The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1906-06-14
THAT PoSTPONEMENT.

The postponement of the decision III
the Smoot case. as announced from
Washington, Is a keen disappointment
10 every citizen i'm Utah who has the
welfare Of the State at heart. IT was.
however, not entirely unexpected; nor
will 1t tend altogether in the direction
that the Smoot supporters have hope.
There arc some points that will work
against Smoot far more powerfully
than any mere postponemert canlhelp
him
First of ALL the country is likely to
get an object lesson in church politics
that is certain TO enlighten it a new
Congress Is to be elected next fall. and
upon that election the parties may not
be aligned precisely as they are now.
IT is not likely, for instance, that the
Republican party. if 1T yokes hope
lessly up with ecclesiasticism, can
elect its member of the House Of Rep
resentatives from Utah. or from Idaho;
and It may be defeated In Wyoming
and Colorado on the same issue. Ot
course there Is n tremendous power
that the chiefs can bring to bear upon
their followers to force them from any
pretended Democratic allegiance to
the support Of the church Republican
nominee for Congress. 1t is not eS-
sential. of course, that this church
nominee should be a Mormon, but
probably Mr.. Howell has the guaran-
tee OF the church support both I'm the
Republican convention and at the
polls; and in that case it would be alb
solutely useless for the Democratic
nominee to be a Gentle. because the
church leaders would find it much cas-
ier to command the votes OF their dew
otees who call themselves Democrats
away from a Gentle Democrat to a
church Republican than from church
Democrat to a church Republican.
| In the meantime the country will be
considering the absolutely convincing
| report made by the Senate Committee
on Privileges and Elections against the
retention by Mr. Smoot of his scat in
| The Senate, for they will be able to
| compare the clear and magnificent pre-
sentation against MIR. Smoot with the
! puerile, evasive and criminally-p plead
ing argument of the minority in favor
of MIR. Smoot,
All these things will tend to lnf1u-
ence the Senator's judgments against
Mr. Smoot. They Will convince the
politicians OF the Senate that the
| church IS a broken reed upon which
to rely for political strength in this
| Western country. They will ncces-
sarily convince every thinking man in
the East that the right thing to do is
the polite thing TO do-and that Is. to
utterly smash all dominance of polit-
| cal and civil affairs by any ecclesias-
tical body whatever, to break down.
once for all, the law-defylng spirit
which is manifest by the hierarchy In
control Of this State; and thoroughly
to eradicate all forms OF treason and
| hostility to the United States.
We have the utmost confidence in the
ultimate exclusion OF Mr.. Smoot from
the Senate OF the United States He
is there simply as an emissary or mis-
slonary OF the Mormon hierarchy, hav-
| ing no political foundation for his
preference. and there being no civic
reason why he should have obtained
| this preferment.
The events between now and the
meeting of Congress next December
| will be powerful arguments In favor OF
| the establishment and maintenance of
| American principles and American
| ideas all through this jntermountain
country. And when the American Deo-
pie have finally made up their minds