--- 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: 32 number: 11 published: 1929-09 publisher: Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations publisher_place: Salt Lake City language: en type: magazine reference: "Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations, “Messages from the Missions,” *Improvement Era* 32, no. 11 (September 1929): 947–952." source: url: https://archive.org/details/improvementera32011unse 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: improvementera32011unse start_page: 947 end_page: 952 rights: status: public-domain basis: US publication 1930 or earlier (published 1929-09) source: https://archive.org/details/improvementera32011unse publication_year: 1929 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 1929, before 1931; a scan-level notice does not restore copyright. --- # Messages from the Missions Messages From the Missions Conference in Virginia District President Neldon L. Rich- ards of the West Virginia South dis- trict in the Eastcentral States mission writes : In sending a group picture of the missionaries in attendance at the recent annual conference of the West Vir- ginia South district, we unite in send- ing greetings to our co-workers throughout the world and friends and loved ones at home. The first of our five sessions of conference, was held at Huntington, where the Saints and friends who filled the chapel enjoyed the counsel of Pres. Miles L. Jones and the re- marks of the visiting missionaries. The following day (May 19th) many attended the three splendid ses- sions held in Charleston. At each Pres. Jones presented some inspiration- al and instructive thoughts, and the talks of each of the missionaries were very uplifting. Special musical selec- MISSIONARIES OF WEST VIRGINIA SOUTH DISTRICT. EASTCENTRAL STATES MISSION Front row, left to right: Neldon L. Richards, district president: Miles L. Jones, mission president: Sister Miles L. Jones: Edith Wooton. West Virginia North district; Alice Jenkins, West Virginia North district; Irma Bihlcr. mission stenographer; Mary Burch, Melba Cox. Middle row: Alma Hanson. R. Evan Gee. West Virginia North district; Marlin Erickson, West Virginia North district: Alberta Gren. Edith Young. Margaret Inkley. Top row: DeLos Anderson. Fenno Casto. G. Ross Huntington. Bruce Lyman, president Kentucky district: Clyde Hollingshcad. Mclvin S. Hamilton, president West Virginia North district: Derald Stowell, James Ball. 950 IMPROVEMENT ERA Sept.. 1929 tions were arranged by the local mem- bers and added much to the spirit of the meetings. The concluding session held at Verdunville, was favored by the same interest and spirit which accompanied the previous sessions. Many were in attendance there who had never be- fore attended a Latter-day Saints' meeting. We rejoice in the truth and its steady advancement in the world. Many opportunities are presenting themselves in the tracting and meetings held by the elders. The lady mission- aries have five non-"Mormon" pri- maries which are held regularly each week with an attendance of 20 to 40 boys and girls. These are wonderful openings for the Gospel message. We take this opportunity of ex- pressing our appreciation and thanks for the Era as it is an invaluable aid to the missionaries. Sheffield District Conference and M. I. A. Day After expressing appreciation of the Era and stating that it is used as a mis- sionary medium, Elder John P. Hopkinson, president of the Sheffield district, adds: An enjoyable spirit of Easter per- meated the Sheffield district conference, held in our chapel in Sheffield, Sun- day, March 31st. Many interested persons gathered to hear the stirring message of "Mormonism" and to par- ticipate in the splendid services. The spirit of the Lord Was present in abundance at all the sessions. Presi- MISSIONARIES OF SHEFFIELD DISTRICT. BRITISH MISSION Front row, left to right: Elbert C. Kirkham; Louis S. Leatham, district clerk; Gwendolyn Lund; John P. Hopkinson. district president; Mission President A. Wrn. Lund; Josephine B. Lund; Alvin G. Pack; Joseph S. Savage, president of the Liverpool district; Ralph A. Garner, European mission office, and Joseph E. Whitehead. Back row: Rulon S. Scoville, Newcastle district; Virgil E. White. Edward L. Hall. Leo V. Toombs. Hull district; George W. Linford, Richard K. Knight, London district: Wesley D. Amott. Raymond H. Swenson. Lucian C. Reid. Arthur B. Livingston. Hull district; Edward E. Morgan. Jay M. Smith, Henry J. Bates. Leeds district. Sept.. 1929 MESSAGES FROM THE MISSIONS 951 dent A. William Lund discoursed on the crucifixion and resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, and bore solemn testimony to the truth and efficacy of Chri't's mission on earth. On Easter Monday, April 1st, a keen spirit of friendly rivalry was manifest at the district M. I. A. finals. Since the inauguration of competitive activities last spring, the Mutual Im- provement Associations throughout the district have been bending every effort toward making the event this year more successful than was the one held last year. The dreams of the members of the various branches were realized when they joined together to prove that Sheffield district has the proper spirit for contest work among its people. The program