Joseph speaks out against the apostates and recounts his many trials and persecutions. "I should be like a fish out of water, if I were out of persecutions. Perhaps my brethren think it requires all this to keep me humble. The Lord has constituted me so curiously that I glory in persecution. . . . When facts are proved, truth and innocence will prevail at last." Joseph then counterpoints each charge and each apostate—Mr. Simpson, Dr. Foster, Chauncey Higbee, William Law, Joseph Jackson, and Wilson Law. Joseph concludes, "I am the same man, and as innocent as I was fourteen years ago. . . . As I grow older, my heart grows tenderer for you. I am at all times willing to give up everything that is wrong, for I wish this people to have a virtuous leader."
[Conkling, Christopher J., Joseph Smith Chronology]
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