People's voice. [volume] (Wellington, Sumner County, Kansas) 1890-1917, 1892-08-26
COUNTY SUPERINTENDENT.

COUNIf SOfEhlN ENDcNi'
The Monitor is trying its best to
make a little political capital against
the editor of the VOICE because OF
the criticism it has offered concerning
the candidacy of Mrs. Carson for
county Superintendent. A more un-
fair statement of our position could
scarcely have been made than that
which it perpetrated last week.
Starting out by saying: 1--WE get a
sample of the high moral and religious
plane on which the VOICE proposes
to conduct the county campaign in
the attacks it is making week after
week upon Mrs. Carson, the Republican
candidate for superintendent Of
schools" it proceeds to hold US up as
an ungallant whelp who has been
"embOldened" by Mrs. CarsOn's tenn
orary absence from the city "tO
attempt to discredit her standing as
an instructor"
Now, really, we thought we had been
fighting "skunks" in close quarters
long enough to have established a
reputation that should have spared
us the ignOminiOuS charge of awaiting
the convenient absence of a lady
candidate before we should dare to
speak a word of criticism concerning
her candidacy. 1t seems that Grand
mother Campbell refuses to recognize
the fact, so we submit it to the peO-
Die. Now as to the attack" We
have made no "attack" whatever on
Mrs. Carson. We have always credit
ed her with being lady of fine at
tainmentS. We say here now at the
OutStart that we have no doubt she
is.amply qualified so far as education
and experience as a teacher goes, to
fill the Office of county Superint end
ent. The criticisms which we saw fit
to offer concerning her candidacy was
prefaced as follows:
"The VOICE recognizes in Mrs.
Carson a lady of culture and
refinement and would be the
last one to Intentionally do her an in
justice. Nevertheless there are some
things touching her filling the posi-
tiOn to which she aSpireS which appear
to be incompatible and which should
undoubtedly debar her from receiving
the boon which she Graves"
We then set out that because of her
sex she was physically incapacitated
to visit all the schools of the county
as required by law, and showed that
with all his vigOr, Supt. Mclaughlin
had been unable to get around to all
of them. Sumner county is one of the
largest counties in the state and has
1871 school districts. A large part of
these visits must necessarily be made
when the weather is cold and disagree
able. The law evidently considers
these visits important, else it would
not have so specified, and in reality
they are important. We also showed
that Mrs. Carson had spurned the
offer of the Peoples Oarty to make
her Superintendent two years ago,
that the breach made by her declin-
alton was filled by J. W. Mclaughlin,
who had been elected in the face of a
violent personal campaign against
him, and had filled the position so sat-
isfactOrily as to make friends of his
enemies and to cover his record with
honor and respect from every quarter;
that he was better qualified for a Sec
Ond term than he was for the first,
therefore Mrs. Carson was not enti-
tied to the support Of Peoples party
men. Now there is nothing in this
that is derOgatOry to Mrs. Carson as a
lady or as an instructOr-certainly
nothing that will in any way compare
with the unjuS! personal attacks
made upon Supt. Mclaughlin last
year. But says the Monitor, "ThC
VOICE publishes as a fact to her dis,
credit that she resigned as principal
of the high school rather than stand
an examination The Monitor tell:
people that we made this statement
as an evidence of the superiority Of
the educational attainmentS of Mr.
Mclaughlin, but it was not made in
that spirit at all. We called atten
tion to it by saying, "Great stress i.
placed on Mrs. CarsOn'S scholarship
and ability. Where has it beer
shown? She resigned her position a.
|, principal of the high school before sh,
would stand an examination by tn,
, school board" And further on in tn