WITHERED LIMB RESTORED TO USE—SISTER AND MOTHER INSTANTLY HEALED—SAINTS PRESERVED IN CHOLERA EPIDEMIC—PROPHETIC ADVICE TO THE BRIGGS FAMILY—CONSEQUENCES OF FAILURE TO FOLLOW IT—VOYAGE TO AMERICA—THE MOTHER HEALED IN ANSWER TO PRAYER—SATANIC THREAT FULFILLED IN MOTHER'S DEATH—SICKNESS AND RECOVERY OF THOMAS—HIS MARRIAGE—PREMONITION OF DEATH—DEATH OF FATHER.

BROTHER THOMAS BRIGGS, of Bountiful, Utah, a man who is noted for his zeal and integrity, has had a rather eventful life, the principal incidents of which he has had reduced to a type-written narrative for the benefit of his posterity. From this compilation and information otherwise obtained, the following items are culled:

He was born August 20, 1832, at Newark, Notting-hamshire, England. When six years of age he removed with his parents to Hull, where his father owned and operated a small vessel that plied about the coast and on the rivers, where the water was too shallow for large ships to navigate. His parents were religious people, but dissatisfied with the sects of the day, and therefore not members of any of them.

In the year 1848, the father heard of the Latter-day Saints, and, on attending one of their meetings, was immediately attracted by their doctrines. The mother could not be persuaded to attend a meeting for a long time because of the unpopularity of the "Mormons," and for the reason that their place of worship was in a somewhat disreputable part of the town.

When she did finally hear the "Mormon" Elders, she too, as well as Thomas, became interested, the latter especially so on hearing a discourse on "the gifts of the Gospel and the signs that follow the believer." Thomas at that time was sorely afflicted with what the doctors called a withered limb. What he heard set him to thinking, reading the Bible and praying. His parents had spent a large amount of money on having his left leg, (which had ceased growing, and was very painful,) treated by various doctors, but all in vain.

In the fall of 1848 the Father embraced the Gospel, and near the same time he took Thomas to a very noted doctor, in the hope that he would be able to cure him; but the doctor, after examining the boy, said his was a very bad case, and told the father confidentially that he could not live much longer.

On leaving the doctor's office the boy asked his father what the doctor had said about him, and received the discouraging reply that, in the doctor's opinion, he could not live to be a man.

Thomas determined to rely no more upon the doctors' treatment, but to appeal to the Lord, and if he could not be healed in answer to the prayer of the Elders to be satisfied to die.

The Elders at that time frequently held meetings at the Briggs home, so the very next time they met there the father informed the President of the Branch of the boy's wish. He was accordingly anointed with oil, after which the Elders laid their hands upon his head and prayed for him. He slept well that night and when he arose the following morning his lame limb was as sound and well as the other, and of the same length, although it had previously been fully two inches shorter, causing him to walk with a decided limp. A pair of shoes had been ordered for him with a specially thick cork sole upon the left one, to enable him to walk without limping, but as they had not been finished before he was administered to, the thick sole feature was the next day countermanded. The left limb had never been as vigorous as the other from the time he was three months old, and it was a few weeks after the incident referred to before it became as fleshy, although it was equally strong. After that one could not have told from the appearance of his limbs when nude which had been affected; nor, in fact, that either ever had been.

Near the same time Thomas' sister Elizabeth had a large and painful swelling come under her ear, and when the mother was almost worn out with sitting up and waiting upon her, the Elders also administered to her. Immediately afterwards she fell asleep, slept soundly all night and when she awoke the next morning the large swelling, which had been round and hard like a ball, had disappeared, and the loose skin hung down in the place of it like a bag upon the shoulder, with no evidence whatever of any discharge from it. It always remained a mystery where the discharge had gone to. Within a few days the loose skin dried up and peeled off, and new skin succeeded, without any sign of a scar.

An account of these two cases of healing was published in the Millennial Star of April 24, 1850, over the signatures of Henry Beecroft and James McNaughton, the two Elders who officiated, both of whom, as Brother Briggs remarks in his narrative, afterwards apostatized, which serves to illustrate the fact that however much the power of God may be made manifest through an Elder, he may still be overcome by the evil one unless he leads a pure life and remains humble.

Brother Briggs also relates an instance of his mother being healed in answer to prayer soon after the family joined the Church. She had been so ill for several weeks as to be unable to leave her bed, when one evening the Elders called and administered to her. She was healed immediately, arose and prepared supper for her guests, of which she also ate heartily herself, and then joined in singing hymns and entertaining until midnight, as if she had never been ailing.

On the 27th of January, 1849, Thomas, who was then in his 18th year, was baptized, and from that time bore a fervent testimony to the truth of the Gospel.

During a meeting of the Saints held in Hull soon after Thomas was baptized, a person spoke in tongues, and when the interpretation was given (which was by another person, and which was evidently inspired) it was found that it related wholly to Thomas. It was said that he would have many trials to pass through in life, and much suffering to endure, but they should be shown to him beforehand, and if he remained faithful he would come off victorious, and in the end wear a martyr's crown.

Thomas was not specially impressed with this incident at the time, but he had occasion to think of it many times afterwards, and also to see much of it verified.

In the year 1849 the cholera was very prevalent in Hull, and though many of the Saints suffered from it, but few of them died, being mostly healed by the power of God in answer to prayer.

In the year 1850 the Briggs family were greatly prospered, and were strongly advised by one of the Elders who enjoyed the gift of prophecy, to migrate to Utah. He said: "Brother Briggs, when you get sufficient means to take you to new Orleans, you go; then go from there to St. Louis, or you may never get to the valleys of the mountains."

