| Show ad I 1 S 0 0 8 M or HOSTLE ERASTUS SNOW DELIVERED lil lit 2 the tabernacle prow on hlin hloi dr day ty jio SIo ruing slag slay alst aist quarterly conference 1885 tw continued from last week nE reported PORTED BY jonn JOHN IRVINE vie vin great furore in the christian world or at least throughout the christian denominations of america four years ago urging upon congress the passage of the edmunds law was on the ground round of the immorality and licentiousness of the tile mormons cormons and a desire to repress it but now the federal representatives in their efforts to enforce it in our country have found themselves under the necessity of throwing the mask off themselves and off the country off the priests and religious people I 1 believe some of you rou on in provo had bad something to do in this about and rendering it necessary for tor them to lay off the mask I 1 believe commissioner smoot was called upon to investigate a case of an outsider seducing ills his cifes sister and a child was the result and he felt called upon under the law to hold him to answer before the grandeury gran grand djury jury for unlawful cohabitation the assistant prosecuting attorney unwillingly allowed the thin thing gr to go on until tile the malfas man was fas committed for this of fence intimating at the bame same time that be he thought this was pushing the edmunds law a little too far and beyond what was the spirit and intent of th tha law if this case should be carried to its legitimate end and the man should be sent to prison and fined for unlawful cohabitation then the door would be thrown wide open for many others to follow for the same of fence hence such a construction was considered an element of dang danger ger gen to themselves to the representatives of the federal government rovern ment and their alders and abettors abet tors in this country that such a construction of the edmunds law as had bad been the popular construction and the understanding of the masses and as was the professed understanding of the christian world for they urged its passage to repress immorality and sexual crime that if this construction was allowed to prevail in utah and the surrounding territories and the district of columbia and other places where the united states exercise j jurisdiction uris unis J it would operate very hard on a great many who would not be so well prepared to bear it as the latter day saints hence it seemed very desiga desirable that their feet should be oe slipped butof out ont of the trap and ours leftin accordingly cordingly their wits were brought to cordingly bear in t this lK is direction and on the occasion of the trial of president angus M cannon on the charge of unlawful cohabitation a plan was concocted and carried out witti wita all the leading attorneys oi of the land and the chief justice upon the bench to discuss this question and decide upon it in this connection the representative of the government boldly came to the front and threw off the tile mask and proclaimed at the outset of this trial that he knew he could not nol prove sexual intercourse between the parties at bar and that he should not net attempt it furthermore he stated that he did not consider sexual intercourse any eief elef element mient of crime that the edmunds lawso called was a blow aimed at the status of the mormon system of marriage alone and that the third section of that law relating to unlawful cohabitation nad had no reference to sexual sins taht it was not designed to repress cation lust lasto lusto rany orans forin form of sexual sin siu that that was left to local legislation that the legislation of congress in the third section of the edmunds law as well as all other legislation upon that subject was aimed directly at tile the status of the marriage alone in this regard therefore he gok fok took precisely the fauna ground that governor murray did av when ien len he first issued his oath for notaries not aries public and aud which was aate afterwards ricards adopted by the board of utah commissioners an and incorporated in their test oath for registration referring to cohabitation with more tha than u one women in the marriage ria relation mr dickson took this view that murray was right night that the he utah commissioners were right t that lat this was the sense of th the country t that lat this was the design of congress t that lat the edmunds law was a blow almed aimed at the mormon system of marriage or to use judge J zanes term the habit and repute of marriage or the holding out to use another favorite phrase of two or more women as wives wises of one husband that the whole and aud only object of the third section of the edmunds edmands law relating to unlawful cohabitation nabi tation as well as all other acts of congress was against the institution of marriage Fl eluding Fin dins however it difficult to prove marriages because of the disinclination of people to testify and because of the difficulty ef of reaching any record evidence of these marriages it was thought necessary to take high elgh grounds and aud assume tills this that the mormons cormons are known to be a virtuous people are known to condemn in strong and by every influence in in their power every form of sexual sin and that they do not indulge in intercourse with the sexes to