Decorah-posten og ved arnen., 1909-04-30
AN OPEN LETTER TO r. B.
ANDERSON.

Fergus Falls, Mimi, April "a, 'oo.
Prof. r. B. Anderson,
Madison, Wis.
Sir
You claim to be a lover of truth,
and have frequently laid the lash on
others for deviating from the truth.
In "Amerika" for April 20, 1909, how
ever, appears an editorial, which is
untruthful from beginning to end, and
| will make that clear, so you can
square yourself with your readers and
your conscience by publishing a cor-
rection.
The editorial l refer to is the one
entitled "Garstaurlareren gaar", in
which you and a Fergus Falls CORE
s%pondent, whose name is not given,
convey the impression hat Prof. 1.
Dorrum has been obliged to resign
from the faculty of Park Region Lu-
Their College, because of the campaign
"Amerika" has waged against him;
and on the strength of this you re-
move "det fam9se citat" from the
head of your editorial page.
Allow me to congratulate you upon
the good sense you show in removing
that "%citat", for it was extremely
ridiculous to put it there in the first
place, but / cannot approve of the
excuse you give for taking such ac-
ton. The plain facts in the case are
that Prof. Dorrum has not resigned,
either voluntarily or involuntarily,
from the college faculty, and it is
hoped by his faculty associates, the
students, and the board of trustees
that he will be an instructor in the
institution for years to come. A year
ago he requested a years leave of
absence, in order that he might pur-
sue advanced studies in some u%niver-
sity, and a teacher was found to take
his place temporarily, but a few
months later that teacher decided to
accept another position, and Prof.
Dorrum was induced to go on with
the work. A few weeks ago Prof.
Dorrum made a second request for a
years leave of absence, and this was
granted by the board. l called on the
two local members of the board to in
quire into the truth of the "Amerika"
editorial, and was assured by them
that the board is exceedingly well
satisfied with Prof. Dorrum's work
at the college, that it would like to
have him back again next year, and,
if that cannot be, that it hopes he will
return after a years absence. The
secretary of the board is J. o. Barke,
Fergus Falls, and | invite you and
your Fergus Falls correspondent to
communicate with him in reference to
the truth of my statements.
Since you seem to be so interested
in Prof. Dorrum, let me tell you that
he has been appointed a university
scholar by the faculty of Harvard and
may spend the next school year in
that institution. This recognition in
dicates that he is a scholar of no
mean attainments and that a bright
future awaits him. 1t is not at all
creditable to you to publish an article
with the evident intention of discre-
diting him in his profession. 1t con-
victs you of the o~ft-repeated charge
that you are malicious and vindictive
"a fact which is becoming so clear
that before long even your robin
will realize it.
1t is contemplate for you to at
tempt to deceive your readers as you
seem to attempt in the editorial men
toned. You try to make out that you
have won a great victory-that you
have shown the greatness of your in
~fluence, ever at Fergus Falls, which
has been characterized as a pretty
black spot in your "famSse" newspa-
per. You, who are called the Father
of Morse Literature in America" by
the august Encyclopedia Britannica
you, who profess to be a lover of
truth and righteousness; you, who
pose as the mentor of preachers, pro-
fessors and doctors of theology-you
ought to be above such things.
MARTIN w. ODLAND.