http://exmormon.org/phorum/read.php?2,1419034


OK folks when we last met we were at post civil war pre-railroad times.

Let us fast forward past the old Brigand's death to post Manifesto I & II and post-statehood times.....

Frank J. Cannon was the first United States Senator from Utah, who served from 1896 to 1899.

After failing to be re-elected to the U.S. Senate by the Utah legislature, in part due to opposition by the Mormon hierarchy, Cannon worked as the editor of several newspapers, including the Salt Lake Tribune, the Ogden Herald (Ogden, Utah) and established the Ogden Standard.

Between 1904 and 1911, Cannon consistently supported the anti-Mormon American Party in newspaper editorials.

Cannon later rejected Mormonism and wrote a book, with Harvey J. O'Higgins, called Under the Prophet in Utah exposing the rigidly hierarchical nature of the Mormon organization. The book denounced what the authors described as the "church" leadership's "absolutism" and "interference" in politics: "[Mormons] live under an absolutism. They have no more right of judgment than a dead body. Yet the diffusion of authority is so clever that nearly every man seems to share in its operation... and feels himself in some degree a master without observing that he is also a slave".

The book details the negotiations Cannon participated in on Utah's behalf leading to statehood in exchange for official rejection of polygamy and LDS leadership's domination of civil politics during the 1890s, and the subsequent back-sliding he observed in the years following statehood.

During the last two decades of his life, he lectured against Mormonism and in support of "free silver" policies (as opposed to the Gold Standard). He died, at the age of 74, in Denver, in 1933



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/02/2014 01:52AM by Shummy.

Forgive me Steve but I would say that Frank J was the Steve Benson of his day, ok?

http://www.amazon.com/Prophet-National-Menace-Political-Priestcraft-ebook/dp/B0084B665A/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1414907685&sr=1-1

from an Amazon review:

>"This is one of my favorite books about late nineteenth/early twentieth century Utah. Cannon's book is almost a memoir, and yet it is a history as well. With intimate detail, Frank J. Cannon, a one time U.S. senator from Utah, describes his life-long interaction with the LDS hierarchy which included his own father, Apostle George Q. Cannon.

A young Mormon growing up as part of an elite LDS family, he initially works on behalf of the Church and its causes, particularly during the polygamy raids of the late nineteenth century. At one point he acts as a special envoy for the Church, meeting with New York Governor Sanford and his wife to convince Sanford to accept an offer to replace Justice Zane of the Utah Supreme Court. The Church leadership had hoped that if Sanford replaced Justice Zane, he would be more lenient on the many Brethren who continued in post-manifesto polygamy.

Many times Cannon writes openly about his discouragement and frustration with the authoritarian control that the LDS Brethren had over the Mormon and even non-Mormon residents of the State. He particularly addresses the economics and politics of early Utah. He comments on interesting and relevant portions of Joseph F. Smith's testimony at the Reed Smoot Congressional confirmation hearings. The reader will learn about some of the rarely revealed back-story involving relationships between the LDS Church and national political and business leaders.

It is a shame this man and his experiences aren't celebrated or even discussed in the public school Utah history classes required for Utah middle school students. The book is short, but very well-written and very enlightening to those of us who have grown up with a whitewashed version of Utah history.:

"In the middle of the nineteenth century there arose a man in America destined to a career more strange and incredible than most romancers have dared to imagine for their heroes.

That man was Brigham Young..."


"Brigham Young and his Mormon Empire"
-Frank J Cannon and George L Knapp


http://www.amazon.com/Brigham-Young-His-Mormon-Empire/dp/1112149198/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1414907685&sr=1-3#reader_1112149198

http://www.amazon.com/Brigham-Young-His-Mormon-Empire/dp/1112149198/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1414907685&sr=1-3#reader_1112149198


When Harvey J. O'Higgins was in Denver, in the spring of 1910, working with Judge Ben B. Lindsey on the manuscript of The Beast and the Jungle, for Everybody's Magazine, he met the Hon. Frank J. Cannon, formerly United States Senator from Utah, and heard from him the story of the betrayal of Utah by the present leaders of the Mormon Church.

This story the editor of Everybody's Magazine commissioned Messrs. Cannon and Higgins to write. They worked on it for a year, verifying every detail of it from government reports, controversial pamphlets, Mormon books of propaganda, and the newspaper files of current record.

