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W. Woodruff
St George
Oct 19 [18]85
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St George
Presidents John Taylor, & Geo Q. Cannon
Beloved Brethren,
Your vary kind and interesting
Letter of Oct 2 is Received, and Read with
much interest. And also your Epistle of
Oct 6 to the Saints. I feel that I can say Amen
with Every sentiment of my heart, to every principle
contained in Either of them. It certainly would
have been a satisfaction to me, and I presume It would
have been to you to have attended the conference
at Logan, but Wisdom Dictated otherwise, and
we have to be satisfied. Your position is ownly
following in the footsteps of the prophet Joseph
in his day. I have felt for a good while that
there was a change coming over Zion, over our
Nation, and over Great Babylon. And this in
order to fulfill the Revelations of Divine truth
and to carry out the purposes of the Lord. I cannot
but acknowledge the hand of the Lord in the present
afflictions of the Latter Day Saints. The persecution
of the Righteous by the wicked is a legacy bequeathed
to all Saints in Every age of the world and will
continue untill Christ reigns on the Earth.
And while all the powers of the Earth are combined
with the powers of Darkness and of Evil to Destroy
the Latter Day Saints from off the Earth it should
be a strong testimony to not ownly the Saints but
to sinners that the God of Heaven had set his
hand to Esstablish his Church and Kingdom on the Earth
in righteousness. I have felt at times as
though I wanted to get out to meeting and
speak to the people in thes southern settlements
but there is a Commissioner and several Deputy
Marshals appointed in this District and if I get
into the hands of my Enemies I should not have
the Liberty I now Enjoy. I lost my friend William
Squire with whom I have spent most of my time
for 7 months. He was sick 10 days. I Blessed him
a short time before He di[e]d and bid him good by He
was a true and faithful Latter Day Saint and a good
friend to me, and gave me a good home. I Received
a letter from My Daughter Bulah saying her
Mother (Phebe W) had met with a serious accident
walking in the Evening with a lighted Lamp caught her
foot in the carpet, fell her whole length struk her
head against the base board, cut a long gash in her
head, ^Dr^ Anderson had sown it ^up^ I Judge she is quite
badly hurt. I also learned that Sarah D. youngest
child was vary sick with Typhoid fever, but I have
to leave these things all in the hands of the Lord
and my friends. My Health is vary good at present
I get freequent letters from the camp of the Saints
in Mexico they seem quite Disappointed that they have
no land to settle upon, as they are in the midst of thieves
who steal them their Horses, Harness, Plough & Crops &c
Dear Brethren I thank ^you^ for your Kindness to me
in a temporel point of view
That the blessings of health, strength, & freedom may Rest
uppon you, and that the Inspiration of the Almighty may
Rest upon you is the prayer of your Brother in the Gospel W. Woodruff
It does appear to me that I have never Read
in the whole history of the World any
Nation taking such rapid strides to prepair
themselves for the Judgments of God as are
the United States to day. whole pages of
the publications of the day are taken up in
the recitation of their Dredful Murder, rapes
and the Abominations of the Earth, and all
the government officers who are sent to admin-
ister Justice to the Saints seem in a terrible
hurry to fill up their cup of iniquity. They are
filled with madness, and Act mo[r]e like
Demons than wise men to Judge the people
by Law and Equity. And I am sorry to say that
I am not able to see any saving or Redeeming
quality in any Department of our Government
The Supreme Court the president, The Cabinet
The Congress or the Majority of them seem com-
bind to destroy the Saints of God from off
from the Earth, and their is a great meen-
ing to all this And no man possessing the
spirit of God, and of inspiration can help but
observe the signs of the times and of beholding
the Dreadful Storm which is approaching
our Country and the Nations of the Earth
The Lord is not slack concerning his promises
for what He promises He will fullfill, his words
will not pass away. fifty four years ago last
January a few Saints in Ohio prayed the Lord to stay
his Hand in Judgment. He said He could not
Deny his word. If the people would Repent
of their sins He would stay his hand in Judgment
but not without. I think the present Generations
are far from itRepentance. I feel the force of
your Remarks in the Epistle to myself and my Brethren
the Apostles, of the great responsiblity which Rests
upon us. And while I am shut up like a caged
Lion, and cannot open my mouth in the congregations
of the Saints or sinners. I am strongly Reminded of
the word of the Lord to the Elders of Israel on the
11 Sept 1836 when He says "If you believe me you
will labor while it is called to day" Again we are
told that soon night will come when No man can
work. When I look around myself and ask where
are the ph prophets and Apostles who laid the foundation
of this Church and Kingdom on the Earth, with whom
I was associated in Kirtland and Nauvoo. They are
gone, gone into the spirit wor[l]d, where I shall soon
follow, and there are but few left of thos days
others have taken their places, but it matters not if
we have done our duty. But I fear that many
times as Elders of Israel, We do not Realize the
great responsibility which Rests upon us
while we hold in our hands in a measure the
destiny of the souls of men in the generation in
which we live Jesus has told us it is our
privilege to know the signs of the coming of the Son
of Man It does appear to me that the signs of both
Heaven and Earth indicate his coming. And looking
upon the other hand it appears as though there was
a great amount of work to be performed before that Event-
ful day. Still the Lord is able to cut his work short
Brother Bleak has
Just read me the dispatches
of to Day the 13 saying that 11 at
to 4 of the grand Jury voted to
clear A M Cannon on the
2 Indictment, and that Dixon &
Varien had Resigned and Reported
that Murry had, and that Zane
is called to Washington. Thank
the Lord for so much may we
have peace for a Month