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Show Page 105 to be discussed in detail. Along with Orson came Parley and Orson Hyde, Wilford Woodruff, and Orson Spencer. Perhaps significantly, Sarah did not accompany her husband on this first introduction to the mysteries 9 of the endowment, whereas most of the other wives were present. A few weeks later, Orson Pratt received his "second anointing," an ordinance which apparently involved confirmation of the blessings promised in the endow- 10 ment, at the home of Brigham Young. These culminating rituals were soon to be generally practiced among the Latter-day Saints, as the temple grew to completion. During this period of doctrinal and temporal expansion for the Mormon Church, Joseph Smith had suffered continually what he deemed harassment on the part of Missouri officials who had made attempts to force him to answer charges - among them, complicity in the attempted murder of former Governor Lilburn Boggs, the executive of the infamous "extermination order." The crime was generally attributed to Joseph's friend and body guard, Orrin Porter Rockwell, but Joseph himself had, on occasion, gone into forced hiding to avoid ruffians from across the river bent on kidnapping him. In December 1843 Joseph was angry enough to appeal directly to Congress for redress - he intended once and for all to test the hand of the federal government with a two-fold petition: he demanded punishment for the officials of Jackson and Clay Counties, who had committed outrages on the Saints; and an end to the vexatious prosecutions against him conducted by Missouri judges. By this time he had been tried and acquitted three times in Illinois courts under writs of habeas corpus on the charge of shooting Boggs. The Prophet committed delivery of this memorial to Congress to Orson Pratt, who left Nauvoo as an "agent of the city" sometime in Marbh 1844. They would not see each other again. Whatever doubts Joseph may have had about Orson Pra€* they certainly did not extend to Orson's reliability |