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Show PROSPERITY MENACED. For many years Utah has prospered through its deserved reputation as a state where the owner of property could feel- himself safe from the legislative vagaries which have kept investments out of other communities. Until quite recently we have been happily immune from the dire consequences which follow fol-low in the wake of doctrinaires, 'Sociologists," 'So-ciologists," near-economists and other theorists when they get in the political saddle and are enabled to inflict the results of their lack of business sense on a suffering public. As a result of our sanity in the past, capital in abundance has flowed into the various'avenues for investment, and the state has been developed marvel-ously marvel-ously in the last decade or so. We have enjoyed a fair name among those abroad whose good will is worth while, and here at home we shared generously in the prosperity that accompanied our commercial and industrial expansion. The Tribune docs not indorse all the acts of those who conducted our public affairs in the past, but it does recognize recog-nize that they were sensible of the great good the state derived through its splendid repute abroad as a place where people miht put their money with tbe assurance that it would have proper protection. Capital came to us and went into the development of our varied activities, our lands, cities, m ines, rail road ? and electric lines, and thereby made it possible pos-sible for uncounted local enterpriser to be established and to succeed. It requires long years and much patient, pa-tient, determined effort by conscientious, conscien-tious, loyal citizens to accomplish such results, and to ga i n for a com inunity sneh a reputation as we have amon the nation 's investors, a reputation which. like most economic Mructures. can be utterly demolished verv quickly. Every intelligent person in the state knows that mining is Utah's great, distinctive dis-tinctive industry, and knows, equally well, that it could never have attained its development without the assistance of outside capita!. This capital ha; always beon available in the pat for meritorious proposi t ion s. ami will be available in the future if wo show ourselves our-selves des'iring of the confidence out-?ide out-?ide investors have in ii. Capital, proverbially timid, i al.-o well informed. Iet word go jtbroad that the people of Utah hac written mto their constitution a provision whi h permits an appointed board, selected bv a single indhidual, to tax the mines at any valuation it sees fit to put upon ihem, and inestors eerywhrre will at onc -eek other fields where thrv feel Their money is s;ifc. Thi.- will applv to all classes of investors, not onlv to thoe who invest in mines; for investors generally cannot be convinced that their money will he safe in u community com-munity which .singles out industries for excessive anil d i f f erent i;i I t ;i at ion w 1 1 h-out h-out vi ng 1 lie ta xpa yer a n v recourse w hatever. With the flow of capital .into the state thus (becked, whence w come the money to continue our develop ment ! Will some of the eminent ' econ om i M ' ' who ad voca t e the adoption adop-tion of the constitutional amendment on mine taxation provide it out of the "salaries most of them receive from the public treasury, 'or will they discover in the ponderous w r 1 1 i ngs from which they derive their indigestible business theories some magic formula to create something out of nothing? Or will the Mate cease developing until it has again at t a ined - - a nd t lie at t n infiieu t will be slow the position from hich the adopt ion of the proposed amendment amend-ment will almont jnstantly remove it? The nmendment w ould be mi 1 1 ic ient 1 v had if it n f f ec I ed mining alone. I In t mining is mi intimately associated with all our nlher actiities nnd with the bu si n ess re put a t ion of t lie state a broad that. most, deplorable effect:, on the stat as a whole will inevitnhlv follow if the people are misled into oting sneh an amendment into the constiln-t constiln-t ion of the st a t e. i 1 1 ho iVrli n povrrn irrnt i very rvuirh like ibr Mtiiill hoy ran uh t rr i h;in1ri in i flic jam rln't it lia? nnihim; to say. j Butte MiinT. |