Western news and the Libby times. [volume] (Libby, Mont.) 1920-1933, 1930-09-25
Historical LilRary ~~
HELENA. Mont
Voters Entitled To
Know The Facts
AN EDITORIAL.

Not long ago the writer was reading
an editorial in a Montana newspapel
that bore the significant caption, "Vot.
ers Are Entitled to Know the Facts.
That caption started train of thought
some of which will be set down here
No honest man will dispute the state
ment that the voters are entitled &c
the facts. The difficulty is to get the
facts before them. In many instances
the truth in re25rd to public matters
may be of complicated nature, in
volving questions of finance sometimes
difficult of understanding by the aver
age non-technically trained citizen
They may be eager to understand public
questions but sometimes the question
is SO complicated that it is difficult for
the average man or woman to grasp all
its intricacies and details. That applies
to all of us. As an example, one might
mention the matter of taxation, a ques-
ton SO obscured by percentages and
different rates of valuation and levies
that it takes much study to understand
it fully
But these naturally difficult and
technical questions are not what causes
the greatest amount of misunderstand-
ing Many conflicting reports are al
ways freely circulated durin. an cleo
ton campaign. Men who have been in
power and who have a desire to re-
gain lost ground or get back onto the
public payroll are more than busy, and
they oftentimess spread misleading re-
ports simply to confound and confuse
the voters and arouse wrong impress
sions and beliefs in the public mind.
Such work is pernicious in the ex-
IRENE. The voters should take with
much suspicion all such underhanded
and underground rumors. 1t is best to
inquire what type of men are busy
spreading such rumors and how they
are to be benefited thereby.
Men of the purely selfish type, men
who are looking to fatten their own
pocketbooks at the expense Of the pub
lie, have no time for an honest official.
For very reasonably they know they
will be unable to carry out their ambi-
tons while the honest official is in
control of affairs. Hence, having
tempted him and having failed, they
oftentimes bend their energies to seek
ing his defeat
What is said here does not--fortu- |
nately-apply to all candidates seeking
election to office, or to all men who
may take hand in politics. There are
honest, upright men, men of sterling
character, with high sense of honor
and integrity who seek to serve the
public, in public office, and they have
every right to go before the voters.
That is the type of man the country
needs in office. All honor to them but
for the very same reason that we honor
them and wish them success we like
wise condemn the type of men who en-
ter politics and play a crooked, dis
honest game only that they may be
gamers thereby
There are far more honest upright
citizens than there are dishonest on
corrupt ones They want justice and
fair play to prevail. They will applaud
the worthy politician, the man who de-
votes his time to public questions and
possibly to office holding But they
have nothing but contempt and con-
domination for that type of politician
whose every thought is to mislead
the voters and to corrupt public Off
Gals either for his own glory or for
the gain Of money.
That type of man is the one who
makes doubly difficult the task Of plac-
ing the truth before the voters. FIRE.
quently they are adept in spreading
lies or haf-truths that, misunderstood
by the public, sometimes react against
honest officials and to the benefit of
the corrupt politician. They carry on a
whispering campaign They spread re-
ports that have not the essence of truth
In them, They incite one community
against another by manufacturing cam
ards in which there is no semblance of
truth. Their entire plan of campaign is
one of deceit. The truth is not in them
and they know no other way to carry
on their battle. For that reason the
stalwart citizen who loves fair play
and wants good government will hear
with much suspicion numerous PERM
cious rllmors or stories told in the
heat of political campaign.
In one of his daily timely articles ex-
President Coolidge recently wrote: