Letter from George Quayle Cannon, 24 February 1863
President Orson Hyde, Orson Pratt, Wilford Woodruff,
John Taylor, George A. Smith, Amasa M. Lyman, Ezra T.
Benson, Charles C. Rich, Erastus Snow, Lorenzo Snow and
Franklin D. Richards:
Beloved Brethren,
As I stated in my last,
under date of December 13th, that it was my intention to open
and keep up a correspondence with you, I now again attempt
to fulfil that promise. Since my last letter was written every
thing connected with the Work in these lands has continued
to move on harmoniously and with tolerable success. The Elders
and Saints have, generally, manifested a disposition to throw
off every feeling of lethargy and to engage in the discharge
of their duties with greater energy than ever. I feel, however,
that there is still room for abundant improvement in all, and
I trust we will not rest satisfied until it is made.
[Redacted name] whose excommunication I mentioned in
my last, has been doing all in his power to public lectures
of the most wicked and malignant character, to arouse a
spirit of hatred and persecution against us. He has fully
abandoned himself to the influence of the spirit of Satan, and
indulges in every conceivable slander against us. So far, his
efforts have been attended with no particular results; for blind
as many people are respecting the Truth, they are not so
