Little Falls weekly transcript. (Little Falls, Morrison Co., Minn.) 1894-19??, 1896-05-08
RICHARDSON WRITES.

RICHARDSON WRITES.
Ed. Mahan's Charge Vigorous
~ and Lenethily Refuted by
the Mayor.
TO THE EDITOR or THE TRANSCRIPT:
Your issue of the oath inst. con-
tanned an effusion from one Ed
Mahan, who is a carpenter residing
on the West side. Ed asserts that
he has been reading my message and
finds nothing in 1t that a mayors
message should contain. Had even
dreamed that Ed Mahan was an
expert on messages Ishould certainly
have submitted it to him for inspec-
ton before publishing it.
But Ed. somehow have got an
impression that YOU are not an ex-
pert anyth thing, unless it night be
at lying, and that your early educa-
ton was badly neglected; that when
an urchin you got into the habit OF
running away from school "a habit
that bright boys frequently get into)
and that your good old mother In
the place of pursuading you to stay
at scho 81, when sent, by vigorously
warming the seat OF your pants
when you were reported absent
without leave, is greatly to be
blamed for your growing up IN
ignorance. Had you the education
and a balance wheel to back y0nr
zeal and aspirations you would be
at the front, among the great and
good men Of the nation. In the place
OF seeing your name at the end OF
silly articles composed entirely OF
inuendoes, slurs and insinuatlons.
printed in some of our Little Falls
papers. that insert nearly everything
that comes along, regardless OF It's
merits or dement's, we would expect
to frequently run across your name
in such papers as the New York Sun,
and Nation, or Tribune, attached to
essays on such subjects as political
economy. and quite likely signed to
presidential messages to congress.
aud your name would likely often
appear on hotel registers at BUS
Yards Bay instead Of ut Fitzgerald,
where you have already been, and
seem bent on going back. Though
not an old soldier yourself, yet you
are moving heaven and earth to in
duce them to believe that you are
great friend to them, and that | am
their enemy, and that slurred and
tried to disgrace them in my recent
message. as mayor.
Ifyou think there is anything in
my message that in the least reflects
upon the honor and integrity OF any
of the old soldiers as a class or as
citizens you know very little OF the
meaning OF words that the English
language contains and entirely mis-
took the purport Of the language
contained in my message, and should
escape censure. But on the other
hand If you purposely attributed a
false meaning to the language used
in my message, and went around to
such of the old soldiers that cannot
read and that can be easily Influenced,
and told them that I had abused
them in shocking manner in my
message, that you were q great
friend to the old soldier from way
back, and that I should be annihil.
ated for the great wrong l had
perpetrated upon them and that You
are Just the chap that could do me
up in one round without gloves, SO
obtained their consent to act for
them as their mouth piece, you are
as devoid OF principle as yon are OF
sense, and you may now go around
to all of your dupes that authorized
you to pour out your wrath upon
my head, and say to them that |
have notan exalted opinion of their
Judgment in going outside OF the
rank and file OF old soldiers for a
man to champion their cause, and
selecting man Of your caliber, when
there Is among the old soldiers OF
this city men of first-class ability and
good sence who, if they found any
thing in my messag. that they con-
sidered a reflection upon the good
name of the Old soldier, would act
manly about the matter and come
ito see me about it, when, it there
existed any ground for their. objec:
lions, I would be glad to make such
correction as would satisfy them,
and the public that | had not
purposely desecrated the honorable
office of mayor by slurring or trying
to degrade the old soldier. / don't
think there is man outside OF their
ranks that has a higher regard for
them than I have. although enroll