The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1892-12-24

Although there had been some small at
tempts at political division, it was not
until 1870 that there was any thorough
organization against the dominant
power. Seceders from the Mormons
united with the other elements of discon-
tent, and an Independent municipal
ticket was put into the field which
obtained about three hundred votes, and
party was organized which developed
into the Liberal party now existing and
commanding nearly 1000 votes.
1t was on account of the opposition thus
developed that the Mormon people entered
into a regular political organization
called the Peoples party. 1t had no
reference to the national parties, nor was
it intended to agitate national questions
except as they related to Utah. 1t was
local organization for local purposes, and
soon extended to every part of the terri
tory. It's members studied political
principles in general but not, to any
great extent, party doctrines in particular.
Their sympathies were largely with
Democratic ideas because of their desires
for complete local government, and
because the Republican party had from
it's inception taken hostile attitude
against the Mormon church on the
ground that it practiced polygamy and
exercised political domination. But the
Peoples party had within it advocates of
the principles of both the great national
parties.
The Liberal party was composed OF both
protested Republicans and Democrats, the
former largely predominating. They
temporarily deployed into their respective
party ranks every four years SO as to gain
recognition by the national party organi-
cations during presidential campaign.
But during the rest of the time they pre-
sented as solid front as Liberals as did
the Mormons in the Peoples party.
For a long time the efforts OF the Liber-
ais We're entirely in vain as to the offices
IN city, county or territory. Tooele
county was captured in 1874 by illegal
votes OF miners who stuffed the ballot
boxes. But it was regained by the Peo-
ple's party four years later, after its
county warrants had been reduced in
value from par to less than fifteen cents
on the dollar. The building up of Park
City as a mining town occasioned the loss
of Summit county and its subsection to
the Liberal party, but not with the same
results as to Tooele, the leading Liberals
there being of better and more capable
class. This was the sum of their achieve
ments for some time.
Later they were successful in procuring
legislation in Congress which gave them
hope. The operations of the Edmunds
act of 1882 and of the Edmunds-Tu
act of 1887 cut down the vote of the Peo-
ple's party considerably. The influx of
non Mormon population through mining
developments and real estate booms aug
mented the Liberal forces. And at length,
through the official help of the Utah Com
mission and the manipulation of the
registration lists under the leadership OF
astute professional politicians, the Lib
eral party succeeded in capturing Ogden
city and subsequently Salt Lake city,
after an exciting and expensive campaign
waged on both sides with great enthusi-
asm and no little skill and executive
ability. The evidences are full and COM
plete that these Liberal victories were
gained through methods and schemes as
illegal as they were unjustifabIe.
The avowed purpose of the Liberal party
was the suppression of polygamy and the
cessation of ''church rule 1t was an
nounced by its leaders and press that with
the abandonment of polygamy by the
Mormon church and the dissolution of
the Peoples party, it's mission would be
at an end.
In the fall of 1890 the president of the
Mormon church officially announced sub
mission to the laws of the United States
on his own part and in behalf of the
members of the church. This was form
ally endorsed by unanimous vote of the
body in general conference assembled in
f October of the same year. Plural mar
riages.h ceased to be solemnized for
some time previous to this announce
) ment.
5 The leading members of the Peoples
' party had for two or three years contem-
plated dividing into the national parties,
1 and the subject had been earnestly dis
t cussed on many occasions. But the I'M
willingness OF the local Republican and
;oI,