The Autobiography of Parley Parker Pratt: One of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Embracing His Life, Ministry, and TravelsPratt, Parley P. (Parley Parker)
Religion
The Autobiography of Parley Parker Pratt: One of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Embracing His Life, Ministry, and Travels
Pratt, Parley P. (Parley Parker)
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints -- Apostles -- Biography; Pratt, Parley P. (Parley Parker), 1807-1857
_Dear Brother_--We have now sailed for twenty-three days
and made nearly half the passage. We are well, and the wind is
generally fair, but now and then a calm. Brother Allen and myself
still study the language with diligence, and still talk with the
Chilian, who is also reading diligently in our Spanish Bible.
The "Book of Mormon," "Voice of Warning," etc., have been the
rounds, and been read by the captain and mates; but they will not
believe in them, nor in the testimony of men or angels. However,
there is one intelligent, sober young man, who is interested much.
_April 29th_, lat. 27 deg. N.--Fifty-five days have
passed like a dreary imprisonment to us, with but little to eat. We
live on a little poor, hard bread, probably baked some two or three
years ago, and some beans, and very poor damaged salt beef and
pork. We have no flour, potatoes, sugar, molasses, rice, or other
comforts, although we pay a good price for cabin passage.
We have not had one day of good sailing in a month; it is either
calms or light head winds. We seldom sail more than from thirty to
fifty miles in twenty-four hours. We are hungry, and weary, and
lonesome, and disconsolate. But, after praying much for a fair wind
and speed, we find our prayers are not answered, and we have given
it up, and have asked our Heavenly Father to give us patience and
reconciliation to His will.
We are now some eight or nine hundred miles from port, and our
provisions (poor as they are) must fail us soon. But live or die we
trust in God and try to serve Him.
There is no one on board who fears God or regards man, as far as
we know, except one of the sailors and ourselves. The most horrid
blasphemies resound in our ears every day in the cabin and on deck,
from captain and mate together, with gambling and blackguardism.
We are shunned and hated because of our testimony, and because
our example is a reproof. But we mind our own business, and study
language and the Scriptures every day.
The young man of which I speak is a Mr. Howard, from the United
States, who is well educated, and has read our books with much
interest during the passage, and has requested to be baptized and
join the Church as soon as we land. He is not accustomed to a
seafaring life, and wishes to go to the mountains with us. He has
been brought up at school and in clerking. I think his calling is
to preach the Gospel, but I have not yet even hinted this to him.
Brethren, I want to see you all with a desire above all other
times of my life. I feel as though I wanted to sit down with you
and seek the powers and gifts of God and the powers of Heaven, even
that which shall be shed forth for the restoration of the house of
Israel.
Oh, when will the time come? When shall the veil be rent and the
full powers of the apostleship be permitted to be exercised on the
earth? It must be before long or no flesh be saved--for the powers
of darkness prevail abroad to that degree that it can even be felt
physically.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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