The Daily Junction. ISSUED EVERY EVENING. (Except Sunday,) by The Junction Printing Association (INEORPORATED.) Office corner of Main and Fourth Streets. Address all communications on business to the Business Manager; those intended for publication to the Editor. MONDAY EVENING, JAN. 24, 1881. QUARTERLY CONFERENCE Of the Weber Stake of Zion, in Ogden Tabernacle. ELDER WILFORD WOODRUFF addressed the congregation which was exceedingly large. Elder Wood- ruff took up the subject of emigration to Arizona. He said that all our la- bor of settling Southern Utah and Arizona had been accomplished un- der great difficulties, many people even despairing of the possibility of redeeming the apparently sterile soil. Brother Eldredge himself, when sent on a mission thither, went and re- ported back that "the country about St. George stood all up edgewise." Now St. George is a very garden of Eden, producing excellent fruit. There the Church has erected a Tem- ple in which as many as 100,000 bap- tisms have taken place. Difficult also was the first settling of Arizona, the first mission thither returning unsuccessful. But others were sent and now they have flourishing set- tlements. However forbidding a country may look to us, we can never find a country more unpromising than Utah looked on the 24th of July, 1847, when first entered by the Pioneers. Lot Smith was sent South and he succeeded in establishing set- tlements. There are Sunset and Brigham City, on the two banks of Little Colorado River. Elder Wood- ruff then gave a description of the country and how he found it himself. When he went up the Little Colora- do River, below Sunset, he found it dried up for about 50 miles; but when they got up to Sunset they found water enough to run a grist- mill all the year round and to irri- gate 1,000 acres. There also was a sufficiency of timber, as near as one mile from Sunset. The country was one field of bunch grass, for miles and miles around, forming an excel- lent herding ground. The people of Sunset and Brigham had organized in the shape of forts. They lived in United Order, each settlement for itself. They had fine herds of cattle, both in the forts and on a dairy in a fertile valley, called Pleasant Valley. They raised all kinds of grain in abundance and of good quality. In the San Francisco mountains is a fine forest of timber, from 6 inches to 4 feet thick and 50 to 150 feet high. St. Joseph is 25 miles up the river; 25 miles further is Woodruff: 25 miles more, up the river, is another place, and several more in the vicinity. The Little Colorado River furnishes am- ple water for all purposes. Sunset once looked very unfruitful; now only 11 men and boys were employ- ed at farming, harvesting thousands of bushels of wheat and corn, the finest ever seen in the West. The Latter-day Saints there are able to sustain themselves from the products of the work of the soil. The United Order is working most harmoniously, no swearing, drinking or quarreling going on. The Order shows most ex- cellent fruits of union, peace, all the people showing the greatest willing- ness to obey the authorities and pay tithings and donations. Elder Wood- ruff then treated of St. John, the county seat of Apache county, where formerly all bad elements of the out- side world would congregate—Jews, Gentiles, Mexicans and others. The Church now has bought the land around there and emigration is wished to secure possession. A good man is placed in authority as Bishop, a man who does right and just. Men are needed to go there to help settle the place which is the key to the whole of Apache county. About 200 families are required, as it is a large country, peopled by many thousands of the Lamanites, located in villages, all except the Navajos and Apaches. These Lamanites are waiting for the Latter-day Saints to come and ad- minister to them. The Church wants to settle Arizona, New Mexico, and a whole chain of settlements into the very heart of Old Mexico. St. John is a very good place for farming, the Little Colorado River flowing directly through it: there is even a natural dam of stone which enables the peo ple with little trouble and labor to irrigate their lands. About 30 fami- lies are desired out of this Stake to go to St. John. But there is to be no compulsion about it, all are to be free about it. Those called upon to go must consider their interest. Prest. Taylor does not want to op- press the people or to call them to go against their will. All who like to go, with willing hearts and ready minds are expected to avail themselves of the opportunities. There is one fine stretch of land there, called the Col- orado Meadows, from 15 miles long to 3 or 4 miles wide. Elder Wood- ruff wished the brethren to consider the matter carefully and those who are disposed to go and hand in their names to the President and get ready as soon as possible, as it is a long journey, of about 700 miles. The Latter day Saints want an outlet to the South and the speaker hopes that we will obtain a foothold in the country of Mexico. There are tens of thousands of the pure blood of Lehi down there, whose minds are open and eagerly awaiting the com- ing of the Latter-day Saints. The Navajos are our special friends and many have been converted and bap- tized. Elder Woodruff then endorsed the remarks made in the forenoon by Elder Joseph F. Smith, about the intents of the hearts of man. He would never oppress or oppose any whatever he pleased. The Lord Him- self never forced any one to belief. He has placed good and evil, faith and unbelief before the children of men and they can exercise their own free agency. Such is also the spirit of the Consititution of the United States which guarantees full religious freedom to all. Another important point is the re- demption of the dead. This is a subject of momentous weight. There are millions and millions in the spirit world, for whom a work has to be accomplished. It takes just as much to save a dead man as it takes to save a live one. Great responsibilities are resting upon us, to do a work for our numerous re- lations in the spirit world. The speaker then gave a touching de- scription of the tender relations be- tween children and their mother and showed how great is our respon- sibility towards our fathers and our fathers' houses. Elder Woodruff himself has been baptized 3,000 times for other people, which should be an example to others. This will be a great consolation and joy for him; so it will be to all the Saints who have done the proper work for their progenitors and other kin. In the spirit world we will only be privil- eged to unite with those of our friends whom we have redeemed while in the flesh, hence we should eagerly avail ourselves of the glor- ious opportunity of the great and mighty work. The work of building temples is a great and urging one. It is worth more than all the gold and silver we may obtain. There is no money in apostatizing, or committing any sin. If there is any glory, it is in men who will stand up in defense of the Gospel of Christ and when troubles come will be found valiant champions on the watch towers of Zion. In such men Elder Woodruff glories, as in Elder Joseph F. Smith, the son of the martyred Hyrum. He is able to preach the gospel of temperance, because he himself lives it and he nobly fills the exalted position to which he has been called, and will one day even occupy the highest. The speaker concluded with a pow- erful testimony to the great bless- ings emanating from the Temples erected to the name of the Most High, and an impressive exhorta tion to the Saints to be solicitous and eager in the fulfillment of all the duties devolving upon us, at- tending to their prayers, for then the Lord would continue to prosper and protect the people in peace and plenty.