--- title: Improvement Era description: Monthly periodical of the Mormon church, 1897 onward. This library holds the issues of November 1897 to December 1930. authors: - Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations collections: - periodicals tags: - magazine - improvement-era periodical: Improvement Era volume: 6 number: 11 published: 1903-09 publisher: Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations publisher_place: Salt Lake City language: en type: magazine reference: 'Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations, "Our Work", *Improvement Era* 6, no. 11 (September 1903): 864–876.' source: url: https://archive.org/details/improvementera0611unse transcription: Transcribed from the Internet Archive scan of each issue (the item for each issue is named in the issue's own source); unnumbered advertising leaves are omitted, printed page numbers are kept as page markers. identifier: improvementera0611unse start_page: 864 end_page: 876 rights: status: public-domain basis: US publication 1930 or earlier (published 1903-09) source: https://archive.org/details/improvementera0611unse publication_year: 1903 note: The Internet Archive item metadata carries a blanket "© Copyright by Intellectual Reserve, Inc." notice. The library owner judged it inapplicable because this issue was published in 1903, before 1931; a scan-level notice does not restore copyright. --- # Our Work NOTES. An American who has studied English life says that one of the things that impressed him most about British boys was their stolid en- durance — their habit of bearing pain, fatigue and privation without murmuring. Here are a few of the essential qualities which will win against all the powers of so-called ill luck: 1. Absolute, unswerving integrity. Is that unattainable? 2. Brains, mental grasp. Given a fair mind, what is that but edu- cation and discipline? 3. Energy and force of character. This is a question of exercise of will to overcome laziness and love of ease. 4. Capacity for work, executive power, the ability to bring things to pass. This is the product of industry by system or method. It is en- ergy conserved and well directed. It is the art of making every stroke count. 6. Personal manners, engaging address. What is this but the result of close, unselfish adherence to the rules for making a gentleman. All these qualifications are not easy, it is true, but they are not im- possible. It is therefore your own choosing whether you will be among the richly rewarded few at the top, or the hungry multitude at the bot- tom. American Boy. "Never put off till tomorrow what you can do today." There is no time like the present: therefore, when you are told to do a thing, if pos- sible, do it at once. Further than this, when you know a thing should be done, do not wait till you are obliged to do it. It is a sure sign of a good workman that he tries to be beforehand with his work, and such an one will certainly be valued. Never put away your tools dirty, intending to clean them by-and-by; do not sweep the dust into a corner to be taken away tomorrow: do not leave those bills to be delivered this evening if you ought to take them in the morning. "Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it," and do it at once. —N. C. Usher. IN LIGHTER MOOD. We suppose there are many of our readers who can tell what word in the English language is always spelled wrong. A gentleman whose li^e is given to the study of books has a wife who never reads at all. She does, however, take down a volume, from time to time, in order to show some sympathetic interest in her husband's pursuits. This, according to the Philadelphia Telegraph, is what happened the other day. Said the lady to her husband: "I took down a book this morning by an author named Voliv. Is he considered a good writer?" "Voliv, my dear?" repeated the husband, in perplexity. "Voliv?" But while he was puzzling over the name, his wife thought of some- thing else, and went away to attend to it. Then he stole into her room, to see which book she had on hand, and found a volume of Browning's poetry. It had been bound with no name on the back, and simply bore the legend, "Vol. IV." Rear Admiral Farquhar, says the New York World, told the follow- ing story of an incident of Lord Beresford's visit to this country at the Army and Navy Club the other evening: "When Lord Beresford went to Newport he was a guest of a dis- tinguished American woman who is a stickler for form. Among her retinue of servants she had a number of pages constantly to attend to the wants of her guests. She had just engaged a new page a short time before Lord Beresford's visit, and she was very careful to impress upon him the proper ceremonial of his duties. " 'Now,' she said to the boy one day, 'when you go to Lord Beres- ford's room and he asks who it is, you must say, 'The boy, my lord.' Well the boy did his best to burn this injunction into his developing gray matter, and after a while he could repeat his little lesson backward. "When he first knocked on the distinguished guest's door, however, he was suddenly taken all a-tremble, and when Beresford called out 'Who is it?' he replied in a high-pitched voice that rang through the " house, 'The Lord, my boy.' OUR WORK. ANNUAL M. I. A. CONVENTIONS. The following circular has been issued to all M. I. A. stake officers: Dear Brethren: By authority of the General Board all superintendents of Y. M. M. I. A. are hereby, instructed to call a convention in their stakes in accord- ance with the following schedule of dates: — August 9th San Juan. — August 30th Emery. — August 31st Panguitch. — September 6th Alberta East and West, Alpine, Beaver, Benson, Bingham, Box Elder, Cassia, Granite, Juab, Malad, San Luis. September 6th and 7th Pocatello.