In September, 1878, he was visited by Elders Orson Pratt and Joseph F. David Whitmer was not aware of this commandment, or had forgotten it, and without doubt, believed that the printer's copy was the original. The original was never in the hands of the printer. The original manuscript was in this manner carefully guarded, and the copy struck off by Oliver Cowdery was used in the printing of the Book of Mormon. All these things were strictly attended to, as the Lord commanded Joseph. Soon after this, Joseph secured the copyright and before he returned to Pennsylvania, where he had left his wife, he received a commandment, which was in substance as follows:įirst, that Oliver Cowdery should transcribe the whole manuscript Second, that he should take but one copy at a time to the office, so that if one copy should get destroyed, there would still be a copy remaining Third, that in going to and from the office, he should always have a guard to attend him, for the purpose of protecting the manuscript Fourth, that a guard should be kept constantly on the watch, both night and day, about the house, to protect the manuscript from malicious persons, who would infest the house for the purpose of destroying the manuscript. An account of this is given in Lucy Smith's history of the Prophet, (ERA edition), pages 142-3, as follows: The manuscript which the "Reorganites" for some time have been designating as the original is but the printer's copy which Oliver Cowdery, shortly before his death, gave into the hands of David Whitmer, his fellow witness.Īfter the plates were translated, the Prophet received a commandment from the Lord that the entire manuscript should be copied, that the copy should go to the printer, and the original manuscript should not be permitted to go out of his hands. This is said merely to correct misrepresentation, and not with the spirit of controversy. Smith), nor in a vault in Independence, Mo. ![]() ![]() It is quite true that the original manuscript of the Book of Mormon is not in its entirety in the possession of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints it is equally as true that it is not in the custody of the "Reorganized" church, nor in the keeping of the secretary of their presidency (F. ![]() The manuscript of the Book of Mormon is in the custody of the presidency, and at the present time is in the hands of the secretary of the presidency, and is in a vault at Independence. The following from the Saints' Herald of April 24, 1907, is an excerpt from the minutes of the "Reorganite" conference:Ī question was presented by one individual who stated that he had been told that the original manuscript of the Book of Mormon was in the possession of the Utah Church. The Original Manuscript of the Book of Mormon.
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