James E. Talmage
Born: 21 September 1862
Called to Quorum of the Twelve: 8 December 1911
Died: 27 July 1933
Called to Quorum of the Twelve: 8 December 1911
Died: 27 July 1933
Conference TalksApr 1892
Apr 1893 Apr 1895 - The Tobacco Habit Apr 1912 - Easter significance Oct 1912 - True liberty and its spurious imitations Oct 1913 - The Fall of Man Apr 1914 - Simplicity of our teachings—Oratory and eloquence Oct 1914 - The hand of God in all things Apr 1915 - The relationship of Jesus Christ to God the Eternal Father, spiritually and bodily Apr 1916 - A marvelous work and a wonder Oct 1916 - The coming forth of the Lost Tribes of Israel Apr 1917 - The Kingdom of God and the Kingdom of Heaven Oct 1917 - Lay hold on eternal life Apr 1918 - The last days Image source: Improvement Era, February 1912
Image source: Improvement Era, July 1932
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Image source: Improvement Era, November 1909
Image source: Improvement Era, November 1924
Image source: Improvement Era, November 1962
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Biographical Articles
Biographical Encyclopedia, Volume 3
Biographical Encyclopedia, Volume 4
Young Woman's Journal, March 1893, How I Gained My Testimony of the Truth
Juvenile Instructor, January 1912, Elder James Edward Talmage
Improvement Era, February 1912, Dr. James E. Talmage
Young Woman's Journal, October 1924, New President of the European Mission
Improvement Era, November 1924, Portrait of James E. Talmage
Improvement Era, July 1932, Greatness in Men - James E. Talmage
Instructor, June 1933, Elder James E. Talmage of the Council of the Twelve Speaks on Eternal Life
Instructor, August 1933, Elder James E. Talmage
Improvement Era, September 1933, Dr. James E. Talmage
Improvement Era, September 1933, James Edward Talmage is Still With Us
Relief Society Magazine, September 1933, Dr. James E. Talmage, A Sketch of His Educational Activities
Relief Society Magazine, September 1933, Dr. James E. Talmage
Improvement Era, November 1962, The Life of James E. Talmage
Ensign, March 2010, James E. Talmage (1862-1933)
Biographical Encyclopedia, Volume 4
Young Woman's Journal, March 1893, How I Gained My Testimony of the Truth
Juvenile Instructor, January 1912, Elder James Edward Talmage
Improvement Era, February 1912, Dr. James E. Talmage
Young Woman's Journal, October 1924, New President of the European Mission
Improvement Era, November 1924, Portrait of James E. Talmage
Improvement Era, July 1932, Greatness in Men - James E. Talmage
Instructor, June 1933, Elder James E. Talmage of the Council of the Twelve Speaks on Eternal Life
Instructor, August 1933, Elder James E. Talmage
Improvement Era, September 1933, Dr. James E. Talmage
Improvement Era, September 1933, James Edward Talmage is Still With Us
Relief Society Magazine, September 1933, Dr. James E. Talmage, A Sketch of His Educational Activities
Relief Society Magazine, September 1933, Dr. James E. Talmage
Improvement Era, November 1962, The Life of James E. Talmage
Ensign, March 2010, James E. Talmage (1862-1933)
Jenson, Andrew. "Talmage, James Edward." Biographical Encyclopedia. Volume 3. pg. 787-789.
TALMAGE, James Edward, a member of the Council of the Twelve Apostles, and a resident of Salt Lake City, Utah, was born Sunday Sept. 21, 1862, at Hungerford, Berkshire, England, the son of James Joyce Talmage and his wife, Susannah Preater. He is the first son and second child in a family of eight. He was baptized and confirmed a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints at the place of his birth, June 15, 1873, and on the 18th of the following August was ordained a Deacon in the Ramsbury branch of the London conference. The entire family left England May 24, 1876, landed in New York June 5th, and arrived in Salt Lake City June 14th following. His career in the Church has been upward and onward from the time of his baptism. In Provo, Utah, where the family had established a home, he was ordained a Teacher December 17, 1877, and an Elder June 28, 1880. On September 29, 1884, he was ordained a High Priest, and was set apart as an alternate High Councilor in the Utah Stake of Zion. On December 7, 1911, he was appointed and sustained to be one of the Apostles, to fill the vacancy caused by the appointment of Elder Charles W. Penrose as second counselor in the First Presidency, and on the following day (Dec. 8th) was ordained an Apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ and was set apart as one of the Council of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, under the hands of President Joseph F. Smith, assisted by his counselors and members of the Council of the Twelve. In 1888 (June 14th) he married Mary May Booth (daughter of Richard Thornton Booth and his wife, Elsie Edge Booth), at the Manti Temple, and from this union there are the following children: Sterling B., born May 21, 1889; Paul B., born Dec. 21, 1891; Zella, born Aug. 3, 1894, died of pneumonia April 27, 1895; Elsie, born Aug. 16, 1896; James Karl, born Aug. 29, 1898; Lucile, born May 29, 1900; Helen May, born Oct. 24, 1902, and JohnRussell, born Feb. 1, 1911. Bro. Talmage obtained his early schooling in the National and Board schools of his home district in England, and was an Oxford diocesan prize scholar in 1874. He entered the Brigham Young Academy (now University) at Provo, Utah, in 1876, and followed to completion the high school and normal courses, and in his 17th year was a teacher of elementary science and English in the institution named. His early predilection was for the sciences, and in 1882-83 he took a selected course, mainly in chemistry and geology, at Lehigh University, Bethlehem, Pa. Though a special student and not a candidate for a degree, he passed during his single year of residence nearly all the examinations in the four-year course and was later graduated; and in 1883-84 he was engaged in advanced work at Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Md. He returned to Utah in the fall of 1884, in response to a summons from the home institution, and served as professor of geology and chemistry, with varied activities in other departments, in the Brigham Young Academy from 1884 to 1888. While still a member of the faculty, he was elected a member of the board of trustees of the Brigham Young Academy. During his residence in Provo, he served successively as city councilman, alderman and justice of the peace. In 1888 he was called to Salt Lake City to take the presidency of the Latter-day Saints College, which position he held until 1893. He was president of and professor of geology in the University of Utah, 1894-97. In the year last named he resigned the presidency, but retained the chair of geology, which had been specially endowed; and ten years later (1907) he resigned the professorship to follow the practical work of mining geology, for which his services were in great demand. In 1891 he received the degree of Bachelor of Science, and in 1912 the honorary degree of Doctor of Science, from his old alma mater, Lehigh University. In 1890 he was given the honorary degree of Doctor of Science and Didactics by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and in 1896 was awarded the Doctor of Philosophy degree by Illinois Wesleyan University for nonresident work. Dr. Talmage has been elected to life membership in several learned societies, and for many years has been a Fellow of the Royal Microscopical Society (London), Fellow of the Royal Scottish Geographical Society (Edinburgh), Fellow of the Geological Society (London), Fellow of the Geological Society of America. Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Associate of the Philosophical Society of Great Britain, or Victoria Institute, and Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Dr. Talmage has traveled
extensively, having traversed most of this country and of Europe many times in the course of scientific pursuits. He was a delegate from the Royal Society of Edinburgh to the International Geological Congress held at St. Petersburg (Petrograd)) in 1897, and was a member of the party that crossed the Urals into Siberia. Throughout the period of his professional career as teacher and professor, Dr. Talmage was particularly active and efficient in encouraging scientific study by popular lectures and writings, and for this labor his deep love for science and his exceptional command of language and ability as a public speaker particularly fitted him. Impelled by the same spirit, he took charge of the little Deseret Museum in 1891, and had the satisfaction of seeing the institution become large and influential. He retained the directorship until 1919, when the Deseret Museum ceased to exist as a unified institution, its collections being segregated to form the L. D. S. University Museum, and the L. D. S. Church Museum, respectively. In his teaching work Dr. Talmage was the first to establish courses in domestic science and agricultural chemistry in the intermountain West. When called to special ministry in the Church he promptly relinquished his profession as a mining geologist and engineer, the practice of which had grown to be extensive and lucrative, and since that time he has devoted himself entirely to ecclesiastical service. Dr. Talmage is the author of many scientific and theological works, among which are: "First Book of Nature" (1888); "Domestic Science" (1891); "Tables for Blowpipe Determination of Minerals" (1899); "The Great Salt Lake, Present and Past" (1900 ) ; "The Articles of Faith" (1899), a comprehensive exposition of the doctrines of the Church; "The Great Apostasy" (1909); "The House of the Lord" (1912), a discussion of holy sanctuaries, ancient and modern; "The Story of Mormonism" ( 1907 ) ; lectures delivered at Michigan, Cornell and other universities; "The Philosophical Basis of Mormonism" (1915); "Jesus the Christ" (1915); "The Vitality of Mormonism" (1919), and numerous pamphlets and contributions to periodicals. Bishop Orson F. Whitney, author of the "History of Utah," says of him: "Professionally a scientist and a preceptor, with gifts and powers equalled by few. Dr. Talmage is also a writer and speaker of great ability and skill. He is an absolute master of English, both by pen and tongue, and possesses a musical eloquence of marvelous fluency and precision. His style of oratory, though not stentorian, is wonderfully impressive, and his well stored mind, capacious memory, quick recollection and remarkable readiness of speech render him a beau-ideal instructor, in public or in private."
