---
title: Improvement Era
description: Monthly periodical of the Mormon church, 1897 onward. This library holds the issues of November 1897 to December 1930.
authors:
  - Haddock, Lon J.
collections:
  - periodicals
tags:
  - magazine
  - improvement-era
periodical: Improvement Era
volume: 16
number: 3
published: 1913-01
publisher: Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations
publisher_place: Salt Lake City
language: en
type: magazine
reference: 'Haddock, Lon J., "Christmastide. A Poem," *Improvement Era* 16, no. 3 (January 1913): 242–243.'
source:
  url: https://archive.org/details/improvementera1603unse
  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: improvementera1603unse
start_page: 242
end_page: 243
rights:
  status: public-domain
  basis: US publication 1930 or earlier (published 1913-01)
  source: https://archive.org/details/improvementera1603unse
  publication_year: 1913
  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 1913, before 1931; a scan-level notice does not restore copyright.
---

# Christmastide. A Poem

<!-- page:242 -->

Christmas tide

        Trees all weird and ghostly in their robes of white
        Myriads of crystals sparkling in the light
        Contours strangely altered, angles knocked askew
        Roads and paths and hedges covered up from view                           ;

        Brooklet hardly breaking from its icy band
        Winter white and hoary, ruling all the land.

        Silver bells a-jingling on the frosty air   ;

        Human hearts a-tingling, in a world so fair
        Violets quietly sleeping, underneath the snow
        Springtime seedlets leaping, in their .beds below                 ;

        All the world rejoicing at the Savior's birth       ;

        God is in His heaven, and peace is on the earth               !

                                             Lon J. Haddock.
LOGAN, UTAH

<!-- page:243 -->

Testimony Derived from the Balkan War

    BY FERDINAND F. HINTZE, FORMER MISSIONARY TO TURKEY

      There are two classes of testimonies concerning the truthfulness of latter-day revelations.   One is individual, the other, general.   The testimony I wish to speak of is of the latter kind.
      General testimonies are derived from such sources as are
plainly discernible to all who are enlightened by the spirit of truth
from God. This spirit reveals the purposes and plans of God's
dealing with man, and assures men that the word of God spoken
by his holy prophets, ancient and modern, are true, are being fulfilled,   or will surely be   fulfilled.   The Balkan War is such a one.
     From a scriptural poine of view, it is quite possible, to show
that the Turkish power was ordained of God to do a great and
mighty work to his honor and glory, even as were Pharaoh and
Cyrus, and other historical characters. They were raised up to do
a certain work for the benefit and advancement of God's mighty
purposes, and when they passed away, left their histories as warnings and testimonies to future generations.
     The writer, having spent many years among the various peoples inhabiting Turkey, is prepared to fully substantiate that the
Ottoman Turks are at least no worse than the average other peoples inhabiting Turkey, in Europe, and Asia Minor.    Whatever is
done by the Turks is generally considered wrong, in any event,
because they differ from us Christians in both religion and civil
government; whatever outrages the Christians commit are, as a
rule,     minimized, or entirely hushed, because they are Christians,
and because our sympathies are strongly              Christian.   But the
                                                                     _

Latter-day Saints should not be biased our speakers and writers
                                                 ;

should not be so entirely blinded by religious prejudices, that they
can not speak fairly of all of God's children.
     Personally, I wish to bear testimony to the many virtues of
the Turks.    They are morally a clean people. They are sober
virtuous, and as a rule, very truthful, far beyond the
                                                         measure of
                              them or  living in their midst.  They
the Christians surrounding
                                                       God's chosen
are extremely pious, and are taught that they are
people, that they must be good, pure and upright, in
                                                       order to gain
 the paradise of the righteous.
                                                         that make
      These are all good qualities. They have others
                               their arrogant, despotic natures de-
 them hated one of these is
                 :

        from their form of government,   by  which they arrogate to
 rived