The Idaho scimitar. [volume] (Boise, Idaho) 1907-1908, 1907-12-21
THE IDAHO SCIMITAR.

church authorities
teacher in the Mormon church was ousted from
the church for criticsng the head of the hierarchy
for polygamous practices, although it was presumed
that his chief offense selling salt in competition
with the head of the church and his associates
A feeble woman accommodated, prosecuted
and driven insane because she refused to surrender
title to property that unquestionably hers.
Who can say in the light of evidence that the
Mormon church does not subject its members to the
"severest penalties that the church can infict?"
But, in the long list of the victims of its discipline
not one is found who has suffered in body, mind or
estate for disobedence of the law that says-"thou
shalt not commit adutery"-or something worse
President Hyde says in his last production that,
ito my knowledge, and safe in saying to that of
the church, there have occurred new cases of DO
lygamy, with the consent of the church. since the
manifesto"
1t has been exceedingly difficult almost impos-
slble, in the past to prove the existence of new
polygamy," for the records of the contracts are
secret and the machinery of prosecution in COM
munlties most deeply stepped in the crime is under
control of the church, thanks to the jealous guard
ianship of the Republican party.
But one can now turn to the never failing stream
OF information that flows out of the 3,427 pages of
testimony taken in the Smoot investigation Ref
tons of the law and the manifesto and in many
instances it proved that the church was cognizant
of the assumed obligations of plural marriage
The Scimtar has printed many of the names of
offending parties, whose crimes were scheduled un-
der the oaths of witnesses. 1t can print them again
and again, that the lesson may be impressed deeply
upon the understanding of the men and the women
who are to cast out this sin from amongst them
selves
There are Apostles Abraham H. Cannon George
Teasdale, John w. Taylor, Matthias F. Cowley and
Mariner W. Merrill All took plural wives after
the manifesto of 1890 and that they could assume
their enlarged marital relationship without the
knowledge of the hierarchy of which they were a
part even President Hyde will hardly assert 1t was
shown in the testimony that two other apostles and
the first president living in the poygamous
of the governing body of the church
tarred with the same stick many years after the
revelation from God" forbidding plural marriages.
The testimony contains the names of other mem
oers OF the Mormon church that took to themselves
additional wives after the manifesto of 1890 and
IS the ceremonies were performed by duly author
zed ofhclals OF the church, the church must have
been aware of the de1nquencies and there is no
evidence to show that any of the offending ones
we're punished Walter Steed, Bishop Merrill, James
ldhelo JOlhlSol, benjamin CnuI, Jr. Thomas
Chamberlain, Bishop Ratha1, John Silver and Wins
ow Farr and others mentioned by witnesses
n this connection
For the information of the Senate committee in
he Smoot investigation, a subpoena was issued that
allied for the production of the church record of
but the head of the church refused to
ermit the official subpoenaed to comply with
he terms of the order of the committee Had there
cen nothing compromising in the record, it would
ave been freely submitted in the interest of the
efense to the scrutiny Of the committee