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Show THE ONLY ISSUE. A friend asks us if we do not want to see Republican Re-publican principles triumph; if the party is beaten this year if it will not be harder to pick up the raveled ends and knit them together again a year hence, when there will be a congressman to elect. The answer is 1hat neither the Republican Republi-can party nor the Democratic party nor their principles are at issue in this present city campaign. cam-paign. The power of the dominant church has absolute control over the mayor and city council of Salt Lake City. Moreover, the same power controls very many of the great corporations corpora-tions of the city the light, the gas, the railway, in great measure the coal and the direction of city affairs. The Gentiles pay the largest percentage of "the taxes and have reached a point where it is practically "taxation without representation." The men really in control are churchmen, incompetent incom-petent to handle wisely the affairs of a great and growing city, and worse still, are seeking to handle affairs in their own interest. All this might . be borne but, insidiously, they are fastening their hold upon their people with more and more strength daily; they have reached a point when the president of their organization publishes I openly that by the very nature of their religious system the officers of the church have a dual rule, one over the souls, the other over the business of i their people. This is as unlawful as it is intolerable, and must be fought by every man who loves his t country and believes in its institutions. Hence there is no other issue in this campaign except whether Americans or Mormons shall have charge of this city's government. Many thoughtful thought-ful men do not realize how much is at stake. The object of this system is to overthrow this republic. re-public. It is to undo all that has been done since the Declaration of Independence was proclaimed, i since the constitution of the Uinted States was framed. And Salt Lake City is the central seat of this power. When the first immigrants came here they established a theocratic government, as binding bind-ing in all its exactions as is the government of Turkey. The people were not consulted. The officers were named by the president and apostles, the people were instructed to sustain them and that ended the business. Had no Gentiles Gen-tiles ever come here, the same rule would be in force today. That is intolerable anywhere under he flag of the United States, but this system has logressed. until in the senate of the United stes we find ten senators ready to do the bid-41 bid-41 pg of the fanatic who. is president of the soiled so-iled ohurch. If this goes on until twenty more ites are brought under the same power, the Mted States will cease to be a republic; it will a kingdom and the real ruler will be on the rner of State and Brigham streets in this city. d that same individual's claim today is that 1 through his succession from Joseph Smith, he is today the only rightful ruler in this land. That is the situation and the test on Tuesday next will be to see whether there are enough Americans in this city to outvote the followers of Joseph F. Smith and the Gentiles who are willing to be his vassals. There is no other issue. What sense is there in discussing Republican or Democratic policies. |