"There are no written laws among them; but trespasses, outrages, and such matters, are taken cognizance of by the elders, and adjudicated on summarily, according to conscience, fines and public flogging being the punishments most in vogue. The authorities have a mint, from which they issue gold coin only; it is plain, but massive, without any alloy.

"There are, as far as I could hear or judge, about 5,000 inhabitants in the town, and 7,000 more in the settlements, which extend forty miles each way-north to the Weber, and south towards Utah Lake. The valley, at its greatest width, is not over fifteen miles, and I think seven would be a fair average. Its soil is a rich black loam, and is watered, besides the Jordan, which flows through its centre from Utah to Salt Lake, by innumerable springs of good water, and streamlets flowing from the snowy mountains; but it has a naked, bleak look for want of timber, which renders the effects of the sun next thing to unbearable. The city is situated on the south-east end of the lake, about nine miles from its shores."

Brigham Young, in a paragraph previously quoted, talks magniloquently of gold as being only fit for the paving of streets and the roofing of houses; but it appears that the sect has been so successful at the diggings of California, as well as at the more profitable diggings of the soil of a grain and fruit produce country, that they have put aside 3 tons, or 94,080 ounces, of gold, gathered in California, for the purpose of “ gathering" the poor Saints from England and other parts of Europe, as well as from the remote districts of the American Union, into the Great Salt Lake Valley. At £4 an ounce, this would amount to £376,320. It is possible that they may have exaggerated their resources in this respect. The gold coinage of their new State of Deseret has been already struck. The five-dollar pieces are of pure Californian gold, without alloy, and somewhat smaller, but much heavier, than a sovereign. The reverse bears the inscription, "Holiness to the Lord," surmounting the eye of Jehovah, and a cap somewhat like a mitre, both very rudely executed. The obverse bears two hands joined, and the words, "Five dollars." half dollar pieces are precisely similar.

OR

The two and a

OTHE

Mormon Gold Coin.

MORMONISM-ITS PRESENT STATE, AND SOCIAL, POLITICAL, AND RELIGIOUS ASPECT.

IN tracing the history of the rise and progress of Mormonism, and detailing the varied fortunes of the founders and leaders of the new faith, as well as of the large community who have recognised Joseph Smith as the prophet of God, and his Book of Mormon as a new Bible, we have necessarily omitted to notice many controversial points, in order that the continuity of the narrative might not be broken. Having concluded this portion of the work, we proceed to the consideration of the present state of Mormonism, and to the arguments by which its divinity is asserted by the men who believe in it.

The discovery of the Book of Mormon is connected, by the believers in it, with certain scripture doctrines and prophecies concerning the Latter Days. Hence, indeed, the designation of the sect, as the Church of the Latter-Day Saints. Here, we have to admire the

cleverness of the case which they have contrived to make out for themselves. The wonder is, that so much plausible evidence should be collectible in support of the most transparent pious fraud ever attempted to be palmed off on the credulity of mankind. However, so it is; and it is writ down in our duty" to say a few words on this curious point.

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In treating of this subject, in his pamphlet on the Divine Authenticity of the Book of Mormon, Mr. Orson Pratt, by far the ablest writer whom Mormonism has produced, commences by a triumphant recapitulation of the means by which he has reduced his opponents to the necessity of asserting a mere negation in defence of their disbelief. Secure in the strength of his affirmative position, he characteristically defies "all the powers of priesteraft, editors, and the infernal regions combined," to disprove his "vast amount of most incontestible evidences," by which it has been " abundantly" testified that "the Book of Mormon has been confirmed by the voice of the Lord, by the ministry of angels, by heavenly visions, or by the miraculous gifts and powers of the Holy Ghost, unto tens of thousands of witnesses." Nay, he boldly declares, that "if any one will follow the steps of demonstration which he has pointed out, he will know with the same certainty that it is a revelation from God, that a geometrician has when he follows the rules of demonstration in relation to any particular problem."

Such being the state of the argument, Mr. Orson Pratt professes to feel that he need call no further witnesses; but, nevertheless, for the sake of completeness, he summons the prophets into court. He takes the last first. St. John on Patmos (Revelations, xiv. 6, 7, 8), and his vision of an angel "having the everlasting Gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth," in the latter days, which, of course, is none other than the all-needed New Revelation contained in the "Book of Mormon," with the restoration of the Gospel priesthood, its gifts, powers, and blessings. Hitherto the world has had a history (in the New Testament) of the Gospel, but not its enjoyThat the angel was to preach his Everlasting Gospel "to every nation, kindred, tongue, and people," shows that they were to be previously destitute of it, as they have been practically. Now, the "Book of Mormon contains the Everlasting Gospel in all its fulness; moreover, it has been revealed to the inhabitants of earth by an angel." Q. E. D.

ment.

