Joseph F. Smith's Testimony During Reed Smoot Hearing - Some Highlights

I've never read the actual testimony of Pres. Joseph F. Smith when he was made to appear before the U.S. Senate in 1904, during the Reed Smoot hearing. Here were some interesting points I found:

On his business holdings:

Mr. TAYLER. What is your business ?
Mr. SMITH. My principal business is that of president of the church.
Mr. TAYLER. In what other business are you engaged?
Mr. SMITH. I am engaged in numerous other businesses.
Mr. TAYLER. What?
Mr. SMITH. I am president of Zion's Cooperative Mercantile Institution.
Mr. TAYLER. What kind of an institution is that?
Mr. SMITH. A mercantile institution.
Mr. TAYLER. Has it a capital stock?
Mr. SMITH. It has.
Mr. TAYLER. How large ?
Mr. SMITH. I think it is a little over a million.
Mr. TAYLER. Without having time to go into it, is that corporation, through its directorate, controlled by officers of the church?
Mr. SMITH. No, sir; it is controlled by directors.
Mr. TAYLER. Yes. I am not speaking of any churchly control of it, but I mean are the directors or a majority of them officers also in the church, just as you are an official and a director?
Mr. SMITH. I hardly think a majority of them are officials of the church.
Mr. TAYLER. Of what other corporations are you an officer ?
Mr. SMITH. I am president of the State Bank of Utah, another institution.
Mr. TAYLER. What else ?
Mr. SMITH. Zion Savings Bank and Trust Company.
Mr. TAYLER. What else?
Mr. SMITH. I am president of the Utah Sugar Company.
Mr. TAYLER. What else?
Mr. SMITH. I am president of the Consolidated Wagon and Machine Company.
Mr. TAYLER. What else ?
Mr. SMITH. There are several other small institutions with which I am associated.
Mr. TAYLER. Are you associated with the Utah Light and Power Company ?
Mr. SMITH. I am.
Mr. TAYLER. In what capacity ?
Mr. SMITH. I am a director and president of the company.
Mr. TAYLER. A director and the president?
Mr. SMITH. Yes, sir.
Mr. TAYLER. Had you that in mind when you classified the others as small concerns ?
Mr. SMITH. No, sir; I had not that in mind.
Mr. TAYLER. That is a large concern?
Mr. SMITH. That is a large concern.
Mr. TAYLER. Are you an officer of the Salt Lake and Los Angeles Railroad Company?
Mr. SMITH. I am.
Mr. TAYLER. What?
Mr. SMITH. President and director.
Mr. TAYLER. That is a large concern ?
Mr. SMITH. No, sir; it is a very small concern.
Mr. TAYLER. Of what else are you president ?
Mr. SMITH. I am president of the Salt Air Beach Company.
Mr. TAYLER. The Salt Air Beach Company?
Mr. SMITH. Yes, sir.
Mr. TAYLER. What else, if you can recall?
Mr. SMITH. I do not recall just now.
Mr. TAYLER. What relation do you sustain to the Consolidated Light and Power Company ?
Mr. SMITH. That is the same institution that you have mentioned, sir the Consolidated Light and Power Company. That is now consolidated. It is the Utah Light and Railroad Company now.
Mr. TAYLER. The Utah Light and Railroad Company ?
Mr. SMITH. The Utah Light and Power Company is the same thing-
Mr. TAYLER. They have been consolidated into the Light and Power Company ?
Mr. SMITH. No, sir; the Consolidated Light and Railway Company.
Mr. TAYLER. The Consolidated Light and Railway Company ?
Mr. SMITH. Yes, sir.
Mr. TAYLER. Do those corporations furnish the electric light and urban traction in the city of Salt Lake?
Mr. SMITH. Yes, sir.
Mr. TAYLER. Altogether?
Mr. SMITH. I believe they do.
Mr. TAYLER. What relation do yon sustain to the Idaho Sugar Company ?
Mr. SMITH. I am a director of that company and also the president of it.
Mr. TAYLER. Of the Inland Crystal Salt Company ?
Mr. SMITH. Also the same position there.
Mr. TAYLER. The Salt Lake Dramatic Association?
Mr. SMITH. I am president of that and also a director.
Mr. TAYLER. Are you president of any other corporation there?
Mr. SMITH. I do not know. Perhaps you can tell me. I do not remember any more just now.
Mr. TAYLER. It would seem that the number has grown so large that it would be an undue tax upon your memory to charge you with naming them all.
Mr. SMITH. It is rather sudden and unexpected to me. I perhaps might have prepared myself for it.
Mr. TAYLER. What relation do you sustain to the Salt Lake Knitting Company? Did I ask you about it?
Mr. SMITH. No, sir; you did not.
Mr. TAYLER. The Salt Lake Knitting Company ?
Mr. SMITH. I am president of it, and also a director.

On whether apostles are called by revelation:

Mr. SMITH. In the first place they were chosen by revelation. The council of the apostles have had a voice ever since in the selection of their successors.
Senator McCoMAS. Had a voice?
Mr. SMITH. Yes, sir.
Senator McCoMAS. Have they had the election of their successors to perpetuate the body of apostles since the first revelation ?
Mr. SMITH. I do not know that I understand your question.
Senator McCoMAS. You say the first apostles were selected in accordance with revelations.
Mr. SMITH. Yes, sir.
Senator McCoMAS. Revelations to whom ?
Mr. SMITH. To Joseph Smith.
Senator McCoMAS. And the twelve apostles were then first named ?
Mr. SMITH. Yes, sir.
Senator McCoMAS. When vacancies occurred thereafter, by what body were the vacancies in the twelve apostles filled?
Mr. SMITH. Perhaps I may say in this way: Chosen by the body, the twelve themselves, by and with the consent and approval of the first presidency.
Senator HOAB. Was there a revelation in regard to each of them?
Mr. SMITH. No, sir; not in regard to each of them. Do you mean in the beginning?
Senator HOAR. I understand you to say that the original twelve apostles were selected by revelation ?
Mr. SMITH. Yes, sir.
Senator HOAR. Through Joseph Smith ?
Mr. SMITH. Yes, sir; that is right.
Senator HOAR. Is there any revelation in regard to the subsequent ones?
Mr. SMITH. No, sir; it has been the choice of the body.
Senator McCoMAS. Then the apostles are perpetuated in succession by their own act and the approval of the first presidency ?
Mr. SMITH. That is right.

On whether he receives revelation as President of the Church:

Senator HOAR. Does or does not a person who does not believe that a revelation given through the head of the church comes from God reject a fundamental principle of Mormonism?
Mr. SMITH. He does; always if the revelation is a divine revelation from God.
Senator HOAR. It always is, is it not? It comes through the head of the church?
Mr. SMITH. When it is divine, it always is; when it is divine, most decidedly.
The CHAIRMAN. I do not quite understand that "when it is divine." You have revelations, have you not?
Mr. SMITH. I have never pretended to nor do I profess to have received revelations. I never said I had a revelaton except so far as God has shown to me that so-called Mormonism is God's divine truth; that is all.

and later...

Senator DUBOIS. Have you received any individual revelations yourself, since you became president of the church under your own definition, even, of a revelation?
Mr. SMITH. I can not say that I have.
Senator DUBOIS. Can you say that you have not?
Mr. SMITH. No; I can not say that I have not.
Senator DUBOIS. Then you do not know whether you have received any such revelation as you have described, or whether you have not?
Mr. SMITH. Well, I can say this: That if I live as I should in the line of my duties, I am susceptible, I think, of the impressions of the spirit of the Lord upon my mind at any time, just as any good Methodist or any other good church member might be. And so far as that is concerned, I say yes; I have had impressions of the Spirit upon my mind very frequently, but they are not in the sense revelations.
The CHAIRMAN. Senator, do you think it is important to pursue that further?
Senator DUBOIS. No.

On how long plural marriages were performed:

Mr. TAYLER. That is to say, no plural marriages were solemnized in the church after October, 1878?
Mr. SMITH. No; I can not say as to that.
Mr. TAYLER. Well, if the church solemnized marriages after that time it did not accept that decision as conclusive upon it, did it?
Mr. SMITH. 1 am not aware that the church practiced polygamy, or plural marriages, at least, after the manifesto.
Mr. TAYLER. Yes, I know; but that was a long, long time after that. 1 am speaking now of 1878, when the Supreme Court decided the law to be constitutional.
Mr. SMITH. I will say this, Mr. Chairman, that I do not know of any marriages occurring after that decision.

On D&C 132:

Mr. TAYLEK. The next verse.
Mr. SMITH. All right.
"64. And again, verily, verily I say unto you, if any man have a wife, who holds the keys of this power, and he teaches unto her the law of my Priesthood, as pertaining to these things, then shall she believe, and administer unto him, or she shall be destroyed, saith the Lord your God, for I will destroy her; for I will magnify my name upon all those who receive and abide in my law."
Senator PETTUS. Now , what is the meaning of the word "destroyed," there, as interpreted by the church ?
Mr. SMITH. I have no conception of the meaning of it more than the language itself conveys, that the woman who disobeys is in the hands of the Lord for Him to deal with as He may deem proper. I suppose that is what it means.
Senator FORAKER. Has the church ever construed that language to give authority to it as a church to destroy the woman ?
Mr. SMITH. Never in the world. It is not so stated. It is that the Lord
Senator FORAKER. The church construes it, as 'I understand, to mean that she is in the hands of the Lord, to be destroyed by the Lord.
Mr. SMITH. By the Lord, if there is any destruction at all.
Senator PETTUS. Have there ever been in the past plural marriages without the consent of the first wife?
Mr. SMITH. I do not know of any, unless it may have been Joseph Smith himself.
Senator PETTUS. Is the language that you have read construed to mean that she is bound to consent?
Mr. SMITH. The condition is that if she does not consent the Lord will destroy her, but I do not know how He will do it.
Senator BAILEY. Is it riot true that in the very next verse, if she refuses her consent her husband is exempt from the law which requires her consent ?
Mr. SMITH. Yes; he is exempt from the law which requires her consent.
Senator BAILEY. She is commanded to consent, but if she does not, then he is exempt from the requirement?
Mr. SMITH. Then he is at liberty to proceed without her consent, under the law.
Senator BEVERIDGE. In other words, her consent amounts to nothing ?
Mr. SMITH. It amounts to nothing but her consent.

