New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1881-12-30
THE DEATH or APPLETONS JOURNAL

THE DEATH OF APPLETONSJ JOURNAL
Doubtless many persons who have not been
in the habit Of reading ApetonS Journal were surprised
at the recent announcement in the papers that large
publishing house, with abundant means and mechanical
facilities bad abandoned the attempt tc establish
profitable and influential magazine And II newsdeaIers
and subscribers surmsed mat the December number was
ia be- the II Apple0S Journal Was not because Oh
any statement TO that effect in its pages; 50 silently dd
an enterprise cons pcuOusy launched only rev years
ago sink out OF sigut Tie experience thus sadly ter
minated Illustrates once the fact that perseverance
does not always achieve Success
The Journal began ns unfortunate career as an IL
lustrated weekly by slow degrees, aban"onhS oLe
feature after another ana changing us hlIauAc'h'H1
many tunes became Mt last naiilusirated eceouc
magazine in which form it has finally disappeared from
view An editorial announcement in the first number
issued Apri B. 1860 said that matter woud be obtained
from all sources oriEhal and selected, ana ad"cu
We abstain from conspicuous spreading oil names 80
usra! n these occlsous." Looking back upon tue M
lucky career which has just been closed ID dlsaPpoih'
ment ana loss # almost If TINS sautaiofy OF
ir,c,,.s, Journal hopefully indicating its plan but
omlttug definite promises. prophetic OF the dismal
yalcdictory lust pronounced Inc first number con-
tanned stories with illustrations, ana IA variety OF cu
turl paragraphs under the General heads l"oie
Talk" Literary EOtS," Matters Of Science ana AI''
"TAe Museum" aud nj the end was an " Art supple
O. >
and this feature irreguary continued III subsequent
uulnbers At this tme too apPcaTei % condensation OF
Jules V-rnes To the Centre Uf the EARN rms pro-
cess Of brid g1nent afterward frequently repealed
I'm I'm, first volume publishers had seen the necessity
Of doing somr.hing to attract the pubic eye,
srd M L contained a wood cut Illustration on the
frat mage not belonging tbs article which followed IT.
This feature continued, with interruptions "hhe me
Jouyr4l remained IA weekly. reference to inc cou
peted index reveals Ia many the authorship Of ar
ttclas which, somewhat to the disappointment 81 both
readers and writer's appeared without cdtin the paper
and " th nothing n1 4ie from what foreign or do
nestle sources they were obtained In tins matter of
credit indications frequently appeared that the pro
ctors bad no. an entirely definite conception OF the
form which they desired their venture t" ASSUME
This lndecision was first developed into positive
change OF form in the number Of the third volume.
a supplement to which began Anthony lrollopes story
VI" Ralph the Heir" printed in three columns &" the
page instead Of This change was extended I" IN"
editorial paragraphs with the beginning OF Volume w.
and eventually the entire paper was printed WIN HFee
columns t. the page. From TINS time forward the history
OF the paper is marked by rapidly succeeding
innovations. prolonged cropping after the
hest medium for presenting the topics and
features embraced in shifting plans Among these
changes may he mentioned the following; n
record OF the famOUs dead Of each closing year was
kept up time departments were Introduced at one
time or anofher under suca headings as Foreign Liter
ary Notes" Dramatic and Contemporary Portraits
"Nnor Matters and Things" Art a. Music Say ngs
| and Doings." ~ Home and Abroad" and National
and Statistical" stories became fewer; pain head III
stead Of a very ornamental one appeared on me hFSt
page; "Table Talk" gave way to an Editors Table
a weekly retrospect of events cOntradcted tue an
| nouncement in tine frat number that the paper
woud contain news: the original column OF Mlsrcl-
lany expanded thirty-sX columns; and one aitcT
another these fresh aurements thcnIs selves dis
| carled for others which seemed more hopeful.
WITH July 1876 was made "a complete change OF base
possibly contemplated thongi couraecousy postponed
in the announcement made three years be0rr that, for
those who preferred It, the paper wond be put up in
! monthly parta The weekly changed 10 monthly
| aud the price reduced. II was hoped that this
transformation would lead fortune. hut
! owners and readers doomed "a disappointment.
The illustrations grew fewer and fewer, though occa-
sjonaliy an effort was made TO revive this feature
notably in article rapid transit published IN Janu
| arv 1873 New departments and varied innovations
| failed to attract new readers, ana, after sirus
| gle prolonged through i've years and half. "A
period Of doubt ard anxiety the part ~ the o~ncfG
and hard work the part OF the EItor-d'nhly hard
because in yainthe magazine has joined tue vast army
| Of failures
Meantime the Appletons were pursued by equal mis-
fortune in other in periodical literature They
tried a costly illustrated Art Journal, and spent much
money IL; hut It gained fOoth0d. and never even
made show Of living. Then they started Supplement-
Popular Science Monthly bat thig, 100, seems
TO have proved q misoalcuation; for, after houndcrng
! along a little it too was abandoned N1ninay 1t WAS
consolidated with ApptJnsJ0u but as was soon
| seen this only proved another form OF death.
This record uCk and ultimate disaster IL rendered
al the more Encouraging 10 the Appetons aud interest
ing to the student Of periodical literature by the success
! Of contemporary enterprises which in way an
other have won SIRE place with the public which
refused 10 support Apple0ns Journal, their Art Jour
| nal or their Popular Science Supplement-
| Thus IL is known that Harper's Weekly has been n
steady and lucrative success the first year; that
| The Easqr became profitable sooner, and that
Harpers Young People-ucky offspring Of lucky parents
within more recent period has become ndis pgnsable
In unnunbered households Long after the Appletons
had been trying establish their Journal in the belief
that some such publication essential TO the dignity
! of large publishing house, young man. absolutely
without experience, bought the hadead Worth Ameri-
.au Rers,r brought IL 70 Ncw-York and published It
! himself but hired the Appletons to print 1t for him.
While their own Journal and their other periodical
publications have been struggling, they have seen
this almost extinct quarterly transformed into a
monthly and raised circulation than double that
! which any periodical Of theirs attained When
| the Young proprietor decided, months ago,
| 10 make his arrangements for withdrawing 1t
from even connection with their house, they
| had already seen him print nearly $4,000 cop
les Of The Reoie while they scarcely able to print
more than one-ffth one-quarter many either Of
their Journal their Popular Science Mohthip Alto
gether the Appletons have luck in attempting
| TO establish any periodical publication bearing the
name their house, but perhaps the experience they
\ have gained NAV enable after "A while