TALMAGE, James Edward, a member of the Council of the Twelve Apostles, and a resident of Salt Lake City, Utah, was born Sunday Sept. 21, 1862, at Hungerford, Berkshire, England, the son of James Joyce Talmage and his wife, Susannah Preater. He is the first son and second child in a family of eight. He was baptized and confirmed a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints at the place of his birth, June 15, 1873, and on the 18th of the following August was ordained a Deacon in the Ramsbury branch of the London conference. The entire family left England May 24, 1876, landed in New York June 5th, and arrived in Salt Lake City June 14th following. His career in the Church has been upward and onward from the time of his baptism. In Provo, Utah, where the family had established a home, he was ordained a Teacher December 17, 1877, and an Elder June 28, 1880. On September 29, 1884, he was ordained a High Priest, and was set apart as an alternate High Councilor in the Utah Stake of Zion. On December 7, 1911, he was appointed and sustained to be one of the Apostles, to fill the vacancy caused by the appointment of Elder Charles W. Penrose as second counselor in the First Presidency, and on the following day (Dec. 8th) was ordained an Apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ and was set apart as one of the Council of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, under the hands of President Joseph F. Smith, assisted by his counselors and members of the Council of the Twelve. In 1888 (June 14th) he married Mary May Booth (daughter of Richard Thornton Booth and his wife, Elsie Edge Booth), at the Manti Temple, and from this union there are the following children: Sterling B., born May 21, 1889; Paul B., born Dec. 21, 1891; Zella, born Aug. 3, 1894, died of pneumonia April 27, 1895; Elsie, born Aug. 16, 1896; James Karl, born Aug. 29, 1898; Lucile, born May 29, 1900; Helen May, born Oct. 24, 1902, and JohnRussell, born Feb. 1, 1911. Bro. Talmage obtained his early schooling in the National and Board schools of his home district in England, and was an Oxford diocesan prize scholar in 1874. He entered the Brigham Young Academy (now University) at Provo, Utah, in 1876, and followed to completion the high school and normal courses, and in his 17th year was a teacher of elementary science and English in the institution named. His early predilection was for the sciences, and in 1882-83 he took a selected course, mainly in chemistry and geology, at Lehigh University, Bethlehem, Pa. Though a special student and not a candidate for a degree, he passed during his single year of residence nearly all the examinations in the four-year course and was later graduated; and in 1883-84 he was engaged in advanced work at Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Md. He returned to Utah in the fall of 1884, in response to a summons from the home institution, and served as professor of geology and chemistry, with varied activities in other departments, in the Brigham Young Academy from 1884 to 1888. While still a member of the faculty, he was elected a member of the board of trustees of the Brigham Young Academy. During his residence in Provo, he served successively as city councilman, alderman and justice of the peace. In 1888 he was called to Salt Lake City to take the presidency of the Latter-day Saints College, which position he held until 1893. He was president of and professor of geology in the University of Utah, 1894-97. In the year last named he resigned the presidency, but retained the chair of geology, which had been specially endowed; and ten years later (1907) he resigned the professorship to follow the practical work of mining geology, for which his services were in great demand. In 1891 he received the degree of Bachelor of Science, and in 1912 the honorary degree of Doctor of Science, from his old alma mater, Lehigh University. In 1890 he was given the honorary degree of Doctor of Science and Didactics by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and in 1896 was awarded the Doctor of Philosophy degree by Illinois Wesleyan University for nonresident work. Dr. Talmage has been elected to life membership in several learned societies, and for many years has been a Fellow of the Royal Microscopical Society (London), Fellow of the Royal Scottish Geographical Society (Edinburgh), Fellow of the Geological Society (London), Fellow of the Geological Society of America. Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Associate of the Philosophical Society of Great Britain, or Victoria Institute, and Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Dr. Talmage has traveled
extensively, having traversed most of this country and of Europe many times in the course of scientific pursuits. He was a delegate from the Royal Society of Edinburgh to the International Geological Congress held at St. Petersburg (Petrograd)) in 1897, and was a member of the party that crossed the Urals into Siberia. Throughout the period of his professional career as teacher and professor, Dr. Talmage was particularly active and efficient in encouraging scientific study by popular lectures and writings, and for this labor his deep love for science and his exceptional command of language and ability as a public speaker particularly fitted him. Impelled by the same spirit, he took charge of the little Deseret Museum in 1891, and had the satisfaction of seeing the institution become large and influential. He retained the directorship until 1919, when the Deseret Museum ceased to exist as a unified institution, its collections being segregated to form the L. D. S. University Museum, and the L. D. S. Church Museum, respectively. In his teaching work Dr. Talmage was the first to establish courses in domestic science and agricultural chemistry in the intermountain West. When called to special ministry in the Church he promptly relinquished his profession as a mining geologist and engineer, the practice of which had grown to be extensive and lucrative, and since that time he has devoted himself entirely to ecclesiastical service. Dr. Talmage is the author of many scientific and theological works, among which are: "First Book of Nature" (1888); "Domestic Science" (1891); "Tables for Blowpipe Determination of Minerals" (1899); "The Great Salt Lake, Present and Past" (1900 ) ; "The Articles of Faith" (1899), a comprehensive exposition of the doctrines of the Church; "The Great Apostasy" (1909); "The House of the Lord" (1912), a discussion of holy sanctuaries, ancient and modern; "The Story of Mormonism" ( 1907 ) ; lectures delivered at Michigan, Cornell and other universities; "The Philosophical Basis of Mormonism" (1915); "Jesus the Christ" (1915); "The Vitality of Mormonism" (1919), and numerous pamphlets and contributions to periodicals. Bishop Orson F. Whitney, author of the "History of Utah," says of him: "Professionally a scientist and a preceptor, with gifts and powers equalled by few. Dr. Talmage is also a writer and speaker of great ability and skill. He is an absolute master of English, both by pen and tongue, and possesses a musical eloquence of marvelous fluency and precision. His style of oratory, though not stentorian, is wonderfully impressive, and his well stored mind, capacious memory, quick recollection and remarkable readiness of speech render him a beau-ideal instructor, in public or in private."
Jenson, Andrew. "Talmage, James E." Biographical Encyclopedia. Volume 4. pg. 248, 320.
TALMAGE, James E., a member of the Y. M. M. I. A. from 1912 to 1922, died July 27, 1933. (See Biographical Encyclopedia, Vol. 3, p. 787.)
TALMAGE, James E., president of the British Mission from 1924 to 1927, died July 27, 1933, in Salt Lake City, Utah. (See Bio. Ency., Vol. 3, p. 787.)
TALMAGE, James E., a member of the Y. M. M. I. A. from 1912 to 1922, died July 27, 1933. (See Biographical Encyclopedia, Vol. 3, p. 787.)
TALMAGE, James E., president of the British Mission from 1924 to 1927, died July 27, 1933, in Salt Lake City, Utah. (See Bio. Ency., Vol. 3, p. 787.)
Talmage, James E. "How I Gained My Testimony of the Truth." Young Woman's Journal. March 1893. pg. 258-259.
HOW I GAINED MY TESTIMONY OF THE TRUTH.
Editor Young Woman's Journal:
Dear Sister,—You ask me to tell you how I received my testimony that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the true Church of God. I cannot tell you for I do not know myself. That I have such a testimony, an unquestionable knowledge of the truth of this work, I am most I certain; but how or when such knowledge came to me I know not any more than I know the moment which marks the passing away of night and the dawning of day. Yet my testimony does not remain ever the same; it grows in strength as the years bring additional evidences through reflection and study and prayer.
I was not born in the Church; my early training was received through the schools of the world; amongst the Methodists, Wesleyans, Presbyterians, and in the Church of England I have been by turns a pupil. But even during those periods of first tuition I had a knowledge of the divinity of God’s work as taught and practiced by the Latter-day Saints, for my parents had previously learned of the gospel, and were then awaiting the reorganization of the branch of the Church in the region of our home. This was in due time accomplished, and soon after my years had filled the allotted number, I was baptized by my father, who was an Elder in the Church. Jeers from schoolmates and scoffs from neighbors came to me as a matter of course. Our family being alone in the professions of the gospel there, to me it seemed that we had always been the recipients of such unkind attentions, which however served to strengthen my faith.
My testimony of this work dates back to the limits of my earliest memories. Since reaching the years that bring with them the powers of judgment, I have never been without an assurance of the divinity of this cause, and therefore I claim no honor for having gained such knowledge. I regard it as the greatest gift of God to me on earth; for though it is a natural endowment, I am none the less certain of its divine origin. I cannot remember a time when I did not live, yet I know that my life is a gift of our heavenly Father, so also is my testimony of His will.
Do not conclude that my faith has never been assailed; that it is like a greenhouse plant nourished through artificial culture, and alive only because protected from the blasts that wither and the frosts that destroy. I call to mind many periods of sore temptation and trial, when snares of the wily adversary have been set with alluring baits of mis-called science, and that which men style wisdom. Sophistry, doubt, and the craft of misbelief have surged in threatening torrents about the delicate roots of the feeble plant of my faith; yet, through the protecting care of the All Merciful, these dark rivers have been made to yield nutriment and impart strength to the rising stem and its sprouting branches.
I know that these vicissitudes are not yet over. A retrospect of my faith’s feeble growth gives me thankfulness, but the thought of the future brings fear lest after all the sapling should be uprooted. Did I not know that there is One who will temper the elements and adapt the conditions to my weak and immature growth, despair would bring destruction. Yet by prayer and works I may hope for the continued support of Him who is the source of my testimony and the author of my life—our Father.
Truly your brother in the Gospel,
J. E. Talmage.
HOW I GAINED MY TESTIMONY OF THE TRUTH.
Editor Young Woman's Journal:
Dear Sister,—You ask me to tell you how I received my testimony that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the true Church of God. I cannot tell you for I do not know myself. That I have such a testimony, an unquestionable knowledge of the truth of this work, I am most I certain; but how or when such knowledge came to me I know not any more than I know the moment which marks the passing away of night and the dawning of day. Yet my testimony does not remain ever the same; it grows in strength as the years bring additional evidences through reflection and study and prayer.
I was not born in the Church; my early training was received through the schools of the world; amongst the Methodists, Wesleyans, Presbyterians, and in the Church of England I have been by turns a pupil. But even during those periods of first tuition I had a knowledge of the divinity of God’s work as taught and practiced by the Latter-day Saints, for my parents had previously learned of the gospel, and were then awaiting the reorganization of the branch of the Church in the region of our home. This was in due time accomplished, and soon after my years had filled the allotted number, I was baptized by my father, who was an Elder in the Church. Jeers from schoolmates and scoffs from neighbors came to me as a matter of course. Our family being alone in the professions of the gospel there, to me it seemed that we had always been the recipients of such unkind attentions, which however served to strengthen my faith.
My testimony of this work dates back to the limits of my earliest memories. Since reaching the years that bring with them the powers of judgment, I have never been without an assurance of the divinity of this cause, and therefore I claim no honor for having gained such knowledge. I regard it as the greatest gift of God to me on earth; for though it is a natural endowment, I am none the less certain of its divine origin. I cannot remember a time when I did not live, yet I know that my life is a gift of our heavenly Father, so also is my testimony of His will.
Do not conclude that my faith has never been assailed; that it is like a greenhouse plant nourished through artificial culture, and alive only because protected from the blasts that wither and the frosts that destroy. I call to mind many periods of sore temptation and trial, when snares of the wily adversary have been set with alluring baits of mis-called science, and that which men style wisdom. Sophistry, doubt, and the craft of misbelief have surged in threatening torrents about the delicate roots of the feeble plant of my faith; yet, through the protecting care of the All Merciful, these dark rivers have been made to yield nutriment and impart strength to the rising stem and its sprouting branches.
I know that these vicissitudes are not yet over. A retrospect of my faith’s feeble growth gives me thankfulness, but the thought of the future brings fear lest after all the sapling should be uprooted. Did I not know that there is One who will temper the elements and adapt the conditions to my weak and immature growth, despair would bring destruction. Yet by prayer and works I may hope for the continued support of Him who is the source of my testimony and the author of my life—our Father.
Truly your brother in the Gospel,
J. E. Talmage.
Evans, John Henry. "Elder James Edward Talmage." Juvenile Instructor. January 1912. pg. 7-9.
