1. 1847 January, pp. 16–17—The Mormons—brief historical information
2. 1847 September, pp. 199–201—The Mormons by Tobit ger y Bont –call them “Satanists
3. 1847 October, pp. 224–25—Lectures on Mormonism—report Edward Roberts lectures
4. 1847 November, p. 256—Edward Roberts—doing more research on his manuscript
5. 1847 December, p. 268—W. R. Davies letter—predicts a short life for the Mormons
6. 1848 January, pp. 18–19—Daniel Jones responds to W. R. Davies
7. 1848 January, pp. 21–22—Dafydd Lewis—observations about Edward Roberts’s lecture
8. 1848 February, p. 40—Carwr Trefn asks W. R. Davies—would he baptize Mormon convert
9. 1848 February, p. 52—s. o. from Machynlleth writes about “Baptizing an Apostle”
10. 1848 March, pp. 69–70—W. R. Davies answers the question about re-baptism
11. 1848 April, pp. 96–97—Deceit of Mormonism—editorial about Edward Roberts pamphlet
12. 1848 June, pp. 138–40—W. R. Davies berates the Mormons by relating several incidents
13. 1849 May, p. 117—Tychicus asks the editor 6 questions about Mormons
14. 1849 June, p. 145—friend of W. R. Davies baptized 9—one was a former Mormon
15. 1849 August, p. 192—“Merthyrun” compares Socinianism and Mormonism

Apostolic Witness, January 1847, pp. 16–17

https://journals.library.wales/view/2167865/2168065/15#?xywh=-162%2C845%2C2277%2C3571

The Mormons

Since the Mormons, or Latter-day Saints, as they are called, are going among the Welsh, perhaps a little of their history would be useful for the readers of the WITNESS. The following account about them is taken from the Supplement to the Leeds Mercury December 12, 1846, written by a neighbor to them:

This sect began in about the year 1827, in the town of Manchester, six miles from Palmyra, in the western part of the State of New York. Four or five years ago, one could see the mine on the side of the mountain, from which, according to the declaration of Joe Smith, their prophet and their original leader, the golden Bible, or the brass plates, were extracted. This is the way the Mormon revelation was had, according to the tale; an angel appeared to Joe Smith, in a dream, and assured him that God had sent him to announce that Joe was the chosen prophet and priest of Jehovah for the entire world. Then the angel made known to him concerning the existence of the golden Bible, in which the new revelation was written; he told him where he could obtain it, and how to dig for it, and after getting it to reveal it to mankind. Joe did according to the word of the angel. But there was not the least doubt in the mind of any enlightened person that all this was Joe’s malicious scheme. The Book of Mormon was purposefully adapted to deceive the gullible with religion; for while it acknowledges the validity and truth of the Old Testament and the New, it reveals new light and truth, through which it transforms everything which is unclear and confusing in the Bible. The Mormon priests and elders claim that the Book of Mormon contains historical and religious records which were written in ancient times by a branch of the house of Israel which inhabited America, and from which the Indians descend. They say that the records of the golden Bible which were obtained by Joe Smith not only confirm the truths of the Holy Bible, but tell of historical happenings since, or even before the flood! They persuade the superstitious host that they are able to speak in strange tongues, heal the sick, receive new revelations from the Lord, and work miracles. These followers settled in the state of Ohio, then they moved to the state of Missouri, and eventually they built Nauvoo; they were driven from there, and no doubt they were wrongly dealt with and suffered many hardships, for although they had been duped they should have been given freedom, provided they did not transgress the laws of the land. A strange thing is that no one who had read the Bible, and who had professed the Son of God, yielded himself as a disciple of Joe Smith! Yet some of the poor Welsh have been seduced to professing faith in that wicked deception! As they preach, the teachers of the Saints do not mention the Book of Mormon, nor the revelations of Joe Smith; but their primary purpose is to persuade men to believe that they are able to work miracles, and that there are no godly people who cannot work miracles; once they have convinced men who are sufficiently daft to believe that, they will then be able to get them to believe in the godliness of Joe very easily. But knowing the history of this superstition from its beginning to the present, is sufficient remedy against it. “Be ye not deceived.”

Apostolic Witness, September 1847, pp. 199–201

https://journals.library.wales/view/2167865/2168257/14

The Mormons

Mr. Editor—I beg patronage for space in your useful Publication for the following lines, and I consider such as a debt for you, for the benefit of your country and your nation; but above all for the benefit of the truth. In the first place allow me to place before the public my reasons for calling the creatures under observation “Satanists of the nineteenth century” and not “Saints of the Latter Days,” as they arrogantly call themselves. Through your patronage, I propose to prove the appropriateness of the name, by three statements.

1. I shall prove that they are devilish men with their own mouth, by the manner in which they profess to cast out devils. The existence of Satan cannot be denied without denying all the holy at the same time, and becoming a complete deist; on the other hand, alleging that Christ and his apostles did not cast them out of men is the same as to argue that the sun did not rise; at this point I wish to summon the attention of the reader, to pay close attention. Who were the persons from whom the devils were cast out by Christ and his apostles? That is, were they saints, followers of the Son of God, or unbelieving and ungodly evil men? If there is a question in your mind read Matt. 4:24. Luke 9:42 and 10:19. Acts v:12–16. But the arrogant creatures that I am concerned with profess that they have been reborn, and have received the Holy Ghost, and have washed away their sins through baptism, and have all certainty that they are children of God, and heirs of the kingdom of heaven, etc., etc., yes, that they are sure of these things, as if they were in heaven now. Well, here are perfect men to be sure! O! definitely not, in themselves and from themselves they cast out the Satanists. Reader, take notice that not from the ungodly, the faithless, the lunatic, and the insane do they cast him out, but from them themselves; therefore, the men continue as Satanists, according to their own statements and assertions; consequently, give to them their appropriate name, i.e., Satanists. I wish for all Welshmen to avoid calling them Saints, as such a name is inappropriate to the extreme; it is blasphemy to give them the name that God gave to the loved ones of heaven. Remember this.
2. “Satanists of the nineteenth century,” and not “Saints of the latter days.” For the latter days in the true sense of the word have not come as yet; many wicked men and deceivers will rise up after these before the final period. Proof that all the prophecies to this point are yet unfulfilled; such as the fall of Babylon, the return of the Jews, etc. It has yet only begun to dawn on Christianity.
3. The King of Zion has given a rule for his saints to follow without exception while in the world, namely the way in which they are to behave toward their enemies when they are persecuted and killed. Most certainly, it is in this manner that the “Saints” have behaved when they were pursued towards Nauvoo in America; absolutely not. Well, what did they do? They enlisted under the arms of war, and they killed as many as they could. “No, no, not so fast,” says the reader; “the ‘Saints’ did not behave that way either; the ‘Saints’ killing men, surprise!” Whether you are surprised or not, that is how it was; I hear every man in his right mind prepared to say, it is the lies and jealousy of their enemies that are spreading things like this about them. Did not Paul definitely say, “The weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh.” Poo, Paul, what was he in education, knowledge, and godliness to compare with Jo Smith? But lest anyone judge the accusations noted to be untrue, here is the fact from his own writings—see “History of the Latter-day Saints,” published by Capt. Jones, printed by John Jones, Rhydybont, page 95. “The Saints decided to defend themselves, rather than comply with the one condition or the other; and so there was fierce fighting on all sides for several days on the outskirts of the city. Many of the rioters were killed, and, among others of their leaders, Capt. Smith was killed.” Have you ever heard before of saints killing men over a period of days without resting? No, not for a second. “Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves,” said Christ to his saints. “Kill your enemies,” say the Mormons, “to the extent of your powers.” In conclusion on this subject, I ask, Is there a more appropriate name under the Heavens to put on them than Satanists? If there is, What is it? Butchers? No wonder that the old Chartists in the works join with them! The greatest surprise is that there are so few. O dear Welshmen, do not be deceived by the creatures whose tricks, lies, and assertions are as clear as the noonday sun. If you take a little, little bit of care, the deceit will come to the same fate as that of Martha of the Mountain, and Mary of the white veil; together with other birds of the night. Do not make yourselves an object of scorn to the infidels, and damn your bodies and your souls in the end.