for the day included debates, musical contests, vocal and in- strumental renditions, essays, original poems, oratory and extemporaneous public speaking. All contestants joined whole-heart- edly together to make the day and program a success; and when the de- cision was announced by President Lund, all felt that their participation had contributed to the growth of the community and to the success of the event. Sheffield branch won the great- est number of points; it also retains the district M. I. A. banner for the second consecutive year. Much talent was discovered. These contests show that our people possess those qualities which make for use- ful, happy citizens of the Church and community. The practical side of "Mormonism" has proved to be of immense value in the lives of its ad- herents. The spirit of cooperation shown thus far has given all M. I. A. workers a new incentive to greater achievement and usefulness in the fu- ture. Will This Interest You? By Austin A. Carter "Tonga I 'Where is that?" Such is the question submitted wherever the above name is mentioned. People hear the name and wonder. The writer of this article made the same startled interrogations when he received a call from our beloved leader, President Heber J. Grant, to go on a mission to Tonga. Responding to the call, I came to this land, have labored among its peo- ple and will endeavor to answer the above question, and relate some of the interesting things which have been ob- served here. Tonga is but a small group of islands, some two hundred in number, gathered together in the Southern Pacific ocean. Wrapped in the glories of tropical splendor, a regular para- dise for the artist, it is a spot selected for habitation by many Europeans. It is approximately four hundred miles south and east of the Fijian Islands, and practically the same distance south and west of the Samoan group. It is readily admitted the latter group ex- ceeds our much beloved Tonga in size. There are three main divisions in the Tongan group upon which our elders are laboring. The main islands of each group are separated from each other by only a few hours travel if suitable means of transportation could be had. To be more exact, the main islands of the south and that of the north are separated by a one hundred and eight mile expanse of ocean, with the third group situated between them and with many smaller islands dotting the huge ocean between these groups. But travel between islands is accom- 952 IMPROVEMENT ERA Sept.. 1929 plished in small sail boats and much time is thereby consumed. The Lord's work has been estab- lished throughout each of the three di- visions, and we are striving to increase the number over the eleven hundred and thirteen names now on Church record. The Saints and also non-mem- bers treat us well and no serious hardships con- front us. Tonga, needless to say, is no longer infest- ed with canni- bals. The peo- ple are well on their way toward c i v i 1 i z ation. Places of busi- ness are plentiful, education is their chief aim, and everything in the government (which Sis reput- ed as being the only one com- pletely without debt) is accom- plished in an or- derly manner and by well learned The Ha'amoga. men under the direction of a queen who also possesses an enviable edu- cation. Such are a few facts concerning Tonga, but here is what I desire most- ly to say. In the September, 1927, issue of the Improvement Era, appeared an article written by Elder Melvin J. Ballard, concerning the ancient ruins of South America and illustrated by a beautiful array of snaps, with which to support the "External Evidences," as he called them, of the Book of Mormon. This article was of great interest to me, and I recollected some things of like construction which had often at- tracted my attention on the island of Togatabu, Tonga. Unlike many other nations, Tonga is without any authenticated history of former periods, and for that reason little or nothing is known of the origin of its people. Some renowned men would have them of Asiatic descent, but we Latter- day Saints pro- claim to the world that we have learned much of them and their an- cestors through the Book of Mormon. How- ever, very few as yet will accept our belief in this respect. It is my firm conviction that the workman who built the temples, walls and arches, as displayed in Elder Ballard's article, were very closely related to the ancestors of the present gener- ation of Tongans. or gate -way The things which I have already referred to are called the "Lagi" in the Tongan lan- guage, and infers, a place of rest. It is here that the old line of Tongan kings were buried. Each of the larger ones, and there are many of them, covers approxi- mately an acre of ground, and are built of huge slabs of stone which are uni- form in size and in harmony with each other in every respect. In the center of the stone terraces they have dug graves and there buried their chiefs, while all about are great trees hundreds of years old. The slabs of stone in one particular "Lagi" are about twelve feet long. Sept.. 1929 MESSAGES FROM THE MISSIONS 953 four feet wide and over one foot thick. The other one consists of much larger stones, they being approximately four feet square, on the bottom row of stones, with smaller