The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1908-10-21
OFFICE ONLY FOR THE RICH.

raised the question OF property qualifi
cation for candidates for office, and il
urges the poverty of the American can
/ didates as tho reason why they should
not be elected. But If not being rich
or not being represented largely on
the assessment roll is n disqualification
for office in the opinion Of the Dcs
orct News and Of the Mormon church
let US have that proposition fairly and
squarely stated 4 number of the
American candidates. especially chose
for State office, are not represented on
the assessment roll. They mako their
living by their daily labor and exer'
ton; they have not accumulated wealth
or property; therefore, says the News,
they ought not to be elected to office.
This is new test in these lntter
times. In the former days it was quite
generally held that man who did not
have property ought not to vote. That
was a hardship on the poor man
which was against the interests Of the
commonwealth. and was on full consid-
Grafton abandoned. So that very few
States now have property qualifications
for voters. But the Deseret News ap-
pears anxious TO have the property
qualification established here for can
didates for office.
This is not the first time the Descret
News has taken this tack 1t made the
same presentation heretofore with re-
spect to the membership of the first
American City Council. But IS soon as
we applied the same test to its own
members of the Council and its own of
flee. holders. it began to protest that
property owning was not requisite
for office-holders. It's position then,
as now, apparently is that an American
candidate should be large property
owner before he presumcs TO bo a can
didate for office; but that member of
the Mormon church need not own any
property at all TO be a candidate for
office. This is plain, concise. and
fair statement of the position Of the
Descret News on this question,
The Tribune does not believe that
any fit man and good citizen should be
office by reason of his poverty. 1t
does not insist that Mornons should be
large property owners in order TO be
any more than II insists
that Americans should be SO, The
Tribune is content to leave the matter
leave it.. and TO say that no man should
be Disseminated against. either in his
voting or in bis candidacy for office,
by reason of his poverty The News
takes the other tack, and holds that
Americans who are not rich men should
not aspire to office, And right there
comes another sharp and clear differ
ence between the American party and
the organ OF the Mormon church and
the church party. 1t is quite true that
the 1.-THE eaters get rich out of the ex-
tortions they practice upon the Nor
mon people at large. But this. so far
from being TO their credit, we hold to
be greatly to their discredit. And We
reject as absolutely unpatriotic, un.
democratic, unrcpublican. the insistence
which the News seems so much TO harp
upon, thai a man in order to be a can
lidate for office ought TO be 4 wealthy
man, or Mt least be heavily represented
,n the assessment roll. That doctrine
is destructive of the equality of man
hood and womanhood as such. and
makes the claim of citizenship for vot.
ing and for office-holding rest upon
.hc ownership OF property. Benjamin
Franklin put this whole matter very
frankly and strongly before the Penn
sylvania legislature in an early day
When, in contending against the prop
erty qualification Of voters, he illus
rated his position by saying: "Here
8 Smith, who owns n jackass. BY rea-
son of his ownership of that lackass,
nc votes. Presently the iackass dies
Smith cannot vote any more, Now,
which voted, Smith or the iackass7'
And that is the proposition, very forci-
bly, expressed, upon which the News,
IS usual, brays for the iackass.