The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1912-10-12
HELP ME, OR I SINK

| HAVING made frantlc appeal TO the
| personal friendship of President Joseph
+. Smith. and worked upon his par.
tisan prejudiccs, it was not very diff
cult for Elder Smoot to get others
whipped into line until the utilization
of the late conference for series
of political meetings followed as a mat
ter Of course. Beginning with the
alarm of the machine at the panic.hke
desertions from tho boss ridden 'tRepub.
lican' organization in Utah. followed
| by the Elders personal appeal to the
| first presidency TO save him and the
constitution, every political sermon was
| a natural step leading up to tho intro.
duction. by Mrs. Susa Young Gates,
of r resolution I'm the general council
of the Women's Relief Society pledg.
ing that religious body to the support
Of President Taft. It was withdrawn.
AS il met with indignant protests, but
the secret understanding prevailed that
the officials of the organization would
Individually work TO that end.
How can we ever hoo for peace
and reform in these things'' exclaimed
a prominent Latter day Saint from
Southern Utah, Hwhen appeals to party
feeling are made in our religious organs
and church gatherings. followed by
News declarations that nothing OF the
kind is done7'
But the Deseret News goes much far
ther and, while it denies that church
influence is being used, it defends it's
use on the ground that the church au-
thorltles have divine insight "into
trusts and other problems The
News even contends that while other
church leaders should keep out of poll.
tics, its own should be permitted to go
in and take sides. 1t says:
There may be important reasons why
ecclesiastical officials OF some denomina
tions should refrain from expressing
themselves on political questions except
In general way. Their training ma,
have been such as 10 render their
opinions on politics OF but little value.
They may know all about theology
They may have studied dogmatic and
practical theology; they may know all
logy: exegesis; criticism: hermeneutics; /;
evidence; and ecclesiastical history. and
yet know next TO nothing about the trust
problem. or the tariff question. why
eHpuiu t'iey oiAet poiitiCdi duNiCe'
Isn't that plain' After reading that
paragraph. can anyone defend the
right Of churches in general to turn
their pulpits into stumps for campaign
oratoryf Now read what the News
says Of its own politicians:
But the officials OF the Church OF Jesus
Christ OF Latter-day Saints are not pre-
lates. They are not hierarchs. They are
common American citizens. educated as
other citizens, with business interests a.
fed to perform their duties as American
citizens as any other man or woman In
the land. They are, moreover. morally
clean, and have no object In view but
good government, by good officials
It will be seen from the foregoing
excerpts that the church organ is get
ting ready to acknowledge that the
Mormon leaders are in politics, that all
denials hitherto made be declared off.
that they are running and intend to
run the politics of Utah to suit their
own purposes; and that no other church
dignitaries have either the right or the
qualifications thus to interfere. The
encroachment is scarcely so gradual
as it has been heretofore. AS to the
individual rights of the president of
the church, the church organ says;
We have always maintained. and we
repeat now, that the president OF the
church, and every other church Official,
has every right and prerosatiVe which
any other citizen has. and We do not
see how this can be disputed by any rea-
sonable being.
No one disputes the rights Of Presi-
dent Smith as citizen. He has every
right that any other citizen has. But
has he more1 Has any other citlzen
a right to air his political views in the
Improvement Era which announces that
"it breathes the spirit of the gospel of
Jesus Christ from every pageH' Has
any other citizen the right to advise
his hearers from the pulpit whom to
support for the Presidencvf Has any
other citizen the right to use the secret
order Of the priesthood for campaign
workf Does "any reasonable being
contend that, in the exercise of his
rights as citizen, President Smith is
confining himself to those rights which
other citizens claim and exercise!
One of the worst features of this
whole bumiliating business is the mix
use TO which the authorities subject
their Influence, Only a few days ago
we'll known satellite of the Federal
bunch declared that If "Nephi Morris
gets too popular ell have him called
on the carpet and made get off the
ticket The Smoot organ Of Wednes-
dav morning SAYS that $50 long az
Morris tells the truth he will be
allowed to pursue his candidacy. These
are the things that cheaper ecclesias
teal dignity, TO have underlings
threatening to use Joseph +. Smith this
way and that way, to punish those
who offend them, to remove obstacles
from political paths, to play with for
political effect. His age, and his strong
prejudice and aloofness from every
day people, and his disposition to lis