f the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. His claims, or those made in h

essing in Liberty jail, Missouri, where his father was confined in the winter of 1838-9 (2) by re

ion in his by lineage-

d to the position by "re

d to it by those holdi

. XXXIX, p. 337; and also The Successor,

hich they are based, the weakness of the argument by which they are sustained, and finally how these claims contradict both

President of the church], through his fathe

on the testimony of Lyman Wig

: "Sunday, December 8th, 1850, bore testimony that Joseph Sm

ortly after we came out of jail,[A] [Liberty jail, Missouri. -Ed.] to lay hands with him on the head of a youth, and heard him cry aloud, "you are my successor when I depart." and heard the blessing

italics are min

t's Herald, Vol. XXXI

church, Mr. Wight knew it in 1844; and is it not strange that he did not speak of it and advocate it when the question of a successor was warmly discussed in Nauvoo, during the autumn of 1844? Why is it that we have nothing from him on the subject earlier than 1850? And this silence on the part of Mr. Wight is the more significant when it is remembered that he was a bo

also made in a Josephite publication. Let it be observed that according to the testimony of Mr Wight, in the Northern Islander, the "blessing and prophecy" under consi

hite tract sustainin

h," p

son, in Liberty jail, Missouri, "little Joseph" was brought by his mother and left with his father in the jail, while she was attending to business affairs in the town-and that then and there[A] Joseph, with Hyrum and himself, laid their

The italics

came out of prison, then it must have taken place in Illinois and not in Missouri at all. For the family of the prophet started from Far West on the 7th of February, 1839, in charge of Stephen Markham, and after many hardships arrived on the banks of the Mississippi, opposite the town of Quincy, Illino

Joseph Smith, Mill. St

d in Quincy, Illinois (Monday, April 22nd) amidst the congratulations of my friends and the embraces of m

oseph Smith, Mill. S

ement with such detail of circumstance. This contradiction in the testimony of Mr. Wight, taken in connection with the fact that at the time of making it, viz, in 1855, he had lost his honor, was an apostate, neither being true to the ch

knew nothing of it; for that they knew nothing of it is evident from their silence. Surely such a thing could not occur in Liberty jail without their knowing it. And had it occurred it is a matter that would have been well remembered and frequently spoken of as one of t

s called to be President of the church

he passage in it supposed to sustain the claim of appointment of

therein, from generation to generation; for this anointing have I put upon his head, that his blessing shall also be put upon the head of his posterity after him, and as I said unto Abraham concerning the kindreds of the earth, even so I say

c. and Cov., se

oes not in any manner refer to succession in the Presidency of the church. What it does refer to is clearly seen in the commencement of the paragraph-"And now I say unto you, as pertaining to my boarding house, which I have commanded you to build for the boarding of strangers, etc." That is the subject of the passage, not the priesthood, nor the succession of the prophet Joseph's son to his father's position as President of the church. How absurd the argument that because a man's posterity are to inherit his stock in a hotel, or succeed to the right of living in it as a return for having paid a large sum towards the construction of it, that ther

for this anointing [appointment and consecration to be prophet and president of the church] have I put upon his head, that his blessings [to these offices and callings] shall also be put upon the head of his posterity after him, and as I said unto Abraham, concerning the kindreds of

nts' Herald, Vol. XX

t of it that the eldest son of the prophet would succeed to the office of the President of the church after the death of

his father to be President of the church by a

sides at Lamoni, Iowa, and who is said to have been one of the secretaries of Joseph the pr

o, anointed and set apart his son Joseph to be his successor in the prophetic office and Presidency of the church, and

nts' Herald, Vol. XX

Newel K. Whitney was present and held the horn of oil on the occasion of this anointing. He asserts

s that after young Joseph was anointed and set apart, George J. Adams came down to her room greatly elated with what had transpired, saying that

: The Succe

r. Whitehead and of Emma Smith, instead of a report of what they said by some Josephite writer. So far as Mr. George J. Adams is concerned he must very soon have forgotten his

