The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1907-03-04

The Seating Of Smoot Result Of Deal
With Mormon Church by Marx
Hanna in Exchange for Votes for Nc
Kinley-Roosevelt Party TO Bargain
and Helped to Garry It Out.
BY Willis j. Abbot, for Columbus (Ohio)
Press Post.
WASHINGTON, D. c., Feb. pa
The System has saved a Senator.
The Mormon church is TO be represent
ed in the United States Congress By
one of its chief "apostles.' The bar
gain made in 1900, has
been most scrupulously carried out.
President Roosevelt has applauded the
defense of Smoot by Senator Knox.
Senator Knox, long a member of the
President 8 official family, made the
final defense of Smoot and of the
church, not the State, of Utah, to
which Smoot frankly owns his allegl-
ance.
The vote by which Mr.. Smoot was
seated on Wednesday of this week was
43 to 2S. Only three Democrats voted
in his favor. One was Clark of Mon
tana, whose Democracy has always been
a matter of question. He retires from
the Senate in ten days, A second was
Blackburn of Kentucky, who will re-
tire at the same time. Washington
is seeking an appointment to Office at
the hands of President Roosevelt on
one of the commissions IN which the
law compels representation of the
minority party. The third was Senator
Daniel Of Virginia, and the reason for
his vote VIII ever remain mystery.
Smoot as a Political Issue,
The seating Of Smoot should. and
probably will, produce serious results
for the party responsible for it, OF
course, they have given the Mormons
the price expected for their support in
Utah, Idaho and Wyoming, and they
may expect gratitude from this organ
lzation, which is called church, but
which is in fact a political party. Near
ly four milliop women in the United
States signed petitions asking for the
rejection Of Smoot, and on the day the
vote was taken the galleries were
crowded with women, while hundreds
stood IN the corridors, unable TO gain
Admission.
1T was not claimed that Smoot him
self was a polygamist, The Mormon
church was too smart TO attempt TO
send TO the National Congress man
who was polygamist. But Mr. Bur
rows of Michigan read the sworn testi-
mony of Joseph +, Smith that on one
day, as matter of fact, in the same
hour, he had married two sisters, the
same Clergyman, or official, Officiating
at the marriage. Then he read the tes,
timony of Reed Smoot that he would
not, and had not protested against
such violation of the laws of ordinary
civilization and decency. The galleries
shuddered, but the well disciplined Re
publican Senate went on to vote.
Senator Burrows showed conclusiyely
the power of the Mormon hierarchy in
politics. He proved that the practice
of polygamy had never ceased. He read
records, officially certified that since
1900, the time OF the enactment Of the
law prohibiting polygamy. the most
prominent apostles and priests of the
Mormon church had continued to live
In. unlawful association with plural
wives. And he pointed out that in
Smoot's 8 impassioned defense for him
self In the Senate the day before. he
had uttered no word of condemnation
OF polygamy but that In his testimony
before the senatorial investigating com.
mIttee months earlier he had declared
that he would not condemn it.
This is the fact in a nutshell Reed
Smoot himself is not polygamist. but
he not merely apologies for, but de-
tends polygamists belonging to his