| Show TUB THE oara IN UTAH the antl anti polygamy law enacted at the recent session of congress provides that every male person 21 years of age resident in the territory of utah shall as a condition precedent to his bis right to register or vote at any election in said eaid territory 11 take a certain oath which to is set forth in section 24 of tile the act lu iti taking this oath the person who desires to vote is required to Ili state his bis full name with his bis age place of business his bi status wh whether single or er married and if married the name of et his lawful wife and ana to swear that he be will support the constitution of the tae united 8 totes states and will faithfully obey the laws thereof and especially will obey the act of congress approved march the edmunds acta act entitled as aa act to amend section of the revised statutes of the united states ia reference to bigamy and for other pur pores popes 1 and will also obey this act ithe the adm edmunda ads act in respect reaped to the crimes in said act dedred denned and for bidden and that he be will not directly or indirectly aid or abol abet counsel or advis eany other person to go commit any of said crimes in the same section it Is provided that no verdon person who shall have been convicted of amy aay crime under either of the two sets acts mentioned or who SWI shall be a polygamist or who shall associate or cohabit with persons of the other sex shall be entitled to vote in utah on the first monday in august there will be a gei general geral elect election ign in the territory at which members of the legislature and local officers will be chosen it is the duty of the utah Commis commission dion to provide for the enforcement of the law in respect to this oat h it has already been enforced at one or two municipal elections and is is now known that hat the oath as set forth in the act will be taken generally by mormons cormons who are monogamists in practice the prospect is therefore that the mormons cormons ot br the territory who constitute four fifths of its population will not be dis franchised by the law but will continue to control their local affairs we learn from mormon sources that abat the utah commission formulated an oath in the very words of the section which we have quoted and on march 19 sent printed copies of this oath to all registration officers that when it became known that monogamist mor mons would take this oath an bation of residents opposed to mormonism asked the commission to formulate another oath and suggested one olie that donld require the voter to make certain statements concerning his bis religious belief that in reply the chairman of the commission on april 22 and his associates on april 28 stated that the oath already formulated was in iii accordance with the requirements quire ments of the law and that they could not see that it was either necessary or proper ro 1 er to make the changes proposal pro proposed arr prom om the same source there comes an assertion that this organization now proposes tp to induce the registers to administer so an oath more stringent than that which is set alorth in the law moreover it is said that applicants for naturalization papers have bare been rejected upon grounds relating to belief and not speciale d in tie the law of course it was intended by bacon COD gress grees that the oath should accord in all respects with the provisions and phraseology of section 24 of 0 the act and if the commission has formals fOrmu formulated ls ted an oath I 1 in n the very words of th the act it has done its plain duty it his has no right to formulate an oath containing any requirements that are not found in the act the theo opponents of the mormon church L in utah utah are am disappointed it is said because the monogamist mormons cormons have decided to take the commis oath and it is reported that for abis reason they an oath these thes mormons cormons would not take if their attitude in this matter has been correctly described in the statements which we have received it will tend to convince the public that tb they ey are more anxious to obtain political cont rolof utah than to suppress the crime of I 1 polygamy ply gamy if a member of the mormon church shall swear that he will obey the constitution ution and the anti polygamy laws and shall be eligible under the other provisions of section 21 24 of the ed munds tucker act we do not see how bow he can rightfully or legally be denied the right to vote it if congress had intended to disfranchise residents of utah for religious belief or connection with the mormon church it would have said so to in the act As it did not say sav so the officers territory have no right to bar out men for their belief belie it is the crime of polygamy and not the belief of mormon against which the laws are directed every man in utah who has violated those liwa laws by plural marriage should be promptly brought before the courts and made made to suffer the maximum penalty provided tor for his offense fease of with the assistance of tb the e laws recently enacted the federal prosecuting officers and courts ought to Kosec be able to give every offender nis his deserts the people will not be satisfied unless these officers abd courts misplay activity to lo the pursuit aud prot pro of mormon lawbreakers law breakers but that men should be punished by dis or in other ways lor for holding a religious belief obnoxious i louah it way icay be is a dangerous doe doc trine it has not the sanction of congressional fress ional legislation and any aftem attempt to give it Is was force ip in ty sy execl executive e action without wair warrant rant of law woold not hasten the up of while it would rive give rise rice to a strong suspicion that those responsible blufor for it were actuated by some less leas praiseworthy than ft a desire to irp oppress prees crime slid and punish law break en arse yew new york mies may 22 |
