ESLTRS-1851-02-11-From,SnowErastus,DenmarkCopenhagen-To,BemanArtimesia(Snow),UtahGreatSaltLakeCity

ESLTRS-1851-02-11-From,SnowErastus,DenmarkCopenhagen-To,BemanArtimesia(Snow),UtahGreatSaltLakeCity

196 Norgesgarde Copenhagen Denmark February 11th 1851 [Tuesday 11 Feb 1851]

My effectionate [affectionate] and ever remembered wife [Artimesia Beman (Snow) 1819-1882] and family with heartfelt gratitude to Our Heavenly Father, do I seat myself to improve another of those precious priviledges [privileges] which he has provided for us of communicating with each other by letter. Your letters of last Sept. which come to hand Jan. 5th [Sunday 5 Jan 1851] I have just re examined (this being the only method left me of hearing from you for the next five or six months) and they seem each time fresh & full of interesting ideas of news and the tender emotions of the heart.


The conference minutes appeared in the 15 Jan [Wednesday 15 Jan 1851] Star [Millenial Star] and the General Epistles of the Presidency came to hand yesterday accompanied by a letter from Bro. Franklin [Franklin D. Richards] all of which are very refreshing to me Truly the Lord is Blessing Zion after her tribulation. and truly his hand has been over you for good during the last summer and I trust you are enjoying yourselves and feasting upon the good things of the kingdom during this winter.


Though I have seen you in dreams sometimes washing, sometimes killing & dressing chickens, sometimes sad and have drawn comforting inferences from my dreams from time to time, yet they do not stamp upon the outward senses that feeling of certainty & satisfaction derived from the perusal of your letters.


I have several times also seen Bro. Joseph [Joseph Smith] in dreams & Brigham [Brigham Young] & Heber [Heber C. Kimball] and received instructions from them which has been consoling to me. It seems though I had really taken up dreaming since I left home a thing not very common for me.

The Lord has been preparing the way for the kingdom in this land and some measure, but this is far from being prepared like as was England and America & the Gospel among this people but those who try it or something similar. There is an almighty power of darkness & unbelief & wickedness in the land, love of pleasure & the lusts of the flesh and a total disregard of spiritual things with the great mass of the people. Yet the land is full of Priests who are fattening upon the tithings [tithing] of the people who control all the meeting houses, and all their schools & schoolhouses and a national police, all pety [petty] tyrants to do the dirty work of the Priests.


It seems as though that I and my brethren were like a few grains of powder placed in a mountain of rock to burst it. But the Lord is with us and although we are poor tools in the Danish language yet the Lord makes weak things become strong to those who believe. By the force of the Holy Ghost the hearts of the Saints are comforted with visions & dreams, healings casting out Devils etc. and the Saints increase in faith, wisdom & power far beyond what could reasonable have been expected under the circumstances & without books in their own language. There has been a strong opposition during the winter to the extension of religious liberty. The Priests have rallied their forces, strongly over the country & brought it to bear upon the Legislature to check the spirit of freedom that is strugling [struggling] in the Legislature. The Chief Bishop of the kingdom has spured [spurred] a circular against its extension which he publishes the usual catalogue [catalog] of fantastic lies about the Saints. The President of the National Police has also with his inhumanity been trying of late to hedge up our way, but they all get outsmarted & every thought makes for good. We keep a fair distance within the law and give them no advantage over us. they would gladly send us out of the country if they could find a cause. We memorialized the King, his Ministry not long since & sent a tract & Book of Mormon to him.


