In a notebook he kept of 1841 meetings, made notes of a discourse JS gave at a meeting of the lyceum in , Illinois. McIntire left this entry in his notebook undated, introducing it simply by writing “Next Meeting.” Lyceum meetings appear to have been held every Tuesday in 1841; because the text of this discourse is found in the eighth entry in McIntire’s notebook, JS likely delivered it at the lyceum meeting of 23 February, the eighth Tuesday in 1841. The meeting opened with the recently appointed Nauvoo city marshal, , expounding on the authenticity of the Book of Mormon. He was followed by , a trustee of the , who spoke on education. Lyceum attendees then heard a speech on charity, followed by a discourse by on manners. It is unclear which, if any, of these presentations prompted JS’s remarks on loyalty featured here, but McIntire recorded these remarks after noting Miller’s address.
This dating assumes a weekly meeting beginning on Tuesday, 5 January 1841. For more on the dating issues in McIntire’s notebook, see Historical Introduction to Discourse, ca. 2 Feb. 1841.