Called by Joseph F. Smith

Joseph F. Smith followed in the tradition of Brigham Young, John Taylor and Wilford Woodruff in naming one or more of his sons to be Apostles. In fact, the majority of Apostles he called were related to him or other previous Apostles. Three of those he called went on to become prophet.

Called to be Apostles by Joseph F. Smith:
Hyrum M. Smith, George Albert Smith,
Charles W. Penrose, Orson F. Whitney,
George F. Richards, David O. McKay,
Anthony W. Ivins, Joseph Fielding Smith,
James E. Talmage, Stephen L. Richards,
Richard R. Lyman

JOHN R. WINDER
(December 11, 1821 - March 27, 1910)

Second Counselor - October 17, 1901

Winder was born and raised in England. He heard about the church while working at a shoe store. He and his wife were baptized and moved to Utah in 1853. he was able to set up a franchise of successful tanneries. He was renowned as a successful businessman in every profession he tried. He was a business mentor to Heber J. Grant.

During the polygamy raids of the 1880's, members would put all their money under Winder's name so it couldn't be confiscated. He had a reputation of being trustworthy and financially sound. He was also involved with many charities.

Winder was called into the First Presidency but he was never ordained an Apostle. Having him in the First Presidency may have aided members in trusting the church with their tithing money, knowing that it would be put to good use.

HYRUM M. SMITH
(March 21, 1872 - January 23, 1918)

Apostle - October 24, 1901

Hyrum was the eldest son of Joseph F. Smith, and the first Apostle called when Joseph F. took over as prophet. He then served as president of the European mission from 1913-1916, but activities for that mission had to be suspended due to World War I.

A few months before his father died, Hyrum died from a ruptured appendix at the young age of 45. His grandson M. Russell Ballard is one of the current members of the Quorum of the Twelve. (In fact, both of M. Russell Ballard's grandfathers were Apostles).

GEORGE ALBERT SMITH
(April 4, 1870 - April 4, 1951)

Apostle - October 8, 1903
President of Q12 - June 21, 1943
Prophet/President - May 21, 1945

George was the son of Apostle John Henry Smith, grandson of Apostle George A. Smith, therefore a second cousin once removed to Joseph F. Smith. John Henry Smith was still an Apostle when George was called to join him in the Q12.

George graduated from what would later be known as BYU and also got a degree from the future University of Utah. He was active in Republican politics and campaigned for William McKinley and Theodore Roosevelt.

He married Lucy Woodruff, granddaughter of Wilford, in 1892. They both then served in the Southern states mission. He made his living as a salesman at ZCMI and became an Apostle at age 33.

He became the 8th President of the LDS church right as World War II was winding down. He made it a priority to send aid to the wore-torn areas in Europe. He emphasized missionary work and spreading the Gospel.

He was plagued by health problems throughout his life. He received permanent damage to his vision from the sun's glare while he worked as a surveyor. He had bouts of depression, and he was diagnosed with lupus. He ultimately died from the effects of lupus on his 81st birthday.

CHARLES W. PENROSE
(February 4, 1832 - May 16, 1925)

Apostle - July 7, 1904
Second Counselor (JFS, HJG) - December 7, 1911
First Counselor - March 10, 1921

Penrose was another Englishman, born and raised in London. He only had one wife, Lucetta, but they had 15 children together. He joined the church when he was 18 and wound serving a six-year mission, preaching all over the United Kingdom. In 1861, he and his family migrated to Utah.

He served in the Utah legislature, and he introduced the bill in 1880 that allowed women to serve in any public office. He was a talented writer and wrote the lyrics for a few of the hymns, including "God of Our Fathers."  He was a BYU professor of theology.

He was called to be an Apostle after the sudden death of Abraham Woodruff, and seven years later, he became part of Joseph F. Smith's First Presidency. When Smith died, the new prophet Heber J. Grant retained him as 2nd counselor, and he made him 1st counselor when Anthon H. Lund died in 1921.

ORSON F. WHITNEY
(July 1, 1855 - May 16, 1931)

Apostle - April 9, 1906

Orson was the son of Horace Whitney and Helen Kimball. Helen was the daughter of Heber C. Kimball, and she became a plural wife to Joseph Smith. After Joseph died, the 16-year-old widow was soon courted by Horace.

Orson made his living as a reporter and editor for the Deseret News, and he later taught English and Theology at the college in Logan that eventually become Utah State University. He served as assistant Church Historian until he was called to be an Apostle.

After Matthias F. Cowley and John W. Taylor resigned from the Q12 over polygamy issues, and Marriner W. Merrill died, there were three vacancies in the Quroum. Orson, George F. Richards, and David O. McKay were called the same day, but Orson had seniority.

Orson was a writer and a poet. He wrote a biography of his grandfather Heber C. Kimball and wrote the lyrics for tsome of the hymns including "Savior Redeemer of My Soul." He died from the flu at age 75.

GEORGE F. RICHARDS
(February 23, 1861 - August 8, 1950)

Apostle - April 9, 1906
President of Q12 - May 21, 1945

George was the son of Apostle Franklin D. Richards, great-nephew to Apostle Willard Richards, and he'd later be the father of Apostle LeGrand Richards. There are three instances of three generations being in the Quroum of the Twelve - George A., John Henry, and George Albert Smith; Amasa, Francis M., and Richard Lyman; and Franklin D., George F., and LeGrand Richards.

George worked as a railway clerk, farmer and school board member. He did a term in the Utah Legislature in 1899.

He was one of the three called to be an Apostle at the April 1906 General Conference. While an Apostle, he also served as the Salt Lake City Temple president. After Heber J. Grant became prophet, and he instructed the church to remove all references to vengeance and retaliation from church sermons, hymns and litertaure, Richards was the key in implementing the changes in the temple ceremony.

Richards was known as a practical man in his sermons, using every-day events to illustrate larger Gospel principles. He became President of the Quorum of the Twelve when Pres. Grant died and George Albert Smith was made prophet, but he died the year before Smith.

DAVID O. McKAY
(September 8, 1873 - January 18, 1970)

Apostle - April 9, 1906
Second Counselor (HJG, GS) - October 11, 1934
President of Q12 - August 8, 1950
Prophet/President - April 9, 1951

McKay was only 32 when he was ordained an Apostle, and at almost 64 years, he was an Apostle or First Presidency member longer than anyone in LDS Church history.

McKay was the son of a Scottish immigrant and Welsh immigrant, born in Utah. He worked as a principal at LDS Weber Stake Academy and taught religion and literature classes. He was the youngest of the three Apostles called at the April 1906 General Conference. He toured the world and dedicated a few countries (including China) for missionary work.

In 1934, after the death Anthony W, Ivins, McKay was called into the First Presidency. He served in that capacity under Presidents Heber J. Grant and George Albert Smith.

McKay became prophet in 1951 and is largely credited for bring the LDS church into the modern era. He oversaw the Priesthood correlation program to ensure the structure in every ward was the same worldwide. He would grant national interviews and build coalitions with other religious groups. He was consulted on 1954's The Ten Commandments. He coined the phrase "Every member a missionary." In his 19 years, the church grew from 1.1 to 2.9 million members. He was an outspoken opponent of communism.

ANTHONY W. IVINS
(September 16, 1852 - September 23, 1934)

Apostle - October 6, 1907
Second Counselor - March 10, 1921
First Counselor - May 25, 1925

I'm noticing a lot of relatives being called in this era. Ivins was a first cousin to fellow Apostle Heber J. Grant when Pres. Smith called him. He was also the son-in-law of Erastus Snow.

He served his mission in Mexico and then became active in the Democratic party. He served exploratory missions to help colonize areas in Arizona and New Mexico. He was the first stake president of Juarez, Mexico.

He was 55 when he was called to be an Apostle and later served in Grant's First Presidency. He died at age 82.

JOSEPH FIELDING SMITH
(July 19, 1876 - July 2, 1972)

Apostle - April 7, 1910
President of Q12 - April 9, 1951
Counselor - October 29, 1965
Prophet/president - January 23, 1970

Joseph F. Smith called two of his sons to be Apostles, the second being Joseph Fielding Smith. JFS was the first son by his father's second wife, and due to the polygamy prosecutions in the 1880's, JFS wouldn't see his parents for years at a time and was raised mostly by his sisters and his father's other wives. JFS and Hyrum M. Smith were the first set of brothers to serve in the Q12 since Luke & Lyman Johnson.

JFS married Emyla Shurtliff in 1898, and they had two daughters, but Emyla died from complications with her third pregnancy in 1908. A few months later he married Ethel Reynolds, and at age 33, he was called to be an Apostle. He had nine more children with Ethel, but she died from a cerebral hemorrage in 1937. A few months later, he married Jessie Evans, who died the year before he died.

