The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1891-02-04
THE MAYORS APOLOGY.

There is sort of humor in the mayors
apology concerning the police department
''that this city is favorite stopping place
between the east and the west coasts for
lawless as well as law abiding tourists
But what has made this city favorite
stopping place for lawless clements! II
never was before. No gangs of armed
roughs ever iran" this city even in the
early days, as was the custom with other
western towns. The apology now for the
necessity of further increasing the mum
bers of men on the police forceis mere
confession that the Liberal administration
OF our city offers great inducements to
thieves, toughs, gamblers, ETC., to come
here
The mayor plaintively continues that the
Idea, however, that our city is especially
dangerous or worse infested by the lawless
than other cities Of the same size and SINH
larly situated is erroneous" Certainly it
Is. The Liberal administration can mar.
not ruin the city. People are still as safe
or safer here than in any other city of this
size in the country. But the MAYORS
apology was intended to make as favorable
showing as compared with the former
condition of this city as could possibly be
made, and this jumping to ''other cities'
10 bolster up his arguments somewhat all
surd. 1t is not the people of other cities
but OF our own, that find fault with the
Liberal administration: and while it NAV
be comforting to our people to know that
things are not worse here than elsewhere
still they remember that they are vastly
worse here now than they formerly were.
In view OF the milk and water policy of
Vaclllation the mayor has exhibited on the
question of the Sunday saloons and allied
issues, this apology to the saloon keepers
1or an occasional shutting up is positively
soft: "Two-thirds of the arrests have
been for being drunk These
hgures present strong argument in favor
OF restraining the sale Of Intoxicating
liquors as far as possible
There would be more point in the MAYORS
argument intended TO show the efficiency
OF the police force, namely, that three
tlmes as many arrests and detentions had
been made this year as last year if the per
centage Of convictions had been given. The
apology that ''at the beginning of the wear
w. FS4ASS AOAOO hCIS LICK DerloQc6Q IN Its
duties" tends to ruff1e the even tenper of
our calmest citizens. Why was it neces-
sary to discharge every member of the
former efficient force in such unseemlv
haste! Such thing would be Justly de-
cried in any other city. A number of men
OF both political parties composed the
old force, every one of whom was
promptly dismissed to make wav
for inexperienced" but orthodox men
This confession that the new men were not
qualified by experience for the important
positions given them, to use well known
but colloquial phrase. makes the peonle
tired.
One circumstance enabled the mavor IN
avoid making just one more apology. that
is the noteworthy fact that the expenses of
the police department were not given in
the marshal's report. This also freed him
from the embarrassment incident to max
Ing comparisons with the previous wear or
preceding quarter" From another report
however, the taxpayer may dig out this
item and learn that the police department
last year cost $40, $685. SO, as against 500
23s-25 the year previous. Whether the
efficiency of this department has been Twice
as great as formerly, we leave to the iudp.
ment OF an intelligent public.