The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1894-07-29

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and are all equal before the law.
We do not believe that the promoters
and prime movers of this gathering
have the slightest desire to mingle
party feelings or opinions with the
congra tulations, which will then be
mutual from all sides on the bright
prospects that are open to this SPLEEN
did commonwealth. It is to be a gen
uine citizens assembly, fraternal
and friendly mingling together of peo-
| pie who desire each others welfare as
members of the same body polite
There would, perhaps, have been no
need to reiterate these simple facts but
for an attempt which has been made
by the chairman of the Republican ter
ritorial committee to inject gross par
tisanship into the congratulations of
the period, and into the matter Of
, framing the constitution, which ought
to be as bipartisan as the meeting
called for the first day of August
While affecting to feel glad at the
passage of the bill which opens the
way for liberty to Utah, he takes oc-
casion to stir up animosities which
ought to be buried, and raise issues
that have no bearing upon the franz
ing of a constitution for a free peo-
pie. He tries to cast slur 4pon the
enabling act and upon those who
amended it in the Senate, and invites
the members Of his party to unite in
making the constitutional convention
a Republican political machine
We do not wish to retaliate or cast
any reflections upon men of any party
in reference to the statehood question.
We are too full of rejoicing over what
has been done to retort as we might.
But on the important business of
framing a constitution for the new
state we must express Our opinion.
We enter our emphatic protest against
the unwise and improper attempt to
organize a Republican body for the
purpose of framing the organic law of
the state,
A state constitution ought not to be
made for the purpose of promoting the
peculiar views or purposes of any po-
litical party. If majority of Demo-
Gratis should be chosen to the state
convention, they would be recreant to
their duty if they Incorporated into
the instrument anything designed to
especially favor their party. The same
may be said of Republicans. But the
Republican chairman says, concerning
the convention
IF it shall be Democratic, then there
will be fixed upon that Constitution
the rule that Utah is determined to
try what has never failed to prove a
calamity when tried, and what will be
direct reversal of the policy which
has governed in Utah from the day of
its first settlement"
That is an amalgamation of ignor-
ance and malice. 1t supposes that
the tariff question would enter into
the framework of a state constitution.
men who know that what he insinu-
ates as to the policy which guided the
people of Utah from the beginning is
entirely false.
We do not believe that if the major
Ity of the convention should happen to
be Republicans, they would attempt to
lntrude into the organic law they
would frame, anything like that which
the wild and woolly would-be political
chief has the hardihood and stupidity
to desire. If either party were to at
tempt such work as he prates of the
people would reject it at the polls. a
contingency that he does not seem to
take into account and possibly does
not understand
We want a constitutional convention
that will be bipartisan, as we want a
celebration and jubilation that will be
Republicans ought toE
repudiate the vagaries of their chair
man, and stop him from making any
more such nuggets of nonsense as
form the body of his latest bombastic