JFS became President of the Q12 when McKay became prophet, and he served in that capacity the next 19 years. He was also made an additional counselor in the First Presidency when McKay and his counselors were getting older and suffering health problems and couldn't fully perform all of their duties.

JFS was the oldest person in church history to become prophet, at age 93. He was able to serve for 2 1/2 years before his own death.

JAMES E. TALMAGE
(September 21, 1862 - July 27, 1933)

Apostle - December 8, 1911

Talmage was born in England, making him the third Englishman that Joseph F. Smith called into the Q12 or First Presidency. Talmage was baptized at age 10, and he and his family moved to Utah in 1877.

Talmage was an academic and specialized in chemistry, geology and received the first diploma from BYU's science department. He wound up getting a PhD from llinois Wesleyan. He was a science professor at BYU and went on to be president of the future University of Utah. He wrote several religious books, including The Articles of Faith (1899) and Jesus the Christ (1915).

He brought a real cerebral, academic approach to the Gospel when called to be an Apostle at age 49. He died at only age 70.

STEPHEN L. RICHARDS
(June 18, 1879 - May 19, 1959)

Apostle - January 18, 1917
First Counselor - April 9, 1951

Stephen was the grandson of Willard Richards, who'd served in Brigham Young's First Presidency, but Willard died before Stephen was born. More relatives in the Q12. Stephen also married George A. Smith's granddaughter Irene Smith Merrill.

Stephen worked as a law professor at the University of Utah when he was called to be an Apostle, and when Pres. McKay became prophet, Stephen was his first counselor. He died at age 79.

RICHARD R. LYMAN
(November 23, 1870 - December 31, 1963)

Apostle - April 7, 1918
Excommunicated - November 12, 1943
Rebaptized - 1954

After Pres. Smith son Hyrum died, he called Richard Lyman, son of Apostle Francis Lyman. His grandmother was George A. Smith's sister. Pres. Smith himself ordained Richard an elder when he was 21, and Pres. Smith married Richard to hs wife Amy Brown. Richard was the last Apostle Pres. Smith called before he died. Amy Brown Lyman would eventually become President of the General Relief Society.

Around 1925, he entered a secret polygamous relationship with Anne Hegsted. They were able to keep their relationship secret until 1943. Richard didn't feel like he'd done anything wrong, but he was excommunicated for adultery. Not even his wife was aware of the relationship. He's the last Apostle to ever get excommunicated from the LDS church. Sis. Lyman eventually asked to be released from her calling.

He was rebaptized in 1954 but his full Priesthood blessings were only restored posthumously.

Called by Brigham Young

The important distinction with those that Brigham called was whether or not they were considered part of the Quorum of the Twelve. By calling three of his sons to be Apostles, it looked like he might be stacking the deck for future leadership, but since only one of them became part of the Q12, none of them went on to be prophet. But two of the men he did call went on to be prophets.

Called as Apostles:
Ezra T. Benson, Charles C. Rich, Lorenzo Snow, Erastus Snow,
Franklin D. Richards, Jedidiah M. Grant, John Willard Young,
Daniel H. Wells, George Q. Cannon, Joseph Angell Young,
Brigham Young Jr., Joseph F. Smith, Albert Carrington

EZRA T. BENSON
(February 22, 1811 - September 3, 1869)

Apostle - July 16, 1846

Benson and his wife Pamela joined the church in 1840. After Joseph taught him polygamy in 1844, he married Pamela's sister Adeline. He was on a mission when he found out about the murders of Joseph & Hyrum.

He was the first Apostle called after Joseph Smith's death, and the only one called before Brigham Young reorganized the First Presidency. His calling put the Quorum number back to Twelve after John E. Page's excommunication. He helped in the initial migration west to Utah. His great-grandson would eventually become prophet. Benson himself died of a heart attack at age 58.

CHARLES C. RICH
(August 21, 1809 - November 17, 1883)

Apostle - February 12, 1849

Rich was originally taught by Lyman Wight before being baptized by George Hinkle in 1832. Rich fought in the Battle of Crooked River and was among those arrested a few days later when Hinkle betrayed Joseph Smith and others to the Missouri militia (which led to Joseph, Hyrum, Sidney Rigdon, Lyman Wight and two others to spend five months in Liberty Jail).

After Joseph's death, Rich easily sided with the Quorum of the Twelve and joined the Saints in their migration to Utah. After Wight was excommunicated and Brigham reorganized the First Presidency, four men were ordained to the Quorum of the Twelve on the same day. Rich was the oldest of the four, the other three being Lorenzo Snow (brother of Brigham's wife Eliza R. Snow), Erastus Snow and Franklin D. Richards (Willard Richards' nephew).

Rich helped Amasa Lyman found San Bernadino, CA, but Brigham ordered the settlers there to move back when it became clear it was primarily being populated by Saints who wanted to get away from the leaders in Utah. He also helped colonize parts of Idaho.

LORENZO SNOW
(April 3, 1814 - Octboer 10, 1901)

Apostle - February 12, 1849
Assistant Counselor - June 8, 1873
President of Q12 - April 7, 1889
Prophet/President - September 13, 1898

Snow was a Baptist and school teacher when he first heard about the Book of Mormon and met Joseph Smith in 1831, but he did not join the church until 1836. He was away on a mission during the rise and fall of the Kirtland Safety Society. He joined Brigham Young, Heber C. Kimball and Parley P. Pratt in 1839 on a mission to England and lived there until 1843.

He married his first wife, Charlotte, in October 1844, after Joseph's death. He eventually married eight other women, inlcuding Wilford Woodruff's 17-year-old daughter Phoebe (when Lorenzo was 44).

After being ordained an Apostle, he went on missions to Italy and Switzerland. Toward the end of Brigham's life, he added more counselors to the First Presidency, and Snow was one of them.

He was arrested in 1885 for "unlawful cohabitation" and spent a year in jail. While serving as prophet in 1900, he changed the succession policy that the senior Apostle of the Quorum of the Twelve would be next in line. Brigham's son John Willard Young was next in line in seniority but he'd never been ordained as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve.

ERASTUS SNOW
(November 9, 1818 - May 27, 1888)

Apostle - February 12, 1849

He joined the church after his brother Zerubabbel Snow. He served missions all over the United States, and after Joseph's death, he was a strong supporter of the Q12 and the Utah migration. He and Orson Pratt were the first two Mormons to enter Salt Lake Valley.

A few months after he was ordained an Apostle, he went on a mission to Scandinavia, where he taught and baptized in Sweden, Denmark, and Iceland. During the Civil War, he served a mission in the Eastern U.S., where many members and converts journeyed with him back to Utah to escape the war.

Snow College in Ephraim, Utah, is named for him. Lorenzo Snow  was a distant cousin.

FRANKLIN D. RICHARDS
(April 2, 1821 - December 9, 1899)

Apostle - February 12, 1849
President of Q12 - September 13, 1898

In 1846, Franklin sent his wife and kids to Utah, but he did not join them until 1848, for he served a mission in England. In 1849 he was called to be an Apostle, and soon, he was sent back to be Great Britain's mission president.

He embraced polygamy and wound up with eleven wives.

His son George F. and grandson LeGrand both went on to become Apostles.

JEDIDIAH M. GRANT
(February 21, 1816 - December 1, 1856)

Apostle - April 7, 1854
Second Counselor - April 7, 1854

Jedidiah joined the church in 1833 at age 17. The next year he was part of the Zion's Camp march with Joseph Smith and others who trekked from Kirtland, Ohio, to Missouri who tried and failed to reclaim land that had been taken from expelled Mormons.

He was called to the Presidency of the Seventy by Brigham Young after Smith's death, and he was one of the major early settlers of Utah. He was the first mayor of Salt Lake City. In 1854, after the death of Willard Richards, he was ordained an Apostle and put right into the First Presidency as 2nd Counselor.

Young told him to travel Utah and cry repentence to the Saints, and his fiery sermons earned him the nickname "Brigham's Sledgehammer." Many members were rebaptized as a sign of their renewed commitment. He died of pneumonia at the young age of 40, just a few days after his son Heber J. Grant was born. Heber would eventually become prophet.

JOHN WILLARD YOUNG
(October 1, 1844 - February 12, 1924)

Apostle - November 22, 1855
Counselor - April 8, 1873
First Counselor - October 8, 1876
Counselor to Q12 - October 6, 1877
Resigned - October 8, 1891

Brigham Young ordained his son John to be an Apostle at the unheard-of young age of 11. It wasn't widely known he did this until 1864, when Brigham ordained two more of his sons as Apostles. However, none of them were actually added to the Quorum of the Twelve at the time.

In 1873, Brigham expanded counselors in the First Presidency from three to seven, two of them being his sons. After George A. Smith died, John was moved up to First Counselor. During the 1870's, he spent most of his time in New York and wasn't in Utah much. After Brigham died, instead of being added to the Quorum of the Twelve, John was made a counselor to the Q12. He still lived in New York and was falling increasingly into debt with failed business ventures. Periodically his name was left off the names of general authorities for sustaining in General Conferences. In 1888, Joseph F. Smith accused him of misusing church funds to support himself. Through 1889 and 1890, there were many debates amongst the First Presidency and Q12 if they should remove John from his position.

