Thursday, July 20, 1837 – Arrival in England

Willard Richard's Journal (volume 1), 1836 December-1840 April, page 29–30

20 awoke this morning in the| utmost horror. It appeared to me| that evil spirits or devils had fastened| on every muscle of my body, punishing| it so severely as completely to stop| the circulation of the fluids & Satan| himself held me so close by the| throat that I was gasping for the| last time. Doubtless it would have| gratified the prince of the power of| the air if he could have strangled| me. But the Lord suffered him| not. I had long desired that I| [pg. 30] might be the first (next to the| Twelve) to set my feet on a foreign| shore to carry the fullness of the everlasting| Gospel, to the honest in heart. we| anchored in the Mersey1 & took to the small| boat & hauled to the shore. Elder [Heber C.] Kimball| first landed, next Elder [Orson] Hyde, myself &| [John Edward] Goodson2. Yes we were the first| who landed from the Garrick after| a prosperous voyage of 20 days| from N. York [New York], & we sought the first| opportunity to unite our hearts in thanks| to our Heavenly Father for his protection.
203 This morning I awoke in a| most tremendous struggle to| extricate myself from the| powers of darkness

1 The Mersey is a river in northwest England that flows into Liverpool Bay. Liverpool served as a key port for Latter-day Saint missionary efforts, being the arrival point for many missionaries traveling from America.
2 John Edward Goodson (1808–1892) was an early member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) and served as a missionary in England. Born in Clerkenwell, London, England, he was baptized into the LDS Church and later participated in missionary efforts in England during the late 1830s. He was among the group of missionaries, including Heber C. Kimball, Orson Hyde, and Willard Richards, who arrived in Liverpool in July 1837 to preach the gospel.
3 The beginning of the entry is restated in paraphased manner next to a number 20, signifying July 20 1837. Perhaps Richards forgot he had already made a entry for this date and started over then realized he had already written this account earlier.
Editoralized and Formatted Entry

Awoke this morning in the utmost horror. It appeared to me that evil spirits or devils had fastened on every muscle of my body, punishing it so severely as to completely stop the circulation of the fluids, and Satan himself held me so close by the throat that I was gasping for the last time. Doubtless, it would have gratified the prince of the power of the air if he could have strangled me. But the Lord suffered him not.

I had long desired that I might be the first (next to the Twelve) to set my feet on a foreign shore to carry the fullness of the everlasting Gospel to the honest in heart. We anchored in the Mersey, took to the small boat, and hauled to the shore. Elder Heber C. Kimball first landed, next Elder Orson Hyde, and John Edward Goodson. Yes, we were the first who landed from the Garrick after a prosperous voyage of 20 days from New York, and we sought the first opportunity to unite our hearts in thanks to our Heavenly Father for His protection.

This morning I awoke in a most tremendous struggle to extricate myself from the powers of darkness

Images (full size)

Source: Willard Richards journals and papers, 1821-1854; Journals; Journal (volume 1), 1836 December-1840 April; Church History Library, https://catalog.churchofjesuschrist.org/assets/53d252e7-a5a9-4e9e-b22b-ac6e1d12ea3d/0/28

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