The Magnolia gazette. [volume] (Magnolia, Miss.) 1872-current, 1886-04-23
PLAIN WRITING.
An Amusing Incident Showing the VICE.
edasss Of iiiegibie ChlroErapiy.

An Amusing Incident showing tne "icN
edhsss Of iiiegibie ChIroEraphy.
The Importance Of writing plain and
legible hand is nowhere better under
stood than among the men who spend
their days and nights in newspaper
offices. The numerous soul-harrowing
blunders that have escaped the eyes of
editors, compositors and proof-readers
and reached the bright sunlight of pub
Lofty in cold type might be enumerated
by .legions, but we believe there have |
been very few occasions when illegible
penmanship has had the effect of setting
an entire community by the ears, pre-
eipitatins heated discussion and fomentl
| ing interheeine strife and local discord,
| Yet such case has occurred in Penn.
sylvania, if the apparently veraclous and
| interesting account OF as4Pmladelphla
paper may be believed
A little over twelve years ago the ems
terprising residents of the town OF Hat
boro suddenly became alive to the TACT
that nothing would so greatly contribute
to the material welfare OF the village
and start it irresistibly on the broad
highway to metropolitan position
as bridge across the quiet
little stream that crept past
the outskirts of the corporation,
The matter grew in successive stages
from double-leaded editorials and COM
munications by Taxpayer, : Constant
Reader and "Veritas' in the local pa
per to the dignity of a political issue.
The building of the bridge across the
Pennvpack formed the keynote, so to
!, speak, of one of the most exciting and
heated campaigns ever enjoyed by the
citizens of the county. The election
was closely fought, and the party which
,, favored ''public improvements won
the day. The law provided that view
|, ers should be appointed to look into the
subject and report their conclusions te
the grand jury for final decision. The
board of viewers was appointed by thu
! newly elected officials, and as matte
), of course they unanimously recommend
: ed to the grand jury the immediate con
struction of the bridge.
, just at this point the matter seems t
|, have been dropped, but for what reasol
= the chronicle does not relate. Perhap
:, it was discovered that the county treas
: ury was in condition tha
= would not warrant so heavy draft NJ
y on it, or perhaps some more Absorb
ing question arose, in the di
Z cussion of which the enterprisihg cit
n zens lost sight of the bridge issue.
y may be that the metropolitan aspiration
of Hatboro encountered chilling fros
: under the influence of which the brlds
I across the Pennypack drifted into TO
y getfulness. Be this as it may, the gre
y Improvement over which the famol
r. f, victory was so gallantly won was new
ar consummated.
Z. u But after quiet slumber of twel
~ years there has arisen new demand #
~ that bridge, and recently the mus
s records of the county were tumbled ov
~ aa in search of the grand jury's indors
~ ment. 1t was finally fished up a.
y - eagerly scanned to see what it was. A
~ here is where the real trouble began.
i A local attorney CHANGED to have be
;n member of the grand jury, and to h
a was delegated the duty OF putting
.ha report in writing. With laudahe p
~ fessional zeal he succeeded iii produci
iU .ha "a scrawl that is not nearly as legible
as ~. Chinese, after the lapse of do2
H., hia years, even to the lawyer himself. ]
on ~ faction which favors the bridge prof
Ih tho to be able to read the last sentence of
'Ae report. The opposing faction claim t
:. it is as plain as print to them, too,
w the two translations do not agree in
a en-. most essential particular. Whether
- grand jury meant to say: 1.-The gr;
ou Inquest moao concur in the within
I'm I'm port" or ''mon-concur, no impair
'cn, tribunal is able to decide. The old fl
u is, therefore, on once more, and with
re- doubled bitterness. The dorble-lea
ON editorials with no uncertain sound h
lar l5 reopened in the local paper, and q
Also payer" Constant Reader" and ..N
Ino itas'' have taken their pens in hand '
iere all the vigor of their perennial yol
The quiet serenity of Hatboro is as
SSoo Ses disturbed by the clamor of the war;
,1uo forces of the bridge and anti-bri
an 'cai; parties, and the only thing the pc
: " are unanimous in is the conviction
@ man who can't write so that he ca
/, . least read his own production sh
~ co o buy typewriter at once.
: % Meanwhile, that great artery OF
80, merce, the Pennypack, goes unspal
nei , to the sea.-Detroit Tribune.