The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1907-02-15
WHAT NEXT?

While busily engaged in the prepa-
ration of this issue Of the 4Egis, we
are eagerly wondering what grist is
being ground at the Times under its
resourceful management. Past his
tory guarantees in advance that it
will be strenuous, though it may be
as evanescent asits predecessors, but
it makes little difference if it is just a
little vulnerable so it is startling.
Some months ago the sober citi-
zens of the county were astounded
with the authoritative information
that the county was over $4,000
short, and that bankruptcy stared
us in the face. With the courage of
despair taxpayers knocked at the
Commissioners door and refused to
believe that the latter were only
$4,000 ahead of the levy of 1906
until an expert committee, the cor
rectness of whose report has never
been questioned, found that the true
amount was 50, 946.73 and that this
amount would be nearly wiped out
By court costs due from other coun-
ties, State money, and unpaid con-
tributions pledged for permanent
road Improvement.
Then came their signal offence of
not electing an expert accountant as
clerk, though having under the law
only 5000 available for his salary,
and they were roundly raped for
having taken care of a political
henchman at $500; but we incline to
the belief that the editor has discov-
cred not only that the new clerk has
a standing among the best citizens
of Hartford of which any man may be
justly proud, but that he is demon
strating a grasp of the work and a
painstaking skill in its execution
which guarantees accuracy, honesty
and despatch.
As side issue little Uncle Remus
literature from an anonymous hand
gives its writer chance to publish
some coarse dogerel a gentleman
would be ashamed to father over his
own signature.
But few back-sets count for moth
ing with this tribune of the people,
so, with the energy characteristic of
the hungry, he finds yelled in the deli
cate language of the lady visitors to
the almshouse the covert assertion
that the aged victims of povery
housed there are being slowl y starved
while it is costing more for their
board than it would at the Belve-
dere, and he eagerly calls on them
editorially to throw aside their ferni-
nine timidity and in true Times style
tell what they know.
A copy of the committees reply
published last week in the Times will
be found elsewhere, and it seems to
us should tend to discount such sen.
sational utterances in the future.
Now what does all this mean?
True it is a consistent continuation
of the course Of the Times since its
birth twenty-five years ago; but is it
not fair to expect from the present
editor the same candor and fairness
in his paper which so conspicuously
chacterize..hi private life?
We agree that every published
statement carries with it certain
weight and leaves it's impress how
ever much it may be afterwards re-
futed or corrected, and we therefore
ask in all fairness that public officers
shallnot be openly maligned without
reasonable cause. We fully recog-
nize that our county officials are hu-
man, and as such have committed
acts of both omission and commits
sion. On such occasions we have not
in the past nor will we in the future
hesitate to speak when we think they
have erred, but a certain pride in
our county and a disposition to treat
fairly public officers as we'll as pri-
vate citizens impels US to urge that
charges damaging in character and
untrue in fact shall not be gratuit-
ously thrown to the world through
the public press, Certainly no reader
of the Times outside of Hartford
could conclude that this is land of
milk and honey in which to dwell,
but il he does settle here we will ad-
wise him in advance that he is COM
ing among people who firmly and
consistently adhere to the principles
of conservative democracy.