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Henry A. Stebbins (1844-1920) Book of Mormon Lectures (Lamoni, IA: RLDS Church, 1894, 1901) |
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D. H. Bays (1897) | Etzenhouser (1894) | Wm. Kelley (1908) | Stebbins' lectures (1894)
American antiquities (1897) | Del Rio on Palenque (1822) | Yates on ancient Americans (1824)
A. von Humboldt (1814) | Charles Hulbert (1823) | Ethan Smith (1825) | Josiah Priest (1826)
Stebbins' "Story of Book of Mormon" | Kingsborough excerpts | Kingsborough (1831-48)
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BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES Being a Series of Nine Sermons Delivered in the Saints' Church, Independence, Missouri, on the Evenings of February 13-21, 1894. Corrected and Revised for this Edition. BY ELDER HENRY A. STEBBINS LAMONI, IOWA: PUBLISHED BY THE BOARD OF PUBLICATION OF THE REORGANIZED CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER DAY SAINTS. |
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[ v-vi ]
LECTURE 2. 26 What the Book of Mormon is -- Boat Construction -- Colony Arrives in Central America and Begins a National Existence -- Proof Presented from AntiquariansLECTURE 3. 47 Records Kept -- System of Writing -- Christ Revealed -- Great Nation from Babel Colony -- Two Civilizations -- Migration into North AmericaLECTURE 4. 81 Palenque, Uxmal, and other Cities -- The Mound-Builders -- Ohio Mounds and their Contents -- Lake Superior Mining -- Age of River Terraces and SkeletonsLECTURE 5. 111 Second Colony -- Hebrew History -- Zedekiah and Jeremiah -- Joseph of Egypt -- A Cedar to Grow in his Land -- Journey from JerusalemLECTURE 6. 138 From Red Sea through Arabia -- The Compass -- They Cross Indian and Pacific Oceans -- Landing in Peru -- Fertility of Peruvian Soil -- Nephi Writes their History -- A Branch of Israel -- Lamanite Rebellion -- Division of Colony -- Nephite Faith and Doctrine -- America a Land of LibertyLECTURE 7. 163 Knowledge of Christ -- Righteousness and Baptism Taught -- Wars between Lamanites and Nephites -- Peruvian History and Products -- Go North into Colombia -- Find Zarahemlaites -- Zeniff's Company -- Mosiah as King and TranslatorLECTURE 8. 194 Location of Sidon River and Manti Land -- Polygamy and other Evils -- Alma as First Chief Judge and Missionary -- Many Lamanites Converted -- Helaman, son of Alma -- By Sea and Land into Central Amerioa -- Sign of Christ's CrucifixionLECTURE 9. 233 Savior Appears among Nephites -- Cross a Common Emblem found -- Quecalcoatl -- Manners and Customs of Hebrews and Indians -- Mexican Temples -- Hebrew Relies -- Nephite Decline -- List of their Records -- A Sacred Book -- Jewish Restoration -- Relics liound in United States -- Conclusion
[ vii ]
Antiquarians and historians. thirty-two named, 66-76. Apocryphal Old Testament, 127. Baldwin, John D., 8, 43, 50-53, 58-65, 67, 69, 73, 88-98, 145 146, 174, 176, 179, 204. 217, 224, 227, 236, 271, 272. Banoroft, Hubert H., 9, 10, 11, 22, 34, 70-72, 82, 118, 237, 249, 250, 265. Bollaert. William, 75. Boudinot, Elias, 245, 247, 248. Bradford, Alexander W., 76. Brasseur de Bourbourg, Charles E., 72, 227. Brownell, Henry., 74, 135, 278. Catlin, George, 176, 228, 243. Chambers' Encyclopaedia, 139. Champollion, Jean Francois, 29, 30. Charnay, Desire, 8, 27, 35, 45, 57-62, 72, 213, 221, 242, 243, 269. Darwin, Charles, 242, 243, 260. Delafield. John Jr., 73. Del Rio, Captain, 18, 67. Donnelly, Ignatius, 74, 175, 237. Dupaix, Captain, 19, 69, 241, 251, 272. Eusebius Pamphili, 56. Ford, Thomas, 233. Foster, John W., 73, 88, 204, 228. Friederichsthal, Baron, 72. Gallatin, Albert, 11, 90. Haines, Elisha M., 154, 244-248. Humboldt. Baron Alexander von, 12, 13, 17, 66, 148, 273. Inspired Version of Bible 5, 6, 33, 55. Johnson's Encyclopaedia, 22, 75, 140. Josephus, Flavius, 5, 7, 33. Kingsborough, Lord, 10, 73, 133, 157, 158, 237-241, 251, 264. Las Casas, Bartolome, 50, 51, 52, 217, 238. Lederer, G. R., 255, 256. LePlongeon, Augustus, 26, 77, 220. Manifold Encyclopedia, 177-179, 186. Maury, Lieut. Matthew F., 22, 41. Mayer, Brantz, 76. Montesinos, Ferdinand, 74, 146, 218. Norman, B. M., 72. Pslaoios, 19, 52, 67. Pimm and Seeman, 75. Prescott, William H, 74, 133, 148, 156, 181-186. Prichard, James C., 175. Priest, Josiah, 11, 12, 15, 18, 34, 67, 68, 144, 254, 265, 273. 276-278. Rice, Allen Thorndike, 8, 29, 58, 59. Short, John T., 74, 175, 248. Siguenza, Carlos, 70. Spalding. Solomon, 24. Squier, Ephraim G., 19, 43, 73, 75, 148, 260. viii RUINED CITIES NAMED. Wagner and Seherer, 75. Waldeck. Frederic de, 60, 72. Walker, Samuel F., 237, 240, 251, 285, 286. Wesley, John, 270. Whittlesey, Charles, 78, 93, 94. Williams, Helen Maria, 17, 66. Winchell, Alexander, 276, 279. Zavala, Lorenzo de, 72. RUINED CITIES NAMED. Chichen-Itza, 60, 63, 82, 86. Copan, 71, 224. Izamal, 29, 82. Kabah, 61. Mayapan, 82. Mitla, 51, 61, 64. Palenque. 18, 57, 69, 64, 68, 82, 84, 86, 229, 242, 251. Tula, 63, 213, 214. Uxmal, 61, 62, 78, 82, 84, 86, 329. |
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[ 3 ]
As an introduction I state that the Sunday school and Religio society of Independence have decided in favor of a course of lectures being given upon the evidences in defense of the Book of Mormon as an inspired book, a book containing divine truth; and, having chosen their speaker, this lecture is the beginning of the series. I will say in advance that I feel my inability to do the subject justice; yet, when my mind dwells upon the weighty facts and conclusive proofs that have come to light since 1829, the year when that book was copyrighted, my reluctance grows less about attempting to fill your requirements and to occupy as you have so kindly called me to do. But your prayers are necessary, to the intent that the Lord will instruct and aid me to present the truth in a clear and convincing manner. My heart bids me to say first that I am fully convinced that our message to the world is not a deception upon us nor a fraud upon others. For not only are the principles of the gospel of Christ great and eternal truths, which we preach, but the book under discussion, as the history of ancient American peoples, is also true and fully substantiated, not only by Bible prophecies, but also by abundant discoveries of science, by a wonderful array of archaeological ruins and antiquarian remains, by many historical facts developed since its publication, by the traditional history of tribes and nations, and, finally, by the internal evidences found in the book itself, they being historical, 4 BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. kingdom. This account... (pages 4-13 not yet transcribed) BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. 5 chiefs of families... 6 BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. This unexpected confusion... BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. 7 Egypt was builded by Mizraim... 8 BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. declarations that God... BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. 9 first civilization... 10 BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. Culchuacan; and... the dumb... BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. 11 is found in the histories... 12 BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. seem to have retained... BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. 13 Tezpi, seeing that... 14 BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. kingdom. This account must have come from the Jaredites themselves, because it is a detailed statement of their journey across land and sea to this country; how they were guided and instructed by the Lord, as we will find by further investigation. Here I will mention a remarkable coincidence that I have never seen nor heard presented by any one, and I consider it to be a very valuable proof of the book. We read as follows in the Book of Mormon: "Jared came forth with his brother and their families, with some others and their families, from the great tower, at the time the Lord confounded the language of the people... And... the brother of Jared did cry unto the Lord, and the Lord had compassion upon Jared; therefore he did not confound the language of Jared; and Jared and his brother were not confounded. Then Jared said unto his brother, Cry again unto the Lord, and it may be that he will turn away his anger from them who are our friends, that he confound not their language. And it came to pass that the brother of Jared did cry unto the Lord, and the Lord had compassion upon their friends, and their families also, and they were not confounded." -- Book of Mormon, small edition, Ether 1:1. Thus the account given in this book teaches us that they prayed unto the Lord that they might be permitted to understand each other's speech so that they could journey together. For, if they understood each other, they would be able to carry on the business in which they were associated, namely in their emigration and their labors, and in settling and improving the new country. Now we take up, in proof of this history of the Jaredites, the following language from Josiah Priest's work: "They say the tongues which the dove gave to mankind, were infinitely varied; which, when received, they immediately dispersed. But among them were fifteen heads or BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. 