Labors in the Vineyard: Twelfth Book of the Faith-Promoting Series. Designed for the Instruction and Encouragement of Young Latter-Day Saints.Various
Religion
Labors in the Vineyard: Twelfth Book of the Faith-Promoting Series. Designed for the Instruction and Encouragement of Young Latter-Day Saints.
Various
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints -- Missions
The stench that
arose and the horrible sight that met my eyes is beyond description.
They had a Spaniard there, who understood the Zuni language, for an
interpreter, who told me they wanted me to administer to all those who
were sick in the room. I being the only Elder in the village, it seemed
to be a great task to administer to so many, but I called on the Lord
to strengthen me. I commenced, and as fast as I administered to them
they were removed, but other sick ones were continually being brought
in. It was late in the afternoon before I could perceive that they
began to diminish in numbers. When I had administered to the last one
and went out, the sun had set and it was getting dark. The Spaniard who
had stayed there all day asked me if I knew how many I had prayed for.
I told him that I did not keep count; he said he had, and that it was
406. The next morning my arms were so sore that I could hardly move
them.
There was a Presbyterian minister in the village, who became jealous
of the influence I was gaining with the Indians. He persuaded two
Spaniards, one Navajo Indian, one albino Zuni, and one of the Zuni
medicine men to circulate lies and frighten the Zunis, telling them
that those who were healed were healed by the power of the devil.
I felt weak from the effects of administering so much, and, on the
second day after administering to the 406, I started for the settlement
in Savoia valley. The next day after arriving in Savoia I was taken
down with a severe fever, which lasted about a week. I stopped with
the family of Brother John Hunt, who treated me very kindly. It was
about three weeks before I was able to resume my journey to the Mexican
settlements on the Rio Grande. I spent about four months preaching
to the Mexican people in New Mexico. When I arrived at Savoia on my
return, I was informed by the brethren that the minister who opposed me
at Zuni had passed there and was nearly dead with the consumption. When
I arrived at Zuni I was told by some of the most reliable Zunis that
all to whom I had administered recovered, excepting five or six that
the minister gave medicine to, and four or five that the medicine man
had tried to cure by magic. The medicine man that opposed me had died
during my absence, and the Navajo who opposed me, on returning home,
was killed by his people to keep the small-pox from spreading among
them.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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