The father, however, delayed starting until misfortune began to overtake him, when he was reminded of the counsel he had received, and hastened to obey it. They took passage on the ship Ellen, which sailed from Liverpool, January 8, 1851. The vessel had not proceeded far when, during a heavy gale, she collided with another ship, and was so badly damaged that she had to run into Cardigan bay, North Wales, and remain there three weeks while undergoing repairs. While there one of the sailors was badly hurt, and was sent to Liverpool; and Thomas Briggs, the subject of this sketch, volunteered to take his place, and work his passage across the ocean, and was allowed to do so.

After a fairly prosperous voyage the ship anchored at New Orleans on the 14th of March, and the Briggs family proceeded by steamboat up the Mississippi to St. Louis, where they landed March 26, 1851. There they met a man who had borrowed some money from the Briggs family in England, and who was now prepared to repay the loan, which helped them to make a new start, for the means with which they started had become exhausted.

Father and son sought employment and worked at whatever job was offered them—as boat hands, farmers' hired help, bottle washers in soda water factories, teamsters, putting up ice, chopping cordwood, etc. Sometimes they were home at night, at other times absent for a considerable period. The cholera was very bad in St. Louis at that time, and one night while Thomas and his mother were the only members of the family at home, she was stricken with the cholera, and appeared to be dying. He was prompted to get some oil and administer to her. Though inexperienced, he anointed and prayed over her, and she immediately revived, and in a short time took some nourishment. Before many days had passed she was as well as ever.

Soon afterwards, while Thomas was lying awake in bed one night, there suddenly appeared before his vision a personage dressed in black, who looking straight at him, said in a sneering tone: "You have saved her life this time, but I will have it next time. And when I get her life I will have yours." Thomas boldly answered: "You shall not!" He understood the personage to represent the power of darkness, and the person referred to as having her life saved to be his mother. He had reason to feel very soon that it was no idle threat that the evil one indulged in.

Thomas obtained work at a dairy, and by his diligence soon worked his way up to the position of foreman. In consequence of the prevalence of cholera and the frequent changes in the force of employees as a result, he was under the necessity of making occasional trips around with the milk wagons to keep familiar with the routes and see that the drivers were doing their duty. One morning while thus engaged he was met on the street by his father, who was greatly agitated, and who asked him to hurry home with him, as his mother was dying. Thomas hastened to her bedside, ready and anxious to do anything in his power to save her life. As he entered the room she turned her eyes upon him and said faintly: "Tom, be a good lad to your father!" These were her last words. Her life was ebbing fast away. She soon lapsed into unconsciousness, and in a very short time her heart ceased to beat.

The mother had not been long dead when Thomas was reminded of the threat made by the evil one, that he would get her next time, and also of that against his own life. About one year had elapsed since the threat was uttered, and he had now (on the 18th of August 1851) partially executed it.

After the burial of his mother Thomas resumed his work at the dairy, and his sister Elizabeth, who had been out at service, returned home and kept house for her father.

About the first of the year 1852 Thomas was taken suddenly ill with bilious fever, and brought home for treatment. The father, very much against the wish of Thomas, sent for a doctor, who attended him for five or six weeks without any sign of improvement; in fact, he continued to grow worse. The father became greatly alarmed and discouraged, lest he also should die.

Finally Thomas determined to have his own way in the matter of remedies, and the next time the doctor called he told him he had decided to take no more of his medicine, and to dispense with his services. He asked his father to throw away all of the doctor's medicine that he had, and to get him a bottle of olive oil, and he would take that and trust in the Lord for the result.

He took about half of the bottle of oil, which caused nausea, and he really felt for awhile as if he was dying, but after vomiting very freely, and thus relieving his system of a good deal of the poison which had accumulated therein, he felt better, and from that time improved.

As the winter approached Thomas felt the necessity of seeking a warmer climate to recuperate in, after being confined to his bed for eight or nine weeks, so went south to New Orleans, where he was soon rejoined by his father. They obtained work and did well, and had every encouragement to remain there permanently, but Thomas especially felt that his destiny would not be completely filled until he had joined his fortunes with the body of the Saints in the mountains. Furthermore, he felt that he had reached a proper age for marriage, and as he had made the acquaintance of a young woman in St. Louis, of his own faith, and in every way suitable, he was anxious to marry her. He laid his plans before his father, and they were heartily approved.

They accordingly returned to St. Louis, where Thomas was shortly afterwards married to the girl of his choice, Miss Ann Kirkham, by the Presiding Elder in St. Louis, Brother Horace S. Eldredge. He and his wife set up a temporary home in St. Louis, hoping to have the father live with them while making preparations for the journey, and then go with them to Utah.

The summer of 1853 was very hot in St. Louis, and much sickness prevailed, and many deaths occurred. On Sunday, the 27th of August, Thomas and his wife entertained his sister and his wife's sister at luncheon, and afterwards walked to the cemetery and looked at his mother's grave. While standing around it he was impressed to say, "Girls, it will not be long before we shall lay another in this cemetery lot!" It produced a profound feeling, and he tried, but in vain, to reason away the idea.

They returned home, feeling very sad and filled with foreboding. Even Thomas, though he felt sure his premonition would be fulfilled, was uncertain as to who the victim would be. When they arrived home, to their surprise they learned that Father Briggs had just been brought there in a cab, stricken with yellow fever. His feet were very cold, and when they were placed in hot water he said he could not feel any warmth in them. Thomas realized then that his symptoms meant death, but kept his thoughts to himself. The father, though confident when first brought home that he would recover, evidently soon changed his opinion, for he said to his son: "Tom, I shall never get to the mountains; but you will, and you must never forget the dead!" He died the following day (August 18, 1853), and was buried beside his wife, thus fulfilling the son's unwitting prediction, and leaving his son bereft of both mother and father within one short year.