adv extent only in the marriage relation this was the well known and established character of the of mormon people and was the result of their deachin teachings s and practice f tor for or a gen aeration past hence ence wherever eh children it were found in mormon families they are the result of marriage ifa it a woman is found pregnant prez pree nant she must be looked upon as a wife and the officers areu are justified stilled in seizing her and bringing her before I 1 a commissioner or aj a jury ury or judge and compelling her to give the name naine of the father of her tier child and that Is deemed sufficient prof proof that ile he is guilty of rot roi polygamy pot g ganty wanly or if two or r more women live liu flu in close proximity to a man and he Is seen visiting them and especially if the children call him fa father therit it is sufficient proof on which the jury may indict for polygamy or unlawful tui tul cohabitation as the case may be consequently they have taken this high ground that it is ho longer necessary necess aey acy to prove even the firstos lirt ilor llor second marriage I 1 nor is it any loub longer ger necessary to prove sexual intercourse in order to establish unlawful cohabitation but the tho common habit and repute of marriage and the appearance of marriage is all sufficient thus thu the ordinary rules of eyt evi evidence tence lence arn are set aside and the mask ot of hypocrisy which g governed bernd the christian world when ahen V they iley were urging tho the pah pas sage e of this thi edmunds 1 J din lid iid I 1 law thi through congress is thrown aside A bold and important testimony is iven given to the world through our persecutors to the morality of tiie flie ile mormon people being so far in excess of the rest of lile the world of mankind and to our integrity to the inar marriage ilage relation we wish indeed that all that i is said in this tills respect were strictly strict y true that there were no irregularities among us we cannot quite say that but we do rejoice and thank god for lor the general good testimony ony which has been given of us in truth in this behalf not lon too long iong since president smoot and myself and some others vere nvere con granulating ourselves and president taylor was congratulating hims elfand many others of our aged fathers in having placed themselves in a condition to escape the operation of the thircy section of the edmunds law by confining coni conj themselves to one woman 1 said to some sonic of my breth brethren reu ren ill in a priesthood meeting in st george one time when they were very badly badty agitated and not knowing whom the lightening or tile the edmunds act would strike next I 1 said paid to them you old prey grey headed men whose wives have grown old with you and are past bearing in g children if you choose now to agree among your yourselves selvas that you will live within the tile third section of the edmunds edmund law and allow the husband and father is confine himself to one wife while he cares for the balance an and deares cares for and protects his children I 1 see not but what you may do this with honor to yourselves and without sacrificing any principles of the law of god or going back upon your covenants providing this be agreeable among yourselves I 1 was somewhat with others congratulating myself in being able to do this without sacrificing any special cial clai principle orgon or going n back on our families but buc it iv would u 1 seem scein that these noble aged ires wires in israel were not to be let out quite so easily as this for I 1 am a little inclined to feel it was a little dishonorable and yet e t perhaps p erhan s not at altogether before god yr the h e I 1 idea das dav was that t they hey might possibly escape while their sons and others who might have taken wives and raised families and entered into the tho those se sacred relations which are to them dearer than life itself would have to abide the consee consequences bences but it seems that under judge zanes ruling it is not these who are arc raising families that are always liable for you may raise a faculty by ay your sister in law if you von don dont I 1 t call her tier your y wife e as yo you u understand from the case I 1 have referred to no sooner had judge zane sustained prosecuting attorney Dick sons view of the base case than this mr aimes isas ivas brought before him on habeas corpus and discharged and he the judge tully fully announced the doctrine that a man could have as many children by sister in laws baws as lie he pleased that no matter how much a inan man might seduce his neighbors wife or neighbors daughter if he is not in the marriage relation with them it is no offense against the edmunds law but with a mormon whether lie he is balsin raising a family or not I 1 if he is even so unfortunate as to have no children or if his ills wives are past be bearing ar children and be he has entirely separated ate d himself so far as be bed d is concerned and there them is evidence of entire rest restraint mint on hi his part still unless he goes back on himself and on his wives elvei and children he comes cornes under the law in enoth other words if it lie hu continues to I 1 hoid hold hold bold them out as wives lie he is guilty of cohabitation hence renee brother