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Discourse, 29 August 1842

Source Note

JS, Discourse,
Nauvoo

Principal gathering place for Saints following expulsion from Missouri. Beginning in 1839, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints purchased lands in earlier settlement of Commerce and planned settlement of Commerce City, as well as surrounding areas....

More Info
, Hancock Co., IL, 29 Aug. 1842. Featured version copied [between 29 Aug. and 2 Sept. 1842] in JS, Journal, Dec. 1841–Dec. 1842, in Book of the Law of the Lord, pp. 183–184; handwriting of
William Clayton

17 July 1814–4 Dec. 1879. Bookkeeper, clerk. Born at Charnock Moss, Penwortham, Lancashire, England. Son of Thomas Clayton and Ann Critchley. Married Ruth Moon, 9 Oct. 1836, at Penwortham. Baptized into Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints by Heber...

View Full Bio
; CHL. For more complete source information, see the source note for Revelation, 19 Jan. 1841 [D&C 124].

Historical Introduction

On 29 August 1842, at a special
conference

A meeting where ecclesiastical officers and other church members could conduct church business. The “Articles and Covenants” of the church directed the elders to hold conferences to perform “Church business.” The first of these conferences was held on 9 June...

View Glossary
of
elders

A male leader in the church generally; an ecclesiastical and priesthood office or one holding that office; a proselytizing missionary. The Book of Mormon explained that elders ordained priests and teachers and administered “the flesh and blood of Christ unto...

View Glossary
in
Nauvoo

Principal gathering place for Saints following expulsion from Missouri. Beginning in 1839, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints purchased lands in earlier settlement of Commerce and planned settlement of Commerce City, as well as surrounding areas....

More Info
, Illinois, JS spoke about outwitting his enemies. These enemies included the legal officials who were attempting to arrest and extradite him to
Missouri

Area acquired by U.S. in Louisiana Purchase, 1803, and established as territory, 1812. Missouri Compromise, 1820, admitted Missouri as slave state, 1821. Population in 1830 about 140,000; in 1836 about 240,000; and in 1840 about 380,000. Latter-day Saint ...

More Info
, as well as
John C. Bennett

3 Aug. 1804–5 Aug. 1867. Physician, minister, poultry breeder. Born at Fairhaven, Bristol Co., Massachusetts. Son of John Bennett and Abigail Cook. Moved to Marietta, Washington Co., Ohio, 1808; to Massachusetts, 1812; and back to Marietta, 1822. Married ...

View Full Bio
and individuals JS associated with him, including
Orson Pratt

19 Sept. 1811–3 Oct. 1881. Farmer, writer, teacher, merchant, surveyor, editor, publisher. Born at Hartford, Washington Co., New York. Son of Jared Pratt and Charity Dickinson. Moved to New Lebanon, Columbia Co., New York, 1814; to Canaan, Columbia Co., fall...

View Full Bio
,
George W. Robinson

14 May 1814–10 Feb. 1878. Clerk, postmaster, merchant, clothier, banker. Born at Pawlet, Rutland Co., Vermont. Baptized into Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and moved to Kirtland, Geauga Co., Ohio, by 1836. Clerk and recorder for Kirtland high...

View Full Bio
, and
Sidney Rigdon

19 Feb. 1793–14 July 1876. Tanner, farmer, minister. Born at St. Clair, Allegheny Co., Pennsylvania. Son of William Rigdon and Nancy Gallaher. Joined United Baptists, ca. 1818. Preached at Warren, Trumbull Co., Ohio, and vicinity, 1819–1821. Married Phebe...

View Full Bio
. Bennett had accused JS of engaging in illicit sexual relations, alleged that JS had sent
Orrin Porter Rockwell

June 1814–9 June 1878. Ferry operator, herdsman, farmer. Born in Belchertown, Hampshire Co., Massachusetts. Son of Orin Rockwell and Sarah Witt. Moved to Farmington (later in Manchester), Ontario Co., New York, 1817. Neighbor to JS. Baptized into Church of...

