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v Vol. B; No. 10 SALT? LAKE CITY, UTAH, NOVEMBER 18. 1905. Price 5 Cents' 111
I Deseret News and Church Influence
!Tho Desorot News took great of
fense at an article which appeared in
the issue of Truth of Nov. 11. Last
Monday the News devoted consider
able space to calling: Truth a liar and
in attempting to explain away, the al
! legations of Truth that tho News fa
vored the Democratic party in tho re
cent olootion, usoil "church Influence"
In behalf of that party, thereby caus
ing the defeat of the Republicans and
tho election of tho "American" ticket
The News denies that it favored the
Democrats in tho campaign and says
that Truth did not prove Its charges
and did not quote from the News in
support of its assertions.
Wo did not make quotations from
the News because It was entirely un
necessary, and to do so would con
sume much more space than we have
at our command, at least 75 per cent
of tho political matter which appeared
in the Nows during tho campaign be
ing either directly or indirectly
"boosts" for tho Democrats. It was
recognized and known by everybody
at all Interested during the six weeks
preceding tho election that tho News
f was in truth and in fact a Democratic
organ. It was discussed In Republi
can meetings that tho Republicans
had tho Nows against-them -and Demo
crats openly boasted that tho church
organ wa"s with them. In tho body of
articles the News even went so far
as to print in capital letters salient
. points urged by the Democrats. Edl
' torials, although written guardedly,
unfailingly carried tho impression
that tho Interests of tho city demand
I ed the election of tho Democratic
i ticket.1 Theso aro matters of. common
jf knowledge. Of course no passage ap
peared in tho News in which it was
. baldly statod that tho peoplo should
,-f vote tho Democratic ticket. But tho
?, Nows constantly "lauded" tho Demo
cratic administration, openly de
nounce tho "Americans" and by .in
direction and innuendo let" no oppor
q tuhlty pass to strike the Republicans.
f Truth several "times during th"o cam
paign called attention to tho fact that
itqburch, organ was favoring the
- rijpij. r and suggested to those
if ' who control the paper, or are goner
" ;
L i .
ally understood to control it, that the
favoritism should he stopped.
The News, in its editorial of Nov.
13, denouncing Truth, admits that the
News was in politics. Here is what
it says: "The News is ready at any
time to meet the charge of Democratic
leanings or Republican proclivities
and Is able to defend Itself on either
ground as an Independent paper, but
not as a neutral."
An Independent papor Is one free to
support any party. A neutral is quite
another thing. The News emphatical
ly says It is not neutral. It certainly
was not in the recent campaign. The
president of the church has again and
again stated that the church was not
in politics In any shape, manner or
form whatsoever. That surely means
that tho official organ of tho church
is not in politics. The editor of the
Nows, however, says tho Nows is in
dependent, not a neutral, and in doing
so tho News, in effect, says that Pres
ident Smith does not speak the truth.
Tho statements of the Nows and the
president of tho church aro diametri
cally opposed to each other and no
amount of sophistry can reconcile
them. Moreover the News being tho
official organ of the church and enter
ing into politics and taking sides as it
has done has violated tho constitu
tion of tho state which provides that
the church and state shall bo separate
and distinct and, that tho church
shall not Interfere with tho functions
of the state.
In tho campaign tho News on more
than one occasion hammered tho Re
publicans by taking for Its text falso
statements of tho Tribune to tho ef
fect that the Republicans were unsuc
cessfully sometimes and other times
successfully seeking tho Influence of
tho church, but tho Nows had neither
time' nor Inclination to deny tho Hor
aldfs false statement that "Republican
whisperers" wero officially reprimand
ed,! that tho Deserot Nows in an edi
torial sanctlbned by tho flrst presi
dency rebuked tho "Smoot machine."
Tho News didn't want this contra
dicted, although tho Nows know It was
falso. It played In with", tho Herald,
tho Democratic organ, In order that
the) impression the Nows had createa
that tho church favored tho Domocrats
should be given as much publicity as
possible.
