The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1896-12-13
THArCHER's LETTER.


Logan. Utah, Dec y. 1895.
Elder Lorenzo Snow, President of the
Twelve Apostles:
Dear Brother-Your recent letter writ
ten for publication in the Deseret News
at The request Of I'VE Young men of Sai-
Lake City demands an answer from me
in the interest of fairness. friends, family
and the Saints throughout the world.
The duty Is a painful one; 50 painful, in
deco. that personal considerations would
l-s motive insufficient 10 induce me,
oven on a matter 50 vitality important TO
me and mine, TO take up ny pen in self
4 have read ard re-read your open leo
ter and have purposeiy delayed replying
TO IT, hoping and praying that q sense OF
right and justice may dictate what
write 10 one holding the high and re-
spcnslb!e position you occupy in the
church. and for whom I entertain senfi-
ments Of profound respect, 10 matter
what you may mink or say about me. L
confess establishment not only 3, the
letter. bat Al the spirit CT your com
muncation; for as have always I'M
derstOOd your disposition. you ideas of
justice ard your love of mercy. that
communication does not appear 10 your
advantage Lorenzo Snow. as / have
known him during all the years OF his
presidency over The quorum o. aDos les.
no where. 10 ny mind. appears in that
bitter and acrimonious communication
Our political differences in Utah have
unfortunately and. as I believe, unneces-
sariiy resulted in criminations and re-
ordinations and the resurrection OF mis-
understandings long since explained or
Settled Before their Introduction l never
saw you turn a deaf ear to pleadings for
Specifications on the part OF an accused
brother Nor is il like you 10 ignore my
earnest often repeated requests for
charges against me. which YOU furnished
by the column. with evident alacrity, for
a public print I'm order to crafty the ap-
ps ent curiosity o. dve young men OF
Salt Lake CITY. II. as you say, 7 was
nCt entitled to a public hearing, as my
case was moi public matter. why did
YOU make public charges against me il
newspaper when you refused to give
me even an intimation Of them in priyate2
It is difficult for me TO understand why
you have publicly accused me when
privately you would not; why you pre-
scented specified charges against ne after
ms deposal instead of before; why you so
readily granted the request OF the five
young men when You persistently re-
fused mine; why you gratified their curl
osity and that OF the public concerning
an affair in which you declared l was
the principal party interested. This
treatment, this discrimination. is diff
cult for me 10 comprehend
Nc- can ! conceive the object of those
young brethren in asking further eX-
PLANTATION Of the conduct of your quorum
towards me, the entire correspondence
on the subject being in their possession.
The Deseret News had already declared
officially that the action OF deDosing me
had been inspired. dictated, authorized
and approved Of God" Holding the
New statements in view, IL may seem
Strange n many of the Saints that the
young men should ask further reasons
for my deDOsal and stranger still that
y'Cu should deem It necessary 10 furnish
them Besides. the published CORES
pondence was complete 1t told its own
story Of the patience and fOrbearance
which had been shown me.
SCORES THE DEsERET NEWS.
The appearance Of those letters in secu-
lar newspapers tand I infer from your
remarks that the Deseret News is not
Secularl was probably brought a bout by
the direct personal attacks Of the News.
which has not appeared TO be friendly 10
me under its present management. And
why should / have gone 10 the News
VIXEN its columns were daily riied with
Representations Of my conduct and
position When II was falsely declared
that had been pledged political support
for mOnths2 When IL was forcing me
upon d platform / had never constructed
acd attributing 10 me words I had never
uttered? But have YOU not seen even Of
fetal declarations from those occupying
higher positions than I ever held. appear
first - a secular paper and afterwards
Il tha organ OF the church,
Why should you feel called upon ITO
meet some of the statements contained
in that public correspondence Were
you not satisfied with the judgment of
tho people as TO the merits of the contro-
versy? Your side was placed before them
;ust as fully as IL had been placed be
fore me. If you believed a further ex-
plaEatiCn was due, why did you not give
it to me when ] requested it time and
again2
harsh expression from your letter: The
evident purpose in publishing those COM
rnunications was 10 excite public SYM
patty; and the unnecessary ana superfiu-
Gus appeals they contain convey the I'M
preston that they were concocted for
that purpose" Judging from the way
those appeals were treated. they were
indeed "superfluous and unnecessary"
Had I known that they would have been
50 regarded J never would have made
them ] viii confess they were ar2eals,
rot TO. the public. but to my brethren.
They were cries Of anguish from a heart
racked with pain They were pleas for
n erey-prayers for hght-for Information
as TO my offending. But why should you
imagine that they were published to ex-
cite public sympathy Do you consider
that 10 be the natural result of their pub
lic1t:o1? An appeal from one in dis
tress. in jeopardy, IS not connected
Rather does TX not require the Gel.bera-
ton of trained. skilled and diplomatic
mind 70 close the cars and hearts of men
against such appeals
3ou say: During that interval (April