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COROLLARY.- -"The only people that do testify that the Gospel has been restored to the earth by an angel are the Latter-Day Saints; therefore, if the Gospel is restored, the Latter-Day Saints are the only people to whom it is restored; all others testify that it has not

been restored to them. If the only people who do testify to the restoration of the Gospel by an angel be impostors, then all nations must still be in darkness, without the Gospel, and without a Christian Church, and must remain so until the angel is sent in fulfilment of John's prediction."

Again. The Church of the Latter-Day Saints is none other than the Stone foretold by Daniel to smite the Image upon its feet of iron and clay. The [Mormon] proof follows:

"The nations of modern Europe, including England and the Gentile nations of America, compose the legs, and feet, and toes of the Image, while the other portions of the Image will be found mostly among the Asiatic nations. The geographical position of the Image is from east to west; its head is found in Asia, and its toes in Europe and America. When the kingdom of God is set up, it must be somewhere near the western extremity of this great Image, for the toes and feet are first broken by it, and afterwards all the other portions, from which we learn that its advancement is from west to east. The progress of the kingdoms of the world has been from east to west; the progress of the kingdom of God is from west to east, in a retrograde direction. This stone, according to Daniel (ii. 45), is to be CUT OUT OF THE MOUNTAIN WITHOUT HANDS,' Cut out of the mountain,' signifies its location before any part of the Image is broken. The present location of the Latter-Day Church is in the valleys among the Rocky Mountains; this appears to be its appropriate position, according to prophecy. The stone is to be cut out without hands :' this signifies that it is a kingdom, not formed by the will of man, but by the will of God; human wisdom has no hand in its formation; it is 'the God of Heaven' that sets it up, and by him it will be sustained and never be destroyed, nor broken to pieces, nor left to other people.

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"The kingdoms of the world made war upon the saints of the former-day kingdom and prevailed against them, and overcame them, and rooted them out of the earth, so that the kingdom no longer existed among the nations; not so with the Latter-Day kingdom; for it will prevail against the kingdoms of the world, until they shall, as Daniel says, 'become like the chaff of the summer thrashing-floors and the wind carry them away, that no place shall be found for them; and the stone that smote the Image shall become a great mountain, and fill the whole earth' (Daniel ii. 35). 'And then shall the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, be given to the people of the saints of the Most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him' (Daniel vii. 27). The events predicted by Daniel are the same as the events predicted by John; Daniel says a kingdom shall

be set up: John tells us by what means, namely, through the everlasting Gospel revealed by an angel. Daniel says, when the kingdom of God is set up, that the kingdoms of the world shall be broken in pieces: John says, that when the everlasting Gospel has been restored and preached to the nations, that then is 'the hour of God's judgment' -the downfall of Babylon. Both of these writers beheld the same great events, but described them in different language. That which was predicted by those two inspired men is now being fulfilled. The angel has appeared-the Gospel is restored—the kingdom is set up-its location is among the mountains, and shortly the balance of these predictions will also be fulfilled to the very letter, and not one jot or tittle shall fail, until the earth shall rest from wickedness, and the kingdoms of this world become the kingdoms of our God and his Christ.

But the great proof of all, according to the believers in Joseph Smith and his book, is derived from the 29th chapter of Isaiah, and his prophecy concerning Ariel therein contained, particularly the latter part of the second verse-" And IT shall be unto me as Ariel."* Taking advantage of the current translation, which seems to compare by the word "it," some other place to Ariel, the Mormon writer contends that another nation than Jerusalem, suffering similar judgments, is intended. The rest of the argument must be taken in Mr. Orson Pratt's own words :

"In the three following verses, the Lord describes more fully the second event; he says, ' And I will camp against thee round about, and will lay siege against thee with a mount, and I will raise forts against thee. And thou shalt be brought down, and shalt speak out of the ground, and thy speech shall be low out of the dust, and thy voice shall be as of one that hath a familiar spirit, out of the ground, and thy speech shall whisper out of the dust. Moreover, the multitude of thy strangers shall be like small dust, and the multitude of the terrible ones shall be as chaff that passeth away; yea, it shall be at an instant suddenly.' These predictions of Isaiah could not refer to Ariel, or Jerusalem, because their speech has not been out of the ground,' or or 'low out of the dust,' but it refers to the remnant of Joseph who were destroyed in America upwards of fourteen hundred years ago. The Book of Mormon describes their downfall, and truly it was great and terrible. At the crucifixion of Christ, the multitude of their terrible ones,' as Isaiah predicted, became as chaff that passed away,' and it took place, as he further predicts, at an instant suddenly.' Many of their great and magnificent cities were destroyed by fire, others by earthquakes, others by being sunk and buried in the depths of the

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* It is believed that the correct translation of the passage is, " And it shall indeed be an Ariel (a stout lion) to me," a play upon the name.