[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 110 (Wednesday, July 24, 1996)]
[Senate]
[Pages S8634-S8635]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              PIONEER DAY

  Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, today is July 24--an ordinary day to 
millions of Americans and 98 percent of this body.
  But to Utahns, July 24, Pioneer Day, is a big State celebration. 
Offices and businesses are closed; there are parades and pageants in 
most Utah communities; and families gather for picnics and games.
  Mr. President, July 24 was the day in 1847 when Brigham Young stood 
atop a rise in Emigration Canyon, gazed at the Salt Lake valley below, 
and announced to the Mormon pioneers who had followed him across the 
Plains and across the Rocky Mountains that ``This is the Place.''
  Today is the 149th anniversary of Pioneer Day. It is a day Utahns 
celebrate so enthusiastically because it commemorates the determination 
and faith that brought our ancestors into the place Mormons call Zion.
  It commemorates the triumph over the hardships inherent in such a 
journey. It commemorates the sense of community that kept them together 
as a people.
  And, it commemorates the fact that the religious persecution suffered 
by my Mormon ancestors did not achieve its purpose. Prejudice and 
bigotry may have forced the early members of the Church of Jesus Christ 
of Latter-day Saints out of the Midwest, but the faith could not be 
killed.
  Today, Utah stands as a shining example of commerce, the arts, 
science, and education. It is an example of solid work ethic, sound 
management, and good stewardship in both public and private arenas. It 
is also a model of tolerance. All of these blessings and present-day 
values are manifestations of the character and achievements of the Utah 
pioneers.
  That is why today Utah celebrates the ``Days of '47.'' I ask my 
colleagues to join me and Senator Bennett in observing this seminal 
event in Utah history.

[[Page S8635]]



                      MESSAGES FROM THE PRESIDENT

  Messages from the President of the United States were communicated to 
the Senate by Mr. McCathran, one of his secretaries.


                      EXECUTIVE MESSAGES REFERRED

  As in executive session the Presiding Officer laid before the Senate 
messages from the President of the United States submitting sundry 
nominations which were referred to the appropriate committees.
  (The nominations received today are printed at the end of the Senate 
proceedings.)

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