Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1873-04-17
s'Be Better at thy Leisure. ,
Office of the tribune"
I'll d Al ~ 1910

! MY GOOD BRO. PHILLEO Ill Is
with commingled feelings of surprise,
pain and sadness that [ read and re-
read your structures npon what were
intended for compliments to the Re
porter. which have appeared in the
Tribune. Not until I read your last
! outburst did [ guess what you meant
by your expression. few weeks since,
I that you Thought Marjorie had left
town. I have betrayed no confidence
nor published or uttered any "slur"
upon either the Reporter or its editor
or proprietor Their repeated and
continual kindnesses toward me and
mine would utterly exclude anything
of the kind. But when you intimate
that the existence of two papers in
this city has not increased the valne
and usefulness Of the Reporter you
will fail to find a single citizen to agree
with you. When the Independent
sprang into existence, the Reporter
was improved, in every respect, at least
an hundred fold and since the birth
of the Tribuas, all have noted still
greater Improvement. By the ex-
pressions of which you complain so
stoutly, [ also designed and desired to
impress upon this community the fact
that the better it sustains the two pa
pers, the more valuable they will be to
the city and county. And | have ur-
ged upon some Of my Advertising pa
irons to give the Reporter share also.
If one is advertising largely with me,
it is his duty, as we'll as his interest,
to represent his business, to some ex-
tent at least in the Reporter also.
Each of us have subscribers from
Maine to California, and they judge
Of the merits Of town from the ad-
Vertisemcnts in the local papers. Every
man doing any branch of business in
this city and Centralia should have at
least fve-line card in each paper,
that subscribers at a distance may
form a correct estimate Of our county
For myself, will just add that I
have nearly all the advertising patron
age | desire, until the paper is enlarg-
ed, which | expect to be compelled to
do within few months.
clubbing the ears does create
warmth - and the publication Of two
papers in town, properly sustained,
will create strife in the conductors
Of each to publish the very best pa
per of which they are capable, and
will thus enhance the usefulness of
both UNNECESSARILY. Deny it as much
and as often as you please, the fact viii
still exist.
Now, as to 'som riiraT'. One would
think from reading your effusion, that
this expression was terrible epithet.
But no fair construction Of the express
ion will confirm your intimation. | am
striving with all my energy, and with
the limited time I have to devote to it,
to make the Tribune equal to the Re
porter as local paper. And it is q
laudabIe ambition IF | don't succeed
in this endeavor, it is on account Of
inferior ability to yours if you don't
make the Reporter at least as readable
as the Tribune, it may be charged to
laziness, for you have both the time
and ability. Are we not s'rivals ?''
If you would construe the expression
to mean that the Reporter IS striving,
or desires, to crush the IriJune-o or
cice rersa-we are not rivals For one,
I have no such desire, nor has any
other citizen who has the prosperity
of our county at heart. | would not
lessen your list by one subscriber, nor
your advertising or other patronage one
dime, and | have not the least suspi-
clon that you would mine But you
would take sort of inward satisfac-
ton or pride to know that you were
publishing by far the best paper of the
two. Many think YOU are; I shall
not dispute with them And I frank
y acknowledge that you are issuing a
paper of which any city in Wisconsin
might well be proud, and [ am happy
in the knowledge that you are patron
lied so handsomely. IF I can make a
fair living aud you fortune each year,
| shall be rejoiced.
\ few words in regard to your alIu-
sion to our ''moTing ii an atmosphere
where dwells the worst and most ins;n-
uating enemy we ever had''-which
''atmosphere' in plain English, is L.
d Donorc ,,I 80, la,,o