Show CURTIS himself in relation to the lit ter day saints and their religion new bonx jan 14 1888 to the muar of the 1 wo read with great interest arid satisfaction is your article of the u it referring to our wonderful work ell titled 11 what the believes in connection with thin matteau e enclose you an interesting otter from tile liberal mind of that eminent jurist goo Ticknor Curtis agthe letter contain ig striking reference to the cormons mormons me think it vill be read with lively inter 8 tily your readers very croly yours GAY CO CURTIS LETTER naw dec 2 4 1887 gov co no 30 efad alei X Y I 1 ordered a COPY of tile second edition of your work what the world believes 11 aft r I 1 had atad your very candid latter to tile deseret brening ocue in which you stated that you bad cancelled the first edition because vou found that it misrepresented the cormons mormons Mor mons and that on had caused a now chapter on tito churell of jesus christ of latter day saints to be writ c by r r trill 11 D riba 51 C i h li b r i ad hi f that C intel it rih rd I 1 k to be A 1 and echalar like man I 1 have tance read the book and X am quite willing to tell you flat I 1 think of it as request ad in your letter of tile just the plan of having an account of the different of the world each by a leading representative of the par nicular church or denomination or by some competent scholar is I 1 supplee suppo ee new the book is full utmost able information and must be useful to all who are interested in the vati u in odes in which the religious iou 8 belief of bas satisfied tire great want of human nature I 1 think that the chapter on the mormon belief donor to liten people of this country and to d lath ignorance that prevails conca ce ang tit at peen far denomination I 1 rd the mormon religion as tile most remarkable of its kind that has occurred in modern times and it is a matter of astonishment to me that hardly any one in world takes pain sto understand it I 1 cau not impute this unwillingness to I 1 ves digate it to the more fact that it I 1 aas taught the rightfulness or inno of that is a pra ecco aich can be entirely eliminated from the social life of ilia cormons mormons Mor mons and there v ill still be left a great deal in their religion that is worthy of t udy by statesmen philanthropists a n other persons interested Ju tile vario us developments of religious organizations it is impossible to account for tile power which this exer clae the lives of its believers by aligning ami gning its influence to the practice of lural marriage A is idle for tile philosophic or tile christian student of human nature to content himself with sa I 1 ng t ila t I 1 t must be a very stupid belief s aich accepts a revelation through such a person as joseph smith on his claim that lie was divinely instructed to watch for certain gold plates buried I 1 I 1 I 1 ft 99 l I 1 II I 1 1 I 1 in the ground on which lie would find recorded a revelation to that which eaino through christ nye are none of ull able to set biundi to ilia capacity odthe human in ili to ac apt honestly hone und roly any relt bious belief whatever certain it is that the alvonnon religion hai been ell by intelligent educated and I 1 I 1 nen and women and iran been to their all religion has been to ilia cincore and cried of its believers this able fact Is ahat makes it in iby view so interesting and important a baudy you are at liberty to inake any uso 61 toils letter that you think fit ilkic I 1 I 1 alto that no one nho reads it mill anter that I 1 regard the chapt C 11 1 1 11 r work which treats of tire 1 I its ho chief feature of the book toil file chapter which juit now elecia ily me 1 recognize 1 b ambolo work a great body of anost useful and alope it ill have all ostensive c yours verz EO CURTIS |