15 chiefs of families, which were permitted to speak the same language, and these were the Taltecs, the Aculhucans, and Aztecs, nations who embodied themselves together, and traveled, they knew not where, but at length arrived in the country of Aztalan, or lake country in America." -- American Antiquities, p. 206. And the Toltecs, who had a like tradition, say that their fathers were seven in number, who, with their wives, understood each other's speech, and then, after crossing great lands and seas, and undergoing many hardships, finally arrived in America. The foregoing is a weighty evidence in favor of the book, and it is quoted from Priest by Bancroft the historian. It is stated as being a fact, and you will notice this marvelous agreement with the Book of Mormon. Bancroft's works were published in 1875. Priest was first published in 1833, having been copyrighted on the 21st of March, 1833, which was nearly four years after the Book of Mormon was copyrighted. And upon this point I call your attention to the fact that Priest's work (there is a copy here which may be examined by any one) was not entered in the office of the clerk of the Central District of New York until the 21st day of March, 1833, while the Book of Mormon was copyrighted on the 11th day of June, 1829. Now there is a difference of nearly four years in favor of the Book of Mormon, yet some of our opponents have said, as I heard Mr. Clark Braden say in a public lecture concerning Mr. Priest's work, that it was published in 1824. Until 1891 I had never seen a complete copy of that rare work, one that included the title-page, copyright, and preface. In October of that year I was passing along Twelfth Street, Kansas City, and seeing a second-hand book-store, I entered it, and one of the first books that I saw standing on the shelves was Priest's "American Antiquities." Here you can see the copyright, with the seal of the clerk of the 16 BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. Central District of New York attached certifying to the book, and as to the character of its contents. Here is the date when it was entered for a copyright, namely, March 21, 1833. It is a complete refutation of what Mr. Braden said, namely, that it was published nine years before that time. And when we consider the Aztec tradition that fifteen heads of families were permitted to speak the same language, it is a remarkable thing. To me it is an evidence that there was a divine purpose in it, namely, to establish the truth. It is a great testimony as to the divine origin of the Book of Mormon. It matters not whether the Jaredites spoke the original language of the earth as it was before the confusion, the idea expressed in the book is that they prayed unto God that he would not confound their language, but that they might be permitted to understand each other. We notice that the tradition of the Aztecs relates that fifteen heads of families were permitted to speak a common language. This word permitted conveys the idea that some one higher or greater than themselves gave them permission, and this is in harmony with the Book of Mormon statement which I have quoted. It is a remarkable coincidence, and a proof for the book that I do not think can be gainsaid. If any in this congregation think this book is a fraud, solely the work of man, will they please to consider the improbability of the alleged authors of it having knowledge of this wonderful coincidence when the book was written. In 1827 to 1829 western New York and northern Ohio were thinly settled, and there were neither railways, telegraphs, city libraries, nor even private accumulations of books, there being so few publications of any kind in those days that people in our time can not realize that even the wealthy then had few books, and that poor families BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. 17 and people in general; had only the Bible and two or three well-worn volumes. These facts, and the then limited communication between people, made it a real impossibility for Joseph Smith and his companions to have known of such evidences as we have referred to, even if they were then published. If it is said that Baron Humboldt had previously issued his travels; yet think of the situation even then. History says that he landed in South America in 1799, went to Mexico in 1802, to Cuba in 1804, and returned to Europe in 1805. Also that the publication of his numerous volumes was begun in the French language in 1809 and not finished till 1825. We also learn that their publication in English was not begun until in 1846, when the celebrated publisher Bohn undertook the task. After 1830 they were published in German, Humboldt's native language, so I have read. But in whatever language issued their cost has been so great that sets of them even now can only be found in large public libraries or in the homes of the very wealthy. * __________ * At publication of this edition. Some years after giving these lectures I learned that a brief synopsis of Humboldt's works was translated into English and published in London by a lady named Helen Maria Williams, and in seeking among encyclopedias and antiquarian books for proofs I found mention of it on page 265 of Priest's work, 1835 edition, which mention I had not seen before, not having read the book beyond the deluge traditions. But no date was given of its issue, and all search for it proved unavailing. And among all the authors only one or two even mentioned her work. At most it only proved that it was published by or before 1835 (or 1833), while the Book of Mormon was copyrighted in 1829. However, in 1898 Elder Heman C. Smith found a copy of her work in England and brought it to Lamoni, for the Church Library. The date of its publication is not given on its title-page; but on page 33 is given date of 1813 in Paris, which probably means something relating to its issuing in French, for the English issue was from London, whatever may have been the year. After a personal search of twenty-five years in city book-stores for antique works, this is the first copy I have seen. Other elders in the church have likewise searched, but have given no account of this work, which shows how very little it could have been known in America during these seventy years. There is no probability that it was known to Joseph Smith, or to other supposed authors of the Book of Mormon. 18 BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. And how about any one by mere chance writing in a made-up work that a people came over here from Babel, and that by special permission they all spoke the same language from the time of their starting on the journey? And that without even the most remote probability that discovery would be made of traditions among two nations that certain families (their ancestors) were permitted to come to America speaking one language and locating in the very lands that the Book of Mormon plainly describes. I am convinced that God himself has created this to be a witness for his work, that the honest may see it, and that scoffers may have no excuse. But many people innocently suppose that numerous books were in existence before 1830, from which it would have been comparatively easy for something to have been written as a work of fiction, just as Mr. Clark Braden boldly and falsely stated about the work of Josiah Priest. Desiring to know for myself how this was, I have either examined the books themselves or the encyclopedia accounts of them and their authors, and the result is that of over twenty chief writers upon American antiquities only one book is proven to have been published in the English language prior to the copyrighting of the Book of Mormon, and that is the work of Captain Del Rio, which was published in London in 1822. * This work is also mentioned by Josiah Priest in his "American Antiquities," 1835 edition, page 246. It seems to be an account in particular of the ruined city called Palenque, otherwise Otolum. In connection with this Mr. Priest quotes from what he calls the "Family Magazine," for 1833, number 34, page 266, the following: "Public attention bas been recently excited respecting the ruins of an ancient city found in Guatemala. It would __________ * Probably now two, with the work of Helen Maria Williams if hers was published before 1830. BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. 19 seem that these ruins are now being explored, and much curious and valuable matter in a literary and historical point of view is anticipated. We deem the present a most auspicious moment, now that the public attention is turned to the subject, to spread its contents before our readers." From this it appears that in 1833 an interest was just being awakened to these facts, that the learned and literary world was then beginning to know about them, not that they were generally known to the learned world before that, much less, therefore, were they known to a humble, poor, and an out of the way class on the American borders. I find no evidence that any other American writer mentioned Del Rio's work before Mr. Priest. We examine other authors, historians, and writers of encyclopedias, and find no proof of any other book upon American antiquities being published in the English language until after the Book of Mormon was copyrighted, but several between 1830 and 1842. Certainly the Spanish traveler, Palacios, was in Mexico and Central America in 1576, but his letters to the king of Spain were carried to Madrid, stored in the National Archives there and were not known to English or American readers until they were obtained by the Hon. E. G. Squier, translated into English by him, and published in 1860. Captain Dupaix wrote a book in French while he was in Mexico early in this century, but revolution and civil war occurred in that land and his writings were placed in the Museum in Mexico. The result was that they were not published until 1834, and then