Saint Mary's beacon. [volume] (Leonard Town, Md.) 1867-1983, 1883-06-14

It is strange what cranky notions
some editors get into their heads,
Here is paper that says: Survive
or perish, our principles are ten cents
line, money In advance
What an absurd idea Ifthe editor
does not know anything about the
newspaper business, let him ask some
patron of his paper, and he will find
ont that money is not needed in carry
ing on the business. Printing presses
do not cost money. The men in New
York and st. LOUIS who make print
ing presses and type pay other men
large sums to do nothing but travel
all over the South and find out the
name and address of the Journalist
who needs press. That's all they
want. As soon as they have got his
address they ship an entirely new
press, worth thousands of dollars, and
to make sure that the Texas editor
will accept the gift, the freight is even
paid in advance and a man is sent
down to set up the press.
As soon as it is known that a Texas
man is going TO start a paper, the pa
per mills all over the North send him
samples, and offer to pay him in adj
vance, monthly, for the privilege Of
keeping him supplied with paper,
gratis. The object of the Northern
men in supplying Southern journals
gratis with paper is to cultivate friend
ly relations between the two sections,
and to make US once more happy and
united people. If the Northern man
ufacturers were to ask the actual
cash for their wares the entente cordi-
ale between the two sections would be
ruptured and spilled. There is pro-
baby no instance since the war of a
Southern editor being called on to
pay for anything supplied him by the
North which goes to show that the
war is almost over. 4
AS the same liberality il shown
newspapers by our home people, we
cannot, for the life of us, imagine why
the editor EFFORTS ten cents line for
advertisements from his own people.
1t Is an outrage-Southern outrage,
so to speak. The Texas editor is
never expected to pay either Office OF
house rent. When it-was announced
that We were going to start a paper
IN Austin, there was a mass meeting
called Of the citizens of Austin, re-
CARELESS of party or political belief,
at which resolutions were passed APP
poining committee to call on the
Sifters In person, and in carriage,
and take them all over Austin, and
request them to pick out the houses
they preferred for their Offices and
private residences; the citizens to buy
said houses and convey them by deed
of gift to these said journalists, all Of
which was respectfully declined, as
Austin is rather small town and the
private fortunes of the Sifters were
ample TO support them in aifluence.
We have never yet had a chance
to pay printers a cent for setting type
or getting out the paper, and we sup
pose all other editors in Texas have
had the same experience. Nothing
is more common than to see half a
dozen printers fighting in front of the
Texas Siftings Office, the cause Of the
quarrel being which shall have the
opportunity Of setting up our paper
for the glory of it. If we were to
offer printer money for time spent
in@setting up Texas Siftings his feel
ings would be hurt, so we never do
anything of the kind. Almost any
day some printer with tears in his
eyes. offers us unlimited credit at the
bank where he keeps his money, which
may be faro bank for all we know,
but We steadily refuse; for as we have
already stated, our private fortunes
are not only more than sufficient for
our needs, but we have money to lend
our less fortunate brethren Of the
press.
For these reasons, we cannot un-
derstand why the editor demands ac-
snal cash for advertisements. It seems
to ms that he must be eaten up with
greed and avarice. We not only In
sert advertisements gratis. but throw
in few hundred copies of the paper
as an inducement. Not only that, but
we publish anything and everything
thas Is sent US In the nature of con-
tribution, no matter what it may be.
--1eras SifSngs.