went out on the ship Brooklyn the year previous.
A t the beginning of June 1 848, Presi- dent Brigham Young broke camp at the Elkhorn and started for the Salt Lake valley with a company of 1,229, and 397 wagons. He was followed by Heber C. Kimball's company of 662, and 226 wagons, and Willard Richards' group of 526, who were traveling in 169
wagons. The last wagons left Winter Quarters July 3, leaving that place al- most a ghost town.
The cricket invasion of the Salt Lake valley took place in June 1848. The grain was saved when the sea gulls came and devoured the crickets.
Captain James Brown entered into negotiations with Miles Goodyear, June 6, 1848, for the- purchase of all the lands, claims, and improvements, owned by Goodyear, by virtue of a Spanish grant. Brown paid $3,000 in Mormon Battalion money to Goodyear, and soon settled on the Weber. This is the beginning of the settlement of Ogden, Utah, by the Church.
The first number of The Deseret News was published in Salt Lake City, June 15, 1850. Willard Richards was the editor.
Apostles Amasa M. Lyman and Charles C. Rich, with about five hun- dred persons from Utah, arrived at San Bernardino, California, in June 1851, for the purpose of making a settlement.
Elder George Q. Cannon commenced to baptize natives in the district of Kula, on the island of Maui, Hawaii, June 22, 1851. This was the commencement of a great missionary work on that island. A few natives had previously been bap- tized on the island of Hawaii, and one or more in Honolulu.
Apostle Franklin D. Richards suc- ceeded Samuel W. Richards as presi- dent of the British Mission in June 1 854. His letter of appointment authorized him "to preside over all the conferences and all the affairs of the Church in the British Islands and adjacent countries. This is the beginning of what has since come to be known as the European Mission. At one time it embraced, in addition to all the European missions, the Church organizations in Africa, Australia, and India.
Thomas S. Smith and company moved to their Fort Limhi ( Idaho ) site of settlement June 18, 1855.
Stephen A. Douglas, in a political speech, delivered at Springfield, Illinois, June 12, 1857, characterized Mormon- ism as a loathsome ulcer of the body politic, and recommended that Con- gress should apply the knife and cut it out.
L. W. Powell of Kentucky and Ben McCullough of Texas, sent as peace commissioners in the Utah War dispute of 1857-58, arrived in Salt Lake City June 7, 1858. Soon peace was restored.
Logan, Cache County, Utah, was first settled in June 1859.
The first company of Latter-day Saint immigrants who came all the way from the Missouri river by rail arrived in Ogden, June 25, 1869. Elias Morris was their leader.
THE IMPROVEMENT ERA
AWARD WINNERS
JUNE 1947
To bring forth the best of modern talent in this centennial year, The Improvement Era and the M.I. A. offered an award for a suit- able three-act play, one-act play, story, speech, and song. Response to this offer was unusually large, and the various boards of judges have had difficulty in choosing the one most suitable for the occasion. How- ever, all decisions have been made and are announced herewith.
The most suitable three-act drama was written by Nathan Hale and his wife, Ruth. They are known throughout the Church for their play, It Shall Keep Thee, which is printed in the current Book of Plays. Formerly drama directors of the Oquirrh Stake, they are now in Cali- fornia continuing their Church and dramatic work, and they are asso- ciated with the Penthouse Players of Pasadena. The play which was given the award is called What Doth It Profit and deals with pioneer life in St. George. This play has been successfully produced by Church groups in California this spring and will be presented at June conference. The one-act play is "The Rose- wood Piano" by Alice Morrey Bailey. It deals with the exodus of the pioneers from Nauvoo, and all who have read it have been thrilled with its stirring drama. Mrs. Bailey is a resident of Salt Lake City.
"Eddie Had a Sweet Tooth," by Estelle Webb Thomas of Shiprock, New Mexico, was adjudged the out- standing story. Dealing with the problems, trials, heartaches, and joys of a pioneer family, its simple, sweet telling makes it an unusually understanding tale.
HpHE speech chosen by the judges was "The Value of Our Pioneer Inheritance" by Robert Earl Knotts. He is a student at the University of Utah and also speech director of the University Ward, Emigration Stake.
Much difficulty was encountered in the music field, for there were so many entries, covering many differ- ent types of songs. There were youth songs, rally songs, popular songs, hymns, marches, and so on. Finally, the judges decided that it must be a tie, as two songs were equally good in their fields.
Beth Hanson Moore of Portland,
Oregon, entered three songs in the
award and was adjudged one of the
{Concluded on page 400)
377
si THE SPOKEN WORD
By RICHARD L EVANS
TLTeard from the "Crossroads of the West" with the Salt Lake A A Tabernacle Choir and Organ over a nationwide radio net- work through KSL and the Columbia Broadcasting System every Sunday at 11:30 a.m. Eastern Daylight Saving Time, 9:30 a.m. Central Time, 8:30 a.m. Mountain Time, and 7:30 a.m. Pacific Time.
\Jn <=d.ii/lna <Jri
9
''orever
VUku J^ln ^rd ^jrorbiddt
TThere is no compromising with death. We may dif- fer much in our preparedness to meet it, but not in our ability to avoid it. And the prospect would be dark indeed except for the event which this day com- memorates: the return from death to life of Jesus the Christ, the Son of God, the "first fruits of the resur- rection," by whose triumph over death all mankind are assured a like coming forth from the grave. This brings us face to face with these uncompromising facts: Either this event as witnessed and recorded in history is true or it is not. Either men are immortal or they are not. Either we ourselves shall pass through death to life and shall come forth again by resurrection or we shall not. Such issues are not to be set aside or explained away. They are true, or they are false. Of course, we are free to believe what we want to believe. It is quite reasonable that men should be reluctant to accept what they cannot explain, and it is certainly true that no man now living can explain the process of res- urrection. But the fact that there are some things the Lord God has not told us would be a miserable excuse for not accepting what he has told us. And who is there among us to explain how life came to be in the first place — and who is there to deny that we live? There will always be unanswered questions — questions that rise upon questions as hills rise upon hills on an eternal horizon. And if we should have to give up everything that man cannot explain, we should have to give up much indeed, including life itself. But it is fortunate that neither truth nor God is limited by man's understanding. If they were, we might expect nature and the universe to be in the same chaos as are man's own affairs. Fortunately, they are not. That we should live forever is surely no greater miracle than that we should live at all — -for the same God who gave us life here, has also given us life hereafter — us, and all men, and all those we love and cherish. And so we accept this day in recognition of the reality that if man die he shall rise again. "... Believest thou this? . . . Yea, Lord: I believe " (John 11:26, 27.)
en
HThere is a statement accredited to Benjamin Franklin which says, "Sin is not hurtful because it is for- bidden, but it is forbidden because it is hurtful."1 Per- haps few truths are more important for youth to learn than this. Young people sometimes profess to feel that instructions and counsels and restrictions are arbitrarily imposed upon them; that there is no basic reason for such precautions except that parents and other elder advisers seek to saddle the standards of their generation on the succeeding generation. Super- ficially this may sometimes seem to be so, because the outward things of life do change: foods and fashions, language and literature, customs and conveniences. But all the rules are not arbitrary rules. There are some things which in the experience of all men of all times have proved to be degrading and ultimately destructive of character, of peace of mind, of happi- ness in life, and there is no escaping the consequences of setting them aside. Such timeless verities are not moved by the passing parade nor altered at the com- mands of convenience. They therefore are laws, com- mandments, if you choose to call them such, and not merely arbitrary prohibitions. They are basic to the nature of man and inscribed in holy writ as the word and will of God to his children. And so we would say to youth everywhere: When parents thus counsel and caution, they aren't trying to spoil your fun or "cramp your style," as you sometimes seem to suppose. They aren't forbidding merely to be forbidding. They know the road and the rules; and in their way and in their wisdom, they are only trying to pass on what many men in many generations have tragically proved that: "Sin is not hurtful because it is forbidden, but it is forbidden because it is hurtful."1 Trust them when they so counsel and caution, for they are speaking out of their great love for you and out of their concern for your unblemished happiness.
"Revised
—April 6, 1947.
]Poor Richard. 1739
— April 20, 1947.
