The Sumter banner. [volume] (Sumterville, S.C.) 1846-1855, 1852-11-12


with their contents. He wished me
to assist him in getting it printed, al.
leging that book of that kind would
meet with rapid sale. This book
represented the American Indians as
the lost tribes, gave an account of
their leaving Jerusalem, their con.
tentions and wars, which we're many
and great. One time.when lie
was reading to me the tragic &C.
count of Laban, I pointed out to
him what considered an inconsis.
tency, which he promised to cor.
rect; but by referring to the Book of
Mormon, l find to my surprise it
stands there, just as he read it to
inc then. Some months ago / bor-
rowcd golden Bible, 80 had not
read twenty minutes before l was
astonished to find the same pas.
sages in it that Spaulding had
read to me, more than twenty
years before, from his "Manuscript
Found" Since then, have more
fully examined the said golden bible,
and have no hesitation in saying that
the historical part of it is principally,
if not wholly, taken from the "Man.
uscIipt Found" I we'll recollect
telling Mr.. Spaulding that the too
frequent use of the words, Snow it
came to pass" "And it came to
pass" rendered it ridiculous. Spaul.
ding left here in 1912, and l fur
nished him with the means to car
ry him to Pittsburg, where he said
he would get the book printed and
pay me. But I never heard any
thing more from him, or of his writ
ings, till I saw them in the Book
of Mormon"
The same in effect is the evidence
of the brother of Spaulling, that
he heard much of the "Mannscript"
read, aud that, according to his best
recollection, "The Book of Mormon
is the same as my brother Solomon
wrote, with the exception Of tie tififee'--iTe re-.
igious matter" All this is con.
frme by more than half a dozen 9th
er gentlcmen,und by thc~widow and
daughter of the author Of Manu-
script Eound."
1t appears that Mr.. Spaulding
left Pittsburg in 1914. and that his
widow, after his death, in 1916, re.
moved to Onondaga county, New
York, near to her early residence.
and carried trunk thither, contain
ing the writings Of her deceased hus.
band. During a Part o[ the
time from 1917 to 1920, when
she again married and moved to
Massachusetts, the trunk was al her
brothers. in Onondaga Hollow, pear
the residence of the Smith family
When the Book of Mormon APPEAR.
ed, and and its identity with the
Spaulding MS. was discovered, he
trunk was hunted up, and search
made for the Spaulding MS. Ithad
mysteriously disappeared, and ths
"Manuscript Found" has ever since
been the Manuscript Lost" From
these circumstances it is thought that
Joseph Smith obtained possession Of
it, and moulded it into the Book of
Mormon, arranging and altering the
matter 80 as to suit his own purpo.
ses.
A copy Of the Book of Mormon
was placed in our hands o few
days ago, when in the Philadelphia
Library, and we have no hesitation
in saying that a more successful at
tempt at the Scriptures, was perhaps
never made. It's Literary style and
merits are, however, truly contemp.
tible, its author having been plainly
about as ignorant of the rules Of
grammar and composition as q Hot.
tcntot.- Contrast the revelations in
the Book of Mormon with the sub.
lime beauty and grandeur of the
revelations of the unchonging laws Of
nature, in the "Principa of Newton. !"
How truly contemplate is supersti.
ton!
The manner Of writing the Book
of Mormon was as follows: "Snith
would place his pseudo gold plates in
hat, and take the stones, Urim and
Thummim, which he affirmed had
been delivered to him at the hill Gu.
Inorah, in Palmyra, by an angel...and, ,
arising screen Of cloth between
himself and the scribe, proceed to
look through the stones, and
the words, in reformed Egyptian
characters would change to his ver-
nacular; and "pass before his eyes by
the power and gift of God"
He gives us particular account
of the first persecution by his
neighbors, who tried to capture the
"gold platcs;" and to escape from
this, he concealed them in barrel Of
beans. We arc also told that