The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1888-10-28
LIKE AN AMERICAN.

Let us all swing our hats and give
three cheers for Grover Cleveland. He
is the kind of man for President of the
United States. He Is an American in
the broad and patriotic sense of the
word. He is a statesman also; and he
knows how to command and enforce
respect. Furthermore, he is a very
capable politician. All of which qualii-
cations are praiseworthy.
During the past few days the press
dispatches have had much to say con-
corning a certain incident Of a political
character, but the kilograms have not
been entirely explicit in the matter. A
little explanation is necessary. A
British-American citizens ST the United
States, resident of Pomona, California,
was sorely puzzled by the politics of
this country. He had not been in tt e
United States long enough to
form an opinion of his own
as to which party he should
support in the national contest. 1t is
q discredit to him that he was unable
to make up his mind, and is almost a
reflection on the court which admitted
him to citizenship that it let the ignor-
ant fellow in. A man who has lived
in this country five years and has in
that time learned so little of the
nations institutions and policies that
he feels incapable of forming an
opinion is unworthy Of citizenship. How
ever, this Briton was naturalized,
though he does not seem to realize
bis changed political status; and acting
as if he were still an Englishman, he
wrote to the British minister at Wash
ingtoS, Sir Lionel Sackyille- West fer
advice as to our politics. The love of
the Qneen and the institutions of Great
Britain is so intense in the average
Englishman that perhaps the Pomona
man should be forgiven for having con-
fessed in his letter that he had no BUSH
ness to apply for American citizenship.
But no excuse can be offered for the &C.
ton of tne minister, who not only re-
piled to the letter, but in his reply es-
poused the cause of the Democracy
and counseled the Briton to vote for
Grover Cleveland. Mr.. Sackville- West
did not do this through ignorance. He
knows his rights, duties and privileges
as the representative of foreign gov
eminent, and he furthermore under
stands that among those is not included
the right or privilege of interfering in
the politics of the nation. So far as
parties are concerned, the minister
must be neutral, and hen he is no
neutral he violates the unwritten law
of nations, becomes meddlesome,
and proves himself unworthy
to occlpy the place which he holds,
That Mr.. Sackville-W is bright and
capable gentleman is proven by his
advocacy of the Democracy and sup
port of Cleveland; that he knew he
was doing something which he
had no right to do, is shown
by the fact that he wrote
on his communication.
thus demonstrating that he did not de-
sire to make public that he was inter
fering in American politics. 1 his letter
this paragraph, among others
equally irregular: You are probably
aware that any political party which |
openly favored the mother country at
the present time would lose popularity
and that the party in power is fully !
aware of that fact. The party how
ever. is, believe, still DESTROYS of main
tanning friendly relations with Great |
Britain, and is still as DESTROYS Of set
ling sill questions with Canada, which
nave been unfortunately re-opened since
he rejection of the treaty by the Re
publican majority in the Senate and by
he Presidents message, to which you
lIIude." Accompanying the letter was
IN editorial from pronounced CleVe-
and newspaper.
Now, this letter was worse than
,lunder. It was an ofense and such
N one as the people of this
without regard to party,
essnted in a mes emphatic man
Ter. The Americans do not &C
ept kindly foreisn interference in
heir politics, and when that Interior
nee is by the official representative OF
great government, the indignation
ecomes intense. This indignation has