They assured us that they would not lay anything in our way. The King sent the book to the Queen dowager (who is reputedly pious) and they produced such a sensation upon her as spread alarm through all her palace & made her sick several days. this I learned through a sister who was at work for the Queens waiting maids. I shall seek an opportunity of communicating with her. We have had some persecution in Copenhagen during the winter such as stoning some of the saints houses & windows and mobs breaking up our evening preaching meeting etc. but it has passed of [off] and we now enjoy comparative peace. My room is in a very retired & secure place, sacred from the rabble, being in the midst of the foreign Ambassadors. The Lord directed us here when we first landed. The family are now in the faith. Here Bro. Hansen & I have thus far spent the winter in translating & publishing the Book of Mormon. We have worked at it all the time we could asside [aside] from other duties over times. I returned from England last fall. We have now but little over half finished, and only 168 pages printed. It will probabbly [probably] take us till May [May 1851] to finish it - It is double the work I expected to prepare it for the Press in its original symplicity [simplicity] & purity.


After the first translation, we submit it to a Danish scholar (a teacher of French, English and German) to examine & note improvements, after which we re-examine it adopting such of the improvements as seem to us adviseable [advisible], and prepare it for the Press. I have also secured the services of an experienced proof reader to assist us in reading the proof sheets which are examined & corrected three times, and I believe and others think the same that so far, we have got it out about as full & clear as the language will admit of. I am issuing 3000 copies. I circulate nearly 200 by the sheet as they issue from the Press. We have baptised [baptized] about 115 in this city and are steadily progressing. Brother Dykes has been labouring [laboring] in the province of Jutland during the winter and has had a hard time, but done a good work - much persecution that made several hares [hairs] breadth escapes from his enemies but at the last account had baptised [baptized] over fifty. By Elder Pratt's [Parley P. Pratt] family & Bro. Cummings who sailed in January [Jan 1851] I sent you presents and letters. like in the "Star" [Millenial Star]; in which you will find an account of Bro. Forsgrens persecutions and final expulsion from Sweeden [Sweden]. He has since been here in Denmark & has of late met with similar treatment in Roskilde the old capital of Denmark. He was pretty roughly handled by a mob of about 200 and the whole town was turned into a terrible uproar and he was finally sent away by the chief authorities of the place. He is now in a little town about 14 miles from here where the work is taking effect and beginning to bear fruit. As usual those who have embraced the work are poor - mostly. Mechanics and labours [laborers]. The funds for printing & our support here I obtained chiefly from Brother Pratt [Parley P. Pratt] and a couple of Liverpool Merchants. I am therefore purser for all the mission in this land. You say in your letter that you would be happy to know that I am as well off as you are. I have often felt that it would be a great Joy to me to know that you all were as well comfortable, & happy as I am. I say happy because I rejoice in the word of the Lord. Yet there is no place like the Zion of our God. No people like those with whom I have suffered - No wives & children that can supply that vacant corner of my heart.


The care & burden of this mission & everything connected with it is like a thousand tons weight pressing upon me from every side continually and nothing but the continual power & inspiration of the Holy Ghost can stear [steer] this ship. But I have seen, in a dream, the old respect slowly & steadily steming [stemming] rapid current without either sails or steam and we were on board hauling in fish. Be comforted concerning me, but pray for me & shall surely return to you in due time. Yours Now & forever. E. Snow [Elder Erastus Snow 1818-1888]


[written around the side]


I want some one of you to write every month and as much oftener as you can send a guard [?] from Bro. Benson [Ezra Taft Benson], or any of the Twelve [Quorum of Twelve Apostles] or others who can find time to write to me it would be very gratifying to me. Direct all to "Millenniel Star office [Millenial Star Office], Liverpool England" We have baptised [baptized] one Icelandic & another is to be baptized tonight. They expect to return to Iceland in the Spring. Probably with the Priesthood. Bro. Zerubbabel [Zerubbabel Snow 1806-1888] writes to me that his family will go the valley [Salt Lake Valley, Utah] as early as possible next spring. I have written to him to take to you some Dried fruit & groceries. He is appointed one of the Judges of the Supreme Court of Utah Teritory [Territory] My love to all my Brethren & friends who inquire after me. to Wm. [William Snow, b. 1806] Willard [Willard Trowbridge Snow, b. 1811]

& Mother [Lucina Streeter Snow, b. 1785] & all my own Dear family particularly.