The Herald of Wales and Monmouthshire Recorder. — 1886-02-13 (Swansea, West Glamorgan, Wales)

KDITOU.  Sir,—ln the Cambria Daily Leader for the 2nd inst., an artiste under the above heading attracted my attention, on which the writer erroneously endeavours to hold Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon responsible for the crime of polygamy. As [am a representative of the "Reorganised Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints," I feel it my duty to explain the subject for the benefit of the public at large. I defy Mr. Bolitho (the I writer of the article referred to), or any other man living, to point to a sentence in the I Book of Mormon, or in the whole of the 1 writings of Joseph Smith the prophet (which are many volumes) to prove that he either taught or upheld Polygamy, but on the contrary denouneed it ha one of the blackest of crimes. If the readers of your valuable paper will refer to the Book of Mormon' they will , find the statements made by Mr. Bolitho are entirely false, and I challenge him to deny it. It is an universal error to suppose that the reorganised Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Sainte and the polygamists of Utah are one and the same, and I would 'impress upon the public mind that the church established by Joseph Smith the prophet in 1830 has no connection whatever with the polygamiete, nir do they uphold their evil doctrines After the death of the prophet Joseph Smith the church became disorganised, and many aspirants come forth for the presidency of the church, and in consequence of the great confusion it waa divided into fourteen different pr-rties, and it wart in 1852, fully eight years after the martyrdom of Smith that polygamy was first institut,,d. During this oonfuelem the church was reorganised, the details of which are too  numeroiiii and lengthy to deal with at present. The reorganised church is the proper representative successor of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, organised by Joseph Smith and others, April 6th, 1830, then numbering about 30 genie, and now numbering in the United States and territories, Great Britain, the Canada., Australia and the Society Islands about 25,000 members. - . _  , IThe members of the reorganised church are loyal to the governments of which they are citizens, and neither teach nor practice any religious tenet that is subversive of those goverrunents, or destructive to good citizenship, as witness the position of the church in defining a relation to those governments and laws viz. We believe that governments were instituted of God for the benefit of men, and that He holds men accountable for their acts in relation to them, either in making laws, or administering them, for the good and safety of society. We believe that all men are bound to sustain and uphold the respective governments in which they reside while protected in their inherent and inalienable rights by the laws of such governments, and that sedition and rebellion are unbecoming every citizen thin protected, and should be putished accordingly, and that all governments have a right to enact such laws as in their own judgment are beet calculated to secure the public interest, at the same time, however, holding sacred the freedom of conscience. We believe that the comillifilioll of crime should be punished acoordingto the nature of the offence : that murder, treason, robbery, theft, and breach of the general peace, in all respects, should be ounished, according to their criminality and their tendency to do evil among men by the la es of that Government n which the Offence is committed; and for tlie public peace and tranquillity oil rno chould step forward and use their ability in bringing offenders against good laws to punishment. We I believe that all rebgieua societies have • right to