Orleans independent standard. [volume] (Irasburgh, Vt.) 1856-1871, 1870-09-20
Mormonism Among the Poor.

A COrlnne, \ tan, letter, says that
there one frequently meets with those
who have extricated themselves from
their former Mormon thraldom, the
most of them being women who had
been forced into a state of concubin-
age, or young girls who had run away
from their parents, in order to escape
a similar fate. Most Of the fugitiyes
have friends among the Montana
teamsters, who used to rendezvous
at Salt Lake City when that town
furnished supplies to their territory,
previous to the completion Of the
Pacific Railway. In those days those
wild wagoners Of the mountains were
received with favor among the Nor
mons, spent their money freely and
became well acquainted. The Nor.
mon girls as they grow up, knowing
that they will be forced if they remain
in Mormondom to lead a polygamous
life, early begin to plan some method
| for escape; and hence those Montana
boys, in whose honor they have the
utmost confidence, are often impor-
tuned to act as their temporary
protectors until they can get beyond
the reach of the Church. They often
accept the trust, and never betray
it.
The correspondent tells oftwo girls
just arrived at Corinne. under such
circumstances, and the tale is itself a
strong denunciation Of the vileness
and vilIanies of Brigham Young's
"religion," especially in its workings
among the poor people: These
poor creatures are nothing but child
ren, no more than sixteen or seven
teen years Of age, and yet the treat
ment they had met with at the hands
OF their own parents and certain dig
nitaries of the church, or had reason
to apprehend was in store for them,
had compelled them to abandon all
of their relatives and homes, and,
young and inexperienced as they are,
without friends or means, to push
about into the great world with com
parative strangers" An older sister
of one had already become the fifth
wife Of church dignitary who had
also bargained with the parents tc
70 lya +bic ooo oc conn oc Cbo Woo nlC
: enough. In both cases their parent;
are polygamists, the father of one
having three, and the other four wives
By each of these wives they have ha(
from four to six children; making {
grand total Of sixteen children borI
in one case, and thirteen in the other
l some of whom are dead. The father.
7 being poor, both the mothers and thei
progeny, in each establishment, were
huddled together in a single house o
t but one story, and Of moderate dimen
: sions: the husband and two Of hi
wives occupying the same apartment
and sometimes the same bed. Th
i boys and girls sleep together indis
criminately, or with but little assort
t ing, until the girls, reaching consid
t, cradle size, would insist upon sleepin
alone. The beds consisted, in mos
cases, merely Of ticks filed wit
straw and thrown On the floor. |
+ no case did they ever get any but th
1t coarsest kind of food and frequentl
e not enough of that. though forced t
G work constantly and always yer
hard! the girls being obliged to labo
out of doors, hoeing potatoes, chopin
wood, and doing other work general
IS elsewhere assigned to men. The
clothing was cf the poorest kind, an
e always insufficient, the children gene
d ally going barefooted Summer an
Winter. These girls had receive
h but little schooling, being barely abl
to read and scrawl their names in
scarcely Ineligible manner. Thoug
in quiet familiar with a class of subiec
to which it is usually though best
keep concealed from the YOUTH
mind, l found them terribly deiciel
,; in general Information, as well as
ne the most common rudiments of lear
ID ing. Without being lewd, their tho
as seemed to have been trained main
Mt to the contemplation of such subjec
as courtship and marriage, therelatit
z Of the sexes, theatres, and other fri
N, olous amusements; and these, ne
to hard work-for they are real
an industrious-do constitute the mo
ok serious questions of life with th
ne people"
1g .s.-
ed "Sir," said the astonished landlat
re to a traveller who had just sent
- cup forward for the seventh time, '.y,
2" must be very fond of Coffee" aY,
ed madam. am" he replied, q or shou