THE reply' to my article in the Arena for August, 1902, by President Joseph F. Smith, of the Utah polygamous church, in the Arena for November, 1902, has at least made one thing plain. He states on page 493 of his paper, "that in the earlier days of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints monogamic marriage was advocated and upheld; but no one has disputed that."
On page 494 this writer further states: "Careful reading of the law of God to the church in these latter days, will show that, while its members were then required to practice monogamic marriage, the declaration as quoted by Mr. Smith, that 'one man should have one wife, and one woman but one husband, 7 bears the implication that a man might possibly be permitted at some time to have more than one wife, while a woman was to have 'but one husband.'"
Here are two direct admissions from the present head of the dominant church in Utah that the law of God regulating the domestic relation in the church at its institution and subsequently was monogamic.
Attention is called to these admissions for the reason that in my article in the August Arena the scriptural evidences taken from the books constituting the standard works of the church were clearly and definitely stated; and while Mr. Smith states on page 497 of his article that his "reply to the leader of the 'Reorganized Church' is not intended as an argument in favor of plural marriage," we fail to see how the ordinary reader will hesitate to take his article as being an effort to defend against the attack upon Utah polygamy by a plain statement of facts, made by the son of the man charged with being the one who introduced polygamy into the church.
Mr. Smith, of Utah, wrote in reference to the question whether the dogma and practice of plural marriage are right or wrong, "That is not the question at issue." (See page 497.) The gentleman's pardon ia craved; that is the question at issue, and has been ever since the sons of the Prophet Joseph Smith took the field in advocacy of the religion of their father, and against any and every perversion of it as a consequence.
In order to break the force of the article in the August Arena, Mr. Smith, of Utah, attacks the motive of the writer, assuming that the purpose of that article was "to brand with willful falsehood all his, Joseph Smith's, successors in the prophetic and presiding office, and also a large number of men and women of unimpeachable character and high standing in the church," etc.
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