Elders’ Journal, August 1838
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Source Note
Elders’ Journal, , Caldwell Co., MO, Aug. 1838. For more complete suorce information, see the source note for Elders’ Journal, Oct. 1837.
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Historical Introduction
The Elders’ Journal, which published two issues in , Ohio, in 1837 before the church’s was destroyed, was reestablished in , Missouri, in 1838, after JS and most other church leaders migrated from Kirtland to Far West. was the proprietor of the newspaper, and JS was the editor, though the amount and nature of JS’s involvement and editorial oversight is unclear. By May 1838, JS and began working on material for the first Far West issue, dated July 1838. Ultimately, two issues were published in , dated July 1838 and August 1838. The July issue included letters to and from church serving proselytizing missions, as well as articles, minutes of meetings, and other items. The August issue contained similar material, including an editorial by JS and a letter that the commissioned to write to who had not yet gathered to Missouri. The August issue also included an obituary for Ethan Barrows Jr., who died in mid-August 1838, indicating that the issue was published sometime in the second half of the month or later.Note that only the editorial content created specifically for this issue of the Elders’ Journal is annotated here. Articles reprinted from other papers, letters, conference minutes, and notices, are reproduced here but not annotated. Items that are stand-alone JS documents, such as the Minutes from a 28 June 1838 conference, are annotated elsewhere.
Footnotes
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1
See Elders’ Journal, Oct. 1837; Historical Introduction to Elders’ Journal, Nov. 1837; Minutes, 21 Apr. 1838; and Prospectus for Elders’ Journal, 30 Apr. 1838. JS was identified as the editor of the November 1837 issue of the paper even though he was away from Kirtland from 27 September to approximately 10 December. (Editorial, Elders’ Journal, Nov. 1837, 27; Letter to Wilford Woodruff, ca. 18 June 1838; Vilate Murray Kimball, Kirtland, OH, to Heber C. Kimball, Preston, England, 19–29 Jan. 1838, Heber C. Kimball, Collection, CHL.)
Kimball, Heber C. Collection, 1837–1898. CHL. MS 12476.
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2
See JS, Journal, 8 May 1838. In May, Sidney Rigdon was assigned to edit the letters that would be included in the Elders’ Journal. (Minute Book 2, 12 May 1838; see also Minute Book 2, 23 June 1838.)
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3
See, for example, Questions and Answers, 8 May 1838.
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4
The obituary in the Elders’ Journal states that Barrows died on 15 August, but his father’s later autobiography gives the date of 18 August. (Obituary for Ethan Barrows Jr., Elders’ Journal, Aug. 1838, 64; “The Journal of Ethan Barrows,” Journal of History, Jan. 1922, 46; see also “The Journal of Ethan Barrows,” Journal of History, Oct. 1922, 451–452.)
Journal of History. Lamoni, IA, 1908–1920; Independence, MO, 1921–1925.
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5
See “Editorial Method”.
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1
Document Transcript
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Footnotes
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1
See Historical Introduction to Discourse, ca. 4 July 1838.
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2
“Celebration of the 4th of July,” Elders’ Journal, Aug. 1838, 60.
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3
Ebenezer Robinson, “Items of Personal History of the Editor,” Return, Nov. 1889, 170–171.
The Return. Davis City, IA, 1889–1891; Richmond, MO, 1892–1893; Davis City, 1895–1896; Denver, 1898; Independence, MO, 1899–1900.
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5
See Crawley, Descriptive Bibliography, 1:80.
Crawley, Peter. A Descriptive Bibliography of the Mormon Church. 3 vols. Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University, 1997–2012.
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6
“Celebration of the 4th of July,” Elders’ Journal, Aug. 1838, 60.
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8
Rigdon concluded the sermon with a warning: “That mob that comes on us to disturb us; it shall be between us and them a war of extermination, for we will follow them, till the last drop of their blood is spilled, or else they will have to exterminate us; for we will carry the seat of war to their own houses, and their own families, and one party or the other shall be destroyed.” Although the Latter-day Saints would “never be the agressors” or “infringe upon the rights” of others, they would no longer permit aggressors to infringe on the rights of the Saints. (See Discourse, ca. 4 July 1838; and Revelation, 6 Aug. 1833 [D&C 98:31].)
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TEXT: “u” printed upside-down.
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10
TEXT: “ord:nation”.
