Show UTAH BEFORE CONGRESS THE advocates of the home rule mule bill had a hearing at washington on wednesday before the house committee Territories on mr W H smith of ogden commonly known as kentucky smith and judge J W judd of salt lake were the speakers togy both advanced adv aneed strong reasons why utah should be relieved of the vassalage attending the territorial condition and be permitted to te elect her own local officers curb the arguments presented were equally good as reasons for admitting utah into the union as a state but the speakers referred to the doubts which yet exist in the minds of some people as to the changed conditions of utah and the alleged hostility of the president to a measure for statehood and cited these as the reasons why this preliminary measure of freedom had been prepared in lieu of the full eli liberty deliberty to which utah is act ally bally entitled IB the course of his remarks mr smith alluded to the present governor 7 and the appropriations made by the legislature for his beve benefit fit botti while lie wap wae secretary and since ho he has been the executive two reports of the bearing are published in addition 0 t the brief press dispatch received today the herald account agrees with the tribune report in the chief particulars tic ulars but in reference to the matters reflecting on the governor they differ if the report is in correct mr smith did dia governor thomas an injustice it says the governor would veto bills unless hired not to he drew 2400 a year for a private secretary and no one had e ever v er heard of him or seen him when secretary of the territory thomas invented two schemes for bagging the public the first compelling every officer to pay 96 85 for his commission and the second making the filing of bonds and articles of incorporation with the secretary obligatory the first rolls in several thousand a year the second fully 1 Y we are doubtful whether mr smith made mada these remarks remark a as they are printed in the bune the rhe herald report makes him say aay that the 2400 was for 1890 and ad 1801 and that articles of incorporation are to be filed in the some secretary B office but bat amith any statement about bonds being filed it la Is true that the governor has a private secretary st at 1200 a year it is in not true that no body has seen him because he to is known well enough by business men as an of the governors office the legislature made this appropriation and it Is ie not in conflict with any congressional inhibition governor thomas while secretary of the territory received only the fees that were prescribed by the legislature and which will be found on the first page of the laws of 1880 and are reasonable and in no case excessive he was secretary from 1879 to 1886 in december of that year he was appointed on the utah commission the new fee bill to whilla mr smith per haps refers was approved march 8 1888 therefore as secretary mr thoma could not have derived any benefit from that and was not etheln of these them schemes 02 it to is not good policy to say nothing of its morality to exaggerate or falsely accuse an opponent and we think it would be difficult to prove that governor thomas has been hired not to veto a bill or has done some other things that the tribune report of mr smiths argument accuses him of we W are of the opinion that the remarks made before the house corn com cittee have been garbled and tinted for a purpose after the notorious fashion of tribune reports of meetings religious and political the advocates of the faulkner bill are getting in their work in the main in good shape and every argument hey abey use is virtually strong reasoning in favor of conferring upon utah the rights and privileges of full political liberty |