The Vancouver independent. (Vancouver, W.T. [Wash.]) 1875-1910, 1882-05-04
A London Editor.


The editor of the Morning Chronicle
during Mr.. Clemenst' proprietorship was
John Black, mai with the spirit of q
Drawcansir and the habits of Car
thusian monk. He had in person, &C.
eording to James Grant, all the blunt
and bluff appearance of thick-set
farmer. He was never, during the many
years of his editorship, to be seen on the
streets without being accompanied by
he, himself, called an honest, sturdy
cudgel, in his hand; and generally, ac-
cording to the recollections of another of
his staff who knows him as we'll as Mr..
Grant, with a couple of books under his
arm, which he had picked up as bar
gain at one of the secondhand book
stalls that abounded at this time in the
Strand. All his habits were of piece.
Dressing, as he did, in the plainest pos
sible manner, he had an insuperable OBJ
lection to having his editorial sanctum
kept tidy. This extended even to the
busting of his books; the dustier they
were the better. They lay, like DR..
Thirlwall's. in heaps all over the
floor, and the whole room was
in glorious confusion-papers piled
upon papers, books upon books.
The place was Chaos. Black found his
way about the room, it is said, by instinct;
but he knew the place of every book,
and when chatting with visitor about
any of the questions of the day he would
walk across the room, take down vol
ume to prove his point, read the passage,
and return the volume to its place with
out removing more of the dust than the
operation absolutely required.
Henry Hunt was once asked, in cross
examination, in libel case against the
Morning Chronicle. whether he had ever
been in Mr.. Blacks room. "Yes," said
Hunt. "And how was the editorial
sanctum furnished -splendidly ?" asked
the counsel. II can hardly say that it
was." sCan you give the jury some idea
of the interior? What do you suppose
would have been the value of the furni-
ture?'' said the counsel. 81
should not think" was the answer,
''the whole of the furniture, if sold
at auction, would have fetched more
than sevenpence-halfpenny." Are you
serious, sir?" asked the counsel; "re-
member you are on your oath, sir" 81
do remember that" said Hunt, "and
remem boring it, have not put too ex-
travagant price upon the furniture. "
"Then, please to explain, sir" replied
the counsel. "How do you arrive at the
conclusion that the whole of the furni-
ture in the editorial sanctum of the
Morning Chronicle is not worth more
than sevenpence-halfpenny? Explain
how you make that out" "Why," said
Hunt, amid the inextinguishable laugh
ter of the Court, there was no furniture
at all in the room except table and two
chairs, and while the table would not
have fetched sixpence, no one would
have given more than three half-pence,
as the utmost, for the two chairs to
gether."
Yet, John Black, with the manners of
a bear, possessed the soul of Saladin,
and although he did not care sufficiently
for his best friend to walk across the
street to shake hands with him, he was
ready, at moments notice, to unlock
his pistol case and fight duel with the
first man who. like Roebuck, impugned
the honor of the fourth estate or its rep
resentatives. He was personally the
soul of honor, and so proud, personally
and professionally, that, although in
constant communication with Her Maj
esty's ministers during the administration
OF the Wings, he never asked single
favor of one of them.
''You are the only man." said Lord
Melbourne to hiIn on one occasion, when
chatting with him in his study, who
forgets that am Prime Minister" "How
so, my lord?" asked Black, supposing,
for the moment, that he had mad
vertently omitted to pay proper respect
to the rank of his visitor. "Well," said
Lord Melbourne, "you are the only man
/ know who never asks favor of me-"
II have no favor to ask, my lord, re-
piled Black. IT have no favor to ask of
any one in the world. You are Prime
Minister of England, but I am editor OF
the Morning Chronicle, and I would not
change places with the proudest man
in England-not even, my lord, with
you..lC. Pebody in English Jour
nalism."