The Mormon Puzzle, And How To Solve It Part 9

Government could exist only in name under such circ.u.mstances."

Those words express the views of at least nine tenths of the people in our land. To deny those statements is to deny doctrines that are essential to the possibility of civil government, and in effect would reduce society to a state of anarchy in which every one may do as he pleases without any legal responsibility. Crimes against society do not cease to be crimes because they are religiously committed. Society can never take the criminal's conscience, whether it be religious or otherwise, as a test or guide on this subject, and yet live under the regulation of law.

Nevertheless, the Mormons do not agree with us in such views, and hold that every person who is convicted under the Edmunds law is a martyr to his religion.

And looking at the subject as they do, we cannot help but feel a measure of respect for the Mormons while we deplore their bondage, when we find them, after conviction in court, when the alternative is presented to them of a promise to obey the law against polygamy hereafter or go to prison, deliberately choose the latter, saying, as Abram H. Cannon, one of the elders of the Church did, March 17th, 1886: "I would like to state, your Honor, that I have always endeavored to keep the laws of the United States, because I have been taught by my parents that the Const.i.tution was a sacred instrument. That I have failed in this respect and now stand before you convicted of the crime of unlawful cohabitation is due to the fact that I acknowledge a higher law than that of man, which is the law of G.o.d; and that law being a part of my religion, sir, I have attempted to obey it. When I embraced this religion I promised to place all that I had, even life itself, upon the altar, and I expect to abide by that covenant which I made. And, sir, I hope the day will never come when I must sacrifice principle even to procure life or liberty. Honor, sir, to me is higher than anything else upon the earth; and my religion is dearer to me than anything else that I have yet seen. I am prepared, sir, for the judgment of the court." Such a man one cannot help but respect; and we can only wish that he stood up thus manfully in a n.o.bler cause than that of polygamy.

Shortly after Governor West went to Utah on his appointment by the President, he visited the penitentiary of the Territory, and in an address to the Mormon inmates promised them pardon if they would hereafter obey the law; but after reflection, the following written reply was sent to him signed by forty-eight Mormon prisoners:

"UTAH PENITENTIARY, May 24, 1886.

"_To his Excellency Caleb W. West, Governor of Utah_:

"SIR: On the 13th instant you honored the inmates of the Penitentiary with a visit and offered to intercede for the pardon of all those enduring imprisonment on conviction under the Edmunds law, if they would but promise obedience to it in the future, as interpreted by the courts. Grat.i.tude for the interest manifested in our behalf claims from us a reply. We trust, however, that this will not be construed into defiance, as our silence already has been. We have no desire to occupy a defiant att.i.tude toward the Government, or to be in conflict with the nation's laws. We have never been even accused of violating any other law than the one under which we were convicted, and that was enacted purposely to oppose a tenet of our religion.

"We conscientiously believe in the doctrine of plural marriage, and have practised it from a firm conviction of its being a divine requirement.

"Of the forty-nine elders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints now imprisoned in the penitentiary for alleged violation of the Edmunds law, all but four had plural wives from its pa.s.sage to thirty-five years prior to its pa.s.sage. We were united to our wives for time and eternity by the most sacred covenants, and in many instances numerous children have been born as a result of our union, who are endeared to us by the strongest paternal ties.

"What the promise asked of us implied you declined to explain, just as the courts have done when appeals have been made to them for an explicit and permanent definition of what must be done to comply with the law.

"The rulings of the courts under this law have been too varied and conflicting heretofore for us to know what may be the future interpretations.

"The simple status of plural marriage is now made, under the law, material evidence in securing conviction for unlawful cohabitation, thus, independent of our act, ruthlessly trespa.s.sing upon the sacred domain of our religious belief.

"So far as compliance with your proposition requires the sacrifice of honor and manhood, the repudiation of our wives and children, the violation of sacred covenants, Heaven forbid that we should be guilty of such perfidy; perpetual imprisonment, with which we are threatened, or even death itself, would be preferable.

"Our wives desire no separation from us, and were we to comply with your request they would regard our action as most cruel, inhuman, and monstrous, our children would blush with shame, and we should deserve the scorn and contempt of all just and honorable men.

"The proposition you made, though prompted, doubtless, by a kind feeling, was not new, for we could all have avoided imprisonment by making the same promise to the courts; in fact, the penalties we are now enduring are for declining to so promise rather than for acts committed in the past. Had you offered us unconditional amnesty, it would have been gladly accepted; but, dearly as we prize the great boon of liberty, we cannot afford to obtain it by proving untrue to our conscience, our religion, and our G.o.d.

"As loyal citizens of this great Republic, whose Const.i.tution we revere, we not only ask for, but claim, our rights as freemen; and if from neither local nor national authority we are to receive equity and mercy, we will make our appeal to the Great Arbiter of all human interests, who in due time will grant us the justice hitherto denied.

"That you may, as the governor of our important but afflicted Territory, aid us in securing every right to which loyal citizens are ent.i.tled, and find happiness in so doing, we will ever pray."

