Brigham H. Roberts
Born: 13 March 1857
Called to Presidency of Seventy: 7 October 1888
Called as Additional Assistant Superintendent of the YMMIA: 1898
Called as Second Assistant Superintendent of the YMMIA: 1901
Called as First Assistant Superintendent of the YMMIA: 1918
Released from Superintendency of the YMMIA: 1922
Died: 27 September 1933
Called to Presidency of Seventy: 7 October 1888
Called as Additional Assistant Superintendent of the YMMIA: 1898
Called as Second Assistant Superintendent of the YMMIA: 1901
Called as First Assistant Superintendent of the YMMIA: 1918
Released from Superintendency of the YMMIA: 1922
Died: 27 September 1933
Biographical Articles
Biographical Encyclopedia, Volume 1
Biographical Encyclopedia, Volume 4
Juvenile Instructor, 15 June 1901, Lives of Our Leaders: President B. H. Roberts
Improvement Era, May 1902, Editor's Table: B. H. Roberts
Improvement Era, September 1917, Major B. H. Roberts
Young Woman's Journal, January 1918, To Major Brigham H. Roberts
Young Woman's Journal, June 1919, True Pioneer Stories - The Sabbath Day on the Plains
Instructor, March 1932, The Faith of President B. H. Roberts
Instructor, October 1933, President Brigham H. Roberts
Improvement Era, November 1933, Brigham H. Roberts--A Tribute
Relief Society Magazine, November 1933, Elder B. H. Roberts Called Home
Improvement Era, December 1933, President Brigham H. Roberts
Ensign, December 1983, B. H. Roberts After Fifty Years: Still Witnessing of the Book of Mormon
Ensign, March 1986, B. H. Roberts: Seeker After Truth
Biographical Encyclopedia, Volume 4
Juvenile Instructor, 15 June 1901, Lives of Our Leaders: President B. H. Roberts
Improvement Era, May 1902, Editor's Table: B. H. Roberts
Improvement Era, September 1917, Major B. H. Roberts
Young Woman's Journal, January 1918, To Major Brigham H. Roberts
Young Woman's Journal, June 1919, True Pioneer Stories - The Sabbath Day on the Plains
Instructor, March 1932, The Faith of President B. H. Roberts
Instructor, October 1933, President Brigham H. Roberts
Improvement Era, November 1933, Brigham H. Roberts--A Tribute
Relief Society Magazine, November 1933, Elder B. H. Roberts Called Home
Improvement Era, December 1933, President Brigham H. Roberts
Ensign, December 1983, B. H. Roberts After Fifty Years: Still Witnessing of the Book of Mormon
Ensign, March 1986, B. H. Roberts: Seeker After Truth
Jenson, Andrew. "Roberts, Brigham Henry" Biographical Encyclopedia. Volume 1. pg. 205.
ROBERTS, Brigham Henry, one of the First Seven Presidents of Seventies since 1887, was born March 13, 1857, in Warrington, a manufacturing town of Lancashire, England, and is a son of Benjamin Roberts and Ann Everington. He emigrated with his oldest sister to Utah in 1866 (his mother and a younger sister having emigrated the year before) and settled in Davis county. The next year (1867) he was baptized by Elder Seth Dustin. He worked as a farm hand during boyhood, and later for some years in the mining camps of the Territory. At seventeen he became an apprentice at the blacksmith trade in Centerville, his present place of residence. In his early teens he attended the district schools of Davis county, and finally the Deseret University, where he graduated from the normal department in 1878. For some years he taught school and worked at his trade, and finally drifted into journalism, becoming associate, and for a time editor-in-chief of the Salt Lake "Herald." Bro. Roberts was ordained a Seventy March 8, 1877, by Nathan T. Porter, one of the presidents of the 19th quorum of Seventy. In 1880-82 he filled his first mission. The first nine months he traveled in Iowa and Nebraska, the remainder of the time he served in the Southern States. He labored principally in the State of Tennessee, and was appointed president of the Tennessee conference Sept. 12, 1881. In his travels he covered nearly the entire State. In April, 1882, the State of Tennessee was divided into two conferences, East and West. Richard R. Camp was appointed to preside over the West Tennessee conference, while Elder Roberts continued to preside over the East, until he was released to return home in June, 1882. In 1883 he was called on his second mission to the Southern States, being appointed to the presidency of the mission under the direction of Elder John Morgan. He labored in that capacity until released by a transfer to the British Mission in December, 1886. Meantime, in accordance with the teachings of the Church, having obeyed the doctrine of plural marriage, in common with his brethren, he became subject to the anti-polygamy laws of Congress, and in December, 1886, was arrested upon a charge of unlawful cohabitation, and placed under bonds of $1,000 for his appearance in court. It was thought, both by his bondsmen and friends, that it would be better to forfeit the bond than to appear in court under the then very severe regime that obtained in the administration of the anti-polygamy laws. The very same day, therefore, that he was arrested he departed for England, where, for nearly two years, he labored in the ministry, chiefly in the "Millennial Star" office as assistant editor. At that time the apostate Jarman was rampant in the conferences of the English Mission, challenging the Elders to public discussion and defying them to prove false his accusations against the Church. Elder Roberts met him in public debate, twice in the vicinity of Sheffield, twice in London and once in Swansea, Wales. He returned from his mission to England in the fall of 1888. On his return from England he was chosen a member of the First Council of Seventy, to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Elder Horace S. Eldredge, and the day following the close of the October conference of 1888, he was ordained and set apart by Pres. Lorenzo Snow. For
some months after his return from England, he remained in retirement, owing to the indictment still hanging over him, but in April. 1889, he surrendered himself to the court, and on Wednesday, May 1, 1889, he was sentenced by Judge Anderson in the Third District Court, sitting in Salt Lake City, to four months' imprisonment, and to pay a fine of $200, on the charge of unlawful cohabitation. On Tuesday, Sept. 10, 1889, he was discharged from the penitentiary, having served his time under the sentence passed upon him. Previous to 1890 Brother Roberts had taken considerable interest in Utah politics, and when in that year the purely local policy of the Territory was abandoned and the people of Utah divided on national party lines, Brother Roberts aligned himself with the Democratic party, and was an active participant in the campaigns of 1892 and 1894. In the latter year he was elected a member of the Constitutional Convention which framed the organic law of the State. In the first State election (1895) he was nominated for representative to Congress on the Democratic ticket, but was defeated with his party. He was, however, elected to the fifty-sixth Congress, receiving 35,296 votes to 29,631 for Alma Eldredge, Republican, and 2,878 for Warren Foster, Populist; but by means altogether unconstitutional and unprecedented in the annals of the nation he was not permitted to take the seat to which he had been duly elected, to the shame and disgrace of the House of Representatives, who, cowering before popular clamor, robbed the sovereign State of Utah of its representative in the halls of Congress. Elder Roberts is one of the most voluminous writers in the Church. His works are historical, biographical and doctrinal, and consist of the "Gospel," "Ecclesiastical History," "New Witness for God," "The Life of John Taylor," "Missouri Persecutions," "The Rise and Fall of Nauvoo," "Succession in the Presidency," etc. (See also "Juvenile Instructor," Vol. 34. p. 354.)