only in French. That was five years after the Book of Mormon was copyrighted. And so with other authors and their works, until it is proven how utterly impossible it was for any American to have obtained in 1829 such evidence as we have mentioned and will continue to give in favor of the Book of Mormon, 20 BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. even had any one desired to deceive in this manner, with a work of this kind. For it is a book devoted entirely to moral and religious subjects and to the special dealings of Almighty God with races and nations. Its characteristics throughout are entirely opposite those commonly found in works of fiction. And it strongly denounces all deceit and lying, and every kind of folly. More than that, it teaches in the most solemn manner the great facts of the atonement of Christ and the purposed redemption of man, never departing from the earnest and serious manner that one would expect to find only in moral and religious works. It lifts up no man, but always exalts God the Creator and Christ the Redeemer; and, equally with the Bible, it presents the future reward of the just and the punishment of the unjust and the wicked. The Book of Mormon claims that from the Tower of Babel the Lord led a people to this continent; that they traveled until they came to the great sea, and that they crossed the Pacific Ocean in barges, under the care and protection of God. Babel was about four hundred miles from the Persian Gulf, and from there they passed down the river Euphrates. The Book of Mormon (page 502) tells us of the starting as follows: "And it came to pass that the brother of Jared did cry unto the Lord... And it came to pass that the Lord did hear the brother of Jared, and had compassion upon him, and said unto him, Go to and gather together thy flocks, both male and female, of every kind; and also the seed of the earth of every kind, and thy families; and also Jared thy brother and his family; and also thy friends and their families, and the friends of Jared and their families. And when thou hast done this, thou shalt go at the head of them down into the valley, which is northward. And there will I meet thee, and will go before thee into a land which is choice above all the land of the earth. BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. 21 And there will I bless thee and thy seed, and raise up unto me of thy seed, and of the seed of thy brother, and they who shall go with thee, a great nation. And there shall be none greater than the nation which I will raise up unto me of thy seed, upon all the face of the earth. And thus I will do unto thee because this long time ye have cried unto me... And it came to pass that when they had come down into the valley of Nimrod, the Lord came down and talked with the brother of Jared; and he was in a cloud, and the brother of Jared saw him not. And it came to pass that the Lord commanded them that they should go forth into the wilderness, yea, into that quarter where there never had man been. And it came to pass that the Lord did go before them, and did talk with them as he stood in a cloud, and gave directions whither they should travel. And it did come to pass that they did travel in the wilderness, and did build barges, in which they did cross many waters, being directed continually by the hand of the Lord. And the Lord would not suffer that they should stop beyond the sea in the wilderness, but he would that they should come forth even unto the land of promise, which was choice above all other lands which the Lord God had preserved for a righteous people; and he had sworn in his wrath unto the brother of Jared, that whoso should possess this land of promise, from that time henceforth and forever, should serve him, the true and only God, or they should be swept off when the fullness of his wrath should come upon them... And now I proceed with my record; for behold it came to pass that the Lord did bring Jared and his brethren forth even to that great sea which divideth the lands. And as they came to the sea, they pitched their tents; and they called the name of the place Moriancumer; and they dwelt in tents; and dwelt in tents upon the sea-shore for the space of four years." -- Ether 1:2-5, small edition. 22 BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. Now these many waters spoken of were evidently the Persian Gulf, the Arabian Sea, and the Indian Ocean. The travelers were several years upon their journey, -- we do not know exactly how long, -- and the book says that they stayed four years upon the land when they reached the great sea that divides the continents. This place I believe, from the account of it, to have been the Malayan Peninsula, or else the island of Borneo, for this reason: In an atlas that contains what is called Mercator's Projection, you will see illustrated the great ocean currents. Also you may read of Lieutenant Maury's theory of the trade winds, which he demonstrated and published in 1856 or 1857. If our map here had upon it an illustration of the great rivers of the sea (as they are called), you would find that east of Borneo one of these currents sets across north of the Equator, directly towards Central America. See also Johnson's Encyclopedia, volume 2, page 341. You will discover that it is between ten and eleven thousand miles across, or nearly one half way around the earth. There are the great ocean currents and there blow the trade winds; and the book itself tells us that the Lord caused great winds to blow upon these barges, and thus they were driven day and night across the sea, and the time occupied was three hundred forty-four days, for this journey of ten or eleven thousand miles. I believe that the hand of God was with that people, and I believe also that he made use of those means which were originally provided by his law, as also that he used his special providence in their being carried over the sea. Of the fact that boats are still carried across the Pacific to America by natural causes alone, Mr. Bancroft says: "There have been a great many instances of Japanese junks drifting upon the American coast, many of them after having floated helplessly about for many months. Mr. Brooks gives forty-one particular instances of such BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. 23 wrecks... A drifting wreck would be carried towards the American coast at an average rate of ten miles a day by this current." -- Native Races of the Pacific States, vol. 5, pp. 52, 53. I will speak now upon the history given concerning the boats in which the Jaredites crossed the ocean. It is stated that, at the command of God, they built barges, eight in number, that they might pass over the sea. And there was a hole in the top and a hole in the bottom of each. They were commanded thus to make the hole in the top and the hole in the bottom, that at the top being for the letting in of air. And when the seas should dash over them, or become very tempestuous, they should close this lest they should be drowned. It has been discovered that the best way to build life-boats is to have a hole in the bottom, strange as it may seem, and thus are now built the safest boats of the United States Signal and Life Saving Service. They were on exhibition during the Columbian Exposition last year, in Chicago, and they may be seen at our naval stations at any time. There are holes in the bottom because they are made double-bottomed, and the space between is an air-tight and water-tight compartment. This makes them light and buoyant to rise above the water. There are holes right down through like a tube. The boats are always on top of the waters if it is possible to be there; and, when waves go over them, they rise quickly, and the water in them goes down through the tubular holes into the sea. This is a method by which they are cleared of water, and they come to the top because the water can pass out of them again so quickly. And the barges of the Jaredites were roofed over tightly, being, as the book says, "tight like unto a dish." Evidently there was a hole in the cover, or top, that let in air, and this might be open the most of the time, when 24 BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. they were passing peacefully over the sea; but when there was rain or storm this hole was closed. Nor, with our present knowledge, is it remarkable that such should have been the case. But how could men have imagined such a theory at the time (1827 to 1829) when the Book of Mormon was translated, or, if we go back to the days when Solomon Spalding lived (1812 to 1816), could he or any one else have imagined such an idea as that? Or could any writer of fiction in that day have thought of putting such a ridiculous statement in any book to be palmed off upon the world as the truth? Would any one have imagined such nonsense as that? Yet now the safest boats in the world are that kind. There is a great deal said by our opponents in relation to the Book of Mormon being ungrammatical, and about the misconstruction of many sentences, such as the "more part of the people," or something of that kind. Yet the origin of the work is ascribed to Solomon Spalding, and he is said to have been an educated man, a graduate of Dartmouth College. If he were really an educated man it is absurd to think of his putting such crude statements in the book, or such historical matter as neither he nor any one else could have thought of writing at that time, like the story of the hole in the bottom of the boat to prevent the people from being drowned; or about the language of the people not being confused, and those who journeyed together to America being permitted to speak the same language. I repeat it, we can not believe that it was possible for any one to have written such absurd ideas as these. These things would have to be explained before we could accept the thought that the book may be a fraud. I close this first lecture by inviting all who are interested in this subject and in God's work to continue to hear and consider the testimony and see what further evidence there may be; and I trust that you will remember me in prayer, BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. 