Daily Republican., 1879-06-16
Rev. j h. MANN and the Press.

Church, preached two temperance SER
nous yesterday, in which he told many
very plain unvarnished truths in
very plain unvarnishea manner. lie
also spent great deal OF his
time both morning and evening, de
nouncing the secular press as being
venal and prostitut-d to the Interests
OF wrong doing, especially TO that of
the traffic in ardent spirits. His prin-
cipal objection to the papers OF the city
was that they published liquor adver-
tissments, Tor which they received pay,
but worse than all they puffed up and
spoke in terms of praise of social gath
srings at hotels and drinking saloons.
The latter he considered an inexcu-
sable offence, and he prayed that God
might convert the e1itors of this city.
He supposed that the papers to-day
would make his ears tingle for what he
said, or they would pass him by with
the silence of contempt. So far as the
REPUBLICAN is concerned we do not in
tend to do either. We rather like Mr..
Mann's preaching, for he always seems
in dead earnest, AMI he is continually
giving not only sinners but luke-warm
believers good round shaking up,
something that they very much need
from time to time. But while We accord
to Mr.. Mann the privilege of slashing
around amongst the newspapers, like
wild bull in a china shop, we fe-l dis
posed to speak word for the much
abused newspaper editors, not that
they do not make mistakes sometimes
as well as preachers, but that they
have rights that are to be respected
as well as any other branch of busi-
ness. Mr.. Mann probably forgets
that there is a difference between
the temperance and religious press,
and the secular press. The first two
named are devoted to certain princi-
i .e, but the latter to no specific princi-
ole. Th4 first two are not newspapers
in a certain sense, but as we have
said welded to certain idea, while
the latter are elnphatically newspapers
in the broadest sense. They are pa
pers which attempt to give al! the local
news-are records of all that trahspires
whether in a church or in hotel, and
whenever paper suppresses something
that transpires in a hotel it ceases to
be local newspaper. So far as the
latter are concerned in noticing what
transpires there is no difference made
in reporting minister's surprise party
fsom that of a social gathering in a
hotel. The people subs cribe for local pa
per so they may See and read of what is
going on in the city, and it would be
the height of coward ice to suppress a
common local report of social gather
ing-may be hop at hotel, simply
because such report would displease
some temperance or religious workers.
Mr.. Mann also had considerable objec-
tiOn to make against the secular pres $
for publishing liquor advertisements.
We doubt whether he thought that
newspapers in publishing such things
are only doing what almost everybody
is doing, and if editors and newspaper
proprietors are wrong, 80 are all who in
any manner barter or trade with liq-
uOr dealers.
Generally about half the columns of
a newspaper are reserved for business
advertisements. They in a certain
sense belong to the business public and
are hired out to all who avail them
selves OF their advantages at so much a
line. square or column, and it matters
not to the proprietors of the secular press
whether the advertisement is one of a
church fair, Sunday School excursion,
sale of real estate, a dry goods or gro
Gerry store, liquor store, hotel or an
application for liquor license, the
space it o. cupies belongs to the adver-
tiser as he pays for it. This is bust
ness upon strict impartial basis. Til g
propriet)rs Of newspapers, have nothing
10 do with the matter, except to sell
the space and receive their pay for it,
and we would ask Mr.. Mann in no cap
tious spirit, why secular newspapers
should not have the same privilege of
barter and trade that any other part of
the business world has. Why snould
a newspaper be condemned for publish
ing hotel or liquor advertisement any
more than the carpenter and other
mechanics who build hotels ard dstil.
leries, and make everything CURED
to carry on the manufacture AMI sale Of
liquors I'VE might go little further and
ask if the grocer, the butcher, the ice
man, the milk man, and everybody
else who in any way trades or tratic
with liquor dealers, hotel and salooi
keepers, are no. equally as guilty, i
guilt it be, az the newspaper in which