A certain Joseph Smith, Jr., pretended, a few years ago, to have been directed by the Spirit of God to dig, in a hill, in the township of Manchester, Ontario county, New York, for a set of golden plates which were there concealed, and upon which were inscribed sacred records by the hands of Mormon. He obeyed the direction and found the plates. The inscriptions upon them were in an unknown tongue. But, by the special power of the Spirit, Smith was enabled to translate them. A volume containing these writings was soon after published, constituting, in the whole, fifteen books, purporting to have been written at different times, and by the different authors whose names they respectively bear. In these writings there seems to be a bungling attempt to imitate the style of the sacred Scriptures. But the attempt is manifestly unsuccessful. Nearly two thirds of the paragraphs are introduced with the phrase, "And it came to pass." In endeavoring to preserve the solemn style of the Scriptures, there is great disregard of grammatical propriety. We read, "The Lord sayeth unto me, and I sayeth unto the Lord." Perhaps a few extracts, selected at chance, will give the reader a more correct idea of the general style of the book than any remarks we might offer.

"And it came to pass that when they had arriven in the borders of the land of the Lamanites."

"And it came to pass that I Nephi did make bellowses wherewith to blow the fire."

"And it came to pass that Limhi and many of his people was desirous to be baptized."

The Mormon preachers claim for themselves and the members of their church the power of working miracles, and of speaking with new tongues. They jabber with some strange sounds, and call this the speaking with tongues. They assert it as a fact, that among them the dead have been raised, and the sick healed, as in the days of Christ and his apostles. From these facts, as they call them, they draw the conclusion that they are the members of the true church of Christ. The doctrine increases among men; and well it may, for there are circumstances in the condition and views of those who embrace it which are calculated to secure its success. In a large portion of the community there is a great degree of ignorance in regard to the geography of the sacred Scriptures, the manners and customs of the Jews, and the natural history of the Bible. There are many who read their Bibles daily, and with true devotional feelings, it may be, who have no idea that the places mentioned in sacred history, like those mentioned in any other history, can be traced on the map, can be found and visited at the present day, although disguised under modern names. It makes no part of their study of the Bible to ascertain where the places mentioned are to be found, and what they are now called. They have no idea that the allusions to manners and customs, found in the Bible, can be understood, through an acquaintance with the practices and habits of the people described; and, consequently, the study of Jewish manners and customs makes no part of their preparation for understanding the Scriptures. They have no idea that the allusion in Scripture to facts in natural history can be verified by an acquaintance with that science, and therefore they make no exertions to understand the natural history of the Bible. They do not take up the Bible and read it with the expectation of being able to understand it, in regard to these particulars, as they would understand any other book. All such are prepared, by their ignorance on these subjects, to become the dupes of the Mormon delusion; or, at least, they are not prepared to withstand this delusion. They open the Book of Mormon, claiming to be a kind of appendix to the Bible. The paragraphs begin with the phrase, "And behold it came to pass." They read of the cities of Zarahemla, Gid, Mulek, Corianton, and a multitude of others. They read of prophets and preachers, of faith, repentance, and obedience; and having been accustomed, in reading the Scriptures, to take all such things just as they are presented, without careful examination, they can see no reason why all this is not as much entitled to belief as are the records of the Old and New Testaments. But if, on the contrary, they were acquainted with the geography and the natural history of the Bible, and with the manners and customs of the nations there mentioned, and especially if, in their reading of the Scriptures, they were accustomed to examine carefully into these points, they would at once perceive the utter impossibility of identifying the cities mentioned in the Book of Mormon with any geographical traces which they can now make. They would thus perceive the deception, and be put on their guard. And then, too, upon further examination, they would discover that the manners and customs of the people, the sentiments and disputes, are not such as belong to the period of the world in which the people are represented to have lived; that they take their coloring from modern customs, from modern opinions and controversies; and, upon these discoveries, they would be led to reject the whole as a fabrication.