View Full Bio
to assassinate former Missouri governor
Lilburn W. Boggs

14 Dec. 1796–14 Mar. 1860. Bookkeeper, bank cashier, merchant, Indian agent and trader, lawyer, doctor, postmaster, politician. Born at Lexington, Fayette Co., Kentucky. Son of John M. Boggs and Martha Oliver. Served in War of 1812. Moved to St. Louis, ca...

View Full Bio
, and vowed to help extradite JS from
Illinois

Became part of Northwest Territory of U.S., 1787. Admitted as state, 1818. Population in 1840 about 480,000. Population in 1845 about 660,000. Plentiful, inexpensive land attracted settlers from northern and southern states. Following expulsion from Missouri...

More Info
to Missouri.
1

JS, Journal, 26 Aug. 1842; John C. Bennett, Nauvoo, IL, 27 June 1842, Letter to the Editor, Sangamo Journal (Springfield, IL), 8 July 1842, [2]; John C. Bennett, Carthage, IL, 2 July 1842, Letter to the Editor, Sangamo Journal, 15 July 1842, [2].


Comprehensive Works Cited

Sangamo Journal. Springfield, IL. 1831–1847.

Bennett’s claims might have contributed to JS’s arrest on 8 August;
2

See Petition to Nauvoo Municipal Court, 8 Aug. 1842.


although JS was released on a jurisdictional question, he then went into hiding to avoid extradition. Bennett had also created problems in the eastern
United States

North American constitutional republic. Constitution ratified, 17 Sept. 1787. Population in 1805 about 6,000,000; in 1830 about 13,000,000; and in 1844 about 20,000,000. Louisiana Purchase, 1803, doubled size of U.S. Consisted of seventeen states at time ...

More Info
. On 8 August,
John E. Page

25 Feb. 1799–14 Oct. 1867. Born at Trenton, Oneida Co., New York. Son of Ebenezer Page and Rachel Hill. Married first Betsey Thompson, 1831, in Huron Co., Ohio. Baptized into Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints by Emer Harris, 18 Aug. 1833, at Brownhelm...

View Full Bio
had written JS from
Pittsburgh

Also spelled Pittsbourg, Pittsbourgh, and Pittsburg. Major industrial port city in southwestern Pennsylvania. Near location where Monongahela and Allegheny rivers converge to form Ohio River. French established Fort Du Quesne, 1754. British captured fort,...

More Info
, urging JS and other
church

The Book of Mormon related that when Christ set up his church in the Americas, “they which were baptized in the name of Jesus, were called the church of Christ.” The first name used to denote the church JS organized on 6 April 1830 was “the Church of Christ...

View Glossary
leaders to “put down the slanders of Bennett.”
3

Letter from John E. Page, 8 Aug. 1842.


While JS was in hiding, the
Quorum of the Twelve

Members of a governing body in the church, with special administrative and proselytizing responsibilities. A June 1829 revelation commanded Oliver Cowdery and David Whitmer to call twelve disciples, similar to the twelve apostles in the New Testament and ...

View Glossary
held a four-day meeting with
Orson Pratt

19 Sept. 1811–3 Oct. 1881. Farmer, writer, teacher, merchant, surveyor, editor, publisher. Born at Hartford, Washington Co., New York. Son of Jared Pratt and Charity Dickinson. Moved to New Lebanon, Columbia Co., New York, 1814; to Canaan, Columbia Co., fall...

View Full Bio
in an attempt to resolve differences between him and JS. The apostles strove “to get him to recall his sayings against Joseph . . . but he persisted.” On 20 August, the council “cut off” Pratt from the church.
4

Woodruff, Journal, 10 Aug.–18 Sept. 1842. In the 1850s, Brigham Young wrote that JS, who was in hiding on 20 August, had been informed of Pratt’s intransigence and had instructed the council to “ordain Bro. Amasa Lyman in Bro. Orson’s stead.” In January 1843 JS determined that “as there was not a quorum” when Pratt had been disciplined, he “had not legally been cut off”; JS did, however, uphold Lyman’s ordination. Some sources use the term disfellowshipped in reference to Pratt’s removal, while others use the term excommunicated. Regardless, when Pratt returned to the church in 1843, he “recived the presthood & the same power & authority as in former days,” thus regaining his membership in the Quorum of the Twelve. (Historian’s Office, Brigham Young History Drafts, 64; Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, Minutes, 20 Jan. 1843; JS, Journal, 20 Jan. 1843; Taylor, Succession in the Priesthood, 18–20; see also England, Life and Thought of Orson Pratt, 75–86.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.

Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Minutes, 1840–1844. CHL.

Taylor, John. Succession in the Priesthood: A Discourse by President John Taylor, Delivered at the Priesthood Meeting, Held in the Salt Lake Assembly Hall, Friday Evening, October 7th, 1881. [Salt Lake City?], [1881?].

England, Breck. The Life and Thought of Orson Pratt. Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press, 1985.

However, JS’s journal suggests that a day later Pratt “signified his intention of coming out in defence of the truth and go to preaching.”
5

JS, Journal, 21 Aug. 1842.


JS returned to his home in
Nauvoo

Principal gathering place for Saints following expulsion from Missouri. Beginning in 1839, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints purchased lands in earlier settlement of Commerce and planned settlement of Commerce City, as well as surrounding areas....

More Info
, at the request of his wife
Emma Smith

10 July 1804–30 Apr. 1879. Scribe, editor, boardinghouse operator, clothier. Born at Willingborough Township (later in Harmony), Susquehanna Co., Pennsylvania. Daughter of Isaac Hale and Elizabeth Lewis. Member of Methodist church at Harmony (later in Oakland...

View Full Bio
, on 23 August.
6

JS, Journal, 23 Aug. 1842.


Three days later, he convened a meeting with members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and discussed plans to hold a conference and send the available elders on missions to foil
Bennett

3 Aug. 1804–5 Aug. 1867. Physician, minister, poultry breeder. Born at Fairhaven, Bristol Co., Massachusetts. Son of John Bennett and Abigail Cook. Moved to Marietta, Washington Co., Ohio, 1808; to Massachusetts, 1812; and back to Marietta, 1822. Married ...

View Full Bio
’s efforts.
The special conference occurred on 29 August. At ten o’clock that morning, “the Elders assembled in the
grove

Before partial completion of Nauvoo temple, all large meetings were held outdoors in groves located near east and west sides of temple site. Had portable stands for speakers. JS referred to area as “temple stand” due to its location on brow of hill.

More Info
near the
Temple

Located in portion of Nauvoo known as the bluff. JS revelation dated Jan. 1841 commanded Saints to build temple and hotel (Nauvoo House). Cornerstone laid, 6 Apr. 1841. Saints volunteered labor, money, and other resources for temple construction. Construction...

More Info
,” and
Hyrum Smith

9 Feb. 1800–27 June 1844. Farmer, cooper. Born at Tunbridge, Orange Co., Vermont. Son of Joseph Smith Sr. and Lucy Mack. Moved to Randolph, Orange Co., 1802; back to Tunbridge, before May 1803; to Royalton, Windsor Co., Vermont, 1804; to Sharon, Windsor Co...

View Full Bio
called on “every Elder who can” to go east in order to counteract
Bennett

3 Aug. 1804–5 Aug. 1867. Physician, minister, poultry breeder. Born at Fairhaven, Bristol Co., Massachusetts. Son of John Bennett and Abigail Cook. Moved to Marietta, Washington Co., Ohio, 1808; to Massachusetts, 1812; and back to Marietta, 1822. Married ...

View Full Bio
’s “false statements,” preach the gospel, and obtain funds for the temple. JS then spoke, rehearsing the trouble the Saints had had with
Missouri

Area acquired by U.S. in Louisiana Purchase, 1803, and established as territory, 1812. Missouri Compromise, 1820, admitted Missouri as slave state, 1821. Population in 1830 about 140,000; in 1836 about 240,000; and in 1840 about 380,000. Latter-day Saint ...

More Info
officials and describing his avoidance of extradition as another victory over them. He then instructed the elders to defend his character and expose the unjust and corrupt actions of
Lilburn W. Boggs

14 Dec. 1796–14 Mar. 1860. Bookkeeper, bank cashier, merchant, Indian agent and trader, lawyer, doctor, postmaster, politician. Born at Lexington, Fayette Co., Kentucky. Son of John M. Boggs and Martha Oliver. Served in War of 1812. Moved to St. Louis, ca...

