Mormons

Mormons, or Latter Day Saints, a religious community established in America by Joseph Smith. The capital, Salt Lake City, is a thriving town. The most remarkable doctrine of the Mormons is that which enforces polygamy. It has been the chief cause of the persecution to which they were formerly subjected and the animosity now felt towards them on the American continent. The sect is now said to number about 250,000 souls, less than half of whom are in Utah. A law condemning the polygamic habits of the Saints was passed by Congress in 1862, but remained a dead letter till 1882. Since that time it has been enforced, and the majority of the sect have now abandoned their peculiar views on this subject.