— — September 7th Kanab. — September 13th Teton, Union, Bannock, Big Horn, Tooele, Jordan, Nebo, Weber, Oneida, Parowan. September 14th — St. George. September 20th — Fremont, Morgan, Salt Lake, Star Valley, Hyrum, Uintah, Utah, Wasatch, North and South Sanpete. September 27th —Bear Lake, Cache, Woodruff, Summit, Wayne, Millard, Sevier, North and South Davis. The conventions in the Arizona and Mexico Stakes will be held in connection with the quarterly stake conferences of those stakes appointed in August and September. You will confer at once with the presidency of your stake and ar- range for holding this convention, and secure their co-operation in mak- ing it a success. You will then see that the stake organization, and all ward organizations are complete in your stake, making personal visits for this purpose wherever necessary, before the date of the convention. Take special pains to notify, either by letter or personal visit, every offi- cer in your stake to be present without fail. This does not mean mere- OUR WORK. 865 ly a representative, but means all the officers from each ward, including (and this is very important) the class teachers. You will see that a suitable hall is secured in a central settlement and location, where the convention may be held so as not to interfere with the Sabbath school. This year the Young Ladies' officers will also hold conventions at the same time and in the same ward as the Young Men, and it is therefore necessary that you consult with their officers in relation to the selection of a place, and provide accommodations for the both associations where they may meet separately. officers of Where officers of Y. M. M. I. A. are teachers in the Sabbath school they should arrange to be excused for that morning. Instructions in re- gard to this have been published, by the Sunday School Union Board. The work of the Young Men's convention will be done in the morn- ing and afternoon, and a conjoint session of the officers of both organi- zations will be held in the evening, to which, by consent, the general public may be invited. It is very desirable that the stake presidency, bishops and other stake and ward officers should be invited to attend all the meetings. In arranging for the meetings you are requested to provide for hold- ing them at some place that will not in any way interrupt the regular meetings of the Saints, as our convention work will not be interesting to a number of people who attend the regular meetings. Avoid, there- fore, any interference of this nature. The stake superintendents are expected to conduct these meetings under the direction of representatives of the General Board. The topics should be treated by the most competent talent in the stake, and the subject matter should be prepared before the day of meeting. We sug- gest that the stake superintendency meet with the appointed speakers in at least one meeting prior to the date of the convention, to discuss the subject in detail, and perfect all arrangements. Following are the leading topics: Preparation for the Opening op the Season. The Manual should be obtained and distributed in ample time for the preparation of the first lesson for the opening meeting. To create a general interest among the public it is suggested that a social reception be held in the ward, the week prior to the opening of the regular meeting. The first program should be ready before the first meeting, and be prepared and assigned by the officers at a preliminary meeting of the officers held for the purpose. It is very important that an officers' meeting should be held not only before the beginning of the season, but every week there- after. 866 IMPROVEMENT ERA As early as possible, before the commencement of the season's work and before this convention, all the organizations should be completed, and vacancies filled, but care should be taken that the work goes on even if this cannot be done, or the president or any other officer is unavoidably absent. Grading. All the associations are now graded and separate courses of study are prepared each year. Difficulties in gradation and class work and suggestions for the betterment of the grades should be dis- cussed in the convention. Class Work. You are requested to provide a class of young men, with a competent and experienced teacher, the best in your stake, and let him conduct, before the convention, a practical lesson from last year's Manual, either senior or junior. This exercise should not occupy more than half an hour. Be sure that all your class teachers are pres- ent at this exercise. Have all your class teachers selected and appointed before the beginning of the season's work, and, if possible, before this convention. In a general way, class teachers should remember that each lesson should have a distinct aim, and that such aim should be clearly developed and the essential points of the