The Lake County times. [volume] (Hammond, Ind.) 1906-1933, 1919-01-22
THE SMALL TOWNS PROBLEMS.

The editor OF the Kansas City Star received Il sort Oh
friendly letter from q country editor tho other day inst
as a brotherly epistle. not intended for publication. But
the Kansas City man thought it TOO good to be allowed
TO perish in an inside pocket. and requested permisr ion
to print it in his columns. The country editor replied
that ne didn't recall exactly what he had written. bu to
so ahead-that every man ought to be willing to have
any letter he writes given to The public if The public VIII
stand for it. So the Kansas Gifts editor printed Vic let
ter from The country editor-and il has been going the
rounds ever since. 1t VIII continue 10 go the rounds be
cause il is worth a good deal TO have such ommulica
tions made public. Hence. here it is. in FUN.
II know everybody in the whole country roundabout
by his first name. There are a thousand things to make
life a 10Y. The youngsters in school come to the Office
Tor my opinion IN difficult things i'll their lessons. ne
ure out the contents OF stacks of alfalfa and prairie hay
FOR farmers. l am the court of last resort when it como
% prices Of corn and cattle and hogs during cleyelands
administration. advise "widow-women" about Their al
fairs. l lend the chronicaIy impecunious sums ranging
from 40 cents to s. and always get it back. head the
lis and help carry the paper 10 take a subscription foI
some one in distress.
Our office gets the freak vegetables and big corn
and 1ne fruits. VIC never got any knocks. No one ever
comes round to tel-us what 10 print. our town has no
Joints. We have one drug store and il sells no booze. II
our druggist should invest il a government license he
knows and his wife knows, because l told him and be told
his wife. that an item would be made Of such d license
being granted.
The only vranelng ] ever have j. With the preach
ers. This town has six cburches-count them-siN. and
there is only room for one. All the preachers are on the
free list But I hardly ever attend church and when they
bring around a half column of dope about their particu-
ar church. ] take it and boil II down 70 a single para
graph and that makes them sore. And they send the
presiding elder around when he comes 10 town TO talk 10
me and to admonish me that l am wasting a wonderful
opportunity to do real work for the Master. And I come
back by telling the presiding elder that our paper is doing
more to make the town a decent little hamlet in a week
than all the preachers do in a week.
The last one to haul me over the Goals demanded
demanded-to know Why did not attend church. and I
told him. Told him Of the church-ridden town-of the
makeshift pastors We have had for twenty-five years-of
the pitiable irony Of having A young man who could not
grow a decent beard and was hardly dry behind the ears
from college. undertaking TO tell grown men who had
met a good many phases OF life-its temptations and
wickedness and sin-how 10 hve-on Sunday-and
through the week lived his life apart from the common
herd of men and women who have trials and heartaches
and joys and sorrows.
"A little country town like this needs a mana man
for spiritual adviser. A man like that and one church in
a town could pull down $4,000 a year and do an immense
amount of good. while as it is the women give suppera
and hold bazaars and take freak WAYS of earning a dollar
in order that the pastor may have bread and butter and
a roof over him and rainent to pat on.
OF course. a young man must begin somewhere. but
he should begin in mission work in q CITY where lie meets
sin and shame and crime and poverty in all its hdeous
ness. and then he would probably be qualified to go out
and preach to country people"