| 756 never fading laurels, (is it not Joseph?) Men of sound minds (not Millerites nor bigots) of all ranks, from all societies, of all the intelligence of the earth; combined in one word, the cream and salt of the same, and virtue of heaven; can this be, and Joseph Smith a false prophet?-again is heard from a thousand voices, no! no! no!
Dear brother if the thousand and one testimonies, miracles, records, antiquities, facts, bible truths, knowledge, revelation, fulfilment [fulfillment] of prophecy, God, men and angels do not prove any thing but a fallen prophet, and Mormonism so far beneath the notice of the would be great and wise men, of this age, I wish you would solve the mystery, for to me it is a mystery indeed.
And now, dear brother, I will; come to the point, having done with my preliminaries.-As many faint and incorrect descriptions have been given of Nauvoo and the temple, by travellers [travelers], passers-by, and others, until some have thought the temple built upon moonshine, and the city a barbarian-ugly, formal with head and horns, and stuck into the nethermost corner of the universe, where none but Indians, Hottentots, Arabs, Turks, Wolverines and Mormons dwell; and if you can find time to reply, I wish you would give me an ungarnished statement of facts respecting Nauvoo; its probable number of inhabitants, and finally, a graphic description of the whole place; give us the number of distilleries, liquor venders, and what gross immoralities have corrupted Nauvoo, cursed the city, the temple, the Twelve, &c., smote the daughters of Zion with scabby heads, and numbered the thousands of saints (that have gathered there to hear the word of the Lord, and be taught in his way) with goats, and cursed them above all horned cattle. An answer to these unaccountable problems, will, no doubt be eagerly grasped after, and be very interesting to many in the east, as we have many braying animals which have become quite obnoxious to the quiet rest of the innocent, and bray to the discomfiture of many, not on account of the soundness of their doctrine; but on account of blasphemies, the Twelve, the temple, the church at Nauvoo, and the great body of saints, their moral men and women, the abominable lies they tell, make people nervous sometimes when they do not know how things are; men who were once men of apparent intelligence, make these statements The place must have become materially changed in its morals since last spring, when I was there, a short time indeed for such a mighty change.
I did not intend to argue the question, what is the difference between Millerism and Mormonism now Millerism is dead. Please to answer how high the temple is to the eaves and top of steeple, (if any at all,) and how long, how many moons, suns, ears and heads, and what do they all represent, of what material and workmanship, how antique and of what order the pillars and structure? Is it a pattern of church and priesthood? Show us the order, the font with the length, the breadth, and the height thereof; the unity of the saints, the proper age of my mother, and her birth-place, also that of my father and his age at the time of his death, and the number of the family, (which you can obtain from the family records in my mother's possession,) embodied in one, in as concise a manner as possible. This will correct many errors, and confer a favor on your old and tried friend I must say, I wish I could think more of Nauvoo than I do, yet it is not Nauvoo! for when I reflect that there he the silver locks of an aged and martyred father, martyred by a Missouri persecution, in the grave, numbered with the dead; and four brothers, two of whom in my vision appear with mangled bodies, and garments red with crimson gore. Oh! the fatal steel and barbarous murder! Their blood is still unavenged, and the cruel murderers are lounging about seeking for more; what have others to expect? Yet Nauvoo contains almost all that is near to me. My poor old mother, almost worn out with years and trouble, and three sisters that remain, with myself, are all of that family, who were the founders of Mormonism and the church of Christ in these last days, through great persecution and trouble, having borne [born] the heat of the day; and how long the rest may be spared, God only knows.
Brother Phelps, will you call and see my mother, and give her a word of consolation from me. I hope she will live till I can get to see her. She may live to see all her sons laid in the grave. Remember me also to my sisters Sophronia, Catherine, Lucy and their husbands, and martyrs' widows-God bless them all for ever is my prayer. I wish also to be remembered to all the saints in Nauvoo, give them my prayer, that God may sustain them in all their trials, for truly they are great, and tell them to think of me their brother in affliction, and my sick family, which has kept me from their society in this their time of peril; and if the Lord does no interpose, they must ere long be numbered with the dead. Oh! that God would have mercy upon me and my sick family!
Will you pray for us, dear brethren at Nauvoo? Remember me to your family. Mrs. Smith sends her love to your wife, and wishes to be remembered to all her friends in that country,
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