Excerpts from Addresses Made by the First Presidency at Conference

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA 3^E Vol. 33-41 AUGUST, 1930 No. 10 Excerpts from Addresses made by First Presidency at j Conf une ^onierence Responsibility Resting on Youth of Church to Uphold Ideals, Spread Gospel Truths, Honor and Obey the Law. PRESIDENT HEBER J. GRANT I WISH to extend to the Pres- idencies of the Young Ladies Mutual Improvement Associ- ations throughout the world, and the superintendencies of Young Men's organizations of all the stakes together with the presiden- cies of the various ward associa- tions of the Young Men and Young Ladies my sincere thanks as the editor of the Improvement Era for the wonderful way in which they have inspired the people to subscribe for this magazine. It is little less than wonderful since the combination of the two magazines — the Young Woman's Journal and the Era — to note the support that has been given the new mag- azine, the Improvement Era, and I hope that all concerned will con- tinue the good work. I am thoroughly convinced that one of the finest things that can happen in any home is to have the Improvement Era come there once a month. It is full of splendid articles, uplifting in their nature and for the benefit of your chil- dren. And instead of spending your money — those of you who do not have this magazine in your homes — in allowing your children to go to picture shows that migbr result in their downfall because of the pictures not being of an uplift- ing nature, I commend each and all of you to have that magazine in your home, that your children can have it where they can put their hands on it, as it is calculated in its nature to implant in their hearts a knowledge of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. (~\UR fathers and mothers came ^ here for no other purpose than to serve the Lord and to spread the Gospel abroad, and I feel that there is a lack of interest in his own fam- ily on the part of the man who does not try to have in his home such literature and such informa- tion as will benefit his children and lead them in that straight and nar- row path which leads to life eter- nal. In the first meeting of this con- ference of the Mutual Improvement Association we adopted and pledged ourselves to carry out the following four items: "To study and know the laws regulating tobacco, liquor and safety." The next item is: "That we observe these laws ourselves." I propose to do it. "That we will co-operate on a strict enforcement of these laws." 'That we will do all we can to get others to do the same." rF HERE is a law in our state that minors shall not smoke cigar- ettes, and the majority of our chil- dren who are going to high school and to our state university are minors, and yet we know abso- lutely that some of those minors are smoking cigarettes on the streets of our city. In the future I shall consider it my duty and the duty of every person who made this pledge at our meeting, although it is a disagreeable task, to complain against those who are under age and smoking. It is simply fright- ful, with our wide streets, that we are having more accidents than al- most any other city in the United States, and it is due to the reckless driving and the breaking of the prohibition law. I would thank the Lord from the bottom of my heart if the judges of Utah would send such men to the penitentiary instead of giving them light fines. It would be one of the greatest aids in breaking up this killing of peo- ple if every time a person under the influence of liquor is guilty of driv- ing fast, when an accident happens and people are injured, he could get a year behind the bars. T\7E are very anxious that our ** children shall grow intellec- tually, physically and morally. Perhaps the greatest benefactor to mankind at the present time is

660 The Improvement Era for August, 1930 Thomas A. Edison- I stood on a mountain behind Hollywood one night some time ago and saw the electric lights blazing for a distance of twenty-five miles, one of the most splendid sights in an evening that I have ever seen, and all of it due to the genius of Thomas A. Edison, who wrote in a letter to Henry Ford: "The injurious agent in cigarettes comes principally from the burning paper wrapper. The substance thereby formed is called 'Acrolein.' It has a violent action on the nerve centers, producing degeneration of the cells of the brain, which is quite rapid among boys. Un- like most narcotics, this degeneration is permanent and uncontrollable. "I employ no person who smokes cigarettes. "Yours, "Thos. A. Edison." "CATHERS and mothers, re- member that cigarettes degen- erate the brain in an uncontrollable manner, and that the degeneration is permanent in your boys when they smoke cigarettes. And for heaven's sake at least keep your girls from doing it. Not only does it destroy their brains but it destroys the God-given power to bring forth sons and daughters into this world. Dr. Fred J. Pack, in an article published in the Scientific Temper- ance Journal, says: "A total of 210 men contested for po- sitions on the first teams." (That is in football) "Of the non-smokers 65.8 per cent were successful. "Of the smokers only 33.3 per cent were successful." It lacks only one-eighth of one per cent of being one hundred per cent more non-smokers than smok- ers who obtained positions on the football team. Thank fortune we have a man at the head of our ath- letic department at the University of Utah who does not have any cigarette smokers on the football team! I do not think this team would hold the championship of the intermountain states if many of the players were smokers. Dr. Pack continues: "This was not only true in the six institutions which furnished data about the tryout when taken as a total but in each of the six the non-smokers far outstripped the smokers. In one institution not a