Many are deceived in consequence of the fluency of the preachers in warning sinners. They pray with fervor; the people are affected; and the Spirit of God is declared to be present, owning and blessing the work. But there is deception here. It is but a few years since the Cochrane delusion, as it is called, prevailed in and around the village of Saco, Maine. What gave that delusion so much success? It was because Cochrane spoke with great fluency, warned sinners with great earnestness, and poured forth his prayers with zealous fervor. The people became affected; many were in tears; many sobbed aloud, cried for mercy, and some became prostrate on the floor. "Surely," it was remarked, "the doctrines advanced by Cochrane must be true, the preaching of them being so signally owned and blessed of God." In this way, men of sound judgment in other respects are carried away by false views and appearances, and become the dupes of the most extravagant sentiments and delusions. They become "zealously affected," but it is not, as the apostle says, "in a good thing." A correct knowledge of the sacred Scriptures, and of proper principles in regard to the study of the Bible, with sound and rational views of the nature of religion, and of the influences of the Holy Spirit, will serve to correct all such tendencies to error and deception.

From the best account that has been published respecting the origin of the Mormon Bible, it appears that it was written by an individual named Solomon Spaulding, some twenty-five years ago; but without the least intention, on the part of the author, of framing a system of delusion for his fellow-men. This Spaulding was a native of Ashford, in Connecticut, where he was distinguished, at an early age, for his devotion to study, and for the superiority of his success over that of his schoolmates. He received an academic education, and commenced the study of law at Windham; but his mind inclining to religious subjects, he abandoned the law, went to Dartmouth College, prepared himself for the ministry, and was regularly ordained. For some reasons unknown he soon abandoned that profession, and established himself as a merchant at Cherry Valley, New York. Failing in trade, he removed to Conneaut, in Ohio, where he built a forge; but again failed, and was reduced to great poverty. While in this condition, he endeavored to turn his education to account, by writing a book, the sale of which he hoped would enable him to pay his debts and support his family. The subject selected by him was one well suited to his religious education. It was an historical novel, containing an account of the aborigines of America, who were supposed by some to have descended from the ten tribes of Israel. The work was entitled the "Manuscript Found," and the history commenced with one Lehi, who lived in the reign of Zedekiah, king of Judea, six hundred years before the Christian era. Lehi, being warned of Heaven of the dreadful calamities that were impending over Jerusalem, abandoned his possessions, and fled with his family to the wilderness. After wandering for some time, they arrived at the Red Sea, and embarked on board a vessel. In this, after floating about for a long time, they reached America, and landed at the Isthmus of Darien. From the different branches of this family were made to spring all the Indian nations of this continent. From time to time they rose to high degrees of civilization and refinement; but desolating wars among themselves scattered and degraded them. The Manuscript was written in the style of the Bible, the old English style of James the First. When the work was ready for the press, Spaulding endeavored to obtain the pecuniary assistance necessary for its publication, but his affairs were in so low a condition that he could not succeed. He then removed to Pittsburg, and afterwards to Amity, in Pennsylvania, where he died. By some means or other, the Manuscript fell into the hands of Joseph Smith, Jr., who afterwards published it under the name of the "Golden Bible." Smith was the son of very poor and superstitious parents, and was for a long time engaged in digging for Kidd's money, and other feats of like description. Possessing considerable shrewdness, he became somewhat skilled in feats of necromancy and juggling. He had the address to collect about him a gang of idle and credulous young men, whom he employed in digging for hidden treasures. It is pretended that, in one of the excavations they made, the mysterious plates from which the Golden Bible was copied were found. Such, briefly is the origin of the Mormon faith—a humbug to which not a few, otherwise sensible men, have pinned their hopes of happiness here and hereafter.

After the death of Joseph Smith, and shortly before the Mormons were driven out from Illinois, many of the disciples of the great impostor seceded and refused to acknowledge the leadership of the knowing twelve who became his successors. Among them were a very pious Mormon named McGhee Vanduzen, and his wife Maria. They soon gave to the world an exposition of the shameful manoeuvres attendant upon Mormonism as a religion; of the absurd and indecent ceremonies which the unprincipled leaders of that wicked imposture enforced upon their infatuated disciples. Smith, and his associate leaders at Nauvoo, evidently established these ceremonies for the base purpose of enticing the more beautiful females among his disciples to their ruin and disgrace. The shameful character of the mysteries developed could lead to no other conclusion.

Says the Boston Traveller, of April 21, 1852, "The rapid spread of Mormonism is one of the mysteries of the age. A more barefaced delusion, except that of the spiritual rappings, was never imposed on the all-swallowing credulity of mankind. Yet it has gained adherents by thousands in Europe as well as in the United States."