Show THE POLYGAMY QUESTION from the cleveland leader of october 6 5 washington september 29 yesterday I 1 received from hon john T caine the delegate la in congress from utah a copy of a letter recently sent out by wilford woodruff president of the church of jesus christof christ of latter day saints on the subject of polygamy woodruff is the successor of j john ohn taylor who followed brigham young as the head of the mormon church in the letter referred to explicit denial is made of published statements to the effect that plural marriages are still being solemnized in utah and that forty or more such mairi marriages ages have been contracted during the past year president woodruff says we are not teaching polygamy or plural nor permitting atty any person to enter into its practice one cue case has been reported in which the parties alleged that the marriage was performed in the endowment house in salt lake ke city in the spring of 1889 but I 1 have not been able to learn who performed the ceremony whatever was done in this matter was done without my knowledge in consequence of this alleged occurrence the endowment house was by my instructions taken down without delay inasmuch as laws has been enacted by congress foru forbidding idding plural marriages which laws have been pronounced constitutional by the court of last resort I 1 do hereby declare my intention to submit to those laws and to use all my influence with the members of the church over which I 1 preside to have them do likewise there is nothing in my teachings to the church or in those thosa of my associates during the time specified which can reasonably be construed to inculcate or encourage rage polygamy and when any elder of the church has used language which appeared to convey such teaching he has been promptly reproved and I 1 now publicly declare that my advice to the latter day saints to to refrain from contracting any marriage forbidden by the laws of the land I 1 WHAT DELEGATE CAINE SAYS this morning I 1 called upon mr caine and had an interesting con with him among other questions suggested by the latter I 1 asked him hi no if it was true that the congressional enactments prohibiting polygamy were being accepted and obeyed by the mormons cormons in good faith absolutely so said mr caine the practice of polygamy has entirely ceased in utah and I 1 believe it is safe to say that it will never be revived I 1 do not personally know of a single case in ia which a man is now living with more than one wife I 1 have that it will take a long time to make the people of the country believe this we all know that there is an almost universal and deep seated feeling against the mormons cormons Mor mons which to my mind is largely prejudice we feel that it is unjust but we recognize the fact that it must take years to overcome it all the prosecutions now being had are tor polygamous living with and supporting plural wives married years ago before the passage of the edmunds daiy la ff let me say to you that our book of mormon does cloes not dot take the place of the protestant bible we use the standard king james translation just as do all protestant denominations the book of mormon is only supplementary supplement aty to it the impression is very general that we the mormon religion not only authorized but enjoined plural marriage this is a mistake polygamy was simply permitted under certain conditions and restrictions no man was allowed to contract a plural marriage unless he be bad a high religious character and had the ability to support two or more wives and the eb children ildren that might be born to them unless uness these requirements were fulfilled plural marriages were absolutely forbidden and were under no circumstances solemnized what proportion of the mor mons have in years past practiced polygamy A very much less number probably than you imagine it did not exceed two per cent twenty persons in every one thousand of the mormon population the population of the territory according to the new census is about of which about are mormons cormons Mor mons the number of males living in polygamous marriage did not at the time the edmunds law was passed elcee exceed soo 2500 it is true that there were some persons dis franchised under that law on account of polygamous practices but this number included all the plural wives for women voted widows and all who had bad ever lived in polygamy I 1 remember one case of a man who in early life lived in plural marriage but has baa not done so for more than thirty years under a strict construction of the law he was held to be disqualified for citizenship and was refused registration you willabe will see that monogamy has always been the rule among our people and polygamy the exception now as I 1 have told you polygamous marriages have been entirely discontinued il what is the condition now existing between those who formerly for merty held aptly a polygamous relation that is between a man and the women who were his wives just such as you might suppose A man must live with his bis legal wife that is the first one to whom he was married the others though living wholly separate and apart from them he is morally required tired to and joes support furnishing them and their children with the means necessary for them to live comfortably public opinion condemns in the strongest manner any man who fails to do this but I 1 can tell you they are kept under the strictest espionage by the united states marshals and their deputies A man inan is not permitted to visit his former plural wives he ble cannot even go upon her premises to cut a supply of firewood for her without rendering himself liable to arrest you will readily see that the extreme rigor with which the law is enforced works much hardship there are many men who have a natural and sincere affection for their former wives and their children they would be glad to visit them now BOW and then not with any intention or desire of violating the law by resuming their former relations but solely in order that they might supply them with the necessaries of life As the law is administered they cannot do this former husbands and wives are as completely separated as though they bad always been strangers how many of those who lived in polygamy had more than two wives only a small number A few had three and still fewer four or more brigham young had nineteen no other man had nearly as many several of youngs wives were sealed to him for the hereafter and did not sustain the marital relation other leading men in the church has also sealed wives it is a part of our religious belief that the future state is but a continuation of f the present and that family relations existing here will be resumed after death and go on through eternity the question of plural marriage was a practical advell as a sentimental one it is about as much as the average