single smoker obtained a place on the team." UOLY men and holy women ,11 j^yg been blessed with the gift J. Y Cobb is given the credit for being the greatest baseball player in his day. He has become too old now to play baseball, and I think has been released. Among other things he says: "Too much cannot be said against the evils of cigarette smok- ing. It stupiRes the brain, saps vitality, undermines one's health, and lessens the moral fiber of the man. No boy who hopes to be successful in any line can afford to contract a habit that is so detri- mental to his physical and moral development. "The alert brain, the strong body, and the moral stamina nec- essary for the success in any line of endeavor ate weakened and\ des- troyed by the cigarette habit; and young men should realize its dis- astrous effects." — Pres. Heber J. Grant of tongues in our Church, and I stand here today as a living witness before you that by the gift of tongues to my wife whose body lies in the grave, I was promised that I should live to lift up my voice in many lands and in many climes, proclaiming the restoration to the earth of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. Subsequent to that I was operated upon for appendicitis and before I had ever lifted up my voice in any foreign land. Eight out of nine doctors said I had to die. One of them said to President Joseph F. Smith, who was present at the operation: "Mr. Smith, you do not need to think of such a possibility as this man recovering. If he recovered it would be a miracle, and this is not the day of miracles." I did recover, notwithstanding the fact that it was announced blood poisoning in the third and last stage had set in. - And I have lifted up my voice, after the sen- tence of death was passed upon me, in England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Germany, France, Holland, Belgium, Switzerland, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Canada and Mexico; from Portland, Maine, to Portland, Oregon; in the Hawaiian Islands, and in the far-off land of Japan, declaring that I know that God lives, that I know that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God, the Redeemer of the world; that I know that Joseph Smith was a prophet of the true and the living God, called by God to establish again upon the earth the plan of life and salvation. I know these things and I rejoice in them. I pray God to bless you one and all and every honest hearted soul upon the face of the earth, and I do it in the name of Jesus, our Re- deemer. Amen. PRESIDENT ANTHONY W. IVINS IT is now more than fifty years since the first Mutual Improve- ment Association was organ- ized in the Church. There have been other associations formed for somewhat similar purposes, but during the early days of pioneering there had been very little time to devote to the cultivation of the literary and artistic tastes of the young people. It was a time of work, a period of colonization, when the Church was reaching out north and south, establishing new settlements in remote regions. One thing, however, was never neglected. Wherever a colony of Latter-day Saints pitched their tents their first endeavor was the establishment of a school. There was a thirst for knowledge. Boys and girls were seeking after truth. They wanted to know something of the world, its history, its peo- ple, its achievements. Associations were organized in many different localities, some called literary associations or so- cieties, some debating clubs, some dramatic associations, all having in a general way the same idea in view. It was for the development of these associations, if I remem- ber correctly, that the idea of bring- ing all these various organizations and clubs and societies under one organization was suggested, where these desires, these various tastes, where the literary, the artistic and other educational branches might be taught and more thor- oughly and properly developed. AND so we organized Mutual Y Improvement Associations, very different indeed in their direc- tion and management and forma- tion from those that we have at present, but always striving for the same ideals, the ideals of the Latter-day Saints, of the Church of Jesus Christ established in the age in which we live, the opening of a new Gospel dispensation, which was to be carried to all the world as a new witness for God and his Son Jesus Christ. But this thought came to me

The Improvement Era for August, 1930 661 this morning: With all the truth that has come into the world and that has been applied for the bene- fit and convenience of man during the past century, the fundamentals of truth have never changed. They are the same today that they have always been. They will remain the same tomorrow and forever, because the truth changeth not. T COPIED this morning a letter that I desire to read. It is dated Alexandria, 29th, the fifth month, 1794: "Dear son Isaac: Thee is now going from under the care of thy loving father, whose eyes have ever been watchful for thy good, into the wide world. Thee will now be under the care of Captain Very who will advise thee for thy good, and I would wish thee to be advised by him. I have thought it most for thy good for thee to go to Salem, to learn the trade of a tanner. * * * "As thee will be among strangers take good care how thee forms acquaintances. Let them be friends, if possible, and steady sober lads, older than thyself, and the fewer the better. A young man's happi- ness both in this world and that which is to come, in a great measure depends upon the connections he forms while young. Keep steady to meeting and to plainness in apparel, and that God that made us will protect you from all harm. Above all things be true to thy trust, and de- fraud no man though the thing may be small, but do unto other men as thee would that they should do unto thee. "And by so doing thee will gain the esteem