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Show ITS KNAVISH PRETENSE. The Smoot lorgnn warns the legislature legis-lature not to pay any attention to Tho Tribune in tho matter of. liquor legislation,, which is a sorry -state of mind for' even a squeaky organ to bo in. F6r, the legislature will necessarily necessa-rily judge of anv argument or presentation presenta-tion of facts ami reason upon tho matter mat-ter presented. Tt will not bo so absolutely ab-solutely silly as to determine beforehand before-hand that anything that is said by n given person or paper is necessarily bad merely because of the source from which it comes. As a matter of fact, so far as one can judge of the tompor of the legislature, that, body would bo far moro disposed to put tho Smoot paper on the black list in this respect than The Tribune, if tho legislature were disposed to judge by sourco rather than by reason. For, the S'moot organ or-gan .has been denounced openly in the most numerous branch of the legislature legis-lature b' a man of its own party faith as a "rag" totall unworthy of any consideration, and not one voice was raised in its behalf, although the! legislature in both brandies is almost unanimously Republican, and that "rag" professes lo be tho Republican organ" of tho State. That Smoot paper reiterated yestcr-day yestcr-day morning its totally false charges of grafting by The Tribune upon the saloons, and it makes further charges to the same effect agaiust the council, especially with regard to alleged rake-offs rake-offs and payment on the side for tho privilege of getting a saloon license or violating the ordinance. Tt calls upon the legislature to investigate its charges in this respect, and affirms that Uicy are true. Tho Tribune, however, how-ever, has made specific denial in its own behalf on all this matter. Not one cent has ever been obtained by The Tribune from the saloons in the wax of graft, rake-off, or aii3f other form of wrongfulness. Nor do xvo .believe .be-lieve that members of the council are guilty as charged. Wo should be glad indeed to have the legislature investigate investi-gate this xx'hole matter, confident that all concerned would be triumphant cleared of the infamousl3' falso charges made b3' the Smoot paper. That paper makes these charges, not in tho least; believing in them itself, but merely in an attempt to offset tho well-known graft that the Smoot organ and party has derived from the saloons, dragging them into polities and compelling them to contribute by the tens of thousands of dollars to the Federal bunch's campaign cam-paign funds. The first raid upon tho liquor interests of this State by the Smoot organ resulted in a "bleeding" of the saloons to the amount of upwards up-wards of $40,000 in the campaign of 1908. That .blood-letting forced the saloons of this State into politics, and thev have been kept iu politics over since by the Federal bunch though they were never in- politics in Utah before. The main facts iuvoh'cd havo Jieon stated as assured by campaign speakers speak-ers that have nothing to do with The Tribune, but that are and have been not. only good Saints, but good Re-publicum. Re-publicum. The facta are well under Btood throughout the State, and it is too late now lo make denial. The Federal bunch brought Ihe saloons directly di-rectly into politics, is holding them in politics, and blooding thorn at its pleasure for political purposes. The cry of the Smoot organ lo tako the saloon out of politics, or I hat the saloons am in politics 1)3' reason of anything that tho American parly has done, is simply the pickpocket's cry of "Slop thief." Jts only possible object ob-ject is tho diversion of tho public attention at-tention from its own part- misdeeds and from tho odious light cast upon tho evil doings of the Federal bunch, the party bosses, and itself. The Smoot organ, in ono part of its editorial, makes bitter complaint, of tho stringency of tho present Salt Lake liquor ordinance, and in another part of the same editorial it complains that tho liquor question will never ,bc settled set-tled right in Snlt Lake until the control con-trol of it is taken axva3 from tho ci 1 3 council. This would indicate that the Smoot organ wants a less stringent ordinance, feebler regulation, and more liberty for the saloons than the American Amer-ican party ordinance coucedes. Tho inconsistencj involved in all this is, of course, quite evident; but that inconsistency in-consistency is tho nntural thing with tho Smoot organ, which is constantly endeavoring to play two tunes at tho same timo with the same keys. The result is a dismal jangle all the time, tho only note that harmonizes with that organ's purpose all the time being be-ing its favorite notes of graft and blackmail. |
