this gift except it be through him, for if it be taken from him, he shall not have power except to appoint another in his stead.[A]

[Footnote A: Doc. and Cov., sec. xliii.]

Mr. Strang claimed that the appointment he received through the letter here presented as coming from the prophet Joseph, fulfilled the terms of the revelation above quoted; for he had been appointed through the prophet Joseph.

When he presented this "letter" and "revelation" to some of the saints in Michigan, viz., to those living in the town of Florence, St. Joseph County, they asked him if the Twelve that were commanded in his "revelation" to proclaim Voree, Wisconsin, as the gathering place for the saints, were the Twelve Apostles at Nauvoo. He replied they were. Did they know anything of this "revelation?" They did not. Had he been ordained a prophet? He replied no. The saints were suspicious of his claims, and would not receive him.[A]

[Footnote A: See letter of Crandell Dunn, who was presiding over the branches of the church in Western Michigan at the time—Mill. Star, Vol. VIII., p. 93.]

This question as to his ordination presented a serious difficulty to Mr. Strang, a difficulty which he tried to surmount by announcing soon afterwards that immediately after the martyrdom of the prophet Joseph, an angel appeared to him and ordained him to be a prophet to the church, and the successor to Joseph as the President thereof.

He presented himself in Nauvoo and succeeded in drawing to his support a number of restless men—men who had been neglectful of their duties in the church of Christ, and of a disposition to follow any person who promised them change and excitement. Not many followed him from Nauvoo, however, for there his influence amounted to little; but in the scattered branches, especially in those in Wisconsin, he succeeded in deceiving many. Among those who accepted and sustained his claims were William Smith, the only surviving brother of the prophet Joseph; the notorious John C. Bennett, who had been excommunicated from the church for his crimes, and afterward plotted with the enemies of Joseph to bring to pass his destruction; and also John E. Page, one of the Twelve, who for several years previous to Joseph's death had been in bad repute with the church. John C. Bennett had first supported Sidney Rigdon, claiming to have received a sealed document from the prophet Joseph—when as yet he was in full fellowship with the church—with a strict charge not to open it until after the prophet's death. When he opened it, lo! it contained what purported to be a revelation from the deceased prophet appointing Sidney Rigdon to be his successor. John C. Bennett averred that this was as it should be, and so eagerly was this purported revelation accepted by the supporters of Mr. Rigdon, that they had it published and widely circulated among the branches of the church. But when Mr. Strang came forward with his claims, John C. Bennett turned from Sidney Rigdon and supported Mr. Strang—having forgot, apparently, the "revelation" contained in the sealed document which appointed Mr. Rigdon President of the church![A]

[Footnote A: Mill. Star, Vol. VIII, p. 94.]

John E. Page, in support of the Strang movement, intercepted a company of saints in Michigan, en route from Canada to Nauvoo. He represented that it was the will of the Lord that they should settle in Voree, Wisconsin, Mr. Strang's gathering place, and not go to Nauvoo. This company, however, were prudent enough not to receive his representations without investigation. They sent messengers to Nauvoo who received such instructions from the Twelve as preserved them from the deceitfulness of this apostate Apostle. John E. Page continued to support the claims of James J. Strang, and for doing so was excommunicated from the church,[A] and swelled the number of those who have made shipwreck of faith through opposing legitimate authority.

[Footnote A: John E. Page was disfellowshipped from the quorum of the Twelve, February 9th, 1846; and excommunicated from the church June 27, 1846.]

Mr. Strang in a short time changed his gathering place from Voree, Wisconsin, to Beaver Island, in the north end of Lake Michigan. He organized a township on Beaver Island, went to the state legislature and succeeded in having the whole group of islands in north Lake Michigan organized into a county, under the name of Manitou County, which for some years Mr. Strang represented in the Michigan state legislature.

Mr. Strang was not satisfied with being Prophet and President of the church, he must also be a king; and accordingly was crowned and given a scepter[A]—"The attribute to awe and majesty, wherein doth sit the dread and fear of kings!"

[Footnote A: The Saints' Herald, Vol. XXXV, p. 718.]

He was crowned by George J. Adams, also an apostate from the church. At one time Mr. Adams had been appointed to go on a mission to the empire of Russia, to preach the gospel; but before he started he was found to be in transgression. His appointment was, of course, cancelled; and subsequently, as he still further transgressed, he was excommunicated from the church, after which he joined Mr. Strang at Beaver Island.

It may be well to observe, in passing, that all these aspirants for place and power manifested an insatiable desire for the honors and titles of men, a thing which shows them to be as vain as they were ambitious, and distinguishes them from true leaders (especially those whom God calls), who so loose themselves in their work, that self is unthought of, much less the empty honors and titles of men. Mr. Strang was not only a "king" in name, but also one in disposition if those who represent his conduct speak truly. Arbitrary and cruel in his methods of government, he finally provoked much dissatisfaction among his followers, and not a few dissensions.

The people whom he gathered together on Beaver Island soon fell into disrepute with their neighbors. They are represented as claiming that the earth was the Lord's, and the fullness thereof; that they were the Lord's saints and heirs to that which was the Lord's, and hence did not hesitate to purloin their neighbor's goods. In other words, they were accused by their neighbors with being an organized community of thieves, who thrived by plundering more honest people. It is not our prerogative to pronounce upon the truth or falsity of these charges. It is enough to say that Mr. Strang and his followers were held in great abhorrence by the other inhabitants of the Manitou group of islands and the people on the neighboring main-land; and in the summer of 1856, there was a general uprising of the people in those parts which resulted in the killing of Mr. Strang—some accounts say, by two men of his own party, and the breaking up of his organization.

Once more we stand face to face with the prophetic words of President
Young:

    All that want to draw away a party from the church after them,
    let them do it if they can, but they will not prosper!