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Show THE CITIZEN RELIGION IN SCHOOLS. While the people were in a state of coma or trance our legislature very conveniently passed legislation permitting the use of our public school buildings by religious organizations for the purpose of holding services and meetings. It was an innocent looking bill, all dressed up in sheeps skin, and no one in particular from the rank and file of the people appeared very much interested in such a triffling matter. However, now we find that in some districts the school house is much more convenient than. the church, and it has even been reported that religious meetings have been called immediately after the close of the school day, because many of the children would be right there for attendance. We know of no state in the United States, outside of Utah, where this condition is permitted. It should not be permitted in Utah, either. When meetings are held in the school houses, especially in the evenings, 'who pays for the heating and lighting during the winter months? Who pays for the janitor service? Is this expense charged up to the taxpayers ? If it is, The Citizen can see the method in this madness to hold meetings in school houses instead of the regular meeting houses. We talk about our high school tax. Is it not about time that an investigation was made by outside interests we mean by the taxpayers and not the professors to see where all our money goes to? It appears very much on the surface that there is an influence at work in Utah to join church and school; as well as church and state. Mr. Taxpayer, is this being done with your consent? For the information of those who like to read facts, we will cite some things which we have seen and heard. On the 12th of last August, religious services were held in the Holden school building, and in the new high school building at Nephi. On August 5th of this year, the meeting house at Gunnison was closed and religious services were held on that Sunday in the new school building. Religious services have been held in our own county in school houses, and it is but a short time ago when the daily papers carried more than column stories regarding such religious services. Church in our politics, church in our schools, church in our business. Mr. Voter, is this your ideal of American government? Do you want Salt Lake to remain as it is or do you want it to grow like Los Angeles? It is up to you, Mr. Taxpayer, you can continue to sleep and hide your beautiful city, or you can awake and make it the metropolis of this intermountain region. COMMISSIONERS EXTRAVAGANT. The tax figures, including moneys received, moneys paid out and moneys set aside for reserve funds for bond redemption purposes as shown by Mayor C. Clarence Neslen and published a few days ago in the Telegram, under the caption, So the People May Know, differed greatly in sum and detail as compared with the figures produced by Paul F. Keyser, which appeared in the Telegram of last Sunday, under the same caption. Mr. Keyser is a heavy taxpayer of this city and he took excepintion to the mayors report which he (Keyser) based as absolutely correct and misleading. Mr. Keyser dug up the records and found that the actual figures widely differed from those which Mayor &eslen had submitted, and Mr. Keyser conclusively proved that the since the city expenditures have greatly increased during every year the mayor is trymayor has held office. In the face of these facts, as well as ing to tell the people that he has reduced expenditures, the taxes, and everybody who pays taxes knows better. effects of our pres Nearly every taxpayer of this city feels the . 5 ent heavy taxation, and people are daily wondering why taxes are being raised every year. Improvements are costing double what they are advertised to cost. The city commission says one thing, and the bills payable say another thing. We had a bond issue to build a bathhouse for $200,-00- 0 and it has cost nearly $400,000. It is constructed out of cement and gravel and some engineers say thet price is ridiculously high. The people voted $7,500 for a cottage for the sexton at the city cemetary, the cost was over $22,500, and other improvements are on a parallel line. Is it because the enginer does not know how to figure, or are his figures juggled by the commission and increased for other purposes ? The present city commission has been the most expensive municipal official body in the history of our city. This is because a great deal of our tax money is being expended for the purpose of supporting big individual political machines with which to steamroller elections. When the American party takes the reigns of government, all this will be changed. We will then go back to a business administration and the people will be given a clear accounting of every cent expended for public improvements. The ward healers of the present city commissioners are doing everything in their power to discredit the American party in order to detract attention from their own candidates. The candidates of the American party have never held a city office and their records as business men of this city are above reproach. They have the interests of this city at heart, and when they are elected they are going to reduce all unnecessary expense and such business methods will reduce taxation. Do you want the city to progress under less expense, or do you wish to hibernate under the present extravagance? TOLERANCE. It true, however much we hate to admit it, that we Americans are intolerant. We hate people who do not agree with us. We cannot forgive a man who happens to hold opinions that run counter to our own. We go out only to those who take their ideas from the same source, who fit into conventionalized patterns. When a neighbor, or an editor or a public speaker, or anyone, for that matter, gives expression to views that are not our own, we grow angry at the individual and make faces at his thoughts. We have not learned the art of tolerance. We are like the people who lived in the middle ages only worse, because there are more of us. We do not burn people for their honest opinions, but we often feel that we would like to. We have not grasped that most delightful and valuable attitude of looking at ideas disinterestedly, detachedly. We are not curious about viewpoints. We like to know that the other man has our slant on things even before we open up on a subject. All of us try to be tolerant. Let us seek for the truth, always the truth, never anything but the truth. And if, during the search, we find that the ideas we have grown to revere and consider sacred are all wrong, lets put them aside, calmly like sane thinking people, instead of growing mad and throwing mud. E. Ilaldeman Julius. is PATRONIZE HOME INDUSTRIES. is generally reported among contractors and cement producers that T. T. Burton is not for Utah products, and so far invariably In replaces a big handicap upon local interests. For example. questing bids for a certain paving job, Commissioner Burton required local firms from nearly double the strength in pavement to be laid by that required from California firms. On that basis, the local people could not compete in bidding with the Pacific coast people. The cement companies of this state believe and rightly so--thome industry should be patronized in preference to outside interests. A representative of the Portland Cement company says that Burton has not been fair with the cement people. American party commissioners will remedy this condition. It hat |