378
THE IMPROVEMENT ERA
TEMPLE BQUHRE
1A& Wen Pray*
'T'he needs of our lives are many — but they are per- haps not so many as we sometimes permit our- selves to suppose. Like the children we are, we are often inclined to pray for things we think are essential to our happiness, but which, in fact, may have little to do with our happiness. As do some children, we sometimes seem to want what we want regardless of the consequences to us and regardless of who else has to go without to give it to us. We are often in- clined to pray for our own particular benefit, excluding thoughts of others, and to pray for things whether we deserve them, or not. And sometimes what we pray for, others are also praying for; and it may be some- thing that both cannot have; and thus, in a sense, we pray against each other — as in a contest when both we and our opponent pray to win, and both cannot win — at least not the same thing. Men sometimes pray for "favorable" weather conditions, often forgetting that what is favorable to one may be damaging to an- other. We pray earnestly at times, and rightly so from our point of view, for long continuing life for someone whose purpose in life may have been accom- plished and who may have earned the right to move on to other scenes, and for whom, in the plans of Providence, death would be a blessed release. Thus, there is often much of confusion and counter purpose in the prayers of men, such as only the wisdom and the patience of God can reconcile and bring to order and justice — and that he does and will continue to do so, we doubt not. It was Paul who wrote: ". . . for we know not what we should pray for as we ought . . .'n which is true of many of us. There should be more in prayer than fervent desire. There should be also gratitude, trust, and, if necessary, resignation: "Thy will be done. . . ." Unless we concede this, we set our wisdom against the wisdom of God, in which case a prayer may become as the coaxing or teasing of a child — as a demand insisted upon regardless of con- sequences. "Our Father which art in heaven, Hallow- ed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven."*
* Revised iRomans 8:26 2Matthew 6:9. 10
Respite all adverse elements, the past century or so has been one of profound unfoldment of glorious truths. The mind of man has been permitted by the Almighty to penetrate what to us have heretofore been unknown realms. But amid all this there is much need for man's humility. Because we have learned a little of what happens and a little of why it happens, we may make the mistake of supposing that we know more than we do1. Knowing a little something of the laws and using a little something of the forces of the uni- verse, we would do well to remember always that we are but the timid discoverers and not the creators thereof. Actually it would seem that we are little nearer to answering some of the unanswered ques- tions than was Job, so many centuries ago, when the Lord God spake to him out of the whirlwind and said: "Who is this that darkeneth counsel by words with- out knowledge? . . . Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? declare if thou hast under- standing. . . . When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy? . . . Hast thou entered into the springs of the sea? . . . Have the gates of death been opened unto thee? . . . Hast thou per- ceived the breadth of the earth? declare if thou knowest it all. . . . Canst thou lift up thy voice to the clouds, that abundance of waters may cover thee? Canst thou send lightnings, that they may go, and say unto thee, Here we are? Who hath put wisdom in the inward parts? or who hath given understanding to the heart? . . . Who provideth for the raven his food? . . . Gavest thou the goodly wings unto the peacocks? . , . Hast thou given the horse strength? . . . Doth the hawk fly by thy wisdom, and stretch her wings toward the south? Doth the eagle mount up at thy command? . . . Then Job answered the Lord, and said, I know that thou canst do every thing, and that no thought can be withholden from thee . . . therefore have I uttered that I under- stood not; things too wonderful for me, which I knew not."1 Surely we are much as the child who proudly proclaims his accomplishment, while a kindly parent looks on, knowing that someday he will come to wis- dom. The greater our knowledge, the greater must be our humility before God, and the more we must realize how little we know of the great unknown.
— April 13, 1947.
iSee Job. chapters 38, 39, and 42 Copyright. 1947.
-April 27, 1947.
JUNE 1947
379
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hat fun lies ahead for you this summer, with a bit of leisure, a shady nook, a questing mind, and a worth-while book! Remember, I said a worth-while book because the fact that material is bound between covers is no sign that the book was worth print- ing, and certainly it does not mean it is worth putting the thoughts inside your head. In truth, too many books find their way into the market these days, and like some other items that are up for sale, they are not worth the price or the time that would be required to read them.
There are some books, both old and new, that will invite your heart and mind to a new way of life, and these deserve your companionship. What shall you read? That's a question that can have no final answer, for what is meat and drink to one person may spell sickness to another, in much the same manner that not all foods are equally good for all people. The book may be good, but if it is not good for you, you shouldn't read it.
It's hard in a letter to tell you what to look for in the books that you read, but let's make a beginning anyway. In the first place, every book you read should make a contribution to your everyday living. It may be by way of fun, for information or inspiration, for beauty or as a way of escape. If the book combines several or all of these qualities, it will prove to be that much the better.
If you read for fun, you will need to choose carefully, because some of the books that are alleged fun tear down rather than build up. One delightful book of recent months will illustrate what I mean. The title itself is invit- ing : We Shook the Family Tree, and the author is Hildegarde Dolson. This is the kind of book that you Gleaners will especially appreciate since it deals with episodes just as you yourself might have experienced. For sheer fun and ludicrous situations the book will prove a riot for most of you, and something
380
else makes the book valuable, and that is the feeling of family solidarity that it
gives.
Another book that is interesting and stimulating at the same time is Harps in the Wind by Carol Ryrie Brink, whose book Caddie Woodlawn you may have read when you were a Bee Hive or a Junior Girl. This, her latest book, is for adults. It is a particularly good book for the centennial year since it features the refreshing Hutchinson family who lived in New England from the time when our people were living in Nauvoo and later. Some of the causes the Hutchinsons championed were some our Church has been interested in championing also: temperance, aboli- tion, equality of women.
The Hutchinsons had a great deal of fun, too, going about singing through- out New England where most of the early members of our Church origi- nated. Some of the people who were interesting and important in their day are equally important in ours : Charles Dickens, and if you haven't read some of his books, try him out — what does it matter that they were written a long time ago; if the books are new to you, as someone wisely said, it doesn't mat- ter when they were written, they are still new books; Henry Ward Beecher, whose speeches are still considered among the best in the United States; P. T. Barnum, who made such a "go" of the circus — and wanted the Hutchin- sons to sing in it; Jenny Lind whom he brought to America. So Harps in the Wind stirs the imagination, gives the mind something to consider, as well as being fun.
^Towadays, for the most part, novels are disappointing. They present too frequently a distorted view of life. Novelists have the false idea that they must be sensational in order to be popular. If I were to choose a novel to read, I should turn to some of the older books, those that have been proved by time. That is one sure test of great literature — that a book will live. So if you are going to read a novel, don't go to the best seller list. A best seller is, as one critic stated, "more perishable than butter." Pick up a George Eliot
CAUTION By O. F. Ursenbach
Tf men would cease blindly to grope, * But wisdom's course with care pursue; Add good sense to their faith and hope, Disaster they could oft eschew. Though butterflies men vainly chase, Grim hazards courting as they go, Best that they fence the precipice Than have an ambulance below.
novel or one by Charles Dickens or Mary O'Hara.
One idea that must be constantly held in mind is that we must learn to discriminate in our reading. As Latter- day Saints you have learned that it is bad to smoke and drink, to use tea and coffee, and to do other things that are equally bad, but you must remember that there are others who do not believe like you concerning these matters; therefore, these actions will be incorpo- rated in their books. They, on the other hand, may have thought deeply about some things that you have neglected to consider. The entire book cannot be discarded because coffee and tea are mentioned, but we must also not accept what the author takes for granted. While we cannot condemn him be- cause he does not accept the com- mandment concerning these things, neither can we accept his idea- — be- cause we have been taught better.
I didn't want to go into a regular song and dance about your reading, but you should consider it carefully. You are concerned about the companions you choose to make your intimate friends; be just as careful about the books you read. Ernest Dimnet made the statement, "Don't read good books; life is too short; read only the best." I commend that idea to you.
And do have fun this summer — and always — with the books that you se- lect. Here are a few to begin with — and then ask your friends, and the librarian, read the reviews in magazines, and decide what others you want to add for yourselves: The Magnificent Barb by Dana Farella, a delightful horse story with which you will have fun; A Slave Was Born by Shirley Graham, which is the heroic biography of Frederick Douglass; A Star Pointed North by Edmund Fuller is a dramatic novel dealing with the same character, Frederick Douglass.
It will be an interesting experiment to read these two together and learn how a novelist and a biographer re- semble and differ from each other. If you read / Wanted to See by Borghild Dahl (and if you didn't, why don't you read it now? ) you will be glad to know that she is having another book pub- lished this September. It is titled Karen and deals with a Norwegian girl who migrated to this country in the 1880's and how, starting out as a servant in the Middle West, became important in the region.
I surely hope that you will have a lot of fun meeting the new and old in the good books that you will read.
Affectionately yours,
THE IMPROVEMENT ERA
Vo BRIGHAM YOUN&^-Udi
Brigham Young is dead, many people say, but those who say this have never known him or experienced the wisdom of his coun- sel; they have denied themselves the reading of his sermons and the warmth of his spirit; they have never gazed upon the great city he founded or felt his presence in the unique house that so long was his home or read the epitaph upon his grave.
I want to thank him for the moral strength he has given me in times of crisis and the example he has been to me in right living. I write not alone for myself but give voice to those of my kindred, who, in follow- ing Brigham Young, lost their lives upon the great American plains; for those of my kindred who, surviving that journey, battled for existence under his leadership in the valleys of the mountains; and I write also for their numerous progeny who now find happiness and plenty in those same valleys. In the memoirs of. the living and the dead of my kinfolk I find a steadfast devotion to Brigham Young befitting a worthy servant of the Most High.
Strange how well I know him! Even in this distant land of Alaska I have almost as clear an image of his face as of that of my own father, and I have a far better knowledge of his thoughts and feelings than I have of most of my contemporaries. I know him, and the knowing is good.
I have stood on the site of the old Nauvoo Temple, overlooking the re- mains of a city once dear to him, and have relived the rich experiences and trying scenes enacted there.
I have traveled with mighty speed the great plains he traversed; while my body reclined in the comfort of modern conveyances, my mind was with him in a covered wagon, mov- ing with slow laboriousness over the muddy prairie and dusty plains.
I wept silent tears while the dead were buried at Winter Quarters and shivered in the sod huts under the cold blasts of a plains winter.
I shall never forget the kindliness and patience and counsel of Brigham Young during that first year upon the plains. They are chronicled in
JUNE 1947
By WILLIAM E. BERRETT
Assistant United States Attorney, Fairbanks, Alaska
BRIGHAM YOUNG June 1, 1801 -August 29, 1877
scores of journals and seep between the dry ink and crackling paper like a flood. His steadfast devotion and faith was like a banner. No won- der his followers found the courage to sing
And should we die before our journey's
through, Happy day! all is well.
Asa child I played upon the little knoll where Brother Wilford Woodruff stopped his wagon that Brigham Young might view the val- ley of the Great Salt Lake. I have returned to that spot time and again, and in the chirping of crickets, the buzzing of bees, and the rustling of sego lilies, caught again the vision in your imperishable christening of a great land, "This is the place."
These words, even as I write them here, bring a tingle to my spine and renew the longing in my heart to return to Salt Lake valley. And I shall return. The timely celebration marking the one hundredth anniver- sary of that imperishable moment will find me again upon that tiny knoll paying my small homage to the memory of Brigham Young.
e
Could he but be there upon that occasion, his great heart would fill with pride in the accomplishments of this people and the realization of his own vision. One hundred years! What a short time that is! — the cool- ing hour in the morning of one of the Lord's days! But what a change has been wrought in Western Amer- ica: valleys carpeted with green fields and studded with bright dwell- ings; cities out-sparkling the stars at night; horseless vehicles speeding over broad highways; sky-monsters mocking time and space and the laws of gravity!