View Full Bio
and
Thomas Carlin

18 July 1789–14 Feb. 1852. Ferry owner, farmer, sheriff, politician. Born in Fayette Co., Kentucky. Son of Thomas Carlin and Elizabeth Evans. Baptist. Moved to what became Missouri, by 1803. Moved to Illinois Territory, by 1812. Served in War of 1812. Married...

View Full Bio
, and he warned
Pratt

19 Sept. 1811–3 Oct. 1881. Farmer, writer, teacher, merchant, surveyor, editor, publisher. Born at Hartford, Washington Co., New York. Son of Jared Pratt and Charity Dickinson. Moved to New Lebanon, Columbia Co., New York, 1814; to Canaan, Columbia Co., fall...

View Full Bio
,
Sidney Rigdon

19 Feb. 1793–14 July 1876. Tanner, farmer, minister. Born at St. Clair, Allegheny Co., Pennsylvania. Son of William Rigdon and Nancy Gallaher. Joined United Baptists, ca. 1818. Preached at Warren, Trumbull Co., Ohio, and vicinity, 1819–1821. Married Phebe...

View Full Bio
, and
George W. Robinson

14 May 1814–10 Feb. 1878. Clerk, postmaster, merchant, clothier, banker. Born at Pawlet, Rutland Co., Vermont. Baptized into Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and moved to Kirtland, Geauga Co., Ohio, by 1836. Clerk and recorder for Kirtland high...

View Full Bio
that their efforts to oppose him would fail.
7

JS, Journal, 29 Aug. 1842. Boggs, Missouri’s former governor, had claimed JS conspired to murder him. Carlin, Illinois’s governor, had issued a warrant for JS’s arrest in response to Missouri’s extradition request. (Lilburn W. Boggs, Affidavit, 20 July 1842; Thomas Reynolds, Requisition, 22 July 1842; Petition to Nauvoo Municipal Court, 8 Aug. 1842.)


According to JS’s journal, “Orson Pratt set behind
president

The highest presiding body of the church. An 11 November 1831 revelation stated that the president of the high priesthood was to preside over the church. JS was ordained as president of the high priesthood on 25 January 1832. In March 1832, JS appointed two...

View Glossary
Joseph all the time he was speaking. He looked serious and dejected, but did not betray the least signs of compunction or repentance.”
8

JS, Journal, 29 Aug. 1842.


Writing a short time later,
Wilford Woodruff

1 Mar. 1807–2 Sept. 1898. Farmer, miller. Born at Farmington, Hartford Co., Connecticut. Son of Aphek Woodruff and Beulah Thompson. Moved to Richland, Oswego Co., New York, 1832. Baptized into Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints by Zera Pulsipher,...

View Full Bio
recorded that “about 400 Elders have since gone & many others are going.”
9

Woodruff, Journal, 10 Aug.–18 Sept. 1842.


Comprehensive Works Cited

Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.

William Clayton

17 July 1814–4 Dec. 1879. Bookkeeper, clerk. Born at Charnock Moss, Penwortham, Lancashire, England. Son of Thomas Clayton and Ann Critchley. Married Ruth Moon, 9 Oct. 1836, at Penwortham. Baptized into Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints by Heber...

View Full Bio
recorded an account of JS’s discourse into JS’s journal, which was being kept in the Book of the Law of the Lord, probably on or shortly after 29 August 1842.
10

Changes in ink density suggest that Clayton recorded the discourse in JS’s journal no later than 2 September 1842. (Book of the Law of the Lord, 183–184.)


The entry in the journal appears to be a fair copy. Rather than carrying the large Book of the Law of the Lord with him to the
grove

Before partial completion of Nauvoo temple, all large meetings were held outdoors in groves located near east and west sides of temple site. Had portable stands for speakers. JS referred to area as “temple stand” due to its location on brow of hill.

More Info
, Clayton likely took notes of the discourse in a smaller notebook or on loose leaves and then used his notes to record an account of the discourse in JS’s journal.

