A Question of Sealing

Reprinted as part of our 'Newspaper Wars Over the Manifesto', the following letter to the editor was written by one 'Nemo' of Logan, Utah, and appeared originally as "A Question of 'Sealing'", Salt Lake Tribune 39/249 (27 September 1890): 3.

A Question of "Sealing"
Case Cited in Cache County - Is This the Church Dodge on Polygamy?

EDITOR TRIBUNE: - The child is born at last, thank heaven, and the mountain has brought forth the proverbial mouse.  Our town has been disturbed for twenty-four hours last past in the expectation of a new revelation.  Bets have been freely laid that it was only a "fake" of the most transparent kind, and the extra of the Logan Journal issued to-day at 10 a.m. shows the prescience of the Gentile mind, which "know better."  It has been circulated that a new revelation had been uttered from above to the effect that polygamy was to be relegate to the shades of oblivion, and all the concomitants of that divine order should be sat down upon by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  Quite a number of the elite swore that if this was so they'd be d----d if they would stand it, and would apostatize and join the Liberals.  Commissioner Goodwin's office has been besieged steadily by the Gentiles and apostates since last night for "news" in relation to the reports circulated as to the revelation, and not a few of the faithful have also hung around to get "pointers" as to the truth of the rumors.  What need has Brother Woodruff for endowment houses?  Has he not temples which are far better suited for his purposes?  Temples in which no record is kept of these marriages; at least such is the statement of those who have had their washings and anointings.  If Mr. Woodruff's statement is true and he be as honest as his manifesto would make him appear to be, the sooner he investigate the doings in the Logan Temple the better.  It is less than six months ago that a married man residing in Paradise took a young girl through the Logan Temple and tried his "darndest" to get her for a second wife, but her father hearing of the matter put a stop to the proceedings.  It appears that this same man had asked the father of the girl for his consent to take her for a plural wife on two or three occasions, but had been refused.  He then got a "recommend" and took the girl through the house as far as to the marriage room, then the father stepped in and stopped the music.  Some time after this the young woman married another man, and now the former beau claims that she was sealed to him, and that the lucky (?) winner had taken his wife away from him.  Had not Apostle Woodruff better be looking after his deputies in Cache county?  If the sealing of this girl is a fact, about which there seems to be no doubt, what else is it but plural marriage?  I suppose this is the hole which the Church of J. C. of L. D. S. proposes to crawl through, but it won't do, and something less transparent than this will have to be circulated before the American people can be thus hoodwinked.

NEMO.
LOGAN, Sept. 26, 1890.