History of Utah, 1540-1886 - Brigham Young University

MISSIONARIES IN NEW YORK. 401
career he made several thousand proselytes, and wheresoever
he set foot, seldom failed of success.
"Of all the places in which the English language is
spoken," writes Parley in 1838, "I find the city of
New York to be the most difficult as to access to the
minds or attention of the people. From July to
January we preached, advertised, printed, published, 5
testified, visited, talked, prayed, and wept in vain."
Elijah Fordham was with him, and for several weeks
only six proselytes were made, of whom two or three
sometimes met in a small upper room in an obscure
street.
Sorely discouraged, the two elders invited their
converts to a last prayer-meeting, intending to set
forth for New Orleans. Each prayed in turn, when
suddenly the room was filled with the holy spirit, and
all began to prophesy and speak in tongues. "They
should tarry in the city and go not thence as yet;
for the Lord had many people in that city, and he
had now come by the power of his holy spirit to
gather them into his fold."
Among the converts was a chairmaker, named
David Rogers, who now fitted up a large chamber at
his own expense and invited the elders to preach.
The room was crowded at the first meeting, and soon
afterward the elders were ministering at fifteen different
places throughout the city, all of which were
crowded, sometimes preaching twice a day almost
every day in the week, besides visiting from house to
house. 6
Mention has already been made of the labors of
Brigham Young and other missionaries in various
5 ' My first production in that city was a book of upwards of two hundred
pages, entitled the Voice of Warning. The first edition of this work
consisted of four thousand copies; it has since been published and republished
in America and Europe till some forty or fifty thousand copies have
not been sufficient to supply the demand.' Id., 184.
6 Branches of the church were formed during 1838 at Sing Sing and in
New Jersey, also at Brooklyn and elsewhere on Long Island. Id., 1S8. In
the 8. L. Herald, June 16, 1877, is a sketch of the MormoD mission in New
York at that date.
Hist. Utah. 26