| Show THE MASS MEETING AntiMormons Assemble to Hear Their Side Discussed A large and orderly assemblage was gathered in the Federal Courtroom Court-room last night to listen to the opinions of several citizen and the famous lecturer Joseph Cook on the antiside of the Mormon question The meeting was called to order by Secretary Tnomas at 830 He read the call for this mass meeting and introduced Chaplain Jackson as the first speaker Mr Jackson said that as he had only been here a short time he had uot had a very good opportumly to observe but he had lead the Mormon Mor-mon sde of the question and had hot been led to a more favorable vi w of it by their arguments The American wants to see the good chool house everywhere with good teachers where the young can be taught the duties of citizens He had had the school houses pointed out to him when be came here and found that each ward had a small wiug at ached to a religious meeting houe and this win was called the chool Elsewhere he had found the schools the most prcminent buildings build-ings in the cities Even in new couotries like Dakota this was the case und at once it struck him as peculiar that here the schopihouses i were small and secondary This he considered as one of the evils existing exist-ing here Larger schools should be built the people should demand hem and the mere fact that they do not that they spend their treasure trea-sure on other less important works apeaka badly for the people He sketched the history of slavery and spoke of the terrible ending which came to it Then he referred at some length to the practice of polygamy saying that it cannot and must not exist in the United States It is unAmerican and it cannot be tolerated in this country told an anecdote of a visit to a Mormon Sunday school which caused a good deal of amusement In conclusion he paid a high tribute to free speech and free thought and believed they would eventually carry the day even in Utah At the suggestion of Mr McNiece a committee consisting of Messrs McNiece Msckay and Sutherland was appointed by the chair to draw up a few pithy resolutions to show I the meaning of the convention As W S Godbee was kept away I by illness General Bane was called cal-led as the next speaker and said that he waa to say a few words on the probable benefits to be derived from a legislative commission to be appointed ap-pointed by Congress to govern Utah The question he said which divides the people here is different from that which causes division among tbe people of other communities He said that the question was deeper and more bitter > bit-ter than ever slavery was for It goes to the very hearthstone into the sacred precints of the family and causes antagonism wInch can never be done away with while the church can denomnate the politics pol-itics and every other institution of the Territory It never cah be done away with till the civil power is taken away from these priests They are sincere tut they are wrong and it they will not en force the laws according to the Constitution Con-stitution the power must be put into hands which will Then the Constitution shall be lifted above the Book of Mormon and the I money which is spent in building temples shall be spent in schools Judge McBride was the next speiker He referred to the meaning mean-ing of the present legislation in Congress Con-gress In regard to Utah It ws allowed that something must be done He said that the Cassidy bill would not interfere in-terfere with the present laws in force The elections of officers would go on here as usual but tbe commission would have power to enact laws and enforce those already al-ready enacted according to the Constitution Con-stitution He said that this commission com-mission would be perfectly const tutional and that there is no doubt on this question in the minds of lawyers statesmen and juristo This 13 the plan to work out this problem He spoke of the state of affairs with respect to county offiCBrs These affairs want gradual reform He does not believe in sudden revolution revolu-tion but he wants these good and misled people to have a chance to give their obedience with the same fidelity they now give it to the church to the government Was opposed to the claser legislation which disfranchised the polygamists polyg-amists and it would have been more just more expedient and caused less ill feeling here if the people had been disfranchised as they are in the District of Columbia Joseph Cook was then called to the stand and said he was a f ien < j of Utah and mean to show his friendship by telling the people of the priesthood that is oreying upon them He said the eagle on the bee hive was a symbol of what existed ex-isted here rapacity preying upon industry He went on to denounce the Mormon system in no measured mea-sured terms He said it was not unlikely that if this institution is left alone for half a century longer the Mormons will probably extend their power to all the States on the Pacific Coast The further it srows the more difficult it will be to overcome it and the more inevitable will be the necessity of u ing radical measures it the school and patriotism do not put an end to the evil the sword will eventually do so He then went on to d scuss the situation here and said that If polygamy was to be proved from the Old Testament it must be borne in mind that it was all the scripture of the Jews and the Jews themselves are not now polygamists But this matter has been allowed to run on more because be-cause of indifference than anything else and when the American people cast out this indifference and decide to put an end to this great wrong it must as certainly tall as a mug quito that Is irritatug the point of a mans Jittle finger He said that the more power the Mormons gain the more certainly they will be crushed for the moment mo-ment the nation becomes alarmed the power of the Mormon priesthood is doomed He spoke in favor of the Legislative commission saying that it had a great many precedents notably Florida Louisiana and the District of Columbia all of which were ruled by such commissions the latter being so sow Mr Beecher says that if missionaries are expected ex-pected to convert Africa and India why cannot they convert Utah But the difference is though this might be done by the millennium Africa and India are not seeking admission ad-mission to this Union and Utah is A long series resolutions expressive expres-sive or the grievances of the non Mormons was then read by Mr MoNiece and unanimously adopted by the convention which then adjourned ad-journed on motion of General Bane |
