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Show AMERICANISM LIED ABOUT. It would bo an impeachment of the intelligence of Mr. Chairman Smith of the Republican county convention of Tuesday to say that he believed what ho said when he uttered this sentiment: Tho reason that 1 do not like the American Amer-ican party more than any other reason la hecaueo Its chief leadors are no tilled with hatred toward the majority of the peoplo of this State that they can't be fair toward them. That Is the chief reason rea-son why I object to them. If that is Mr. Chairman Smith's veal and controlling reason, he may dismiss his antagonism to tho American party at once; because what ho states is a mere chimera of his own imagination, without tho least basis of fact upon which to found it. Thero has never been any spirit of hatred among tho American party leaders or in tho American Ameri-can party against tho peoplo of this orate, anero naa never oeen a aei;iu.ra.-tion aei;iu.ra.-tion of hostility ngainat tho Mormon peoplo or against the Mormon church. Every platform and statement of principle prin-ciple of the American party has o:c-pressly o:c-pressly and emphatically disclaimed any such feeling or any purpose of religious hostility or proscription. Tho American party is a party of absolute abso-lute tolerance in religious affairs; thero has never been a declaration of its principles iu any form or at any tirao that did not make this entirely and distinctly plain. What the American party fights is tho lawlessness of the leaders of tho Mormon church, their trampling upon and dofianco of constitution consti-tution and statute, their criminal lives, their usurpations In political, civil, and commercial affairs, and their oxtortiona of immense sums from the public, wilh-'out wilh-'out giving an' account of tho two rail-lions rail-lions of dollars which they thus annually an-nually receive. Mr. Chairman Smith will search in vain among any of tho declarations of tho American party for any substantiation of or support to his vagrant and wholly imaginary straw man which ho sets up as the reason why he. opposes the American parl When ho again appears -in public to make a speech, we trust that he will show himself him-self either better informed or moro honest of mind. It is astonishing to see the Salt Lake Herald, which is fully informed in tho case and takes this view through utter mendacit' and through no want of knowledge in the facts, ."join in that sort of. malignant misrepresentation. Yesterday morning, for instanco, it said that "the troublo with tho ticket, as with the party, is its programme of proscription, pro-scription, its intolerance and hatred of others, its blind, unreasoning and untruthful un-truthful defamation of tho city and State." We doubt if it would bo possible to get a greater amount of absolute falsehood false-hood and vicious misrepresentation in tho like number of words ou any subject sub-ject whatever, to say nothing of the awkwardness nnd absurdity of claiming that the ticket has any "programme" whatever. It is enough to say in refutation refu-tation of the Herald's charges that the American party has no "programme of proscription." It has never in the least said or done a thing on which any such charge could possibly be based. On the contrary, it has been open, candid, can-did, and has expressly and completely complete-ly disclaimed all "proscription" of anybody, confining its opposition to law-breakers and usurpers alone, aud ha6 never attacked any class of people, peo-ple, either on their religion or on any other account. It opposes law-breakers, of course, robbers, and those wh blatantly proclaim that they are living lives in defiance of the laws of God and man. It claims that the proper place for all such persons as these, such lawbreakers, law-breakers, is in tho penitentiar-. They should not bo permitted to disgrace the high and holy positions which they have usurped and maintain themselves in, despite their disobedience to the law of the church over which they have assumed despotic control, and in defiance de-fiance of the laws of the State. They are under the ban of the civil law, and also of the divine law. It is indeed an anomaly to think of such persons as tlmcl V.nlTirr nllnn-nl IV.;.. 1.K....I .1. """" U1JUM1.11 Hltll UUUIlij, III U less of their occup3ing such stations as they do. ' But fo say that notorious and self-confessed self-confessed criminals should bo sent to jail is uot proscription, " And nothing that has ever been in the American party programme savors in the least of proscription. Neither has tho party exhibited intolerance or hatred of others. oth-ers. It has never in any way defamed de-famed this city, but, on the contrary, has proudl- boasted of tho greatness of the city, both present and to come. Aud neither has it exhibited anything toward the Stalo but tho highest appreciation ap-preciation of its aplendid natural resources re-sources and of its standing as a Stale.. How it is that a paper, clniming the standing of the Herald, can disgrace itself it-self by thus stating What is absolutely, baldly, and notoriously untrue and exactly ex-actly the reverse of tho position of tho American party on this question, a position which has been one of absolute tolerance of individual opinion, and of tho highest appreciation for this city and State, we do not understand, nor can wo see what it expects to gain by auch stupid, utter lying. This concertod effort of the opposition opposi-tion to falsely present tho American position and to claim that the American party represents and aims at things precisely pre-cisely the opposite of what it does represent rep-resent and aim at, it is difficult to comprehend. Wo do not believe that a discriminating public will fail to visit its displeasure toward a paper thus misrepresenting the majority of this community and falsjfyiug the position of the dominant party hero. What point the Herald expects to mako by its miserable, wretched, falso tactics, it is impossible to see. Tt is inconceivable that such lies as it is telling in this matter can have any appreciable weight in this campaign. Tho Tribuuo the other day printed a resumo of all of the American statements of principles and platforms. Tl - reader will search iu vain for any expression of proscrip-tivoness, proscrip-tivoness, of intolerance, or defamation defama-tion toward this city or State. And sinco tho Herald has mado this charge, we now call upon it to mako good its statement or confess itself to bo a malignant, consoionccloss liar. |
