Show THE RESULTS General Grant Is credited with the following apothegm The shortest way to secure the repeal of a bad laws law-s to demonstrate its evils by giving It vigorous effect If the Generals doctrine doc-trine is correct the Mormon people may derive some comfort by remem ring r-ing that the shortest way to secure the repeal of the Edmunds law Is being pursued No one acquainted with the condition of affairs in Utah will say that the Edmunds law was a wise measurs for Utah A civilization new in some respects grew up In this Territory Terri-tory and incorporated in that civiliza bon was the idea that under some circumstances cir-cumstances it was right yes even a religious duty for a man to have more wives than one Men and women were taught accept that doctrine and practice it as a religious duty nor is it too much to say that It was practiced with the tacit con sent of the general government for it was publicly taught and practiced for ten years before any law of Congress was enacted making it a crime And after the enactment of that first law In 1862 we witness no effort worthy of the name to enforce it 10r twenty years This new feature then of Utahs civilization had been ffeely and openly practiced for thirty years during which time it had grown to be one of the established establithedfeatures of our society linking together either directly or indirectly well nigh all the families ot the Territory These plural marriages mar-riages created no scandal in the community com-munity Second third or wives were honored equally with the first wives and their station was equally respectable respect-able No distinction was made be tween the children of the several wives ot a household and society in Utah recognized the relationship of the wives to be plural eminently proper And now after polygamy has been taught and practiced as a religious duty for over thirty years comes the Edmunds law and demands that these associations with plural wives shall be abandoned Women who have held the honored station of wife walk tog beside their husbands for over a score of years bravely sharing with them the good and Ill in life are to be forsaken aken The beautiful robe of wifehood that they have worn is to be stripped i from them and their husbands mar iage vows are to be made false as divers oaths A law that would that debase Innocent women and unstttlt the social affairs of a large and respectable I respect-able community can by no deductions I of true logic be made to appear good It is bad It is cruel and Its vigorous enforcement by the Federal officials is demonstrating its evils For eighteen months the Edmunds law has been vigorously vig-orously enforced even to a degree of cruelty and now let its most sanguine friends count their gains I What has that vigorous enforcement of the law accomplished It has driven a few prominent Mormon ecclesiastical officials offi-cials into exile sent a few others to prison terrified insulted and distressed a few women and childrenand paralyzed the business interests of the Territory but what has it done towards abolishing abolish-ing polygamy Practically nothing Those parties who have suffered imprisonment im-prisonment have not been convinced that their marriage system is wrong The community of which they are members mem-bers look upon them as martyrs to a principle and they themselves look upon it in the same light The men who think the means and methods employed em-ployed against the Mormons will result in a renunciation of plural marriage by that people have studied the history of religious persecutions to little purpose The cruel persecution of the past eighteen months has but intensified the religious zeal of the Mormon people The leaders speaking from their places of concealment commend more devotion from their followers than when they were free because be-cause they are now regarded as exile conscience sake and will not their counsels be more carefully followed by the faithful In vain their enemies have looked for a revelation renouncing polygamy and basing our guess upon the known character of human nature and the effect that persecution has upon up-on it we think the day of such renunciation renuncia-tion Is very far distant All domestic arrangmentsmarriage in particular are recognized as belonging to those subjects which properly come i under the management of the State governments and should of right be left to the Territorial governments When that is done Utah aided by contact with the customs of other communities will solve her own social problems We believe the vigorous enforcement of the Edmunds law will to demonstrate the avis of it that our statesmen will be con stiainid to turn over the Mormon Problem to the people of Utah to solve To them it rightfully belongs |