Elder James Edward Talmage. By John Henry Evans. "Well, how do you like the new apostle?" everybody asked of everybody else the next day after the appointment; for people will talk, you know, about things in which they are interested. And everybody else invariably answered: "Fine! Couldn't have been a better!" One good woman said in answer to this same query, "I'm so tickled over it I don't know what to do!" Not very dignified, to be sure, but, like slang, very expressive, and, unlike slang, immensely gratifying. If Dr. Talmage could have overheard the general murmur of approval that went up in every "Mormon" community throughout the country when news of his elevation to the apostleship became known, well -- Elder James Edward Talmage is in his fiftieth year. He was born Sept. 21, 1862, at Hungerford, Berkshire, England. He was fourteen years old when, with his father's family, he came to Utah, settling in Provo. He attended the national schools of England, at Hungerford and Ramsbury, Wilts. Also he studied at the Brigham Young Academy, at Provo, where he entered in 1876, and later at Lehigh University, at South Bethlehem, Pennsylvania (1882-3), and at Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland (1883-4) receiving his baccalaureate degree from Lehigh in 1891. He received a doctor's degree (Ph. D.) from the Illinois Wesleyan University in 1896, and four years later the degree Doctor of Science and Didactics (D. Sc. D.) from the Church. Since the completion of his studies at the schools he has occupied prominent educational places in Utah schools. At one time he was professor of chemistry and geology at the B. Y. Academy. Later (1888-93) he was president of the Latter-day Saints' College at Salt Lake City. In 1894 he was called to the presidency of the State University, assuming at the same time the chair of geology there. Four years later he resigned the presidency but retained the professorship of geology till 1907, when he resigned the place to follow the profession of consulting geologist and mining engineer. In 1891 he was appointed curator of the Deseret Museum and later its director, which position he still holds. He has traveled extensively in Europe, specifically in the interest of scientific study, and was a delegate from the Royal Society of Edinburgh to the Seventh International Geological Congress, held in Russia in 1897, in connection with which appointment he traversed Russia and crossed the Ural mountains and reached Siberia. To no other educator in the Church have so many distinguished honors come. He is Fellow of the Royal Microscopical Society of London (F. R. M. S.) : Fellow of the Geological Society of London (F. G. S.) ; Fellow of the Geological Society of America (F. G. S. A.) : Fellow of the Royal Society, Edinburgh (F R. S. E.) ; Fellow of the Royal Scottish Geological Society (F.R.S.G. S.) ; Fellow of the American Society for the Advancement of Science : Life Associate of the Philosophical Society of Great Britain. Elder Talmage is an author of considerable prominence among us. The following books are from his pen "First Book of Nature," "Domestic Science," both of which have been used extensively in our public schools, and the former of which was one of the series of books for reading in the M. I. .A. course some years ago ; the "Articles of Faith," more copies of which are found in the homes of Latter- day Saints than of any other work. excepting alone the standard works of the Church: "The Great Apostasy," "Tables for Blow-pipe Determination of Minerals." "The Great Salt Lake, Present and Past." He has also written numerous articles for scientific and religious publications. He was married in 1888 to Mary May Booth, of Alpine, Utah County, of which union are eight children. Elder Talmage has during all these years held Church positions. At eleven years of age he was ordained a deacon. Four years later he was made a teacher. In 1880 he became an elder. And four years after that he was ordained a high priest. Since 1901 he has been a member of the General Board of the Deseret Sunday School Union. His appointment to the apostleship occurred on December 7, 1911. I have spoken briefly of his educational activities, of his literary activities, and of his religious activities. And other activities could be named, for Elder Talmage has been an exceptionally useful man, in various capacities, to the community. Nevertheless, as it seems to me, we could easily point out a department of activity in which he is pre-eminent, not only as regards these others, but also as regards other public men, not only in our own community, but in America. It is in public address. Astonishingly few men have the gift of speech. In the language of the school-boy, most men "know, but they can't tell it." Dr. Talmage both knows and can tell. He has the gift of utterance in a rarely high degree. Some men who have this gift, moreover, can write well, but not speak. Others can speak well, but not write. Dr. Talmage, on the contrary, can both write well and speak well. Yet most of us, I think, would say that public speaking is his special gift. But there are speakers and speakers. Some of them astonish us with their rhetoric and brilliance; others with their analytical powers ; and still others with the poetic beauty of their language. In all of these you are struck by something in their way of saying a thing. "What a fine speaker!" you say, after hearing them. None of these things is true of Dr. Talmage's address, lie has a higher gift. Now, the perfect utterance, written or oral, is the utterance which does not call attention to itself at the time—the utterance which Ijodies forth the thought, and only the thought in an effective way ; that is to say, in an interestingly clear way. And Elder Talmage does this in a way that few public speakers in American can do. Hearing him you are struck with what he says, and not till afterwards with his way of saying it. In the first place, if I may analyze his public speech as a pattern for our young preachers, it is simple and direct. There are no oddities in it, no flourishes, no pomposities; there is no attempt to be "fine;" everything is straightforward, backed by a strong desire to express adequately the thought. Secondly, there is exhibited in it the unique power of bringing the abstract, the technical, the difficult down to the comprehension of the mind unaccustomed to the abstract, the technical, and the difficult. Addison thought it the highest praise that anyone should bring wisdom "out of closets and libraries, schools and colleges to dwell in clubs and assemblies, at tea, tables and coffee-houses." Dr. Talmage has the rare ability to do this. And yet it is done so as not to leave a feeling that he has been "patronizing." In this respect he ranks with Huxley, who was one of England s best scientific lecturers. In the third place, Dr. Talmage is always interesting —he always grips the attention. And this can be said of only the best public speakers. Years ago, when he was to speak at one of the large universities in the East, where even the best few often failed to hold the interest of the student body, the college men had arranged to leave, as was their wont, in large blocks. But they did not leave—not one of them left. And this was an audience all of whom even Ingersol. that very year had been unable to hold. These four qualities—simplicity, directness, clearness through concreteness, and high interest with a big fund of read words —sufficiently characterize Elder Talmage's public speaking and put it at once in the highest class. And now he has been given a place where this unique talent will be most useful. It is the Church that ought to be congratulated upon the elevation of such a man to the apostolate, not the man thus honored. |
John Henry Evans.
Dr. James E. Talmage.
(His latest photograph.) |
"Dr. James E. Talmage." Improvement Era. February 1912. pg. 346-349.
Dr. James E. Talmage Dr. James E. Talmage, son of James Joyce Talmage and Susanna Preater Talmage, recently ordained an apostle, was born on Sunday, September 21, 1862, at Hungerford, Berkshire, England. He was baptized and confirmed a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints at the place of his birth, June 15, 1873, and on the 18th of the following August was ordained a deacon in the Ramsbury branch of the London conference. With his parents and their entire family he left the family home at Ramsbury on the 22nd of May, 1876. They were all bound for Utah and sailed from Liverpool on the 24th of the same month by the Guion steamship Nevada. They landed in New York on the 5th of June, and arrived in Salt Lake City on the 14th of the same month and year. According to the order then in vogue in the Church, which required that all immigrants be re-baptized, he was re-baptized at Provo, Utah, on the 12th of July following. His career in the Church has been upward and onward ever since. On the 7th of December, 1877, he was ordained a teacher in the third ward of Provo, and an elder in the same city, on the 28th of June, 1880. Four years later, on September 29, 1884. he was ordained a High Priest, and set apart as an alternate High Councilor in the Utah Stake of Zion. On the 10th of November, 1901, he was sustained a member of the Deseret Sunday School Union, at the special conference of the Church on that date. He was appointed and sustained to be one of the apostles to fill the vacancy caused by the appointment of Elder Charles W. Penrose as second counsellor in the First Presidency, on the 7th of December, 1911, and on the following day was ordained an apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ and set apart as one of the Council of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, under the hands of President Joseph F. Smith, assisted by his counsellors and members of the Council of the Twelve. He was married to Mary May Booth, daughter of Richard Thornton Booth and Elsie Edge Booth, at the Manti Temple, June 14, 1888, and from this union there are the following children: Sterling B., born May 21, 1889, recently returned from a mission to England; Paul B., born December 21, 1891 ; Zella, born August 3, 1894, died April 27, 1895, of pneumonia; Elsie, born August 16, 1896; James Karl, born August 29, 1898; Lucile, born May 29, 1900; Helen May, born October 24, 1902; John Russell, born February 1, 1911. Dr. Talmage received his common school education in the national schools at Hungerford, Berks., and Ramsbury, Wilts. On his arrival in Utah he entered the Brigham Young Academy at Provo, in 1876, and was later a student at Lehigh University, South Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, 1882-3, and of John Hopkins' University, Baltimore, Maryland, 1883-4. From the Pennsylvania institution he received his Baccalaureate degree, in 1891, and the degree of Ph. D. from the Illinois Wesleyan University, in 1896. He received also the degree of Doctor of Science and Didactics (D. Sc. D.) from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in 1890. Returning from his college studies in the East, he became professor of chemistry and geology at the Brigham Young Academy in Provo, in 1884, in which capacity he continued until 1888, at which time he became president of the Latter-day Saints College, in Salt Lake City, then known as the Salt Lake Stake Academy. In this capacity he continued until 1893, in which year he was appointed professor of chemistry and geology for the then prospective Church University, which institution was never completed as to its organization. In 1894 he became president of the University of Utah, and Deseret Professor of Geology therein. In 1897 he resigned the presidency but retained the chair of geology, which he resigned in July, 1907. and has since followed the profession of consulting geologist and mining engineer. In 891 he was appointed curator of the Deseret Museum, and later ne became its director, which position he still holds. Dr. Talmage has traveled extensively in Europe specifically in the interests of scientific study, and was a delegate of the Royal Society of Edinburgh to the Seventh International Geological Congress, held in Russia, in 1897, in connection with which appointment he traversed Russia and crossed the Ural mountains and reached Siberia. Aside from his college degrees he has had conferred upon him many distinguishing honors of a scholastic nature, among them the following: Fellow of the Royal Microscopic Society of London (F. R. M. S.) ; Fellow of the Geological Society of London (F. G. S.) ; Fellow of the Geological Society of America (F. G. S. A.) ; Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (F. R. S. E.) Fellow of the Royal Scottish Geological Society (F. R. S. G. S.) Fellow of the American Society for the Advancement of Science Life Asscoiate of the Philosophical Society of Great Britain. In the domain of literature he has written a number of excellent works, among them: The First Book of Nature, Domestic Science, The Articles of Faith, The Story of Mormonism, The Great Apostasy, Tables for Blow-pipe Determination of Minerals, The Great Salt Lake, Past and Present, and numerous contributions to scientific literature through the columns of standard publications. |
DR. JAMES E. TALMAGE
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"New President of the European Mission." Young Woman's Journal. October 1924. pg. 560-561.
New President of the European Mission
The European Mission is once more to be greatly blessed in having called to its Presidency another stalwart Apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ. The appointment that has come to Elder James E. Talmage of the Council of the Twelve to occupy this position is a well deserved honor and one for which he is eminently fitted. His splendid intellectual powers, his unlimited capacity for work, and above all, his devotion to the Gospel make him a leader of unusually strong personality. The missionaries especially who are privileged to be in close association with him, and the Saints and sincere investigators who will listen eagerly to his fervent discourses on Gospel themes, will find in him constant inspiration; and the many great and learned ones who doubtless will come under his influence will recognize in him a forceful and eloquent exponent of Mormonism.
Our Senior girls will be pleased to learn that the lessons outlined for the coming season have been prepared especially for them by Elder Talmage and that his great work, Jesus the Christ, will be their text hook.
This call means much to the General Board of Y. L. M. I. A. for not only will its members miss Brother Talmage, but his excellent wife, who is to accompany him, will leave a vacancy in their ranks not to be easily filled.
May Booth Talmage was one of the first aids chosen by the late President Elmina S. Taylor. For thirty- two years she has given of her time and talents to the Mutual Improvement cause, and whether the task required was committee work, writing a letter of condolence to one in sorrow, traveling among the stakes and wards, writing for or editing the Journal, which latter service she rendered for some eighteen months, her splendid efficiency and devoted spirit was manifest. Needless to say her associates hold her in highest esteem.
However, while they will greatly miss her genial presence, the opportunity to be a missionary in foreign lands is one that they could not wish to deprive her of. To be a friend to the eiders who will look to her for encouragement and cheer, to minister to the Saints and new converts who come under her sympathetic influence will be a most happy experience and one that will redound to her blessing and to the blessing of all with whom she may come in contact.
Brother and Sister Talmage expect to leave for England in October, accompanied by their son John and daughter Helen. The Mutual girls throughout Zion, we are sure, will join with us in saying to them: God speed you!—C. A. B.
