The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1904-03-16
PoLyeAMx's WORST PHASE.
1t Must be Eliminated-Not Theorsti-
cally but Actually.
New York GlobeD

CNew York GlObe.)
In Mrs. Kennedy's testimony before the
senate committee at Washington yester-
day something was brought out more
sinister than how and by whom she was
married. Asked why she had left her
poIygamous husband. the following col
lOquy ensued;
Would you have stayed If you had
been treated right?" asked Senator For
yes sir: I certainly should"
1T was not. then. are we 10 inter, De
cause Of any objection YOU had 10 the
polygamous state that made you leave?'
No, sir. do not-no, sir; IL was
One of the principal objections 90 polyg-
amy has been that. bad as are its effects
on men. its influence on women is worse
so degrading them and bunting their
moral sensibiities as TO make them the
fanatical supporters OF system OF
which they are the miserable victims
Even the witness Mrs Kennedy does not
claim she abandoned her multi-married
Husband because of disgust at polygamy.
That her moral strabismus is not eX-
cepuOnal is shown by statements re
Jr., the present president of the Mormon
( church The following is contained in a
dispatch from Salt Lake:
The five admitted wives Of Joseph r.
Smith We're asked 10 express their views
on the subject of polygamy- Mrs Ju1ana
LampsOn Smith said:
Il do not believe polygamy Is divine
] know II. Why do you ask me about
such matters? Everything President
Smith says is straight"
Mrs. Edna LamDsOn Smith, sister of
the wife just quoted. said:
Il don't care to say much on the sub
Ject; but l uphold everything that my
husband says"
OF similar tenor is the response of one
OF the Mrs. Brigham II. Roberts, wife of
him who was denied admission 10 con-
gresS Asked concerning her attitude to-
ward polygamy she says:
7 certainly never would have accepted
Z polygamy unless / believed il divine and
a direct command from God. II / We're
n man / would be incarcerated before
would desert my plural wives"
/ The great impeachment to successful
I prosecutions for polygamy and pOlyg-
amous cohabitation has been that women
} nave not only refused TO give testimony,
but many times have unblushingIy COM
m1tted perjury to prevent convictions
i Ann Eliza Young turned against the first
/ Brigham Young and startled the world
/ with her revelations, but. for the most
part, the plural wives have been pitt
/ fully faithful.
| In view of this dark fact. as well as
! many others. it is not strange, now the
| shadow of MOrmonism has again fallen
] athwart general attention. that the in
vestigation at Washington has quickly
/ progressed beyond the technicality OF
! whether Reed SmOOt is entitled 20 his
/ seat POlygamy is an abomination SO
/ monstrouS, n system so corrupting and
| noxious and abhorrent to the normal
moral sense that smaller matters can
! not be discussed when ii obtrudes its
foul presence. The duty Of the senate
| may relate, in the first instance to de-
/ termining the competency of Mr.. Smoot
TO, sit as a senator, but a broader duty
relating to the preservation of the ma
! uOnal honor has been revealed Polyg-
amy must be elimina ted-not merely
| among congressman and other public
lOfficers, but among private citizens
! The Mormon hierarchy must be disa-
! bused of the notion that when it tricked
the country into admitting Utah as q
| state 1t secured itself from interference
| from national authority