Leigh, Gloucestershire, England. .
Elder H. C. Kimball & G. A. Smith.
Beloved Brethern,
I am in the midst
of the saints at the Leigh enjoying good health & spirits. & while
meditating upon the scenes which have transpired with me during the
last 23 days which has been spent with you on a mission in the
City of London, I feel disposed to pen a few of my thoughts on paper for your
perusal. Brethren this is the first mission we have ever enjoyed together in the vineyard. Can
we for a moment say that our time hath been spent in vain during this period? Nay we cannot
the spirit within me forbids it. Have we not profited by this school of experianc? yea much
evry way. While the Lord hath manifested by revelation that it is his will that we should obtain a
knowledge of Kindgdoms & countries, this mission hath placed us in a situation to avail our-
selves of the desired information upon many things that which we could not otherwise
have obtained. Time will clearly show that the late mission which we have enjoyed together
in the City of London (which is still continued by your labours) will ever be firmly engraved
in our minds & occupy an important place, In the history of our travels among the
Nations of the Earth. When London feels the chastning hand of the ALMIGHTY
& in her turn amid the revolutions of the gentile world finds her doom is sealed with her
lofty spires, synagogues, mansion, & pallaces, laid in one common ruin, then with what feelings
shall we address our children or the thousands that may surround us, while our heads
are blossoming with age, as we point to the 21st day of September ^october Aug^ 1840, when we
stood together upon the top of the most splended & highest modern pillar in the Univers &
with the naked eye surveyed the most populous & wealthy city upon the face of the
earth, which we can then exclaim hath been the theater of much misry & wo, but now sleeps
in death. We ^having in my possessin a history of places visited I feel disposed to give the same {that [and may he] give} a correct {account of} the {same} to refer to^ shall not readily forget ^on the 24th oct we visited^ Oct [Aug] 24th while we walked to & fro through St
Pauls Cathedral which was 500 feet in length 285 in bredth 404 in highth which was 40 years
in building from 1675 to 1715 which cost £136000 or $3,680,000 ^£l,567,076,15. $ 5880,380^ which contains
47 monuments of fine marble erected over the Tombs of certain Lords Bishops Generals
Earls & other titles who had distinguished themselves in the military service of Great Brit-
ian & otherwise, Lord Nelsons being the most noted, & while historians have taken much
interest in the origen of this cathedral dedicated St Paul which was first built by St
Augustine in the year 610, & now considered the largest cathedral in the world excepting
the Vatian at Rome dedicated to St Peter. We ^ourselves^ can clearly see the gentiles are zealous in
a form of Godliness while they deny the power thereof, for while this church stands in
honor to St Paul, those who whorship therein utterly reject & deny the principles which
he tought. Again I think we shall not doubt the words of Soloman when he said man had
sought ought many inventions esspecially when we reflect back to the 1st day of Sept, when
We desended together about 40 feet into the Bowels of the earth & walked throught the Thames
Tunnel with the River Thames & British shiping over our heads which was opening a thorough
fare from one shore to the other which was finished 1110 ^feet^ & was lighted with gas, arched
overhead & considered one of the greatest wonders of the last days. The time we spent
together on the 5th of Sept Visiting Westminster Abbey was not unprofitable, had we
travled the world oer we could not have found another spot that would have pre-
sented a wider field of knowledge & of contemplation as touching the history of the
rise, progress, & fall of Kings, Princes Lords & mighty men of Gentile greatness pride
& boast. This Abbey was composed of eleven Chapels (ownly seperated by walls or petitions)
Viz 1. St. Benedict. 2. St. Edmund. 3. St. Nicholas. 4. Henry the Seventh. 5. St. Paul.
6. St. Edward the Confessor. 7. St. Erasmus. 8. Abbot Islip. 9. St. John. 10. St Andrew
& 11. St. Michael. & these Chapels contain the Bodies, tombs, & monuments, of of elveven Twelve ^13^
Kings viz Edward I. — III. — V — VI. Charles. II. Henry III. — V. — VII. James I. George II.
