The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1899-10-07
CONFERENCE OPENING
Seventeen Semi-annual Gathering
of Latter-day Saints.
PAYMENT OF TITHING
MEMBERS URGED TO OBSERVE
THIS RULE.
Attendance Heavier Than Usual On
the Opening Day-President Snow
Opened the Session-Speakers
Urged the People to Obey the Law
of Tithing.


Urged the People to Obey the Law
of Tithing.
The SEVENTEEN semi-annual conference
of the Church of Jesus Christ of Lat
ter-day Saints was begun in the large
( tabernacle yesterday morning. The
/ great edifce was unusually well filled
! for the opening meeting, the entire
lower floor and part of the gallery be-
ing occupied
The great asssmhlage was called to
order by President Lorenzo Snow. who
announced as the opening hymn, Nov
Let Us Rejoice in the Day of Salvation
The invocation was offered by Elder
John Nicholson; the choir and congre-
cation sang, Our God, We Raise to
Thee, and the venerable president, in
a clear, strong voice. made the opening
address. 1t was very brief and listened
to with rapt attention. He was thank
ful, he said. for the fine weather, and
hoped 1t would continue throughout the
conference. 1t was the privilege of the
brethren. particularly those who came
long distances, to feel grateful to God
/ for this splendid weather, and they
should feel abundantly repaid for their
Z
from so living, day by day, week by
week, that they would be prepared at
any time for departure into the spirit
life. The Lord had blessed the Saints
abundantly, and if they were faithful
and felt to do right, everything would
be well for them in the future The
people were not here to fight anybody
or contend with anybody. They pro-
posed to mind their own business and
hoped that others would mind theirs.
He asked that wisdom might prevail in
their counsels and that the spirit of
God would rest upon the people.
Address On Obedience.
Apostle Rudger Clawson then deliv-
cred an address on obedience, which, he
said, was one of the cardinal principles
of the gospel. In addition to the Bible,
the Mormon people owed allegiance to
the commands and teachings in the
Book of Covenants and Book of Nor
mon, as well as the living oracles set
apart to direct and command them in
these last days. He knew that much
trouble and many evils had come upon
the people on account of disobedience,
If they had obeyed the Prophet Jo-
seph Smith they would now have been
established in the east and would have
been the wealthiest people on the face
Of the earth He had no doubt that
some of the evils with which the people
now had to contend were due to dis
obedience. They had strayed away
from the commandments. Take the law
of tithing, for instance, the speaker
said. 1t required that one-tenth of
what was produced or earned Should
be paid to God. for it was his command.
A man had NO right to figure out, as
did some, his expenses, ETC., until he
claimed there was nothing due, or until
ha orI 1t int TO
man. He urged the members CT the
church not to let their tithing accounts
run to be settled yearly. Pay it as
you go, said he, and then it will not be
so hard to figure up.
Colonization Projects.
Apostle Abraham Woodruff, who is
laboring to build up the new colony of
Alberta, Canada, made an earnest APP +
peal to members of the church, partlc- !
ularly the younger people, to enter into
the new colonization projects and be-
come home owners and employers, I
rather than dependent wage earners. |
The brethren, he said, were not as /
united in effort as they ought to be. |
Those who were taking up land, help |
ing to subdue the elements and creating |
new commemorative were just as much !
in the service of the Lord as those who /
went out to preach the gospel. There /
was not as much interest taken in the !
colonization scheme by the young peo /
pie as there should be. There was too
great a tendency to make living be
hind desks and counters, in order to |
avoid manual labor. This class seldom
made any material advancement In I
their conditions, and if allowed to drift
for a few years in those channels, a !
large proportion of the people would
come to be, classed as employees merely.
- nd lots Of nrNlI
land, we'll watered, for the people to
occupy, and the young people should
take advantage of the opportunities
now omen to them. The church, he said,
could be better built up by people
trained on the farm than it could. be by /
those brought up in the cities More
olonizers-blacksmith farmers, etc
We're what was needed. Individual col
schemes usually failed, but
when such undertakings were counseled
and directed by the church. unity of
purpose prevailed and the people were
in their efforts.
Apostle Cowley's Remarks.
Apostle Matthias F. Cowley said the
church was sXty-nine and a half years
old today, and since its beginning the
brethren had been in need of instruc-
ton and admonition respecting their
temporal and spiritual affairs. The
trouble with many of the people was
that they were LaIter-day Saints spir- (
itually and Gentiles financially. He
touched briefly on the question of 1.-THE
paying, and closed by saying the Lord
had bountifully and abundantly blessed
his people.
The choir sang From Afar, Gracious
Lord" Stake President Angus M. Can
non said benediction, and the meeting
closed,
At the afternoon session the attend
ance was somewhat larger, and the
line followed by the speakers
was tithing payments.
The meeting opened by the choir
singing
High on the mountain top
A banner is unfurled."
Elder Joseph w. McMurrin offered
prayer. and the choir sang Glorious
Things of Thee Are Spoken.
Apostle Lund's Discourse.
Apostle Anton H. Lund, who was the
irst speaker, said the Latter-day
Saints had greater faith than any other
people. They had inspired men to give ;
hem the word of the Lord, but they
we're not dependent on them alone, for
hey get the spirit of the Holy Ghost to l
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