Erastus Snow

“ As to the riches of the world they belong to the Lord, and He gives them to whom He will. If we are determined to devote our lives to the kingdom of Heaven, and not to this world, we shall in due time inherit all that is good for us to inherit; and unless we realize the objects of our existence, and learn to govern and control our spirits so as to devote ourselves and our energies and all the means given to us to build up Zion, then the good things of this life would be wasted upon us comparatively. ”

“ Let no one flatter himself that he can pass along in obscurity, unnoticed, and neither magnify his calling, nor yet be discharged from it. It will linger around you, it will haunt you and will be like a canker worm gnawing at the root of your felicity. ”

“ I have seen that the Lord has taken care of the Lamanites as well as of the Latter-day Saints, and He requires that we should exercise our reasoning powers, and not throw ourselves heedlessly into positions where we are exposed to the wrath of the savages. Inexperienced men who are unacquainted with Indian habits and customs, and their mode of warfare, should never be trusted beyond the confines of our settlements with their wives and families, to commence operation on their own account. ”

“ And if the blade grows, it may wither or the locusts devour it; and if they do God directs them, for there is not a sparrow which is not fed by our Father in Heaven, neither does a hair of our heads fall to the ground without being numbered; neither is there a locust that is not cared for by Him who rules all things, and He can dispose of them as seems to Him good He can move them east, west, north or south, and can destroy or multiply them at pleasure. ”

“ But the Savior compared the Kingdom of Heaven to a mustard seed, which, He said, is the least of all seeds, but which, when grown, becomes greater than all herbs, so that the fowls of the air can lodge in its branches. From this small beginning the Latter-day Saints have become a great people. ”

“ Let the people in every ward be awake and alive to this subject, that neither provisions nor teams for the outfit may be lacking when the time comes to send for the poor. If the people find that their plans for freighting and other business are thwarted to some extent in doing this, they will in the end find themselves richer, for the Lord has given us abundant evidence in times past that He controls the avenues of wealth and prosperity to this people. And who need fear the locusts and grasshoppers? ”

“ The discovering and opening of gold and silver mines tempt the cupidity of the blind worshippers of mammon, and spread corruption among the people. The prayers of every good man and woman should ascend to God, that in Zion these precious metals may be covered up and concealed until it is His good pleasure for His Saints to possess the kingdom, so that they may be governed and control [l] ed by the righteous instead of the wicked.
There is much neglect in some of the distant settlements on the part of our foreign brethren, with regard to taking out their naturalization papers. ”

“ I am aware that the hosts of hell have sought to control the wealth of the world, and Lucifer has ever sought to allure the righteous, as he did the Savior when he offered Him the kingdoms and wealth of the world if He would only fall down and worship him. ”

“ Iron, copper, coal, lead zinc and tin abound in our mountain home, and the development of these minerals is of far more importance to the welfare and prosperity of a nation, than the development of mines containing the precious metals ”

“ There are many here who assisted in establishing settlements in Salt Lake Valley, and who know the difficulties we had to encounter for the first two or three years; and there are others who have gone out and buffetted the difficulties of establishing settlements upon our borders north and south. The country on the Muddy affords facilities for extensive and prosperous settlements, but there is a lack of timber. ”

“ We may exert ourselves to the utmost to gather the poor and send forth our teams to bring them to our homes and He will provide abundance for us to feed them and ourselves and the locusts that He sends among us. And when the locusts have eaten enough, He will bid them leave, providing we are not over anxious to transport our substance to feed the wicked and build up hell in our midst. ”

“ The emigration of the poor has commended itself to the hearts and feelings of the people, and I am sure that their liberal response to the calls made upon them last October will do much to commend them to the favor of Heaven, and to secure the blessing of the Lord upon the labor of their hands. ”

“ It is very natural for them, like children, to feel after home and father and mother, and the scenes of their youth. And it is very natural, too, for the sympathies of parents to be with their children. ”

“ Let us continue in this great work, and let every bishop and elder exert himself in his sphere, to encourage the people to send in their available means of every kind, that our President and those whom he calls to assist him may be able to carry out the glorious programme that he has adopted for the gathering of the poor. ”

“ I am persuaded that the Lord is perfectly willing that His people should possess every good thing the earth will afford, orchards, gardens, vineyards, houses, carriages and every other good thing, to be enjoyed with thanksgiving and used with prudence and judgment. ”

“ Men of experience, energy, watchfulness—men with kind hearts and generous impulses, who can forgive an injury—are the men who should be selected on all occasions to lead out in the formation of new settlements on our frontiers ”

“ The word "white" is stricken from the Constitution of Deseret, and when the citizens of African descent are admitted to the polls, the adopted sons of America who have come here to obtain homes for themselves and their posterity, should not be indifferent respecting the rights of citizenship and neglect to take the steps necessary to secure to themselves the full privileges pertaining thereto. ”

“ With regard to the aborigines of this continent, there are several prophecies in the Book of Mormon to the effect that they will one day become a pure people; but that will not take place until the fulness of the Gentiles has come. ”

“ During the progress of this Conference there have been various means of industry and enterprise spoken of and presented for the consideration of the people, such as the producing of wool, flax, hemp, cotton and silk, and the introduction of machinery for the manufacture of the raw material into the various fabrics necessary for the use of the people in cold and warm weather. The subject of developing the mineral resources of our Territory is one of great importance. ”

“ It requires stout hearts to develop a new country like that; but perseverance, time and patience will accomplish it. There is plenty of bread—the staff of life—in the country, and no necessity for actual want among any of them. ”

“ If the Lord thinks that the locusts will be less offensive and do less harm than herders of the ungodly in our borders, I am contended [contented] to feed them, provided our people will cease feeding their enemies. ”

“ They have not Salt Lake market to go to, and they cannot procure all the little luxuries of life; and their food and manner of living will neces [s] arily be somewhat crude and primitive, but wholesome and healthy. ”