Tho Nows had no word of consuro
for Democratic Chairman Martlncau,
who through tho wholo campaign
worked tho church influenco racket
and did his utmost to drag tho church
Into politics and on tho day before
tho election and on election day used
tho Nows Itself as a campaign docu
ment. Early in tho afternoon of the
day of election Mr. Martlneau got out
a circular letter or dodger as tho
Nows very appropriately calls It, false
ly stating that Senator Smoot had
conceded that tho Republican ticket
was beaten. This dodger, which tho
News admits was printed In tho Nows
Job office was widely circulated by
Deserct Nows carriers at tho polling
places and through the city generally
and several of tho ardent Domocrats
of tho Nows industriously occupied
themselves In spreading that falso ro
port gotten out by tho Democratic
city commltee and signed by Its
chairman.
Truth makes specific charges
against tho News.
1st. That it during the campaign
strongly advocated tho election or
tho Democratic ticket, openly and de
cisively opposed tho "American" tick
et and opposed tho Republican ticket
covertly and by lnuondo and finally
dealt It a death blow. Tho Nows it
self during nnd before tho campaign
Is amplo proof of those assertions.
2nd. Tho two paragraphs which
appeared prominently on tho llrst page
of tho News on tho evoning of tho day
boforo tho election taken In connec
tion with what had appeared in tho
News boforo was a clear direction to
voters to voto tho Democratic ticket.
It was so considered by tho public
generally, Gentilo and Mormon allko;
so considered by tho Democratic cam
paign commlttco which purchased
several thousand copies of tho Nows
contaiulg those paragraphs and cir
culated them as n campaign docu
ment. Tho article complained of was
also printed with othor mattor In tho
form of a circular and sent broadcast,
through Desoret Nows carriers, over
tho city. Tho same typo was used in
tho printing of tho circulars as was
used In tho Nows, tho typo being lift
ed from ono form to tho other. The
latter proceeding Councilman Fern
strom could explain. Ho was prob
ably the originator of the scheme, If
- a
not tho originator ho was in on it' jM
with tho Democratic city committee, ;:
and tho Nows editors and manager", '. H
and know tho valuo of tho Nows as a , H
campaign documont to assist in tho ; jlfl
election of tho ticket on whlcli'ho was " M
a candidate. . . '
lid. The Nows by Its actions has j j'H
subjected tho church of which It is
tho official organ to desorvod consuro f I
and put tho heads of tho pliu'rcir!In til
the light of breaking their pledges' ,' 'I
and made them appear as inslnccro in '
their declaration that tho church J',B
takes no hand in politics. ,, J H
Those aro cold facts which" 'no t 'H
amount of explanations and no contor-i ;.;H
tlon of language or sophistry can ( x- ' H
plain away. Tho Nows has brought 'I
upon Itself tho bitter condemnation, of jfi 'I
tho Gentile Republicans and equally fl
as bitter consuro by a. groat many. H
Mormons, who want this church InfhP V
enco consigned to a bottomless' pit. : xH
Truth Is thoroughly convinced that H
President Joseph F. Smith and tho
others of tho first presidency did not 'H
excrclso any church Influence- in tho H
campaign. Tho Nows, however, on Its H
own responsibility and directly con; H
trary to tho wishes of tho church load" H
ers, mndo It appear that tho "church H
wanted tho Democratic ticket elected.' H
To cloar their own skirts tho church. H
leaders should in somo decisive way H
show their disapproval of tho courso jH
of tho Nows. H
WHAT DOES THIS MEAN? ; I
On November 9th tho. National- H
Bank of tho Republic filed suit in tho H
Third district court against W. G. H
Van Horno, now of Egypt, but former- H
ly of Salt Lako City, and Josoph Llpp-, H
mnn, to recover $3,209.45 and costs M
alleged to bo duo on a promissory- M
noto dated January 31, 1901, .duo and M
payablo on January 31, 1902. Tho noto M
was signed by Mr. Van Homo and on-. ifl
dorscd by Mr. LIppman. It will bo- M
romombcred that in January, 1901, t
Mr. Van Horno was a member of tho M
lower house of tho Utah legislature. M
That' was boforo Mr. Van Horno, by H
tho grace of Senator Kbarns, re-' H
eelved tho United States Federal ap; ;
polntmont .of Justice of tho Court of tM
First Instanco at Cairo, Egypt, which'
ho now holds. It will, also bo'rqtndnv iJ
bered that at' that - llmo Mr.' Van ,
Horno was not in affluent, -circum M
stances and that few- p'cbplo" wound" lJ
have considered . it, prjiiTenV-.to Jend LH
