The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1907-06-20
Frank R. Christensen Delivers
An Able Address Before
American Club.
MORMON LEADERS ARE
DISL0YAL TO COUNTRY
POlygamy, He Declares, Is Being
Taught More AssiduOusly
Than Ever.

Frank r. Christensen delivered an
able and instructive address before the
American club Tuesday on the workings
and practices of the Mormon hierarchy.
He spoke as one familiar with the
church from the inside, having been
| born and reared in the Mormon faith.
! There was a large and enthusiastic at
tendance at the meeting. Judge FL. j.
Dininny presided in the absence of
President j, W. Houston.
Mr. Christensen began his address by
saying that all the various forms of
opposition to the American party in
Utah could be traced to one source, the
Mormon hierarchy, which saw in the
| party n power destined ultimately to
curb its power and greed. Aided by a
corrupt and Venal press, Mr.. Christen"
sen declared, this hierarchy, to accom-
| pish the defeat of the American party,
is now engaged IN slandering Salt Lake,
maligning tho city administration and
iinpairing the city s credit. In passing
| he paid a tribute to the city admin
istration. which, he asserted, was the
most efficient, economical and progress
| i've in the history OF the city.
Duplicity of the Church.
Mr.. Christensen predicted that,
| through the agency OF the American
party, the power of the church ulti-
mately will be broken. This had been
done once; the church had begged for
a truce, and, when it was granted. had
used il to prepare for the war which
il is again wlging for absolute control
here.
1.-The church has no intention of aban
| doning polygamy,' declared Mr. Chris
! tensen. ''It has no intention of sur
/ 10 ,,.,
cants and leaving them free men and
women TO think and act for themselves.
| The hierarchy has boldly declared its
purpose TO violate The law of the land,
1t proposes to continue practices that
are opposed to the best sentiment of civ
| lliZatlon y
The most reprehensible feature of
Mormonism. the speaker declared, was
that its priesthood was able To take it's
standard works, writings and alleged
revelations and prove the Affirmative or
converse of any proposition involved IN
| the Mormon question, according to the
necessities of the moment. Hence. he
declared, it was impossible to pin the
church down to any declaration or mode
of life and conduct
Polygamy Still Practiced.
''Thus, declared the speaker.
Hwhile the manifesto of 1890 was sup
!
polygamy Is being taught more assidu-
ously in Utah today than ever before
true, 1t is not practiced as openly as in
days gone by. 1t lacks the dignity Of
the eighties, when it's devotees had the
courage of their convictions and dared
to come out in the open and fight for
them. Those who enter the relation now
skulk, and hide, and lurk, and COVER
Men marry one wife in Utah, one
IN Mexico, one in Idaho and one in
Canada and then swear they are mon
ogamists, and the hierarchy upbolds
them in their falsehood and duplicity.
The leaders of the church dare not tell
their followers that polygamy is wrong.
These leaders are supposed to represent
and speak for God who is the same
today, yesterday and forever; and if
they tell their blind adherents that God
has changed His mind about polygamy,
those adherents are likely TO ask them,
selves If God has not changed His mind
about other things-sbout implicit
obedience to the priesthood and the col.
lection of 10 per cent rake off by the
hierarchy, for example -
How Obedience is Enforced.
To the outsider, Mr. Christensen said.
the fact that the hierarchy is able 10
enforce an implicit obedience to its
commands is thing Of amszement; but
those who arc familiar with its work
ings, he declared, are not surprised. In
proof of this, he pointed out that from
the cradle to the grave. throughout all
the various organizations of the church
which all good Mormons are supposed
TO Jon; several cardinal principles are
instilled into the minds of the members
of the church, as follows;
tiTst-That all good Mormons must
yield implicit obedience to the priest
mood; that if they do not they must
|
hood will not be responsible for the
consequences of such reckoning
Second-That the entire human race
is the enemy of the kingdom Of God
and that ali mankind has set its face
against the Mormon people because the
.Third-Tbat all wisdom, all knowl-
edge. all power emanates from the
priesthood which is supposed to repre-
sent God on earth: that the progress
which the world has made and is max
ing in art, science, invention, etc,
"As a matter Of cold fhct,' de-
clored the speaker, "not n single mem
ber of the priesthood has even added
one iota TO the sum total of human
knowledge. ~
Mormons Are Not Loyal
f'I do not say continued Mr., Chris
tepsen, "that the Mormons are all
nub no SdJ lDdI SOpu
Mormon does not have burning in MS
breast the fire of true patriotism. He
cannot have In thn very nature of
things. He is taught from his youth
up that all human governments, the
United States in particular, are his
enemies. This government is regar led
with suspicion and distrust. In Nor
mon meetings and homes the story mas
been told so often that in the Mormon
war Of 1858 the church, under the lead
of the spirit of God. whipped the
army Of the United States. and forced
the signing of a treaty between the
church and the Government. that every
good Mormon has come to believe that
this absurd story is literally trme,
"The legitimate outTowth of the
Mormon system is the production of a
man without individuality. without the
power of initiative, without indepen-
depce of thought, Of passive charnc-
| - ,,,,1r. ,c 1,,fNv To n nc