Salt Lake Tribune | 1908-10-11 | Page 6 | "A Thing of the Past."

"A THING OF THE PAST." When President Joseph F. Smith was upon the witness stand iu defense of Smoot, appearing before tho Senate Committee on Privileges and Elections, Senator Hoar asked him about the leaching of polygamy, and , Smith answered that that was a "thing- of the past." Tho following is tho official offi-cial report of the testimony on this point to bo found on pages 144 and 145, volume I., of tho official report of the tcstimon3'.' Senator Hoar When your acents meet, converse with, or solicit persons to Join your church, in other parts of the- world than Utah, do they not urge, as you understand tt, the rightfulness of polygamy polyg-amy from a religious point of view? " Mr. Smith Never. Senator Hoar Today? Mr. Smith Today, never. Only when they are forced into a defense of their belief. Thoy do not advocate nor teach the doctrine nor Inculcate it in any way, shape, or form. Senator Hoar That is. if anybody should raise the question, which has been applied to you, with the agent, the agent would answer as you have answered, perhaps. per-haps. But what I want to know is, whether If you employ a man to go to England or to Massachusetts, or anywhere any-where else, to solicit converts or adherents adher-ents to the Mormon church, to come to Utah and Join you, whether or not thoso agents arc Instructed now, today, to preach I do not speak of its lawfulness in regard to the statutes or acts of Congress Con-gress the rightfulness of polygamy as from a religious point of view. I understand under-stand you to negative that in the fullest degree? Mr. Smith In the fullest degree? Senator Hoar res. Mr. Smith And let me add, Mr. Senator, Sena-tor, that in every Instance oUr elders who arc sent out to preach the gospel are instructed in-structed not to advocate plural marriage In their ministrations. It Is a thing of the past. At the recent contention over tho detained Mormon immigrants at tho port of Boston, it is reported that fourteen four-teen wero turned back, some pf these on account of their expressed belief iu polj'gamy. Now, these were pro-sumabl3; pro-sumabl3; new converts to tho Mormon church. Tho testimony delivered by President Smith, as above quoted, was delivered more than four 3ears and a half ago. At that time the teaching of polj'gamy was declared to bo a thing of the past, and 3'et it appears that some women converts seeking to come into the United States wero denied de-nied admission on accouut of their belief be-lief in polygamy'. Now, where did thci obtain that belief? Is it not a clear case that the ciders inculcated that belief be-lief iu the miuds of the new converts? And if that is correct, as tho inevitable conclusion must be, for what purpose were thoy indoctrinated with that belief? be-lief? Clears it would seem for no other purpose than to prepare them to enter iuto tho polx'gumous state. Aud since there has tmqucstiouably been a recrudescence of polygamy in the Mormon church, it appears, to be a plain case again that when President Smith gave his leslimou3', as above quoted, that tho teaching of polygamy was absolutely a "thing of the past," he was lying again, to deceive "his enemies."