The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1883-11-23
THE CLEVELAND LEAGUE.

The Philadelphia Times is not in
harmony with the Cleveland cranks
who have set themselves the task OF
extirpating polygamy; nor can any
body be in harmony with the
ersnks, who is capable of thinking
intelligently and reasonably mo-
ment. With some people the wish
Is all they deem necessary to the
performance, and the Cleveland
League appears to be made up en-
tirely of that class of persons. They
have probably never thought of
methods. their reflections being con.
fined to the single suggestion that
"polygamy must CO." Perhaps
when they come to devise
schemes and arrange plans, they
will conclude that the very best
thing that can be done in the prem
ises will be to enact law declaring
pelygamy q crime, punishable by
heavy fine and imprisonment; and
that this should be supplemented by
another legislative declaration tax
ing away all political rights of the
muchly married. This is about how
the business strikes the average
person when he smothers his en-
thusiasm long enough to do a little
sane rejecting. When the Cleye-
land cranks come to agree upon
these means for assaulting polygamy
they will find that the laws are here
and have been in force for years;
and then the Clevelanders will feel |
tired, or in their madness de-
mand Legislative commission
This latter seems to be the last re-
sort of the reformer who has set out
to crush polygamy. He doesn't
seem to know that a commission
could have no more power than
courts; that commission must
necessarily be made up of men, as
the judgeships, disIrict-attorney-
ships, commissionerships, marshal
ships and so on are filled by men
simply. If there should be com-
mission-of which there is not much
danger-and it should fail, heaven
knows what next would be the re-
sort of the Cleveland Leaguers.
Perhaps they would then accept the
Rev. Talmage for a general and
adopt his plan of treatment of
bayonet and bullet for. everything
Mormon.
But here is what the Philadel-
phia Times says edito1ially of the
Cleveland League:
Polygamy is an old. fashioned vice that
ought to be suppressed, and when men
have sense enough to govern themselves
or 10 execute such laws as we have al.
ready bearing on the subject the evil will
be choked or die natural death. For all
that, sober-minded people with .econd
thought or two in their head will hardly
|
land that 'the honor Of the nation ia in
danger" on account Of polvgamy in
U:sh. The nation ia a good deal bigger
than Utah or the League in question,
snd the main trouble with tbs Cleveland
reformers appears to be that, like other
cranks, they thirk the world will be
saved if only their panaces gets into the
Constitution. There is law against
polyrsmv already. What In Wanted 10
an amendment to the constitution and
course of human nature. so that when
jury gets together it " II decide accord.
ing to the facts and such laws ss We have.
II the Cleveland anti-polysamists can fix
that business ths7 will prove themselves
worry of medals as reformers Of the FIRST
wster. But 10 get SD amendment INTO
the United States Constitution won't
stop men from living with more wives
than one or Chris.ianiz, them in any
other way.