The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1896-01-26

Salt Lake has or rather had its
Sweinfurth. About a year ago a man
named Israel f. Dennis appeared,
claiming, like the Illinois imposter, to
be an incarnation of the Deity. His
general plan and theory was closely
akin to that of Sweinfurth and doubt
less of many others and Dennis could
in no way lay claim to originality in
the doctrines he propounded. Like the
other religious takers of his kind he
claimed to have ''cinch"- on the wo-
men and the most prominent feature
of his teaching was that it was the
duty and privilege of the ladies in I'M
limited numbers to be set apart or
sealed to him. Whether the women
had husbands already or not did not
at all appear to interfere with either
the theory or practice of the god
man., as he styled himself. He located
himself in the northwest part of the
city last April and held his meetings in
tent on the banks of the Jordan
near the old race track. He succeeded
in getting fair audiences. chiefly of
the lower and more ignorant classes,
of whom he gained quite an influence
and made converts.
ENDOWED WITH SUPREME
POWER.
He claimed to be endowed with
supreme power and to be not only
possessed of supreme power but to be
God incarnate and to have a mission
on earth looking to the redemption of
mankind. He laid particular stress in
his preaching on the doctrine that all
the women of his flock should be
sealed to him and frequently predicted
that soon thousands of the fair sex in
this city would set themselves apart
and feel honored in considering them
selves as his special preserves. This
sealing was supposed to be in
spiritual sense and not to partake of
the grosser passions; however, it APP
pears from the sequel that this was
only supposition.
AN ARDENT ADMIRER.
Among his ardent admirers was a
Mrs. Robinson, the wife of a laborer.
She imbibed his teachings. particularly
the portions in reference to sealing and
without her husbands knowledge be-
came sealed to Israel, but the conduct
such as to warrant a very strong sus-
picion that the relations existing be-
tween them were not purely of a
spiritual nature. The husband tum-
bled to the fact and interposed very
strong protests and forbid his wife
having anything to do with the sup
posed divinity.
ELOPED WITH DENNIS.
Last Friday Mrs Robinson
left her home with the avowed inten-
ton of coming to town on a shopping
expedition. but she failed to return
and her husband has not seen her
since. He suspected that Dennis was
the cause of her disappearance and
instituted a search for his truant
spouse but without avail He then
expressed his intention Of having
Dennis arrested. but that worthy pro-
fessed the greatest contempt for sher-
ifs and all officers of the law. He
feared them not and declared that any
person attempting to arrest him would
be Immediately stricken dead. Robin
son. Notwithstanding, sought the aid
of the minions of the law. but Dennis
evidently hadn't a great deal Of faith
in the potency of his threat, as he
suddenly disappeared. and that so
quickly that he didn't have time to fold
his tent and take his scanty belong
ings with him.
DISCOVERED AT MANTI
He. however. left instructions with
two boys to forward his goods and
chattels to Manti, and on this clue
the officers proceeded and wired the
sheriff at that place that Dennis was
wanted. Soon they got reply stat
ing that a person answering the de-
scription was at Manti with two wo-
men. and yesterday afternoon Robin
son went before Justice Sells and swore
to a complaint charging Dennis and
Mrs. Robinson with adultery. The war
rant was issued for the arrest of the
pair, and Deputy Sheriff Thomas,
taking his life in his hands and BRAY
ing the threat of the supreme Dennis,
went to Manti with the purpose of
bringing the pair back to Salt Lake.
Before he got there, however, they
had DISAPPEARED. but are supposed to
be in the neighborhood of Manti. as
neither of them had much money and
couldn't get very far away, and the
probability is they will be brought in
today or tomorrow.
Mrs. Robinson is quite an elderly
woman and has grown-up sons and
good character and is we'll spoken of,
but appears to have been led astray
by the religious crazes of Dennis. Her
husband is an Englishman, apparently
about 60 years of age.
Dennis is a married man and pc
culiar circumstance is that his wife
is a firm believer in his theories and
is said to have been instrumental in
persuading Mrs. Robinson to leave
home and family to go with Dennis,
and the two women are now supposed
to be living with him as his wives.
Dennis is a tall man about 50 years
of age. with dark hair. chin and upper
lip clean shaver, but wears long, flow
ing whiskers. which Robinson desig-
mated as 'lawdy-dawdys" when giving
a description of him to the officers.
The grand jury has been investigat-
ing the case and it is said have found
charging Dennis and Mrs.
T J,,Ik