OCR Text |
Show B. H. ROBERTS MOOT Hecklers Hurl Questions at Democratic Campaigner at Orpheum Talk "Why are any of you opposed to the ileapruo of nations? What has come lover yOUt Maybe you don't know. I lean tell you. It Is because the league 'has become a party Issue and you are b( tter partisans than you are humanitarians- ' This ami a score of other verb. 1 1 Jabs moved a large audience to cheers and applause- when Brlgham II Bob-ertS, Bob-ertS, former chaplain of the 14oth field artillery, delivered an address at the iirpheum theatre last nlsht on the league of nations. Throughout his entire discourse only once dlr Mr. Roberts refer to any candidate can-didate other than the presidential candidates. can-didates. In this connection he charged charg-ed Senator Reed Smoot. rather than the Democratic party, with being Individually Indi-vidually responsible for dragging the Mormon church Into politics on the leaguo Issue. CWO imktmi:m- In this connection he set out to convict con-vict Senator- Smoot on two indictments. Tho first indictment, he said, contained the charge that on August 22, 1 : 1 1 . the L'tah senator gave an Interview to the Universal Press service declaring that the doctrines of the Mormon church were In opposition to the league of nations. na-tions. "Under flaring headlines and for about two and une-half columns in length our theologian statesman set forth that our scriptures were jg.tinst the league of nations. I'd like to know If that Isn't the act which dragged tip Lutter-da Saints authorities niio politics poli-tics and be did it. "In reply to this interview and on September 22, President lleber J. Grant said, The position of the chur h Is that the standard works do not stand in opposition to the league of nations and this Is to correct Reed Smoot's impertinent imputation 1 Reed Smoot was responsible for dragging the Mormon Mor-mon church Into politics and he was so responsible that President Or ant was compelled to correct him.'' slit OND OH LUGE. The second charge set up in the indictment in-dictment arrayed against the Utah senator sen-ator by Chaplain Roberts concerned the statement of the first presidency as printed in the Christmas edition of the DeSeret News on December 20, 1919. The speaker referred to Senator Smoot's Statement in Toole and ut our i of the Salt Lake Wurd meetings that millions of people had eh mged their minds on tin. leaguo of nations." after af-ter which he read the fourth paragraph para-graph of the first presidency's Christmas Christ-mas message, omitting the first three paragraphs. What does thai present?" continued contin-ued Mr. Roberts "Not direct but by Innuendo does it not Imply that the church authorities changed their minds? But I think the senator's ut-j tcntlon was directed to the mistake. In fact I called his attention to It. Any-! way, he made u statement ut 'gden a few days ago which was reported, Isomething like this. I had no lnten-t:on lnten-t:on of Including members of tin first presidency among the millions who have changed their minds with regard to the league of nations.' "Well, why in thunder didn't he say so the first time he made the statement'" state-ment'" shouted the speaker, Chaplain Chap-lain Roberts resumed the subject of Senator Smoot's attack by reading the .three paragraphs of the Christmas message which he charged that thoi ! Utah senutor had failed to present lo his audience. These paragraphs In-1 elude the statement "The approaching unity of nations, which must come In spite of threatening obstacles, animate s the vaot majority of mankind and pre" sages the fraternization ol whilom contending con-tending powers and tne substitution of friendly arbitration for the settle incut of international quarrels in place of armed conflict and detestable bloodshed.' blood-shed.' LE .l i DISCI -s u Other than his reference to Senator Smoot the ex-service man devoted his entire discourse to a discusolon of tlu-prlneiples tlu-prlneiples involved in the league of nutlons. the actual meaning of the various va-rious sections of the covenant and to the sacrifices made by the United States anu other allied nations. I Briefly, these were .omc of his I point 9 "If the Republicans think that the statesmen of European nations are go- I Ing to teur up the league covenant and ! listen to such men as Harding, they are mistaken It's going to be this 'league. And It Isn't a Wilson league. Icither. tVe are not so crazy as to attribute at-tribute to Wilson the vision of the l,,vo.. nf :ill,.ni Isaiah, you remember, gives us oni of the first visions of the league In hi: prOpheo) ami you know his prophecy for I've preached it to you lime am again. Vou people In this state am in the surrounding si ites to L'tah havi lc , ii taught and have considered your selves factors in Isaiah's vision. "in the name of God. what ho i omi over you to give up the teachings o your religion to run after the shadow: of Republican propaganda? II.