John Kune's escape from robbers through truthfulness
Published October 5, 2026 at 5:49 AM
Contributed by
Millennial Star Research
John Kune, a man in Poland, was waylaid in a wood by a band of robbers who demanded his money. He handed over his purse, gold chain, and ring. However, he then remembered his fear of having lied or omitted parts of his belongings, and feeling that his conscience was troubled, he offered the robbers the rest of his gold pieces. The robbers, struck by his integrity and compelled by an internal influence to not steal, returned all his property, helped him remount his horse, and asked for his blessing.
Fuller account of this event (as retold in The Latter-day Saints' Millennial Star, 5 September 1881 (Vol. 43, No. 36)):
John Kune, a man in Poland, was waylaid in a wood by a band of robbers who demanded his money. He handed over his purse, gold chain, and ring. However, he then remembered his fear of having lied or omitted parts of his belongings, and feeling that his conscience was troubled, he offered the robbers the rest of his gold pieces. The robbers, struck by his integrity and compelled by an internal influence to not steal, returned all his property, helped him remount his horse, and asked for his blessing.
In Their Own Words
“One night, while riding through a dark wood, he suddenly found himself at the mercy of a band of robbers who demanded his money and other valuable articles about his person. He handed them all, dismounted, and handed them a purse filled with silver coins, a gold chain from his neck, and a ring from his finger, and a prayer book... But his conscience began to trouble him, for he knew that he did not tell them the whole truth, and he had no rest... to his great surprise not one of the robbers would take them. A very strange feeling was at work in them. Thou shalt not steal! said a voice within... Then, as if moved by a common impulse, they handed him his purse, another his ring, another his book of prayer, and another led up his horse and assisted him to remount. Then all the robbers, as if ashamed of intending to harm so good a man, went up and asked his blessing, which he gave with a devout feeling, and then rode on his way, thanking God for such a strange escape. — Millennial Star 43:36”
Sources & References
The Latter-day Saints' Millennial Star (Manchester, later Liverpool, England, May 1840–1970), 5 September 1881 (Vol. 43, No. 36). https://archive.org/details/per_utah-and-the-mormons_the-latter-day-saints-millennial-star_1881-09-05_43_36 (account extracted verbatim from the issue's Internet Archive OCR text; research confidence: high) Fuller account: The Latter-day Saints' Millennial Star, 5 September 1881 (Vol. 43, No. 36) https://archive.org/details/per_utah-and-the-mormons_the-latter-day-saints-millennial-star_1881-09-05_43_36
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