ROBERTS, Brigham Henry, one of the First Seven Presidents of Seventies since 1887, was born March 13, 1857, in Warrington, a manufacturing town of Lancashire, England, and is a son of Benjamin Roberts and Ann Everington. He emigrated with his oldest sister to Utah in 1866 (his mother and a younger sister having emigrated the year before) and settled in Davis county. The next year (1867) he was baptized by Elder Seth Dustin. He worked as a farm hand during boyhood, and later for some years in the mining camps of the Territory. At seventeen he became an apprentice at the blacksmith trade in Centerville, his present place of residence. In his early teens he attended the district schools of Davis county, and finally the Deseret University, where he graduated from the normal department in 1878. For some years he taught school and worked at his trade, and finally drifted into journalism, becoming associate, and for a time editor-in-chief of the Salt Lake "Herald." Bro. Roberts was ordained a Seventy March 8, 1877, by Nathan T. Porter, one of the presidents of the 19th quorum of Seventy. In 1880-82 he filled his first mission. The first nine months he traveled in Iowa and Nebraska, the remainder of the time he served in the Southern States. He labored principally in the State of Tennessee, and was appointed president of the Tennessee conference Sept. 12, 1881. In his travels he covered nearly the entire State. In April, 1882, the State of Tennessee was divided into two conferences, East and West. Richard R. Camp was appointed to preside over the West Tennessee conference, while Elder Roberts continued to preside over the East, until he was released to return home in June, 1882. In 1883 he was called on his second mission to the Southern States, being appointed to the presidency of the mission under the direction of Elder John Morgan. He labored in that capacity until released by a transfer to the British Mission in December, 1886. Meantime, in accordance with the teachings of the Church, having obeyed the doctrine of plural marriage, in common with his brethren, he became subject to the anti-polygamy laws of Congress, and in December, 1886, was arrested upon a charge of unlawful cohabitation, and placed under bonds of $1,000 for his appearance in court. It was thought, both by his bondsmen and friends, that it would be better to forfeit the bond than to appear in court under the then very severe regime that obtained in the administration of the anti-polygamy laws. The very same day, therefore, that he was arrested he departed for England, where, for nearly two years, he labored in the ministry, chiefly in the "Millennial Star" office as assistant editor. At that time the apostate Jarman was rampant in the conferences of the English Mission, challenging the Elders to public discussion and defying them to prove false his accusations against the Church. Elder Roberts met him in public debate, twice in the vicinity of Sheffield, twice in London and once in Swansea, Wales. He returned from his mission to England in the fall of 1888. On his return from England he was chosen a member of the First Council of Seventy, to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Elder Horace S. Eldredge, and the day following the close of the October conference of 1888, he was ordained and set apart by Pres. Lorenzo Snow. For
some months after his return from England, he remained in retirement, owing to the indictment still hanging over him, but in April. 1889, he surrendered himself to the court, and on Wednesday, May 1, 1889, he was sentenced by Judge Anderson in the Third District Court, sitting in Salt Lake City, to four months' imprisonment, and to pay a fine of $200, on the charge of unlawful cohabitation. On Tuesday, Sept. 10, 1889, he was discharged from the penitentiary, having served his time under the sentence passed upon him. Previous to 1890 Brother Roberts had taken considerable interest in Utah politics, and when in that year the purely local policy of the Territory was abandoned and the people of Utah divided on national party lines, Brother Roberts aligned himself with the Democratic party, and was an active participant in the campaigns of 1892 and 1894. In the latter year he was elected a member of the Constitutional Convention which framed the organic law of the State. In the first State election (1895) he was nominated for representative to Congress on the Democratic ticket, but was defeated with his party. He was, however, elected to the fifty-sixth Congress, receiving 35,296 votes to 29,631 for Alma Eldredge, Republican, and 2,878 for Warren Foster, Populist; but by means altogether unconstitutional and unprecedented in the annals of the nation he was not permitted to take the seat to which he had been duly elected, to the shame and disgrace of the House of Representatives, who, cowering before popular clamor, robbed the sovereign State of Utah of its representative in the halls of Congress. Elder Roberts is one of the most voluminous writers in the Church. His works are historical, biographical and doctrinal, and consist of the "Gospel," "Ecclesiastical History," "New Witness for God," "The Life of John Taylor," "Missouri Persecutions," "The Rise and Fall of Nauvoo," "Succession in the Presidency," etc. (See also "Juvenile Instructor," Vol. 34. p. 354.)
Jenson, Andrew. "Roberts, Brigham H." Biographical Encyclopedia. Volume 4. pg. 246, 333.
ROBERTS, Brigham H., a member of the General Board of Y. M. M. I. A. from 1901 to 1922, died in Salt Lake City, Sept. 27, 1933. (See Biographical Encyclopedia, Vol. 1, p. 205.)
ROBERTS, Brigham H., president of the Eastern States Mission from 1922 to 1927, died Sept. 27, 1933, in Salt Lake City, Utah. (See Bio. Ency., Vol. 1, p. 205.)
ROBERTS, Brigham H., a member of the General Board of Y. M. M. I. A. from 1901 to 1922, died in Salt Lake City, Sept. 27, 1933. (See Biographical Encyclopedia, Vol. 1, p. 205.)
ROBERTS, Brigham H., president of the Eastern States Mission from 1922 to 1927, died Sept. 27, 1933, in Salt Lake City, Utah. (See Bio. Ency., Vol. 1, p. 205.)
"Lives of Our Leaders: President B. H. Roberts." Juvenile Instructor. 15 June 1901. pg. 353-355.
LIVES OF OUR LEADERS.—THE FIRST COUNCIL OF THE SEVENTY. PRESIDENT B. H. ROBERTS PRESIDENT BRIGHAM HENRY ROBERTS was born in Warrington, a manufacturing town of Lancashire, England, March 13, 1857. He emigrated with his mother to Utah in 1866. They settled in Davis County. The next year he was baptized by Elder Seth Dustin. He worked as a farm hand during boyhood, and later for some years in the mining camps of the Territory; at seventeen he became an apprentice at the blacksmith trade in Centerville, his present place of residence. In his early teens he attended the district schools of Davis County, and finally the Deseret University, where he graduated from the normal department in 1878. For some years he taught school and worked at his trade, and finally drifted into journalism, becoming associate and for a time editor-in-chief of the Salt Lake Herald. On March 8, 1877, Brother Roberts was ordained a Seventy by Elder Nathan T. Porter. He has performed numerous missions, more particularly in the United States; and in 1886-88 labored in the British Isles, spending much of his time as associate editor of the Millennial Star. During his absence in Europe he was chosen one of the First Seven Presidents of the Seventy, to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Elder Horace S. Eldredge, and was sustained as such at the general conference of the Church in October, 1888. After his return he was set apart to this high calling, in October, 1889, President Lorenzo Snow being mouth. Previous to 1890 Brother Roberts had taken considerable interest in Utah politics, and when in that year the purely local policy of the Territory was abandoned and the people of Utah divided on national party lines, Brother Roberts aligned himself with the Democratic party, and was an active participant in the campaigns of 1892 and 1894. In the latter year he was elected a member of the Constitutional Convention which framed the organic law of the State. In the first State election (1895) he was nominated for representative to Congress on the Democratic ticket, but was defeated with his party. He was however elected to the fifty-sixth Congress, receiving 35,296 votes to 29,631 for Alma Eldredge, Republican, and 2,878 for Warren Foster, Populist; but by means altogether unconstitutional and unprecedented in the annals of the nation he was not permitted to take the seat to which he had been duly elected, to the shame and disgrace of the House of Representatives who, cowering before popular clamor, robbed the sovereign State of Utah of its representation in the halls of Congress. One of the distinguishing traits of Brother Roberts' character is his great personal courage. The manner in which he, single- handed, fought the attempt to deprive Utah of her constitutional rights by preventing its representative from taking his seat, won the admiration of even Utah's most bitter enemies. This courage has been manifested «many a time and oft» in the mission field, in the defense of his faith when assailed and of his brethren when attacked. No more conspicuous instance, however, of this trait is to be found than in his recovery of the bodies of Elders Gibbs and Berry who were slain with two local brethren by a mob at the Cane Creek massacre in Tennessee, which took place Sunday, August 10, 1884. As an example to the youth of what faith, courage and determination in the right will do, we append the following account of the memorable incident, as he himself modestly tells it. After giving an account of the killing of the four brethren and the wounding of the mother of two of them, and of the threats that were made of what would further be done if any other Mormon Elders were found in that region, he continues: Word was now wired to the writer, who was then in Chattanooga. We sent at once to Elder John Morgan, president of the mission, for means to convey the bodies home; but wishing to lose no time in getting the bodies to their friends, we presented the case to Mr. B. Moses, a merchant tailor of Chattanooga, and that gentleman kindly came to our assistance by going our security for two metallic caskets which cost two hundred dollars, and loaned us one hundred dollars in cash; subsequently he lent us two hundred dollars more, as the means sent for did not reach us by the time we had the remains of the Elders ready to send home, though it was wired to us within an hour after it was known that we needed it. The kindness of Mr. Moses will long be remembered. We met with Elders W. H. Jones and J. G. Kimball, and learning from them particulars of the massacre and the feeling of the people, we considered it proper to see the State authorities