The Sedalia weekly bazoo. [volume] (Sedalia, Mo.) 187?-1904, 1883-10-16
A REFORMED MORMON.
The Revolt Of Q Virtuous Woman
and What Came OF It.
A Polygamist Who Returned to
HE First Love.

Moncure D. Conway writes from
Salt Lake City to the San Francisco
Chronicle : 1t happens that l am il
possession of some facts connected
with the life of two persons which
casts light upon the innsr life of Nor
monism. Ifin perusing this story my
reader should be inclined to fancy
that l am trying my hand at romance
I beg to assure him or her that what
I am permitted to relate, names OF
the persons only being suppressed, is
simply true.
About forty-three years ago an
American preacher was going through
the northern counties Of England,
bearing to such groups as he could
gather around him, tidings of proph-
ct newly arisen in the region Of the
great western rivers. The story he
told was briefly, that in the midst of
great Methodist revival in that far
western land, the Lord himself, with
another celestial being, bad appeared
to a boy of Is summers and warned
him not to unite with any of the sects
which other converts were joining,
promising him further light. That
three years later, a wondrous being
had appeared ip the room of the
same, person announcing himself as a
messenger from God that his name
was Moroni that he had been an
ancient of the American continent and
was sent to appoint him (the youth of
Is years)for q great religious work.
He said that he would soon discover
a book written on plates of gold, CIV
ing an account of the American abb
origines, and with these plates also
the Urim and Thummin that he
must not show these to anybody on
pain of death, and then he, Moroni,
or Mormon, proceeded to interpret
the Old Testament as prophecy and
SYMBOLISM of this newlatter-day reve-
lation.
The traveller who told this strange
story in the English and Scottish pro-
vinces added that the subject of these
revelations had grown to be mighty
prophet and was gathering around
him thousands of men and women,
who were obtaining heavenly exulta-
ton on earth and realizing the latter
day gIories which to the rest of
Christendom were but shadowy hopes.
Among those who listened to this
wandering preacher were a young
man and his wife, fervent Wesleyans.
living in the old English village of
Austin Moor, Cumberland. These
were 80 moved by the tidings, so con-
WINGED that the heavens had once
more opened to send new light upon
the cropping earth. that they gather
ed their possessions, and with little
twin daug hters 6, months old, and a
sister of the wife, voyaged across the
Atlantic and migrated to what was
then the far west Illinois.
When they arrived in the region OF
the prophet they were not disappoint-
ed. With the vast threng that fol-
lowed him they were sitting at the
feet and listening for hours without
WEAKNESS the fervid eloquence of a
man more suggestive of a returned
Moham ned than any enthusiast OF
our century.
Authentic portraits of the prophet
Joseph" exist, and one is before me
as / write. 1t is a face of striking
beauty, the mouth being more sug-
gestive of kisses than that of prophe-
cies. 1t is beardless, feminine, pas
sionate, and might excite the suspi-
cion of pathoIogist that something
very like hysteria was factor in the
foundation of Mormonism.
Up to the time when our Cumber-
land pilgrims arrived there had been
no public intimation that plurality of
wives was to be included in this Moro
mic adoption of Hebraic theocracy.
But there are indications that much
of the eloquence and power of the
Prophet Jos pm lay in his warm pas.
sional nature. that he was especially
magnetic in his influence over women,
and that the revelation he received
in 1913 reserved for the inner cir
Gle of saints till 1852 was largely
meant to secure the obedience and
quiet the conscience of his own con-
cubines. His power in this respect
seems even to have survived death
and to this day some women-as many
have chosen to be before them-are
..ol.l IN Joaonh in heaven whOae