The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1896-10-07
THE uoLnRooK INTERVIEW.

THE HOLBR00k INTERVIEW.
A contemporary has printed an in
terview with Lafayette Holbrook, Re-
publican candidate for representative.
This interview involved the answer
ing of certain adroit questions. put in
such form as to entrap him, whichever
way he answered. Mr.. Holbrook did
The best he could in good faith to
give straightforward replies, but it was
next to impossible to candidly answer
the questions as formulated. and Mr..
Holbrook is put at disadvantage.
But worse followed. These questions
and replies appear to have been given
in advance to Judge Powers, and were
used by him in an attack upon MI
Holbrook in Powers speech at Silver
City on Saturday night.
This is disreputable journalism; 1t
shows that the purpose behind the IN
terview was sinister and mean; the
idea is not to treat those interviewed
fairly. nor to deal with the public in
good faith.
The hest thing for Republicans to
do who are approached for this sort
of tricky interviews is to respectfully
refuse to be trapped and to decline to
talk-The Tribune.
It will strike the average reader that
our morning contemporary pleads the
baby act in behalf of the candidate of
its party. Is Mr.. Holbrook such a
tender political child that friend and
foe alike are debarred by humane con-
siderations from breathing upon him?
The questions asked Mr.. Holbrook
were plain and straightforward. The
purpose was to get at his position.
The people have wanted to know
where he stood; they have desired to
learn how Mr. Holbrook could serve
two masters. If he was put at dis
advantage by having the questions
propounded to him it was solely be-
cause of the incongruity of his posi-
ton.
If a man can be loyal at once to the
McKinleyites and to the cause of Bry-
an. to the gold standard and to free
coinage. the people want to know it;
if he cannot, and is a candidate for
office. they want to know it. Reason
teaches us that such dual allegiance
cannot be maintained; and it was
shown by Mr.. Holbrook's interview
that by no legerdemain can so much as
an appearance of consistency be pre-
served by one placed in a position OF
that kind
Mr.. Holbrook has not complained
that there was anything unfair about
the interview; nor is there any GROUND
for complaint. He answered the ques
tions Put to him with perfect candor
but his answers showed that he wa.
in the ditch If he had announced
himself squarely in the position tina
the people want their representative
to occupy; if he had stated tina
he would make the financial issu,
paramount in all his official acts; if h,
had said that he would bolt any golf
caucus, v,te for silver under all cir
cumstanctn and always oppose botl
the devices and the supporters of tn
gold standard, the interview would hav
strengthened him and there would no
now have been any necessity for hi
friends to plead the baby act in hi
behalf: but. unfortunately for him. h
was obliged to disclose his sympath,
with the Mckinley wing of his party
and that is what has dropped him int
the pit It is not The Herald but til
condition of his candidacy by whic
the result has been brought about
The Herald has only taken off the Ii
and exposed the character of the priz
package in the Republican basket.
Mr.. Holbrook is in a position tina
he cannot successfully maintain; n
man can consistently be at one an
the same time the candidate of the gol
standard and of the free coinage caus,
And this is the first time we hav
ever heard that the giving out OF
proof sheet in advance of publicatio
was disreputable. This interview wa
put in type Friday night for use Sur
day morning. It was shown to Judg
Powers; he saw at once that it woul
be the undoing of Mr.. Holbrook an
asked for and received a proof sill
for use in his Silver City speech.
any one can find anything disreputab
in that. he is welcome to the discover
Mr.. Holbrook has been fairly put
the hole" if his supporters can derry
any comfort from such form of crit
cism of the operation, no one will
disposed to deny them that privileg