The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1909-10-27
AS A REACTIONARY.

this city. made q record as Councilman
from tlrc First ward i'm mis- term not
Yet completed. hat definitely ranges hm
as among tho obstmctouistS: among
those who are deliberately determined
20 hold The city back from it's career
of progress and TO do everything pos
sblc 10 bring obloquy upon the fair
name Of Salt Lake. He alone had the
.unpairIolic maiguity TO vote against
The appropriation of $4,000. which the
Council with unanimous vote of all
present except himself, appropriated
for the entertainment of the Grand
Army veterans in their National En-.
campmcnt in this city last August.
He voted also against the appropria.
| tion for the Commercial Travellers AS
/ Isociation, and the organ OF thc bunch
supports him in this negative vote.
That organ did not have thc tcmcritv
to support him openly in his refusal
! TO DO the right and proper thing by
the Grand Army veterans. but il rests
! its support against the Commercial
| Travellers appropriation on n basis
that would necessarily exclude support
I for the appropriation for the Grand
Army veterans, The same reason that
iustiGcs the Murdoch vote in the Com.
mcrcial Travellers case would also Jus.
! itify it in opposition TO the Grand
Army
In all Of his votes on public nm
pToycmcnts and matters Of public pol.
icy and utility, Murdoch voted on the
,sjstently "'No' on every proposition
of the city advanccmcnS. and no al.
ways found reasons satisfactory to him
self for so voting.
But the people of this city do not
want to have n man for Mayor who
is always looking for some excuse for
acting against the city's progress and
trying 10 stop Improvements. What
thcy want is man who can sec the
reasons for helping the city. not for
dealing it a blow or a kick. The man
who is constitutional obStructionist
or rcacrionary never fails TO find rca-
sons sufficient for his own purpose TO
vote "No" when Il question of prog
ress comes up.
1t has been so with Murdoch right
along as Councilman, He was always
able TO urge reasons sufficient to con
vince himself that the projected i'm
provemcnt ought not to be made, and
so he voted against II.
In the matter of the issue of bonds
which was authorized by vote of the
taxpayers in this city in July, 1905,
Mr.. Murdoch not only voted as Coun-
Gilman against the submission Of the
proposition TO the taxpayers, but he
came out in a long winded address,
undertaking to show that the bonds
ought not TO be issued, He did his
best 10 prevent the taxpayers from
voting this boost for the progress OF
the CITY. The absolute necessity of
this bond issue was shown by the Coun-
ell in IFS address 10 the public In ad-
vocacy of the issue The experience
of the city since has demonstrated the
wisdom, and in fact the imperative
need of that bond issue The tax
PAYERS were convinced that the bonds
ought 10 bc issued. and so they voted
that they should he issued, The re-
alone opposed them. The
The two double distilled official reac
tionartes came out in active opposition,
ranging Themselves consciously and
willfullv against the progress OF the
city, Councilman Hall Joined With
in signing a statement which
undertook. to show not only that the
bonds ought not TO be issued, but that
the city could pay its part on all the
ordered or necessary
without the bond issue.
In thus making this protest Mr. Muir
doch must accept one of two PROPOSE
tious. Either he knew that the state
mcnls he made in the protest against
the bonds were untrue and be made !
them. knowing them to be so and with !
intent TO deceive the taxpayers, or he !
believed them TO be true and so showed |
himself 10 be absolutely and utterly !
TO deal with the question. !
IL makes no difference which of these !
MI NluIuptu dNSCptSs liz
is bound TO accept one of them, be- !
cause there is no other way TO look !
at it, And the fact certainly is that !
the bond issue was needed. Indeed, |
the opposition press, which is now sup !
porting Mr.. Murdoch with such men |
dacity and clamor. is eager in It's as.
sertions that the city is bankrupt even |
with that 100000 issued. That ac
cusation. OF course, is false, and yet |
in making ii the opposition deals
body blow 10 It's own candidate for
Mayor without realizing what it is
doing, for it couvicts Mr. Murdoch of
villful falschood i'll signing that pro.
Test against the bonds, or of absolute
and childish incompetence in making
The claim that he did in that protest
And there YOU have the measure of
Mr., Murdoch, absolute and well de-
incd, a measure which it is impos
,ible for him either to diminish in his
il service TO this city, or to eg-
arge by way of good viii or progress
vencss.