The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1907-03-19

position has some influence and fol-
lowing announce an opinion on any
subject and at once there is a senti-
tiers not what the thing is. 1t may
be belief in the divinity of Joe Smith
or the wearing OF live chameleon as
an ornament. That good Methodist
revival hymn, I'VE All Like Sheep
Have Gone Astray" has a real truth
wound up in it People go astray
because they either do not think for
themselves or are Influenced against
their own beliefs.
A great cry has been raised in
Florida concerning the transactions
of the Internal Improvement Trus-
tees. 1t is dollars 10 dingbats that
the average citizen of Florida doesn't
care what the Internal Improvement
Trustees have done, or are doing.
There may be assigned two reasons
for his apathy The first is that the
average man has enought troubles of
his own and is willing to side step
any additional worry as to what the
ond is that the average man does not
think that the country is on the verge
OF blue ruin and that all public ser
wants are dishonest; he is willing TO
leave the administration of public af-
fairs in the hands of those men who
have been placed in their positions
by the elective choice of the people,
of which he is one
Thus is the average man unaroused.
But let some one come along and
tell him that his public servants are
dishonest; that the public affairs are
being maladministered and let this
cry fly fore and aft. and it isn't long
until the solitary few are joined by
mass and the call becomes chorus.
The average man does not inquire
too closely into the motives of people
who set themselves up as leaders.
MIR. Pecksniff was regarded by many
as very good man and great None
except his intimates knew him to be
the most miserable hypocrite And
this leads most naturally TO the men
ton of the Times-Union newspaper
at Jacksonville which has been per-
sistently misrepresenting the actions
and reports of the Internal Improve
ment Trustees for many months with
the result that the Big Fraid has
number of smaller papers echoing its
cry Of suspicion against the trustees
and their transactions.
For quite awhile the Times.Union
called for report from the trustees
and the little papers also called. The
Times-Union made it appear through
its hypocritical yawping that the trus-
tees had never made report and
that all the actions of the body were
shrouded in mystery.
Reports Always Published.
AS matter of fact the trustees had
long since published its deeds in de-
tail up to the beginning of the Brow
ard administration and according %
the custom of printing reports bien-
nially the last report covering the
period to the firstsof the present year
has been printed, having during the
past week been delivered to the trus-
tees for distribution.
The reports from every other adj
ministrative department have been
made also, as is the custom, and
those that nave not been published
are in the hands of the state printer
and will be published so soon as me-
chanical and human energy combined
can turn them from the presses.
poScnccnd Of 10 r,0+
these reports would be published in
due order, for the Times-Union can
not afford to admit that it didn't have
this knowledge, and imposing upon
the forgetfulness or the ignorance OF
its readers the Times-Union first
called loudly for the report and when
the report was published, the Times
Union cooked itself up and an
nounced: I'VE forced them to 90
it."
But that is not all.
The announcement was echoed by
the diminutIve Gimmerian who pub
fishes paper at the capital, who
piped also I'VE helped to do it," and
so down the line of the vicious and
unthinking the cry has gone forth
that the trustees have been forced to
do something which they had no in
tention of doing 1t is hardly neces-
sarry to state the truth any more
clearly than it has already been
stated.
But that Is not ALL
Since the report has been published
the Times-Union has felt duty bound
after having cast suspicion upon the
trustees, to pick out segregated por
tons Of the financial report AID at
tempt to make political capital OF
these disconnected items without ex-
PLANTATION, and shrieking Why"
Attorneys Fees.
The item which has been most
questioned is that of attorneys fees.
The particular object of the Times
Union is to throw discredit upon the
Broward administration; it is pleased