In 1891, John resigned his church position and was in turn formally released. He kept the office of Apostle, and in 1900, when he was next in line due to his Apostolic seniority, Pres. Lorenzo Snow and the Brethren changed church policy to make ordination in the Q12 part of seniority. A few days after Pres. Snow died in 1901, John showed up in Salt Lake City, but it was Joseph F. Smith who was ordained as the next prophet. John lived out his days in New York.

While out in New York, his son Hooper was convicted of murdering a woman in his apartment while John was in France. John stayed active in the church in his LDS branch in New York, and he eventually died of cancer.

DANIEL H. WELLS
(October 27, 1814 - March 24, 1891)

Apostle - January 4, 1857
Second Counselor - January 4, 1857
Counselor to Q12 - October 6, 1877

Wells lived in Nauvoo and was friendly to the LDS church, to the point that many assumed he was a member, even though he wasn't. He was a member of the Nauvoo Legion and helped defend the city after mobs tried to ransack it after the murders of Joseph & Hyrum Smith.

He was ultimately baptized in 1846 and moved to Utah in 1848. He was elected as the territory's Attorney General the following year. He helped oversee construction of the Salt Lake Temple and the Tabernacle. When Jedidiah M. Grant died, Brigham ordained Wells as an Apostle and put him right into the First Presidency.

He had seven wives. His first wife divorced him after she refused to move to Utah with him. His son Heber eventually became the first governor of Utah.

After Brigham's death, he didn't enter the Q12, but he was called as a counselor to the Q12, and he held that position until his death.

GEORGE Q. CANNON
(January 11, 1827 - April 12, 1901)

Apostle - August 26, 1860
Counselor (BY) - April 8, 1873
First Counselor (JT, WW, LS) - October 10, 1880

Cannon was born in England, and his aunt Leonora married John Taylor. Taylor visited the Cannon family while on a mission back in England and baptized the whole family when George was 13. The family migrated to the United States in 1842, and George's mother died during the voyage.

George wound up living with John and Leonora, and he helped John in his printing offices. When John was shot four times at Carthage Jail, George kept their printing business afloat while he recovered from his wounds.

George served a four-year mission in Hawaii beginning in 1849. He then helped Parley P. Pratt with a mission in California, and he was called to stay behind to preside over the California-Oregon mission. After Pratt was murdered, it took Brigham three years to fill that vacancy, and he did so with George.

George was one of five counselors added to the First Presidency by Brigham in 1873. After Brigham died and John Taylor reorganized the FP, George was made 1st Counselor. When Taylor died and Wilford Woodruff became prophet, he kept George as 1st Counselor, and then when Lorenzo Snow became prophet, he kept George as 1st Counselor. He was next in line in seniority behind Snow when he died at age 74.

JOSEPH ANGELL YOUNG
(October 14, 1834 - August 5, 1875)

Apostle - February 4, 1864

Brigham's son Joseph was ordained, but he never joined the Quorum of the Twelve, nor served in a First Presidency. He did a mission in England and he served a few terms in the Utah Territory's House of Representatives. He died at only age 40.

BRIGHAM YOUNG, JR.
(December 18, 1836 - April 11, 1903)

Apostle - February 4, 1864
President of Q12 - December 9, 1899

Young Jr. was only 11 when he crossed the plains via oxcart in the trek to Utah. He also helped rescue the Willie and Martin handcart companies.

Young Jr. was ordained in 1864 but he didn't become a member of the Quorum of the Twelve until 1868, after Joseph F. Smith.

He was one of the four additional counselors added to the First Presidency in 1873. He went back into the Quorum until he became its president in 1899. (Nowadays he would've been called Acting President, as Joseph F. Smith had seniority but was in the First Presidency, but then when Smith became prophet in 1901, Young Jr. was the true President of the Q12.)

He was only 66 when he died. He also had five wives.

JOSEPH F. SMITH
(November 13, 1838 - November 19, 1918)

Apostle - July 1, 1866
Counselor (BY) - July 1, 1866
Second Counselor (JT, WW, LS) - October 10, 1880
Prophet/President - October 17, 1901

Joseph F. was only five years old when his father Hyrum and uncle Joseph were murdered in Carthage Jail. After being forced from their home by a mob in 1846, he and his mother and siblings met up with other Saints to migrate to Utah. His mother remarried to Heber C. Kimball. Smith was 13 when his mother died of penumonia, and he relied on Kimball and Brigham Young for emotional support after that.

When he was 15, he went on a mission to Hawaii. He spent a few years in California before joining the Nauvoo Legion during the Utah War in 1858. He returned to Hawaii in 1864 to clean up the mess created by its mission president William M. Gibson, who was excommunicated for embezzling church funds and preaching false doctrine.

Smith had six wives. His first wife was his first cousin Levira, daughter of Samuel Smith. After Brigham directed Joseph F. to take a plural wife, he married George A. Smith's wife's niece Julina Lambson. Levira divorced Joseph in 1868 and moved to California. Another wife Joseph F. took was his stepsister Alice Ann Kimball, making him by marriage the uncle of Spencer W. Kimball.

Brigham ordained him an Apostle in 1866 and made him part of the First Presidency. He was also ordained a member of the Quorum of the Twelve in 1867 following the excommunication of Amasa Lyman. After Brigham's death, John Taylor made Joseph F. his 2nd counselor. He was 2nd counselor to Wilford Woodruff and Lorenzo Snow. Snow called him to be his 1st counselor when George Q. Cannon died, but then Snow died a few days later. Thanks to Pres. Snow's 1900 directive on seniority, his deatht he following year made Joseph F. the most senior Apostle, and he became the 6th President of the LDS church. he led the church for 17 years, and he also wrote Section 138 of the Doctrine & Covenants, a revelation on the afterlife. It was the last revelation by a prophet to be canonized as a section in the D&C. (Official Declaration 2 in 1978 was never made a section.)

For a brief period of time, Hyrum's son Joseph F. Smith presided over the LDS church while Joseph's son Joseph Smith III presided over the RLDS church.

ALBERT CARRINGTON
(January 8, 1813 - September 19, 1889)

Apostle - July 3, 1870
Assistant Counselor - June 8, 1873
Excommunicated - November 7, 1885
Rebaptism - November 1, 1887

Carrington, a lawyer, joined the LDS church with his wife in 1841. He took a second wife shortly before they migrated to Utah in 1846.

After the death of Ezra T. Benson, Carrington was called to replace him in the Q12, and when Brigham added four more counselors to the First Presidency in 1873, Carrington was one of them.

Carrington served as president of the European Mission in the late 1870's-early 1880's, doing so without either of his wives with him, and he was accused of an affair with a young housekeeper named Sarah Kirkman. His replacement, John Henry Smith, wrote a letter to President John Taylor in 1882 to report such. After coming home and meeting with the Q12, they decided he hadn't done anything wrong, but they learned later he'd lied and had affairs with numerous women, and that he'd slept with Kirkman before and after her marriage to another man. Carrington rationalized it, saying he hadn't actually "spilled seed" in any of the women. The Church was already suffering greatly due to the US crackdown on polygamy, so news of an Apostle sleeping around was not good publicity, but after another hearing in 1885, the decision was made to excommunicate him.

Carrington's health deteriorated quickly and he pleaded repeatedly for rebaptism, which was eventually granted, and he died less than two years afterward at age 76.

LDS First Presidency - A Chronology

Henry B. Eyring, left, and Dieter F. Uchtdorf, right, were called to be counselors
to President Thomas S. Monson, center, in 2008.

The First Presidency was the first organized governing body of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It was organized in 1832 by Joseph Smith, who was already head of the church, but he prayed and decided he needed two counselors. There's been occasion when there's been more than two counselors, and in Smith's time, there was also the office of Assistant President.

The inaugural First Presidency:

1832 March 8
Pres - JOSEPH SMITH, JR.
1st Coun - Jesse Gause
2nd Coun - Sidney Rigdon

Gause was excommunicated on 1832 Dec 3.

1833 March 18
Pres - JOSEPH SMITH, JR.
1st Coun - Sidney Rigdon
2nd Coun - Frederick G. Williams

1834 Dec 5
Pres - JOSEPH SMITH, JR.
Asst. Pres - Oliver Cowdery
1st Coun - Sidney Rigdon
2nd Coun - Frederick G. Williams

Smith Jr. then called three assistant counselors, respectively his brother, his uncle, and his father.

1837 Sept 3
Pres - JOSEPH SMITH, JR.
Asst. Pres - Oliver Cowdery
1st Coun - Sidney Rigdon
2nd Coun - Frederick G. Williams
Asst Coun - Hyrum Smith
Asst Coun - John Smith
Asst Coun - Joseph Smith, Sr.

Williams is rejected as 2nd counselor at a church conference.

1837 Nov 7
Pres - JOSEPH SMITH, JR.
Asst. Pres - Oliver Cowdery
1st Coun - Sidney Rigdon
2nd Coun - Hyrum Smith
Asst Coun - John Smith
Asst Coun - Joseph Smith, Sr.

Cowdery is excommunicated.

1838 April 11
Pres - JOSEPH SMITH, JR.
1st Coun - Sidney Rigdon
2nd Coun - Hyrum Smith
Asst Coun - John Smith
Asst Coun - Joseph Smith, Sr.

Joseph Smith Sr. dies.

