Western Reserve chronicle. [volume] (Warren, Ohio) 1855-1921, 1873-02-19

paper publishing is the most hazar
dOus of all business enterprises, and
the failures outnumber the successes
a thousand fold. Thousands of meI
must needs try journalism, in the full
hope and belief that they were borI
for 1t, and as surely fail as though they
had attempted the circumnavigatioI
OF the globe in q canoe. In the Wes
tern States, and especially In Kansas
newspaper mortality has been fright
full. 1t is getting to be that the funer
ais are even more numerous than the
ehristeninQs, Ten years from thiI
date, and il is to be hoped that Jour
nalism in Kansas will have grown
much less in quantity and much bet
ter in quality.
But ia the great cities the competi.
ton is tremendous and rivalry intense
Read two dailies published the samt
day in the same city; see the evident
ingenuity displayed in 8 different
| dressing Of the same news, and the
everywhere apparent strife for thai
which in eaen Is meant to be newel
and more startling than that in the
other; the keen cuts, the sarcasm and
sometimes the unbridled license Oi
abuse; and the reader wonders what
the world is coming to, The inven-
tiveness displayed In making much
| Of very little amounts to absolute ge-
| MUS. All characters lose sacredness;
fun is poked at every belief and every
feeling Of humanity. The quiet citi-
zen does not know at what moment
his humble name may appear in
startling head lines, which, IL he have
any unfortunate remainder Unnatural
mOdesty, will haunt him ever after
With the thirsty news-hunter there
has long ceased to be any such thing
as private character. He cares for
none Of those things which people in
general value, and he is equally care
less whether his reports be true or
false. "Mischievous Manning Makes
Many Mistresses Miserable" he says
in great black letter, and 50 he can
have his sensation and play upon
words, he cares nothing more for
Manning. Diamonds and Devil
try" he goes on, and column OF racy
stuff sacrifices forever and chance of
future respectability on the part of the
victim. Such discussions are con.
tinued daily and ad infnituDI. A eiti-
zen named Robyn writes q small book
of senselsss rhymes, and then wants
the board Of education to adopt it as
singing book in the common
schools. Not content with giving
some Of the most senseless of the stuff
to the public, altered to the utmost
stretch of righteousness, he must
needs chronicle its rejection by the
board with this sentence at the head
of the next mornings locals ''Who
killed Cock Robyn?n The rivalry
between two great cities finds express
sion in paragraphs of which the pecu-
liarity consists in the fun which may
clothe very trivial ideas. A man in
st, Louis was frightfully crushed by
a passing wOman's foot Yes, and the
next day gives to the world the start
ling announcement that the ladies of
Louisville are obliged 10 play croquet
with billiard cues, because there is no
mallet which will reach bail beneath !
the foot Of one of them. These items |
which might be continued Indefinite |
ly, are only mentioned as illustrations !
Of what we mean.
But all this is only by-play in the |
business. The real tone |
and standing of successful paper /
comes from other sources. Each one /
seems to be permeated by some marked |
A newspaper has a
and a mind, and the /
men who daily read it and are con-
with every feature would be ]
unable to tell how this peculiar face /
and character came to be so made
The whole sheet has marked tone"
though made up by dOzeh or two
workers. Sometimes for
weeks it is angry and waspish. Some
lines it is patronizing, and, as gen.
,ral rule, the smaller the paper the
more is this feature apparent in speak
ng of contemporaries, and especially
n the criticism of the literary efforts
,f the others. Sometimes it is sarcas-
ie, and filings its shafts right and left
luite indiscriminately for weeks
again il is didaetie, or what people
re apt to call "dull, {" aud every thing
II it is Of the heavy" style, and it ;
,oes sOlemnly on for years, supported
" the people who the world over are
Onstantly mistaking mere owlish-
less for wisdom. There are a few
apers in the United States which
ave always been remarkable for the
pangency and clearness Of
heir editorial articles. Others are
qually remarkable for the quality of
To recognize the facts
ne only has to contemplate for a
loment the class Of people who read
be Nation, or those who are in daily !
aver until they have digested the
Olumns of the World, the Herald,
he Chicago Times, and many others
( less note.
But the daily paper, frequently with ]
lrge hopes in the beginning and I
mall profits in the end and struggling I
lways, seems peculiarly an Outgrowth ]
our own prosperity, and a feature
( Kansas enterprise In the great s
ED of journalism the Kansas daily /
sui oeneTis. 1t is not small, ill /
rinted sheet, proclaiming a tempo
ary purpose on every page, but of
oOd size, handsome in appearance, {
nd containing each morning the I
stest telegraph and political news,
nd editorials which sometimes pos i
ess force and point fully up to the {
.sndard. Nevertheless, the Kansas J
ally always possesses remarkable fea- '
Ires. The correspondence from all /
ortions Of the State as vOluminous.
very man writes letters for his pa /
or. There is a page upon which {
lree columns are set apart for the in /
ividual known as the ''lOcap. This
ian gathers every item of interest in
ne days life of city of twelve to fif- |
zen thousand people. He has q hard I
lace. His days work and his nights {
igest is q contest with space" Up {
n him, more than upon any other, /
epends the popularity of the paper {
/ home, where it is mostly read. He
cts all his items from men whom he {
knows, and well. He can {
OF enter an assembly, convention [
r q police court room simply as a q
member of the press" whom fortu- ]
ately no one knows save in his char {
Dter as reporter. Every. body brings {
greater or less personal pressure to
ear upon him. Thus, in making '
.antic endeayor to please all, he pleas 9
} nobody. Then this citizen and
nat one proceeds to lecture him as he I
asses down the street. While his c
aper Of course is severely criticised
n his alleged mistakes, in most in 4
ances it is made personal matter 1
-jth the "local.n The effect of all
lis of couase becomes painfully ap- 7
aren't on the local page. He becomes 1
le absolute slave of q set OF tame and q
ite complimentary phrases. Every a
lan is "ColOnel" or Professor or q
Sc, with playful familiarity, he is a
Tjm,u or "Johnny," or bill" If
! is venerable, he is called "Uneley C
! "Father." If functionary Of an" ]
ind. he is Invariably liable and erti-
ent.n The local editor who can &
turn a neat compliment in I