New Britain herald., 1922-04-12
THE ELECTION

Yesterday the voters or the clty o'
 New Britain chose Angelo M. Paones'
 ga to head their city government for
 the next two years. They choose 2
 man through whose veins raced the
 blood of another race, less than ono
 generation removed, one who cannot
 be honestly called a foreigner be-
 cause he has the good of his adopted
 country and city at heart, but one
 who was born across the seas. The charges of foreigner had been
 brought in the campaign, which charges harmed the contestant not at all. In fact it appears that they may have helped him. After all many of us are foreigners in that our fami- lies were not native here and it is a tribute to our system that a man, coming here from another land to live and make his way can have his em- bitions and his work realized as Paonessa did yesterday. Ii is to Pa onessa's S glory that he came here pen niless, uneducated in the ways of his new surroundings and, through noth- ing else but sheer ambition and per sistency achieved goal th4 will be looked up to by many of his country men and men from other lands, giving them a concrete illustration that an- bition may be realized.
 His victory will give to Americani zation-the cause of making true an impetus that nothing else could do. He has been recognized by those about him, voters of Yankee blood and foreign extraction, he has been granted the opportunity to make good by all of them. No particular race elected him, some may have helped He wes chosen by truly American vote, nothing else. Others may some times be chosen under like circum- stances and let us hope that many others will have the ambition to achieve what Paonessa has achieved, The quality of their citizenship will then be beyond challenge.
 And Paonessa is not going to be- tray the impulse that has placed him where he is for the sake of petty poli- tics He has had the desire to make good, has had the ambition to come to his present position from an obscurity in which he might easily have lived and died, and he is going to make good. He is sincere, he de- sired the position of Mayor because needed the money, he is honest and he is swayed by genuine wish to do well by the city and by himself. | He does not pretend to know it all, he is willing to listen to an argument and | capable of acting in judicial man. ner. Can we ask any more of a Mayor or of the citizen along our streets? Not at all.
 We may differ with him Jn some matters of policy, any man who takes a positive stand is liable to be differ ed with, but we honestly believe that the motives which prompted Paones- sa's seeking the mayoralty will insure his being good Mayor and we well come the chance that d foreign born American has to successfully fill an important post that is too often held to be triaing by the native Yankee.
 The election is personal triumph for Mir. Paonessa. He is to be con- graduated for his failure to make any claims not justified by the facts and for his clean methods of campaign ing. He will assume his duties sup ported by the good wishes of those who know him personally.
 If Mir. Paonessa lives up to his repu- taton for unswervng fidelity 10 the peoples interest and is not led into ill-advised alliances with others whose wisdom is questionable or mo- tives ulterior, and if he maintains his policy of open, frank action and speech, steering clear of subterfuge and evasion, he will be more popu- lar with the people of New Britain at the end of his term than he is today. , He has the opportunity to surprise those who voted against him because ! of prejudice: the opportunity 10 { justify the ardent support that Was given him by his friends.
 Mir Paonessa s first duty is and his duty, not only to the city but to him { self, will continue to be to keep the $ wisest of advisers near him, dominat- l ing them, however, by an adherence l to a policy of straightforward hon 1 esty, untanted by political expediency , no matter how politically wise anyone suggesting such a course should seem to be.