The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1906-12-12
SMOOT WAS NAMED
!. BY THE HIERARCHY
When Selection of the Apostolic
Senator Was Ratified by
the Legislature.
A CUNNING SCHEME TO
PLACE CHURCH In POLITICS
Candidate Receiving Indorse.
ment of the Mormon Leaders
Cannot Be Defeated.

riages and calling upon all members and
the laws OF the United States in refer
ence TO said subject matter. and
a. whereas 1t Is represented that since
and adherents OF said church have gener-
ally obeyed said laws and. have ab-
stained from plural marriages and polyg~
amous ohabitation; and
Whereas by petition dated December
19. 1891. the officials of said church.
pledglng the membership thereof to
plural marriage and unlawful cohabita-
ton. have applied 10. me to grant amnes-
ty for past offenses against said laws.
Now, therefore. I, Benjamin Harrison.
President OF the United States by vIr-
tue OF the. powers In me vested, do here
pardon TO all persons liable to the pen
alties OF said act by reason of unlawful
cohabitation under the color of poyg-
amous or plural marriage who have since
November /, 1880. abstained from such
unlawful cohabltation. but upon the eI
press condition that they snail in the
United States hereinbefore named and
not otherwise. Those who shall fall TO
avail themselves OF the clemency hereby
offered Will be vigorously prosecuted
Cleveland's Proclamation
subsequently, and on the 25th Of
September, 1894. President Cleveland
issued similar proclamation, except.
ing, however, from it's benefits .sail
persons who have not complied with
the conditions contained in the execu.
tive proclamation of January 4, 1898"
These pleas for amnesty were grant,
ed, prison doors opened, church prop.
erty restored, all disabilities resulting
from violation of law removed, and it
was confidently hoped that the people
8 Tfn,h Nd 1ar 4
by conforming to the mandates of the
law and the civilization of the age,
would enter upon new era Of peace.
order, and prosperity. But the plans of
the hierarchy were not yet fully real
lied, and would not be until the Terri
tory had escaped from Federal domi-
nation by securing the freedom OF State
hood; and the time seemed opportune
for such a. consummahon.
Previous to this, and during all the
years of Utah S Territorial existence,
efforts were repeatedly made to escape
the direct domination of the National
Government by securing admission into
the Federal Union. If my recollection
serves me correctly, at least half a
dozen attempts were made TO secure
Statehood previous TO 1890, all OF which
proved abortive for the reason that the
people OF the Territory, under the dom
ination of the Mormon hierarchy, were
not obedient TO the laws OF the United
States-were not ]aw-abidlng citizens
and therefore not regarded fit to be
intrusted with selfgovernment, After
the manifesto of 1890 and the general
amnesty following, and the liberal
spirit which seemed TO have taken pos
session of the public mind, the effort
for Statehood was renewed, and as
early as 1892, only two years after the
manifesto, a movement was lnaugurated
to that end and followed with such
persistency that two years later an en-
abling act was passed, and IN 1895
Utah was admitted into the Union as
a sovereign State.
And thus was the prophecy of Brig
ham Young fulfilled:
Do not be discouraged by your repeat
ed failures TO get into the Union as
State We shall succeed, we shall pull
the wool over the eyes Of the American
neople and make them swallow Mormon
We shall drop the old issue between
the Mormons and the Liberals IN uSan
tional parties. dividing ourselves ABOUT
equally, so as 70 fail In with the one IN
power We do not know and we do not
peace with them In order 10 get into the
Union After that we can snap our mn,
gers in their faces; restore the 5000 o.a
valleys OF the mountains, and cast out
devils as we used 10 do.
What Enabling Act Said.
Thus was consummated Ill the brief
period of SIX years what nearly balI
century had failed TO secure. No
stronger proof of public confidence IN
the sincerity OF these people could pos
sibly have been gwen However, to
hierarchy would keep faith with the
Nation. II was provided, among other
things, in the enabling act of July 10,
1894, that
The constitution shall be republican In
form And said convention shall
provide BY ordinance lrreVocable without
the consent of the United States and the
people Of said state
That perfect federation Of religious sem
tlnoent Shall lie secured. and that no In
habitant OF said State shall ever be mo-
Tested In person or property on account
or his or her mode OF religious worship:
That polygamous or plural mar
riages are forever prohibited
Subsequently, and when the Consttu,
tion was framed. these requirements of
the enabling act were embodied III the
of the state, coupled with
the further provision that There shall
be no union of church and State, nor
shall any church dominate the State,
nor interfere with its functions, under
which Constitution thus framed and
ratified by the people. Utah was admit
ted 10 the freedom of Statehood. Fol
lowing her admission, the usual steps
we're taken TO set the machinery OF the
State government in motion and to ad-
inst it To its new relations as member
If the Federal Union. To this end State
and Federal officials were elected from
lime to time. when, ON the 26th of
January, 1908, the Governor of the
State certified that on the 2lst day of
January, 1908, Reed Smoot was duly
,hosen by the Legislature of Utah to