The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1926-09-30

says:
At your suggestion, arising from a.
short discussion between us recently
of MAIN Street" by Mr.. Lewis, a ma
tive of Sank Centre, l will endeavor
to give a few slants on ''Main Street"
as / recall it in the early seventies, al
SO in 1880, and on occasional v1slts
since. AS you will recall, we spoke
of the probability of any old resi-
dents, and possibly late ones accept
ing the Idea that Sank Centre at any
time was va prototype, even IN nc,
ton, for the depletion gwen OF small
town and its social life comprising
such an aggregation of persons as
"Main Street" reveals.
In his very brief preface, charac-
teristically novel, stuck up in one
corner of fly leaf to the volumne
read, the author states that the story
he is about to tell does not pretend
to be a picture of any special small
community, but will fit amy such, In
the United States, England, Russia,
or some country of southeastern
Europe. As to the later fitting l
could not judge, never having been,
outside the United States save in
Mexico, where, I feel certain no such
example of village could be found.
While in very many of the states
of our own country where nave Nv
ed, sojourned or tarried for a few
weeks, / believe it would be hard to
find town of from few hundred to
two or three thousand making up It's
business and social entity OF such
collection of human freaks, varying
fl ON a few norm1als to absolute fat
heads as to men and shallow or med
iocre females, as Mr.. Lewis depicts.
The Norsk Anarchist and his anna
BILE, simple and wilol , 'cme young
wife, DIR. Kennicott, the Congrega-
tiora minister, the Librarian and two
or three others, stand out as virtlle,
normal and perhaps in two or three
Instances, above the ordinary char
acters as to mentality end conduct.
Some of the others are of the aver
age in most communities, and others
are positively odious. The majority
leave the impression of studidty or
low-grade intelligence. 1t is not to be
wondered at THAT the first criticism
that came under the eye of the writ
err, regarding the book was that Sank
Centre resented strongly the imputa-
ton that lit had been made to stand
before the world as the fictional pro
totype of "Main Street" and its peo-
pie.
It must be admitted that the book
is written in good English and con-
tains much of real life, but its gener-
al tone throughout is sardcnic, cynical
and presents a depressing picture OF
small community life and aspirations.
A backward glance ait Main Street
as I knew it in 1871 and 1872, in
the entire summer of 1880; and in
subsequent shorter visits during the
past As years, gives no hint of the
"Main Street" of Mr.. Lewis and
Gopher Prairie. In the seventies
there were some peculia1ities that if
given public record now would GER
family make interesting reading to
those all over the world who have per-
sued the work of Mr.. Lewis.
The book has put Sank Centre on
the map of the reading world, more
glaringly perhaps than any other
American town of an almost wholly
agricultural surrounding.
If it were possible to tell of
stMain Street" in actual fact it would
require much detail and would
make an interesting sketch, but
it would hardly do to publish
it.. Besides, it is doubtful if the
leading weekly of the nation, which
deals much in rather bold stuff, would
venture to assume the responsibility
of printing it. Old residents Of the
stagecoach and oxtrain period, when
first knew "Main Street." would ait
once recognize the picture and recall
the incidents. Take, as one example,
the doings of the once notorious fake
secret society, the knights of Malta,
which embraced number of more
or less prominent citizens. That was
a highly spicy organization. It's
meetings We're not held on any set
night but happened whenever promis-
ing candidates for rank horseplay of
fered.
At one of these crude limitations
one candidate, in clearing his
personal record in order to fit
him for entrance into such a.
high order confessed to having used
more government internal revenue
stamps than the law allowed. He was
aCCOQIHC6u OisE III IIit ipOucSu VI
men, but under pressure of the chat
echism by the high priest, felt it a
duty to make clean breast of his ac-
lions for many years. The admins
sion naturally startled the members,
who the next morning sent a COM
mittee to inform the new member
that he must forget all, and that they
would say nothing but he must here
after abstain from irregularity with !
the government. He was more or
less Disguised and also somewhat
vexed that he had been led to expose
his secrets.
Another notable case was that of
a stage-driver who confessed Ito SER
ious venalities and sins which it would
not do to tell about on the streets, /
much less put into print. The detail
of these limitations was amusing to
the operators, humiliating to the mo-
vitiate, and shocking to those on the
outside who learned of them through )
the usual channels of small Down gos-