Show REV EV MR MB NUTTING AND THE NEWS our readers will remember that a few days ago there appeared in these columns a few explanatory words to the effect that a lady named hannah M peaden of falkland N C was a latter day saint and had recently written to the news a letter bearing testimony to the truth of the work she had embraced that her published communication had been answered by rev J D nutting of this city and that she had written a rejoinder to him his letter to her and hers to him were given verbatim allowing the coi correspondence to speak for itself the bews dismissed it with a single comment and without a word of censure of mr nutting although he in his letter to mrs peaden had used some very severe and offensive language in referring to the faith and practices of the latter day saints in utah mr nutting has addressed a communication muni cation to the news in which he states that he has long been it a subscriber to it that its news calums are usually clean and that occasional u have been especially timely and strong on moral questions and I 1 have rejoiced greatly in them and h have ave publicly commended some of them but he complains the course of the news in publishing private letters without leave seems to me clearly dishonorable A letter which to is in its nature private is the property of its author it cannot honorably he used in any way other than he intended without his consent unless by due course of law how much less in direct and known opposition to his wishes or for his personal injury or er that of his christian work the news has done this so frequently that it to is a quite unanimous belief among those concerned that some one here procures persons east to act as decoy dacks in writing letters to utah ministers for information that the honest answers may be published in the news with acrimonious comment in suea such a way as to prejudice mormon readers against the faithful ministry of christ and injure his cause here to the utmost As an to mr nuttings cuttings Nut tings letter being private it was written to a news correspondent in reply to a published communication from which mr nutting derived his sole acquaintance with and knowledge of the existence of f anat correspondent it was an at tack upon the religion professed by that correspondent and upon the daml dominant class of 0 the people of ul religion and people it Is the special province of the news to defend it wa an u unsolicited effort in the fullest bense akra gratuitous tullous tul tous to persuade e tta att ae recipient cape to forsake that to which she had borne solemn testimony as being truth revealed from heaven and it occasioned both astonishment and disgust on her part in no sense nor degree can it justly claim the protection tion of privacy and under the strictest construction of the amenities the 11 Nevall was fully justified in publishing it X MR cuttings nuttings Nut tings reference to decoy dus is in funny to a degree that is both remarkable and resistless what duck de coyed him he volunteers an offensive letter to a person whom he has never seen and who turns the tables on him and then he complains about decoy ducks mr nutting distinctly conveys the impression that the exposures the news has made of the duplicity of some of the sectarian clergy of utah has made them all fearful of decoy ducks they would be willing to write to persons abroad statements and sentiments they have not the hardihood to utter in utah but they fear that the recipients might prove to be decoy ducks who would forward their letters to the news for publication in other words according to mr nutting the whole fraternity of christian ministers in utah is a set of hypocrites if ingersoll ever made a severer charge against the clergy than mr nutting with such charming has done it is not here recalled in the opinion of the news mr nutting is too severe on at least some of his fellow laborers in the ministry there is no earthly reason why any one of them should write to a correspondent abroad any statements of facts or expressions of sentiment regarding the mormons cormons Mor mons or any other people or matters in utah that they would object to having published in any paper in this state if they are doing this or are willing to do it they deserve all mr nutting has said of them directly and by wise he has done them a gross injustice the news will leave this matter to be settled by the interested parties mr nutting denies that he has any apology to make for the statements of facts contained in his letter to mrs peaden but admits that it was more intensely worded than it should have been As to the theological issues raised between her and him he proposes a joint debate of them through the columns of this paper a proposition by the way which the news could not consent to he insists that his motive in writing to mrs peaden was pure and that he is an earnest worker for the glory of christ and states in effect that he has received sympathy and endorsement from among his mormon neighbors in his labors and expresses a wish to operate cooperate co with them in all matters of temperance morality etc we do not deem it necessary to give mr nuttings cuttings Nut tings letter in full as the quotations lations from it give its substance we had always thought him to be an earnest worker in what he regarded as a good cause and have understood that he was well thought of in the community by mormon and non mormon alike his past reputation for fairness was a chief element of the surprise occasioned by his letter to mrs peaden and one reason for its publication we cannot help thinking that his distress is occasioned more by the disclosure which he did not expect than by regret at the manner in which he be spoke of a community whom he acknowledges has treated him well his letters to mrs peaden and to this paper give ample opportunity for argument and satire at his expense but the news has no desire to treat him unkindly in common with his mormon neighbors to whom he refers we sincerely wish him both joy and success in all his efforts to promote faith in a risen redeemer and the revealed word of god so far as he himself has faith in them and also in his efforts to promote morality temperance and the christian virtues generally but in closing this episode we will remind him that according to his own standard of righteousness it is not the part of either a brave man or a christian to say in the absence of your friend those things about them which you would not say in their presence |