Life of Heber C. Kimball, an Apostle Part 50

Sadler, J. Wakeham, W. Adkins, G. Wareing, D. Evans, H. Sperry and W.

Lloyd.

2nd. Of the High Council, Elders W. Eddington, J. L. Blythe, C. V.

Spencer, W. H. Folsom, T. E. Jeremy, J. Squires, P. Nebeker and G. W.

Thatcher.

3rd. Of the Presidency of the Salt Lake Stake of Zion, Elders D.

Spencer and G. B. Wallace.

4th. Of the Presidency of the Seventies, Elders Joseph Young, L. W.

Hanc.o.c.k, A. P. Rockwood, H. S. Eldredge and J. Van Cott.

5th. The Presidency of the High Priests, Elders John Young, S. W.

Richards and E. D. Woolley.

6th. Presiding Bishop E. Hunter and his Counselors, L. W. Hardy and J.

C. Little.

7th. Of the Twelve Apostles, Elders Orson Pratt, John Taylor, Wilford Woodruff, Geo. A. Smith, Ezra T. Benson, Lorenzo Snow, Geo. Q. Cannon and Joseph F. Smith.

8th. President Brigham Young and Counselor Daniel H. Wells.

9th. The corpse, in a neat coffin wrapped in black broadcloth and deeply fringed with white cashmere and black lace, borne by twelve pall-bearers, namely, Elders R. T. Burton, T. McKean, G. W. Grant, L.

S. Hills, B. Y. Hampton, W. Calder, H. Heath, A. Dewey, H. S. Beatie, H. P. Richards, H. Dinwoodey, and John T. Caine.

Immediately following the remains walked the three eldest sons of President Kimball, namely, William H., Heber P., and David P., succeeded by his wives, the elder sons and daughters, the younger sons and daughters, and many other relatives in the rear. The families of Presidents Young and Wells in carriages, and a number of the most prominent citizens on foot, terminated the procession.

To the solemn strains of the "Dead March in Saul," from Captain Croxall's band, the cortege, pa.s.sing down East, North and West Temple Streets, successively, to the west gate of Temple Block, entered the Tabernacle at door No. 32, north side, and occupied reserved seats in front of the stand. The casket with the remains was deposited on a draped bier raised from the middle aisle. Seven elegant vases of roses and other beautiful flowers were placed upon the coffin. During the services a bird flew into the building and, alighting on the coffin, remained for several minutes.

In consonance with the solemnity of the scene, the interior of the Tabernacle was draped in mourning.

The a.s.semblage was called to order by President Brigham Young.

The choir then sang the following hymn, composed for the occasion by Sister Eliza R. Snow:

Be cheer'd, O Zion--cease to weep: Heber we deeply loved: He is not dead--he does not sleep-- He lives with those above.

His flesh was weary; let it rest Entombed in mother Earth, Till Jesus comes--when all the bless'd, To life will be brought forth.

His mighty spirit, pure and free From every bond of Earth, In realms of immortality, Is crowned with spotless worth.

He lives for Zion:--he has gone To plead her righteous cause, Before the High and Holy One-- Let all the Saints rejoice.

Let wives and children humbly kiss The deep-afflicting rod: A father to the fatherless, G.o.d is the widow's G.o.d.

Elder George Q. Cannon offered the opening prayer.

The choir sang "Farewell all earthly honors," with the chorus "There is sweet rest in heaven," and remarks were then made as follows, by the speakers named:

ELDER JOHN TAYLOR.

"Were I to give way to my feelings at the present time I should not be able to address this congregation. I feel as, I suppose, most of you feel--sympathy with the family of the deceased who now lies before us. When I speak of this as being my feeling, I am aware that I express the feeling of the generality of this people.

In this bereavement that has afflicted us, we all partic.i.p.ate. A wave of sorrow has rolled throughout the Territory, and feelings of sympathy and sorrow gush up from the fountains of every heart.

We have met at this time to pay the last tribute of respect to no ordinary personage, but to a good man who was called and chosen, and faithful; who has spent a lifetime in the cause of G.o.d, in the establishment of the principles of truth and in trying to upbuild the Church and Kingdom of G.o.d on the earth; who has endeared himself by his acts of kindness, affection, integrity, truthfulness and probity to the hearts of thousands of Latter-day Saints, who feel to mourn at this time with no ordinary sorrow.