New President of the European Mission
The European Mission is once more to be greatly blessed in having called to its Presidency another stalwart Apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ. The appointment that has come to Elder James E. Talmage of the Council of the Twelve to occupy this position is a well deserved honor and one for which he is eminently fitted. His splendid intellectual powers, his unlimited capacity for work, and above all, his devotion to the Gospel make him a leader of unusually strong personality. The missionaries especially who are privileged to be in close association with him, and the Saints and sincere investigators who will listen eagerly to his fervent discourses on Gospel themes, will find in him constant inspiration; and the many great and learned ones who doubtless will come under his influence will recognize in him a forceful and eloquent exponent of Mormonism.
Our Senior girls will be pleased to learn that the lessons outlined for the coming season have been prepared especially for them by Elder Talmage and that his great work, Jesus the Christ, will be their text hook.
This call means much to the General Board of Y. L. M. I. A. for not only will its members miss Brother Talmage, but his excellent wife, who is to accompany him, will leave a vacancy in their ranks not to be easily filled.
May Booth Talmage was one of the first aids chosen by the late President Elmina S. Taylor. For thirty- two years she has given of her time and talents to the Mutual Improvement cause, and whether the task required was committee work, writing a letter of condolence to one in sorrow, traveling among the stakes and wards, writing for or editing the Journal, which latter service she rendered for some eighteen months, her splendid efficiency and devoted spirit was manifest. Needless to say her associates hold her in highest esteem.
However, while they will greatly miss her genial presence, the opportunity to be a missionary in foreign lands is one that they could not wish to deprive her of. To be a friend to the eiders who will look to her for encouragement and cheer, to minister to the Saints and new converts who come under her sympathetic influence will be a most happy experience and one that will redound to her blessing and to the blessing of all with whom she may come in contact.
Brother and Sister Talmage expect to leave for England in October, accompanied by their son John and daughter Helen. The Mutual girls throughout Zion, we are sure, will join with us in saying to them: God speed you!—C. A. B.
"Dr. James Edward Talmage." Improvement Era. November 1924. pg. 2.
DR. JAMES EDWARD TALMAGE ONE OF THE COUNCIL OF THE TWELVE APOSTLES Born in Hungerford, Berks, England, Sept. 21, 1862, and therefore just started on his 63rd year. He has been successively ordained Deacon, Teacher, Elder, High Priest, and Apostle. To his present exalted position as one of the Twelve, he was ordained on Dec. 8, 1911, under the hands of President Joseph F. Smith, his counselors, and members of the Twelve. On October 24, 1924, accompanied by his wife, Sister May Booth Talmage, their daughter Helen, and son John, he sailed from Montreal, Canada, on S. S. Montcalm, for England, to succeed Elder David O. McKay, of the Council of Twelve, in the presidency of the European mission. The jurisdiction of this presidency covers the British mission, all the Continental missions of Europe, and in addition the Armenian and South African missions. |
Hinckley, Bryant S. "Greatness in Men - James E. Talmage." Improvement Era. July 1932. pg. 522-525, 567.
Greatness in Men James E. Talmage By BRYANT S. HINCKLEY President of Liberty Stake Scholar, teacher, writer, lecturer, scientist and apostle —Dr. James E. Talmage has been and is all of these. In this article President Hinckley reveals the path by which this man mounted from immigrant boy to Apostle and to the proud position of being one of the ablest defenders of the Church and the Saints in these latter days. PROFESSIONALLY a scientist and a preceptor, with gifts and powers acquired by few, Dr. Talmage is also a writer and speaker of great ability and skill. He is an absolute master of English, both by pen and by tongue, and possesses a musical eloquence of marvelous fluency and precision. His style of oratory, though not stentorian is wonderfully impressive; his well stored mind, capacious memory, quick recollection and remarkable readiness of speech render him an ideal instructor in public and private." Such is the estimate of the historian, Orson F. Whitney, as recorded in Volume 4, History of Utah, thirty years ago. This is an accurate appraisal of Dr. Talmage's ability—he is a scientist, a teacher, a writer and a speaker. Since the day this was written he has, with unusual diligence, pursued the tasks that have come unasked to him and has moved steadily forward adding to the list of academic honors which he won early in life, and constantly contributed with his pen and tongue to the advancement of science, of education and of theology—his later life confirming all the bright prophecies that were made of him as a young man. THE historian speaks of him as a "scientist." While he was permitted to follow this line he made important contributions in various fields and early won international recognition for his work. He is scientifically minded and has stimulated interest in scientific study through his original work and through his ability to present and to popularize the subject. He was the first to establish courses in domestic science and agricultural chemistry in the intermountain West. Under his direction the Deseret Museum was made a large and influential institution. He is a teacher of extraordinary ability—always in complete mastery of his subject, fascinating and inspiring in his presentation, exacting but reasonable in his requirements, constantly stimulating his students to great endeavor—he is an "ideal teacher." He has majored magnificently as a writer and a speaker and will best be known to coming generations through his writings but remembered best by the present generation for his eloquence as a speaker. There is indeed a "musical eloquence" about his speaking which gives to it a fascinating and persuasive quality rarely surpassed. He has spoken before congresses and colleges, from the pulpit and the platform, on the streets and over the air and with impressive effect. Would it not be interesting to speculate just where his splendid abilities would have taken him in any one of several fields of endeavor had he chosen to follow them? His father and his grandfather were medical men and he had a predilection for that profession, and had he followed it would, undoubtedly, have become a renowned physician. ANY one acquainted with his capacity, his resourcefulness, his readiness in debate and his ability as an advocate would at once accord him an eminent place among the great jurists and lawyers of his time had he elected that profession. Both of these fields were very alluring in the days of his young manhood and would have brought to him worldly preferments and emoluments out of all proportion to anything he received. He would have gone to great heights in journalism or won distinction on the lecture platform. The question naturally arises — what determined his course? What led him to choose the major work of his life? The answer is easy to one acquainted with him. He has always sought divine guidance and the counsel of his brethren in making important decisions and has followed the counsel given without question or hesitation and with ultimate joy and satisfaction. Dr. Talmage is deeply religious and has always been active in the Church. Since December 8, 1911, when he was set apart as one of the Council of the Twelve, he has devoted himself almost exclusively to his ministerial duties and has given a service distinguished for its scholarship and consecration. His life has been an example and an inspiration to young people who have looked to him with pride and admiration. He has, with learning and with logic, defended his faith at home and abroad and expounded the doctrines of the Church with a clearness and cogency unsurpassed. James E. Talmage will go into history as one of the ablest and most brilliant advocates of "Mormonism." In this work he has found lasting satisfaction and made the supreme contribution of his life; without question it is greater and more fundamental than anything he might have done in other fields. JAMES E. TALMAGE was J born in the little town of Hungerford, Berkshire, England, September 21, 1862, and came with his parents to this country arriving in Salt Lake City in June, 1876. The family became established in Provo and James entered the Brigham Young Academy at the opening of its first regular academic year. In his native land he was a diocesan prize scholar at twelve years of age. At fourteen he entered the Brigham Young Academy and came in contact with Karl G. Maeser who was not slow to discover that this English boy possessed superior possibilities. The fifty-five years which have passed since he enrolled in that institution have verified all of the hopes and anticipations held out by Dr. Maeser concerning this boy. Among the thousands of students who have registered in that institution since its establishment we do not call to mind any one more highly endowed than he is. His mind, luminous and absorbent, coupled with his matchless industry, very early in life won for him a proud place among the scholars and leaders of his time. His contact with Karl G. Maeser was a fortunate and happy one, for Dr. Maeser was indeed a technician in the fine art of character building. There was a lofty idealism about him and a rational and enlightened faith permeated all he said and did. This had a deep and permanent influence upon the life and character of Dr. Talmage. Although the Academy was in those days small and financially poor there was something great about it—the soul, the atmosphere of the institution radiated to every city and hamlet of the Church carrying the name and fame of Karl G. Maeser, James E. Talmage and others. In June, 1879, he was graduated from the Normal department of that institution, the highest in his class, and in his seventeenth year he was employed as a regular instructor there, teaching elementary science, Latin and English. He taught full time and received for his services the munificent sum of $3.00 per week or $120.00 for the school year. The second year his pay was increased to $5.00 per week. That was before the days of depression. BEFORE entering the services of his Alma Mater he was offered a responsible and a highly remunerative position, for those days, in the public schools of Provo. He needed money and needed it badly and was in grave doubt as to just what would be the best thing to do. Following his usual custom he sought divine guidance. Retiring to a secluded place in a nearby canyon he prayed with all the fervor of his soul for wisdom to guide him in his decision and received a clear and satisfying answer to his prayer, after which he went cheerfully to work in the Academy not knowing what the remuneration would be. And so all his life he has had the humility and the faith to seek light from this divine source. The current of his religious life runs deep and still and strong. He has never drifted from the moorings of his early faith which is childlike and beautiful. His life furnishes many illuminating and faith-promoting lessons. When asked—"When and where did you receive a testimony of the gospel?" he answered: "That I do not know, I believe I was born with it as I belong to the third generation of Talmages in the Church. My paternal grandparents, James Talmage of Ramsbury, Wiltshire, England, and his wife, Mary Joyce of Hampshire, England, were the first, or among the first, to join the Church in that part of England. My father, James Joyce Talmage, and my mother, Susannah Preater (Talmage) became members of the Church before I was born. They were active and devoted members." Continuing he said: "Though I seem to have been born with a testimony yet in my early adolescence I was led to question whether that testimony was really my own or derived from my parents. I set about investigating the claims of the Church and pursued that investigation by prayer, fasting and research with all the ardor of an investigator on the outside. While such a one investigates with a view of coming into the Church if its claims be verified, I was seeking a way out of the Church if its claims should prove to me to be unsound. After months of such inquiry I found myself in possession of an assurance beyond all question that I was in solemn fact a member of the Church of Jesus Christ. I was convinced once for all, and this knowledge is so fully an integral part of my being that without it I would not be myself." ON June 15, 1873, he was baptized and confirmed a member of the Church by his father. His baptism took place under circumstances of the most extraordinary character, as published in the Era, Vol. 25, p. 675. He was ordained a deacon, teacher, elder, high priest and apostle successively. In conversation he said: "Every call I have received to office in the priesthood has come to me because some one was needed to fill a particular place, and was in no sense a matter of advancement or honor to myself as an individual. The greatest joys of my life have come to me through activities in the Church and these have been the activities of a member rather than an officer. Early in life I realized that I would have to live with myself more than with anybody else and I have tried to so live that I would be in good company when alone." After concluding to devote himself to education he laid plans for taking a college course and thus better prepare himself. Many of his brethren to whom he looked for advice warned him against this, feeling that it would jeopardize, if not destroy, his faith to go away from home to college. He finally asked advice from President John Taylor and with reference to this visit Dr. Talmage said: "I have often marveled at the kindness and condescension of President Taylor in spending nearly two hours with me. In the course of our conversation he inquired into my work and plans. He advised me strongly to enter a University in the East and, to my grateful surprise, laid his hands on my head and blessed me for the undertaking. The blessing thus pronounced has been realized in both spirit and letter." IN 1882 Dr. Talmage entered Lehigh University, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, as a special student and passed, during his single year of residence, nearly all the requirements of a four year course and was later graduated from that institution. While a student there he was offered a position as laboratory assistant which carried a salary sufficient to meet his needs for the next year. This was a distinct recognition of his ability. He declined this offer and went to Johns Hopkins University at Baltimore, Md., where he specialized in chemistry and geology. Here again he won recognition and the most enticing prospects were held out to him. He was called home to resume his work in the Brigham Young Academy and responded to the call. Here he served as professor of geology and chemistry, with varied activities in other departments. While still of the faculty he was elected a member of the board of trustees of the Brigham Young Academy. During his residence in Provo he served successively as city councilman, alderman and justice of the peace. His services were now eagerly sought and many opportunities were open to him. He was President of and Professor of chemistry in the Latter-day Saints College 1888-93; President of and Professor of Geology in the University of Utah 1894-97. In the last named year he resigned the Presidency but retained the, chair of geology, and ten years later (1907) he resigned this professorship to follow mining geology. In 1891 he received the degree of Bachelor of Science and in 1912 the degree of Doctor of Science from Lehigh University. In 1922 he received the honorary degree of Doctor of Laws from the University of Utah and from the Brigham Young University. He belongs to many