, 1888-02-23

religious beliefs IL could forbid prurtice,
when. though sanctioned by revelation.
were held to be detrimental " good inur-
AIS There was no pret-psc that the telig-
i"'is oeliei Of the people were to lie In.
CURED into. Caihe defend his case NJ
Utai, ngains. the charges brought by yari-
GUS writer's; declared that they were UP
right, worthy people; tnat though rev.In-
tion permitted ,lural marriage. siut, thv,iuh
all inenibers ol the church might have mar
ried repeatedly. the large majority al
themselves into conf,rmty WIN
the requirements of the country. The
constitution adopted by the convention
was not n work of conspiracy. There was
hut one .fOIht In 1t about which there
could be any Questiun, and that WAS
whether the twelfth section emibudi.d the
honest views of the l3. l05 men who vuted
to ratiiy II. This section makes lmlygnny
and bigainy a nii-ienieanor, punishable BY
tine and inipri"t,n,cnt. He declared u,n IL
his honor that the people oi Utah did de-
liberately and Unre-ervedly adopt that
sectiuii In good faith Us u law OF tile land,
and Intended To enforce 1t in the new state.
In reply to questions he said that the Inst
aud best niessaye Of which he ba,I knowl-
edge, was that Ut Rudger Cuwsun several
years ago. This man had been tried and
had suffered Imprisonment Tor his uiiense.
session, has beioreit u bill for marriage
laws, prohibiting pulygainy aud bigunIous
marriages. This had been reported iuvVr-
ably from the committee ON judiciary.
hose who opposed the statenUOa for
Utah, he continued, care nothing ior the
religion or morals of the Morn,ons, 1t is
their politics which they oppose. IL you
would satisfy them you must disfranchise
every Mormon OH account OF religious
belief.
Judge jeremiah Wilson also addressed
the committee. He eulogized the people
oi Utah u, among the ibriniest, most hUi-
est, and temperate OF the world aud chxl-
Ienged comparison with any other CunS
munity as ~ the progress they have made
~ ali that goes to constitute aU enlightened
and civilized people. The whole opposi.
ton tn admission at Utah, he said, might
be summed up in two prop sitiOns, al as-
sault upon the religious belief and an at
tempt 10 govern u ma jority by the minor
ity. The Morniors were objects Of abuse
because they held u voting power " h cl
could not be lesilimstely overcome at the
pills. lie said they had never broken IL
pruiuise Or betrayed trust, and therefore
their sincerity in this matter ought not to
be questioned. lie cuntended in n legal ar
gunIent that if the state broke cuin'uc
made with all other states, represented IN
congress, the latter had an inherent power,
and all that was necessary to enforce tile
provisions OF the contract. Ii asked
whether in his his opinion the people OF
Utah could he trusted ~ make this cOli.-
pact aud exercise the powers of stutehuod
lie would answer most solemnly and ein-
phatically, yes.
Delegate dubois, Of Idaho, addressed the
committee III opposition to the petition
for admission. He admitted the poi ula-
tlon oi U,ah to he 10000, and sufficient
50 lar rs numbers 20 to entitle the terrk
tory to statehood, but declared that tins
population WAS mainly imported directly
from Europe by the Mormon church.
Even with insufficient lohce force, he
said the number vi arrests was enormously
disappropriate to the popu alton, niiu
vast ina ujOrity OF the persons arrested we're
convicted Utah hud been blessed with u
superior climate uid soil, she lay on the
direct line between the east and California,
yet with such advantages her taxable
wealth only aggregated S35 OOG, zoe. 50 VOO,-
900 ot which was railroad property not
owned In Utah, and $40 UO0 OOO of which
belonged to the 10 OOu Ge..tile Inhabitants
oI the territory. Her taxable wealth aver
aged only Si57 per capita. while in neigh
boring territories IL ranged from $500 to
500. He asked to be informed by any
advocate OF admission what practice Ot
brigham Young or Joseph Iaylur WAS now
Admitted To have been wrong, and argued
that the cause of the MormOns in the
future could be best judged by their past.
They had been driven out of Missouri 10y
reason Of their polygainous practices
and had established themselves III
Illinois, where they founded the city of
Nuuvoo. und undertook to d. the same
thing they are now trying to accomplish
They secured "A city Garter which made
them also Independent OF state control. and
then enacted regulations oi such character
that the outraged people of tue state rose
in their might and drove them away.
Crime was rife in Utah. and the criminals
had sympathy vi the entire Mormon peO
pie. IL any reform was promised, any ABB
stination from the practices pronounced by
law to be criminals, the men who promised
it was ostrucized The legislature refused
to make provisions for the arrest and
states government was Compelled to bear
the burden OF the local government OF the
territory. The new constitution Was
half trick, half lie, and those
who presented 1t did not come
US free men to free men, but
with criDging and cowardicc proposed to
bind themselves for the future In way
which was req iired of no other state. The
territory coulu not come In under this colt
sttution as equal, and the provision against
the amendment OF tins constitution WIS
therefore either entirely nugatory or ell
tirey wrong. The Gentiles OF the territory
did not believe two years Of statehood
would elapss before the constitution would
he changed to meet the views Of the
church.
Richards asked leave to reply to Nr Du-
of the committee but present as an inter.
,sted party, stated that the opponents Of
tile petition would wait further opportunity
To present their case, and the niiuttee
adjourned for the day.