lesson applied to the individual student an aim, a development, and an application; or in other words, what shall be taught? How shall it be taught? And of what use is it to the student? For further hints on class work see any good work on teaching and Era, vol. 4, pp. 313-316, "Class Methods," and "How to Conduct Reci- tations," also vol. 5, pp. 314-315, "Hints to Class Teachers." The Manuals. It has been decided by the General Board to devote the next two years in the senior class of the associations, to the study of the Book of Mormon, and the Manual will be prepared for that course of study. Arrangements have been made with Elder B. H. Roberts to use a treatise on the Book of Mormon which he has been preparing for gome time as a companion volume to his well known work, "A New Wit- ness for God." This work is divided into four parts. Part I. The value of the Book of Mormon as a witness for the au- thenticity and integrity of the Bible and the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Part II. The discovery of the Book of Mormon and its translation; the migrations, lands, inter-continental movements, civilization, govern- ment and religions of its people. Part III. Evidences of the truth of the Book of Mormon. Part IV. Objections to the Book of Mormon. OUR WORK. 867 Parts I and II will be used as the body of the Manual for 1903-4. Parts III and IV for the Manual for 1904-5. There will be this differ- ence between the two forthcoming Manuals and those already issued, that whereas the analysis of each lesson has been given and immedi- ately followed with notes which gave the general information on the text, in the present Manual the analyses of all the lessons will be placed together and the references made to the body of the Manual which treats on the subject. It is believed that the treatise of Elder Roberts will comprise nearly all the material that the student will require to in- form him on the subject of the lesson, though, of course, copious refer- ences will be made to the works of other writers, yet the Manuals upon the subject of the Book of Mormon will be practically all the reference works that the students will require in mastering the subjects of the several lessons. We cannot refrain, in justice to the General Board, from calling attention to the fact that they are presenting at a very low price, to the young men of the Church in the two forthcoming Manuals, a very valuable work on one of the most important subjects connected with the great dispensation of the gospel in which we live. Ordinarily the price of the treatise would be $1.50 (the price of the same writer's work, "New Witness for God"). In the Manuals they will get the two for 50 cents, and indeed it was a desire, on the part of the General Board, to get this work in the hands of the young men of the Church that led them to make the arrangements with Elder Roberts by which they secured his work on the Book of Mormon. We therefore anticipate a very general and thorough study of the Book of Mormon on the part of the young men of Israel in the next two years, and congratulate them upon the arrangements that have been made for the consideration of this important volume of scripture. The junior manual to be used next season will consist of a number of character sketches taken from the Bible and Book of Mormon, con- sidered in their chronological order. The lessons will be presented in a simple story form, arranged with subdivisions, so that assignments may be made to several members. Each lesson will emphasize some import- ant principle taught in the life and character treated, and will be fol- lowed by a series of questions. One of these lessons should be completed at each regular meeting. Each of the sub-topics of a lesson should be assigned to a member, and that member should come specially prepared, at the next meeting, to treat upon that topic; such treatment should not occupy more than five or ten minutes; but this special preparation of one topic should not pre- clude the study of the entire lesson. Every member of the class should 868 IMPROVEMENT ERA. prepare upon the whole lesson, and be familiar with every topic; so that in case of the absence of an appointed speaker, upon request, any other member may take his place. It is expected, of course, that the officers shall be fully prepared on every lesson and ready to finish the program, in the case of failure on the part of any member, but the officers should not be considered until it has been made clearly apparent that no mem- ber in the house is prepared; the members should do the work and not the officers, except in cases of need, and in their regular order on the program. The Manuals may be obtained from General Secretary Thomas Hull. There are two ways of handling it. The first has been found most sat- isfactory in certain stakes, where the distances are not so great, and where there is a general central gathering place — it is for the stake officers to obtain the entire supply for the stake and distribute the Manuals to the ward presidents. The second method is for each presi- dent to order the Manuals for his association direct from the general secretary. In either case, the Manuals are furnished on credit, it being distinctly understood that the person ordering them is responsible for the payment of the bill. Be