In about a minute her breath returned to her, and she walked out of the river all right.
As I said before, I baptized eight or nine of such cases that day, the old chief keeping count all the time.
He told me that they had been practicing their witchcraft and working with their black art so much, that he did not expect anything else of them; but it caused me to reflect a great deal.
Some of those that were operated upon in this way were men, and when I would raise them out of the water they would hang upon my arm breathless, and as limber as a half-filled sack of wheat.
The old chief took sick about a week after he was baptized, and called for baptism for his health. I baptized him, and he got well immediately. The power of God was made manifest in his case to such an extent, and made so much impression upon him, that, on being taken sick last summer, he started to come a distance of between two and three hundred miles on horseback to be baptized for his health.
Now, if he had never been healed himself, nor seen anybody else healed, he would never have started that distance on horseback to have that ordinance performed.
The Lamanites are very much like other people; some of them have great faith, and will be healed of any sickness, no matter how severe the attack, while others will not seem to be benefitted in the least.
I have frequently administered to them when they were burning up, as it were, with mountain fever, and before I would get my hands off their heads, their faces would be covered with large drops of sweat, and the fever would be entirely gone.
I remember one case of this kind among many others that took place on Salmon River, in the fall of 1855.
A band of Indians came in from their hunt, with a little girl, very sick of mountain fever. Their relatives told them that we practiced the ordinance of laying on hands for the healing of the sick.