The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1911-09-15
IT'S SORT OF NoNPARTIsANsHIP

ITS SORT OF NoNPARTIsANsHIP.
a number of years ago, when the
silver question was much discussed,
and when there was action taken upon
it from time 10 time in this region,
there were various meetings. dcclara-
tions, and efforts to find sound and
acceptable basis upon which silver
might he coined and used as good
money, such as the real silver advo'
Gates contendcd was its right and due,
But, after the first defeat. and when
it began to he evident that it was I'M
possible to retain the old standard of
sixteen TO one, n number of the best
friends of silver had successive meet
ings, in which a careful programme
was laid down for the rehabilitation
of silver on such ratio as could be oh.
tanned. \ silver meeting WAS called
in tho Salt Lake theater, and the build
ing was dcnsely packed, The delib-
erately considered programme of the
true friends of silver was cautiously
Hl'o'Hbtbs anu We uhH NdlbN9lAN
by those who were cognizant of the cf-
forts made, and of the principles in
volved and the purpose in view. When
II came to submitting the definite res
olutions, as drawn, to the meeting,
however, an unthinking person who had
not been in the meetings at all, who
knew very little about the question
but who was a trumpcter for the six
tecnto.one standard, rose and moved
an amendment providing that nothing
be done except on the coinage ratio
Of sixteen TO one. He pointed out that
that had always been the position of
the silver men, and that il would not
do for that meeting 10 90 back on it,.
His amendment carried with a whoop,
and tho long and toilsome efforts of
the best friends of silver were defeat
cd in an instant.
We are reminded Of this incident by
the course of the Smoot organ in this
city as related to the commission form
OF government A number of persons
here Of civic pride and good intentions
have been advocating n real commits
sion form of government for n num-
bcr Of years. They finally concentrated
their efforts upon the Des Moincs sys-
tom as the commission form best adapt
ed for Salt Lake. They almost sue
ceeded in 1909 They renewed their
efforts with the legislature Of last win
ter. The Federal bunch, however, ap-
parently yielding TO the arguments and
representations made, decided in favor
of commission form of government,
but one which had never been heard
of anywhere before They took the
Des Moines plan and carefully elimi.
mated from it the initiative, the ref
erendum, the recall, and all the civil
service features that protect tho mu-
nlcipal officials in their Offices as long
as they are competent and do what is
right; those features which secured
nonpartisauship were all cut ont So
| emasculated, the commission form of
| government is made more direct po-
| litical machine than even the system
of municipal government that we have
The Federal bunch amendment TO the
| commission form .of government is thus
| precisely like the amendment referred
TO above with regard to the silver ques,
tioD. The real silver men had reached
| definite and careful conclusions, which
were overturned in a moment by hot
| headed, ignorant zealot. The friends
of the commission form of government
| had carefully gone over the field and
| selected the Des Moines system as
! the best; but they did not reckon with
the Federal bunch. That vicious mar
plot combination saw way to emascu
late the Des Moines plan and make il
serviceable TO them as a coveted politi
cal machine, while at the same time
pretending to give way TO the idea OF
commission form of government
! Crafty, selfish, and unscrupulous, the
Federal bunch is imposing the pre-
| tense of a commission form of gov
ernment upon this city, leaving out
even the shadow OF n-partisanshiy
the substance of which everywhere else
accompanies that form 1t is nonpar
tisauship with the provisions for it left
out, And when the organ of the Fed
eral bunch demands -partisanship in
the municipal affairs Of this city, ii
simply means that every other form OF
partisanship shall lie down and let tho
Republican machine roll triumphantiy
over them. That is absolutely all there
is to nonpartisanship so far as the Fed
eral bunch organ is concerned.