Salt Lake Tribune | 1906-01-04 | Page 9 | The Tough

The Tough. We command men when we trust the good In ourselves nnd have equal fnlth In the good that Is In them Force as a part of that command we resist, conscientiously conscien-tiously and Instinctively, and we hate the conduct that proclaims. "If I can't be respected re-spected I will at least be f. .ire. I ' There Is a considerable element In this countrv especially In the clfle. that conceives Itself It-self Important because It exerclsea force, but of a physical sort. Mental force It usually lacks In proportion 1 0 Its muscle, and moral force It holds In ,i sort of disdain dis-dain ss something not quite manl Thi element may not silmlre the burglar nor the wlfe-beater. lis Ideal Is rather the prlre-ftghter. as an embodiment of sheer material Importance, and because of this aloofness from what another class regards re-gards as lifting and fine we say thai the class profeselng It Is "tough." In our government we are represented largely bv the totiph He has i sat In every board of aldermen, he takes our names at the polls nnd makes playful gibes about them If the names are un usual; hs Is always on hand at tha political po-litical meeting, nnd tiring pistols for Joy when his candidate le elected He winks at some financial process because he "the people," ss he la fond of naming himself needs the money for which political contractors con-tractors are e it scheming H- drinks more than is good for him. relying on the captain of his district to prevent his arrest ar-rest or punishment if h ts noisy In his cups. lie uses dreadful language, and has a faint despite against adults who use better, regarding If as affectation He begins his career ss a mud lark who loafs on the corners and smokes discarded discard-ed cigarettes, and he ends either In the Legislature or In Sing Sing. He Is a dreadful trial, the American tough If It were not for him we should have no yellow press, no slum theater, no Coney Island, and but one In ten of ur saloons. Our elections would be clean nnd pretty, and the church b'.dls would ring oftener Mechanic labor would g.. shout with Its head up, and not cringing under the laeh of the walking delegate The police would he disbanded and Jails would be rented to B jndny-schools Brooklyn Eagle