Daily Los Angeles herald., 1879-01-08
sEus Auaeles Ae@ld.
American Magazines.

It Is reported by the Philadelphia
journals that Mr.. Louis A. Cooley,
who lately died in that city, let
nearly q million OF dollars. ne was
one Of the very few mem who nave
made fortune-out Of the puoiica-
tfon of o magazine In this country,
for much more money has peeh
lost than won in this sort of peri
odtcal literature.
His magazine was Godeys La.
dV's Book, which at one time sold
more than hundred thousand
coples q month, and has never
been exceeded in circulation by
any OF our magazines except Hor-
perss. It gave the kind Of love
stories which were liked by large
part Of the young women OF the
country, q pretty frontispiece and
colored fashion plates, and was well
known both at the North and
south. But of late years it has
pretty thoroughly dropped out oil
notice, the other illustrated maga-
Knee far exceeding it in their en-
cravings aud in the quantity ana
quality of their reading matter.
Yet it made fortune for Mr.
0odey during its years of prosper
ity.
Noting the death of Mr.. Cooley,
the New York Sun takes occasion
toImpart some very Interesting in-
formation about our American
magazines. It says that among
them all there is now only one
which can be called q highly valu-
able property, and that, OF course,
Is Hdrper's. 1t must yield very
large yearly income, and, by itself,
would constitute business with
which most publishing houses
would he content. Scrabner's
Monthly seems to be getting a very
fair circulation, but it is not a prop.
erty of great and permanent
value like Harpe's. The
Atlantic would probably hard
ly pay to print except In con
nectlon with a publishing house
and it has much declined in popu
lar favor and influence of late years
though it still retains several OF 1T
favorite writers. Lippincotts ha
small circulation, loses none,
steadily, and only the pride of IL
publishers keeps it going. TIT
North american RevtetO has dom
very we'll since it left Boston ant
became the vehicle for though
about things of present interest
and not collection OF essays with
out any special relation to tn
times.
The trouble with magazines /
that they give at u comparativel.
high cost no better and but ver.
little more reading matter than ca
be found in a daily newspape
which may be h~ugl.t FOR u fe,
cents. Taking them as whole
the class of men who write for tn
journals are of brighter order O
talent and of more varied learning
than, those who manufactur
the articles for the magazines
and the range of subject
treated, in the Sunday editions @
the daily newspapers especially, i
larger than that in any magazine
while the discussions are at leas
as thorough. Meanwhile entir
novels may now be purchased fC
ten and fifteen cents each, and pee
pie therefore are not in such a hui
ry to paw thirty-five cents each ft
monthly installment of col
tinued story.
Only great illustrated magazln
like Harper's can nowadays hoI
to prove very profitable; thoug
1t0rIn american in this countr,
and the Contemporary ReuieW g
instance i'm England, which, B
giving the matured views on sui
jects of general discussion of me
in whose opinions intelligent pee
pie have an interest, will comman
an extensive audience. The day
the fancy magazine dependent 0
light and sentimental essays AT
pretty stories is over here. M
Cooley probably made the last TO
tune which will be reaped out
that business for a good man
years TO come.