The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1908-10-22
JUDGE PoWERs'S SPEECH.


Justly said that the election of Smoot
TO tho Senate had caused more dis
tress and misery to the State than any
thing that had happened since State
hood. And in discussing the impro
prIety of electing r high church ofb
cial TO civic Office, the Judge touched
upon the sore spot when he referred tc
the resentment that is developed i'll
certain church quarters whenever Smoot
is attacked. The Judge said that on the
political platform all men are equal
and no one has any right to plead
special ecclesiastical privileges when nc
| goes upon that platform. But right
Smoot, apparently, without being sub
| iect to the charge of attacking the
| Mormon religion. OF course that is one
of the unfair things in the political
situation. II man goes into the politi~
cal arena ne wants to leave his re-
ligious privileges behind him. He
goes there, or should go there, as an in.
dividual, and not as the representative
of a church. But in Smoot s case he
pleads the privileges Of his church,
while at the same time denying that
he is in the political arena as church"
man, And yet that is exactly his po-
sition. He is there as representative
and by the favor Of the Mormon church,
and whenever he is attacked the Nor
mon zealots raise an outcry that IL
rs the church that is aimed at. But If
the church suffers by reason OF Smoot s
activity in the political arena, then the
church ought 10 keep him out Of that
arena altogether, And without the
least doubt, Judge Powers made this
so plain that there can be no misunder.
standing on this point among intelli,
gent men. As a matter Of fact, there
has never been any misunderstanding
on the point save in the minds Of
those who either sought the church in
terest for personal or political ad-
vantage, or those who were so bigotcd
as to be willfully blind. Judge Powers
rendered a conspicuous service to the
general political situation in Utah in
making this situation entirely clear
Smoot, as a politician, has no business
to plead tho religious exemptions OF
Smoot as an eccleslast; nor has any one
the right TO plead that exemption Of
Smoot for him, The fact that it is
nuisance of such mixture
of religion with politics,
On another matter Judge Powers was
equally clear, explicit, and Illuminating;
that was where no treats of the dis
honesty Of the Smootite managers in
this State in Withdrawing the Re
publican electors from the American
ticket. That withdrawal is selfish aud
dishonest, and is everywhere known to
be so. There is no reason for il cX
cept q desire TO help tho local Smootite |
ticket by monopoli2ing for il the Taft |
strength, or at least attempting to do
so; for the effort will fail. To show |
the dishonesty of it and to show the |
purpose back of that dishonesty, !
Judge Powers illustrated tho point by !
asking the question whether. if the |
American party should withdraw its /
candidates for the Legislature and in.
sert in their place the Republican candi-
iates, those Republican candidates
would withdraw from the American
icket, No one for one moment be-
ieves that any such step would be
AIKEN Nor, to pursue the analogy
further, does any one believe for one
moment that IN case the Americans
hould withdraw their State ticket and
ubstitute Spry and tho other Smoot
ing candidates, that those ring caudi-
lates would resign from the American
ickct. Not IN the least. Just as in
be case of the supposition suggested
With respect to the legislative ticket,
% it would be with the State ticket
The Smootites would welcome with
pen arms and the glad hand the
OF their State. legislative,
md county tickets in place of the
candidates on the American
lcket, this either in whole or in part
Everyone knows that this is so, of
curse; such substitution would I'M
leasurably strengthen the Smoot local
lcket, and they would welcome il with
everish Joy. And since they would do
o, that fact illustrates perfectly the
eneral situation here. and Smoot s sell
sh dishonesty toward Taft. The
are playing for the success Of
heir local nominees at the expense Of
heir National ticket. This has been
ointcd out by the American speakers
nd by The Tribune from the first in.
matioD that the Smootite gang had
ach trcachery to Taft IN view. The
urpose of their treacherous scheme
as perfectly evident from the first,
nd low that it has developed in prac-
cal form the animus back of it is
ntirely apparent. That purpose is to
'ercc the Taft strength TO the service
the local Smoot tickets, no matter
ow much harm that may do to Taft.
Judge Powers made another good