Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1885-04-25

tli0 FiittlitiCicIS diu NtICi'iCN H'i'i
railroad collisions and divorce
cases. DON'T send me the paper
any longer. I'll come in and pay
you what I owe you when l have
soldFmy corn. Good day"
And then there came flight step
at the door, and IA person wearing
q severe conntenance, and a shawl,
cameiin and took the vacant chair.
CLAM very SORRY" he said, in
measured tones, and with fixed
and critical stare at the end of the
editors nOSe-"I am very sorry to
NOTICE that You are giving in yonr
columns so little attention to the
cause of prohibition-the noble
cause Of prohibition. You must
rouse Yourself npon this great ques-
tion. sand give vonr readers page
of it.weekly. Lam not subscrib-
er tosyOtlrspaper, but / borrow = t
cver:Sxeely from M eighhor and
I loan him the Banner of Truth IN
exchange. So you will observe that
] hayesbeen one of your faithful
readers, and know just where You
fall short Of making good news
paper. / willleavc Won a few tracts
from which you should make liner
al extracts from time to time. Yon
will}notice that this Que, entitled
Dash the Cup Awayr is written by
myself. Yon are atllbertiy to print
it IN full. And when I come across
anything particularly good in the
columns of the Banner of Truth I'll
cntit ont and send it aronnd to yon.
Yon have grand opportunity TO
make your paper grow IN circnla-
ton and influence, and I hope ynn
will come boldly to the frOnton the
right course and no longer continne
to devote vonr valuable space TO
trivial matters. BY the way. have
You few exchanges YOU are done
with7 All. that will do; thanks.
Good day."
In the door the man in the shawl
passed a person with a merry
twinkle in his eyes.
1T like Your paper-it is first
rate" lie said, as he dropped into
the-vacant chair, "except that it
does not contain humor enough.
Why don't Won fill her full of Jokes
and bright things by the funny fell
lows and make your readers laugh?
Nobody cares a cent for those polit-
ical editorials and those scientific
articles, and that stuff ahout the
tariff yon print. That puts me to
sleep. Give us plenty of jokes to
shake mans liver mp and let the
sma.iff take care ofitself. That's all.
Be in to see You again when pve
mtre time; tn. ta.'
The next person who took The
vncant chair had a cOnntenance as
solemn. as second-hand-hearse.
He didn!t-look as'if he had smiled
fIoIe than once in years. and the
-xi!agc editor. taok-h,m for an. nm
Certaker who wanted to advertise
a patent emballning process and
pay in trade.
"Sir," said the solemn man after
a silence that became very painful
TO the village editor. IL am grieved
to notice the tone of levity that has
recently pervaded the columns Of
your paper and I am compelled to
ask you on that account to take my
nam" off yonr list. Yon seem to
forget that this is a world of calam-
ity and woe and that u spirit Of lev
ity in the press is unseemly, and
tends 20 draw attention from the
solemn realities of life and near
pioximities of death. Last week
YOU declined to print my article EN-
titled Reflections on the Grave
alleging that Won did not have
room for it, and then gave nearly
column of your paper to frivolous
IbkeS. I do not intend to read any
thing light this year. That is all ]
lave to say; good afternoon
The door closed behind the sol
tmn man and then softly opened
hgain to admit dreamy-eyed man
with a poetic brow, and general OK
Ipression that seemed to Indicate
That he wanted something he had
never had and never expected to
have.
II merely came in to remark, he
began, as he took the vacant chair,
"that you are sadly negIecting the
literary department. of yonr paper.
I not only have noticed it myself,
lbut several of my friends have
called attention to it. Yon shonl,l
Iby all means run a continued story
land have from two to three short
stories in each issue. Good stories
lis what is the thing that is wanted
| to make a village paper popular
Everybody you ask will tell You
I that. A little news and some local
matter and the marriages and
deaths should be printed, of course;
but you shouldn't let anything
crowd out the stories. I don't take
your paper, but my brother-in-law
does, and l borrow it Of him. |
have intended fox some time to
mention the matter to you, but
never could think OF it when I was
in town before. If you think that
these suggestions are Of any value
to you, you may send me your pa