The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1911-11-03
A NEGLIGENT PUBLIC MAN.

n
is making for him. That concern dc
| nonnced his selection as having beer
made bv q clique without authority
| aud in the secrecy of the star cham
Der. 1t opposed the method and th'
nomination. and promptly sent forth
call for a Republican, city convention
to defeat it. .Agl now, when 1T makes
tho sort Of dcfcusc that it IS making
of AIR. Park. one is inclined to believe
that il means. in fact, TO stab HIM IN
the back rather than 10 hclp him; tof
certainly its defense is calap'Itous at
tack upon him
Speaking of the .cght,hour law and
the report that Mr., Park opposed 1T, the
Smoot organ says. "Mr Park did not
oppose the eight hour law, and until the
rumor reached him he had never heard
OF that particular statute.
But man who had never heard OF
the eicht.hour law until i rumor
reached him that he WAS accused OF op.
posing it, is certainly in a condition of
blankncss with respect to that matter
which can hardly commend him to the
favor of an intelligent public; for, who
has not heard Of the cigbt-hour law :
| The answer is, Samuel Park. candi-
date for mayor of Salt Lake City, and
nc alone. And this is not a charge
made against him by those who are OPP
set forth by his rcputcd friends.
Surely no more calamitous defense Of
Il candidate was ever suggested. For,
if it is true that Mr.. Park had never
beard OF tho eight hour law. the most
prominent and often the most bitterly
contested law on the statute books,
then surely there must be Il multitude
Of other important statutes that he has
never heard Of, and his qualifications
for mavor of n great city may be rea-
sonably doubted on tins ground
It's defense Of Mr. Park BY the Smoot
organ puts him decidedly 10 the bad,
and the question is. whether that organ
did not mean to damage him IN making
hat defense? We are inclined to
think that its support of Mr.. Park Is
"NlNlN anu ''ut iHIo S''p
in the back is delivered for a purpose,
But in case there should be any trut
in it, surely it is a warning to all in
tcligent people 10 refuse to vote for
Mr.. Park. and notice TO the public
that nc is so wocfulv lacking in in
formation about public matters that his
election would be a damage to the
city.
The card issued by Mr.. Park and
printed in the Smoot organ Yesterday
morning docs not relieve the situation
in the least: 1T leaves the editorial
sta tcmcnt made in the organ TO stand
uuchallenced Mr. Park in his card
does not saw that he never heard of the
eight hour law, but he docsn { say that
he had heard of it; vet now that his
attention has been called TO it, he viii
be ono of its stnuuch defenders if it
is ever attacked This is a piece of
inadVertence which shows over his own
signature that Mr.. Park knows moth
ing whatever about the question, for
that law has been attacked, il has been
adiudcatcd. and Mr. Park in no way
stepped forward to the defense OF ;h;
law, 1t is only now. when he is a can.
didate for Office, and long after the law
had been fully vindicatcd in the courts,
that he comes forward with a trium-
phant declaration that he will be one
of its stannchcst defenders 1t is easy,
however, 10 defend statute which has
been fully adiudicatcd and declared
valid, and so Mr., Park 5 protestatou in
this regard. while fully sustaining the
claim of the organ that he knows moth
ING about the cight-ho law. is mere
empty wind.
With regard 10 ihc charge that he
took part IN the military service OF the
state against thc strikers in tho Car
bon county coal troubles. Mr.. Park
saws that he ''would not have been in
sympathy with any opposing Of labor
men lawfully attempting to obtain their
rights But this is pitiablc begging
Of the whole question. for that was not
the situation; and the language could
easily mean that he would obey mill
tarv orders whether tie lawful rights
OF ihc Iaborcrs were involved or not
The defense of Mr., Park on these
grounds is 81 coutcmptibly silly. both
in the editorial of the Smoot organ and
in his oNn card. that his real friends
must blush for him. and hope that he
will not emerge from his retirement
again during the campaign. for his ad
missions. such as are made, arc damag
ing and the want Of knowledge pro
tested in his behalf is disastrous for
a man seeking responsible public po.
sitiou.
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BENEFIT OF DRILL.