No doubt, the Welsh in general have not understood that the persons under scrutiny are infidels of the worst kind, and they have not the least respect for the word of God; although they use him as far as he answers their purposes, they pretend to reverence him in order to deceive the ignorant. It is not by listening to any sect’s preaching a few times that we can judge their principles, rather by reading their views and their beliefs; and so the public can see them in their true color, I put before them the following from the letter [book] previously noted in pages 34 and 35. “We said in the previous chapter that there are more witnesses to prove the Book of Mormon than there are to prove the New Testament, etc.” And here they are:

It is painless to write three hundred thousand, etc., and since the witnesses are so numerous, allow me to ask for one miracle, namely, Where, and on whom was it worked? Not one can be noted.

“Not so much as one living witness who was healed in the days of the apostles,” etc. If they are not alive in the body, they will yet speak though they are dead, and their speech will be respectful and heavenly, after the abomination and fables of Jo Smith and the infidels who believe his nonsense become stinking and rotten. “There are thousands who testify in our day, that they have received health,” perhaps there are. “Man’s wretchedness weighs heavily on him, and he has sought out many fanciful ideas,” and there are more in the world who testify to lies than who stand for the truth; and what good are false witnesses? There are thousands upon thousands who testify that Christ has not risen, but despite their number, he lives. Christ once asked, “Were there not ten cleansed, but where are the nine?” May I be allowed to ask the “Satanists”, since you have thousands who have received health, where is one? It is easy to get a wicked man to go to bed, bind his head, etc., and pretend to be sick; and equally as simple to get a man of the same principle, to stand above him, and pretend to pray, and it is easy for the infidel in order to deceive others, to jump up and shout, “It’s a miracle;” but where is the blind man who has received his eyes, etc., yes, where are those two idiots, who gave up their cudgel the other day in Aberdare, claiming “that they would never need anything, that God had promised to deliver his saints,” etc., but the following morning were terribly burned, under the earth, by the damp.” If these are healed from pity, yes, for shame, they must either get better or die under the hands of the doctors as do others, and there are thousands from Aberdare, thousands from Merthyr, and thousands from Dowlais, etc., who testify to your faces, that all your infernal assertions are blatant lies. Furthermore, “not so much as one unbiased witness outside the church:” thus, consequently, the sun must have been in the church when it went dark, the stones and the graves, etc. “Hundreds of thousands of reliable witnesses who testify that God performs miracles,” etc. It is surprising that there are such hosts of witnesses everywhere, to prove the divinity of the Book of Mormon. Too many, too many; but thinking about it, always proving too much fails to prove anything: but what use is chattering, they are to be found: here are some, blind Daniel in Carmarthenshire, little Maggie in Merthyr, big Lemi in Pendaran, and the two men in Aberdare, and thousands of others; one has received eyes, the other a hip, etc. Consequently, it is appropriate that they can ask, page 35, “Now, is it not obvious that there are more witnesses to the truth of the Book of Mormon, than have been found up till now to the New Testament,” etc. Yes, yes, no doubt, thousands upon thousands were healed by Christ and his apostles. Not one by them. It is hard to keep from laughing at them, at the first look at things, seeing such witch-like rubbish in print; yet, when we remember, that they are men who have souls, pretending to believe such foolish, presumptuous, and ungodly rubbish; yes, the doctrine of men and devils; feelings cannot keep from being injured and bleeding, on thinking of the damnable consequences. Christ and his disciples always appeal to the public for the truth of their doctrine through the miracles they worked, and no one in their age dared to deny them. I appeal to the conscience of every Welshman, Who, and where, has one miracle been seen? Challenge anyone to show the blind man who has received his sight, a withered arm restored, the dead restored to life, etc.; challenge them to name one. We see at once the extremes of deceit and presumption.

I hear that they are bragging throughout the country, that many members of the Baptists in Caersalem have joined them. I myself can assure you that that is not true, except for one old woman.

