162

REMARKS AT DEDICATION OF NEW MONTGOMERY
COUNTY SENTINEL PLANT, ROCKVILLE

April 21, 1967

Dr. Leonard Kapiloff, Dr. Bernard Kapiloff, Mr. Farquhar, Distin-
guished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen of Montgomery County:

A newspaper often serves as the mirror of the community in which
it is published. On its pages are reflected the births and deaths, the
joys and sorrows, the trials and triumphs, the peace and discord in the
community.

If it properly stands guard over the community's interests—as does
the Montgomery County Sentinel, whose new plant we formally dedi-
cate today—it does more than just serve as a mirror of the times and
a record for future historians. It pulls and pushes, praises and con-
demns, and using that omniscient eye from the ivory tower so com-
mon to newspapers, tries to tell its citizens in which direction to head.

And I am sure there must be some readers of the Sentinel in this
audience today who, after reading a Roger Farquhar editorial on some
subject of controversy, have wanted to tell the Sentinel where to head.
Indeed, a few have probably picked up their pens and done just that.
If so, the paper has been doing a good job of leading as well as in-
forming.

I assure you that I understand perfectly how it feels to be on the
receiving end of such missives. More than a few from irate correspon-
dents have landed, still sizzling, on my desk at Annapolis during the
past four months. If I took their advice to heart and went where they
suggested, I'm afraid I would be constantly traveling in very uncom-
fortable locales and would have little time for anything else.

Today marks my first official return as Governor to this County
which rewarded me so handsomely and substantially with its votes last
November. Let me take this public occasion to again express my deep
and sincere gratitude for Montgomery County's vote of confidence and
to reassure you that I will do my level best to live up to the hopes you
expressed through your ballots last fall.

We made a good start, I believe, on carrying out these hopes in the
legislative session which concluded last month. All of our actions may
not have met with your full approbation, but I trust that enough did