50 THE STORY OP MORMONISM.

Joseph buys of his wife's father a small farm and goes to work on it. In February 1829 he receives a visit from his own father, at which time a revelation comes to Joseph Smith senior, through the son, calling him to faith and good works. The month following Mar- tin Harris asks for and receives a revelation, by the mouth of the latter, regarding the plates, wherein the said Harris is told that Joseph has in his possession the plates which he claims to have, that they were delivered to him by the Lord God, who likewise gave him power to translate them, and that he, Harris, should bear witness of the same. Three months later, Harris having meanwhile acted as his scribe, Joseph is commanded to rest for a season in his work of translating until directed to take it up again.

various compartments, arched with various strange marks, and evidently copied after the Mexican calendar given by Humboldt, but copied in such a way as not to betray the source whence it was derived. I am thus particular as to the contents of the paper, inasmuch as I have frequently conversed with friends on the subject since the Mormon excitement began, and well i-emem- ber that the paper contained anything else but Egyptian hieroglyphics. Some time after, the farmer paid me a second visit. He brought with him the gold book in print, and offered it to me for sale. I declined i^urchasing. He then asked permission to leave the book with me for examination. I declined re- ceiving it, although his manner was strangely urgent. I adverted once more to the roguery which, in my opinion, had been practised upon him, and asked him what had become of the gold plates. He informed me they were in a trunk with the spectacles. I advised him to go to a magistrate and have the trunk examined. He said the curse of God would come upon him if he did. On my pressing him, however, to go to a magistrate, he told me he would open the trunk if I would take the curse of God upon myself. I replied I would do so with the gi'eatest willingness, and would incur every risk of that nature, provided I could only extricate him from the grasp of the rogues. He then left me. I have given you a full statement of all that I know respecting the origin of Mormonism, and must beg of you, as a personal favor, to publish this letter immediately, should you find my name mentioned again by these wretched fanatics. Yours respectfully, 'Charles Anthon.'

It is but fair to state that Smith never claimed that the characters were the ordinary Greek or Hebrew, but were what he called Reformed Egyptian. Harris says: ' He gave me a certificate which I took and put into my pocket, and was just leaving the house when Mr Anthon called me back, and asked me how the young man found out that there were gold plates in the place where he found them. I answered that an angel of God had revealed it unto him. He then said unto me, Let me see that certificate. I accordingly took

it out of my pocket and gave it to him, when he took it and tore it to pieces, saying that there was no such thing now as ministering of angels, aud that if I would bring the plates to him he would translate them. I informed him

that part of the plates were sealed, and that I was forbidden to bring them; he replied, " I cannot read a sealed book." I left him and went to l)r INIit- chell, who sanctioned what Professor Anthon had said respecting bcth the characters aud the translation. ' Pca7i of Great Price, xiii. 54.