Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1899-12-16
NALL THE "MoRAoN QUESTION Be REVIVED?


s'sIy COW Nv Apostle Brigham Young
b 'rlss cspton above given The
" ~, 90 Of president snow and md. Wood Wood
rril'' A. sno,tle Young are also given
~ Np = preceded by the following
sirIAI' ooga Of this issue OF Har-
o. snoIhy,,, vii be found an article
u: brigham Young, w ',iiossc aa q M
u,,y indicates his pro,i' i,h,,r'h an
cihcne which Is now agflating .ne
.sbjec' locomotives In connection
rsss o. weston OF the right OF MT
ID me w representative from utah,
teths uis which he has been chosen.
be sea. " doubt. as We understand
Or , y that the Mormon enuseh
y nsss"odoned the practice ol po, MS
v apnia,yiages. but that the MOI
Us nld MAJ Ike Mr.. Roberts, had al
- NnO MI wives in 1890, at the time
riiy plu,S, Woodurffs manifesto, con-
pTssl0yIhYs IN the polygamous rela-
r8s 70 u established is clear. The
- wv ~ whether Congress VIII
Fa. 49, such continuation OF poays
G'al' cations as venial, and as on li
lr'H hsr 10 the seating OF a duiy
e % p9ssnresentative, Is now on trial'
elti W. W. M desire 10 anticipate the
y We va A. the moment Of writing IL
kds0h - that the Representatives,
sslw acton are fully alive 20 their
h&shi'tles and are not likely 90
,helr eyes to the unquesuoheu
~ W. me American people. Mr'
~ s,aiement. however Is OF vaiue,
lsat are are sure that the light II offers
81 We sSlormon" view Of the cont ro-
M mi he welcomed by the readers
W pp. YouNGs ARTICLE.
-,,s are being made to revive the
n~l1 ors question. The bulk OF the
tgiaS ~ The country are not correctly
~ go mon the subject. Where gen.
ilrr,ormatlou exists there Is litlle or
n'nositlon to engage in a crusade
~, he "Mormons." They have
w, checkered history from the IN
sa a n ,helr community, In 1880, but
r'Ays IN understand their present
ms n ls only necessary 10 deal WIN
y. career OF later years
80 perlod dating back 10 a time
IN subsequent to the founding oil
4 ~ harmon" Church its adherents be-
IN and a limited number Of them
..nsted al not more than two per
.,-nrsetced patrlarchal (or plural
,Isss believing II TO be O divine
-.,,n9on. In 1862 an anti-polygamy
rss psssed by Congress. II pro.
"A penalties for the punishment OF
=, Who married women While lhey
"a sgsl wives living and undlVorced'
~ statue remained practically q
IN letter upon the books.
,.iSst.g the subject was revived, and
January IS Of the latter year what Is
.,rn as Inc Edmunds law was passed,
~ mas followed later by the Ed
m, fucker act. The two statutes
rrNsel provided for the punishment
s,sose who committed the offense OF
rsrany By a fine OF not more than
4, hundred dollars, or imprisonment
4, ra more than five years, or both
"a Ane and Imprisonment. The offense
rlawful cOhabltation was included
tAs measure. This was not aimed at
n act Of plural marriage, but the ilV-
"a husbands With their plural wives.
fractions we're made punishable By a
d o. not more than three hundred
Nsrs and costs, or Imprisonment for
Z, nore than six months, or both fine
ri Imprisonment. Under these
,ayures polygamlsts were disfran-
s,d the Church was dlsincorporated,
I'd ks property, with certain exemp.
TIA was eschea,ed to the United
sllss
n crusade opened with the arrest OF
RIDER Clawson IN April, 1884, and was
I1iucted with extreme rigor for nearly
q ysas. In almost every case the
N penalty OF the law was inflicted,
esexceptiOns being where the accused
EVrised TO obey the law "as construed
" he courts"
70 most people the making Of such
Hcnise would seem q very simple
riikr, easy 10 be compiled with, 1t
VA however, an exceedingly difficult
III apparently impossible condition for
-, 0. the accused TO engage to con-
I'm 10, for several reasons. They con-
cautiously thought that some OF the
fslrgclions OF the courts were not
Eg strained, but extra judicial, which
risictOn was subsequently verified 10y
sisons Of the United States Supreme
Cart They likewise took the ground
ni hey could not consistently enter
10 such a contract In opposition 70
Z Institution they deemed divine, UNI
Z he Lord should justify them In so
NC and the Supreme Court rendered
ittll decision as 10 the constitutional
y q the laws under which they were
keecuted.
Another formidable obstacle that
f'Od 10 the way Of making the promise
Scetionce was that 1t practically In
t'sd the casting aside of wives, with
non in the minds OF the husbands a
sued contract, which could not be
h1fably disregarded, had been en-
ViN upon The required pledge like
S meant the casting of blight upon
AaIen born under that contract.
s-hoers Of those men who preferred
y ald Imprisonment, involving asso-
luon with some OF the vllest Grimm
% The earth would also have suf-
- themselves TO be shot TO death
alf Than have secured freedom at
vi price.
'llle the judiciary pursued their pur-
Vhe suppression OF polygamD
1 uhrelen,lng determination. they
-ldlently paid a tribute TO the in
snIy OF the genuine Mormon" char
wi ny Offering comparative and. In
,-Ivels OF cases, entire immunity from
,.-sh'nent on the basis of a personal
.l~ Had the accused been GRIMM
" the ordinary sense, they would
N Promised anything IN order to es-
~ me lash Of the law. If the judlcl-
y lAa not believed that such a per-
~ oblgatlon as the one asked for
80 nave been sacrcdly kept, they
I, .-' not have made the tempting Of
~ W several Years a reign Of terror
tnel-familes were temporarily
speli men who stood well In the
.,,.unlty were herded into the peni-
k,p oy scores, the aggregate being
| t,s.ts eight hundred and nine
sMs"' Among the extraordinary
na's ' OF The judiciary was the segre-
ss MI ot the offence Of unlawful CO.
ss.e suon' In this way Il was made
49,. ss by minute divisional process
,nStslofe unknown to civilized juris-
snl. e 70 lmprison person accused
eu swtul cohabitation for a term
h,s,s, ' gnl cover the period OF his
a, la Lie, and place him under a fine
| a., hilnonaire would be unable 10