, 1877-10-14
THE LONDON TIMES.
Retirement Of MIR. Defana After
ThirtY-Seyen Years
Service.
The Power He Has Wielded--Spec-
u!ations as to His Sue
ceSS0r

london Correspondence Ntto Yort Tribune.
LONDON, Sept. 29.-The report so often |
spread, aud SO often contEadictcd, has at last
come true. Mr.: Delane has resigned the editor
ship Of the Times. While the report was false,
it circulated with great rapidity, as often as It
was started afresh. Now that the event has
really occurred, it seems almost unsupported.
1t has been mentioned conjecturalfv in one or
two papers this week. I am heartily sorry to
say that know the report to be oulY too we'll
founded. Mr.. Delane was really i'll when he
went to Homburg this summer. He came
back 50 little the better for bis journey as to
leave him, in his own words, no solid hope Of
soon returning to work again. After thirty
seven years' hard work it is not, perhaps, to be
wondered at.
No, certainly not to be wondered at, but to
be dcplorcd. Mr.. Delane-1 may surely say it
without wounding any susceptibilities or chal-
lenging any other clai,n-was beyond dispute
and comparison the first journalist In the world;
and there is no journalist-no member OF the
great profession OF which the editor OF the
Ti,nes stood ut tue llead-who does not owe
him, whether he acknowledges it OF not. a debt
Of gratitude which must be called immense. /.
for nv part, acknowledge it with readiness.
have certainly a deeper, or, perhaps l should
say, more alert sense Vi my ogllsation taan
If had never lived abroad. But whether
at home or abroad. whether American or
European, no journalist no knows anything OF
the actual condition of journalism can doubt
that Mr. Delanc's share in winning and Keeping
for the newspaper the position it now ho1l1s IN
the world has been very large one. VINO DIS
putes that the Times is the leading journal of
tho world! Nobody, l suppose; but II there
we're any one whom patriotism OF personal pride
induced to put any other paper above it, he
would be sure to say the Times Was second.
And if there were any one who should say that
some other paper was more powerful III Ills OWL
country, as must often be the case, ne would
aoree That no journal not OF his own country
had SO much influence ili it as the It'nes And
there would not, ] think, be even one man to
dcnv that the Times was power ina great ter nnm-
bcr of countries than any other journal. Inc
sum Of all these admissions womb not ullleI
from the proposition to which those whom
| suppose to make them objected, that the 1tnscs
is the leading Journal OF the world. 1t is Mr.
Delanc whu, if l.c did mot make it such, kept 1t
such; and when Tie history oI the paper comes
to be written, think it will have to be said that
it's supremacy and influence were never at any
| period during the first century ol its existence
SO great as during Mr.. Dclape's edltorship. II
| there had been no .dr. De!anc, the Times would
| have existed no doubt, but who eau saT what 1t
! would have been! Il there had been no 1tmcs
such as it actually has been. the place OF other
| newspapers in the world would have been dis
| tinctly inferior to what 1t Is. when say.
!ncrGiofc, tIt 1os4l 49,. 49,. o,ra h;,' in ,,rt
ar. Delahe, "'su 1fI.st;n i's mane ;n s
tue au'anee Iuctt p ~ IT, In,a.t ai"' ra"Ntha cnn.
scuuent improvement in their own personal po-
sition and fortunes
ca,sai tn h. Distinguished by those qualities
/ which Mr.Dclans has impressed on it, the result
| would bc what called it-a cllamity. Il the
Times descended, other papers would descend
| Win IL. j'ulhti:,.i, 't0.i H.. o.r,rs ,.o,id
| 1t IS very u'ulhel, .11 da+ao;aro.;nn ~
to!erate AnS Innn time Il is SIRE
tone lol ans s,,r ro4 :, he moral, SIRE to watch
pnoi'c interests w." a,,d nrI1;c or,Ier in the
on Inc sue u le'Sn ~, ~; n''1 1, MI Huf those
ldture' as ~ n'2 1;n.a on.n - M Prn,.1it;nns of it's
are merely Tue laif ,n,st "x;st snnaratc.v.
R9"ea, Ts st .nI pstl le :, hrn to direct the great
ihcre must sln. ;e..n Nv ~ ~ t1 49, or,lrr: a
engine, an 'a,,;.a oh;,;tv IN othrrs and touse
cappt5 " teTuSh th..rn nTst hc scttI.d views o1
otls. 1a,s On ,..;1 os w;t1e knowledge of men ant
ptce ~ ".f.,t ,,o,ncss and a fac,,lty of ar
..;,,,r .;..' 'rapn;div nt n sound Judgment in the
n,ust ol a., edenII n,ctiino more. lie ha1 thirty
ont NJ Laa 'us;a1''..s so'I md xhn i to sunni,
sSa.l st.. - ti,., rcwronrrt For more than I: gen
ttlat u -. .ro1;nrs of the Times have ccntret
IN him. hc has been the repository OF them all
IL ~ '.l n,1 mo - lin that they have been expressed
u - a., t'io o',;,1ne nf The nancr irscIf Some o
IN tc eo':i anabc Of Transmission some arc not
thtIi , II nn,o ar1ant new ideas must arrive Will
at.u, ~ ,,. oU T. can never be quite the SAINT
nen 1''i.t ,,anc ui1 still be, as Emerson salt
pa?tt. t,-cntr ~. vcars mo- terror in Paris, ii
- o =. y" -, h.r,;n itself. But how long and t.
'ienna, -, - - ,r;u ha 81. M man can surel,
VIZ 1;et SA1eA' - "'
prGu'es. TIL, NJ r,c,,ne has welded, for thirt,
u staeu' Ir'atcr nn no,srr than most Kings or Min
lsass' ~, hava bpcn m the stare during tlla
i:ters WY as asi hccn constant lie has not gon.
tlae. & ~ as ,,.,, 49, ',1;nets nor disappeared witt
ont ~ VI oa''.I .1,nst;os r. nothing to saw tha
changing G5sastE!r ~ En,ond las far exceeded tua
ms autnor.y ~ = has cnualIy surpassed tl,a
o. tnc ;;,ars II NAV l,c rom narcu with tll:,
o. tloss ti,roo pra,n;rrs wl'o have re1no,l
Q, lne smo VI " H.. institutions of the country
eleu sosiS ~ ~. ronstitnt;nn. And in co,npar
anu iiou'nsu 70 hnrnc IN mind that there hay
ing u, y nust ~ W ,n"ra Administrations, but Mr.
9cen uuxeu ne -. 'casrd tn edit the Ti,s.
De!auc ~ l's n,,1t, eJjtrd # IIis control llavt
Anu ns .,1ers,;,ot tn l,e complete; while lis su
alNa's unoe e ts c,.1er coi11Inn was so y,.ilat,t
pc1sls,. y" diro .t;nn NJ th, papcr so absolute
ms eutp. ID h. jnliviIual opinion which wen
fn~th every morning lie did not write, but h
o4e'" ~ ~,n,, ahont. him and uulcr him, but i