The Idaho recorder. [volume] (Salmon City, Idaho) 1886-1927, 1915-04-15
PRESIDENT BRINGS
MESSAGE OF PEACE
HEAD OF CHURCH DECLARES
CHURCH rs AT PEACE WITH
ALL THE WORLD.
Opening Session of Annual Confer
ence Of Church of Jesus Christ Of
Latterday Saints is Held on
Easter Sunday.

Salt Lake City-With the presence
of nearly all the general authorities
of the church, and a large and en-
thusiastic crowd, the opening session |
Of the eighty-ffth annual conference
of the Church Of Jesus Christ OF Lat |
ter-day Saints was held on Easter |
Sunday, the first time in twenty |
eight years that the opening day OF
conference has fell on Easter Sunday. |
President Joseph F. Smith, although |
he has not been entirely well for
some time, presided and made the
opening address. His message was
one of peace. Everything seems to
point out" he said, that the church
is pursuing it's way peacefully. II is
at peace with Itself and with all the
world, for it carries a message of life,
! peaceful salvation and redemption
| from sin. Our work is to make peace
and to establish goodwill
| Following the principal part OF his
address, President Smith announced
that he would take a liberty that, he
said, was rather unusual, because OF
the many false, wicked things that
had been charged against him and his
brethren. He then gave a summary
of the tithes received during the
year of 1914 and of the uses to which
& this money had been put. The total
amount received from tithes during
the year he said was $1,SS7,920.
In addition to the amount paid out
of the tithes to the poor, $116,23S,
there has been collected and paid to
the poor by the relief society $74,290,
and there has been paid to the poor
by bishops from the fast offerings and
other ward charity funds $4,000
making a total paid to the poor for
1914 of $266,52S.
There has been collected for the
war sufferers, which is being ex-
pended under the direction OF Presi-
dent Hyrum NJ Smith of the Euro
pean mission, $4,000.
Our records show that 70 per cent
of all the Latter-day Saint families
residing in all the stakes of Zion own
their own homes.
The birth rate of the church for
the year 1914 is 1915 to the thousand
The death rate for the year 1914 il
S.3 to the thousand
Marriage rate for the year 1914 Is
II to the thousand.
During the year there were 14,71i
children blessed.
There are 1876 elders and 115 wo
men laboring in the missions as mis-
= sionaries.
There has been a net increase il
, the membership of the church in tn,
e stakes of Zion from the year 1901 Il
d 1914 of l29,943 sCdis.
Y There are now 1873 wards and thirty
d three independent branches. Tner
are sixty-eight stakes of Zion an
= tWenty-one missions During the yea
1914 twenty-one new wards have bee
organized and two stakes of Zion.
There have been performed in tn
temples during the PAST year LOO
e 9O9 baptisms Tor the living and deaC
and 1882 endowments for the Twin
and dead Altogether 326,264 ord
.. nances have been performed in tn
l. four temples. This is very conslC
cradle increase over any preViou
year.
The speakers at the opening Sc
sion were President Joseph r. Smit
and his counselors Anton II. Lun
and Charles w. Penrose.
lie At the afternoon session $4,000 pc
re pie attended the three meetings he'll
U | the speakers dL Tue tdJ~A uoN+N bNAh
d Elder Charles W. Penrose and EIDE
q Francis Nj. Lyman.
The great organ was not used, b
cause it is undergoing repairs. TT
floor of the tabernacle has been e
tirely replaced; the seats have Dee
y, repainted and rev rnished and Il
a building put in excellent condition.
Nine thousand persons sat or stoC
in the tabernacle Sunday night in &
)u tendance at what the program denol
sT mated the biggest Sunday school
y, the world" the meeting being und
~ the auspices OF the Deseret Sundi
H., School union and part of the sprn
~ conference of the Mormon church.
!" Speakers included President JOSEF
F. Smith, who by virtue of his Off
as head Of the church Is also gener
superintendent OF the Sunday Scho
union, and 9th n workers prominent
Sunday school activities.
o A feature Of the services was sin
2 ing by a chorus of 1900 voices, me
= OF them children from the Salt La
stake OF the church. The report
George D. Piper, & neral secretary
) the Sunday School assoc.a il
{ showed a total Sunday school enrc
ment of 195.416, a gain Of S,465 oV
= last year.
President Joseph F. Smith pres!d
; at both sessions Ct the conference
Monday, April 5. The speakers al
morning session were Apostle Het
J. Grant, Apostle Rudger Claws
9 and Apostle Reed Smcot.
Il believe" declared Apostle G-a
): that | never saw thu people OF
e church so devoted as they now ?
- Recently a wave OF unusual zeal a
3 faith seems 10 have swept over
. the church and its people. Work