"'Blessed are they that die in the Lord from henceforth. Yea, saith the spirit, that they may rest from their labors; and their works do follow them.'
"In a few verses before those that contain this vision it says an angel was seen passing swiftly through the midst of eternity, coming down to the earth bearing the gospel of the Son of God, to be declared to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people. This message our dear, beloved brother has sought, during a part of his life covering a period of fifty years, to carry forth to the nations of the earth. And during this period it is well known to the Latter-day Saints, the sufferings, the trials, the afflictions, and the blood that he spent in announcing and carrying forward these principles of life and salvation to the world of mankind. He truly fought a good fight. He has finished his course; 'and henceforth,' his spirit could well proclaim, 'there is laid up, for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day; and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.'
"Of course we feel the affliction; we feel the sad stroke. The Latter-day Saints feel that they have lost a friend; that we have lost a mighty counselor; that we have lost one of the greatest men that have stood upon the earth since the days of the Son of God—a man whose virtue, whose integrity, whose resolution to pursue the path of righteousness is known, and well known.
"Now, we could apply this passage of scripture to many others who have gone before; they have fought the good fight and kept the faith to the end; and they have finished their course, and they now sleep in peace in the spirit world, and the influence of their grand doings and great accomplishments in the path of righteousness, extend over the land of Zion. The Latter day Saints feel those beautiful and glorious influences. Our hearts are made glad to contemplate their virtues, their fidelity, their faithfulness, their glorious integrity.
"This our beloved brother has not only been a father and friend to his wives and to his children—to his numerous family; he has been a faithful friend also to the world of mankind, which at some future period, though it may be for a thousand years to come, they will distinctly understand. He has stood firm to those principles that are a light to the world, that are a light to the human family. And did the world understand President Taylor and his motives during the last fifty years of his pilgrimage among the children of men, they would feel differently towards him than they do. Those who put themselves in the attitude of enemies to the Latter-day Saints and the servants of God, do so because they don't comprehend us; they don't understand our hearts, and don't understand our willingness to sacrifice in order to lay a plan or to carry out measures by which salvation may come to them also. We dedicate our lives which we hold as not dear to us, in order that the world may understand that there is a God in the eternal worlds; in order that they may understand that God has something to do at the present time with the affairs of the children of men. The world is passing into feelings and opinions of infidelity. Even among the Christian portion of the human family, thousands and tens of thousands, though they are not willing to confess it because of being unpopular, do not believe that God has anything to do with the children of men. We have to stand forth and make sacrifices in order that that belief and knowledge may come to the children of men. That is the case with our beloved brother, President Taylor. He has shown himself willing to make sacrifices before he would deny or turn his back upon those principles that, when people understand them, lead them to the path of knowledge, of salvation and of immortality.
"Well, it is so ordered that one man's death, or the death of a dozen, though they stand in the highest positions in the Church, does not stop this work. The Latter-day Saints have advanced to that wisdom and that intelligence and that understanding, that this does not materially affect their interest. The kingdom of God moves forward. It is not dependent upon one man or a half dozen men. It was thought by some in the days of Joseph that this Church could not prosper except Joseph guided its destinies; and when the time came that he was to pass away from this world as a martyr, into the spirit world, the Saints throughout the kingdom of God were greatly agitated. It was something unexpected. They hardly knew how things would then move. The responsibility then devolved upon the quorum of the Twelve Apostles; and through the blessings of God upon them and the spirit of inspiration that dwelt in their bosoms, and under the guidance of the Almighty, the kingdom moved forward. And so in regard to the time when our beloved Brother Brigham Young was called from this state into the spirit life. He passed away almost unexpectedly. The Saints were hardly prepared for it. And yet the kingdom of God moved forward. The duties of guidance were still upon the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.
"The Lord has seen proper now to call our beloved brother, President Taylor, away from these scenes of suffering, these scenes of martyrdom; and the Church still moves forward.
"Notwithstanding the duties and the obligations devolve again upon the quorum of the Twelve Apostles, for the third time, through the blessings of the Almighty and the spirit of inspiration that will be upon them as it always has been, the Church will move forward. We are gaining that experience that each man and each woman knows what his or her duty is; and they know the foundation upon which this kingdom and Church is founded; they know the foundation upon which each individual is established; and they know that God reigns over the children of men and over the affairs of the Latter-day Saints. They feel, now, perhaps, different to what they generally feel when circumstances of this kind occur. They feel more calm, more assurance in the providences of the Almighty.
"And so in regard to the beloved family of President Taylor. Of course they cannot but feel—and it is well that they do feel—that they have lost a parent, a father, a guide, to direct and counsel. But still there is nothing in the way of their progress, any more than there is in the way of the progress of the kingdom of God. They can move forward, and it is their duty to move forward in order that the word of the angel may be fulfilled which said: 'Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord henceforth; yea, saith the spirit, that they may rest from their labors and their works do follow them.
"And this family of President Taylor's, if they prepare themselves, can go onward notwithstanding they have lost their head. The road is still clear. They still have the counsels of the Holy Spirit, to which they are entitled, for guidance and direction, and they can move forward in the path of wisdom and knowledge, and in all those beautiful qualifications that make a Latter-day Saint; and they can prepare themselves, so that the words of the angel may be fulfilled. Elder Taylor's works follow him. His labors, so far as his family are concerned, follow him. Well, I have occupied sufficient time. There are a number here that we wish to speak. I ask God in His mercy to bless the family of President Taylor, that the Holy Spirit of life may be upon them, and that they may have consolation in their hearts. Their parent is now dwelling in glory, having a crown of righteousness upon his head; and he will be there to welcome them as they pass off one after another from this into the next world and to take them by the hand. God bless the family of President Taylor, God bless the Latter-day Saints; God bless the quorum of the Twelve Apostles, on whom rests the responsibility of moving forward the interests of the kingdom of God. God bless the authorities of the Latter-day Saints and bless the honest in all the world of mankind, is my prayer, in the name of Jesus. Amen."