The Sun.
London, England, 1870-04-18 00:00:00

MORMON AFFAIRS.

Brigham Young and his party, consisting of his
favourite wife, Amelia, a counsellor, and a dozen
elders, had arijved at St. George, the most southern
settlement and telegraph station of the Mormons,
and about 300 miles from Salt Lake City. There
is said to be a belt of country 300 miles still fur-
ther south, well watered, though in the dry regions
of Arizona, and large enough for a State, known
only to the Mormons and the Indians ; and, in
view of an emergency, it is confidently asserted at
Salt Lake that Brigham is on the road critically to
inspect that land. The importance attached to his
movement may be judged from the fact that for the
first time in the history of Mormonism in Utah the
April Conference, which annually commemorates the
anniversary of the Church, was postponed for it. On
March 26 a great meeting of merchants and pro-
fessional men was held in the Masonic Hall of Salt
Lake City, touching a memorial to the U.S. Senate,
praying for the expurgation of those sections of
Mr. Cullom's Bill, which punished by fine and im-
prisonment the continuance of the patiiarchal fa-
mily relations. Several of the speakers argued
that a liberal policy towards the offenders of the
past would benefit the country, arresting polygamy
in the future, and a number of Gentiles were ap-
pointed to draw up the memorial to be telegraphed
to the President of the Senate. The interest is
represented as being intense, and it is asserted that
if the Senate pass the House bill in its present
shape, the Territory of Utah will become " a deso-
lation." It is not easy to gather from the conflict-
ing statements a just notion of what the Mormons
will do ; but we find in the letter of a very intelli-
gent Gentile correspondent of the New York Tribune
many of what appear to us, unprejudiced remarks,
written from the new Jerusalem, which throw some
light on the subject. He considers Brigham to be
a fanatic, believing in himself and the mission of
his people, which is to cover the earth as the waters
cover the sea. If they have to fly before their
enemies, it will be because of their unfaithfulness;
but the Lord is on their side, and will prove too
much both for Congress and the Executive. Brig-
ham will not change ; though he sees that his people
do change under contact with the world, and he
has sworn that he will never submit to outside
dictation in polygamy, or in whatever he deems
religion. A portion of his people think his thoughts,
and do his will. The able-bodied mennumber 16,000,
of whom one-eighth are polygamists beyond the law.
The straitest of the sect who would follow Brig-
ham to a more isolated Sion in case the Cullom law
we re enforced would be about these two thousand,
with theirwives and children ; and with them would
terminate the iron reign of terror which Brigham
has maintained in the mountains for twenty years.
The correspondent hopes for the passage and en-
forcement of the Cullom Bill, divested of its
har6her features, as he anticipates nothing more
than the flight to Arizona of that fanatical band,
which, like an incubus, has rested on Utah. Whe-
ther the correspondent be right or wrong, there
are many who strongly dissent from his conclusion;
believing that if the bill be passed and enforced, d, it
will lead to a desolating war. The non-arrival of
last Saturday's mail interrupted our report of the
debate in the House on the Polygamy Bill. Mr.
Axtell would vote against it as unnecessarily
harsh, a declaration of war, and as such
industrious
community. to destroy a prosperous and
community. General Schenck, while desiring to
break up the corrupt criminal state of things in
tit ah,did not consider the bill calculated for that ob-
ject ; its provisions violated every principle of common
law ; one of its sections even provoking war ; and
he moved to recommit the bill Mr. Cullom op-
posed recommitment, while willing to have it
amended, and the 11th section struck out.. Re-
commitment was rejected by 89 to 75. An amend-
ment, offered by Mr. Fitch, was also rejected by
114 to 43, and the bill was passed with the 11111,
30th, 31st, and 32d sections struck out by 94 to 32.

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