The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1900-01-28
SAINTS in HOOSIERD0M
INDIANA Is SAID TO BE THE BANNER
MORMON STATE.
Progress of the PROSECUTING Work ut
the Various Missions - Great
Activity of the Elders.
Special to the Indianapolis Journal.

KOKOMO. Ind, Jan. 27.-Is Indiana the
banner Mormon State in the Union?
That is the claim made by the Latter-day
Saints, who saysthat outside of Utah and
its immediate environments. Indiana has
more Mormons than any other State. not
withstanding other commemorative are
larger and have been proselyted longer.
They have the figures to show that the
Hoosier State is a productive field for the
followers of Joseph Smith and that the
State leads all its sisters in membership.
No State outside the Mormon center in
Utah has membership beyond 800. In
diana is credited with 273.
The district and mission reports for the
year 1899 show that Mormonism is growing
rapidly in Indiana. This is a comparatively
new field for the Latter-day Saints, but
IL is being worked energetHally and effec-
lively as the church figures demonstrate.
Elder F. Il. Brooks, who has had charge
of the missions at Kokomo, Elwood and
Noblesville, has gathered statistics of the
condition of the church in Indiana to
port to the parent church in Utah and from
him the following information was secured.
1t was not until the year 1896 that the Nor
mons began PROSECUTING in Indiana, though
a few attempts TO establish missions had
been made prior to that time Hoosier
Mormonism had its birth in South Bend
in the North Conference. and Evansville
in the southern district, in the spring of
1896. The first northern missions were es-
tablished in ST. Joseph. Steuben and
Starke counties and the first conference
was at Crumstown. st. Joseph county, In
October, 1896. Nathan Gedge was president
of the conference. Samuel G. Spencer. pres
ident of the Northern States mission, and
other prominent members from Salt Lake
City were present. At that conference ad-
ditional missions were established at Lo-
gansport. indianapolis, Lafayette, Muncie,
Bluffton, Angola, all presided over by eld-
ers sent from Utah. Other fields opened
later were Kokomo, Marion, Elwood, An
derson, Noblesville, Hartford City. Upton,
Fort Wayne. Frankfort. Portland, New
Castle, Charlottesville, Lebanon and Hunt
ington. All these fields have been MAIN
tanned, and the missions are reported in a
prosperous condition. There are at present
twenty-seven elders laboring in the north
Indiana district. Twenty-Five baptisms are
reported since last conference. Fields were
recently opened at Peru and Gas City.
The hot beds" In the southern district
are the counties of Bartholomew, Monroe,
Owen, Vigo, Knox, Daviess. Martin, Pike.
Gibson. Posey. Warrick, Vanderburg, Spen-
GER Floyd. Clark, Crawford. Johnson, Nor
gan and Scott Evansville being the south
ern headquarters. The greatest activity is
shown at Evansville Jeffersonville, New
Greene
baptisms are reported since Sept. Is, 1899.
Elder Sorenson is president of the Southern
Conference. The statistical report for the
year for the State is as follows: Number
of elders engaged in mission work, A; total
church membership, 273: meetings held, $50;
families visited I'm distributing tracts,
35.O0S; houses visited by invitation, 19, 192;
gospel conversations, 14,743; books distrib-
uted, sos; tracts distributed, 5S,7lO; leaflets
distributed, 12.729. In the North Indiana
Conference from organization In 1886 to the
present time the record Is: Leaflets dis
tributed, H,125; families visited, $3.50; fam
lilies revisited, 2S.227; tracts distributed, 3d.
3S7; books sold, 1.620; meetings held, LAO;
gospel conversations, H,46
The work of the Mormons in this State
has been practically unopposed by other
denominations. On the contrary, the eld-
ers have been treated courteously, and in
many instances been rendered the free use
of the churches of other societies. These
missions are not sustained by the. church
as is popularity supposed, but by individual
members. There is no church fund set
aside for the support of missions. Jealous
members who are able financially ask to
be sent into the field or to pay the ex-
penses of a missionary, as they prefer.
Elder Brooks. of this charge, Is supported
by his father, a wholesale grocer of Salt
Lake City. They have missions in every
State in the Union and in every civilized
nation on the globe They have at pres
ent about 1000 missionaries at work in the
United States. Each elder pays his own
expenses and breaches free of charge. No
collections are taken or permitted. In
diana has the largest list of membership
of any of the central western States, the
converts in the past four years being: In
DIANA 3d. Illinois, $50; Iowa, 100; Missouri,
1CO: Michigan, 20; Wisconsin. 100; Mime
sofa, 75; North and South. Dakota, 100; Ne
braska 60. Elder Brooks, who has charge
of the mission in this city. is one of the
youngest engaged in the work He is
twenty-three years old and has been in
the field four years.
Speaking of Polygamist Roberts and his
troubles, Elder Brooks says: Mr.. Rob-
erts was not elected to Congress as a
Mormon. The church, as a church, had
nothing to do with his election, and Ii is
having nothing whatever to do in his con-
test for seat in the House. The church
takes no part in such affairs. Roberts.
who was elected by both Mormons and
anti-Mormons, is a very fine. scholarly
gentleman and would have represented his
constituents to the credit of both them and
himself"