The Nome daily nugget., 1935-01-19
Howe About:
An Affecting Letter Sentiment Our Courts
By ED HOWE
O. Bell syndicate.-wNU Service.

 books show that you have for some years paid your bills promptly. In our grumbling about patrons whe are very slow, or do not pay at all, we feel we should express apprecia- tion of your long continued fair ness" i. l have not in long time seen letter affecting me more agreeably. Should there not be more appreciation for men who come somewhere near doing their duty to themselves, their families and their country?
 
 often think of the loneliness of my position in religion; l almost never meet a man who agrees with me; one can sing hymns with, and call brother. As hypocrite I think I am above the average, but have never seen any sense in exploit ing 1t; I am rather disposed to hide my hypocrisy, and be ashamed of 1t. I have found 1t best to be hon est with sentiment of all kinds; 1t is easier than to pretend a lot of things there Is no practical war rant for. judge religion as judge everything else and, as say above, am very lonely. ,.
 A rather notable lawyer called on me lately. He visited London a few months ago, and told about sen sational murder case there. The crime was committed after his ar rival. He was in and around Lon don not to exceed two or three weeks, and by the time he left the murderer had been arrested, con victed and hanged. An appeal to the highest court had also been made and considered and decided in due form. z I do not know reputable law yer who is not ashamed of our courts. Many of the judges, and all the people are, yet we do nothing about 1t, as we do nothing about our disgraceful political system, our banking system. or raeketeering, Kidnapping, or bombing. We shout higher ideals than the people of other nations, and submit to actual performance not existing among the Indians before we Christian iZed them.
 Reasonably respectable people are largely in the majority but they do not use their power; the mistaken, irresponsible. incapable, vicious, are in control. It Is said Russia is ruled by less than ? per cent of the peo. pie. That Is about the percentage here. We pretend we are devoted to the Old Flag, our homes, our families. Actually we daily assault and insult all three. A certain town built really re- markable court house and city hall. "A beautiful structure" stranger said to citizen. Yes" the citi. zen replied, but 1t busted the town and county. It reminds me of the war: It was fine gesture, but how 1t cost A New York magazine re- gently made fun of us because of our squirming about the bonds. Be. fore you leave town. you should see some of our school houses. I fear we shall get in trouble over the school house bonds, too"
 Occasionally a written sentence is so wige and true as to be worthy of place in the permanent philos- ophy of every fairly intelligent and honest man.
 I know of no American who may be credited with greater number of such rare exhibitions than Abra- ham Lincoln. And the sentences I admire were cast in almost perfect form; nothing can be taken from them, nothing added, without harm. Yet Lincoln was not a professional writer. He almost never went to school; of young men of today not one In hundred had as poor a start as Lincoln.
 Of all Americans of large equip ment I regard Ralph Waldo Elmer son as perhaps the ablest writer Lacking Emerson's enormous tech nical education. Lincoln was timfd, and wrote sparingly. l can point out many specimens of folly in Emerson's writing; none in Lin coln's he intended for the public. Some of his private love letters were foolish. but these were intend ed for the fire.
 And no one should be criticized for folly in love.
 A traveller says that when an American picture play Is presented in Germany. the lingering kisses, the bravery of the. Western heroes, the nobleness of the heroines at. tract whistling from those in the audience The Germans are making fun of us -. Have we not reached an age when we should re cover from some of the conspicuous follies which attract contemptuous criticisms in older countries?
 l know an old man who Is i'll, and lately went to see him. He lives