upon which the same shall have been taken, shall have gone out of the possession of the Council.

"21st. No motion, or proposition, shall be received as an amendment which shall be a substitute for the proposition before the Council; but nothing shall be considered a substitute which shall have relation to the subject matter under consideration.

"22d. When the yeas and nays are called, every member shall vote, unless specially excused; and in voting by yeas and nays, the Counsellors shall be called first, the Aldermen next, and the Mayor last.

23d. When a motion is made and seconded, it shall be reduced to writing, and shall be first read aloud before any order be taken thereon; but the question, Will the Council now consider it,' shall not be put, unless called for by a member, or is deemed necessary by the Mayor and on motions to amend, the question of consideration shall in no case be put.

"24th. Any motion may be withdrawn or modified by the mover, at any time before a final decision or amendment.

"25th. When a question is under debate, no motion shall be received but to adjourn, to lie on the table, for the previous question, to postpone indefinitely, to postpone to a day certain, to commit, or to amend; which several motions shall have precedence in the order they stand arranged. A motion to strike out the enacting words of a bill, shall have precedence of a motion to amend, and, if carried, shall be considered a rejection. And a motion to refer to a Standing Committee, shall have precedence of one to refer to a Select Committee. A motion to adjourn shall always be in order; that, and a motion to lie on the table, shall be taken without debate. "26th. The previous question shall be in this form, 'Shall the main question be now put?' It shall only be admitted when demanded by a majority of the members present; until it is decided, shall preclude all amendment and further debate of the main question, and upon said question there shall be no debate.

"27th. Any member may call for the division of a question where the sense will admit of it, but a question to strike out and insert shall be indivisible.

"28th. When a question is carried in the affirmative by yeas and nays, any member may enter on the journal his reasons for dissenting.

"29th. It shall not be in order to introduce a bill, unless by way of report from committee, or leave be previously asked and obtained. "30th. Every bill or resolution requiring the signature of the Mayor and Recorder, shall receive three several readings previous to its passage.

"31st. The first reading of a bill shall be for information, and if opposition be made to it, the question shall be, Shall this bill be rejected? If no opposition be made shall go to the second reading without a question, when it shall be open for discussion and amendment, or such order as the Council may think proper to take, except the question on the passage thereof, which can only be taken, on the day of the introduction of the bill, by the consent of two thirds of the members present.

"32nd. Before any bill or resolution requiring the signature of the Mayor and Recorder, shall be read a third time, the question shall be put, Shall this bill be read a third time?' and if a majority of the members present shall not vote in the affirmative, the same shall be declared to be rejected.

"33rd. On the third reading of a bill, the question shall be on its passage, but it may be committed at any time previous to its

passage.

"34th. When a blank is to be filled, and different sums or dates are proposed, the question shall be first taken on the highest sum or longest date, and thence downwards.

35th. The Council may at any time suspend any of its rules by a majority of three fourths of the members present.

"36th. After the arrival of the hour to which the Council may stand adjourned, no member who may have appeared, shall absent himself without leave of those present, or of the Council when formed.

"OF COMMITTEES.

"37th. All Standing and Select Committees shall be appointed by the Mayor, unless otherwise directed, and the first named member shall be the Chairman. The following Standing Committees shall be appointed, to wit:

A Committee of Ways and Means, to consist of one member from each ward, to whom shall be referred all subjects of taxation and

revenue.

A Committee of Improvement, to consist of one member from each ward, to whom shall be referred all subjects relative to repairs and opening of roads and streets, and other subjects of a similar nature.

A Committee of Claims, to consist of three members, to whom shall be referred all matters of claims against the city, and applications for remission of penalties.

A Committee of Unfinished Business, to consist of two members, who shall examine the journal of the preceding Council, and report such business as may have remained unfinished.

A Committee of Elections, to consist of three members.

A Committee of Police, to consist of one member from each ward, who are empowered to call upon any officer of the Corporation, for any information, report, paper or other matter relative to the police.

A Committee of Municipal Laws, to consist of five members, to whom shall be referred all bills for ordinances presented to the Council.

A Committee of Public Grounds, to consist of one member from each ward.

A Committee of Public Works, to consist of three members.

"OF AMENDMENT TO RULES.

"38th. All motions for amendment of the rules, shall be submitted one month previous to a final determination thereof, unless three fourths of the members present shall assent that it shall be finally acted on the day on which it is submitted.

"OF BALLOTING.

"39th. In balloting for committees, a plurality of votes shall be sufficient to make a choice, but in other cases a majority of the whole number of votes shall be required to decide.

"All of which is respectfully submitted.

"JOHN C. BENNETT, Mayor.

"The above communication was read by the Recorder to the City Council, on the 22d January, 1842, and referred to a Select Committee, consisting of Joseph Smith and Orson Pratt, the Committee reported back the Communication and recommended its adoption, which was carried."

Times and Seasons, Vol. III., No. 7, pp. 683–686.

"In regard to the correspondence between Dr. C. V. Dyer and Gen. Bennett, referred to by Gov. Duncan, his statements are foul perversions of truth; the correspondence does not show either myself or Gen. Bennett to be abolitionists, but the friends of equal rights and privileges to all men." —Times and Seasons, Vol. III., No. 15, p. 808.

From Sidney Rigdon, Esq., Attorney at Law, to Major-Gen. James Arlington Bennet, LL. D., of Arlington House, L. I.

"POST-OFFICE, NAUVOO, Illinois, April 23, 1842.

