The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1891-03-12
THE LAKEPOWN SCHOOL.
A Reply to the Recent Communication of Mr..
Joseph Irwin.

To the Editor of THE HERALD
Your paper of February II contains
quite a lengthy communication over the
signature Of Joseph Irwin, in reply to an
article written by myself, dated January
10, and published in The HERALD of Janu-
airy %, in which appears some distortions
OF meaning and very crooked staten ents
which, in justice to myself and the cause of
truth, I would kindly ask the privilege to
correct
"Itis the truth that offends"
This is an old saying, and that it is a true
one is made plainly manifest by
the tone of Mr.. Irwin's reply. 1t
is evidently made up of uncalled-
for invectlves, and is not becoming
to man of his pious pretensions. l can
justly scOrn the attempt which he has made
to make it appear that 1 wrote for fame or
with mischievous intent.
Now, Joseph, if l wrote without any re-
gard for truth, as you intimate, why did
you not, in all the space that you took ND.
point out even one false statement? BY
your prevarications and sophistry YOU
would fain try to shift the guilt from your
own shoulders to those of the teacher by
saying: "a teacher must be superhuman
to please all when he first commences
There was not an intimation in my article
disparaging the teacher more than that he
allowed himself to be used by you
as a tool to bind burdens upon Others
which he was not willing to bear himself.
The arbitrary rules-"I fail to see in
them the elements of tyranny" Quite
likely. But when the measure which Won
have melted OUT others is measured back
to you, perhaps the scales will fall from
your eyes. As to when you first heard that
the ''tardy pupils were called black sheep,
cuts no figure in the case. It was true, all
the same, and have good reason to believe
that you knew it at the start, ana that the
scheme originated In your own brain. The
teacher, Mr.. Rex, told me himself when
talked to him about the management of the
school that he was acting under the in
structiOns of yourself and others in au-
thority Now, as to the scribble about the
person who broke the slate being called a
rogue aud criminal! 1t is safe
to say that no such language
was used, Of course it was
not and you certainly knew that you were
misquoting when you wrote it, for nv
words were right before you, 1t was not
the person who did wrong that was pun
ished, for it was not known who it was. but
is was those who were guilty of no crime
that were turned out in the cold. This
misquotation and perversion of facts, to-
gether with your "waste basket episode.
it is plain, were used merely as subter-
fuge to cover up the possible meaning of
my words. The following is the language
used ''F'or this supposed crime, the Who'll e
school must suffer with cold, besides have
a lock turned on them and their Young
minds poisoned with the sad reflection of
this implied proof which stands against
them, branding them as rogues and Grim
inals unworthy of either trust or conf
dence.''
The very fact that they were out in the
cold, under lock and key, was implicit
proof OF their crlminality and roguery.
Now Joseph, how does this clubbing of
yours tally with the correspondence of the
unesteemed contemporary, which YOU
tauntingly mention in your public witt
cism. Precisely such perversion of facts
| and garbled statements as this of yours
written by the scribes you refer to, are
taken up and torn to pieces by the editor of
IHE HERALD In almost every issue of that
paper, and am sorry to say that not unlike
them, in many OF your differences, you ap-
peared to have but little use for truth, but
kept scratching away for dear life, in or.
der. II possible. to cover up the record be.
hind you.
| 1t would seem as though it had become
QUE of your peculiarities Ito use a familiar
phrase of your OWN to try to put the
bright side of the cloth out,n until many
of your statements amount to but little
more or less than mere fabrications. II
shall presume till further informed, that
the home talk must have been exclusively
around his own HEARTH Now, have the
best of reason to believe that you did not
presume any such thing, for you knew
better. You well know that day or two
before Christmas, patron of the sbhool
who lives over mile from the schoolhouse
and had two small children in the school
met the teacher, Mr.. Rex, in your place oil
business, the Coop. store and there pro
tested to him against locking the pupils
out of the schoolroom during the noon hour
and then and there offered to make him a
present Of suit of clothes if he would
refer him to one school outside of Lake
town where the pupils were thus treated
This conversation was had in your pres
ence, and hearing, and so obstinately and
entirely was his petition disregarded tina,
he took his children out of the school and
they have not come since, which 1 am
| ready to prove at any time. 1 willsay here