The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1890-05-18
THE GENTILES PROTEST.

In another part of this issue will be
found a protest to Congress against the
passage of the CULLoM- BAsKIN disfran-
chisemenu bill. The signers are all non
Mormons. and most of them are what may
be called anti-Mormon. Some of them
have been prominent and active in the war
that has been waged against the Saints,
and we think it is safe to say that all of
them who voted at the late election voted
the Liberal ticket. They are well known
citizens, bankers, merchants, capitalists
and business men. We mention these
things in order to show that it is not the
unthinking rabble that is moving in this
matter and opposing the bill. Some men
are ready and willing to sign anything that
is presented to them by friend or a per-
son they do not care to offend, so long as it
does not hurt them; but Postmaster BAR
RAFT, Bankers DoNNELLAN and BALcH.
Merchants SIMON, Conn and SIEGEL,
Lawyer BROWN, Messrs. GEORGE
A. LOWE, GEORGE COLLINS, T. 4.
STEVENS and the others whose names
appear on the list are not of that class:
they are careful thoughtful men, whose
acts are directed by intelligence and whose
motives are what their brains teach them
are the best. These gentlemen protest
against the disfranchisement Of the Nor
mons, and for good and sufficient re ason.
They realize that the passage of the bill
would turn back the wheels of
progress in this territory many
years; that it would undo much OF
the work that has already been &C
complished, and widen to an unbridgable
distance the social and political chasnl
which has so long existed here and which
so many are striving with earnestness and
sincerity to close. 1t is a very serious
thing to deprive of citizenship great com
munity Of intelligent, educated, progressive
men who have reclaimed and made
the country and devoted their efforts
and energies to the general welfare
it becomes much more serious when these
men have been guilty of no offense against
the law, their whole lives being those Of
upright, honorable and patriotic citizens
The natural effect of such an act would bt
10 embitter the minds of the disfrauchise(
against those who had imposed upon them
another effect would be to destroy in tn,
disfranchised the ambition which men hav,
to work for the advancement, the progress
and the welfare of the community. Caus
man to feel that his country is agains
him, that his presence is not desirable, an,
IL is more than human nature to expec
that he viii be as good and useful q mem
Der of the community as he would be undo
normal conditions. We maintain that tn
passage of the infamous bill mentone
would infict almost irreparable damag
upon Utah, and that while the Mormon
would suffer most nobody would escap
all the effects of the disastrous blow. Thu
signers Of the protest take this same col
rect position, and we are glad to recogniz
in them men possessing the courage @
their honest convictions. There are othe
non Mormons here who agree perfect
with those whose names are attached I
the protest, but they are iweak-kneed.an
faint-hearted; they fear the assaults of tn
radical few WHO are urging the passage c
the disfranchisement bill because of tn
spoils they see, and that few deters thel
from protesting against what they d,
nounoe privately as an infamous propos
ton. There cannot be much respect fo
these timid creatures who dare not rails
their voices in protest against an outrag
lest they incur the displeasure of the pc
petratcrs of the outrage.