Footnotes

  1. [1]

    JS, Journal, 26 Aug. 1842; John C. Bennett, Nauvoo, IL, 27 June 1842, Letter to the Editor, Sangamo Journal (Springfield, IL), 8 July 1842, [2]; John C. Bennett, Carthage, IL, 2 July 1842, Letter to the Editor, Sangamo Journal, 15 July 1842, [2].

    Sangamo Journal. Springfield, IL. 1831–1847.

  2. [2]

    See Petition to Nauvoo Municipal Court, 8 Aug. 1842.

  3. [3]

    Letter from John E. Page, 8 Aug. 1842.

  4. [4]

    Woodruff, Journal, 10 Aug.–18 Sept. 1842. In the 1850s, Brigham Young wrote that JS, who was in hiding on 20 August, had been informed of Pratt’s intransigence and had instructed the council to “ordain Bro. Amasa Lyman in Bro. Orson’s stead.” In January 1843 JS determined that “as there was not a quorum” when Pratt had been disciplined, he “had not legally been cut off”; JS did, however, uphold Lyman’s ordination. Some sources use the term disfellowshipped in reference to Pratt’s removal, while others use the term excommunicated. Regardless, when Pratt returned to the church in 1843, he “recived the presthood & the same power & authority as in former days,” thus regaining his membership in the Quorum of the Twelve. (Historian’s Office, Brigham Young History Drafts, 64; Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, Minutes, 20 Jan. 1843; JS, Journal, 20 Jan. 1843; Taylor, Succession in the Priesthood, 18–20; see also England, Life and Thought of Orson Pratt, 75–86.)

    Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.

    Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Minutes, 1840–1844. CHL.

    Taylor, John. Succession in the Priesthood: A Discourse by President John Taylor, Delivered at the Priesthood Meeting, Held in the Salt Lake Assembly Hall, Friday Evening, October 7th, 1881. [Salt Lake City?], [1881?].

    England, Breck. The Life and Thought of Orson Pratt. Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press, 1985.

  5. [5]

    JS, Journal, 21 Aug. 1842.

  6. [6]

    JS, Journal, 23 Aug. 1842.

  7. [7]

    JS, Journal, 29 Aug. 1842. Boggs, Missouri’s former governor, had claimed JS conspired to murder him. Carlin, Illinois’s governor, had issued a warrant for JS’s arrest in response to Missouri’s extradition request. (Lilburn W. Boggs, Affidavit, 20 July 1842; Thomas Reynolds, Requisition, 22 July 1842; Petition to Nauvoo Municipal Court, 8 Aug. 1842.)

  8. [8]

    JS, Journal, 29 Aug. 1842.

  9. [9]

    Woodruff, Journal, 10 Aug.–18 Sept. 1842.

    Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.

  10. [10]

    Changes in ink density suggest that Clayton recorded the discourse in JS’s journal no later than 2 September 1842. (Book of the Law of the Lord, 183–184.)

Asterisk (*) denotes a "featured" version, which includes an introduction and annotation. Journal, December 1841–December 1842 History, 1838–1856, volume D-1 [1 August 1842–1 July 1843] *Discourse, 29 August 1842 Journal, December 1841–December 1842 History, 1838–1856, volume D-1 [1 August 1842–1 July 1843] “History of Joseph Smith”

Page 184

tens, hundreds and thousands to fight for you. If oppression comes I will then shew them that there is a Moses and a Joshua amongst us;
13

See Numbers chaps. 21, 31; and Joshua chaps. 6–12.


and I will fight them if they dont take off oppression from me, I will do as I have done this time, I will run into the woods. I will fight them in my own way. I will send
bro. Hyrum [Smith]

9 Feb. 1800–27 June 1844. Farmer, cooper. Born at Tunbridge, Orange Co., Vermont. Son of Joseph Smith Sr. and Lucy Mack. Moved to Randolph, Orange Co., 1802; back to Tunbridge, before May 1803; to Royalton, Windsor Co., Vermont, 1804; to Sharon, Windsor Co...

View Full Bio
to call
conferences

A meeting where ecclesiastical officers and other church members could conduct church business. The “Articles and Covenants” of the church directed the elders to hold conferences to perform “Church business.” The first of these conferences was held on 9 June...