and inquire if they could and would assist us in any manner. We went to Nashville, but the governor was absent from the city on an electioneering tour, he being a candidate for re-election. We had an interview with the adjutant general, but he was of the opinion that nothing could be done until it was known that the officials of Lewis County refused to act. Being satisfied they would remain inactive, we determined to take steps to secure the bodies at any rate. The adjutant-general gave us a letter to the sheriff of Lewis County, suggesting to him the idea of accompanying us to get the bodies of our brethren; this was of no service to us, as when we called at his residence he was not at home. It was thought best for Elders Jones and Thompson to remain in Nashville, where they would be out of danger. Elder Kimball and myself went to Columbia, to which point we had shipped the caskets. From here we took livery and conveyed the caskets near Shady Grove, Hickman County, where there is a branch of the Church. Here Brothers Emmons and Robbins Church fitted up two teams and wagons, and Brothers Henry Harlow, Wm. Church, and a young man by the name of Robert Coleman consented to accompany me to Cane Creek after the remains of the Elders. Before starting, I had Elder Kimball clip off my beard and mustache, donned an old suit of clothes, smeared my face and hands with dirt, assumed a rough character, and going through corn fields and woods joined my three companions on the road. Elder Kimball parted with me at Shady Grove, to go to Chattanooga to make further arrangements for conveying the bodies home. We drove thirty miles, which brought us to Mr. Garrett's about five o'clock in the evening. He was upon the alert, and on our arrival was ready to go to the graves and assist us in getting the bodies. Two or three of his neighbors went with us. Taking Mr. Garrett aside, I told him who I was. He was very much surprised to think he had shaken hands with me, and yet had not recognized me, as he had known me well for several years. He was more than glad to see me. I pass over the sad scene of taking up the bodies and placing them in the caskets, and will say nothing of the struggle it required to keep up my assumed character, and still the emotions that swelled my heart. The saddest moments of my life were when we moved from the spot were the Elders had been buried. As we passed Brother Condor's house, we saw the grief-stricken father chopping some wood; we thought of the bereaved mother lying wounded in the house, where only a few days before she had seen her two sons murdered; I looked back to the little graveyard we had just left, and a few of the Saints were standing close together looking after us—while the shades of night were gathering round us. As I took in this scene, and felt the spirit of loneliness that seemed to settle over those who remained, the natural impulse was to stop the teams, throw off my disguise, and speak a few comforting words to the Saints, and administer to Sister Condor—but it was not wisdom to take such a course. Sister Condor was doing very well, and the excitement of seeing me might produce more injury than good, besides the enemy was still on the alert, though I felt that I would give the whole world to speak to the Saints, and comfort their hearts with words of counsel. Daylight the next morning found us hitched up, and on our way to Carpenter's Station, which is some twenty-four miles from Mr. Garrett's house, where we had stayed all night. The road was an extremely lonely one, through a heavy growth of oak timber principally of the species called Black Jack. After leaving Cane Creek and crossing Little Swan, we traveled some fifteen miles without seeing man, woman or child; Robert Coleman, who drove the wagon on which I rode, claimed to have seen two birds and a squirrel—the only animal life visible to any of the party in traveling the fifteen miles mentioned. When within one mile of Carpenter's Station, the road forked and arguing ourselves into the belief that we had been bearing too much to the right, we took the left fork and finally reached Mount Pleasant, a railroad town of several hundred inhabitants. By taking this left hand road, we went some twelve miles out of our way. It was well we did so, as it is reported to us that twenty men had banded together and rode to Carpenter's Station, where they intended to intercept us; if so, the Lord delivered us from their hands and our hearts are filled with gratitude to Him for His watchcare over us. From Mount Pleasant the bodies were taken to Nashville, and Elder Robinson was released to accompany them home. They reached their destination and were delivered to their friends in safety. Like many others of his brethren, Brother Roberts, in the days of the «Crusade» suffered imprisonment for his obedience to the law of celestial marriage. On Wednesday, May 1, 1889, he was sentenced by Judge Sanford in the Third District Court, sitting in Salt Lake City, to four months' imprisonment, and $200 fine, on the charge of unlawful cohabitation. On Tuesday, September 10th he was discharged from the Utah Penitentiary, having served his time under the above sentence. On Brother Roberts the Lord has conferred the gift of eloquently and forcefully defending the truth with both his tongue and pen. Besides the vast amount of traveling he has done as a missionary both at home and abroad he is one of the most able and voluminous writers in the Church. His works are historical, biographical and doctrinal, and there are but few of our youth who do not study and prize his «Gospel,» ("Ecclesiastical History," «New Witness for God,» and other aids to their comprehension of and faith in the marvelous work the Lord is now performing in the midst of His earthly children. |
PRESIDENT B. H. ROBERTS
|
"Editor's Table: B. H. Roberts." Improvement Era. May 1902. pg. 551-553.
B. H. ROBERTS. We present an excellent portrait of Elder B. H. Roberts in this number of the Improvement Era. Elder Roberts, who is second assistant in the General Superintendency of the Y. M. M. I. A., and an enthusiastic advocate of education and advancement for the young people, was born in Warington, Lancashire, England, March 13, 1857. He is the son of Benjamin and Ann Roberts. In 1866, he emigrated to Utah with his eldest sister, and settled with his mother in Bountiful, Davis County, whither she had preceded him four years, and had established a home. At the age of seventeen, he was apprenticed to a blacksmith in the settlement, and made his home there for a number of years. He was connected with the early movements of the Improvement Associations, which were first organized in 1875, and for two years was the Superintendent of the associations of the Davis stake of Zion, which position he quit when called on his first mission to the Northern States, in 1880. Nine months after arriving in that field, he was transferred to the South, where he served for two years, at the close of which time, he was called to assist in the presidency of the Southern States mission, over which he afterwards had direct charge for three years. In 1886, he was temporarily released and became the associate editor of the Salt Lake Herald. While acting in this capacity, he was arrested, during 'the raid," on the then prevailing charge. He avoided having his case brought to trial at that time, and with the consent of his bondsmen and the advice of his brethren, went to Great Britain, where he served in the mission field two years, chiefly engaged in editing the Millennial Star. He returned in the fall of 1888, and at the October conference was appointed a member of the First Council of Seventy, being ordained under the hands of the late President Lorenzo Snow, in which capacity he has continued to faithfully serve up to the present time. Following this ordination, he visited, during the ensuing years, all parts of the Church, preaching to the people generally and assisting in the building up of the Stakes of Zion. He filled several brief missions in the meantime— one to the Eastern States, with Elder John Morgan, the purpose of which was to stem the tide of misrepresentation which was then running against the Latter-day Saints. Subsequently he filled a call to Mexico and California. In a later or second mission to the Coast with Apostle Francis M. Lyman, he assisted in opening the California mission, which was established in 1893. In July, 1896, he was appointed a second time to go to the Eastern States, in company with Elders George D. Pyper, Melville Ballard and Edward Midgley. During this trip, he visited Kansas City, St. Louis, (where he organized a branch of the Church) Cincinnati, Pittsburg, Philadelphia, Brooklyn, New York and Chicago, speaking in all these large cities; the special purpose of their visit being to allay prejudice against the Latter-day Saints, and open missions in these cities. Prior to his departure upon this latter journey, he outlined a scheme for the revival of the labors among the Young Men's Mutual Improvement Associations. A letter embodying his views on the subject was sent to President Wilford Woodruff, and favorably considered. As a result, there was a general revival inaugurated by a series of lectures given in the Salt Lake Tabernacle, under the auspices of the associations. These were later repeated in Ogden and Provo, and gave a new impetus to the cause of Mutual Improvement. Missionaries were called; the General Board was more fully organized, and weekly meetings held; the Manual was devised and issued by them, and the Improvement Era, of which Elder Roberts became the associate editor, was established in October, 1897; the whole resulting in a wide-spread improvement among the young people. In 1898, Elder Roberts was elected, by the Democratic Party, representative from Utah in the Congress of the United States, He had before this engaged in politics, having served in the Legislature and also in the Constitutional Convention of the State of Utah, in which, as in all things to which he applies his mind, he took a leading part and an active interest. His writings are found in nearly every household of the Saints; the "Life of John Taylor," the "Gospel," "A New Witness for God," "Ecclesiastical History, "The Missouri Persecutions," and "Rise and Fall of Nauvoo," being his principal works. At the April, 1902, conference, he was sustained as one of the assistants of the Church Historian, and he has been engaged for a year past in the arduous task of editing "The History of the Church," a voluminous work, the first book of which will soon appear. Elder Roberts is a man of broad views and splendid oratorical ability, and is a deep thinker, a genial associate, and a leader, indeed, among the people. |
B. H. ROBERTS
|
"Major B. H. Roberts." Improvement Era. September 1917. pg. 945.
