The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1870-01-24
FIRST EDITIO n
PRENTICE.

The Df%lss fEass.pes % OF nis % VIII aud n%%sr
We annoanced the death of George ID. Prem
tice, of the Louisville Journal, on Saturday
afternoon, and gave at that time sketch OF his
life and services. From among numerous anec
dotes in circulation illustrative of the celebrated
journalists character, we select the following
He accepted the Kentucky civilization with
true Yankee grit, and fought his way inside Of
it. Once man met him on the sidewalk and
fred deliberately at his heart. Prentice knocked
him down and put his foot ON him, Get up"
he said, II don't care to kill you" They met
again, years afterwards, Mt q Kentucky water
ing-place; the assailant was dying of consump-
ttOn, and he came up a coughing spectre, and
thanked Prentice for his life.
Mr. Prentice said of journalism in the days of
Clay and the journalism of the present. lit did
not take the money nor the enterprise in those
days that are now required: A newspaper did
not try to do much; political head was mainly
necesia y. Now the newspapers are able to get
on without any politics In some instances. "If
your life we're TO go over again, would you
choose journalism for your groleSslon' u
don't know, he said with smile, 81 dare say
would"
Reuben Durrett was editor of the Louisville
Courier, the principal local opponent of the
Journal in 1898, and kepta sly paragraph in its
columns for several days, intimating that Mr..
Prentice, while 'under cloud, ," had fallen from
gangplank of a steamboat into the water. Mr..
Prentice was intensely aggravated by this little
might have been true but 1t was certainly no
less Objectionable on that account. Probably he
felt that even his great command OF language
would not permit him to do justice to the sub
ject lie simply announced that if the paragraph
appeared again he would hold the editor person
ally responsible. OF course the paragraph APP
peared next morning. Mr. Prentice Immediately
waited upon Mr.. Durrett fired twice at him. re-
ceiyed two shots in return, the police nterfered,
honor was satisfied, the paragraph was can
celled," and each editor had ball extracted from
under his hide
William E. Hughes, another rival editor, sent
his belligerent card up to MIR. Prentice during a
popular excitement, and received the following
reply:-"Tell Mr.. Hughes that will be down as
soon as load my pistols" Hughes however,
unwilling to give his enemy every advantage of
ground and preparation, withdrew in haste.
When the news of the Bull Run fight reached
Louisville, the intensest excitement prevailed,
and the Rebel population paraded the streets
swearing vengeance against all loyal men who
came in contact with them. The Journal Office
had long been floating United States flag from
a staff on the roof, but the staff being too short
for the flag, n carpenter had been sent for early
in the day to put up longer one He arrived
at the time quite q threatening demonstration
was being made in front The Courier office,
which was on the opposite side of the street,
was intensely Rebel, and it was bruited about
that Confederate flag would be hoisted upon it
during the day. The crowd between the offices
was clamorous for the raising of one flag and
the lowering of the other. At this juncture Mr..
Grentlcc was informed Dy an eXclLeu enplOyc
from the counting-room that somebody was on
the roof pulling down the flag. The old mans
eyes flashed fire. "Then, by G." said he, ''go
up there and throw the scoundrel down among
the mob"
During the days just preceding the war, Mr..
Prentice became great favorite with the hardy
backwoodsmen of Kentucky who usually came
to see him when they were in Louisville on
business: not that they were acquainted with
him, but, as they themselves would tell him,
just to see what he looked like. Such visits
were of course peculiarly painful to sensitive
nature, though Mr. Prentice had no recourse but
to endure them. Reception rooms are not gene
rally in use among the provincial newspapers,
and a knock at the door is the only intimation
of visitor before he enters the room. One of
these enthusiastic individuals shook Mr.. Prem
tice warmly by the hand one day, when he had
come, as he said, on visit of curiosity" and
after scanning the editors features in various
lights, drew himself up and said:-"So, you're
old George D. Prentice, air you? Well, I'm
migl ty glad to see you. Jim Dodd bet me you
was good looking. and bet you wasn't; and /
Hiak Toe tcon IT,"
During the Ward riots in Louisville, when
Mutt Ward, who murdered the schoo-teacher
was the object of vengeance, Mr.. Prentice de
Tended Ward in the columns of his journal, and,
in consequence, not only was compelled to fee
from the city, but subsequently found his sub
scripton list wofully depleted by the with
drawal of subscribers who censured the course
he had taken during the trial In order to re-
trieve this loss, he published daily for week or
two several columns of letters from imaginary
subscribers who having withdrawn, were
anxious to subscribe again. These writers
declared that they had been afflicted
with terrible pains and ''miseries" in the
chest or head or stomach, or with
rheumatic and consumptive ailngs, and
solemnly took oath that one reading of the
Journal cured them completely. One indi-
vidual declared that he had tricky horse, but
that he commenced taking the Journal again,
and the animal became mild enough for coun-
try doctor. Such good humor had its effect.
The old subscribers laughed and subscribed
again. When his course in favor of coercion
was decided, his Southern subscribers, who were
in a large majority on his list, dropped off
rapidly, but the large cities of the North sent
him long lists of new ones. He vented his
ridicule on his Southern deserters in many
instances through his columns. Here is one
instance
"UNIy VIRGINIA, May II 1s6i.-Preutice stop
my paper; can't afford to read abolition journals
these times; the atmosphere OF old Virginia will not
admit OF such filthy sheets yours has grown to be-
"Yours, etc, GEORGE LAKE"
LOUISVILLE, May "a, ls6l.-Lake, 1 think it a
DitV that a On IN "a