Saints' Herald, V

when Mr. Smith was a lad twelve yea

t, in the presence of quite a number of then prominent Elders in the Chu

of this "blessing;" if he was anointed and blessed to be the future prophet and President of the church, he evidently has no recollection of it, though he was of an age when such a circumstance would make a deep impr

ished in Josephite edition of the Life

to his assistance by reminding him-since he had forgotten it, if he ever knew it-that he had been anointed and set apart to be the successor of his father,-both her husband and George J. Adams having told her so! Especially is her silence astonishing on the occasion of the visit of Messrs. Briggs and Gurley in 1856 to "young Joseph," when those gentlemen almost, as we have seen, commanded him to become the President of their organization. One of the interviews between these gentlemen and Mr. Smith was conducted in the home of Mrs. Emma Smith, they being introduced at that time both to her and her husband, Mr. Bidamon. It was on that very occasion, too, that Mr

Amboy conference in 1860, she endors

d the present occasion was one she had looked for for the last sixteen years. Said she knew su

: The Succe

ne of the revelations in the Doctrine and Covenants as an "elect lady,"[A] and since the "elect"

Doc. and Co

B: Matt.

hat young Joseph is hi

: The Succe

his father; and though not present, she knew it upon the statement of both her husband and George J. Adams? Was not the occasion worthy of such a statement? Would it not h

occasions on which Mr. Smith was called or anointed to be his father's successor, as prophet and Pres

t William Clayton, of Salt Lake City, told him at the time they were laboring to

nt's Herald, Vol. XX

giving to it and its leaders his unqualified support! To accept the statement of Charles Derry is to make the best part of William Clayton's life a lie-those who knew him, at least, will re

e in a bad condition, and that he did not look for a change for the b

nts' Herald, Vol. XX

death, and the fact of his allegiance is put against the statement he is said to have made in a letter to Alpheus Cutler-mark you, we hav

s when they were going from Utah to California, that the church would never

nts' Herald, Vol. XX

par with the two quot

ed to Elder Pratt is c

iance to the church o

t Brigha

ll the saints who called on her that young Joseph would yet

nts' Herald, Vol. XX

of Lucy Smith published in this work, where she attempts to sustain the claim

of the heads of the Church, according to the lineage, he having inh

A: See p

to the Northern Islander, in

gham Young and H. C. Kimball, in regard to Joseph's leaving one to succeed him in the prophetic office, and in all my attempts to ascertain the desired truth as to that personage, I was invariably met with the inuendo, "stop" or "hush

nts' Herald, Vol. XX

n he ran off after other leaders? First following Mr. Lyman Wight to Texas, and after quarrelling with him joining Mr. Strang in Michigan. Bishop Miller, like Lyman Wight, lost his honor, he was neither true to the church of Christ led by the Twelve after the martyrdom of

o all concerned, tha

in Salt Lake City, in

59, when he was spea

ph Smith, son of Jose

he church more willin

the church to young J

me and c

S GA

E. GAU

owa, May

nts' Herald, Vol. XX

h this is t

at were it not for his mother's influence, he would have been in Utah long before; but he would come, and he

A: Ibid,

rence. I take it therefore that the assertion is based upon the statement of Louis and Harriet Gaulter which precede it. If there is anything in the discourses of President Brigham Young, or the minutes of any of the conferences of the church which would bear out the case of the "Reorganized church," the writers thereof wo

said in a council, at our house in Nauvoo, shortly after your father's death, that neither Rigdon, himself, nor any other man but "young Joseph" co

nts' Herald, Vol. XX

amoni, Iowa, is rep

, that he and the Saints knew "Little Joseph" would stand in his father's place and lead the Church

nt's Herald, Vol. XX

l council of the priesthood, with the caution that nothing must be said about it least the boy's life be put in jeopardy thereby-what was conveyed to these parties in secret, Mr. Moore represents Brigham Young as teaching from the public stand! Yet so far recognizing the danger of having it taught as to say i

