THE MORMON TEMPLE, SALT
LAKE CITY.
The recent dedication of the Temple in Salt Lake City closes another chapter in the history of Mormonism. It is true that the Tabernacle, which was described long ago, is no mere tem-porary structure, like that of the Jews. The Tabernacle, though of wooden construction, will seat twenty thousand people, and con-tains a very fine organ. But the Temple, on the other hand, serves rather as a cathedral monument of the Mormon religion. Its found-ations were laid nearly fifty years ago, and it has just been completed. Its architecture, extern-ally, is grand and stately. The highest tower is surmounted by a gigantic gilt archangel, with a trumpet instead of the usual cross. The Temple is built of white granite, brought from Cottonwood Canon, a distance of about fifty miles. The stone is well tooled, the joints even, and the workmanship throughout very good; so that in the clear atmosphere of the Rockies it ought to require no repairs for centuries. The extreme length is 200 ft., the width 100 ft., and the height 200ft., the thick-ness of the walls being 10 ft. The interior is divided into rooms for various administrative purposes, as the regular Sunday afternoon services will continue to be held in the Taber-nacle, which has double the area but only half the height of the Temple. The heating appar-atus and the electric lighting are of the most modern description. One of our Illustrations, from a photograph taken in April last year, is that of a man on the great stone ball at the top north-west tower, 185 ft. above the. ground, attending to the electric light, which is supplied by eight large incandescent lamps, each of one hundred-candle power, erected around a spiral column of metal above the huge brass coronet. These lights, which can be seen thirty miles around, were planned and con-structed by Mr. E. G. Holding, electrician, of Salt Lake City, brother to Mr. T. H. Holding, of London. In the same enclosure with the Temple and the Tabernacle is the Assembly Hall. This building seats 2500; it is arranged like a church with pews and galleries. Services for Swedes, Norwegians, and Germans are held in it on Sunday mornings, when they are addressed by Mormon preachers of their own nationalities. It is also used for Sunday schools, and on weekdays for concerts and lectures. The population of Salt Lake City is now over 56,000. The streets are wide, none less than 120 ft.; most of them have the foot-paths bordered with trees and a stream of running water on each side. There are several large stores, the most important being the "Zion's Co-operative Stores," which are large and well-stocked, but the prices charged are, as might be expected, very high. The banks are almost entirely in Gentile hands. The hotels and shops are quite equal to those of Denver or other western cities. The private residences are detached, each standing in about an acre of ground; while many are of the modern villa type, some are the frame shanties probably put up by the first emigrants on their arrival. The most elaborate was built by Brigham Young for one of his wives not long before his death. It is now a hospital, and is, next to the Temple, the most conspicuous object in a view of the city from the surrounding heights. Among the Mormons overt polygamy has been stopped, and there is nothing outrageous in the sermons preached at the Tabernacle; but it is believed that Mormon submission to the decisions of the United States tribunals is merely a reluctant yielding to force. It was stated two years ago that the Mormons proposed to emigrate en masse to Sonora or Chihuahua, in Mexico. But the President and Bishops still have more power in Utah than the Pope and Cardinals have in Rome, and it is not likely that they will abandon the property created by their people's industry. Colonies may be sent to Mexico, or even to more distant countries, but the headquarters of Mor-monism will certainly remain in Salt Lake City.
THE ELECTRIC LIGHT ON THE TOWER OF THE MORMON TEMPLE,
SALT LAKE CITY.
Photo by G. R. Savage, Main Street, Salt Lake City.
THE MORMON TEMPLE, WITH THE TABERNACLE AND ASSEMBLY HALL,
SALT LAKE CITY
