Salt Lake evening Democrat. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1885-1887, 1886-02-03
PONDER A LITTLE"

Under this title the Ne,cs of last night
says that it is because the people OF the
United States Go not ponder over the
actual trouble in Utah that they are
worked into burning hostility against the
Mormon creed. If the people of the
United States would ponder over the
question more they would be better in
formed and would have better under
standing of things here. 1t would also
be well for the people of Utah to ponder
little over the situation in Utah, for
then they too would have a better un-
derstanding of things here. If the
people of the United States were
to take all their facts from the
News they would be woefully mis-
informed, and they would, no doubt,
come to the conclusion that polygamy did
not exist to any extent in Utah and that
it was not preached here. This is scarcely
the case. The general opinion of the
Mormon people which the world enter
tains is largely erroneous, so far as we
can judge. The great majority OF the
Mormon people are industrious and fru-
gal, and while polygamy in the eyes of
the law is adultery, the Mormon people
are and always have been advocates of
chastity, and have ever discouraged sex
ual crime. We believe we have been
fair in this estimate of the virtues of the
Mormon people, and now let us see
wherein they are open to just censure.
The Mormon people have persistently
violated the law against polygamy and
have claimed right to do so. For this
they are justly censured with being a
lawless people. When the law which
they have so extensively and SO persist
emily violated was declared valid by the
Supreme Court of the United States, they
ignored the decision of that court and
continued to violate the laws as before.
The News, will scarcely have the hardi-
hood to say that if the people of the
United States were to ponder little
more they would come to the conclusion
that the laws against polygamy and the
decision of the Supreme Court of the
United States have not been ignored by
the people of Utah. That polygamy
exists in Utah and is held to be a cardinal
doctrine of the Mormon church is true,
and no amount of pondering can change
this fact. Neither can any amount of
pondering ever alter the fact that polyg-
amy is unlawful and that the United
States have jurisdiction OF the Ter
ritories, and that a law of Con-
gress applicable to the Territories is
supreme over the laws of any Territory.
This latter fact it would be we'll for the
people of Utah to ponder little. The
people of this Territory do not ponder
enough the fact that Utah belongs to the
United States and that the Territory is
not independent of the Government.
This is most important fact, and care
full consideration OF it by the people of
Utah would save them much trouble.
The greater part of the trouble iE. Utah
has arisen from the fact that the people
have acted on the theory that this Terri
tory does not belong to the United States.
1t does belong to the United States, and
the sooner the people fully realize and
acknowledge this fact the better it will be
for them. Another thing it would be we'll
for the people of Utah to ponder not
little but very much, is the fact that they
exercise the powers of government in this
Territory because they are citizens OF the
United States of America, and not because
they are members of the Mormon church.
These are important matters and if the
Neps would but teach its readers to pom
der them little, it would be doing
very good work. So far as the creed of
the Mormon church is concerned, that is
a matter which will interest only those
who are interested in creeds But when
the professors of one creed array them
selves against another creed because they
do not like the doctrines of the creed
against which they array themselves i
their opposition is tinctured with the
suspicion of doctrinal hate. In these
matters we have no interest, and our OPP
position to the practice of polygamy is
because such practice is an usurpation of
a sovereign power of the State, and there
fore inconsistent with the control of the
family, which is the basis of the State,
by the State. The evils resulting from
the practice of polygamy are far greater
than any good it could possibly do. The
Mormons have as much right TO claim a
divine origin for any of their doctrines
as any religious body has, and uics rersa. |
1t would be we'll for people everywhereto
ponder this fact.
THE DEMENT, AFFAIR.