The democrat. [volume] (Weston, W. Va.) 1868-1874, 1873-02-10
In a Newspaper Onlce.

4Hu luNcAluA VI u SAt1 h1hnPApNA OhiSc l
is at certain hours Of the day q busy
place. A correspondent who strayCd
into New York office tells US the fol-
lowing story: In the city editors room
are some ton or fifteen or twenty desks
las the case may be. AT half Of these
arc laen, notebooks beside them, scrib-
bling rapidly and busily, One, US tho
guide points out, is transCribing his
shorthand notes. Hehas been attend-
ing the meeting OF the Bar Association,
mud after standing in n crowd for IN
hour OIL, two, unable to obtain q seat,
and forced to take his notes ms best he
could, is preparing the speeches which
were delivered, to be read commercially
on the morrow. Another is engaged in
apparently the same employment: He
is one OF the law reporters, has been at
the General Term from ten A. NJ. until
four p. NJ, taking photographic notes
of tho evidence and the legal declnma-
tons in the case OF the People vs.. Ed
ward s. Stokes, andis Just finishing Ills
report. "Meroly n matter Of time and
drudgery, presume 2" says the visitor.
swell, you know" the reply is, Sin
order to report legal teclnicalitics, II is
necessary to have some acquaintance
with them beforehand. And though
lawyer, or oven n Judge, sometimes errs
from misunderstanding, report must
not contain u mistake" Just beyond
IRE two young nen hard at work Us the
rest. One is describing tho scene at
the ruins OF the terrible fire in Centre
street, where excavations for tho buried
victims are in progress; the other is
writing out" the testimony taken at
tho Ooroner's inquest on the single body
which had been found.
In an alcoye adjoining tho room are
two desks. The largeris covered with
manuscripts. At the left is tall iron
spindle on which are impaled the yari.
Gus reports which have come in during
the day which are not already in the
hands OF tho compositors. large sheets
Of foolscap written closely with m nc.
count Of the proceedings Of tho Cham.
Der Of Commerce; large sheets Of vel.
low manifold" tissue-pnper containing
the reports OF tho City Sanitary Inspec.
tor and the Fire Marshal; smaller ones
Of white from Jersey City and West.
chester and Long Island; reports OF the
meetings Of the Brooklyn Bridge Com.
pany, and tho trial Of Dr.. Irish, and so
on seemingly unfortunately. Before this
desk sits the city editor, pencil in hand,
deep in mass Of Copy" which to the
visitors surprise the guide says some.
times appears IN quite different shapes
from that in which it reaches tho desk.
"You see, he explains, "all reporters
are not thorough journalists, and biassed
or partisan statements might creep into
their reports. So it Inns to be edited
with some care. Besides, its importance
lias to be calculated, not a6stractly
merely, but in rGationto the rest of the
matter which the morrow's paper is to
contain, and its length and prominence
determined accordingly. Then it has
to be headed and 'snbhoaded' and
made attractive in that way" In m.
other room arc number Of sage and
sedate editorial writer's commenting
learnedly upon the news brought in BY
reporters and The wires. AT ono end,
with mass Of foreign papers and peri.
odicals covering his desk and living
about his chair, sits the foreign editor,
watching for details of Intelligence
whose outlines only have been transmit.
ted by cable. Near lin is tho exchange
editor with stock I domestic Journals
reaching nearly to his head beside him,
each Of which must be carefully exam.
incd. Opening door the privileged
two enter the library, where sits the lit.
erary editor surrounded by the latest
magazines and books, OF which he is
doing his best to say something kind.
~. Passing by the door OF the man.
aging editors room, and that OF the
editor.in.chief-to which none arc apt
to gain admission unless urgent bust
ness requires II, but whose occupants
the guide might explain-arc engaged
much in the same way as the generals
Of IN army arc supposed 10 be on tho
eve Of battle; md entering another do.
partment--supposing the hour to be
late in the eyening-the busiest scene
Of oil is met with. The men at the diff
ferent desks aro the night editor in
charge, the night news editor, the sum.
marizer, an editor whose duty it is to
comment upon intelligence received up
to the hour of going to press, and one
or two others to be on hand in case Of
emergency. Tho night editors desk is
covered with proofs, which he ponders
with no little porploxity, endeayoring
to perfGm tho difficult task OF putting
twelve columns Of matter into six col.
limns of "form." For, full rs the waste.
baskets are of animportant news, and
carefully us condensation has been per-
formed, there is always too much which
Unjust go in" and the turtles" are not
elastic.
At the night news editors desk des.
patches from all over tho country are
being constantly received, written in
MI sorts Of styles and chronicling all
sorts Of events, which need at once the
most careful and the most rnpid prepare.
ton for tho printer; for no mistakes
can DO tolelated, of course, and ut fire.
quent intervals the office boy comes in
from tho foreman Of tho composing.
room with the news TINT tho copy.lcsk
is out of copy and tho insatiato nav Of
the competitors cannot cease It's grind.
ing. By tho time the tour has beon
partially made, md hastily made with.
al, and before the composing-room or
tho press.room or the folding.room or
the mailing-room has been visited, tho
visitor will hardly fail to recognize tho
Justice with which the force Of daily
newspaper is compared to IN army, pri.
Yates and non.conmissiencd officers
ni,n,,;,r, 1;nutonouIu ond nn,,to;,,, a..