The December 1902 Medford Mail newspaper featured an article touting the superiority of Talent over Ashland, Ore.
The article describes Talent as a place “that allows quiet rest.” Even when the train pulls into town twice a day, only the train’s bell disturbs the peace while the usual “ten people of both sexes” meet the train.
Ashland is four or five miles away, but Talent sees no need for a streetcar line to connect the two towns.
There is one big difference between the two towns, the article says in these words: “It is the will of our people that we license no saloons, and the necessary resultant is, there are none; as for Ashland—well, I’ve heard that even the hydrants send forth a stream of booze if you turn the faucet with the right pressure.”
The article disputes what is calls a conception that Talent is biased. It states, “we are not—we are simply elevated by conscious pride of our undisputed mastery of the secret of municipal legislation, which has long been sought for by various other cities, and who now turn green with envy as they see our glorious success.”
Source: Mail Tribune, 5 Dec. 1902 [Medford, Ore.].
