All of the golden plate “witnesses” save his two brothers, Samuel and Hyrum, had either died or left the church. Oliver Cowdery had carried off one copy of the manuscript when he apostatized, leaving the other as the only tangible reminder of the book’s origin. This manuscript Joseph decided to bury in the cornerstone of the Nauvoo House, along with a few other relics, and interrupted the ceremony of laying the stone in order to bring the manuscript from his home. Ebenezer Robinson was shocked to hear him say as he flipped through the pages to make sure it was complete: “I have had trouble
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