The amounts collected from the people for tithing exceeded $500,000 annually. In 1870 the amount was $425,000; in 1880, $540,000. The amount received for temple building is also very large. At the October conference of 1880 it was announced that the uncompleted Manti and Logan temples had cost to date, respectively, $207,977.35 and $252,147.78. The building of the Salt Lake Temple was commenced September 6, 1853, and will not be finished for years to come. It has cost millions of dollars. The church has become quite wealthy. In 1880 John Taylor stated that the church held $430,000 of the paid-up capital stock of Zion's Co-operative Mercantile Institution, which pays large dividends, and which was organized by Brigham Young for the purpose of depriving non-Mormons of Mormon patronage. It owns or did own the Deseret telegraph system; the Zion's Savings Bank; the Deseret Evening News; the Deseret paper-mill; a church farm south of Salt Lake City of over 1,300 acres; street-railway stock; stock in the Deseret and other national banks; railroad shares and bonds; and a large amount of real estate in Salt Lake City and elsewhere of great value.

The heads of the church teach and impress upon the people to be united and submissive in their political action to the will of the leaders of the church. At a general conference of the church President Taylor said:

We have to lay aside our covetousness and our pride and our ideas that are wrong, and be united in our political affairs, in our temporal affairs, under the direction of the holy priesthood, and act as a mighty phalanx under God in carrying out his purposes here upon this earth.

In connection with this exercise of political control is the dream of empire which all through their history has cheered them with its pleasing illusions of future power. They teach and preach and apparently believe that the portion of the country in which they now reside was set apart to become the abiding place of the saints, where is to be erected the kingdom of God upon earth. Their missionaries preach that God has commanded his people to gather to the mountains, to the Zion of the Lord, to receive their inheritance at the hands of his servants. This idea is very clearly set forth by Brigham Young, in a remarkable thanksgiving proclamation from him as governor of the Territory, dated December 19, 1851. We reproduce the opening paragraph. The italics

are ours:

It having pleased the Father of all good to make known his mind and will to the children of men, in these last days, and through the ministration of his angels, to restore the holy priesthood unto the sons of Adam, by which the gospel of his son has been proclaimed and the ordinances of life and salvation are administered, and through which medium the Holy Ghost has been communicated to believing, willing, and honest minds, causing faith, wisdom, and intelligence to spring up in the hearts of men, and influencing them to flow together from the four quarters of the earth to a land of peace and health, rich in mineral and vegetable resources, reserved of old in the councils of eternity for the purposes to which it is now appropriated; a land choice above all other lands, far removed from strife, contention, divisions, moral and physical commotions that are disturbing the peace of the nations and kingdoms of the earth.

The church leaders have been very much disturbed by the sale of property to non-Mormons, and have from the pulpit urged upon the people not to sell their inheritance in Zion, that has been entrusted to them to carry out the purposes of the Lord, and not for the purposes of gain.

The people are very tenacious of what they claim to be their rights, and have never yielded a point. They stand to-day where they stood when they first entered the Territory. They persistently claim that

they have been persecuted. September 29, 1851, in a letter to the President, Governor Young said:

That no people exist who are more friendly to the Government of the United States than the people of this Territory. The Constitution they revere, the laws they seek to honor. But the non-execution of those laws in times past for our protection, and the abuse of the power in the hands of those we have supported for office, even betraying us in our hour of our greatest peril and extremity, by withholding the due execution of the laws designed for the protection of all the citizens of the United States.

Similar protestations of loyalty have been made from time to time down to a very recent period.

Undoubtedly in Missouri and Illinois they were the victims of many unlawful attacks; but there has always been something in their methods which have excited the opposition and the distrust of every people among whom they have lived. They have been invited and had it in their power while in Utah to settle honorably the contest which has been waged between the Government and them. All that has been asked of them is to acknowledge the supremacy of the law.

The Mormons control a territory almost as large as the area of the States of New York and Pennsylvania combined, and a controlling influence in a tract of territory as large as that of the New England and Middle States combined. They have established in this Territory a religious system, with a political attachment, the two forming a strong compact government, with the power of control centered in a few men who claim the right to speak by Divine right, and whose advice, counsel, and command is a law unto the people.

The majority of the Mormons are a kindly and hospitable people. They possess many traits of character which are well worthy of emulation by others. In their local affairs they strive to suppress the vices which are common to settled communities. In matters of religion they are intensely devotional, rendering a cheerful obedience to their church rules and requirements. They possess many of the elements which under wise leadership would make them useful and prosperous people.

