| 510 page 135, that the Lord has said to the church, and we mean to live by his words, 'Let no man break the laws of the land, for he that keepeth the laws of God hath no need to break the laws of the land' [Doctrine and Covenants 58:5]; therefore, as the people of God, we come before the world and claim protection, by law, from the common officers of justice, in every neighborhood where our people may be: we claim the same at the hands of the Governors of the several States, and of the President of the United States, and of the friends of humanity and justice, in every clime and country on the globe.
"By the desperate acts of the inhabitants of Jackson County, many hundreds of American citizens are deprived of their lands and rights: and it is reported that we mean to regain our possessions, and even Jackson County, 'by the shedding of blood.' But if any man will take the pains to read the one hundred and fifty-third page of the Book of Commandments, he will find it there said, 'Wherefore the land of Zion shall not be obtained but by purchase, or by blood, otherwise there is none inheritance for you. And if by purchase, behold you are blessed: and if by blood, as you are forbidden to shed blood, lo, your enemies are upon you, and you shall be scourged from city to city and from synagogue to synagogue, and but few shall stand to receive an inheritance' [Doctrine and Covenants 63:8]. So we declare that we have ever meant and now mean, to purchase the land of our inheritance, like all other honest men, of the Government, and of those who would rather sell their farms than live in our society. And, as thousands have done before us, we solicit the aid of the children of men, and of government, to help us obtain our rights in Jackson County, and the land whereon the Zion of God, according to our faith, shall stand in the last days, for the salvation and gathering of Israel.
"Let no man be alarmed because our society has commenced gathering to build a city and a house for the Lord, as a refuge from present evils and coming calamities. Our forefathers came to the goodly land of America, to shun persecution and enjoy their religious opinions and rights, as
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