1840 Sept 14
Pres - JOSEPH SMITH, JR.
1st Coun - Sidney Rigdon
2nd Coun - Hyrum Smith
Asst Coun - John Smith

1841 Jan 24
Pres - JOSEPH SMITH, JR.
Asst. Pres - Hyrum Smith
1st Coun - Sidney Rigdon
2nd Coun - William Law
Asst Coun - John Smith

1841 Apr 8
Pres - JOSEPH SMITH, JR.
Asst Pres - Hyrum Smith
Asst Pres - John C. Bennett
1st Coun - Sidney Rigdon
2nd Coun - William Law
Asst Coun - John Smith

Bennett is excommunicated, vows to drink the blood of Joseph Smith.

1842 May 25
Pres - JOSEPH SMITH, JR.
Asst Pres - Hyrum Smith
1st Coun - Sidney Rigdon
2nd Coun - William Law
Asst Coun - John Smith

1843 Feb 4
Pres - JOSEPH SMITH, JR.
Asst Pres - Hyrum Smith
1st Coun - Sidney Rigdon
2nd Coun - William Law
Coun - Amasa Lyman
Asst Coun - John Smith

William Law is excommunicated.

1844 April 18
Pres - JOSEPH SMITH, JR.
Asst Pres - Hyrum Smith
1st Coun - Sidney Rigdon
Coun - Amasa Lyman
Asst Coun - John Smith

Joseph Smith Jr. and Hyrum Smith are killed on June 27,1844. The First Presidency dissolves. Had Hyrum lived, he would have been the next leader of the church. There is a succession crisis. Rigdon argues that he should be the new leader of the church, as the senior surviving member of the First Presidency. Amasa Lyman and John Smith side with Brigham Young, President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Young and the Twelve lead the majority of the Church, and after they establish themselves in Utah, Young organizes a new First Presidency. The title of Assistant President is never again given. From this point on, assume any changes are due to someone's death. I'll note otherwise. (Trivia note: If Heber C. Kimball had been born three weeks earlier, he would have had seniority over Young.)

1847 Dec 27
Pres - BRIGHAM YOUNG
1st Coun - Heber C. Kimball
2nd Coun - Willard Richards

1854 Apr 7
Pres - BRIGHAM YOUNG
1st Coun - Heber C. Kimball
2nd Coun - Jedidiah M. Grant

1857 Jan 4
Pres - BRIGHAM YOUNG
1st Coun - Heber C. Kimball
2nd Coun - Daniel H. Wells

1866 July 1
Pres - BRIGHAM YOUNG
1st Coun - Heber C. Kimball
2nd Coun - Daniel H. Wells
Coun - JOSEPH F. SMITH

1868 Oct 7
Pres - BRIGHAM YOUNG
1st Coun - George A. Smith
2nd Coun - Daniel H. Wells
Coun - JOSEPH F. SMITH

1873 April 8
Pres - BRIGHAM YOUNG
1st Coun - George A. Smith
2nd Coun - Daniel H. Wells
Coun - JOSEPH F. SMITH
Asst Coun - John Willard Young
Asst Coun - George Q. Cannon
Asst Coun - Brigham Young Jr.
Asst Coun - LORENZO SNOW
Asst Coun - Albert Harrington

1876 Oct 8
Pres - BRIGHAM YOUNG
1st Coun - John Willard Young
2nd Coun - Daniel H. Wells
Coun - JOSEPH F. SMITH
Asst Coun - George Q. Cannon
Asst Coun - Brigham Young Jr.
Asst Coun - LORENZO SNOW
Asst Coun - Albert Harrington

Brigham Young dies August 29, 1877. John Taylor is the senior Apostle and leads the church until the reorganization of the First Presidency in 1880.

1880 Oct 10
Pres - JOHN TAYLOR
1st Coun - George Q. Cannon
2nd Coun - JOSEPH F. SMITH

John Taylor dies July 25, 1887. It's 18 months before the senior Apostle, Wilford Woodruff, reorganizes. After that, First Presidencies tend to reorganize within days of the prophets' death.

1889 April 7
Pres - WILFORD WOODRUFF
1st Coun - George Q. Cannon
2nd Coun - JOSEPH F. SMITH

1898 Sept 13
Pres - LORENZO SNOW
1st Coun - George Q. Cannon
2nd Coun - JOSEPH F. SMITH

Cannon dies and a few months later, Snow calls Joseph F. Smith and Rudger Clawson to be his first and second counselors. They were sustained but not set apart, as Snow died four days later. I should also mention here that John Willard Young was the senior-most Apostle behind Snow, but he'd never been a member of the Quorum of the Twelve. Many within the church felt John Willard Young, ordained at age 11 by his father Brigham in 1855, would be a disaster as church leader. The First Presidency and the Q12 unanimously approved a change in church policy in 1900 that stated seniority went by ordination into the Quorum of the Twelve, not just ordaination as an Apostle.

1901 Oct 17
Pres - JOSEPH F. SMITH
1st Coun - John R. Winder
2nd Coun - Anthon H. Lund

1910 April 7
Pres - JOSEPH F. SMITH
1st Coun - Anthon H. Lund
2nd Coun - John Henry Smith

1911 Dec 7
Pres - JOSEPH F. SMITH
1st Coun - Anthon H. Lund
2nd Coun - Charles W. Penrose

1918 Nov 23
Pres - HEBER J. GRANT
1st Coun - Anthon H. Lund
2nd Coun - Charles W. Penrose

1921 Mar 10
Pres - HEBER J. GRANT
1st Coun - Charles W. Penrose
2nd Coun - Anthony W. Ivins

1925 May 28
Pres - HEBER J. GRANT
1st Coun - Anthony W. Ivins
2nd Coun - Charles W. Nibley

1933 April 6
Pres - HEBER J. GRANT
1st Coun - Anthony W. Ivins
2nd Coun - J. Reuben Clark

1934 Oct 11
Pres - HEBER J. GRANT
1st Coun - J. Reuben Clark
2nd Coun - DAVID O. McKAY

1945 May 21
Pres - GEORGE ALBERT SMITH
1st Coun - J. Reuben Clark
2nd Coun - DAVID O. McKAY

1951 Apr 9
Pres - DAVID O. McKAY
1st Coun - Stephen L. Richards
2nd Coun - J. Reuben Clark

1959 June 12
Pres - DAVID O. McKAY
1st Coun - J. Reuben Clark
2nd Coun - Henry D. Moyle

1961 June 22
Pres - DAVID O. McKAY
1st Coun - J. Reuben Clark
2nd Coun - Henry D. Moyle
3rd Coun - Hugh B. Brown

1961 Oct 12
Pres - DAVID O. McKAY
1st Coun - Henry D. Moyle
2nd Coun - Hugh B. Brown

1963 Oct 4
Pres - DAVID O. McKAY
1st Coun - Hugh B. Brown
2nd Coun - N. Eldon Tanner

1965 Oct 29
Pres - DAVID O. McKAY
1st Coun - Hugh B. Brown
2nd Coun - N. Eldon Tanner
Coun - Thorpe B. Isaacson
Coun - JOSEPH FIELDING SMITH

1968 April 6
Pres - DAVID O. McKAY
1st Coun - Hugh B. Brown
2nd Coun - N. Eldon Tanner
Coun - Thorpe B. Isaacson
Coun - JOSEPH FIELDING SMITH
Coun - Alvin R. Dyer

Upon McKay's death, Brown went back to being a member of the Q12. Isaacson was never ordained an Apostle, and Dyer, while an Apostle, was never officially made part of the Q12.

1970 Jan 23
Pres - JOSEPH FIELDING SMITH
1st Coun - HAROLD B. LEE
2nd Coun - N. Eldon Tanner

1972 July 7
Pres - HAROLD B. LEE
1st Coun - N. Eldon Tanner
2nd Coun - Marion G. Romney

1973 Dec 30
Pres - SPENCER W. KIMBALL
1st Coun - N. Eldon Tanner
2nd Coun - Marion G. Romney

1981 July 23
Pres - SPENCER W. KIMBALL
1st Coun - N. Eldon Tanner
2nd Coun - Marion G. Romney
Coun - GORDON B. HINCKLEY

1982 Dec 2
Pres - SPENCER W. KIMBALL
1st Coun - Marion G. Romney
2nd Coun - GORDON B. HINCKLEY

Romney becomes President of the Q12 upon Kimball's death.

1985 Nov 10
Pres - EZRA TAFT BENSON
1st Coun - GORDON B. HINCKLEY
2nd Coun - THOMAS S. MONSON

1994 Jun 5
Pres - HOWARD W. HUNTER
1st Coun - GORDON B. HINCKLEY
2nd Coun - THOMAS S. MONSON

1995 March 12
Pres - GORDON B. HINCKLEY
1st Coun - THOMAS S. MONSON
2nd Coun - James E. Faust

2007 Oct 6
Pres - GORDON B. HINCKLEY
1st Coun - THOMAS S. MONSON
2nd Coun - Henry B. Eyring

2008 Feb 3
Pres - THOMAS S. MONSON
1st Coun - Henry B. Eyring
2nd Coun - Dieter F. Uchtdorf

General Conference Highlights: October 1918

I'll just pick random General Conferences through the decades. I've skipped ahead to the last General Conference over which Joseph F. Smith presided. He died a month later, a few days after his 88th birthday. On his watch, the LDS Church grew from around 290,000 members to around 490,000. This also takes place just before the end of World War I.

