Peru and Pioneer Life

PERU AND PIONEER LIFE. BY ELIZABETH MCCUNE.

[At the general conference of the M. I. A., on Sunday, May 31, 1903, Sister Elizabeth McCune of the General Board Y. L. M. I. A,, spoke of her recent tour to Peru, and also incidentally referred to a visit which the officers of the Y. L. M. I. A. had made to her elegant new home in Salt Lake City. The life of Mrs. McCune is so characteristic of a class of hardy pioneer women in Utah that her remarks, reported in part be- low, are worthy of more than passing interest. Her father, Samuel Claridge, and her mother, came to Utah in the early 50's, having joined the Church in England in 1852. When they arrived in Utah and settled in Nephi, Mrs. McCune was a babe only nine months old. From that time on, through girlhood and young womanhood, her life was cast among the pioneers of the south, and her episodes in the deserts, on the mountains, by rivers, and with Indians, would fill a book. Her father is still living in Arizona, a pioneer to the end. Editors.]

I have had the pleasure of visiting South America, and there is a people there about whom we know but little, and they are in- deed strange and have many peculiar customs; still, I found many good people there. There are many English and Germans, also many Chinese and negroes, and others from almost every nation. I became acquainted with a great many of the upper classes. I

had a great opportunity to explain the principles of the gospel to many of them. I met and talked with foreign ministers from the various nations, and I was never treated better, and they seemed greatly pleased to hear what I had to say. I once called upon a lady out of town, with the English embas- sador. An elegant tea was served, and as soon as we were seated the English minister said, "Mrs. McCune, I want you to explain to this lady the principles of your religion." I, of course, was greatly pleased to have the opportunity, and they sat and lis-

PERU AND PIONEER LIFE. 755

tened for an hour and a half to my explanation of the principles of the gospel. At the close of our delightful interview, the party shook hands with me and said that they felt better men and women than before having met me, and hearing my conversation. I can testify that when we have a desire in our hearts to ex- plain the principles of the gospel, our Heavenly Father comes to our assistance, and no matter how humble we are, when Father helps us, we make an impression. It is not ourselves, but the Spirit of God which enables us to do this. Many times when I felt weak, I was given the greater power from the Lord. I met the embas-

sador from Brazil and explained the gospel to him. I said, "Mr. Alcoforada, I want to explain the principles of the everlasting gospel to you," and he very kindly listened, and remained convers- ing with me all the evening, being loath to leave, and he paid many compliments to our people. I related to him some of the history

of our people and the trials they had passed through, and bore testimony to their purity and faithfulness. Tears streamed down his cheeks when I explained to him what our people had done; and I said, the time will come when there will be elders sent to this

country, for they are commanded to preach to every nation, and I want yuu people, when they come, to treat them kindly when you meet them. I explained the missionary work to them, how our

elders travel throughout the world, being taken from their daily avocations and sent to preach without money and without price. They were much surprised at this. I told them of the persecutions our elders had suffered, and said to them, when they come I want you to study their characters and watch their movements. You will never find them using tobacco nor strong drinks, nor blas- pheming the name of God. They promised me that they would do as I had requested. I met many people on the vessels, going to and from South America. Day after day they sought me to hear the gospel. I enjoyed myself while away, because I knew I was doing

a little good for the cause of Christ. I put in some time studying

the Spanish language, and helping my children to study it.

One of the happiest times of my life was yesterday, in taking the Young Ladies' officers through my beautiful new home. One of the young ladies said to me, "Sister McCune, I have been told that you planned all this house. Where did you get your experience ?'

756 IMPROVEMENT ERA.

Irelated to her hovv I obtained my experience in house-building. When my father came to this country, he went to live at Nephi, and helped to build up that city. We moved from one place ta another until finally we obtained a very nice home, as homes went in those days. Shortly after this, my father was called to the Muddy, now in southeastern Nevada. He sold out everything he had and moved to that place. At the time of our moving, we passed through a country infested with Indians, who frequently made war upon our people. Many times we were surrounded by night, but I always felt safe, because I was with father who was doing what he was counseled to do. When we finally reached our destination, however, we had no place to live, and, consequently, we set about building a house. I carried every adobe and every bucket of mortar for that house, while father laid it up. That is how I received experience in building. It was hard work, but I am not ashamed of it, and would do it again under like circumstances, if necessary. Surprise was also expressed at the hard woods in my house, and my knowledge of them. I explained to the young ladies that I early received an education in hard woods. When we built our new house on the Muddy, we were very proud of it, but we only re- mained there about one year, when it was deemed wise to leave that country, so we all left our homes and fields and moved away, leaving everything behind us. We had used all our money to pur- chase this property, and now everything was gone- Father settled in Long Valley, and I helped him build another house. I used to go with him to haul the wood, and he and I lifted every stick that was brought from the mountains for the building of our home; and sometimes, when we came to a very heavy stick of hard oak, we could not lift it at all. And so I gained an early knowledge of hard wood. The M. I. A. work is calculated to bring the young people to a knowledge that God lives. I am grateful for every trial, for I have, in them, been obliged to rely upon him, and it has brought me nearer to him. Let us be diligent and faithful, obey counsel, and never find fault with the Priesthood or our parents. This is the key note of our success through life. And a further duty to young people is to honor, love and obey their parents. No boy or girl has ever lost anything from such a course, but rather gained true riches.