Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1883-02-25
WASHINGTON LETTER.
Newspaper Correspondent and How
They Conduct the Business.
Sources Of Information Mistakes OF
Ccngrcssmen Uses the wisest
OF Them Make Of These Letter
Writer'S Desperation the
Best Method.

Washington, February 20.---It viii
bc observed thnt the columns
81 the daily papers Of the capital are
Devoted mainly 20 society matters. 60
with newspaper letters emanating
nom this city. Each correspondent,
with few exceptions, occupies u
government office Of high or
low degree. for which he Is
Indebted TO the gracionsness OF the
magnnte whose glorlcs be dcyclopcs.
proiessionnlcorrespondents employed
real tOiling industrious news-gnthcr-
ers, caring little for individuals and
having little reverence for place or
power. Here, too, we have associated
industry, devoted 10 the production OF
cheap manifold letters devised for the
country wceklies aud patent
0utsls:es. Ono man employs
dozen paragraph makers. Pro-
ducts OF their inventive faculties
and Of that genius developed IN the
heels Of an efficient reporter, making
him ubiquitous and witness of every
incident and an auditor of every speech
mud colioquy falling from the lips Of
greatness are embodied In these
manifold letters, which are, of
course, perfect copies Of one another,
aud sent 10 n limited number OF news.
papers In ench state Washington
correspondents, living by the trade,
and serving only one or two
distant publications, must compete,
therefore, with two classes of rivals.
the one salaricd by the government;
the other serving n class of cheap pub
IicatIons which cannot afford 90 pny
more than a dollar II week each for
copies OF matter distributed sipnltn-
ncously over many stntcp, Only two
Texas papers have here, cnch, u special
representative, but neither has u sign.
p M"s,. o., "Nsew',spapers Row"
Chicago, New York, Philadelphia Bal.
timore and Boston organs Of opinion
have their branch offices. One New
Orleans papers designation Ia visible
and not another representing tho
south, while five or ak southern
journals have specially employed
agents always encountered at hotels,
notably the Metropolitan, most FREE
gucnted by southern people and
their law-malsing representatives.
TASKS or LErrEH.wUIrERs.
IL ono would prepare letter for
Texas no must confer each week with
membcIs" and othcrs from that
state. These occupy apartments
often remote from one another and II
The news gatbcrer call on such he Will
lind him engaged on committee work
ar surrounded i,y constituents who de.
nand and must have his attention.
These southern congressman have nat
learned, especially like thosc from the
cnsf, Ia prepare memoranda In order
tn save time. for their representative
newspaper men. Ifapy member from
Alabama have devised u scheme VI
local legislation IL never occurs to him
To prepare an outline of the enactment
proposed for the newspaper reporters
for thnt state. II the press telegraph
agent diGr II up or accidentally hears
~ II and the scheme has any degree 90
general interest the story i,toid most
surcinctIy In press dispatches where
ID n buried ont III sight and mny
never be discovered by the Alnbainn
uewapapers. Northern NJ. C's, have
ycry different way of doing bisl-
ncss. They recognize the value
of newspapers aud their power and
usefulness. They see ~ IL that what
they do propose to do for their CON
stitucncias n placed properly before
the people. II the press and people
apprnvr the congressman iAnpplauded
aud gains strength 1T home and POI
icncv In congress. hut southern NJ.
c's derive no advantages from this
sort az moral power which, notably
s,ox, Beln,ont. Randall Carlisle and
each distinguished leader OF the
senate aud ho,.se employs
10 give hin, national reputation and
corresponding influence In legislative
action.
WHAT A MANNER M, g, rfltNkS OF N,
A sllrvwd member who has boon re-
elected ngaln and again said TO me
that lie "had never paid n penny
for newspaper services and Yet they
have kept me In my place. ! soon
learned, he continued, ''that IL as
sisted me little or nothing TO send
uuhiic documents and Congressional
the press ufmy district. Those Pub.
docs. were leo weighfy FOR careful
pcrusAl. Editors tasks aro ton varied,
they can't wade through long speech |
or con ever the intcrlninahle pages OF
the Daily Congressional Record. but
when prepare brief synopsis OF one
or NV speeches or decline Succincily for
correspondents from my district I
any resolution or bin, or speech, or tell |
briefly of any fact, would have hruited /
nhrsid for my own or public good, the
newspaper man IL grateful for the ser.
vice have done him rs am that he
ttItV~ nlS anu NY HcNIiS.
TNE SwRli.N.
There Is another class OF cNcepiingly 4
saieniiled and royalty msn.ied gentle. \
rson who not only will not deign 10
scck an interview with corn,Spon-
dent or editor, that results here defined
MAY he attained, hut when vailed ON
communicates facts 80 sparingiy
and ~ anwiliinRly, that the selflovc,
II nos the svlf-rospect, OF the letter
writer ii wounded, aud he never calls
again. Thr lawgiyer assumes that he
cnnfcrr favor hy delgning 10 convey
information, nov ever sparingly, when
the honest nrwagathenAr only proposes
fo serve the public by serving hls
newspaper, Then too. a class of let.
tar-wri,ers have dtshonorea the press
They demand ssonoenrs either Ia the
shape of fees or ntcntion LA office AS
conditions precedent 30 the utterAns>e
~ kindly words through the press.
Therefore The stiitcd siignity aud un-
observation-disclosures ~ this snsail class az
ncu of whom ] aal tell
Ing
oIftafSv MRMnEgs.
Rus only wished 90 SAY that Sena.
sus~ Maxev and t'oke and Representa-
tivss 4 ipson, Wcslbom and Reagan !
and CnIlscrSon ~ Texas. Cox af New
N0rk, Carlisle 81 hennleky, ,
OF Virginia and Nancr, Gar
baud, Nu~i and Ingalls, arc mo~l com-
and most useful astiuNstuts