| 17 of you; but preach the gospel in its simplicity and purity, and practice righteousness, and seek to establish the influence of truth, peace, and love among mankind, and in so doing the Lord will bless you, and make you a blessing to all people.
"You may expect to hear from us again.
"BRIGHAM YOUNG, President of the Twelve.
"Nauvoo, August 15, 1844."
-Times and Seasons, vol. 5, p. 6l8-620.
The Millennial Star, volume 25, has this purporting to be the language of Brigham Young, on August 8, 1844:-
"You cannot fill the office of a prophet, seer, and revelator; God must do this. You are like children without a father, and sheep without a shepherd. You must not appoint any man at your head. If you should, the Twelve must ordain him. You cannot appoint a man at your head; . . . I tell you there is an over-anxiety to hurry matters here. You cannot take any man and put him at your head; you would scatter the saints to the four winds. You would sever the priesthood. So long as we remain as we are the heavenly head is in constant coöperation with us; and if you go out of that course, God will have nothing to do with you. . . . I again repeat, No man can stand at our head except God reveals it from the heavens."-Page 231.
These statements are quite significant. They voice sentiments which it will be well for the reader to remember as we proceed with the narrative.
The following thoughts are made prominent: First, The people cannot by selection place a man at their head; God must do this. Second, The effect of presuming to select would be to scatter the saints to the four winds, and sever the priesthood. Third, Every man should remain just as he was without changing his position, and this was in harmony with the motion that he put to sustain the Twelve in their calling. Fourth, The effect of this policy would be, that the heavenly head would coöperate with them. Fifth, The effect of a departure from it would be that God would have nothing to do with them. Sixth, There was then no man who by virtue of his position was entitled to be at the head,
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