Fast and Young

The Fredonia Justice of Peace was a very interesting man, Joseph Brooksby. He had a ranch on the strip where he had raised sheep for years. He had some mountain grazing land up in Utah. Joseph Brooksby was also the Kanab Stake Patriarch. I really loved working with Joe as my judge.

Most days Joe was away from home so his wife Herma would handle my tickets when I sent violators in to see the judge. She did a great job. She was a Pratt and grew up in Fredonia.

One morning as I was leaving home and approaching the Highway 89 I saw a car heading South at a pretty fast pace. I followed the car to the Johnson Wash about 5 miles then realized he was going 85 miles per hour so I stopped him. The driver got out and walked back to meet me.

He was a very distinguished looking older man. I asked him for his drivers license and he gave it to me. He was Seymore Dilworth Young of Salt Lake City, Utah. I recognized him as a member of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles in the Church of JESUS CHRIST of Latter-day Saints. I advised him that he was driving too fast and particularly thru town. His reply was, "Those women in the back seat were talking fast so I was driving fast to keep up with their pace."

I wrote him a ticket and had him go back to see the judge. I felt sure that Herma would recognize who he was and not fine him. He was going to a Stake Conference in Mesa and his wife accompanied by the Welfare Representative and his wife. I told him I was a member of the church so he said, "Brother Johnston if you think I drive fast you ought to follow President David O. Mckay or Apostle Delbert Stapley sometime."

He thanked me for making him aware of his speed very graciously and sincere.

I went back to see the judge later and I asked Herma what she had done to S. Dilworth Young when he came in. She said who and I said who and I said Apostle Young. She hadn't recognized him because, like me, he never uses his first name so she had made him pay a $25 fine. She felt terrible about it that she hadn't recognized him as an aspostle of her church.

Later in 1958 while I was working out of Yuma we had a stake conference and S. Dilworth Young was the visiting authority from Salt Lake. He recognized me in the congregation and came back and talked to me. He assured me that he was still watching his speed all the time.

Then later in 1964 at a Grand Junction, Colorado Stake Conference S. Dilworth Young was our visiting general authority. This was a much larger crowd than the one in Yuma was but before the meeting started he walked back to where I was seated and addressed me as Brother Johnston and again thanked me for that time I stopped him for speeding near Fredonia, Arizona. We had a good visit that last time I saw him.