Elder D. Spencer and Associates Guided to Success in Obtaining Supplies

In 1855, while organizing emigration at Mormon Grove in the Kansas Territory, Elders Erastus Snow, C. A. Harper, and D. Spencer were tasked with the responsibility of obtaining the necessary livestock and provisions for the Saints. As recounted by Spencer in the Millennial Star, the group frequently encountered a divine influence that smoothed their path and ensured their success. Spencer noted that in almost every instance where they applied to the local settlers for supplies, they discovered that 'something had preceded us' to prepare the minds of the people, which allowed them to acquire the goods they needed on terms they desired. Spencer explicitly compared this experience to the Lord’s hand in leading the children of Israel out of Egyptian bondage, expressing his conviction that the same divine care was being extended to assist the Saints in America. He concluded that he would long remember this manifestation of the Lord’s kindness in answering their prayers and granting them success in their mission.

Fuller account of this event (in the witness’s own words):

On our application for what we wanted of the people, we all found that we were not alone in the matter. Something had preceded us, and prepared their minds to supply us with what we wanted, and that too upon pretty much such terms as we desired. Such was the case in almost every instance where we made application for anything to forward the emigration. I often thought of the care which brought out of bondage the children of Israel who were in Egypt, and verily thought the same was used in bringing out of bondage the Saints who were in America; and I trust I shall, as well as many more, long remember the kindness of the Lord in answering our prayers and giving us success on this mission.