The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1908-09-29

The Democratic state committee and
candidates, at a meeting held in the
office of Chairman Martineau yester-
day afternoon, by unanimous vote
adopted the following address, intro
duced by B. H. Roberts, committeeman
from Davis county:
To the Democrats Of Utah:
Fellow CitiZens-A crisis has arisen
in the experience of the Democratic
party of the state Of Utah, upon which
we deem il necessary to issue to you
this address The Democratic state
convention. which assembled on the 22d
of September, at Logan, presented to
the people of this state as the party 5
candidate for governor one of the
states foremost citizens. and the man
of the hour. Jesse knight of Provo,
The nomination was presented under
circumstances most unusual and &C
companied by such a demonstration of
unanimous desire for his nomination,
as must have been gratifying to him.
self, his family and his friends through
out the state. That he would have been
elected had he consented to run for
the office of governor of Utah no one
doubts; and that his election would
have put an end to the disreputable
and dishonorable machine methods of
the Republican party in this stale, on
the one hand, and on the other would
have disrupted and finally obliterated
the American" party, is equally GER
tain; for all that is needed by the good
people Of this state to end the unnatu-
raj strife that now RACES in our midst
as bitter and cruel as it is unneces-
sary; as foolish as it is injurious TO
the progress of our peoples an as
sured opportunity. That opportunity
was presented, as we believe, in the
| - ut Uv.t 1T
however, in the exercise of his judg-
ment, aided perhaps by the wisdom of
his friends, has chosen to refuse the
high honor the people of our state de-
sired to confer upon him. We say the
people of our state advisedly, for the
! call which came to Jesse Knight to
serve the state was a call greater
than one that could be issued by a pO-
| litical party-it was the call of the
people of Utah, without respect to par
| ty, for Jesse Knight to come to the
political rescue of the state.
No Censure for Mr.. Knight.
! This incident in the recent experience
| of the party is not here dwelt upon
in order TO end in deDnnciatiOn of the
course taken by the man we desired
for a candidate. Mr. Knight has only
acted within his personal rights in the
\ matter, ana gives 10 tnlS committee
and to the people of Utah such sound
reasons for declining the honor the
people would most surely have con-
ferred upon him, that no friend of
Jesse knights should censure him in
their judgments, or allow their esteem
| for him to abate by SO much as the
one poor fraction of hairs breadth
No, and a thousand times no, The
| Democrats of Utah, the people of the
state, would do scant honor to them
selves il they could find it in their
hearts to censure Mr.. Knight for the
course he has thought wisest and best
to take in the trying hour which came
upon him in the struggle between the
performance of one duty and another
We will not be of those who idolize to-
day and rend tomorrow; today weer
a Caesar slain, tomorrow build a mon
ument to Brutus. Uncle Jesse, to you
we speak in behalf of the Democrats
of Utah. We love and honor you, jus,
the same. Long may you live among
our foremost and most honored citi-
zens. to do all the good that is in your
heart to do; to stand as we know you
will for square deal for all the peo-
pie in those relations where your ac-
tivities touch the public welfare. And
when the anxieties of your recent ex-
perience in being sought for political
Office shall have passed away, may the
incident take form and crystalline into
one of your most pleasant and endur-