Major B. H. Roberts Member of the Governor's staff of Utah, and President of the State Board of Equalization, was appointed by Governor Simon Bamberger, July 17, Chaplain of the First Utah Light Field Artillery, with the rank of Captain. Major Roberts served in the recruiting campaign for the National Guard as a member of the Governor's staff, and was given the honorary title of Major. Major Brigham H. Roberts was born in England, March 13, 1857, and is the fourth child and second son of Benjamin and Ann Everington Roberts. His father was a blacksmith, and his grandfather was an independent ironmonger, in comfortable circumstances. His mother's parents were tillers of the soil. She was a strong woman, intelligent, with a desire for the beautiful, the noble, and the refined. It is said of her: "She mastered by her own efforts the arts of reading and writing, and exhibited at various times in the course of her life those qualities of courage, independence and determination so conspicuously manifest in the character of her distinguished son." Both of his parents joined the Church. The mother first, in the early 50's, against the will of the father, but in the course of time the father also became a member of the Church. However, he gradually drifted away, and a permanent separation took place between him and his wife some time before the latter came to Utah, which was in 1862. Under the advice of the presidency at Liverpool, she took two of her youngest children with her to Utah, leaving the older daughter, Mary, and B. H. in England. Mary was sent to live with a distant relative, while B. H. was domiciled with a family of Latter-day Saints with whom he lived and wandered from place to place during the next four years, experiencing the sad sensations of poverty, squalor and utter homelessness. By means of the Perpetual Emigration Fund, both the sister, Mary, and B. H. Roberts were enabled to emigrate in the spring of 1866. They sailed on the John Bright, in April, and landed in New York in June. Proceeding with the rest of the company, some 700 Latter-day Saints, under Elders C. E. Gillett, to Wyoming, in Nebraska, they here outfitted for the plains. After many adventures they finally landed at Salt Lake City on the 15th of September, 1866. Here the mother met her children and took them to her humble log cabin in Bountiful, Davis county, and it was in this settlement that the son spent the remainder of his early boyhood. He went to school one winter and learned to read. With his step-father, he went to the Ophir and Jacob City mining districts, at the age of fourteen, and passed the greater part of three years working prospects on the crest of the hills above the present camp of Mercur. Returning home, he apprenticed himself for three years to James Baird, a Centerville blacksmith, choosing that vocation because it had been his father's trade in England. He was then seventeen, and at the age of twenty had served his apprenticeship. During the time of his apprenticeship he attended school three months each year according to agreement. At the age of eighteen he was seized with a passion for reading, and forsook his frivolous companionship and plunged into history, biography, and literature. He then drifted into religious readings, joined a theological class taught by Nathan T. Porter, Centerville, comprising about twenty young people of both sexes. It was in this class that he received his first opportunity to speak before the public, and it was really the beginning of his ministry. He married Sarah Louisa Smith, daughter of President William R. Smith of Davis stake, in September, 1877, the ceremony being performed by President. John Taylor at Salt Lake City. In 1877-8 he completed a two-years' course prescribed for normal students in the University of Deseret, graduating at the head of his class, and delivering the commencement day valedictory. He was ordained a seventy by Elder Nathan T. Porter, and became connected with the Nineteenth quorum, in 1877, having been baptized in 1867 by Elder Seth Dustin of Bountiful. In 1880, he went upon his first mission, to Sioux City, Iowa, being later transferred to the Southern States mission, under Elder John Morgan, until June, 1882. Then followed constant missionary work at home and abroad, and his labors, religious, civil and literary, and his powers as a writer and orator are well known and of more than ordinary interest to the people of the West. His miscellaneous writings in the Salt Lake Herald, The Millennial Star, The Contributor, The Improvement Era, and other publications are voluminous, touching sharply upon every phase of doctrine, and upon the current questions of the lime. He has written many books, among them: A History of the Mormon Church, 6 volumes, 3,000 pages; New witnesses for God, 3 volumes; Life of John Taylor; Outlines of Ecclesiastical History; Defense of the Faith and the Saints; Joseph Smith, the Prophet-Teacher, and others. Li Whitney's History of Utah, it is well said of Major Roberts: "A man of courage, full of energy and vitality, he has risen b she r force of innate ability, coupled with hard and honest toil, from the humblest walks of life to positions of honor and eminence." |
MAJOR B. H. ROBERTS
Chaplain of the National Guard of Utah |
Fox, Ruth May. "To Major Brigham H. Roberts." Young Woman's Journal. January 1918. pg. 32.
To Major Brigham H. Roberts.
By Ruth May Fox.
God speed thee, dear brother, on thy mission of love.
May angels surround thee, the Gift from above
Descend to inspire thee, sustain thee, and guide
When thy pathway leads over the perilous tide.
Intellectually brilliant, tearless, and bold
Tn defense of the right, like brave Paul of old,
A Roman freeborn, holding fast to the Rod,
Thou hast stood for thy people, thy country, thy God.
And now when the world should deal gently with thee.
When from turmoil and strife thy life should be free.
The call of humanity appeals to thy heart
And regardless of danger, or tear drops that start
From the eyes of thy friends, from those thou lov’st best,
Thy spirit responds to the throb in thy breast--
“Up, gird on thine armor, mankind must be free!
Blood and tears are the price of the world’s liberty.”
Thou hast answered the call with our brothers and sons
To go to the front where the roaring of guns
And the clash of the battle may fall on thine ears.
Where the horrors of war, its anguish and fears
May pierce thee to the quick; in that trying hour
Remember that love like a beautiful flower.
Is wafting its off’ring to the Father of Light.
That thou with thy faith, thy prayers, and thy might
Art cheering our dear ones, bone of our bone.
Renewing their valor with the strength of thine own.
God speed thee, our brother, on thy mission of love.
May angels protect thee, the Power from above
Bring thee back to the homeland without blemish or scar.
Thy peace banner waving its glory afar--
“Sheathed is the bayonet, silenced the roar,
And the din of the battle, henceforth, evermore.”
Note: This poem was read at a farewell party given Elder B. H. Roberts by the General Board of Y. M. M. I. A.