OCTOBER 1918

First Presidency
JOSEPH F. SMITH -79
-Anthon H. Lund -73
-Charles W. Penrose -87

Quorum of the 12 Apostles
-HEBER J. GRANT -62
-Rudger Clawson -62
-Reed Smoot -57
-GEORGE ALBERT SMITH -48
-George F. Richards -58
-Orson F. Whitney -62
-DAVID O. McKAY -45
-Anthony W. Ivins -66
-JOSEPH FIELDING SMITH -42
-James E. Talmage -56
-Stephen L. Richards -39
-Richard R. Lyman -47

George Albert Smith did not speak at this Conference. At the very beginning, they introduced Joseph F. Smith's vision of the afterlife, which would later be added as Section 138 of the Doctrine & Covenants.

Pres. JOSEPH F. SMITH - "Opening Remarks"

I will not, I dare not, attempt to enter upon many things that are resting upon my mind this morning, and I shall postpone until some future time, the Lord being willing, my attempt to tell you some of the things that are in my mind, and that dwell in my heart. I have not lived alone these five months. I have dwelt in the spirit of prayer, of supplication, of faith and of determination ; and I have had my communication with the Spirit of the Lord continuously; and I am glad to say to you, my brethren and sisters, that it is a happy meeting this morning for me to have the privilege of joining with you in the opening of this eighty-ninth Semi-annual Conference of the Church...

TITHING - We have been blessed with a most abundant harvest in all the stakes and wards of the Church. The Lord has greatly blessed the people, and it is gratifying to note that our tithing records show an increase in tithing paid for the first nine months of this year over the corresponding months of 1917.

PRIESTHOOD ACTIVITIES - In consequence of so many of our young men being drafted into the
war, the activities of our quorums of the priesthood, especially of the Elders, Priests and Teachers quorums, are very much impaired. In some wards nearly every priest and teacher of draft age is in the war. The quorums have been seriously depleted, and a corresponding effect has also been felt in the Sunday School and Y. M. M. I. A.

MISSIONARY WORK - The extension of the draft age has also affected our missionary work, and we are not now sending missionaries out who are within the draft age.

RELIEF SOCIETY WHEAT - Our Relief Societies were called on, just prior to harvest time of this year, to supply the government with all the wheat they had stored up for years. Of course, they promptly and loyally complied with the request, and the wheat has been taken over by the government and used to help meet the demand made upon this country by our allies. The money received for this wheat is a trust fund, and should be kept in the banks, and when the proper time arrives, used to purchase wheat to be saved up against another time of need. The policy inaugurated by the leaders of the Church years ago with reference to this matter is a sound policy and should be continued.

TEMPLES - The Hawaiian temple is now nearing completion. Substantial progress is being made with the Cardston temple. The building is enclosed, and the finishing work now in process.

MILITARY SERVICE - We believe that our brethren who have answered the call of their Country and entered the war should have their names on record in the Church, and Bishops should enter every member of their ward who is in the military service of the United States or its allies on the tithing record, as this record is a roll of honor...

LABORS OF LADY MISSIONARIES - In the mission fields, now that so many of our young men have had to come home and go into the army, we have been assisted very much by our young women, who have gone out and filled missions. They also are successful in tracting, in meeting the people and getting into their homes. Those who may be afraid of the elders, cannot believe that these innocent girls can come for any purpose of deceiving, and they are willing to listen to them, and many have been brought to believe in the truth by the simple testimonies borne by these young women who have accepted missions. The Lord bless them and make them successful in their labors...

I want to say to this congregation, and to the world, that never at any time since my presidency in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints have I authorized any man to perform plural marriage, and never since my presidency of the Church has any plural marriage been performed with my sanction or knowledge, or with the consent of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints; and therefore such unions as have been formed unlawfully, contrary to the order of the Church, are null and void in the sight of God, and are not marriages. I hope you will put this down in your note-book of remembrance, and bear it in mind henceforth.

HEBER J. GRANT - "A Remarkable Manifestation"

From October when I was called to be one of the council of the Twelve, until the following February, I had but little joy and happiness in my labors. There was a spirit following me that told me that I lacked the experience, that I lacked the inspiration, that I lacked the testimony to be worthy of the position of an apostle of the Lord, Jesus Christ. My dear mother had inspired me with such a love of the gospel and with such a reverence and admiration for the men who stood at the head of this Church, that when I was called to be one of them I was overpowered; I felt my unworthiness and the adversary taking advantage of that feeling in my heart, day and night, the spirit pursued me, suggesting that I resign, and when I testified of the divinity of the work we are engaged in, the words would come back, "You haven't seen the Savior ; you have no right to bear such a testimony," and I was very unhappy.

But in February, 1883, while riding along on the Navajo Indian Reservation with Elder Brigham Young, Jr., and fifteen or twenty other brethren, including the late president, Lot Smith, of one of the Arizona stakes,on our way to visit the Navajos and Moquis — as we were traveling that day, going through a part of the Navajo Reservation to get to' the Moqui Reservation — as we were traveling to the southeast, suddenly the road turned and veered almost to the northeast, but there was a path, a trail, leading on in the direction in which we had been traveling. There were perhaps eight or ten of us on horseback and the rest in wagons. Brother Smith and I were at the rear of our company. When we came to the trail I said, "Wait a minute. Lot ; where does this trail lead to ?"

He said, "Oh, it leads back in the road three or four miles over here, but we have to make a detour of eight or nine miles to avoid a large gully that no wagons can cross."

I asked : "Can a horseman get over that gully?"
He answered, "Yes."

I said, "Any danger from Indians, by being out there alone?"
He answered, "No."

I said, "I want to be alone, so you go on with the company and I will meet you over there where the trail and road join."

One reason that I asked if there was any danger was because a few days before our company had visited the spot where George A. Smith, Jr., had been killed by the Navajo Indians, and I had that event in my mind at the time I was speaking. I had perhaps gone one mile when in the kind providences of the Lord it was manifested to me perfectly so far as my intelligence is concerned — I did not see heaven, I did not see a council held there, but like Lehi of old, I seemed to see, and my very being was so saturated with the information that I received, as I stopped my animal and sat there and communed with heaven, that I am as absolutely convinced of the information that came to me upon that occasion as though the voice of God had spoken the words to me.

It was manifested to me there and then as I sat there and wept for joy that it was not because of any particular intelligence that I possessed, that it was not because of any knowledge that I possessed more than a testimony of the gospel, that it was not because of my wisdom, that I had been called to be one of the apostles of the Lord Jesus Christ in this last dispensation, but it was because the prophet of God, the man who was the chosen instrument in the hands of the living God of establishing again upon the earth the plan of life and salvation, Joseph Smith, desired that I be called, and that my father, Jedediah M. Grant, who gave his life for the gospel, while one of the presidency of the Church, a counselor to President Brigham Young, and who had been dead for nearly twenty-six years, desired that his son should be a member of the Council of the Twelve. It was manifested to me that the prophet and my father were able to bestow upon me the apostleship because of their faithfulness, inasmuch as I had lived a clean life, that now it remained for me to make a success or a failure of that calling.

DAVID O. McKAY - "The Gathering of Israel"

Boys of latter-day Israel, does it not seem that the time has come when "their hearts no more turn against the Holy One?" It seems to me that it has. Then, if so, great events are to take place. God has said he will remember his promises. What are they? Turn to the tenth chapter of II Nephi, and there you will find that "when the day cometh that they believe in me. then shall they be restored in the flesh unto their own land." In the month of December, 1917, General Allenby, of the British army, took possession of the holy city, Jerusalem. Today the Holy Land is practically freed from the domination of the Turk, and it is under the rule of the Gentile. It was significant that during that very month one of the leaders of the British parliament, announcing the taking of Jerusalem, also suggested that it should be made the home of the Jews. In that same paragraph in II Nephi the prophet also added this significant reference: "And the Gentiles shall be great in mine eyes, because they shall be the means of restoring Israel unto their lands." As soon, practically, as the announcement was made by Mr. Balfour, I think, that Jerusalem should be held for the Jews, a prominent Jew in this country wrote an article in one of the magazines saying, "We don't want to go back to Jerusalem. The Holy Land is of such strategic value that should the Jews gather there and build a Jewish republic, and the nations go to war later, we shall be crushed as Belgium was crushed in this war;" but he was answered by the leaders of the Zionist movement, one of whom is Israel Zangwill, the author of that most patriotic American play. The Melting Pot, and they said this : "Place the Jewish republic under the protection of some such nations as Great Britain and the United States," and in harmony with that sentiment, June the 26th of this year, prominent Jews held a convention in Pittsburg in which it was stated publicly and authoritatively that at that time fifty thousand Jews were with General Allenby working for the freedom of the Holy Land ; and the Jews who stood up in that convention, said: "We dedicate the rest of our lives to the rebuilding of Jerusalem."

DOM - "Aspirations"

I would like to say at parting that the thoughts that have been awakened in our minds, the resolutions that have been made in our hearts, have placed upon us greater responsibility than we have ever had before. God help us to be true to them, and to radiate that strength of character, that faith and confidence in God and his eternal work that will encourage others to seek higher ideals, and arouse in others' hearts higher hopes and aspirations.

JOSEPH FIELDING SMITH - "Beware False Teachings"

I want to say to you, my brethren and sisters, that if you understand the Church articles and covenants, if you will read the sciptures and become familiar with those things which are recorded in the revelations from the Lord, it will not be necessary for you to ask any questions in regard to the authenticity or otherwise of any purported revelation, vision, or manifestation that proceeds out of darkness, concocted in some corner, surreptitiously presented, and not coming through the proper channels of the Church. Let me add that when a revelation comes for the guidance of this people, you may be sure that it will not be presented in some mysterious manner contrary to the order of the Church...

