THE FOURTH OF JULY, 1838.

The Fourth of July, 1838, is a memorable day in the history of Far West. The saints had long been vexed by their enemies. They had seen their homes destroyed, their helpless women and children driven into the wilderness by cruel mobs, when the exiles could be traced by the blood left in their tracks. They had been robbed of their possessions and maltreated in their persons until they were driven almost to desperation. They took advantage therefore of Independence Day to declare their intentions no more to quietly submit to the outrages perpetrated against them. Joseph Smith was president of the day; and his brother Hyrum, vice-president; Sidney Rigdon, orator; and Reynolds Cahoon, chief marshal. They marched in procession through the town and at last formed a circle around a large excavation—one hundred feet long by eighty wide—in the public square; and there, with appropriate ceremonies, they laid the corner stones of the House of the Lord at Far West. This was followed by speeches, music, prayers, reading the Declaration of Independence, etc. Sidney Rigdon, orator of the day, stirred with indignation in contemplating the sufferings the saints had endured, allowed his eloquence to carry him beyond the limits of calm wisdom, and many of the words spoken by him on that occasion, though corrected by the Prophet Joseph, were later made use of by the enemies of The Church, to the injury of the saints.

As an example of Elder Rigdon's unwise and intemperate language on the occasion referred to, I quote the following paragraph from his speech:

Our cheeks have been given to the smiters—our heads to those who have plucked off the hair. We have not only when smitten on one cheek turned the other, but we have done it again and again, until we are wearied of being smitten, and tired of being trampled upon. We have proved the world with kindness, we have suffered their abuse, without cause, with patience and have endured without resentment until this day, and still their persecutions and violence do not cease. But from this day and this hour we will suffer it no more. We take God and all the holy angels to witness, this day, that we warn all men, in the name of Jesus Christ to come on us no more for ever, for from this hour we will bear it no more, our rights shall not be trampled upon with impunity; the man, or the set of men who attempt it, do it at the expense of their lives. And that mob that comes on us to disturb us, it shall be between us and them a war of extermination; for we will follow them until the last drop of their blood is spilled, or else they will have to exterminate us, for we will carry the seat of war to their own houses and their own families, and one party or the other shall be utterly destroyed. Remember it then, all men. We will never be the aggressors, we will infringe on the rights of no people, but shall stand for our own until death. We claim our own rights and are willing that all others shall enjoy theirs. No man shall be at liberty to come into our streets, to threaten us with mobs, for if he does he shall atone for it before he leaves the place, neither shall he be at liberty to vilify and slander any of us, for suffer it we will not, in this place. We therefore take all men to record this day, that we proclaim our liberty this day, as did our fathers, and we pledge this day to one another our fortunes, our lives, and our sacred honors, to be delivered from the persecutions, which we have had to endure for the last nine years or nearly that time. Neither will we indulge any man, or set of men, in instituting vexatious law suits against us, to cheat us out of our rights; if they attempt it we say woe unto them. We this day, then, proclaim ourselves free with a purpose and determination that never can be broken, no, never! No, never!! No, never!!!—COLLECTION OF FACTS.— Rigdon in Missouri, by J. M. Grant, p. 11.