Show THE QUESTION president joseph F smith on the subject ABLE STATEMENT OF the holy tho standard of morality pui rity and rollo iship the deseret evening contained the following we can afford to exercise true christian charity towards the world in tod we trust and this is not to us simply a meaningless motto we know from bitter experience that tro cannot rely upon man nor depend upon the toleration and charitable spirit of modern christendom these we have weighed in alie balance and found wani ing but calm as a summers morning and without faltering having counted the cost and having placed all upon the altar of sacrifice we can afford lo 10 await the hag in god though lie should slay the pi cat trouble in relation to the mormon question seems to be that we are so strongly entrenched behind alio bulwarks bulwa of scriptural and ann christian religion that alic ordinary deap ns of reason persuasion and the are powerless in the hands of our ene dislodge us so they arc compelled t resort to persecution and unconstitutional methods and means to combat alie truth while we may sincerely re grat thu fact our enemies surely have nothing to be proud of nor we anything to fear one tiling eliat WE have known all alic while hut which has generally been discredited is now becoming patent to all the world thatis rt la hot arnnon non plural marriage thai is the bone of contention the crusade against us is no genuine struggle for nor for breedom and liberty as was tho struggle against plural marriatt tv as practiced by the latter day saints is not slavery nor lias it alic remotest resemblance in principle or fact to slavery nor to the crimes of murder forgery suttee or adv kindred evil quitu alie reve iise mormon marriage is not campula iby it Is optional it cannot bo oiher except as a matter of faith and conscience on the part of so far is it from a single element of coercion of slavery that we view it as absolutely antipodal 0 o it in the airet place no man or woman is constraint to become a My nor to demain becoming ao except the constraint of belief or conscience which is beyond abc domain of law or physical foric nor is anyone compelled to ener into tho practice of plural marriage after alio church whoever does eo docs it upon conviction of its rightfulness anil upon hia own untrammeled volition not only would it be impossible to compel obedience to this principle af pf our religion as any one can see with half an ebie eyie but it id contrary to the benius of the gospel to enforce obedience to any principle thereof it id lawful and proper to men to ece the truth and to embrace it this was the mission of christ and his apostles but after all 0 o far as obedience thereto is con cern on the part of mankind it ia all fren will and all free araco in of this fact then what resemblance does plural marriage bear to slavery to which it is claimed it bears the relation of twin relic whose right doss it interfere with liberties are abridged who 19 oppressed who ia in bondage ia there about a con volunta rilly chosen by the parties concerned and preferred by oilier condition it is them to any useless to say it la not BO because the condition of plural marriane mar is supposed to be unnatural the facts exit there is not one in a thousand in alio church who ara practicing plural marriage that would exchange their condition for another As an evidence of this fact alie utmost latitude ia allowed and the easiest possible opportunities offered by tho federal authorities in utah absolute power being in their hand to women in plural marriane marri ape to step out of if their former husbands belne con eldered morally bound to damiam them and children ate alon until the women marry dognin if marry at all all aliu of the Fei leral curta and all the kiihn ence of our enemies are alao brou glit end and to bear 10 accomplish tho into that rc laMn to compare plural marriage with hie hindmo pra clico of suttee or burning widows upon tho funeral husbands or to tho casting of infants in the ganges or to the idolatrous sacrifice of human ufa under the wheels of the car of juggernaut or to or to the smaller crimes of counterfeiting or forgery ia the aburdan anti mor mon bigots and fanatical fa natica may use ench comparisons but certainly no rational person on foe rte arte apo mant would any euch coia parison to pe consistent on tho ana W all tta are destructive f to natural to the enjoyment of life liberta and iho of hap ther elure to tho sod plurad me is the source of to thousands and is injurious to none it affords liberty to ninny a woman to act alio husband of her icho would otherwise to to iTi any dinati not of her li oice fir re main in celibacy or do buhe per ha elau the victuro of boino roana brutal mormon fioria for women and children and makes men responsible for aln lr conduct towards tho fer oale sex and towards tapir children the takane of human life ii a crime perte plural may be pronounced a crime by legislative enactment but all the congresses in alio world cannot legislate into it nor into the practice of it under divine command a binelo element of crime mormon plural marriage is not bigamy nor polygamy as benned denned by wt or as generally understood in the world and benned denned by law bigamy consists of marriage by a man or woman who is already married and to either a man or woman other than the legal husband or wife and that without the knowledge or consent of the non contracting husband or wife or th person Pi Hering into tho triple relation thus the married man or woman en bering into does so clandestinely so 11 1 1 a the alier partner is concerned and at the same time de ceides the third ganv fraud falsehood and dei ft these arc eles rients of crime which we ami detest and think should bo prevented or punished vo 0 not believe in polyandry and BO far as any of these elements enter into polygamy or bigamy vo do not believe in either nur do we practice them we believe in and practise polygamy or bible plural marriage as practiced by abraham jacob alases cavid elkanah gideon and the ancient patriarchs worthies and people of god under the sanction approval and blessing of the AI mighty in mormon plural marriage no one is deceived all the parties concerned are acquainted with the facts and consent the rule has been for the first cifa to bo present and witness the ceremony of the second marriage of lier husband she giving her consent as did sarah rachel and leali of old no one is defrauded or wronged no one is injured as they believe but all ferl equally blessed in the observance of a righteous and god given privilege and blessing to all concerned in the marriage rites of the church the first wife enters into the marriage relation with her husband believing in and endorsing all the conditions of thia marriage covenant embraces the feature of plural marriage Beside sand apart from this order of