of all good men and thy Master and come up into the world a useful member of society. Thee will have peace in thy own mind which cannot be taken away except by actions which I hope thee will not be guilty of. * * * "If thee agrees to stay I shall send thee a certificate, which thee must take to the monthly meeting. "As there will be many opportunities I would have thee write often and let me know if thee stand in need of any- thing, and I will endeavor to furnisih thee from time to time. "I want thee to serve five years and a half, then thee will have some time in the winter, which will give time for thee to prepare for setting thyself in the spring following. "I now recommend thee to that God who has protected me from my youth until this time, my father having died when I was about four years old, and I am sure he is the same Heavenly Father that ever he was, and will remain to protect and preserve all those that love and fear him. "From thy loving father, "BENJ. SHREVE." "N. B. — Take care of the little money thee has, for thee will find that to be a friend when all others have forsaken thee. I shall furnish thee with small mat- ters of money according as I hear of, thy behavior. Often read this advice and en- deavor to follow it." I am thinking of another ex- ample which came under my obser- vation. I was among the Navajo Indians in Arizona, the strongest States. I was surprised to learn that among them the turkey is re- garded as an unclean bird. They would not eat its flesh. I wanted to know why and they told me this story: A long time ago a great flood covered the country, and the Great Spirit commanded two of all the animals and of all the birds to go up on top of the San Francisco peak, which is the highest mount- ain in that neighborhood. All went willingly except the turkey gobbler. He went very reluctantly and as ther water rose he went down into the edge of the water, and there he strutted and gobbled, and defied the flood. But it con- tinued to rise until the mud settled on his tail and held him fast so that he could not get out. But the turkey family could only be pre- served by releasing this bird, and so the Great Spirit, through his power lifted him out of the mud and placed him on the top of the peak. Now as the man tells this story to his boys and girls he says to them: This is why you must never gobble, never strut, never pretend anything but that which you are. Think slowly, but when your thoughts are once concen- trated act quickly. Be slow to make friends, but be true to those you have. Can you beat that for these Boy Scouts? It appears to me to be an ideal that is worth while, and do we not see examples of that strutting turkey gobbler almost every day of our lives? T ■L ODAY the more than human element is visible in our creed The life of the Prophet Joseph Smith is a testimony to all the world of the inspiration of God to that man. A young man without education, predicting the war be- tween the North and the South! He prophesied that we would be driven from state to state, from county to county, and from city to city, and eventually be driven to the Rocky Mountains; that the saints, would continue to suffer much af- fliction, many would be put to death, others would lose their lives in consequence of exposure and disease; and some would live to assist in building cities and mak- ing settlements and become a great and mighty people in the midst of the Rocky Mountains. He re- quested that this prophecy be re- corded, and it was recorded in the journal of Anson Call. — Pres. Heber J. Grant WAS in St. George, a little A town where the greater part of my life was spent. Early in the morning I arose and walked out to the cemetery. I stood there by the graves of my parents. I walked up and down those narrow streets and read the names inscribed on the tombstones. There was not a name that I did not recognize, not a person whose life had not influ- enced mine for good that I could remember. I thought of the devo- tion of those men and women, of the sacrifices they had made. They were my Sunday School and day school teachers, who framed the beginning of my life. They lived and died for ideals. Their faith in God, their faith in the opening of this Gospel dispensation, the purpose of it, the redemption of human kind which was to come through it, was unwavering. These are the ideals they taught me, that they lived for and which they died for, all of them in pov- erty. I heard Erastus Snow say, who was in the vanguard of all the accomplishments! in that region, that there were times when he had not money enough to buy a post- age stamp, but he had riches that the wealth of the world could not purchase. CO I thought as I walked down *^ those lanes, with God's help I will never do a thing that shall bring discredit on those good men and women, and I know that my experience there was the experience of every one of you. If you will go into the cemetery in the town where you live you will think of your father and your grandfather, of the thing that brought them here; you will understand then what the ideals of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are. God help us to exemplify them in our lives. If we do they will lead us back into the presence of those who have passed on before, into the presence of Christ our Lord. God bless you, my brethren and sisters, through Jesus Christ. Amen. PRESIDENT CHARLES W. NIBLEY IT is indeed gratifying to note the great interest that our young people have in these conferences. This organization that you are tribe of Indians in the United

