History of Utah, 1540-1886 - Brigham Young University

204
BRIGHAM YOUNG SUCCEEDS JOSEPH.
ure he was a little above medium height; in frame
well-knit and compact, though in later years rotund
and portly; in carriage somewhat stately; presence
imposing, even at that time, and later much more so;
face clean shaven now, but afterward lengthened by
full beard except about the mouth ; features all good,
regular, well formed, sharp, and smiling, and wearing
an expression of self-sufficiency, bordering on the supercilious,
which later in life changed to a look of subdued
sagacity which he could not conceal; deep-set,
gray eyes, cold, stern, and of uncertain expression,
lips thin and compressed, and a forehead broad and
massive—his appearance was that of a self-reliant and
strong-willed man, of one born to be master of himself
and many others. In manner and address he was
easy and void of affectation, deliberate in speech, conveying
his original and suggestive ideas in apt though
homely phrase. 21 When in council he was cool and
imperturbable, slow to decide, and in no haste to act;
but when the time for action came he worked with an
energy that was satisfied only with success.
Like his predecessor, he was under all circumstances
naturally a brave man, possessing great physical
strength, and with nerves unshaken by much excess
or sickness. That he was given to strong drink has
often been asserted by his enemies, but never by his
friends, and rarely by impartial observers. He was
always in full possession of himself, being far too
wise a man to destroy himself through any indiscre-
tion.
He was undoubtedly the man for the occasion,
however, for no other could, at this juncture, save
the Mormons from dissolution as a sect and as a
people. If the saints had selected as their leader a
man less resolute, less confident, less devoted to his
cause and to his people, a man like Sidney Rigdon,
21 Bowles, Across the Continent, 86, says that even at 64 he spoke ungrammatically.
This criticism is a fair commentary on the difference between a
Bowles and a Brigham.