Wilford Woodruff

“ Yes, God has determined that seeing the Gentiles count themselves unworthy of eternal life, he will through the instrumentality of his servants cause salvation to go to Israel in the mountains, and fulfil the promises which were made to their fathers hundreds of years ago. When you see the servitude in which the poor of mankind are kept in the various nations, and the privations, abominations, and oppression that grind down the inhabitants of the earth, does it not make us feel for them? ”

“ Now, suppose I were to call for Missionaries to go and preach the Gospel to the nations that are termed the civilized nations, I could get hundreds of volunteers. Why are you not willing to make sacrifices here? Why should not men be willing to go and spend their time and talents among these Lamanites and save time, money, and hundreds and thousands of dollars? Let a man till his garden, attend to the cows, get his living and devote the spare portion of his time to preaching to these Lamanites, and and he will be right at home all the time. ”

“ Well, do I delight in seeing the wicked destroyed? No, I do not; but I delight in seeing the righteous get what they look for, happiness and eternal life. Is it a benefit for the wicked portion of mankind to live or to die and go down to the grave? ”

“ It has been remarked that it costs a great deal to keep the Lamanites, and who does not know that everything costs a good deal in this kingdom? Have you not tithed your whole substance, your flocks and herds and all your possessions? Have not the Gentiles robbed you and spoiled you of every thing you possessed? ”

“ It is better for the people to go down to the grave than to live upon the earth; when the principles of salvation are offered to the world, it is better that they should cease to live than bring thousands of posterity into the world who will like themselves do wickedly, for the wicked and the ungodly of the earth will not receive the Gospel of Christ, and the earth is bound to be cleansed that there may be room for the righteous to live, for a holy and righteous generation to be raised up and the name of God honoured among men. ”

“ The kingdom of God will remain upon the earth, and the holy Priesthood will rest down upon these our neighbours as well as we, and the keys of power will remain with this people for ever and be used for their redemption, for this is the decree of the Almighty. If we do not do our duty as a people we shall be chastened and whipped until we learn obedience. ”

“ Whenever I hear things set forth by the servants of God, I always know that there is a meaning to them, and they always weigh heavily upon my mind. The Lord foreshows us through his servants what is coming to pass, and in this way we have been led by the hand of God; and it has been by his mercies that we have been guided until the present time. The blessings of God have been multiplied upon our heads year after year, and we have had more than we deserve bestowed upon us, and the counsel and instructions given us have been good. ”

“ Supposing we were to take those Elders that we have in the various nations and send them in among these Indians, these natives of the mountains, what would be the result? Our Elders go and leave their families for two, three, five and seven years, they leave all and travel by land and sea, they get shipwrecked, go almost naked, and be gone for years, preaching and labouring year after year, and what do they accomplish? Not as much as they could do at home in one month, but still they go, and positively don't do as much good as they could do at home in one fourth the time. ”

“ Or, had we best take hold and bring them into the Gospel of Jesus Christ? Now, if this people, male and female, feel to school them, spend time and pains to instil into their minds correct principles, to divide land with them, and clothe them, draw their wood for them until they learn to draw their own, and farm for them until they learn to farm for themselves, and if they will no more slay them, no more seclude them from their houses and hospitality, and will go to work and restore them to the knowledge of the truth the Lord God will bless them, and they have nothing to fear. ”

“ I have felt, and did in the commencement of this Conference, that for one man or several men to have oil enough in their vessels to supply one thousand men was a very difficult thing, but it seems necessary when a congregation comes together for all to have oil in their lamps, and not to require one or half-a-dozen men to have oil with them for the whole congregation.
Well, brethren and sisters, we have heard a great deal since this meeting commenced, on various subjects, and we have had good teachings—principles of eternal life have been set before us by the several brethren who have spoken. ”

“ All will acknowledge that it is better to give a part than to lose the whole, and have to flee to the rocks and mountains, and be driven from our homes by the Gentile world. You will find, brethren and sisters, that the trials will be heavier and more severe every time and you will also find, that when the duties of our calling are light upon us, it will be then that we will require to, be stirred up to diligence and to the performance of our duty. The people are always the best when they are busily engaged. ”

