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Show i THE KEWS' INDEPENDENCE. The Deseret Evening News claims to be an independent paper, but its views of independence aie peculiar to itself. A perusal of its columns would one day indicate that it was inspired by the pure light of truth, but feared to give expression to that truth lest it might lose cast as an independent; at another time it appearB from its tone that independence and money mean the same thine; at etill another time I its expressions warrant the belief that a support by the son of anything the father says is the acme of independence, indepen-dence, and 6till on other occasions its readers must be forced to the conviction convic-tion that a valid and unreasoning attack at-tack on the ways of journalistic opponents op-ponents or of those that have braved its anger is the culmination of independence. inde-pendence. All this the News is and has been. An ordinary fellow, illiterate ps the world goes, would call that paper independent in-dependent which gave fearless expression ex-pression to its honest convictions. Thi3 the News does not do, whether because it dare not be fearless or really has no honest convictions does not appear; but it is neither fearless nor free. Referring directly to a case in point, and one in which public attention at-tention has been centered, the present contest as to the constitutional convention, con-vention, where has it beeu independent? indepen-dent? When not silent it has in a masterful way, in all probability inherited in-herited from father to son, attacked this grave subject in i half fearful, timid sort of way. It tiuthfully states that Utah cannot afford to go Into the TJpion with the tarnish of fraud upon her escutcheon. The News does not come out and say there have been frauds, though it intimates as ..much. That would be the manly thing. It does not eay that the men for whom the people cast their ballots should, in lawful ways, be given the right to frame a constitution for the people, no matter what the cries of partisans nor what the allegations of those fighting fight-ing against statehood. That would be in keeping with an independent news- ' .... t "" i li lliri" liiM mlnnlm i il It intimates that the the commission should cease in the work of investigation imposed upon it by the law, and gives the meanest reason ever offered to humanity for submission to wrong and ' refusing to perform a manifest duty. It says the present course of the com- I mission or the democracy will keep money lrom the territory. How have the mighty fallen! As the organ of the church whose mission is to battle against wrong and to contend for the right, be the coBt what it may, the ; News should come out and demand that, for the reputation of the people i it pretends to represent, a juBticeto the church leaders to whom it is so closely allied, this paper above all others should demand and insist on the most vigorous investigation and the conviction of the guilty, if there be euch, or the vindication of those wbo are scorched by its unmanly intimation that wrong has been done ; but we had better drop all proceedings leEt it affect our purses. We have fallen on degenerate degener-ate times, or the News into degenerate hands, when an oran of the pure and holy should publicly acknowledge the sceptre of Mammon. There was a time when all the world was tendered a Iloly One if he would bow down and worship wrong. He evidently had no connection with the News, for he rejected re-jected the offer. |
