Durango semi-weekly herald., 1904-03-14
SALT LAKE
VERSUS
BOSTON

To the casual visitor perhaps the
resemblance between Boston and Salt
Lake is unnoticeable. and indeed. out
wardly there is little resemblance.
| Nevertheless. local pride and ances-
| try worship is more marked in these
Two cities than in any other in Amer
| lea. and the causes that inspire it are
very similar.
To begin with. they were both set
lied by religious enthusiasts. driven
| by persecution to separate themselves
| from other communities. Their pion-
GERS endured untold hardships and
conquered wilderness. wrestling ev-
| cry inch of ground gained from
| bloodthirsty, hostile foe. After
| measure of safety had been attained.
they each commenced to persecute
| those OF their own members who fail
ed to agree with their leaders in ev-
| roborate this statement II is only nee
essary TO remember that Roger Will
liams was banished from Boston, and
went to Providence. where he had the
privilege OF believing as he chose and
doubtless also, the equally joyful priv
| ilege of enforcing his particular belief
on such of the rest of his neighbors
as could be induced TO believe any
| thing Witches were burned on Bos-
ton common As to the prevalence of
| these conditions in Salt Lake, the end
is not yet, and many there be who still
remember the massacre of innocent
people that occurred there when first
the gentle entered the land The per
secuiiOns within the church have not
| had such a wide publicity, but doubt
less the secret archives contain the
record OF much shedding of innocent
| blood.
| Then lastly as climax to the com
| parison. the wonderful and triumphant
progress they each made, and the sue
cess they attained, justifies the pride
| their present descendants feel Salt
Lake Is a beautiful city.
Now. in order to justify this compar-
| son of the Mormons and Puritans. in
the minds of those who are Mortified
ii such comparison, a look at the
records of still more ancient time
l =
in part at least, this feeling of horror.
The early record of the Jews says
that they were held in captivity and
sadly prosecuted by the Egyptians.
SO We're the Mormons by the people
of Illinois and Missouri. A prophet
arose among the Jews who promised
to lead them from their bondage to
| a ui ,ptt
So did there likewise among the Nor
mons, the same of the former being
Moses, and latter deliverer Young
1t is matter of record | believe,
that the Jews borrowed" everything
belonging to The Egyptians that they
| could lay hands on before they com
menced their exodus. 1t is said the
Mcrmons did likewise, Moses led his
people into wilderness, and to sat
isfy their murmuring, to inspire their
| respect and force their submission, he
| published his laws as the commands
of God. So did Brigham Young
Right here. of course. | know that
many will say, But Moses was in
| spired." Give the Devil his due,
please, and admit that the Mormons
believe that Brigham Young was in
| spred, and that on no other ground
can his wonderful achievements be
accounted for. Moses was wonder
full man, but so was Brigham Young.
! 1t is hardly to be supposed that the
Philistines, the people who inhabit the
land coveted by the Jews, admitted
that the Jews We're chosen of God
They believed that the land they oc.
cupied on which they had built their
home. planted vineyards, set out
fruit trees, herded their cattle and pas
tured their bees. belonged to them and
that the Jews were barbarians bent on
subjugating and despoiling them.
Since the Jews We're successful what
they say goes 1t is not on record
either that the Utah Indians were par
ticularly inspired by the claims of
the Latter.Day Saints, and It is fact
that they fought for every possession
they We're eventually forced to give
up.
As another side, II seems to me that
the influence OF the air by the shores
of an inland salt lake on polygamy'
has not been sufficiently investigated
by the savants, and that therein may
be found an interesting field of in
quiry Did the Jews and the Nor
mons practice polygamy because they
each selected such a dead sea as the
site OF their colony. and was this the
cause OF their phenomenal success ?
Were they really inspired, or is the
Impression that they We're due to the
admixtre of salt with hot air? II
these questions are approached In all
seriousness by some of the wise gees
whose business 1t is to answer such
questions. much light may be thrown
on heretofore mooted subjects. Do the
signs of the times, in the light of pro
phecy intimate that the new Zion must
he located near the shores of an in.
land salt lake? Is Dowie up Salt
creek? I'd like to know.
/ visited the wonderful Mormon tah