There he lay as I had left him. He had not moved a limb; he lay placid and calm, a monument of greatness even in death; but his noble spirit had left his tenement and had gone to dwell in regions more congenial to its exalted nature. Poor Hyrum! He was a great and good man, and my soul was cemented to his. If ever there was an exemplary, honest and virtuous man, an embodiment of all that is noble in the human form, Hyrum Smith was its representative. Such was the character of this witness to the existence of the Nephite record. He not only never denied the testimony that he received through seeing and handling the plates of the Nephite record, but he consecrated his life to the great work of God which in a way may be said to have had its origin in the coming forth of the Book of Mormon; and finally sealed his testimony with his blood, and it is in force upon all succeeding generations of men. He loved the Book of Mormon, and from it more frequently than others took the texts which formed the central thought of the discourses he delivered to the Saints. In it also he doubtless saw foreshadowed, near the close of his career, his own impending martyrdom, and the justification also of his life. On the morning of his departure from Nauvoo to Carthage, where he met his martyrdom, he read the following passage in the presence of his family, and turned down the leaf upon it: And it came to pass that I prayed unto the Lord that he would give unto the Gentiles grace, that they might have charity. And it came to pass that the Lord said unto me: If they have not charity it mattereth not unto thee, thou hast been faithful; wherefore, thy garments shall be made clean. And because thou hast seen thy weakness thou shalt be made strong, even unto the sitting down in the place which I have prepared in the mansions of my Father. And now I, Moroni, bid farewell unto the Gentiles, yea, and also unto my brethren whom I love, until we shall meet before the judgment-seat of Christ, where all men shall know that my garments are not spotted with your blood. [15] SAMUEL HARRISON SMITH.