The Iola register., 1901-05-03
OFFICIAL PAPER OF ALLEN COUNTY
BE FAIR, FRANK AND FRIENDLY

BE FAIR, FRANK AND FRIENDLY.
The LaHarpe News, the only news
paper in the county that is opposing
the new court house, is making its
fight, not on the merits of the PROPOSE
tion, but on the alleged demerits OF
lola. 1t does not attempt to show by
dispassionate argument that new
court house is not needed, or that the
sum asked for is too much, or that the
way in which it is proposed to raise
this sum is wrong or unbusiness-like.
1t doesn't discuss the real question at
all. 1t simply tries to prejudice the
people against lola and lola business
men. 1t denounces these men in a
body as ''nefarious schemers" and
"tax-dodgers, and tries to make it
appear that they arethe only ones who
will be benefited by the building of a
new court house.
Now the REGISTER submits, in all
fairness, that this is not honorable
warfare and that whatever the result
of the election may be the kind of a
campaign the News is conducting will
not help it nor its editor nor the town
for which it is presumed to speak.
We have all got to live together
here in Allen county, and we can live
together a great deal more pleasantly,
and a great deal more protitably if we
1.-Two in, ig tho pt of
good citizenship for any man to at
tempt to stir up ill-feeling in one Sec
tion Of the county against another
section, any more than it is good citi-
zenship to try to stir up hatred be-
tween different sections of our coun-
try. lola is trying to live at peace
with all her neighbors. The REGIS
TER is just as earnest in supporting
the court house proposition as the
News is in opposing it, and it knows
what everybody knows that the only
active opposition comes from LaHarpe:
and yet you will search these columns
in vain for single word of criticism
or denunciation of that lively and am
bilious town. This paper recognizes,
as everybody else does, that the real
motive of LaHarpe's opposition to
the court house is its hope to some
day become the county seat: but it
doesn't for that reason jump onto La
Harpe and accuse every man in it
of being a public enemy. On the con-
trary it sayslthat LaHarpe's ambition
is honorable and all right. 1t doesn't
criticise the News as the mouthpiece
of LaHarpe for opposing the court
house; it criticises it only for the man
ner Of its opposition, for abusing
good citizens and stirring up section
al feeling, for alleging every reason
except the real reason. If the News
would say to the people: Don't vote
to build court house at lola now,
for after awhile you will wish it were
built at LaHarpe, " everybody would
respect it. But when it says: "Don'
build court house at lola, because
we don't need new court house, be-
cause the business men of lola are
nefarious schemers and taX-dodger:
and because it will benefit lola and be
cause lola does not deserve the gooC
will of anybody in the county" why
everybody thinks of the fable abou
the dog in the manger, iapd they dc
not give the News credit for candor ol
good citizenship or good faith.
The REGISTER would like to see {
new court house because it knows it il
needed, because the county lean wei
afford it, and because the plan b,
which it is proposed to erect it is tn
very cheapest and best that could b
devised, and also, we frankly admit
because it would be a creditable ad
dition to the buildings o
lola, and because it would settle tn
county seat question for all time t,
come. Now will the News be equall
frank and say that it does not wan
new court house, NOT because on
is not needed, NOT because the peopl
of lola are "nefarious schemers" ant
tax-dodgers, BUT because at the yer
earliest moment that seems propitiou
it wishes to start fight to have tn
county seat removed to LaHarpe?
For cider vinegar go to the eide
Mill. Phone 1876.