OCR Text |
Show j Where Destruction Was invoked ' Editor Tho Tribune: The veslry to the old meetinghouse here has been torn down during tho present week. This nioetinghouso was built some forty-five 3'ears ago. but after the town was divided divid-ed into four ecclesiastical wards tho old house was transformed into an opera house. The vestry was about sixteeu feet square and was two stories high During I he years from 1SS5 to 3800. ! while I lie Government of the United Slates was proeeculing tho polygamists, the upper story of that vestry was used as a prayer circle. It was there I that tho polygamous high priests met early on each Sunday morning and. after dressing themselves in their endowment en-dowment robes, would pray to God to overthrow the Nation so that they might continue in their lustful practices. prac-tices. The writer has often soon them going lo and coming from that "prayer circle" with their robes done up" in small bundles on a Sunday morning. T onco hoard a high priest, on July 4, 1SG7, ho being a three-wived polygamist and chaplain of the Fourth of .July proceeding, pro-ceeding, pray after this manner: "O God. we ask Thee to damn tho inhabitants inhabi-tants of the United States." Then lie gave a number of reasons why God should do as Ho was requested on that particular occasion That high priest hud received his "second anointings." There j no doubt in my mind but that was and is the prayer uttered and taught, in these advanced secret cerc- I monies. But when the Almighty was heard from through His "mouthpiece,"' Wilford Woodruff, in JS90. He commanded com-manded the Mormon people to cease the practice of polygamy and obey the laws of our common country tho very thing thai, the Government "had been asking I them to do for so long. This fact ought to con.vineo all reasonablo Mormons that the .Mormon church was wrong and that tho Government was right m its efforts to cause tlicm to obey the laws i like other people. I think the Government Govern-ment was very merciful to them. Jf thoy had attempted the practice in England there is no doubt but thoy would have received much greater punishment pun-ishment than wns given them here. CONTRIBUTOR. Spanish Fork. Utah, Aug. U6, 1010. |