Ladysmith news-budget. [volume] (Ladysmith, Rusk County, Wis.) 1907-1927, 1908-11-26
BUILDING UP A TOWN.

Town, by Edgar watson Howe, the
writer thinks it appropriate that an
extract from same be printed in the
News-Budget. 1t is unfortunate that
space will preclude giving a larger ex
tract from the story. It goes on to
state about the large amounts of mon
ey that had been given to induce
manufactures and the lack of cohes.
ion in efforts by citizens to upbuild
the town:
There was very general impress
sion that manufactures were needed,
and this was talked about so much
and so many inducements were Of
fered, that the people became discour
aged, believing that the average man
ufacturer had wicked heart and a
hollow head to thus wrong Twin
Mounds in the face of his own inter
ests, therefore we were very much
surprised to learn once, after all hope
had been abandoned, that quiet
man was building a wooden mill down
the river, which he completed and af-
forwards operated without the help of
the committees which had been ap-
pointed to aid in such matters of pub
lie veal. The trouble was that the
man lived in Twin Mounds, whereas
we had been expecting man and
money to come from a distant point
for that purpose, and had never
thought of looking about home, but
had spent a great deal of money in
sending committees away to make ar
rangements for a WOODEN mill. This
circumstance, although humiliating
proved a good thing, for it taught the
people that, if the town were to be
built up at all, it must be by it's own
citizens, which knowledge was after
wards used to good advantage.
Il never formed a good opinion of a
man there that | was not finally told
something to his discredit by anoth-
er citizen, causing me to regard him
with great suspicion, and if | said q
good word for any Of them, It was
proved beyond question Immediately
that he was a very INSCRIPTIONS, a
very ridiculous, a very weak, and a
very worthless man, There We're no
friendships among them, and they all
noNf in
ing much quiet satisfaction when one
of them failed. There seemed to be
no regular aristocracy, for l heard so
frequently how ignorant and awkward
the prominent citizens were when
they first came, that ] finally found
them all out. If DR.. Medicine told m
what an unpromising lout the pres
ent magnificent Honorable Legal was
when he first arrived, and how much
difficulty he had in getting him intro
duced into respectable society, | was
certain to meet Honorable Legal soon
after, and hearing him recite a SINH
lar experience with reference to DR.,
Medicine. One of the stories, and |
found out afterwards that it was true,
was that a man of ordinary worth,
who seemed to be prosperous, had
collected his money of a railroad
company in the country he had
moved FROM because of an injury to
his first wife, and that his second
was enabled to go elegantly dressed
because Of the misfortune of the
first. Thus 1t went on until I was ia
miliar with the poor origin Of ali of
them, and perhaps this was one reas-
on why we did not respect one an
other more"
The description of Twin Mounds
may be little overdraWn when ap-
piled to Ladysmith, but there is a
good lesson to be received from It's
perusal There are all too many men
in every town who are endeavoring
to build themselves up by tearing
down their neighbor.