San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1891-07-31
THE ST. PAUL FIASCO.


| Ever since the Minnesota Athleti,
club failed to bring Hall and Fitzsim
mons together as advertised the city
OF st. Paul and the Athletic clut
have been the targets for all kinds OF
! shooters. The sports are indignant
and they have sailed into st. Paul
and the Athletic club for not keep.
ing faith with the public and for
knowingly Inducing people to come
to the city at great expense to witness
mill which never was expected to
come off. The moralists, on the other
hand, have charged the newspapers
with conniviBg at the violation of
law, because these papers were heavy
advertisers of the races and the fight
and the races were under the same
management; they also charge the
Athletic Club with decelving the
public, asserting the validity of the
exhibition under state laws while
euCy hhO" w VIC Ooh"oiy, having
had legal opinion to the effect that
the proposed fight was contrary to
law. The press of st. Paul gives
very positive denial to the charges of
the sports and the moralists alike,
asserting that the whole transaction
was in good faith on the part of the
club, and that the charge against the
is made out of whole
cloth, the advertisements for the
race not being inserted until the day
after the fight was to have come off.
This whole matter has received un-
usual attention owing to the use made
of it by certain critics of the city adj
of st. Paul, who have
gone farther than the facts warrant In
order to connect this'prlze fight with
the alleged immoralities and corrup-
tons OF the city administration. The
Pioneer Press, of st. Paul, arraigns
these critics for the immortality of I'M
and shows how hard it
is to cooperate with any form of big.
otry in securing reforms. While say
ing this the Pioneer Press has some
words concerning social re-
form and reformers, not altogether in
applicable to San An tonic, and which
are as follows:
1--WE agree with him, the critic re.
ferred to, however, in cordially con-
temning the wide open policy which |
has prevailed in st. Paul under |
the too lax administration OF
Mayor Smith. The problem
of municipal government is,
however, a very serious one, and 1t is |
too serious and too complicated to be !
dealt with according to any methods |
which are likely to be proposed by |
the representatives of the purely re-
ligious element. For, desirable as it |
might be to make the city government |
q stern and infiexible guardian of the |
morals of the citizens, experience |
in all American cities has proved |
that this is not practicable; that |
the great majority Of the people of
our large cities demand broader lib |
srty than the strict letter Of the law
permits, and that they will not toler- |
ste any city government which will |
enforce all the laws. This is a shams- |
full and a painful fact, but it is true.
The history Of every city in the |
country illustrates it. Every NUM- |
cipal government in the land is either !
3 mOnstrous hypocrisy, which secret. |
ly protects while pretending to pre-
vent otfenses prohibited by
law, or ir is an open COM
promise, If not in open league,
with prevailing social immorslities
What is the remedy? Frankly, we do |
not know. 1t is apparently the most
insoluble of all the social problems
under form of government where
the majority rules. SO far as we can
Judge from the lessons OF experience
In dealing with the unlawful vices of
great cities, the best that can be done
is to go as far in restraining them as
public opinion will permit, and to
educate public opinion until il is
more and more a restraining force.
ENGLAND announces that the agree.