"Drigham Young entered these val- leys naked of material wealth — with a people seeking first the king- dom of God and its righteousness, and, as the Master foretold, "all these things" have been added.
Yes, there are false pride here and love of money and a striving for social prominence and political in- fluence. The battle for the souls of men was not won even by Brigham Young, but, while he lived, the ene- my wavered and fell back, and good men breathed more freely. The spir- it he engendered and the ground he gained have not been lost. He would love the membership of the Church today as he loved them in his own time. He would find the same weak- nesses of the flesh, but he would glory in their spirit of giving, their tithes and offerings, their voluntary services, and their missionary spir- it. In a world of temptation and turmoil he would find ten staunch men where but one stood before — and he would be satisfied!
In every gathering of this peo- ple in this centennial year we feel his spirit. It is in the clasp of friendly hands, in the smiles on friendly faces, and echoes in the warmth of children's voices.
In this day we have no sensation of having lost Brigham Young; we glory only in having found him. He has been good company for me these many years. I want my sons, and my sons' sons to know him as I have known him. For them and for gen- erations yet unborn I offer my thanks and heartfelt appreciation.
381
w
¥CKUROH HDYES DN
Tabernacle, Temple Square
""Phe world-famed Salt Lake Taber- nacle is receiving a new roof of sheet aluminum which, according to re- ports, is guaranteed by the manufactur- er for one hundred years. The alumi- num sheeting is from thirty-six to forty- two inches wide, and interlocks in ridges to provide for expansion and contraction brought about by weather conditions.
Workmen this spring have replaced part of the adobes in the wall surround- ing Temple Square with new brick. Water seepage had caused some of the old bricks in the wall to buckle. This was not the first time that bricks in the wall have been replaced for that pur- pose, and it probably will not be the last time, either.
Western Canadian Mission
p* len G. Fisher, bishop of the Hill Spring Ward, Alberta Stake, has been appointed president of the West- ern Canadian Mission by the First Presidency. He succeeds President Joseph Y. Card who has been ill for several months.
JOSEPH Y. CARD
GLEN G. FISHER
President Fisher has been bishop of the Hill Spring Ward since 1940. Dur- ing this time he was given a six months leave of absence to fill a short-term mission to the Northern States.
Mrs. Fisher accompanies him to the field of labor.
Assistant Tabernacle Organist
Doy M, Darley has been named an assistant organist at the Salt Lake Tabernacle by the First Presidency.
Elder Darley is a former chaplain in the armed forces, having served in the Philippines and in parts of Japan. He has filled a mission to the Eastern States, and has been director of the Bureau of Information at Washington, D.C. 382
Navajo-Zuni Mission
C Eugene Flake has been appointed * by the First Presidency as presi- dent of the Navajo-Zuni Mission. He succeeds Ralph William Evans who was appointed to the mission when it was organized some four years ago.
President Flake, at the time of this appointment, was president of the Snowflake Stake, Arizona, Mission. He has done considerable missionary
RALPH WILLIAM EVANS S. EUGENE FLAKE
work among the Navajo and Apache Indians. He also filled a mission in the Northern States from 1921 to 1924.
It is anticipated that the mission head- quarters will be moved from Shiprock, New Mexico, to Gallup, New Mexico, and that the work will be expanded to include other tribes residing in New Mexico and Arizona.
General Welfare Committee
rn C. Stayner, member of the Big A * Cottonwood Stake presidency, and chairman of the Jordan Valley welfare region, has been appointed to the general welfare committee by the First Presidency.
T. COLLEY STAYNER
Let the people see to it that they get righteous men to be their lead- ers . ♦ ♦ officers who would rather do right at a sacrifice than do wrong for a reward,
— Brigham Young
Hawaiian Mission President
"P Wesley Smith has been ap- ■L/* pointed by the First Presidency as president of the Hawaiian Mission. He will leave Salt Lake City for his new post about May 15. He succeeds President Castle H. Murphy.
President Smith was born in the Hawaiian Islands, while his parents. President Joseph F. Smith and Julina Lambson Smith were filling a mission there. His first mission to the Hawaiian Islands was from 1907 to 1910. He filled a mission to California beginning in 1914, and while still in that mission, in 1919, he was called to the presidency of the Hawaiian Mission, acting in this capacity until 1923.
His wife, Mary H. Smith, and their
CASTLE H. MURPHY
E. WESLEY SMITH
son Julian C, who is set apart as a missionary, will accompany him to the field of labor.
New Stakes
""Three new stakes have been created in the Provo area of central Utah, bringing the total stakes in the Church to 167.
East Provo Stake was formed April 13 from portions of the Provo Stake. Its wards are the Bonneville, the Provo Eighth, and Ninth wards, both of the latter are soon to be divided.
Golden L. Woolf was sustained as president of the East Provo Stake, with Hilton A. Robertson and Leland M. Parry as counselors.
Remaining in the Provo Stake are the Manavu, Provo First, Fifth, Seventh, and Tenth wards.
Officers of the Provo Stake include President Charles E. Rowan, Jr., and his counselors, Lee Valentine and Orin H. Jackson.
The organization was effected by Dr. John A. Widtsoe of the Council of the Twelve and Elder Thomas E. McKay, assistant to the Council of the Twelve.
Orem Stake was also created April 13, from parts of the Sharon Stake. Its membership live in the Geneva, Sharon,
THE IMPROVEMENT ERA
THE CHURCH MOVES ON
Vermont, Vineyard, Lake View, and Windsor wards.
Walter R. Holdaway was sustained as president with E. Carlyle Bunker and Dover Hunt as counselors.
Remaining in the Sharon Stake are the Edgemont, Grand View, Pleasant View, and Timpanogos wards.
The stake is officered by Henry D. Taylor, president, and William C. Faulkner and Philo T. Edwards as counselors.
Elders Ezra Taft Benson and Mark E. Petersen of the Council of the
Twelve were in charge of the organiza- tion.
On May 4, the Utah Stake was divided to form the West Utah Stake The wards are the Pioneer, Provo Sec- ond, Eleventh, Rivergrove, and Sunset wards.
Sustained as president was J. Earl Lewis, with James F. Paramore and Leonard Braithwaite as his counselors.
Remaining in the Utah Stake are the Park, Provo Third, Fourth, Sixth, and University wards.
Victor J. Bird was sustained as presi-
dent of the Utah Stake with Fred L. Markham and Terry J. Oldroyd as counselors.
Mission Presidencies
A uthorization has now been given to form mission presidencies in the full-time missions of the Church where this is thought advisable. The mission president is to select two counselors, either from missionaries or the local brethren. The counselors will be auto- matically released when the mission president is released.
MISSIONARIES ENTERING THE MISSIONARY HOME APRIL 7, AND DEPARTING APRIL 16, 1947
Reading from left to right, first row: Edwin Bab- cock, Emma Mirie Hamann, Eula Wilkinson, Georgia Colling, Don B. Colton, director; Bernice Anderson, Evelyn Northgrave, Phyllis Harding, Albert Edward Walker.
Second row: Ona L. Lundgren, Olaf Meier, Don J. Bingham, Lillie Leloudir, Donovan C. Larson, Lyle J. Nielsen, Naomi Parrish, Francis M. Bay, Frank B. Jones, Geraldine Bridge.
Third row: Lee Harris, Ralph Beesley, Clarence Mac Lloyd, N. Stanford, Johann L. Stanford, Barbara Allen, John S. Allen, Bonnie Mae Snow, RoMay Rich- ards, Aloha Bohmer.
Fourth row: George S. Taggart, Marrincr K. Norr, Edwin J. Richardson, Dale W. Mathie, Dale L. Hoff- mann, Welburn K. Johnson, Yvonne Fabricius, Virginia
Tibbetts, Laura Eugenia Larsen, DeMar Rasmussen, Wilford H. Hansen, LaRue Hatch.
Fifth row: J. Marian Walker, Melvin K. DeWitt, Glen L. Flake, Joseph L. Taylor, Raymond M. Haslam, Donald E. Harris, Jack M. Farnsworth, Wallace Jenks, Dean Goodman, Gilbert Holyoak, Arlo E. Bond, Mar- gery S. Cannon.
Sixth row: Helmet A. Olson, J. Gordon Brown, 6. Keith Judd, V. Doral Graff, E. Gayle Richins, J. Vaughn Hobson, William L. Wilkes, Jr., Dan L. Stiff, Mark R. Lewis, Marquis S. Cheney, William B. Adams, Donald E. Whiperman, David J. Nielson.
Seventh row: Merrial Dee Porter, Oscar G. Row- land, Theron R. Jackman, Orline Maas, Jerry J. Wake- field, Jack H. Braithwaite, Russell S. Hales, Clarence L. Madsen, Stanley Reed Nixon, J. Paul Jewkes, Jo- seph W. Walt, Melvin A. White.
Eighth row: Jonathan H. Palmer, M. George Tanks,
Robert E. Walker, Robert Orgil, Darld Long, Walter B. Kerr, Bernell G. Stout, Frank M. Tippetts, Dean L. Freeman, Bob J. Patterson, Jay E. Welch, Reid P. Nelson.
Ninth row: William W. Cannon, Elden Gabriel Price, F. L. Sommercorn, Albert G. Funk, Lothar Nestman, Mark G. Johnson, Vernel Rex Gray, Lisle T. Russon, Richard Allred, William Vere Frampton, Jr., L. M. Hill, L. Clark Roberts, James J. White.
Tenth row: Clint L. Bond, Richard O. Evans, Mel- vin B. Tew, Derrill Richards, John L. Loutensock, Juan Whiting, Herman W. Stiener, Byron D. Adair, Herbert T. Patton, Lawrence J. Harrison.