prompt in distributing the Manuals, and as prompt in collecting the pay and remitting to the general office. Missionary Work. The following resolution was adopted at the general conference of Y. M. M. I. A. on Monday afternoon, June 1, 1903. Resolved, That the general missionary work be suspended, and we bend our efforts and energies to the local missionary work; and that the local missionaries be called sufficiently early to be present at the fall con- vention, and there receive their instructions. And further, that a com- mittee from the General Board be appointed to look after this work. The missionary work for the coming season, therefore, will be con- fined to the local missionaries. In addition to the local officers of each association two or four com- petent men are seleqted by the presidency of the association, with the approval of the bishop of the ward, and set apart by the bishop as local ward missionaries. (The missionaries called last season are not released but are to continue their labors. Where for any reason brethren are released from this mission, the vacancies should be at once filled). These should be released from all other duties in the ward, and should devote their entire time to this missianary work. The stake or- ganization of the Y. M. M. I. A. should take charge of all the ward mis- sionaries, calling a meeting weekly or monthly to receive reports and give instructions concerning the work of the missionaries. These brethren will labor in the ward under the direction of the ward presi- OUR WORK. 869 dency. The stake superintendency will report monthly on the mission- ary work to the missionary committee of the General Board. The fol- lowing brethren have been appointed the missionary committee: J. Golden Kimball, Joseph W. McMurrin, Thomas Hull, and B. F. Grant. It is distinctly understood that the officers of the association are and shall also act as local missionaries. The local missionary-work must not be discontinued, but must be made more effective. This local missionary work is the most important that the officers have to do. Upon it depends greatly the success of our organization and its power to do good. It should be the spiritual labor of the season. In case this work is not thoroughly understood by the officers, informa- tion concerning its scope, and the methods to be adopted, will be given at your convention by a member of the General Board. The General Improvement Fund. The General Fund is an essen- tial in the work of mutual improvement, and is an important item to place before the members; because without it, the work of the General Board cannot be carried on. You remember that there are two will weeks set apart as collection weeks for this fund, viz., the first weeks of December and February of each year. Envelopes will be sent to stake superintendents for distribution to the ward associations. Committees should be appointed to visit, during the collection weeks, every member of the association, and deliver to them the envelopes and solicit their contribution to this fund. The Era. The Era is a necessity in your association, and should be in the hands of every member thereof. It is your duty, as officers, to see that a thorough canvass is made in your ward for subscrib- ers. Every officer should be a subscriber. Subscriptions may begin at the beginning of the volume, or at any time there- after. The canvass for subscriptions should begin early in Septem- ber. Do not delay; it makes the work harder and the results poor. The subject of the Era was very thoroughly discussed at the general con- ference of Y. M. M. I. A. in June, and a very loyal spirit was manifested by the officers present. The following resolution was unanimously adopted: "That we, as officers, pledge ourselves to subscribe for the Improve- ment Era so that it can be sent free to every missionary. And further resolved, That we return to first principles in conducting our Era busi- ness, i. e., pay in advance, and that the officers of associations in their respective positions in stakes and wards superintend the work of can- vassing and securing subscribers." One way to canvass is to appoint five or six young men, themselves 870 IMPROVEMENT ERA. subscribers, to thoroughly canvass the ward on a given date and to continue their labors until the desired results are obtained. Every ward obtaining as subscribers, five per cent of its Church population, will be given a rebate of twenty-five cents on each sub- scription, upon presentation of their claim for said rebate. The Church population consists of all baptized members and children under eight years of age. Secretaries. It is very important that competent young men be selected for secretaries who can be depended upon to remain with the association until the season's work is completed, and then make up the statistical report at once. Reports should be prepared during the sea- son, so that at its close, everything being in shape, the reports can be compiled and forwarded without delay. The secretary should be present at every meeting or see that some- one is there to represent him, if, for some unavoidable reason, he is com- pelled to be absent. He should keep the president informed in relation to the programs and all business connected with the association. He should see that a complete roll is kept containing