The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1881-04-27
Paupcr journalism.
Cleveland Plaindealer.


Just now the city of Cleveland is being
torn up by terrible row between newspa-
pers. Mr.. Cowles, of the Leader, is an &C.
centric character, and he spends the most of
his time in as.uting the pope Of Rome and
providing against the supposed schemes of
the Catholic hierarchy 10 convert the United
States into a vast monastery. Mr.. Cowles
sanity has been severely questioned but his
integrity has never been impugned. Re.
Gently u reporter for an Insignificant Cleve.
land paper, called the Penny Press, visited
him in his Office with proof sheet article
rejecting somewhat severely upon
his character, and there WAS
plain intimation that its publication could DO
prevented by the payment of snail sum.
The great pope.crusher rose in his wrath and
kicked the obstrutive knave down stairs.
Next day, in relating the circumstance, he
denounced the Penny Press as a black
mailing concern. Thereckless, irresponsible
managers of the Penny Press, acting upon
the theory which prevails among publishers
of similar sheets, that sensation i,sm Is the
meat upon which they can alono iatten, made
scurrilous attack upon { wles and were
promptly sued and arrestc or libel By
way Of retaliation they h. Uowes arrested
for speaking Of them rs b. .ckmailers, and so
the trouble goes on. Cowles has a well es-
tsblished newspaper and considerable char
actpr, and in the end he will certainly tri.
umph over his ssssllanis. In u msjority of
cases whers attempts have been made in this
country TO establish newspapers on an absurd
bases Of values, chsntage or matchmaking has
been one of the chief sources of supply. The
difficulty Of producing paper and placing 1t
before the public At cost, or less than cost,
naturally forces the publishers into devious
ways and all sorts Of disreputable schemes.
There are some honorable exceptions among
the cheap papers Of the land, for it Is posi-.
BILE for a journal of this class, after II has
secured ab::epormous circulation, to live fairly
and decenily by legitimate methods. Take
the Chicago News for instance, with its
great circulation Of 10000 per day, and the
New York News, with Its 100, 900, and II Is
plain that o very handsome profit can be
made by these journals from advertising
IL not from circulation. But in nearly every
prominent city of the land there Is
a blotch upon journalism in the shape of
cheap paper, which from physical reasons
|
achieve circulation enough to lift II above the
bread and water condition of things. These
papers starve their employees and struggle
and dio without even disturbing the junk
market. In lite they are slrident, offensive
and virulent, mistsking course sensation.
alism for enterprise, and when their
extremity comes they arc as unrelent-
ing as the daughter of tho horse
leech In their matchmaking schemes.
The more money they lose tho more vicious
and venomous they become toward those who
arc supposed TO stand In their way. II is
almost possible TO Judge by tho yirulence Of
these papers the measure of their credit nj
the banks. As their funds are exhausted
and their hopes dashed their crooked natures
are revealed, even as the beggsrs sores
show through his ialter,t garments.
II Is 10 bo regretted that q profession
which holes out such brilliant
inducements 10 men Of talent, which Yields
such power and which offer such rewards,
should be weighted down BY this species Of
fungi, but the legal profession has lie shysters,
the race.course lie "welchers" and the guild
OF the Zingari is thieves II isfor the public
" judge between honorable journalism and
that which seeks by adventurous
means 70 attain ends which
arc alone the recompense Of honest am.
bition and properly directed effort. To
The credit Of the public DO Il said that its
discernment 10 sharp and keen. The sec Of
journalism isstrewn with the wrecks Of pi.
rstical penny crafts dashed 10 pieces by the
fierce winds Of public disapprobation, and
Ito shores arc whitened with tho bones o. men
allied In attributes, and instinc.a 70 Just such
social offenders Is have been shipped from
Newgate 10 Tyburn n m tails of carts. OF