MORE: We started to share a few “Random Notes” we found in 1918 editions of The Era the other day. We promised you some more, and we’re delivering.

“When plain fault finding masquerades as constructive criticism, enemies of good government lead the applause.”

Ouch. That one had a bit of sting to it.

Here’s another that might get an author in trouble in modern times.

“The upward strokes of prices and the downward strokes of service form the double cross on which the public is crucified.”

These notes certainly seem to have retained relevancy over the past 100 years. It makes us wonder what was happening at the time to have led to these observations.

We’ll continue: “One of the greatest sources of waste is found in doing things that are not worth doing.”

It’s clever how a barb carefully wrapped in colorful words seems less harsh.

“It isn’t always safe to judge a town by its monuments. The dead ones are not all in the cemeteries.”

“The things many people suspect are what give them such a tragic view of life.”

It seems like there were some pretty good life lessons tucked into that column of the paper, too.

“The best insurance against failure is to treat every opportunity as a last chance.”

“Take your time, but in doing so, be considerate and do not take the time of the man who is busy.”

This next one has a bit of a bite to it.

“‘Think twice before speaking once’ is a maxim that ranks high in the scale of good advice. Strict application of the rule, however, would bar many persons from conversation.”

Some of the comments, like this next one, offer some encouragement.

“Many a good idea languishes and dies for want of apt expression.”

This last one gave us a chuckle.

“There are more things in life than money. Some of the others, however, seem to lack the advantages of proper advertising.”