The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1884-12-03
THE COMMISSION.
r Makes a Report of the
Situation.
COME VIEWS ENTERTAINED.
-,., Number Of suggestions as
W. - the Treatment of the
problem"
n COMMISSION.
,vr VIEWS ENTERTAINED.
u.sf,ous for the Future Treat
s"sS INT OF the MOrmOns.

,nept OF the MOrmOns.
-,,veroN. December 2.-The re-
,ort Of the Utah Commission Is mace
Po,s ro # states that the duties I'M
guD,,, ., tbe Commission at the recent
20 I'0.;on we're successfully performed,
ed that all polygamists were excluded
from voting, and continues as iolo"S;
. ,1S more than two years labor and
.-no~;ance here, it becomes our duty 10
advise the government and the country
tbot although the law has been success sue d;s
fnfIT administered IN respect ol ~, tn So fao
enhancement of pOlygamlsts lLe 49,.
of the same upon t1e =, hos
o1d nractide of polygamY mas
anu Iheen of character 10
NOV the former or decrease the
Ito laV During the present year, there
nnnears 10 have been a polygainlc re,
RloI THE institution is boldly ana
Iosan4lv defended and commenced py
t5o SbirftuaI teachers, and plural mar
-;o,,as are reported to have increased In
nr99bar - A considerable portion OF the
Tanorf Is devoted to an account Oh the
reaant trial and conviction OF kuuger
CIawson. which the Commission WINK
iii have restraining influence upon
voung MormonS. ut Is not unlikely
saws the report, that, nhaIiy, 'ie
Federal government VIII hiio ~
necessary to take into It's own nahu l-
all the civil power In tins IerrlSoEy
For the present, however, We a Tvs;
only. First, that the OtneeS OF LeTIi-
foriaI Auditor and Treasurer should be
Se6nitely defined by Congress, as offices
10 be filed by appointment, and we may
remark. in this connection. that, al
though the Organic Act would seem 10
leave no doubt as to appointment
and double character of these
Offices. and the Commission has
persistently refused to recognize the
right of election under the law, and the the
local courts sustained this view sun,
the incumbents of these offices at the
present time are holding over from
previous elections. We would recon-
mend in addition to the above
that the Commissioners 10 Locate
University Lands, Probate Judges
County Clerks, County Selectmen
County Assessors and Collectors
and County Supenupeudeuts OF
District Schools be made, by act of Con-
press. sppointable, and all these, after
nomination by the Governor, shall re-
duire to be confirmed by majority
vote of the Commission before being
commissioned. The reason for this Is
obvious. The Organic Act now re
auires that all nominations by the
Governor shall be confirmed by the
Legislative Council. The Council is al
ways a creature of Mormon power
Hence, no suitable appointments can be
secured. The Governor and Commits
sion, acting respectively as nominating
and confirming powers, would insure
such appointments as would be effective
IN the effort of the Federal government
TO overthrow pOlygamy. For the courts
after comforting with the judges and
district-attorney of this district, we re-
commend: First, that the provisions OF
the law of 1874, relative to juries and
the mode of selection, be revised, either
by providing for a greater number
of jurors or by authorizing an
open yenire, when the names in the
box have been exhausted. A better
provision, perhaps, would be one au
thoriZing an open Yenire in all cases
prosecuted by the United States
Second, the jurisdiction of the several
district courts ought to be extended; sc
as to give each Jurisdiction in al
cases of polyganly- wherever in the
Territory the crime may have been
committed. Third, in United State:
cases the Territorial courts should be
invested with power co-extensiYe with
that possessed by the United States cir.
cult and district courts in the several
States, In matters of contempt and pun
ishment thereof Fourth, that prose
cutions for polygamy should be ex
smpted from the operation OF the gen.
eral limitation laws; certainly while
parties continue Ito livegin polYgamy
the statute should not run against
the principal crime, polygamy, Fifth
The process of Subp@nas in all case,
prosecuted by the United States SHOULD
run from the Territorial courts int
any other district Of the United States
Sixth: Provision should be made fol
binding over witnesses on the part o
government in all United States cases
to appear and testify at trial
Seventh: When continuance
granted upon the motion of defendant
provision should be made for the taking
Ofdepositions of witnesses on the part o
government, with an opportunity glvel
defendant to be confronted with tn
witness or witnesses making SUCH de
position, and to crOss-examinei sue
deposition to be used at the trial In tn
eFentOf the death of a witness or /
case Of his or her absence from the Tel
5itory at the time of the tria
Or in the event that such VII
ness concealed himself or herself S
IS to elude the process of the subpGns
Eighth: 1t should be made a penal o.
tense for any woman to enter into tn
marriage relation with man, known
MIN to have a wife living and und
,orced. This should be coupled with
PF On that, in cases where 3 polygs
nous wife was called as q witness
any prosecution for polygamy again:
her husband, her testimony given, l
len cases could not be used against he
n any future prosecution against be
self, with a like provision as to testimon
1s 20 che husband called as witness
ProsecuSsa agsiBst his polygamoT