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Office of Joseph Smith, President of the Church of Latter Day Saints. Having introduced me, together with several Mormons, to this _sanctum sanctorum_, he locked the door behind him, and proceeded to what appeared to be a small chest of drawers. From this he drew forth a number of glazed slides, like picture frames, containing sheets of papyrus, with Egyptian inscriptions and hieroglyphics. These had been unrolled from four mummies, which the prophet had purchased at a cost of twenty-four hundred dollars. By some inexplicable mode, as the storekeeper informed me, Mr. Smith had discovered that these sheets contained the writings of Abraham, written with his own hand while in Egypt. Pointing to the figure of a man lying on a table, he said,
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That is the picture of Abraham on the point of being sacrificed. That man standing by him with a drawn knife is an idolatrous priest of the Egyptians. Abraham prayed to God, who immediately unloosed his bands, and delivered him. Turning to another of the drawers, and pointing to a hieroglyphic representation, one of the Mormons said,
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Mr. Smith informs us that this picture is an emblem of redemption. Do you see those four little figures? Well, those are the four quarters of the earth. And do you see that big dog looking at the four figures? That is the old Devil desiring to devour the four quarters of the earth. Look at this person keeping back the big dog. That is Jesus Christ keeping the devil from devouring the four quarters of the earth. Look down this way. This figure near the side is Jacob, and those are his two wives. Now do you see those steps?
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What, I replied,
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Yes, he said,
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That is indeed curious, I remarked;
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Jacob's ladder standing on the ground, and only reaching up to his wife's waist.
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to build the
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Nauvoo house. He informed me that he had migrated from the Johnstown District in Upper Canada. He would have returned to that country before, had he not been desirous of remaining to see the wonderful works of the Lord in Nauvoo. He preferred Canada to the United States; and the British government was, in his opinion, greatly superior to that of the Americans, which he considered little better than an organized mob, especially in the Western States. He regarded a strong monarchy as essential to good government, and believed that this opinion was generally held among the
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Saints. In the event of a war between England and America, England might rely upon it that the Mormons would not be her enemies. The Indians, too, whom the Americans had persecuted almost as badly as the Missourians had persecuted the Mormons, were decidedly friendly to England. He had lately been among their tribes, and had found everywhere English muskets bearing the date of 1839. The Indians were already making preparations for espousing the cause of England in a war with America. He foretold that great desolation was about to be inflicted on America by England, with the assistance of the oppressed negroes and Indians. The conversation was now interrupted by the entrance of numerous Mormons, who begged to be permitted to see and handle the wonderful book. They all looked upon it as something supernatural, and considered that I undervalued it greatly, by reason of my ignorance of its contents. It was in vain I assured them that a slight acquaintance with Greek would enable any person to decipher its meaning. They were unanimous in the opinion that none but their prophet could explain it; and congratulated me on the providence which had brought me and my wonderful book to Nauvoo. The crowd having cleared away, my host asked me to give my opinion of Nauvoo. I told him that it was certainly a remarkable place, and in a beautiful situation; but that I considered it the offspring of a most astonishing and unaccountable delusion. He said that he admired my candour, and was not surprised at my unbelief, seeing that I was a stranger to the people and to the evidences of their faith. He then proceeded to inform me respecting these evidences. He assured me, in the first place, that America had been mentioned by the prophet Isaiah. I begged for the chapter and verse. He pointed to the sentence,--
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Woe to the land shadowing with wings. Now to what land could this refer, but to North and South America, which stretched across the world with two great wings, like those of an eagle?
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Stop, I said;
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Well, said my host,
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Have you a map? I said.
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Yes, he replied,
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Now tell me, I said,
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In Palestine, he answered.
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Very well, I replied;
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South, by the map, was the reply.
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In what direction from Palestine is America?
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West, he answered.
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Now do you think that Isaiah, as a man of common sense, to say nothing of his prophetical character, would have described a country in the west, as lying _beyond_ another which is due south? He was silent for a moment, and then confessed that he had never thought of studying the Bible by the map;