"My parents were Presbyterians, in which faith I was strictly brought up; but I early came to the conclusion that my father was right when he said, as I heard him one day: 'The true religion is yet to come.' After my marriage I attended the Methodist Church mostly, led a moral life, tried to be honest in deal, and 'did' (as well as circumstances would allow) 'unto others as I would they should do to me.' I thus went on quietly, until the 'true religion' was presented to me by a Mr. and Mrs. Daniel M. Bell, of Ballygrot. My reason was satisfied, and I embraced the truth with avidity.
"In February, 1858, my husband, myself and our six children left Ireland on the steamship City of Glasgow, and in due time arrived at Council Bluffs. Starting across the plains, the first day out I sustained a severe accident by being thrown from my carriage, but this did not deter us, and we arrived all safe and well in Salt Lake City on the 25th of September.
"In 1868 I went with my husband on a mission to England; had a pleasant, interesting time, and astonished many who thought 'no good thing could come out of Utah.' While there I was the subject of no little curious questioning, and therefore had many opportunities of explaining the principles of the gospel. There was one principle I gloried in telling them about—the principle of plural marriage; and I spared no pains in speaking of the refining, exalting influence that was carried with the doctrine, wherever entered into in a proper manner."
Sister Howard has not exaggerated in claiming that the Irish nation has been fairly represented in the Mormon Church. Some of its most talented members have been directly of that descent, though it is true that Mormonism never took deep root in Ireland; but that is no more than a restatement of the fact that Protestantism of any kind has never flourished in that Catholic country.
Of the esteemed lady in question it maybe added that she is one of the most prominent of the women of Utah, one of the councilors of Mrs. President Horne, and a leader generally, in those vast female organizations and movements inspired by Eliza R. Snow, in the solution of President Young's peculiar society problems.
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Scandinavia shall be next represented among the nationalities in the church. The Scandinavian mission has been scarcely less important than the British mission. It is not as old, but to-day it is the most vigorous, and for the last quarter of a century it has been pouring its emigrations into Utah by the thousands. Indeed a very large portion of the population of Utah has been gathered from the Scandinavian peoples. The mission was opened by Apostle Erastus Snow, in the year 1850. One of the first converts of this apostle, Anna Nilson, afterwards became his wife. Here is the brief notice which she gives of herself:
"I am the daughter of Hans and Caroline Nilson, and was born on the 1st of April, 1825, in a little village called Dalby, in the Province of Skaana, in the kingdom of Sweden. At the age of seventeen I removed to Copenhagen, Denmark. There, in 1850, when the elders from Zion arrived, I gladly received the good news, and was the first woman baptized into the Church of Latter-day Saints in that kingdom. The baptism took place on the 12th of August, 1850; there were fifteen of us; the ordinance was performed by Elder Erastus Snow. Some time after this we hired a hall for our meetings, which called public attention to us in some degree, whereupon we became the subjects of rowdyism and violent persecution. One evening in particular, I recollect that I was at a meeting in a village some eight miles out from Copenhagen; as we started to go home we were assailed by a mob which followed and drove us for several miles. Some of the brethren were thrown into ditches and trampled upon, and the sisters also were roughly handled. Finding myself in the hands of ruffians, I called on my heavenly Father, and they dropped me like a hot iron. They pelted us with stones and mud, tore our clothes, and abused us in every way they could. These persecutions continued some weeks, until finally stopped by the military.
"In 1852, one week before Christmas, I left Copenhagen, in the first large company, in charge of Elder Forssgren. We encountered a terrible storm at the outset, but were brought safely through to Salt Lake City, where I have since resided."
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