The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1904-03-10

OF SAINTS
Members Of the Church Of Latter
Day Saints Testify at Senate
Inquiry.

WASHINGTON, March I0.-Several
officials Of the Mormon church testified
In the Senator Reed Smoot case before
the senate committee on privileges and
elections that they had plural wives
and had continued to practice polyga-
nous cohabitation since the manifes-
to of 1890. Just before adjournment
for the day the committee held an ex-
ecutive session for the purpose Of hav-
ing read the unprintable testimony in
the Teasdale divorce case. The prose-
cutlon stated that it had no more wit
nesses ready to put on the stand on
account of the failure of several sum,
moned officials of the Mormon church
to appear. President Joseph f. Smith
was asked to use his influence with the
! witnesses and promised to get into
communication with them If 1t was
possible to do so.
Lorin Harmer testified that he was a
bishop for five or six years, but had
been sent to the penitentiary in 1899
hHbA NNANANAAbh VI hANAltAoAlAg anu ADnA
his good standing. He said he had two
wives, Ellen and Ida, and had lived
also with Ellen Anderson, but never as
her husband He said she had two
children by him, one since he had re-
turned from the penitentiary. He Rpw
lives in Springville.
He said Ellen Anderson supports her
self and that he had contributed moth
ing for the care Of herself or her chill
dren. He said she had property Of her
own.
Mr., Harmer was asked If Mr.. Smoot
had anything to do with his arrest
II think he caused it," he said. "He
was counselor at that time to the presi-
dent of the state, who was then away
He called me TO Provo and told me
the church proposed to take away my
bishopric and other offices. l asked
him to give me time to prepare my fam
lily, and then / started home"
why was he going to take away
your Offices"
Because | had committed crime"
'What crimeY
Adultery. to be frank"
''Why do you think Mr. Smoot caused
your arrestY"
Because before reached home the
sheriff overlook me and put me under
arrest. l blamed Mr. Smoot for send
ing the sheriff after me. thought he
might have given me more time, al
fhnnsFI In .tsftr
don't know that Snoot was responsible
for my arrest, but il looked like IT,"
Hiram NJ Smith, thirty-two years
old, son of President Smith and one
of the twelve apostles, read a speech
he had made in 1894 in Brigham City
at one Of the quarterly conferences, in
which he said each one in the matter
of obeying laws does as he pleases,
but that each must bear the conse-
quences Of his acts. He said that was
his view. He explained at length the
manner of sending out missionaries
and said polygamy was not talked and
that polygamous cohabitation had new
er been talked at a conference at which
Mr.. SmoOt was present
At other meetings he had heard dis
cussed the question of n continuance
of plural marriages, and the apostles
had taken steps to prevent it, Polyg-
amous cohabitation, he said had not
been considered.
When he (Smith) went on a foreign
mission to Great Britain he had been
instructed not to discuss polygamy.
He never had discussed it as an apos-
tie, but when he was n missionary he
had told certain persons who assailed
the doctrine that it was teaching of
the Bible and had ended the contro-
versies by referring the persons to the
Bible so they could judge for them
selves"
Senator Hoar-Did you commend up
on prospective converts the rule of
your church against polygamy2
Il always refrained from arguing on
polygamy."
At the request of Attorney Tayler
for the prosecution the committee went
into executive session, and the testi-
mony in the Teasdale divorce case was
ANdN. ~ was hSltCu Ahtit NOuhsSA AVA
and against Senator Smoot should en-
deavor to come to an agreement on a
statement of facts in the case Con-
sideration was given to the proceed
ings in executive session because OF
the unprintable character of the testi-
mony and a dislike on the part of the
committee to spread the facts before
the country.
Andrew Jensen, assistant historian Of
the church. giving testimony said he
had two wives, who were sisters, and
that they both lived in the same house,
though he lives with the first Mr.. Jen-
sen said he was not sealed in eternity
to the mother Of the two wives.
Escaped Murderer Has Pneumonia.
ST. JOSEPH, Mo-, March 10.-Mark