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Show I China, Turkey, Persia and Utah A r THE annual banquet of the Geographic Society in Washington in December last, U William E. Curtis spoke upon the great HI events of the closing year. When he came to H Persia, after stating that the old shah had given Hf the people a constitution; that the new shah had Hi tried to overthrow it, he said: Hf "His situation is hopeless. The Supreme Ec- M cleastics of the established church of Persia M have declared that a constitution and parliament M and a complete change in the personnel at the H palace are necessary for the well being of Per- sla; they have excommunicated their sovereign, m and the nominal head of their church for vio- fl lating an oath he took upon the Koran and for m, profaning the sanctuary of two mosques in which V members of parliament who were fleeing from H the soldiers had taken refuge." B We have always been made to understand H that Persia was nearly barbarous, but if It has H the strength to make its sovereign a prisoner H for assuming to overthrow the will of the people, H and if the church of Persia has the strength to H excommunicate both the sovereign and the cMor- H est of the priests because they violate their oaths H and pursue men who are trying to uphold the H law; we, here in "Utah, certainly have no right to H pity the barbarism of Persia. H There is not strength enough in Utah to pun- H su a Priest who violates his covenants, or to H excommunicate' a ruler who assumes to hold the H right to dictate to his people what their politl- H cal actions shall be. Ik-; not the above true? If H any ono doubts the first proposition let him re- H' cal1 the covenants made in order to obtain state- H hood for Utah, and how they have been kept; Hir if ne doubts the second, let him read the last H sermon delivered by the head of the dominant g church. H This puts Utah behind Persia, behind Turkey H and Egypt. Ht The men of the present Legislature of Utah H! should consider these things, and at the same Hf time recall that they have been given political HI liberty by the organ of their church and that P they are under oath to bo Americans while ex- H ecuting their legislative duties. Can they not H break the spell of their superstitious fears and Hjl be real men? Hl The people are watching to see what they will H do. The real forward march of Utah has but H! just begun. The people are watching to see i whether they will put a brake on this advance or whether they will catch the spirit of the pres- H ont progress and do what they can to further it. H; This is a vital period in Utah; the question Ht ' before the people and the Legislature is, "Shall H the people and the state advance up int aO clear sunshine of American statehood or shall there bo an effort to return the state to the swaddling clothes In which it was bound for forty years? The present Legislature can do much to decide de-cide the matter. Ought not Utah to keep up with China, Turkey Tur-key and Persia in progress? |