To Major Brigham H. Roberts.
By Ruth May Fox.
God speed thee, dear brother, on thy mission of love.
May angels surround thee, the Gift from above
Descend to inspire thee, sustain thee, and guide
When thy pathway leads over the perilous tide.
Intellectually brilliant, tearless, and bold
Tn defense of the right, like brave Paul of old,
A Roman freeborn, holding fast to the Rod,
Thou hast stood for thy people, thy country, thy God.
And now when the world should deal gently with thee.
When from turmoil and strife thy life should be free.
The call of humanity appeals to thy heart
And regardless of danger, or tear drops that start
From the eyes of thy friends, from those thou lov’st best,
Thy spirit responds to the throb in thy breast--
“Up, gird on thine armor, mankind must be free!
Blood and tears are the price of the world’s liberty.”
Thou hast answered the call with our brothers and sons
To go to the front where the roaring of guns
And the clash of the battle may fall on thine ears.
Where the horrors of war, its anguish and fears
May pierce thee to the quick; in that trying hour
Remember that love like a beautiful flower.
Is wafting its off’ring to the Father of Light.
That thou with thy faith, thy prayers, and thy might
Art cheering our dear ones, bone of our bone.
Renewing their valor with the strength of thine own.
God speed thee, our brother, on thy mission of love.
May angels protect thee, the Power from above
Bring thee back to the homeland without blemish or scar.
Thy peace banner waving its glory afar--
“Sheathed is the bayonet, silenced the roar,
And the din of the battle, henceforth, evermore.”
Note: This poem was read at a farewell party given Elder B. H. Roberts by the General Board of Y. M. M. I. A.
"True Pioneer Stories - The Sabbath Day on the Plains." Young Woman's Journal. June 1919. pg. 333-335.
True Pioneer Stories.
THE SABBATH DAY ON THE PLAINS.
Taken from the minutes of the Daughters of Utah Pioneers—the lecture having been given by Elder B. H. Roberts recorded by the secretary, and approved by the Society, and re-written by A Daughter of a Utah Pioneer of 1847.
“We are going to the Rocky Mountains to find a place where we may worship God according to the dictates of our own conscience, and where we may live in peace free from angry mobs and persecution.”
The above is copied from the journal of a pioneer who came to the valley in July, 1847.
As the blasts of the storm make the eagle soar higher, so the persecution and suffering of the Saints made them more determined to live their religion according to the promptings of their consciences.
They had not forgotten their sorrows in being driven from their homes and the much loved city of Nauvoo. Neither had the crossing of the Mississippi in the cold winter, when ice blocked the flow of its water passed from their memories. The scenes of heartache and suffering at Winter Quarters but added to their determination to seek homes far away in the west, for Winter Quarters was known to them as the place of sorrow, sickness. hunger, and death.
The pioneers who came to the valley in July, 1847, were men above the ordinary. Not old men. as our young people regard them, but men in life’s prime, full of fire and spirit. There was no cowardice in them, but they were brave and well balanced, and no trials could cripple their usefulness or neutralize their powers. Some of them were college graduates, all were intelligent and knew the value of mixing common sense with theory and taking whole views of things.
Though young men and strong, yet they had tender consciences and hearts that were true and brave enough to dare.
They knew the mighty force of truth and even though men had failed them and driven them out, deep in their hearts was the conviction that God would not fail them; and in undertaking that journey fraught with many perils, they knew He would go with them as a Light just as He guided Moses of old, because they were buoyed by a great faith and a strong testimony. These men knew that God lived.
Many of them were of Puritan stock and had New England notions and would not have been startled at sight of the public whipping post for those who broke the Sabbath Day. They observed the Sabbath as a Holy day from long training.
As they began that pioneer journey the promise unto them was “If you observe strictly the Sabbath, you shall be protected, but you must serve the Lord.” Therefore when the Sabbath arrived, they halted and served God, holding service, singing hymns, preaching Gospel truths, praying, etc.
Remembering, however, that the personnel of the pioneers was made up of young men full of strength and spirit, is it any wonder that as they journeyed westward, their souls responded to nature’s delicate touch and they were keyed up by the freedom of the uninhabited plains to such an extent that their light-heartedness led to frivolity, No longer in fear of mobs, and inhaling the delicious purity of the atmosphere their spirits became more and more buoyant till they must do something to give vent to it, so they devised amusement.
One great diversion to them was the holding of mock trials. One of their number was arrested and held on some silly charge. Trial by jury was followed by conviction and then the guilty one was punished.
One penalty was the tying of a log chain to the leg of the one convicted compelling him to walk twice around the camp, while the rest followed him, beating tin pans lids, kettles, etc., causing great noise and loud laughter.
This noise and spirit of frivolity was very annoying to President Brigham Young, and finally he admonished them to desist, fearing the sacredness of their mission in seeking a secure place for the Church and their loved ones left behind might be lost. Therefore, he reproved them for their frivolity, telling them that unless they desisted he would withdraw from the camp.
The first Sabbath on the plains was distinctive because it had been set apart as a day of fasting and prayer, following the reprimand from their leader.
The Saturday evening previous they halted, and bathing in a nearby stream, they put on clean clothing, shaved, and made themselves fit to fast and pray on the approaching Sabbath.
They were reminded of the 50th Section of the Doctrine and Covenants, where it says, “Thou shall offer a sacrifice unto the Lord thy God in righteousness, even that of a broken heart and a contrite spirit.”
“But remember, that on this the Lord’s day thou shalt offer thine oblations and thy sacraments unto the Most High, confessing thy sins unto thy brother and before the Lord”
With contrite spirits, the Sabbath found them clean, penitent, prayerful. They clothed themselves in the garments of the Holy Priesthood, formed a prayer circle a little secluded from the road-side, placing guards at proper places that no interruption might occur.
Thus, they knelt with the green grass under them and the beautiful arch of heaven above them, and all nature in tune with the sweet, humble spirit of supplication which filled every heart.
Following the admonition of their leader, could anything be more significant than this? Could greater humility and submission be shown from young men brave to dare any danger?
This Sabbath day was long remembered by them for the Spirit of God was poured out upon them.
The first Sabbath on the plains laid the foundation for continued reverence and from that day their levity ceased.
Amid scenes unpropitious, dangerous, difficult they traveled al.mg that trail, obedient, humble, prayerful, persevering.
Another impressive Sabbath was at Green River on July 4th when they met thirteen members of the Mormon Battalion. This was the first news they had received since their departure and gave cause for sincere thanks.
On July 11th, President Young took the mountain fever. This made them anxious to move on but it was the Sabbath and they halted.
July 18th found them on Canyon Creek surrounded by what seemed like endless peaks. They were anxious to move on, but it was the Sabbath and they must rest. President Young was very ill. The Saturday before, they prepared as on that first Sabbath. This time their prayer circle formed, they prayed for their leader and from that day he began to improve. If one could get a mental picture of these men kneeling on the ground in prayer circle, humble, full of faith, surrounded by boundless plains, with only nature to listen, one must know that a sublime faith backed them with a real inward devotion and they poured their souls out to God as if they knew Him, and they felt assured and comforted.
There was no conflict of wishes, no clashing of views, in that prayer circle, but heart to heart, in a united faith they prayed. When one considers the intellectual standing of these men and their physical manhood as well, yet their willingness to obey, and their great reverence for the Sabbath day and single hearted devotion to their religious principles, one must marvel and acknowledge that they were not ordinary men but called by God for a special work, the triumph of which today proclaims them great, for through their achievement “Zion shall flourish upon the hills and rejoice upon the mountains, and shall be assembled together unto the place I have appointed.” Sec. 59. Doc. & Cov.
True Pioneer Stories.
THE SABBATH DAY ON THE PLAINS.
Taken from the minutes of the Daughters of Utah Pioneers—the lecture having been given by Elder B. H. Roberts recorded by the secretary, and approved by the Society, and re-written by A Daughter of a Utah Pioneer of 1847.
