The sun., 1882-08-27

willing to pay at that rate for these special artl
cles. but he hesitated TO pay the Same price for
n series Of articles that Dickens proposed to
contribute, and Dickens. refusing to write Mt
all unless he was paid at this rate or more. be-
gan to turn over in his mind the idea Of news
paper OF his own. The result was the pubica-
tion Of the Daily Ne,cs. Messrs. Bradbury and
Evans entered into the scheme with en-
thusiasm. taking large interest in it
themselves. and inducing Sir Joseph
Paxton and others to take still larger
shares. All the preparations were upon
a scale OF muniflcence then unexampled. The
provinces were swept for skiful reporters. and
the ablest men in the Liberal ranks were
secured us contributors. The salary Of the
editor was fixed at 1000 year and all tho
rest Of the salaries were in proportion. one
clever writer being offered $4,000 year for a
couple of leading articles II week. The appoint
ments Of the office. 1t was said resembled
those Of IL Duchesss boudoir. the desks being
OF rosewood and the inkstands OF silver. and
the books Of reference being all bound in
Russia and gold. The porters were all in
livery. and the story ran that the letters to the
editor were presented on silver salver. The
position Of editor. however. lost all its charm
for Dickens the instant the work began to
pail. and on Feb. 7. 1Si6-about n fortnight
after the first appearance of the paper-he de-
manded to be relieved from an intoerable posi-
ton. John Forster. at that time editor Of the
Examiner. was induced to take Dickonss chair
but before the year was out Knight Hunt had
relieved Forster of the edtorship. and had
gathered around him staff OF contributors
second TO none then to be found in London
Douglas Jerrold, McCullagh, Torrens. Harriet
Martineau. and DR.. Lardner From this time
forward the Daily NeIcs lacked nothing that a
newspaper ought to possess. Its articles were
clever and brilliant. its reports ample and ac-
curate; Its Indian intelligence. secured at
great cost was not less prompt than that Of
its rivals. Still the paper did not take. the pub
lie declined to read it at any price. and ut least
a million dollars are said to have been sunk in
the publication. When the paper duties were
repealed however. the drain was stopped. and
the paper rose in circulation: but the turning
point in the history of the Daily Ne,os was the
transfer of the property from tho original pro-
prietors to new set OF men. The latter brought
fresh capital into the concern. reorRanized and
strengthened the staff reduced the price to IL
penny and the Franco German war breaking
out soon afterward sent into the field corps OF
special correspondents. including Archibald
Forbes. MacGahan. and Skinner, who we're un
rivalled in energy and brillianoy. The effect
OF this new policy was soon seen. The
DAILY Necs sprang at a bound into
the front rank OF the newspaper press. and the
Times found itself dstanced in respect Of
news from the seat Of war. The reputation
which the Daily Ne,rs won by its war cor
respondents in 1870 It managed to keep all
through the Russian campaign in Turkey. the
Indian famine. the Afghan campaign, and the
Zulu war. We are told that William Black,
Robert Giffen. Edmund Yates George Mac
donald. and Westland Marston have all been
contributors to the Daily Ne,cs. and that Its
present staff Of leader writer's includes An
drew Lang. G. Saintsbury. Grant Allen. Moy
Thomas William Senior and H. w. Lucy. Ac-
cording to the compiler OF this volume the
present editor OF the Daily Neps. Mr.. Frank H.
Hill. has well maintained the high literary
character which the paper acquired during
the editorship of Mr.. Thomas Walker.
Tho Daily Telegraph was started by Col. Sleigh
in June. 1855. and was first published as
a single sheet at twopence. The circulation
was small and the advertisements were
but few when the paper came into the
hands Of the Lawsons and the Levys as
a bad debt. Mr.. Levy at once reduced the
price OF the paper from twopence to
penny. secured all the best telegraphic news.
strengthened the corps of Parliamentary re-
porters. and obtained rs contributors and crit
les men who were at least equal to those upon
the staff OF either of it's contemporaries-such
men as Thornton Hunt. Edwin Arnold. G. A.
Sala. Sutherland Edwards. and Godfrey Tur-
ner The fruits of this policy were soon seen.
The circulation quadrupled and the advertise
ments increased in proportion; but with all this
the paper was published at loss till Mr.. Glad
stone repealed the paper duty, which is said to
have been equivalent to q present of $50 900 a
year to the propretors of the Trle0rdph. The
$50 900 were spent in the Improvement of the
paper. the articles becoming boldcr and frcsher.
the kilograms fuller. and the reports ampler.
The liveliness sparkle ana vigor of its style soon
distinguished it from all it's contemporaries
except the Times. and the Times. published at
fourpcnce. hardly camo into competition with
the Telegraph, which was published ut n penny.
The American civil war did much for the DnjV
Telegraph: the war OF 1866 did moro : but the
war OF 1870 did most. for all through the latter
contest the Telegraph was we'll served by n staff
of special correspondents. who. by freely using
the telegraph. raised the paper to u level with
the best Of its contemporaries.
Mr.. Pebody has good deal to tell us about
such evening newspapers rs the Pal MAI ga
ie'te and its ConsG rva,ive rival the st. JaucS's
Gazette. about the so-cailed society weekirs
Vanity Fair, the World Trtth and the WHITE
hdH Rerielc. and about the provincial press.
Upon all of these subjects the inQuistive reader
will find some. If not all of the information he
desires. but we have preferred to dwell mainly
on those great morning newspapers of the
metropolis, which Of all journals printed in the
English language, are the most widely read.
Our Merchant Marine.