learned societies and has traveled extensively in scientific pursuits. FOR many years he has been a Fellow of the Royal Microscopical Society (London) , Fellow of the Royal Scottish Geographical Society (Edinburgh) , Fellow of the Geological Society (London) , Fellow of the Geological Society of America, Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Associate of the Philosophical Society of Great Britain, or Victoria Institute, and Fellow of the Ameri- can Association for the Advancement of Science. His connection with these societies has given him a standing and a recognition among men of great influence which could not be secured in any other way, and he has used this for the advancement of the Church and it has meant a very great deal. This was conspicuously the case while he presided over the European Mission (1924-28). As a result the attitude of the newspapers throughout England was entirely changed. In this way Dr. Talmage has been able to give a service which probably no other man thus far has been able to give. If this article were devoted exclusively to his educational and scientific achievements it could scarcely catalogue them in the space allotted. IN addition to all of this he has written extensively on theological and scientific subjects. Among his writings are: First Book of Nature, Domestic Science, The Great Salt Lake—Present and Past, Tables for the Blowpipe Determination of Minerals, An Account of the Origin of the Book of Mormon, The Articles of Faith, The Great Apostasy, The House of the Lord, The Story of Mormonism, The Philosophical Basis of Mormonism, The Vitality of Mormonism, Jesus the Christ, Sunday Night Talks by Radio. To get a correct estimate of the character of Dr. Talmage one must know something of his domestic life. One discovers the same capacity for always doing the fitting and appropriate thing at home, as elsewhere, and doing it in an original and superior way. When the record of his life is written one of the most charming and fascinating chapters will be the one narrating the little things of his home life—things which contribute so much to the joy and satisfaction of living. There are intimate letters to his children and grand-children, on occasions such as their baptisms or birthdays accompanying some appropriate gift. These letters reveal the tender side of his nature and he has a very tender nature. The care which he has taken of his children in their infancy and in sickness is not only scientific and efficient but soulful and tender. Forty-four years ago this June he married Mary May Booth, a daughter of Richard Thornton Booth and Elsie Edge Booth of Alpine, Utah, a most sympathetic and companionable woman of transparent honesty and of unusual intellectual capacity, who seemed to complement almost perfectly the life of her distinguished husband. That she has kept abreast of affairs and combined home-making with successful and valuable public and Church service is attested by her excellent work in the European Mission during her sojourn there with her husband, her thirty-eight years of helpful service on the General Board of Young Ladies' Mutual Improvement Association, and other similar work. This union has been blessed with eight children, seven of whom survive, all born in Salt Lake City—Sterling B., Paul B., Elsie, James K., Lucile, Helen May and John B. Talmage. It is an unusually talented family. His love and admiration for the woman whose wisdom and companionship have meant so much to him, his affection for his children and his solicitude for their welfare, is recorded in a correspondence which, we venture, will some day be found among the most precious and delightful things he has written. We are permitted to use a letter written from Siberia nearly thirty-five years ago: For Elsie, in Mamma's care. Kychtym, Siberia, Russia-in-Asia, August 16, 1897. Elsie, My Darling Daughter: A father's fondest greeting to you on this the first recurrence of your natal day. Such I send to you from the plains of the far East, from the Steppes of Siberia. 1 write in the light of the early dawn, at an hour which to you on the opposite side of the earth is the same Sabbath hour at which one short year ago, you came to gladden our hearts, and to call forth our prayers of thankfulness; the hour at which your sweet mother reached the depths of the shadowy valley known as the Valley of Death, whither she had fearlessly gone to find you, my child. But the great Father, who is your parent as He is ours, guided and guarded her through the threatening darkness, and led her along the rough path of painful recovery, until she emerged from the pain and the travail, once more a sanctified mother, with you, my Darling, an added jewel to her crown. May the one completed year of your life be the first of many, each bringing increasing wisdom and growing goodness in the service of our God. May the blessings pronounced upon you by the power of the eternal priesthood be realized in all your life and work. May you live to be a sisterly guide to your brothers' feet, and a comfort to the mother whom God has given to you and to me. And in the Lord's due time may you be crowned an honored mother in the House of Israel. Peace, happiness and the love that knoweth naught but good, be yours, my darling and my pride. Affectionately, Your father. I send you blossoms, leaves and ferns, gathered for you on the slopes of Songomak. THIS daughter, Elsie Talmage Brandley, associate editor of this magazine, referring to him, said: "From the earliest memory of his children James E. Talmage was a man who 'knew everything,' and could explain most of it in a way to be at least partially understood by immature minds. Questions as to what thunder is made of, where water comes from, how high the sky is and why it is blue, and numerous others of similar character were never met with a weary 'Do be quiet.' Always there was a carefully worded explanation which helped to clear up the puzzle. "To children this was a boon. Confidence in the clear understanding of their father and his ability to make things plain to them was a strong part of the feeling which his sons and daughters held for him. "Strange and fascinating little bugs were shown to them through a microscope, queer things from strange lands and unfamiliar parts of their own, ore in which could be seen glints of precious metals, specimens of crystals, rocks, lime formations and other unusual, though natural peculiarities, all were regular parts of the hours which this man spent with his family. "Later the certainty that he could explain problems and make them simple carried over into fields other than the physical and geological. Questions of a more vital nature were propounded and clarified—questions of life and death, of where people came from and where they were going, of how to find the true values of life. Implicit faith in his answers helped them to take the ideas explained and weave into their adolescent philosophy. Some of these children, now grown, feel that no problem can present itself which cannot be met satisfactorily by the man who has never failed them when they needed help—their father." THE breadth of his interests, the reach and penetration of his. mind, the capacity of his memory, his matchless industry, the felicity with which he expresses himself, make him delightfully companionable any time or any place and at the same time give him an accuracy of thought and a directness of action that accounts, in part, for his prodigious accomplishments. He does more than is humanly possible for most men to do. He has; been known to work all night and go to his regular task in the morning without rest or relaxation, and so his achievements are not due entirely to an imperial mind but to the determined will to work. He produced his greatest work, Jesus the Christ—writing all the manuscript in long hand, proof read and issued it from the press in less than a year. At the same time he carried on much of his regular work. On September 21 next he will be seventy years of age—while presiding over the European Mission he met with an accident which injured his knee—otherwise he is in sound health, his mind keen and' vigorous and working at high speed. Dr. James E. Talmage has a superior intellect, a pure and a contrite heart, a radiant faith, a sane and lofty idealism, a clear understanding of the meaning and purposes of life. He has achieved' splendidly in the world. His life reflects credit upon his name and his people and has added strength and majesty to the great Church to which he has given a consecrated; allegiance. |
James Edward Talmage
May Booth Talmage
Susannah Preater Talmage
James Joyce Talmage, Father of James E.
An hour of reading enjoyed at home
James E. Talmage as he appeared in academic robes
Dr. Talmage in his private laboratory
Mining Geology has held a prominent place in his vocational life
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"Elder James E. Talmage of the Council of the Twelve Speaks on Eternal Life." Instructor. June 1933. pg. 244-246.
Elder James E. Talmage of the Council of the Twelve Speaks on Eternal Life Address given at the Conference of the Deseret Sunday School Union, April 9, 1933 "For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." (Romans 6:23.) What more glorious yet more terrifying contrast could be drawn? Studious consideration of this and related scriptures demonstrates that the death here referred to is other than the physical death with which we are acquainted by observation and with which every one of us shall become more closely acquainted through experience, but a death of even greater import, to escape which we should seek that gift of God, which according to the text can come unto us only through Jesus Christ our Lord. So the life referred to, eternal life, is something more, something immeasurably greater and grander than the assurance of individual existence throughout eternity. So, be it known, eternal life is far beyond continuation of existence after physical death, and after resurrection from that physical death, which resurrection is assured unto every soul that has drawn the breath of life upon the earth. Both righteous and wicked shall come forth from the graves of earth, each in his turn according to what he is, but all shall be resurrected in their order and shall stand in immortalized bodies to receive their assignments according to the deeds done in the body. The soul is eternal; and unending existence with identity unimpaired is inevitably certain. Even in hell there is no annihilation. The spirit of man is immortal in the sense of being assured of never ending existence. Therefore, eternal life must mean more than mere existence. Even as life here upon the earth may mean more to one than to another, for Christ said he came to give men life and that more abundantly, so the eternal life of which we speak is life that is supremely abundant and to which there shall be no end. But that is not all; it shall be marked by eternal progression, advancement, achievement ever greater and greater, higher and higher. None who have experienced death have come directly to tell us about it, and what we know of eternal life we have learned from the One who hath power to grant it. It is a gift from God; and it comes unto those who have reached God. There is but one means of reaching the Father's presence, and the Savior has thus described it: “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father but by me." (John 14:6.) And this is in harmony with the declaration that eternal life is a gift from the Father, through Jesus Christ, His Son, to those who are entitled to it. It is the assurance of ever-increasing and ever-enduring wealth. So the Lord declared in this dispensation, even before the organization of the Church: "Seek not for riches but for wisdom, and behold, the mysteries of God shall be unfolded unto you, and then shall you be made rich. Behold, he that hath eternal life is rich." (D. and C. 6:7.) From that marvelous revelation known to us as Section 76 of the Doctrine and Covenants, as also from other related scriptures both ancient and latter-day, we learn that there are gradations beyond the grave, and that there will be gradations following the resurrection when the graves shall give up their dead. Three distinct kingdoms or orders of glory are spoken of, the Telestial, the Terrestrial, and the Celestial. It is plainly set forth that only those who attain salvation and exaltation, we may say supreme exaltation in the Celestial kingdom of our God, shall receive that blessing of eternal perpetuation through posterity. Only they shall become parents of spirits, and unto them eternal life carries the power of endless increase. When the Resurrected Lord visited the Nephites, he said unto them: "Verily I say unto you, if ye will come unto me ye shall have eternal life" (3 Nephi 9:14.) And again: "Behold, J am the law, and the light. Look unto me, and endure to the end, and ye shall live; for unto him that endureth to the end will I give eternal life." (3 Nephi 15:9.) The Apostles of old and other prophets urged the people to make good their claim to eternal life while opportunity remained. Paul, in an impassioned way, admonished his convert and fellow missionary, Timothy, to cry unto the people: "Lay hold on eternal life." And how shall we lay hold on it? By complying with the conditions under which it may be obtained. Not all who are resurrected from the dead, as all who have lived in mortality shall be, will attain eternal life in the sense described, for we read in that vision given unto Joseph the Seer that those of the Telestial order were seen to be as numerous as the stars in heaven or as the sand upon the seashore. And they are to receive their reward according to their deserts. They shall receive their mansions, . we are told, in the kingdom of the Father, when they have been sufficiently trained and disciplined, "and they shall be servants of the Most High; but where God and Christ dwell they can not come, worlds without end." ( D. and C. 76:112.) In that last prayer before the crucifixion, called by many the "High Priestly prayer," Christ supplicated the Father in agony, knowing what lay before him, exclaiming: "And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent," ( John 17:3.) Note the words "know thee"—does that mean that knowledge shall give us eternal life? Remember that to know a man is somewhat different from knowing merely something or much about him. It is not a matter of knowledge in the ordinary usage of the term, but knowledge in a supreme sense, knowledge that becomes an integral part of the individual, knowledge of God. And one who knows God and knows Jesus Christ will strive to become like unto them. In this age we have had it declared unto us that the gift of eternal life is the greatest gift that God has for his children. One of the outstanding and most impressive declarations of Deity through Joseph Smith, the Prophet of this dispensation, is recorded in the first chapter of the Book of Moses. Consider the conditions under which that utterance was made. Moses had pleaded to learn something about the earth upon which he stood and about the heavenly bodies that are visible from this earth, and the Lord had told him much. Moses was overwhelmed by the knowledge thus given unto him, and wanted to know more. But the Lord said unto him—if I may be permitted to paraphrase—Moses, you marvel at these worlds in space, and there are many you know nothing about, for many have passed away, and others have been created to take their places; and there is no end to my work, neither to my words. But, Moses, all these things, glorious as they are, are means to an end. These worlds are created for a purpose, mine own purpose. But you do not understand it in full. All these are the handiwork of God; man is his son! Greater than the earth on which you stand, more sublime than all these bodies in the heavens, is my further and supreme purpose: "For behold, this is my work and my glory—to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man." |
ELDER JAMES E. TALMAGE
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"Elder James E. Talmage." Instructor. August 1933. pg. 337-338.
