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Show A POINTED INQUIRY. Tho Tribune has a letter from a gou-t gou-t Ionian in tho East who is identified with Christian and patriotic work, and who takes considerable interest in the situation in Utah. In that letter tho question is asked, "Whtft ia your opinion opin-ion of President Smith's roemfc public declaration that, tho Jdormon church would give up polygamy?" Qf course tho answer hud to bo that I hero has been no such declaration, oithor by President Smith or any other church authority, or from tho Mormon church. It was expect od that the recent October conferoneo would givo forth a declaration on this question. Thoro in reason to believe that such a declaration was prepared. It was evidently in typo in tho Dcsorct iN'cws office as part of President Smith's openiug address at tho conforoncc. Wo sa3' this because the Dcsorot News's hcud lines made specific spe-cific roforonco to polygamy, as purl of President Smith's address; that heading road, "President Joseph F. Smith Alludes Al-ludes in Unmistakable Terms lo tho Policy Pol-icy of tho Church, in Reference to the Matter of Recent Plural Marriagos." Everybody naturally searched tho report, re-port, lo sco what that, allusion was. Nothing came of it, however. Nothing was said; uo dccluaratiou was niado by Prcbidont Smith or anybody else, and tho conferoneo was entirely silent. But what a blessing it would have bcou lo Utah if Ihoro had boon a declaration declar-ation of this kind made by President Smith aud sustained by tho conference, that the church would deal with such criminals in au exemplary manucr, and would turn them over to .justico! What a load of iniquity, crime, and rascality it would have lifted from -the nocks of -Mormondoiul As it is, the leaders of tho church aro guilty of tho wickedness, wicked-ness, the perfidy, tho pledge-breaking, and scandalous breach of honor. The' arc the ones who received and availed themselves of the amnesty proclaimed by the President without in the loast cither meeting or intending lo meet tho conditions of that amnesty. As Presi dent' Smith testified in the Smool case, ho preferred lo "lake his chances against the law," which is tho attitude of tho crrniiiml everywhorc. What a load also a dcclaralio'n such as ought to havo been made at the ro-cont ro-cont conference would havo lifted from tho minds of tho church leaders themselves! them-selves! As it is now, they aro dishonored, dishon-ored, they "arc ouflnws on their owff confessions. Outlaws both under tho laws of God and of man. President Joseph Jo-seph F. Smith in his testimony in that case expressly said that ho had admitted admit-ted thisi guilt "a great many times here." Prosidcnt Lyman expressly answered an-swered "Yes" to the question whether or not bo had been living in defiance of the laws of God and man, and meant to continue so to live., Sonator iloar, who' put tho question, was horror-struck with the answer: There has been such a revival of polygamy thai Tho TriBuno has boon abln to print' over two hundred cases of violations of tho law, of the amnesty, and of the express compact with the Nation ami of the conditions of the proclamations of amnesty. "It is a shocking record, and the question ques-tion is, how long is this vicious, false, ami repudiating condition to continue? How long will the church leaders remain in the position of violators of their pledged word of honor? How long will they continue to sot themselves up as violators of the Jaw of their own church, officially adopted in the October generul conference of 1S007 How long will they repudiate their obligations to God and man, to say nothing of their obligations us men of God, trusted wTth the wolfaro of. their church and as exemplars lo their people? |