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Show THE REPUBLICAN PLEDGES. The pledges made to the people of Utah by the Ttepublicnn State Convention Conven-tion in its platform may fairly bo construed con-strued as of no binding force upon the party; for precisely such plejrlgcs have been made heretofore and disregardod. Successive Republican legisalturos have disregarded their constitutional duty by refusing to reapportion tho Stato so as to give tho now population roprcaonla-tiou roprcaonla-tiou to which it is entitled in tho legislature. legis-lature. It is notnworthy that the party platform shirked all expression ou this arbitrary and unconstitutional refusal, which may mean that tho pnrty is ashamed of its indcfcnsiblo and tyrannical tyran-nical neglect in this matter, or that it intends to continue that outrageous imposition im-position upon tho people, which levies taxes without representation, a plain violation of the most fundamental proposition prop-osition in American administrative principles. prin-ciples. Salt Lake county has more than one-third of the population and wealth of the Stale, and yet it has less than one-fourth of tho rcDroacntation in the lower; house of tho legislature, and it has less than its. proper representation in the Sonato brauch of tho Stato legislature. leg-islature. Wo do not forgot that two years ago tho State convention pledged tho legislature legis-lature to the ratification of the income tax amendment to the' Federal constitution; consti-tution; and yet tho legislature next elected absolutoly rofusod to ratify that amendment. The platform pledges tho legislature to enact measures against poolrooms and forbidding the issue of passos to public officials, and yet it docs not explain ex-plain Ts-hy, with continuous Republican legislatures, these measures now pronounced pro-nounced beneficial havo heretofore been neglected. The platform favors tho ratification of the constitutional amendment providing provid-ing for the election of United Statos Senators by direct voto of tho people. But if this is a good proposition, why has it not been adopted heretofore, by tho Republican legislature? And whether wheth-er the proposition is good or bad, why should thcro be supposed to bo any moro likelihood that tho Republican legislature legisla-ture would carry out these pledges made iu this platform any more than it carried car-ried out the-pledge made in the platform plat-form heretofore to rntify tho income tax amendment, which the Republican legislature failed to do? The platform favors the adoption of the amendment of tho State constitution providing general methods for tho creation of new counties in this State. Are we to infer, therefore, that the party is opposed to tho other seven amendments which aro submitted? Tf not, why single one amendment out of eight for indorsement? The platform favors the amendment of the State criminal code, to the end that criminals may be brought to more speedy trial and punishment and that the guilty may not escape through technicalities. tech-nicalities. A good plank, truly; but, why docs Utah lag in tho rear in this important reform with respect to the enforcement of the criminal law? For moro than four year's paafc President Taft has been insisting upon the reform re-form of criminal procedure and proclaiming pro-claiming that, the postponement of justice jus-tice is practically n donial of justice. There havo been repeated Republican legislatures since this mattor becamo a grievous public complaint. Long bo fore President Tnft came out. so emphatically em-phatically in fnvor of judicinl reform in this respect, the public wns exasperated exasper-ated al the delays which arc practically a denial of justice, and was loudly demanding de-manding reform. Tho legislatures of Utah have passed by this demand as if it had not been henrd; and so we arc , not inclined to place much reliance upon any reform which is thus loosoly and tardily promised. The carrying out of this promise would probably be neglect ed. as other promises have been neglected, neg-lected, and other constitutional requirements require-ments defied. The congratulation over the work of tho last legislature in providing for a eapitol building would fall with greater effect upon the public mind if ai'thing j iu I lie wnv of actual work had been done in the wny of getting 011 with the construction of that building. But two full building seasons have passed by since the legislature authorized tho con struction of the capilol building and sot aside a big sum of money to proceed pro-ceed with the work. Nothing has been done in the way of real construction; but tho mouey set aside for the building is in somebody's hands and ought to be drawing good returns, which tho State Treasury, as far as heard from, does not get, but which it is probable that some one docs get; for it is inconceivable inconceiv-able that an amount of money approximating approx-imating a million dollars should lie unproductive un-productive for two full seasons with no return to anybody. The congratulation on the passage of tho law against tho white slavo traih'c will bo joined in by all good citizens. Tho congratulations of tho Stato ou tho "'high efficiency of our Congressional Congres-sional delegation" was probably "writ earkastic;" for, so far as known, the greatest triumph of our Congressional delegation was in the disastrous special session of 1909, v.'hcn It labored so diligently dili-gently and, as far as it was effective, in affixing tho term "reactionary" to tho Republican party in its dealing with tariff revision, and forcing a split in tho party as between the standpat and tho progressive elements thereof. Whether that sort of work is a subject of congratulation or not, there is cor-tainly cor-tainly room for difference of opinion. So far as wc arc concerned, we should say that congratulations on that sort of work arc decidedly not In order. Tho platform as a whole is weak, and is conceived largely ou false pretense. Ft is not likely, to deceive anybody or to attract any special support to tho bogus Republican pnrty bossed by the Federal bunch in this State. |