Elder James E. Talmage Elder James E. Talmage, whose death occurred on July 27, last, had been an active member of the General Board of the Sunday School for many years, and it is of his services in this connection that we wish to speak here. Sunday School work is educational in its character. If it is to be most effectively done, it calls not only for religious devotion and conviction, but also for special training in the art of teaching. Especially is this so in the work of directing the efforts of instructors, many of whom have not had this training. And the greater this special knowledge and training, other things being the same, the more efficient the service done. Elder Talmage had two qualifications that prepared him peculiarly for the work which he undertook when he became a member of the General Board. In the first place, he was devoted to the cause of religion. He had a clear and definite conviction that there are spiritual as well as material realities. Occasionally it happens that teachers are selected for religious classes who are not themselves converted to revealed religion and who, therefore, cannot of necessity impress on the minds of their pupils the truths of religion in a way that will be effective in the lives of the class. Such was not the case with Elder Talmage. His religious conviction was deep and strong, and his knowledge of the gospel was both extensive and accurate. Indeed, in these respects he was outstanding. Coming from parents who had been converted from another church in the missionary field, he naturally imbibed their notions and caught their fervor and spirit. So firm-rooted was his conviction of religious truth that it is improbable he ever entertained any doubts on the subject. And this is all the more remarkable in view of his large knowledge and training in the modern scientific method, which has made shipwreck of so many young men's faith. Elder Talmage clearly recognized a distinction that is all too dim to many an educated man, that the field of religion and the field of natural phenomena are separate, and that they require two sorts of apprehending methods. And then, in the second place, Elder Talmage brought to his work on the General Board a scholastic training which was not so common in those early days of the Sunday School as it is now. With a mind naturally endowed to grasp fine distinctions, not only in fact but in language, he added to this native quality by systematic training of the mind in colleges and universities. He was one of the first, if not the first member of the Church to acquire the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. This acquisition implied not only an accurate knowledge in a special field, but a mental discipline so necessary in the search for truth. In his field of thought and endeavor he came to be known both nationally and internationally— a rare distinction for a Latter-day Saint in his generation. In addition, Elder Talmage was a born teacher. He liked to instruct others, to impart the truths he had himself learned. What young man or young woman will ever forget the reading of his First Book o[ Nature, written for and adopted by the M. I. A. in the '80's? Or those early lectures on science, delivered about the same time? Or, a little later, his lectures on religion, now included in the books, The Articles of Faith and Jesus the Christ? It was an exquisite intellectual pleasure to note his rare power in definition and in drawing distinctions—which, after all, is the best mark of an educated mind. Moreover, no one ever had any doubt as to what Elder Talmage meant—so clear was that meaning. All this knowledge and training, coupled with unusual native ability. Elder Talmage put at the service of the Sunday Schools. His outlines of lessons, his professional direction of teachers, his numerous treatises were given freely to those who might profit from the use of them. It is impossible, of course, for mortal man to tell in what ways the Sunday School 'work is different by reason of Elder Talmage's efforts, but we are sure that it is different in many respects. Many will be able to say that their knowledge is greater, more accurate, and clearer than it would otherwise have been. Peace and love to his memory! |
Ballard, Melvin J. "Dr. James E. Talmage." Improvement Era. September 1933. pg. 647-648.
Dr. James E. Talmage By MELVIN J. BALLARD Of the Council of the Twelve A GREAT prince in the house of Israel departed this life on July 27, when Dr. James Edward Talmage of the Council of the Twelve passed from this mortal life. His death was a shock to most of the Church. While many knew of his failing health, his sudden illness was known by but few. Those of us who were close to him, however, saw at an early day the danger of his being rendered helpless and more or less an invalid. It was a merciful kindness on the part of the Lord to save him this embarrassment and suffering, for such an active soul would have felt it real torture to have been rendered helpless; consequently his being thus suddenly taken was a kind intervention of Providence. Though his failing health rendered it impossible for him to make the usual visits among the stakes of Zion, he was nevertheless extremely busy in his office writing up until the very day he was carried, two days before his death, to his home. Not well the Sunday before, he had delivered a radio address and had already written two others which have since been read, so that only two days of sickness prevented him from his usual work. His funeral was held in the great Tabernacle at Salt Lake on Sunday afternoon, July 30, at 2:00 p. m., and was broadcast over KSL. The Tabernacle was crowded to capacity, showing the great interest the people of the Church had in this remarkable man and paying him a tribute by their presence. Elder Talmage was born at Hungerford, Berks., England, September 21, 1862. He emigrated with his parents, who were members of the Church, and the rest of the family, in 1876, and located at Provo, Utah. As a boy he entered the Brigham Young Academy at Provo (now the University) and completed the high school and normal courses at the age of seventeen, when he became a teacher in that institution. His strong bent was in the field of science. To pursue his work in these courses he went east where he won high honors at Lehigh University, also Johns Hopkins University. IN 1884 he responded to a call to return to the Brigham Young Academy, where he engaged again as teacher. In 1888 he was made president of the Latter-day Saints College at Salt Lake City, and in 1894 was made president of the University of Utah. He traveled extensively in Europe in the interests of science, also in the interests of his Church, lecturing from city to city on Mormonism. He won fellowship in some of the leading scientific organizations of both the Old World as well as the United States, and stands eminently among that group of Utah men who have attained the highest scholarship. However, it was not in this field that he distinguished himself or won the highest honors. On December 7, 1911, he was called to be a member of the Council of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and it is very evident to those who knew him best that all this previous training had been but a preparation for the outstanding service he performed as an Apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ. It is true that there were many alluring and attractive openings for him in his chosen profession which would have paid him well, but, when the call of the Master came, he responded as Peter of old did when the Lord asked him: "Lovest thou me, Peter, better than these?" (Meaning the things of the world.) Peter's answer was: "Lord, thou knowest all things ; thou knowest that I love thee." Then came the commission to feed the sheep and feed the lambs. DR. TALMAGE answered in the same spirit with which Peter did, forsaking all the world and its alluring, attractive offerings to become a disciple of the Master and to feed the sheep and feed the lambs. At no point in all his ministry did he ever waver from the position he took when he surrendered everything for the cause of the Master. Though many and alluring offers came to him to engage as a side-line in his chosen profession, he turned a deaf ear to all these appeals, reserving all the strength and power of his intellect, marvelous as it was, to promote the welfare of the Church. At his funeral I stated that we counted him among us as Paul of old among the Apostles of that dispensation, for he did have that brilliancy of mind and clearness of expression. He was a master of the English language. Boldness and courage to take his position and ability successfully to defend it were his, and he will stand in as high and as honorable a place in time to come as Paul the Apostle of old occupies. During these many years as an Apostle his was a busy and active life in the ministry. He visited every state in the Union preaching the Gospel, presiding over the European Mission, and that gave him the opportunity to visit most of the European countries where his message was delivered and will be remembered as long as this generation endures. For several years he prepared a series of articles for the newspapers of the United States in the interests of the Church. This was a great contribution to the cause and helped mightily to change public opinion and win favor to the Church. These articles have since been compiled and published under the title. The Vitality of Mormonism. He was the author of many other books, outstanding among them Jesus the Christ and The Articles of Faith. These will be found in the homes of the Latter-day Saints as long as the Church exists because they are fundamental and no one will ever more clearly state the doctrines of the Church than he has done In these volumes. Royalty on these many publications in itself would be a handsome return, but this man thought not of himself, for these were his gifts to the Church, and it is a rich endowment. IT would not have been possible for Elder Talmage to have accomplished all that he did if it had not been for the wonderful companion God gave him In Merry May Booth, who became his wife and the mother of the seven children who survive him. They are Sterling B., Paul B., Elsie. James Karl, Lucile, Helen and John Russell, the latter just concluding an honorable mission in Europe and not able to be home at the funeral of his father. This extraordinary woman, his wife, was father and mother to these children because Brother Talmage had to be absent from home so much in filling his ministry. She is a woman of high intellectual attainment, a most congenial companion; they were ideal and devoted husband and wife. She said, as she stood by his bier, that she loved him from the first time she saw him and has never ceased to love him unto the day of his death. Her self-sacrifice and devotion to him he highly prized and was willing to accord her a large part of the honor which came to him which would not have been possible had she not been willing to stand by and do her part, not only by him but their home and children. As a speaker Elder Talmage never failed to interest. He always had something to say that was full of thought, his style also was most effective. He was a brilliant speaker. While he was strict and exacting that all should subscribe to the laws and order of the Church, he was full of charity and forgiveness to the erring sinner. Many times I have seen his forgiveness manifest to the humble repentant soul. He took a very active part in dealing with certain transgressors violating rule and order. It ought to be known by these persons as well as by others, however, that he was delegated by the Council of the Twelve, representing them, to protect the Church against the violators of its rule and discipline. This mission was not a pleasant one always for him, but he performed it with credit. He takes with him the things that are worthwhile—a marvelous knowledge, his faith, his well-trained mind, and above all his right to the holy Apostleship which he will never forfeit, having honored that calling In this life. He goes prepared to join with his associates who have in other dispensations been called to this holy appointment, and he sits with them with the Master at their head in the councils that preside over the destinies of this world. |
James Edward Talmage
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Richards, Lula Greene. "James Edward Talmage is Still With Us." Improvement Era. September 1933. pg. 648.
James Edward Talmage Is Still With Us
By Lata Greene Richards
JESUS wept."
A man beloved had died.
