The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1922-09-05

sob stuff and it may be mat some Of
Won like to read that kind OF stuff
but | do not like to write 1t.
For many years have written
copy for the Enquirer. | have told OF
the successes OF our people. l nave
gladly told OF their joys and It has
been a delight to me to chronicle the
fact for them the banner OF success
f1oated full mast and that Tor them
the bugle OF victory was sounding
sharp and clear. Sorrowtully / have
told OF the griefs OF our people. WITH
a heavy heart and an unwilling hand
| have told OF death entering the
homes of our people, OF pain, sickness,
suffering and loss coming to the peo-
pie whose servant | have been in the
wav OF furnishing them with the local
news But no more will | talk OF the
events OF good or bad, cheering or
sorrow-laden in our community.
81 pass my pen to another hand. l
wish | knew who will take my place
here in the office. | might tell him
| few things that 4wOuld be OF inter
est. if not Of benefit to him.
NV work as | have intimated, has
been pleasant. There have been, OF
course. times of gloom. The paw OF
old hard times has, now and then,
pressed painfully hard on overburden-
ed shoulders, but there has not been a
time when that hard old paw pressed
down hard enough to crush to earth.
The night has not been so dark that
there was not now and then, between
the clouds the cleaning Of the star
of hope.
MY relations with the public have
been pleasant The public is not as
good as the candidates for office tell
it that it is, neither is it so absolutely
bad as the defeated candidate thinks
it is, and taking it year by year the
public is pretty fair in its dealing with
the individual, at least | have found
it so.
Il have long since come to the con-
clusion, however, that the editor who
pets the public is a fool and the editor
who fears the public has a broad
streak of cowardly, yellow cur in his
makeup.
Il have mingled with our people in
public gatherings of about all kinds
from preaching services to street
brawls-but the thought comes that
at the next gathering OF the people
where | will be one of the number l
will be the silent party at the gath
ering, and at that gathering no mat
| ter what is said or done | will make
no objection, but | do hope that on
that occasion no self-appointed saint
who claims to know all about the
other world and knows so little about
this world that he wearies part OF its
inhabitants almost death when he
speaks. will make an ass of himself by
| Illuminating over me and airing my
many failures-a thing he did not have
! the nerve to do publicly while | was
in the land of the living. Neither dc
! | want any sugar -mOuthed' lndlvld-
ual who never had any kind words toi
me while i was failing along the best
| could, to come and say pretty moth.
ings, over my rotting remains. Ant
you folks who have taken delight II
throwing rocks at me when | was
not looking, for Gods sake keep your
flowers off my gravel do not neeC
them.
81 would like to leave a message tc
my business assOCiates-the boys il
the shop-but | cannot write abou
that for there comes lump in my
throat, and, doggone it, my eyes fl
with tears when l try to tell Of thu
loyalty, the fidelity, the patience o
those who have 1abored with me yea
after year and some Of whom have
grown up in the shop. | love then
with a love unutterable, and if the
blessing of a dying man is worth ;
whoop they will be endowed will
richest blessings if old reason shall 81
!enthroned when | pass out. Boys, W.
have fought the battles together.
you have not failed me Coo
bless you. If | have failed to act The
man before you forgive me as | hop,
God has forgiven me, for if have
played the towards part, if | have
been untrue, dishonest and unclean il
my dealing with you or in my life be
/ fore you | have not been aware of it
| have tried, God knows, | have tried
to play the man in my work. You cal
tell the man who says that | knowing
: " wrote falsely of any person, insti
tuition or thing, or that | withheld m,
= pen from writing the plain truth whel
| deemed best to write it for tea
= OF any man or for favor from am
one on the face of the earth that h
, |
! is a liar
perhaps some one will want t.
know what are my views concerning
death and the future state. My an
swer is, | know nothing about death
that mystery that all men since tn
race had its origin have faced. | know
no more about the future than tn
cave men knew And you who reat
this know no more. But although
do not know and cannot know, | car
trust-no man can do more.
Il came across this bit OF vers,
some time ago. | do not know who
wrote it, but it so well expresses my
thought that I pass it on as the adopt
ed child OF my brain as | face death
the grave and the great unknown:
Il cannot feel
That all is we'll when darkenine
clouds conceal
The shining sun;
But, then, | know
God lives and loves; and say, since
1t IS 50; 60.