April 1, 1847

Elder R. Cowan baptised Margaret Fleming for the remission of her sins. She is the oldest daughter of Bro Wm. Fleming.

4th [April], Sunday afternoon

Sister Margaret Fleming was confirmed under the hands of elders A. Sprowl, R. Cowan, & Pres. Bell & he was the mouth.

11th, Sunday evening

Sis. Elisabeth Eccles was rebaptised by Elder A. Sprowl for the remission of sins. A number of the Saints accompanied us to the water. ‘Twas a pleasant night. We offered p prayer to God in the name of Holy Child that his Spirit might be given to us to attend to this ordinance with an eye to his own glory & that its holy influence may ever be with us to direct us all, even all the Saints, to the end, amen.

18th April, Sunday

The Saints met int heir usual place of meeting to worship the God of Joseph & Hyrum & all the twelve & also of all the Saints of latter days. Pres. Bell opened meeting, made a few remarks encouraging the Saints to faithfulness in the work of God. Elder R. Cowan spoke sometime then Priest Granger. Bro. Bell called upon me at the close of Bro. Granger’s remarks to close; our forenoon services, which was done after stating that I felt to say to the Saints that our meeting together from time to time struck me that we were like so many scholars come to receive a little more education on the great subject of salvation & that as the sons & daughters of the Kings & Nobles of the earth received a liberal education far above many others of their fellows so we being the sons & daughters of God, the King of Kings & Lord of Lords, wold receive an education above, even above the comprehension of the greatest in the earth by becoming the sons & daughters by obedience to his laws & keeping the faith to the end. amen. Afternoon meeting, which being organised by Pres. Bell, we partook of bread & wine in remembrance of the Son of God, Jesus Christ, after which Elisabeth Eccles was confirmed under the hands of Elders P. Bell & R. Cowan & A. Sprowl, Bro Bell calling Bro. A.S. to be the mouth after which the above Elders administered to Sis. Cowan by laying on hands, Bro. Bell administering the oil inwardly & being the mouth. We then laid our hands on a small bottle of olive oil. R. Cowan was the mouth to consecrate it to the use of the Saints & all who will receive it in faith. This oil is Wm. McGreggor’s. After this being done, we administered to Deacon D. Wilkin for the recovery of his eyes & strength to his body. Bro. Cowan was mouth. We then anointed Agness McGreggor, infant daughter of Wm. McGreggor & Ann Hosack, & laid on hands for the recovery of his strength & the removal of a distemper in is head, A. Sprowl mouth. The Saints enjoyed their privileges & so do I too & sung the Seer, the Seer, Joseph the Seer. Meeting at six o’clock. Priest Granger spoke.

25 April 1847

Sunday meeting of the Saints in the usual place. Pres. Bell presided over the meetings through the course of the day.

May 1st, 1847, Saturday

John Nielson & Jannet d[itt]o, his wife & also Jane Jameson who have been attending the meetings of the Saints some weeks past & seeing from the preaching of the Gospel what God required of them to do that they might become members of the Church of Jesus Christ came & expressed their willingness to be baptised which ordinance I administered to them for the remission of sins, 3 candidates.

Sunday, May 2nd, 1847

The Church met as they are wont to do at the usual place & hour. In the afternoon after we had the supper over, we attended to the ordinance of confirmation & laying on hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost. Pres. Bell confirmed John Nielson, E.A. Sprowl [confirmed] Jannet Nielson his wife & E.R. Cowan, Jane Jamieson. After evening meeting E.F. Sprowl & Rubena Sprowl, his wife, wished to get rebaptised which I attended to, also Ann Sprowl & Isabella Sprowl & Elisabeth Sprowl their children I baptised, 3 candidate members into the church.

May 8, 1847

Isabel Sprowl confirmed by F. Sprowl Junr., Elisabeth Ann Sprowl confirmed by John Bell Senr.

June 14th

I baptized Jane Bell, wife of John Bell Junr. a member into the Church, also widow June Inch, Maria Bell, wife of John Bell Senr., Catherine Hamelton & Mary Brown, Sis. Listen, & Elisabeth Eccles I rebaptised for the remission of sins. They were confirmed June 14th by Elders A. Sprowl, F. Sprowl, & John Bell.