Richard II. & William III. & Sebert King of the east Saxons who first built this church
& died July 616 Also Twelve ^13^ Queens viz Athelgoda, Queen of Sebert who Died Sept 13 615
& Phillippa, Matilda. Mary I. — II. & Queen Mary of Scotland, Elizabeth, Catherine,
& Queen Anne & Editha, Eleanor & Caroline & of ^six^ Prince's George, & Eleven ^11^ Dukes, seven ^7^—
Duchess, one ^1^ Marquis, Seven ^7^ Lords, three ^3^ Vicount, Eight ^8^ Countess, three ^3^ Barrons sixteen ^16^—
Earls, eleven ^11^ Admirals, twelve ^ten 10^ Generals, 5 Col, ^3 Majors^ 10 Capt. 4 Lieut. 16 Bishops. 6 Divines
15 Doctors, 52 Sirs. 153 Gentleman, & 48 Ladys, making 421 persons who have been
deposited in vaults in this Abbey & Monuments erected to their memory. Here we had the privilege
of viewing the full stature & perfect likeness of Queen Elizabeth, Mary, & Anne
Lord Nelson, & Pitt & others. We saw the full Coronation Dress of Queen Anne. We
also saw the chair & sat in it, in which Queen Victoria was crowned & all the Kings
& Queens in England for the last 800 years this chair is covered with gold tissue. It
contains a stone under the seat upon which all the Scottish Chiefs, & Kings were crowned
since they were a people it is reported to be Jacobs Pillar which chair has been in use 800
years. In walking through this Abbey we see frequent marks of violence from Oliver Cromwell
in defacing some of the tombs, monuments, & brass work with which some of the Abbey was
adorned. Here we behold the art of man with all its combined force & power spun to the
finest thread, & expanded to the fullest extent in the building & finishing of this Abbey as
a general whole, But more esspecially that part called Henry Sephenth Seventh's Chapel
& a visit to this Abbey is not ownly worthy of the Attention of all travellers but to occupy
a place in the Journal of any Historian.
While speaking upon this subject I would
not pass over our visit to the house of Parliment, on the 8th of Sept. As we entered the
house of Lords (now occupied as the house of Commons) ^we did not behold^ so much to interest the sight of the eye as
the meditation of the mind, however we had the privilege of resting ourselves by siting in the chair in
which the speaker of the house of Lords had sat for many years. In this room all the speeches were
made by Mr William Pitt while advocating the American cause, before the Revolution. In this room
all the laws were made that now governs ^from^ 175 to 200 000 000 of human beings. As the house of
commons was burned down about six years since this room at the present time is occupied by ^for^ the
house of commons & there is another house now built which the house of Lords at the
present time occupies. One would naturly suppose that a house of Parliament fitted up to
contained Kings, Lords, & Commons would be sumthing extra, grand, & expensive but we found
it quite the reverse. It is excedingly plain & undecorated. On entering the room one would
sooner think he was in an American school house rather than in a house of Lords or of Commons.
While retiring from this scenery we had a view of the order of British soldiery or foot guards
while on parade in St James' Park, accompanied by a full band of music. Also of the Queens
Horse guard 100 in number well mounted upon fat gay black mares, & the steel with which
their bodies were covered glistening in the Sun. We might make mention of the monument
erected in honour to his grace the Duke of York which was 135 feet in highth & of the
mansion of Queen Dowager widow of the Late King Williams IV which we had a
view of as we past along. In fine St James Park is surrounded as it were with Dwellings
mansions, castles, monuments, & Palaces, of the first class as to size, splendour, & Note of any in
Europe, of which Buckingham Palace is the Chief. this is for the Royal Family & is now
occupied by Her Majesty Queen Victoria, & his Highness Prince Albert, except while they
are at Winser Castle. Buckingham Palace Covers a number of acres of ground & is surro
unded by a high wall of hewn stone except the front which is a high fence of cast Iron
railing, & evry door, enterence, & gate was strongly guarded by armed soldiers. I walked
nearly around this castle Palace, & while there I for the first time had a view of his
Royal Highness Prince Albert while he was riding from his palace across St James Park
mounted upon a gray horse accompanied ownly by his groom who was riding a sorrel horse.
