Position of James, Peter & John in LDS doctrine

[_Uncle Dale]

...to the truth of Hardy's pamphlet...

Of course William himself had struggled to refute the charges
brought against him by the Boston branch. See this:

http://www.sidneyrigdon.com/dbroadhu/LD ... htm#051445

In the attached comments, the pamphlet is identified:

"History of the Trials of Elder John Hardy, before the Church of Latter Day Saints in Boston, for Slander, in saying that G. J. Adams, S. Brannan and William Smith, were licentious characters."
http://www.olivercowdery.com/smithhome/ ... 44Hard.htm

see also:
http://people.ucsc.edu/~odonovan/john_hardy_history.htm

For some extracts re William's activities in Boston, etc., see:

http://connellodonovan.com/sister_annis.html

UD

[_Uncle Dale]

...a Reader's Digest chronicle of his misdeeds
...

You might want to read the next dozen articles, after
this one from April of 1853:

http://www.sidneyrigdon.com/dbroadhu/IL ... htm#040953

Then skip over to Cincinnati, for articles after this one:

http://www.sidneyrigdon.com/dbroadhu/OH ... htm#052050

UD

[_Yahoo Bot]

William testified before Congress to persuade Buchanan to send an army west. People died as a result; not in armed conflict but soldiers in the course of their duties. The army yielded no results, unless if you count the replacement of Brigham Young as governor. Even that is debatable, since Young clearly knew he served at the pleasure of the President.

[_Uncle Dale]

William testified before Congress to persuade Buchanan to send an army west. People died as a result; not in armed conflict but soldiers in the course of their duties. The army yielded no results, unless if you count the replacement of Brigham Young as governor. Even that is debatable, since Young clearly knew he served at the pleasure of the President.

Although William didn't himself go to Washington, D.C., he used the
status of his Kentucky follower, Isaac Sheen, to have a petition (to stop
Deseret from gaining statehood) submitted by the Kentucky congressman.

I doubt that William's efforts had much effect. Soon afterward Isaac
Sheen renounced the whole effort -- although he was no fan of Utah
Mormonism or Deseret statehood.

William warned that the Mormons would attack wagon trains passing
through Deseret, disguised as Indians -- or, blame the attacks on
the local Indians. A few years later that actually happened -- so
William's old connections with The Twelve (and with The Fifty) may
have left him in possession of a few secret plans for "Zion" in the west.

I'm not sure what William had to say about the 1857 expedition to
Utah Territory. He spent most of his later life claiming that Utah was
one big mistake, so I doubt he would have supported sending the
U.S. Army there, to do much of anything.

Probably things would have turned out better, if Deseret had become
an independent state, and the troubles of the 1850s had been
between two nations (as in the U.S. Civil War that soon followed).

But -- who can say.

I still do not comprehend Willliam's claim -- that the rights and blessings
of the biblical Joseph somehow passed down to Joseph Smith, Sr.

Any LDS scholars, familiar with D&C 86 lurking here?

UD