The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1904-05-03
CANNON HURRIED
TO SAY HE'D LIED
TOLD SENATE COMMITTEE
rHAT HE HAD PERJURED HIMSELF
IN UTAH.

cannon Said That He Had Told
Prominent GcntiIes That President
smith Had Performed Plural Mar
riage CeremODies--He Had Been
Drinking and Thought 1t Would
he n Good Joke on the GentiIes,
Whom 1t Would Tickle.
Washington, May 2.-Agnus NJ.
Cannon, Jr., son of Angus M. Can
non, former president of the Salt Lake
stake of Mormons in Utah, travel
ed from Salt Lake to Washington to
inform the Senate Committee on Privi-
leges and Elections that he had per-
jured himself in informing prominent
gentiles in Utah that President Joseph
F. Smith of the Mormon Church had
performed plural marriage ceremon-
les.
Angus NJ. Cannon, Jr.. was a wit
ness in the Smoot investigation to-
day He said that he had told false
stories in regard to President Smith
marrying his cousin, Abram H. Can
non, to Lillian Hamlin, a fourth wife.
His only excuse was that he had been
drinking and conceived the idea that
to tell such a story would be good
joke on the gentiles referred to as
anything against the Mormons tick
led them all over"
The witness said that he knew
Abram H. Cannon intimately, as they
had been associated together in BUSH
ness. He said that Abram had three
wives at the time of his death in the
fall of 1885, but that there was an
other wife he knew about. He gave
the names of three wives as Sarah M.
jenkins, Wilhelmina NJ. Cannon, sis
ter of the witness, and Mary E. Xrox-
all. Abram H. Cannon had children
by all of them.
Marriage on a Boat
In response to questions, answered
with the briefest of admissions, it was
drawn from the witness that he had
told E. w. Wilson, a Salt Lake bank
cashier, and others within the last two
weeks, that in 1896, in Los Angeles.
ten or twelve people chartered a YES
sci for the Catalina islands, and that
in the PARTY, in addition to himself,
were Joseph F. Smith and one of his
wives; Abram H. Cannon and his wife,
Wilhelmina sister to the witness;
man named Langford, and Lillian Ham
lin. After the boat had gone some dis
lance from Los Angeles, members of
the party. with two or three excep-
tions, retired to the cabin and there
Joseph F. Smith married Cannon and
Lillian Hamlin. The witness said that
OFT Il i-Ea Sc ,-sfo
heard what was going on she got an
cry and left the cabin"
When asked how he happened to tell
the story in regard TO the marriage, the
witness said: well, 1 had read the
testimony which MIR. Smith gave in
Washington, and l told Mr.. Wilson
that / knew that Smith did know of
polygamous marriages since the. mani
festo, because he had performed one
himself"
Are you still satisfied that Smith
married them?" asked Senator Du-
bois.
"Of course I don't know that he mar
ried them, but l think that he did"
was the answer.
The witness said Lillian Hamlin had
a daughter named Marva Cannon and
that Marva was recognized as Abram
H. Cannon's child.
1t Was All Hot Air.
The Witness in reply to questions of
Senator McComas, said he had been
drinking when he told the story about
the marriage on the boat and that he
did it as a joke. When the subpoena
came he said he told his brother-in-
law that what he had been telling was
all hot air."
At the afternoon session Mr.. Can
non said he arrived here early to-day
and that he met Senator Smoot and
talked over what Cannon was to tes-
tify to at the hearing.