The weekly Union times. [volume] (Union C.H., South Carolina) 1871-1894, 1877-05-18
THE FIELD OF JOURNALIsM.

-
of the Cincinnati Commercial: 1t has
been remarked that very few who get into
Journalism start out with such Intention
They drift in accidentally, and are promoted
as they develop capacity. Money, wealthy
parents aud influence are of no sort of SER
vice in getting young man place on a
newspaper. There is no business that is so
entirely Independent of all these considera-
tions as this. A wealthy father can easily
get his son a location to read law or medi-
cine, or push him forward in almost any
walk of life he may select, but he is utterly
powerless to do anything for him in jour
nalistic way. To ,bessure. he smay buy 4
newspaper and set up his hopeful in that
manner but unless there is something in
the youth called journalistic knack, natu-
raj knowledge of what to write and how to
write it, he will be failure in that line,
and all the money and influence of wealthy
and perhaps powerful relatives will count
for nothing.
Some fond parents educate their sons with
especial view to make journalists of them
but it is rare that we hear of these young
men after a few years. Meantime some
scrub, born amoug the hills, having nothing
but common school education, and the
knowledge scraped up in country printing
office, will advance to a front rank in the
profession. He has the journalistic knack,
and forces recognition because he has it,
He gets place, not because he has wealthy
parents to influence the proprietors of lead
ing newspapers, but because he knows what
to write and how to write it, and the editors
take it because it is what they want. His
articles go in because they supply demand,
while, perhaps, the elaborate essays from the
per Of a man educated on two continents,
with an especial view to journalism, are cast
into the waste basket.
Young men just out of college, and with
journalistic ambition, and who have had
their essays passed upon by admiring rela.
tives, and pronounced the production of
genius, think if they can get letter of in-
PRODUCTION to the managers of some leading
newspaper, they will forthwith find rccogni-
tion in his columns. I don't know how
many applications by mail and in person I
have had from young men asking me for a
letter of Recommendation" to the editor Of
the Commercial Inever complied, because
| know that these agencies ara not worth
five cents peck towards getting into the
paper. Itell the applicants to send alcne
whatever essays and so forth they have or
hand, and that letter of introdution mile
long would not be of the least service ir
influencing the editor to print what didu
fill the bill. Recommendations from those
known to the editor, or the "infucncc" o.
wealthy relatives of young men ambitious
to shine in journalism, are Of no earthly
benefit in this matter, unless, indeed, the
latter might furnish money to have the
maidan nffnris nnblished as advertisements
Bnt fame, at thirty dollars column, is ex
pensive.
The majority of successful Journalists
drift into it from other walks of life and
perhaps the most of them up to the timt
they are eighteen or twenty years old, hat
no thought in that direttion.
FIRST WORKING OF CoRN.-lf the lane
hoo hoon ,,o ot al by DIN q; n 90 tho corn xvo,