Burlington free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1827-1865, 1865-09-22
From the N. 7. Citizen edited By Col. Hal
zrt7r pine-"Miles o'Reilly.''l is. o.
Henry }. Raymond.

flfu1lS Henry J. Raymond.
dspper little man, he might be called, 80
active that you do not see that he is quite short,
aud 50 prompt when You speak 10 him, that you
set him down for a very handsome gentleman.-
AT the table. where a Federal offcer and rebel
lady SAT in Virgiman fellowship, usei to watch
Raymond. fresh at repartee as he was averse TO
social debate, and by manner rather than by
rank the foremost Of the boarders, and wonder
if ii were really true that he had once picked up
police items, and met at the hour oftheir occur
renee the episodes Of twenty years ago, As meet
them now, TO state them in the long newspaper
column. 'i rtft ri
So we were put together to doze, and pro-
voked him into self-comparisons. II was a bare
little room, looking out upon sogzy lawn, all
shadowy of nights with teams and mules, and
the em6ers of fires, and while il was 80 dark
that be did not know how eagerly / listened,
this successful journalist told me the steps to
success.
Steps, he said, "are like that horseman's
who passed the mIll-stream on stones, and did
not know the perilonsness Of the passage TIL the
night was over and he could look back. | work
ed-that was the route; and made frienis-that
was the refreshmeDt -
So he told me with jest, like my own, how he
had commenced-a poor Yankee boy, wander
that his schooling had not been in vain. In the
Office of the .Nev Yorker, successful mans
early failure, Raymond took up the routine OF
chipping, clipping. and tripping for ten or If
teen dollars a week. He had adaptiyeness which
think a surer capital than bank account, and
mastered whatever he saw, from piece Of ma
cbinery to a horse race Therefore he very prop
erly followed the instinct Of news, which IS a
separate affair from mere literary talent. by Civ
ing up the weekly paper and meetins the more
alive ordeal of a daily Journal The old Cour-
Ter and Enquirer took him up, aud here was
| the absolute start Of Raymond. Ii removed him
from the back room of life TO front on the busy
street; he wrote as much as ANY Of the timor-
| Gus young gentlemen nowadays vine think the
quality Of their matter so good that they ought
to be chsry OF expeudingIt.
know not what lists OF fires, 70 beries and
murders Raymond kept the run Of. and hear but
dimly Of the memory Of his reports from eotem-
porary people; but that they were the cleverest
of their time IN daily journalism. am free 10
| hazard, and while he spoke Of some of them
could hear the fever of the young man in the
rising clearness of his voice, admonish me thst
the days of the first piece rivalry Of news are
the widest of our triumphs.
With the cleverness Of his pen, Raymond pos
sessed a more public felicity in greater degree.
/ i
writer Indeed, do NOT believe he has any
equal as u debater, and shall look TO the next
| Congress, where he will sit, to be satisfied Of it
He IS not often epgramstic, intense, and subtle
as journalist. He is always earnest, but can
not be playful, nor show you that vehemance Of
| saying a new thing like the explosion Of a mine,
| or epiOmZing old one 50 that II hushes up
with genius; but the smoothness Of his letters Is
| like sober mans narrative, and on the PENN
sula-where he was a public servant, most prob
ably-he wrote 10 the Times like any InGustri-
Gus reporter.
As public man. Mr.. Raymond IS even ADLER
1 than as a writer. He knows nothing that he has
not at hand, and his promptness Of speech Is a.
c'ose to his material. as a carson 10 q cannon
| Pliant but not retreatng, discreet a. he is in-
genious, clear headed but not great headed, and
conducting better than conceHing, warrant
that Raymond will prove the most parliamenta-
~ of our Congressional debA,ers, and lead with
excellent grace toe majority OF the uouse.
1t has been long since lay abel and form
cd this estimate Of him, but held him a | still
DO, the best Representative Of journalism per Sc
| IN America, a steady worker, fIcile ieloN with
A nostr for news, and the architect OF the mosr
equal and calmly ielinbe morning daily il the
! metropolis. The Times Is the mosl English Of
| American urnals; il has no meteor ic'deas; II
lo,s not surrender ,s entire iufuenc 10 pol tics;
| It Is s. dom personal and never mslciousy 20 :;
| II can be real without encouraging ln-tt'. " or
aeakening our general confidence ia the honor
Of mankind. E,eryto Of c0us cqreuce connect
d with ii. resembles Raymond, alroit but bot
brilliant. Still. 1t Is very far from perfect
| journal; but those Of its rivals that are more
brilliant are les perfect
Mr.. Raymond was the protector Of HGTPer's
| .naga-ine, and he detected the merit ct the
-.O,c Of Jane Eyre, while II rpgr's Reader, be-
| ere the echo of ITS fame had reached NJ from
| abroad.
have been particular to speak Of hin, be-
cause he Is the only journalist OF note, who bias
gone SO steadily from the ranks to power. lie
carried pencil and note book not long ago;
he President IS glad 10 be advised by that re-
| porter now.