The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1912-08-31
A GREAT BIG PLATFORM.


year is mastodon. 1t breaks all rec
ords for size, and upon reading it one
cannot help but sympathize with Pro.
fessor Evans, who moved to have it ed.
tied and condensed: but of course his
motion was out Of order, as Judge
Powers stated, since the convention had
adopted the platform as it stands.
A very large portion of this bulky
document is taken up with general
| ties, pronouncements which everyone
agrees to and nobody opposes. Every
body wants a non-partisan judiciary;
( everybody wants good roads; ev
erybody wants equitable labor laws;
everybody wants pure elections; every
body wants relief from the too exces
sive cost in the price Of living; every
| body wants unadulterated goods, and
to know what the right price is; ev-
erybody wants women and children TO
| be treated fairly; and everybody OF
honest mind and good sense joins with
the Democracy in denouncing the ae-
tion of the last legislature in this State
IN refusing to ratify the income tax
amendment, which the party platform
| Of the campaign which elected it spe-
cifcally approved and pledged the Re
publican legislature to ratify, The
| failure to rstify was breach OF faith
with the people that ought to be Wis.
tied with coudign punishment.
The personal allusion to President
Taft was undignifed, and unworthy Of
a great State convention. The criti-
cism Of his administration was unde-
| served also, so far as he is concerned
personally. 1t is quite true, however,
that the reactionary course Of the
United States Senate is open to the
most unrestrsined condemna ton; but
when the platform arraigns "the tim
id and vacillating policy Of the present
administration with regard to Mex
leo, we must arraign the Democracy
for its attitude on that question. The
declaration Of the Democratic party, if
it were adopted by the administration,
would be a declaration Of war with
Mexico. But the patriotic American
citizen who desires a war with Mex
leo, is i'll advised in that desire, and
he is altogether wrong in his position;
for such war would create far more
distress, and lead to far more blood
shed and destruction of property than
even the most excited e1aggeration of
the situation, present and past, would
show. In Nicaragua we are invited by
the Government to aid it in the pro.
lection Of American lives and proper
ty. In Mexico any move on our part
is officially and emphatically protest.
ed against, The difference is that be.
tween friendship and cnmity, between
peace and war.
When this platform deals with home
matters, however, it is on solid ground.
There is no question at all but that
the people who drew this platform un,
derstood what they were writing about,
when dealing with home affairs, as
they clearly did not SO well understand
in dealing with the Mexican situation,
and with National matters. The ar
raignment Of the State administration
is strong and we'll deserved. The de-
nunciations of the way in which the
public moneys are handled IS proper
and the system under which the ad,
ministration acts is rightfully con-
demDed.
Coming to the State Land Board,
the platform makes, by suggestion
scathing arraignment of the official
acts, doings, and position of that board
We believe, however, that this ar
raignment by suggestion is well found
ed, and that everything intimated as
dereliction Of the State Land Board
is absolutely true. Indeed, we believe
against the actions Of this board, but
surely no more is needed to stigmatize
it as an unworthy body. To allege ia
voritism which has contributed to the
enrichment of certain officials and their
friends; the taking advantage of in
formation to which all the people were
equally entitled; the discrimination in
terms of sale, negotiations of loans not
authorized by law, the selling of wa
tersheds to favored persons-al this
surely is a tremendous arraignment OF
the State Land Board, The truth Of
the matters suggested, We do not be
lieve to be open to the least doubt.
The denunciation of the Federal
Bunch machine Of this State is eX-
tremely severe, as was stated on the
floor of the convention: but that it is
too severe we do not believe that many
people in this State will say. The out
rageous abuse of position and power
by that machine, the overriding Of the
popular will, the committing of the
State to unwholesome and indecent In
trieues with favored interests: the eel.
fish action Of the Federal Bunch in
selecting favored persons of its own
for Office, and forcing them upon the
people, 10 the displacement Of better
men; the arbitrary and insulting meth
DDS employed, the rough-r riding, steam
roller methods, arc all we'll known to