Letter to Willard Richards, 3 February 1840
Burslem
Elder W. Richards
Dear Brother
Though I have no extraordinary information
to communicate to you at this time upon any subject, yet I thought I would
drop a few lines to you this morning, & let you know that I am alive &
enjoying good health, & what I am about &c We arived in Manchester the day we
left you, & saw Elder Clayton & the Saints in good spirits. I was much
pleased with my acquaintance with Brother Clayton I consider him a worthy
Brother a man of wisdom & of God. I was called upon in the evening with Brother Clayton
to go & visit that Sister that has been so much afflicted possessed with the Devil &c. I
do not recollect the name. her husband that was considered under Transgression came
to us & confessed his Sins, & next day made acknowledgments before the church.
When we arived at his house his wife was in a great rage required 3 men to hold her
We lade hands upon her & after a mighty struggle cast the devil out & rebuked
the fever & she was made whole & was at meeting comfortable next day, but
the devil entered into her child next, day & flung it into a dredful agony &
made it as stiff as a stake, we lade hands upon it, & the devil instantly came
out & the child fell asleep. I have herd nothing from them of late. We preached with
them on Sunday & had a pleasant time with them. We left Manchester on
the 21st & rode to Burslem, & found Elder Cordon & the Saints well. I found
them meeting with some opposition in Burslem such as getting the candles
& candlesticks flung at their heads while preaching. The rabble generally was lead
by John James. We immediately commenced preaching & opening new doors
as we had an oppertunity. One evening while I was preaching in Burslem John James
came with two constables (to keep the peace for he feared the people) while he could read a
pamphlet exposing Mormonism taking taken from Mormonism unveiled & W. Parrish
letters & P. P. pratts &c. I helped him to read then what I could, by giving him lights, &
water to quench his thirst, & calling for order while the house was hissing at him
when he got though I answered him & the people retired in peace, his opposition
