Fayette County herald. [volume] (Washington [Washington Court House], Fayette County, O. [Ohio]) 1860-1???, 1871-12-21
The MOrmOns--StFange Sights at
the Tabernacle.


The San Francisco Chronicle says:
! hat dense mass of humanity is
to be seen at the great Mormon Tab
ernacle on Sabbath morning! The
congregation Varys from three to ten
thousand, according to the bill of fare
offered If Brigham ia advertised to
| speak, there is sure to be full house,
and, if the times are lively and excit-
| ing, standing room will be scarce
Next to Brigham, Elder John TAYLOR.
the ablest of the twelve Apostles,
draws the best; and then comes Geo.
Z. Cannon, another of the twelve
Apostles. Orson Hyde and the Pratts
were formerly big guns, but Of late
they do not take any active part IN
| the discussions at the TabeTnacle.-
! The earnest saints in attendance ney-
er know who is going to preach, ex-
cept in the case of Brigham. ANY
brother present may be called upon to
make remarks, which constitute the
Latter Day Saints Sermon. The old
elders ard fathers in Israel sit upon
the ample raised platform specially
built for them, and it is from their
ranks that ecclesiastical orators most
ly come. The Mormon preachers
never use notes, as they consider that
preaching from paper" is a sure sign
that mans religion is his profession,
not his life. In taking their texts.
which they seldom do, the Old and
New Testaments, the Book Of Nor
mon and the Doctrine and Covenants
are the Sources Of inspiration. They
open them at any given page by
chance, and, the text read, they con-
strue it in a material sense. The list
ener, not knowing their style, will be
eager to know, according to the text,
what the preachers views are regard
ing the resurrection of the dead, the
Immortality of the soul, the attributes
of God and the angels, or some other
hair splitting theological problem
But the listener is most gloriously
| fooled when his cars are burned with.
remarks" about building good roads,
the best mode of irrigation, how to
herd stock and run saW-miIls, the
prospects ofthe cotton and silk trade
of Utah, the beauties Of polygany In
household economy, etc, and so on,
and ''all for the glory of Godr' as
the preacher enthusiastically exclaims.- =
The audience listens with reverent-
attention. The sea of upturned faces
is remarkable sight. Anglo Saxon
physiognomies of all shapes, sizes and
expressions, solemn and stolid look
ing, handsome and homely, young and
| old, green and witherd, are to be seen
All nationalities are presented-the
English, Welch and Danes predoni-
mating. Norway and Sweden come
next. An occasional wandering Jew
or renegade Celt may be seen here and
there, by way of variety. The men
are mostly clad in home spun, and the
women, some in fine silks and others
in coarse garments. The costumes Of
the European lower classes, which
have not changed in centuries, are to
be seen here in all their primitive
beauty. Many of the American Nor.
mon women are dressed richly, and
some of the young saintesses look as
pretty as peaches. The old elders
who sit upon the platform, are grave,
earnest, stolid looking class of men,
whose countenances are stamped with
the mysterious force of fanaticism.