--- 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: 20 number: 9 published: 1917-07 publisher: Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations publisher_place: Salt Lake City language: en type: magazine reference: 'Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations, "Utah Pioneers," *Improvement Era* 20, no. 9 (July 1917): 831–835.' source: url: https://archive.org/details/improvementera2009unse 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: improvementera2009unse start_page: 831 end_page: 835 rights: status: public-domain basis: US publication 1930 or earlier (published 1917-07) source: https://archive.org/details/improvementera2009unse publication_year: 1917 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 1917, before 1931; a scan-level notice does not restore copyright. --- # Utah Pioneers EDITORS' TABLE 831 tyranny that have been inaugurated against not only one nation, but others, because they were not able to defend themselves. Where will it end if might is to be right, if men filled with desire of conquest and of increasing their power can do as they please with their neighbors? The people of the United States feel that they ought to defend the freedom of mankind; and furthermore they believe in the right of men to govern themselves and not to be subject to an autocratic government. I believe that the spirit of freedom is working among nations. Russia has been ruled by an autocrat, so that the people had nothing to say in the management of their government. They have cast off despotism. I fear that, having been so long oppressed, they are hardly able to govern themselves, but I hope there will be leaders strong enough to lead them, so that they may overcome the elements of disunity and ignorance, and that they may establish a government there of the people, and for the people. Our Young Men Will Do Their Duty Now we are called upon to send our young men over to help the oppressed. It is not only the love we have for our fellow beings that makes us do this, but also the wisdom of seeing that we ourselves mav be protected against the power that seeks to govern and rule, whether the people want to be ruled or not. I am glad to see so many here, and as far as our young men are concerned, 1 know that they will do their duty, that they will not be found lacking, whether it be to go to war or to stay at home, attending to those things that will build up the people here. I believe that in whatever circumstances they may be placed, they will continue faithful. * I hope that the foundation ot faith laid in their hearts will not be shaken, and that they will go as God- fearing young men, not influenced by the evils and temptations that gener- ally attend warring armies, but that they will carry out what they have learned in their youth, and set such an example before others that they will be looked upon as indeed sons of God-fearing parents and young men that want to do right. „ ,, , May God bless them, and may the associations of the Young Men, the Young Ladies, and the Primaries and Religion Classes continue to prosper and help our youth to form such characters that they may be able to with- stand the trials and temptations that come in life. May the Lord bless these organizations and those who are called to lead and guide them, I ask in the name of Jesus. Amen. Where and Under What Spirit to Enlist* By President Charles W. Penrose This assembly to me is a most beautiful sight, and the influence pre.ent gladdens my heart. It opens to me, to some extent, a vision of the future of this ChJrch with which we are associated, and in which we have the privilege of membership. For, while it is true that a few of our >oung people'are headstrong and wilful and sometimes rebeRious and err and stray from the strait and narrow path, yet, as I have often said, I am con SlhetruThaml a desire for righ.eonsness, a desire to do good, .o abs.am ~ Remarks made at the M. I. A. and Primary Conference, Jane 10, 1917. 832 IMPROVEMENT ERA from evil, to follow in the footsteps of their faithful parents, to serve the Lord and keep his commandments and aid in building up the great latter- day work which our heavenly Father has commenced on the earth in ful- filment of the sayings of ancient and modern prophets. So, I am encour- aged today in looking upon this vast assembly, composed largely of our young people, members of the Mutual Improvement and Primary Associa- tions, young men and young women, and boys and girls who are associated with the anxiliary organizations, which have been established under the in- spiration of the Lord for the training of the younger members of our com- munity in righteousness, in truth, in a knowledge of the principles of eternal life, revealed in the gospel of Jesus Christ, as restored to earth in these latter days. An Inspiring Prospect I am glad in my soul today to feel the conviction that the young mem- bers of our community will move forward to the places designed for them, and take up the work commenced by their fathers and mothers and grand- fathers and grandmothers and carry it on to a glorious victory, the consum- mation so devoutly to be wished — the establishment of the kingdom of God to be paramount in the earth, that the kingdoms of this world may become the kingdom of our God and of our Lord Jesus Christ, who is the rightful King, and who will come in power and glory and reign from pole to pole and from shore to shore. I am thankful for the convictions in my soul in regard to the future of this work. Like many of my brethren around me, and some of my sisters here, I have labored for many years in this great cause, and each succeeding year brings stronger testimony of its divinity, of its ab- solute truth, because it has been established, not by the power of man, but by the power and through the revelations of the Most High God, through Jesus Christ, our Redeemer. So I am assured, more and more, that the time will come when we shall not only be better understood by our fellow crea- tures in the world, who are not of our faith, but that the power of the holy priesthood, revealed from on high, will be exercised to establish righteous- ness and bring about that glorious peace foreseen by the poets and sages and prophets of old. And today I am thankful to God that I have the priv- ilege of looking upon this vast assembly of our young people engaged in the work of mutual improvement and in learning the primary lessons of the gospel of Christ. In Enlisting, Join the National Guard of Utah I did not arise, however, to occupy time in preaching, I did not expect to say anything this afternoon, but a request has been made by the Governor of this State, represented by the Secretary of State, Harden Bennion, the governor now being absent, that those of our young men who desire to enlist in sustaining the movement made by the Government of the United States for the protection of human liberty, for the establishment of freedom in the place of despotism and militarism and tyranny, shall be able to see the ad- vantages indeed, of joining the National Guard of Utah in the service of the United States. There are a great many reasons that might be given for this, but I do not expect to take up time in enlarging upon them, but hope that every young man who desires to do something in this line for the advancement of liberty and the establishment of good government and the overturning of misrule throughout the world, will see the benefit of being associated with brethren and friends, of being under the direction of officers from our own midst, men of Utah, most of