25 both to-night and hereafter, that there may be brought out that truth which is necessary to establish the divinity of God's word, wherever it is found... (pages 25-45 not yet transcribed) 46 BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. that they were the Jaredites and the Nephites, just as the Book of Mormon tells us they were? I might have brought further evidence upon the point of geography, but think I have presented enough to show that the Book of Mormon describes the very land that I have mentioned. The book says that when the Jaredites landed they bowed before the Lord and gave thanks to him for the preservation of their lives during the three hundred and forty-four days spent upon the sea, directed and protected by the power of God in the journey across the great waters, a distance of more than ten thousand miles, as your geographies will show it to be. They bowed before God; they gave him thanks, and for a period of time they lived justly, walked uprightly, and they prospered and became a great and a wealthy people. But this I will try to take up and consider more thoroughly to-morrow night. |
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(pages 194-232 not yet transcribed) |
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One of the important teachings found in the Book of Mormon, and which necessarily has attracted a great deal of attention, and has caused a great deal of gladness to the believer, as well as brought about a great deal of criticism by the unbeliever, has been the statement of the Book of Mormon that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, visited the American Continent and made himself known to the Nephites. In Governor Thomas Ford's "History of Illinois," page 252, it is said that the Book of Mormon claims that our Savior came to this continent "and was crucified here nearly in the same manner in which he was crucified in Jerusalem." Another falsehood upon the same page is that the book gives "the history of the ten lost tribes of Israel in their wanderings through Asia into America." But an hour's reading of the book will convince any one that both of these statements are false; for in no place does the book claim to be a history of the ten lost tribes, or of any fragment of them. And, instead of teaching that Christ was crucified here, it simply states that Christ visited the people upon this continent after his resurrection. And that is a very reasonable statement, considering the prophets declared that the land of Joseph should be a choice dwelling-place for the descendants of Joseph, one of the choicest, if not the very choicest land of all the earth, if we may believe the book, and also our own experiences and observations. After the great disturbances that we read of last eve ing, after the great convulsions and commotions, after all the calamities that the Book of Mormon and science unite in declaring took place in Central and Northern South 234 BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. America, after these events there came to the inhabitants of those lands peace and light once more. And the statement is made that a large company who were assembled, after the desolation was past, heard a voice from above that said to them: "Behold, my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased, in whom I have glorified my name, hear ye him. And it came to pass as they understood, they cast their eyes up again towards heaven -- and behold, they saw a man descending out of heaven; and he was clothed in a white robe, and he came down and stood in the midst of them, and the eyes of the whole multitude were turned upon him, and they durst Dot open their mouths, even one to another, and wist not what it meant, for they thought it was an angel that had appeared unto them. And it came to pass that he stretched forth his hand, and spake unto the people, saying, Behold I am Jesus Christ, whom the prophets testified shall come into the world: and behold I am the light and the life of the world, and I have drunk out of that bitter cup which the Father hath given me, and have glorified the Father in taking upon me the sins of the world, in the which I have suffered the will of the Father in all things, from the beginning." -- Nephi 5: 2-4, small edition. Thus beginning, he preached to them his doctrine, the principles of life and salvation, identical, so far as the fact or substance is concerned, with those found in the New Testament scripture, and, to a great degree, in the same language that he spoke to the people in the land of Palestine. He made declarations that the people here were the ones referred to in John 10:16, where he told his Jewish disciples that he bad "other sheep" which were not of that fold (in Palestine) -- that he must visit those other sheep, and they should hear his voice, and there should yet be "one fold and one shepherd." So to-night I wish to bring, some evidences (lack of time BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. 235 prevents that I should read all) to prove that the people who anciently lived in America were of Hebrew origin, and that they understood the atonement and the necessity of Christ's crucifixion. I have before spoken of the saying of Christ, "Other sheep I have which are not of this fold, and of his promise that he would visit them and that they should hear his voice, to the intent that there should be "one fold and one shepherd." -- See John 10:16. While in Palestine Christ made another declaration that has a bearing upon this matter, namely, that he was "not sent but to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." And there is no history, that I am aware of, that Christ ever preached to any that are called Gentiles, but all his personal ministrations appear to have been among the Jews, except perhaps a case or two of healing. Not only were all the old prophets Israelites, but also from that race did Christ choose all his apostles and ministers, under the same idea, "I am not sent but to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." As some of those sheep of Israel were upon this continent I will give the Savior's own interpretation of his declaration that he had other sheep which were not of that fold, whom he must visit, and who should hear his voice. The words are those which he spoke upon the occasion of his appearing to the Nephites, as already mentioned. He said: "And verily, I say unto you again, that the other tribes hath the Father separated from them; and it is because of their iniquity, that they know not of them. And verily, I say unto you, that ye are they of whom I said, Other sheep I have which are not of this fold, them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd. And they understood me not, for they supposed it had been the Gentiles; for they 236 BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. understood not that the Gentiles should be converted through their preaching; and they understood me not that I said they shall hear my voice; and they understood me not that the Gentiles should not at any time hear my voice; that I should not manifest myself unto them, save it were by the Holy Ghost. But behold, ye have both heard my voice, and seen me, and ye are my sheep, and ye are numbered among those whom the Father hath given me." -- Nephi 7:2, small edition. The foregoing words are those spoken by Christ to the people on this land when he appeared and taught them that he had been crucified for the sins of the world, bad been lifted upon the cross, as their fathers and their prophets had long before prophesied, and that the three days of darkness just passed were the days of his agony and his lying in the tomb. As this subject is of considerable importance, and I trust also interesting, I will read you valuable outside evidence that the cross, the crucifixion, and evidently the atonement, were understood by the ancients of America. I first present the statements of Professor Baldwin, the Hon. Ignatius Donnelly, and the Hon. H. H. Bancroft, as follows: "The cross is one of the most common emblems present in all the ruins. This led the Catholic missionaries to assume that knowledge of Christianity had been brought to that part of America long before their arrival." -- Ancient America, p. 109. "When the Spanish missionaries first set foot upon the soil of America, in the fifteenth century, they were amazed to find the cross was as devoutly worshiped by the red Indians as by themselves, and were in doubt whether to ascribe the fact to the pious labors of St. Thomas or to the cunning device of the Evil One. The BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. 