I also spent a few moments in the National gallery which was ^is^ not unprofitable to a traveller
desiring to form a knowledge of countries & the art of man. This gallery contains a vary
great & extensive variety of the most Perfect Paintings that could be gathered together
by the Nation, these with other things we have had the privilege of forming a
knowledge of for ourselves. ^But^ Brethren while you discover that I hav written rather
largely concerning these temporal & perishable objects which are in the same state, & doomed to
share the same fate in the revolutions of the last days & the fall of Babylon, as Jerrusalem
did when they rejected their king & put to death the Messiah, think not that I for a moment
harbour the idea that the ownly benefit we have derived in the enjoyment of our late
mission together in the City of London has been a knowledge of these things, far from this.
for while I have spoken of these things while they were in memory more for the purpose
of preserving a historical sketch of the same than other wise, still the remaining part of
the subject rest upon my mind with greater weaight. Yes Brethren our late mission together
has not ownly put us in possession of a knowledge of those things spoken of but it hath
given us a more intimate acquaintance with each other & that to in some degree in the midst
of trials, which acquaintance has had a tendancy if possible to unite our hearts
more closer together in the love of God & the New & Everlasting Covenant. this is
not all. we have stood together in this first mission to the city of London in which
we have had the privilege of uniting our labours in lifting up the standard of truth, of
light, & the fulness of the everlasting gospel, & When on dilligent search we found the whole
city given to Idolitry, Priescraft, tradition, superstition, & all manner of abominations wick-
edness, & uncleanness & all doors closed against us we did not hesitate to stand in
the midst of the streets & Jonah like cry repentance unto the Inhabitants of that mighty
city, The Metropolis of England, the Pride & glory of Britain, the Boast of the Gentiles & the
largest city in the world, containing one million five hundred thousand souls who were
ripened in iniquity, &prepared for the wrath of God, & like the ox going to the slaughter
know not the day of their visitation. Yes Brethren I shall long remember standing in
the midst of that people & assisting you in bearing a message unto them, a message—
which will prove a savior of life unto life or of Death unto Death not ownly unto
them, but unto all they unto whom the sound thereof shall come, even of the whole
gentile world & the judgment of the great day shall manifest the truth of it unto all
nations. And it will ever sweeten the memory of that eventful period of my life
to know that our labours on that occasion were not in vain. But that we were
enabled through the great mercy & goodness of God & toil, labour, dilligent search, &
perseverance, to find some of the Blood of Ephraim, a few honest souls that were
willing to recieve & obey the gospel & that we were enabled to lay the foundation
of a work in that City which will not be removed untill the City is warned so that
they will be left without excuse, & the saints gathered out to stand in Holy places
while judgment works. Untill that time the seed which we have sown in that
city & that which you are now sowing shall bring forth fruit & the fruit
shall remain to the honour & glory of God & I say it in the name of
Jesus Christ & the Spirit Beareth record & the record is true. Therefore
Brethren let your souls rejoice, & your hearts be made glad, that we are permitted
to bear some humble part in the sacrafices, sufferings, & reproach of Christ & of
warning this generation & of gathering together the honest in heart & the meek
of the Earth that they with us may stand together in Holy places while judgement
works ^works^, & be prepared to enter into that rest which remaineth for the People of
God. And Dear Brethren my prayer to God is that we may ever be meek & humble
that the Power of the Priesthood & the spirit of our ministry & mission may rest upon
us that we may be carried through evry strait Place wherein we are called to walk that
we may keep the faith & overcome the world. I pray my heavenly Father in the name of
Jesus Christ that this may be our happy lot & that we, with all the Elders of Israel, & Saints
of God may be prepared to joyfully meet our Lord & Master when he appeareth again the second
time without sin unto salvation.
Thus Testifieth your Brother in the Everlasting Covenant
Willford Woodruff
Copy of a letter from
W Woodruff to HC Kim
ball & G. A. Smith
Sept 12th 1840