| 51 and they have since ceased to profess any organized existence. The men (or their successors) who expelled the saints are still in possession of the fruits of conquest. They dwell in the abandoned homes, substantial cabins of hewn logs, vine-clad and surrounded by little gardens. The office of the Northern Islander has become a boarding house, and is now the 'best hotel' in St. James. The island nomenclature alone preserves the traditions of the fallen kingdom. The village on Beaver Harbor is still St. James. The excellent road which leads into the interior is the King's highway. The largest of the inland lakes is called Galilee, and a trout brook which winds through a ravine near the eastern shore is the Jordan. The Mormon tabernacle is a mere mound of charred ruins; Catholicism has become the dominant religion of the island, and is represented by a handsome chapel."-Sketch of James Jesse Strang and the Mormon Kingdom on Beaver Island, pp. 11-13.
Since their expulsion most of them have lost faith in Strang's theories and united with other organizations, but a few yet retain confidence in his claims. The following conclusions of his son, Charles J. Strang, we commend to a careful consideration:-
"LANSING Michigan, July 18, 1882.
"Editor Herald:-Concerning James J. Strang's claim as successor to Joseph Smith, which is urged from time to time by certain of the faithful, permit me to give through your paper a brief statement of the matter as it looks to me.
"Some time ago I was permitted to see what purported to be the original letter of appointment, and there is written below the signature a postscript which is not given in any printed copy of the letter I ever saw. I carefully compared the whole letter with the copy printed in the Diamond, a gospel tract, and found it a true copy except the postscript, which was as follows: 'P. S.-Write me soon and keep me advised of your progress from time to time.' Without this the letter may be easily construed to mean just what was claimed for it, but this, it seems to me, puts the whole matter in a different light. In the very first sentence of the letter I would understand that Strang had written to Smith
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