| Show MORMON WOMEN IN N washington from the rational yat Zat ional of wash ington SEEKING REDRESS FOR WRONGS correcting EVIL AND sensational REPORTS ABOUT it is known to comparatively few people perhaps that there is a commission ol of mormon women from utah in the city they seek redress for wrongs in the names of over 2000 ladies who assembled at salt lake city in mass meeting march 6 1886 representing the wives mothers sisters and daughters of the whole territory A republican representative met the commission by appointment at the headquarters on grant place yesterday afternoon and confronted four well favored agreeable and inteli intelligent igent women mrs emmeline B wells the editor of the womans comans exponent pub dished semimonthly semi monthly at salt Lak eUty I 1 seemed by common consent to be the chairman mrs wells is the plural wife of gen D H wells who was counselor to brigham young mrs wells was bor born u a puritan in massachusetts but was converted with her mother and went to nauvoo III IlL in 1844 and w was I 1 s married in salt cje lake city in 1852 D dr r ellen B ferguson was born in cambridge england was married in london and came to this country in 1860 and went to salt lake in 1875 in consequence of embracing the cormon mormon faith in illinois her husband died in 1889 1880 and both were mormons cormons Mor mons but were never in abl polygamy Y m y jose mrs r s E emily m 1 lly S richards and mrs 1 r josephine p hi e R west were born in the 3 mormon j 0 amo n church a U of parents who lived in pol polygamy amy they and their husbands are all arlor mor mons but do not practice poly polygamy garny they are young women having each been married several years and have had bad numerous children and mrs west has an infant with her la in answer to a question concerning their mission to the capital mrs wells said our mission to washington on at this present time is to present memorials which we brought ourselves being properly accredited for the president the senate and the house the first was delivered to the chief magistrate on april ad when we had an interview with him that to the senate was presented by b on the ath he was selected because he voted against the edmunds bill and is besides a woman suffragist and ex gov go v long of massachusetts who is a suffragist also has ha I 1 charge of the document for the house which has not yet been referred to the judiciary committee in the senate the memorial was allowed to lie on the table and appeared in full all f in the record of april 7 having presented your memorial what do you propose to do f urther further in the matter we shall do all in our power to correct the evil and sensational reports that are being daily disseminated among the people of the east from the bulpit pulpit and by the press we have some books boks and pamphlets which ve will gladly give to inquirers and we invite investigation and are ready to answer questions I 1 what is the condition of affairs in utah that compels you to make this protest the edmunds law which was passed in 1882 11 said dr ferge ferguuon on with a view of prohibiting and doing away with polygamy has been the means of inflicting much suffering upon the people who do not come within the penal scope of the law through the of officials fici als As will be seen from our memorial we complain that young children are brought into court and plied with indecent questions tender women in delicate health are asked impertinent and insulting questions in court and many of the lading aen men and priests priest of mormonism are d driven rive into hiding biding by the exactions of the officials fici als the juries are composed of men known to be antagonistic to mormonism and no mormon is permitted to sit upon juries the men and women living in polygamous marriage have been disenfranchised but monogamous mormons cormons Mor mons men and women still vote it is not true that the women vote at the dictation of mormon officials the ballot is secret and no one has any means of knowing how another votes the gentile ring in ia utah I 1 continued dr ferguson is not making a crusade against polygamy but is agitating matters and moving tor for adverse legislation in order to get the local and elective offices of the territory under theirl control the elective and territorial offices are now all held by mormons cormons Mor mons should the ring succeed in chasing monogamous mormons cormons Mor mons although greatly in the minority they would manipulate territorial affairs to suit themselves all we can do to foil the political conspirators is to enlighten public sentiment on all that pertains to mormons cormons and mormonism in reply to a question as to what made the church of the latter day saints so fascinating to women mrs wells resumed we feel that the doctrines are the truth and feel like clin clinging in to them at any sacrifice I 1 kno know t there jere is more liberty for women in th the mormon church than in any other in the world the women vote not only upon all political questions but upon religious tenets as well we believe in a pro pre existence and future state of progression and the discipline of is a corrective to supreme selfishness the great wrong congress 9 bessis Is doing in enforcing the edmunds law is the breaking up of families the ruin of hearts anti and homes and disgracing the women and making their children outcasts mormons cormons Mor mons believe that a man can love more than one woman jutt as a mothers love is not confined to one child said mrs richards Eich ards mylius my husband and I 1 talked the matter all over before marriage we both came from parents who lived in polygamy oly gamy but we were the chil children drea of tte me first wives and no mormon youth would marry a girl who was not a good mormon in all that the word implies we were born and brought u up inthe in the church and when we arrive arri vedat at years of responsibility we adopted the faith as our own we have seen the power given the saints that the lord prospered them in temporal things as well as in spiritual things 1 mrs west is the daughter of an apostle of the church and avers that it if she had a score of children would bring them all up to be latter day saints she is enthusiastic about the superior principles of her religion and says mormons cormons are not living for the present only but for the glory of eternity and are willing to make sacrifices here for the f future exaltation mr JF F S richards Kic hards is in the city with his wife he is attorney for the mormon church and attorney for salt lake 98 city it y an and 4 is here to argue a case in the supreme u p r e m e C court 0 u r t mr joseph A west is also here with his bis wife he is here on legislative business |
