The weekly true Democrat. (Tallahassee, Fla.) 1905-1912, 1905-12-22
ABUnPrIOUS EDITOR.

70
against the late Jennings State admin
| istration, TO which very few people
seem TO be paying any attention. The
fact is that people are tired Of TRADES
! What they want to hear-if they are
to be provoked from their natural indif-
! ference-is a firm, positive, detailed
declaration Of wrong doing, duly affirm
| ed and sealed, and turned over to au-
| thorities able to hale the culprits into
court and try them according to the
laws of the land. At the bottom of all
! the smoke being raised around Tallahas-
see there must be some fire, or the old
adage is entirely wrong. Let the gen.
! tlemen who are rending the lower story
of the welkin uncover enough of the
fire to assure the public that it is there,
or hereafter hold their peace. If any
member of the late State administra-
tion has committed any Offense against
the law let him be arraigned, tried,
convicted and punished--but elsewise
let the din and noise cease and let the
ears Of the people have a rest. Moth
ing is more tiresome than noise signi-
flying nothing Let the men who are
crying aloud get down to business or
cease their alarm. Tampa Times.
We have always enjoyed the excel
lent editorial department Of our esteem
ed contemporary, barring an occasional
disposition on the part Of its editorial
writer Whose name is unknown to u.s.
to get funny" The above quotation
precisely illustrates our impression of
him.
1t would seem almost superfuous for
us to again repeat what we have 50 Of
ten said, that this newspaper is not
court, jury, a prosecuting officer or
an investigating committee. 1t can do
no more than point out the evils which
exist and indicate the source from
whence the evidence of their existence
may be procured, leaving to official au-
uthority the task Of setting in motion
the machinery Of the law, marshalling
the testimony and prosecuting the
wrong doors to conviction-or acquittal.
We have in these columns made no
accusation of wrong doing on the part
of any public official without citing the
evidence thereof or indicating the place
where it can be found We respectful
ly submit to a discerning public and
fair and honorable press, the implica-
ton of the Times that our efforts toun-
uncover graft and crookedness have a.
mounted merely to "tirades.
Nor do we accept the assertion that
'few people seem to pay any atten-
ton" to what we have said. Our ex-
changes and correspondence and sub
scription lists all belle the statement. So
large and respectable a body as the
Jacksonville Bar Association has (al-
though the Times may not have heard
of it, taken up and vigorously acted up
on the matter of graft in the execution
of the State printing contract Not
single accusation which we have made
has been denied, either in person or in
the public prints. Is not the inference
conclusive that they are undeniabe?
We have asserted, and cited the rec
ord in proof, that the unlawful pay
ment by the Jennings administration to
Judge Liddon of $500 fee out of the
money belonging to the people for his
services to Mr.. Lamar in the prosecu-
ton of Walter L. Taylor was nothing
more nor less than case of pure and
unadulterated graft Will the Times
deny it? We need not cite other illus
trations to show that undenied-and I'M
deniable- instances of wrong d ing
which we have mentioned have been
fortified by citation of the evidence
The fact appears to be that our
bumptious friend, The Times, taking its
cue from the mysterious and as yet I'M
explained silence of the Jacksonville
Times-Uuion on these topics. and will
ling to go" that journal lone better"
lin order, perhaps, to give it lesson
in modern journalism) has executed
one of it's worst breaks, and made
spectacle of itself that will afford inf
mite amusement to the State press and
the public generally.
~~--~~----~---~-~------
The Barlow Courier-Inf m ant a
grees with the News that every good
newspaper man knows what purports to
be an editorial, and truthfully adds that
after looking over several copies of
any paper" the good newspaper man
can put his finger on every so called
editorial not written by the editor. y