The Work and the Glory (122 page)

Authors: Gerald N. Lund

Tags: #Fiction, #History

Chapter Twenty-One

The tarring and feathering of Edward Partridge and Charles Allen also comes from Joseph’s history, and Bishop Partridge’s response comes largely from his own autobiography (see
HC
1:390-91).

The experiences of the Rollins sisters recounted in the novel, including Mary Elizabeth’s first experience with the Book of Mormon, are historically accurate (see CHFT, pp. 133-34; and “Mary Elizabeth Rollins Lightner,”
Utah Genealogical and Historical Magazine
17 [July 1926]: 193-97). Having been instrumental in saving several unbound sheets of the Book of Commandments, the two girls were later given bound copies of the book, which they prized for the remainder of their lives. Mary Elizabeth Rollins married Adam Lightner at the age of seventeen. She eventually bore ten children, came to Utah, and lived to the age of ninety-five.

Chapter Twenty-Two

Throughout this whole section on the expulsion of the Saints from Jackson County, the author has placed his fictional characters in the midst of actual events. Every attempt has been made to represent the events properly, including the loss of life and the actual names of known persons, both Saints and Missourians. (B. H. Roberts’s book
The Missouri Persecutions
[1900; reprint, Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1965] brings details from various sources together into one place; the discussion in CHFT, pp. 127-39, is also excellent.) To facilitate the flow of the story, in some cases (e.g., the shooting of the man who was ill) an event has been included in the occurrences of a day other than that on which it actually took place.

Chapter Twenty-Three

See general note for chapter twenty-two.

The story of the money being found in the fish’s stomach is recorded in the history of Mary Elizabeth Rollins (see “Mary Elizabeth Rollins Lightner,” p. 197).

Chapter Twenty-Four

Though fleshed out for the purposes of the novel, the conversation in which Joseph prophesies that Brigham Young and his brother Joseph will return safely is accurate (see
CHFT,
p. 142). The prophecy about the gathering to the Rocky Mountains is reported by Wilford Woodruff (see Ivan J. Barrett,
Joseph Smith and the Restoration
[Provo, Utah: Brigham Young University Press, 1973], p. 278).

Chapter Twenty-Five

The record of Zion’s Camp as given in Nathan’s diary in this chapter comes largely from Joseph’s history (see HC 2:63-101). (CHFT, pp. 141-51, also contains an excellent summary of Zion’s Camp.)

Chapter Twenty-Six

The gathering at the courthouse in Liberty actually took place a day or two earlier than shown in the novel; the time frame has been altered slightly to aid in the flow of the narrative.

The details of the gathering of Zion’s Camp on the Fishing River—including the visit of the five Missourians, the terrible swiftness with which the storm strikes and its fury, the hail and the rapid rise of the river—are all from Joseph’s history (see HC 2:102-6).

The depiction of the plague of cholera and the resulting deaths is accurate. The reader should be careful, however, not to assume that in all cases those who died were the ones who had been rebellious. Joseph does not make that conclusion in his history. (See
HC
2:114-20.)

Chapter Twenty-Eight

The events of this chapter take place in the late summer of 1834. Parley P. Pratt actually did go on a mission to the East, but it took place later than this.

Chapter Twenty-Nine

The description of Kirtland and the events that were taking place between the fall of 1834 and the spring of 1836 comes largely from CHFT, pp. 153-64.

Chapter Thirty

The only liberty the author has taken with the events of the dedication of the Kirtland Temple and the associated Pentecostal season is to place his fictional characters into those scenes. Accounts of the marvelous manifestations that took place during this period in Church history can be found in several excellent sources (see Milton V. Backman, Jr.,
The Heavens Resound
[Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1983], pp. 284-309; CHFT, pp. 164-67; and HC 2:410-28).

Regarding the last illustration, “Dedication of the Kirtland Temple,” readers might be interested to know what the letters on the western pulpits stand for. Starting at the top, here are the generally accepted meanings: M.P.C.—Melchizedek Presiding Council; P.M.H.—Presiding Melchizedek High Priesthood; M.H.P.—Melchizedek High Priesthood; P.E.M.—Presiding Elder Melchizedek. (See Backman,
Heavens Resound,
p. 160.) Note also that some of the leaders who were actually present for the dedication services are depicted in the illustration, including Joseph Smith, Jr., Frederick G. Williams, Joseph Smith, Sr., and Hyrum Smith.

