Brother John L. Smith is pursuing a very wise and saving
course towards the Saints and the people within the limits of
his mission. When everthing is considered I think the Elders
there have done and are doing remarkably well. In France
Bro. Bertrand has many grave difficulties to contend with,
which prevent him from being as successful in his labors
as he otherwise would be. He does not appear to get discouraged
or to give up trying, and occasionally baptizes a few. I proposed
to him, when I was in Paris, in view of his lengthy absence from
home and the almost ^utter^ indifference of the people to the message
of which he is the bearer, to return home this season; but left
it with himself to decide. He has since expressed a wish
to remain another year. The Holland Mission, I think from
present appearances, will have to be abandoned. You will
doubtless recollect that Elders Vander Woude and Paul A.
Schettler were appointed ^a^ missions to Holland in the
Spring of (18)61. For some time after their arrival they had but
little succeess, and Bro. Vander Woude wrote some very dis-
couraging letters here, in which he evinced but very little faith.
Money had to be sent there to sustain them, and as I had no
authority to thus use funds I mentioned the matter in a letter
to the President. He counselled the withdrawal of the Elders,
if they people would not receive their message. In the mean-
time, however, they had baptized a few, and as prospects
appeared brighter we thought it better to let them try a little
longer. As I had learned that there was difficulty in the
Branch they had raised up I thought it better to visit them to
while I was on the Continent, and concluded it would be
(7)
Brother John L. Smith is pursuing a very wise and saving
course towards the Saints and the people within the limits of
his mission. When everthing is considered I think the Elders
there have done and are doing remarkably well. In France
Bro. Bertrand has many grave difficulties to contend with,
which prevent him from being as successful in his labors
as he otherwise would be. He does not appear to get discouraged
or to give up trying, and occasionally baptizes a few. I proposed
to him, when I was in Paris, in view of his lengthy absence from
home and the utter indifference of the people to the message
of which he is the bearer, to return home this season; but left
it with himself to decide. He has since expressed a wish
to remain another year. The Holland Mission, I think from
present appearances, will have to be abandoned. You will
doubtless recollect that Elders Vander Woude and Paul A.
Schettler were appointed a mission to Holland in the
Spring of (18)61. For some time after their arrival they had but
little succeess, and Bro. Vander Woude wrote some very discouraging letters here, in which he evinced but very little faith.
Money had to be sent there to sustain them, and as I had no
authority to thus use funds I mentioned the matter in a letter
to the President. He counselled the withdrawal of the Elders,
if they people would not receive their message. In the meantime, however, they had baptized a few, and as prospects
appeared brighter we thought it better to let them try a little
longer. As I had learned that there was difficulty in the
Branch they had raised up I thought it better to visit them
while I was on the Continent, and concluded it would be
"Letter from George Quayle Cannon, 24 February 1863," p. 7, The Wilford Woodruff Papers, accessed April 26, 2024, https://wilfordwoodruffpapers.org/p/m8GE