Year: 1874

SOUTH CAROLINA-UTAH.


It is said to be almost certain that the bill
for the regulation of affairs in the Territory
of Utah, passed some days ago by the House.
will be passed by the Senate and approved by
the President. The provisions of the bill have
been heretofore stated at length in The TRIB-
UNE, and do not need to be repeated. 1t is
sufficient to say that its effect is to turn every
Mormon sheriff out of office, and deprive every
member of the Mormon church of one of the
most valuable rights of citizenship by excluding
them from the jury box. 1t is, in short, to do
for Utah what has been done already for South
Carolina.


We beg the Senate to consider this question
seriously as one not of sentiment but purely
of good government and safe precedent. To
turn the owners of the fruitful farms and
productive fields of Utah out of the jury-bOx
and disfranchise them from one of the most
important privileges of the citizen, is step in
vOlving the gravest consequences not alone to
the men whose rights of life, liberty, and prop
erty are thus put at the mercy of a minority,
but to the whole structure of our government.
We leave entirely out of the question now the
fact that the minority in that Territory, known
as Gentiles, are for the most part landless
and irresponsible. having little or no stake
in the Territory, and the further fact
patent to all who are familiar with
the affairs of Utah, that this law is asked for
by men whose sole object is to secure the
offices and enrich themselves at the expense
of the original settlers and present property
owners. We make no account of the fact that
Of ity
and religion when they pretend to be actuated
only by desire to purify the morals of the
Territory and maintain the Christian religion.
We ask the Senate to lay aside the social and
religious aspects of the case and treat the sub
ject from purely political point of view.


The bill passed the House under the stress
of appeals to sentiment, prejudice, and passion.
Upon the theory that the disgraceful crime
of pOlygamy must be suppressed at all hazards,
this bill, which is worse political crime than
the one it is aimed at, since it is blow at
self-government and denial of popular rights,
has been rushed through one branch of the
National Legislature. The Offenses of the
MOrmOns are not to be overlooked OF defended; /;
they are disgrace to the present century
and to our civilization. Nor can the law
less acts which were committed under the
sanction of the Mormon church during the
time when that community was isolated
from the rest of the world and found i'm
punity in that isolation, be in any manner
justified or condoned. But neither their past
offenses nor their continued disregard of the
laws prohibiting pOlygamy can justify so
sweeping measure as this. The blow which
this bill aims at single community and
single crime strikes at our system of govern
ment; it establishes precedent fraught with
most dangerous consequences to the country
and the people, In the case of South Carolina
there was the excuse that her citizens had
committed q political crime in engaging in
rebellion; that they had thereby disfranchised
themselves, and furthermore, that the eman-
cpated and enfranchised blacks needed pro-
lection. But here there is no such argument


With South Carolina lying PROSTATE and
helpless under the foot of the spOiler, her
citizens impoverished, business ruined, enter
prise destroyed, lands sold for taxes, her
people at the mercy of an ignorant and dis
honest rabble, her legislators and her rulers q
gang of unprincipled adventures and shame
less thieves, and the whole State crying to the
President, to Congress, and even to the passer-
by for succOr and relief-with such an example
of the effect of this sort of legislation under
the very eyes of Congress, it is almost incredible
that the same policy toward the Territory
of Utah should be proposed South Carolina
should be sufficient warning. The decent
and reputable citizens, taxpayers of that
State, have sent delegations to Washington
praying for some measure of relief. Both the
President and Congress have listened to them
codly, and while admitting the hardships of
their situation, have said they could give
them no help. Is it possible that in face of
these facts the process which has brought