New-York tribune., 1884-03-03
THE TIMES EDITOR.
THE LATE Mr.. THOMAS CHENEhf 40
SCHOLAR AND JOURNALIST.

hos heen Editor of The Timts since the ehd Oh
1877 when he succeeded Mr.. Deiane' Al "oooun,
of his life and an estimate OF his chaiao'oi anu
seryices occupy two columns OF 'no "o -
edited. and for once it drops the ven Vi "iS
18th which il delights, as q rule, to screen IT'S
.sa,rs or make believe screen them, from the
world Neither Mr. Delane's retirement nor Mr..
fy,ororv,s accession was mentioned at the time
The facts of Mr.. Chenery's life may be stated III
ta,v sentences He was born in Barbados IN loZo'
went TO school at Eton, then to Caius College Yam
bridge. and was called TO the Bar. lie oegah MS
journalistic life after as Times correspondent ~
Constantinople, in the stormy diplomatic perloo
which preceded the Crimean war" III was Vhere
that he seems first to have acquired taste lor
those Oriental languages in when he alter"aru oe.
came pro6cient "On more than one occasion"
saws his biographer, Mr. Chenery went up to the
front in the Crimea TO relieve DIR. W. II. RUSSELL
who rs is well known was our special correspond
ont a+ the seat of war" The sentence is a remark
able one 1t is unquestonably well known that Dr.
w H. Russell was the special correspondent OF that
journal in the Crmea, but am by no means sure
that the fact was ever announced IN the lournI 10
which he sent his letters. After the war MI
Chenerv returned to England, and from that time
on became permanently connected with the lourhal
GAS regular contributor of leading articles reviews
and other original papers" He pursued his orient
al and other linguistic SluQcS az eAN 0ti'N NA'iN'
Modern Greek and Turkish, Arabic, Hebrew, he
wrote and smoke with duency. His scientific
knowledge of these languages it is agreed, OF
high order. If he had speciality it seems TO have
been Arabic The publication in 1867 OF his trans
lation of the well-knOwn Arabic classic Inc AS
sembles of Al-Harri," gave him settled fame IN
The learned world and a ProfessorshiP' in 1865, OF
Arabic at oxford. Two men" says his blographer,
so competent to judge as the late Professor Der
IL. Il l, ,Faf pf DrTp
tai literature by predilectiOn and NJ Renan, incon
testably the most brilliant Semitic scholar of
France. spoke to a common friend in terms of en-
thusastIc admiration of Mr.. Chenery's pathological
attainments" There is a remark in Dr. JOhnsons
"life of Sir Thomas Browne" to the effect that the
reciprocal civility of authors is one of the most
risible scenes in the farce of life. No doubt how
ever Mr.. Chenery deserved his fame as an ORR
entast.
What concerns us more is his fame as journalist
Two of his contemporaries in London journalism
publish brief but respectful tributes to his memory
What The Times itself says is expressed in terms to
which it is difficult to give ones full assent, but
which none the less do honor, began by saying,
TO a journal that has but too seldom shown itself
socitous enhance the reputation OF Its own stai
or TO do bare justice to them. With this amable
sentiment toward Mr.. Chencry is mingled some feel
ing of the need in which The Times itself stands OF
apology Whoever holds the pen for Mr. Walter
puts in kind of protest against the general verdict
upon the recent conduct of the paper, and an at
tempted vindication of the appointment of Mr.
Chenery The ideal editor is first depicted. After
an enumeration of the great events since 1871 the
writer says:
An Editor of The Times must move aud work not
merely in great affairs HumGni Mill q Sc SedtenUm
putat; whatever concerns mankind for the moment.
from a war to whim, from passing fancy or
transient fashion to the great secular movements OF
humanity, from q great crime TO great cataStrO-
phe the tragedy of life and It's comedy the victories
OF science and the achievements of literature the
vicssitudes of circumstances and the lnexoTaole
harvest Of death-thcse, and much more than these,
are threads in the web of which an editors life is
woven and they belong as much to his personal life
as they do to the general history of his time.
Mr. Chenery is then described as man of wide
knowledge, sound Judgment and great capacity; al.
accomplished pubcist an experienced man of
affairs. As the dominant interest in public affairs
since he became Editor has centred largely in the
East Elr. Walter hopes it will be acknowledged
that his selection of Mr.. Chenery as Editor was
amply justified both by his personal fitness on gen
eral grounds and by his special and peculiar apti-
tude for dealing with Oriental affairs" And we are
TO draw by the way the faterng inference that Mr..
Walter SO far foresaw the course of events as TO
nominate an Arabic scholar to deal with the coming
complexities of the Eastern question in one of its
acutest forms Well. 1t may be that we have all
been dreaming troubled dreams and that the gen
eral conviction of the decadence of The Times has
had no real basis; that it never lent its influence to
the lingo movement, nor gave any support to Lord
Beaconshell's hollow schemes of Oriental aggran-
dizement but pursued during all these years wise,
prudent well balanced and far-sighted policy Of its
own But that is not am sorry to say, the general
opinion.
But | don't think il was wholly or mainly Mr..
Chenery's fault if the journal Oycr which he ex-
al NVayprpI and u
on so many great questions both English and Eu-
rOpean. 1t has been The belief among journalists
that Mr. Chenery was made Editor in name to the
end that Mr. Walter who is the chief proprietor of
the paper might be Editor in fact, or whenever the
whim seized him. Mr. Walter does not pass for
man OF wide knowledge or sound judgment IN pubic
affairs but he is the less perhaps all the more
eager to meddle with high matters Nh Dolane
was an editor Of too much independence of spirit
and too sure of himself to tolerate interference.
Upon his retirement il seems to have been thought
desirable to select a successor who would prove
more plable Mr.. Cheuery pitched upon HIS
long experience III some departments of journalism
gave an ar Of plausibilty TO the choice. Mr..
Chenery was an excellent writer on certain SUBJ
iects lie had been, as we have Seen correspondent
at Constantnople. But lie was essentially literary
man | do not know in what sense it can be sad,
as is said IN the passage have quoted, that he was
an experienced man Of affairs Save in the COnstan-
tbOple episode there is nothing 10 show that he had
ever come in contact with affairs He knew l
think, very little of journalism on what may be
called its practical side. He had never been man
ager of the paper, nor concerned in the collection
OF news, nor versed in any branch Of the admins
tration Of a great paper. lie had 10 executive ex-
pcIience whatever And he was Glty-one years old
when the editorshp of The 1i.aG thrust upon
him.
Nor was Mr.. Chenery what is called man Of the
world hope may avoid anything that looks like
o contradiction of what is stated in The Times eX-
cept IN matters of opinion. do not mean 1t is
ll.narr OF IN the frnfh IL