The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1882-03-14
TEE ANTI MORMON A6ICA-
TON.

4 W
from Thomas Hoyne, John Went
worth, Herrick Johnson, J. Hall
Dow, George 5. Willitts and E. F.
Cragin, committee appointed at a
recent aRti-polygamy mass meeting
held in Chicago. We know some of
these gentlemen personally, and the
rest of them by reputation, to be
sober-minded citizens, who rarely
become unduly excited on any sub
ject, and We are little surprised to
discover in their letter evidences
not only Of singular excitement in
themselves. but Of desire also to
throw US into a state Of perturba-
ton, and by means Of the ETe7aing
Ne1us to excite and agitate this
gOodiy and peaceful commonwealth
of Michigan. And about whag 2
Simply because certain persons in
the territory Of { tab and Whereabouts
instead of enjoying eennubial plu-
rality in succession, like the average
American, prefer 10 have all their
wives at once. They ask US in sub
stance to get right up and howl
about this Utah custom, to stir up
our esteemed contemporaries about
if, to call meetings about it in halls
and schoolhouses, and to precipitate
fool OF petitions, letters, and per-
sonal solicitations Oh the subject
upon our delegation in Congress.
We must respectfully but firmly
and calmly decline this task.
Our declination is based upon a |
multitude of reasons. A few of
them are sufficient. We are not ex-
cited upon the subject; and, in spite
of the most arduous and conscien-
tious efforts in that direction, we
cannot become excited. Nor do we
think the gentlemen Of the commit
tee, nor the average congressman
just now bowling about the Nor
mons, are really as excited as they
would have the public believe.
The public at large are not
excited, and do not intend to
get excited. That is plain. They
may attend meetings-as they
would 60 to Oscar Wilde's lectures,
if they were free; and they may
vote for indignant resolutions
framed in advance by the projectors
of the meetings; and they may sign
petitions-who refuses to sign
petition but they are perfectly
calm and almost Indifferent.
The man of common sense does
not lay awake nights thinking about
the personal vices of his fellow eiti-
Zens, if those personal vices do not
affect his own happiness or his own
peace. He may be satisfied with
one wife himself, or he may content
himself Wit lOuG any-and many
wise men have approved the latter
as the safer cOurse-but he will not
concern himself seriously about the
connubial condition of his neigh Dor,
so long as the latter keeps the peace,
is honest, does not publicly misuse
his one or more conRubial COM
panions, and so long as the wife or
wives chiefly concerned are satisfied
with the situation.
The man OF common sense takes
this view of the Mormon question,
not only for that he desires to mind
his own business and not interfere
with that Of his neighbor, but be- :
cause he knows perfectly well that
It is the supremest folly to attempt
oy legislation to prevent his neigh
DOT from having TWO or more wives, I
f his neighbor can afford it and the
wives are willing. 1t can't be done.
If il co id be done the Nan of
common sense, even if he did get
excited on the subject, would not
begin in Utah but at home, where
lie is perfectly well aware bigamy, :
,olygamy, and polyandry, in some
orm or other, is practiced all about
i'm every day. He knows that IN
his Christian city, there are hun
Ireds, nay thousands, Of men who
i've in open polygamy, hundreds of
who are guilty Of polyan-
Try, and that he and the society
f which he and they are parts, can 4
lot discover or apply a remedy. Y
He, therefore, in time, becomes
ontent 70 govern his own domestic
fairs, and to leave others to gov
IN theirs. He-if he be of that
in as much peace as pos
IDLE with his own one wife, and q
ares not how many his neighbor s
as, so be that his neighbor DO not G
SIX the community TO support any 81