TOBIT GER Y BONT

Apostolic Witness, October 1847, pp. 224–25

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Lectures on Mormonism

It is unnecessary to tell the Welsh of the existence of the people who call themselves Mormons, or Latter-day Saints; but perhaps they do not know that it is in Merthyr where they have their most elevated throne. From here especially the beings called apostles are sent out to preach the gospel, they say, and to cleanse their hands from the blood of all other. In Merthyr, apparently, is the greatest part of them to the shame of the gullibility of the inhabitants in this age, from there at least; here also the attentive and the careful people received the advantage of observing them, and to recognize their tricks and their deceit; and the name is not Saints, rather blatant forgery. Having received this advantage to know them, to know whose children they were, and to know about the character of their father JOE SMITH, Mr. W. R. Davies, Dowlais, troubled, as was Paul in Athens, concerning the purity of the religion of Jesus Christ, and out of concern for some of his townspeople, who were being beguiled and lectured by these deceivers, came and made an effort similar to that of the readers of several of the Welsh publications, to expose their deceit in a skillful and deft manner for the Welsh. After that, several of the ministers of the area decided to have a meeting or two for the purpose of lecturing about their presence; and they were blessed in their work by choosing one who was suitable for the task, namely Mr. E. Roberts, Rhymney, (Iorwerth Glan Aled). After that a time was determined for the meeting, the 2^nd of September, and the place where it would be held, the Caersalem chapel, Dowlais. After that they deemed it appropriate to print tickets, which were provided for an admission of sixpence; when collected these funds were to go toward the building of a nearby house of worship pertaining to the Baptists. When the time for the meeting came, several esteemed ministers gathered together, and in their midst Iorwerth Glan Aled. Also at this time, a numerous crowd of listeners came, all desirous of hearing what the lecturer had to say about the Saints. After going into the chapel, Mr. W. R. Davies moved that Mr. J. Hughes, a revered minister of the Independents, take the chair, which was seconded by Mr. D. Jones, Cardiff, and the general consent was given by the crowd by a raise of hands. After the meeting was begun by Mr. W. Jones, Llansanan, Mr. E. Roberts, Rhymney was called to deliver his lecture. After that, he went ahead and delivered one of the most eloquent and well crafted lectures we have ever heard, to a numerous crowd of listeners who were stretching their necks to listen as if for their lives; indicating at the same time, through several signs, the greatest satisfaction for that which they heard. The meeting was carried forward in a peaceful and civil manner; and everyone left after being completely satisfied, except for a few of the “Saints,” who insisted that they had not been convinced, nor had they heard the truth. Since the time was up, and since the lecturer had many highly pertinent things that he had not been able to deliver, the various ministers deemed it appropriate to hold a meeting the following night, and Mr. E. Roberts promised that he would finish his lecture at that time; and Mr. D. Jones promised to spend a little time to tell of the glory of the CHRISTIAN RELIGION. Bethania, a chapel of the Independents, was appointed to hold the meeting; and that all who wished to come would be admitted gratis. The meeting house was completely filled: it was judged that there were about two thousand listeners there at least. The lecturer went ahead in his usual manner; and a greater approval for a speech in a meeting had never before been given. Mr. David Jones, Cardiff, delivered an oration on the Excellence of the Christian Religion, by indicating some things that were worthy of the most detailed logic; and at the same time full of the greatest sweetness from the true Saints. The meeting was ended by giving the warmest thanks to the esteemed chairman, and to the lecturers. The crowds left after receiving true satisfaction; and it is hoped that the blessing of God will be with them for their efforts to extinguish this presumptuous superstition, and cause the true religion to be a strong flame in Dowlais and the neighborhoods. This is the true wish of the weakest of the sons of Zion,

Llansanan W. JONES.

[I shall be glad to receive an abridgment of the excellent Lecture of our friend Roberts, to put in the APOSTOLIC WITNESS, so that our readers can know of the origin of those rascals who are called the Latter-day Saints.]

Apostolic Witness, November 1847, p. 256

https://journals.library.wales/view/2167865/2168307/23#?xywh=1040%2C1318%2C915%2C1435

Lectures on Mormonism

Dear Editor,

In the issue of the Witness for last month, I saw the account of my Lectures on Mormonism in Dowlais. You wished for a written report of them for the Witness, but I must disappoint you in that for the time being—for my friend, Mr. W. Roberts, Blaenau, Gwent, is busy working to gather an account of the Mormons from their beginning to the present, with the intent of publishing it all in one low-priced Booklet, so the all the Welsh may come to know of them to the greatest detail. From a conversation between me and my friend Roberts, I understood that he already has prepared a detailed account of its founder—its assertions—and its deceit. And from the means he has in his possession, I conclude that he will be able to give an account of their tricks in the most perfect manner that is possible.

I am confident that the work will come out very soon, in order to forestall the spread of these deceitful sorcerers still in Wales; and the country in general will be completely prepared to give a welcome reception to this effort for their benefit from the research of my industrious friend.

Yours truly,
Rhymney, October 7, 1847

I. GLAN ALED

[Since this is how things are, we must be content with the plan; but we take this opportunity to call attention of our readers to the booklet of our friend Roberts from Blaenau. No doubt the account of the lunatics called “Saints” will be entertaining to our philosophical readers as an intellectual curiosity, which will enable them to see to what extremes of stupidity and superstition man can go. Some of our Correspondents have written to us about more of the history of the “Saints” in the WITNESS, but we shall wait until the Mr. Roberts’s book comes out, and then you will be content. Brother Roberts, make haste! otherwise, the “Saints” will die before we see their portraits.]

Apostolic Witness, December 1847, p. 268

https://journals.library.wales/view/2167865/2168332/11#?xywh=70%2C1843%2C1929%2C1722

To Mr. Daniel Jones, Minister of the Baptists, Felinfoel

ALLOW me to direct the following observations and questions, through the medium of the WITNESS, to the attention of the above respected gentleman, lest they fall to the ground; and I sincerely beseech his views concerning them in a sober and scriptural way: and I have not the slightest fear, but what he will, as a tried and tested old minister, do them justice and fairness. They are not questions to satisfy the curious, rather questions which arose often to the attention of the churches of the saints throughout various parts of Wales. By now it is known to the public, that the followers of the wicked, frenzied, hypocritical, and lying wretch Jo Smith, are like shooting stars traveling up and down throughout Wales; and to the surprise of every man in his right mind who possesses a little of the fear of God in his heart, they succeed here and there in winning some weak-headed men to believe them. To be sure, man will believe every bit of fiddle-faddle and foolishness more easily than he will believe the truth: but their foolishness everywhere will come into view, and their heresies and their organizations will fall without delay into eternal shame and oblivion. They are sinking very easily in this place. One woman went to them from Caersalem, and two people from Hebron; and a bunch from the sprinklers: But I have no interest in the latter; consequently, I shall direct my question to the former. And here they are. As noted, the “Satanists” will very soon come to an end, with the result that we shall see some coming back to ask for their places in our churches, and the occasional tender-hearted, good and forgiving brother wishing to extend mercy to them, and they pout and confess their foolishness, that they had been deceived, etc. Now, let us consider their sins before asking the question.

