| Show 66 incompatible WITH A republican FORM OF government I 1 THE opponents of statehood for utah exhibit the weak weakness of their cause by carping criticisms of simple phrases in the constitution and endeavors to altac attach h to them a meaning foreign to their import and intent for instance much has been made of the opening sentence of the section in reference to the practice which has been proclaim ed toe great areat barrier to itaas admission into the union it says bigamy and polygamy i eine considered incompatible with a republican form of government each of them thelm is hereby forbidden and declared a misdemeanor it Is ia asked why are these practices any more incompatible with a republican than a monarchial monarc bial form of government ern ment and why should the 11 mormon members of the convention formulate such a prohibition it is very difficult to satisfy persons who are determined to be dissatisfied and IMP impossible possible to make those whose living and alia pleasure depend upon determined hostility to political advancement agree to anything fair an and d rational relating to tile the movement objections are to be expected and some of them foolish and fallacious but these are so silly as to be beyond anticipation the state of utah and the national government have ni nothing to do with monarchical antipathies antipa thies or affinities the united states have a ave to guarantee to t each state a republican form ot of government crowe ern ment nt 11 this is provided in the national constitution it his bs been claimed as an objection t to 0 statehood that bigami and polygamy are incompatible wita a reau republican b form of government whether this objection is reasonable or foolish has nothing to do with the fact the objection has been raised it has been quite common the only constitutional objection that could be interposed to admission into the union I 1 is one founded on that constitutional provision all that thai congress is really required to do iu in the matter of admitting new states into the union is to see that they have a republican form of gov er frament ament ern meat religious questions may not be interposed they are outside of the purview ot of the government whether citizens are mormons cormons Mor mons or methodists catholics or protestants puritans or infidels Inn dels has nothing to do with their political eal status the government of each state must be republican in form and spirit and anything la in it that appears to be antagonistic to this requirement may be considered as an objection we have net stated that polygamy is either incompatible or out of harmony with a republican form of govern government ment the convention did not pass upon the truth or falsity of the theory that body made no affirmation or negation ot of its correctness the convention recognized the fact that such a an n objection had been raised and to meet that objection the prohibitory provisions S ions were inserted in the govi constitution the object was to frame an unexceptionable in trumont as the fundamental law of the new state one that could not be reasonably seasonably assailed by the strictest sticklers klers for conformity with the laws and institutions of the L several partners in the federal compact we believe the convention succeeded and it cannot be urged that its work was not thorough direct comprehensive and complete if bigamy and polygamy are not incompatible with a republican form of government the objections to admission into the union are responsible for the declaration that they are incompatible and not the members of the constitutional convention ven tion if they are incompatible then no objection can reasonably be raised against the sentence complained of in either case toe convention is ilot bot to be blamed aud and the criticism is groundless ground leha As to the religious status of the members of toe tae convention that should out cut no figure in the argument it was a political body it was not in any sense ecclesiastical it had bad to do with political questions and all its acts had relation to cirii matters it was not dot providing for or against a church it formally declared that the state should have no union with or domination from any religious organization the members were not they were all regist registered erod voters they had taken the oth oath provided in the special legislation for utah latah they proceeded in the line of that legislation they were differently situated from many of the members of preceding conventions they were consistent in the position trev took and in good faith so sought aught to remove the barriers raised by the opponents of statehood it is a si signia milliant mill cant fact that the papers and persons who have made the most clamor and the strongest demands that the younger and men of this territory should take hold bold of affairs and remove the alleged obstacle to political advancement are now tue toe bitterest denouncers of the members ot of the convention for doing what was demanded deai it proves that the re quire meat was a sham and that nothing which gives the faintest hopes for fairness and justice to utah will suit auit her malignant enemies the only Y thin thing that will satisfy them is the turning over of this territory its offices its treasury and the lives and fortunes of its founders and builders and thrifty population dinv inv imp p the hands of a very few and comparatively ively recent who lay claim to a monopoly of all the loyalty intelligence education and to 10 control out many of whom have not a stake in the country and no qualities to recommend them but invincible impudence and some knowledge of political wire pulling and intrigue the situation is this utah has many times sought admission into the union as a state the cry has been raised polygamy exists in utah it is incomputable with a republican form ol of government ern ment no state can be admitted with any recognition of the practice provide against it and there is no reason why utah should not come in the fact of the objection has baa been recognized the provision demanded has beeta been mado as thoroughly and unchangeably as is possible in any constitution ution and row BOW tile the op posers find fault wila the removal of the obstacle which they pretended to want taken out of the way Is anything consistent to be expected expected of the enemies of the honest and pea peaceable ceabe citi citizens ze ns of tile the united S spates who h have ave built ap a great commonwealth in the deserts of these mountains |