er, I ask him: What is its value? Look it over, there is not a direct statement at first hand in it, except, perhaps, in the case of Mr. Wight, and in his testimony, as presented by the Josephites themselves, there is such conflict as to time and place as to render it worthless. Not even Mr. Smith, the claimant himself, makes a direct averment that he was ordained by his father to succeed him as prophet and Pre

as appointed by his father to succeed to the Presidency, I have made such remarks as point out the worthl

or Sidney Rigdon, when putting forth his claims to be the "Guardian of the church!" How greatly would it have strengthened his position, if he could in truth have said: I claim the right to be the Guardian of the church until "young Joseph," whom our late prophet anointed and ordained to succeed him, shall have arrived at a suitable age to t

roclaiming himself, as he did afterwards, in 1850, the natural guardian of the one who had been anointed and ordained to succeed to the office of President. But this he did not do. On the contrary, he claimed the place for himself by virtue of being the brother of the prophet. When he failed to secure the position of leadership for himself, he followed the

lidge, in his life of

quotes the prophet

again, we should [would?] be massacred, or I was not a Prophet of God. I wan

the Josephites in this work quoted accepted Mr. T

itten in the history of Joseph Smith; what authority he has for

nge my blood, but he is det

seph Smith, Mill. Sta

rdained Hyrum Smith to succeed him. At the October conference following the martyrdom of Joseph and Hyrum, and the 8th of Au

he would have stood for Joseph. Did Joseph ordain any man to take his place? H

es and Seasons,

to lead the church? In desiring and ordaining Hyrum to fill his place had the prophet forgotten the "anointing" and "ordination" of his son? This clearly disposes of the claims of "young Joseph" through any appointment by his father; for if the prophet Joseph app

idency of the church so far as it is based upon an appointmen

his by lineage

h descend by lineage from father to son: the office of

revelation. The order of this priesthood was confirmed to be handed down from father to son, and rightly belongs to the literal descendants of t

t man of the blood of Joseph or of the seed of Abraham."-J

Doc. and Cov,

plies solely to patriarchs in the church, and yet Josephites attempt in t

seph as the legal successor of his father. The law

The Success

g careful to omit the clause of the passage which shows it to refer to evangelists or patriarchs only.[A] This is the way the passage is used by the writer

: The Succe

iteral descendants of the chosen seed, to whom the promises were made. This order [not the Priesthood, but the offices therein] w

Saints' Herald, V

ge, but they read into the revelation by their inserted words in brackets what is not there, and what was never intended to be conveyed even by inference. The statement of the revelation is that the patriarchal

Josephite writers, the matter is so plainly a perversio

l order of priesthood which was his by virtue of his lineage. Abraham sought for his rights as a patriarch-which right comes down from f

l of Great Price,

ave a right by virtue of their lineage to that position, if at any time they can prove their lineage, or do ascertain it by revelation from the Lord. But even in that case they must be designat

Doc. and Cov.

y lineage; yet Josephite writers quote the following in supp

ful heirs according to the flesh, and have been hid from the world with Christ in God; therefore your life and the Priesthood hath remained, and must nee

in brackets are the

ics in the above

Doc. and Cov.

r has done-that the passage can be made to apply at all to the prophet Joseph personally. The reve

my servants, concerning the parabl

the flesh; that it must remain through them and their lineage until the restoration of all things-was a statement concerning, and a promise made as much to the other elders addressed on that occasion and their posterity, as

esidency of the church, or any other office in the priesthood or church of Christ. Priesthood, and office in the priesthood are two things quite distinct; and even if a man inherited th

of lineage from father to son! That is, because the records of a people are handed down from father to son, therefore the Presidency of the church descends by lineage also! What can be more absurd than this? Nor does it help our opponents out of

ints' Herald, Vol.

