The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1909-03-10
W cAsABIANcA sPRY.


Governor Spry is in a position to
sympathize with the sensations of the
famous Casabianca when he was left
alone on the deck with d bonfire on all
sides of him. The governor has finally
been driven by the painful exigencies
of the situation to assume all the re-
sponsibiiity for putting out the fire
with every indication that ne will need
emollients for his blisters before he
finishes the job.
This condition of affairs, painful as
it is, follows most naturally the devel-
opment Of events originating in the
justly-celebrated deal between the
liquor dealers and the Republican ma
chine whereby, for a cash cOnsidera-
ton, the legislature was pledged in ad-
vance to suppress any and every at
tempt to pass prohibition laws or per-
NIT the submission of the question to
the voters of the state.
It must have looked easy-when the
deal was made. For years the machine
had done as it pleased with the party.
it slandered folks, and the innocent
partisans believed the ISLANDERS, voting
accordingly: it circulated anonymous
Hbels and got away with them, as the
vulgar say; it named candidates and
refused to name others; it pretended Sc
cretly to represent the wishes of the
church authorities, and good church
people accepted the whispering as au
thoritative. Finally, il buncoed some
of the most prominent churehmen into
believing that the salvation of the
Mormon people from destruction de-
pended upon the election of the ma
chine ticket and the return of SmOot
to the senate.
With this long train of successful
crookedness. what could seem simpler
than to finance the campaign by q lit
tie negotiation for cash in exchange
for legislation? What could be more
natural than the assumption of virtue
when the subject came up and the
quiet assassination of legislation when
no one was looking.
Unfortunately, the plethora of cant
paign funds affected some of the ma
chimes followers so much that they
Dragged about the transaction which
had produced the bari. And, unfor-
tunately, the Mormon church insisted
that its conference resolution meant
prohibition in spite of the machines
assertion that the resolution was bun
combe, meant only to deceive the I'M
wary.
What followed is known too well to
need repetition. The machine finds
itself almost at the close of the session
compelled TO throw Spry into the
breach and leave him on the burning
deck. whence all but him have fed. In
the midst of the roaring flames, the
crash of falling masts and flying
sparks. threatened with an explosion
in the magazine and sizzling with the
heat. William has accepted the job.
At yesterdays joint session of the
legislative bodies he urged the adoption
of a local option measure-the very
thing the Democratic county platform
recommended-and talked about siren
nous regulation as the one thing to be
desired.
On the face II II the message looks
good: behind IL. however, looms the
oninous figure of a barrel on one hand
and a prohibition Republican on the
other. with unlimited dollar marks
scattered suggestiveIy about the frame
of the picture. The governors strategy
may stave off prohibition. for which we
the blaze on the deck where William
stands He and all his associates Of
the federal ofIiee-holders' syndicate are
booked for q fire drill beside which the
present exhibition is a pleasant picnic