The Cheyenne daily leader. [volume] (Cheyenne, Wyo.) 1870-1884, 1881-05-20
Advertisements in Local Papers

There is a class of people in the world
who think that newspapers are conduct
ed by their proprietors for the mere
pleasure of the thing. They also labor
under the delusion that a puff for
their place Of business, or for any par
ticular article in which they may deal. Is
an ..item of news and would. as the COM
mon expression of the dead-beat adver-
tisers hath it, ''go to fill up the paper;
just as il, as all newspaper men know,
that there is not always enough and TO
spare of matter to crowd into the col
umns. Unfortunately, there are too
many proprietors of journals who insert
in their local columns items that are de
fdcto advertisements, and should be
paid for as such. The Rev. Mr.. Snod-
grass, Ii. A., etc. etc, gets a far coat
presented to him about Christmas time,
and the editorial sanctum is, about a
week before the interesting event
of, invaded by a small army of in
fiuential female members of the Rev.
SIS congregation, clamoring tor an
advance notice of perhaps thirty or
forty lines. which, of %couise, go ito fill
up the paper and at the same time
takes sundry shekels out of t~heproprie-
tors pockets for composition. Then
comes a long report of said %presenta-
ton, taking up time and space-for
what? Just wear and tear of type and
no thanks! Every man whose hen lays
a mammoth egg. every huckster who
has the first strawberries of the season,
wants a puff, but all for nothing. and
the paper has to run staff, pay wages,
feed the proprietor and his BARNS, for
c-hameleon-like remuneration. As every
body who has had the luck, i'll or good,
to engage in the newspaper business
knows, it is not the subscription list
that keeps up a paper. because the lat
ter is as hard to collect as borrowed UNI
brellas, and if the neutrality-suspicious.
is all of the d. b. class, q paper soon goes
TO the wall. One of the most valuable
adjuncts to a newspaper Is a good adj
vertising canvasser, and when he is q
good one he is worth more to the pro-
prietor than any other man on the staff.
Pay him well, give him carte blanche
to use his own discretion as to what
contracts he makes: trust to his iudg-
ment, and keep clear of gratuitous .ad-
vertisements, and the elements of sue
cess in q paper r secured. The writer
of this at one time was connected with
q little paper in Liverpool, England.
called the Porcupine, that threw its
quilts around in a lively style. Hugh
Shimmin, the editor and proprietor
thereof, inaugurated a new departure.
No contributor was allowed to accept
a complimentary ticket for any sort OF
entertainment. Hence, free and I'M
bridled criticism could be indulged in.
Here they are trammelled with being
placed under the thumb of n WI
who comes along. floods the office with
tickets, and the unfortunate mortal of q
reporter is oftentimes obliged to stulti-
fly himself by saying that an affair Is
good, when he knows full well that it is
o. than bad. For PHYS sake, let
some journal start the ball rolling, and
do away with this infection of having to
waste printers ink, printers time, ..and
proprietor's space. which is a portion Of
their capital, Tor gratuitous ads. If ono
paper would only have the pluck,,to set
Its face against it, the others would
soon follow.-An Exchange.