the names of every member of the association, and that such roll is called at every meeting. For calling the roll, such methods should be adopted as will best suit the local conditions. Every association should have and use the new roll book prepared by the General Board for the use of the associations. The price is seventy- five cents. Send your orders immediately to the general secretary. Every association should have a well kept record, which should in- clude: A roll book carefully kept, minutes of all meetings, including public lectures and joint sessions, and a record of all transactions. Min- utes should contain records of all transactions, but not comments on programs, etc. Every stake should have a record of all meetings of the superin.. tendency and of the stake board, a roll of all the stake officers, and a careful financial record, also a complete stake directory, showing the names and addresses of every officer of M. I. A. This should show the names of every ward president, counselor, secretary, and other officers. Miscellaneous. The stake superintendency and aids should hold board meetings at least once a month, better, as some stakes are now doing, once a week. Where weekly meetings are held, the Manual may be studied on the night of the meeting, and the officers made thoroughly familiar with the lessons one week ahead of all the associations, so that they may criticise and help in their weekly visits. Every week the stake officers should be in the field visiting the wards. OUR WORK 871 Ward officers should meet in council every week, and be thoroughly prepared on the lesson so that they may present the same to the best ad- vantage in the class. To these meetings also, all the class leaders should be invited. It is very important that every officer should be in pos- session of the Era so that he may become familiar with the instructions which have been given and are continually being given, concerning his duties in the work. Attention is again called to the necessity for closing up all accounts, immediately, with the general office, and in this connection we refer to the following resolution passed at the last general conference: "That the stake officers pledge themselves to use their best en- deavors to see that the obligations to the Era and Manual are liquidated before the 1st of November, 1903." The topics outlined above should be treated in the convention in the following order: Morning: Preparations for opening the season; grading; general improvement fund; Manual. Afternoon: The Era; class work; missionary work; secretaries; miscellaneous. Evening: Joint session; preliminary programs; amusements. In order that none may be overlooked, we make the following sum- mary of the items referred to in this circular, requiring the attention of the stake superintendents: 1. Confer with the stake presidency — secure their co-operation and arrange for the convention. 2. See that your stake and ward organizations are all complete and your class teachers selected, before the convention. 3. Notify all officers, class teachers, and M. I. A. missionaries, by personal visit, if necessary, of the convention and request them to be present. 4. Secure suitable hall or halls for the convention where both the Young Men's and Young Ladies' officers may be accommodated, without interfering with the Sunday schools or the ward meetings. Consult with the Young Ladies' officers in regard to this. 5. Have all Sunday school teachers, who are Mutual Improvement officers or class teachers, excused from their Sunday school classes to at- tend the morning session of the convention. 6. Extend special invitation to the stake presidency; the high coun- cilors; the bishops and their counselors; and all stake and ward officers to the convention meetings. 872 1MPR0 VEMENT ERA 7. Select competent persons to treat the subjects at the conventions, and assign the topics to them in advance. 8. Secure a class of young men with a competent teacher, to pre- sent a Manual lesson at the convention. 9. Hold at least one meeting of the stake superintendency, aids, and convention speakers, and discuss the convention subjects thoroughly, and perfect all arrangements. 10. Have, so far as possible, your local missionaries selected, so that they may all be at the convention to receive their instructions. Now these are the arrangements and instructions that have been thoughtfully outlined by the General Board,and we look to you to see that they are carefully and zealously carried out. No effort on your part should be left unmade to thoroughly advertise the convention before your officers and all who are interested. It will require work on your part and on the part of your assistants to accomplish this end, and we trust that no excuse will be presented on the day of the convention, but that every requirement will be fully complied with. AskiDg the Lord to bless you, and His Holy Spirit to assist you, in this important work for the welfare of the youth of your stake, we re- main, with best wishes, Your brethren, George H. Brimhall, Edward H. Anderson, J. Golden Kimball, Thomas Hull, Bryant S. Hinckley, Committee. EIGHTH ANNUAL CONFERENCE, M. 1. 