s not made from father to son! In three instances the transfer is made to brothers instead of from father to son; in two cases the transfer is made to nephews; and in two instances the transfer is made to those who are no kin at all, making seven exceptions to the rule out of sixteen cases; lacking only one of being half! Out of six transfers of the sacred things, from the coming of Mess

transfer of records among the Nephites from father to son has nothing

ge, I quote the words of his illustrious father. In a discourse delivered on the 27th of August, 1843, having for his text the seven

ot by descent from father and mother;[A] and that priesthood is eterna

A: Italics

Joseph Smith, Mill. St

that the "law" did not operate on the other side of the prophet Joseph as well as on this side of him? If that "law" had operated so-and there is no good reason why it should not so operate, if indeed it be the "law" of the priesthood-it would have left out not only the present Mr. Smith but even the prophet Joseph himself. For in that event it would have come first to Joseph Smith, the father of the prophet, who was a n

made in behalf

n of President of the church

he office of President of the church; and secondly, that the office is his by lineage. Since these two claims have been disproven, it renders his third claim of no eff

er recovering from an illness, in 1853, in which was shown to him, on the one hand, the busy marts of the world where men struggle for place, power and di

ese people without honors or renown? Think of it well, for the choice will be offered to you sooner or later,

Joseph Smith, in Jose

h, p.

y not go to Utah?" he was overshadowed by a bright cloud and he heard the

Mr. Smith, in Josephi

h, p.

t he must oppose polygamy; but in what way

ote A:

where and with whom shall my life-labor lie," he received a

anized portion of the Church accepted by me. I have given them my spir

Smith, Life of Joseph, Jo

must be the "revelations" to himself by which he was called to be President of the church! Just where the "call" can b

elated by Mr. Smith) to preside over the church, Mr. Smith has never complied with the conditions of the law of the church stated above. That is, he has never been "chosen by the body . . . . upheld by the confidence, faith and prayers of the church"-unless, indeed, the few people, scarce a corporal's guard, who gathered at the Josephite conference at Amboy, in 1860, constituted out of all the tens of thousands of saints in this country at the time, the church! What of the scores of thousands of saints in Utah at that time who never so much as receive

oc. and Cov.,

g that all the rest of the saints were in transgression, and could not call a conference-those represented at the Amboy conference were the only sai

: The Succe

Saints' Herald, V

is my doxy; and hete

s do

rd Sandwich when he said he did not know the

and last claim made in b

ident of the church by tho

Guardian of the church";-who at the general conference of the church in Nauvoo, October, 1844, was rejected by the saints as president of the Nauvoo stake of Zion, two persons only voting in his favor, the rest against him;[B]-who as we shall see further on, in December, 1844, over his own signature said: "The Twelve are the proper persons to lead the church;"-who, in 1846, as per statement of Mr. Smith him

, especially upon the minds of Wm. Law and Wm. Marks, who complained before the mayor's court about the actions of these special police. After the investigation of their complaints Joseph, in his journal, says: "Whatever can be the matter with these men?" [Law and Marks] Is it that the wicked flee when no man pursueth, that hit pigeons always flutter, that drowning men catch at straws, or that presidents Law and Marks are absolutely traitors to the church, that my remarks should produce such exci

because he persisted in sustaining the claims of Sidney Rigdon a

ut. in Josephite Ed.,

Mr. Jason W. Briggs, in forming the "Reorganized church." Any authority held by Mr. Gurley previous to the death of Joseph the prophet, was des

know that about the time "young Joseph" decided to take the Presidency of the "Reorganized church," they were associated with William Marks[A] in the work of

oseph Smith (Tullidge)

Saints' Herald, V

have been "called" subsequently. But no matter when they were "called," if they held any apostolic authority, they held it by virtue of some ordination received at the hands of some one or more of the seven apostles, chosen through Mr. Deam's "revelation." Now, I affirm that among all those seven men who were "

since it was organized by the commandment of God, to Joseph the prophet, in 1830; and therefore, this "Reorganization" which began it

y are misleading. After the April conference of the "Reorganization" in 1853, a pamphlet was issued entitled "A word of consolation

