Why Not Investigate?

WHY NOT INVESTIGATE?

From the Deseret News.

Not long since a gentleman who takes an interest in the discovery of relics of the ancient races of America, was passing through this city. The theory and narrative of the Book of Mormon were explained to him by a believer in its authenticity. The harmony be­tween the numerous discoveries of ancient relics made on this continent during the last half century and the statements of the book, seemed to strike him with considerable force. He said he was almost wholly devoid of any religious sentiment, and judged matters solely from the standpoint of human reason. There was one pecu­liarity of the subject brought before his notice for which he confessed he was unable to account. While it could not but be admitted that the discoveries corroborated the state­ments of the Book of Mormon, neither Joseph Smith nor any other man, he said, in substance, could know of the existence of the bulk of the relics by any ordinary means at the time of the publication of the record, for the rea­son that they had not at that time been discovered. The same admis­sion would be made by any fair-minded person giving the subject even but a casual investigation, while a more thorough search would confirm it.

Probably no book that was ever given to the world has been treated with more unqualified unfairness than the Book of Mormon. It has simply been repudiated—except by the Lat­ter-day Saints— without investigation. Instead of efforts being made to de­termine whether or not it is authentic, the aim has been to find some plau­sible theory upon which to base its repudiation. Numbers of them have been advanced, but have one by one fallen by the way, that which was deemed by far the most feasible—the Spaulding Manuscript—having been effectually dissipated by the discovery of the veritable story written by the Rev. gentleman who bore that name, the original being now in the archives of Oberlin (Ohio) College, as a literary curiosity.

Considering the status of the sub­ject, would it not, in the light of so much interest being taken in discoveries of what are termed prehistoric relics of the ancient races of America, be in order for some scientific body in pursuit of knowledge to undertake the task of ascertaining whether the Book of Mormon is or is not substan­tiated by the developments being made in that line? Such an investigation would be of great scientific as well as religious value. If it were to be demonstrated, after an impartial scru­tiny in that direction, that there was an absence of corroboration, those who are anxious to disabuse the minds of believers in the authenticity of the book would have strong ground upon which to base their assumption, which as it stands is baseless. On the other hand, if it were found that these dis­coveries and developments which are causing so much interest, among peo­ple belonging to a certain line of scientific circles, substantiated the statements contained in the record, the latter could be made a valuable acquisition in reaching still greater discoveries, as it would act as a key to open up new wonders to the world.

If this fair and intelligent method of reaching a just conclusion upon a prominent subject were not unpopu­lar, there can be no doubt that it would be adopted. Il may yet be, however, at some time when men are more just, consistent and liberal; who knows} Whether it is adopted or not, the fact will not keep covered that between the discoveries of ancient land-marks and relics, including the peculiar topography of a large portion of the continent, there is an agree­ment to a marvelous extent with the statement of the book so largely and disdainfully repudiated. Neither is there any preventive against a similar harmony existing between it and developments in a similar line yet in the future. It is not improbable that the cumulative evidence will become so overwhelming, that in order to adhere to the theory of repudiation of the Book of Mormon, the people will be compelled to acknowledge its claims to authenticity, or shut their eyes and ears and shout the oft-repeated cry of “delusion and imposture.”

Speaking in relation to recent dis­coveries in Arizona, the Gazette, pub­lished in that Territory, says:

“There are many wonders in Ari­zona, and one. of the most mysterious is that of the ancient race or races which centuries ago flourished under the same Arizona sky, and at night beheld with admiration the same starry heavens. People who built great cities, cultivating the soil with scientific skill, as is evidenced by their engineering ability plainly shown in the traces of the greatest irrigating canals, visible in the Arizona valleys. Who these people were, from whence tiny came, whither they went, or if destroyed by some great disturbance of nature, pestilence, famine, or the victims of hords of savages which came sweeping down from the north, of which the Apaches are the rem­nants, may never be fully determined. But that a people who had attained a high degree of civilization did inha­bit this region, is settled beyond dis­pute. To discover who they were, their ancestry and history, is becom­ing an interesting problem of the stu­dent of man, and recent developments and discoveries in the ancient city of ‘Los Muertos’ near Phoenix, is ex­citing much interest in scientific cir­cles. It is to be hoped that the mys­terious veil which obscures the his­tory of these ancient races from pre­sent view, may be at least in part re­moved through the labor of American scientists who are devoting their time and treasures in exploring the buried cities of oriental countries and ancient Rome. Let American ethnologists turn their attention to the study of the ancient races, ruins and evidences of civilization in their own land, in­stead of traveling thousands of miles across ocean and desert to make less interesting discoveries.”