Show REPORT OF THE disfranchise disfranchisement BILL FOR FOB purpose history we here her preserve the following material in relation to the struble truble tf bill now pending in congress the object of which Is ie to disfranchise the latter day saints we do this that it may be known in the days when confusion shall sweep over our now fair and prosperous country what were the names anti and personality of the men whose wicked conspiracies bore fruit so disastrous following is the report proper of the house committee on territories on the bill mr struble from the committee on territories submitted the follow ing report to accompany 4 ab R the committee on ferrito rieB having under consideration house bill no amending an act entitled anscer ato amend section of the revised statutes of the united states in reference to bigamy and for other purposes approved march march 22 1882 11 respectfully report the same back back to the house and ancl recommend its passage the act of march 3 1887 amending section of the revised statutes of the united states commonly known as the edmunds tucker act provided that an oath should be taken as a condition precedent to the right to klote vot or hold u 0 office in utah territory a accord cco rd a J aih t the utan utah 0 wion ion prep prepared th the following arvo form of f oath th to be t taken by intending f vo voters rs vi viz 1 I being duly daly sworn or 05 affirmed depose and say that I 1 am over twenty one years of age that I 1 have resided in the territory of utah for six months at past and this precinct for one mo month nth I 1 immediately M m mediately edia tely preceding the date hereof t that ho t I 1 am a native boi bom n or naturalized as the case may be citizen of the united states that my lull name is that i am years of age that my p place 1 c e of business is that I 1 am a single or married man that the name t f my lawful wife is and that I 1 will support the constitution of the united states and will faithfully obey the laws thereof and especially will obey the act of congress approved march 22 1 1882 entitle dAn sot act to amend section of th the revised statutes of the United states in reference to bigamy au aud d for other purposes and that I 1 will also obey the act of congress of march 8 1887 entitled I 1 an act to amend an act entitled an act to amend section of the ELe televised statutes of the united states in reference to bigamy and for other purposes approved march 22 1882 1 11 in respect of the crimes in said not act defined ana ami forbidden and that I 1 will not directly or indirectly aid or abet counsel or advise on any y other person perso n to commit any of am said crimes defined by acts of congress as polygamy bigamy unlawful habitation 03 incest adultery and fornication by referring to the law it will be seen that it was the intention of con gross to bind the voter to an observance of the laws passed for the suppression of polygamy at the time the law was enacted the opinion wa was a entertained by many persons that no mormon would take such an oath without having formed a clear intention to obey iland doubtless this opinion had a controlling cont roling effect in the passage 0 of the law 1 the he peoples party mormon issued r an address to the voters with respect to the oath its effect meaning etc using noting the following language the questions that intending voters need therefore ask themselves are these are we guilty of the crimes in said act or have we the present intention of committing these crimes or of aiding abetting causing na or advising any other person to commit them male citizens who can answer these questions in the negative can quality under the existing laws as voters and office holders probably no language could have been used more misleading than the above the very purpose of Con congress press in passing the law and the plain letter of the ibe law contemplates that thereafter the voters and office holders of utah territory should give the laws for the suppression of polygamy a firm and loyal support yet the mormon voters were instructed by their leaders that unless at the time of registration they then and there had a present intention to violate said law they were eligible for registration under iland it and fl fit d to take the prescribed oath it cannot be successfully denied that it was the purpose and intention of the law that those who should register hold offices or act as jurors under it should have a formed purpose to thereafter obey its requirements but the results of the registration under the advice given b the mormon leaders rendered the law in accomplishing accomplish in the purple M for which it was enacted enacted the fact is that with respect to the purpose and intention of the mormon voters concerning poi polygamy the law has had no effect an and in today a dead letter an extra t from the report of the utah commission for the year 1887 relating to this subject marked exhibit exhibits ab I 1 is hereto an annexed n fit t will therefore be seen th I 1 dional legislation is necessary to div give i v full force and effect to the e existing x astin n laws the bill reported by your committee will in their opinion meet t the difficulty r similar provisions have been successfully cess fully enforced in the Terr territory kory of idaho and the supreme court of the united states has affirmed its validity in the he case of df davis vs beason a copy of which opinion Is hereto annexed marked exhibit A no religious right is invaded and no constitutional 1 objection can be urged to its passage it will close the door to the evasions which have made the present laws inoperative and will in the opinion of your committee be effectual in the extirpation of polygamy we also append extracts from the reports of the governors of utah territory for the years vears it 87 1888 and 1889 and of the utah cow commission mission for the years vears 1887 and 1889 which fully explain the condition oi of affairs in the territory attached to the report are appendices pen dices A and B the former Is the opinion of the supreme court of the united states in the case of samuel D davis vs H G beason sheriff of oneida county idaho territory appealed from the third judicial district of the territory of idaho commonly known a the idaho test oath case A synopsis of this decision has heretofore been given in the NEWS and it is not necessary to rive give it here for historical purposes however it will be preserved entire in the DESERET WEEKLY appendix B is comprised of extracts from reports rendered to the interior department by the utah commission and governors west and thomas the account of the registration and election of 1887 as given in the majority report that year of the utah commission Commis Bion is reproduced aa is a portion of the majority report of the same body for 1889 which aims to convey the impression that the church of jesus christ of latter day saints is an organized conspiracy against the laws and of the country that portion of governor we bests atis at Is report for 1887 which gives an account of the correspondence relative to th the constitutional convention of 1887 which took place between john R winder chair chairman man of the peoples peopled territorial central committee and J B rosborough chairman of the central committee of the deac democratic party of utah the chairman and members member of the territorial republican committee and J L rawlins chairman of the democratic club is also reproduced all this appeared in the NEWS at the time A lengthy extract from the report of governor west fo for r the year 1888 is given this report p was published we believe by tonly aly one newspaper in the territory b the chief liberal organ it was so full of misrepresentation and false falsehood bood as to be appropriately suited to the columns of that sheet in the portion quoted by the congressional committee is contained the statement that the charter of Z C M I 1 provided as a condition n to become a stock hower membership in the church of jesus jesu christ of latter day saints the false and absurd character of this assertion tion was shown in these columns A long extract from the report of governor thomas for 1889 the most important portions of which were given in the NEWS closes appendix B and the aggregation of material presented by the committee in support of favorable action on the disfranchisement bill it would be a long and weary task to attempt to separate the small amount of truth contained in the conglomerate mass of falsehood misrepresentation and absurdity with which a mejo majority rity of 61 the house committee on territories has sought to bolster up its report it has ostensibly tried to show what sort of people the mormons cormons Mor mons are and in the effort has outraged the rules of right and logic which ought to govern in such a proceed ing g by gathering information exclusively clu from their enemies the members of the utah commission who signed the majority reports quoted from by the congles committee and the incumbents of the gubernatorial seat in utah who have furnished aid to the scheme cannot escape the responsibility which contemporaries and posterity will attach to the efforts made by them to destroy religious liberty upon the american continent nor for the consequences which may attend those efforts |