Of course it may be possible that in the present state of knowledge of American antiquities evidences for all these facts may not now be obtainable; but if evidences tending to prove them can be pointed out at all, it will be so much in favor of the Book of Mormon. Meantime the reader should be cautioned not to expect too much from the character of the evidence now to be considered, nor should he be discouraged if in quantity and clearness it falls below his expectations. It must be remembered that examination of our American antiquities, especially in Central America, has not yet been made as thoroughly as it will be; there are many buried cities and other monuments yet to be heard from,[[9]] as also, a better understanding of those monuments of ancient American civilization already brought to light. Moreover, it should be remembered that for many ages the Bible stood practically without the advantages of monumental testimony in its support. Not until modern times have learned men penetrated the eastern countries to return ladened with exact knowledge of monumental testimony to the truth of the Bible. Not until the discovery and translation of the Rosetta Stone, early in the last century, was an impetus given to explorations in Egypt, the Sinaitic Peninsula, Palestine and the Euphrates valley—Bible lands—resulting in that collection of collateral evidence for the truth of the Bible noted in a former chapter. One should not be impatient, then, if the Book of Mormon has to wait some time yet for the development of that fulness of monumental testimony to its truth which I am sure lies hidden in the, as yet, imperfectly known, and still less perfectly understood, antiquities of the western hemisphere.
Footnotes
[1]. See chapter X.
[2]. See chapter X.
[3]. II Nephi 5:1-13.
[4]. The Nephite land of Bountiful.
[5]. Mormon 8:1-10.
[6]. II Nephi 5:15.
[7]. Jarom 1:8.
[8]. Helaman 3:6-11.