66 Sir, "A letter has appeared in the New York Herald, giving a description of certain individuals in this city. I take the liberty of addressing this letter to you, that I may answer my part and show my opinion. The subject of this address is General J. C. Bennett. General Bennett is five feet five inches high, one hundred and forty-two pounds' weight, and thirty-seven years of age. He is at once Major-General in the Nauvoo Legion, Quarter-Master-General of the State, Mayor of the City of Nauvoo, and Master in Chancery for the County of Hancock. He is a Physician of great celebrity, and a successful practitioner; of great versatility of talent; of refined education, and accomplished manners; discharges the duties of his respective offices with honor to himself, and credit to the people. He possesses much decision of character; honorable in his intercourse with his fellows, and a most agreeable companion; possessing much vivacity and animation of spirit, and every way qualified to be a useful citizen, in this or any other city.

"You will be so good as to permit General Bennett to withdraw his name from the Church record, if he desires to do so, and this with the best of feelings towards you and General Bennett. "JOSEPH SMITH."

"In accordance with the above I have permitted General Bennett to withdraw his membership from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, this 17th day of May, 1842; the best of feelings subsisting between all parties. JAMES SLOAN,

"General Church Clerk and Recorder.

"CITY OF NAU voo, May 17, 1842.

"The above is a true copy from the original.

ORSON PRATT."

After my withdrawal from the Church, the Prophet and his minions withdrew from me the hand of fellowship, and ANTE-DATED the MORMON BULL OF EXCOMMUNICATION, and presented it to Professor Orson Pratt, A. M., one of the twelve Mormon Apostles, for his signature, some days after I showed him my official withdrawal, and Mr. Pratt REFUSED to sign it stating as his reason THAT HE KNEW NOTHING AGAINST ME. This BULL was signed by the Mormon Hierarchy, who forged the names of Lyman Wight, who was then in Tennessee; William Smith, who was in Pennsylvania; and John E. Page, who was in Pittsburgh!-These are three of the Mormon Apostles.

Prentice and Weissinger, the able editors of the Louisville Journal, in their paper of July 23, 1842, in speaking on this subject, say,

"Here Gen. Bennett publishes a copy of a highly honorable dismission from the Mormon Church, given him by the general church clerk and recorder, at Bennett's own request, and in accordance with Joe Smith's written instructions. Subsequently to this withdrawal and honorable dismission of Gen. B., Joe Smith, in anticipation of an attempt on the part of the General to expose his villanies, undertook to blast Bennett's character, and destroy his credibility, by publishing a pretended copy of a withdrawal of the fellowship of the Church from him, giving this withdrawal of fellowship a date prior to that of the honorable dismission, and appending to it the names of men, who, at the date of the document, were more than a thousand miles off. This fraud and forgery, on the part of the Prophet, is rendered so perfectly palpable, that even he himself cannot pretend to deny it.'

New Election of Mayor and Vice-Mayor of the City of Nauvoo, on the Resignation of General Bennett.

"On the 17th instant, General John C. Bennett resigned the office of Mayor of the City of Nauvoo, and on the 19th, General Joseph Smith, the former Vice-Mayor, was duly elected to fill the

vacancy; and on the same day, General Hyrum Smith was elected Vice-Mayor in place of General Joseph Smith, elected Mayor.

"The following vote of thanks was then unanimously voted to the Ex-Mayor, General Bennett, by the City Council, to wit: Resolved by the City Council of the City of Nauvoo, that this Council tender a vote of thanks to General John C. Bennett, for his great zeal in having good and wholesome laws adopted for the government of this city, and for the faithful discharge of his duty while Mayor of the same. JOSEPH SMITH, Mayor.

"Passed May 19, 1842.
"JAMES SLOAN, Recorder."

From "The (Nauvoo) Wasp," of May 21, 1842, Vol. I., No. 6.

It will be seen by the foregoing documents, that I was in perfectly good odor with the saints and their rulers, in the Holy City, up to the time of my withdrawal from the Church, and even afterwards. So it appears, from the Prophet's own showing, that the Lord was remarkably well pleased with his servant John C. Bennett so long as he was an advocate of the Mormon creed; but when he came out on the pretended man of God, the Lord's Anointed Old White Hat Prophet, Joe contended that he always knew Bennett was a scoundrel. It appears, therefore, that either the Lord, or Joe, was mistaken. Which do you think it was, Christian reader?

I will now conclude by giving my Patriarchal Blessing, from the Holy Hyrum Smith, the Patriarch of the whole Mormon Church, and Heir-Apparent to the THRone.

A Blessing pronounced on the Head of J. C. Bennett, son of J. and N. Bennett, born in the Town of Fair Haven, Bristol County, Massachusetts, August 3, A. D. 1804, by Hyrum Smith, Patriarch of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, September 21, 1840.

"John C. Bennett- I lay my hands upon your head in the name of Jesus Christ, and inasmuch as thou art a son of Abraham, I bless you with the holy priesthood, with all its graces, and gifts, and with wisdom in all the mysteries of God. Thou shalt have knowledge given thee, and shalt understand the keys by which all mysteries shall be unlocked. Thou shalt have great power among the children of men, and shalt have influence among the great and the noble, even to prevail on many, and bring them to the knowledge of the truth. Thou shalt prevail over thy enemies; and shalt know when thou hast gained power over them, and in this thine heart shall rejoice. Many souls shall believe, because of the proclamation