The Louisiana Democrat. [volume] (Alexandria, La.) 1845-1918, 1872-12-25
Newspaper Failures.

THE REASON WHY THERE ARE so MANY
OF THEM.

IN MS recent excellent address be
Iftre the Press Association Of Tennessee
General Ira P. Jones, of the Nashvill.
Union and American, gave the follow
ing truthful account ofnewspaper NOR
tality:
We do too mucl, work without com.
pensation. We pay too mnch more,
without any return whatever. We es
tablisll an eleemosynary institution al
our own expense. We keep Chart,
school on our own hook. We conduct
business as if we owe everything to til,
public, and the publicsare not indebted
to us a fart|ling. We are preyed upor
by the sharpers and the innocent'
alike. We advertise CONTINUOUSLY every
week, When we should''lave the none,
for it. The general public a,e entirely
isnorant-prnbahy we ourselves are
not ful)ysaware of the extent to whicl
newspapers are bnrdened by this in,
sidious drain uponstlleir resources. Il
insinnates itself in every conceivable
form. 1t does it through reporters
through agents, through correspon.
dents, through editors, through bust.
ness managers, through proprietors and
generally, too, with as much disadvan.
tase to the public as,to the press. There
is not business, from the dispenser OF
ginger cakes and cider to the langes,
mandatory, which will not advertise
with you gratis which will, if you
listen to it, endeavor to convince you
that it is your duty to the public to du
so. THERE'S not an aspiTant for pub
lie station and when I contemplate
the numbers of these, l experietfce an
overwhelming sense of commincle(
amazement and dlsgust-from consta-
BILE to the Senate of the Union, who
does not conscientiously believe it to
be. the imperative duty Of the press,
daily and weekly, to speak, with d
pen of telescope power, of his micro.
scopic deservings. Even that army of
stvollers, which infest the country and
the people as a sort Of visitation of
Providence for our iDiqnitits, from the
street-corner seller of prize candy or
magic Oil to the operate empressario,
will expect you to write an indefinite
number of editorials on three SQUARE
advertisement inserted for Eve days.
chanseable daily, without charge! We
are required to writes up urge up, and
put through every enterprise, great or
small, that seems to have possible
connection with the public. But we
never hear of a share of stock, or of Il
dividend. The Church, the State,
commerce, industry, art, invention aud
humbug alike. seem to regard the press
as their SENATORS, and to he run and
sustained for their advantage.
There is a line of demarkation in all
these things between public demand,
public utility, newspaper duty and in
dividual gain. That line should be
defined, aud held, rs it in reality is,
the Dead Line. Not letter nor a
space nor a figure, not a comma nora
period, nothing of all the innumerable
PARTICLES that enter into the form and
structure Ola daily or weekly news
paper, is there that its picking up and
putting down does not cost'casl money.
Not revolution of the press, not a
square inch of paper, that does not cost
something in cash. This. should he
understood by the pnblic. If it is not,
its correlative should he spracticed by
the press. do not mean that the
press should abandon its position Of
being the foremost charitable ins,itu-
ton in the world. 1t should hold ia
that, for its munificent liberality, afte,
pufging itself of nine tentfs of the
daily swindles practiced upon it, viii
exceed that of any other business.
TO get rid ofthis stupendous frand
of gratuitous advertising, this cancer
canker-call it anything. provided you
select an epithet that will characterize
it strongly enough can prescribe no
other rule than this: Put voluntarily
aud without charge any and everything
into your paper which you deem adj
vantageous to it in being beneficial Ia
the public. All else, exclude, being Of
advantage to those who wish to make
money upon your capital and enter.
prise. Hold your space at its value,
FIX yonr rates mt a fair price for yon,
circulation, and adhere to them. Fai,
dealing will accomplish more than foul.
at all times and everywhere. For he
it Known that the American press is
not vampire, to be constantly suck
ing the life-blood of the people. 1t has
vastly higher mission hut it should
also be known that it will not longer
be made the victim Of the thousands Of
vampires that come daily to the coun-
tels, in every conceivable garb, to have
its life-blood incontinently sucked
away. S.,
EFFECT OF CAST IRoN STevEs.-some.
time ago a paper was read before the