1. Here is a person of age and reason coming of his own will and choice before the Church of God.
2. Here is the same person being questioned, tested, etc., and there he is obeying by choice the form of sound doctrine, by receiving his baptism: for in the ordinance we are baptizing to something as well as to the water; that is, to Christ, or to the Christian doctrine.
3. Here is the same person after that, joining with the “Satanists,” professing their assertions, believing, I say, in the most infernal nonsense and lies that have ever been proclaimed by these fools and blind men.
4. We have a warning from the apostles in 2 Peter 1:3, Titus 3:10 and other places to warn them.
5. These are the most ungodly, lying, and impudent men of all, namely those who were once members, going round sea and land to assert the biggest lies in an effort to deceive the unlearned and the unstable; they call the heavens as a witness, that they sometimes see devils and other times angels; yes, they increase in presumption, and they call God as a witness that they see and converse with the Lord in person, and that they receive direct and immediate instructions from him; with a range of similar and frightening things, known to all who read their books, or hear them.
6. The question is, Does the Church of God have something special or unique, or is it possible on the basis of the Bible, to receive these persons back into the unity and communion of the saints and the family of God? By asking this, I am not setting a limit to, or on a Saint of Israel, or doubting the virtue of the blood of Christ. That is not the question. But have the men under scrutiny sold every human trust, and damned every religious principle, so that the church below can have nothing to do with them?

I am your well wisher,
W. R. DAVIES
Dowlais

Apostolic Witness, January 1848, pp. 18–19

https://journals.library.wales/view/2167865/2168358/14#?xywh=93%2C1138%2C1002%2C1572

TO MR. WILLIAM R. DAVIES

DEAR AND UNPRETENTIOUS BROTHER,

As you have honored me in the WITNESS with a few inquiries regarding the deceitful people who call themselves Latter-day Saints, I consider myself obligated to give you my thinking, in a brotherly and humble way, about them and their sorcery which is damaging to those who are weak and unfamiliar with the holy word. I am certain, that it is for the benefit of the immortals, that you and others in Merthyr and Dowlais are compelled to strive to show the evil results of the Mormon system; I wish success to the people of the Lord everywhere, in revealing the above new and horrifying chicanery so effectively that the monoglot reader sees quickly and easily, its deadly trend. I never have wished, nor do I now, to put an obstacle on the path of men, to enjoy their own views about the word of God, and to worship, according to the manner that may appear to them the most consistent with Divine revelation; let me not blame them in any manner, since they, no more than I and my brethren, do not claim infallibility, or pretend to be perfect in any way. But when I see presumptuous and shameless men rising up to claim a new light has shone on them from the Western world, through Joe Smith, equating his deceitful booklet with the Word of the living God; I believe that all Christians should speak, and write if they can, in favor of the sufficiency of the Bible itself, to teach everything that pertains to our lives in this world, and also everything that pertains to our eternal safety in the world to come. I have no fear in the least measure, to proclaim if I could to the hearing of all creation, down, down with the Book of Mormon—may the organization of Joe Smith come to an end—may all who were charmed to embrace it and cultivate it flee from its false witness, from Western Carthage, to the works of Wales, etc., and may the Book of God receive supremacy from every class, throughout the kingdoms of the world, as absolutely the only book to worship from entirely. (2 Tim. 3:16, 17.]

There would not be any call on the children of God, to take any more notice of the Saints, or the followers of Joe Smith, than they would of some other club or society, if they were not imitating several religious things to charm the unwatchful people to them, and having got them inside their palisade they teach them to proclaim the certainty of their salvation and to criticize all who stand outside; yes, there will be idiotic little men, physically bragging that they have obtained thorough knowledge that they are heirs of heaven; and at the same time showing fruits too obvious for anyone to mistake their kind, that they are complete strangers to the Christian disposition, which the New Testament shows characterizes the children of God. I would not relate these things, were it not for the arrogant and prideful boasting, and the prejudiced spirit, and the blasphemies they throw at those who were and are ministers of the New Testament; they claim they have not been sent to the great work (the truth is that they have not been sent by Joe Smith, or by anyone from Merthyr Tydfil; otherwise, there would be cause for them to fear, namely for their lives). So, where is the proof of all these atrocious assertions? Let the intelligent compare the lives of some who have left the world, as well as those of some who are alive today, with the followers of Joe Smith, and after that, judge which are more like Jesus Christ and his apostles, in innocence, truthfulness, honesty and other virtues, for the benefit and well-being of mankind. Then it will become clear to him, that the false prophet and his followers, are babbling and unholy fanatics. For their miracles, and their strange tongues, and their different offices, about which they boast, they are all nothing but false and lying claims, worthy of every other false and deplorable opinion, such as that of the Roman order, etc. Could we not name many madmen as well as madwomen, pretending to work miracles, in England and other parts of the world, when they wanted to raise up a new party as Joe has done.

Pray, is the arrogance of these people not very clear even to a very superficial reader, speaking of miracles in this age? We know that it is a miracle of the blessed God which saves every sinner, and he can, through his infinite power, turn the thoughts of these deluded people to the truth, and to his Son Jesus Christ. We pray for him to see fit to turn them soon, lest they become worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived. As for miracles after the apostolic age through his messengers to be seen in sick people, etc.; we have no account of it, nor either that real people claim or expect those things. But their effort was, and still is, for the people to accept the clear witness of Jesus, as it is manifest in his own simple Word; and they have prayed, and will yet pray for the invisible hand of the Holy Ghost working with their sermons, and their advice. In this manner have the energetic Moravians done, and continue to do today, for the benefit of men, as well as the Baptists, the London Mission, under the supervision of the council of godly men from among the Independents, and the great Mission of the Wesleyans; the Episcopal Church of England which also sends useful missionaries among the Pagans, and the Calvinistic Methodists with their missionaries at work to show Jesus as the Savior of lost souls; each one of the foregoing Missionaries has the same beneficent purpose, and not one of them presumes to work visible miracles on the lame, the blind, etc., or cast out devils: no, they all preach the word, and counsel, relying on the work of the Holy Ghost to bring them success in every country. I know of no one who claims perceptible miracles, except for the Muslims, the Catholics, and some madmen who have failed to advance their deceit for more than a very little while; and among the above poetasters and flotsam and jetsam behold Joe the hard-hearted, cruel, and deceitful wretch who claims miracles—forsooth! And several in Wales are swallowing the deceit!!

We have only to always continue forward with the same Biblical doctrine, the same ordinances, and the same effort to live worthy of the gospel of Christ, to put an end to Joe’s deceit and his muddled and venomous book. There is nothing that can harm us in any way; but let us strive to renew in spirit our mind through the power of God, to stand against the beguiling sorcery taught by the followers of Joe. Let us take comfort; Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and eternally, and as a consequence his holy word is also the same. Joe’s system will come down, by the weight of its own corruption, and Zion will sing at the fall of this dagon; may every child of God pray for that time.