marriages which is a sacrament of the church a religious ordinance there exists throughout alie community the right and privilege of marriage as a civil contract which may be performed by a justice of the peace judge or any legal ot licer both forms of marriage arc open to members of the BV far as they arc con berned at their option still while marriage as a legal contract is accas to all marriage by rites of the to members 0 the church in good standing therein hadeed kattinge by church rites iba privilege denied to all ex cent members and many of them are not allowed tho privilege lega because of doubtful character or unworthy attic holy scriptures aro the egand ard of lapralty purity and fellow in only those who ara considered in full ing peach ablo moral cliar acter supposed to of parc up 1 and honorable lives free from i m ajl ona and danin iii tiong to bitted to posterity are considered really worthy 10 enter into the linly 1 relationships and assume tho sacred j responsibilities plural i chere are far too many macii I 1 in the world who are not worthy of j one wife much less the hish raising fa I 1 scarcely need mention the drunkard the libertine tho gambler and a host ilar charAC tera or the incompetent the imbecile the low and brutal natures who are not capable of raising above tha conception of physical force or brutal passions our gospel net having gathered of nearly all kinds and to pluck up the tares from alie of the wheat until the day of harvest I 1 nm sorry 0 o say that there are boine who claim mambert leip in the church who are not yf the blessings but must repent and purify themselves or he purged put when come nor was this practice inan of lust many suppose A moments tion it would seem ought to correct this error men can generally gratify this ft they do their appetite for tobacco or liquor by purchasing the object of their de airy for money consideration they dimply buy aliey wan tand if coneal in de alpay for it caro not to pur chao in oro than their lust requires f they can avoid it plural marriage involves au le duties labors and and expenses of ing larne families it ia absurd art suppose men would assume all these consequences simply to gratify lust when baso ni ay iy ba indulged to riotous excess for the anero few paltry dollar and cent men who are eee kint for tho arati fl cation of lust the wy the world goes now do abt ener dlly seeh to preserve the honor abid chastity and good names of elior victims nor to and provide for their offspring they to provide thein homac best upon lapi name them to feel that they tiro honored aa and hid ren havens claim upon their hus bandstand band sand fathera foi ediin tian and paternal lenons tenons te ibero are appt alm of lust on tha aliey are aft expensive too burd naome too and too irk some for yh thing sidled t would ho paying too thih istle at alii figure all ath er brini bt when tot lila 4 abe iio pular fw and ha tred to be met with in opposition to this practice the civilized world while as before sald to gratify list no no no and comparatively tho tb i f n ot the lit exrie nBC standa Idi ftc of eliuh ft on elau relief whatever n bold may be eaid n to i ho origin bif principle it ia very tant lait la neither if rather nor mother many do that wo have ever red lvcy adv re lun from god enjoining plural marri aso but aln they know that we havo noi what will the negative ditona ol 01 men who d not bo but have no on atie v y subject weigh in tho scales against the actual knowledge of two or three witnesses witnesses by the thou binds can be produced who will testify that god haa given a revelation enjoining plural marriage upon the faithful members of the church and I 1 defy all the world ta impeach choir testimony these witnesses my be called fanatics deluded deceivers ce ivers false prophet etc for such epithets arc the strongest mema of our foes but bythe rule laid down by christ liim self they can demonstrate the truth of their testimonies beyond the power of roan to disprove it this is davil is mad at us we but wo know that plural marriage first came tu us through joseph smith the martyred marty red prophet brigam young received it from him although god may have prepared his beforehand to receive it and so he did to scores of others some of whom are still and detill bearing their testimony to tho truth this point alio soup of the prophet may quibble but they do so in theace of theace they have no room lor argument R snow smith emily D P smith eliza M P smith and other honorable intelligent and refined ladies choso whoso addresses is Salt Lake city hayo borne their testimony to the world as the wives of tho martyrs and they are still living to be interrogated ro it is true the book of mormon forbade plural marriage to the ancient and enjoined monogamy there was a reason given for it and it is the only instance known in holy writ of the kind but there ia nothing in the book of mormon enjoining he almighty from commanding plural marriage as ho has done through the prophet joseph smith in this latier dispensation on this subject the book says for if I 1 will saith the lord of hosts beed unto me I 1 will command my people etc B of mp ar 30 it is lirely believed by many that amral marriage is the cause of our persecutions and if abandoned by us we would have no cause lo 10 fear any further persecutions the present crusade is not a struggle gle against plural marriage alone nor in abe interests of morality quite the reverse it represents a despotism of the most grinding character for the destruction of every vestige of local self government and it works by falsehood fraud trickery usurpation and while its battle cry against polygamy is created to deceive and repeated and echoed to mislead it is simply a ruse de guerre to hide the brutal villainy and hypocrisy of the infamous the edmunds law of 82 u abder tho commissioners has deflect bally covered the question my so far as fiuman enactments can do it the death penalty might be added to the law although eary for under it now of courts n man sa s1 1113 1093 aj fluce add costs never was there a creator burlesque on justice equity and equal rights than is being perpetrated in utah to day by the carpet baa min ions of the united states non mor mona who are guilty of the grossest and most infamous violations of law and decency including U S officers are summarily discharged from the custody of subordinate bub courts on habans corpus witnesses of their lecherous crimes are tried for conspiracy sp iracy convicted and punished by excessive pains and penalties because aboy aro cormons mormons Mor mons the new edmunds monstrosity now pending in the house of depre senta tives is not aimed at plural marriage but al robbing us of our church property and utterly destroying our territorial government and the organization of the church of jesus christ of latter day saints F SMITH |