Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1890-03-24
CHICAGO LETTER.
An ETeniful Date.-Another Para
lel.- Horrible Prosecutions OF
the Early Christians

to remind one of the fact. The man
who two years ago would predict
that st. Patrick was 10 die in 1891,
would be pronounced fool. / re-
member reading srrncwhere that 1t
was predicted more than half a CEN
fury ago that 1890 was to be re-
markable year. Such in truth it is. In
/ fact, il is the marking point in n
social, political aud religious evolu-
ton or revolution in the worlds
affairs. In Europe We have the
Emperor Of Germany and the Pope
OF Rome forming n political coalition
to suppress Socialism. Is this the
story Of the lion aud the lamb, or is
it the brotherhood Of wolf and
tiger for the good Of mankind?
In our own country do We
not see n political party built
on a dream? Has not Bellamy's
novel become the gospel of political
faith? Do we not see, not the put
lie school system, but the language
of our Constitution itself assalled?
For this is the phase the school
issue in Wisconsin and Illinois has
now assumed. The German tongue
is fast becoming the national Ian
guage, but IL is in this year the first
| decided attempt has been made pol
itically TO make it so. l. it not in
this year that natives Of this coun-
try guilty DINO crime, free from stain
of any kind but holding religious
opinions not endorsed By the rabble,
have been DISTINGUISHED, reduced to
political slavery? Though the city
OF Rome according to the Liverpool
Catholic Times is undergoing
changes worthy Of even Chicago,
yet the old harlot is hale and
hearty, and like Jupiter devOuring
| Ceres, Rome Is absorbing and dis
integratlng her numerous offspring.
/ Other changes are appearing, and
though at present no bigger than n
mans hand, viii in the near future
obscure the horizon; 1SeO is GER
tlinly and will be marked year in
/ the worlds annals.
According To Andrew Jenson's
Historical Record, i. will be seen
that the month OF March is more
/ prolific Of events in connection with
I MOrmonism than any other
month in the year. This is especi-
| ally 50 OF Revelations. :,
lt was on or abOuut March l., lsa2,
/ that Joseph Smith and Sydney
/ Rigdon were mobbed in Hiram. IL
was ON March Il. 1889, that Marsh,
! Phelps, Williams, Hinkle and 9th
I erst were communicated from the
Church. This Is just 81 years ago,
/ but there Is no mention male that
/ their Threats were cut from ear to
ear.
1t was about March II, 1870, that
Wiltord Woodruff built up branch
I Of the Church in HereiOrdshire,
/ England. IT was on March IL, 1871.
! that the ship Uieste sailed from
/ Liverpool with fifty-fOur Saints
I ~ - -
that the Female Relief Society Of
Nauvoo was first organized. IL was
about March II, 1877, that David
Smith Of the Mormon battalion died
at San Luis Rey. About March II,
ls49 a Mr.. Van Colt sold n peck Of
potatoes in Salt Lake City for s.,
and they were considered cheap.
1t was on March Il, 1851, that W.
Burton, a missionary, died in Edin-
burg. Scotland. Ii was Oh March
IL, 1855, that the constitutional con-
vention to take steps for the admis-
sion Of the State Of Deseret into the
Union met. 1t was on March Il,
1875, that Msjor Blair died at Lo-
gan. On March Il, 1873, Colonel
Stephen Markham died at Spanish
I FORK. Ii was on March Is or Il,
1852. that the first number OF the
/ HicOrical Record was issued in Salt
Lake City by Andrew Jensen. This
/ is literary event worthy of COM
mem0raiion, because TO the student
Of Latter-day Saint history the Rec
ord is an invaluable book Of refer
ence.
| But this date brings to mind
another event which the observer
Of the present cannot overlook. II
occurred just l7l0 years ago. Mar
Gus Aurelius, Emperor OF Rome.
/ died at Vienna, or as some say at
Sirmium on March Il, a. ID. $50.
| To the Latter day Saint there can
be no more interesting study than
I the life Of this monarch. To the
American statesman it is a study.
the omission Of which at the present
would be criminal. So close is the
resemblance between the history Of
Aurelius and his times, and that OF
President Harrison and his times.
that In the future it will appear more
than n repetition of history, il will
lead persons to believe that some
confusion in historical annals has
occurred and that Harrison is con-
founded with Aurelius and the
American republic with the Roman
empire.
Aurelius was horn in Rome about
A. ID. III. He succeeded to the EN-
pire of Rome 4. d. l6l. During the
early years Of his reign Rome ex-
perienced great disasters. Within
is walls pestilence ragged. Floods
and earthquakes destroyed large
portions of the city. Granaries and
their contents were entirely lost.
Famine and hunger prevailed. The
Germans, Britons and others were in
revolt. Faustina, his wife, was
prOhigats. She nursed treason
against her husband. Noble fami-
lies experienced troubles. In fact
the times were good deal like our
own at present. We have floods,
earthquakes, railroad disasters, ter
rible fires, famine, revOlts and per-
sonal family troubles. Secretaries
Tracy, Blaine and others Were
visited with disasters. The good
family OF Lincoln has received Sc
we're blow. Minister Pendleton was /
brought home dead, in a ship the !
officers Of which disgraced America 4
ty their brutality, drunkenness aud /
license.
Marcus Aurelius had the best |
grounds for considering himself the |
most enlightened person Of his |
time An absolute monarch and a /
stole, yet he was acknowledged /
humane, Just and tender. IL he |
had failings they Inclined rather to
the side Of mercy. His writings |
bespeak the highest ethical product |
Of the ancient mind, and differ but
little from the characteristic teach
ings Of Christ. In the dog
matte sense of the wOrd he /
was far better Christian l
than any sovereign, nominally
Christian, who has reigned since.
Yet this man, Marcus Aurelius, was
the bitter anemy Of Christianity.
Though he was the elimination OF
the then civilized worlds accumul-
ated knowledge and a.tainments,
with an open, unfettered intellect.