Imperial press and farmer., 1902-01-25
THt GREAT ISSUE

The Press and Farmer has been on the greatest issue which has been before the people of Southern Cali fornia for many years if one can judge by the amount of newspaper space devoted to it. This neglect is probably due to the fact that the issue is itself about as old as the progressive era of Southern California, though each year the issue is growing into greater prominence in the press of Southern California.
 Briefly stated, this question is: Is Ma ajor-General Harrison Gray Otis a suitable person to edit the Los Ange- les Times2 ,.
 IL might be considered that this is all issue for the press of the State to settle according to personal feeling toward the Times and it's editor, but in reality the question is a greater one. The opponents of General Otis have opposed him so vigorously and so per sistently that they have beyond all question elected him to the chief cit izeuship of Southern California. He is the man of whom all men have heard and the one whose character most men have discussed, often with little opportunity for knowing his true character. Personal feeling to- wards the Times and it's editor and the acceptance or rejection of the opinions of the Times and its editor have no relationship with the real issue, for men may disagree and yet respect or even admire one another--can even re
 fl T ,.,l, are above the. meaningless glad hand order when they are associated With strength of character enabling a man to lift himself from the dead level of average life to the almost commanding position which General Otis has come to occupy in Southern California.
 There are but two men living in Cal ifornia who, by the sole force within them, starting with little or no capital, have built up great and powerful news papers. NJ. II. DeYoung did that in San Francisco and H. q. Otis did the same in Los Angeles. In San Fran cisco the editor of the Chronicle is a leading citizen, but he would probably not be selected as the one imposing parsonage in that city in the same de gree that General Ois would be in Los Angeles. Herein, one would nat urally think, there is ground for the newspaper men of Southern California to manifest some pride in the fact tEat follower of their profession has won the high place which everybody ac- cords to General Otis, even though they may occasionally have found the Times vigorous English gnawing like file upon their own upinions and wishes.
 The one charge against the Times and it's editor which has been made to stick is that their opinions are arbitra- ", which is to say that their opinions are of the same character as those of every newspaper and every editor that ever got above the dead level of medi- ocrity. The writer who feels that he must go about the highways and hedges with explanations of or apolo- gies for the ''policy" of his newspaper is lost. and the Times and its editor have never got lost in that way.
 The Press and Farmer realizes that both the Times and the general public have been waiting with some anxiety for this deferred expression of it's opin- ion on the real live issue of Southern California, but now it wishes to record it's verdict and to declare it's pleasure and pride that the chief representative of journalism in Southern California