In the history of religion in the United States, surely no story is more astounding than that of the Mormons, or, as they style themselves, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Their chronicle has a Biblical ring, for it contains not only a revelation and a martyred prophet but also a pilgrimage through a wilderness and a discovery, after long sufferings, of a promised land. It starts with a few disciples, then a few score; today it reckons its numbers close to two millions, many of them beyond the seas, with fresh converts added daily. Yet all this is the work of barely a century and a third —as if the whole Old Testament could be crowded into the span of but four or five begats, and Moses were the contemporary of Abraham Lincoln, Ralph Waldo Emerson, and Mark Twain.

The story has its beginnings in upstate New York near the town of Palmyra, in a time of deep religious ferment. It is told here by Carl Canner, historian and poet, who is a member of the Council of the Society of American Historians and also of the Advisory Board of AMERICAN HERITAGE. In such works as The Hudson, Listen for a Lonesome Drum, and Dark Trees to the Wind, he has demonstrated his special attainments as an authority on tlie history and folklore of his native state. For some time now, Mr. Carmer has been engaged in research and preparation for a much-needed objective history of the Mormons. He is a “Gentile” in their terms, that is, not a Mormon, but he has been able to augment his researches through the assistance of Mormon authorities and scholars; he has pursued his studies at the Church House in Salt Lake City, at the University of Utah, and at other Mormon sources.

This series, which begins here with the story of Joseph Smith, will coutume in later issues with accounts of his violent death, of Brigham Young’s trek to the shores of the Great Still Lake, and of the establishment in Utah of the Mormon Zion. Mr. Carmer’s completed manuscript, as yet untitled, will eventually be published by Doubleday. —The Editors

Just after midnight had ended ilie twenty-first day of September in the year 1827, tall, twenty-oneyear-old Joseph Smith entered the room where his mother lay and asked her if she had a (liest with a lock and key. Years later Lucy Smith recounted what happened after she heard the question. She “knew in an instant what he wanted it for, and not having one, was greatly alarmed.” Joseph comforted her, saying, “Never mind. I can do very well for the present without it—be calm—all is right.”

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