“With the sanction of David Whitmer, and by his authority, I now state that he does not say that Joseph Smith ever translated in his presence by aid of Urim and Thummim, but by means of one dark colored, opaque stone called a ‘Seer Stone,’ which was placed in the crown of a hat, into which Joseph would put his face, so as to exclude the external light.”

J.L. Traughber, Jr., The Saints’ Herald, Vol. 26, No. 22 – 15 November 1879 installment (Mandeville, MO: The Saints’ Herald, 13 October 1879), 341.