Arizona weekly enterprise., 1890-06-28
TRE HORIZONS.
Secretary 5Eurphy's Remarks Before the
 Committee on Territories.

A garbled report of Secretary N. o. Murphy's remarks before the Com mitlee on Territories, having been ex- tensigely published, THE ENTERPRISE herewith gives his exact language upon that portion touching the Nor mon question
 It is also desired that the enabling act, when passed shall contain the provision that the constitution Of Arizona, to be adopted by the people, and under which the Territory shall be admitted to statehood, must embrace conditions similar in language and effect, gov erning the rights of franchise, to what is known as the Idaho test oath, contained in the constitution of that State The reason for the desirabihty of this safeguard as to franchise are many and convincing.
 1 Because 1t will check perpetration ol moral and social wrong
 2 Because inc people of Idaho the Su- preme Court, the Congress of the United States, and the moral lntellingence ot the highest civilization, have declared, after thorough and exhaustive examination, in favor ot restrictive action.
 BeoauEe unless Arizona is protected in this matter she will be at the mercy of an acknowledged evil and g dangerous disturber to ths affairs of the State.
 i Because ig is not s political but 2 moral GnGStlOU WHICH tIe NuOlS COultTS
 l understand that 1t has been stated to your honorable committee that the majority of the citizens of Arizona, regardless ot polltl- cal faith, take no interest in and care nothing about this question. 1 wish to deny such statement
 in the year 1885 the legislature of Arizona, which was 8 tie politically, passed an act al most exactly similar to the Idaho law Pre- vious to that time the issue had not been raised, and was no factor in the preceding election in fact, the members of the church l of Latter Day Saints at that time voted the ] Republican ticket. helping elect Republican 1 Delegate to Congress Immediately upon ! Territory, where the legislature was in session, was visited by delegates and 1 enissaries of ths church, and after the act had 1 been enrolled, and after it had been agreed by 1 resolution that no more bills should be in l trOduced during the session, 1t disappeared ! ipresumably stolenl The theft so incensed l the members ef the legislature that joint l resolution WIS unanimously passed authoriz- ing the admission of another bill, and al exact duplicate was introduced and passed and became law in one day, politics cutting no figure whatevsr. On the last night of the session dndisputsd evidence exists that the ennissaries of the church tried to brib' employees and procure destruction
 of the law in which they failed
 Then the instrumentaIty of politics wa
 invoked, an understanding was entered intC
 between the leaders of the church and tn, ] new Democratic administration in the Terri
 tory whereby it was aereed that the member
 the church would support to q man the Dem ocratie legislative ticket at the coming cleo
 ton upon the condition that the objection , able law be repsaled these are absolute fact ] and numerous ai1idavits from responsibl parHes can be procured to prove it. dhe la7 was not enforced aJ the polls, no challenge
 being made, the Democrats obtained contrc
 oi the legislature, and the very first act tha
 became law was the repeal of the test oatf
 Since that time this people have voted tn . Democratic ticket unanimously, aithoug
 there is no dependence to be placed upo
 them-in this respect, as t is known that the [ have already been in correspondence wit
 certain Republican leaders in connection wit f the coming election They will suppol
 whichever side they hope to be most beneh ed by, and therefore 1 said it is not 3 polite; }, lat least, not perInanently) but q moral que Y tion. Suffice 1t to say, that under presel , conditions they hold the balance of power ? the Territory. the two political parties beir : about equally divided, with the Republican o probtbly, 2 trifle the strongest. A great de
 of buncombe is indulged in by the partiss . politicians, and false sentiment paraded. ! It is allegsd that the Mornons of ol Is country neither live in poiygalny nor belie' 2, in nor favor it, and great stress is place
 
 \. frauckisiug q man on account of his religio - belief; the word belief does not appear in t q law, nor did 1t in tllo Arizona law. No ela 10 orabion of argument, no spacious reasonin ys can parry the irresistible logic of the facts b they gre either insincere and are striving Y deceive in their efforts to remain undisturb K il tLe violation or iav, CT otherwise they cs ry not consistently sustain the position that tn to are injured in being denied the right of fra
 ehise unless they renounce alegiar
 to 'aect, order or ogariZation tt CT counsels, teaches, encourages, and pr; 9, ticcs" the commission Of crime, which poly m any and bigamv unqusstionable are. Bo
 ever, 1t IS not my province to argue this grt 40 moral question. Ycur committee are fu 2 informed upon every bearing of the subje At bu5 will say, in conciusion, that Arizona 1, das is mare yital.v interested than any oti part of t3le country except possibly Uts Il Bordering Utah on the south, and situat CT directly between that Territory and the of public of Mexico in the direct line of int - course. Arizona is menaeed by an influx 'P undesirable immeration unless the pro- Ne legal safeguarCis can be had. Idaho has De aW granted relief legislation is under way lei cure the evil ia Utah, and Arizona, if ' ~ protected, will soon be worse of than eithe, oi the Territories or States
 at There are about ten thousand Mocmons 3st the Territory now. and they already c at trol and run in 9 very arbitrary manner
 affairs of one of the counties joining Ut q and they are reaching southward and pe-ne er ing the entire body polite.
 Therefor in view Of all the facts earnt of ly urge the speedy passage O. an enabling T, fer Arizona, with the proper safeguards IS h. franchise provided for therein.