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PRESIDENT WILFORD WOODRUFF

said that through the mercy and provi-
dence of God those present this morn-
ing had been preserved to again at-
tend the semi-annual Conference of the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints. Quite a number of our breth-
ren and sisters had passed from this
state of existence into the spirit world
since we last met in Conference. In
turn we should also pass away. While
we had the privilege of meeting togeth-
er in this capacity, he trusted that our
hearts would be united in prayer before
the Lord, that we might enjoy the in-
spiration of Almighty God, the gift of
the Holy Ghost, the spirit of light and
truth, so that we might edify one an-
other in our teachings, counsels, tes-
timonies and administrations. We
needed this blessing day by day, that
we might understand and comprehend
the responsibilities which we were
under to God our Heavenly Father.

When he reflected that this com-
paratively little band of men and wo-
men had been gathered into the
valleys of these mountains, from
all nations under heaven, by the
proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus
Christ, for the purpose of carrying out
the mind and will of God in the age
and dispensation in which we lived,
he realized indeed, as all the Saints
must, that the responsibility resting
upon us, as upon the Saints of God in
every age of the world, was very great.

Like all other dispensations and gen-
erations of men, we were placed here
on a mission. We lived in the spirit
world before we came here: we dwelt
in the presence of God; and it had been
our fortune, or our destiny—call it
which you please—to be born in the
present generation when the God of
Israel had set His hand for the last
time to build up His kingdom upon the
earth, to prepare His people for the
great event which awaits us.

There had been no dispensation
fraught with greater importance than
this, and his desire while we were to-
gether in this Conference was that the
Apostles and Elders who might ad-
dress us should have the spirit of the
Priesthood upon them.

He thanked God that he still
lived—that his life had been
spared until now. When he
looked back upon the past,he real-
ized that the majority of his former
companions—those with whom he had
been associated from the foundation of
this Church—had gone into the spirit
world; and he expected shortly to fol-
low them there.

From the time we were first led into
these mountain valleys by a prophet,
seer and revelator, who was clothed
with the spirit and power of God, until
now, the hand of God had been mani-
fested among the people, and that in
fulfilment of the revelations and proph-
ecies recorded in every book handed
down to us as the word of God to the
children of men.

He sincerely hoped that while we
lived in the flesh we would fully re-
alize all our responsibilities and the
work which is required at our hands.
He desired that the Saints would, as
far as possible during this conference,
lay aside all business cares, and pay
strict attention to the work now before
us—that we might be of one heart and
mind, and be filled with light, truth
and power to receive the teachings of
our brethren.