CHICAGO, December 20, 1911.
My Dear Sir:
Several times in the past years I have felt justified in criticizing, in the severest terms, what I considered an unjust and prejudiced feeling entertained by the Record-Herald towards the Police Department.
In view of the tone of its editorials, recently appearing in its columns, bearing on this branch of the city government, a question has arisen in my mind as to whether or not I have misjudged the true spirit of this paper. I am now rather inclined to the belief that I was [too] hasty or positive in my conclusions that the Journal possessed such a small sense of justice, and I sincerely hope that further developments will prove that I entirely misjudged them.
I take this occasion to extend my most heartfelt thanks for your recent editorial, setting forth so clearly and justly the fact that after all a vast majority of policemen are honest and conscientious. I am sure it will touch the heart of those men who day in and day out, in different newspapers, find themselves referred to as crooks or criminals.
It is an example that the Daily News, the Hearst's yellow rags, and more particularly the narrow-minded Tribune could well afford to emulate.
In conclusion, will say that I pretend no defense of the corrupt policeman, so long as I know that policeman is punished for being corrupt, but when I see papers dishing out editorial after editorial, denouncing policemen at every turn, opposing everything that comes up that is liable to be beneficial to them, even to an increase in their salary, insulting them with the insinuation that not one in the entire department is honest enough or efficient enough to become the police head, then I can only arrive at one conclusion and that is that they are certainly not actuated by any honest or just motive.
Further, I have no reason whatever to be prejudiced in favor of the police, as I am not intimately acquainted with a single one in the department, but I love justice, and detest narrow-minded bigotry.
I number among my friends men of all religious beliefs, or at least a great number of beliefs, and also of many nationalities, and I can honestly say that a man's belief or nationality has not made one iota of difference with me, in his relations with me, either in a [illegible] business [illegible] political or social way, and if the News, Post, Tribune and Hearst's sheets could only learn to do likewise, they would be taking a big step in the direction of decency.
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