Discourse 1897-03-01
[FIGURE]
PRESIDENT WILFORD WOODRUFF.
An address of welcome was then
made by President Woodruff. He
spoke as follows:
I feel highly honored this morning
in meeting with so many of my friends
upon this important occasion. Yester-
day those who were present might
have observed my condition. I was
perfectly overwhelmed in consequence
of the scene before me. It was not
what was said particularly, but it
brought to my mind in overwhelming
power my boyhood and early
manhood and my desires that
I might live upon the earth to find a
people who would receive the Gos-
pel of Jesus Christ as taught by Christ
and the Apostles. I[n] meeting with
thousands of the children of the
Latter-day Saints, it brought to my
mind those scenes and the fulfillment
of my prayers and desires before the
Lord.
I hope this morning I may be able
to make a few remarks. I will say
this, it has been a desire of my life,
from my boyhood up, never to ad-
dress any assembly of people whom I
could not make hear what I had to say.
I feel the same this morning; I do not
know whether I can make this as-
sembly hear me or not; but I will do
the best I can.
As I can hardly expect to ever
have the opportunity of addressing
the people of this State and my
friends in days to come I
have a few reflections upon
my mind that I wish to lay before you.
And I will say they are different from
any of my public speeches that I have
been in the habit of presenting to the
people. I have consulted no man with
regard to the course I should pursue in
my remarks here this morning, and I
do not know that I shall satisfy my
friends in the remarks that I may
make.
First, I want to say a few words
upon politics. I hope that will not
astonish you. I have not been in the
habit of this heretofore. But I feel
desirous to say a few things that are
upon my mind. In the first place,
there is not one item, not one sentence
in the Constitution of the United
States, nor in the laws of the United
States, or of the State of Utah, that de-
prives any citizen, of any name,
nature, religion or politics in the land,
from joining any political party he
wishes or voting for whomsoever he
wishes. This is the right of every
man without hindrance. We
have been accused at times
of using Church influence to
guide and direct the State. This is
occasionally presented to the public as
our action. I feel it my right and duty
to say here today that I was acquainted
with Joseph Smith and associated
with him from 1833 until his martyr-
dom. I have been acquainted with
Brigham Young and associated with
him for forty years of my life, at home
and abroad, under many circum-
stances. I have also been acquainted
with John Taylor and labored with
him in every capacity in which he was
called to act. I have also been a mem-
ber of the quorum of the Twelve Apos-
tles for upwards of fifty-six years of
my life. And I have been presiding
over the Church itself for a few years.
I have been associated with my coun-
selors and with the present Twelve
Apostles. And I want to say upon this
occasion, before God, angels and all
men that are before me, that I never in
one instance have ever known any
leader of this Church ever attempt
to dictate and direct the affairs
of the State as member of the
Church. At the same time, when
any man, no matter who he is—Mor-
mon, Jew or Gentile—goes forth and
uses money or any means to hire men
to vote for him, I think he steps out-
[s]ide of his right, and stands in a
measure responsible.
I want to say so much to my friends
this morning. I have officiated for
twenty sessions in the Legislative
Council of the Territory of Utah, and
one session as a member of the House,
and it never cost me one farthing for
any office I ever held in the Church
or in the State or Territory. And I
never asked any mortal man on the
face of the earth to cast a vote for me
that I have any recollection of. As an
ensample, perhaps I may be permitted
to say, I am the father of fourteen sons
and have a number of sons-in-law, and
I believe they are pretty nearly evenly
divided on political party lines—Demo-
crats and Republica[n]s. I will give
any man five dollars if in con-
versing with them he can get any one
of them to say that his father
ever told him who to vote for. Some
of you may try to make a little money
perhaps at that. (Laughter.) I con-
sider everybody is responsible for him-
self, and he has a right to vote for
whom he pleases.
Again, I never asked any office at
the hands of any being in heaven or
on earth, not even of my heavenly
Father, except upon one instance,
which I will relate here. In my boy-
hood, as you have heard me testify, I
went to the Sabbath schools. I read
the New Testament. I saw the doc-
trine there portrayed in plainness, as
taught by Jesus Christ and His Apos-
tles, and it was a glorious doctrine. I