Mary and Martha also with Him mourned
Even at the grave of Lazarus their brother.
Sorrowing, friendly Jews grieved, too, with sympathy.
Eyes to His Father lifted, Jesus prayed
Devoutly giving thanks for that His prayer was heard.
With loud voice then He cried—"Lazarus come forth!"
And he that had been dead came forth and lived!
Renewed in mortal life;
Death's fetters loosed!
Talmage—Apostle of the Christ in latter-days--
Appointed, blest, and given authority.
Loving and studying carefully the Master's word,
Makes still more clear in his great book, Jesus, the Christ,"
Analogy of that semblance of the Resurrection real.
Gone from us now to higher fields of learning and of love,
Ever alive in noble, written works, we have him still.
James Edward Talmage Is Still With Us
By Lata Greene Richards
JESUS wept."
A man beloved had died.
Mary and Martha also with Him mourned
Even at the grave of Lazarus their brother.
Sorrowing, friendly Jews grieved, too, with sympathy.
Eyes to His Father lifted, Jesus prayed
Devoutly giving thanks for that His prayer was heard.
With loud voice then He cried—"Lazarus come forth!"
And he that had been dead came forth and lived!
Renewed in mortal life;
Death's fetters loosed!
Talmage—Apostle of the Christ in latter-days--
Appointed, blest, and given authority.
Loving and studying carefully the Master's word,
Makes still more clear in his great book, Jesus, the Christ,"
Analogy of that semblance of the Resurrection real.
Gone from us now to higher fields of learning and of love,
Ever alive in noble, written works, we have him still.
Merrill, Joseph F. "Dr. James E. Talmage, A Sketch of His Educational Activities." Relief Society Magazine. September 1933. pg. 514-518.
Dr. James E. Talmage A Sketch of his Educational Activities By Dr. Joseph F. Merrill, of the Council of the Twelve JUST after noon, July 27, a rap on the door of our cabin in Logan Canyon led me to open and face a stranger who announced he had just come from a long distance phone over which the statement was made that Dr. Talmage was dead. This was a thunderbolt. "Is it possible?" I asked. "He died at 8:45 this morning," was the answer. And so I turned back and remarked to my companion that "all in all Dr. Talmage was the most brilliant man I ever knew. I shall miss him greatly." Just before leaving the office for a week's sojourn in Logan Canyon I telephoned to Dr. Talmage and asked if I could have a long talk with him when I returned about the European Mission. He could have given me much valuable information, as he had done relative to various matters many times before, for versatility and wide, accurate information were among his outstanding possessions. Every acquaintance of his can testify to these facts. SINCE his arrival in Utah from England with his parents, June, 1876, in his fourteenth year, Dr. Talmage has been recognized by all who knew him as an unusual person. In the fall of that year he enrolled in the Brigham Young Academy, Provo, and was graduated from the Normal Course three years later at the head of his class. Though very young he had so impressed himself upon Dr. Maeser, the principal, and his other teachers that a wholly unusual offer for one of his age was made to him—to become a regular teacher in the Academy. This offer is ample proof of the fact that young Talmage was a remarkably gifted person. And so he proved to be. Of the thousands who have been graduated from this Church school perhaps none has been more brilliant in intellect, in speech, in achievement than Dr. Talmage. Of course his Alma Mater could not retain him long. He was not yet prepared. His goal was the top. He must go to an eastern university, if his ambition was to be satisfied. But here he met discouragements. Had he not emigrated with his parents from England to Utah for the gospel's sake ? And to go back into the world to study science, did he not know that this would make shipwreck of his faith? Such was the prevailing opinion among his friends. So the young man now did something characteristic of him. He needed wisdom; he wanted to know what was the best thing to do. Hence he prayed about the matter and sought also the counsel of John Taylor, the president of the Church. He now was satisfied. The President pronounced a wonderful blessing upon his head and sent him forth. IN the fall of 1882 he entered Lehigh University in Pennsylvania, and a year later he registered at the Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, at the time America's foremost graduate school. At both institutions Dr. Talmage was soon recognized as a brilliant student. But he did not stay to graduate at the time from either university. But baccalaureate graduation from Lehigh came in 1891. The call to return to the Brigham Young Academy was so loud that he yielded and during the next four years, 1884-88, Provo was again the center of his activities. From here his fame as a gifted teacher and scientist spread apace. It reached me in northern Utah while I was a student in the grades. A book of his on Domestic Science fell into my hands. I began to read out of curiosity; I was soon spell-bound. The chemistry of baking powder, what yeast does, etc., were described and goaded me on. Then and there I determined I was going to study science, if ever I could go away to school, and emphasize chemistry. This I did. Only recently I told Dr. Talmage his inspiration was responsible for my eight years of scientific study in eastern universities. AND then came another "call," which found him ready. He was firmly anchored in the faith. His testimony of the divinity guiding the Church had become ingrained in his soul. He was wanted to head the newly established Church school in Salt Lake City—the Latter-day Saints College. To him a declination was unthinkable for the call came from God's servants. And thus in the summer of 1888 Salt Lake City became the home of the Talmages— the newly weds went to the altar in June—the city where his eight children were born, the city he honored the rest of his life by calling it home. Dr. Talmage continued as the administrative head of this Church college during the five years, 1888-1893. But so rapidly had his fame increased that he was called in 1893 to begin the organization of a new institution, a Church university in Salt Lake City. A science laboratory was erected and equipped and Dr. Talmage gave a course of public lectures on scientific subjects during the winter months. These proved to be very popular, so much so that the Board of Regents of the University of Utah went to him with an offer. Salt Lake City, it was thought, was not big enough for two universities, one maintained by the State and the other by the Church. Why should not all interests and parties unite on the State University and build up an institution that would be worthy of and bring fame to Utah ? So negotiations were begun. The result was that in the spring of 1894 Dr. Talmage was called to the presidency of the University of Utah, and his newly erected science laboratory was given by the Church as an endowment to establish the Deseret Professorship of Geology in the State institution. But this call to the most important university executive position he ever held did not supercede his love for teaching. So Dr. Talmage was given the professorship of geology as well as the presidency of the University of Utah. He therefore continued his activity as a teacher, an activity that in one form or another he maintained vigorously until the gripping hand of death was laid upon him. DR. TALMAGE'S election as president of the University of Utah signaled a new day in the history of this institution of learning. This was an event of the utmost significance to the University. In one sense its history as a collegiate institution begins with the election of the new president. For this election signaled the burial of the hatchet of warfare on the University from which it had suffered more or less for a long time. One portion of the public looked upon the University as a Mormon institution, run in the interest of the Church, also an institution entirely without real collegiate standards. Another portion of the public regarded the University as anti-religious, as a destroyer of religious faith. Thus the institution had the whole-hearted support of but a very small part of the public, and so was not prospering. But now all of this was changed. Perhaps no new college president was ever received by the public and the school with greater enthusiasm than was Dr. Talmage. His multiform educational activities since his coming to Salt Lake City in 1888 had captivated the public. In him was seen a man of wholly unusual ability, a genius who was master of everything he touched, whether in the class room, the lecture hall, or the executive office. With him and behind him stood a practically united public in support of the University, a support that the University has enjoyed from that day to this. HOWEVER, able as he was, Dr. Talmage was hardly a superman (and no one else is). With his coming the University entered upon a period of enlarged growth as a collegiate institution and this brought a very serious problem to the vigorous new president. The duties of president grew apace, so did the growth in the department of geology. Here was an exceptionally able young man with two full-time jobs on his hands. What should he do. He chose to stay with the class room and with the laboratory, his first loves. Others could fill the executive chair. No one else available could fill the chair of geology as he could fill it. There was rejoicing among his students at his decision. The executive office was handed back to Dr. Joseph T. Kingsbury, from whom, through the Board of Regents, Dr. Talmage had received it three years before. But Dr. Talmage's great mission had been accomplished. He had united the public in support of the University. It is questionable if any other man could have done this at the time. Certainly no one else could have done it with the facility and speed with which he did it. He had rendered a super-service to the University. Does any one wonder then why the University in 1922 conferred upon its brilliant former president the. highest honorary degree known to the university world—that of LL.D., Doctor of Laws? Already he had three other doctor's degrees—one from the Church in 1890, a Ph.D. from Illinois Wesleyan University, 1896, and D.Sc, Lehigh University, 1912, the latter, an honorary degree, making him especially happy because it was the first one of its kind that Lehigh had given to one of its own sons. Hence the granting of this degree brought him a very unusual honor. Dr. Talmage was honored not only by American universities and scientific societies but also by several foreign ones. He held the highest rank of membership (that of Fellow) in these societies. (See Who's Who in America.) One of these, the Royal Society of Edinburgh, conferred an unusual honor upon him—jumped the Atlantic and crossed to western America to find an outstanding man whom it appointed as a Delegate to represent the Society at the International Geological Congress, held in St. Petersburg, 1897. Many there are who remember how spellbound they were in seeing Dr. Talmage's lantern pictures and listening to his eloquent lecture on Russia, given in many places on his return, AGAIN Dr. Talmage was to be confronted with a divided love. The University continued its growth and so did the work in the department of geology. Since 1897, when he began giving full time to his department, the Mining School, a division of the University, required him to emphasize geology in its relation to mining. This necessitated that much time be spent in the laboratory and the mines. This brought Dr. Talmage into intimate contact with mine superintendents and managers, and gave him an expert knowledge of the geology of their mines. But in those days there were many law suits between mines relative to their rights in ore bodies, many of which extended from one mine to another. Nature had not parceled out its ores into isolated bodies convenient to the man-made boundary lines of separate properties. And of course the direction of ore veins could not often be seen from the ground surface. There were many law suits. Where was there an expert witness in Dr. Talmage's class upon whom the litigants could call? The question answers itself. And so Dr. Talmage was again confronted with the perennial question, "What shall I do?" His decision was a wise one, made no doubt, as was his custom, only after much study and fervent prayer. Since he could no longer do the work of both the class room and the laboratory and the field, he chose the latter and resigned his chair of geology in the University in July, 1907. Why was this decision wise? Dr. Talmage had ready a capable successor for the class room in the person of his student, Dr. Frederick J. Pack. But no one was yet ready for his place in the field and court room. But when this was the case the readers of this Magazine all know what happened. Four years later, Dec, 1911, Dr. Talmage was called into the Council of the Twelve. Thus it seems that all his life he was raised up to do special work that at the time none could do as well as he. THUS I have sketched an outline - of some of the educational activities of Dr. Talmage with which I am most familiar. But of course these are a part only of the many activities of this wonderfully gifted and extremely energetic man. The limits of this article do not permit me to sketch others. In any case, perhaps this is unnecessary, for some others are beautifully sketched by President Bryant S. Hinckley in the July, 1932, number of the Improvement Era. Further, those who attended or read the impressive funeral services, held July 30, 1933, are in possession of still additional sketches. Other facts may also be learned from the sketch in the volumes Who's Who in America, American Men of Science, and elsewhere. MUCH more should be written to make the sketch adequate but I shall close with these quotations from President Hinckley's Era article, written a year before Dr. Talmage's death: "James E. Talmage will go into history as one of the ablest and most brilliant advocates of 'Mormonism.' "Dr. James E. Talmage has a superior intellect, a pure and contrite heart, a radiant faith, a sane and lofty idealism, a clear understanding of the meaning and purpose of life. He has achieved splendidly in the world. His life reflects credit upon his name and his people and has added strength and majesty to the great Church to which he has given a consecrated allegiance." God bless Dr. Talmage's memory, and inspire his gifted family to emulate his example. |
DR. JAMES E. TALMAGE
|
"Dr. James E. Talmage." Relief Society Magazine. September 1933. pg. 539.
