On the 9th, five charges were also preferred against David Whitmer, who was cited to appear for trial on the 13th. David also replied by letter, in which he refused to recognize the authority of the general assemblies of the Church and the action taken against him; nor would he recognize the authority of the present council which had been called to try his case. And, since the council would pursue its "unlawful course at all hazards," he preferred to withdraw from their "fellowship and communion--choosing to seek a place among the meek and humble, where the revelations of heaven will be observed, and the rights of men regarded." Action was therefore taken against David Whitmer and thus another of the special witnesses, was cut off from the Church.[1] Lyman E. Johnson and William E. McLellin The same day charges were preferred against Lyman E. Johnson; these were sustained, and he was cut off from the Church. One month later, May 11, 1838, William E. McLellin was handled for his fellowship, and he also lost his standing in the Church. About this time Jacob Whitmer and Hiram Page also left the Church having partaken of the spirit of apostasy. A Day of Sadness This was a day of sadness for Joseph Smith. To see the witnesses who were associated with him in the incipiency of the Church fall by the wayside, touched his heart. Yet right must prevail, and righteousness triumph, even though it should cause wounds which could not be healed. To their credit, be it said, that none of the witnesses who had beheld angels and the plates from which the Book of Mormon was translated, ever denied their testimony concerning these things, notwithstanding the extreme bitterness of heart they manifested against Joseph Smith the Prophet.[2] Return of Elders Kimball and Hyde April 1, 1838, a conference of the Church was held in Preston, England, in Temperance Hall (the "Cock Pit"), for the purpose of setting in order the branches in that mission. Joseph Fielding was sustained as President of the British Mission, to succeed Heber C. Kimball, and Willard Richards and William Clayton, an English convert, were chosen as his counselors. These men were ordained high priests. On the 20th of April, 1838, Elders Kimball and Hyde sailed from Liverpool for the United States, in the same ship which had carried them to England, the _Garrick_. They arrived in Kirtland, May 21, 1838, and immediately notified the Prophet, at Far West, of their good feeling and firmness in the faith. Far West--The House of the Lord