Matthew pounced on that. “But that is a testimony of the book, Will. Those feelings are how you know it’s true.”
“Go on, Will,” Derek said, ignoring Matthew’s outburst.
“I really liked the part where the Savior visited the people. That’s probably the time when I felt most strongly it was true. But then, the next day I wasn’t sure again.”
“Did you see Moroni’s promise right near the end of the book?” Derek asked gently. “It talks about how to know if the book is true.”
Will opened the book to the very back, turned a page or two, then held it up. Someone had bracketed with a pen the very passage Derek was referring to. “Jenny marked it for me before she gave it to me.”
“And?” Derek asked again.
The shoulders lifted and fell. “I’ve prayed every night about it,” he said dejectedly. “Maybe it’s because I don’t know how to pray right. It’s been a long time since I prayed, you know.”
“If you prayed with a sincere heart,” Matthew said, his directness softening now, “then you prayed right.”
“Then why don’t I know?” Will cried. “I want to know.”
Derek sat back, watching him steadily. Matthew started to speak but, seeing Derek’s face, stopped and sat back to wait. “I don’t know,” Derek finally said. “I think the Spirit works with different people in different ways. Maybe it will just take a little longer with you.”
“But I want to know. I want to know for Mama’s sake, and for Jenny. And Pa doesn’t even know I’m doing this. I guess in a way I want to know for him too.”
“Maybe that’s part of it, then,” Matthew said.
“What?”
“Moroni says you must ask with a sincere heart and with real intent.”
“But I really want to know. Isn’t that real intent?”
Matthew spoke very gently now. “It’s real intent, all right, but maybe your intent is for Jenny, or Caroline.” He hesitated. “Or for Joshua. And maybe unless, and until, you want to know for yourself, you won’t know for sure. I don’t know. It’s just a thought.”
Will sat back. He wasn’t at all offended at Matthew’s directness. In fact, during the last days of the voyage, he came to realize that he was looking forward to being with Matthew and Derek partly because he was hoping he could ask them his questions and get an honest response.
Derek stood up and walked over to a small table near the door. He picked up a paper and then came back. “Let me show you something, Will. This is a copy of the report I gave to Brigham tonight. He’ll be giving this in the conference tomorrow. It’s a report on the Church membership here in Britain. We’ve organized the Church here into branches, and then groups of branches are called conferences. Tomorrow, Brigham will call on the leaders of each conference to report on their memberships. Here is what they are going to say.”
Not sure what this had to do with the Book of Mormon, Will sat back.
“You have to remember, this total does not include about eight hundred Saints who have already emigrated to America. But”—he consulted his paper—“there are now 5,864 members of the Church in the British Isles. I don’t know how many total members there are in America, but with almost six thousand here, that means a big portion of the Church are now English.”
Will was suitably impressed. Almost six thousand members. Jenny had talked about the phenomenal success of the missionaries, but she had never talked numbers.
“Now, here’s what’s amazing. A year ago at this time—that was when Matthew and Brigham Young and Heber C. Kimball were just arriving—there were 1,541 members. So counting those who have emigrated, there have been over five thousand people baptized in just one year’s time.”
That was impressive. But Will was still puzzled by it all. “That is really something,” he said, “but what does that have to do with me knowing whether or not the Book of Mormon is true?”
Now Derek made his point. “A good many of those five thousand people are going to be here tomorrow, Will. They’re coming to the conference. Orson Hyde, one of the Apostles of the Church, just arrived here from America about a month ago. He is on his way to Palestine. That means there are now nine members of the Quorum of the Twelve here in England.”
Now Matthew saw what Derek had in mind. “They’ll be speaking to us,” he said. “You’ll have a chance to listen to them and feel of their spirit.”
Derek was nodding. “Before the Savior ascended to heaven for the last time, he gathered the Apostles together. Do you know what he said to them at that time, Will?”
Will shook his head.
