The state rights democrat. [volume] (Albany, Linn County, Oregon) 1865-1900, 1872-05-31
MARK TWAIN AZ EDzTOR-Hx.
CHIEF.

Mark Twain. in bis new volume,
"RoughiBg It." Q.res bis experience
as local editor Of the Virginia City
(Nevada) Duty -Eate,7ortse, and inci-
dentally credits the leading writer
of daily Journal in manner as rare
as ii usually deserved In the case
mentioned, Mark had tired of bis la
bor as local editor. He says:
1 WANTED VARIETY on SOME KIND.
It came. Mr.. Goodman went away
for a week and left me the post Of
Chief editor. 1t destroyed me. The
first day | wrote my leader in the
forenoon. The second day / had no
subject, and put il OFF till evening.
and then copied an elaborate edito-
rial of the American Cyclopedia, that
steadtast friend Of the editor all over
the land. The fourth day / "fooled
around till midnight, and then fell
back on the CycIopedia again. The
fifth day | cndgsIed my brain until
after midnight, aud then kept the
press waiting while penned some
personalities on six different people.
The sixth day labored far into the
night and brought forth nothing
The paper went to press without any
editorial The seventh day resigned.
On the eighth day Mr.. Goodman re-
| turned and found six duels on bis
hands-my personalities had borne
fruit.
Nobody, except be who has tried
il, knows what it is 10 be an editor.
IT IS EASY TO sCgIBBLE
local rubbish, with the facts all before
you; il is easy TO clip selections from
other papers; it Is easy to string out a
correspondence from any locality; but
it is an unspeakable hardship to write
editorials. Subjects are the trouble
the drcary lack of them. mean
Every day is drag, drag, drag---think
and worry and sutfer-ail the world
is n dull blank, and yet the editorial
columns must be filled. Only give
the editor subject and his work is
done; it is no trouble to write it up;
but fancy how you would feel if you
had to pump your brains dry every
day in the week-fiity-two weeks in
the year. 1t makes one low-spirited
simply TO think Of it. The matter
that each editor of daily paper in
America writes in the course of a
year would fill from four TO eight
bulky volumes like this book. Fancy
what an editors work would make
after twenty or thirty years service
Yet people often wonder that Dick
ems, Bulwer, Scott Dumas, etc. have
been able TO produce SO many books
II these authors hal wrought as vo
lurninonsly as newspaper editors do,
the result would be something Ia
marvel at indeed.
How editors can continue this ire.
mepdous !abor--this exhausting
CONSUMPTION OF BRAIN FIBRE
(for their work is creative, and not 9
mere mechanical laying up of fact.
Ike reporting,) day after day yesl
after year, is incomprehensible
! Preachers take two months holida,
in midsummer, for they find that te
produce two sermons week is wear
ing in the long run. In truth, it musl
be so. and it is so; and therefore how
an editor can take from ten to twent,
texts aud build upon them from ter
TO twenty painstaking editorials &
week. and keep it up all the ytal
round, is further beyond comprehen.
sion than ever Ever since have
survived my week as editor, have
found at least one pleasure in any
! newspaper that comes TO my handi il
is admiring the long columns OF edi
torials, and wondering TO myself how
the mischief he did it.