The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1903-02-20
P0LYdAHY IN THE
STATEHOOD DEBATE
CONTINUED from Yesterday
:. Hale-For only a moment

NACotuCnNs mas NOT only D9eH most IN
terestlng, but most valuable, and, as a
senator on my left SAYS. startling. It
has disclosed the presence in certain
states and territories of a powerful re-
l1glous organization, well-organized
church. not asserting a practice that is
believed by the American people to be
wicked in its results, the practice of po-
lygamy, but asserting itself as dom
inant. potential force from the mind
and action of its followers.
Inc senator says that this has been
fully discussed before l do not think
so Most OF the discussion that has
taken place in congress in relation to
MorInonism has been with reference to
the practice of polygamy and its dis
astrous results upon the social fabric.
The greater question of the power and
determination of the Mormon hierarchy
TO intrude itself into temporal matters
and to influence and control the action
of its followers as citizens is what has
been developed here today, and it may
well give US pause.
The very last statement of the SEN
ator from Utah-that when an election
has taken place and there have been
opposing forces. in some way the in
fiuenee of the church has been brought
to bear to secure given result, he does
not know how-tells the whole story.
We have been told that in elections of
popular officers where there are two
candidates and the one has the APPROX
al of the church and the other rests I'M
der the frown of the church, the man
who rests under the frown Of the
/ church goes down. We have
been told of another case where a
man running for Office, a candidate be
fore his fellows. with a laudable ambi-
ton to be elected to an Important Of
fee, has been prohibited from running
f.zxf h. MI
he is Withdrawn from the contest.
/ do not know, Mr. President, of any
greater power than that. do not know
of any more dangerous power than
that. It is the power to bind and loose
If there is anything in the spirit of the
American institutions, it is that this is
never permissible on the part of the
authorities of religious organization
to exercise control in temporal matters
over its followers and to influence cleo
I-tions as the senator from Titan said, by
methods which he does not know about,
but which are effective.
This day has not been i'll spent, Mr..
President, in bringing out in this dis
cussion on what is called statehood Ger
tain conditions that obtain where the
Mormon church has secured its lodg-
ment: and the lessons which we have
been taught here ought TO sink into the
minds of sena tors and ought to give us
pave. / do not think upon this bill-it
it wider than that-but it discloses con-
ditions that we may well take into ac-
count in any legislation with reference
to these communities.
Mr. Patterson-ME- President
The President pro tempore-Does the
senator from New Jersey yield to the
senator from Colorado?
Mr. Kean-I yield This is very in
structive discussion.
Mr.. Patterson-Mr. President, as sug-
gested by my colleague CMr. Teller
there is group of states in which a
very considerable Mormon population
exists besides in Utah, and ii has given
| those of us who have been interested in
public affairs cause for considerable
thought and investigation
I have listened with a great deal of
| interest to the disclosures of the SEN
ator from Utah (Mr. Rawlins), and
heard given as the probable cause of
| the Intervention of the chief officers of
the Mormon church in the political af-
/ fairs of the states and territories in
| which the Mormon church has a con-
| siderable existence. It might be well
enough for. senators to take into con-
| Sideration with the facts as they have
been stated the probable cause.
We all know from history that the
Mormons have been. what they believe
themselves at least, a prosecuted sect
| The institution of polygamy has
brought them into very serious disre-
pute with those who believe that the
very foundation of society is the insti-
l tuition of homogeneous marriages. Witt
anti poIygamous laws, with the edicl
| of the church that polygany should
cease. the antipathy or the odium with
/ which Mormonism was surrounded die
not cease to any very considerable ex'
tent The odor of polygamy has clung
/ to the church whether polygamy wa:
exterminated or altogether abandoned
or not. 1t produced a desire in the
minds of the leaders of the church Il
maintain the church and its member
ship in as favorable a condition to thu
popular mind as was possible
| The church. I am inclined to think
has been particularly DESTROYS of beins
in good favor with the government, if
might use that term, for the purpose o
indicating the political power that TO
the time being was in possession OF I'M
government the result of which IA
been that one political party, not be
cause the political party was any n1or'
tolerant of polygamy or of the Mormon
religion than another political party
has been the chief beneficiary of thi
intervention by the Mormons OF tn
country as a church, as an organlza
ton, in the political affairs of the coun
try, of the states and territories il
which they exist
We have heard reports of this kim
suggested by the senator from Utah, o
those who are interested in politica
| matters outside of Utah sending dele
cations to high members OF the churcl
in Utah for intervention by them in be
half of political candidates or po
liticaI party That such appeals haV
been made there is no doubt. What tn
success of the appeals has been haV
no knowledge. But when 1T is remem
bered that the Mormons have. in thel
opinion, endured persecution, that the
are a body of people selected for tn
, weight of the government hand an
the finger of scorn from outside thei
: territory, it is not TO be wondered a
that the church as a church organize
ton has intermeddled as it has in pc
htical and public affairs. Its chief de
| sire is and has been 10 remain In faVo
} with the party in power From tina
party, not because it is a Democrat
or Republican party. but because 1t
! in power, they have expected profectlo
by reason of political favors they wer
able to. and did. in fact, return
Hence. from the very necessities c
the case, from their standpoint at leas
we find the condition of things existin
that the senator from Wyoming on
Warreny has described and the senate
from Maine (Mr. Hale) has denounced
and I do not know how you are goin
to prevent it. It is simply a develop
ment of human nature in an orsaniza
| ton of men and women striving for DC
| sitfon, striving for protection endeaV
oring TO maintain their organizatio
and to strengthen it. They are reach