Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1900-12-20
SHALL A CONSTITUTIONAL
AMENDMENT PROHIBIT POLY GAMY ?

An earnest affirmative was given to this
question Tuesday evening by DR.. Sarah J.
Elliott OF Utah, who spoke on the subject
az the New Century Club, She said "it
seems an immense question TO talk Of alter.
ing the Constitution and three ysars ago IL
asked II IL were necessar, to have legisia.
tion OIL the subject, would have said. no,
education will solve the problem thought
like others, that plural marriages we're
thing Ut the past hut have seen the faisity
q this aud the effects of .polygamy oil the
Mormon women. The older ones among
them who. had gole from the East realized
their condition, but had burned their ships
behind them, and they set their lips together
to bear the degradation, though Que could
see they had suffered in the elm ination of
their wornanhood. and each ones face was
q summary OF the tragedy and showed she
WAS acquainted with grief. But the next
generation show they have grown more in
different, aud the faces of the younger
women indicate no suffering; they are used
to 1t. This abnormal womanhood means
an abnormal race; there is something tre-
mendo,ls. awful in it. The New Gospel
teaches that by the practice of Mormonism
men become gods and their idea of God is
that he is only another man like themselves.
II Is menace to the nation, for 1t IS rotten
to the core.
1.-THE Mormons knew that only by state
hood could they really get control of their
and we really hoped the question was settled
and that they were willing to give it un.
But the very day after statehood came men
and women preaching Of the divine iustitu-
tion and the beauty of polygamy. and the
plural marriages go on. They say you
have no court evidence against us, for
their marriages are celebrated in the
temple where even no member Is allowed to
enter without permit, and the marriages
are recorded only in the historians office OF
the Mora on church. Every man who
signed the treaty to give up plural mar
fYou ask, How are their homes. their
childien? Are they different from our
homes?' Not all of them, on the surface
one meets educated people, apparently like
you. but tee homes are fatherless homes.
They say We. are no worse than men IN
New York. But there Is this difference, If
man has six wives in Utah it means deifl-
cation for him; In New York ii means
degradation. Are we going to let the chill
dren grow up used to these conditions?
They will not be able to see harm In what
they see their mother aud grandmother do.
The danger Is worse than it WINS 20 years
ago. Tor 1t Is more subtle, less apparent.
At your back door you may find Mormon
| elders telling your servant girls IL they
come u Utah they win get IUur times their
present wages, while at the front door they
are handing tracts to your daughters. They
uu HOb ttll hIl tubiT uUcbflueS. Dub say, Wneu
we get them to Utah we will give them the
strong meat Of our word.' The contagion
is spreading; you say they are only 300, GEO
and we are 10, 900. COO. But do you recognise
that Mormonism has political power in five
States and partially In nine? There is a
Mormon temple in Idaho. In regard TO
the amendment to the Constitution, be-
lieve It Is necessary because the State laws
cannot be enforced. Senator Edmunds and
| Senator Hoar favor It.. II we pass law
prohibiting polygainy In every State we
| will not give them time to Gil up the States
we want to get the amendment before this
| Congress. IL took time and money to get
Roberts out. We want you to sign petitions
to Congress. You ask what Is the use OF
| women signing petitions. Because the voice
| Of American woman has weight with Ameri-
| can men; they will rise to her level; they
| will say, i can't 40 back to my wife with
| out work for this II the men are the
| heads of the nation you are the necks that
| move the heads. You have freed the colored
women OF this country, why not free the
| whito women from this slavery, for 1t Is
| slavery. II means the degradation of
| womanhood TO let 1t go on. There are good
| honest people among the Mormons, thrifty
and industrious, but they are victims of a
| fRnaticism never equaled. We must save
the children; the men and women are
formed material, but the children. are yet
Ia a formative state. They must be saved
| from the degradation of living thus and not
knowing that It is degradation. A. y.