Salt Lake Telegram | 1923-08-21 | Page 4 | Underworld Advantages

: . - -X Underworld Advantage f- ; :. It : TPHE other night seven men entered a Mich-'! Mich-'! Igan mn and held up and robbed 170 patrons and employes. The incident does not reflect courage on the part of the des- ". peradoes or the lack of it on the part of the " patrons. ! Many handicaps are overcome in the possession of arms in an age which, is supposed to move without resort to dead! - ' weapons. - , Weapons, today, are used chiefly by those - who have no right to them. Few persons arm themselves for their own protection, although the practice U likely to find more favor, un-. un-. lesa the police authoiities can find a better means of suppressing banditry and crime. The idea of seven men robbing 170 is ridiculous "' until It Is understood that all of the firearms :'. were in the possession of the minority. There Is a movement afoot for the sup-; sup-; presslon of the manufacture and sale of fire ;7 arms. It is doubtful if this movement would ; have any. effect on the prevailing condition. Even under this prohibition, the underworld : - would have Its guns. Men who resort to ban-b ban-b ditry and murder, and those are the ones who I,, carry weapons today, would not be discour-r;.f discour-r;.f aged by 1 which prohibited them from buy- Ing weapons. The odds against the peaceful Individual 1$ would be the same as they are today. There is but one way to make any headway against n crimes committed by the aid of deadly weapons and that Is to make the punishment - stronger. We do not know what penalties await the Michigan thugs, but' it is certain that if they were convicted in Utah, they would rv .serve a comparatively short time. Men who I ' commit crimes with the aid of guns, have ; murder m their hearts and should be removed j Z'l from society for terms long enough to dis-Z dis-Z courage others from following their footsteps, j