The City of the Mormons; or, Three Days at Nauvoo, in 1842 — John Shaqi
The City of the Mormons; or, Three Days at Nauvoo, in 1842Caswall, Henry
History
The City of the Mormons; or, Three Days at Nauvoo, in 1842
Caswall, Henry
Latter Day Saints -- Illinois; Nauvoo (Ill.)
too poor; but let the poor man contribute out of his poverty, and the
rich man out of his wealth, and God will give you a blessing."
During this address, I noticed some of the English emigrants whom I had
seen a few days previously on board the steam-boat at St. Louis. They
were listening with fixed attention, and, doubtless, considering how
many of their hard-earned sovereigns should be devoted to the pious work
of building a fine hotel for the prophet and his posterity. The thought
arose in my mind, that these earnest appeals for money were designed
mainly for the ears of the three hundred green saints who had just
arrived.
This address being concluded, two other elders followed in a similar
strain. They spoke with great fluency, and appeared equally familiar
with worldly business and operations in finance, as with prophecies and
the book of Mormon. At length, having, as they supposed, wrought up the
zeal of the congregation to a sufficient pitch, they called on all
believers in the book of Mormon, who felt disposed to take stock, to
come forward before the congregation, and give in their names with the
amount of their subscriptions. Upon this appeal, there was much
whispering among the audience; and I detected two Mormons, apparently
from Yorkshire, in the very act of nodding and winking at each other.
However, none came forward; and one of the elders coolly remarked,--that
as they appeared not to have made up their minds as to the amount which
they would take, he requested all who wished to become stockholders to
come to his house the next afternoon at five o'clock.
The elder who had delivered the first discourse now rose, and said that
a certain brother, whom he named, had lost a keg of white lead. "Now,"
said he, "if any of the brethren present has taken it by mistake,
thinking it was his own, he ought to restore it; but if any of the
brethren present has stolen the keg, much more ought he to restore it;
or else, may be, he will get _cotched_; and that, too, within the
corporation limits of the city of Nauvoo."
Another person rose and stated that he had lost a ten-dollar bill. He
had never lost any money before in his life; he always kept it very
safely; but now, a ten-dollar bill had escaped from him, and if any of
the brethren had found it, or taken it, he hoped it would be restored.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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