It ran through nine numbers of the magazine, and not so much as a successful contradiction was ever made of one of the innumerable incidents or accusations that it contains. It is here published in book form at somewhat greater length than the magazine could print it. It is a joint work, but the autobiographic I has been used throughout, because it is Mr. Cannon's personal narrative of his personal experience.

Shummy Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
...Yet the
> diffusion of authority is so clever that nearly
> every man seems to share in its operation... and
> feels himself in some degree a master without
> observing that he is also a slave".

Reminds me of an old quip, or riddle:

Q "What does a slave want, more than anything else in the world?"
A (1) "Why, his freedom of course!"
A (2) "No. He wants to be a slave-driver."

caffiend Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Shummy Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> ...Yet the
> > diffusion of authority is so clever that nearly
> > every man seems to share in its operation...
> and
> > feels himself in some degree a master without
> > observing that he is also a slave".
>
> Reminds me of an old quip, or riddle:
>
> Q "What does a slave want, more than anything else
> in the world?"
> A (1) "Why, his freedom of course!"
> A (2) "No. He wants to be a slave-driver."


Which describes 9/10 of humanity today.

:(

I might have said this before but Uncle D has taken aim on the bullseye of Brighamite Mormonism......Brigham Dung of course.

But from a Joseph the 3rd RLDS perspective.

Got any other nuggets in those old drawers of yours?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/02/2014 04:38AM by Shummy.

Shummy Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
>
> Got any other nuggets in those old drawers of
> yours?

Yes -- in years gone by I photocopied thousands of old
newspaper clippings on 19th century Mormonism. The set
takes up two filing cabinets and a small closet.

Unfortunately my health problems continue to severely
limit my stamina and inclination to transcribe and upload
all of that material to web.

Last cancer scan examination came back fully negative,
however -- so perhaps in future weeks I can share a bit
more with you folks.

UD

That is fantastic news!

Thanks for everything you have and continue to do to increase our understanding

May the scans be ever fully negative.

No true blue exmo can say your presence on the board isn't fully positive.

Hang in there willya?

George Henry Dern (September 8, 1872 – August 27, 1936) was an American politician, mining man, and businessman. He is probably best remembered for co-inventing the Holt–Dern ore roasting process, as well as for his tenure as United States Secretary of War from 1933 to his death in 1936. He also served as the sixth Governor of Utah for eight years, from 1925 to 1933. Dern was a progressive politician who fought for tax reform, public education, and social welfare. He was an exceptional public speaker, able to captivate and entertain his audience, whether they were Progressives, Democrats, or Republicans.

Early life

Born in Dodge County, Nebraska, on September 8, 1872, Dern was the son of John Dern, a pioneering Nebraska farmer, mine operator, and industrialist, and Elizabeth, whose maiden name was the same as her married name, Dern. His parents were German immigrants.[1] John was president of the Mercur Gold Mining and Milling Company and no doubt had a profound influence on George, who would follow in his father’s footsteps when he entered the mining business. Dern graduated from Nebraska's Fremont Normal College in 1888 and from 1893 to 1894 attended the University of Nebraska. Dern was also a talented athlete, serving as the University’s football captain during that time. In 1894 he accompanied his family to Salt Lake City, joining the Mercur Gold Mining and Milling Company, which his father served as president. Rising rapidly from bookkeeper to company treasurer, he was promoted in 1901 to general manager of the company, which had been reorganized as the Consolidated Mercur Gold Mines Company. Dern was co-inventor of the Holt-Dern roaster, a furnace for carrying out the Holt-Christenson roasting process, a technique for recovering silver from low-grade ores. Mercur Gold Mining and Milling shut down in 1913, however Dern’s experience and passion for mining would be reflected later on in his political career. On June 7, 1899, in Fremont, Dodge County, Nebraska, he married Charlotte "Lottie" Brown and had six living children together (Mary J. (1902), John H.(1904), William B. (1907), Margaret (1909), Elizabeth (1915), and James G.(1916)) and were married up until the time of his death in 1936. Lottie died on September 5, 1952 in Chicago, and is buried in Mt. Olivet Cemetery, Salt Lake City, Utah.[2]
Politics

Dern entered politics in 1914, running on a Democratic and Progressive fusion ticket in a Utah state senate district encompassing Salt Lake County. He was elected in 1914, serving until 1923 in the state senate, where he was twice selected as Democratic floor leader. His tenure there was marked by his strong advocacy of progressive legislation, including a landmark mineral leasing act that leased, rather than sold, Utah's mineral rights to private concerns. Dern gained the Democratic nomination for governor in 1924, and during the campaign he received backing from the Utah Progressive party and an endorsement from Progressive presidential candidate Robert La Follette. Challenging incumbent Republican governor Charles R. Mabey, Dern ran on the catchy slogan

"We want a Dern good governor, and we don't mean Mabey."