Cowdery were ordained to the lesser priesthood by an angel; then by their authority, and a commandment, they on the 6th day of April, ordained each other Elders, and the eldership ordained high priests and apostles, and this high priesthood, ordained, by comm

the organization on t

oseph the Prophet, Jos

e organization of the church and its alleged reorganization, and all the fine-spun theories about the lesser ordaining the greater. That overlooked fact is that Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery held the apost

e operated under the direction of the apostles Peter, James and John, who held the keys of the Melchisedek priesthood, which, in due

h Smith, Mill. Star, Vol

s by the prophet Joseph, under dat

mony, Susquehanna county, and Colesville, Broome county, on the Susquehanna River, declaring th

Now as to the time. In a revelation given in September, 1830, referring to Joseph a

. . and also with John the son of Zacharias . . . . and also with Peter, James and John whom I have sent

Doc. and Cov.

ion dated June, 18

ent; for behold, I command all men everywhere to repent, and I speak unto you, even as unto P

Doc. and Cov.

osephite writers-that is not the order in the church, nor the manner in which the church was organized on the 6th of April, 1830. It is true that Joseph and Oliver ordained each other elders "of the church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints," on the day the church was organized; but they did not do that by virtue of the Aaronic priesthood which had been conferred upon them, but by virtue of the apostleship they had received. Joseph and Oliver had just been accepted by their brethren to be the presiding elders in the church, and proceeded to ordain each other to that office.[B] Whereupon Josephite writers rush to the conclusion that by virtue of their ordination to the lesser priesthood, they proceeded to ordain each other elders in the higher or Melchisedek priesthood, and that that "elders

commanded that the church be organized on the 6th of April, 1830, it is said: "Which commandments were given to Jesus Christ, to be the first elder of this church; and

Smith, Mill. Star, Vol.

sfigured before him. . . . How have we come at the Priesthood in the last days? It came down in regular succession. Pete

oseph the Prophet, Jos

ccomplished by men of very questionable standing and authority as to their priesthood; and apparently conscious of the inadequacy of even the priesthood they claim to have possessed to perform the task before them-virtually the organization of the church of Christ-they fly to the untenable position, as false in philosophy as it is in fact, that the lesser can ordain the greater, until that gr

upon the following passag

erily, verily, I say unto you, that none else shall be appointed unto this gift except it be through him, for if it be taken from him, he shall not have power, except to appoint another in his stead; and this shall be a law unto you, that ye receive not the teachings of any that shall come before you as revelations and commandments;

Doc. and Cov.

the successor of the prophet Joseph must be appointed

ft [of revelator, seer, prophet, etc., for the church, to receive 'commandments and revelations' for a 'law' unto the church-Ed] except it be through him [Joseph the Seer];" and it then adds that even if the Lord should take that "gift" from Joseph, he shall not have power except to appoint

l. XXXIX, p. 358, the words in ital

revelation from which the passage under consideration is taken.[A] The revelation read in the light of these facts means simply this: First the Lord gives the saints to understand that He has appointed Joseph Smith, the prophet, to receive revelations as laws and commandments for His church and no one else but him, until he should be taken from the earth, provided he remained faithful to the Lord;

oseph, Mill. Star, Vol.

any office in this church, where there is a regularly organized branch of the same, without the vote of that church. . . . Every president of the high priesthood (or presiding elder) . . . is to be ordained by the direction of a high council or general conference."-(Rev. given Apri

e gate and be ordained as described in one of the laws of the church previously given. There was surely no need after this that any should be deceived. But to argue from what is set down in this revelation that the only possible way for a successor "in any event," to be appointed to the church was through Joseph Smith the prophet, is clearly an error; for the only provision made in this revelation for him to appoint his successor i

ere taken from the earth. So that notwithstanding the fact that Joseph desired Hyrum to succeed to the Presidency, and had appointed him to that place, both himself and the one he appointed being taken away by the hand of death-the question confronts us just as it would have done had Joseph never intimated that he wanted Hyrum to succeed him. And I now ask, in the absence of both Joseph and Hyrum, where was the authority lodged to lead the church and carry on the work