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Show 199 on the summit, and President Dame began to gather them up and build an altar. Apparently overcome by the grandeur of the moment, the men commenced singing the Mormon hymn "For the Strength of the Hills We Bless Thee," as they stood around the altar of stones. The words of this hymn seem to have been written for this exact moment. Indeed, they had only recently been published in the Deseret News in January and were meant to reflect the Mormon feeling that Utah was a sanctuary from the enemies of Zion. Perhaps one of the three men had cut it out of the newspaper and brought it with him to the desert. The hymn is quoted in full as originally published: For the strength of the hills we bless Thee I Our God, our Fathers' God Thou hast made Thy children mighty By the touch of the mountain's sod. Thou hast fixed our ark of refuge, Where the spoilers foot ne'er trod. For the strength of the hills we bless Thee, Our God, our fathers' God. We are watchers of a beacon Whose light must never die. We are guardians of an altar Midst the silence of the sky. The rocks yield founts of courage Struck forth as by a rod. For the strength of the hills we bless Thee, Our God, our fathers' God. |