237 hallowed symbol challenged their attention on every hand." -- Atlantis, pp. 319, 320. "The island of Cozumel was especially devoted to religious observances, and was annually visited by great numbers of pilgrims; there were therefore more religious edifices here than elsewhere. Among them is mentioned a square tower, with four windows and hollow at the top; at the back was a room in which the sacred implements were kept; it was surrounded by an enclosure, in the middle of which stood a cross nine feet high." -- Native Races, vol. 2, pp. 792, 793. "In a tablet on the wall of a room at Palenque is a cross surmounted by a bird." -- Native Races, vol. 3, p. 135. "One of the most remarkable emblems of Maya worship in the estimation of the conquerors, was the cross, which has also been noticed in other parts of Central America and in Mexico." -- Native Races, vol. 3, pp. 467, 468. Then we find still more in Lord Kingsborough's testimonies upon the same point. And for the succeeding extracts from Kingsborough's extensive and costly volumes I am indebted to Elder S. F. Walker, now deceased. He went from Lamoni, Iowa. to the Cincinnati Exposition in 1888 for the purpose of seeing this work, for, although it was published in 1830, its value is several hundred dollars per set, therefore it can not be seen by ordinary people without a special effort. But it was on exhibition then and Elder Walker was permitted to copy such items as he might choose. Some of these were published in 1889 in Autumn Leaves, at Lamoni, Iowa, and the following quotations are taken from pages 178, 179, 180, 181, 263, and 264 of volume two of that magazine: "Torquemada says the Bishop of Chiapa, when he passed through Yucatan, sent his ecclesiastic to the interior of of the country, who at the end of a year wrote to him that he had questioned a principal lord about the ancient 238 BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. religion, who informed him that they knew and believed in God, who resided in heaven and that their God was the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost; that the Son was called Bacab , who was born of a virgin named Chibirias, who was in heaven with God, and that the name of the mother of Chibirias was Oschil; and that the Holy Ghost was called Echuah. Bacab, the Son, they said, was put to death by Eopuco, who scourged him and put a crown of thorns upon his head, and placed him with his arms stretched upon a beam of wood, to which they believed he bad not been nailed, but tied, and that he died there, and remained during three days dead, and the third day came to life and ascended to heaven, where be is with the Father; and immediately afterward Echuah coming, who is the Holy Ghost, tilled the earth with whatever it stood in need of." -- Mexican Antiquities, vol. 6, p. 141. "Amongst the many arguments which might be brought forward to show that Christianity had in very early ages extended itself to America, one of the strongest and most convincing is the fact that the doctrine of the Trinity was known in Peru, New Spain, and Yucatan. This fact rests on the authority of very respectable writers. Acosta, in his Natural and Moral History of the Indies, distinctly asserts it; and the celebrated Las Casas, bishop of Chiapa, as cited by Torquemada, says that he had heard it from a person worthy of credit whom he charged to make inquiries into the religion of the inhabitants of the peninsula of Yucatan. A distinguished writer, also, of the present age, the Baron De Humboldt, says that the Muyscas, the ancient inhabitants of Bogota, likewise believe in the existence of a Trinity." -- Ibid., p. 158. De Salcar says: "The chiefs and men of rank in the province of Chiapa were acquainted with the doctrine of the most holy Trinity. They called the Father Icona, the Son Bacab, and the Holy Ghost Estruach, and certainly BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. 239 these names resemble the Hebrew, especially Estruach that of the Holy Ghost does, for Ruach in Hebrew is the Holy Ghost. "As in the tradition current in Yucatan of Bacab and his crucifixion.... so in these Mexican paintings many analogies may be traced between the events to which they evidently relate and the history of the crucifixion of Christ as contained in the New Testament. The subject of them all is the same, -- the death of Quecalcoatle upon the cross, as an atonement for the sins of mankind. In the fourth page of the Borgian manuscript, he seems to be crucified between two persons who are in the act of reviling him; who hold as it would appear balters in their hands, the symbols perhaps of some crime for which they were themselves going to suffer." -- Ibid., p. 166. "If more of the historical paintings and monuments of Yucatan had been preserved, we should probably have been able to have determined whether Bacab and Quecalcoatle were only two different names for the same deity, who was worshiped alike by the Mexicans and the people of Yucatan. Torquemada informs us, on the authority of Las Casas, that Quecalcoatle had been in Yucatan, and was there adored. The interpreter of the Vatican Codex says, in the following curious passage, that the Mexicans had a tradition that he like Bacab, died upon the cross, and he seems to add, according to their belief, for the sins of mankind. This tradition which rested solely upon the authority of the anonymous interpreter of that manuscript, acquires the most authentic character from the corroboration which it receives from several paintings in the Codex Borgianus which actually represent Quecalcoatle crucified and nailed to the cross. These paintings are contained in the fourth, seventy-second, seventy-third, and seventy-fifth pages of the above-mentioned manuscript; the article of his resurrection, burial, and descent 240 BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. into bell appears also to be represented in seventy-first and seventy-third pages of the same." -- Ibid., p. 165. Elder Walker also quotes from pace 166 of volume 6 that on the seventy-second page of the Borgian manuscript "Quecalcoatle is there painted in the attitude of a person crucified, with the impression of nails both in his hand and feet, but not actually upon a cross." It is here said that his body "seems to be formed out of a resplendent sun." On the seventy-fifth page of the Borgian Manuscript he "is again represented as crucified, and one of his hands and both his feet seem to bear the impression of nails; he appears from the phonetic symbol placed near his mouth, to be uttering an exclamation, and his body is strangely covered with suns. If the Jews had wished to apply to their Messiah the metaphor of the Sun of Righteousness, they would have perhaps painted him with such emblems." From page 168 of Kingsborough's sixth volume, Elder Walker quotes as follows: "Both a fan and sickle were sometimes placed in the hand of Quecalcoatle, as would appear from a bust which is preserved in the British Museum, the countenance of which is mutilated, though not deformed, and the curve of the sickle in the right hand broken off." We can see the meaning of the fan and the sickle, for it is written of Christ, "Whose fan is in his hand;" and when he shall come again he shall come with the sickle, as shown in Revelation 14:14-19, where it is said: "Upon the cloud sat one like unto the Son of man, having on his head a golden crown and in his hand a sharp sickle." So the character and work of Christ were illustrated in painting by the ancient Americans, first to fan away the chaff, as John the Baptist said, and second when he shall come with his sickle to gather the final harvest, as John the Revelator foresaw. "And he that sat on the cloud thrust in his BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. 241 sickle on the earth; and the earth was reaped." -- Rev. 14:16. Here are the two implements, the fan and the sickle, spoken of in the New Testament scriptures, concerning the great periods of the first and second comings of the great Redeemer and King, both known to the ancient Americans. Lord Kingsborough continues: "Mons. Dupaix discovered in the province of Tlascala, which bordered on Cholula, a bust which so exactly corresponds with the description given by Herrera of the image of Quecalcoatle, which was adored in that city, that we can not refrain from referring to the Fifty-third Plate of the Second Part of his monuments, which contains a representation of it under the number 123.... It deserves to be remarked, that both of the hands of the figure seemed to be pierced with nails, the heads of which are invisible. The tradition current in Yucatan that Eopuco crowned Bacab with thorns appears also to be preserved in its head-dress. A crown of thorns of another fashion may perhaps be recognized on the head of another piece of ancient sculpture discovered by Mons. Dupaix. This figure, in relievo, is represented in the Ninth Plate of his Monuments, Part Third, Number Thirteen; and the crown seems to be formed out of the thorny leaves of the aloe." -- Mexican Antiquities, vol. 7, p. 169. When we read of these evidences we see the very character and work of Jesus Christ, and also his suffering, presented to us. There is much upon this point if time permitted to read it, but having the statement given to us that one of the most common emblems found in the New World was the cross, we have abundant reason to understand that the ancients on this land did indeed comprehend the crucifixion of Christ and the object of it. Chartiay, page 214, states as follows: 242 BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. "Don Rodriguez, a Government Inspector of Mines, has lately had the central stone cross which stood in the temple bearing the same name at Palenque, brought here. This tablet, now so well known, has had a checkered existence. Some thirty years ago, it was taken from its place, and left lying in a forest adjoining the town by the thief, who was unable to carry it further. It was unbroken in 1858, when I found it covered with moss, and took a rather good photograph." -- Ancient Cities of the New World, p. 214. He writes more about it, and gives a drawing of this interesting relic. He adds: "Since the cross was a symbol of Tlaloc, the temple in which it stood must have been dedicated to him, and perhaps Quetzalcoatl also." Tlaloc was the father and Quetzalcoatl was the Son, in their religion. On page 252, M. Charnay writes further of the cross: "In our cut of the Temple of the Cross, No. 2, three distinct subjects are seen: in the central slab is a cross, branching out with palms supporting two figures; the body of the cross, which rests on a hideous head, is sculptured in the center, and at the upper end are two human figures, crowned by a symbolic bird having a long tail and eagle claws. The left slab represents a man richly habited, with collar, medallion, girdle, and greaves; the right slab a woman, to judge from her size, long plait of hair, and peculiar clothing. This female is borne on palms having the very well preserved outline of human heads. Both the male and the female seem to stand before the symbolic bird offering presents, the nature of which it is not easy to specify. To the rear of each device is an inscription of sixty-eight characters, doubtless explanatory of the ceremony the whole sculpture represents, but which no one has yet been able to read. We are of the opinion that the Temple of the Cross No. 1 was a sanctuary consecrated to Tlaloc and Quetzalcoatl, and that the BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. 