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Show -THE UTAH EVANGELTST.- <br><br> THE UTAH EVANGELIST. <br> PUBLISHED BY <br> THE EVANGELIST PUBLISHING COMPANY, <br> Salt Lake City, Utah. <br> The UTAH EVANGELIST is published in the interest of he [sic] Evangelical work in Utah Territory, on the 15th of every month. <br> Terms, single copy, one year … $ .50 <br> Three copies … 1.00 <br> Eight or more copies, per copy … .25 <br> Will not the friends of Utah missions give the UTAH EVANGELIST a wide circulation? It will give the monthly information which Sabbath Schools and missionary societies need to keep up the interest in the missionary work, and it therefore solicits the earnest cooperation of pastors, Sabbath School superintendents, and officers of mission bands. <br> THE EVANGELIST is the organ of the Utah Presbytery of the Presbyterian church. Its object is twofold: first, to discuss, in a fair and candid spirit, the peculiar doctrines and practices of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, or Mormons; secondly, to furnish news of the Mission Work and its progress to the teachers engaged in the work, and to friends in the East, who support it. <br> The aim of THE EVANGELIST is to state facts, and not to abuse or misrepresent. Should any of our Mormon friends take exceptions to any of its utterances, they may use our columns, to a reasonable extent, to show wherein we are wrong. Let the truth prevail. <br><br> EDITORIAL. <br> The present number closes the first volume of the Evangelist*. It was begun as a private enterprise by Prof J. M. Coyner, under the title of The Earnest Worker*, but was taken by the Presbytery as its organ, at its last meeting, enlarged, and its name changed to the Evangelist*. The new volume commences with the July number. <br> Will not all our friends promptly renew their subscriptions for the next volume and also send us some new names? We will continue to send the paper to our old subscribers, unless they order us to discontinue it. Meanwhile, will those teachers who have promised to take fifteen or more copies, send us the names of the persons to whom they wish the paper to be sent, so there will be no delay? There is certainly a necessity for a paper of this kind. Friends in the East are constantly writing to us for information in regard to our schools. They are eager for any news from the mission field. But to answer all these letters, would keep several persons constantly busy. By sending them a copy of the Evangelist*, a great many questions can be answered at one time, and besides, a better notion of the work in all its branches, given. <br> Our columns-hereafter, will he more devoted to discussion of Mormon questions, in which we are all interested, with such news as comes in gradually from the field. <br><br> HAVE WE A PRIESTLY GOVERNMENT IN UTAH OR NOT? <br> The charge has often been preferred against the Latter Day Saints that there is in Utah only the form* of a Republican government, but that the substance* is, for the most part, lacking, the government being in reality a priestly despotism, in which all measures for the public weal or wo must be first discussed in the church councils, and afterwards receive the approbation of the First Presidency of the Mormon church, before being brought before the public. This charge the Saints, from the press and pulpit, have constantly denied, and have asserted, with the utmost appearance of truth and candor, that the government in Utah is as truly Republican as in any other part of the United States. <br> An occurrence which took place some two or three weeks since throws some light on the real relation of church and State in Utah. The Municipal authorities of Salt Lake City thought it best to make a change in the time of the city. Accordingly one morning the time was set forward twenty-eight minutes, and all the business houses, schools, and private families adopted the new time. Now one would think that this was purely a matter for the civil authorities to regulate, being entirely outside of religious matters to all appearances. But not so. In a (sermon?) delivered by President Taylor in the Tabernacle, Sunday afternoon, May 4th, on his return from the south, we find the following language: <br> "A thing has occurred in relation to a change of time in this country that I thought I would refer to. I was informed by the Superintendent of our telegraph company that they were purposing to change the time, in the various offices of the company. I immediately telegraphed back to him to stop these things until a general understanding had been reached; for such changes without a general understanding would have a tendency to produce confusion, and confusion is not a thing that should exist in the midst of the Latter-day Saints, with the intelligence that we profess to be in possession of. <br> "With regard to the alteration made in Salt Lake, any change that is for the better is a thing we ought always to adopt, but anything that tends, as I have said, to confusion, ought always to be avoided. Not being informed of the arrangement that had been made, nor of its nature, and supposing it to be simply a railroad change I thought it rather a strange thing for the people here, say in this city, to change their time at the instance of a railroad or a telegraph company, which must of necessity have their time regulated according to circumstances. But on inquiring more fully into the matter, I have found that it is a principle that has been generally adopted-if I have been correctly informed-by the leading cities and states of the east; but just how far and how extensive the change is I am not at present prepared to say. It struck me immediately upon hearing it that if it was anything of a National character and was proposed to be universally adopted it would be a thing we ought to adopt, but if it was a sectional affair it was a thing to he avoided as tending to promote disorder and confusion. <br> "As we reached nearer home I heard that the City Council of Salt Lake had adopted the new time. That might be all well enough provided other things were right. But the City Council of Salt Lake does not govern the Territory. There are a number of cities in the Territory with their Mayors, city officers, and municipal regulations, possessing equal rights with the city of Salt Lake, and although it might be thought proper to regulate matters in regard to this thing, say in this city, yet at the same time it would be equally as proper that other cities, other towns and other people should be consulted. Hence in view of these things, being president of the telegraph company, I sent a telegram, such as I have before referred to, requesting the gentleman who had charge of our telegraphic operations here to stop everything of that kind until we could have a correct understanding of these matters, and see how far they extended and what was their nature; for it is proper that we in a Territorial capacity should act in accord in a matter of this kind. I am inclined to think from what little I have heard that this change will perhaps be a good one, and if so, after consulting the various authorities throughout the Territory, then we should feel at liberty to adopt it; but I do not think it is proper for one city, or two, or three, as the case may be, to make an arrangement affecting the whole Territory, because no City Council can go outside of its own City limits, and as all others are concerned, these are matters about which the people generally should be consulted, and therefore I sent the telegram previously mentioned, in order that we might look into these matters and have things adjusted upon correct principles, and if it is a National thing, of course we will comply with it, and if there are things that are loose about it we do not want it. We do not want to be changed about by irresponsible individuals and thrown into confusion even in so small a matter as time." <br> Also in the Deseret News* for May 13th, we find the following: <br> "To the Presidents of Stakes and the Bishops of the several Wards: <br> Dear Brethren-It has been contemplateed [sic] for some time to facilitate travel, and regulate time in the United States. <br> * * * * <br> Salt Lake City and Ogden have already, through their Municipal Councils, adopted the Mountain Standard time, and we recommend that the people of the Territory generally adopt this time, and suggest that the county, city, and town officials throughout the Territory meet in their several capacities at an early day and pass measures to adopt what is called the "Mountain Standard" time, and then we can adjust our time as formerly by the Salt Lake meridian, adding the difference between that and the Standard time, and having this time, as heretofore, telegraphed twice a week to the various telegraph offices throughout the Territory, which will avoid confusion and place us in har- <br> [Continues on next page.] <br><br><br> * words and titles are italicized. <br><br> |
