The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1879-08-15

New NevvsRapers.
We are informed that Z Mr.. Hahn,
who has been running Sgrseoback paper
in Kansas City, IL working up patronage
for another paper in lola Now We
have no objection 70 Mr.. Hahn, and an
other paper in Iols win mot interfere
with tic Jssios 70 any alarming extent;
therefese we can take this opportunity
to say few words on the policy Of in
creasing the number Of newspaper
beyond their legitimate means ofsupport,
without being charged with pereenaEy
motives. If the support nos given to
the three newspapers in the county were
'gisssrto one paper ssly. it would not be
more than enough to enable that one to
run first.class country papef. EAeh Of
the papers now publiahsd In this county
is better than its support justihss the
owners in publishing, and the people
cannot expect the publishers to put much
more time and expense on than they get
paid for, and keep it up any great length
of time. Country newspapers are but
poorly paid at the best; ami the isolated
cases of success in q money-making point
of view are 90 few and far between a. to
scarcely constitute an exception to the
general rule of poverty. Especially is
this the case in the Western States.
Young men come here and 60 into new
counties, endure all the hardships and
privations Of the settlers, work up fair
business, and live in hope that, with the
increase ofpopulation and the settlement
of the county. may come q solid, sub
stantial support which will allow them
q comparatively easy living in their old
age. If there are any profits during the
flush times incident to the first settle
ment, the money is expended in increas-
ing the facilities of the Office, and the
paper is almost always kept far ahead Of
the town and county. Nothing is laid
up for a rainy day-all goes to keeping
the paper up to a high standard, and
extending the reputation of the town
and county. By and by, along comes
some printer man with few pounds OF
WORKOUT type, secondhand press, and
other fixtures in proportion, and goes to
canvassing for patronage. Forgetting
that the old standby needs all-aye,
even more patronage than they can afford
to give-the people subscribe for and
patrenize the new paper, under the
mistaken idea that another paper will
aid in up-building the town, draw SET
tiers, and assist in extending business.
The old paper, losing . portion Of its
patronage, becomes poorer and poorer,
the new one doesn't gain much-and
you have two poor papers published
while you had one good one before.
Parties at distance pick up one of these
either one for that matter-and look
at it and say: "Yery poorly gotten up /;
looks as if it wss half starved guess l
don't want to go there" When they
pick up another paper from a smaller
town, but where all the patronage is
bestowed upon it the language is much
different: "Weh gotten up; well pat,
ronized; evidently good growing
country; guess I'll 60 there" 4
One good newspaper is worth more to
a town than dozen poor ones-in fact,
poor, little, scrawny, iiiy-patrOnized
papers are a positive injury to town
and to county. Localities are judged
and rightly-by the newspapers pub
lished in their midst. Persons at a
distance look at the newspaper to see
the character of the community, and it
is a better index than anything else they
can get. Nearly every day letters are
received by editors from parties in the
East, asking for sample copies Of the
paper, and q short time ago the Daio"
Office was so overwhelmed with these
applications that We could not supply
the demand.
We have never raised . howl when q
new paper was started in Humboldt, and
We don't intend to. Neither do we
blame anyone for going into the bust
ness here or elsewhere. The field is open
to all. But what we wish to combat is
the mistaken idea on the part Of the
people that the more newspapers town
or county has, the better it is of For
its own welfare, town or county should
have no more newspapers than it can
support in a liberal manner, and the
encouragement given to new papers In
towns where q good paper is already
published, is generally apositive injury.
-Humboldt Union.
= L.