Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1883-06-12
The Mormon Scare.


There seems to be some perturbation
felt and expressed in different religious
nuarters on account of a moderate de.
gree of success that has attached to the
efforts of Mormon missionaries, who have
been at work in some out. .Of-t..e-way,
sparsely settled communities, where the
simple-hearted folk have given ear TO
their preaching and heed to their prom
ises. We agree with an esteemed con-
temporary-one with whom we more
frequently disagree-that where the
Mormon preachers gain converts 1t IS
likely owing to the fact that the people
have not had better gospel preached
to them; and those who grudge the
emissaries of the Latter Day Saints the
scanty success which has attended their
evangelizing work, may, upon sell
examination, find that they themselves
have neglected the wayside and stony
places in which the scattered Morhoh
seed has found iodgment.
There are so many communities DC
yond all modern civilization and SO many
individuals even in communities en-
lightened by Christianity who are far
worse off and more degraded than the
Mormons, that it is likely to be many
wears before there will be lack of abun-
dant material for the efforts of both
Christian evangelists and Mormon apos-
ties to exhaust themselves upon. 1t is a
confession of weakness for Christianity
to fear the efforts of the MOrmOns 10
proselyte among its own believers and
should they who will neither accept nor
practice the tenets of our holy faith
even embrace the Mormon teachings and
become part of the Utah community
they may not be more utterly sunken in
sin than many who abide where better
gospel is promulgated, but having eyes
see not and hear not with their ears.
For, notwithstanding the obnoxious
institution of polygamy, permitted and
even encouraged by their religion and
practiced by a certain portion OF their
man-by no means the most OF them =,
there must be some elements of worth
in a church and social pOlily which bears
such fruits as MOrmOniS,n can show III
answer to the railliery against it. Not
only does it exhibit the results of un
euualled industry and patient thrift in
the reclamation of Il rainless desert and
its transformation into q " blooming
plain" covered with fruitful farms and
thriving towns, but the singular free
dom of The Salt Lake City community
from the prevalence of the vices and dis
orders which permeate every other cen
tre of population make MormOnism ;
social problem too complex to be dis
missed by Il condemnation OF it's one
fagrantly offensive feature.
If it be true, as seems TO be undeniabl!
reported, that the crimes forbidden b.
the dccalogue are seldom known there
that thieves, murderers, adulterers, dis
turberS of the peace, drunkards ant
prostitutes are rarely ever seen, tha
their police system is sexcellent, their ter
ritorial government pure. wise and just
simple in its machinery and imparti:,
in its laws, its burdens light and its pro
lection universal, with no cheating at eiec
tions, no official defalcatiOns, no specia
taxes and not dollar of debt"-if thi
is their social condition it would be Il
loss to the cause of morals and no degra
datiOn to the individual, for Il grea
many denizens even of our own Eastern
cities to he translated TO MOrmOni0n
And there are good many men il
Christian communities who would no
suffer injustice 10y being compelled t
publicly own and support their plnlalit
of wives.