THE NON-MORMON ELEMENT.

The strength of the non-Mormon element cannot be accurately stated. The population of the Territory has been given at 200,000. If from this be deducted the strength of the Mormon element, 132,277, we have 67,723 not claimed by the Mormon church; but of these there are many whose sympathies remain with it. They have been raised in Mormonism and, although they have drifted away, they probably act with their former friends in political matters. The non-Mormon strength will probably not exceed 55,000.

In Salt Lake City and Ogden they have prosperous communities, mainly engaged in business. The strength of the element, however, is to be found in the mining camps. Gold and silver mining began in Utah in 1869-'70. Since then a vast amount of capital has been invested in mines.

The great body of the Gentiles are equal in intellect, courage, and energy to those of any other community. When they went to Utah they found all the agricultural land that had water convenient already appropriated. Both the land and the water had been secured, and land without water is practically worthless for agriculture in that Territory. There was nothing left for them but the mines. These they searched for and, as found, opened. This is work that none but superior men can

carry through. It takes capital, courage, faith, sagacity, endurance, and ceaseless work. Of all the mines found some have brought rich returns. But of these a vast proportion goes for labor, for supplies, for machinery, and to make roads. Silver mines are generally found among almost inaccessible mountain tops, and every movement connected with them is costly. These mines have yielded, up to the pres ent time, $96,000,000. Quite half the sum has been paid to Mormons for labor and supplies, and through this, from a very poor people, they have become very prosperous. They possessed the land when the Gentiles went among them, but they were so poor that some whole families did not secure $10 in money throughout the year.

What the Gentiles have been able to accomplish has been in spite of the Mormon combined competition and opposition. They wrenched from the rugged and barren mountain tops the gold and silver until they owned of the assessed property of the Territory nearly one-third, exclusive of railroad property.

A brief description of the Little Cottonwood mining district, where mining is conducted under more than ordinary difficult circumstances, will convey an adequate idea of the toil and danger which attends, and of the superior abilities required for, successful mining. This mining district is located in Little Cottonwood Cañon, the mouth of which is some 15 miles distant from Salt Lake City. Entering the cañon, the granite walls rise 4,000 feet above the valley. The granite forms the cone, around which the mountains have grown until their peaks are 13,000 feet above the level of the sea and nearly 8,000 feet above the valley. Passing up the cañon the granite walls continue for 5 miles, rising in grandeur far above the tramway which transports passengers and freight to the mining town of Alta, 8 miles above. The grade is over 350 feet to the mile. Snow-sheds cover the rails nearly the whole distance. Leaving the granite, we pass a great quartzite reef, interspersed with shales. Above this the limestones (the Silurian, Devonian, and Carboniferous) rise in succession. In the limestones the ore is found, and scattered around the steep declivities can be seen the cabins of the miners. The rock is so hard that the average cost of tunneling is some $10 per foot. Miles of tunnels have been run at an enormus cost. The snow commences to fall in August and September and continues until the following May. The average fall is 30 feet. At Alta City, where the elevation is nearly 9,000 feet, the average depth covering the ground the winter through is 15 feet. The citizens communicate with each other through tunnels run under the snow. The tramway is closed in the early fall, and the only means of communication with the valley below for six months of the year is by a hazardous trip down the cñaon through the deep snow. The snow gathers around the summits of the peaks in such heavy masses that snow slides are of frequent occurrence. Since 1870, 132 persons have perished in this cañon from these slides, and the town of Alta has been repeatedly swept as if by a cyclone. Many of the miners work in the mines all the year round. One has built a cabin under the summit of "Old Baldy," a peak between the Little Cottonwood and American Fork Cañons, 10,500 feet above the level of the sea. In these high altitudes the rocks which lift their heads through the soil become bare. The tempests have left them naked and gray. A life in these vast solitudes is not very enchanting, and yet thousands of energetic, able, and patriotic men pass their lives among them, the great majority deprived of many of the comforts of life, and, by unremitting toil, contributing to the material wealth of the Territory.

Leaving the mining camps and returning to the valleys we find the non-Mormons supplying the majority of the capital which is invested in the different avenues of business, and the brains which give life and force to the different channels of trade. They are also engaged in the important work of educating the youth of the Territory. By their ef forts mission schools have been established in Salt Lake City, Ogden, and nearly every community of importance in the Territory, which have been very successful.

