On 3 July 1840, the met to reconsider a memorial from JS requesting that he be relieved from his active involvement in the ’s temporal affairs, especially those related to land sales in Nauvoo, Illinois. At its 20 June meeting, the high council passed resolutions aimed at granting JS’s request, but JS vetoed the council’s decisions. Although the high council passed additional resolutions at this 3 July meeting, the decisions were essentially the same as those made on 20 June. The 3 July minutes do not specify if JS attended, but it is probable he was there to ensure that the high council addressed his concerns in a way that met his approbation.

As clerk pro tem of the meeting, took the minutes. At some point after 14 February 1842 and likely before the end of that year, Stout recorded the minutes into the high council record book.