Western Carolina Democrat and French Broad hustler. [volume] (Hendersonville, N.C.) 1913-1915, 1914-09-03


r Ors, say SO, and why. g
e Letters must bear the name e
* and address of the writer. g
g Anonymous communication 81
40 win not be considered. e
SsH MM# ### g e ## e
ARE WE AFRAID OF TRUTH9
Editor Democrat:
Most every reader of the Democrat
If asked the above question direct
would invariably answer to the mega
tive, mo I am not afraid of truth.
am believer in the truth, prac-
tice the truth, live life of truth, ]
hate lying in any form, am even OPP
posed to what may be called prevari-
cation, evasion, or, withholding truth
in any manner whatever" PLATE, be-
fore whom Christ was tried, was also
believer in truth, so far as he un-
derstood it, and so long as it did not
get in the way of carrying out his de-
Signs and schemes.
: II a financial institution adver-
tises in the Democrat, through It's
agent, that it, has money now which
it will loan to people at s per cent
interest, it would not be proper for
Us to charge it with coming at you
with direct falsehood, for the truth
OF the matter is, it is not coming at
you directly, it is coming at you indi-
rectly. No doubt your readers will
try to get some of that money, and
when they put in their application,
and look into the methods and COM
plicated ways In which such loans are
offered to be made, no doubt they will
wonder where and how truth enters
iato the 8 per cent loan business
especially while all the rest of the
world is engaged in war, and trying
to find out what kind of figure truth
cuts in such a mighty war-business.
The greatest avenue in the world, at
present, for untruthfulness is said to
be in the channels of National Diplo-
matte circles, especially in what We
call the nations of the Old World.
Had the principle of truth, as Christ
meant it, when he said to PLATE. 'I
am the TRUTH" prevailed in all the re-
latiOns of Germany, Russia, Austria
Hungary, Servia, and with much less
+
England and Belgium, would this
most terrible and shocking carnage
of blood-shed, since the foundation of
the world, ever have been brought
about? Undoubtedly it would not.
for the real cause of this fearful ca
lamity lies in naughty, deceptive, eva
sive, prejudicial, ambitious lying. I'm
der the old, common law maxims, a
king, prince, emperor, pope or other
royal parsonage, cannot lie, and all
they do is truth, the same as though
they are deities,-hence to that ex-
tent, and under such presumption, it
becomes necessary to modify the fore
going assertions.
The writer is a charter member of
one of the largest Building and Loan
associations in the State, and has
been a humble stakeholder since its
organization, and we advertise to loan
money to our members at 6 per cent
as we are allowed under the charter
and the usury laws of the state, but
does the borrower get it at six per
cent? He begins by paying dues on
his stock and six per cent monthly,
for a period of not less than rs
months, when his stock is matured
and his loan is paid off. 1t is the
best known way for most poor men
to borrow money and build a home
but he pays his stock dues and month
1y interest on his loan, at the legal
annual rate, and because it is paid so
often and reinvested, in laguage of
old Ben Franklin, ''the money that
makes money make money" and by
the time the loan is matured, posi-
bly, all your monies paid in, are earn
ing the association from twelve to
twenty per cent interest Six per
cent interest paid annually, straight,
would OF mature your stock in the
time of rs months, and hence this de-
vice of monthly compromising mus
be resorted to. 1t is not straightout
lying, to the borrowerer but it is
slightly truth crushed to EARTH" as
a matter of expediency.
Perhaps some reader by this time.
is wondering where all the above
shows anybody to be afraid of truth.
for they all want, at least to be on
the legal side of truth, otherwise
troubles comes. Plate had to so
twist matters, as to condemn Christ
to death legally and his accusers had
to so twist matters as to make the
evidence appear truthful The diple-
mates, of course, are all honorable,
truthful men of the highest standing
yet if truth is strictly to prevail, every
one OF them have to be enrolled in
Col. Roosevelt's Annanias club. Let
the 3 per cent loan company explain
every detail. from beginning to end,
OF its methods of dealing with borrow
ers, and in our opinion, as the boys
say, there will be nothing doing" A