"That he is esteemed and venerated by this people as a friend, a counselor and a father, this immense congregation, who have met on this inauspicious occasion, is abundant testimony and proof, if any is wanting. But his life, his acts, his services, his self-abnegation, his devotion to the cause of truth, his perseverance in the ways of righteousness for so many years have left a testimony in the minds, feelings and hearts of all who feel to mourn his departure from our midst. But we meet not at the present time particularly to eulogize the acts of Brother Kimball, who is one of the First Presidency, and who stands, or who has stood as one of the three prominent men that live on the face of the earth at the present time.

"We do not mourn over him as over an individual in a private capacity; neither, when we reflect on the circ.u.mstances with which we are surrounded, and the gospel we believe in, do we mourn that he lies there as he is. For although to us he is absent and lifeless and inanimate, yet his spirit soars above clothed upon with immortality and eternal life. And as he has been in possession of the principles of eternal truth, by and bye, when the time shall roll around, that gospel and the principles of truth that he has so valiantly proclaimed for so many years, will resurrect that inanimate clay, and He who, on the earth proclaimed "I am the resurrection and the life," will cause him again to be resuscitated, reanimated, revivified and glorified, and he will rejoice among the Saints of G.o.d worlds without end.

"It is not then an ordinary occasion upon which we have met at the present time. It is not to talk particularly about our individual feelings and bereavement, although they are keen, poignant and afflictive; but we meet at the present time to perform a ceremony and to pay our last respects to the departed great one who lies before us. We do not mourn as those who have no hope; we do not sympathise with any foolish sympathy. We believe in those principles, that he, for so many years, has so strenuously advocated, and believing in them, we know that he has simply pa.s.sed from one state of existence to another. It is customary for men to say "how have the great fallen!" But he has not fallen.

It is true that he has gone to sleep for a little while. He sleeps in peace. He is resting from his labors and is no more beset with those afflictions with which human nature always has to contend: he has pa.s.sed from this stage of action, he has got through with the toils, perplexities, cares and anxieties in regard to himself, his family, and in regard to the Church with which he was a.s.sociated; and in regard to all sublunary things, and while mortals mourn "a man is dead," the angels proclaim "a child is born."

"We believe in another state of existence besides this; and it is not only a belief, but it is a fixed fact, and hence for a man of G.o.d to bid adieu to the things of this world is a matter of comparatively very small importance. When a man has fought the good fight; when he has finished his course; when he has been faithful, lived his religion and died as a man of G.o.d, what is there to mourn for? Why should we indeed be sorrowful? There is a church here on earth; there is a church also in the heavens. He has migrated from one, and has pa.s.sed into the other.

"We have had leave us before, Joseph, Hyrum, David Patten, Willard, Jedediah, and a mighty host of good, virtuous, pure, holy and honorable men. Some have died, as it were, naturally; others have been violently put to death. But no matter, they are each of them moving in his own sphere. Brother Kimball has left us for a short time that he may unite with them. And whilst we are engaged carrying on the work of G.o.d, and advancing and maintaining those principles which he so diligently propagated and maintained while he was on the earth, he is gone to officiate in the heavens with Jesus, with Joseph and others for us. We are seeking to carry out his will, the will of our President and the will of our Heavenly Father, that we may be found fit to a.s.sociate with the just who are made perfect, and be prepared to join with the Church triumphant in the heavens. It is this that our religion points us to all the time.

"We embraced the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and he who now lies before us was one of the first to proclaim it to thousands that are here. And what did that teach us? To repent of our sins, and, having faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, to be baptized for the remission of our sins, to have hands laid upon us for the reception of the Holy Ghost and to gather together to Zion that we might be instructed in the ways of life; that we might know how to save ourselves--how to save the living and how to redeem the dead; that we might not only possess a hope that blooms with immortality and eternal life; but that we might have a certainty, an evidence, a confidence that was beyond doubt or peradventure, that we were preparing ourselves for a celestial inheritance in the kingdom of our G.o.d. And when a man goes to sleep as Brother Kimball has done, no matter how, he lays aside the cares of this world; the weary wheels of life stand still, the pulse ceases to beat, the body becomes cold, lifeless and inanimate; yet at the same time the spirit still exists, has gone to join those who have lived before; who now live and will live for evermore. He has trod the path that we have all to follow, for it is appointed to man once to die, and after that, we are told, the judgment. We have all to pa.s.s through the dark valley of the shadow of death, and as I said before, it matters little which way this occurs; but it does matter a great deal to us whether we are prepared to meet it or not; whether we have lived the life of the righteous; whether we have honored our profession; whether we have been faithful to our trust; whether we are prepared to a.s.sociate with the spirits of the just made perfect, and whether when He who has said "I am the resurrection and the life" shall sound the trump we shall be prepared to come forth in the morning of the first resurrection.

