History of Utah, 1540-1886 - Brigham Young University

38 THE STORY OF MORMONISM.
of the ten tribes; we believed that Jesus would come
to reign personally on the earth; we believed that
there ought to be apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors,
and teachers, as in former days, and that the
gifts of healing and the power of God ought to be as-
sociated with the church." These ideas, of course,
were not held by all; in many respects the strictly
orthodox evangelical churches taught the contrary;
but there was enough of this literal interpretation and
license of thought among the people to enable them
to accept in all honesty and sincerity any doctrine in
harmony with these views.
Such were the people and the place, such the atmosphere
and conditions under which was to spring up
the germ of a new theocracy, destined in its development
to accomplish the first settlement of Utah—
people and an atmosphere already sufficiently charged,
one would think, with doctrines and dogmas, with vulgar
folly and stupid fanaticism, with unchristian hate
and disputation over the commands of God and the
charity of Christ. All this must be taken into account
in estimating character, and in passing judgment
on credulity; men of one time and place cannot
with justice be measured by the standard of other
times and places.
Before entering upon the history of Mormonism, I
would here remark, as I have before said in the preface
to this volume, that it is my purpose to treat the
subject historically, not as a social, political, or relig-
ious partisan, but historically to deal with the sect
organized under the name of the Church of Jesus
Christ of Latter-day Saints as I would deal with
any other bod}^ of people, thus carrying over Utah
the same quality of work which I have applied to my
entire field, whether in Alaska, California, or Central
America. Whatever they may be, howsoever righteous
or wicked, they are entitled at the hand of those
desirous of knowing the truth to a dispassionate and
a