“ Truly, if the Elders in this Church and kingdom realized what is put into their possession, and that the God of heaven will actually require an account of our stewardship, an account of what we have been doing, and what use we have been making of the gifts and blessings which he has bestowed upon us, we should be more diligent in the performance of all our duties, and we should often act differently to what we do, and pursue a different course, and especially concerning our red brethren. ”

“ Then teach them to work, to fence in their land, to plough, to raise wheat and corn, and potatoes, and everything they need; teach them to be cleanly and industrious, and prevail on them to send their children to school to learn to read and write the English language, and let some of those men that used to talk of teaching the Lamanites, and of converting them, let them go down and build a nice school-house in their settlement, and there teach them the principles of civilization. ”

“ I feel an anxiety for the welfare of this people, and I pray that we may not neglect the blessings that are given to us, for this is an important time. While we are in this probation we should make the best possible use of our time, for this is the time to receive life and knowledge and to lay up treasures in heaven, that where our heart is, there our treasures may be also. ”

“ I am going to tell you what to do with these natives, you Bishops and Presidents of Provo and Springville, call out those teams which you have about you, all of them, and if these Indians want wood, haul it for them for you have burned theirs, and they need a little wood as well as you. Let them have feed on the range for their horses, wood to burn, and then they will let you alone. You will eat their fish too, on which they depend for a living one part of the year, and every service berry that you can find in the mountains, and still you grumble to let them have a little with you. ”

“ Now, if you will take hold of the wheel and lift, it may be granted unto us to accomplish this great work, and I tell you that you will receive the blessings of the Gospel, such as you never received before, if you will make up your minds to be favourable and merciful unto them in their filthiness, and in their ignorance, these blessings are yours. But if you get angry and kill them, you will not obtain them. ”

“ They never will find it but through the instrumentality of this people, for into their hand the kingdom is given never more to be destroyed, but it will spread and increase until all have had an opportunity of receiving the truth in all nations. ”

“ In this way you will gradually bring them in to civilization, and they will be convinced that you are their friends, and that you intend to do them good, and these things will lead them to give ear to the Gospel and be baptized for the remission of their sins. Now are we going to try to make them one, and encourage them to abide here in peace, or are we determined to drive them from us? I can tell you the Lamanites of these mountains will yet be a shield to this people if we do right, and if we will not do our duty, our necks are ready for the halter or the knife ”

“ And it will be just so with us, we will be under greater condemnation than any other people if we neglect our duties, because we have received the Priesthood of God, and have learned what is right and what is wrong. ”

“ I have sat and listened with a great deal of interest to the teachings of the Prophets and Apostles of the Lord, and I feel it to be a privilege, indeed, to enjoy the society of such men, to hear them speak, and to have a few moments with the rest to address you. In the subjects and items that have been presented before us, there is a great amount of important matter. ”

“ I do feel though that the subject before us is of all importance to the house of Israel, and I believe that the Lord does intend that we should speak to them, and bring them to understand the light of truth. They are in darkness, because their fathers had the truth and turned away and forsook the Lord their God. ”

“ Before the whites came, there was plenty of fish and antelope, plenty of game of almost every description; but now the whites have killed off these things, and there is scarcely anything left for the poor natives to live upon. ”

“ If you will live up to this you will rise, while those who do not will go down. If this people will observe this covenant, and follow it one and all, (and here are the leading men in these mountains belonging to several of the tribes, and they feel well) , thousands and hundreds of thousands will embrace this Gospel, and for ought I know scores of thousands will become members of this Church. ”

“ I also believe that which was said here to-day, viz.:—That we do forget what we are, and we often forget who we are; we forget, as a people in these mountains, by what hand we have been led here, and by whom we have been governed and control [l] ed since this kingdom has been organized and the holy Priesthood committed to man upon the earth. We become so overcome by the cares of life that we neglect and forget our duties ”