The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1899-12-10
THE ROBERTS CASE.
Worcester Man Visits
the MormOns at
Their Home.
INVESTIGATES Their RELIGION.
Its Practice Is a Curse
Upon the People Led
Into the Temple.
INVESTIGATES THEIR RELIGION.

George c. Whitney, president of the
George C. Whitney Co., has collected
data concerning Mormonism and the
Utah congressman Brigham H. Rob
erts, which is original in nature and
represents a diligent search for facts in
the famous controversy. Mr.. Whitney
visited Salt Lake City while acting as
a delegate to the conventions of Baptist
church societies in San Francisco, and
the repugnant methods of the practi-
TONERS of polygamy touched him. Not
until now has he been interviewed upon
Mormonism.
To The Spy man Mr.. Whitney said:
''Of Salt Lake City, the headquarters
of the Mormons, it can be truthfully
said that it is an ideal spot Rich soil,
a climate fairer than the sunniest It
ally authors ever wrote about, makes
the city and vicinity attractive to the
visitor The tabernacle in which pub
lie meetings are held is one of the
grandest buildings in the world. It's
acoustic properties are beyond belief
from mere statement. A visit to the
tabernacle alone can dispel the doubt
which is certain to enter the mind of a
man being told of the meeting place of
the Mormon worshippers. The taber-
nacle seats 10000 people. Standing upon
the stage and uttering a sentence in the
lowest possible tone, one can be easily
heard at the rear of the mammoth au-
ditorium. The equipment is modern,
and an air of something akin to refine
ment pervades the place.
Public meetings in the tabernacle
are attended not only by Mormons, but
in the audiences are hundreds of Cen
tiles. A large class of Mormons do
not practice polygamy, although they
are strict attendants at the tabernacle
and firm believers in its principles. The
reason I found for this fact is that
many of the Mormons are not wealthy
enough to support more than one wife.
1t is not because the practitioners
believe the principle of plural marriage
sinful, but solely because of financial
circumstances
In the Mormon temple, no one but
the elect are admitted. 1t has been
said that no Gentle has ever crossed
the threshold Here the practice of
polygamy is fostered. The knowledge
of what transpi ,es in the temple never
reaches a Gentle. Mormon men, and
women, too, can keep secrets. In the
temple the marriage services are per-
formed. There is no public record Of
marriages performed here, and only
members OF the elect have knowledge
of the number of wives a Mormon has.
When / questioned Mormons, regarding
the marriage ceremonies in the temple,
the answer was always the same: The
law forbids it. We obey the law Still
the plural marriages continue. but be-
cause of the clannish nature of the Nor
mons. it is not heralded among the
Gentiles.
Roberts defence, that he should not
be unseated because it Is not a question
of politics or law, but religion, is a
weak one. There can be no denial of
stct fY,fa ira, To fc sIrly
ably brilliant in thought and speech.
Polygamy and belief in Mormonism is
the only objection one could have to
him, but that is enough, inasmuch as
plural marriage is unlawful. I have
proof positive that the following is cor
rect. 1t has never been published.
There was in Salt Lake City two
years ago Mrs. DR.. Green, whose sign
bore that inscription and was on the
outer wall Of her office. Soon after that
time. the sign was changed to Mrs. B.
H. Roberts, M. D., and she was living
under the same roof with Brigham H.
Roberts. Her name appeared there
after in the city directory as Mrs. B. H.
Roberts, at the residence of the con-
gressman-elec
1T was generally reputed and actu-
ally believed that he had been married
to Mrs. Green by some officer of the
Mormon church. About II months there
after, there were born twins, which
were the children of his second wife, to
whom he was married at the time of
the adjustment of polygamy by the
laws of the United States. The only
inference from the above facts answers
the great question at issue. Among
business men of Salt Lake City 1t was
a matter of general belief that Rob-
erts was living with his three wives.
THE antipathy to Roberts developed
because the system he represents is re-
pugnant to American ideas. In this
very garden of beauty, Salt Lake City,
there are evidences of prosperity every
where. Mormons are especially pros
porous. In exterior appearance, a
Mormon is no different from a Cen
tile, although it is generally a fact
that a Mormon has better education
and is more plentifully supplied with
money than the Gentle.
II found man in Salt Lake City
who had been induced to leave his
home in Holland by a Mormon mission
airy. He entered into all the affairs of
the Mormon church for two or three
months, but found it much different
than represented to him. He said that
1t was not religious in his sense. and
left the church He characterized
Mormonism as more of a system than
a belief, inasmuch as there is nothing
vital in it.
1.-THE Mormon elders teach that a wo-
man will never have happiness in the
hereafter unless she is attached to a
man of Mormon faith. This is thor
oughly instilled in the minds of Cen
tiles who show a disposition to enter
the Mormon church. / know of a
case in Salt Lake City where a Gentle
woman became interested in the Nor
mon faith. Once in a position where she
could be under the influence of the eld-
ers, she was induced to give up her
husband and embrace the faith of the
Mormon church.
lin the temple she was sealed to a
Mormon who was dead The corpse
was that of an elder, and by the mar
rage ceremony, in the hereafter he
would be her husband. This was so
thoroughly instilled in her mind that
she was ever honored among Mormons,
because Of the great triumph in secur-
ing such noted member of the upper
class for a husband in the hereafter.
This barbarious teaching eradicated
true religion from her mind, and,
strange as it may seem, the woman
who believed such infamous practices
was intelligent, refined, and a sup
posed Christian, prior to becoming a
subject for Mormon teachings.
The opposition to Roberts from a
religious point of view is based partial
ly on the Mormon belief in God Nor
monism teaches that God, our creator.
is man who recognizes only Mormons
and women who are wives of Mormons.
According to Mormonism, there will be
both Gentiles and Mormons in heaven.
The non-belieyers in Mormonism will
be there to act as servants for the elect.
The religious question does not touch
the Roberts case. or at least there is
no reason why it should
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