“He said that the Twelve should go forth into all the world, baptizing those who would believe on their words. And then he said something like this: ‘And these signs shall follow them that believe; they shall cast out devils, they shall heal the sick, they shall take up deadly serpents or drink deadly things and it shall not harm them, they shall speak with new tongues.’ ”
Now he sat back, watching Will with a great sense of calm. “Tomorrow you are going to meet people who have been healed of their sicknesses. There will be people here who have spoken in tongues. I’ve heard them. There will be a woman here who was possessed of an evil spirit. I was there, Will. I was there with Wilford Woodruff. This woman was raging terribly. She screamed and shouted, trying to rip her clothes off. Wilford laid his hands on her and commanded the evil spirit to leave her. In moments she was entirely calm, and then she went to bed and slept for the first time in days. The next day in church she stood and bore testimony of the power of the priesthood.”
“And you saw all that for yourself?”
Derek nodded. “Will, what I’m telling you is, tomorrow you’ll be meeting those people, people who heard the message of the gospel and believed, people who read the Book of Mormon and believed. Talk to them. Ask them how they knew.”
Yes, Will thought, feeling a great sense of relief. I don’t have to know right this moment. He began to nod. “I like that idea, Derek.”
“Matthew’s right, you know. It is important that you know for your mother or for Jenny, or even for your father. But that’s only secondary. It’s most important that you know for yourself, Will.”
Matthew went up on the balls of his feet, searching the crowd of faces. Finally he spotted Will in one corner, surrounded by several young ladies. Laughing at that, Matthew made his way over. Will was holding court and the girls were hanging on his every word. When Will finally looked up and saw Matthew grinning at him, he got a little flustered and quickly excused himself.
“Well, well,” Matthew teased, “I can see the handsome young American sailor has made quite an impression on the belles of England.”
“Go on,” Will said, flushing a little. “They were just asking about what the crossing will be like. A couple of them and their families will be with us.”
“Maybe you’d better not ship on as crew. That would leave you time to”—he grinned at Will—“to answer all their questions.”
Will slugged him lightly on the shoulder. “You know better than that.”
Matthew sobered. “So,” he said, keeping his voice light, “what do you think?”
“About the conference? I thought it was great. Very interesting.”
Nodding slowly, Matthew thought about that. Will had sat with him and Derek during the two meetings. He had listened intently, especially when Brigham Young spoke and bore testimony, and he seemed to like what he was hearing. “Have you had a chance to talk to anyone about how they felt when they joined the Church?”
Will shook his head. “I was about to ask some of those young belles, as you call them, when this other young American came up and started laughing at me.”
“Who, me?”
Will smiled at the feigned innocence. “It’s all right, Matthew. Actually, it’s a little awkward to walk up to total strangers and say, ‘Hello, my name is Will Steed. I’m confused and wondered if you could tell me the innermost feelings of your heart about
the Church.’ ”
“All right! All right!” Matthew chuckled, surrendering. “There will be plenty of chances on the ship to talk with people.”
Now it was Will who grew serious. “If you want to know the truth, there is one thing.”
“What?”
The dark eyes were very thoughtful now, and touched with just the slightest hint of regret. “For a long time, I’ve had some very bitter feelings about the Church, even after I learned that it wasn’t Mormons who had ‘killed’ Pa. Those feelings softened quite a bit in Nauvoo. But even then, down deep, there was still this resentment, this . . . I don’t know . . . this revulsion about Mormonism. And I’m sure some of that came from Pa even before all the trouble in Missouri.”
“Probably so.”
“Nathan once told me hate is like being poisoned by a rattlesnake. And I guess I still had some of that poison in my system.”
“And now?”
Will’s shoulders pulled back as he tried to find the proper words. “Well, since I’ve been reading and praying it’s been slowly changing. And particularly today, as I listened to those men speak, I suddenly realized it was gone. All those feelings are gone. I . . .” He looked directly into Matthew’s eyes now. “If I should learn that the Church is true, I will be very happy to be a Mormon.”
