Holmes County Republican. [volume] (Millersburg, Holmes County, Ohio) 1856-1865, 1859-09-01

| Il. G.-What is the largest number ol
wives belonging to one man.
| B. VI have fifteen; / know no one
who has more; but some of those sealed to
me are old ladies, whom l regard rather
as mothers than wives, but whom l have
taken home to cherish an! support.
H. G.-Does not the Apostle say tha,
a bishop should be the "husbaud of one
wife!'
B. Y.-So we hold. We do not regard
any but married man as fitted to the of.
fee of bishop. But the Apostle does for,
bid bishop having more than one wife.
| H. G.-Does not Crist say that he who
puts away his wife, or marries one whom
another puts away, commits adultery2
B. Yes: and l hold that no man
should put away wife, except for adultery
not always even for that. Such is my
individual view of the matter. l do moi
say that wi: es have never been put away
in our Church, but that l do not approve
of the practice.
H. Glow do you regard what is
commonly termed the Christian Sabbath
B. Y.-As r divine!y appointed day Of
rest. We enjoin all to rest from secular
labor on that day. We would have no
man enslaved to the Sabbath, but we en-
join all to respect and enjoy it.
Such is, as nearly ss can recollect, the
substance of nearly two hours conversation,
wherein much was SAID incidentally that
would not be worth reporting, upon if
could remember and produce it, and where.
in others bore part; but, as President
Young is the first minister of the Mormon
Church, and bore the principle part in the
conversation, have reported his answers
alone to my qu 5tions and obserrations.-
The others appeared uniformly to defer to
his views, and to acquiesce fully in bis re-
sponses and explanations
He spoke readily, not always with gra-
matical accuraty, but with no appearance
of hesitation or reserve, and with no ap-
parent desire 10 conceal anything, nor did
be repel any of my questions as imperti-
nent. He was very plainly dressed in thin
summer clothing, and with no air of sancti-
mony or fanaticism. In appearance, he is
portIy, frank, good natured, rather thick
ret man of fifty-ive, seeming to enjoy life,
and be i'll no particular hurry to get to
heaven. His associates are plain men, ev-
idently born and reared to life of labor,
and looking as little like crafty hypocrites
or swindlers as any body of men l ever
met. The absence of cant or shuttle from
their manner was marked and general, yet,
think l may fairly say that their Nor
monism has not impoverished them-that
they were generally poor men when they
embraced it, and are now in very comfort
| able circumstances as men averaging
three to four wives apiece certainly need
to-be.
If hazard any criticisms on Mormon
ism generally, reserve them for sepa-
rate letter, intending to make this fair
and full exposure of the doctrine and poll
ty, in the very words of its Prophet SO far
as | can recall them. l do not believe
President Young himself could present
them in terms calculated to render them
less obnoxious to the Gentle world, than
the above. But | have right to add here,
because | said it to the assembled chiefs
at the close of the above colloquy, that the
degradation for, if you please, the restric-
tion) of Woman 10 the single office of child
bearing and Its accessories, is an inevitable
consequence of the system here paramount.
l have not observed sign in the stree.s,
an advertisement in the journals Of this
Mormon metropolis, whereby woman pro-
poses to do anything whatever. No Nor
mon has ever cited to me his wife's or any
woman's opinion on any subject; no Nor
mon woman has been introduced or has
spoken to me; and, though 1 have been
asked TO visit Mormons in their houses, no
one has spoken TO his wife Tor wives) de-
string TO see me, or his desiring me to
make her Tor their) ac9 aaintauce, or volus-
tarily indicated the existence of such being
or beings. l will not attempt to report
our talk on this subject, because, unlike
what l have given above, it assumed some
what the character of dispu,ation, and l
could hardly give it imparlially; but one
remark made BY President Young | think
l can give accurately, and it may serve as
a sample of all that was offered on that
side. 1t was in these words, l think, ex-
actly: "If I did not consider myself com
petent to transact certain business with
out taking my wife's or any woman's coun-
sci with regard to it, l think ought to let
that business alone" The spirit with re-
gard to woman, of the entire Norman, as
of all polygamic systems, is fairly display
ed in this avowal. Let any such system
become established and prevalent, and Wo-
men will be confined to the harem, and
her appearance on the streets with unveil-
ed face will be accounted immodest.
Ijoyfully trust that the genius of the Nine
teenth Century tends to solution of the
problem of Women's sphere and destiny
radically different from this. H. G.
A Glorious Thing.