The Newberry herald and news. (Newberry, S.C.) 1884-1903, 1892-03-23
THE MUNICIPAL ELECTION.
The Platform Of The Herald and News Dis
cussed-An Argument Against, Which
Only Proves the Necessity
of Our Position.

| IOT our lOHN eIecllCu III d ISCSUl NUN
Der of The Herald and " ews, and have
since re-read it. But cannot yet fully
decide whether you meant it as quite
serious, or rather as a joke. Taking it
however, as meant seriously, [ woulC
ask the privilege of noticing it briefly
If we were prepared to establish {
little Utopia here is Newberry your
platform would he worthy Of serious
consideration. Or if we could even
feel quite sure of New berry getting hel
full share Of the s40,O0O,000 pro
posed by the sage of Enoree fc
South Carolina, and that this
would all prove to be real money
and not worthless paper, we might
venture little. But as Utopianisnl
has hitherto proved to be only poetic
fancy, and as we will likely have to
wait awhile for ever the sage's panacea,
we would Go we'll perhaps to remain
yet little longer on terra .tirnea, and
indulge in no vain illusions.
The futile efforts made some time
since to get somewhat expensive sys-
tenn of water works and electric lights,
the two to cost, if remember rightly,
only $4,000 to $50, 900, it seems to me
ought to convince any one that our
people are not Yet prepared to under
take expensive lGXuries, however use
full they might be at the same time.
The fine opera house to which you al
Jude, and which has not yet been paid
for, serves rather, I think, as bug-a-
boo against such expensive enterprises,
than as an incentive to others OF like
character. Our people are inclined to
be conservative, and are lndlSposed to
burden either their own or future gen.
eratiops with heavy debt. They pre-
fer to move slowly and cautiously, and
to pay as they go; and, if I am not mis-
taken, your suggestion of bonded
debt of half a million, or even Of $780,
900 will make them more so. They
have not yet learned how easy it is to
become rich simply by the use of a
printing press and little paper. This
they will doubtless, ere long, learn
from our sage of Enoree and other such
financial thinkers. But they have not
yet got so far along. While convinced,
however, that our good people are not
vet prepared to undertake costly enter
prises, am quite sure they would not
object to such inexpensive improve
ments as they can afford without going
in debt. Our streets ought certainly
to be keptin better condition than they
are. Mr.. Jackson ought either to have
more force, or to use what he has with
more skill and energy. To this all will
assent. Then we might have, at least
few more lamps, such as they are,
put up on principal street corners.
But one thing we ought to insist on the
new council, whoever may constitute
it, promptly giving US; that is at least
two or three cisterns properly located
in the outskirts Of the town. These
cisterns, I am informed by one in
position to know, can be constructed
for $3.50 to $500 each. Certainly the
town could afford at least three such
for the greater protection against fire
Of our present exposed suburbs. OF
course an elaborate system of water
works would be far preferable. But as
this is likely to be a thing Of the more
or less distant future, we ought, IN my
opinion, to insist on having at least the
cisterns now. They would very soon
more than pay for themselves ia the
greater security of property.
One other point in your platform lam
inclined to notice briefly. You say
The Herald aud News is for measures
now, not men," Let this read "meas-
ures and men," or measures as well
as men," and I can agree with you.
But not as it stands. We want, as you
we'll say elsewhere, ''good and true"
men. We want also "l;-'= energetic
and progressive'' men. lat We want
just as much, men of good moral char
acter and intelligence, who will repre-
sent the better moral sentiment of our
people, and reflect credit on our town
on all occasions. It is this so-called
principle of supporting "measures"-
that is. ''the party''-without regard
to the character Of the men put for
ward by the party machine" that has
made our party politics so corrupt and
debased all over the country. Let good
citizens refuse to vote for unworthy
candidates, and party machines" will
soon be taught the necessity of putting
forward good men. DR.. Park lrst, in
his recent scathing arraignmenC Of the
Tammany Hall government of New
York city we'll and truly says: "You
cannot have men of tainted reputation
high in municipal authority without
that fact working the discouragement
of virtue, and the reduction of moral
This is, perhaps, even
more true of a small town like New
berry, where everybody knows every
body, than it is of large city like New
York. We cannot avoid being judged
as 8 people by the character Of those
we select to govern our town and to
US officially. How necessary,
then, that we should be extremely
careful in the selection of men of good
character, of reasonable intelligence.
and ofestablished. civic virtue, who Will
worthily represent at least the mora.
if not the religious character, of our
community. y.