The Portland daily press., 1883-10-27
MoRMoN1sA


WASHINGTON, Oct. 26.-The Utah commits
sion is in the city, preparing its report to the
President, and ex-senator Ramsey, Judge
Carleton and Mr.. Godfrey had an interview of
some length with the Secretary of the Interior
yesterday. The commissioners do not give any
particulars as to what they will recommend,
but in general way they claim that while the
E0munds bill has not accomplished g. that
was hoped, it has accomplished something and
is, in fact, the first piece of anti ipolyganf6us
legislation that has been done; that there are
several points, in regard to which their expert
ence has led them to think that the law may
be ade more efficient, and they will yscom-
mend supplementary legislation. 81
Judge Carleton says that while no staJlstics
on the subject of plural marriages eau be OBJ
tained the result of careful inquiry by him,
both in Salt Lake City and in the farming re-
gions, satisfies him that polygamy is decreas-
ing. Four-ifths of the male Mormons, he
says, are not, and never have been in polyga-
NV About 1000 officials of all kinds have
bsen elected under the supervision of the
commissioners, and while nearly sll of them
are Mormons, not one is, or has been, in polyg-
amy. Homogeneous Mormons, however, be-
lieve fully in polygamy, and he has no very
strong hopes that the homogeneous legislature
recently elected will enact any laws hostile to
plural marriages The register of one settie-
ment. appointed by the commission, told him
that the only ti-Mormon votes cast at the
last election were cast by himself and HE -'te,
and the Mormons cast about 800, but e
plural marriages used to be very common in
the solidly Mormon community, he was conf
dent that not case of this kind had occurred
for year, and he attributed this to the fear Il
the Edmunds bill.
The JUDGE found no evidence of disloyalf, 10
the government except in SO far as the Nor
mons were determined to obey what they said
was the voice of God rather than the COM
mands of men, but they would never resort to
resistance. The jndge did not believe that
martial law would avail, or that any good re-
suits would follow from the employment of
troops. II an army were sent to Utah, it would
have nothing to do. He was certain that, un-
der no possible circumstances would the Nor
mons take up arms against the government.
AS far as resisting marshals, the judge said
that, while under some peculiar circumstances
there might be q popular excitement that
would cause resistance to the marshal, in any
ordinary state of affairs the United States Mar
shal could arrest John Taylor, George @. Can
non and John Paine and take them to court
without any assistance.
Governor Murray ia the head and front of
the extreme Gentle element, that insists on
the immediate overthrow of polygamy by any
and all means, and he has made himself in
tensely hsted by all the Mormons; but al fed
eral officers who go to Utah get into troxble.
They are between the devil and the deep Sea,
and, If they are on good terms with the Nor
mons. they are hated by the Gentiles. The
judge did not think it would be possible to get
possession OF tDe RECORDS OF the endowment
house, as they could be conveniently lost if it
should be necessary to keep them out of the
hands of government officers. He thought the
opeuing of the Pacific railroad and the death
of Brigham Young had weakened the poyga-
nous features of Mormonism, and legislation
would help destroy it, though he did not enter
tain expectations of its immediate disappear
ance. The one thing that he WAS very certain
about was that the problem was one of extreme
difficulty, and he did not want to resort to any
measures foreign to our system of government
and ideas of civilization