The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1896-04-16
CRllCHLOV ON
THE CHURCH
Continued from Page -
POWER OF THE pREsInENrcv

e POWER OF THE PRESIDENCY.
1t is and will be understood bv the
world, outside Of Utah that under
sucn rule it rests viii. these three
1lluIpiuuals, whoever they may be, at
1-y given time, to decide who of the
1eduing members of that communion
can, and who cannot ACCEPT nomina-
g-SAs Tor Important offices throughout
Tan, that they can make or unmake
aHs candidate; that a candidate au-
Naiorlzed by them as against one run
9liig without, or against their author
,1duon, or Endorsement would, to say
the least, have a very, decided advan-
'ssIges over his competitor; that to have
tue flSht ITO accept or refuse nominal
liens TO the nod or beck of the head
OIL the prevailing church, without limi-
uaplon upon their will, is Ito practically
pace the political machinery of all
polrtcal parties in their hands. In
shopt. to place THE state absolutely I'M
DER rhe control of three men with no
responsibility but their own conscien-
ces. You and I may believe that they
VIII exercise this power with the su-
premest wisdom, or that they will in
TACT, not use it at all, but will allow
uhls tremendous power to remain in
complete allegiance. And yet can It be
wondered at if the outside world take
this view?
A MIGHTY DANGER.
Is not this power one that
might be abused by any three
men that walked the face of
this eartn? Will the American
people believe that any three Ameri-
can citizens, men of high intelligence,
OF large personal and property inter
ests, viii be so utterly unmindful of
their privileges, so Indifferent had
almost said so criminally Indifferent
TO their duties as citizens of this rising
commonwealth and of this great ma
ton, chat they feel no interest in the
result of important and exciting cleo
tions, so that they will be perfectly
impartial toward all political parties?
WIN not outsiders claim-are they not
justified in believing, by all past eX-
perlence-that there will he constant
danger that IL a popular brother, a
church Official, strong with the people
OF the church, proposes, if not dis
approved by tie head of the church,
to accept nomination against a less
popular brother Of opposite politics,
but whose views coincide with those
OF the first presidency, it viii be found
that his duties to his church preclude
him from accepting the desired Of
fee? And is there not great danger
TO the church itself, even if the author
1ueS act with the strictest impartial
ity, that the brother who is ambitious
to fill the Office, as well as all his
friends of the same political faith in
the church, will feel and will say in
THESE latter days that their action has
not been fair? Will not the people of
the United States charge the leaders
of the church with duplicity and
fragrant breach of faith toward the
United States rs well as the people
OF Utah?
ARE THE PLEDGES KEPT?
VIII they not say that promising be
fore statehood TO utterly abstain from
interfering in the politics of the new
state, they have seized upon the very
earliest opportunity after receiving
statehood to announce to the people
of the church, as well as the world in
general, that, having obtained what
they want by making the most solemn
pledges, they propose to throw those
plGdges TO the wind? Will this act
exalt the church or the people of Utah
in the eyes OF the world? We must
remember that the people of the Uni
ted States all through the last two or
three years have been intently-I may
truly say uspicicusly-watchi us,
wondering whether the church really
intended to keep it's solemn pledges
or whether they were made to deceive
for a purpose. IF the verdict is against
the heads of the church, it is a ter
rible blow to the best interests of the
new state, as well as to the church.
THE PRACTICAL SIDE OF IT.
But to come to the second question
the practical working of the new man
ifesto. How will the Democratic and
Republican state conventions MANAGE
viii their respective chairmen send
OF 0f
the church officials whom they will
permit to become candidates for Of.
fee in their respective parties? A GER
tain number from whom they may be
allowed to select a candidate for gov
ernor? Or viii the church officers
limit them to one in each party, and so
on for representative to congress and
senator's? Or will the delegates from
ST. George, from Logan, from Ran
dolph, from Kanab, from Vernal and
from every hamlet and precinct, meet,
saw at Salt Lake, nominate g ticket
and send a committee with the ticket
TO learn the pleasure of the first preSi-
.dency, and if they refuse to allow the
Yaarty to put in nomination any one or
am of the candidates. will they try
again till they have done their pleas
l,ra7 Or will they come into the con-
vention end. sitting there as tribunal
of last resort. announce to the conven-
ton whom they VIII and whom they
1,yiIi not allow to become candidates?
.lr will the convention meet, nominate
their ticket and go home, and, if the
head of the church disapproves, will
1.laeig. chairman reconvene their con-
Tenfion and reconvene it again and
a gain till they get it satisfactory to the
s1owers that be? Will the approval or
sisapproval be open and public, or
will it be secret, communicated in
some occult manner to a chosen few,
~,rno will disseminate it to the party
ehiefso / have in a feeble manner
etrated some Of the questions which
1n1,st arise G1rder the new manifesto,
and must arise in the next few
-T1onths. There is no escape. They
-n,,st be met The manifesto does not
aiiow for the changed conditions in
TT.ah: but / forfbear to predict the
ocnseouences unless the first presi-
dency permit the new manifesto to lie
=, connnlete. absolute allegiance, lest
.-l,o1,ld prove another Cassandra. I
relieve the action of the church in
,sdonfing the manifesto viii prove to
he Something which every friend of
1T+ah every true friend of the church
vii ultimately regret.
EUGENE LEWIS.
ADMINISTRATORS