Eleventh row: Neil McCarthy, Joyce T. Gooch, J. Richard Clark, Earl D. Love, Howard M. Gray, Jr., Almon A. Nelson, Douglas W. Stott, Rex N. Terry, Jasper D. Hepworth, Ross D. Thurber, Roland A. Baldwin, Weston G. Henrie, Clarence J. Frost.
MISSIONARIES ENTERING THE MISSIONARY HOME APRIL 20, AND DEPARTING APRIL 30, 1947
Reading from left to right, first row: Nelson V. Johnson, Jr., Earl M. Boy, Mary Nichols, Don B. Col- ton, director; Lillian Clark, Lenord D. Moore, Char- lotte Renne Johnson.
Second row: Cecil W. Sherwood, Dean L. Summers, Kate G. Harris, Leo A. Harris, Daniel A. Keeler, Helen Hernandez, Howard Brodford.
Third row: Joseph D. Taylor, Jennis Weeks, Bernice Wilde, James H. Leak, LeRoy Moore, Mack W. Brown, Henry Dee Johnson, Elmer Lewis Frasier, Robert O. Hickman.
JUNE 1947
Fourth row: Morris Paul Gray, Jack R. Young, Ivan A. Olson, R. Mark Bartholomew, Leonard K. Roberts, Marcel L. Nielson, Claudio Villalobos, Mrs. M. P. Tryon, M. P. Tryon.
Fifth row: Glen A. Horspool, George W. Nielsen, Paul H. Cooper, Donald K. DeLaMare, Sanford S. Walker, Rulon M. Dutson, Jesse J. Roberts, Donald K. Clark, Robert N. Hutchinson, Martin B. Hickman, Donald G. Rawlins.
Sixth row: Lionel Kennard Riding, Robert H. Densley, George E. Westfall, Rex E. Arthur, Joseph R. Pulsipher, Thomas D. Harper, Ralph E. Prusse, Pierce A. Fast, G. Ronald Bowles, Paul E. Stanford, Laurie B. Coles.
Seventh row: Arlin T. Mecham, Milton V. Backman, Jr., William Edzell Beckstead, Lyman A. Bond, How- ard W. Anderson, Max Dutson, L. Dean Perkins, Versal H. Hunter, Aaron Leon Gummearsall, Floyd A. Johnson, Keith E. Atkinson, Boyd A. Lake.
Eighth row: Gordon C. McGavin, David L. Mor- row, Don B. Coburn, Ray E. Jorgensen, Vernon A. Bingham, Allen S. Cornwall, Ronald D. Taylor, Gayle Charles White.
Ninth row: Dee M. Peiper, Morris A. Kjar, Reid S. Larsen, Kenneth Hedin, Max Payne, James J. Robert- son, J. Lowell Young, M. Dwayne Eskelsen, Norman W. Johnson, Warren E. Jensen.
383
i, Ljleaner Lj'iAs, r(obte55e LJUlae!
Voir are born to the purple. You are of a noble race. You belong to the world's nobility.
Before the story of your people, unsurpassed in human history, the world stands in admiring awe.
For the sake of truth, and that alone, six thou- sand of your ancestors rest in lonely graves along the pioneer trail. For truth alone the easy comforts of a fertile land were exchanged for the barren grimness of a desert waste. For truth, alone, the softness of your grandmother's hands was changed into hard, horny palms; and your straight-backed grandfathers became bowed in body. With a song in their souls, these people to whom you owe your lives faced, for truth alone, the contempt of the world.
Under the hot sun of the desert, as the oxen trudged along, or the handcarts were pulled over hills and hollows, or the plow points were broken in the dry soil, they defied untruth, and sang, "All is well." They were unconquerable.
They won the patent of true nobility. Truth was their motto and coat of arms. The badge that a mortal ruler might confer, is, by comparison, dross and worthless.
Such is your heritage!
Do you remember it?
Do you honor the people to whom you belong?
Do you thank the Lord for the great gift of your descent?
He who comes of a noble race must live nobly. That is his obligation. That is the meaning of noblesse oblige, a phrase which, throughout the world's history has stirred tens of thousands to action.
Our fathers, whether pioneers in fact or in spirit, loved truth above all else. Do you do so?
They kept their bodies clean — physically and morally. Do you?
In the wilderness of desert or thought, at any sacrifice, they sought learning to help them. Do you prepare yourselves as well for life's work?
They fed their eternal spirits by Church activity. Do you take time out regularly to help build the kingdom of God, the kingdom that will absorb and direct all other kingdoms?
They spurned untruth, and the dissolute habits of a careless world. Do you?
They had courage to live the law of the Lord. Have you?
Your answers will determine your own futures,
and that of the Church. Only as you answer, yes, will true success and happiness wait upon you.
Twenty-five years ago the M Men ( May 1 7, 1922) and the Gleaner Girls (May 24, 1922) were authorized and organized. Their work has been so well done that it is as a beacon to the world of youth. They have shown themselves worthy of their noble ancestry.
During these years much evil has crept into the world. Satan is making his last stand, and a deter- mined one. It should be your concern to battle against every corrupting practice. Tell the tempter, whoever he may be, "Get thou behind me!"
You are the flying wedge of men and women who can cure the world of its moral sickness.
In this work of upholding the traditions of your people it will give you courage to remember —
"Noblesse oblige."
And ask the Lord for help! — /. A. W,
Jhe cJLeadt Lyrdalned
^ommonly heard is the expression, ". . . the last and the least ordained." This might lead to the conclusion that the blessings and the Spirit of the Lord are to be more enjoyed by some than by others, that some services are rewarded with great- er blessings. This is not necessarily so, and the expression may be misinterpreted.
The Lord said, "O ye that embark in the service of God, see that ye serve him with all your heart, might, mind, and strength." This was said to everyone, not alone to bishops, not alone to stake presidents, not alone to the General Authorities. Everyone is to serve wholeheartedly and com- pletely. And everyone has an opportunity to enjoy the Spirit of the Lord. Blessings are predicated not necessarily upon the position or title held but upon the observance of the law. The leader of a small chorus in a remote branch of the Church re- ceives blessings as does the conductor of one of the great choirs; the Relief Society visiting teacher or the ward block teacher who serves faith- fully in her or his responsibility can receive a testi- mony of the Lord's work equal to that of any member or officer of the Church. All spheres of activity are important, and every soul brought to a knowledge of the Lord's work is precious. For the building up of the kingdom, to do the will of our Father which is in heaven, no one is "least" responsible, no one is "least" set apart, no one is "least" ordained. — H. L.
384
THE IMPROVEMENT ERA
JElSlUlflllB*
It's two weeks before the Cadet Hop, and Bob is on the phone asking you to go with him.
"Oh, I'm sorry," you explain, "I'd love to, but I'm going steady with Walt now, and he's planned some- thing else that night."
You like Bob, and for a moment you have a pang of regret at missing the big school event, but you lose that pang — fast! You come from the phone, singing. It's wonderful to be going steady — and especially with Walt.
He's marvelous — athletic, tall — the center on the basketball team. He's fresh and clean and easy and "smooth." You feel "tops" when you're with him — at your absolute best.
Then, it's such a good feeling to know that you're "all set." You don't have to pretend not to care when the other girls are talking about their dates and you don't have one. You don't have to worry whether you are going to have an opportunity to wear the new formal that Dad gave you for your birthday, because you'll always have an opportunity now — or will you? Well, you're just not going to think about missing the Cadet Hop. It's nothing to the fun of being with Walt.
W'hat good times you two have together- — sitting over "malts" and discussing the fine points of the last game. (Bob says you're the only girl who really understands basket- ball.) You've planned the summer, too — swimming, tennis, bicycle rides, hikes. Mmm — going steady is won- derful!
Pomes Friday night and the Cadet Hop. The girls are all in their prettiest formals, and the boys have scrubbed and polished the family cars. You and Walt sit out the dance in a movie. You don't see much of the show because you're all mixed up in your feelings. You are so hap- py to be with him, and yet you would have liked to go to that dance and wear your new dress, and Dad was a little disappointed, too. Walt doesn't seem exactly himself, either. Finally, he says:
"Say, Gerry, I feel like a goon about this dance. I would have taken
JUNE 1947
you but I found myself short of money and couldn't persuade Dad to help me out. I don't care myself — in fact I'd much rather just spend the evening with you, but a swell girl like you should have been there."
"Oh, Walt, don't be silly," you protest. "I don't care a thing about the old dance — stumbling around on long skirts to the tune of a terrible orchestra. I'm having a wonderful time. Let's go home. Mom's saved us the drumsticks from tonight's chicken, and there's a bottle of pop in the refrigerator, and I'll teach you a new rhumba step." The Cadet Hop is forgotten.
Come Talks to Young People About Current Problems
By MARY BRENTNALL
call up and say "hello" occasionally and give you a chance to turn them down. Well, not that, exactly, but you like to do your own explaining about this little arrangement. You are fuming. Spring has turned chilly, and you don't love your teachers, nor the neighbor's puppy, nor Jenny Do's singing, nor Walt — especially Walt.
It's two weeks after the Cadet Hop. Spring's in the air. You feel as fresh and gay as the first crocus in your garden. You love everybody- — your teachers, your parents, your friends, the neighbor's cute puppy, Jenny Do's divine singing over the radio, Walt — especially Walt. And then suddenly you see a brand new boy at school. He looks nice. You find yourself thinking about him. You pass him the next day in the corridor and overhear one of the boys say to him, "Hands off there, fella. That's Walt's girl." For some reason it makes you mad. "Walt's girl," indeed! Do they think you're a piece of property? "Going steady" doesn't mean that Walt owns you. So that's the reason no one's called you recently! They might at least
I
t's a week later. You can't under- stand why the new boy still in- terests you. He isn't as good look- ing as Walt. In fact you keep think- ing that if you should, just should, by any faint chance, go out with him, you'd have to wear "flats" because he isn't as tall as you like your boys. But his teeth are wonderful, there's a nice friendly twinkle to his eyes, and he's a "whiz" in physics. It isn't that you've lost interest in Walt, but he doesn't seem quite as much fun as he once did, and occa- sionally when he comes over to see you he looks a little unkempt. And he never calls you till the last minute — he takes everything for granted.