“Good! Good!” Matthew said, genuinely pleased.
“And if I don’t . . .” He stopped. The corners of his mouth pulled down as he thought what Jenny would say if she were hearing these words.
“Yes?” Matthew prodded.
He pushed his thoughts away. “And if I don’t find out it’s true, I will always be a strong friend to the Church.”
For several moments, Matthew considered that. Will could tell he was a little disappointed that it wasn’t more, but he also could tell that Matthew understood just how much that was for Will. Suddenly, Matthew reached out and laid a hand on Will’s shoulder. “That’s great, Will. I think that’s just great.”
By half past eleven, most of Nauvoo and much of the surrounding area, including many places in Iowa Territory across the river, were nearly empty of their inhabitants. All morning long they had been converging on a spot on the bluffs east of the city proper. Now they were there by the thousands, and still coming.
The assembly site for this vast congregation was not accidental. For the last several weeks the word had been sent out among the branches and the settlements. April sixth marked the eleventh anniversary of the founding of the Church. It was time for another general conference.
But that was only partially what drew them. Up high on the bluffs, overlooking the great horseshoe bend in the Mississippi River, was the site for the latest temple of the Church. In the October conference, Joseph had announced that they would build another house of the Lord. Immediately thereafter, construction work began. Now six months later, the excavation—itself a massive undertaking—was done. The foundations were in place. And on this day, starting with the southeast corner, the point of greatest light, and beginning at noon, the time of greatest sunlight, the cornerstones for the Nauvoo Temple would be laid.
“I can’t believe how big it is going to be,” Melissa said, letting her eye run the length of the foundation walls. “It’s much bigger than the Kirtland Temple, isn’t it, Papa?”
Benjamin bobbed his head. “I should say.”
“How much bigger, Grandpa?” young Joshua asked.
“Well,” Benjamin said, pursing his lips as he tried to remember the exact figures the building committee had been given, “if my mind is correct, it’s about thirty feet wider and more than twice as long. It’s going to be one hundred twenty-eight feet long.”
Carl Rogers eyed the foundation walls that ran east and west. It was going to be huge. Carl had already been asked to furnish some of the brick that would be used to pave the basement floor and had done some calculations. But to actually see it like this, it was impressive.
“Where will the oxen be, Mama?” Rachel asked.
Jessica looked around. “I’m not sure, honey. In the basement here, but I’m not sure exactly where.”
“Joseph says right there,” Benjamin said, pointing to the near center of the excavation. “That’s a well you see there. That will furnish the water they need.”
“They’re gonna let cows in the temple?” six-year-old Mark Griffith asked, his mouth open in amazement.
Everyone laughed at that. “No, Mark,” Benjamin said, chuckling. “They’re not real oxen. They’ll be carved from the same stone as the temple.”
“Then why do they need water?” Emily asked, as puzzled as her cousin.
“Yeah,” Luke Griffith piped in. “Why?”
Lydia knelt down in front of her daughter. “Remember last year when Papa baptized you, Emily?”
“Yes.”
“Well, instead of being baptized in the river like you were, there’s going to be a baptismal font—a font is like a huge bathtub—in the temple. And it will sit on the backs of twelve oxen. Not real oxen, but carved oxen, like Grandpa said. That’s what the water is for, to put in the font so people can be baptized.”
Olivia had been listening closely. She looked up at her mother. “When we get baptized, Mama, can we be baptized in the temple?”
A sudden, embarrassed silence swept over the family. For a moment, Caroline was taken aback, but then she looked around. “You can all relax,” she laughed. “It’s only Joshua who doesn’t like you talking about baptism. But I have made up my mind to be baptized someday, you know.”
“And so have I,” Olivia said with conviction.
