| 970 and they shall be an abhorrence unto all flesh, for their worm shall not die, nor shall their fire be quenched.
An extract from a letter written to JOHN ADAMS by THOMAS JEFFERSON, of Virginia, published by Mr. John Stewart, of New York, in the second volume of the 'Bible of Nature,' page 271-272.
"I feel, therefore I 'exist.' I feel bodies which are not myself: there are other existences, then. I call them matter. I feel them changing places: this gives me motion. Where there is an an absence of matter, I call it void, or nothing, or immaterial space. On the basis of sensation, of matter and motion, we may erect the fabric of all the certainties we can have or need. I can conceive thought to be an action of a particular organization of matter, formed for that purpose by its creator, as well as that attraction is an action of matter, or magnetism of loadstone [lodestone].
When he who denies to the Creator the power of endowing matter with the mode of action, called thinking, shall show how he could endow the sun with the mode of action called attraction, which reins the planets in the track of their orbits, or how an absence of matter can have a will and by that will put matter into motion, then the materialist may be lawfully required to explain the process by which matter exercises the faculty of thinking. When once we quit the basis of sensation, all is in the wind. To talk of immaterial existences is to talk of nothing. To say that the human soul, angels, God, are immaterial, is to say they are nothings, or that there is no God, no angles, no soul. I cannot reason otherwise: but I believe I am supported in my creed of materialism by the Locks, the Traceys, and the Stewarts. At what age (Athanasius and the Council of Nice) of the Christian Church this heresy of immaterialism, or masked atheism, crept in, I do not know. But a heresy it certainly is. Jesus taught nothing of it. He told us, indeed, that God is a spirit, but he has not defined what a spirit is, nor said that it is not matter. And the ancient fathers, generally, of the three first centuries, held it to be matter, light and thin indeed, an etherial [ethereal] gas; but still matter.
TO JOHN ADAMS."
Will the editor of the Messenger inform us whether Thomas Jefferson was a Mormon or not? As ever, yours,
J. M. GRANT.
Mr. Holley, N. J. July 15, 1845.
(->) It seems the editor of the Messenger has not answered Elder Grant's request, and so we take the responsibility to give a sentence of revelation on the subject, which came through the great prophet and seer, Joseph Smith. On the 373d page of the second edition of the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, last words: "And for this purpose have I established the Constitution of this land, BY THE HANDS OF WISE MEN, whom I raised up unto this very purpose, and redeemed the lands by the shedding of blood" So it seems that the immortal Thomas Jefferson was so much of a Saint or Mormon, that God knew he was a wise man, and raised him up on purpose to prepare the way for breaking to pieces Nebuchadnezzar's image of governments, priests, misrule, confnsion [confusion] and false religion.'
The whole world can bear witness that God's "wise men" have shown more genuine humanity and wisdom, that all christendom put together; and this makes revelation triumphant. Glory to God, Jesus Christ, Joseph Smith, and all the prophets! men could kill their bodies, but they could not hurt their souls, nor their words. They are eternal.
SPEECH DELIVERED BY HEBER C. KIMBALL.
AS REPORTED BY G. D. WATT.
City of Joseph, April 8, 1845.
There are many things that are necessary to lay before this congregation to day, as there are a greater number of visiting members, from the different branches, than our own citizens, they have not come out to day, it is so cold and disagreeable.
There are some matters it is necessary we should know; but let us act in concert, and be agreed in one thing, not to give counsel contrary to the advice that shall be given from the stand. It is the case many times that persons receive counsel, that is not for their benefit, peace, nor salvation; and these are matters pertaining to the saints here in the City of Joseph; cultivating the earth; for every man to do all he possibly can; to put all the seed into the earth they can. It is wisdom that this city and the regions round about shall be cultivated, for we may as well cultivate first as last; to raise our own wheat, and our own corn, and oats, pease [pea's], and beans, and barley, and cheese, and butter, and eggs, and every other thing that is for our comfort; for we are not considered suitable to live among 'white folks;' therefore we'll cultivate the earth for ourselves, and make our own cloth, and our own stockings, and shoes, and our own bonnets, and caps, and every other thing we need for our comfort: and what we cannot make we will buy, and we will buy the
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