The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1895-12-09
POLITICAL AND OTHERWISE.


The pertinent answers given by
Judge Merritt, to the pertinent ques-
tions of the grand jury. in Salt Lake
city the other day, has caused the
members of the Weber county court to
pause and reflect. Whether they have
been guilty of as fragrant a violation
of the law as they have their duty to
the tax payers in the erection of the
annex to the county building remains
to be seen. Certain it is that their
thoughts do trouble them, and whether
it is the shadow of an investigation
snto their acts and doings or a guilty
conscience does not appear.
Members of the court declare that
they have never worked the mileage
racket with the same vigor as their
collea CUES in Salt Lake county and they
are inclined to blame the Salt Lakers
for being so greedy. They say it is a
blamed long limb the metropolitan
selectmen have broken off, because it is
bound sooner or later to belt all other
selectmen in the state over the head.
Some people are considerably inter
ested in the prospective appointments
to be made by Mayor Spencer, when
he assumes the reinS of government in
this municipality on the first of jan
uary. Now the fact is the mayor-elect
has not put anything down on his
slate A Herald man got a peep at it
The other day and it is void of mark
or scratch. 1t is safe to say that when
he does write anything on it he will
put it there to stay, because he is not
a man of tickle mind. Like Davey
Crocket-to whom it is said he is re-
lated-he first is SuDe he is right and
then goes ahead.
Speaking about the change of ad-
ADMINISTRATION calls to mind a cherished
hope to which several Republicans
cling. and that is. that there will be
no change at all If the president is
sues the statehood proclamation before
January /. Others say that if salts
hood comes after New Years the pres
ent officers hold over, in other words
the Republican gets the turkey every
time.
Now it SO happens that down in Salt
Lake the Republicans want to get in
and any construction placed upon the
constitution and the laws which leaves
them out causes a roar-hence we have
the spectacle of two contenr1ing forces
sending representatives to Washington,
one to influence the president to wait
a bit. and the other. urging him to
hurry up.
The Richfield Advocate dominates
James Bolithe, the representative-elect
from Sewer county, for speaker of the
house of representatives and volun-
teers the information that Weber coun-
ty is to have the presiding officer of
the senate in the coming state legisIa-
ture. That would be all right if Weber
county had a candidate. but the gentle
man who was slated for that position
is without doubt the most exclusively
modest man in all Utah, and he is a
nnember-elect of the Senate from this
county too
Hon. E. NJ. Allison of this county
could have had the presidency of the
state senate by simply saying he
would take it, but he thought he could
be of more service TO his constituents
on the floor of that august body,
hence, it is said, he declined Whether
the senators or his constituents are
most to be congratulated is a. question
which time alone will determine His
friends in this county, and not without
reason either, have great confidence in
him
The boldest senatorial move that
las been suggested lately is to adopt
the Idaho plan and elect three United
States senators from Utah. at one and
the same time, thus making it possible
to bring about a compromise and avoid
many difficulties now an sight here
are two places to fill. one senator to be
elected for one year and another for
three. When Idaho was admitted it
will be remembered that the conditions
were similar except that one was elect
ed for few months and the other for
four years. So the legislature elected
three senators. one for four years, one
for two months and another to take
the place of the one whose term ex-
pired on the 4th of March next ensu-
ing. Now the conditions are not ex-
actly the same in Utah because there
is TO be a new legislature elected next
fall which will be in session before the
term of the senator expires in March.
1897, and there seems to be some legal
obstacles in the way that did not APP
pear in the Idaho case.
This matter is being looked into and
while the prospect is not very en-
couraging. SILL to the minds of some
anxious politicians it offers possible
means of solving a very difficult prob