In the meanwhile, I heard from Joe Smith himself how God had selected
him to obtain and be the keeper of the divine bible; and the reader will
form his own idea of Joe Smith by the narrative. The day appointed was
the 22nd of September, and Joe told me that on that day--
"He arose early in the morning, took a one-horse waggon of some one that
had stayed overnight at his house, and, accompanied by his wife,
repaired to the hill which contained the book. He left his wife in the
waggon by the road, and went alone to the hill, a distance of thirty or
forty rods. He then took the book out of the ground, hid it in a tree
top, and returned home. The next day he went to work for some time in
the town of Macedon, but about ten days afterwards, it having been
suggested that some one had got his book, his wife gave him notice of
it; upon which, hiring a horse, he returned home in the afternoon,
stayed just time enough to drink a cup of tea, went in search of his
book, found it safe, took off his frock, wrapt it round his treasure,
put it under his arm, and ran all the way home, a distance of about two
miles. He said he should think that, being written on plates of gold, if
weighed sixty pounds, but, at all events, was sure it was not less than
forty. On his return he was attacked by two men in the woods, knocked
them both down, made his escape, and arrived safe at home with
his burden.
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