Now, this reply is respectful, sincere, and straightforward, yet firm and vigorous, and shows no sign of weakness or indecision. We must credit the signers with the courage of conviction and the qualities which cause men to suffer rather than recant. Such acts show unmistakably the utter futility of law _now_ as applied to Mormon polygamy. Had the law which was enacted in 1862 then been rigidly put in force, and, if necessary, supplemented by other legislation to make it effective, Mormon polygamy might ere this have come to an end. Then it was in its first decade of existence, and had not had time to be firmly grounded in the minds of the people as a distinctive article of their faith; but now it has thirty-five years of open practice back of it, and the example of father and mother, who are stigmatized by any harsh appellation applied to polygamy.

Furthermore, the belief in it has been instilled into the minds of the present generation from their childhood, and has become firmly grounded in their belief.

There is one great mistake made by most people in regard to Utah polygamy.

They believe that the women of Utah are held by the men in a kind of captivity, not being able to escape from their degradation, but would gladly avail themselves of liberty if they only had an opportunity. The fact is, that they are in voluntary servitude, and would not accept liberty, because _they believe it is their duty to be polygamists_.

There was a ma.s.s-meeting of women held in Salt Lake City in the fall of 1878 which was attended by about two thousand women who were devoted Mormons. At that meeting one woman seventy years of age said: "I thank G.o.d that I am a polygamous wife;" and she said she had a "feeling of great pity for those who did not enjoy this good blessing." Another old lady said: "I would not abandon it to exchange with Queen Victoria and all her dependencies." The secretary of the meeting said: "The women of this country want to crush us, but it will be diamond cut diamond." And thus for nearly three hour one speaker after another defended polygamy, all believing it to be an inspired doctrine given by G.o.d to aid in redeeming a sinful world from a condition of sin and pollution to one of holiness and purity. The following resolution among others was unanimously adopted by the meeting:

"_Resolved_, That we solemnly avow our belief in the doctrine of the patriarchal order of marriage--a doctrine which was revealed to and practised by G.o.d's people in past ages, and is now re-established on earth by divine command of Him who is the same yesterday, to-day, and forever; a doctrine which, if lived up to and carried out under the direction of the precepts pertaining to it, and of the higher principles of our nature, would conduce to the long life, strength, and glory of the people practising it; and we therefore indorse it as one of the most important principles of our holy religion, and claim the right of its practice."

It can be plainly seen from that meeting that the leading Mormon women are in earnest in their plea for polygamy, and that it is practised because _they believe G.o.d commanded it_; and consequently it can never be overcome by human law.

SENATOR h.o.a.r, who, with Senator Edmunds, has divided the honor of originating radical laws against Mormon polygamy, seems himself to have acknowledged their worthlessness as an effective remedy. The following letter from him to Joseph Cook was read by the latter in connection with his lecture delivered in Boston, February 2d, 1885:

"WASHINGTON, January 31, 1885.

"MY DEAR SIR: I am glad that the topics of Mormonism and the reorganization of the South are to be discussed in your lectures in Boston. Ma.s.sachusetts is an old State. Her people dwell under inst.i.tutions which have been ripening for two hundred and fifty years; but in the West, in the heart of the Continent, and in the South we are laying foundations still. If Mormonism live and grow, the Christian family will not be an element in the civilization of the great Central States of the future. If the 30,000,000 of the colored race who within fifty years will inhabit the States of the South are to be a race of peasants, denied their practical and equal share in the Government by such processes as have prevailed in recent years, the republic itself cannot continue. The Russian 'despotism tempered by a.s.sa.s.sination' is quite as desirable as Republicanism tempered by both a.s.sa.s.sination and fraud. _In the warfare with these things, the school and the Christian Church are to be our most potent instruments.

They can accomplish more than any political party._ I have contemplated with the greatest satisfaction the n.o.ble work in this cause of our New England churches and of the a.s.sociations they have organized.

"I am yours, very truly, "GEORGE F. h.o.a.r."

It is, indeed, true that the school and the Christian Church are more "potent instruments" for the overthrow of polygamy than any laws of our political legislators. Law does not reach the evil, for it rests upon a strong religious conviction. _Law cannot reach it._ To make a law that a man shall not be fanatical is to waste paper on which something sensible might be written; for Congress to undertake to keep people from becoming fanatics is unspeakably ludicrous. Legislation in that direction is intrusive. Law provides for the punishment of an overt act, and is absolutely powerless as to a man's eccentricity.

We do not mean to a.s.sert that the laws against polygamy should be stricken from our statute-books. Far from it. On the contrary, it is a shame to our country that they have been allowed so long to be nullified. Let us thank G.o.d that during the past two years they have been enforced. They should be most rigidly enforced, although no such system of inquisition and prying into the most sacred relations of husband and wife through their children should be inst.i.tuted in the name of purity and justice, as the Mormons claim is being now carried on there, and which called forth an earnest protest by the women of Utah at a ma.s.s-meeting in the theatre of Salt Lake City March 6th, 1886. Besides, other crimes in the Territory should not be overlooked in zeal to punish that particular crime. The laws should be impartially executed. Moreover, I believe the penalty for the crime should be made to correspond better with the gravity of the crime. Six months'

imprisonment seems a very small penalty for such an enormous crime against society; the Mormons purchase martyrdom at too cheap a price. It should be increased to three or five years' imprisonment.