View Glossary
every where through-out the
States

North American constitutional republic. Constitution ratified, 17 Sept. 1787. Population in 1805 about 6,000,000; in 1830 about 13,000,000; and in 1844 about 20,000,000. Louisiana Purchase, 1803, doubled size of U.S. Consisted of seventeen states at time ...

More Info
,
14

According to Wilford Woodruff, available elders were specifically charged to go to the “free states & mostly to New England or the canidas not to go to any of the indians or slave states.” (Woodruff, Journal, 10 Aug.–18 Sept. 1842.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.

and let documents be taken along and show to the world the corrupt and oppressive <​conduct​> of
[Lilburn W.] Boggs

14 Dec. 1796–14 Mar. 1860. Bookkeeper, bank cashier, merchant, Indian agent and trader, lawyer, doctor, postmaster, politician. Born at Lexington, Fayette Co., Kentucky. Son of John M. Boggs and Martha Oliver. Served in War of 1812. Moved to St. Louis, ca...

View Full Bio
.
[Thomas] Carlin

18 July 1789–14 Feb. 1852. Ferry owner, farmer, sheriff, politician. Born in Fayette Co., Kentucky. Son of Thomas Carlin and Elizabeth Evans. Baptist. Moved to what became Missouri, by 1803. Moved to Illinois Territory, by 1812. Served in War of 1812. Married...

View Full Bio
and others, that the public may have the truth laid before them.
15

JS likely had in mind documents related to his extradition. He also intended to provide the elders with “all the affidavits concerning Bennetts conduct . . . so that each Elder could be properly furnished with correct and weighty testimony to lay before the public.” The affidavits were published as a broadsheet dated 31 August. About a month before, the Wasp and the Times and Seasons had published affidavits defending JS and condemning Bennett. (JS, Journal, 26 Aug. 1842; Affidavits and Certificates [Nauvoo, IL: 1842], copy at CHL; “Bennettiana,” Wasp, Extra, 27 July 1842, [1]–[2]; Times and Seasons, 1 Aug. 1842, 3:874.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

Affidavits and Certificates, Disproving the Statements and Affidavits Contained in John C. Bennett’s Letters. Nauvoo Aug. 31, 1842. [Nauvoo, IL: 1842]. Copy at CHL.

The Wasp. Nauvoo, IL. Apr. 1842–Apr. 1843.

Let the
Twelve

Members of a governing body in the church, with special administrative and proselytizing responsibilities. A June 1829 revelation commanded Oliver Cowdery and David Whitmer to call twelve disciples, similar to the twelve apostles in the New Testament and ...

View Glossary
send all who will support the character of the Prophet— the Lords anointed.
16

Wilford Woodruff noted that, along with about four hundred elders, “many others are going,” including all members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles except Woodruff and John Taylor, who were both ill. (Woodruff, Journal, 10 Aug.–18 Sept. 1842.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.

And if all who go will support my character I prophecy in the name of the Lord Jesus whose servant I am, that you will prosper in your missions. I have the whole plan of the kingdom before me, and no other person has.
17

An 1841 revelation indicated the Saints would yet receive “things which have been kept hid from before the foundation of the world, things that pertain to the dispensation of the fulness of times.” (Revelation, 19 Jan. 1841 [D&C 124:41]; see also Discourse, 1 May 1842.)


And as to all that
Orson Pratt

19 Sept. 1811–3 Oct. 1881. Farmer, writer, teacher, merchant, surveyor, editor, publisher. Born at Hartford, Washington Co., New York. Son of Jared Pratt and Charity Dickinson. Moved to New Lebanon, Columbia Co., New York, 1814; to Canaan, Columbia Co., fall...

View Full Bio
,
Sidney Rigdon

19 Feb. 1793–14 July 1876. Tanner, farmer, minister. Born at St. Clair, Allegheny Co., Pennsylvania. Son of William Rigdon and Nancy Gallaher. Joined United Baptists, ca. 1818. Preached at Warren, Trumbull Co., Ohio, and vicinity, 1819–1821. Married Phebe...