With respect to your question, brother, as to what to do with the man or the woman who has received baptism according to the New Testament, before going to the seductive deceivers, naming themselves erroneously as Saints, they no doubt qualify for the name which you and many others have given them, namely S-t-n-t, [Satanists] or opponents, obstructers, etc. My earnest and determined thought is, with respect to receiving them back, is that we ought to recognize the difference between some and others; if the man was an agitator in the church, and disgruntled because of a desire to be allowed to preach or become a deacon, despite his lack of qualifications for the one or the other, and became a SAINT, to wreak vengeance as he supposed against the church, and having failed again to get the world under his feet, and the government in his own hand, etc., it is best that we keep him from the church, and leave it without our judging him with respect to his condition, but turning him over to the JUST JUDGE, who we know will judge the man fairly in the matter. I do not say that he cannot be saved, but he cannot give nor receive comfort among the children of God here, for a bit of the slime of the family of Joe remains on him, more than likely for the duration of his earthly life. As for one who was enticed to them by his wife or her husband, after having the excuse of a transgression in the church and being excluded from communion, and went to the S-t-n-ts in tribulation, what I think is that there is a difference between the two to be carefully considered by the church of God.

Regarding those who had not been baptized prior to joining with them, and then leaving them and returning to the church of Christ, there is no need to doubt, if their profession of faith and their life are satisfactory, whether they should, without hesitation, be baptized in the strict sense of the word, for the thing they received under the name of baptism, is nothing more than a vile forgery. Worse in my opinion than children immersing each other in the summer while playing; their imitation of baptism was a useless illusion to satisfy the conscience.

Yours, dear brother,
DANIEL JONES

Apostolic Witness, January 1848, p. 21–22

https://journals.library.wales/view/2167865/2168358/15#?xywh=2061%2C759%2C1202%2C1886

Lecture on Mormonism

Dear Editor,

I cannot keep from sending to you an account of a public meeting held in Ebenezer, Merthyr, the 2^nd of November, 1847, to deliver and listen to a Lecture on the above topic; the friends at the Ebenezer Chapel called for the service of Mr. E. Roberts, Rhymni (Iorwerth Glan Aled), to deliver the said lecture; and our friend kindly agreed to our request. Our purpose at that time was not to collect money by means of such a meeting; rather we were just compelled to do so out of a feeling of pity for the host of our fellow travelers on the way to eternal life, who have been snared by this dreadful heresy, and others who are still in danger of being deceived.

I would not have paid such public attention to such an obvious heresy in Merthyr had it not been for the success and the good that followed the Lectures of our respected brother on the topic in Dowlais several weeks ago. His solid facts—his detailed account—and his irrefutable reasons had the effect of enlightening the people of Dowlais, to the point that some of the Mormons have left the deceitful system, and are now publicly revealing the terrible heresy to their fellow men: and the few Saints, as they are called, who were in Dowlais, have become a laughing-stock by the inhabitants in general. This caused us in Merthyr to give fair play to our fellow men, to hear about Mormonism in detail, from its establishment until the present time. The listeners were permitted to come to the House of Worship free of charge. The meeting was begun with prayer by Brother William Thomas: then Mr. Roberts began his Lecture, which continued for over two hours; and the hearers appeared more eager to listen at the end than at the beginning. We received a detailed account of the founder of Mormonism; his Bible; an account of the activities of his supporters, together with the great deceit that became evident through it all.

After Mr. Roberts delivered these things in Dowlais, someone from the Mormonism wrote what is called a Review of his Lectures: Mr. Roberts held up this offensive patchwork to the attention of the respected congregation before him, with unusual dexterity; showing the weakness of the system, which had no stronger defense to his assertions than did that dull and idiotic booklet; not to mention the weakness of his arguments, which was an insult to the Welsh language it was written in and it was a calumny against the common sense of the Welsh, that such rubbish was directed to their attention. The lecturer showed clearly that this pathetic writer of reviews did not disprove anything in his Lectures, but only by claiming that they were lies; and he did so in such a blackguardly and irrefutable manner, which is so appropriate to show the devilish spirit of those who dare to call themselves “Saints.” And Mr. Roberts said clearly in public, that he would leave entirely to the side the historical facts which he had to prove the deceit of Mormonism, and that he would venture only into the land of the Mormon Bible—proving that it is a bare-faced forgery; that between the two covers of the book he could come up with sufficient proofs which would prove what is called Mormonism to be “the most delusive superstition, and the most shameless religious fanaticism ever offered to the attention of rational beings.” But our opinion is with regard to these parts, that there is no need for our respected lecturer to go to any further trouble with this rabble; that he has already lectured them about every belief, and made them the object of scorn to every thoughtful man.

Roberts has behaved quite kindly and graciously toward these “Saints,” with respect to their persons; he has shown a Christian feeling toward them: but regarding their assertions, it is far too much work for one Mormon physician to heal them from their wounds inflicted in the areas of Merthyr and Dowlais ever again.

Some of us in these areas were of the opinion that the Lectures of our brother should be printed, for a low price, to enable us to disseminate them to the general public; but he has informed us that there is no need for that to take place, since his friend Roberts from Blaenau is bringing his narrative out in a low-priced booklet: we hope that such a book will come out before the “Saints” become totally extinct in this manner; and haste must truly be made, for Iorwerth Glan Aled prefers yet to sing the death chant to them, than for Roberts of Blaenau to publish their history.

Yours, Mr. Editor,
Affectionately,
Dafydd Lewis
Merthyr Tydfil
November 5, 1847

P.S. The Ebenezer chapel was too small to hold the listeners who wished to be present: and in the congregation within the chapel we saw the most respected inhabitants of our Town among all the religious denominations—Calvinists, Wesleyans, Independents, Baptists, and the Church of England, even priests.

Apostolic Witness, February 1848, p. 40

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To Mr. W. R. Davies, Dowlais

SIR—

I saw in the APOSTOLIC WITNESS for December 1847, your question to Mr. D. Jones, Felinfoel, with respect to those persons who were of age and understanding coming of their own free will and choice before the church of God, and obeying the ordinances of Christ according to the New Testament. After that, here are the same persons leaving the faith, and joining with those who call themselves saints, when in fact, as did Jannes and Jambres, who stood against Moses, these men stand against the truth. But here is my question: If one of these men who call themselves saints, without having professed with the Baptists previously, received his baptism from the apostle, and then confesses his foolishness and their deceit, and during his repentance puts himself before the church and is received, would you immerse such a one again? An answer to this question will give satisfaction to many besides

A LOVER OF ORDER.

Apostolic Witness, February 1848, p. 52

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BAPTIZING AN APOSTLE!