243 altar in the same Temple No. 2 was dedicated to Tlaloc; our only ground for this belief, however, is the cross." -- Ancient Cities of the New World, p. 252. Also on page 449 he presents another engraving, or facsimile of the cross, as shown in the book, and he says: "They are of different size, and represent probably a man and a woman performing a religious ceremony; the taller holds in each hand a Latin cross, while the other carries but one in the right hand." -- Ancient Cities of the New World, pp. 448, 449. We esteem these evidences as very weighty in their character. How did the people of Central America or Mexico have so clear an understanding of the fact of a crucified Redeemer, unless the Book of Mormon tells the truth about their origin and God's care over them? There is something more than a coincidence in this; the Book of Mormon alone solves the question about these matters. The Spaniards were astonished to find the cross as one of the most common emblems throughout that region of country, and no wonder. But this outside evidence was not known until after the Book of Mormon had been copyrighted and printed. Their Hebrew origin, as claimed in the Book of Mormon, is also a matter of importance for our consideration. In relation to this we find that George Catlin, in his work upon the antiquities of America, says: "From many of their customs, which seem to me to be peculiarly Jewish, as well as from the character of their heads, I am forced to believe that some part of those ancient tribes, who have been dispersed by Christians in so many ways, and in so many different eras, have found their way to this country, where they have entered among the native stock.... I am induced to believe thus from the very many customs which I have witnessed among them, that appear to be decidedly Jewish, and many of 244 BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. them so peculiarly so, that it would seem almost impossible, or at all events, exceedingly improbable, that two peoples in a state of nature should have hit upon them, and practiced them exactly alike.... The first and most striking fact amongst the North American Indians that refers us to the Jews, is that of their worshiping, in all parts, the Great Spirit, or Jehovah, as the Hebrews were ordered to do by divine precept, instead of plurality of Gods, as ancient Pagans and Heathens did, and the idols of their own formation." -- North American Indians, vol. 2, p. 232, as copied by Elder M. H. Forscutt. Their worship of Jehovah, calling him Yohewah, is itself a good assurance of their Hebrew origin. And I have here considerable matter copied from Hon. E. M. Haines' work, "The American Indian" (published in 1888). Upon the subject of the Hebrew origin of the red men, Mr. Haines says: "Many writers have given special attention to an inquiry into the subject of the American aborigines, with reference to discovering an affinity of this people with the Jews, or people of Israel. Among the class of writers aforesaid is Mr. James Adair, who resided forty years among the American tribes, and who wrote a book on the subject, which was published about the year 1775, in which he, without hesitation, declares that the American aborigines are descendants from the Israelites, and so complete is his conviction on this head, that he declares he finds a perfect and indisputable similitude in each. He says: 'From the most accurate observations I could make, in the long time I traded among the Indians of America, I was forced to believe them lineally descended from the tribes of Israel.'" -- The American Indian, p. 98. Mr. Haines continues: "One of the earnest writers in support of this theory in later times, is Rev. Ethan Smith, of Poultney, Vermont, BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. 245 as shown in his book entitled 'View of the Hebrew, or the Tribes of Israel in America,' published in 1825, wherein he undertakes to prove, citing Mr. Adair and others, that the American Indians are descendants from the lost tribes of Israel. "Mr. Smith sums up the argument of Mr. Adair that the natives of this continent are of the ten tribes of Israel, to the following effect: 1. Their division into tribes. 2. Their worship of Jehovah. 3. Their notions of a theocracy. 4. Their belief in the administration of angels. 5. Their language and dialects. 6. Their manner of counting time. 7. Their prophets and high priests. 8. Their festivals, fasts and religious rites. 9. Their daily sacrifice. 10. Their ablutions and anointings. 11. Their laws of uncleanliness. 12. Their abstinence from unclean things. 13. Their marriage, divorces and punishments of adultery. 14. Their several punishments. 15. Their cities of refuge. 16. Their purifications and preparatory ceremonies. 17. Their ornaments. 18. Their manner of curing the sick. 19. Their burial of the dead. 20. Their mourning for the dead. 21. Their raising seed to a deceased brother. 22. Their change of names adapted to their circumstances and times. 23. Their own traditions; the account of English writers; and the testimonies given by Spaniards and other writers of the primitive inhabitants of Mexico and Peru. Many of those who contend for the Jewish origin of the American Indian insist that evidence of this fact is found in the languages of the Indians, which appear clearly to have been derived from the Hebrew. This is the opinion expressed by Mr. Adair, in which Dr. Edwards having a good knowledge of some of the Indian languages, concurs and gives his reasons for believing this people to have been originally Hebrew." -- The American Indian, p. 99. "A table of words and phrases is furnished by Dr. Boudinot, Adair and others, to show the similarity, in some of 246 BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. the Indian languages, to the Hebrew, and that the former must have been derived from the latter. The following is an example from the sources quoted." -- The American Indian, p. 100. Then follows a lengthy list, but I will read only a small part of it. For instance, the Great First Cause in Hebrew was Jah; in the Indian it is Yah. The Hebrew name Jehovah is in the Indian language Yohewah. The name of God in the Hebrew is Ale or Aleim; in the Indian it is Ale. Shiloh in the Hebrew is Shilu in the Indian. The word Heavens in the Hebrew is Shemin; in the Indian it is Chemim, a final 'm' instead of 'n.' And the name of Father is alike both in the Indian and Hebrew, Abba. Both in the Hebrew and the Indian the name of man is Ish, and the name of woman is Ishto. The wife in the Hebrew is Eweh or Eve; in the Indian it is Awah. In the Hebrew His wife is Lihene; in the Indian it is Liani. The words This man in Hebrew is Huah; in the Indian it is Uwoh. The Hebrew Canaan is in the Indian Canaai. Rushing Wind in the Hebrew is Ruach; in the Indian it is Rowah. See "The American Indian, page 100. Other words of great similarity might be read from Short, Haines, and others, if it were necessary. This also reminds me of the Seneca Indian whose lecture T heard in Van Buren County, Michigan, in June, 1868. This Indian made the statement that he could refer his hearers to one hundred and fifty words in the Seneca language which closely resembled the Hebrew. It was many years later that T saw the list that I have read a part of here this evening. You can find this list in John T. Short's work (published first in 1880) and on page 100 of Hon. E. M. Haines' "The American Indian," published in 1888. The Seneca Indian spoken of by me in lectures two and six said he fully believed they were descendants of the Hebrews, and children of the East; that their traditions BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. 