| 739 from the ends of the earth to the places the Lord appointed. This decision in council gave general satisfaction, and the elders soon saw the beauty of every man in his place.
COMMUNICATIONS.
MR. EDITOR:-I have just taken a glance at the 2nd number of Sidney Rigdon's paper.-He tries to show that a division of the church was predicted by the Savior in the parable of the ten virgins: but his logic will all fail on this point. He will never get one half of the church. Consequently the division which he has caused is not predicted of, neither alluded to in the Scriptures which he quotes. But that he is a branch spoken of, none I presume will deny. The Book of Mormon speaks of some bitter branches that were to be cut off, and I am free to confess that he is one of them, and has been legally cut off by the authorities of the church. He tries however to show that Joseph was cut off for his transgressions; yet when he came here first from Pittsburgh, he said that God had shown him that a guardian must be appointed to the church to carry out the measures of Joseph, and he offered himself as the guardian, but was rejected. And now he says to carry out the measures of Joseph would be death.
Mr. Rigdon, do you not remember how you came into a certain council about the 1st of April or latter part of March last, that had been organized by Joseph Smith; and also how you danced and shouted, and threw your feet so high that you came well nigh falling backwards upon the stove? Certainly you must remember this; for you frothed at the mouth like a mad man, and gave glory to God so long and loud that you became entirely hoarse and exhausted. Your song was, "Glory to God and the Lamb that I have lived in this time, Hallelujah to Jesus that mine eyes have seen this day, and thanks to my brethren that I have been permitted to enter here, for of a surety God is with you in power and glory." Do you not recollect, Mr. Rigdon, saying to me a day or two after, at your own house, when you were standing in the door and I just without, that every body might know that God was there. "I know that he was there," said you, "even in that council." Now you say that Joseph was a bad man, and has been for a long time. You say that all the authorities here are base and wicked. But you did declare here that if ever a man died a martyr to the cause of God, Joseph Smith did; and that he went to Heaven holding the keys of the kingdom, and that the kingdom must be built up unto him (Joseph Smith.) You also said that you had seen Joseph in a vision, and that he occupied this important station. You declared that God had shown you these things, and you need not attempt to deny it; for there are thousands of witnesses here of both male and female that heard you. And why are you now prating against him and the church, giving yourself the lie and rendering yourself a burlesque upon all honesty, integrity, consistency and uprightness.
Your race, sir, is about run: and unless you speedily repent, the hand of God will soon be heavily upon you. And if you do repent and eat your own words, that will damn you in the eye of reason and justice; so you are bound to come to naught, and that speedily, turn which way you will or go forward in your present course. If you go forward in your present course, you will waste your strength and spirit, and God will condemn you. But if you repent, you are only damned for this world in the eyes of men, and you may get salvation at last.
The Editor of Mr. Rigdon's paper is very sure that Nauvoo is doomed to be overthrown. I would say, don't be so fast. Nauvoo will live to preach the funeral sermon of the pretended "Branch," and her daughters chant thy requiem. When thy memory only lives to be a stink in thy nostrils, and also in the nostrils of God and his people, when thou art as powerless as John C. Bennett, or Judas Iscariot, then know that you have fought against Jehovah, and lied in his holy name.
ORSON HYDE.
FROM THE ISLANDS OF THE SEA.
Tahita, June 16th, 1844.
* * * * But without going into detail, as it would be uninteresting to you, suffice it to say, on the morning of the 14th of May, we saw Tahita about forty miles distant; and the next day succeeded in getting to an anchor in the bay. But things looked very dark and portentious [portentous] I assure you. Doubtless you have heard the particulars respecting the French having taken possession of these islands and establishing their laws here, if not, this will inform you of the fact, but the particulars I am not sufficiently acquainted with to give.-The natives were, and are still unreconciled to these proceedings, and about two weeks before we arrived, after a continual fermenting between them and the French, the natives took up arms against them, and there was a smart engagement took place, the result of which we have never been able correctly to ascertain, but there were many killed on both sides. The
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