Lately, a very laughable happening took place within 100 miles from the town of Machynlleth, in a pool in the river which is known as Forge Pool. Living here are a few of the creatures who are called Satanists; there were more at one time; but, as I understand it, they are here with their destiny, as in every other place, pulling them quickly toward the land of the setting sun; in their midst there is a man, learned and strong in words and works, especially in miracles, whom they call an apostle; and since his occupation is selling pottery, he is called and known by the honorable name Apostle N-d the Pots. A young man came to them to request his baptism, etc., and after the apostle, and the man “who experiences the spirits,” had interviewed him, they understood him to be a true satan; next the few Satanists gathered together, all at midnight at the appointed place; and at the side of the river before going into the water, the apostle prayed long and fervently, for the new brother to be able to receive the Holy Ghost, etc., in his baptism; then the two of them went down into the water, and after reaching the intended depth, the young man proved that he was filled with some spirit, for he wrestled the apostle three times head over heels into the water, and held him down each time until he was more than half drowned! The Satanists ran away, and left the apostle to work miracles; after freeing himself, he ran for his life, and in his fright and in his stupor he went out of the water to the wrong side, and climbed to a steep wooded hill, and made his way through the thorns and thicket; and of everything the Satanists have done from the beginning until this time, this is the thing most similar to a miracle of all: namely to be able to climb such a hill and work his way through such a place. Is it not reasonable to think that the Devil is able to make such a fool of the human creature, and send him to make a mockery of the holy ordinances of heaven? The account is true every word, to the shame of our nation.

Machynlleth

Apostolic Witness, March 1848, pp. 69–70

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Answer to Lover of Order

I consider your question to be an important one, and consequently, I shall endeavor to answer it. In the first place, I direct you to the review of Mr. Daniel Jones, in the Witness for January, page 19; I am of completely the same opinion as he. Every evangelical ordinance is administered according to rules, and in consultation with the church of God, and with worthy and appointed persons; were it not so, they would not be ordinances of Christ. The low, ungodly, and arrogant manner in which the satanic fiends take upon them to administer baptism, as they do with every other thing they have, is frightening.

1. They baptize in the depth of night, without perhaps anyone present except for the one being baptized and the person performing the baptism, and it is not for certain whether there is total immersion or not. To believe two or three of these creatures, is impracticable, because they make a habit of telling the most frightful lies, which are declared by the worst of evil men since the beginning of the world until now, such as seeing good and bad angels, conversing personally with the Lord, etc., etc.
2. They do not customarily use the names of the Godly persons when they baptize; consequently, it cannot be a Christian baptism.
3. They give too much respect to the ordinance, claiming that they go down into the water as sinners; but the moment they are baptized, the rise up perfectly clean, all their sins having been washed away, etc.
4. The Ministers. These are the lowest characters in all knowledge and behavior, having not one sign of common courtesy or morality; yet, they are in possession of sufficient satanic presumption to claim “that the Lord in a straightforward and direct manner has called them to their offices and has authorized them to baptize, etc., etc.
5. I baptized one from them lately, in Caersalem to the Christian faith, who, said he, had been baptized in the middle of the night by a man who all those acquainted with him knew (though at the time was a priest in the Melchizedek order) that he had the same amount of grace in his heart as did Judas Iscariot. In short, their baptism is nothing more than deceit, and the greatest infernal presumption that the heart has ever imagined. Nothing more, at best, than baptizing according to the doctrines of men and devils. No doubt if one of the disciples of Mohammed came to us, and professed his belief in the Christian religion, and by the way, informing us that he had been baptized into the religion of the Koran, we would take no notice of his baptism; thus we should remember that it is to the Mormon Bible the followers of Joe Smith have been baptized; consequently, there is in their baptism not one connection with that of the New Testament. If two or a hundred evil men, in the dead of night, were to take of a piece of bread, and a sip of wine, claiming that they were partaking of the Lord’s supper; no man in his right mind would look on them except as the most presumptuous and ungodly sinners, and he would see no relation between their deed and the holy ordinance of our great Savior. Thus, precisely, with respect to their presumption in pretending to baptize, it is nothing more than infernal mockery and insult to the ordinance of great Jesus. The Welsh have lowered their character more with this nonsense, than they have ever done, at least since the gospel has come into our midst; but what use is idle talk? There are evil men and dregs in every nation, and it remains a matter of honor for us that there is not one Welshman, around here anyway, of any note, education, or morals who has joined with them; so let us have a little bit of patience, and they will all have disappeared. If this will suffice for the inquirer, here it is.

I understand that the Satanists, according to their practices, as children of their father, are spreading up and down the country that one of the Deacons of Caersalem has just joined with them; I wish to notify my fellow nation, that every word of this is untrue, without one trace of truth in it; no one but one woman from Caersalem went to them from the beginning until now, and none from Elim.

Dowlais
W. R. Davies

Apostolic Witness, April 1848, pp. 96–97

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Deceit of Mormonism

Lecture delivered by E. Roberts, Peniel, Rhymni (Iorwerth Glan Aled)

Our friend Roberts delivered the above lecture in various places, to large crowds, with a great reception; he was earnestly encouraged frequently to put the fruit of his labor before the public by means of the press; finally, he agreed and the lecture was published by Mr. D. Jones, Printer, Merthyr Tydfil. I think the publisher should have done a better job, but the author is not responsible for that. Iorwerth did his part very well; he did a considerable amount of research on the history of the Saints, as they are called, and he put the result before us in a compact, clear and very powerful manner.

The primary objective of the lecture under scrutiny is to give an account of the remarkable and superstitious proceedings and actions of the Mormons. Here we have the history of Joe Smith, the Book of Mormon, etc. True that the history of Joe is not a bit more important to us than the account of Twm Sion Catti, or Tirpyn the thief, but for Joe to proclaim himself a prophet of the Most High, and for some of the poor Welsh to get persuaded to believe in him, it is a thing of importance for them to know his history. It is true that Mohammed worked himself into prominence by claiming that he was a prophet of the Lord, and by bringing countries under his authority; but there is no danger for the prophetic authority of Joe to reach any further than destroying some of the dregs of the people; but that is too much.

