The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1908-04-05
PRESIDENT OF
CHURCH URGES
LOCAL OPTION
Joseph F. Smith Makes Signifi-
cant UtteranCeS at Nor
mon Conference. IL
RECORD CROWDS ARE
PROMISED FOR TODAY
MEETINGS IN TABERNACLE AND
OVERFLOW MEETINGS IN AS
SEM5LY HALL.

The Church of Jesus Christ Of Lat
ter-day Saints yesterday, in annual
conference, went on record in favor OF
local option in the liquor traffic and for
! temperance more widespread and more
closely adhered to. The president Of
the church, Joseph F. Smith, declared
! from the stand i'm the tabernacle yes
terday forenoon that the church was in
sympathy with the movement that is
sweeping the country for a curtail-
ment of the liquor traffic. Other speak
ers, members of the quorum of twelve
apostles, also urged the more general
observance of the rules of temperance,
saying that the embargo laid on ex-
cesses in the Word of Wisdom is a
commandment. not only with regard 10
strong drink, but as well in respect to
tobacco, profanity and tea and coffee.
The church was declared TO be in a
better condition than ever before. The
auxiliary societies were reported to be
flourishing as never they had in the
past. The testimony of President
Smith and other speakers was that the
favorable conditions were a fact, in a
spiritual as well as a temporal way.
The laws laid down in the gospel are
being observed with greater fidelity
than they have ever been, 1t was as
serted.
Record First Day Crowd.
The attendance at the seventy-eighth
annual conference on the opening day
was larger than that for any opening
day in the past. It was conservatively
( estimated that $500 attended the fore
noon session in the tabernacle yester-
day, and that the afternoon throng
mounted well above 10000. Apostle
/ Heber ]. Grant, in the course of his
afternoon address, called attention to
/ the extraordinarily large number in at
/ tendance for first day services, and
pointed TO il as n manifestation of the
/ Increased interest which the people are
! taking In the church and as indicating
! the growth of the faith.
/ The salt Lake Route reports that its
trains have carried thus far more con-
( ference visitors than were carried dur
/ ing the entire conference a year ago.
/ The Rio Grande reported a first day
travel of 200, which is 200 more than
the records show for the corresponding
period last year. The Oregon Short
/ Line reports an increase, but figures
/ had not yet become available when the
/ offices closed last evening.
! 1t is believed that the 10000 mark
/ will be reached, if not, indeed, sur
passed at this conference. One reason
/ for the large early attendance is said
/ to be the fact that the farmers have
quite finished their spring planting,
and that they and their families can
leave the farms without worry.
Overflow Meetings Today.
President Smith yesterday afternoon
announced an overflow meeting for 10
o'clock this forenoon in the Assembly
hall. Undoubtedly another overflow
! meeting will be held in the afternoon.
and it is probable that there will be an
onen-air meeting. The weather lndl-
cations are that the day will be fair,
and if that prediction comes true and
the weather conditions prove anyWise
as favorable as those Of yesterday
| there win be record attendance in the
temple grounds today
The overflow meeting in the Assem-
bly, hall viii be in charge OF Heber j.
/ Grant, one of the apostles.
High Officials Present.
With very few exceptions, all Of the
high authorities of the church were III
. attendance yesterday In addition 10
President Smith, there were on the
stand the counsellors of the first pres
idencv. John r. WindeT and Anthem
! II land. All of the apostles were
nreseut save two. The absentees were
Reed Smoot. who is in Washington,
/ and c. W. Penrose, who is Oh mis-
sion to Europe OF the quorum OF
twelve there were in attendance:
/ Francis NJ. Lyman. the ranking apos-
tie: Orson F Whitney. Anthony w
Wins. David o. Mckay, George F.
Richards, John Henry Smith, George
Albert Smith, HyrUm NJ Smith, He
Der ]. Grant and Rudger Clawson>
President George Reynolds was the
only member of the first seven who
was absent The others on the stand
we're: Seymour B. Young, B. H Rob
erts. J. Golden Kimball, Rulon S.
! Wells. Joseph ". McMurrin and
Charles H. Hart. The presiding bish-
opric was represented by Charles X.
/ Nibley, Orrin P Miller and David A.
Smith, Patriarch <Ohn Smith was also
in attendance, as were Assistant His
torians Andrew Jensen and A. Milton
| Musser.
The Presidents Address.
President Joseph F. Smith. in the
beginning of his remarks, extended
! welcome to the Saints. 1t was ex-
tremeIy gratifying. he said, to see so
great an outpouring of people. We
Continued on Page 8.