662 The Improvement Era for August, 1930 connected with — I mean the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter- day Saints — is the greatest thing in all the world. Every other sys- tem, every other organization sinks into insignificance compared to this. Why? Because it is the bearer of a direct message from the Eternal Father, miraculously sent. It is not of the wisdom of man; it is the wisdom of God. You who are gathered here, you young people, and some older ones, your parents came here believing with all their hearts in this mes- sage of Mormonism. They heard it in the simplest kind of way, by the testimony of humble men. These men as a rule were not ed- ucated, not cultured, but, they had in them a strong testimony of the divinity of this thing called Mor- monism. 'T'HEY told their story u* a sim- pie way. Generally speaking, it was the poor who heard the mes- sage, the poor were gathered in, and the poor have accomplished what we see. They came here be- cause of certain convictions, such as St. Paul sets forth in one of his epistles. St. Paul was acquainted with the philosophies of men; he was learned; but he had received such a divine witness in his soul that he cast aside the philosophies of men and his own wisdom and learning for the one thing that was then above all other things with him and that was Christ and him crucified. He said to the Corin- thian Saints; "And I, brethren, when I come to you, came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the tes- timony of God. "For I determined not to know any- thing among you, save Jesus Christ and him crucified. "And I was with you in weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling. "And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power." TN like manner there has come to ■ the world in this our time a message which it is our duty to preach and deliver to the world. You young people, on your shoul- ders the responsibility will fall to carry this message unto people all over the earth. And, like Paul, you will go determined to know nothing else, for it is the supreme message of the present age. Of course, it is commendable to seek wisdom in all good books. We are told to do so in a revelation to the Prophet Joseph Smith — even by study and by faith. Do not forget that part of it. TF there is anything that is lovely -*■ or of good report or praise- worthy, anything that makes for the growth and development and betterment of mankind, we seek after those things. But we need not waste much time seeking out the philosophies of men. Indeed there is not much time to waste, for this is a day of warning and not of many words. The time is short. The hour is present. The Gospel must be preached, not with enticing words of men's wisdom, but by the power of God. For you have something to give which the world, with all its philosophies, has not. You have the Priesthood, the power of God unto salvation, the Gospel of Jesus Christ. CO that this mysterious power, *^ which men can understand only by the Holy Ghost, is given to this Church; and by that power we may build up a better civilization than can be found any- where else in the world. Nothing of good that anyone outside has is lost to us. The philosophies of men that are good and that lead to good, we have them. They are here. We do not need to seek for them. But the key to the knowledge of God they have not. We have it from on high. That is what you young men and you young women who go out as mis- sionaries are expected to preach, as Paul did. He could have talked about the philosophies and theories of men until doomsday. But the one thing that he eternally talked about, and the only thing, was Christ and him crucified. That was new. They did not believe it. It was the supreme message then. In the last chapter of the Book of Mormon the Lord holds out a challenge to all the world. I must read it. The Lord is speaking here of this miraculous work that is to come forth in the last days: Wh HEREFORE, I the Lord * * also gave commandments to others, that they should proclaim these things unto the world; and all this that it might be fulfilled, which was written by the prophets — The weak things of the world shall come forth and break down the mighty and strong ones * * * " . "And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you by the power of the Holy Ghost." AND that, my young brethren -**• and my young sisters and old- er brethren and sisters, is the mes- sage of Mormonism. It must be preached in the power and demon- stration of the Holy Ghost, which enlighteneth the heart and con- vinces the soul of the truth of the Gospel. Above all things, my young brethren and sisters, as the ideal of Mormonism, in your preaching and teaching, sincerity first. First know the truth. No man can teach the truth of this Gospel un- less he first believes in it. The Lord requires sincerity of heart. The power of the Priesthood is the power of God unto salvation. I say it again, that is what we have to give, and it is beyond anything which the world has. That is the power that has built up this Church. Not the power of man at all, nor the wisdom of man, but the power of God, the power and spirit of revelation. T ET me read another item from ~ the Doctrine and Covenants. This was given at a time when Oliver Cowdery was assisting the Prophet in bringing forth the Book of Mormon: "Yea, behold, I will tell you in your mind, and in your heart, by the Holy Ghost, which shall come upon you and which shall dwell in your heartt. "Now, behold, this is the spirit cf revelation; behold, this is the spirit by which Moses brought the children of Israel through the Red Sea on dry ground." HTHIS is the spirit, I want to testify, that guides this Church today. The power of the Holy Ghost is manifest through Pres- ident Heber J. Grant as it was through the Prophet Joseph or Brigham Young, or John Taylor, or any one of those who followed the prophet as presidents of the Church. It is not the power or wisdom of Heber J. Grant, not at all. But he is the man called at this time to be a prophet, and by the spirit of revelation, and the power of the Holy Ghost resting upon him the Church is guided. By that power we conquer. God bless you. Amen.