Human nature is very inclined to accept deceit, especially in sorcery and fake miracles. A religion to bring man to his senses, and sanctify him through the influence and teaching of the truth is too simple a thing for him to accept; some strange, supernatural things are always sought—something to put aside the gospel because it is grating on their ears; therefore, every lunatic who says he is someone great from the days of Simon Magus and Elymas the Charmer to the days of Joe Smith, succeeds in enticing people to follow him. But the splendid lecture of Mr. Roberts is an excellent means of keeping the Saints from progressing further, by deceiving and being deceived, and making their foolishness obvious to all. Mr. Roberts ends his lecture with an observation or two on the Mormon miracles, which are worked (?) continually in the church; not publicly like the miracles in the Bible. They say to someone who is sick, if he joins them, he will be healed; and thus they occasionally seduce an innocent person into the fellowship, and then abandon him after everything in his illness.

We would advise any of our readers who wish to know the history of this rabble to purchase the lecture of Mr. R. The name of the lecturer, together with the high approval he received from such a number of people in several places, is sufficient praise for it.

Apostolic Witness, June 1848, pp. 138–40

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Baptism for the Dead

It is amazing the extremes to which children of men run in their views of natural and religious matters; but of all the crazy and superstitious idiots who ever came to the world, let alone to Wales, in all of their beliefs the followers of Joe Smith excel on everyone and everything. Martha of the Mountain in Arfon, and Mary of the white cloak in Meirion, as well as every other wicked man or woman that we could put in the same category, were no more than children compared to this crowd these are the dregs who have brought the greatest shame on the lineage of Gomer from the time we came to Wild Wales until now. Two of them live near me; they fearlessly and shamelessly claim that they have received the Holy Spirit under the hands of the elders in a miraculous way; but to which part of their bodies do you think the Holy Spirit came? To their bellies: and they claim that they still feel it today, and the best description that they can give of its effectiveness is that it warms them and heats them like gin. But one of the pair says that it recently moved from the pit of his stomach to up under his arm, but that he continues to be always warm there. Although it’s so difficult for every man in his senses to believe the above lying, sinful and bold madness, yet it’s as true that they claim it as that the sun has risen.

Another quite exceptional thing about them is that they “baptize on behalf of the dead.” They say that the hosts who have died without having the opportunity of Joe Smith’s gospel or the Mormon Bible are in some middle state between heaven and hell, (similar to the Pope’s Purgatory). They are too good to be cast into hell and not good enough to have the happiness above because they were not baptized; and to make up for this shortcoming they baptize each other on behalf of these dead. A young man who had been here some months returned to them, he was baptized. They performed a miracle, he himself told the secretary, on or in his ear, not by restoring his hearing which is not required, but some pain or strange stabbing struck his ear, and he ran as fast as he could to the Satanists, one of the rabble put his hand on it and it was cured in a moment. Soon after this, he and a crowd of his brothers came to his mother-in-law who has been a Baptist for many years; they said that Daniel must be baptized; the woman was surprised and asked, What purpose would that serve? The answer she got, to her worry, was that it was for his father-in-law, that is her husband, who had recently died and had spent most of his time as a chosen and earnest member with the Baptists; and he died intent on the sacrifice of the cross. When the widow heard this blasphemy her eyes filled with tears and she became agitated, and she took hold of the poker swearing that she would beat them with it unless they left her house in a moment; they ran out into the middle of the road with her after them. This is baptism on behalf of the dead according to the Satanic mind.

I saw another madness just as bad as this in my opinion, in the Revivalist for last March, page 97, by some Catholic I should think, who calls himself, “W.G., Llanharn.” In connection with the story of a mother, etc., some “woman who hailed from the loins of various notaries;” although she did not give herself to religion, says Mr. W. G., the poor woman died on the birth of her first-born; then added the writer, namely W.G., “Her son was baptized on the lid of her coffin on the day of her funeral by the writer.” Now the question is, whether it is Daniel who intended to be baptized for his father-in-law who is in his grave, or the aforementioned W.G., who is the greatest fool? Let the wise judge. And wasn’t the discipline of the poker as necessary for one as the other? Or we’ll take a little more time and we’ll tell this W.G. that John didn’t baptize on the lids of coffins; and we’ll show before his eyes that it was in the Jordan or in some water that all the baptized were buried together in the time of Christ and the apostles. We shall leave the foolish, disgusting and papist scoundrel here.

BAPTISM AGAIN

An amazingly Satanic family lived in D——s, which contained, so they say, all true saints; and amongst them was a young lad who was courting a responsible draper’s maid, and they decided to marry; and as they were both saints, and the draper had enough goods whilst they had nothing “and that the earth and its fullness belongs to the Lord,” they judged that it was fair for them to have their share and so it was; but the saints secret came out into the open, they were caught and they were imprisoned for a long time; now they severely threaten anyone who mentions that they did wrong saying that they suffered the punishment of the law in a proper way, and that they have been baptized a second time (one three times) to wash away their sins before God.

I recently received letters from different people asking about the fact that their preachers all over the country say that they are very successful and responsible men in Dowlais, &c. And they refer me to the filthy pamphlet for last March published for them by the Rev. J. Jones, Rhydybont, the author of explanations and catechisms, etc. for the Independents. After quite some trouble I had a look at it and as I read it I couldn’t help but feel serious and solemn that one Gomeric writer or writers could be so shameless in loving and telling a lie, yes, they are blatant and obvious lies. I call the reader’s most serious attention to the Dowlais story: the filthy and untrue booklet in question says “that the increase in the congregation of saints in Dowlais was so great that the Saints’ have become too small and they had to move to another place,” etc. Everyone here knows a better truth, Mr. Evan Davies turned them out of their old room as soon as he could after he took over the house; and the only reason, he said, was that no serious men, yes, even their best friends, would come to the house because such low and poor characters in every meaning of the word were welcomed there. They asked for a room in another inn nearby; but that man, to his honor, said that there was no sum of money which would cause him to let such low, foolish and characterless scoundrels into his house. And if there is anyone who doubts the above facts, let him ask Mr. Evan Davies, Dowlais Inn., etc., etc.

“Nine have been baptized here (Dowlais) since the beginning of January; one of these was the right hand man to the Rev. W.R. Davies; he was the secretary in his meeting place; one of the trustees, “etc. Old Satan, the father of all the Satanists, could not tell such hellish lies. Remember this—we expelled a man some time ago; he went to them and he is the man in whom the Holy Spirit moved from his belly to his armpit, and I think that he can fly almost as well as he can write; I know from enquiring after seeing the above lies, that he cannot keep any sort of accounts, poor thing, except by scribbling something for himself alone; that he never held one post, nor has he been a trustee. They can just as truly say that he keeps all the Dowlais accounts, and that he is the owner of the works there—the one would be as true as the other.