In Salt Lake City the Protestant Episcopal Church established its first school in 1867. Then it had a school with 16 pupils; now it has 4 schools with 29 teachers and 589 pupils. The Methodist Church opened its first school September 20, 1870, with 28 pupils; now they have 20 schools with 36 teachers and 1,060 pupils. The Presbyterians opened their first school April 12, 1875, with 30 pupils; now they have 33 schools with 67 teachers and 2,110 pupils. The Salt Lake Academy opened its doors in the fall of 1878, under the auspices of the Congregational Church. They had, in 1886, 22 schools with 43 teachers and 1,900 pupils. The Baptist Church came into the Territory in 1884. They have 1 school with 1 teacher and 74 scholars. The first Catholic school was commenced in the fall of 1875; they now have 6 schools with 53 teachers and 880 pupils. The Swedish Lutheran Church opened a school last year with 1 teacher and 35 pupils. A grand total of 87 schools, 230 teachers, and 6,668 scholars.

These different denominations have now in Utah 62 churches of the value of $453,950, as follows:

The non-Mormons have always been regarded as intruders in Utah, and are referred to as "outsiders." Within the past five years one of the first presidency of the Mormon church in an address delivered in the Mormon Tabernacle, in substance said, "We ought never to have let them secure a foothold here;" and this expresses the sentiments of the great majority of the Mormon people. They attribute the troubles which have come to their leaders to the presence of these "outsiders," and not to the awakened public sentiment of the nation. The nonMormons who have played a conspicuous part in the work of reforming the Territory are referred to as "aggressive persons, blatant assailants of the religion and politics of the majority of the business men and people of the Territory, "conspirators and adventurers." In illustration of this feeling we refer to the organization of the chamber of commerce at Salt Lake City. This movement was made under the lead of Gov. ernor West, and business men of every shade of opinion were invited to participate and to work for the common benefit of all.

The prominent non-Mormons became members of the chamber. The Deseret Evening News, the authorized exponent of the views of the

Mormon church, speaking of the movement and referring to them, said:

How much harmony can be expected in such a heterogeneous commingling of antagonistic forces. If the business men of the Territory want to work together for business purposes, all such plotters against the peace of the Territory and obstacles to its material interest will necessarily have to withdraw or be removed from the organization. How can any man with self-respect fraternize and hold intimate relations with persons who have deliberately plotted and labored with all their might to misrepresent him and his friend and rob them of every political right that is valued by free men. Through their efforts the wives, daughters, sisters, and mothers of the business men who are invited to help boom these agitators into influence and prosperity have been deprived of the franchise and relegated to political serfdom, on a level with felons, idiots, and lunatics.

This extract thoroughly explains the feeling entertained by the majority against those of the minority who have been persistent in urging Congress to provide a remedy for the evils which they believe to exist there.

The chamber of commerce was organized, is prosperous, and has proved a valuable ally to the business community. The non-Mormon element has brought to Utah enterprise and capital, the school-book, and the Bible. Their mining industries have created a market for the sale of the surplus products of the Mormou farmer, and employment for the surplus labor; their schools and churches are promoting the temporal and spiritual welfare of the people. The majority of the nonMormons impress us as being enterprising and public-spirited citizens, who are warmly attached to their country and its laws.

THE POLITICAL HISTORY OF UTAH AND POLYGAMY.

The political history of the Territory of Utah and the system of plural marriage are so closely interwoven that the one cannot be considered separate and apart from the other. In fact, since July 24, 1847, polygamy has given tone to the political policy of the Mormon people. Under the provisional government of the State of Deseret, and the Territorial government which followed after, every act of the legislative assembly which had, even remotely, a political bearing, was voted up or down solely upon the question of its relation to the overshadowing interest. Every effort has been made to strengthen polygamy which the strength of forty years could suggest, and every chord has been struck which it was supposed might send back a responsive and friendly note.

The result has been that nearly every man of prominence in the church became a polygamist; the controlling intellect of Utah became involved in the practice. They filled nearly every office of importance in the church, and in the Territorial and county governments, and had a large majority of every legislative assembly down to the year of 1882, when the "Edmunds law" disqualified them. Utah was governed by men who seemed determined to build up in the heart of the American continent a polygamous empire.

The statistics for 1880 will give an idea of how far they had progressed.

The census found a population of 143,962, of which 60,576 were over twenty-one years of age; about 10,000 of these are estimated to be non-Mormons.

The number of persons then living in polygamy was found, after careful inquiry, to be about 12,000, and there were at least 3,000 who had lived in polygamy, but a separation had been effected by death or