Muscatine weekly journal. [volume] (Muscatine, Iowa) 185?-1890, 1858-03-13
The 'ssournal',---lts Prospects.


Tho ''scurnai''---lts Prospects.
Tw" years ago to-day, (March 18Th we
bee :me in'sreste 1 for the second time in the
publication u the Journal, having previous
To that time enjoyed about q years respite
after connection with it since July, 1852.
Our patrons will pardon us Il indulsing in
few retrospective observations. Ii is we'll
known that The newspaper business i'll hi,
city has Involved nearly every on who has
had ny,hing to do whit in pecunary loss.
THIS has leon Oh account OF 4 variety OF
cause. W. ich We will not now enumerato
Suffice II TO say that the main reas N has
been owing to the ne. l;g"nce of those who
Wore aba and who were ntercstc'! in
having the press sustained. Whea we took
charge of the Journal in 1882, We had pain
f,l nisgiyicgs OF oar fl.s. Added to cur
inexperienced, our pecuniary resources were
Indeed limited. Blu, by close application 10
our busin and by strict economy, We
managed not only to improve The appearance
AMI enlarge the size OF III. p@,,vr 7, lu, to
come out at the end at two years and halt
in better ina; c!al condition than wien We
embarked in The business.
v hen we resumed coutrol of the JuurnQi
III 1856, our prospects were Eot the brightest
out cheered by encouraging words from our
friends We renewed our lab ors hopefully. -
The same economy has been exercised by us,
and We have applied all the earnings of the
establishment thus far 10 its enlargement
and to the Improvement of the paper. 1t is
our ambition and aim to publish Il prpe-
which in appearance and ability will be CT, d.
stable TO Musca;ine. During our manage
ment the Weekly Journal las been twice en-
larsed. 1t is now as large rs any other pa
per in the STATE. Bat willie we have been
ambitious to have orr paper present hand
some appearance. We have studiously avoid
ed going SO deeply i'll debt for material as to
I've compelled finally to sell ont or be sold
ont This has beer the cause of more than
hslf the failures of newsp paper publishers in
the West. Possessing little or no capital
with less discretios, and being anxious to
out q handsome figure before the public, they
have undertaken too much and at last re
auired the sheriff to wind up their business
for item. We have preferred to live in ar
humble garb while we could, trusting for "a
COOL time coming when we would array
"nr elf in SNOWY apparel.
IT,, 81,
it is oar determination to continue making
such improvements in the Journal as our
circumstance. viii allow. We are aware
,hat It's typographical appearance could be
much improved by new type. This will re-
quire considerable of an ou,lay-lnore tlan
we would bejustifcd in making just at this
time unless the equivalent additional pat
ronage sh ,uld be extended to us by our mer
Chants and citizens generally. OF MAORI
~ Of orr citizen. We have no complaint to
make. Blu. there are quito q number of bu
siness men in this city who have not a line
Of advertising in our columns, and who
have never contributed to our support ex~
cept by taking our paper. We believe if
they would pursue a more liberal policy to-
wards the printer it would be to their al
vantage. We kno,c it would be to our ad
vantage. and would also add to the appear.
ance and responsibility of the papers pub.
lshed here. We throw out these hints 70,
their consideration, not presuning, however
that we shall prevail upon them to sse,
themselves as Others see them" for VIC hay,
tried it before.
We hope, at least, that all who are in
debted to lis on subscription the past yea
will pay M immediately We have beer
iisiu'gent during the hard times" of til,
past few months, and consequently ar
some" bat behind on our bills for hire, pane
&c. We have endeavored to be prou,nt i,
al our engagements. aud have never MISE,
al issue of our paper, while many of GU
contemporaries lave suspended weeks an,
even months at time. We only ask on
patrons to be equally prompt in their obliea
t3Gs t. us.
g.y The ingenuity and good humor of tn
acting editor of the Eaquircr, Judge Thaver
are Irresistible. He found hinsclf in strait
ened circumstances to sustain his assert;o,
that he had never exhibited disposition te
cast odum upon religious societies, and afte,
vain cndeavor to extricate himself from
his dilemma, he concluded he had best laurl
1t of! So he assumes to regard the entir,
thing as joke. Give us your sW-, Judge
we know that your merriment is only in.
tended to conceal your chagrin because vol
have been "shown up in your true charac
ter, but in consideration of your good hu.
NOR, we will say nothing m ore about it
You may dismiss all approximations from
your mind also, concerning that ssrod., Il
has already accomplished all We Intended i
should. We shall take it out of :.pickle':
and lay it up ''for a memoral,'' as Aaron.
rod that budded and brought forth almond.
was laid up in the tabernacle. You hay,
studied your Bible diligently for the past two
weeks, Judge, and shown a remarkable pro
hclency in all thin S written therein from
the Pentateuch to the Apocalypse of S,
John. 90 on in the good work. We hope
shat while you are under our tutelare
you Will continue to be dutful scholar
and that we shall never again have occasion
to use ''the rod" How true it is, as tn
wise man hath said that 'thc rod and reproo
give wisdom"
We might in our turn challenge you t.
PROVE your assertion that we had ''becom
notorious for calumny and misrepresenta
tion," but We shall not do so. Itwould ge
you into another dilemma from which ever
your good humor wouldnot relieve you, ant
then you would ''let your angry passion