'A. SUNDAY, MAY 31, 1903, 10 A. M. The Temple choir and congregation sang the hymn, "Come, come, ye Saints." Prayer was offered by Elder J. Golden Kimball. Sister Lottie Owen sang the solo, "Oh Lord, Most Holy." President Elmina S. Taylor, of the Young Ladies' Associations, ad- dressed the congregation briefly. She said in part: "I cannot tell you what feelings of joy and gratitude fill my heart at the privilege I have of addressing you this morning. I did not expect to speak, but Presi- OUR WORK. 873 dent Joseph F. Smith feels that I can, and I will try for a few moments. I thank God for this movement and for his help to the workers in it. This work has been a blessing to our girls and boys. I hope that the instruc- tions and examples set them will be to them a lesson, and that they will follow in the steps of those who stand at the head of the Church. Boys and girls, I wish you would all look to the Presidency and Apostles, and seek to be obedient to them, for this is the path of safety- God bless you all. Seek for the Holy Spirit, that you may be guided into all truth." President Joseph F. Smith said: "The committee of arrangements it 'seems has put me down for a few remarks at the opening of this con- ference in connection with the president of the Young Ladies' Associa- tions throughout the Church, whose voice we have just heard, Sister Elmina S. Taylor, whose frail body has been ailing for many years, but the Lord has preserved her life and raised her up from time to time from what seemed almost to be a final sickness, and I sincerely hope that the Lord will preserve her life and strengthen her body that she may live for many years to come to continue the wise and good work she has been doing for so long. We all appreciate her work. She is a woman of sound judgment, possessed of extraordinary faith, else she would not have been with us today; a woman of executive ability, faith- ful in the performance of all the duties devolving upon her. "I have not time to study any special subject. My time and atten- tion are continually occupied with a great variety of things, from the most important subjects to the most trivial affairs. There are times when we do not possess the gifts of the Spirit or the light thereof in such degree as we do at others. I have seen weeks and months when the horizon was obscure and all seemed dark, but subsequent events have shown that it was for a wise purpose, to prove us, to test whether we would be true, firm and steadfast in the hour of adversity. It is pitiable to know that many have been unable to stand these trials. But those and steadfast, how happy are they I have who have remained true ! seen the father stand at the bier of his dead children and turn and ask, 4 Do you expect me to believe any more that there is a God ? Would a preservation of loving father have turned a deaf ear to my prayers for the never again believe in a God;' and I have seen my loved ones ? I will men turn away from their Father and reject the love of God, and such follow him no more. On the other hand, I have seen those full of faith stand by the side of their little ones who have been taken from them blessed be and declare— 'The Lord gave and the Lord hath taken away, Lord;' and they have been drawn closer by their sorrow the name of the 874 IMPROVEMENT ERA. to the Lord their God. So when sorrow comes upon us, it is a pity that men will desert their only source of comfort and assistance." He related a dream which came to him when he was laboring under the most distressing circumstances in poverty and want, without means or resources. "The next morning after having this dream instead of feeling as I had before, that I was a worm of the desert only, a subject of pity and disgrace, I felt in my soul that I was a human being, born of God, and that the Lord had shown me something to give me courage and help me to cheer up under the untoward circumstances in which I was placed. And so the Lord lifts the veil from time to time that we may not faint by the way. "I remember the testimony that filled my being when I was baptized. At that time City Creek flowed down through the heart of the city, and in that stream I was baptized when a boy, and when I came out of the water my whole being was filled with the testimony that my act was accepted of God, and that his approval rested upon me. At other times, when reading the words of the Prophet Joseph, sitting alone, my mind has been carried away and the realities of eternity opened up before me. Such glories as seem impossible for the mind of man to conceive have passed before me, and then they are closed up, and we are left in wonderment at what we have seen." Sister Sarah Eddington and Elder Thomas Hull addressed the meet- ing on the subject "The Achievements of Mutual Improvement." Secre- tary Hull then presented a synopsis of the statistical reports of the Young Ladies' and Young Mens' Associations, and also presented the general officers of the two organizations, the following being the officers of the Y. M. M. I. A.: Joseph P. Smith, General Superintendent. Heber J. Grant. Assistants B. H. Roberts, ' Thomas Hull, Secretary and Treasurer. Evan Stephens, Music Director. Horace S. Ensign, Assistant Music Director. AIDS. Francis M. Lyman, Le Roi C. Snow, John Henry Smith, Frank Y. Taylor, Matthias P. Cowl y, Rudger Clawson, Abraham 0. Woodruff, Rulon S. Wells, J. Golden Kimball, Jos. W. McMurrin, Junius F. Wells, Reed Smoot, Milton H. Hardy, Bryant S. Hinckley,