| Show FURTHER PLUNDER contemplated FOLLOWING is the text of the new edmunds bill framed for the purpose of helping the supreme court of the united states boutot out of a judicial muddle it t is fitting filling that the bilious and bibulous senator whose anti aati mormon 11 fanaticism has put the court in a hole should try todo to do something vigorous towards helping it out after the enact enacting ipg clause the bill reads that any and all funds or other property lately belonging to or in the posses posse biou eblon of or claimed by the corporation mentioned in section 17 of the entitled act an act to amend an act entitled an act to amend section of the revised statutes of tho the united states in reference to bigamy aud and for other purposes purpose sf approved march 22 1882 at before or since the taking effect of said act in respect of which funds ani and property it shall appear that there to is no lawful p issee stun nor lawful private right shall be devoted to the use and benefit of the public common schools in the territory of utah and the secretary of the interior shall sav JI take and receive the same and dispose thereof for the use aforesaid in such manner as shall seem eem to him with the approval of the president to be mot most expedient and the supreme court of said territory is hereby invested with power and authority to make all necessary and proper orders and forthe for the purpose hereinbefore mentioned ti p it must be evident to every critical reader of tue the act of 1887 fur for the plunder of the mormon 11 church that it provided for the confiscation of its real estate only and that merely for such realty as a it had acquired since july 1862 iti io excess of the value of and not used exclusively for the worship of god or for or burial grounds the seizure of the personal property was an afterthought original originating ori ginat ng with the lawyers and the utah supreme court the superior couri in affirming the decree found I 1 ier ap hal hai gone teyo beyond iad the law and so announced that action would be deferred till the october term in order if possible to find some way out of the difficulty now senator edmunds comes to the rescue with what we think may be fairly termed judicial legislation for it is 18 not only designed to solve problem but is judicial in its ito nature and operation the only pretext that Is ia or can be offered to legally justify this pillage of personal property is the judicial assertion that there do not exist any natural persons or any body association or corporation who are legally entitled to any portion of said as successors in interest of said church of jesus jeana christ of latter day saints nor are there any trusts of a definite and legal character upon which the court sitting as a court of chancery can administer the personal personal property hereinbefore set out I 1 this to is the excuse given by the utah supreme court I 1 now mark the fact that the same court in the same decision in which this pretext appears judicially As the fact that since ahe passage of the act of Congre february 19 1887 the church of jesus christ of latter day saints has existed as a voluntary religious sect of which the said wilford woodruff is the acting president and has had duly designated and appointed by the probate court of said salt lake count county iti in said territory in purs pursuance tiance of the act of congress aforesaid the following named trustees W B preston robert T burton barton and john R winder to take the title to and hold such real estate as shall be allowed such religious sect by law for the erection and use of houses of worship parsonages personages nages and burial grounds here there are both natural perso sons na and trustees to whom the personal prop pro eity petty might have been administered if the court had the disposition to so ao order the unincorporated corp orated sect was the natural successor to the incorporated wet sect after the dissolution of the corporation by legiel etive act the members bers of both were the same the corporation itself was but the agent of the church cli urca or association or nat ural persons who owned the personal property it could not be claimed that they had either acquired or held it illegally for there Is no limit in law to the amount of personal property which a religious association may possess the restriction Is only in regard to the realty but the court also hold beld that there were moral grounds for seizing thin personal property namely that ou on the dissolving of the corporation there did not exist any trusts or purposes within the objects and purposes for which said personal ws ers onal property was originally acquired as hereinbefore set out whether said acquisition was by purchase or donation to or for which said or a any part rt thereof could be used or to tow lakic which r it could be dedicated that were not in whole or in part opposed to public policy licy good morals and contrary to the t e laws of the united states I 1 I 1 let us see about this the act of incorporation which is cited in full in the decree sets forth the objects and purposes for which said property both real and personal was originally acquired they were to be used managed or disposed