“We are going to the Rocky Mountains to find a place where we may worship God according to the dictates of our own conscience, and where we may live in peace free from angry mobs and persecution.”
The above is copied from the journal of a pioneer who came to the valley in July, 1847.
As the blasts of the storm make the eagle soar higher, so the persecution and suffering of the Saints made them more determined to live their religion according to the promptings of their consciences.
They had not forgotten their sorrows in being driven from their homes and the much loved city of Nauvoo. Neither had the crossing of the Mississippi in the cold winter, when ice blocked the flow of its water passed from their memories. The scenes of heartache and suffering at Winter Quarters but added to their determination to seek homes far away in the west, for Winter Quarters was known to them as the place of sorrow, sickness. hunger, and death.
The pioneers who came to the valley in July, 1847, were men above the ordinary. Not old men. as our young people regard them, but men in life’s prime, full of fire and spirit. There was no cowardice in them, but they were brave and well balanced, and no trials could cripple their usefulness or neutralize their powers. Some of them were college graduates, all were intelligent and knew the value of mixing common sense with theory and taking whole views of things.
Though young men and strong, yet they had tender consciences and hearts that were true and brave enough to dare.
They knew the mighty force of truth and even though men had failed them and driven them out, deep in their hearts was the conviction that God would not fail them; and in undertaking that journey fraught with many perils, they knew He would go with them as a Light just as He guided Moses of old, because they were buoyed by a great faith and a strong testimony. These men knew that God lived.
Many of them were of Puritan stock and had New England notions and would not have been startled at sight of the public whipping post for those who broke the Sabbath Day. They observed the Sabbath as a Holy day from long training.
As they began that pioneer journey the promise unto them was “If you observe strictly the Sabbath, you shall be protected, but you must serve the Lord.” Therefore when the Sabbath arrived, they halted and served God, holding service, singing hymns, preaching Gospel truths, praying, etc.
Remembering, however, that the personnel of the pioneers was made up of young men full of strength and spirit, is it any wonder that as they journeyed westward, their souls responded to nature’s delicate touch and they were keyed up by the freedom of the uninhabited plains to such an extent that their light-heartedness led to frivolity, No longer in fear of mobs, and inhaling the delicious purity of the atmosphere their spirits became more and more buoyant till they must do something to give vent to it, so they devised amusement.
One great diversion to them was the holding of mock trials. One of their number was arrested and held on some silly charge. Trial by jury was followed by conviction and then the guilty one was punished.
One penalty was the tying of a log chain to the leg of the one convicted compelling him to walk twice around the camp, while the rest followed him, beating tin pans lids, kettles, etc., causing great noise and loud laughter.
This noise and spirit of frivolity was very annoying to President Brigham Young, and finally he admonished them to desist, fearing the sacredness of their mission in seeking a secure place for the Church and their loved ones left behind might be lost. Therefore, he reproved them for their frivolity, telling them that unless they desisted he would withdraw from the camp.
The first Sabbath on the plains was distinctive because it had been set apart as a day of fasting and prayer, following the reprimand from their leader.
The Saturday evening previous they halted, and bathing in a nearby stream, they put on clean clothing, shaved, and made themselves fit to fast and pray on the approaching Sabbath.
They were reminded of the 50th Section of the Doctrine and Covenants, where it says, “Thou shall offer a sacrifice unto the Lord thy God in righteousness, even that of a broken heart and a contrite spirit.”
“But remember, that on this the Lord’s day thou shalt offer thine oblations and thy sacraments unto the Most High, confessing thy sins unto thy brother and before the Lord”
With contrite spirits, the Sabbath found them clean, penitent, prayerful. They clothed themselves in the garments of the Holy Priesthood, formed a prayer circle a little secluded from the road-side, placing guards at proper places that no interruption might occur.
Thus, they knelt with the green grass under them and the beautiful arch of heaven above them, and all nature in tune with the sweet, humble spirit of supplication which filled every heart.
Following the admonition of their leader, could anything be more significant than this? Could greater humility and submission be shown from young men brave to dare any danger?
This Sabbath day was long remembered by them for the Spirit of God was poured out upon them.
The first Sabbath on the plains laid the foundation for continued reverence and from that day their levity ceased.
Amid scenes unpropitious, dangerous, difficult they traveled al.mg that trail, obedient, humble, prayerful, persevering.
Another impressive Sabbath was at Green River on July 4th when they met thirteen members of the Mormon Battalion. This was the first news they had received since their departure and gave cause for sincere thanks.
On July 11th, President Young took the mountain fever. This made them anxious to move on but it was the Sabbath and they halted.
July 18th found them on Canyon Creek surrounded by what seemed like endless peaks. They were anxious to move on, but it was the Sabbath and they must rest. President Young was very ill. The Saturday before, they prepared as on that first Sabbath. This time their prayer circle formed, they prayed for their leader and from that day he began to improve. If one could get a mental picture of these men kneeling on the ground in prayer circle, humble, full of faith, surrounded by boundless plains, with only nature to listen, one must know that a sublime faith backed them with a real inward devotion and they poured their souls out to God as if they knew Him, and they felt assured and comforted.
There was no conflict of wishes, no clashing of views, in that prayer circle, but heart to heart, in a united faith they prayed. When one considers the intellectual standing of these men and their physical manhood as well, yet their willingness to obey, and their great reverence for the Sabbath day and single hearted devotion to their religious principles, one must marvel and acknowledge that they were not ordinary men but called by God for a special work, the triumph of which today proclaims them great, for through their achievement “Zion shall flourish upon the hills and rejoice upon the mountains, and shall be assembled together unto the place I have appointed.” Sec. 59. Doc. & Cov.
"The Faith of President B. H. Roberts." Instructor. March 1932. pg. 131-132.
The Faith of President B. H. Roberts Upon being asked to answer the question, "What My Faith Means To Me," Elder B. H. Roberts, President of the First Council of Seventy, cited and reiterated the concluding portion of a speech delivered by him some years ago, in which he made the following statement as to his subconscious relation to the pioneers of Utah and to his faith and attitude towards the Church. "I feel that I am a little associated with the pioneers of Utah, for as a boy with bleeding ,feet I marched beside our ox teams every foot of the way from the Missouri river to these mountain valleys, to this city. I felt the restraining influence of that Church's hand upon me in the wayward days of my boyhood ; and as boyhood passed into manhood, a deep ' conviction of the truth of her teachings lay hold of my heart. I spent the best years of my life as her representative abroad, and in the United States, in the midst of persecution and sometimes in mob violence—I passed through all those experiences. As later days of manhood came on, I responded to the teachings she imparted to me, in common with her membership, and I obeyed all of them. In consequence of this I found myself behind prison walls, and with the stripes of shame upon me. But God was good even then, for amid those strange circumstances, which now seem like a dream, I was called upon by the warden of the prison, even there to teach any faith among 'the spirits in prison'. Often allurements were offered me to forsake her, this Church, whose cause it had become second nature in me to defend. Partnerships in law firms were offered me, associations in business that promised better rewards than the pittance that she was able to give to me; but in the midst of such temptations, recollection of Tom Moore's beautiful poem, in which the Irish peasant addresses his mistress, supposed to be in the allegory, the ancient Church of Ireland—would occur to me. This is the way it runs: 'Through grief and through danger thy smile hath cheered my way, Till hope seemed to bud from each thorn that round me lay; The darker our fortune, the brighter our pure love burned. Till shame into glory, till fear into zeal was turned; 'Yes, slave as I was, in thy arms my spirit felt free, And blessed even the sorrows that made me more dear to thee. Thy rivals were honored, while thou wert wronged and scorned. Thy crown was of briers, while gold their brows adorned. They wooed me to temples, while thou lay'st hid in caves; Their friends were all masters, while thine alas! were slaves; Yet cold in the earth, at thy feet I would rather be. Than wed what I loved not, or turn one thought from thee.' To the foregoing President Roberts subjoined the following: "Three things are true respecting this Church: (1) God has deposited with her the sum of his truth—the truth necessary to believe in order to gain salvation ; the truth respecting the principles to be accepted wholeheartedly ; the ordinances to be obeyed ; the authority in which they are to be administered :—all this God has deposited with His Church. (2) He has laid upon her the high responsibility of making proclamation of this truth to all the world—to every nation, kindred, tongue and people. (3) He has also laid upon her the responsibility to perfect the lives of those who accept the truth above referred to and has given a perfect organization of a Priesthood—-power and authority from God—to guide her membership, and teach them the truth and the fulness thereof, and the practice of it. This is the character and the remission of God's great Church of the New Dispensation, founded under God, by the Prophet Joseph Smith, whereof I am a minister and special witness of her truth." |
ELDER B. H. ROBERTS
President First Council of Seventy |
Evans, John Henry. "President Brigham H. Roberts." Instructor. October 1933. pg. 437-439.