View Full Bio
18

Rigdon and JS had been at odds since May, at least in part due to differences concerning Bennett. In mid-August, Rigdon, who had been warned by his daughter Elizabeth to repent, “bore testimony to the truth of the work” and denied that “he had said Joseph was a fallen prophet.” (JS, Journal, 12–13 May 1842; 28 June 1842; 21 Aug. 1842; see also John C. Bennett, Nauvoo, IL, 27 June 1842, Letter to the Editor, Sangamo Journal [Springfield, IL], 8 July 1842, [2]; John C. Bennett, Carthage, IL, 2 July 1842, Letter to the Editor, Sangamo Journal, 15 July 1842, [2]; Letter to Nancy Rigdon, ca. Mid-Apr. 1842; and Letter from Sidney Rigdon, 1 July 1842.)


Comprehensive Works Cited

Sangamo Journal. Springfield, IL. 1831–1847.

or
George W. Robinson

14 May 1814–10 Feb. 1878. Clerk, postmaster, merchant, clothier, banker. Born at Pawlet, Rutland Co., Vermont. Baptized into Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and moved to Kirtland, Geauga Co., Ohio, by 1836. Clerk and recorder for Kirtland high...

View Full Bio
19

Robinson, who was married to Rigdon’s oldest daughter, Athalia, appeared to side with Bennett and against JS in the summer of 1842. In a late June letter to the Sangamo Journal, Bennett named Robinson as an individual whom the editors could rely on to corroborate his allegations. Robinson never offered the corroboration Bennett sought. By July he had resigned his position in the Nauvoo Legion and left the church. (John C. Bennett, Nauvoo, IL, 27 June 1842, Letter to the Editor, Sangamo Journal [Springfield, IL], 8 July 1842, [2]; George W. Robinson, Nauvoo, IL, to John C. Bennett, 20 June 1842, in Bennett, History of the Saints, 44; George W. Robinson, “Letter from Nauvoo,” Quincy [IL] Whig, 23 July 1842, [2]; “G. W. Robinson,” Times and Seasons, 1 Aug. 1842, 3:878; “Bennett’s Second and Third Letters,” Sangamo Journal, 15 July 1842, [2]; George W. Robinson, Nauvoo, IL, to James Arlington Bennet, 27 July 1842, in Bennett, History of the Saints, 245–247; George W. Robinson, Nauvoo, IL, to John C. Bennett, 8 Aug. 1842, in Bennett, History of the Saints, 247–248; “Letter from Col. Robinson,” Sangamo Journal, 26 Aug. 1842, [2].)


Comprehensive Works Cited

Sangamo Journal. Springfield, IL. 1831–1847.

Bennett, John C. The History of the Saints; or, an Exposé of Joe Smith and Mormonism. Boston: Leland and Whiting, 1842.

Quincy Whig. Quincy, IL. 1838–1856.

Bennett, Henry Holcomb, ed. The County of Ross: A History of Ross County, Ohio, from the Earliest Days, with Special Chapters on the Bench and Bar, Medical Profession, Educational Department, Industry and Agriculture, and Biographical Sketches. Madison, WI: Selwyn A. Brant, 1902.

can do to prevent me I can kick them off my heels, as many as you can name, I know what will become of them”. He concluded his remarks by saying “I have the best of feelings towards my brethren since this last trouble began, but to the apostates and enemies I will give a lashing every oppertunity and I will curse them.” [p. 184]
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Source Note

Document Transcript

Page 184

Document Information

Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Discourse, 29 August 1842
ID #
10421
Total Pages
2
Print Volume Location
JSP, D10:449–454
Handwriting on This Page
  • William Clayton

Footnotes

  1. [13]

    See Numbers chaps. 21, 31; and Joshua chaps. 6–12.

  2. [14]

    According to Wilford Woodruff, available elders were specifically charged to go to the “free states & mostly to New England or the canidas not to go to any of the indians or slave states.” (Woodruff, Journal, 10 Aug.–18 Sept. 1842.)

    Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.

