The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1890-04-10
THE IDAHO BILL.

The New York World, bitter as is its
hatred OF the Mormons, denounces the pas
'age by the House, or rather by 129 Re
oGblicans and Speaker REED, of the bill for
The admission of Idaho as state The
Vorld'S opposition is based upon the irregu-
ar manner CT the bill's passage, and upon
he wicked constitution Of the proposed
'tate. Says our contemporary: This is a
.sse which illustrates the iniquity and tyr
lnny Of MIR. REEDS rule. The constitution
adopted in Idaho is of such character as
% make the bill providing for admission a
most flagrant partisan outrage. 1t is even
worse than the intended crime in Montana,
or it fixes upon the community an
Unjust and corrupt fundamental law. 1t is
provided that Mormons shall not
Tote. For the first time religious test
las been made in state constitution
Under the Edmunds Tucker law polyg-
lmous Mormons are disfranchised. These
constitute about 10 per cent. of the voting
population OF Utah. The Idaho constitu-
ion DISTINGUISHES citizen because he is a
Mormon, whether or not he has been guilty
VI polygamy. Moreover, the constitution
S probably the first in which a gerryman-
Ter has been perpetrated. Mr.. SPRINGER
,ontended in the debate that Shoshone
county, which is Republican, having pop
Iation of $500, has been given four mem
0ers in the House, while Bear Lake and
Cassia counties, Democratic, with a popu-
alton OF 10.400, were given only two men,
5ers.
ba FIJI g.
70 fragrant d character that the Democrats
simply did their duty when, by keeping 81
ent, they insisted that the Republicans
should take the whole odium of its passage
AT least thirty-seven Republicans who did
1ot care to vote for so vile measure re-
NAMED away from the House, and Mr..
REED, who has no reputation to lose,
passed the bill. The Republicans who were
zoo nice to befoul themselves by voting for
The measure and not courageous enough to
Fote against it, thus escaped personal re-
'ponsibility both to their party and to their
orinciple-one OF the results which the
World predicted would certainly follow the
adoption Of Mr.. REEDS unconstitutional
rulen
The World says the case will undoubtedly
DC carried into the courts for the purpose of
trying the question whether the minority
Of the House by the aid Of a speaker who
cares nothing for law and justice when
they come in contact with his party, can
admit state. This threat was made at
the time OF the passage Of the bill, but we
don't believe an attempt will be made to
carry it out The Democrats have let the
thing run too long. and they also made the
mistake of voting on the rules which makes
n autocrat Of the speaker. If the Demo
,rats had compelled, by refraining from
voting, the adoption of the rules by the
same method which the speaker employs,
they could have gone into the courts with
some method of propriety 10 ask for pro
lection from legislation by the minority:
but court would not be apt to interfere
Tor the correction of the rules which have
been adopted regularly, an actual ma
Ority of the House voting on them. If
she Senate shall pass the Idaho bill, nobody
aeed expect that the legality Of the admis-
Iion viii be attacked except in the press
and on the stump, where the attack will
not count.