President Brigham H. Roberts Elder Roberts was the last of a trilogy of writers and public speakers in the Church, the other two being Orson F. Whitney and James E. Talmage. These three men were outstanding during the latter part of the first century of Mormonism. President Roberts had, to begin with, some striking native endowments— a physique that impressed at a glance, with its broad shoulders and massive head, a courage that took its tinge from the element of pugnacity, a high sense of fairness toward an opponent and a large toleration for the opinions and the life of others, powerful emotions coupled with a strong, clear intellect, a deep-rooted humanitarianism which sympathized with the common man everywhere, and a rare gift of speech, that manifested itself in both the written and the spoken word. Who that has read or heard the story of the young missionary risking his very life to bring home the bodies of two fellow missionaries shot down by a mob, can fail to appreciate the daring and bravery involved in the situation? The famous Whitney Roberts debate over woman suffrage in the Constitutional Convention will go down in the history of the State as one of the most thrilling intellectual and oratorical feats. And the Comprehensive History of the Church, with its leisurely, running narrative and wide imaginative sweep, will endure as a monument of patient research and prodigious industry. But if B. H. Roberts possessed high native endowment, this endowment was given opportunity and direction by the Church to which he belonged. What would have been the lot of President Roberts if Mormonism had not found his parents in that small English town? It is a question that brings up the problem of human destiny—whether man makes his environment or is made by it. At all events, Mormonism did find his parents, it did snatch him from a possible obscurity and barrenness of life, and it did open up for him an avenue for growth which, to say the least, would not have been offered elsewhere in the same way. Brother Roberts would have been the first to concede this, for the influence of religion in his life was creative in the highest degree. It is extremely rare as things go for a man to become eminent as both orator and writer. One can count on the fingers of one hand the men in Mormondom who have left a name in both these lines of activity. If one were asked to say in which field President Roberts was best known, one would be hard pressed for an answer. It was Mormonism chiefly that gave opportunity to, if it did not actually force, development in these two lines. The religion made demands for the two sorts of talent. Out of this religious compulsion, so to speak, came avenues for development in breadth, both of thought and experience, which characterized President Roberts. He was a student. At perfect ease with books, he garnered treasures of knowledge in many fields—in politics, in government, in history, in philosophy, and, most of all, in religion. And this knowledge was both deep and accurate. Moreover, he was a lover of the common man. Springing from the people, his sympathies went out to all those everywhere who were struggling for political or economic freedom. No strike of labor in any part of Utah but saw B. H. Roberts on the scene trying to settle the dispute between employers and employed. It was this sympathy with the masses, together with his strong love of country, that impelled him to volunteer his services in the World War as Chaplain. One of the most prominent things about President Roberts was his theory of the ministry. The gospel, as he conceived it, was a plan built up on a grand scale. It took in the whole of the human family, regardless of color, race, or creed, and sought to weld them into a single unit, by teaching them the principles of life here and hereafter. Accordingly, this grand scheme of salvation must be preached with a knowledge and dignity commensurate with its importance. While he would not have had a paid ministry, he would have a trained ministry. All through his life he entertained the notion that there should be nothing petty or trivial about the presentation of these principles of salvation. It was with this end in view that, as the senior president of the Seventy, he proposed the present plan for the training of the men in these quorums in a knowledge of the gospel and in preaching it. It is safe to say that the name of Brigham H. Roberts will never die among the Latter-day Saints. His writings alone will insure that, particularly to the teachers in the Sunday School. More, perhaps, than any other man during the latter part of the nineteenth century and the first quarter of the twentieth century, he gave both color and form to the teachings of Mormonism. This was done both by tongue and pen. Since the appearance of The Gospel, in the 80's, he has probably been more quoted than any other writer in the Church. His Comprehensive History, his numerous works defending the Church, and his interpretive writings—these will be read as long as our present ways of thinking religiously continue. All his wealth, nearly, B. H. Roberts was able to take with him into the Great Beyond—his splendid intellect, his loyalty to what he conceived to be the truth, his knowledge of life and books, his rounded life and character. His was a unique personality. We shall not see his like again. —John Henry Evans. |
Pauly, T. "Brigham H. Roberts--A Tribute." Improvement Era. November 1933. pg. 783.
This beautiful tribute to President B. H. Roberts came to us from Texas. Next month we shall run an article by Elder Levi Edgar Young concerning the great “Christian Soldier.” Brigham Roberts—A Tribute By T. PAULY BLESSED is the man who bequeaths to the succeeding generation a work which lives after him, Brigham H. Roberts has conveyed a rich bequest. His life, his faith, his work, this trio will redound from generation to generation. His work as teacher, advocate and defender of the Restored Gospel is potent and enduring. Doubly potent are his writings which reflect the characteristics of the living Roberts. Particularly his polemical work bears this imperishable imprint. One senses first of all his courage and readiness, nay his eagerness to give battle. Next we observe his rare polemical skill, restrained or severe as befits the occasion, carrying the battle to the opponent, never begging the question. Then there is that full measure of flame and fire of his surging spirit sustaining him throughout the conflict, never asking for quarter, but withal as generous as a knight in tournament. When repelling an attack launched against his faith or his people he wields the rapier of defense "as though the strength of twenty men were in his arm." He is truly a formidable champion. For several years his rapier has been sheathed. Mormonism has attained a semblance of maturity. Our faith is now, to the World at least, a more or less tolerated sect, bringing a season of calm and peace. This new order of things calls for another, a new work for Elder Roberts. The El Paso, Texas achievements of the first century of the Dispensation of the Fulness of Time must be recorded and evaluated. THIS new work, largely historical, is unique among all works of its kind. Here, as in his other works, Elder Roberts does not permit this last work to fall to the level of the commonplace. This is much more than a history—more than a reciting and recording of events. Dates, names and places of Mormonism's growth can properly be recited and recorded, but truths reflecting the birth and growth of our Dispensation, yours and mine, must not be recorded and recited. These truths must be set forth. As a master craftsman carves and polishes a precious gem, bringing forth the full measure of natural beauty possessed by the stone, so does Elder Roberts set forth the truths of God to reflect the beauty and strength inherent in them. In these truths are found the justification and vindication of every claim of the Restored Gospel. More than that in these pages containing the sum-total of achievements of three generations of Latter-day Saints is found the justification for the prayers and testimonies which have been offered in behalf of this latter day work. Is this the work of a historian? Nay, this is the labor of one inspired of God. In addition to this task of recording and setting forth the accomplishments of this generation. Elder Roberts has undertaken and devoted his word and pen to another task, a work more difficult and delicate, I refer to his work of evaluating not only the revealed truths of God as received through the living oracles of God,. but also the task of harmonizing the principles of truth as possessed by men of the world in our wonderful age. It is by no means sufficient that we possess new light, but this new light of truth must be tempered that men of the world might comprehend it—must be blended with that measure of light extant in the world to the end that finally we shall weave into harmonious splendor all of the principles of truth under Heaven. What an opportunity for a Roberts or a Spencer. The accomplishments of Elder Roberts in this work cannot be measured today. In the hour of his passing we stand too close to this work to obtain an appraisal in retrospect. Today he stands out in bold relief as a defender and advocate of the Faith. Perhaps tomorrow he will be enshrined as an interpreter and harmonizer of the variant aspects of truth — the Herbert Spencer of the Dispensation of the Fulness of Time. |
B, H. Roberts and the Mormon Battalion Monument
|
"Editorial: Elder B. H. Roberts Called Home." Relief Society Magazine. November 1933. pg. 679.