247 were they would sometime return to the country from which their fathers came, just over which is the spirit land. He stated that the tradition came down to them through many generations about a celestial being who was born of Manito, the Great Spirit, but who had an earthly mother; that he visited their fathers on this land and after that he went away to the north country; but he will return by and by, and then the earth will burst into flame. All this makes clear to us that their ancestors had a knowledge of the time to come when the perishable things of the earth shall be burned, and of the return of Jesus Christ, when there shall be a great change wrought upon the face of the earth. The traditions that the Seneca spoke of are evidences of a Hebrew origin, as well as the discoveries of the same nature as made by Mr. Adair and others. I refer you again to Hon. E. M. Haines' volume, "The American Indian," page 101, where he mentions Dr. Boudinot speaking of the Penobscot Indians (of New England) calling a high mountain west of them, Ararat. And Dr. Boudinot relates attending an Indian religious dance, during which they "all joined in a lively and joyful chorus, and sung halleluyah; dwelling on each syllable with a very long breath, in a most pleasing manner," about which the learned doctor said there was Do deception, and their pronunciation was "distinct and clear." Mr. Haines quotes the Rev. Ethan Smith as remarking upon this fact as follows: "'How could it be possible that the wild native Americans, in different parts of the continent, should be found singing this phrase of praise to the Great First Cause, or to Jah -- exclusively Hebrew, without having brought it down by tradition from ancient Israel? The positive testimonies of such men as Boudinot and Adair are not to be dispensed with nor doubted. They testify what they have 248 BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. seen and heard. And I can conceive of no rational way to account for this Indian song, but that they brought it down from ancient Israel, their ancestors.'" -- The American Indian, p. 101. Mr. Haines quotes Dr. Boudinot again, as follows: "'Their languages in their roots, idioms and particular construction, appear to have the whole genius of the Hebrew; and what is very remarkable have most of the peculiarities of that language, especially those in which it differs from most other languages."' -- The American Indian, p. 101. Mr. Haines' own words follow the above from Dr. Boudinot, as here given, quoted from the same page: "It is also insisted by many, as further evidence showing the Jewish origin of the American Indian, that they have had their imitation of the ark of the covenant in ancient Israel. Rev. Ethan Smith says that different travelers, and from different regions, unite in this, and he refers to the fact that Mr. Adair is full in his account of it. He describes it as a small square box, made convenient to carry on the back; that the Indians never set it on the ground, but on rocks (logs?) in low ground where stones were not to be had; and on stones where they are to be found. Mr. Adair in reference to this matter says: "'It is worthy of notice that they never place the ark on the ground, nor set it on the bare earth when they are carrying it against an enemy. On hilly ground, where stones are plenty, they place it on them. But in level land, upon short logs, always resting themselves (i. e., the carriers of the ark) on the same materials. They have also as strong a faith of the power and holiness of their ark as ever the Israelites retained of theirs. The Indian ark is deemed so sacred and dangerous to touch, either by their own sanctified warriors, or the spoiling enemy, that neither of them dare meddle with it on any account. It is BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. 249 not to be handled by any except the chieftain and his waiter, under penalty of incurring great evil; nor would the most inveterate enemy dare to touch it. The leader virtually acts the part of a priest of war, pro tempore, in imitation of the Israelites fighting under the divine military banner."' -- The American Indian, p. 101. On page 81 of volume 5 of "Native Races" Mr. Bancroft mentions the Mexican tradition of their fathers undertaking a journey at the command of a god, which journey was a long one, and was under the direction of certain high priests, who miraculously obtained supplies for the support of the people. Bancroft says -- "This bears a striking resemblance to the Hebrew story of the wandering in the desert." Mr. Bancroft also speaks of Father Duran's idea that the Indians are descendants of the ten lost tribes, because of the Hebrew analogies of customs, language, religion, etc. He says that Duran gave scriptural reasons and also various traditions that he obtained from the aged Indians while he was doing missionary work among them. Bancroft says: "They related that their ancestors, whilst suffering many hardships and persecutions, were prevailed upon by a great man, who became their chief, to flee from that, land into another, where they might have rest; they arrived at the seashore, and the chief struck the waters with a rod he had in his hands; the sea opened, and the chief and his followers marched on, but were soon pursued by their enemies; they crossed over in safety, and their enemies were swallowed up by the sea.... Another tradition transmitted from generation to generation, and recorded in pictures, is, that while their first ancestors were on their journey to the promised land, they tarried in the vicinity of certain high hills; here a terrible earthquake occurred, and some wicked people who were with 250 BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. them were swallowed up by the earth opening under their feet." -- Native Races, Vol. 5, p. 89, footnote. For the above he credits Duran's manuscript history of the Indians, Vol. 1, chap. 1. This last tradition can mean nothing less than the rebellion of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, as related in Numbers. Mr. Bancroft copies Mr. Adair's compilation of the similarities between the Hebrew beliefs and customs and those of the Indians, of which I here present the most important or striking ones, as follows: "'The Israelites were divided into Tribes and had chiefs over them, so the Indians divide themselves: each tribe forming a little community within the nation -- And as the nation hath its particular symbol, so hath each tribe the badge from which it is denominated.'... "The Hebrew nation were ordered to worship Jehovah the true and living God, who by the Indians is styled Yohewah.... Their opinion that God chose them out of all the rest of mankind as his peculiar and beloved people, fills both the white Jew and the red American, with that steady hatred against all the world, which renders them hated and despised by all. "The Indian language and dialects appear to have the very idiom and genius of the Hebrew. Their words and sentences are expressive, concise, emphatical, sonorous, and bold, and often both in letters and signification synonymous with the Hebrew language. They count time after the manner of the Hebrews, reckoning years by lunar months like the Israelites who counted by moons. The religious ceremonies of the Indian Americans are in conformity with those of the Jews, they having their Prophets, High Priests, and others of religious order. As the Jews bad a sanctum sanctorum or most holy place, so have all the Indian nations. The dress also of their BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. 251 High Priests is similar in character to that of the Hebrews." -- Native Races, vol. 5, footnote on pp. 91, 92. Again I quote from Lord Kingsborough, he being another one who gives strong testimony that the ancient Americans were of Hebrew origin. He is quoted by Elder S. F. Walker as follows: "An infinite variety of facts connected with the customs, religious rites and ceremonies, and opinions of the Indians, are utterly inexplicable, except on the supposition that America has in early ages been colonized by Christians: and not a few others are difficult to be accounted for unless we suppose that colonies had proceeded to that continent from Egypt. In the first class may be reckoned the Christian doctrines and traditions discovered in America; in the second the discovery of Greek crosses in many provinces of New Spain, and of brass money. in the shape of a cross, as of the Greek letter [T]. The art of embalming, which in Peru was carried to the highest perfection; the pyramidal shape of the Mexican Teocallis, some of which, for example the temple of Cholula, and that discovered by Mons. Dupaix among the ruins of the city of Palenque, were like Egyptian pyramids, hollow in the interior; the use of the temazcalli, or vapor bath, which was very general in New Spain; but above all, the invention of the Mexican calendar, which nearly agreeing with the Coptic, especially in an extraordinary intercalation of a month every four years displayed an exact knowledge of the duration of the year." -- Mexican Antiquities, vol. 6, p. 187. "The Toltecas were most probably Jews who had colonized America in very early ages, bringing along with them the knowledge of various arts, and instructing the Indians in them, but especially propagating among them their own religious doctrines, rites, ceremonies, and superstitions, which seem to have pervaded the New World 252 BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. from one end of that vast continent to the other, and even to have extended to some of the islands in the Pacific Ocean." -- Ibid., vol. 6, p. 255. "It is certainly surprising to see how nearly the Jewish costume is imitated in some of the Mexican paintings. In the twelfth page of that manuscript of the Bodlean library, which seems to represent the migration of the Mexicans, or some other subject connected with a descent into hell, and which is unfortunately only a fragment of a larger painting, from which a part has evidently been torn off, the figure occurs of a Mexican priest in a dress very like that of the high priest of the Jews; the linen ephod, the breastplate, and the border of pomegranates, described in Exodus, are there in a manner represented." -- Ibid., vol. 6, p. 296. "We are induced from all these considerations to believe that the Peruvian sacrifices of atonement and burnt offerings were originally instituted amongst the Indians by the Jews; and that time had corrupted them, as likewise the feast of the Passover, into a mass of superstitions." -- Ibid., vol. 6, p. 302. "It deserves to be remarked that as amongst the Jews certain cities were appointed as cities of refuge, by which criminals might fly and escape the punishment of the law, so amongst the Mexicans and amongst most of the Indian states, there were appointed places of refuge to which culprits might fly and escape the punishment of the law." -- Ibid., p. 320. "It is obvious that we can not compare the temple of Jerusalem, as a whole, with any of the Mexican temples, because we have not a perfect idea of all its parts. It is only from scattered passages of Scripture that we are enabled to guess that there were many features of resemblance between these different structures." -- Ibid., p. 378. "It is so singular a fact that the Indians of Mexico and BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. 