The Kendrick gazette. [volume] (Kendrick, Idaho) 1892-1968, 1921-09-16
Where's Such a Town

visited in a town last year where
nobody had good word tor any
body.
The people are God-fearIng cit
liens IN their own esteem, who pay
taxes, raise children and attend
dutituIly to the other obligations
of life.
But good news is an out law in
that community; and an enthusiast
would be regarded with Suspicion
as one who was probably trying TO
put something over
A cold, lainy day seems to bring
sort of grim satisfaction, par
ticularly if 1t follows period Of
sunshine. Folks 60 around drip
ping and declaring that they knew
we'll enough such good weather
couldn't last. 1--WE was due for a
spell of ram, and | guess 1t come,
all right
Merchants positively glow when
they tell that they "aint got" what
you want. And there is more joy
over one sinner VINO is caught in the
: act and whose sin can be told about,
than over ten righteous persons who
, need no repentance.
1. in all the week | was there, |
f never once heard anyone say
| gracious, enthusiastic thing about a
I fellow-human-being. Where the
' facts were such that they could not
e be gwen gloomy turn, they were
uttered grudgingly, as though no
: mortal had a right to such good
5 luck and 1t certainly would not last.
The inevitable result is that the
town is dying. Its industries dried
up long ago. Occasionally new
conner will try to start something;
but he wlthers finally under the cold
gIances of those who are waiting
:, around to see him TAIL And when
:, he leaves they tell you that they al
. ways told you so.
There has been recently consid-
-, erabIe criticism of the Pollyanna
:. philosophy of life. That philosophy
:. can, of course, be carried to ex-
tremes. There is something the
:. matter with man who whistles
= while his leg is being cut off or
=. fails to grumble when the coffee is
~ cold.
- But between Pol!vanna and the
- average citizen of the community
=. which | VISITED, and to which shall
- never return, give me PolixAnna
=, every time. As a matter of cold
- - dollars and cents, to use no sHighei
>. standard, the Pollyanna stuff pays
- Napoleon was called a. ( one
" hundred thousand man,sax ~ b!y,r,tllli
enemies, because they feared .sfhle
effect of his enthusiasm 5ssen /, I ,a.a4t,he
battlefield more than aRaSt EaAun
dred thousand men. WrdMEeye
d. have achieved results HFe en-
ss joyed poor health?" :
tn "Men are nothing, "ssMohtaignt
he said, until they get5SAted." Anc
k it is such men- excited BY thei
of visions of great aehieesasnt, b.
ne their faith IN their fellows, .or IN ;
ID. cause or an ideal. who haN.found
on ed cities and built rafIroads an
of won battles and II transformed '!1 tn
Sc. world.
he The book of GeseeS-.wvu4d. tell
in very different story /, the writer o
it had lived ln. the toWn to whic
,se | have referred. Thee thift frs
ed verse of the first cbapiM now reads
he "And God saw :eaef fyaaj jnglsat H
had made, and keh old ,s7it Nss yer
a good - :. sEsssass
,as A citizen complainln
,y. communfy ,shave writer
err And Coo saNashrythng tnat H
err had made,t and sighed and SAID: 4
the amt what you'd call good, and
full my opinion, It'll be a whole IL
es. worse before 1t gets any better.
Bruce Barton in the Red Book.