School is nearly over. The new boy has asked you out, and you've told him you would "let him know." It sounded flat and uncomplimentary, but you just couldn't bring yourself to say, "No, I'm going steady," and yet you felt that you'd have to talk it over with Walt first.
He is fine. "Why, sure," he says. "You go right ahead. I want you to do anything you want to do." But you wonder if he is a little hurt.
"Please feel free to go with other girls too, Walt," you urge. "I don't want to be selfish about this, and I certainly don't want to give up your friendship. It's just that Fred's be- ing so new and all, it's hard to turn him down. I feel that he probably needs a little attention."
"Oh, sure, Gerry — don't you wor- ry about that. I'll ask someone else if I want to." Walt was fine!
So you have your date with Fred.
t's June. Walt hasn't asked for a
date since the first night you went
out with Fred. He's friendly but in
a very reserved fashion. For a while
(Concluded on page 386)
385
I
LET'S TALK IT OVER
( Concluded from page 385 ) he didn't take anyone out at all, then he began to "play the field." Now he's going away to his grandfather's farm for the summer, and you feel lost — as if a member of your own family had deserted you. But any- way, there's Fred and he's taking you out frequently and you wonder whether he's going to ask you to "go steady." It might be fun —
And following Fred, there will probably be Jeff and then Arnie and then Cal — one at a time with heavy, intensive dating for a while and then — not even good friends!
Y"ou may not be Gerry or anything like her. This may not be the pattern you follow. But it's a pretty fair sample.
"Wouldn't you rather have more friends — not so exclusively — but lasting longer?" This was asked of Marilyn.
"Oh, but you don't understand," she exclaimed. "That's impossible." The boys won't have it. You go out with someone three or four times and you automatically belong to him! You find that you are going steady whether you want to or not, and you have to break with him completely before any one else will ask you out. And you don't always want to do that.
"Of course," she admitted, "some- times it's the girl who maneuvers a few dates into a steady situation and makes a boy feel a little responsible for her social life."
It sounds to me a little like, "All or nothing at all" — which dating at your age was never intended to be. How in the world did bright young women ever get themselves into such a situation? How in the world do bright young men ever subscribe to any such arrangement?
If you'll forgive me for making a very logical deduction, it seems as if you were either very lazy or not quite intelligent. How about getting bright and energetic and healthful and honest — and proving we are all these by discarding this "going steady" business — at least until we have the right or the real desire, actually, to belong to someone? After all, "going steady" means that we're "trying out" an engagement long before we should be engaged. It's "jumping the gun." It's a not very sportsmanlike trick! 386
Dating should be fun for right now, but it also has the purpose of preparing us for happy married life, and that preparation involves not only selecting the right partner but also becoming the right partner. Neither of these purposes is further- ed by this exclusive "going steady" idea. Happy marriages are achieved by young couples who have grown up — some; by young couples who have attained a marked measure of self-control, who are tolerant, under- standing, forgiving, unselfish, who have high standards of life, and par- ticularly, lofty conceptions of mar- ried and family life. Happy marri- ages are achieved by young couples who love each other in the best sense of that word and who know, beyond doubt, that they do love each other. I am sure there are exceptions to this generalization — because there
■ »
If persons lose confidence in themselves, it takes away the strength, faith, and confidence that others have in them — it leaves a space that we call weakness*
— Brigham Young
always are — but the rule still holds that "going steady" doesn't do much for your development into the kind of grownup who can handle mar- riage happily. It's a pretty safe formula that when you try to make things too easy for yourself in youth, you succeed in making things too hard for yourself later on.
HThe resilience of youth was planned to take the shock of "growing up." A normal amount of heartaches and anxieties and pain are part of that process, and when we try to avoid it by this particular type of "social security," we just make it harder for ourselves later on. It's a little like the youngster who learns to play the piano in "six easy lessons." Some native ability and a few musical patterns may give him some facility, but it's far too limited training to meet the demands of real musicianship. You need the best possible training also to meet the needs of social life. You should worry a little about whether you're going to have a date to the Junior Prom. You must learn to exert your-
self a little to please others and yet not overdo it. There are nice dis- tinctions and gradations in behavior which you learn only by some effort and, perhaps, some embarrassment. Be glad, if adverse situations teach you to hide your own disappoint- ment, because to mask your own hurt is often the first step in learning real unselfishness. A little genuine anxiety for your own popularity teaches you invaluable lessons in sympathy with the needs of others.
You can take all this training in your youth because at this time you bounce back into health and good spirits when sorrow and disappoint- ment have had their day. But if you avoid all this in your youth, you won't be able to live happily in a marriage where you are expected to have reached emotional maturity and to be ready — at least moderately ready for life. Only in exceptional cases does "going steady" give you this training.
It doesn't give you wide enough experience, or requisite adaptability or high enough standards either for yourself or your friends. It doesn't give you training in the kind of real friendship which can "keep the old," even while "making the new." "Go- ing steady" as it is practised today is too often just a technique for avoiding the real training to which normal dating subjects you.
Then too, it works a hardship on a boy — sometimes from the stand- point of finances — often from the standpoint of time. For, while normally, he might be saving his money to take a girl out on a very special date, under the "steady" sys- tem, he finds his money used up on the too frequent small things — the movies and sodas and gas— which playing continuous attendance de- mands. And, whereas, he might be studying or playing basketball with the boys or attending to his Church duties — any of the personal and varied activities of boyhood — he finds himself "on call" and entirely responsible for the good times of his girl.
Of course, "going steady" isn't the only dating mistake. There are others, and perhaps they call for dis- cussion also. But for now — let's think "going steady" over. Maybe you'll decide to "throw it over."
THE IMPROVEMENT ERA
"Put some pep in your pick-up, Scoop,
... or it won't be news by the time we get it!"
FLASH: Ride it, man, we've an edition to catch. That four-alarmer will be colder than a wet match by the time this hesitating Hilda gets us there. Obviously, chum, you haven't heard the word about Chevron Supreme Gasoline. It's "climate-tailored" for this neck of the woods; balanced just right to put more speed in start- up, more pep in pick-up.
SCOOP: I've got the word now, pal! With Chevron Supreme under the hood, this baby has more hustle than a cub reporter. And notice there's no knocking when I give it the gun. That's Chevron Supreme's high octane on the job. We've got a beat on this story — Z. and Chevron Supreme gets the credit line.
Its good going on
CHEVRON
GAS STATION
There is no
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gasoline at
any price
SUPREME GASOLINE
JUNE 1947
387
Z)o JU> -J NEIGHBOR
V
ONE night in a small town in southern Utah, I met a friend whom I had not seen for a long time. Among other things, he mentioned that he and his wife had been reading the counsel of the Church leaders concerning storing at least a year's supply of food. He said that his faith in the gospel and the Church leaders was as strong as it had ever been, that he aimed to pay a full tithing each year and also remembered to consecrate his fast day with an appropriate offering. The ward in which he lived was not as active in welfare work as he thought it should be, but whenever the bishop had called upon him to assist, he had tried to do his part. "But let's talk about this storing of food that I'm interested in," he said.
Taking a memorandum book from his pocket, my friend showed me a list of foods which he and his wife had decided to store. We went over it item by item. The list had been very carefully prepared and was the most complete list of its kind that I had ever seen.
We talked about each item and its storing qualities. I complimented him on the thoroughness of the list, but added that it seemed to me that the quantities he proposed to store were excessive. I told him that the counsel had been to store only enough for one or two years so that the food would not spoil, because the Lord does not look with favor upon waste. I suggested also that the food which he stored should be used from time to time as needed, and that as the food was used, it would be well to replenish the stocks so that there would always be a fresh supply on hand to last for one or two years.
A7[y friend smiled and said, "You know, I have some neighbors that are not very provident, and I have some more neighbors who lack faith in what our leaders have said, and I have other neighbors who are not in very fortunate circumstances; I am thinking not only about myself and family, but also about my neigh- bors. I think that if hard times come, I can enjoy my stored food and be happy in my home only if I know that my neighbors are not hungry. 388
By ROSCOE W. EARDLEY
Of the General Church Welfare Committee
It seems to me that it would be very comforting to have a little on hand — a few pounds of sugar or a little flour or some canned fruits and vegetables that one could pass over the fence to my neighbors who might be in need. President Brigham Young, Presi- dent Heber C. Kimball, and others of our stalwart fathers and mothers took from their own supplies in the early days in Utah and helped their neighbors who were in need. This should be a splendid example to guide us today."
rPo help a neighbor in need was a fundamental teaching of the Lord Jesus Christ. This friend whom I met that late fall night is the per- sonification of the Church welfare plan: In the storehouse system, the aim has been to provide sufficient to meet the needs of those who look to the Church for help, and then to have a little left over that can be handed "over the fence to our neigh- bors."
Our neighbors who are now in most distress are separated from the central stakes of Zion by seven thou- sand miles of land and sea, but from the stores which have been laid up in the homes of the Latter-day Saints and the storehouses of the Church, the sufferings and distress of our brethren neighbors in Europe are be- ing partially met by a new and in- tensified campaign for supplies and shipments.
Good Ideas for
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THE IMPROVEMENT1 Eft#v
Photographed in "Harvester Farm" Exhibit at Museum of Science and Industry, Chicago
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The new Internationals are prod-
ucts of advanced design, research and engineering. Note the handsome lines of the two popular units shown here-the KB-1 and the KB-5. Under hood and body are scores of features, improvements, and refinements that combine to make the biggest values in 40 years of International Truck history. Full range of sizes— from the sturdy pick-up, above, to the heavy- duty hauler of 35,100 pounds gross vehicle weight rating.
