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Show THE CITIZEN 8 No Effort To Close Salt Lake Saloons IT Is to be presumed that when the government stationed a federal prohibition officer in Utah it was the intention to enforce the law. Is there any good reason why the federal officer should allow bootlegging dens to operate simply because the city authoriteis fail to do thier duty? In Salt Lake City there are forty or more places selling liquor daily. They pay no license, income or excess While others scrimp to pay the state and federal exactions the bootleggers grow rich at their illegal trade and are mulcted only for the profits taxes. sums they must pay for protection. Who is getting this money? How many officials are waxing rich quick on the wide open town permitted by the Democratic administraprofits of the tion? Is it not time that the federal prohibition officer devoted his attention to the duties of his office rather than to his duties as chairman of the state Democratic organization? Does he regard Salt Lake as a safety zone which is immune from the protection of the federal law? Usually the official who neglects his duty pleads that he cannot find the liquor dens in operation. If the private citizen can find forty such places ofwhy cannot the federal prohibition ficer find ten or a dozen? Of course, it is hopeless to ask the city authorities or the police to close these dens or the gambling dens which operate day and night. The city is nowr paying the bill for electing the present city Administration and that administration pays its election debts by permitting the wide open town. And in addition fortunes are being paid in graft to those whoshould enforce the laws. The federal prohibition officer has a force of men at his command, but results are few. Occasionally a joint in some place is raided and is compelled to seek new quarters and out-of-the-w- ay perhaps, new methods of secrecy. On the whole, however, the state is just as booze-riddeas is the city. n Being state chairman of the Democratic party, Mr. Thomas keeps the public informed as to his movements. On the eye of his departure for some definite destination he announces his plans in the newspapers. The bootleggers know that the state chairman is coming to visit their town and they suspect that the federal prohibition officer wrill accompany him. They will be delighted to be at home to the state chairman, but not to the officer of the law. As state chairman Mr. Thomas can meet everybody even the bootlegger on an equal footing and contributions to the Demo- cratic campaign fund are accepted on the same footing. We have not heard that any line has been drawm as to the source of the contributions, and, as a matter of fact, the Democrats are accepting all the money they can get and not inquiring as to the source The federal and state laws on prohibition have become a farce. When we had the saloons they paid their wsy, not by contributions to individuals or, at least not solely by that method but by taking out licenses and by paying their share of public taxation. Now we have laws that put nothing into the public treasury. The result is that taxes are increased to make up the deficiency and sums that should go into the public terasury are paid in the form of graft for protection. We' do not believe that the saloon ever will come back, and we are not deploring its departure, but when we see how the prohibition laws are violated we can understand that prohibition might become a greater evil than the saloon. There will be no demand for the return of the saloon, but there will be an incerasing demand for the enforcement of the law. Democratic Women Join Harmony Fight 117 E have had some pleasant words to say about the harmony existing in Democratic ranks and We have heard, from time to time, the somewhat less pleasant words zealous Democrats have been employing about us. The words they have been employing about one another lately, however, have been positively disagreeable. It is to be regretted that the use of unpleasant, not to say malicious and even profane words, has not been confined to the men members of the Democratic party. Of late the men poor driven brutes have been denouncing the ladies of the party. llecently the Democratic ladies held a joyous fiesta at one of our leading hotels. To this jubilation they invited the men, offering to let them attend at so much per attendance. In other words, they sold tickets. all It will be recalled that a similar fiesta wras held at the Hotel Utah some weeks ago. National speakers were there and hundreds of tickets had been sold by the Democratic women. The unfortunate result was that so many tickets were disposed of that scores of buyers were compelled to sit in the remote recesses of the mezzanine floor, overflowing sniffing the banquet from afar off and contenting themselves with the merest inarticulate hum of festal eloquence. dollar, they grow so tearful and whineful on the subject. i There was much complaint at that time that the women employed duress in selling their tickets. Similar complaints are again heard regarding the Then went into the highways, inviting all Democrats to the feast. But when any Democrat began to make excuses he wras immediately met with threats. If there was the slightest suspicion that he entertained ambitions he was told frankly, not to say brutally, that his political scalp would be removed if he did not purchase a certain number of tickets forthwith. It pains the because that they needs must do is to threaten the mere man Democrat with political annihilation unless he pays his coin and takes his tickets. yj The amount of wailing and gnashing of teeth is really surprising. One would think that the mourners had been held up and robbed of their last Some of the Republican meetings have not been so well attended, but, as one patriot was heard to remark, they have been better attended. THE POET AND THE MAIDEN. latest festivity. The story goes and we do not wish to assume too much responsibility for it that the Democratic women were so delighted with what they considered the grand success of their earlier effort that they decided to employ the same method in selling tickets for the latest affair. attendance He chanced, on a time not long ago, To meet a maid with her cheeks aglow. will do strange things, chance (For you know!) And under the shade of a linden tree They got to talking of poesy, And he confessed that he sometimes wrote; she cried, I should dearly dote To hear a poem, if youll only quote! So what could he do, since her eyes were blue As the vernal skies when the sun shines through A rift in the cloud-racbut recite A lyric, that lilted along as light As a warbler does in its morning flight! Then, Oh, k, Democrats to old-lin- e discover that ladies will speak softly and use the big stick. Some are hurling the long and ugly word blackmail to express their feelings. But when he had finished m . careers. And the Democratic women are chuckling and even chorteling in triumph. They have been heard to remark that they can always rely on an mur- mured, Why, As she cast upon him her April eye, Do you mean to say thats poetry? It rhymes, and it seems to have some Here are ladies the employing strong-armethods which the men flattered themselves was a prerogative, privilege or whatever you may wish to call it that belonged by right prescriptive to themselves alone. Of course, a large number of tickets were sold, for, as all of us know, there are a large number of deserving Democrats who look forward to political she sense; It i isnt dull and it isnt dense; And it And I doesnt jump or bump or crawl. dont call it a poem at all! Clinton Scollard in Life. THE WORM TURNS. Wanted, loud English paper gramophone for reprisals. Macon Telegraph. i IN ROUND NUMBERS. Motorist (arrested for speeding) : A fine morning, Isnt' it, judge? Judge: It is. Ten dollars, to be exact. |