Not very long ago a good sister, I suppose a good sister, one who means well, placed into my hands a purported vision, or revelation, which she claims she received, dealing with matters pertaining to the welfare of the people. Now, the Lord is not going to give unto any woman in this Church a revelation for the Church. He is not going to give unto any man in this Church, other than the one who is properly appointed, a revelation for the guidance of the Church, for everything will be done in order. When you find good sisters, or otherwise, and brethren, circulating revelations or manifestations which they themselves have received, you put it down that it is contrary to the law and the order of the Church and the doctrine the Lord has revealed...

I wonder, let me say in conclusion, I wonder if we are indeed a praying people. I know that many of us pray. I doubt if we all do. I rather fear there are some among us who have neglected this important duty.

ORSON F. WHITNEY - "Patriotism"

We stand by our country, we are glad and proud to see her continuing the noble work that God has placed upon her. Even as Joseph of old, liberated from prison and exalted to a throne, ministered to his brethren who had hated him and cast him out and sold him into slavery, so this Land of Joseph, lifted up on high, enthroned in beauty and power and glory, is now ministering to the needy nations who come bending to her for food, for succor, for assistance. America, rediscovering herself, forgiving the past and magnanimously returning good for evil, has even crossed the ocean with her armies and navies and is sending her sons to the front to help the nations of Europe, the democracies of the Old World, fight the battle of freedom and equal right. And I thank God, for one, that our boys have the privilege of participating in this glorious strife. They are pre-eminently the sons of liberty, for the gospel covenant in which they were begotten and born, is liberty's perfect law, and it is most fitting and appropriate that they should play their part in the great and mighty drama that is fated to spread the principles of human freedom and clear the way for the carrying of the message of salvation into every nook and corner of the world.

General Conference Highlights: April 1902

I'll just pick random General Conferences through the decades. Upon Lorenzo Snow's death in 1901, Joseph F. Smith became the next President of the Church. Smith was the son of Hyrum Smith, brother of Joseph Smith, and the two of them had been murdered in Carthage Jail when Joseph F. was six years old. Also, Heber J. Grant had just returned from a year-long mission to Japan.

APRIL 1902

First Presidency
JOSEPH F. SMITH -63
-John R. Winder -81
-Anthon H. Lund -57

Quorum of the 12 Apostles
-Brigham Young Jr. -66
-Francis M. Lyman -62
-John Henry Smith -54
-George Teasdale -70
-HEBER J. GRANT -45
-John W. Taylor -44
-Marriner W. Merrill -70
-Matthias F. Cowley -44
-Abraham O. Woodruff -28
-Rudger Clawson -44
-Reed Smoot -40
-Hyrum M. Smith -30

Trivia: John H. Winder was never called to be an Apostle. Hyrum M. Smith was Joseph F. Smith's eldest son, but he died at age 48, a few months before his father.

Pres. JOSEPH F. SMITH - "Righteousness Increasing"

I rejoice exceedingly in the truth. I thank God every day of my life for His mercy and kindness, and loving care and protection that has been extended to all His people, and for the many manifestations of His peculiar mercy and blessing that have been extended unto us throughout all the length and breadth of the land and through all the years since the organization of the Church, on the 6th of April, 1830.

The Lord, about that time or soon after, decreed a decree which He said His people shou'd realizes That they should begin from that very hour to prevail over all their enemies, and, inasmuch as they continued to be faithful in keeping His laws which He had given unto them, it was decreed that they should prevail until all enemies were subdued — not subdued by violence or the spirit of contention or of warfare but subdued by the power of eternal truth, by the majesty and power of Almighty God — and by the increased power of the righteous and of the upright covenanted people of God should be magnified and increased, until the world shall bow and acknowledge that Jesus is the Christ, and that there is a people preparing for His coming in power and glory to the earth again...

I have to say this to my brethren and sisters: That I believe conscientiously, from all that I know, that the day never has been when Zion was more thoroughly equipped, more thoroughly furnished in good works, when there was a better spirit or a more united feeling existing among the people of God than exists today.

JFS - "Ennobling Rules of Conduct"

There are laws which we do not observe as we should; there are principles of the Gospel which are perhaps too pure and exalted for us to live them as we should; but I believe with all my heart — I cannot consistently believe otherwise — that we are growing in grace and in the knowledge of the truth, and that the day will come, and I pray that it may be hastened, when the people of God will not only be faithful in keeping the law of tithing, but that they will be faithful also in observing the Word of Wisdom, which is a law of God, and that we will be faithful in observing that most sacred and most important law of God — the law of chastity, wherein we may preserve the purity of our own persons and the chastity of our neighbors and associates as we would preserve our own lives. I would to God that the time may come, and that it is not far distant, when the Latter-day Saints will live up to the golden rule taught by the Son of God, (than whom none so perfect has ever sojourned in the flesh upon the earth,) to do unto others as we would have others do unto us; and in this way stop all fault-finding, all bickerings, all jealousies, all contentions, and all strife, and, as far as practicable, remove every possible chance for misunderstanding amongst us, that we may see as we are seen and know as we are known, that we may be true men and women in the cause of Zion and of human redemption, that God may put His holy name upon us and we bear that holy name acceptably before Him...

I believe with all my soul in God the Father of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. I believe with all my might, mind and strength in the Savior of the world, and in the principle of redemption from death and sin. I believe in the divine mission of the Prophet Joseph Smith. I believe in all the truth that I know, and I believe that there are many principles of eternal truth that still lie hid from me and from the understanding of men, which will yet be revealed by the power of God unto His faithful servants. I believe that the Lord has revealed to the children of men all that they know. I do not believe that any man has discovered any principle in science, or art; in mechanism, or mathematics, or anything else, that God did not know before he did...

I love good, honorable men — even men who may be mistaken, as far as their judgment is concerned, but who try to do right; I love them for the reason that they are my brethren, the sons of my Father, and I would that they might all see the truth as it is in Christ Jesus, and accept it, and receive all the benefits of it, in time and throughout all eternity. If the Lord has revealed to the world the plan of salvation and redemption from sin, by which men may be exalted again into His presence and partake of eternal life with Him, I submit, as a proposition that cannot be controverted, that no man can be exalted into the presence of God and attain to a fulness of glory and happiness in His kingdom and presence, save and except he will obey the plan that God has devised and revealed.

My brethren and sisters, I feel in my heart that we have had a time of rejoicing during this conference. I wish we had a place big enough to hold the Latter-day Saints at conference. I do not know but we will have to build some boweries or something else on this temple block, to accommodate by overflow meetings the multitude of people who come to conference in the performance of their duty, many of whom cannot be accommodated in this Tabernacle.

HEBER J. GRANT - "Missionary Work"

I have the assurance in my soul that there is to be a wonderful work accomplished in Japan; that there will be many, yea, even thousands of that people that will receive the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We have made no effort whatever to try and baptize people. Many have come and applied for baptism — ten young men at one time; many have written us letters and asked to be baptized into the Church; but we have realized that they did not understand the Gospel, and we had no desire to baptize and seal the Holy Ghost upon a person who would be likely to lose the Spirit and turn around and fight the Church. We have had no desire whatever to baptize people just to make a showing. We prayed earnestly every day for the guidance of the Spirit of God...

I rejoice to be here. I rejoice in the testimony of the Gospbl of Jesus Christ. I rejoice in the increased testimony that my mission has given me. I never expected that it would be possible for a man of my temperament and disposition, who from a boy of 14 years of age has been actively engaged in business, to forget it, and that I could content myself in a foreign land studying a language that put me to sleep nearly every time I tried it, and yet be happy. But I was. There was the sweet Spirit of God with us, and many times in our little meetings we shed tears of joy, because of the outflow of the Spirit of God...

It is a sorrow to me to come home and not receive the handshake of my beloved President Snow, whom I loved as dearly as life itself; but I rejoice that the son of one of the two martyrs for the cause presides over the Church of Christ. I rejoice in the knowledge that the work of God is onward and upward, and that each and every one of us who are true and faithful will be saved. I rejoice that this Gospel is going to all the nations of the earth. I rejoice in being a messenger of the plan of life and salvation. God has blessed me with a knowledge. I know that He lives. I know that Jesus is the Christ. I know that Joseph Smith is a prophet of God.

HJG - "Testimony"

May God bless each and every one of us, that as we grow and increase we may grow in the knowledge of the Gospel, and that we shall have a determination to serve God and carry out in very deed the teachings of the Savior; to let our light so shine tnat men seeing our good works shall glorify God. If we set an example worthy of imitation it is sure to have its effects. I re- ceived a letter from a man in London, stating that the Latter-day Saints were the only people, so far as he knew, who carried their daily beliefs into their daily life, as though they believed what they taught.

HJG - "Teach Your Children"

I have heard men and women say that they were going to let their sens and daughters grow to maturity before they sought to teach them the principles of the Gospel, that they were not going to cram the Gospel down, them in their childhood, before they were able to comprehend it. When I hear men and women say this, I think they are lacking faith in the principles of the Gospel and do not comprehend it as they should. The Lord has said it is our duty to teach our children in their youth, and I prefer to take His words for it rather than the words of those who are not obeying His commandments. It is folly to imagine that our children will grow up with a knowledge of the Gospel without teaching...

Parents are deceiving themselves In imagining that their children will be born with a knowledge of the Gospel. Of course, they will have greater claim upon the blessings of God, being born under the new and everlasting covenant, and it will come natural for them to grow up and perform their duties; but the devil realizes this, and is therefore seeking all the harder to lead our children from the truth...