Nevertheless, no matter what the law may be, it cannot alone overcome this evil. It may make the evil unpopular. It may act upon some as an educator, and cause them to lose their implicit confidence in their leaders; and, indeed, such is said to be the fact in Utah now. Dr. McNiece, in his letter to the writer from Salt Lake City, dated February 12th, 1886, says: "The people are beginning to lose faith in their leaders. The Lord is not coming down on the Wahsatch Mountains with horses and chariots of fire to deliver the persecuted (?) Saints, as Orson Pratt used to predict. In fact, the people are beginning to doubt about the Lord's being on their side at all." Now, that is a good sign; and it is, doubtless, true of the more enlightened among the Mormons; but upon the ma.s.ses of the people, the only effect will be to weld them closer together; and I cannot but think that the leaders are glad that they can raise the cry of persecution. That cry puts down all internal dissension, and unites the people against a common enemy. "The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church," has pa.s.sed into a proverb.

But the plan which we propose has nothing of persecution in connection with it, and thus it will leave room for internal dissension; and from within alone can Mormonism be effectually helped to eradicate its errors.

The evils will in this way be overcome by the people themselves, while in reality the work will be accomplished by forces without.

That this system would prove effectual may be safely argued from the fact that, wherever the Gentiles now live in any number, there polygamy is discountenanced and is on the decline. JUDGE C. C. GOODWIN, editor of the Salt Lake _Tribune_, in an article in _Harper's Weekly_, October, 1881, said: "Not half of the daughters of Mormons who have grown up amid a large population of Gentiles will ever enter into polygamy."

Besides, it may be argued from a parallel case, which actually did take place in our own land. The Oneida Community, in the midst of one of the most prosperous and intelligent communities in the State of New York, openly defied popular sentiment and covertly transgressed the law by the maintenance of a social system as abhorrent as that of polygamy; for they practised promiscuous marriage. They were a community having all things in common, and the women were as much common property as any other property.

Its members, however, were not mobbed; they were not terrorized in the name of law; they were not driven into exile by persecution; but free contact with the healthful currents of the life about them finally resulted in the disintegration of that portion of their social fabric which was maintained in opposition to law and the sentiment of their neighbors. Now, with that practical example in mind, who would dare say that the scheme we advocate would not be effectual in breaking up polygamy?

Thus we trust that we have shown that this plan would effectually cure the evils of the Mormon social system, and bring the Mormons out of the personal, mental, and moral bondage, which now blinds their eyes and benumbs their sensibilities.

We regard it the duty of the nation to set on foot this peaceful, yet most effective, plan. Let the nation at once establish free schools all over the Territory, to let the rising generation breathe constantly the air of liberty and have the light of knowledge, that the ignorance and superst.i.tion which form the cement which keeps the Mormon social system from falling into ruins may not get possession of their minds and souls; and let the nation offer large inducements for colonists to emigrate to Utah, and give them every facility. Money spent in this way is for the general welfare, and is as justifiable as to spend money for a national exposition, or for checking the spread of cholera or yellow-fever. If the nation would do these two things, that accursed system of bondage would disappear within the next decade, and the citizens of Utah would "_be like the rest of us_."

But if the nation fails to do this, then individual citizens throughout the land, all lovers of humanity, and especially all Christian denominations, should take the matter in hand; and they should not only plant free schools in all parts of the Territory, a few of which have been established already by five different Christian denominations; but they should also form Utah Colonization Societies, whose object should be to secure the planting of pure, freedom-loving, Christian families in every Mormon city, town, and village; and they should not desist until the Mormons are in a minority in Utah, the people freed from their bondage, and the laws respected. Honor demands it; humanity cries out for it; Christianity implores it.

"Up _now_ for Freedom! Not in strife Like that your sterner fathers saw-- The awful waste of human life, The glory and the guilt of war; But break the chain, the yoke remove, And smite to earth Oppression's rod, With those mild arms of Truth and Love, Made mighty through the Living G.o.d!"

PART IV.

THE RELIGIOUS PUZZLE.

"The true grandeur of nations is in those qualities which const.i.tute the true greatness of the individual."--CHARLES SUMNER.

"A Christian is the highest style of man."--YOUNG'S NIGHT THOUGHTS.

"There was never law, or sect, or opinion did so magnify goodness as the Christian religion doth."--LORD BACON.

CHAPTER XII.

The religious aspects of Mormonism paramount--General ignorance concerning the Mormon religious system--SOURCES OF THEIR DOCTRINES--Revelation, not reason, the primary source--All religions founded on revelation--Sacred books--The Mormon Bible--The "Book of Mormon"--Migrations of Jews to America--Visit of Jesus to America--"Book of Doctrine and Covenants"--The "Living Oracles."