of for the benefit ampro improvement erection of houses bouses for public wore worship 1 1 and instruction and the well betag being of sail church that is the church of jesus C christ h riot of latter d day ay sat sainto ants it is further set forth in the act of incorporation that each and every act ct or practice ice so established or adopted opted for law lav or custom shall re late to solemnities sacraments cere consecrations consecration ti endowments ti things marriages fellowship or the religious dutte duties 4 of manto man to his bis maker inasmuch tua as the doctrines prineo principles ples pra practices cices tices or performances performance support virtue and increase morality and are not inconsistent with or repugnant to the constitution ot of the united states etc here are a number of uses to which this property could be put which no fair construction of language can interpret to signify objects or purposes opposed to public policy good morals and the laws of the united states only one use therein can be so construed that is in for marr marriages iageR PP there is no definite reference in the whole act to polygamy ur or plural marriage but supposing post ug that is meant by or included tin in the term marriages PY strike that thai word out eliminate from the act all allusion to marriages 1 I andl and are there not a large number dumber of I 1 use and purposes 1 1 named that are perfectly moral politic and lawful even in the eyes of the most vigorous opponent of plural marrow providing he to is not id idiotic lotic or lusane insane furthermore the same dec decision adjudges and decrees that the temple block be and the same Is hereby set apart to co the voluntary religious worshipers and unincorporated sect and body known as the church of jesus christ of lat ter day saints and that the said W B preston robert aburton TB urton ancl andyjohn John R winder trustees appointed by the probate court of salt lake county as hereinbefore set out do hold manage and control said property so set not aside for the benefit of said voluntary religious worshipers and unincorporated sect and body and for the erection and use by them of houses of worship shi and for their use and convenience con ven tence in tie the lawful exercise of gorshin according accordine to the tenets of said sed sect and body here are uses which the court Judi ju dUally cally recognizes as legal and which are the same as set forth in the act ded defining a I 1 ug them as those for which the property whether it be real or personal was originally acquired 91 9 1 they are not opposed to public police polac good morals and the laws of the united states 21 2 1 or neither the act of congress nor the decree of the court would have set apart this realty fur for the purpose ani and why should dedication of real estate to the use and convenience IP of the latter day saints sainte I 1 according to the tenets of said sect and bodhil body be politic moral and lawful and the devotion of personal property to the same use be impolitic immoral and unlawful indeed the property so set apart for the benefit of the latter day saints cannot be used for the purposes named by the court without some personal property there are certain things essential to public worship ceremonial cere monal and otherwise and all denominations require ire them thus there is neither legal nor moral ground for the confiscation and escheat of the personal property of the church and the latter day saints are fully justified in the conviction that they aie to be pillaged and plundered by the force of bight over right and to gratify brej prejudice udice I 1 tolerance intolerance u and bigotry it must not be fur forgotten gotten that the proposition in this new edmunds bill which is an tion of the purpose of the act of 1887 embodies rank I 1 injustice and a violation of the principles of jurisprudence governing charitable uses expounded by the court of last resort it contemplates taking property donated by the latter day for specific purposes and diverting them to other and different uses and fo for r the benefit of persons who have not and do not make any claim upon it whatever the rhe eammon schools of utah are for all classes of the community not only tor Mormon Mor mons 8 but for jews gentiles infidels and apostates to filch it from the latter day saints anti and give it to people not of their church ie not only rank robbery but is antagonistic to the theory and practice set forth in the argument of the supreme court of the united edited states as judicially recognized in both hemispheres it t is not dot improbable that the new edmunds bill will become a law it is worded so as to catch the average congressman and lead him to believe that it is merely a needful supplement to existing taw law for the purpose of relieving the supreme court of a technical difficulty its innate roguery will not appear unless it is exposed in a striking manner the friends of justice aud and honesty throughout the land should be moved to resist this further aej dangerous encroachment upon religious liberty por for it will open the way to evils in other directions and may let in suh abuses as are now scarcely contemplated it ought to be strangled ere it is born |
