The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1906-11-16
Some Progress Being Made.

James H Moyle took the position
that progress is being made-that fif-
teen years ago it would not have been
possible for members of the Mormon
church to meet in this way and protest
against the actions of the church lead
ers without being subjected to disci-
pline by those leaders. He favored the
adoption of any means that would put
the voters right on the question as to
what the Democrats stand for. The
question, he said. as to whether the
leaders of the Mormon church are TO
dominate in the affairs of the state
must be settled, ard it will never be
finally settled until it is settled right
F. s. Fernstrom was full of fight He
proposed to get hold of a number of the
church officials who were most offensive
in the use of their official positions. take
them before the church authorities. lay
the facts before them and demand an
endorsement or condemnation of their
actions. He was asked what he would
do i'm the case of President Joseph F.
Smith and the campaign document he
published over his own signature in the
Mutual Improvement Era. This ques-
ton showed up the futility of any such
line of action.
Philip S MaycOck was for fight. He
said the Democrats in this matter We're
fighting for a principle, and that the
offices were secondary considerations.
He wanted an opportunity to express at
the ballot box his honest political con-
victions. and he could do this only in
voting a Democratic ticket. He was
ready to fight if there was not more
than a dozen left to fight with him.
Joseph F. Smith Criticised.
Ray Van Cott severely criticised
President Joseph F. Smith for using
the Mutual Improvement Era for cam
paign purposes. He took the position
that President Smith in using his &c
clesiastical position and in using the
Era as engines in favor of the Repub-
lican party and against the Democratic
party was violating the constitution of
the state of Utah, where il says there
shall be no union of church and state.
He held further that in taking this ac-
ton President Smith had violated the
rights of every citizen of the state.
Stephen L. Richards argued that any
address sent out should be intended to
reach the reason of the voters: that in
ii the position of the Democratic party
should be made SO clear and plain that
there need be no excuse for misunder-
standing il.
Frank B. Stephens. who was unable
to be present. sent a letter i'm which he
insisted that the integrity of the party
should be maintained and that there
should be no backward step from the
position taken in the last state conven-
ton. He insisted that the leaders of the
church must be fought just as long as
they undertake to dictate in politics and
just as long as they interfere with the
political rights of the voters
Politics Farce.
Samuel a. King pointed out that the
Democrats had protested time and time
again against this evil of church inter-
ference, that back in 1895 they had re-
convened its convention 10 protest and
that all their appeals had been spurned,
they had been unfairly beaten, ridieuled
and insulted; and that now after eleven
years of this infamy the conditions are
worse than they had ever been before.
He was convinced that 1t was useless
to try longer to keep up the farce of
running a political party. He was not
Continued on Page 2.