Caroline looked down at her oldest daughter. “But to answer your question, Livvy. No, I think this font will be used only for those who want to be baptized for the dead. We’ll be baptized in the river, probably.”
Benjamin started to make an additional comment, when the sharp crack of cannon shot was heard from the direction of the city.
“Oh,” Mary Ann cried, “they’re coming. Quick, let’s go over by the road so we can see better.”
Rachel looked up in alarm at Jennifer Jo. “What is it? What’s happening?”
Jennifer Jo took her hand. “It’s the Nauvoo Legion, Rachel. They’re coming. The parade has started.”
They joined the flow of the crowd as everyone moved to where they could see the sweep of Nauvoo below them. And then the Steeds, along with everyone else, stopped dead, dumbfounded at the sight that awaited them.
“Oh, my!” Mary Ann breathed.
“Would you look at that?” Carl exclaimed with open awe.
“Oh!” Caroline said, in a drawn-out exclamation of amazement.
Carl reached down and picked up his two younger boys and held them up as high as he could. Lydia had her baby and couldn’t do anything for Emily as the crowd pushed in and cut off their view. Benjamin already had Savannah on his shoulders, and Jessica did the same with John, her youngest. Cries of excitement were exploding everywhere now. People were shouting and pointing. Children who couldn’t see were squealing to be lifted up. People near the back of the crowd were calling out, asking what it was. Those near the front with the best view whistled and clapped their hands.
“I can’t see, Papa,” young Carl complained.
“Me neither,” cried Olivia.
Just then two men came riding up on horses. “Make a path! Give way!”
The crowd began to fall back in both directions, opening up a broad avenue. The Steeds were right at the split point and ended up along the second or third row of spectators. And now they all could see what was coming.
Sixteen companies of the Nauvoo Legion were marching up the road toward the temple site. In the lead was the Legion band, playing a rousing military march. Next came the officers and their staffs on horseback. And following behind was square after square of soldiers, boots crunching in perfect rhythm to the music, forming a phalanx of men and weapons almost a quarter of a mile long.
It was a grand sight and one to sti
r the blood. As the band passed, the Steeds and everyone around them applauded wildly. A band, no less, Benjamin thought. In Far West, they had had a few who could play instruments, and they had formed a band of sorts. But this was a real band. Most of the men had uniforms on, and the drum major was marking the beat with long up-and-down sweeps of his staff. As he passed by, he raised the staff above his head and twirled it around two or three times with a grand flourish. There were cries of approval and the applause increased. The children’s eyes were big as wagon wheel hubs.
“There’s Brother Joseph,” Kathryn McIntire cried, pointing. “And Sister Emma.” Joseph, mounted on his horse, heard her and turned and waved.
“My,” Mary Ann said to Benjamin, “don’t they make a fine-looking couple?”
Joseph and Emma rode side by side. Emma was in a full dress and rode sidesaddle. Joseph was resplendent, dressed in full uniform. There was a dark blue coat with gold braid epaulets and brass buttons, white trousers, knee-length boots, a wonderful belt with a sword and scabbard, and a plumed helmet. The plumes, made of ostrich feathers, waved gaily in the breeze as his horse pranced, sensing the excitement of the crowd.
Under the Nauvoo Charter, the city council was allowed to appoint the commanding general of the militia. To no one’s surprise, Joseph Smith was chosen and given the rank of lieutenant general. John C. Bennett was made a major general as a reward for his role in getting the charter passed. Wilson Law and Don Carlos Smith, Joseph’s youngest brother, were given commissions as brigadier generals.
Behind Joseph and Emma came the other general officers and their wives and the younger officers who served them. They waved and called out as they rode past.
“Where’s Papa, Mama?” Emily asked, searching the rows of faces as the first company of men approached them.
“He is in General Law’s company,” Lydia answered. “I’m not sure which one that is, but if—”
“There he is!” Peter said, pointing to the third company back. Nathan was the second man in on the fourth row.
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