Southern standard. [volume] (Columbus, Miss.) 1851-1856, 1851-02-08
The Editor BY One.

The Editor is the dupe of destiny. His lot was
knocked down to him bargain, and it turns out
to be a take in. His land of promise is a moving
bog. His bed of roses is high backed chair stuff
ed with thons His laurel wreath is a garland of
nettles.-His honors resolve themselves into a ca
ptal hoax, his pleasures are heavy penalties, pride
Is the snuff of candle-his power but volumes OF
smoke. The Editor is the most ill-starred man
alive. He and he alone, the thousand pretenders
about town notwithstanding indeed the identi-
cal martyr, commonly talked of as the most ill-used
individual. He seems to govern opinion, and is,
in reality, victim, to the opinions of others He
ncurs more than nine-tenths of the risk and respon-
sibilty and reaps less than tenth of the reward
and reputation The defects of his work are liber-
ally assigned to him-the merits are magnanimous-
iy imputed to his correspondents If bad article
appears the Editor is unsparngly condemned
If brilliant article be inserted, Anonymous car
ries off the eulogium The Editorial function is
supposed to consist I'm substitutions of 'if it be- ="
for sit is and the insertion of the word "howev
er," here and there, to impede the march OF fine
style. Commas and colons the only marks he
is reputed to make-hs niche OF fame Is merely a
parentheSis, he IS but note of admiration to ge-
nus,-his life is spsnt in ushering clever people
into deserved celcbrty-he sits as charoteeT, out
side the vehicle, in which prodigious talents are
driven to immortality. 1t is his fortune to insert
all his contributions in the temple of glory and to
exclude himself for want of space. lie Is always
to go in, but expires unblushed at last. He be-
slows present popularity thousands without Sc
curing posthumous rcnown as his own share His
career in this life is a tale of mystery-'to be con-
tinued in the next" He is only thought of when
things go wrong in the Journal. Curiosity then
looks out at the of Its eyes, and with brows
and lips pursed up queriously calculates, "who is
he ?'-if by chance, praise instead of censure
should be meditated, the wrong man is immediate
" mentioned. People only certain of their
Editor when they are going to cowhdc him. Is
there bright passage two in an Indifferent arti-
Gle, YOU may be that they not indebted for
that polish to the editorial pen. Is there dull
phrase or harsh period in some favorite contribu-
ton :? Oh the Editor has altered 1t, neglect
for what he inserts he is twice abused for what he
neslects. It is a curious feature in his destiny that
Ii he strikes out but a single line Of article whe-
Their in poetry prose, that very line is nalllbly
the browning beauty of the production. 1t is not
a little odd that when he declines paper, that pa
per is to be by far the best thing the author
ever wrote. Accepted articles may be bad re-
Jccted ones are invariably good. 1t Is admitted
that judgment is the first essential for Editor
ship, and IS the time insisted that iudg-
mcnt is exactly the quality which the Editor has
not. An author Is praised In a revIew-he Is CRATE
full to individual writer, whose name he has IN
dustrlously inquired for, author Is condemned
in a review-he is unspeakaby Disguised with the
Editor Week after week, month after month, the
said Editor succors the oppressed, raises up the
weak, applauds virtue, exalJs talcnt-he pens OF
promulgates the praise of friends-of their books,
pictures, acting safety-amps and steam paddles
but from the catalogue of golden names, his Is
an eternal absentee.