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Show I DO NOT BE HOODWINKED. H The Salt Lake organ of the Standpatters wants to know why H those opposed to Governor Spry do not call the Governor a thief, and H then 'insinuates that the only reason is that they fear the law. The H Salt Lake paper pretends to be wholly unaware of the charges made H against Governor Spry, as it says, in a most blandly innocent way, H "Why, the Governor is not the state treasurer. The state treasurer H is the sole custodian of state funds." 1 Yes, but the Governor is at the head of the state administration j and a very great part of that administration, and he is in duty bound j morally if not by the exact letter of the law to stand for good H government, which he fails to do by allowing his bank in Salt Lake j to participate in the profits on state funds. The Merchants' bank, of M which Governor Spry is a stockholder and director, has over half a M million dollars of state funds. Now call that what you may, it is M the most dangerous precedent that could be established, as it becomes H a standing inducement for the Governor to work for the impounding H of great sums of money. Of course the Governor may be above the M temptations that have caused greater men than Governor Spry to j fall, but the people should not allow a condition to exist that places j such a tremendous incentive to wrongdoing before Governor Spry or Hl arty other Governor. 1 As to the motive that promoted the state treasurer to place such H a large sum of money in the Governor's bank, we have nothing to 1 aay. , We do not desire to inquire beyond what is known. The evi- H deuce as given by the state treasurer himself is sufficient to brand H the -whole proceedings as fraught with the greatest danger to the 1 state. If tolerated if condoned by re-electing Spry it eventually M fwill be a corrupting power in our politics and there is a possibility H ,of such scandals as similar tremendous temptations have brought to M i other states where state funds have been made plums to be nicked Hl from the tree of corrupt politics. 1 Here in Utah banks have offered to pav 2 per cent on state de- M I pouts. The city of Salt Lake, whose treasurer is under as heavy a H vV8 the treasurer of the atate receives interest on its funds- the M hoard of education of Ogden is obtaining interest on all daily bal- M ance fa a Ideal bank. There is no law requiring that the money shall m be so placed as to obtain interest except the law of conscience, which m m the absence of a superior mandate, is the highest law known But M rtfc state treasurer has refused the offer of interest on state monev m , on the upecious plea that the law does not specifically command him M , to do so, and the further excuse that interest on overdrafts, now car. M ried by favored banks, more than compensates for the loss of the 2 per cent revenue. The last statement is palpably a misleading one. An immense sum of money constantly has been held by the state trensurcr ever since the Harriman inheritance tax was paid, and, from now on, as the bond measures passed by the last legislature are placed in operation, greater sums will be locked up, the law providing for redemption funds which will aggregate a million dollars. If any one doubts the viciousness of the financial legislation which is soon to be put in force in this state, let him talk with George J. Kelly of Ogden, a Standpot R-opublican, and the man who acted as chairman of the Iteed Smoot meeting in this city last week. Mr. Kelly was a member of the lnsfc legislature. Ask Mr Kelly why his bill, requiring interest on state funds, was defeated. No voter should go to the polls without a clear idea on this question ques-tion of the state funds. Do not be hoodwinked. |