The Magnolia gazette. [volume] (Magnolia, Miss.) 1872-current, 1899-12-16

case De tested m Jle courts, DN
which he means the courts Of
! Utah. OF course these courts
would sustain him. The most
they would do would be to inn
| pose a nominal fine upon him.
! But the real place to test the
matter is in the congress of the
| United States.
! Let ourcongressmen bear sew.
eral facts in mind:
i. BY his own confession Mr.
Roberts is living in polygamy.
or, to use his own term, in "un.
lawful cohabitation, with at
least three women.
.. Part Of the penalty for liv-
ing with plural wives, as prescrib-
by the Edmunds-Tucker law of
1886, is disqualification to vote
or to hold office as an American
} citizen.
3. During the campaign which
resulted in the election Of Mr..
Roberts, polygamy was the most
prominent issue raised against
him; and this issue was made
very clear, MIR. Roberts vigor-
ouaiy defended poIygamy in that
campaign.
! 4. In the Improvement Era,
. Of which he is editor, be contin-
: ues to defend it, as also in the
{ interview quoted above.
] 8. The charge is made and
4 tacitly admitted that since state
t hood was granted Utah he has
a taken a new polygamous wife,
8 one DR.. Maggie c.. Shipp Of Salt
: Lake City, who has recently
changed her name to Mrs. Rob-
erts. II he did not marry her
since statehood was granted, he
has az least openly acknowledged
q her as his wife since then, and Is
] thus publicly living in "unlawful
I cohabitation' with her.
s 6. Mr.. Roberts has beon a
/ leader in the movement to repu-
: date the solemn covenant enter
: ed into by Utah in order to se-
: cure statehood.
\ z. He has the support Of the
D Mormon church in this repudia- :
Y ton. He could not be candi-
5 date for office withou: the con-
r sent Of the church leaders, or at
) least could not be elected. Once
Z before when he dared TO be a
candidate without their consent
he was overwhelmingly defeated,
while this time he was as over
whelmingly elected. The Nor
mon leaders are now openly at
> tempting to justify their repudia
! ton OF this covenant upon the
+ ground that it was forced upon
them. they had to accept it 'as
a condition precedent 10 admis-
sion; that it was obtained by
dure5s, and, therefore, not bind
a ing upon those who made IL.
! Like the promise Of man who
is seized by po%erful foe and
compelled, in order TO gain his
freedom, TO make some promise
which the other has no right 10
2 demand, the obligation is OF no
moral or legal effect, but may be
' repudiated, and the parties stand
with reference 10 each other the
t same as. il no promise had been
made. - (See Salt Lake Tri-
bune, Nov. 6, 1S99). The issue
i is thus squarely joined. By the
election OF the said b. III. Rob-
: erts, Utah serves notice upon
the nation that she repudiates
her solemn covenant which she
made in order 10 secure statehood.
, 8. To permit Mr.. Roberts To
: remain in the house Of represen-
, tatives would, therefore, be an
8 endorsement on the part Of the
. house Of Representatives Of such
. covenant breaking; it would be
e to reverse a well-settled national
policy, according TO which the
house OF representatives refused
TO seat George Q, Cannon, a pol
ygamist, as delegate from Utah
in 1882 it would be understood by
the Mormon people as an en-
2 dorsement OF polygamy by the
. house Of representatives OF the
Y national congress; and 1t would
Y give polygamy sucn an impetus
Y as it has never had before in all
0 the history Of the Mormon church
!, II would establish polygamy as a
3 Legitimate system OF marriage,
and make it at once a menace to
the American home, which 7. the
corner stone OF otr Christia1 ~