Dr. James E. Talmage
IN the passing from the earth life of Doctor James E. Talmage of the Council of the Twelve Apostles, the Church loses one of its most brilliant sons, one of its most able advocates, one of its most fluent writers and one of its most convincing speakers.
In the 70 years he tabernacled on earth, judged by achievements, he lived many times three score and ten years for work was with him a passion. From early morn until late at night with almost no intermission he was at his desk writing and going over manuscript submitted for his criticism.
He allowed nothing to interfere with his Church duties. Often he was called upon to do scientific work and might have made a great deal of money thereby, but he felt his time, his talents, his every effort must be devoted to the Church and his high calling as an apostle. While he was always willing to do service for others, he sought no favors for himself.
He has made some of the finest contributions to Church literature and for all time he will be remembered through the splendid things he has written.
To his devoted wife and children our hearts go out in sympathy. May they rejoice in his achievements and emulate his many virtues. May peace come to them and may time heal their broken hearts.
Dr. James E. Talmage
IN the passing from the earth life of Doctor James E. Talmage of the Council of the Twelve Apostles, the Church loses one of its most brilliant sons, one of its most able advocates, one of its most fluent writers and one of its most convincing speakers.
In the 70 years he tabernacled on earth, judged by achievements, he lived many times three score and ten years for work was with him a passion. From early morn until late at night with almost no intermission he was at his desk writing and going over manuscript submitted for his criticism.
He allowed nothing to interfere with his Church duties. Often he was called upon to do scientific work and might have made a great deal of money thereby, but he felt his time, his talents, his every effort must be devoted to the Church and his high calling as an apostle. While he was always willing to do service for others, he sought no favors for himself.
He has made some of the finest contributions to Church literature and for all time he will be remembered through the splendid things he has written.
To his devoted wife and children our hearts go out in sympathy. May they rejoice in his achievements and emulate his many virtues. May peace come to them and may time heal their broken hearts.
Zobell, Albert L., Jr. "The Life of James E. Talmage." Improvement Era. November 1962. pg. 812-814.
The Life of James E. Talmage BY ALBERT L. ZOBELL, JR. RESEARCH EDITOR "He lived on the bank of a mighty river, broad and deep, which was always silently rolling on to a vast undiscovered ocean. It had rolled on, ever since the world began. . . ." Those words are attributed to Charles Dickens, the English novelist of the last century. Mr. Dickens could very well have used them to describe a small English lad (who would have been but seven or eight years old when that great man of letters passed away)—James Edward Talmage—who truly lived on the bank of a mighty river of knowledge all through the days of his mortality. James E. Talmage was born in the small town of Hungerford, Berkshire, England, September 21, 1862— a third generation Latter-day Saint born there in the mission field. He came with his parents to America, arriving in Salt Lake City in June 1876. The family became established at Provo, and James entered the infant Brigham Young Academy (now the University) at the opening of the academic year. In England James had been a diocesan prize scholar at the age of twelve. At fourteen he entered Brigham Young Academy, and he and the never-to-be-forgotten master teacher, Karl G. Maeser, discovered each other. Soon James held the positions of secretary to the faculty and academy librarian. In June 1879 he was graduated from the Normal department, and while still in his seventeenth year began teaching philosophy, chemistry, geology, Latin reading (Julius Caesar), phonography (the Isaac Pitman system of shorthand), academic penmanship, and grammar, at a weekly stipend of almost 43c each, the magnificent sum of $3.00 a week or $120.00 for the school year. The second year his salary increased, but a professor's remuneration left much to be desired. Before entering the services of the academy he was offered a responsible and an enticing position with the Provo public schools. He needed the money that had been offered. But, following his usual custom, he discussed the matter with his own father, with Brother Maeser, and sought divine guidance. He went to work for the academy. His field from the beginning of his public life to the end was education, for the early part as a professional teacher, for the latter as a writer and preacher of the word of God. To the classroom he brought such personality, such lucidity of explanation, such an energizing influence that students made unusual progress under his direction. His ready wit was always an engaging part of him in and out of the classroom. Great honors came to him over the years from the intellectual world. The man, largely self-taught, was recognized abroad and at home for his original investigations and understanding. But it was in the spiritual realm that he exercised the greatest influence and felt the strongest call. He impressed one as possessing a severe mind, (his field was first chemistry, and in later years geology), scientific and unusually interested in facts, and then surprised one with the mellowness of his soul and his extraordinary spiritual gifts. Before an audience his persuasion was based largely on logic and intellectual appeal, though he left no doubt of the strength and fervor of his testimony. In 1932, the late Elder Bryant S. Hinckley, under Era assignment to write biographical articles on members of the Council of the Twelve, asked Dr. Talmage: "When and where did you receive a testimony of the gospel?" "That I do not know," he answered; "I believe I was born with it as I belong to the third generation of Talmages in the Church. My paternal grandparents, James Talmage of Ramsbury, Wiltshire, England, and his wife, Mary Joyce of Hampshire, England, were the first, or among the first, to join the Church in that part of England. My father, James Joyce Talmage, and my mother, Susannah Preater (Talmage), became members of the Church before I was born. They were active and devoted members. "Though I seem to have been born with a testimony yet in my early adolescence I was led to question whether that testimony was really my own or derived from my parents. I set about investigating the claims of the Church and pursued that investigation by prayer, fasting, and research with all the ardor of an investigator on the outside. While such a one investigates with a view of coming into the Church if its claims be verified, I was seeking a way out of the Church if its claims should prove to me to be unsound. After months of such inquiry, I found myself in possession of an assurance beyond all question that I was in solemn fact a member of The Church of Jesus Christ. I was convinced once and for all, and this knowledge is so fully an integral part of my being that without it I would not be myself." Speaking of the priesthood he said: "Every call I have received to office in the priesthood has come to me because some one was needed to fill a particular place, and was in no sense a matter of advancement or honor to myself as an individual. The greatest joys of my life have come to me through activities in the Church, and these have been the activities of a member rather than an officer. Early in life I realized that I would have to live with myself more than with anybody else, and I have tried to so live that I would be in good company when alone." He desired more education to pursue his chosen field. Many of his friends were strongly against this; and finally Elder Talmage went to see the President of the Church, President John Taylor. In recalling it, Elder Talmage was to say: "I have often marveled at the kindness and condescension of President Taylor in spending nearly two hours with me. In the course of our conversation he inquired into my work and plans. He advised me strongly to enter a university in the East and, to my grateful surprise, laid his hands on my head and blessed me for the undertaking. The blessing thus pronounced has been realized in both spirit and letter." As a special student, in 1882, Elder Talmage entered Lehigh University, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, and in a single year of residence, passed nearly all the requirements of a four-year course and was later graduated from that institution. He was offered a position as laboratory assistant which carried a salary sufficient to meet his needs for the next year, but he declined this offer and went to Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland, where he specialized in chemistry and geology during one intensive academic year. Then he was called home to resume his work at Brigham Young Academy, serving now as professor of geology and chemistry, with varied activities in other departments. During his residence in Provo he served the community as city councilman, alderman, and justice of the peace. He came to Salt Lake City as president of the Latter-day Saints College, 1888-93, where he also served in the dual capacity of professor of chemistry. In 1894 he became professor of geology and president of the University of Utah, resigning the presidency in 1897 but continuing for ten years as professor of geology. In 1907 he resigned this professorship to follow mining geology. He received his bachelor of science degree in 1891, and his doctor of science degree in 1912, both from Lehigh University. As a professional geologist, respected in his field, he literally traveled the earth. The late Elsie Talmage Brandley, one-time associate editor of the Era, prized a birthday letter she had received from her father. He was in Siberia on geologic business—the date: August 1897. On December 8, 1911, at the age of forty-nine, he was ordained an apostle by President Joseph F. Smith. As such he followed Elder Joseph Fielding Smith into the Council of the Twelve. Still he carried a heavy schedule of civic and other activities. He represented Salt Lake City and the State of Utah at the national conventions called to further popular movements. He would plunge into the work at the convention and would bring the enthusiasm home with him. He was called to preside over the European Mission of the Church in 1924, following President David O. McKay in that assignment. Here came a man to Europe who was not only a leader of a then not so popular church, but he was also a respected and honored Fellow of the Royal Microscopical Society ( London ) , Royal Scottish Geographical Society ( Edinburgh), the Geological Society (London), the Geological Society of America, the Royal Society of Edinburgh, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and was an Associate of the Philosophical Society of Great Britain, or Victoria Institute. In professional fields he knew whereof he spoke, and when he spoke for the Church, newspaper columns and other media were opened as never before up to that time. Home again in 1928, Dr. Talmage was finding the challenge of something then comparatively new—radio. The Church had a Sabbath evening radio hour on KSL then as now, and soon he was finding his element. He liked it, and the radio audience enjoyed him. From the March 1929 Improvement Era: "The sermons delivered over the radio each Sunday evening at nine o'clock, by Dr. James E. Talmage, of the Council of the Twelve, are attracting widespread attention. Naturally it would be impossible even to estimate with any degree of accuracy how many people 'listen in,' but it is safe to say that many thousands do. Favorable comments on this series are received from many different states. Our missionaries in Alaska report that they have been able to receive these messages." He was as much at home in his writing, in his speaking, in his teaching, as he was in his own laboratory. Among his writings were the volumes: First Book of Nature, Domestic Science, The Great Salt Lake—Present and Past, Tables for the Blowpipe Determination of Minerals, An Account of the Origin of the Book of Mormon, The Articles of Faith, The Great Apostasy, The House of the Lord, The Story of Mormonism, The Philosophical Basis of Mormonism, The Vitality of Mormonism, Jesus the Christ, Sunday Night Talks by Radio. He had met with an accident while serving as president of the European Mission that resulted in a knee injury that bothered him, off and on for the rest of his life. Nevertheless he kept working to bring to fruition the great purposes of the restored Church. The summer of 1933 found him amidst another series of Sunday evening radio sermons. On Tuesday, July 25, he became ill while working at his desk in the Church Offices and was carried to his home. Wednesday found him improved enough to be working at home on his next radio address. On Thursday, July 27, he passed away, death being due to acute miocarditis, following a throat infection. At the funeral services the following Sunday President J. Reuben Clark, Jr., of the First Presidency, himself a student of Dr. Talmage at the old LDS College, as well as special assistant and private secretary at the University of Utah, paid this tribute: "To him God's gospel plan was truth, and all truth. Whatever fell outside that plan was error. He literally found " 'Tongues in trees, books in running brooks; Sermons in stones and good in everything.' "This was I think, his glory." Elder Melvin J. Ballard of the Council of the Twelve said: "In this ministry he produced many volumes that shall be read until the end of time, because that which he has written is so clear and so impressive that it shall ever be among the cherished treasures of those who love the works of God. Yet these contributions he gave freely to the Church, without any earthly reward. . . ." Elder Ballard that evening read Dr. Talmage's last message to the radio audience, entitled: "Priesthood- Taken from the Earth." Such was the man James Edward Talmage: gifted and aggressive, a man of brilliant accomplishments and high attainments — student, scholar, preacher, and writer — a man whose very heart and soul found the love of the gospel and spent his all in its purpose and calling. |