The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1889-10-29
THE JUDGE WAS RIGHT.

1t seems to US that it is pretty good law
which Judge ZANE gave. on Monday, in the
BENNETT case. 1t was, at least, good
common sense, and the law should not run
counter to common sense. Mr.. BENNETT
had registered, as a citizen, evidently with
the intention of voting. He had taken the
regulation oath, swearing that he was not
bigamist or polygamist, and was not
guilty Of doing any of those things which
the congressional laws say shall disqualify
man for voting or holding Office or per-
| forming the duties OF full-fedged citizen.
BENNETT having taken the oath which the
law and the Utah commission had formu-
| lated and prescribed, there was nothing
left for the registration officer to do than to
put the gentleman's name on the list. The
case was thereupon reported to the grand
jury, which promptly indicted Mr.. BEN
NETT, under the territorial statute, for il
! legal voting. In explanation it should be
stated that at one time Mr.. BENNETT was a
polygamist. That was some time ago,
however. For reasons personal to himself
and his family, he and his polygamous wife
agreed to separate, and in accordance with
that arrangement they did separate, the
| lady procuring what is known hereabouts
as church divorce" the authority which
assented to or performed the polygamous
marriage annulling the relation. The
union being illegal in the eyes of the writ
ten law, secular court certainly could not
grant divorce, although the late lamented
Chief Justice mexican did award alimony
to a wife who was not wife according to
the law which he was administering
After the issuance of the church divorce,
and when BENNETT and his erstwhile
polygamous wife were living apart, as di-
vorced people should do, the man was in
dicted for the alleged violation of the Ed
MUNDs law forbidding cohabitation with
more than one woman. He stood his trial
and it appearing that he did not live with
the polygamous wife during the period
covered by the indictment, he was &C
quilted by the jury. Then came the indict-
ment for illegal registration, and at the trial,
on Monday, the chief Justice instructed the
Jury to find the defendant mot guilty"
His honor correctly held that the accused
was not polygamist, having abandoned
the practice and discontinued the unlawful
relation VIXEN he and his wife separated
and let it be generally known that they had
ceased to bear to each other the relations of
husband and wife. The proposition advanced
by the prosecution seems monstrous in so
far as it was claimed to be law. 1t was that
the only way by which the defendant could
recover his citizenship, was through par
don granted by the President of the United
States; in other words, once poly gamist
always polygamist, in spite of anything
the man could do to relieve himself If this
doctrine were to prevail it would remain
with the President to say whether or not a
man should exercise the rights of citizen,
regardless of anything the individual might
do. The law never contemplated any such
thing, and we don't believe the attorneys
who advanced the proposition think for a
moment that it is sound. At any rate,
Judge ZANE's ruling was such as to make
the law reasonable and consistent, and that
is what all laws should be, if they are not.
Mr.. BENNETT and his wife, it occurs to
US, took the one way open to them to law
fully discontinue the unlawful relation
which had become irksome to them
They procured the only kind of divorce that
could possibly have any weight in the
case, they ceased to live together, and they
lett be publicly known that they were in
no sense husband and wife. More they
could not have done to prove sincerity and
good faith, and to say that what they did
was insufficient to satisfy the law would be
to make the law an inconsistent and cruel
thing. Judge ZANE was right in instruct
ing for an ac quittal.