Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1855-04-19
Pennywise and his paper

Pennywise and his Paper
Every farmer ought to take u newspaper o
some kind Of course foreign one is' bette
than none at all. But we feel perfectly safe
in asserting that any county paper, howeve
poor-the mesnest, most insignificant, shah
best, smsllest-is worth TO the farmer, in
hard dollars, ten times more than the largest
fullest and bcst foreign paper, even when il
is filled with carefully selected matter, not
previously used-which is not often the case.
Publshers Of county papers ought not to
undertake to compete in price with the pow.
expresses and five times used matter Of nam.
moth conglomera,e city week!ies. IT is
vain and foolish. No county paper can be
afforded at less than two dollars year, and
the citizen ought not to ask il. But the peo-
PIES attention ought to be turned to the rea-
son Tor its Necessity. The very reasons for
its necessity show its value. And lis value
ought to demonstrate its support.
But no" Il can get a huge, uHganly, vas:
paper from Cincinnati for d Jllar. ! guess
won't subscribe Il am taking q Cincin-
natl paper. Such are the usual answers -
You can get paper for COLLAR, Mr. Penny
wise! Farseeing man! Wise country edi-
tor, who talks of no postage to pay and
thus makes itappear that his paper, elter all,
is almost as cheap as the Cincinnati Mam-
moth Steam Shorter which Pennywise gets
for dollar aud thirteen cents, all told!
Well, Pennywise takes city paper, and
tells the country editor he may stop Prob
ably too, he depends upon the community Of
which the editor is portion, for his subsis-
tence-but no matter for thai. Perhaps he
sells his produce 'in town TIE first week
he loses fifty dollars by not knowing the
price OF bar .ey. The next week he loses a
bargain Of hundred dollars in piece of
land advertised. The next week he misses
valuable agricultural item, selected for the
very township in which he lives, and loses
twenty dollars. He was very anxious always
TO hear Mr. Thomas Traveller, lecture. He
thinks it would do him ten dollars worth Of
good at least for lie is an intelligent man,
AID would ike to tel his children years
hence that he heard the famous man lecture
'in the spring. of '55.' Some en,erprs n :
men induced Mr.. Traveller to visit Mr.. Pen
nywise's county town, and they duly adver-
tised it in the county paper. Next week Er.
=. comes trotting into town as coT placen,lv
as il he had never been pound foolish Ey-
erybody i, talking about 'the lecture las,
night 'Whose!' asks Pennynise. 'Oh,
the famous Nj. Traveller was here last night
B g audience. Good tall. Never forget i,
as long as live 'Pshaw! why | never
dreamed of his coming here. | wish had
known it. Why wasn't it adve;tisedr
This is the fourth week. The fifth Miss
Jerusha Jenkins $ marriage i, published, ani
old Mrs. BlkinsS death. Mrs Pennya se
heard Of it at a neighbor's, and is asked,
why law!--dont your husband take the pa
per'
The next week Mr.. P, intends to look
sharp. He will borrow a paper. lie trav-
els a quarter oc q mile through muddy lane
after 1t, and spends three hours; SO cts.--
The same next week, 90 cts. TIE same
next week; 80 cts. The next forty-four
weeks a, thirty cents a week; Sl2,5O-total
lost time, $l4,40. Blu; this he considers bet
ter than his first five weeks experience, in
which he lost Sl6O. lie is doing bravely,
and his neghbor Smith says, when he turns
his back with the paper in his hand, If
were as rich as Pennywise, l think Iii take
a paper, and not spUn ge on my neighbors.'-
And Mrs, Smith, washing the dishes, re-
marks, 'Pennywise seems to be gitiin' to be
a dreadful mean man. And pretty soon the
community all around will taIk Of Penny-
wise as penurious fellow.
Now let US square the accocnt.
fennywise DR.. Pennywise Cr.
To sundrles $50 co BY difference
Lost time IA 20 between cuun-