In the latter part of December, 1881, the committee appointed to furnish and arrange the affairs of the Gardo House as the family residence of President Taylor, announced that it was ready; and if agreeable to him, suggested that he immediately move into it. They also intimated that they would be pleased to announce to his friends when they could call upon him. He acted upon their suggestion and appointed the 2nd of January as the day that a public reception would be given, between the hours of 11 a. m. and 3 p. m. At eleven o'clock that day Croxall's Band entered the enclosure and serenaded the President in his new home, after which the doors were thrown open and the stream of callers began filing into the house. President Taylor, surrounded by his family, his counselors and a few personal friends, received them cordially, and exchanged kindly greetings. During the hours of reception Professor C. J. Thomas' orchestral Band serenaded him. The Tabernacle choir came also, and sang several pieces, among which was the grand anthem "And it shall come to pass in the last days," etc., concluding with "Auld Lang Syne." Two large tables in the dining hall were kept replenished with refreshments, of which nearly all who called partook. It was estimated that more than two thousand friends called upon the President that day. All were pleased to greet him, and were full of kindness and the best wishes for the man of God. It was a grand day in the life of President Taylor. His youth and manhood had been spent in the service of God. He had never manifested a disposition to desert the ministry, no matter how strained his own circumstances might be. He was never called to do service in the cause of God, but that he answered, "ready!" and now that the frosts of seventy-four winters had made silvery white his hair, he was comfortably established in a magnificent home, surrounded by his family, his friends and brethren and honored by all Israel. No man had fairer prospects for enjoying the one boon ever coveted by age--the privilege-- "To husband out life's taper at the close, And keep the flame from wasting by repose." The fair prospect of ease and comfort, however, was soon to be marred by the ruthless machinations of unreasoning hate. During the year 1881, a bitter agitation of the Mormon question, was inaugurated in Utah and spread throughout the United States. It was the work of sectarian religious bigots and political adventurers.