Yet, “another two of Mr. Davies’ members were baptized after him, and several before that, although Mr. Davies claims that only one old woman went from him to the Saints.” Pooh, pooh, why isn’t it said that they baptized scores, and amidst them the owner of the Dowlais works who is a member of parliament; claiming this would be just as rue. Again, I announce that one old woman went from Caersalem and one woman from Elim; that is the wife of the man in whom the Holy Spirit moved from his belly to his armpit. But I could name women near me who are now bruised and wounded by their husbands, if it is suitable to call them such, because they refused to join the Satanists which make up “the gentlemanly congregation.” It would be easy to name them, but for what purpose?

Now, Mr. Editor, I wish you to put these things before the public so that your reader will see what sort of belief is to be given to their testimony. It is doubtless that lies fill all their stories before they would dare to pour out such a store of lies in the tale about Dowlais. In a word, there is not as much as a single man amongst them; and they are nothing but topics of mockery to the irreligious, and objects of pity to all those who fear God. But the greatest surprise of all is that the godly and respectable priests of the nonconformists and their fellow nation did not lead the spies when they were here to the idiots in question; this is where they could have found honey and fat to blaspheme the Welsh, heard people claim to their faces that the Holy Spirit was warm in their bellies, others that it was under their armpits, others that they had seen and spoken with Christ, angels, etc., etc. These are good things to fill the blue books to blacken and disgrace the Welsh.

I wish you well and am your compatriot,
W. R. DAVIES
Dowlais

Apostolic Witness, May 1849, p. 117

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QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

1. What difference in meaning is there between satan and devil?
2. Why does the Apostolic Witness use the name Satanists for the people called “Latter-day Saints”?
3. Is it proper in the Witness to call “this Sect” sorcerers, gypsies, fortune tellers, and other bad names?
4. What is there in the “Saints” which makes them so formidable and to raise the hackles of the Witness?
5. Formerly in Israel contempt for a servant was forbidden by reminding the nation of its own captivity in Egypt. Does not the same principle call on the religious sect which is defended and represented by the Witness, to remember the persecution, and the scorn, and the imprisonment that they had to endure, in the thick darkness of the times; to refrain out of compassion, in this enlightened age, from persecuting anyone because of their religion?
6. Is the Witness not in danger, because of the extent of its circulation, of influencing the feeble-minded through disrespectful examples like this, making them more prejudiced, blasphemous and inclined to persecute nonconformist religious denominations; and to fall short of the rule which says, “Love the brotherhood,” “Respect everyone.” “Judge not, that ye be not judged.”

Witness, please answer.

Tychicus

[Our correspondent must be satisfied with a general comment on his questions, for we hardly think there is need to go into detail about them one by one. Our intention was not to say a word about the folk who call themselves “Saints” in the Witness, but our Correspondents have insisted on some discussion of them to our considerable displeasure, and no doubt some have called them “Satanists,” etc. Christ call their better “Satan,” and he called one similar to them a “devil,” and we have not heard that he corrupted anyone’s morals by so doing.

If our Correspondent thinks that the Witness is persecuting the “Saints,” he must until now be uninformed as to what constitutes persecution. To persecute is to preach baptism according to some; according to others it is to expose some deceit and evil; but according to our opinion, one cannot say that telling the truth about men is ever persecution; but human nature often gets angrier at the one who exposes the evil, than at the perpetrator. But we would not take Llangollen and its wealth for writing the devilish and abhorrent words they use to portray the spiritual gifts they receive. They are a disgrace even to Satan himself. They ought to be exposed as religious deceivers, but they should not be persecuted, that is, to deprive them of their freedom. They should not be considered Christians, and they do not consider anyone else as such. The Bible is not their guide, rather the Book of Mormon and the dreams they have continually. There is a great desire in the world to depose the Bible. Traditions, miracles, and the clergy is what Rome and its descendants have; fake philosophical whims are what the wise men of this world have; and miracles and revelations is what Joe Smith and his people have; but all the children of the devil join together to depose the Bible. The first who was sent to disrespect baptism was the “Quick,” but the counsel of Ahitophel ended up as foolishness; but the Devil remembered that the “Cap.” was a lump of the same dough, and some have already turned aside after Satan.]

Apostolic Witness, June 1849, p. 145

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Hebron, Dowlais.

April 22, after hearing our brother, W. R. Davies, preaching from Mal. 3:14 and 1 John 5:3, we watched Brother John Jones, the minister of the place, as he immersed nine persons in the baptismal font of Hebron. The chapel was overflowing with sincere and respectable listeners, and judging from their comportment, we think they will hold fast to the things they heard and saw. One of the baptized had been blinded and ensnared some time ago by the followers of Joe Smith, and had been baptized to those loathsome and devilish doctrines; but we believe that such a baptism was nothing more than the play of children, or an impudent joke of the things of God; in our view it was nothing but sinful frivolousness. This is the second to be baptized here lately from this deluded household.

Apostolic Witness, August 1849, p. 192

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The Socinians and the Mormons in Dowlais and Merthyr

Here are the two groups that are causing the biggest noise and bombast in these places these days. It is a small number that belongs to these two groups, but great is their commotion. It is the Mormon dregs who hold their meetings on the streets, in order to get some people to listen to their nonsense: thus, the number of listeners of the Socinians has declined although they have a chapel, and despite their efforts to get some people to listen to them. The stratagem these use is to send for the most renowned preachers they have from everywhere throughout Wales and England, and print large handbills, and plaster them on the walls, doors, etc.; and they announce that so and so will be preaching on this topic or the other, at this time or that, etc. The above things are undeniable signs that the two groups have dwindled in these places to the point that they are beneath notice. The Socinians are generally considered to be wise as men who are able to debate well, when in fact they are not: proof of this—it is the men around Merthyr, Dowlais, Llanbydder, etc., who are most ready to believe and bow to the Mormon Doctrine. But what wonder, is it not natural for the heretics to run from one extreme to the other?

Merthyrun

Apostolic Witness, October 1850, p. 244

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Trivia

Mesmerism

One sees by the Times and the Caernarvon Herald, that “Jones Llangollen,” as he is called, has annoyed the Independents because of his Mesmerism and his Clairvoyance, etc. Although we do not have a better view of the present craft of Mr. Jones, than we have of the old craft of “Dick Spot,” or “Pig of the Stream,” (old, notable sorcerers, yet we judge this well-known soothsayer to be mistaken in one point—he should turn Clairvoyance to proving the sprinkling of infants, then all the brethren would shout hooray). He would be canonized a saint, and proclaimed the wisest man on the face of the whole earth! but he has become worse that Simon the Sorcerer. Pity that Mr. Jones does not understand the color of the water better. But good Homer nods sometimes.