cause faithfully during the latter part
of her life. The Sunday Schools,
too, are a very important institution
in our Church. President Young
was moved upon in very early days
to organize the Sabbath Schools in
these valleys. Many have labored
faithfully to carry on the work, and
others have taken hold of it, until we
have today, I understand, almost a
hundred thousand children belonging
to the Sabbath Schools. They are
taught the Gospel of Christ. They
are taught the duties of children to
parents; the importance of their es-
chewing evil and ceasing from sin,
and praying to God to keep them in
the paths of virtue, holiness, right-
eousness and truth.

Then the young men and maidens
of Zion have been organized into
what has been termed Mutual Im-
provement Associations. Too much
importance cannot be attached to
any of these organizations and their
interests. We look to the Mutual
Improvement Associations for our
Elders, for our missionaries. We go
to this body of young people, and
take from them men to go into the
vineyard of the Lord to preach the
Gospel of Jesus Christ. Do our
young men comprehend this? I fear
not, but many of them do, and many
of them have entered upon this work.
And such are prepared from child-
hood to pray and obtain the Spirit
and power of God, the Holy Ghost,
the revelations of heaven, enabling
them to go forth, bearing the holy
Priesthood to warn the world, con-
vert the honest in heart and gather
them to Zion to prepare them for
the coming of the Son of Man. Up-
on your shoulders, young men of
Israel, rests this duty today. Your
fathers are passing away. Joseph
Smith laid the foundation of this
Church. He lived but a short time.
Like the Savior he died a martyr.
He lived but a little longer than the
Savior did. Jesus labored only three
years and a half after entering upon
the active duties of the ministry. Jos-
eph labored in his mission some
fourteen years, I believe. He stood
at the head of this dispensation.
His spirit was kept in the
spirit world to tabernacle in the
flesh in fulfillment of promises to
Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph and
Ephraim. Through their posterity
he came forth and laid the founda-
tion of this Church, and organized it
in all its beauty and power and glory
and strength and Priesthood, by the
authority of God. I do not know
how many there are in this house
who knew him, but there are some
who were acquainted with him for
years. Before he was called away
he organized the Church of God with
prophets, apostles, teachers, gifts,
helps and governments, and there
were given unto him, and by him
sealed upon the heads of the Apostles
and Elders of Israel the holy Priest-
hood, the apostleship, the keys of
the kingdom of God; and these Apos-
tles were commanded of God to
round up their shoulders and bear off
this kingdom or they would be
damned. I am now the only man
living in the flesh who was present
when that communication was given
to us. My presence with you must
necessarily be limited. I cannot
stay a great while longer, and don't
expect to; but I know it is my
duty to do what I can in laying be-
fore the rising generation their duties.
I am especially anxious that our
young people should sense the great
responsibility that must sooner or
later rest upon them; and that they
should bear in mind the fact that
they were kept in the spirit world
thousands of years to come through
the loins of the ancient patriarchs
and prophets in our own age and
generation for the very purpose of
carrying on this great latter-day
work. God called upon us and He
will call upon you and our posterity
after us, to rise and warn the genera-
tions in which they live; to preach
the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the
nations of the earth that their gar-

Y. M. M. I. A. ANNUAL CONFERENCE. 635

cause faithfully during the latter part of her life. The Sunday Schools, too, are a very important institution in our Church. President Young was moved upon in very early days to organize the Sabbath Schools in these valleys. Many have labored faithfully to carry on the work, and others have taken hold of it, until we have today, I understand, almost a hundred thousand children belonging to the Sabbath Schools. They are taught the Gospel of Christ, They are taught the duties of children to parents; the importance of their eschewing evil and ceasing from sin, and praying to God to keep them in the paths of virtue, holiness, righteousness and truth.

Then the young men and maidens of Zion have been organized into what has been termed Mutual Improvement Associations. Too much importance cannot be attached to any of these organizations and their interests. We look to the Mutual Improvement Associations for our Elders, for our missionaries. We go to this body of young people, and take from them men to go into the vineyard of the Lord to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Do our young men comprehend this? I fear not, but many of them do, and many of them have entered upon this work. And such are prepared from childhood to pray and obtain the Spirit and power of God, the Holy Ghost, the revelations of heaven, enabling them to go forth, bearing the holy Priesthood to warn the world, convert the honest in heart and gather them to Zion to prepare them for the coming of the Son of Man. Upon your shoulders, young men of Israel, rests this duty today. Your fathers are passing away. Joseph Smith laid the foundation of this Church. He lived but a short time. Like the Savior he died a martyr. He lived but a little longer than the Savior did. Jesus labored only three years and a half after entering upon the active duties of the ministry. Joseph labored in his mission some fourteen years, I believe. He stood at the head of this dispensation. His spirit was kept in the spirit world to tabernacle in the flesh in fulfillment of promises to Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph and Ephraim. Through their posterity he came forth and laid the foundation of this Church, and organized it in all its beauty and power and glory and strength and Priesthood, by the authority of God. I do not know how many there are in this house who knew him, but there are some who were acquainted with him for years. Before he was called away he organized the Church of God with prophets, apostles, teachers, gifts, helps and governments, and there were given unto him, and by him sealed upon the heads of the Apostles and Elders of Israel the holy Priesthood, the apostleship, the keys of the kingdom of God; and these Apostles were commanded of God to round up their shoulders and bear off this kingdom or they would be damned. I am now the only man living in the flesh who was present when that communication was given to us. My presence with you must necessarily be limited. I cannot stay a great while longer, and don't expect to; but I know it is my duty to do what I can in laying before the rising generation their duties. I am especially anxious that our young people should sense the great responsibility that must sooner or later rest upon them; and that they should bear in mind the fact that they were kept in the spirit world thousands of years to come through the loins of the ancient patriarchs and prophets in our own age and generation for the very purpose of carrying on this great latter-day work. God called upon us and He will call upon you and our posterity after us, to rise and warn the generations in which they live; to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the nations of the earth that their gar-