Page:The House of the Lord.djvu/149

Rh Then followed the solemn and sacred shout: "Hosanna! Hosanna! Hosanna! To God and the Lamb! Amen! Amen! and Amen!" This was repeated a second and a third time; and in conclusion the President said: "So let it be, thou Lord Almighty."

The somber clouds of persecution were gathering and thickening about the devoted people. Under counsel from their leaders the people prepared once again to leave their homes; and this time they resolved to go beyond the boundaries of civilization. A general exodus was imminent; and as early as February, 1846, this had begun. Most of the Saints, however, remained for a short time; and with these the completion of the Temple was the main purpose and object of life. Though they knew the sacred edifice would soon be abandoned, they labored diligently to complete it, even to the smallest detail.

By October, 1845, the building was so well advanced that large assemblies therein were possible. The general autumnal conference of the Church for that year was held within the walls ; and the congregation present on October 5th numbered fully five thousand souls. During December, 1845, and the early months of 1846, many of the Saints received their blessings and endowments in the Temple, for which purpose parts of the structure had been duly consecrated; but not until the end of April was the building as a whole ready for dedication.

The Nauvoo Temple was constructed for the most part of a close-grained, light-gray limestone, a material at once hard and durable, yet easily tooled, and therefore readily adapted to ornamental finish. The entire building was one hundred and twenty-eight feet by eighty-eight