advertisements were required to be published in the paper at "Washington, Pa., and the Pittsburg papers, from which two counties Beaver county was formed. The politicians depended mainly on the Pittsburg papers for a hearing and for access to the newspaper reading public.
A paper of that city which had most to do with Beaver county, was the "Commonwealth," started in Pittsburg Wednesday morning July 24, 1805. It was printed and published every Wednesday morning by Ephraim Pentland. Mr. Pentland was the son-in-law of Abner Lacock of Beaver, was a Pittsburg lawyer, and was admitted to the Beaver County Courts April 11, 1831. He was city recorder of Pittsburg for a number of years, but was best known in those days in his stormy career as a newspaper editor.
Mr. Lacock was a frequent, indeed almost a regular contributor to the columns of the "Commonwealth." In the first issue of the paper, an editorial reference is made to a letter from Lancaster, Pa., to John Israel, register and recorder of Washington county, and editor of the "Tree of Liberty," no doubt the same Israel who was arraigned in the columns of the "Commonwealth," in its second number. In that number Mr. Lacock had an article two and one-fourth columns in length, defending his course in the legislature from the attacks of an "apostate printer." This was supplemented by an editorial commenting on the letter to Israel, from which the following is taken: "There certainly can be but one sentiment of disapprobation with all parties, towards the editor who wilfully mutilates and disfigures what is committed to his charge for publication. Israel knew Mr. Lacock's letter was unanswerable, and forsooth undertook to destroy the effect of his language by altering the spelling and punctuation. Oh, meanness unparalleled."