man can do to support one wife and family and in this our people do not differ from others othera it would have been the height of folly indeed criminal fora for a man to encumber himself with wives and children whom he could not support this was guarded against as I 1 have already told you by the ruler of the church I 1 do not think that 10 per cent of the men who lived in polygamy polygamy had more than two wives each 12 aside AsId from efrom polygamy is there anything in the principles and teachings of the mormon religion which can be considered as inimical to the social and political welfare of a people in other words in your opinion has the prejudice if you please that exists through the country at large against mormonism any good and reasonable foundation other than the practice of plural marriage JI emphatically it has not there is nothing in the mormon religion leaving out its permission of polygamy to which any objection can be made of course there are some points in our belief with which many persons would not agree but bul the same can be said of baptists methodists unitarians catholics spiritualists and all other religious denominations what I 1 mean is that there Is nothing in our belief or teachings which we have not a perfect and unquestionable right to believe and teach or that is in the slightest degree hostile to the spirit of our government and its institutions we have a right to claim the same religious liberty that is guaranteed to others by the constitution of the united states elates now there are in our country a great many goo i people who believe sincerely no doubt that the hierarchy of the roman catholic church is unfriendly to the principles of our government but in the legislation of congress or of any state there is not to my knowledge any discrimination against catholics why should there be against mormons cormons Mor mons now that thai this one point of objection is removed we concede that the popular virdice condemns polygamy and we accept this as final so far as our religion is concerned I 1 need only point to the morality industry and prosperity of our people A tree is known by its fruits men do not gather grapes of thorns or figs of thistles whistles es I 1 may confidently challenge the civilized world to show more inore sober orderly thrifty and law abiding communities than those of the cormons mormons in utah now that every man cleaves only to one wife surely none can say that our people are not good citizens let me give you just a few figures taken from tho the official police records of salt lake city which appear to me to be convincing on this point it should be borne in mind that the mormons cormons are largely in the majority there as to population although in voting strength the gentiles gentile are now in the ascendant during one year the arresta were for offenses lenses of against virtue 78 gentiles Gentile sand and not one mormon for drunkenness and violation of liquor laws gentiles 23 mormons cormons Mor mons personal violence 5 gentiles 1 mormon larceny gentiles and 27 mormons cormons Mor mons sundry other offenses gentiles 22 mormons cormons Mor mons does not this strike you as a pretty good showing for our people As an evidence of their industry and thrift left me cite the fact that al alt I 1 through utah nine tenths of the mormons cormons who are heads of families own their homes there areno are no mortgages mortgage sto to speak of the census inquiry shows that the recorded indebtedness in utah is but a small fraction per capita i ta of what it is in the other S states cut es and territories I 1 think no one will deny that this is very strong evidence of prosperity and dooh citizenship when brig barn bam young was living he always advised the new comers to make it their first object to secure h homes 0 mes geta get a piece of land I 1 he would won id say land and if you are not able to build a house at once make a dugout dug out end live in that until you can do better what is the feeling among the mormons cormons in regard to the admission of utah into the union and what in your opinion is the prospect that it will be admitted in the near future the people of utah mormons cormons and gentiles earnestly desire statehood we are unable to see any valid reason why this should longer be denied the polygamous lire life of some of the mormons cormons has been the cause of objection to the country at large but this no longer exists our population is more than sufficient to entitle us to admission and we have abundant agricultural and mineral resources to assure our permanent and increasing wealth and prosperity I 1 think the republican party will make a mistake if it continues to oppose the admission of utah whichever party does allow it to come will have a strong the people for their votes perhaps it ought not to be so but I 1 sul suppose pose political considerations always have had and always will have more or less influence in such matters n which of the two great parties republican and democratic would probably control the politics of utah in case of its admission it would be difficult to say because our people have never t any election been divided on that line our contests have always been be tween the mormons cormons and gentiles the gormong are known as th the peoples peopled party and all opposed to them as the liberals there ar are republicans and democrats in both of these parties it is probable that a majority though not a large one in my opinion of the Mori cormons mormons would affiliate with the demoe democrats rats A reason for this is found in the legislation which many of then them feel to be unnecessarily severe passed and rigorously enforced by the republicans A large minority of the mormons cormons Mor mons however are outspoken republicans prominent among these are the descendants and family of joseph smith the founder of the mormon church utah has very large wool and min ing interests and this fact makes many of our people crotee zionists and of necessity republicans public ans probably forty per cent of the mormons cormons would vote with that party in wyoming a large majority of those who were not dis franchised voted the lican ticket I 1 have cave no doubt that the greater part of the gentiles in utah would be republicans I 1 am of the opinion that if statehood were given us today both parties would have an equal chance t to 0 carry the state salt lake city and ogden are our chief cities both are controlled by the gentiles the majority of their po population populate on men women and children are mormons cormons Mor mons but the Gon gentiles tiles have a much greater per cent of voting strength in these cities the gen tiles have of late years been largely augmented by immigration from other parts of the country and they have now dow obtained full possession sion of the municipal governments W F HINMAN |