Adventures Of The Prisoners Remaining In Missouri—The Prophet's Narrative Of Personal Experiences In Missouri.
Saturday, May 18.—Finished my business at Quincy for the present.
Sunday, 19.—I arrived at home [Commerce] this evening.
Monday 20.—At home attending to a variety of business.
Tuesday, 21.—To show the feelings of that long scattered branch of the house of Israel, the Jews, I here quote a letter written by one of their number, on hearing; that his son had embraced Christianity:
Rabbi Landau's Letter to his Son.
Breslau, May 21st, 1839.
My Dear Son—I received the letter of the Berlin Rabbi, and when I read it there ran tears out of my eyes in torrents; my inward parts shook, my heart became as a stone! Now do you not know that the Lord sent me already many hard tribulations? That many sorrows do vex me? But this new harm which you are about to inflict, makes me forget all the former, does horribly surpass them; as well respecting its sharpness, as its stings! I write you this lying on my bed, because my body is afflicted not less than my soul, at the report that you were about to do something which I had not expected from you. I fainted; my nerves and feeling sank, and only by the help of a physician, for whom I sent immediately, I am able to write these lines to you with a trembling hand.
Alas! you, my son, whom I have bred, nourished and fostered; whom I have strengthened spiritually as well as bodily, you will commit a crime on me! Do not shed the innocent blood of your parents for no harm have we inflicted upon you; we are not conscious of any guilt against you, but at all times we thought it our duty to show to you, our first born, all love and goodness. I thought I should have some cheering account of you, but, alas! how terribly I have been disappointed!
But to be short; your outward circumstances are such that you may finish your study or [suffer] pain. Do you think that the Christians, to whom you will go over by changing your religion, will support you and fill up the place of our fellow believers? Do not imagine that your outward reasons, therefore, if you have any, are nothing. But out of true persuasion, you will, as I think, not change our true and holy doctrine, for that deceitful, untrue and perverse doctrine of Christianity.
What! will you give up a pearl for that which is nothing, which is of no value in itself? But you are light-minded; think of the last judgment; of that day when the books will be opened and hidden things will be made manifest; of that day when death will approach you in a narrow pass; when you cannot go out of the way! Think of your death bed, from which you will not rise any more, but from which you will be called before the judgment seat of the Lord!
Do you not know, have you not heard, that there is over you an all-hearing ear and an all-seeing eye? That all your deeds will be written in a book and judged hereafter? Who shall then assist you when the Lord will ask you with a thundering voice, Why hast thou forsaken that holy law which shall have an eternal value; which was given by my servant Moses, and no man shall change it? Why hast thou forsaken that law, and accepted instead of it lying and vanity?
Come, therefore, again to yourself, my son! remove your bad and wicked counselors: follow my advice, and the Lord will be with you! Your tender father must conclude because of weeping.
A. L. Landau, Rabbi.[[1]]
The Prophet's Letter to W. W. Phelps.
Commerce, Illinois, May 22, 1839.
Sir:—In answer to yours of the 23rd of April, to John P. Greene, we have to say that we shall feel obliged by your not making yourself officious concerning any part of our business in future. We shall be glad if you can make a living by minding your own affairs; and we desire (so far as you are concerned) to be left to manage ours as well as we can. We would much rather lose our properties than to be molested by such interference: and, as we consider that we have already experienced much over-officiousness at your hands, concerning men and things pertaining to our concerns, we now request, once for all, that you will avoid all interference in our business or affairs from this time henceforth and forever. Amen.[[2]]
Joseph Smith. Jun.
Indictment of Parley P. Pratt et al.
A bill of indictment having been found by a grand jury of the mob in Ray county, against Parley P. Pratt, Morris Phelps and Luman Gibbs, for murder, and against King Follet for robbery, and having obtained a change of venue to Boone county, they were handcuffed together two by two on the morning of the twenty-second, [of May] with irons around the wrists of each, and in this condition they were taken from prison and placed in a carriage. The people of Richmond gathered around them to see them depart, but none seemed to feel for them except two persons. One of these (General Parks' lady) bowed to them through the window, and looked as if touched with pity. The other was a Mr. Hugins, merchant of Richmond, who bowed with some feeling as they passed.
They then took leave of Richmond, accompanied by Sheriff Brown, and four guards with drawn pistols, and moved towards Columbia. It had been thundering and raining for some days, and the thunder storm lasted with but short cessations from the time they started till they arrived at the place of destination, which took five days. The small streams were swollen, making it very difficult to cross them.
An Adventure by the Way.