Show LEGAL ASPECTS OF THE MORMON PROBLEM tires january number of the century Magaz magazine ines inep published by scrib ner aco co new york and formerly bearing the name of ordinarily dina din rily arlly very attractive and readable is of unusual interest to the people of utah because it contains an article in relation to the problem which just now is exciting much public attention it is entitled legal aspects of the mormon problem and is contributed by arthur G sedgwick the writer exhibits a much better acquaintance with his subject than is shown by most persons who undertake to descant upon it he Is familiar with the laws that have been enacted in congress designed for the exair extirpation of polygamy and also wiil with their actual and possible effects upon the problem 1 which certain persons are so anxious to have solved the writer commences by stating that the magnitude de of the mormon as been greatly exaggerate exaggerated in the minds of most persons and that it ht 19 rather a local disturbance nuisance he calls it than a national biffl culty ii and that the questions presented by it are mainly legal and constitutional because the only weapons that can now be resorted to against it are those furnished by judge jury aund arid sheriff but after treating of the subject very ably from this legal standpoint his conclusion cl it appears to us is ather rather at variance with his hia proposition for proceeding to explain the reasons for the failure to execute the law against polygamy be he not only ar gues against the practicability of 61 punishing polygamists with a partly mormon jury but admits the unfairness of an attempt to do so with a jury from which polygamists would be excluded because that would be necess necessarily arlly a packed jury and says saya no plainer demonstration could homade be made of the impossibility of effecting by any auy change of ot the jury laws the enforcement of the statute against bigamy what then can be done dono here ia Is the closing sentences of the article in reply to this question under these cli cil cum stances J there is nothing to be do done with the IMor mons but to let them alone persecution has been tried and has only served fp strengthen and aud in crease them law has been tried and has proved of no use because it has not been enforced from the circumstances of the case it cannot be in view of this how can it be consistently claimed that the questions arising from the sM mormon ormon problem are mainly legal and constitutional are they not more properly of a philosophical and polemical ch character arneter betit must not be thought from theau thorns conclusion conclusions that be he consider the tem tern must necessarily prevail in utah on the tha condray contray lie he thinks that left to itself it ia Is hound pound to give way and disappear or at least to part with its most objectionable feature he says the operation of natural causes Is certain in the long run to sap the foundations of polygamy the railroads have already brought the territory ry into communication with the rest of the country and the development of the mines must ultimately pring bring in a large gentile population almost entirely male A strong tendency in the direct direction io n of marriages between gentile men and the daughters of mormon parents must spring up indeed this is said to show itself already there Is no surplus of women in the west from which to recruit polygamous households the births of the two sexes are always very nearly equal and the mormon population is no longer being rapidly increased from abroad as it was in the times of the early persecution of the church the whole article which ia Is not lengthy is well worth reading and we have no doubt will iii make a good impression upon thoughtful minds there is nothing rabid or intemperate in it the usual anti antl Il mormon bitterness Is plea antly conspicuous by its absence anti mormon legislation is reviewed and commented on with fairness and precision it is shown that the statute providing that real estate held by any religious tion in the territories of greater value than fifty thousand dollars shall be forfeited to the united states does not affect the church property acquired previous to the passage of that law and that the experience of history shows that mat me properties of religious corporations po rations cannot be broken brolien up under law by any means short of confiscation nis fis cation catlon and eontis contis confiscation cation under this act was expressly prohibited the law of 62 and the deci decision ion lon of the supreme court of the united states concerning it are explained and also the reynolds case which led to the supreme supreme court ruling but the writer argues that in considering the passage of such laws the sentiments and feelings of the community in which they are designed to operate should be considered as well as the thing to be put down and draws a clear distinction between the easy enforcement of laws against bigamy in the states where where ohe here the ben sen ciment is opposed to polygamy where the lawful wife and children have a amstrong strong motive to supply the evidence necessary and the reverse revers condition I 1 in n utah where he says bays no member of the polygamous family has an adequate motive to come forward and furnish the evidence which would be absolutely necess necessary necessary ary arv to secure a conviction it la Is not merely that they all regard polygamy as the normal married state but as appears from the reynolds case they regard it as a religious duty and a violation of this duty as entailing religious penalties much more serious than any possible inconvenience or dis dib discomforts comforts which might arise from a continuance of their existing family system such facts facto as aa these clearly presented in the century article are usually ignored in the legal aspects of the question but they are important feb fes features tures of the case and statesmen and lawyers must duly consider them or their efforts will continue to be vain the author concludes on this point that the law has not been and never will be enforced for reasons which gr grow w out of the boudi condition tion of society in I 1 utah t ah and which are beyond the re meach reach of ordinary legal machinery he errs I 1 very naturally rally raily however not knowing the exact sentiments of the cormons mormons Mor mons on the subject I 1 in this statement of the legal situation the objection mentioned ethe the packing of juries brings us face to face with this thia fundament ij dia dint culty in dealing with polygamy by legal methods that no utah jury unless it were packed would ever convict a mormon of the crime this Is a mistake A mormon juror would consider himself bound by his oath to find according to the evidence presented his religious belief in the rightfulness rightful ness nesa of plural marriage would have no bearing waring upon his duties aa as a juror sworn to act in consonance with the law As an illustration of in the reynolds case several cormons mormons Mor mons I 1 were on the jury and the defendant was convicted and imprisoned we regard the article in the cm cen cury iury as evi evl evidence dence deAce of a more rational and spirit in the consideration of mormon affairs than has hitherto prevailed to any great extent sensible people are beginning to perceive that the outrageous stories told about the cormons mormons Mor mons are inconsistent with known facts and that the rash measures suggested by hotheaded hot headed and fanatical reformers are as unlikely to accomplish lish I 1 any good effect as the mob el binga and ivings dr of missouri and illinois investigation will follow and in that we have nothing to fear let the whole subject be scanned without passion and weighed without prejudice and the mormon problem will be found very diff different er from the horrible monstrosity which has been held up under that name before a startled public tury fury has haa many other well written articles besides that which we have briefly reviewed prominent among which is the increase of divorce by washington gladden the fron tl la Is a fine portrait of thiers the illustrations are superb th the e light reading la Is and the whole magazine is entertaining and of first class claes merit |