"Joseph Smith stands at the head of this dispensation. His brother Hyrum Smith was a.s.sociated with him. They were both a.s.sa.s.sinated.

No matter; they are gone. Brother Heber is now gone, and whilst we mourn the loss they rejoice at meeting one with whom they were a.s.sociated before; for he was the friend of Joseph and Hyrum Smith, and he was the friend of G.o.d, and G.o.d is his friend, and they are his friends. And as they a.s.sociated together in time so they will in eternity. It behooves us then not to think so much about dying, but about our living, and to live in such a way that when we shall fall asleep, no matter when, or how it may transpire, that our hearts may be pure before G.o.d. When I look upon a man like Brother Kimball, I feel like saying let my last end be like his. Let my life be as spotless, as holy and as pure, that I may stand accepted before G.o.d and the holy angels. Our ambition ought to be to live our religion, to keep the commandments of G.o.d, to obey the counsel that those lips now silent and cold have so often given to us; to honor our calling and profession, that we may be prepared to inherit eternal lives in the celestial kingdom of our G.o.d. May G.o.d help us to do so, in the name of Jesus, Amen."

ELDER GEORGE A. SMITH.

"The occasion which has called us together is truly one of mourning; but our mourning is not as the mourning of those who have no hope. Our father, our brother, our President, has fallen asleep. He has fallen asleep according to the promise that those who die unto the Lord should not die, but should fall asleep.

Still, the circ.u.mstances with which, we are surrounded cause us to feel keenly, deeply this bereavement of his company, of his counsel, of his support, of his society, and the benefit of that wisdom which ever flowed from his lips. Short is the journey from the cradle to the grave, and all of us are marching rapidly in that direction; and the present occasion is certainly calculated to inspire in our minds a desire that in all our lives and actions we may be prepared for that coming event, that we may be prepared to rest in peace, and in the morning of the first resurrection to inherit eternal life and celestial exaltation. The a.s.sociation which we have had with President Kimball has been of long standing. He entered the church early after its organization. In 1832, with President Brigham Young, he visited Kirtland, and made himself personally acquainted with the Prophet Joseph, whose bosom friend he was from the time of their first acquaintance until the day of his death. President Kimball was a man that seemed embarra.s.sed when called upon to speak in public in the early part of his ministry. My first acquaintance with him was in 1833, when in company with President Young he moved his family to Kirtland.

The Saints were then building the Kirtland Temple. He had but little means, but he subscribed two hundred dollars and paid over the money. Efforts were being made to build another house, for school and other purposes, and he subscribed one hundred dollars for that also, to buy the nails and gla.s.s. That was the first public meeting at which I ever saw Heber C. Kimball. When he was chosen one of the Twelve Apostles, and they were called into the stand to bear their first testimony as Apostles to the Saints, there was an embarra.s.sment and a timidity about his appearance that was truly humble. And when he went abroad to preach, many felt almost afraid to have Brother Kimball preach because he had not as great a flow of language as some others. But it turned out, I am sorry to say, that some of those who were the most eloquent seemed to be those who fell off by the wayside. It was a dark hour around the Prophet in Kirtland, many having apostatized, and some of them prominent Elders, when Brother Kimball and some others were called upon to take a mission to England. He went abroad when some of the first Elders were covered with darkness, and apostasy ran rampant through the Church. He started almost penniless, made the trip across the ocean, introduced the gospel to England, and laid the foundation for the great work that has since been accomplished there, accompanied by Orson Hyde, Willard Richards and Joseph Fielding. Brothers Kimball and Hyde remained in England about one year, and in that time 1,500 were baptized there. It was strange, the power and influence which he had over persons whom he had never before seen. On one occasion he went out five days to some town which he had never visited before, and among people whom he had never seen and who had never seen him, yet in those five days he baptized eighty-three persons. It seemed that there were a power and influence with him beyond that which almost any other Elder possessed. He returned home just in time to find the Saints in their troubles in Missouri. He had hardly got home until the clouds of mobocracy intensified by apostasy again gathered around the Prophet. In a short time after, Joseph was in prison and his counselors were in prison and all were closely guarded.