them men belonging to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, of being associated with men of the same faith and the same desires and the same grand intents. EDITORS' TABLE 833 Spirit in Which Young Men Should Enter the Service None of our young brethren, I hope, have the least desire to go forth into the world to shed human blood. That is not a part of our faith, nor our aim and object in the world. We want to establish peace but some- times peace has to be obtained through war. This cruel war has not been entered upon, as I understand it, by the authorities of the United States for the purpose of making conquest, obtaining an extension of territory or ac- quiring property, but rather in the spirit of sacrifice, to do good, to defend our liberties and to extend the blessings of freedom to every nation that is oppressed. And going forth in that spirit they can do it under the influ- ence of the Holy Ghost, they can do it under the direction of good men and for good and wise purposes. Our heavenly Father established this govern- ment in this way: He inspired wise men, great men, strong men, to lay the foundations of this government on eternal, righteous, principles. The principles that underlie th-3 Constitution of the United States and are set forth in the Declaration of Independence are God-given. I do not mean to say that they were entirely original with the men who wrote those instru- ments, for truth is eternal, without beginning and without end, and the prin- ciples embodied in those instruments are absolute truth, and these men were inspired of God to embody them in the nation of which we form a part as a State in the Union, for the benefit of all mankind, "all flesh," as we read in the Doctrine and Covenants, so that truth and liberty and the protection of human rights and the freedom of every individual to worship God according to the dictates of his own conscience might be preserved, and go forth to all nations, eventually, through the influence and power of this governmental institution which God has set up, that light and truth and liberty shall prevail, and tyranny and oppression be overcome, and all man- kind made free to unite together according to just and righteous principles to serve God according to the dictates of their own consciences unmolested. Now, in going forth in this spirit our young men will be doing no harm un- less they engage in something that is vicious and evil, is contrary to the doctrines of the Church to which they belong, contrary to the principles of our faith; for the doctrines of this Church inculcate purity of life, purity of conduct, enjoining just as much purity in the male as in the female, and if our young men go forth in the spirit of purity of life, righteousness of conduct, with a good example for others to follow, and have in their hearts, not a desire for conquest and to shed human blood, but to protect our coun- try and to carry to other countries the principles of freedom which we look upon as paramount, they will be under the influence and power of Almighty God, and be able to accomplish a great and mighty work and they will in no wise lose their reward. Loyal to God, Country and Home Now, the chief point, then, that I wish to present to our young men in this congregation today is the desire of the Governor and his associates in this state that the number required to be raised in the National Guard of Utah shall be obtained, and the plan shall be effected, and that Utah will be able to stand in the roster of States having the proper number, accord- ing to the lists made out for the respective State organizations and will not be behind in any good work. We desire to show, for a fact, that notwith- standing reports that have been circulated, concerning the people of Utah and particularly the Latter-day Saints — the "Mormon" people — that we are loyal to our Government, as we desire to be, first of all, loyal to our God and to the truths which He has revealed. We want to stand shoulder to shoulder with other good citizens of the United States in maintaining the principles of our Government and in defending this nation, in association with other nations that are assailed, in the maintenance of truth and liberty for the benefit of all mankind. That is the spirit of it. 834 IMPROVEMENT ERA Why Join the National Guard? Now, then, the desire is that the proper number shall be raised and that our young men who desire to enlist in the armies of the United States shall make the preference of enlisting in the National Guard of Utah. They will have their own officers, they will be associated with men of their own kind, they will be much freer from contamination and the temptations which overcome a great many who enter into the armies and navies of the world, and be able to maintain their purity, their standing as members of the Church, and to do good work as members of the Mutual Improvement As- sociation to which they belong. The Spirit of Right Living Now, I thank the Lord for this sight this afternoon, for the beautiful music that we have heard, for the good spirit that is here, for the splendid reports that I have heard of the meetings of this conference at all its ses- sions, and for the earnest desire made manifest by the young men and young ladies of our community to enlist in the great cause of human re- demption, of mutual improvement, to help one another to do right, to over- come wrong, to live according to the laws of God Almighty, to live in ac- cordance with the laws of their country, to maintain the rights and priv- ileges of all people, that the time may come when everybody on the face of the earth shall be free; free to do right, free to serve God, to carry out their own convictions of right, so long as they do not interfere with the con- victions of other people, and to prepare the way for the coming of him whose right it is to reign — Jesus the Christ, the "Only Begotten of the Father" in the flesh, our Elder Brother in the spirit, with whom we are associated in this great work of the latter days which he has set up. May God con- tinue to pour out his Spirit upon this conference, and may his blessing at- tend every effort that is being made for the accomplishment of the pur- poses I have briefly alluded to, I ask, through Jesus Christ. Amen. Utah Pioneers A month or two ago the Improvement Era offered twenty- five dollars as a prize for the best essay on the Utah Pioneers. The offer was extensively advertised in the universities and high schools, and a great many made applications for information relating to the matter. However, only six essays were received by the time set, June 1. The committee to whom these were re- ferred report to the Improvement Era that not one of these is suit- able or up to the standard for publication in the magazine. Care- ful thought had not been given to the idea, and in every case the form, or development, of the essay was faulty, and without dis- tinctive purpose. We have therefore returned the essays and will make a further attempt in the future to obtain the subject matter that we desire. The object of the offer was to encourage essay-writing, and give opportunity for young people over eight- een and under twenty-five years of age to show their apprecia- tion of the Pioneers of Utah by a definite thought. We regret that the response has been so limited. While the efforts re- EDITORS' TABLE 835 ceived are appreciated they are scarcely up to the standard that the Improvement Era desires, and we further believe that they are not as good as even the authors who have sent them can make them. M. I. A.