The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1860-05-31

:, MAY 81, l86O.-TRIPLE
Progress - Independent JsurnslasuA--
The asrala - To-day anA the HerAxA
% twenty. ave Years Age.
On the ffth Of May, eighteen hundred and
thirty I've, the publication Of he NEW YoRx
HERALD was commenced by the present pro-
prietor. 1t was printed upon Q single sheet,
and contained in il four pages about the same
amount Of matter that Is included In ono page
Of tho HERALD Of to-day. II was Q modest
child. The platform laid down by the editor
was that upon which the paper has ever since
been conducted entire independence Of opin-
ion, freedom and fearlessness In the treatment
Of the current topics Of the day, and the pro-
duction Of the very best Newspaper that expe-
rienoe and enterprise could make ut d
equally intended" said the leading article In
the first number, "for the great masses Of the
community-the merchant, mechanic, working
people-the private family - we'll - the pub
Lie hotel-the journeymaa and his employer
the clerk and his principal" This catholic
doctrine has certainly been carried out to the
letter, for, II there ID universally read news-
paper in the metropolis, It IL the HERALD.
As for the matter Of circulation, we said:-
"There are In this city at least one
hundred and fifty thousand persons who
glance over one or moro newspapers
every day. Only forty-two thousand
daily sheets are issued to supply them.
We have plenty of room, therefore, without
jostling neighbors, rivals or friends, to pick up
at least twenty or thirty thousand for the He
RAID, and leave something for others who come
after us" During the next month we alluded
to the "rspid increase Of the HERAID's circula-
don,n thus:-''Between the 10th and 10th inst
the daily circulation of the HERALD has in
creased 1920 copies, or at the rate of 200 per
day. Query-How long will it take to reach
daily circulation Of 10000 at that rate." We
remember that in those days we regarded
daily sale of three thousand impressions as
something enormous.
That was the HERALD of a quarter of a CEN
fury ago. Then New York was bounded on
the north by Blocker street-then the old
istic field. The idea Of publishing newspa-
per, and giving all the news, without fear or ia
vor, nearly petrined the old fogies. When
they recovered in part from their as
tonishment, they took up their pens
and pitched into Bennett In the real
old orthodox style. Some of them-Webb,
especially-have not yet recovered from their
ancient Authorizations. The HERALD, however,
throve under persecution proof that
the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the
church. We believed that we should build up
great journal when We commenced; but the
reality exceeds our expectations. The modest
limit of twenty thousand copies was reached
long ago. We print now every day an ave-
rage Of seventy thousand copies-by far the
largest circulation Of any daily paper in the
world In two consecutive days our circulation
has run up to one hundred thousand each day,
which round number will be regularly reached
before great while, our circulation keeping
pace exactly with the growth and progress Of
the city. While We have been going on In
this way We have introduced many improve
ments into journalism, all Of which have been
copied BY our rivals, who, in some cases, have
been mean enough to try and pass OF our ideas
- their own All the real newspapers In this
country are printed on our plan, which Is
quite simple. We give oil the news that can
be obtained by time, tact, talent, and liberal
expenditure Of money.
The Nxw YoRx HERALD has been very often
compared 10 the London Times, and the fact Il
that we occupy here the same position that Is
held BY the leading journal Of England In
Europe. The London Times has no influence
here, very few copies ever reaching the United
States. The New York HERALD goes over .
wider field, d read by the masses here more
extensively than the Times BY the same Glasses
In England, and the former Il altogether .
more wonderful example Of progress than the
latter. The London Times has required sixty
years wherein to build itself up, and that in .
country ten centuries old. We have had ma
tonal existence In anew country Of only eighty
years, and the HERALD Is only twenty five years
old. The detail Of the business In the London
Times and New YoRx HERALD Offices In almost
identical Both journals are conducted on
sound, practical business principles, and,
without copying the one from the other,
they have naturally fallen into the same ways.
The London Times people make paper for
the English mind, and we suit the American
taste. In many respects our people are like
the English, but do not appreciate servile imi-
tation; SO that any attempt to reproduce the
London Times here would result in failure.
Naturally little proud Of the success which
has attended our efforts, we are not intoxicated
by it We know ss well as any one else, per-
haps better, that there are still opportunities
forimprovements in the science Of journalism
for an exact science II has come TO be. We
think ofr roadora afrou fha sfartf lan1 thn~o