Octr. 30,k 1847

I baptised George Taylor and John Wotherspoon for the remission of sins. The former belonged to the Chartists and the latter to the Church of Scotland. These two brethren had some months previous been making very earnest inquiry into our principles. I lent G.T. the Voice of Warning, wrote by P.P. Pratt. I also got another copy of the same work for J.W. They both read it. After this they attended our meetings very regular. Besides this we had many very interesting conversations on the principles of the gospel as taught & written by Jesus and the ancient apostles, contrasting the order of the ordinances practiced, the gifts and blessings enjoyed through which a knowledge of God and his son Jesus was attained to when men was duly authorized by Jehovah to officiate in Holy things. This authority, we showed them, was called Priesthood. Comparing this order with that now in Christendom failed not, along with the Spirit of God, to convince them what steps they should take to become members of the Church of Christ. In answer to inquiry we showed them from scripture that such a work was to come before the end, as Jesus says this Gospel of the Kingdom shall be preached in all the world & then shall the end come, and not until this would the end come, and if the same gospel as Jesus & his apostles taught would be established, the same Priesthood or authority would attend it, hence the necessity of such a man as Brother Joseph Smith being chosen of God to stand at the head of such a dispensation of love & mercy of God to man & not only that such a man as Jos. should be but Joseph was that man & we knew it for ourselves. Many other important things were conversed over until satisfaction was satiated & obedience to the will of the Shepherd found them under the liquid wave to wash away sin.

The night appointed to go to the water was rainy and stormy, and it had been so for a day or two, before. The little burn where we immersed in had grown big by the constant fall of rain, and over the little fall a little above where we stand to administer was roaring like a cataract. Undaunted, we stood on the bank of the stream. Bro. Bell offered up prayer to God, after which I went down into the water and buried George Taylor beneath it in likeness of the burial of Jesus, & raised him out in likeness of his resurrection and in like manner did I with Bro. John Wotherspoon.

31st being Sunday, under the hands of Elders Bell mouth, F. Sprowl and myself was G.T. confirmed, after which we attended to the same ordinance to J.W. Bro. Bell called me to speak or be mouth.

Nov. 9, 1847

I went along with brother James Hannah who like his Lord went down and was rebaptised for a remission of sins. This bro. had been baptised 23rd Sept., 1842. He is husband to Elisabeth Hannah. The same night Robert Moyes was baptised. He had been cut off for disobeying counsel but made acknowledgment, the Sunday before Stewart Hutcheson baptised them, previous to which I offered up prayer.

Nov. 14

Being Sunday, in a meeting of the Saints, Bro. James Hannah was confirmed by Elders J. Bell and F. Sprowl Senr. and Robert Moyes was also confirmed by F. Sprowl and J. Bell.

Feb. 8, 1869

20th Ward, S.L. City

President D.H. Wells:

This is to certify that Andrew Sprowl is a member of the Church in good standing and wishes to have a wife sealed to him and we therefore recommend him to you.

John Sharp, Bishop
Pres. Dunbar & Allan, Councilors

Endowment House, Feb. 9, 1869, Andrew Sprowl took Mary Jane Mathews through the veil. She gave him her name. She then gave her consent to stand proxy for Mary McSporran Sprowl, dead, after which Mary Jane Mathews stood proxy for Mary W. Sporran, when she was sealed to me for eternity, then Mary Jane was sealed to me for time & eternity by D.H. Wells, President.

I feel very much interest in the words spoke by Pres. Wells, so much so that while he was sealing my wife who is dead & repeating her name, Mary McSporran, which is her maiden name, I felt as though she was close by me while I knelt over the altar, Mary Jane Mathews kneeling with me. The feeling of peace & joy which filled the house while Pres. Wells was speaking the words pertaining to the sealing was above anything I have ever felt.

God was there.

A. Sprowl

(End of the Diary of Andrew Sproul, Missionary)