| 602 kingdom of happiness, light and glory? Commune with thine own heart and answer these questions.
Who art thou, O man! that vauntest thyself of thine own prudence and wisdom? Be admonished of thine arrogancy; the first step towards the cabinet of wisdom, is to know thou art ignorant: the second step is, to disencumber thyself of the folly of self-conceit, and then walk slow in the path of truth, being continually lighted by the lamp of virtue. If thou hast any thing about thy raiment, about thy person, or in thy speech, that is adorned with beauty, like the fair woman of ancient days, vail [veil] it, so thy modesty exalt the [thee] in the courts of kings. Prudence and integrity, like a husband and wife, should be united in a perpetual covenant with him that means to be what his creator made him-a man.
A great man, possessing a noble soul is above meanness: he ever stoops from the dignity of his reputation to the degradation of a traitor, to accomplish the purposes of God.-Nor does he endeavor to win the hearts of the people, under the mantle of charity, with the oil of religion, while his tongue is green with the venom of corruption, and his pockets groan with the weapons of death. O thou who art charmed with the beauties of truth, and dost boast of the gem of sincerity;-beware lest hypocrisy and deceit bring thee to shame and disgrace in this life, and wretchedness and wo in the world to come! Fidelity and friendship and love and light, are only eternal by perpetual succession.
Man, how nobly hast thy creator endowed thee with reason, with faculties, and with powers; so that thou canst know thyself and comprehend thy being's purpose and perpetuity: canst comprehend the globe with all the glory of its elements; canst comprehend the heavens in all their majesty and sublimity. P.
Ship Timoleon, North Atlantic Ocean,
Nov. 4th, 1843.
Lat. 20-15, Lon. 25-19, west from Greenwich.
I expect ere this reaches you, Brother P. B. Lewis will deliver you the letter and articles I sent you by him, with the $8,00 in cash, I expect he has told you the state of Br. Hanks health when he left us, the reason I never wrote you the particulars of his health was because he did not wish to have his friends know the worst. I did not see him from the time I left them at Evansville till he came to me at Winchester. At first sight of him there I saw he had failed materially, and I was bed-fellow with him; my heart often ached to hear the deep rooted cough as it racked his whole frame. I kept a bed vessel with some fresh water in it and what he raised from his lungs would sink in it like lumps of clay; this indicated to me that short of the immediate interposition of divine Providence nothing would save him from a premature grave. On his passage from Nauvoo to New York he seemed to recruit up, but from New York to New Bedford he with Brother Grouard took passage in a packet; the weather was rough and they were both sea sick, by being exposed to the sea air together with his sea sickness, his disease took a regular downward course, from which I had but little hopes of his recovering. When I met him at Winchester, the kind attention and anxious solicitude which Sister Abigail and the rest of the family took in his welfare, seemed to recruit him up a little.
When we took stage for Boston, our friends in Winchester, with myself, felt fearful he would not be able to perform the journey, but the thought of meeting Brothers Rogers and Grouard, the expectation of seeing some of the "Twelve," and attending conference with a large collection of brethren, stimulated him to great faith, and he stood the ride far beyond my expectation. The stage was crowded inside with ladies, and we were obliged to take an outside seat, for one of that kind it was very good, much of the way I supported him in my arms, and when I thought he was getting fatigued, I would secretly place my hands upon him and raise my desire to him, who is able to save and strengthen. We staid in Boston with Sister Whitmore; her untiring kindness to him is long to be remembered. He was able to attend conference but little, he was administered to by some of the Twelve once twice while there. I was with him continually while I staid in Boston, I nursed him as well as I knew (as you know I am not very skilful [skillful];) I daily rubbed him with flannels, anointed him with consecrated oil in the name of the Lord, and prayed with him, and was often assisted by Brother Rogers. When I left for New Bedford, Brother Rogers took charge of him; they went to Salem on business for the mission; back to Boston and then came on to New Bedford; when I was away from him a few days the change was more visible than when I saw him daily. I was surprised at the change, and knew at that rate he could live but a few days. I asked him particularly how he felt, he would at no time betray the least fear that he should not live, notwithstanding he closed up all his business before we left New Bedford. I believe he was determined to die as near the place of our destined
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