smoot and myself and others have be been heen e n congratulating ourselves a litt little le too soon you will avill find that the old men and the young nien men are all coupled together thet their ir feet still in the trap while tiie tile adulterer fornicator whoremonger harlot and libertine the trap is open just enough to let their feet out now tiley caa can vote they can carn ca n hold office they can raise children providing they do not do it in the marri marriage ae relation and they thuy hold out this inducement to you von and 1 I become like one of us 1 46 fivish I wish you out there could be like the rest krestof of us 1 l wish you would only disown your wives then do what you will you are arc secure that is you must only own one wife for this is s the ular idea the sentiment of the age c this is the voice of lifty fifty millions of people you must listen to it congress has said sald it if you hesitate some soine go so far as to say you will be held to answer for treason treason I 1 against what treason against the law dell welt then of course every thief Is guilty guilky of treason every man roan that ste ils its all an axe handle handie shall shail be tried for treason because he diso beys the law by the same f parity of reasoning again il if boutry you try to avoid the law and we ave can catch you why youa you arh arr redoing doing a 1 terribly Avic ked thing yes yee it if sT spotter lotter are dowil flown some luckless fellow or his wife and they at th Lh eback doob door or hide la in a haystack why you must be tre treason ason asen or some other crime now I 1 have always understood that catching goes before banging hanging that it ilis ills is the duty of the cers to make arrests when nhen indictments are fohne and it Is equally understood that there is aguar a guarantee in the tile constitution of the united states that no man is hallbe held to answer for any crime ext epe on presentment of an indictment t b bv v a aarand grand jury furthermore when indictments are aund the parties against whom lynom they are found are known only to the jury and public prosecutor the general pub lie arg are are not supposed to know anything about them and the general maxim of law is that ev everybody ia IS innocent until they are proven guilty consequently on wu we are tornow that when anybody is gong goin out to the haystack that they are fleeing neet beet it g froia an all officer ol licer or that every eveny tramp that coanes s along is a deputy marshal or if lip h is that he has haa a warrant in his pocket for that man and jf he has it is his bu business giness kluess to catch him and not ours does not the law forbid you te to aid in the die escape of a criminal yes if he has been found a criminal by a competent jury and under sentence of df the law then it is public notice to YOU ou that he Is a criminal but not otherwise I 1 merely make mention orthis because of the foolish threats that are sometimes made to terrify ig g borant people because itis itts it is well known the world over over oyer so far as a anything is known of us and of the legislation of congress against us its asa as s religious people that there is all an issue between congress and the latter day saints and chat that I 1 issue sue is of a religious character and relating to the social socia relations of the latter day saints tie tle views which we ave hola hord are founded upon the teve revelations latious of godf godi god both ancient and modern ve we have given evidence to the world of our sincerity in this and yet the world do not seem to accept t I 1 believe that mr dickson was honest enough to express his conviction of our sincerity in this tills and that the mormon people as a a people PP op to were moral people and t anat t a t th thi their i r teaching sand action actions showed hov hol ed that they did not indulge in these sexual sins outside of the themar mar rh niage 1 e relation to any great extent w while I 1 1 the great mass of mankind who know us not are not willing to give us this credit they have raised tiie tile hue and cry all at over the land for so many years that we were geu gru guilty lity of gross immorality that it seems as if the lord intended in the way now being deneto give the world ocular demonstration and a strong testimony of the integrity of this people of the sincerity of their actions of the depth and strength of their faith and their devotion to their reli reil religious glaus convictions and their inte integrity rity in carrying them out at t it is a source of gratification and thanksgiving that but few comparatively speaking among Us its have felt to go back on themselves band and to throw off allegiance to god and to their families ana and I 1 friends and to violate their consciences kut but but few have been found to do this in order to escape fine and imprisonment how far it will till become necessary that this tills testimony should go forth to the world and how many should suffer so that that their test testimony iril ony should go abroad to mankind t to 0 convince the i world and tu to vindicate god G od and ills his people I 1 am not yet able to sav say for I 1 am p persuaded that it will be a as s the lord will 11 that whatsoever is necessary we ave must submit gub to with the best grace race possible I 1 do not mean to |