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11
In JS’s journal entry for 28 July 1838, George W. Robinson noted that a large group of “Cannadian bretheren” had recently arrived in Missouri. In the entry for 29 July, Robinson wrote that “a large majority of the saints in Kirtland have and are arriving here every day.” In this entry, Robinson also noted that apostles Orson Hyde and Heber C. Kimball had returned from their mission to England with the news that more than one thousand there had joined the church. It was reasonable to assume that at least some would migrate to the United States. (JS, Journal, 28–29 July 1838.)
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12
The church’s founding “Articles and Covenants” included directions for reporting membership “so that there can be kept a regular list of all the names of the members of the whole church in a book.” A “general” record book used in Far West began with such a list of members. (Articles and Covenants, ca. Apr. 1830 [D&C 20:81–82]; “Names of the Members of the Church in Missouri,” 2–14.)
The Scriptory Book of Joseph Smith, 1838. CHL. MS 8955.
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13
The April 1838 revelation designating Far West a holy city of Zion also directed “that other places should be appointed for stakes in the regions round about as they shall be manifested unto my Servant Joseph from time to time.”a After surveying and directing settlement in Adam-ondi-Ahman, Missouri, JS organized a stake there in June.b JS similarly directed settlement in De Witt, Missouri, suggesting that he intended to organize a stake there as well.c
(aRevelation, 26 Apr. 1838 [D&C 115:18].bMinutes, 28 June 1838.cSee Letter from David Thomas, 31 Mar. 1838; Letter to Stephen Post, 17 Sept. 1838; Rockwood, Journal, 14 Oct. 1838; and Perkins, “Prelude to Expulsion,” 261–280.)Rockwood, Albert Perry. Journal Entries, Oct. 1838–Jan. 1839. Photocopy. CHL. MS 2606.
Perkins, Keith W. “De Witt—Prelude to Expulsion.” In Regional Studies in Latter-day Saint Church History: Missouri, edited by Arnold K. Garr and Clark V. Johnson, 261–280. Provo, UT: Department of Church History and Doctrine, Brigham Young University, 1994.
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14
The previous issue of the Elders’ Journal included an editorial written in May that reported extensive cultivation generally and stated, “Hundreds of acres of corn have been planted already, in our immediate neighborhood; and hundreds of acres more are now being planted.” The editorial claimed that “no part of the world can produce a superior to Caldwell County.” On 24 July 1838, Bishop Edward Partridge in Missouri wrote to Bishop Newel K. Whitney in Ohio that whereas the wheat crop had been average, “the corn looks uncommonly prosperous.” (Editorial, Elders’ Journal, July 1838, 33–34; Edward Partridge, Far West, MO, to Newel K. Whitney, Kirtland, OH, 24 July 1838, in Reynolds Cahoon, Far West, MO, to Newel K. Whitney, Kirtland, OH, 23 July 1838, CHL; see also Swartzell, Mormonism Exposed, 39.)
Cahoon, Reynolds, and Edward Partridge. Letter, Far West, MO, to Newel K. Whitney, Kirtland Mills, OH, 23 and 24 July 1838. CHL.
Swartzell, William. Mormonism Exposed, Being a Journal of a Residence in Missouri from the 28th of May to the 20th of August, 1838, Together with an Appendix, Containing the Revelation concerning the Golden Bible, with Numerous Extracts from the ‘Book of Covenants,’ &c., &c. Pekin, OH: By the author, 1840.
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15
See Revelation, 24 Feb. 1834 [D&C 103:22].
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16
In the July issue of the Elders’ Journal, an editorial written in May likewise anticipated an “abundant harvest.” On 24 July 1838, Bishop Edward Partridge wrote a letter to Bishop Newel K. Whitney in Ohio, noting there was “no danger of the saints starving.” However, there was significant scarcity in Adam-ondi-Ahman in July 1838. William Swartzell wrote that there was “complaining among the poor for food and water.” (Editorial, Elders’ Journal, July 1838, 34; Edward Partridge, Far West, MO, to Newel K. Whitney, Kirtland, OH, 24 July 1838, in Reynolds Cahoon, Far West, MO, to Newel K. Whitney, Kirtland, OH, 23 July 1838, CHL; Swartzell, Mormonism Exposed, 18–19.)
Cahoon, Reynolds, and Edward Partridge. Letter, Far West, MO, to Newel K. Whitney, Kirtland Mills, OH, 23 and 24 July 1838. CHL.
Swartzell, William. Mormonism Exposed, Being a Journal of a Residence in Missouri from the 28th of May to the 20th of August, 1838, Together with an Appendix, Containing the Revelation concerning the Golden Bible, with Numerous Extracts from the ‘Book of Covenants,’ &c., &c. Pekin, OH: By the author, 1840.