"During this time President Kimball visited the prison, the Judges and the governor, and exerted himself to relieve the prisoners; and he had a peculiar influence with him, so that he could pa.s.s among our enemies unharmed, when others were in danger.

"When the Saints were driven from Missouri, as soon as their feet were planted in Nauvoo, he built with his own hands a log cabin for his family, and started again to renew his mission to Great Britain, with President Young and others of his quorum. It is not my intention to trace his history, but I have culled out these few circ.u.mstances to show you his integrity, his faithfulness, and his untiring labors to benefit mankind.

"We are called now to mourn; but we do not mourn as those who have no hope. Brother Kimball was a man who was the son of nature. The literature he loved was the word of G.o.d. He was not a man to read novels. He studied the revelations of Jesus. His heart was filled with benevolence. His soul was filled with love; and he was always ready to give counsel to the weakest child that came in his way.

Thousands and thousands will remember him with pleasure.

"As we follow him to his last resting place, we must recollect that those men who stood side by side with Joseph Smith the Prophet, who bore with him his burdens, and shared his troubles; who stood shoulder to shoulder with President Young while he faced the storm of apostasy, mob power and organized priestcraft, are rapidly pa.s.sing away. Brother Kimball was foremost among them.

Joseph loved him, and truly it may be said that Brother Kimball was a Herald of Grace. May we all so live that with our brother we may inherit the blessings of celestial grace, is my prayer in the name of Jesus, Amen."

ELDER GEORGE Q. CANNON.

"The scene in which we are partic.i.p.ating this day reminds us more strongly than any language can do, how frail is mortal existence, and how slight a tenure we all have upon this life. Two weeks ago, to-day, he, whose lifeless remains we now surround, was moving among us in this Tabernacle; if not in the enjoyment of perfect health, yet in the enjoyment of such a degree of health as not to inspire us with any apprehensions as to his life. If we had been asked, How long is Brother Heber likely to live? the probable answer would have been, he is as likely to live ten or twenty years as any other period. But since then, two weeks, two brief, short weeks, have gone, and we have a.s.sembled ourselves together to pay our last respects to his memory. It seemed to me when I entered the building, and sat down and looked upon the congregation, that the greatest eloquence I could indulge in would be silence. Yet it is due to him that our voices should be heard in instruction to those who remain, and in testimony of his great worth; and if possible to spread before them, the great and glorious example which he has set for us, and which if we will but emulate and follow, will result in the attainment of the most glorious blessings of which mortal heart can conceive.

"I have known Brother Heber from my childhood. To me he has been a father. I never was with him but what he had good counsel to give me. And when I speak this I speak what every one who was acquainted with him might say. He was full of counsel, full of instruction, and he was always pointed in conveying his counsel in plainness to those to whom he imparted it.

"Have we any cause, in reality, to mourn to-day? Have we any cause for grief and sorrow? When I stood by his bedside and saw his spirit take its departure there was no death there; there was no gloom. I had seen but two persons die before, and they died by violence; but when I watched Brother Heber I asked myself, Is this death? Is this that which men represent as a monster, and from which they shrink with affright? It seemed to me that Brother Heber was not dead, but that he had merely gone to sleep. He pa.s.sed away as quietly and as gently as an infant falling asleep on its mother's lap; not a movement of a limb; not a contortion of his countenance; and scarcely a sigh. The words of Jesus, through Joseph, were forcibly brought to my mind,--"they that die in me, their death shall be sweet unto them." It was sweet with him.

There was nothing repulsive, nothing dreadful or terrible in it, but on the contrary it was calm, peaceful and sweet. There were heavenly influences there, as though angels were there, and no doubt they were, prepared to escort him hence to the society of those whom he loved and who loved him dearly. I thought of the joy there would be in the spirit land, when Joseph, and Hyrum, and David, and Willard, and Jedediah, and Parley would welcome him to their midst, and the thousands of others who have gone before, and like them have been faithful. What a welcome to their midst will Brother Heber receive! to labor and toil with them in the spirit world in the great work in which we are engaged.