St. John Kansas,
ANNUAL REPORT OF, THE INDIAN TERRITORY MISSION Ending Dec 31st 1896
To the first Presidency
Salt Lake City, Utah
Dear Brethern:
I take pleasure in reporting to you the result of
our labor for 1895 and informing you of present plans and future pros-
pects of Indian Territory Mission.
There has been thirty Elders in the field this year during which
time they have traveled 51,520 miles on foot and 38,194 otherwise, team
horse-back and rail, visited 17,689 families during their canvass, have
been refused entertainment 1879 times, had 20,259 fireside and other gospel
conversations, with 58,512 responsible persons; distributed 17,686 tracts;
sold and given away 16 Books of Mormon 6 Doctrine And Covenants 110 Voice
of Warnings 10 Orson Pratts works, 23 ready references, 5 Mormon doctrines,
84 miscellaneous amounting to 260 at a valuation of $97.40; held 2,216
meetings with an attendance of 72,252 in which and gospel conversations
there have been borne testimonies to 43,383 adult persons; the Elders
have been refused 282 times the oppertunity of holding meetings where
applications have been made; 898 days manual labor performed by Elders
in the improvement of Church property and in helping friends who have so
kindly entertrained us. And in teaching School; we included School teach-
ing in manual labor because it was not directly in line with ministerial
work. I am pleased to say that this class of labor, excepting school
teaching, is diminishing as we progress, and I feel sure the Elders will
be kept so busily engaged the coming year under our new arrangements
that they will have no time to devote to manual labor.
There has been 30 baptisms 30 children blessed 2 ordained Elders
4 preists 1 deacon 1 Mutual Improvement Association organized.
Our old Indian Territory field leads all as yet and to some extent
the fruits of former labors are being realized. No change is apparent
among the Lamanites all that have embraced the gospel are faithful and
the many prominent Lamanitish families who have been our friends are
still loyal to us.
There is a constant influx of white people moving in from the States.
Our Indian friends being the property owners, to some extent control
this constant moving hundreds of white people, on revisiting the Elders
find a new class of people to preach to. At present things are very
much unsettled, the government of the United States has surveyed the land
with the purpose of alloting it; giving to each individual Indian a quarter
section, the remainder to be sold.
A movement is on foot to remove all intruders, which naturally mili-
tates against our seccess in obtaining converts, though we are sowing the
seeds that are like those carried by the wind and birds, take root and
bear fruit in other lands.
Kansas has proven to be a splendid field and a great help to our
mission, but we are handicapped for sufficient material with which to do
the work as it opens up before us; we have in that great State 110 coun-
ties largely populated. Since Oct. 15th all have traveled absolutely
without purse or scrip and report much better success; so well entertained
and so briskly engaged are the Elders that it seems like making a clear-
ance in a forest; so little headway is made among so many people.
We must have more workers in that conference. At present we have eight
traveling Elders from Zion besides our Secretary John M. Knight, Prest.
Baker of St. John Branch, and two local traveling Elders in Kansas.
Arkansas has eight traveling Elders from Zion all of whom have been
kept busy; reports show a marked improvement since we adopted traveling
without purse or scrip, they are holding many meetings, entertained by
the best families and at hotels.
In the very district where Apostle P. P. Pratt was assissinated our
Elders had thirty invitations for entertainment, after a well attended
meeting, and not withstanding the bitter feeling we have had to meet among
decendants of the company who were slain in the Mountain Meadows Massacre,
a better feeling is growing. Many are commencing to look upon our people
with kind consideration.
By carefully districting the State and observing instructions I