ones forming the two upper rows. However, these too are wonderfully well proportioned and conform most exactly in size and workmanship. The formation of the bottom row of the latter one awakens interest, for the corners are built of huge seamless stones — that is, they do not join with other stones on the corner but extend around it about five feet, forming a jointless corner. This one stone I have made mention of is twenty feet long and has a regular four-foot square shape, as the others have. Its weight would be extremely difficult for an in- experienced person to estimate. Kindly remember that, and it will be of in- terest when you hear of the way these were brought and made. One finds also an old stone gate very similar to that mentioned by Brother Ballard, which is evidently the gate- way of a huge palace or place of wor- ship. This has long since crumbled, but the gate-way still remains almost intact. This old gate-way which is called the Ha'amoga, and means a burden, consists of the same workmanship as the Lagi's and is formed of huge stones placed on end in the ground and reach- ing to a height of twelve feet or more. One day I called on an old Tongan gentleman whose story of these ruins is said to be the only authentic one. He was told it by his mother, who died at a very old age, and she in turn received it from her mother. This is all Tonga knows of the Lagi's and the Ha'amoga. Many years ago Tongans, under the leadership of Tele'a, a chief, visited Uvea, an island some five hundred miles away and brought those mon- strous stones on double canoes to Tonga. All of their labor was accomplished, as the natives believe, with the old Tongan ax, which was made from a smooth rock with ends sharpened somewhat. Through the use of these axes they cut out the huge stones, fashioned jointless corners, made them in almost exact proportions, and built these things which I have briefly and imperfectly described. Archaeologists passing through and examining them claim it to be old Asiatic workmanship, and they even >%tJt* . \ ■*■*. TONGAN RUINS CALLED "LAGT 954 IMPROVEMENT ERA Sept.. 1929 infer that the Chinese or Japanese peo- Obviously these things were built pie were the authors of it all. Of very long ago, and, I suggest, by the course they connect the Tongan with same class of people who built those one of these two races. marvelous things of stone in South After bringing the stones and de- America, and with a better grade of positing them in their present resting tools than a stone ax. place, burials were performed therein, Every line of the ruins suggests and a few years ago one of the old sciCnce and highly developed skill, the graves was opened and there was found ifa 0f which is absolutely unknown an old Tongan pillow made of ivory. arnong the people today. On the ends was found carved a per- „T, ,., ., , c . , . v, r. Where did they learn of such son seemingly hanging, with out- ..,..,. ' „ , stretched arms. They buried it again th'ngf u l believe the Tongan to be through superstitious fears and there it indeed the seed of Father Lehl' dnfted remains to this day. ^ar from his former home. Compar- The person who told me the story, ing these old relics with those of South vouched for the authenticity of it, for America has been an additional force he assisted in uncovering it and saw it in strengthening my testimony of the himself. Book of Mormon story. What Are We Going to Do About It? By Dr. J. H. Paul, of the U. of U. These reflections came to the writer during a recent visit to Bear Lake, to act as nature guide for groups of boy and girl leaders. Impressive reminders of the findings of four leading American economists — Ely, Hess, Leith. and Carver — were frequent there. In their admirable work, The Foundations of National Prosperity, the authors approve the statling conclusions of Regnault, a French investigator, who finds that the decline of Greece, Rome, Spain, Italy, Palestine, China, and parts of Austria, was due, not to the usual causes given by historians (wars, tyranny at home, emigration to other lands, poverty, and popular unrest) , but to a cause only recently disclosed by investigations in forestry- — the failure to practice forest conservation. Exploiting the elevated lands with herds of cattle and sheep, without any rules as to how the grazing should be carried on, led to forest destruction in the uplands and was quickly followed by floods, which poured down upon the lowlands. These resulted in wide-spread ruin of agricultural lands. Diseases from the presence of malarial mosquitoes in the swamps and lagoons made by the floods followed in the wake of the flood losses. Then, of course, poverty and disease discouraged the people, causing them to emigrate to more favored countries. The investigations of Regnault have found favor with the Smithsonian Institution, which published some of his results in its annual report for 1914. The importance of all this to the people of the Rocky Mountain region may be precisely and bluntly put thus: Shall Utah and other intermountain states become, like Spain, Palestine, China, Greece, Italy, another monument to the folly of forest destruction? If not, Western legislatures must act, and act quickly. That is the situation. What are we going to do about it?