My brethren and sisters, if we will study the Scriptures, the plan of life and salvation, keeping the commandments of the Lord, all the promises that have been made will be fulfilled upon our heads, and we will grow and increase in light, knowledge and intelligence. There is no such thing as standing still. The Church is not standing still; we have the evidence today of its growth.

B.H. ROBERTS (Presidency of the Seventy, and Church Historian)

I say that I am happy in the reflection that the work of God, notwithstanding all the storms of opposition it has met, moves on apace in the earth, with a force that is irresistible; and I cannot help but rejoice just a little — the brethren must excuse me if there is just a little worldliness in my makeup, enough at least to rejoice in the failure of those who have assailed the work of God. Truly, it must be just a little humiliating to them when they see all their purposes thwarted, and every storm they start passes over the Saints only to leave them the stronger and the more confirmed in their faith. I cannot help but exult just a little at this condition of things.

General Conference Highlights: October 1900

I'll just pick random General Conferences through the decades. Upon Wilford Woodruff's death in 1898, Lorenzo Snow became the next President of the Church. Snow was the first Apostle called by Pres. Young who went on to become President. I'm adding what their ages were at this time.

OCTOBER 1900

First Presidency
LORENZO SNOW -86
-George Q. Cannon -73
-JOSEPH F. SMITH -61

Quorum of the 12 Apostles
-Brigham Young Jr. -64
-Francis M. Lyman -60
-John Henry Smith -52
-George Teasdale -68
-HEBER J. GRANT -43
-John W. Taylor -42
-Marriner W. Merrill -68
-Anthon H. Lund -56
-Matthias F. Cowley -42
-Abraham O. Woodruff -26
-Rudger Clawson -43
-Reed Smoot -38

Trivia: Reed Smoot served from 1903-1933 as a U.S. Senator for Utah, all while also being an Apostle.

Pres. LORENZO SNOW - "Opening Remarks"

I dare say that the people that are before me this morning have learned that it was an absolute necessity to have a perfect understanding, and an understanding that could only come directly from the Lord. It would not be satisfactory simply to turn over the leaves of the New Testament and to see that these principles were in accordance with those preached by the Apostles of old, but to have this knowledge come directly to themselves from the Lord. Now, I say this in order that if there are any Latter-day Saints, who have not advanced to this knowledge and can not see and understand clearly that they have espoused the principles of salvation and exaltation and glory, and that directly from the Lord, it is time they were about receiving this information.

We are not through with our labors yet, although we have got through a great many of them that have been considerable of a trial to us, and temptations, perhaps, have been to some of us of a nature that almost amounted to a disposition to turn away from the principles that we had received. The trials and temptations have been very great to many of our people, and more or less, perhaps, to all of us. The Lord seems to require some proof on our part, something to show that He can depend upon us when He wants us to accomplish certain things in His interest...

The religion that we have received, the principles of exaltation and glory that you and I have received, bring upon us persecution, or else they are not those principles which we thought they were. They bring upon us trouble upon the right hand and upon the left, but we should seek to be calm and cool as Job learned to be calm and cool under circumstances of the most uphappy character. We should learn to do this and there are things that are provided for us by which we can learn this. Think now of how much worse you and I might be, and then think of what superior blessings we actually possess...

When the brethren arise to speak you should ask the Lord to let them say something that you want to know, that they may suggest something to you that will be of some advantage. If you have any desire to know certain matters that you do not understand, pray that these brethren in their talks may say something that shall enlighten your mind in reference to that which troubles you, and we will have a grand and glorious Conference, a better one than we have ever had before.

LS - "The Redemption of Zion"

A word or two about Joseph Smith. Perhaps there are very few men now living who were so well acquainted with Joseph Smith the Prophet as I was. I was with him oftentimes. I visited him in his family, sat at his table, associated with him under various circumstances, and had private interviews with him for counsel. I know that Joseph Smith was a Prophet of God; I know that he was an honorable man, a moral man, and that he had the respect of those who were acquainted with him. The Lord has shown me most clearly and completely that he was a Prophet of God, and that he held the Holy Priesthood and the authority to baptize people for the remission of their sins and to lay hands upon them for the reception of the Holy Ghost, that they might receive a knowledge themselves in relation to these things. I am one that has received from the Lord the strongest revelation concerning the truth of this work. That manifestation was with me powerfully for hours and hours; and whatever circumstances may occur in my life, as long as memory lasts this perfect knowledge will remain with me...

God bless you, my brethren and sisters, and let us try and be as perfect as we possibly can be from day to day. No religion has in it such prospects as has the religion of the Latter-day Saints. Nothing was ever introduced to man equal to it in its grand and glorious advantages. We ought to enjoy our religion to such an extent as to be happy most all the time. We should never allow ourselves to get into a position where we cannot secure some happiness. The prospects that have been opened up to us are grand. In the next life we will have our bodies glorified and free from sickness and death. Nothing is so beautiful as a person in a resurrected and glorified condition. There is nothing more lovely than to be in this condition and have our wives and children and friends with us.

JOSEPH F. SMITH - "Temple Work"

The same Gospel prevails today, and the same ordinances are administered today, both for the living and for the dead, as were administered by the Prophet, himself, and delivered by him to the Church. So far as I know, there is not an ordinance of the Church now enjoyed or practiced that was not revealed to the Church by the Prophet Joseph Smith. I know of no new doctrine that has been revealed. Principles that were revealed to the Prophet Joseph have grown and developed more fully and clearly to the understanding; but we have received nothing new that I know of. Yet if we should receive something new, through the proper channels of the Church, we should be as ready and willing to receive it as we were or would be to receive the same at the hands of the Prophet Joseph himself...

The question in my mind is this: Who is to judge who are the good men and the wise men? If you leave me to judge, I say one man; if you leave Brother Brigham to judge, he may say another man; or, if we leave it to the people to judge, one says this is the wise man, and another says that is the wise man. The question with me is: Am I in a frame of mind, that when I get the word of the Lord as to who is the right man, will I obey it, no matter if it does come contrary to my convictions or predilections? If I reel that I can obey the word of God on this matter, then I am in harmony with the spirit of the work of God. If I cannot do it, I am not in harmony with that spirit.

JFS - "Baptism"

Here is a question: "We have but one baptizing day in each year in our Stake. Thus we nearly always have children over eight years old in our schools that are not baptized." This I think to be a very great mistake. I believe in this Stake of Zion there is a baptizing day in each month, and all the children that reach the age of eight years, and all others who desire it, may be baptized, without waiting any longer than one month. We think it is all wrong that children should be kept for nearly a year after they are eight years of age before they are permitted to be baptized, and we would recommend to all the Bishops and to the presidents of all the Stakes, to institute the practice of baptizing once in each month in all the Stakes, and as far as possible in all the wards, so that all the children may be baptized, when they are eight years old, according to the commandment that is given to us in the revelation.

HEBER J. GRANT - "Pay Your Debts"

We have the commandments of the Lord before us in the written word, and from time to time we have our minds refreshed by the outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon those who are called upon to preach to us. There is therefore no excuse for the Latter-day Saint who does not keep the commandments of God. We cannot say that we do not know what our duties are, because they are fo often and so forcibly brought to our minds by those who speak to us. I realize that it requires a constant effort on the part of each and every one of us to make a success of our lives. It requires no effort at all to roll down the hill, but it does require an effort to climb to the summit. It needs no effort to walk in the broad way that leads to destruction; but it needs an effort to keep in the straight and narrow path that leads to life eternal, and we are told that but few find this path. The all-important thing for you and me is to discover whether we are walking in the straight and narrow r path that leads to life eternal, and if we are not, wherein have we allowed the adversary to blind our minds and to cause us to depart from that path which will lead us back into the presence of God? Each one should search his own heart to find out wherein he has failed, and then he should diligently seek unto our Heavenly Father for the assistance of His Holy Spirit, that he may come back into the straight path...

Now we desire that the Latter-day Saints shall be free from the bondage of debt...

I know that the policy of President Brigham Young in advocating to the people that they support home manufacture and keep their money at home to build up the country, is the true policy for the Latter-day Saints to follow. I wear home-made clothes. I have done it ever since I was a little boy. Why? Because I believe it is better for this community that I pay twenty dollars for a suit of clothes than that the wool be sent East and bring only one dollar back...

[He went on to give a story that illustrates the importance of staying out of debt by relaying a skit he saw at a "negro minstrel show" that showed the different characters passing money around and all getting out of debt. Different times, different times.]

HJG - "Do Not Fail to Keep the Commandments"

Take Sidney Rigdon, who was with Joseph Smith when he received that great vision and revelation wherein it is declared that they saw Jesus Christ who came into the world to bear the sins of the world; and the testimony which they bore of Jesus was: "After the many testimonies which have been given of him, this is the testimony, last of all, which we give of Him, that He lives, for we saw Him, even on the right hand of God, and we heard the voice bearing record that He is the only begotten of the Father." And they testify that they saw the angels and those that were sanctified singing praises to God. I say, notwithstanding they saw the Savior and bore His testimony, this man Sidney Rigdon, fell by the wayside. I say to the Latter-day Saints, no amount of knowledge, no amount of testimony, no amount of sealing in the temples of God to our wives and children will save us; but the keeping of the commandments of God, being honest in our dealings with God and with out fellow men, paying our tithing, obeying the Word of Wisdom and doing our duty as Latter- day Saints — these are the things, and the only things that will save us.