Elder B. H. Roberts Called Home
A MOST colorful life closed when Elder B. H. Roberts passed away September 27, 1933. His boyhood was hard. His life was a continuous struggle. He showed what an intrepid spirit can accomplish, spite of odds.
Who would think that this eminent writer and cultured man had had no school advantages in his boyhood? In his young manhood, so eager was he for learning, that he would walk back and forth from his home in Centerville to Salt Lake to attend school. He studied until he became one of the most noted theologians in the Church. He had an insatiable hunger for knowledge. Ulysses-like, he was ever striving, seeking, and finding truth.
In his long life he experienced much. His books on Church doctrine and his extensive histories of the Church will ever be a most valuable source of information to students and will make his name live among generations yet unborn.
Elder B. H. Roberts Called Home
A MOST colorful life closed when Elder B. H. Roberts passed away September 27, 1933. His boyhood was hard. His life was a continuous struggle. He showed what an intrepid spirit can accomplish, spite of odds.
Who would think that this eminent writer and cultured man had had no school advantages in his boyhood? In his young manhood, so eager was he for learning, that he would walk back and forth from his home in Centerville to Salt Lake to attend school. He studied until he became one of the most noted theologians in the Church. He had an insatiable hunger for knowledge. Ulysses-like, he was ever striving, seeking, and finding truth.
In his long life he experienced much. His books on Church doctrine and his extensive histories of the Church will ever be a most valuable source of information to students and will make his name live among generations yet unborn.
Young, Levi Edgar. "President Brigham H. Roberts." Improvement Era. December 1933. pg. 838-839.
In closing his speech before the Congress of the United States President Roberts said, “Gentlemen, I have lived with a good conscience until this very day and am sensible of no act of shame upon my fart; you can brand me with shame and send me forth but I shall leave here with head erect and brow undaunted and walk the earth as angels walk the clouds. If you violate the Constitution of these United States ALL THE SHAME WILL BE WITH YOU.'' President Brigham H. Roberts by Levi Edgar Young A Member of the First Council of Seventy THE death of President Brigham H. Roberts removes from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints one of the ablest defenders of the Faith that the Church has ever had. The people revered President Roberts as a profound thinker, who was always animated by a sincere love for the work of God, His gifts won recognition in the Nation, and his many years of work for the quorums of Seventy and in the Council over which he presided made him known as a teacher and leader. As far back as forty years ago, he had succeeded in making his creations a part of the thought of the people, and his historical works stand apart as rich contributions to the literature of the Church. President Roberts was born in Warrington. England, March 13, 1857, and was the son of Benjamin and Ann Everington Roberts. With his elder sister, he came to Utah, traveling by ox-team from the Missouri River, and settled in Centerville, Utah. In his later years, he recalled with feelings of joy the many experiences he had on the plains as he walked bare-foot toward the land of Zion. After a journey filled with trials and sometimes discouragements, the two children arrived in Salt Lake City, where within a few months, the mother joined the little son and daughter. When seventeen years of age, President Roberts began serving as an apprentice in a blacksmith shop in the village, and soon became known for his successful handling of horses, which were brought to him from the range. He rode one day to Salt Lake City and entered the old University of Deseret, from which he was graduated in 1878. He studied under Dr. John R. Park, Milton H. Hardy, O. H. Riggs, Bartlett Trip, and other educators of that day. Elder Roberts always had pride in that he listened to the lectures of Professor Orson Pratt, who gave courses in mathematics and astronomy. He became particularly interested in history and one of the first volumes of history he read was the "Intellectual Development of Europe" by John William Draper of the University of New York. At the time of his death. President Roberts was an honored member of the Alumni of the University of Utah. PRESIDENT ROBERTS filled two missions to the Southern States, and from 1922 to 1927 he presided over the Eastern States Mission. In 1888, he was ordained a member of the First Council of Seventy to fill the vacancy caused by the death of President Horace S. Eldredge. He was associated during the first year with presidents Jacob Gates, Abram H. Cannon, William W. Taylor, George Reynolds and Seymour B. Young. At the time of his death he was the senior member of the First Council. The work of President Roberts as a member of the Council of Seventy was varied, and covered a large field. Always active in civic affairs, he was elected to represent Utah in Congress, but was refused his seat after a hard and bitter contest over his views on religion. During the World War, he was Chaplain of the 145th Field Artillery which went over-seas from Utah. In France hundreds of the young men of the American forces looked to him for spiritual advice. He died an honored member of the American Legion. President Roberts' writings on Church history and kindred subjects are voluminous. His books are a revelation of his mind, and have more literary merit than some critics have commonly allowed them. His history of the Church is monumental in character, and is characterized as one accuracy, keen observation, and calm and sound judgment. His "Rise and Fall of Nauvoo" is written in such a style and manner, that his readers appreciate the trials and persecutions of the Saints in the early history of the Church. His short treatise on the “Mormon Battalion" is a monograph of rare beauty and insight, and his History of the Church which appeared in the Americana a few years ago will always be referred to by scholars as a distinct contribution to American historical study. His New Witness For God is another contribution which shows clearly the "Mormon" view-point on the Mission of Christ our Lord. Of his essays, "Joseph Smith, The Prophet- Teacher" is a first appreciation of the work of the founder of Mormonism. There is nothing in his writings broader, clearer and more forcible than the five volumes prepared for the Seventies of the Church in their class study. Much of his work effected its purpose, and it will live on into a distant future, because of its sound and vigorous thinking. HISTORY to President Roberts was the joy and labor of his life. Whenever he started a piece of writing on any subject, he always brought to his work a broad and comprehensive knowledge obtained by careful research and reading. He had a bold and inventive mind, which naturally led him to unsparing criticism at times. A man who had few external advantages, he was obliged to face the world with nothing but his own self-confidence and faith. It was only a natural result that as the years went by, he buried himself in his work, which made him tenacious of the ideas which he advocated. Nature gave him a resolute will, and a vehement individuality; his personality was forceful and directive. The character of his thought is shown as a member of the State Constitutional Convention, when Utah presented its request for statehood. The struggle for Woman suffrage was a bitter one, and many people will recall the debate between him and Bishop Orson F. Whitney. Elder Whitney espoused suffrage for women. President Roberts bitterly opposed it. Yet within four years, the votes of the women of Utah helped to send him to Congress. As a preacher, President Roberts was forceful and lucid; in debate superb and skillful. At times he was dangerously impulsive in his words, and had frequently to suffer for his impulsiveness. Yet no one could misunderstand just where he stood on a question. Always fearless in expressing his opinion, he often lent his name to causes he deemed right. The two addresses recently given at Chicago before the International Fellowship of Faiths were received by scholars of religion as a dignified and fine contribution to the religious thought of the day. His voice was strong and sonorous; his diction pure and dignified. His thought moved on a high plane, and he believed every word he uttered. As the years go by, President Roberts will be appreciated for his love of the Gospel; and his fearless defense of the right. It was his character which ennobled the office he held, and which enabled him to accomplish his great tasks, and which will cause him to be held in fadeless honor. |
Brigham H. Roberts
|