Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1906-10-13
DEsERET EVENING NEWS SATURDAY OCTOBER 10 1905

| April, 1906 The Rev. ID. Ferguson, MA.
Of tho +. y. mission, Formosa, Ia
lengthy article on polygamy and polyg-
amous cohabitation, said that the Old
| Testament sanctioned polygamy and the
! New did not condemn II. He also said
II was right and proper and showed
| Christian spirit 10 receive a man into
| the church with moro wives than one.
| And II was cruel and sinful for a man
on becoming Christian to leave or for
sake a plural Wife, who had borne him
children"
The Rev, Hugh White OF China,
Presbyterian preacher, In a lengthy and
well written article on polygamy In the
Louisville Christian Observer "a Pres
byterian family paper) In Issue OF May
10, 1906, says In part. when one I'm
Ignorance Of the law has assumed the
responsibilities OF husband to more than
one wife or concubine, 10 retract his
course would be more sinful than TO re-
main IN il"
!. He says THE Scriptures give a
sufficient precedent. The Injunction =
Tim. ILL., p that a bishop should be the
husband Of one wife, plainly implies
that there were members in the church
who had more than one"
>. For polygamist 10 dismiss his
wives and concubines Is to make him
liar and violator OF solemn cove
nants"
Third. For q polygamist IN China
10 put away his wives and concublnes
involves sorrow, disgrace, ruin, IN this
life, and well nigh inevitable damna-
ton in the world to come" 1t Is a his
torical fact, that ever since the days
OF Abraham down to the present time,
II has been the rule OF nearly all ortho-
doN religious societies to receive to
their MEMBERSHIP polygamistic converts
and their plural wives. The only Chris
tan societies who are opposing this
rule are the so-called Christian mis-
slonaries in Utah and those that have
been misled by them. There Is no
question In the minds OF the right
thinking that II the orthodox Christian
missionaries IN Utah had made con-
verts Of Mormon polygamists that this
rule would have been adopted there as
II has been In all countries where they
have converted polygamists.
When the Mormons first settled In
Utah In lS4T II was then a province OF
Mexico and there, IN accordance with
the teachings OF the Bible and to "mul-
tply and replenish the EARTH" that Is
TO populate the then great and unsub-
dued west, they married into polygamy
and reared large families as q rite OF
their religion. When Utah was annex
ed TO the United States the Mormons
relied on article of the amendment to
the Constitution which said Congress
shall make no law RESPECTING an estab-
llshment OF religion. or prohibiting the
free exercise thereof" The Mormons
declared that marrying in polygamy
was a religious rite and no one had
right to modest them IN so doing The
very few who married In polygamy
were prosecuted. They carried II to the
courts and then to the supreme court
Of the United States. and when the SUI
preme court (the court OF last resorO
decided that marrying in polygamy
was not a religious rite, the Nor
mons stopped marrying into polygamy
and Since september, 1890, there has
not been one plural marriage perform
cd or sanctioned by the Mormon
Church.
Many religious lecturers and papers
claim that the Mormons are still mar
rying In polygamy. They are either
wilful falsiflers or they have been mis-
Informed on the subject. Guaranteed
rewards Of $1,000 each have been post
ed since September 1905 for reason
able proof of each and every plural
marriage performed or sanctioned by
the Mormon Church since Sept, 1890.
No one mas yet made any attempt TO
claim the reward. which still holds
good and will for some time to come A
very few Of the Mormons who married
plural wives previous TO September,
1880, are living with them. as they have
perfect right TO by every rule OF
every Christian denomination which
has passed on the subject OF poiyga-
nous cohabitation. They have a per-
feet right to as manly men, II would
be mighty mean man who would for
sake his plural wife or children be-
cause some one told him to!
In conclusion l will say that at It's
most prosperous period there was less
than 4 per cent of the Mormons IN
polyganly, and so many of them have
died since 1890 that today there is not
one polygamist in thousand Of the