Show THE CHURCH AND THE LAWS j For some unaccountable reason the I News on Saturday evening devoted one of Its column paragraphs to establishing establish-ing that If there was one thing more than another that the Mormon church Is anxious to establish U is its unswerving I un-swerving obedience to the las of the land Vvhy the News at this time should return to thai subject Is not clear but 11 s n mysterious organ at best It begins by asserting that the history of Mormonism does not furnish anything any-thing by way of proof that the charge 1 I of lawlessness against It has any 0 foundation The record Is a long one 1 It would be profitless to follow It It Is 1 i enough at this lime to quote the words of the Mormon who Is just now attracting at-tracting more worldwide attonlion than any other one We mean D 1 II Roberts In the Tabernacle not many I years ago he declared that thc earth was the Lords that he made it that he has a right lo rule It and does rule it through his priesthood That way In perfect accord wllh John Taylors declaration that all other governments except thai of the Mormon priesthood wore usurpations But the New notes one apparent exception lo the rule the deriding of tha laws relating to polygamy U admits that polygamlsls disobeyed the law hut claims that It was beratisp of heir I Interpretation In-terpretation of that clause in the Con sliullon of the United Stairs which provides that Congress hal pass no law respecting an establishment of religion re-ligion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof I dots not seem to consider that there was anything wrong In that But It adds When the court of last resort finally decided against them Ihey bowed to the rulings of the judicial body which the Constitution clothes I with power to define Its meaning and settle as to Its application Plural marriages mar-riages were discontinued The head of thc church Issued Its manlfeslo and tho body IndorSed his declaration That is a marvelous showing The first antipolygamy law was passed In 1SG2 l was not obeyed because the courts in Utah Were helpless to enforce the law here The Judges were denounced de-nounced by public meetings for even expressing i desire to enforce the law The Poland law was passed In 1S71 1 and lone conviction was obtained That was appealed and In 1S70 the Supreme Su-preme court rendered its decision upholding up-holding the validity of the law In every respect That was more than ten years prior to the Issuing of the manifesto and It was during those ten years that the Mormons made their chief fight against the law I More when the news of the passage of the Edmunds law came Instead of advising the people lo obey it John Taylor the then head of o the Mormon church ordered that all men holding offices In the church who were not polygamists should either at once take plural wives or resign their priestly offices This Is why Roberts says the order was mandatory This Is history only eighteen years old Again the manifesto was not Issued because of tha decision of the Supreme court but because a bill was then pending In Congress lo disfranchise those who believed In polygamy Neither has the manifesto been obeyed As a rule It has been broken by all men who have plural wives and more there are a vast number of women In Utah who claim to be plural wives who were not such when that manifesto was Issued What does it mailer 1C the News copies some disjointed extracts from Its religious re-ligious books every one of which has a double meaning I is needless to deal wllh anything but very recent history to prove the case against the contention conten-tion of the News and against the proposition prop-osition thai the Mormon church In a lawabiding organization so far as the main question Is I concerned |