My esteemed fellow workers in the Priesthood:

My heart is filled with gratitude tonight, as it has been throughout this conference, for the knowledge I am sure we all have that God is with this people. That expression of brotherhood, love, just given by Brother Stephen L Richards is akin, indeed it is identical with the spirit that prompted the Apostle of old to say, "I know that I have passed from death unto life because I love the brethren"  1 Jn. 3:14

That is the sublime feeling which every member holding the Priesthood may experience if he will do his duty and live uprightly before the Lord.

UNBECOMING GAMES

I have in mind only one or two items to give at the conclusion of this impressive conference. One that I mention by way of caution is that in your carnivals that you hold in order to raise money for building purposes, you avoid those games which are unbecoming, or that will cast in any way reflection upon our young girls or men who hold the Priesthood. We know the difficulties that you have to raise fifty per cent of the cost of these edifices, and we commend you highly, and our sisters, for the effort you put forth. But there are some games which are carried on in carnivals outside the Church which are unbecoming the recreation furnished by the Church officers.

One I will name is a feature in which young Beehive Girls come out in public in bathing suits, sit on a spring board before young men who throw balls to hit a certain spot which will loosen the spring-board, and cause the young girl to drop into a tank of water.

I have seen colored and white men do that for so much money, but let us not have our young girls do it, nor men who hold the leadership in the Priesthood.

FELLOWSHIP IN THE PRIESTHOOD

Now, there are three other items which I will name, just briefly I hope, and I will illustrate each by practical experiences. The first is the value of companionship in quorums, already mentioned by my counselors.

One of the most pleasing experiences of this great conference was meeting a bishop who came to the stand and said, "I am here with some of my deacons, whom I should like to have the privilege of meeting you." A true leader accompanying his quorum boys to conference!

Fellowship in the Priesthood! If we can get the bishops to fellowship the priests in every ward, and in some way, at opportunities favorable, meet those young men and young women of corresponding age in some social or groups or meetings, and win their admiration and confidence, we can avoid some unpleasant things which are occurring in our towns. For those priests and girls determine largely the moral atmosphere of your town. You bishops are the leaders. Your counselors can aid you in associating with the teachers and the deacons.

This companionship applies also to Elders.

There are many ways in which we can get these indifferent elders together without inviting them to do things which are difficult. Some of them do not like to pray. They hesitate about standing in public to preach, and some of them would rather go fishing or playing golf on Sunday than attend meeting. But, not one of those indifferent elders will refuse an invitation, for example, to come to a funeral of one of the townsfolk, or one of their members, or of one of their members' wives, and if you will come as a quorum and sit together as a quorum, there is one means of fellowship. Our High Priests are doing it more than Seventies or Elders.

I have attended a number of funerals where I have seen reserved seats for High Priests, in paying respect to a departed brother. There is group fellowship.

Again these indifferent men will come to your quorum socials. Make those socials of a high order, and thus you will come in personal contact with them.

We must be mutually helpful. This world would not exist if it were not for the mutual aid we give one another from the time we are born until we are laid away.

REVERENCE

A second principle to which I wish to refer is reverence. I have spoken upon this several times, and intend to continue to speak upon it, because I look upon reverence as one of the highest qualities of the soul. An irreverent man is not a believing man. I think a man cannot testify of his knowledge of the existence of God and take God's name in vain. He can do it by words, but as the old king in "Hamlet," his words will fly up, but his thoughts remain below.

I was deeply impressed with the lesson that President George Q. Morris taught his missionaries in the Sacred Grove. They have an entrance there now, a sort of fence and a gate leading into the sacred spot, where they hold the service.

There as you enter the gate is a sign, "Quiet Please." I wish everybody in the Church could experience that quiet attitude of several hundred missionaries in that Sacred Grove, and as soon as the Amen of the benediction was given, these elders retired without consultation, without shaking hands, to the outside part of the grove.

In our meeting houses today we have reverence just as soon as the hour comes for worship, but in Sunday Schools particularly, at the change of classes there is a hub-bub. That is not educative to our children. They have done away with the marching we used to have when I was in the Sunday School work in Weber. They now think it undignified for older persons to march.

Well, Superintendents, you may do this, at least—when you separate for class work, let a class rise and pass out to the room, and then another class follow, without this careless, sometimes boisterous attitude of everybody's mingling and talking as he goes to his class.

Reverence indicates high culture, and true faith in deity and in his righteousness.

KINDNESS TO ANIMALS

The third is kindness. The first line in what is now known as the "Psalm of Love" is this: "Love suffereth long and is kind"  1 Cor. 13:4

A true Latter-day Saint is kind to animals, is kind to every created thing, for God has created all. He is right, the author of the "Ancient Mariner" when he deplores the killing of the albatross, when he wrote these lines:

"He prayeth best who loveth best all things both great and small,

For the dear God who loveth us, he made and loveth all."

I am mentioning this because I have seen, in my travels, such cruelty in the world, particularly in the Near East. I was touched with the treatment that those people gave, and probably now give the humble little donkey. Every caravan is led by that poor, humble creature, carrying a heavier load than his own weight, it seemed sometimes. Often the driver, the leader of those camels, if he became weary would climb on top of the load the donkey was carrying. As you drive along those highways, on the roads you would see the carcasses of the donkeys that walked and carried, struggled and staggered until they fell. They were unloaded and left for their bones to bleach on the side of the highway.

