The Durant news. (Durant, Miss.) 1882-1985, 1946-11-07
ELLIS q HIRSBERG
CerLAIleo PuDnc Accountants
CIarksdale, MISSISSIPPI


C~Iarksoale, MISSISSIPPI
OCTOBER 20, 1870
Miss Hazel Brannon,
Lexington, MISS.
Lear NllSs Brannon:
1 wish TO express my high ad-
mlratlon for the Tine courage when
YOU are manitesting in the conduct
of your papers, and to let you know
that |, along with probably many
thousands OF others, commend you
for your efforts in behalf OF better
government in your county.
1 shall not discuss nor even re-
fer to the transactions OF the last
few days in your court, In which
YOU have been concerned, nor Is any
parallel to be drawn between that
business and anything / say.
But, looking at the trend OF affairs
today, our Nation over, and Missis-
sippi is NO exception, and discussing
such trend from a purely academic
viewpoint, it is indeed deplorable-
It is frightening and ominous-to
observe the growing tendency on
the part of government, government
agencies, and petty officials to
throttle, browbeat and intimidate
the press and abridge the right OF
free speech.
We daily observe instances OF
Justice being defeated, sometimes by
the employment Of too finely drawn
technical devices, such defeat being
countenanced by little judges and
abetted by miserably incompetent
and untrustworthy public officials,
and at the same time our press, n
Inundated and cringing in fear,
stands silently by or at the most is
allowed to raise its voice in apollo
getic whisper. It would be difficult
for u %forefathers to contemplate
the America of today where any
man is denied the right to express
his opinion and u papers are
estopped from giving all Of the facts
to all Of the people all of the time.
The great trouble is that during
the past two or three decades the
calibre of our public officials, from
the highest to the lowest, with each
succeeding election, has shown
smaller and smaller. This, coupled
with the well known fact that the
ego Of the little man is reversely
large in proportion to his smallness,
has given us generally +, today, a
hoard Of despicably little men in
positions of authority. and they
of their inferiority and
victim of their exaggerated ego, pro-
coed to elevate themselves on false
pedestals. Too busy with u per-
sonal affairs, or wanting no punish
ment obliquely directed upon US
from their position Of advantage, we
are, too generally, suffering this con-
dition to continue. The situation
needs that we bring these arrogant
officials to account, that we bring
them to a realization of the fact
that they hold no position OF
superiority among society but that
their position is properly a servile
one and that they are accountable to
us for their actions, and that we
demand that accounting. People
generally though, are a peaceful lot
and prevailing conditions testify to
the fact that they viii stand much,
In fact more than they should, be-
fore rebelling,-and even then, with
out leadership and inspiration, they
too often 60 down in submission.
It is therefore up to you and me,
and others, who have the courage
and will to self sacrifice, if need be.
to continue to cry out from our posi-
tons of obscurity, to protest on every
occasion the abridgement of justice
and right in the hope that our
lamentations may eventually reach
the ears of a Messiah who will, out
of great compassion, come among us
and see that justice and democracy
again prevail, or, failing in this we
might inspire and incite to action
the more able among society who
will leadership in a long
overdue fight to put u govern
ment, local, State and National, into
more trustworthy hands.
realize that yours is perhaps a
heartbreaking and discouraging task,
but ! hope that you will keep It up.
for the most hated and despised OF
all things, in the eyes of the dereict