Los Angeles herald., 1905-03-01
ECCLESIASTICAL AUT0CRACY
DEEPLY SCORED
PoLYGAMY APOSTLES RULE
Business Methods and Political Man.
lpuIatlons Of President Smith
and His Cabinet Ruthlessly
Criticised
BY Associated Press.

Dubois was laid before the senate and
was made the occasion of a long ana
explicit address by retiring Senator
Kearns Of Utah. He said that he could
not permit the occasion to pass without
saying what 1t seemed should be said
by a senator under such conditions be-
fore leaving public life. He then re-
viewed the history of Utah and recited
the conditions under which statehood
was granted.
"The pledges given by the people OF
Utah." said the senator, consisted OF
the following propositions:
"That the Mormon leaders would
live within the laws pertaining to plu-
raj marriages; that they would no
longer exercise political sway, and that
their followers would be free and would
exercise their freedom in politics, busi-
ness and social affairs
Continuing. he said: Utah secured
her statehood by a solemn compact
made by the Mormon leaders in behalf
of themselves and their people. That
compact has been broken willfully and
frequently. No apostle of the Mormon
church has publicly protested against
that violation.
The Church Autocracy
Senator Kearns said the question of
religion is not involved and he passed
from that question to the social aspect
with brief comment. The church au-
tocracy he said. at present is at as high
a point as it has ever reached. He de-
scribed the surroundings and the pow
ers of President Smith, who, he said,
affects a regal state and has estab-
lished himself with the dignity of a
monarch.
"In all the social SYSTEM said Sen
ator Kearns, leach apostle has his
great part He is inseparable from it.
He wields now such part Of the power
as the monarch may permit him to
enjoy, and it is his hope and expecta-
ton that he will outlive those who were
his seniors in rank, in order that he
may become their ruler"
Its Business Policy
Taking up the business policy of the
church, Senator Kearns charged that 1t
amounts to a monopoly He recited
the hearing Of President Smith, by vir-
tue of his office as well as his private
holdings, and said that when he became
president he boasted of his property,
while he now "is in receipt of an in
come like unto that which royal fam
lily derives from a national treasury.
One-tenth of all the annual earnings
of all the Mormons in all the world
flows to him. These funds amount 20
81, 100000 annually"
parties are nothing to these leaders,
except as parties may be used by them.
So long as this is a Republican admin-
istration and congress they will lead
their followers to support Republican
tickets, but If by any chance the DEM
ccratic parry should control this gov
ernment, with a prospect of continu-
ance in power, you would see a grad
ual veering around under the direction
Of the Mormon leaders. No man can
be elected to either house of congress
against their wish.'
PoIygamous Apostles
Senator Kearns subsequently took up
the question of the Mormon marriage
relation and said:
7"Plural marriage relations have been
continued defiantly, according to the
will and pleasure of those who had
formerly violated the law. and for
,IAo AA Ia ha ohtY
monarchy pledged the faith and honor
Of its leaders and followers alike in
order to obtain statehood"
He charged that every apostle of the
church is in a large part responsible
for this condition, and that it is quite
evident the church monarchy is try
ing 10 re-establish the rule of the polyg-
amous class over the mass of the
Mormon people. He further claimed
that not more than three or four of the
quorum Of apostles have refrained from
practiclng polygamy, and that Special
reasons may exist in some particular
case why a man in this class has not
entered into such relation"
We All Pay Mormon Tithes
Speaking of the tithing system, Mr.
Kearns said that no account was made
Of this vast sum of one-tenth of all
the incomes of the Mormons and that
the president of the church expended
1t according to his own will. He said
the hopelessness of contending in u
business way with this autocrat was
perfectly apparent and continued:
TT will astound you to know that
every dollar of United States money
paid to any servant of the government
who is Mormon is a tithe for the
benefit of this monarch. Out Of every
thousand dollars thus paid he gets $10O
TO swell his grandeur. This is also
true OF money paid out of the public
treasury of the state of Utah TO Nor
mon officials. But what is worst of
all, the monarch dips into sacred pub
lie school funds and extracts from
every Mormon teacher one-tenth OF his
or her earnings and uses 1t for his
.o.trnaaaa. aud h., ,..ao.,a