Camels, if a bit obstreperous, would have steel prongs piercing the sides of their jaws. If they happened to pull back, the clamp would close and those prongs penetrate not only the skin but the flesh as well.

However, we need not go to the Near East to see cruelty to animals. We see it around here if we but open our eyes. It is a good thing to teach our boys to be kind. A man who was working for me once on the farm came home about sundown, and said, "I have just killed a porcupine over there."

I said, "Why did you kill it?"

"Oh," he said, "just for fun." And I said, "Did you kill it or is it over there suffering?"

"Oh, I killed it." Well, I wondered, so I just took time to cross those two creeks and go over to the little hill. He had not killed it. The poor creature was just stunned, its head was beaten, and he was struggling. What fun can there be in treating dumb animals in that cruel way!

KINDNESS TO WIVES

But I mention this now, because I think we are cruel to our wives. I have here two letters, one anonymous, another signed by a woman. They are asking "What shall we do? Our husbands are cruel to us."

Says one, "My husband has a terrible temper. He comes home and scolds the children. He is cruel to me. At first he seemed to be a good, loving husband, but when my first baby was born, then was born my troubles."

Brother Bowen is aiding greatly in taking care of appeals for cancellations of sealings. I am grieved, brethren, I say "I" because the responsibility of canceling those sealings rests upon the one who holds that key. I am grieved indeed to note in those appeals the number of instances which indicate that some husbands treat their wives cruelly.

I cannot imagine a man's being cruel to a woman. I cannot imagine her so conducting herself as to merit such treatment. Perhaps there are women in the world who exasperate their husbands but no man is justified in resorting to physical force or in exploding his feelings in profanity. There are men, undoubtedly, in the world who are thus beastly, but no man who holds the Priesthood of God should so debase himself.

Some of us are now past the threescore and ten. We can look back over the short life, and it does seem short, and treasure those things which seem most precious. Tonight, one of those things, one of the most precious possessions is my memory of a home in which love was supreme, in which I cannot recall ever a cross word having passed between father and mother. We owe that blessing to our children.

"Love suffereth long and is kind"  1 Cor. 13:4

The spirit of kindness is as enduring as love itself. Let us go home, and if we have been cruel, either by treating our wives with indifference, or by scolding, or loud talking, if we have been cruel to our children by neglect, or by striking them, let us see if we cannot repent and look introspectively and see whether or not we are not to blame for some of the conditions that arouse these passions.

CHILDHOOD EXPERIENCE

Now, brethren, I wish to bear you a testimony which I think I have never before given in public. Since childhood it has been very easy for me to believe in the reality of the visions of the Prophet Joseph Smith. What I am going to say may seem very simple to you, but to me it is a heart petal.

When a very young child in the home of my youth, I was fearful at night. I traced it back to a vivid dream in which two Indians came into the yard. I ran to the house for protection, and one of them shot an arrow and hit me in the back. Only a dream, but I felt that blow, and I was very much frightened, for in the dream they entered, one a tall one, and a smaller one, and sneered and frightened mother.

I never got over it. Adding to that were the fears of mother, for when father was away with the herd or on some mission, mother would never retire without looking under the bed, so burglars or men who might enter the house and try to take advantage of mother and the young children were real to me.

Whatever the conditions, I was very much frightened. One night I could not sleep, and I fancied I heard noises around the house. Mother was away in another room. Thomas E. by my side was sleeping soundly. I became terribly wrought in my feeling, and I decided to pray as my parents had taught me.

I thought I could pray only by getting out of bed and kneeling, and that was a terrible test. But I did finally bring myself to get out of bed and kneel and pray to God to protect mother and the family. And a voice as clearly to me as mine is to you, said, "Don't be afraid. Nothing will hurt you." Where it came from, what it was, I am not saying. You may judge. To me it was a direct answer, and there came an assurance that I should never be hurt in bed at night.

EASY TO BELIEVE

I say it has been easy for me to understand and believe the reality of the visions of the Prophet Joseph. It was easy for me in youth to accept his vision, the appearance of God the Father and his Son, Jesus Christ to the boy praying  JS—H 1:17 I thought of nothing else. Of course that is real. It was easy for me to believe that Moroni came to him there in the room  JS—H 1:30-33 Heavenly beings were real from my babyhood on, and as years came those impressions strengthened by reason and strengthened by the inspiration of God directly to my soul.

I know that those visions were real, and that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God, and when we say this it means that I know that Jesus lives, that Christ is our Redeemer and that this is his Church. We are merely his representatives. When we accept that, then the reality of God the Father, Father of our spirits, is easy to accept.

These things being real, brethren, we cannot do anything else but try our utmost to do what Jesus Christ, our Redeemer, asks us to do, for he has given us the Gospel that bears his name, and in the words of Peter, "There is none other name given under heaven whereby we must be saved"  Acts 4:12

God bless you. With all my heart I bless you, and pray that peace and love and kindness will abide not only in your hearts, but in your homes, that your wives, our wives and our children may have memories sweet of a home in which God was pleased to dwell.

May this be our lot, our experience, throughout the Church in all the world, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.