Show TALK WITH THE UTAH DELEGATE the new york world of october constans conti 09 the following interview by the well known official correspondent of that paper prank frank G carpenter with the delegate from utah HON JOHN T CAINE washington oct 11 I 1 met john T caine the territorial delegate from utah last night and had a talk with him regarding the con of the mormon church he referred to president woodruffs against plural marriage rah and tells me that polygamy Is beld dead in the territory that there have been no plural marriages to speak of for years and that the gentiles have always had bad an ides idea that there were more polygamists than there really were I 1 I 1 there are no now w 15 0 mor cormons mormons mo na in utah said he and there have never been more than 2500 or men who have had more than one wife this to is less than two per cent of the male population of utah the majority of the polygamists had only one extra wife and it was only in exceptional cases that they married more than three the young men among the mormons cormons have not gone into polygamy they are the leading power in the territory today and they are to a large extent running the afie church the mormon church at their state convention in 1887 when they adopted a constitution and asked for al admission mission into the union passed a resolution prohibiting polygamy and the doctrine has not been taught iu the church since then it was the younk young men who brought about this change the leaders of the church and the older men accepted the situation and from now on every mormon will have only one wife does the churek still believe in polygamy I 1 asked the arbe people may believe in it but they believe in obeying the laws of then their country and as these laws are against it they will not practice it many of the mormons cormons went into int polygamy against their own wishes brigham young once told me that the greatest trial of his life was the adoption of this principle and that it was only because he thought it was his bis duty that he took more than one wife he said this to me at the theatre one night and I 1 have no doubt of his sincerity he con dered it a cross but he be believed that polygamy came from god and he accepted it what kind of a man was brigham young I 1 asked he was a great man replied delegate calne caine the work of moses leading the children of israel through tho the was wa nothing to his taking that band of mormons cormons over the wilderness of the great american desert and of settling them in the heart of it moses only traveled a few hundred miles brighams Brig hams baud band traversed thousands it took book brigham young less than a year to find his land of cana cauaan in while moses wandered around for fully forty brigham young will have a great place in hig history tory and the day will come when all americans will bet be proud of him give me a description of his character said 1 I brigham young replied delegate caine cahoe was an allaround all around great man he had an evenly balanced mind and wonderful executive ability he was able to decide upon anything that came up the moment it was presented to him and he always grasped things in their details as well as a whole he had bad a wonderful amount of practical knowledge and he be built the temple in salt lake city that cost coet a million dollars and more J jie he ie was a very industrious man mall and ud he be went to bed early rose at daybreak ate plainly and dressed simply his soul was wrapped up in the mormon church and he cared more for its interests than he did for his own 12 still he died rich said 1 I yes his wives were all provided for out of his bis fortune and the estate was left in the hands bands of trustees so that all were fairly treated he made the most of his fortune out of the union pacific railroad he built miles of this road and one of his sons was one of the masters of construction for the union pacific I 1 dont think that brigham young eared cared anything for momey as money he valued it only as it enabled him to carry out his plans he was a very valuable adviser to the church and it is largely due to him that our people are in so prokp prosperous erous a condition as they are today does the mormon church own much property I 1 asked no replied delegate cabneit Cai caine neit it does not the united states state congress passed an act taking our property from us or rather stealing it it was nothing more than a steal and there are other churches in utah today which own more property mormons cormons Mor mons when speaker reedval in utah a year or so ago be said to me in that drawling tone of his the rhe gentiles complain that you mormons cormons wont sell any of your pro property perky 1 I 1 showed mm lm that a large proportion of salt lake city wu wab ow owned ned by the gentiles the hebl hebrews bews and others and asked him how bow this could be it if the mormons cormons would not sell I 1 do your people hold their title in fee simple or does the greater part of the property in the territory belong directly or indirectly to the church in fee simple of course replied mr caine the church has nothing to say as to what I 1 shall do with my house or my farm any more than the presbyterian or methodist has to say regarding the property of its s iV members eMbers I 1 suppose there is no part of the united states where so many people own their own homes as iu in utah nine tenths of the mormons cormons own their own homesteads and the census of mortgages will show a smaller number among them than among any other class of people in the united states when brigham young began to tie build up the territory he urged the newcomers not to rent houses and ad v coed bleed them to buy ur or enter a piece of land and put up a house bouse on it 1 if you can cant it put up a house said he be put up a shanty if you 1 can cant it put up a shanty build a dug out and in the meantime live in a tent the people followed his advice and the result is they are well to do As to selling sell ing their property the mormons cormons are good business men at least as much so HO as the average members of other churches the they know the value of their property they do not dot need to sell and they only do so when they get their price doea not the church eat up a s great part of the substance of the I 1 people I 1 asked not more so than other chut churches ches 21 was the reply we believe in giving one tenth of our income to the church and we believe in supporting support ipg our church ourselves you never get a collection plate shoved under your nose when you 0 o to listen to a mormon sermon the matter of giving to is a matter of ones own conscience no one investigates whether a man gives a full tenth of his income or not net if becan he can afford to cheattle che cheat atthe the lord we think that the church can i stand it and that the lord will settle with him by and by what is the mormon idea of hell said L I 1 well we dont believe in terrifying people into joining the church by preaching brimstone dam damnation nation we dont dodt take a naan man by the nape dape of his neck and the seat of his breeches and bold him over the burning fires of hell and shake him back and forth and turn him over and over until he squirms and sizzles fizzles into repentance we believe belleve iu in a future state but not in that kind of a future state we think that the deeds of thie life will be rewarded and punished in the next according as they are good or bad we believe in ill the atonement but we hardly think that the lord will take the time hardened sinner who has committed all the crimes in ia the decalogue to heaven by telegraph just because he repents with his dying breath we believe in a future state of progression towards perfection and we think that religion should be a matter of works as well as faith many of you gentiles havea wrong idea of mormonism we are nearer the bible today than nine tenths of the churches and I 1 believe there is as much simon pure christianity taught ir in utah as there is in any other place of its population in the united states the book of nor mot mon men is only a supplement to the bible it floes not take the place of it we believe in the ten commandments mand ments and we know the scriptures as well as aa the Gen geneles Ules and we try to practice what we preach what will be the effect of the abolition of polygamy on the growth of the church 1 I think it will help it rather than otherwise replied delegate caine polygamy has been more of a cl g to us than sia aa aid the church got along during its first years without it and prospered it will prosper now you have never been a polygamist said 1 I cacno no not in practice I 1 have had but one wife and one family was all that I 1 could support I 1 have had ten children and the mormons cormons belove believe in having children we be lieve that the greatest of crimes is that of taking away a human life and we believe that there is no hope of salvation for the murderer whether his victim be an unborn babe or a grown man we have in short what I 1 consider to be the best religion on the face of the globe and if the rest of the united states really understood it I 1 dont think that the present opposition to us would exist cirank G GL |