| Show MORMONS AND WB have received the following letter of ir i editor deseret news can you explain the object in having the words mormon and non mormon applied to the school children in this territory granting the object is a proper one is it right to use the slang term mormon when latter day saint should be used and require parents or guardians to endorse the term on the scholars certificate supposing posing the party who originated the printed pr anted forms were a member of the roman catholic church how do you think he would relish the question Pea tion ia 1113 your child a papist or a non hagist 11 1 we twe do not know w what bif oba bot cc was in view TIOW in the insertion of the words mormon I and non mormon la in the forms which have to be filled up for school chool statistics in this territory other than the desire of certain government officials to learn the relative numbers of each class in the school population we are of the opinion that the term mormon should not have been used and that the term latte batter rd day saint would have been far better if the di sign had been to show the religious attachments of the school children and the parent but this was not contemplated only two classes of people were recognized namely mormons cormons Mor mons and gentile Gan 11 and these not particularly in a sectarian sense but rather as distinct orders of citizens the party who originated the printed forms was not acting in fin a religious capacity nod and therefore the query in relation to the papist or pa ista P will not apply no 0 individual to is responsible for this unpleasant discrimination it Is a provision of the edmunds tucker act the territorial Commis commissioner of schools who furnishes the blanks has to con form to the act of congress which created the office section 25 of the act provides that said isail superintendent shall collect and clasa ity statistics and other information respecting the district and other schools in said terri territory ory showing their progress the whole number of children of school age the number who attend school in each year in the respective counties the average length of time of their attend annethe anc ethe number of teachers and the compensation pensa tion paid to the same the number of teachers who are mormons cormons Mor mons the number who are so called gentiles the number of children of mormon parents and the number of children of so called gentile parents and their respective average attendance at school all of which statistics and information shall be annu ally all reported to congress through the governor of said territory and the department part ment of the interior it will be observed that the word gentiles to ig used in non Is ie substituted to in the forms prepared this we suppose is COD ii a softer term but it does not comply with the letter of law it accomplishes comp lishes the intent however and is perhaps less objectionable to many people there are quite a number of oui citizens of both elapses who regard this provision with 40 favor the fault must not be laid upon the commissioner nor upon any other school officer in the territory and while we object to the offensive discrimination crimination dic in the law we can afford to put up with it for the present with the sure eure and certain hope that statehood will before many years relegate it to the oblivion which ought to cover a great many disagreeable things connected with the treatment of the so called mormon problem |