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You'll know without our telling you that the new 40th Anniversary Internationals will be hard to get for some time. They are very much worth waiting for! See your International Dealer— he'll do his level best to get early delivery for you. And count on our truck factories to do their best to supply your dealer.
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ERY SUNDAY! NBC NETWORK.
JUNE 1947
389
^DNTHEBDDKRHC
PROTESTORS OF CHRISTENDOM (James L. Barker. Zion's Printing & Publishing Co. 1946. 220 pages. $2.50.)
P\id an apostasy from the doctrine and organization of the primitive Church make necessary a restoration in this day of doctrinal truth and of divine authority? That is the question which is brilliantly answered in this book, chapters of which appeared first in The Improvement Eta, volumes 41 and 42.
In twenty-two interesting chapters, easily read and understood, the author pursues his theme. The early Christian fathers, the early councils, the deep confusion of the dark and middle ages, and the reaching out for light by John Huss, Martin Luther, Ulrich Zwingli, John Calvin, John Knox, and others, form a moving historical panorama of human waywardness and human hopes. Out of the picture rises the certainty that a restoration of gospel truth was necessary.
This book is a forceful treatment, somewhat new, of a theme of deepest interest to all Latter-day Saints. It should be so also for the whole Chris* tian world. — /. A, W.
MY LIFE'S REVIEW (Benjamin F. Johnson. Published by the B. F. Johnson Family Association. Sold by W. S. Johnson, Barnwell, Alberta, Canada. 1947. 394 pages. $1.75.)
"Denjamin F. Johnson, at one time secretary to the Prophet Joseph Smith, compiled in his later years, from his journals, the story of his long life ( 1818-1905) . It is one of the best per- sonal records of early Church and west- ern history. In seventeen really well- written chapters he reviews his experi- ences in the first years of the Church, in Ohio, Missouri, and Illinois. He shared in the exodus to the West, be- came a useful builder of Utah and Ari- zona, filled missions to Hawaii and other places, and at last moved as an exile to Mexico. The book overflows with the spirit of pioneer times and re- veals many precious items of the half- forgotten, intimate history of the com- ing of the gospel and the winning of the intermountain West. — J.A.W.
MORMONISM AND MASONRY (E. Cecil McGavin. Stevens and Wallis, Salt Lake City, Utah. 1947. 200 pages. $2.25.) '"Phis enlarged edition of a work long out of print is very welcome. Those 390
unfamiliar with the subject, in and out of the Church, ask frequent questions which are here candidly and well- answered. Mormonism has learned nothing from masonry; that is amply proved by this book. — /. A. W.
THE MODERN MINUS SIGN ( 24 pages. 25c. ) and ARE YOU AWAKE? (Florence E. Marshall Stellwagen. Published by the author, 704 Third Street N.W., Apt. 51, Washington, D.C. 96 pages. 50c.) HThe first of these two booklets of rhymes and jingles is against to- bacco; the second, against alcohol. To- gether, they form a battery of good sense, some humor, and not a little ridicule for the destruction of these two enemies of mankind. Many of the rhymes will hit some men harder than logic. — /. A. W.
APES, GIANTS AND MAN (Franz Weidenreich. University of Chicago Press, Chicago, Illinois. 1946. 122 pages. $2.50.) 'T'he latest views relative to the physi- cal development of man are here set forth in understandable language, by a great authority. While the author ap- parently accepts the doctrine of man's long ago descent from ape-like an- cestors, throughout the book is the clear differentiation between facts and in- ferences. Those who are interested in the processes employed by scientists in the study of man's physical past will find this book most interesting. The chapter on the races of men is especial- ly enlightening. It is refreshing to note the judicial care and deliberation of a true scientist. — /. A. W.
BARS FROM BILIBID PRISON
(Charles Brown. The Naylor Company, San Antonio, Texas. 1947. 129 pages. $2.75.)
WITH a foreword by Jonathan M. Wain- Wright, this book is a poignant re- minder of what some of our soldiers suffered with the advent of the Japanese into the Philippines. While the poetry is uneven, the thoughts behind the poems will reveal an anguish which we should experience in order to see that such an event does not oc- cur again. Each section of poetry is pre- ceded by a prose explanation of the events in the march and the final defeat of the Jap- anese. These prose sections are flesh torn from the wounds of our soldiers. These re- veal the true majesty of man.
The most poignant of the poems is "Son- net to a Prisoner," while the strongest line is, "We have stacked our arms and shoul- dered dreams."— M. C. /.
PHILOSOPHER'S QUEST (Irwin Edman. Viking Press, New York. 1947. 275 pages. $3.00.) As always, Dr. Edman writes well, and in this volume he particularly stimulates since he steps into his field of philosophy and tears aside a few veils and plunges into vital questions. Anyone reading the book will come away refreshed and resolved to live more calmly, more meaningfully.
The author judiciously teases with bits from the recognized philosophers, not always fully agreeing with them. One bit that will reflect in a measure the tone of the book follows:
The artist sometimes builds a little for- tress against universal chaos, a little island of meaning in the epidemic of contingency and futility of things. I think that is why these little discoveries of form and order delight us so, and why, if we have any talent at all, we feel we must achieve that just-rightness . . . have the thing, the paint- ing, the sonata, the sonnet, come out just right. One feels, on a small scale, I imagine, the way God must have felt when He was creating the universe. It had to look good to Him when it was finished. It did, too, if I remember.
— M. C. J.
LAST STRAW FOR HARRIET (Elizabeth Cadell. William Morrow & Co., New York. 1947. 256 pages. $2.50.)
'T'his book is full of laughter and good family fun and problems. Harriet Ellison, the mother of the family, is the long-suffering heroine on whom all kinds of difficulties descend. She's a thoroughly enjoyable person whose poise would shame most red-blooded Americans who would like to emulate her.
The author has done a great deal to build the ideal of family solidarity which is so much needed today.
— M. C. ].
THE READER'S SHAKESPEARE
(Babette Deutsch. Julian Messner, Inc.,
New York. 1946. 510 pages. $4.00.)
* I ^he author's introduction to this work in-
■*■ eludes this statement: "The writing of this book has opened up new vistas .... not only as regards the great plays, but with respect to the fundamental matters of which they treat." No matter how well- known these plays may be — or how little known, the treatment of them in this book by an accomplished writer will create in- terest in them and make the reader desire to turn to that master playwright of them all, Shakespeare, and read his stirring dramas. The book includes fifteen of his greatest plays and will provide interesting reading for every member of the family.
— M. C. ].
THE IMPROVEMENT ERA
foe
fa
¥
THE RAIN FALLS QUIETLY ON TEMPLE SQUARE
By Caroline Eyring Miner
THE rain falls quietly on Temple Square. How often I have dreamed of this —
away In tropic jungle or upon the sea. The rain falls tenderly — it is for me A dream come true. The tall spires pierce
the gray Of pregnant cloud, and heaven's gracious
peace Falls magically in silver darts. To be Here on our Pioneer anniversary And feel this benediction was my dream. The rain falls reverently. The trumpet's
blast Has parted curtained sky, and it now seems To let the light of God shine through at
last. Let rain fall peacefully upon this dome; It is the symbol of my faith, my home.
— Courtesy Salt Lake "Tribune' TEMPLE SQUARE AT CONFERENCE TIME
THERE IS EVER A SONG
By Zara Sabin
HPhere is ever a song in my heart, ■■■ A paean of gladness, Now chanting wildly its part, Now muted in sadness. But it sings, It sings!
There is hidden deep in my heart,
A prayer of thanksgiving
For blessings which God imparts—
It is good to be living!
It is there,
My prayer.
There is ever a hope in my heart,
A trust in the Infinite,- —
My guide, and my compass, my chart,
My pattern exquisite.
He is just!
I trust.
JUNE 1947
GRADUATION DAY By Helena W. Larson
Today, your graduation day, How proud we are of you! Oh, may you always walk as straight And be as sweet and true!
Yes, all the world's before you now, And you can run or fall. So fearless, confident you start — You're not afraid at all.
Unfaltering your step, and firm, As the right paths you choose. You've graduated, Baby mine. Into some hard-soled shoes.
PATTERN FOR A HOME By Jessie Ambridge Swigart
Upon a day especially made We shouldered transit, hammer, spade, And staked the pattern for a home In the gypsy grass and sandy loam. A dozen trees, a ragged row, Was all the realtor could show When first we eyed this weedy space A year ago. But see! the place Assumes at once a friendlier air For we have set a pattern there, To be a home and garden; now We'll buy a broody hen — a cow; A fence to bound a shining lawn, A gate for kids to swing upon; Berried shrubs of brilliant hue To soften corners, and renew Earth's covenant when blossoms die Beneath the chill of an autumn sky. . . . The path that wanders past the door Curves yonder at a sycamore — (We find it easy to forget The tree has not been planted yet.) The house, the fence, the garden plot, The shrubs and emerald lawns have not Progressed beyond an eager mind; But diligence will always find What heart and mind are set to do Have various ways of coming true.
A SUMMER DAY AT THE RANCH
By Eva Willes Wangsgaard
T'd save one day forever if I could:
* The sky was blue as hyacinths which
bent Their stars above the marshes, near a wood, Where cattle browsed releasing spearmint
scent; A flock of blackbirds found a willow tree, Their bodies ebon leaves on emerald lace; The children left the brook and came to
me And every minnow found a shadowed place. Then suddenly the black leaves burst in
song; Soprano arias and choral parts Wove such an opera as can belong Only to open air and grateful hearts Bursting with summer and the joy it yields Over the luscious, mellowing barley fields.
Moisture-vapor-proof LOCKER AP-Locks in the natural juices of frozen meats, fish, fowl and game . . . keeps them looking and tasting FRESH! Get easy-to-use, economi- cal LOCKERAP at your grocer's or at your favorite locker plant.
