The state chronicle. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1883-1893, 1884-08-09
FOULLY MERDERED!
A Critical Reader has the Candid Kind.
ness to Write what You will Enjoy.

To THE CHRONICLE Within short
time past / have glanced at random at
different columns devoted to literature
agriculture, science and art" and | have
been Informed that such an one is about
to build a handsome store on the slant of
the present one; that the Democrats were
hrlnS q canon IN recognition of a nOmi-
nation; that a certain somebody led his
bride to the alter: that Mr. so and So
persesSed something-I forget what; that
the editors Submits a certain matter to
the public, and that somebody hollosced at a
runaway horse-while a vivid description
is given of an excursion trip, and the
numbers have threbbled.
Have not newspaper readers as much
right to expect reasonable accuracy in the
makeup of a journal as customer has
to demand that his tailor shall fit his coat
to his person? A farmer, Or merchant,
or a mechanic may with some show of
reason excuse himself for photographed,
chronological or syntactical errors, plead
ing lack Of time and opportunity to keep
| himself informed; but an editor processes
to be an educator Of the people.
But when they reach the field of meta
phOr, the mazes of rhetorical construction
or the domain of history, many of our
modern wielders of the pen are grand,
gloomy and peculiar" y reporter tries
his hand on a vineyard, and rides dow n
the avenue between a sea of vines re-
minding one Of the famous marine pas
sage of the lsraelites. Not long ago one
Of prominent 8 metropolitan " journals Of
the State mentioned the disappearance of
a passenger from a train and declared
that his " absence was not missed" 4
classical editor" s. laid himself out" to
give a historical account of Flora McDon-
aid and her settlement on the Cape
Fear and spoke Of her as the heroic
as a reason for the same Scotch settle
ment on Cross Greek the fact that they
chose that part of the country in order to
shoot deer to make buckskin breeches to
send to the mother country.
But the sins of the whole editorial es-
tablishment, from the sanctum to the lye
pot, have to be borne by the ''intelligent
cOmposltOr," who must silently take it
it with the good humor displayed BY the
country storekeeper, who, while writing
an order to his city merchant, was stopped
by a friend at his elbow. who exclaimed,
8 Hold on Bill! just look how you are
spelling sugar-shetge''. We'll, [ de-
clare" said Bill with self-pitying smile,
what won't | do next I've left one of
the gs."
Editors, fear, are very much ''set y in
their ways, and maintain the dogma of
infallibility with more than papal per-
sistency-as witness the manager Of
country paper, who, having stated in his
columns that Mr.. JnO. Thompson had
hanged himself in his barn the day be-
fore, was confronted after the edition was
put out by Mr.. Thompson himself, brist-
ling with weapons and Indignation, and
demanding q retractiOn. Can't retract,
sir; it's against the rules of this oifice.n
"But great Jews, man." said poor Thomp-
son, " here am alive and we'll - Can't
help 1T, sir, We never retract. | can say
in the next issue that you were cut down
before death ensued; that's the best |
can do"
All the above, and more, THE CHRON-
ICLE could publish with serene brow, but
stay did | dream it, or did | read the
other day a declaration of THE CHRoN-
ICLE's 'Traveler," that he who could de-
hberately eat an aN1pe0led peach, was
g fit for treason, stratagem and spoils?"
Seriously, newspaper reading has be-
come part of the family training and ed
ucation in this country, and even our
children have their favorites in every
mail brought home by the head of the
household. First Of all, let our current
literature be pure and harmless to the
soul; then let it be at least respectable
enough in point of ability not to shock
the ordinary intelligence of the
READER.
Fdyetterille, August 4.