At the time, Utah was extremely Republican oriented. This was largely due to the high concentration of Mormons, typically having conservative republican viewpoints, living in the area. Although George Dern was neither a Republican nor a Mormon, he won by a plurality of 10,000 votes, 81,308 to 72,127, while the Republicans carried all the other statewide offices by a margin of 30,000 votes. Dern obviously had an incredible knack for reaching across party lines, a skill that is highly desirable when running in a minority party. Dern’s ability in this area can be attributed to his outgoing, open-minded and empathetic personality.

As governor, Dern focused on using Utah's rich natural resources to develop the state economy and devoted himself to education, social welfare, and tax reform, thus further embroidering his reputation as a progressive. Arguing that the general property tax was unfair as the sole source of state revenue, Dern secured the adoption of a state income tax and a corporate franchise tax against strong opposition. He also took a leading role in resolving important interstate problems related to the building of the Boulder Dam on the Colorado River. Dern, whose state had the disadvantage of being upstream from the dam, staunchly defended the theory that, with the exception of navigation, the waters of western streams were state rather than federal resources. This controversy brought Dern into direct conflict with U.S. secretary of commerce Herbert Hoover, who was attempting to mediate the dispute for the Calvin Coolidge administration.

In yet another demonstration of Dern’s appeal to Republican voters, Dern was reelected governor in 1928 by a landslide 31,000 votes despite the fact that Utah voted for the Republican National ticket by a margin of 14,000 votes. He subsequently served from 1929 to 1930 as chair of the National Governors' Conference, where he worked with New York governor Franklin D. Roosevelt. Dern's record as a progressive western governor also commended him to Roosevelt, who after his November 1932 election to the presidency considered Dern for a cabinet position during his second term. He subsequently appointed Dern as his Secretary of War.
Secretary of War

Roosevelt initially wanted Dern for the post of Secretary of the Interior but settled on appointing him to the War Department. Although he had no military experience and was reputed to have pacifist leanings, Dern won the support of military circles by promoting greater efficiency and readiness, calling for a military structure that could be expanded quickly and easily in a crisis. He also initiated a five-year plan to equip the army with newer airplanes, more tanks, semiautomatic rifles, and modernized artillery. He advocated increased strength for the army Air Corps and investigated charges of lobbying in the War Department, resulting in the court-martial and dismissal of two high-ranking army officers who were found guilty of lobbying. These reforms won him the support and admiration of most military leaders.

During Dern's tenure the War Department oversaw the administration of the Civilian Conservation Corps. Dern's department provided the CCC with food, clothing, transportation, and medical care for the 300,000 unemployed who joined its ranks for work in the preservation and conservation of America's public lands. The army's Corps of Engineers also began several important public works projects during Dern's tenure, including the dredging of the Mississippi and Missouri rivers, the construction of the Florida ship canal. Under the ageis of the PWA, the Corps also built such projects as the Bonneville and Fort Peck dams; and began the aborted "Quoddy" Dam project. Dern worked closely with army chief of staff Douglas MacArthur on such projects. Dern was often at odds with President Roosevelt over plans to coordinate water resource development, and in 1935 and 1936 he opposed legislation to establish a permanent National Resources Board, even though it was strongly supported by Roosevelt. While still serving as Secretary of War, Dern died in Washington, D.C., from heart and kidney complications following a bout with influenza.
Legacy

Dern was fond of outdoor sports such as fishing and hiking and is remembered as a hard-working member of the Roosevelt cabinet, one who could also be an entertaining public speaker. Ultimately, George Dern served as Secretary of War during a rather inconsequential time period for that position. The country was in the midst of the Great Depression, and due to the financial crisis, had adopted an isolationist approach toward foreign policy. After years of tight military budgets and an isolationist foreign policy, the War Department was a relatively inconsequential post during Dern's tenure. While he was generally well liked by other members of the cabinet, he never played a decisive role in the determination of administration policies. This is why Dern’s political career is less documented than someone who served in his same position during a time of war.

His wife was Charlotte "Lottie" Brown (the daughter of William Steele Brown and Ida Belle Martin); the couple had seven children. He is the grandfather of Academy Award-nominated actor Bruce Dern, and the great-grandfather of Academy Award-nominated actress Laura Dern.