Gunnison news-champion., 1902-11-14


Il tne s.-s -9sa .ssEeyss~s-rs go
s,sea fss other pssry0----rsrVs~-r
fsr wnsca the ..s q q MD sssckssss
IL sss. s.a tns; ~er. IN part es~.s-sd
ssxcAa~r the Sara ~2- tn.Fe ~ ~ -
t~cksd
/ The res.nse meA-sre-s tsO u
~nses the aeasScEscy usSv Scii ~
y~esa-wa~ naliIhsd ~ ITS vsesl
features BY the board II easalizAtse~-
No Republican sesTd ees.la h.se t.so
sssrs sat-erssest to the sress eeeU<ss-
ss,oas N a..sllng ~.th tser tsa~s. is
establishing Valuations the bsssd T.
nered the vital e.emcat. winch TIE
.aw directed 1T 10 consider IN dsstes-
us4aiag ss.sstsous stocks. baslH
and other securities IT the coVQs-
atsons. The valuat,sa ut rsslrooA
property Uss based. =. IN the seual
asys before the new ls~, uVou the
visible, baked and tsngio.e psoVerty
The franchises and market value 1t
the stocks and bonds we're ignored
ss thoagh none existed. The result
was that the great corporations ss-
capped with the pas mest 1T bat q
fraction Of the taxes they -hosld
have been forced to pav. While the
private citizen was taxed ap to the
very extreme 1T hIs property vsla-
alton. The democratic state admia-
lstrstion having placed upon the
statute books the best tax law that
any state can boast #, deprived the
party Ut al benefit from 1t by con
strung IT for the corporations aud
against the citizen. The conduct of
the board gagged every democratic
speaker upon the subject Of the tax
law. The speakers could not clam
credit for the law without denounc-
ing democratic administration Of it.
1t is needless 10 refer ut length to
the fragrant dishonesty of the three
democratic county commissioners.
II the democratic executive con m ,tee
had taken notice Of IT aud driven
them from the committee, as Vt might
and kept them out of the convention,
as it should, instead Of conspiring to
give them greater power in-excbange
for their support in convention the
dishonesty Of the commissioners
would not have hurt the party their
prompt condemnation would rat her
have strengthened it. 1t wonld have
demonstrated to the public that the
democratic party would not tolerate
official dishonesty in its members.
w hen party committees will expose
and prosecute dishonest officials for
whom they are responsible, the pub
lie does not lose confidence in party
integrity. Such course rather
strengthens public confidence in the
party.
A grave technical mistake was the
refusal of the democratic state con
vention to give decent consideration
to the efforts of the populist con-
ventlon for union of the forces.
The Populist vote will demonstrate
that with it the democratic ticket
would to-day be elected The recog-
milton of the Peoples party upon a
fair basis would have involved the
abandonment of no principle-mere-
ly the surrender of one or two posi-
tons upon the state ticket to hither
to faithful and sympathetic allies.
With all the shortcomings of the
democratic party tn. populist vote
would have given it victory.
The socialist party was new but
not unexpected factor in the equation.
The socialist ranks were swelled by
populists who. after the democratic
convention had houted their party
voted with the socialists. Judge
Overs in more than one speech ad-
vised populists to vote the socialist
ticket. Thus the vote cast for Judge
Overs is not the full measure of the
votes lost to the democratic ticket
through discourtesy to the populists.
Democrats wonder why it is that
with so splendid ticket and issues
that appealed to Colorado voters, the