The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1910-02-23
POLYGAMY NOT PASSING.

The Deserct News of Saturday, Feb
ruary 10, 1910, contained an editorial
article in which the following matter
appeared:
As fast as poygamous families are
dissolved by death. the institution itself
disappears. With possible infractions of
the law the church has nothing to do,
except In so far as violations of the
church rule arc brought before the proper
church courts. in a regular manner, for
purposes of discipline But, as we have
said before. the church does not sane
ton or in any manner approve the in
fraction OF the law. A thousand dollars,
we believe. can still be claimed by any
one who can prove case of polygamy
with the sanction of the church, in re-
cent years.
The institution of poygamy is not
disappearing from the cause stated by
the News, nor from any other cause, for
the simple reason that there are hun
dreds OF new eases of plural marriage
lievc that if count were had OF old
and new polygamous families, the latter
would be found to outnumber the for
mer The mon who have taken TO them
selves new plural wives since the man
Ifesto of 1890 are Young men as com"
pared with those of the older day. Some
Of them are not yet al middle age, even !;
aud under the present system of en-
couragemcnt by the church leaders of
these infractions Of the law, il is un-
douhtedly true that there will be still
other and Younger men take plural wives
in the future. Everything connected
with the practice has the effect Of keep
in, II alive. Within the small circle
of the Mormon leadership ii is the un.
derstanding that the Woodruff manifesto
was merely issued for the purpose of
allaying public antagonism against and
popular opposition TO the polygamous
doctrine and cult; that a sufficient num-
ber of new marriages shall be permitted
secretly 10 keen the cult in existence
pending the arrival Of E'thc due time
of the Lord :" when they Will be again
permitted TO Give their religion open
ly. Not only is this understanding
had in The inncrmost recesses of the in
ner circle, but it is permitted TO GO out
in certain other quarters among the
oath bound members whose discretion
can bc depended upon. This surrepti-
tious teaching and preparation has been
going on for several years, and its nat
ural results are evident in the new
polygamous marriages which are not de-
nicd, even by the highest Mormon Off.
cials On the contrary, the first presi-
dency have confessed the existence of
this infraction ~of the law and the rule
of the church.
That the Mormon church has Ill TO do
with this new poIygamy is proved in the
fact that it introduced the doctrine !;
that il is the only pretendedly Christian
organization under which it has been
practiced; that it still retains in its law
book the pretended revelation command
ing IFS practice; that there has been no
discipline of offenders. before church
tribunals or civil courts. notwithstand.
ing the assertion of the News 10 the
contrary; that permissive silence on the
part of the church as respecting these
offenders is approval and sanction of
the offense.
So far as that offer of reward for
proof is concerned. the Dcseret News
knows that Elder Joseph e. TAYLOR
could make il in perfect safety. 1t is
impossible TO produce such proof. be-
cause new polygamists will deny their
new polygamous wives, the women
their illegal husbands, and often the