JS, History, 1838–1856, vol. D-1, created 4 July 1845–4 Feb. 1846 and 1 July 1854–2 May 1855; handwriting of , Robert L. Campbell, and ; 275 pages, plus 6 pages of addenda; CHL. This is the fourth volume of a six-volume manuscript history of the church. This fourth volume covers the period from 1 Aug. 1842 to 1 July 1843; the remaining five volumes, labeled A-1, B-1, C-1, E-1 and F-1, continue through 8 Aug. 1844.
Historical Introduction
History, 1838–1856, volume D-1, constitutes the fourth of six volumes documenting the life of Joseph Smith and the early years of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The series is also known as the Manuscript History of the Church and was originally published serially from 1842 to 1846 and 1851 to 1858 as the “History of Joseph Smith” in the Times and Seasons and Deseret News. This volume contains JS’s history from 1 August 1842 to 1 July 1843, and it was compiled after JS’s death.
The material recorded in volume D-1 was initially compiled under the direction of church historian , with the assistance of . After Richards’s death in 1854, continued work on the volume as the new church historian with Bullock’s continued help. The process adopted by Richards and Bullock involved Richards creating a set of rough draft notes and Bullock transcribing the notes into the volume along with the text of designated documents (such as letters and meeting minutes). George A. Smith followed a similar pattern, though he dictated the draft notes to Bullock and other scribes.
According to the Church Historian’s Office journal, finished the third volume of the series, volume C-1, on Thursday, 3 July 1845, in , Illinois. He began work on the fourth volume, D-1, the next day, beginning on page 1362 with the entry for 1 August 1842. (The pages in volumes A-1–E-1 were numbered consecutively.) Bullock continued work on the record, drawing upon ’s draft notes, until 3 February 1846—the day before D-1 and the other volumes were packed up in preparation for the Latter-day Saints’ exodus from Nauvoo. At that point he had reached page 1485 with the entry for 28 February 1843. Subsequently, apparently after the collection had arrived in Utah, Bullock added a brief comment beneath that entry: “end of W. Richard’s compiling[.] the books packed Feby. 4— 1846 in Nauvoo[.] Miles Romney— present. The records carried by T Bullock from Winter Quarters to G S L [Great Salt Lake] City in 1848.”
A notation at the top of page 1486 reports that “the books were unpacked in G. S. L. City by and . June 7. 1853. J[onathan] Grimshaw & Miles Romney present.” Vertically, in the margin, is a poignant epitaph: “Decr. 1 1853 Dr. Willard Richards wrote one line of History—being sick at the time—and was never able to do any more.” With Richards’s death on 11 March 1854, JS’s cousin was called to the office of church historian. The notation on the top of page 1486 acknowledges this change in officers, noting, “commencement of George A. Smith’s compiling as Historian. April 13. 1854[.] [C]ommenced copying July 1. 1854.” From mid-April to the end of June 1854, George A. Smith, in collaboration with Thomas Bullock, worked on the draft notes for the history before a new scribe, , resumed writing in D-1 on 1 July 1854, beginning with the entry for 1 March 1843.
continued transcribing intermittently into the late fall of 1854, when he was assigned other duties in the Historian’s Office. He had reached page 1546 with the entry for 5 May 1843. Work resumed in February 1855 in the hand of Robert L. Campbell, recently returned from a mission. He concluded volume D-1 on the morning of 2 May 1855 and began writing in E-1 that afternoon.
The 274 pages of volume D-1 contain a record of much that is significant in the life of JS and the development of the church he founded. Among these events are
• JS’s 6 August 1842 prophecy that the Saints would become a mighty people in the midst of the Rocky Mountains.
•JS’s 8 August 1842 arrest on a warrant for being “an accessory before the fact” to an attack on former governor .
• ’s 17 August 1842 letter to governor , pleading for the humane treatment of her husband and family.
•JS’s 1 and 6 September 1842 instructions regarding the proper procedures for performing baptisms for the dead.
• JS’s 15 November 1842 “Valedictory” as he stepped down as editor of the Times and Seasons.
• The 26 December 1842 arrest of JS on a “proclamation” by former governor , and subsequent hearing in , Illinois.
• The 7 February 1843 recovery of a volume of patriarchal blessings given by , which had been stolen in , Missouri.
• JS’s 21 February 1843 remarks regarding the and .
• JS’s 2 April 1843 instruction at , Illinois, on the nature of God and other subjects.
• JS’s 16 May 1843 remarks at , Illinois, on the everlasting covenant and eternal marriage.
• The account of JS’s 23 June 1843 arrest and his hearing the following week at .
<March 15> sneered contemptuously at the idea of their smaller, and younger brother taking the field, and like David’s brethren they thought that he was but a stripling, and that he would certainly fall by the hand of some of the great Goliah’s; but on the contrary while some of advanced years, noble mein, and possessing a more formidable appearance have given up the ghost, the little Wasp has held on the even tenor of his way, the untiring, unflinching supporter of integrity, righteousness and truth; neither courting the smiles, nor fearing the frowns of political demagogues, angry partizans, nor fawning sycophants. Partaking so much of the nature of the industrious bee, it has gathered honey from every flower, and its pages are now read with interest by a large, and respectable number of subscribers.
As the young gentleman is now nearly a year old, we propose on his birthday to put him on a new dress, and to make him double the size, that he may begin to look up in the world, and not be ashamed of associating with his older brethren; and as he has acted the part of a good samaritan, we propose giving him a new name.— Therefore his name shall no longer be called The Wasp, but the Neighbor.”
I prophecied in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, that would get away honorably from the Missourians, and cautioned Peter Hawes [Haws] to correct his boys, for if he did not curtail them in their wickedness they would eventually go to prison [HC 5:305]
I dreamed last night that I was swimming in a river of pure water, clear as crystal, over a school of fish of the largest size I ever saw, they were directly under my belly. I was astonished, and felt afraid that they might drown me, or do me injury
The Editor of the Wasp has the following editorial.
“What reliance can be placed upon a Legislature that will one session grant a charter to a city with “Perpetual Succession,” and another session take it away. We expect however that this honorable body believe in the common adage, “promises and pie crusts are made to be broken;” and we have sometimes ourselves seen boys crying for their marbles again, after they have given them away.
We suppose however with them that the words perpetual succession do not mean what they say. The house in the dignity of its standing passes a bill, at the request of the people, telling them that they shall have a charter granting them certain privileges, and telling them that it shall perpetual, without any repealing clause. It is made a law of, and the grand seal of state, appended to it. The people on the good faith of the go to work, and improve under the provisions of that charter; companies are formed, buildings are erected, and money expended; but by and by they find out that they have been leaning upon a broken reed, that there is no dependence to be placed in government; that they have broken their most sacred promises, violated their plighted faith, and wantonly and wickedly, sought to injure thousands of men who relied on their promises, by an unprecedented, unconstitutional, and tyrannical law, trampling under foot the faith of the , and virtually saying, that the members of the Legislature that granted the charter were all fools, or knaves, and that we the pure representatives of the people must break the plighted faith of the to set them right.”
The Herald gives a list of indebtedness of the several states who refuse to pay the same,—— as follows: $29,129,123, Georgia $3,184,323 [p. 1499]