Wheeling Register

MR EDMUND'S UTAH BILL.

Mr Edmunds' Utah bill providing for the disfranchisement of the women of Utah and the appointment of trustees to manage the revenues of the Mormon church, is the most comprehensive and perhaps the most vigorous measure yet proposed. But it makes no distinction between polygamists and monogamists. It strikes at the whole church.

One thing has been decided in the minds of the American people-that polygamy must go. It is so averse to the institutions of this country that the Mormons will never be allowed to rest while this practice exists. This is what the government needs to strike down.

But there are only 10,000 or 15,000 polygamists among 500,000. Casting aside polygamy, they have a perfect right under the law to believe in Joseph Smith's doctrines if they want to. Congress should discriminate between those who break the law and those who do not. Under the present law every polygamist is disfranchised and is subject to imprisonment. By carrying out this law to the letter, polygamy could not fail to soon become very unpopular, except with contrary "saints." Also, in all probability, there would in due time be two factions formed in the church: those under the ban of the law and those that do not violate the law but respect and sympathize with the Government. But Mr. Edmunds' new law would unite the whole Mormon people in solid phalanx against the Government and perhaps destroy all hopes of blotting out polygamy without driving out the entire people.