Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1885-01-11
THE MORMON QUESTION.
A Curious Historical "Reminiscences of "a
Quarter of Century Ago.

HARTFORD, Conn, Jan. S.-Many Eastern
papers have variously commented upon a
proposition from a Chicago source that the
National Government solve the Mormon ques-
ton by buying out the Mormon possessions
for $50,0 COO on an agreement by them to
leave the country. Emigration to New Guinea
or some other Of the islands Of the Pacific is
suggested.
This Is a curious illustration of history re
peating itself. In the summer of 1888, while
on a visit to the Sandwich Islands, CORE
spondent had long and pleasant interview
one afternoon with the veteran, the Hon.
William NJ. Gibson, Minister of Foreign AT
fairs for King kalakaua's domlniOns. In
notes OF the conversation find that Mr.. Glib
SON in 1857 was party to q scheme for buying
out the Mormons on somewhat the same terms
now suggested. He proposed that the
MormOns seek home among the islands of
the Pacific, and New Guinea was mentioned
by him as fertile land, at that time without
government or prCtectOrate. The MormOns,
he thought, would accept S5,OOO,CO0 for their
Utah possessions, and agree to depart
within three years, the government TO fur
nish convoy of naval vessels to their new
home. Mr.. Gibson drafted his plan and sent
It to Brigham Young. That willy leader,
wearied with long agitation aga nst Nor
mOnism, promptly replied, inviting Mr. Glib
son to Salt Lake City. After conference with
Gen. Cass, Secretary of state, and several
prominent congressman, all of whom re-
garded the scheme with favor as promising
an easy solution Of troublesome question.
Mr.. Gibson started for Utah. Brigham
Young went over the details carefully,
and authorized Mr.. Gibson, to
submit the plan. unchanged in its main
features, to the authorities at Washington.
he did so, but President Buchanan earnestly
opposed it on the ground that it was unhe-
coming the dignity of a great nation to vir-
tually admit, as it would, that it could not en-
force its laws within its own borders. The
Presidential opposition killed the scheme.
Now it crops up, after all these years, with a
proposition to pay 10 times the original
amount. The argument advanced by Presi-
dent Buchanan would doubtless have equal
weight to-day.
Brigham Young was promptly advised of
the result. At that time he had small Nor
mon colony in the Sandwich Islands. II was
on the east side of the island of Oahu, some
distance from Honolulu, and exists day,
with about 3, 900 souls there and in adjacent
islands. who are in no wise interfered with
by the native authorities. Many of the Nor
mons are natives, and they are governed
from Salt Lake City. Young arranged with
Gibson to go there and organize among the
cOlOnists company to go to New Guinea.
y Dung agreed, if the outlook was promising,
ne wouldlargely reinforce the new colony from
Europe, where Mormon pTCselyter5 were
even then at work. Gibson reached the Sand
WIch Islands in June, 1861, investigated the
colonization scheme, found 1t impracticable
and went to sheep raising. He gradually
drlfted into politics, and Is now one of the
most influential men in the Hawaiian king
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