Handy Guide to Correct Wrapping
STEP 1 : Use sheet large enough to wrap around TWICE. Place meat close to end of paper and roll over once. BE SURE THAT WAXED SIDE IS NEXT TO MEAT.
STEP 2: Tuck in one side of paper. Be sure to crease tightly and tuck securely, insuring air- tight seal. Sealing air out is essential to pro- tection of flavor.
STEP 3: Roll meat half over again and tuck in Other side of wrapper.
STEP 4: Sealtightlywith tape or string. Label with soft pencil or crayon.
\ C^i1
*!*?
WESTERN WAXED PAPER CO.
PORTLAND > OAKLAND • LOS ANGELES Division Crown - Zel I e r b ac h Corp.
J
391
Confidence « file
—Illustrated by Fielding K. Smith
A systematic file comes in han- dy to any student, whether it ■ be a file of receipts for ex- penses or a file of psychology notes. A new type of file came to light the other night, however, when a busy junior college girl was having a vis- it with her aunt. The girl is presi- dent of a college club, president of the dramatics club, editor of the col- lege annual, and teacher of a Sunday School class of junior high school girls.
After they had discussed current events relating to the girl's varied activities, the aunt shook her head. "I don't see how you manage so many jobs, Mary. They all must take a lot of thought and work. Where do you get the courage to undertake them?''
Mary smiled at her aunt, a woman she loved and respected and whose advice she had accepted on many occasions. "I'll show you, Aunt Ruth. Just a minute, please."
Mary went to her study desk, opened a drawer and brought out a small, black notebook. On the cover, in white ink, was printed the one word — "Confidence."
"When I was in high school," the girl explained, handing the book to her aunt, "I read somewhere that success is simply a matter of attain- ing a goal — regardless of how small or large. That gave me the idea for this book. From then on, whenever I carried through on a job I had 392
By PHIL HANNUM
started, I wrote it down. You can see, I didn't use many words about any particular 'success' — just enough to refresh my memory. Then, any time I feel discouraged because a new job looks big and impossible, I just take out this book and look back at other things I managed to accomplish, although they once seemed impossible, too."
In high school, Mary had trouble with cake baking in her domestic science class. Her aunt, reading a note about this cake problem, learn- ed that Mary had resolved to keep after it until she had turned out at least one cake of which she could be proud. She had — for she had won a blue ribbon at the district fair with her devil's food cake.
HThe "Confidence" file also con- tained a note about Lucy, Mary's college chum. When Lucy had moved to Westport several years before, the girls had become bitter rivals for the high school tennis championship. As Mary had written in the "Confidence" file, "The truth was, I guess we were scared of each other's game. I had been champion the year before, and in Lucy I saw the greatest threat to my title. I was right. She won it!"
But, while losing on the court, Mary had been won by Lucy's sportsmanship over a close decision. Mary had liked the newcomer from then on and had determined to win Lucy as her friend. The "Confi- dence" notebook recorded how Mary had succeeded in this aim — not only winning Lucy as her chum, but also winning her to her Church, so that Lucy had become one of the leaders in the young people's ac- tivities.
While in high school, Mary had also determined to have a full sum- mer at the large girls' camp at Lake Eagle, near Westport, although her family could not afford this added expense. She had enrolled in after- noon classes to equip herself for camp leadership, and then had worked
hard enough to win a recommenda- tion from the secretary for a position on the Lake Eagle camp staff. The note of this success was also in her neat "Confidence" book.
"But there is the note I'm really proud of, Aunt Ruth," Mary said earnestly, pointing to an incident recorded from her senior year. She had been voted editor of the high school annual — the first girl ever to hold the position. She had been worried because she had felt un- qualified by her insufficient experi- ence. However, she had resolved to do her best to put out a champion- ship annual. At the end of the year, when the yearbook had won the highest possible rating in the state contest, Mary's "Confidence" file had received a fresh note.
In this way, Mary builds quietly from success to success. Her cour- age and self-confidence, based on reaching one goal after another, is having a sound, natural growth. Through her "Confidence" book, she is developing a feeling for the kind of success which makes for happiness. Her personal record is becoming a rich bank from which she can draw inspiration when she faces greater challenges in years ahead.
Han^nmts
Payment for Handy Hints used will be one dollar upon publication. In the event that two with the same idea are submitted, the one postmarked earlier will receive the dollar. None of the ideas can be returned, but each will receive careful consideration.
If you like cheese with apple pie, try cheese with apple dumplings! Just tuck a cube of cheese in the center of each dumpling before baking — it's delectably different. — Mrs. W. C. /., Somerville, Massachusetts,
To make moist lunch sandwiches that are not soggy, make sandwich in regu- lar manner with this one exception. On either side of the tomato or other moist filling, place waxed paper just a little larger than the slice of bread. When lunch is to be eaten the waxed paper is slipped out, and the sandwich is per- fect.— Mrs. A. P. A., Los Angeles, Cali- fornia.
THE IMPROVEMENT ERA
CD0H5 CORNElf
Josephine B. Nichols
A fter Church on Sunday is an ideal time to visit with friends and neigh- bors, and it isn't hard to scheme up something new for that evening snack. There are luscious fruits and vegeta- bles, to be served alone or in combina- tion with enriched rolls, biscuits, or cake.
Make your serving easy by planning menus that can be prepared the day be- fore. Use recipes that can be whipped up in a few minutes, or that are partially prepared and stored in the refrigerator.
Sunday Night Supper Menus
A pitcher of Tomato Juice
Filled Hot Biscuits
Fresh Fruit Pie
or
Stuffed Crab ala Creme
Spiced Crab Apples Potato Chips
Warmed-over Rolls Butter
Big fresh bowl Strawberries
Cream
Angel Food Cake
or
Frozen Fruit Salad
Whole wheat Nut Bread Sandwiches
Ginger Ale
Recipes
Filled Hot Biscuits
Fill hot buttered baking powder biscuits with minced baked ham, snappy cheese, sardines, shrimps, tuna, or minced hard cooked eggs, mixed with salad dressing and parsley, or mustard and chopped pickles.
Fresh Fruit Pie
A baked pastry shell and fresh fruit; sprinkle powdered sugar heavily over bot- tom of baked pastry shell, fill with sliced peaches or well-drained washed berries, sprinkle generously with powdered sugar. Spread whipped cream over the fruit, gar- nish with sliced peaches or whole berries; serve at once.
Stuffed Crab ala Creme
1 cup medium cream white sauce 14 teaspoon salt
fine grain pepper
2 tablespoons finely minced celery
1 tablespoon minced green pepper
2 cups cooked or canned crab meat \>2 CUP fi°e buttered crumbs
Combine white sauce, salt, pepper, celery, green pepper, and crab meat. Stuff crab shells with mixture; sprinkle crumbs over top. Place in shallow pan; bake in moderate oven, 375° F. for fifteen minutes or until brown. Serves six.
{Concluded on page 415)
JUNE 1947
No3 Mother ...
"I didn't forget to 'phone . . . but
I never knew just how much work went with
a wedding ring. Seems to me there's always something
Oh, my goodness! that's what you used to say, isn't it
Yes9 Mother
"I'm doing my own cleaning and washing. Our place is so tiny . . . and everything's so new and bright, I can't bear to let anyone else touch it or my beautiful linens and towels either . . .
Of course^ Mother! • .
"Fels-Naptha Soap? ... I never use anything else. That's one thing I did remember ... By the way, Mother, how does a man get so much dirt in his collars and cuffs? . . . All you've learned is how to get it out? I see what you mean, darling. Fels-Naptha Chips? . . . I have plenty— I think. Soon as I p
hang up I'll make sure . . . 'bye!"
Fels-Naptha Soap
BAN/SHESyATTLE-TALE GRAY"
• * •
393
.MELCHIZEDEK
FREDERICK W. BABBEL
Frederick W. Babbel Named Melchizedek Priesthood Secretary
P*lder Frederick W. Babbel has been named secretary of the Mel- chizedek Priesthood committee of the Church, succeeding Arnold D. White who has entered private business.
Elder Babbel spent nearly three years in prewar Europe as a missionary in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. He was awaiting his release from the army in San Francisco when the call came to accompany Elder Ezra Taft Benson of the Council of the Twelve to Europe as his secretary, and assist in reorganizing the missions of the Church there. He worked with Elder Benson for ten months, and with Elder Alma Sonne, assistant to the Council of the Twelve, for four months after Elder Sonne had succeeded Elder Ben- son as president of the European Mis- sion. In his fourteen months of activity, Elder Babbel visited fourteen countries, traveling seventy thousand miles.
With his unique experience as mis- sionary, serviceman, and having a spe- cial assignment to postwar Europe, Elder Babbel has the firm conviction that the gospel is the only sure way to peace — and that any peace must come from the hearts of men rather than being imposed by governments.
Elder Babbel has held many ward and stake assignments, among them be- ing ward Mutual superintendent, teach- er of special interest classes, and a member of a stake Sunday School su- perintendency. He has been active in scouting for twenty years.
♦ »
The general Constitution of our country is good, and a wholesome government could be framed upon it for it was dictated by the invis- ible operations of the Almighty.
— Brigham Young
394
Importance of Priest- hood Stressed by Church Leaders
T)riesthood, the Foundation of the Church: "The study of the sub- ject of the Holy or Melchizedek Priest- hood, including the Aaronic, is one of vast importance to the human family. The student of the true science of theology will readily comprehend the necessity of its existence among men, for the reason that true theology, or the Church of Jesus Christ, cannot exist without it. It lies at the foundation of the Church; it is the authority by which the Church is established or organized, built up and governed, and by which the gospel is preached, and all the ordi- nances thereof designed for the salva- tion of mankind are administered or solemnized. No ordinance of the gospel can be performed acceptably to God or with efficacy to man except by its au- thority and power, and certainly there is no ordinance or rite instituted by the Almighty in the great plan of redemp- tion which is not essential to the salva- tion or exaltation of his children. Therefore, where the Melchizedek or Holy Priesthood does not exist, there can be no true Church of Christ in its fulness. When this priesthood is not found among mankind they are desti- tute of the power of God, and therefore of the true science of theology, or the Church and religion of Jesus Christ who is the great high priest and apostle of our salvation." — Joseph F. Smith, Gospel Doctrine, p. 1 89.
