Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1908-12-03
THE SCHOOL ELECTION.

NV the result of the school election on
Wednesday, the citizens of this CITY
declared that they are not willing 70
turn the schools over to the politician
machine with which the Tribune ri!t,tTle l ~
connected. The vote was, IN fact, q
protest against any kind of machine
politics insthe school board, since every
one of the candidates of the non par
tisau conventions, including the Am
erican," was elected with large mai
GRITTY. The community is to be con-
graduated on the prevalence of that
sentiment. 1t augurs well for the
schools It means that the school funds
viii be honestly spent and that tie
schools will develop with the City.
The vote proved that the people here
no longer accept the charges and &C
cusatfons Of the breeding news
papers as true These papers sought
to make 1T appear that the members Of.
the old school board were but the tools
of a church; that the schools under
that board We're under Church
control: that discrimination had been
shown in the appointment of teachers,
and SO forth. One paper went 50 far
as to descend to personalities and ac-
cuse one Of the most able and eX-
perienced members, Of being a graft.
err. Such were the grounds on which
the voters were appealed to by the
advocates Of a so-called "Amerl-
can" board. Such We're the arguments
used If the people Of this City had
given any credence to the charges
made they would have come out in
force on Wednesday, ana elected the
opposition candidates by over-whelm-
ing maioritiss. "Mormons' and non
''Mormons'' alike would have united In
! the defense Of the schools. II the
voters who in the past elections nave
voted American tickets had be-
slieved the charges made by their pa
pers, they would have rallied to the
rescue OF the schools and the major
tiles or the non-partisan nominees
would have been considerably smaller.
But neither the American voters
generally, nor anybody else, believed
one word OF the newspaper charges.
And SO the opposition candidates lost.
This should be a notice to those papers
that the people OF this clty--people OF
all classes-are getting tired Of the
falsehoods they are offered daily. 1t
should be a notice that the reign Of
false pretenscs Is over, and that the
voters are no more to be swayed by
such means, in the Interest of unscrup-
ulous politicians.
We take the school election this time
to mean that there Is closer
approachment between enlightened
citizens Of various classes, in tbs
interest of the restoration Of
normal, peaceful conditions in the
affairs of this community. II this
Is correct, the result should be satisfac-
tory to all. For tho restoration of peace
means so much to every interest, both
material and spiritual. When the en-
ergy of$one part of the citizens is spent
other part, and this part, consequently.
is under the necessity of cxerting it.
self for defense, all must suffer. You
cannot carry on fractional war without
injuring tho country that Is the scene
of 1t. No one can tell how much Utah
has lost by the anti" Mormon crusades
of which it has been the victim ever
since office-seekers discovered the value
of anti" Mormon bigotry as a political
asset. When these conditions are
changed and the way is prepared for
all loyal citizens to pull together for
the material development of the City,
Its progress Will be as marvellous as
1t was before the crusades were en-
tered upon, and on scale as much
grander and more magnificent as the
resources at hand now are more plenti-
full than thsy We're then. Let us all,
then, do what we can to bury the dead
past, and unite to make the living pres
ent a monument to enterprise, patriot
ism, and universal good will. With
anti" Mormonism' out of the way the
people here can by united effort easily
build up truly American city.
.3ss