Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1888-05-01
MORMON WOMEN.

why They are Wiliingto Marry Husbands
with several wives.
Philadelphia Press.
SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH, April 10.-Ai-
ter days ind nights Of travel our long
train came suddenly into the valley o. the
Jordan, which has well been called the
Eden OF the west. 1t WIS the land Of
Brigham Young and polygamy, and the
people we esw we're .Mormons, and the
ladies of our party scanned them as curl
ously as they would have examined some
phenomenal monstroslty, while the gen.
tlemen found It convenient to light at
every station and buy cups Of muddy
coffee aud tough legs OF veteran fowls
from every rosY-cheeked girl who had
them to sell. 1t was not long before Salt
Lske City was reached and we were
driven to our hotels.
Most OF the marriages take place In the
Endowment house, the ceremony some
times lasting from eight in the morning
until three in the afternoon, a fatiguing
process, to say the least Of IL. At these
marriages the last wife is expected to be
present and give away the bride, thus sig
niiyirg her willingness and consent.
"I m 2rried my sisters husband and
she gave me to him." said woman with
whom was talking polygamy, and who
also told me that the wife WAS always
consulted by the husband before taking
to himself another.
'And suppose che objects, does he
give it up?" I asked, ana she replied:
"Not always il his heart is set upon her"
THE THEORY OF MoRMoNIsM.
Oar visit was at time when the Saints
were grestly agitsted by the enforcement
of the Eimun>s bill. Many of their
leaders were in prison, Others were hiding
from Justice, and as consequence Gen.
tiles were not greatly In favor. We,
however, were so fortunate az to have
letter of Introduction TO Mrs. Wells,
one Of the literary stars OF Sslt Lake
City and editress Of he Women's Ex
ponent. She is native OF Msssachu-
sets, the sixth wife of her present hus-
band, and a firm believer in polygsmy,
but very pleasant and intelligent
woman. She did not pretend to be per-
fectly hsppy in polggsmy, as some others
did, but WAS as happy as wives usually
are who love their husbands and sre
loved in return, but who still have an
noyances and burdens to bear. think
that most of the better class look upon
plural marriages as cross which some
times presses heavily, gout which they
must carry II In the end they win the
crown. No woman in her senses is
willing to share her husband with another
unless she believes it her duty to do go.
Plural marriages are necessity, they say
in order that the myriads Of spirits float
ing around US in spsce can be born and
become good Mormons and go where the
good Mormons go, and ones happiness
in the next world is proportionste to the
number of these spirits which he or she
has been instrumental in clothing with
flesh and blood.
SINCERE WOMEN MOEMoNs.
Whatever the men may be, 1 believe
the women are sincere, especially the for
eigners, who are ignorant in the extreme
and show it in their faces and speech and
manners. Among the better
classes, however, the women are
Intelligent and refined and well edu-
Gated, sending their sons 10 college and
their daughters to Europe, snd living in
every respect like their wealthy Gentle
neighbor. Some Of them profess TO be
very happy with their sisters, as they call
their husbands wives, while others openly
denounce system which has brought SO
much evil to them.
In pretty cottage near our hotel YVES
Scotch woman who talked freely upon
the subject. She married her husband,
who was much older than herself, because
asked to do so by his wife, with whom
she lived happily for time. Then fierce
jealousy and qusrrels ensued and they
lived a cst-sad-dog life until the old
man threw bomb into the camp
by telling them he was about to
marry Rose, fsir-haired Swede Of
twenty. Then the first and second be-
came s unit and waged war against the
third, whose charms, however, prevailed,
and she came to rule over them until the
first wife died and the second packed up
hergoods and left the field to Rose, whose
bue-eyed babies 1 saw, together with her
husband, s man Of seventy or more.
I was taken to the Lion House to call
upon Eliz. Snow, widow of the great
apostle, who had, when he died, eighteen
wives, not including Ann Eliza, and forty
seven or fifty children. The
room In which was re-
ceived was pleasant, home-like
apartment, with many portraits Of the
1opngs upon Inc Walls, ana among them
one of Brigham. Sister Eliza, as she Was
called had been thesswiie of Joseph Smith,
the first expounder Of Norm onism, ana
was about eighty years Of age, with the
sweet, | l lcid face of one who, having
outlived the joys and sorrows of life, was
pstie tlY waiting for the end. She was
very Intelligent and well informed, and
talked freely upon various subjects, es-
pecially that Of polygamy, in which she
fully believed as something sacred and
holy, alleging m.ny arguments in its de-
Tense, one Of which was thst as women,
as class, are much purer than men, and
it is better for young girl TO be
sixth in the love Of good man
than first in the heart of bad one. Sac
was & Mormon, and had been the wife of
a man Of many wives, and on that point
had no sympathy with her, but she i'm
pressed me as sincere Christian woman,
with nothing in her religion except polyg-
amy which the most rigid evangelist
could not endorse, and when not long
ago heard that she wss dead felt sure
that she had found the rest she was wait