Priesthood, the Key to Revelation: "The Melchizedek Priesthood holds the mysteries of the revelations of God. Wherever that priesthood exists, there also exists a knowledge of the laws of God; and wherever the gospel has ex- isted, there has always been revelation; and where there has been no revelation, there never has been the true gospel." — John Taylor, Journal of Discourses, vol. 13, p. 231.
"Men who wish to retain their stand- ing before God in the Holy Priesthood, must have the spirit of prophecy, and be qualified to administer life and salva- tion to the people; and if they cannot do it to the world, they must do it at home, in their families, in their shops, and in the streets, that their hearts may be inspired with words of life at their firesides, in teaching the gospel to their children, and to their neighbors, as much so as when they are speaking to
their brethren from this stand." — Lo- renzo Snow, Journal of Discourses, vol. 4, p. 157.
Priesthood to Bring About the Res- titution of Alt Things: "To bring about this desirable end — to restore creation to its pristine excellency and to fulfil the object of creation — to re- deem, save, exalt, and glorify man — to save and redeem the dead and the living, and all that shall live according to its laws, is the design and object of the establishment of the priesthood on the earth in the last days. It is for the purpose of fulfilling what has not here- tofore been done — that God's works may be perfected — that the time of the restitution of all things may be brought about, and that, in conjunction with the eternal priesthood in the heavens (who without us, nor we without them, could not be made perfect) , we may bring to pass all things which have been in the mind of God, or spoken of by the Spir- it of God, through the mouth of all the holy prophets since the world was. . . .
"The priesthood in the heavens are uniting with us to bring about these purposes, and as they are governed by the same principle, that our works may agree — that there may be a reciprocity of action, and that God's will (so far as we are concerned ) may be done on the earth as it is in heaven. It is this which we have to learn, and this which we must do to fulfil our calling, and render our works acceptable in the sight of God and of the holy angels, and also in the sight of our brethren, who are associated with us in the priesthood in the kingdom of God on the earth." — John Taylor, Millennial Star, vol. 9, pp. 321-322, November 1, 1847.
Duty of Men Holding the Priest- hood: "It is the duty of this vast body of men holding the Holy Priesthood, which is after the order of the Son of God, to exert their influence and exer- cise their power for good among the people of Israel and the people of the world. It is their bounden duty to preach and to work righteousness, both at home and abroad." — Joseph F. Smith, October 1901, Conference Re- port, p. 83.
"Men who are vessels of the Holy Priesthood, who are charged with words of eternal life to the world, should strive continually in their words and actions and daily deportment to do honor to the great dignity of their call- ing and office as ministers and repre- sentatives of the Most High." — Brig- ham Young, Discourses of Brigham Young, p. 202.
THE IMPROVEMENT ERA
CONDUCTED BY THE GENERAL PRIESTHOOD COMMITTEE OF THE COUNCIL OF THE TWELVE — JOSEPH FIELDING SMITH, CHAIRMAN; HAROLD B. LEE, SPENCER W. KIM- BALL, EZRA TAFT BENSON, MARION G. ROMNEY, THOMAS E. MCKAY, CLIFFORD E. YOUNG, ALMA SONNE, LEVI EDGAR YOUNG, ANTOINE R. IVINS
NO-LIQUOR-TOBACCO COLUMN
Conducted by Dr. Joseph F. Merrill
"I have no fears about this work being accomplished, but I have fears about many of the Latter-day Saints; because if we have the Holy Priesthood upon our heads and do not live our re- ligion, of all men we are under the greatest condemnation." — Wilford Woodruff, Journal of Discourses, vol. 21, p. 125.
The priesthood of the Son of God cannot be exercised in any degree of unrighteousness; neither will its power, its virtue and authority abide with him who is corrupt, who is treacherous in his soul toward God and toward his fellow men. It will not abide in force and power with him who does not hon- or it in his life by complying with the requirements of heaven."— Joseph F. Smith, April 1904 Conference Report, p. 3.
Sacredness of Keeping the Priest- hood Covenant Inviolate:
And also all they who receive this priest- hood receive me, saith the Lord;
For he that receiveth my servants re- ceiveth me;
And he that receiveth me receiveth my Father;
And he that receiveth my Father receiveth my Father's kingdom; therefore all that my Father hath shall be given unto him.
And this is according to the oath and covenant which belongeth to the priesthood.
Therefore, all those who receive the priesthood, receive this oath and covenant of my Father, which he cannot break, neither can it be moved.
But whoso breaketh this covenant after he hath received it, and altogether turneth therefrom, shall not have forgiveness of sins in this world nor in the world to come. (D. &. C. 84:35-41.)
Suggested Priesthood Restoration Topics
Tn the May issue of The Improvement Era was published a special letter from the Council of the Twelve regard- ing Melchizedek Priesthood commemo- rative exercises. This was addressed to presidents of stakes, presidents of mis- sions, bishops of wards, and presidents of branches.
Anticipating that suggested topics with notes and references for this event might be helpful in preparing this program, a number of items are here- with listed for your consideration:
JUNE 1947
1. Importance of priesthood restora- tion to this latter-day work.
D. & C. 84:62-64; 107:5, 8; Gospel Doctrine (1919 edition), pp. 178-181; 236-238; Gospel Kingdom, pp. 130-132.
2. The Holy Priesthood restored. Documentary History of the Church,
volume 1, note pp. 40, 41; D. & C. 27: 12, 13; 128:20; Gospel Doctrine (1919 edition), pp. 242-246.
3. Priesthood "holdeth the key to the knowledge of God."
D. & C. 76:5-10; 84: 19-22; 107: 20; 121:26-32; Gospel Kingdom, pp. 136, 137, 139; Discourses of Wilford Wood- ruff, p. 64.
4. Priesthood's part in the settle- ment of the West.
D. & C., section 136; Gospel Doc- trine, p. 170; Milton R. Hunter, Brig- ham Young the Colonizer, Chapter 7 — The Personnel of Mormon Coloniza- tion; chapter 10 — Mormons Theo- Democracy.
5. Effects of priesthood administra- tion during the past hundred years.
(An excellent opportunity is here afforded to develop the role of the priesthood in the Church since the exodus of the Saints from Nauvoo. Particular stress might be placed upon events within the memory of most of the listeners. It may be well to cite the work of the priesthood among the serv- icemen during the recent war and in the Church welfare relief and rehabili- tation activities, particularly during the past two years.
6. Responsibility of priesthood bear- er to his family, neighbors, Church, and the world.
D. & C. 68:25-33; 121:34-38, 41-46; Discourses of Wilford Woodruff, pp. 102-105.
7. Priesthood as preparation for eternal life.
D. & C. 27:15-18; 84:22, 33-44; 107: 99, 100; Gospel Kingdom, p. 138; Dis- courses of Wilford Woodruff, pp. 80, 85. See also D. & C, section 76.
8. Necessity for keys of the priest- hood.
D. & C. 27:12, 13; 84:14-18; 132:7; Gospel Doctrine, pp. 168, 176; Dis- courses of Wilford Woodruff, pp. 71- 74.
Each of the topics above outlined affords an unlimited field for original thinking. Every effort should be made to stress the sacredness and vitality of
Tt was Gold and Green time in El Pa- so, Texas, and the committee chose for its locale the lovely Hotel Paso Del Norte. A menu for the banquet was under consideration and the manager innocently asked the kind of cocktails desired. He was surprised to learn no cocktails were wanted. He asked the choice of tea or coffee with the meal. Again he expressed surprise that neither was part of the Mormon menu: a mem- ber of the committee mentioned to the manager that there would be no use for the ash trays. "You mean to tell me that there will be no smoking?" He was openly incredulous. "How could any group enjoy themselves without cigarets or cocktails — or even tea or coffee?"
The hotel manager mentioned the Mormon plans to his friends. The re- sult: an immediate debate among the most prominent men of the city con- cerning whether such a thing could be done. These men, all leaders in civic El Paso, asked permission to witness the Gold and Green Ball and banquet. They were quickly welcomed. At the banquet, as well as the ball, they care- fully observed every action of the eve- ning. The guests were deeply impressed. Never before, they said, had they wit- nessed such a well-conducted party nor one more lovely.
Liquor Advertising
As readers of this column know, the "^ movement to eliminate liquor ad- vertising is growing in magnitude in various parts of the country. An inter- esting example is the action of the South Bend, Indiana, Tribune. This paper is said to be a publication which has earned acceptance as one of the most influential and widely circulating newspapers, outside the strictly metro- politian field, having an accredited paid circulation of 86,415. On December 17, 1946, it announced that after December 31, 1946, no alcoholic beverage adver- tising would be accepted, either by the Tribune or its radio station, WSBT. In explanation of this action the man- ager said any newspaper or radio sta- tion considerate of the best interests of its patrons or listeners, and not of the monetary income involved, can hardly do less than refuse to advertise liquor.
The movement to induce readers of
newspapers and magazines that adver-
{Concluded on page 414)
» ♦ ■
the priesthood. Make of your presenta- tion a dramatic and living account which will stir and inspire those who may participate in these commemora- tive exercises.
395
,1 RRRDHIC PRIEBTHDDD
CONDUCTED UNDER THE SUPERVISION OF THE PRESIDING BISHOPRIC. EDITED BY LEE A. PALMER.
WARD YOUTH LEADERSHIP OUTLINE OF STUDY
JULY