Book Three: The Work and the Glory - Truth Will Prevail

The Work and the Glory - Truth Will Prevail

Text illustrations by Robert T. Barrett

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without permission in writing from the publisher, Deseret Book Company, P. O. Box 30178, Salt Lake City, Utah 84130. This work is not an official publication of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The views expressed herein are the responsibility of the author and do not necessarily represent the position of the Church or of Deseret Book Company.

Bookcraft is a registered trademark of Deseret Book Company.

First printing in hardbound 1992 First printing in paperbound 2001 First printing in trade paperbound 2006

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Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 92-73810

ISBN-10 0-88494-853-6 (hardbound) ISBN-10 1-57345-872-4 (paperbound) ISBN-10 1-59038-498-9 (trade paperbound) ISBN-13 978-1-59038-498-5 (trade paperbound)

Printed in the United States of America

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Text illustrations by Robert T. Barrett

Preface

With the coming forth of
Truth Will Prevail
, the third volume in the series
The Work and the Glory,
the reader can continue the saga of a fictional American family acquainted with Joseph Smith and caught up in the grand events associated with the restoration of the Church of Jesus Christ to the earth. Volume 3 carries on an attempt to help the reader feel what it must have been like to live during the events that Latter-day Saints of the twentieth century look back on with some awe and considerable wonder. And, as with the earlier volumes, it is hoped that, through this novel, readers who are not of the Latter-day Saint faith may come to a better understanding of the Church’s beginnings and of the events that so stir Church members’ hearts.

In the prefaces to the previous two volumes much was said about the nature of this work and its avowed purposes. A brief word or two in addition to those comments seems appropriate here.

First, while the various historical sources together give a remarkable picture of what was happening during the period of Church history covered in this third volume (1836 to 1838), they do not always agree on specifics. The novel makes no effort to resolve these disputed points, which are generally of little or no consequence to the story. In giving priority to presenting a coherent story line, the author has sometimes opted for vagueness on historical details or has chosen to accept one historical source over another. Occasionally, too, literary license has been taken to vary placement of minor events or of persons, especially when historical evidence is not conclusive. Chapter notes at the end of this book—a feature first introduced in volume 2 of the series—indicate when events depicted in the novel are based on actual historical occurrences and also provide a few relevant source citations.

Second, the early history of the restored Church is filled with well-documented miraculous experiences that are part of the rich spiritual legacy of the Latter-day Saints; indeed, it would be surprising to find it otherwise (see Mark 16:16–18). Therefore, in this and previous volumes in the series the author has placed the fictional family, the believing Steeds, in the midst of that environment.

As with the first two volumes, there are many acknowledgments to be given for help in preparing this third volume. No novel, however proprietary, is ever the product of one person. An immeasurable debt is owed to the cluster of Latter-day Saint historians who have provided such a rich cornucopia from which a writer can draw out the backdrop for his characters. A researcher who spends hours so that the writer can spend minutes is also one to whom much is owed. Then there are readers who read and critique the manuscript and knock off those corners that, if left, would later have proved to be embarrassments. There is the secretary who files and indexes and types and then does it all over again. An editor with an eye for detail coupled with a respect for the writer’s individuality moves the manuscript from rough and sometimes inaccurate stages to the polished and (it is hoped) precise final product. There are designers and artists who attractively package the book and add to readers’ pleasure by helping them visualize certain scenes or events. There are marketers and advertisers and warehouse staff and bookstore sales personnel. Truly, in the publishing of a book, as in so many other of life’s endeavors, “no man is an island.”

In previous volumes I have expressed appreciation for all of the above kinds of people in more detail. But again I say: To Rick Huchel and Calvin Stephens, to Deena Nay and Shawn Stringham and Garry Garff, to Robert Barrett and Lester Lee and Cinda Morgan and Jana Erickson and Russell Orton and Cory Maxwell and all the staff at Bookcraft—again, a most special thanks to each of you. Surely you can share generously in those moments when readers say, “I have been reading
The Work and the Glory
. Thanks.”

Even a special thanks is not adequate for the contributions of my wife, Lynn, and of Kim and Jane Moe. Without their support, encouragement, and vision, the series would still be languishing somewhere in the back recesses of the mind, perhaps never to move from the shelves of imagination to the tables and desks and laps of tens of thousands of readers of many ages and occupations and interests.

One final thing needs to be said. Any grandeur that this series conveys, any emotions that it may stir, any uplift that it may bring are ultimately due to the work and the glory of God’s great plan of restoration and redemption. It is to the Father and the Son that we look with gratitude and humility when we consider all that has been and will yet be unfolded in our behalf. And it is because of them that we can, even in the darkest of times, be moved in our hearts to exclaim, “Truth
will
prevail.”