Fitzgerald enterprise. (Fitzgerald, Ga.) 1895-1912, 1905-06-24

demnition bow vows for rotteness, when it is
no worse than any other city with life enough to
make it desirable for live men to reside. "-Artle
Jones' Little Paper-The People.
Now if that isn't gall, what is it? What
ever it is we have this suggestion to make, that
the editor of the People will have lively time
between his supine spells.
If there's anything~in Fitzgerald that the
People would defend, judging by recent appear
ances, it would be the "rottenness" of which it
speaks. The Enterprises best efforts have
been in the interest of Fitzgerald's reputation
at home and abroad and we have done good
deal on the line of "consigning to the demnition
bow-wows," the very things that the People
essays to defend.
If the bar rooms, bawdy houses, and gam
bling bells, of which Arte's little paper tells us
exists and have existed from the foundation OF
the city have secured them an organ, then look
out organ, we're going to strike and strike often
and hard. At first we would use the gentler
admonitions of words and grass, but when we
find that neither words nor grass will do we
will try what virtue there is in stones"
The cheek of writer, who writes for the
public to read, who tells us one week that gam
bling bells and bawdy houses exist in the city
and then has the unspeakable gall to say IN its
very next issue "emph attic ally" if you
please-that 1T does not intend to sit supinely
by and hear the Enterprise or any one else con-
sign it (meaning Fitzgerald, the rotten F1tz-
gerald it has just pictured) to the domination
bow-wows for rottenness, when it is no worse
than any other city with life enough to make it
desirable place for live men to reside" must get
on its fighting togs.
''Live men" five MEN, who must have the
1uxuries referred to by the organ OF the wide
openers" Shame on you boys.
One suggestion we want to make about
this matter of defense, if you want to defend
anything, defend decent Fitzgerald, not rotten
Fitzgerald. Defend the Fitzgerald of law and
order not wide open" Fitzgerald and when you
undertake to defend anything be sure you
don't undertake to defend it against its best
friend.
In another column you say who is satisfied"
Why! certainly YOU must be. If there is any
dissatisfaction your part surely it is at the
tendency to law and or der--our progress towards
decency.
Do not attempt, to fool yourselves. There is
not one particle of danger that you'll fool any
body else. Although some wide opener" who
despises deceucy because it is so remote from
his standpoint, and hates the successful for the
single reason that he is failure, may pat you
on the back but all of them, even the most
degenerate, will heartily despise your effort.
1t is just as easy and just as as profitable to de-
fend the good as it is to uphold the vile, and
laundering sight more honorable.
In the next sentence you ask who knows of
a real practical reform working today?" Pray
tell us who has the nerve to attempt reform
when there are men of sufficient audacity to fight
them in public print, and who has the ability to
accomplish reform with such an environment?
We've read in several of our exchanges an
account of the capture of thirteen crap shooters,
colored boys and negro men by sheriff and
posse in an open field in Sumter county.
We are opposed to gambling, all sorts of
gambling. The truth is we haven't much pa
tience in games of any kind or so called recrea-
tons. We find that we are every day more and
more welded to the idea that the honest frugal
and industrious man can find all the health and
pleasure necessary in the persuit of his chosen
avocation-usually called his daily toll.
But it does seem to us that the officers of the
law too often go round grave offences to find the
smaller, turn their backs on pis ol toter, burg
lar, thief or other criminal, to go on a long
chase after negro crap shooter, or card player.
We are not quite sure, but we have got the i'm
preston some where that the law allows larger
fee for their arrest than for the arrest of other
criminals.