--- title: Improvement Era description: Monthly periodical of the Mormon church, 1897 onward. This library holds the issues of November 1897 to December 1930. authors: - Hewer, A. C. A. Dean collections: - periodicals tags: - magazine - improvement-era periodical: Improvement Era volume: 22 number: 10 published: 1919-08 publisher: Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations publisher_place: Salt Lake City language: en type: magazine reference: 'Hewer, A. C. A. Dean, "What of Yesterday?," *Improvement Era* 22, no. 10 (August 1919): 870.' source: url: https://archive.org/details/improvementera22010unse 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: improvementera22010unse start_page: 870 end_page: 870 rights: status: public-domain basis: US publication 1930 or earlier (published 1919-08) source: https://archive.org/details/improvementera22010unse publication_year: 1919 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 1919, before 1931; a scan-level notice does not restore copyright. --- # What of Yesterday? 872 IMPROVEMENT KRA /ion in the last days. If their kings were defeated, Immanuel would triumph. If the land of Canaan were trodden down, the land of Joseph would flourish. If they were scattered, they would be gathered again. If the temple of Solomon were destroyed, the Lord's house would still be built "in the tops of the mountains." Joseph Smith, shortly after organizing the Church, the members of which were now seeking a western home, had made it known that the time had come when the Lord would fulfil his promises in relation to the gathering of Israel and the establishment of Zion, and that the place especially prepared and suited for the carrying out of these purposes, was AMERICA PREEMINENTLY A LAND OF PEACE AND LIBERTY "On the Western hemisphere every country has free access to the sea." somewhere in the Rocky Mountains. This message was in the mind of Brigham Young when he said, "This is the place!" We can appreciate, to some degree, the joy it brought to his heart, and to the hearts of the earnest men and women, who were following him when the place was designated, and they realized that they were looking out upon the Promised Land. The object of this brief discussion is to point out, in the light of its present development and geographical position in the world, how perfectly the place is adapted for the purpose intended to serve. it is The bearing and influence which the topography and geographical location of a country have upon the development