The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1907-05-16
THE REAL SLANDERER.

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slandering the State of Utah. 1t seems
to find what it Processes TO he basis
for it's complaint in the exposures made
by this paper concerning the criminal
ity of the men who dominate the News,
and many others.
Now the Deseret News knows that
the most vicious calumnies ever uttered
against this commonwealth came out
/ OF the mouth of Joseph +. Smith, when
he was testifying before the Senate
Committee on Privileges and Elections.
The bogus prophet realized at that tiEie
that whatever he might say to the
committee would be published broad"
pears that he wns determined to take
advantage Of this opportunity to be-
smlrch the whole commonwealth IN a
cowardly effort to sanctify his own un.
lawful career. Joseph T. Smith insult"
ed every man and every woman in
Utah, and traduced this whole State
| before the Nation, when he uttered
the following words:
| In other words Mr. Chairman the
people OF Utah, as a rule, as wei! as the
people OF this Nation. are broad minded
and liberal minded people and they have
sumo my oHense against the law.
Suppose that Abe Ruef, San Francis
co.'s alleged wholesale and conscience
less CRATER, should make similar
assertion for his fellowscitizens in Cali
forDia, what a sweat Of Indignation
the organ of the Lord would expert
ence! How it would rail at the world 8
wickedness and the utter depravity of
Californians In particular. But let us
see what the favorite law breaker of
the News charged that the people Of
Utah condoned Here is one of the
items, in his own words:
They [Joseph F Smiths plural wiyesl
have borne me children since 1890, and
have done II, knowing the responsibility
and knowing that ! was amenable TO
the law,
Citizens Of Utah, do you condone
the defiance of law by any citizen with
in this commonwealth If you do, then
you are parties to that breaking.
That is what Joseph +. Smith charged
you with having done in the past, and
that is what be is willing to say that
you are doing at the present day. Do
you not consider that to be slander
upon your good name7 Or do YOU ac
cept the word of the Deseret News for
it that the prophet exalted your char
acters before the world, and incident,
ally gave the State big boosts
The president of the Mormon church
was one of those men who received
from the President of the United States
amnesty for past polygamous offenses,
upon solemn promise TO the Nation that
they would forever cease the practices
whose perpetuation the law-abiding
citizens of Utah are prophctically
charged with encouraging. On this
point we will again quote the chief
sanity patron of the News:
wish to assert that the church has
obeyed the law OF the land and that 1t
has kept its PLEDGES WITH THIS
an INDIVIDUAL. AND HAVE TAKEN
THAT CHANCE MYSELF.
Do you condone the sacred pledge
breaker, good citizens' That is what
Joseph F, Smith says you do; and when
he makes that assertion, do you not
consider that he has basely slandered
youl Some of YOU are prominent in
the business affairs of the State. In
tho course of your business life YOU
have come to be known, for instance,
as Mr.. Blank. one of the leading mer.
chants of Utah. You may never have
had occasion TO say what your family
status was. Joseph F. Smith named
no individual. so your business associa.
tes and friends throughout this broad
land will be obliged to guess whether
OF not YOU arc included in this cate
CORY, az presented TIC the world by
Smith;
The fact of the matter is. that the
most prominent men. the most influential
men, the men who have stood highest
In business and in social circles in Utah
among the Mormon people. have been
men who had more than one wife.
Even being a member of the Nor.
mon church, will the homogeneous busi.
ness man In Utah consider that, to the
world, Joseph r, Smith gave him
certificate Of good charcter, when he
thus wagged his slandcrous tongue7 We
think not. the church organ notwith.
standing,
Again. the venerable Wiford
Woodruff was sincere in his dosire that
the polygamous practice should cease
In this State, and in the Mormon
church, throughout the world. He
caused to be issued manifesto, inhib-
iting the unlawful practices coming
under this head. The attention of
Joseph F, Smith was called TO the fact
that the manifesto had not been print.
ed in the Doctrine and Covenants. tho
official law-book Of the church, and he
promised the world, through tho Com.
mittee on Privileges and Elections, that
he would see to il that the inbibitorv
document should be so promulgated. He
has not done so. and continues TO pub
lIsh tho alleged revelation, commanding
the practice of polygumy, He thus
again insulted and slandered you. and !
resorted to the priestly deceit of issu.
ing the book without date. No one |