The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1889-01-20

Church are promulgated from week tt
week, and where large numbers o
worshipers meet for the purpose Of
listening to the teachings ana hearing
promulgated the tenets of the Church
by its leading members. These pro-
visions OF the law and this decree of the
court would seem, to any one of ordin
airy understanding, to admit that thI
PRONUNCIATION of these tenets and doc
trines is not an illegal act, such as
ought to subject the property of the
Church to escheat or forfeiture.
La the case of Jackson vs. Phillips
80 Mass. 555 1t was held that gifts. fol
purposes prohibited by or opposed tc
the existing laws, cannot be upheld as
charitable even for objects which would
otherwise be deemed such. When
however, the scope and purpose of the
gift embraces objects, some of which
are lawful or are broad enough to al
low of the fund being applied either in
q lawful or an unlawful manner. the
court held that the gift would be sup
ported, and its application restrained
within the bounds of law. See pages
555, 557, 568 and $50, and authorities
there cited.
Now, it is found by the court below
as fact in this case, that the appellant
corporation was religious and charit-
able corporation for the purpose of
promulgatlnk, spreading and uphold
ing the principles, practices. teachings
and tenets of the Church, and for the
purpose of dispensing charity accord
Ing, to its principles. practices, tenets
ana teachings, and thai one of the doc
trlnes, tenets, teachings and practices
frtv Of
polygamy, or plurality of wives. 1t
follows, therefore, that there were doc
trlnes and teachings. other than the
doctrine of polygamy, which 1t is not
pretended were illegal or illegitI-
mate.
A court of equity should not con-
found the innocent with the guilty, and
deprive all the members of a congrega-
ton OF property acquired by them be-
cause the practices of some who had an
interest In that property were illegal or
immoral. Such decree is not IN CON
sonance with the principles O: either
laws or equity.
S:Uenth-Prior to July LIST, 1862, the
church had such vested right in the
Temple Block, the Tithing Office prop.
erty and the Historians Office an
grounds, as could not be impaired, even
II the provisions of the act of Congress
OF that date are valid which limit the
amount of al property to be there
after acquired and held by the Church.
Because its claim to this property dates
back to the first settlement and loca-
| ton OF Salt Lake Uity in 1913. and it is
such claim and right as this court has
held to be valid ia law and equity.
Ii both the acts of Congress referred
to should be held Constitutional and
valid, and it should be declared that
any real estate belonging to the corpor-
alton can be legally forfeited and es-
cheated to the United States by any
legal proceedings, then we claim that
the following described real estate can
not be held as forfeited and escheated
to the United States
First-All real estate in which the
Church held vested rights, either legal
or equitable, on the LIST day of July,
1862
Second-Real estate to the value of
$50 600 at the time of its acquisition
acquired after the 1st of July, 1862.
Third-All real estate held or occu-
pied by the corporation at the date of
Its dissolution, for the purpose of the
worship OF God, or parsonage connected
Herewith, or burial ground aud prop
erty appurtenaut 10 such real estate as
may have buildings erected thereon for
any of these purposes.
The property in which the Church
corporation had a vested right at the
time of the passage of the act of July
L, 1862, consisted of the Temple Block,
the Historians Office. the Tithing
Office-which in the finding of the
court is described in two parts-and
the real estate connected with those
respective premises.
The facts in regard to the first piece
OF property above described, namely,
the Temple Block, are that it was taken
possession OF by the agents of the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints, then existing as voluntary le-
ligious sect, when Salt Lake City was
first laid out and surveyed in 1S48, and
ever since that date has been in possess
sion of the Church, which held it as an
unlncorporat sect until it became
incorporated, and then as a CORPORA
ton; that at the time it was taken pos
session of it was a part of the public |
domain and continued as such until
the land was entered by the mayor of
the city, with other land, on the 2lst |
day of November, 1871, under the !
Townslte act of Congress of March 2, |
1867. At the time of the passage of the !
act of 1887 the legal title was in John
Taylor as trustee.ln-trust for the cor
poratioD.
The property known as the Hit
torian's Office was taken possession of
by Albert lockwood in 1848, when it
was part of the public domain, and it
continued to be a part of the public |
domain until the 21st of November,
1871, when the town-site of Salt Lake
City was entered as mentioned aboye.
In 1855 Rock woods claim was pur-
chased by Brigham Young, trustee-in-
trust for the Church; the latter built
thereon an Office for its historian and
continued in possession until the present
time. The legal title became vested
in Theodore Mexican, who, at the time
OF the passage of the act Of March 8, |
1887, held it in trust for the Church |
The Tithing Office grounds were
taken possession of by the agents of the |
Church in 1S4S, when Salt Lake City
was first laid out and surveyed, and |
rom that time it was occupied by the |
Church as a voluntary sect until it |
became incorporated, and then as q |
Prior to 1862 buildings |
and i'm 2rovements of considerable |
value had been erected upon it by the |
corporation. When first taken pos