Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1841-1853, 1846-04-02
Published every Thursday
Newspapers mt the Capital.


Speaking of the recent change in the proprietorshiE
of the Indiana State Journal, the Muncie Journal,
wing paper, says
ave hope Mr.. Defrees will endeavor 10 make thu
"Journal' what it should be, the leading wing paper
in Indiana. Its situation and the support ii receires
we think is amply sufficient to justify a greater exer
ton to make the paper interesting than has hereto
fore been made"
We copy this simply with a view of endeavoring
to correct the impression, as general as 1t erroneous,
which is conveyed in the last sentence. The sup
posed generous Support" growing out of the ''situa-
ton" of a political paper at the Capital, is greatly
overrated, and is by no means Sufficient 10 Justify
greater exertions'' on The part of publishers than have
generally been made. We know this is true so far
as we are concerned, and we have very good reason,
judging from the circumstances of some of the for
mer publishers of the Journal, to believe it true of
that establishment. One of them in particular, for
example, who devoted near twenty years of his life
to that concern, and who should have retired wortha
least ten or fifteen thousand dollars, hardly possesses
as many hundreds. The same man, with the same
industry and economy, could have amassed more at
any mechanical business, or perhaps as a common
laborer. We have known woodsawyers and ~draymen
to make much more money than he was able to do.
w u - 0dC VI MS A0boAt 10 R0C u O0A
every other who has been engaged in the publication
of newspapers at the Capital. Wherever an excep-
ton can be found, it will as certainly be found, that
property accumulated has been obtained by some spec
ulations more profitable than the publication of news
papers at indianapolis.
So far as subscriptions are concerned, no newspa-
per here has ever had one half the number that those
acquainted with the business would say they ought to
have to be profitable to the publishers. Add to this
deficiency, the losses inevitable under the credit sys-
TEN, upon which they have all, with the exception Of
the State Sentinel, beer conducted, and the receipts
would certainly fall below the actual expenses of
white paper and manual labor. Even under the cash
system, rigidly adhered to by us, to the offence of
some of our friends, there would still be a deficiency
to meet the items mentioned. To supply this def
cheney, publishers here or elsewhere, are compelled
to resort to the profits of advertising and job work.
And these, in proportion, have been less at Indiana
polls, than any other place in the State, owing to TIE
greater degree of competition-the job-work being d.
vided among at least four Offices.
Nevertheless, more is demanded of a paper at the
than of any other, and to meet this demand
the publisher,.i ii ambitious to make a good paper, or
to escape the censures of his friends, will apply the
pAOCSCuS VI ii PuoAC pdIIOHdSS. III AAhS SOhC
by, this was worth something. But the two greatest
items, as we have been told, were the land sales in
this district, and the laws of the general government.
These have been non est for years and so far as we
are concerned, excluding the advertisement for mail
contracts, which comes once in four years, all the
patronage from the general government which we
have received since we have received any, would not
exceed an average Of one hundred and fifty dollars a
year.
The State patronage In the same line is still less,
especially since the distribution of the Sinking Fund
advertisements, which were worth more than all the
rest, Notwithstanding they were published by the In
dianapolis papers at half price.
Putting together then the extra expense of printing
a respectable paper at the capital, and the extra ''sup-
port which it receives, (though we have not told half
the story,) and it will be found that there is neither
cause for enpy nor a very great degree of grumbling.
If the editor of the Muncie Journal, or any other
journal thinks there is, he had better remove his press
to the Capital and try it.
Of course, in the above, we have spoken a word on
our own account, as well as our neighbours.