| 373 by the touch stone of all schemes, systems, projects, and adventures,-truth, for truth is a matter of fact; and the fact is, that by the power of God I translated the Book of Mormon from hieroglyphics; the knowledge of which was lost to the world: in which wonderful event I stood alone, an unlearned youth, to combat the worldly wisdom, and multiplied ignorance of eighteen centuries, with a new revelation; which, (if they would receive the everlasting gospel,) would open the eyes of more than eight hundred millions of people, and make 'plain the old paths,' wherein if a man walk in all the ordinances of God blameless, he shall inherit eternal life; and Jesus Christ, who was, and is, and is to come, has borne me safely over every snare and plan, laid in secret or openly; through priestly hypocrisy, sectarian prejudice, popular philosophy, executive power, or law defying mobocracy, to destroy me.
If, then, the hand of God, in all these things that I have accomplished, towards salvation of a priest-ridden generation, in the short space of twelve years, through the boldness of the plan of preaching the gospel, and the boldness of the means of declaring repentance and baptism for the remission of sins; and a reception of the Holy Ghost, by laying on of the hands, agreeably to the authority of the priesthood; and the still more bold measures of receiving direct revelation from God, through the Comforter, as promised, and by which means all holy men, from ancient times till now, have spoken and revealed the will of God to men, with the consequent 'success' of the gathering of the saints, throws any 'charm' around my being and 'points me out as the most extraordinary man of the age,' it demonstrates the fact, that truth is mighty and must prevail; and that one man empowered from Jehovah, has more influence with the children of the kingdom, than eight hundred millions led by the precepts of men. God exalts the humble, and debases the haughty. But let me assure you in the name of Jesus, who spake as never man spake, that the 'boldness of the plans and measures,' as you term them, but which should be denominated the righteousness of the cause, the truth of the system, and power of God, which 'so far,' has borne me and the church, (in which I glory in having the privilege of being a member,) successfully through the storm of reproach, folly, ignorance, malice , persecution, falsehood, sacerdotal wrath, newspaper satire, pamphlet libels and the combined influences of the powers of earth and hell, I say these powers of righteousness and truth, are not the decrees or rules of an ambitious and aspiring Nimrod, Pharaoh, Nebuchadnezzar, Alexander, Mahomet, Buonaparte, [Bonaparte] or other great sounding heroes, that dazzled forth with a trail of pomp and circumstances for a little season, like a comet, and, then disappeared, leaving a wide waste where such an existence once was, with only a name, nor were the glorious results of what you term 'boldness of plans and measures,' with the attendant 'success,' matured by the self aggrandizing wisdom of the priests of Baal; the scribes and Pharisees of the Jews; Popes and Bishops of christendom; or pagans of Juggernaut; nor were they extended by the divisions and sub-divisions of a Luther, a Calvin, a Wesley, or even a Campbell; supported by a galaxy of clergymen and churchmen, of whatever name or nature, bound apart by cast iron creeds, and fastened to set stakes by chain cable opinions, without revelation; nor are they the lions of the land or the Leviathans of the sea, moving among the elements, as distant chimeras to fatten the fancy of the infidel; but they are as the stone cut out of the mountain without hands, and will become a great mountain and fill the whole earth. Were I an Egyptian, I would exclaim Jah-oh-eh, Enish-go-on-dosh, Flo-ees-Flos-is-is; [O earth! the power of attraction, and the moon passing between her and the sun.] A Hebrew; Haueloheem yerau; a Greek, O theos phos esi; a Roman, Dominus regit me; a German, Gott gebe uns das licht; a Portugee, Senhor Jesu Christo e libordade; a Frenchman, Dieu defend le droit: but as I am, I give God the glory, and say in the beautiful figure of the poet;
'Could we with ink the ocean fill;
Was the whole earth of parchment made;
And ev'ry single stick a quill;
And every man a scribe by trade
To write the love, of God above,
Would drain the ocean dry;
Nor could the whole upon a scroll,
Be spread from sky to sky.'
It seems that your mind is of such 'a mathematical and philosophical cast, that the divinity of Moses makes not impression upon you, and that I will not be offended when you say, that you rate me higher as a legislator, than you de [do] Moses, because you have me present with you for examination;' that 'Moses derives his chief authority from prescription and the lapse of time; you cannot however say, but we are both right, it being out of the power of man to prove us wrong. It is no mathematical problem, and can therefore get no mathematical solution.'
Now, Sir, to cut the matter short, and not dally with your learned ideas, for, fashion's sake you have here given your opinion, without reserve, that revelation, the knowledge of God,
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