The Montana post. [volume] (Virginia City, Montana Territory [i.e. Mont.]) 1864-1869, 1867-07-06
VIRGINIA CITY, MONTANA

OF the massacre, was thoroughly con-
vinced that the Mormons concocted the
deed and were the main parties in ex-
ecutiHg it. Numbers of Mormons who
had apostatized offered abundance of
evidence if they were assured of mill
tary protection. He took affidavits and
issued warrants for the arrest of thirty
eight Mormons including three Bishops
when orders were received from Wash
ton to withdraw the military and so
ended, tor the time at least, the inves-
tigation. Brigham Young, superinten-
dent of Indian affairs at the time made
no mention of this massacre in his re-
port. The Desert Nc1os made no men
ton of it for several months. The In
dians, aPostate Mormons and the child
rem saved in the massacre; goods found
in the possession of Mormons, known to
have belonged to the emigrants, and
traced back to the day succeeding the
massacre, every evidence of direct or
circumstantial character, fastens upon
the Mormon people the stigma and
guilt OF this dumnable outrage II this
is not sufficient there is this day in pos
session of Judge Titus in Salt Lake city.
Tie original 0T7aer issued by Lieut. Gen.
Welles commanding the Nauvoo Legion
in the handwriting of his Adjt. Gen.
witnesses, and admitted last winter by
the widow OF Spangler to be his hand
writing. ordt7-i.sg tie murder of 0Uer .JoT-
ty tSdH1SterS who had incurred the dis
pleasure of the Mormon dignitaries.
This order is published in report in the
United States Congress last W inter
Ia December of 1862, Governor Hard
ing sent in his message TO the Utah Leg
islature, in which the following passage
occur:
1 lay 1t down as a sound proposition that no
community can happily exist with an InstItu-
tIou so important as that of marriage, want
ing IN all those qualities that make IL homo
geueal with institutions and laws of neigh
boring civilized communities having toe same
object Anomalies In the moral world can
not long exist in state of mere abeyance /;
they must, from the very nature of things,
become aggressive, OF they will soon disap-
pear from the force of conhIc Ictiug ideas.
This proposition l. supported by the history
of our race, and Is 50 plain that 1t may be sat
down as an axiom. 1T we grant this TO be
true, we may sum up the conclusion of the
opinions of the communities by which you
are surrounded must become subordinate to
your customs and opinions; OF, on the other
hand, yonr's muse yield TO theirs. The con-
fIct Is ITTepreSSlble.
That plurality of wives is tolerated and be-
lieyed To be right may not appear go strange
but that mother and her daughters are all
lowed to fulfill the duties of wives to the sa n e
husband, or that man could be found in al
ChTistendom who could be induced TO take up
en- himself such a relationship, Is, perhaps, no
less a marvel In morals than In matters of
taste. The bare fact that such practices are
tolerated amongst you Is sufficient evidence
that the human passions, whether excited by
religious fanatlcIsm or otherwise, must be
restrained aud subjected to laws to which all
must yield obedience. Much to my astonish-
ment, i have not been able to find any law up
on the statutes of this Territory regulating
marriage.
This message, most temperate and
able argument against the practices in.
dulged in by the Mormon people in di.
rect violation of the laws of the country,
the Legislature suppressed, and no record
of their journals will show that Governor
Harding ever delivered any message
whatever. This fact being communica
ted to the United States Senate, the
Committee on Territories, of which Ben
Wade was Chairman, was instructed to
examine into and make Report to tie
Senate of the cause for its suppression
From this Report we make the follow.
ing extracts:
We have here the first exhibition within the
limits of the United States of Church ruling
the State. POlygamy of the Id osl
unlimited character, sanctioning the cohabi
tation of n man with the mother and daugh b.
tiers indiscriminately, is not the only non
American thing among them.
In 1868, Judge Waite, who was Judge
of the Second judicial District, proposed
holding term of court in it, in the
month of May, as provided by law, many
murders having been committed there
The Mormon Legislature had passed q
bill changing the term to October bu
the Governor had refused to approve it
On examining the original bill, however
( in the Secretary's office, he found tha
the word May" had been erased, ane
the word October" forged and inter
lined in the handwriting of one of tn,
clerks, who had penned the body of tn,
bill, and the Legislature sustained tn,
forgery.
| The original act of 1850 not being ad
| equate to the administration of justic,
! by the judiciary, an amendatory act wa
drawn up by Judge Waite, and havinl
been submitted to and approved by Judg,
Drake and Governor Harding, it was sen
/ to the United States Senate and intro
duced by Senator Browning. The tele
graph brought the word of its introduc
ton to Salt Lake, and a meeting wa
called at the Tabernacle, March 3, 1863
at which Brigham Young used the fol
lowing language:
Do you acknowledge this man Harding fo
Governor? (Voices-Nol You are Gov