253 Peru should have believed with Christians in many doctrines which were held to be peculiarly and exclusively Christian, and to constitute a line of demarcation between Christianity and all other religions that it appears a convincing proof that Christianity must, in early ages, have been established in America, and that ancient communication existed between the Old and the New Continents at a period long antecedent to the age of Columbus." -- Ibid., p. 409. "The doctrine of a vicarial atonement, or of a sacrifice for sin, whereby the guilt of one party is expiated and atoned for by the innocent blood of another, was also well known to the Indians; and the question is curious, how traces of this doctrine should have been discovered in America, and how, on the supposition of these traces, affording indications of Christianity having in earlier ages existed in that continent, the doctrines of a purer faith could have thus degenerated, and in time have become mingled with such barbarous superstitions." -- Ibid., p. 409. "Torquemada writes: 'It was likewise found that in some provinces of New Spain, as in Tolonaca, they expected the coming of the Son of the great God, who was the Qieu, into the world; and they said that he was to come to renew all things; although they did not believe in interpreting this in a spiritual, but in a temporal and earthly sense. For example, they thought that on his c oming, the grain would be of a pure and more substantial quality; that their fruit would be better flavored, and more excellent in its kind -- that the lives of men would be considerably prolonged, and that everything else would become better in a corresponding degree."' -- Ibid., p. 413. "Rosales, in his history of Peru says: 'That in former times, as they had heard their fathers say, a wonderful man had come to their country, Smearing a long beard, 254 BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. with shoes, and a mantle, such as the Indians carry on their shoulders, who performed many miracles, cured the sick with water, caused it to rain, and their crops and grain to grow, kindled fire at a breath and wrought other marvels, healing at once the sick and giving sight to the blind."' -- Ibid., p. 419. "For the Mexicans believe that Quecalcoatle took human nature upon him, partaking of all the infirmities of man, and was not exempt from sorrow, pain and death, and that he suffered voluntarily to atone for the sins of mankind. They also believe that he alone, of all the Gods, had a human body, and was of a corporeal essence."' -- Ibid., p. 507. The preceding eleven quotations are taken from Elder Walker's extracts from Kingsborough, and are found on pages 266, 322, 325, 357, 358, 359, 419, and 421 of volume two of Autumn Leaves. Kingsborough also produces evidence that the ancients practiced the ordinance of baptism and the sacrament of the Lord's supper, but both in a perverted manner. Many other things are interesting, but those dwelt upon are the chiefest in importance. On pages 68 and 69 of his "American Antiquities," Mr. Josiah Priest relates the finding of an important Hebrew relic by Mr. Joseph Merrick, in the year 1815, in what was known as Indian Hill, near Pittsfield, Massachusetts. Mr. Merrick was plowing and leveling the hill, and at a depth of several feet he found what afterwards proved, on examination and cutting into, to be two pieces of rawhide, so sewed and gummed together as to be water-tight. Between the folds were found four pieces of dark and yellow parchment. covered with written characters. One became torn in pieces, but the other three were carried to Cambridge College, and the writing was found to be "in Hebrew, plain and legible." The writing was "quotations BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. 255 from the Old Testament," the texts being "Deuteronomy 4:4-9; 11:13-21; Exodus 13:11-16, inclusive." Mr. Priest said he considered that these passages found in the strap of rawhide "had, unquestionably, been written on the very pieces of parchment before Israel left the land of Syria, more than twenty-five hundred years ago," though probably they had not been inclosed in the pieces of rawhide for a very great length of time. Hon. H. H. Bancroft on pace 93 of his fifth volume also copies the same account from Mr. Priest's book. Afterwards on page 94 he copies a description given by his father, Mr. A. A. Bancroft, of a stone containing Hebrew characters, which he saw, said stone having been taken from a mound eight miles southeast of Newark, Ohio, many years ago. Mr. Bancroft, the elder, wrote an account of it, which was incorporated with the work "Antiquities of Licking County," from which his son quotes it. The elder Bancroft writes that the stone was "very hard and of fine quality," the size being eight inches long, an inch and a half thick, and four and a half inches wide at one end and tapering to three inches at the other. He says: "'Upon the face of the slab was the figure of a man, apparently a priest, with a long flowing beard, and a robe reaching to his feet. Over his head was a curved line of characters, and upon the edges and back of the stone were closely and neatly carved letters. The slab, which I saw myself, was shown to the Episcopalian clergyman of Newark, and he pronounced the writing to be the ten commandments in ancient Hebrew.' " -- Native Races, vol. 5, pp. 94, 95. Of this stone Elder S. F. Walker, in his "Ruins Revisited," says that it was seen in 1861 by Dr. Lederer, The Jewish Rabbi, editor of the Israelite Indeed, who published an account of it in his magazine of May, 1861. Dr. 256 BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. Lederer said that the carver evidently intended to perpetuate the essence of the divine law on a stone "of such a nature as should be able to resist all influences of the destroying tooth of time." He believed "that, at some remote age, and in some unknown way, one or more pious and distinguished Hebrews came over to this continent, became the teachers of some of the wild tribes of America, and thus introduced not only the knowledge of the true and living Jehovah, but to some extent Jewish, or rather Mosaic rites and ceremonies also." -- Ruins Revisited, p. 215. Dr. Lederer closed his editorial with these words: "The form of the characters is neither the modern Hebrew, (adopted by the High council in consequence of the fact that the 'Cutbiyiun,' or Samaritans, adopted the ancient Hebrew,) nor is it the Samaritan, which shows again that the writer or writers had already forgotten much. Of one thing, however, I am morally convinced: that this stone is a genuine relic of antiquity, as it would be a greater difficulty to believe in the invention of such a strange mixture of characters, disorder of combination, and innocent blunders, than to believe it the handiwork of one long, since passed away." -- Ruins Revisited, p. 216. Many more evidences might be presented but it seems needless; for enough proof has been given to satisfy all just demands for evidence that the native Americans were descendants from the Hebrew tribes. If you desire more, read Bancroft, Priest, Short, Kingsborough, Walker, and other writers. Turning again to the Book of Mormon we find that the fifth chapter of Nephi chiefly contains the words of Christ. He taught the same sublime truths that he gave to the people in the land of Palestine, and he chose twelve chief ministers to be teachers upon this continent also. Though in the book these twelve are riot called apostles, yet they BOOK OF MORMON LECTURES. 257 are designated as chief disciples. He established baptism as the divine order by which people should receive a remission of their sins. He taught the ordinance of the laying on of hands as the principle of the gospel plan for the conferring of the Holy Ghost. He taught the administration of the sacrament, and commanded his disciples to continue the observance of this until he should return to the earth again. He blessed their children and showed that this ordinance was in harmony with those divine and eternal principles for the blessing of God's people and their children upon the earth. They saw their children encircled with fire, as it seemed, and they witnessed that angels ministered to thew.. The heavens were opened to show them the glory, the favor, and the peace of God towards the little ones, even as Jesus, when he was in Palestine, took them in his arms, put his hands upon them and blessed them, and said, "Of |