  3. [15]

    JS likely had in mind documents related to his extradition. He also intended to provide the elders with “all the affidavits concerning Bennetts conduct . . . so that each Elder could be properly furnished with correct and weighty testimony to lay before the public.” The affidavits were published as a broadsheet dated 31 August. About a month before, the Wasp and the Times and Seasons had published affidavits defending JS and condemning Bennett. (JS, Journal, 26 Aug. 1842; Affidavits and Certificates [Nauvoo, IL: 1842], copy at CHL; “Bennettiana,” Wasp, Extra, 27 July 1842, [1]–[2]; Times and Seasons, 1 Aug. 1842, 3:874.)

    Affidavits and Certificates, Disproving the Statements and Affidavits Contained in John C. Bennett’s Letters. Nauvoo Aug. 31, 1842. [Nauvoo, IL: 1842]. Copy at CHL.

    The Wasp. Nauvoo, IL. Apr. 1842–Apr. 1843.

  4. [16]

    Wilford Woodruff noted that, along with about four hundred elders, “many others are going,” including all members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles except Woodruff and John Taylor, who were both ill. (Woodruff, Journal, 10 Aug.–18 Sept. 1842.)

    Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.

  5. [17]

    An 1841 revelation indicated the Saints would yet receive “things which have been kept hid from before the foundation of the world, things that pertain to the dispensation of the fulness of times.” (Revelation, 19 Jan. 1841 [D&C 124:41]; see also Discourse, 1 May 1842.)

  6. [18]

    Rigdon and JS had been at odds since May, at least in part due to differences concerning Bennett. In mid-August, Rigdon, who had been warned by his daughter Elizabeth to repent, “bore testimony to the truth of the work” and denied that “he had said Joseph was a fallen prophet.” (JS, Journal, 12–13 May 1842; 28 June 1842; 21 Aug. 1842; see also John C. Bennett, Nauvoo, IL, 27 June 1842, Letter to the Editor, Sangamo Journal [Springfield, IL], 8 July 1842, [2]; John C. Bennett, Carthage, IL, 2 July 1842, Letter to the Editor, Sangamo Journal, 15 July 1842, [2]; Letter to Nancy Rigdon, ca. Mid-Apr. 1842; and Letter from Sidney Rigdon, 1 July 1842.)

    Sangamo Journal. Springfield, IL. 1831–1847.

  7. [19]

    Robinson, who was married to Rigdon’s oldest daughter, Athalia, appeared to side with Bennett and against JS in the summer of 1842. In a late June letter to the Sangamo Journal, Bennett named Robinson as an individual whom the editors could rely on to corroborate his allegations. Robinson never offered the corroboration Bennett sought. By July he had resigned his position in the Nauvoo Legion and left the church. (John C. Bennett, Nauvoo, IL, 27 June 1842, Letter to the Editor, Sangamo Journal [Springfield, IL], 8 July 1842, [2]; George W. Robinson, Nauvoo, IL, to John C. Bennett, 20 June 1842, in Bennett, History of the Saints, 44; George W. Robinson, “Letter from Nauvoo,” Quincy [IL] Whig, 23 July 1842, [2]; “G. W. Robinson,” Times and Seasons, 1 Aug. 1842, 3:878; “Bennett’s Second and Third Letters,” Sangamo Journal, 15 July 1842, [2]; George W. Robinson, Nauvoo, IL, to James Arlington Bennet, 27 July 1842, in Bennett, History of the Saints, 245–247; George W. Robinson, Nauvoo, IL, to John C. Bennett, 8 Aug. 1842, in Bennett, History of the Saints, 247–248; “Letter from Col. Robinson,” Sangamo Journal, 26 Aug. 1842, [2].)

    Sangamo Journal. Springfield, IL. 1831–1847.

    Bennett, John C. The History of the Saints; or, an Exposé of Joe Smith and Mormonism. Boston: Leland and Whiting, 1842.

    Quincy Whig. Quincy, IL. 1838–1856.

    Bennett, Henry Holcomb, ed. The County of Ross: A History of Ross County, Ohio, from the Earliest Days, with Special Chapters on the Bench and Bar, Medical Profession, Educational Department, Industry and Agriculture, and Biographical Sketches. Madison, WI: Selwyn A. Brant, 1902.

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