Letter to the Editor by Harry Doss:Dear Mr. Pritchard:

As you are well aware, politics is a passion of mine. There are many ways to run a race. Some you win and some you lose and because we are all blessed to be in the United States of America, we appreciate the opportunity to be engaged. However, one thing has been and will always remain true – one does not speak ill of the dead. Thus, when I read the report of a recent political gathering held in Ellijay in a recent column of Jim Galloway’s in the Atlanta Constitution and Journal, I was appalled at the total lack of class exhibited by some of the participants. The column to which I refer can be found at

http://politics.blog.ajc.com/2014/05/07/speaking-ill-of-the-dead-in-ellijay-and-other-topics/

In response to the accusation made, I would like to offer another view.

In 1973, I was afforded a wonderful and life changing opportunity. I was hired by the firm of Spence and Milam and relocated from Washington DC and the active US Army to beautiful Fannin County, Georgia. Mr. Herman J. Spence and Mr. Bobby C. Milam (later Judge Milam) were excellent trial attorneys and conducted numerous real estate transactions. In the course of working for these great mentors, I had the opportunity to be in the Gilmer County Clerk’s office on numerous occasions. It was there I first meet Willard Ralston. A quiet, thoughtful person, Mr. Ralston never failed to ask how I was and once he learned that I had two small children, how my kids were.

I recall one Friday afternoon when I was checking a title for a real estate transaction, there was suddenly a long line of men standing in line to go see the Clerk of the Superior Court Willard Ralston. I was baffled. I happened to know one of the men and I asked what is going on – his reply – “we got paid today. Mr. Ralston cashes our checks. He don’t charge us nothing. Some of the men don’t trust the banks, but they trust Willard. I appreciate him not charging me to get my pay.”

This was not a service that Mr. Ralston was required to do. It was not in his job description. He knew his community and he had earned their trust and he did what was needed to help make life a little easier for the hard working men and women of Gilmer County. He taught me a lesson in what it meant to be a statesman – go the extra mile – not because you need to – but because you want to do so.

Willard Ralston was a Southern Gentleman.

David Ralston is alive and well and if one wants to attack David – that happens in political races. However, to describe Willard Ralston as anything less than honorable should be beneath the dignity of any one that considers herself a Lady or he a gentleman.

The dead cannot normally defend himself — of course, in the case of Willard Ralston, that may not be true, because his legacy remains and is continuing to serve not only the citizens of Gilmer County, but also the citizens of Fannin and a portion of Dawson.

Yours very truly,

Harry Doss