Perth Amboy evening news., 1920-09-22

THE MAYORS LOOSE TALK.

ltray to attack the EVENING NEWS,
lie Is quoted as saying at the Demo-
cratic meeting Monday night that
many phases of the city work under
his administration have not been
brought before the public because
accounts in the EVENING NEWS
were so greatly contorted that they
conveyed an entirely wrong impress
sion, or, in some Asses, were not
presented at all.
Loose talk on the part OF poll
ticians and office seekers is to be ex-
pscted during q political campaign.
As far as the EVENING NEWS is
concerned the Democrats usually ac-
cuse US Of having sold out to the Re-
publicans and the Republicans are
certain that we are under control Of
the Democrats. We would feel that
we were not maintaining our in
dependent position IL these charges
from both sides were not made each
year.
But that is mere campaign bunk
unworthy of notice. When the
mayor of the city. however, openly
accuses US of comforting the news
and suppressing facts concerning his
administration the matter ceases to
be mere political humbug and raises
the question OF the honesty and in
tegrity OF a newspaper. Naturally.
q newspaper that is dishonest, as
any paper that comforts the news
must be, cannot have the confidence
OF the people. A newspaper that
lacks moral responsibility. as any
paper that deliberately SURPRISES
news for Interior motives must, is
mot worthy of public support.
Mayor Dorsey, having openly ac-
cused us of dishonesty through on
torting the news concerning his ad-
m~inistration, and having said that
we suppressed the facts in regard to
his management of public affairs. is
now called upon by the EVENING
NEWS to come out into the open for
once and make good his charges or
else admit by his failure to do so
that he is merely clustering hot air
for political effect. The columns of
the EVENING NEWS are open to
him to state any instance wherein
the news as published in the EVE
MING NEWS has been contorted or
deliberately suppressed for the pur-
pose of being unfair to him
AS a matter of fact. the greatest
trouble the EVENING NEWS has
had with Mayor Dorsey has been to
get him to talk at all on public
affairs. or at least to allow US to
Apublish what he has said. Not in
+many administrations has it been so
difficult to get news of public affairs
from the mayor as it has been since
Mayor Dorsey has been in ONCE. A
reporter waits on the mayor every
day to get news of his administra-
ton, but little or nothing has been
tcrthcoming during the past two
years
Only as recently as last Thursday
the EVENING NEWS asked Mayor
Dorsey for a statement regarding
Prosecutor Stricker's letter on the
enforcement of the prohibition laws
by the local authorities. The mayor
being the head of the police force
was the logical man to see on such
q matter. The only satisfaction that
could be obtained, however, was the
statement which we published at the
time. The mayor said:
81 saw the letter that came
from me prosecutor yesterday.
This Information was conveyed
0N me To the department oOIlC
time ago. 1t is my opinion that
police matters should not be
given newspaper publicity be-
cause 1t will obstruct the work
Of the department"
If this statement was not correct
It was not changed deliberately and
we would have gladly set the mayor
right before the public in our very
next issue had he said the word; We
viii yet make any correction he may
deem proper. AS far as having omit
ted anything that he said, we ART
only too anxious TO have the mayor
give US some details Of what he pro
poses 10 do in the line of this dut!
toward cleaning up the scandaloui
situation that is known to exist here
The mayor must certainly know tina
his administration cannot escape IT
share of the responsibility for tn
iawlessness that is bringing the city
which the mayor says he loves. int
such disrepute.
When the mayor frst went Int