Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1858-03-25

vidual Geutiles complained of bad treatment;
some of the Government officials in the Ter
ritory also complained; but formal obedi-
ence was kept up. The emigrant trains to
California passed through Utah, as a general
rule, undisturbed. But recently matters
have changed. The effort upon the part of
our Government to put Governor Cumming
in authority has been resisted by force, and
we appear to be on the eve of war with
the Mormons A portion of the army, with
Governor Cumming, are in the mountains of
Utah, waiting for reinforcements with which
to begin their march; and put the question
to the arbitrament of the sword. This is
sad spectacle in a Republic, and demands
our serious consideration.
The question is before us now, what shall
we do with the Mormons? Wemust decide
upon it; we cannot postpone it if we would.
Fortunately, it is question with which moth
ing of sectionalism miugles The laws of
Utah, it is true, recognise and provide for
slavery, but there are no slaves there. Utah
while it is technically slave community, is
actually free community. The President
of the United States has simply undertaken
to perform his duty in seeing chat the laws
are executed in Utah. He has no power to
institute policy, though he may suggest
one; he can only enforce the laws as they
exist 1t is for Congress to determine the
policy to be pursued in reference to these
people. Whatever that policy may be, L
have no doubt the President will carry it out,
as far as it depends upon him, and is posi-
| BILE.
War, even witha foreign nation, isl grave
matter; not to be gone into inconsiderately.
But domestic war, upon a portion of our
own people, even if they be fanatics, mad
men, fools, rebels, traitors, is matter of far
graver Importance. The genius of our Gov
ernment in its internal relations, is peace
1t is presumed that the laws will enforce
themselves that the people will submit to
the laws. Though force is not excluded from
our system, yet it is considered sad alter
native, only to be resorted to in the last ex-
tremity. Such condition of affairs as ex-
lists in Utah was, I apprehend, never consid-
cred as possible by the trainers of the Con-
stitution. That whole people should rise
in arms and defy the central Government in
the exercise of its undoubted authority,
without even a plausible pretext, never en-
tered into their minds. They had no con-
ceptiou that an American Mohammed would
rise up in the United States in the middle of
the nineteenth century and promulgate a
new dispensatioD, made up of Christianity
and Oriental sensuality, which should Iasci-
nate multtudes, and establish distinct ma
tionality in the bosom of the Rocky Noun
tains The condition of Utah, then, is one
which, while it has no precedent in our his
tory, will, l trust, for the sake of humanity,
have no imitation.
Before we undertake to determine what we
should do in reference to the Mormons, it is
necessary that we should understand precise
ly what we wish to accomplish, the benefit
to be attained, or the evil to be averted.-
Utah is settled almost exclusively by Nor
mons; there is scarcely handful of Gen.
tiles-as those are called who do not adopt
their faith-there. So far as good govern
mept, order and obedience to law is concern
ed in Utah among the Mormons it is a mat
ter of very small Importance to us, except
from the general desire we have that even
the Mormons should prosper. But as that
region of country is not now wanted for set
tlement by our citizens generally other than
Mormons, and is not likely to be wanted for
an indefinite period, We would have no spe-
cial motive to exert our power to restore or
der, so far as the interests of the inhabitants
of that region may be concerned. If, there
fore, Utah, instead of being in the centre Of
the continent, on the highway of our emigra-
ton to the Pacific, were in some other por-
tion of our dominion not traversed by emi-
grants, we might feel under no necessity to
concern ourselves about their proceedings,
no more than we do about remote tribes of
Indians. But the local position of Utah,
the fact that our great emigration trains to
the Pacific coastmust necessarily pass through
Utah, or make considerable detour to the
north or to the south, invests the condition
of affairs in Utah with great practical i'm
portance to us. So far as the people Of
Utah are concerned, we might, without loss
to ourselves, abandon them to their own an.
archy or madness. The only practical as.
pect of the case of immediate interest is the
necessity We are under of preserving undis
turbed our communications through the mid
die route to our Pacific possessions. Itseems
to me that this is the extent of our present
practical interest in the question. If al
Utah we're to transform itself into Pande
monium, it would not materially affect us
provided our communications were left un
disturbed. While we should, of course, de-
sire to see order in Utah, yet no degree O.
disorder would at all disturb us, except il
the single matter of having our communica
tions disturbed. This is, think, fairly
stating the extent of the present practical in
terests we have in the Utah question; it il
to continue the central route, open and undis
turbed to the Pacific.
There are two modes of solving the Nor
mon question--frst, by peaceful means
second, by force. There can be no doub
that the first mode is infinitely the best, if i