- i(aote, portions of tho war poem "In Flanders Field." At its conclu slon. ho said: "You withdraw from the league anr I tell you as coming from one wh has smelted the battlefields of Kranci that you will betray tee blood of th & 1,000 inen who paid the supreme sac riflce. Will you do that thing? Yoi will if you do not vote right on thii great Issue which Is soon to be pre sented to you In that great referen dum on November 2- SPIRIT oi l'OK.M "I believe that the meaning of the poem which I hne just quoted is tha the spirit of the millions who made tht supreme sacrifice will walk the eartl 'and confront the Hung with its per I fitly in falling to make good the In ! tent of that war. namely, to end wai forever." Chaplain Roberts expressed it as hi: belief that the Cnited Slates was no a member of th. lea(7Ue at the present time because this country did not s'uf-l far enough to make its people appre-Clatfl appre-Clatfl the value of the le.igue. in this connection tiie speaker quoted in de-1 lull the losses In dead, wounded and missing suffered by the various nations! involved on both sides Id the recent world conflict "Did you ever atop to realize what a storm of war means?" continued the K F, chaplain Again I repeat ,sc are outside the league of nations because the hand of calamity was laid lloo lightly upon us and I do not minl-raae minl-raae tne sacrifice which the t?hlted Stutes made i.i that conflht "It the United Stales had Buffered nine mill. on casualties wlm a would have beon in the same proportion to I that of Prance, and a coierie of sen-I sen-I a tors In the congress of the United Stated would have entered into a round robin to prevent ua putting a stop tn war forever, what would you do aboi't It?'' DON"! W M Mi.oi We don't want Smoot any more." ! somebody shouted In reply. "That gentleman knows the an-i swer," sild Chaplain Kooeris. and he 'continued. "Undei those conditions. If i ( rtatn senators had stood In the congress con-gress of the United States and voted for reject Ion of the lengue we would have given them tickets to oblivion ami I don't want to us harsh words. ;ii I said what I really wanted to you'd, , sit up and lake notice." in n terrlng t the Individual sac-tions sac-tions of the covenant ut another time uMiaplaln Uoberta aske'l "1 want to ask ou farmers a question Why the Mdcuee do you denoni your came; i u I tell you, l-'irtt of all, you take away the dispo8lUdu to hot each other. sjThen,v.hy not take away the dlspOSl-rtlon dlspOSl-rtlon of r.atlona to hook each other by l reducing armaments? 'I "Take away from them these Infernal f (establishments of militarism und you " take awa the dreams of conquest over i other nat ions. 'The charge is mude thai Article X would come to every home in l'tah and snatch away our hoys to light tn Europe. Eu-rope. In this It Is undertaken to say .' that any man who says this article will take away one lota of the power or the constitutional rights of the United States is either ignorant or a " ' "Liar," was the reply shouted from , the auditorium 1 "I have no desire to use such harsh i language" laughingly replied the j chaplain. "1 brought you to tho verge. 1 now It's up to you to Jump over " At one time an attempt was made to heckle the veteran speaker. Chaplain Chap-lain Roberts wus discussing tho pro- visions of the league covenant for pro-t pro-t venting war and Mad stated that It had j already prevented armed conflict be-i be-i tween Pinland and Sweden. "Why dldn t the league of nations - stop the Polish WSX?" asked somebody r seated on the main floor of the the-latre ' "If the Kcntleman refers to the dispute dis-pute over the boundaries between Pol-: Pol-: and and Lithuania, " rplled the speaker, can advise him that this question is now being considered by the council coun-cil of the league. If he refers to the war between Poland and novlet Russia jl i an only say that soviet Kussla is not, and 1 want to emphasize that word rnot." a member of the league The storm of applause which greeted greet-ed the reply drowned the apiwiker'a further reference to the question of the heckler. In addition to Chaplain Roberts Charles C. Blntz of Salt Lake also spoke at the Orpheum meeting. The epeakers were Introduced by Mayor I Frank Francis. The procrun .-lso In-eluded In-eluded musical numbers by Mrs. Ak-nss Ak-nss Warner. Mrs. Lernlce Tyree and Nepht ttrow-n. OO |