PEACE ONCE MORE—THE RESULTS OF THE WAR—THE LABORS OF HELAMAN—SHIBLON RECEIVES THE RECORDS—HAGOTH, THE SHIP-BUILDER—ANOTHER WAR—MORONIHAH—PAHORAN'S DEATH—CONTENTION REGARDING THE CHIEF JUDGESHIP—PAANCHI's REBELLION—THE GADIANTON BANDS—ASSASSINATION OF PAHORAN II.—ANOTHER LAMANITE INVASION.

(ALMA CHAP. 62 TO HELAMAN CHAP. 1.)

IN THE next year after the capture of the city of Moroni peace was established in all the land; not a Lamanite warrior remained on Nephite soil. Then Pahoran returned to his judgment seat, and Helaman recommenced his labors in the ministry.

The long-continued and savage war just closed had brought various evils to the church. In many parts of the land it may be said to have been disorganized. The occupancy of so many of the Nephite cities by the unbelieving Lamanites had produced numerous demoralizing effects. Murders, contentions, dissensions and all manner of iniquity had become rife, and the hearts of the people had grown hardened. Yet not altogether so, for there were some who acknowledged the hand of the Lord in all their afflictions. These humbled themselves in the depths of humility; and because of the prayers of the righteous the people were spared.

Such was the state of affairs when Helaman went forth to call the people to repentance and set the church in order. In this blessed work he had much success, and with the help of his brethren he again established the Church of God throughout all the land. These labors he continued until the time of his death, and his joy therein was greatly increased by the continued faithfulness of the people. They, notwithstanding their abundant prosperity, which, as ever, followed their repentance, remained humble, fervent in prayer and diligent in well-doing. Such was the happy condition of the people of Nephi when Helaman died (B. C. 57), he having survived his illustrious father sixteen years. Shiblon, at the death of his brother, took possession of the sacred things that had been delivered unto Helaman by Alma, and held them for four years.

The next year (B. C. 56) the valiant Moroni, one of the greatest and most virtuous of God's sons, passed away from this state of mortality to the glories of eternity, at the early age of forty-three years. Some time before his death he had given the chief command of the armies of the Nephites to his son, Moronihah, who, from the history of later years, we judge to have been a worthy son of so illustrious a sire.

The four years that Shiblon held the plates are principally noteworthy for the commencement of Nephite emigration to the northern continent. It was during this period that Hagoth established his ship-building yards on the Pacific, near the land Bountiful. It is probable that ships were built by the Nephites before Hagoth's time, but he being an exceedingly expert mechanic, constructed much larger ones than had hitherto been built, and thus inaugurated a new feature in Nephite colonization. [7]

When Shiblon died he committed the records to the care of Helaman, the son of his brother Helaman. The history of the Nephites and Lamanites still continued a history of wars. In the same year that Shiblon died, the Lamanites again raised a numerous army and went down against their traditional foes. The campaign was a short one. Moronihah, the son of Moroni, inflicted a signal blow upon their advancing legions, and drove them back to their own lands. Their loss in this deservedly ill-fated expedition was great.

Still this blood-thirsty race never seemed to gain experience by the things it suffered. This, no doubt, arose to a great extent from the continued irritation kept up by the wily apostates, who had much private spleen to gratify in the sufferings of the Nephites, and who held no particular love or respect for their credulous dupes and cat's-paws, the Lamanites.

It was in the year B. C. 53 that Helaman took charge of the sacred plates, etc. In the next year Pahoran, the chief judge, died, which event gave rise to serious contention amongst the Nephite people. Three of his sons, named Pahoran, Pacumeni and Paanchi, were ambitious to fill the exalted position left vacant by their father's death. Each had his adherents and following, but, according to the national law, the matter was decided by the voice of the people, and Pahoran was chosen.

Pacumeni assented to the decision of the citizens, but Paanchi attempted to raise a rebellion, for which crime he was arrested, tried by the law, and condemned to death. Still the more wicked part of the community supported his unlawful claims. These determined to slay Pahoran, which resolve they carried into effect, and the chief judge was slain by an assassin named Kishkumen. [8] This foul murder was committed while the chief magistrate was sitting in the judgment seat administering the law, but through the connivance of the murderer's associates in iniquity he escaped.

These lawless men bound themselves together by a secret oath and covenant, that they would never divulge who was the murderer of Pahoran, and they swore, by the most horrible oaths, one to another, to conceal each other's crimes, to aid and sustain each other in their villainies, and to carry out the designs and directions of their leaders. Over this band of conspirators, assassins and robbers, Gadianton stood as the head.

The next year after Pahoran's assassination, the Lamanites invaded the lands of the Nephites. The Lamanite armies were commanded by a Nephite dissenter named Coriantumr. He was a descendant of Zarahemla, therefore, presumedly, of the tribe of Judah. He determined on new and venturesome tactics, and caused his forces to make an unexpected dash through the Nephite territory. The Nephites everywhere gave way before them. They marched through the center of the country, ravaging its most populous and richest districts. Before the astonished Nephites could collect their armies the enemy had assaulted and captured their beautiful and strongly fortified capital, and for the first time the savage soldiery of Laman held possession of the towers, temples and palaces of Zarahemla. On this occasion the chief judge, Pacumeni, was slain. Intoxicated with his uninterrupted successes, the Lamanite general crowded yet further north, neglecting to keep up his line of communication in the rear.

Coriantumr's hope was to obtain possession of the narrow isthmus which was the key to both continents. In this he failed. The Nephite commander first checked his progress northward, and then cut off his retreat. In a fierce battle that followed he was killed, his armies surrendered, and the remnants hastened ingloriously home, Moronihah, the Nephite commander, magnanimously permitting them to return unmolested. (B. C. 51.)