St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1885-03-29
Some of the Bright Intellects Who
Have Achieved Distinction in
the Newspaper Field.
Methods of Work of Correspondents at
the Seat of War and Else
where.
Gath the Long MINDED But Interesting
How He Writes and What He
Gets for 1t.
Leander Richardson and Some Of His Freaks
w. A. CrOffut's Self COnceit-Ot
journalistic Lights.
Correspondence of the Globe.

Correspondence Of the Globe.
| CHICAGO, March 27.-I wonder how many
readers Of the GLOBE give a thought as to the
authorship of the especial correspondence"
columns of the Sunday SUPPLEMENT- Do
they ever stop to think whether the gossip
embodied in those columns is indisputably
accurate, or that they may be reading the
product of ready pen backed by fertile
imagination? Your newspaper correspond
ent in nine cases out of ten is a needy fel-
| low, and on the product of his pen depends
his daily bread. He has certain amount OF
space to fill for one, two or perhaps half
dozen papers, and it not unfrequently hap
| pens that there is lack of good material for
his work. He is not always-verv infre-
quently, indeed-foot-loose and untram-
melled that he may devote The proper amount
of time to his correspondence. Indeed, some
of the best known and most popular CORE
spondents are the very ones who are crowded
to death with routine work, and who have
made names for themselves By hard work in
the exciting service of large dailies. There
is no class of writer's more maligned, whose
occupation is more arduous, and whose say
ings-or writings are
ACCEPTED AS GOSPEL TRUTH
than the special correspondents. Each
writer has his own peculiar style and wins
the clientage of class of readers to whom
his efforts most strongly appeal; and within
a short time that particular class turn each
Sunday morning to that page on which that
particular writer is usually allotted space. The
message therein contained is accepted,
swallowed and assimilated by the receptive
organs of the reader. But few "specials"
are paid by the letter-generally by the
amount of space their correspondence occu-
pies on the printed page. Hence arises the
temptation to ''pad,'' and the managing
editor remorselessly cuts out whole para
graphs. But the editor who eliminates and
revises thd ''copy' is not such bugbear to
the correspondent as that genius who, after
the intelligent compositor, is the one
unmitigated nuisance of the print shop.
may say with great applause from the several
legions of type settlers in the land) the aver
age proof reader is fraud. He it is who,
better than the writer, knows how to spell
and punctuate, and considers himself walk
ing encyclopedia of general information. He
it is that is paramount to the managing edi-
tor in the matter of altering your manuscript
to suit his own ideas, and he'll change a
name or date or word provided the copy does
not agree with his ideas. Truly your CORES.
| pondent's life is
NOT HAPPY ONE.
had chat with one of the best known
newspaper men in the country few days
ago. Ten years ago his name was familiar
one, as he was brave and enterprising cor
| respondent of leading New York daily dur
| ing the war, and he afterward spent several
| years in Europe writing series Of let
| tiers which have since been republished
| in book form and have met with a wide sale.
| But the flower of his youth has gone and his
health left him years ago and he is now doing
editorial work in small quantities on large
salary. Conversation turned first on the pro-
| fession in general, but later l gathered no
small amount of information concerning
newspaper correspondents of the day and
some others that were well known few
years ago. The old man filed his pipe, took
off his glasses and settled himself comfort
ably in his chair, remarking: eyes, / have
known all the prominent "specials" that
have appeared before the reading public for
the last twenty-five years. | suppose George
Alfred Townsend is the best known
writer of to-day. If he were
more reliable his communications would
| De more Sought LOT, anu uc
would be the gamer thereby. When I first
knew him he was So a column man, but
nowadays he gets $50 for. the same space
and will do no work for less than that.
HE HAS PECULIAR STYLE,
| retentive memory and an acquaintance
| larger believe than any other man in the
country. Yet withal he's driven for stuff to
send his journal very frequently, and in
such an event he gets hold of a new book or
resurrects bit of ancient history and manu-
features an interview. But what he does say
| is always readable, and doubt much if there
| is another man in the profession who can
grind out two or three columns day every
| day in the year with the ease that Gath
does, AMI still make the matter
good reading. He employs two stenog-
raphers, and while debating his letters
/ smokes strong pipe and walks the floor,
Frightening his ideas with occasional dashes
of brandy from his wel-stocked sdeboard.
Gath has made more money and saved less
| than any other man in the profession, and
| he'll die poor. Leander Richardson-be's
the ''ItbureP' of the Boston Herald and Phila-
dephia News-is one of the raciest writer's in
! American journ alism, but thorough
Bohemian, with no stamina, little principle
and less business ability than a man with
one-tenth his brains. He came honestly by
his love of iourn alism, for his father
WAS WAR CORRESPONDENT
of the New York Tribune, and good fellow
| be was, too Leander's New York exyer-
| fence proved him a bright, capable fellow,
but too unstable and not to be depended on.
One Of his earlier experiences was in the
West, where he had been sent to write up
one OF the Indian outbreaks. One day he
sent to his paper an elaborate three-eolumn
| report of his own death, with biography and
| lengthy Mandatory notice attached. Ran out
of material and had to fill the space was his
excuse for the freak. Later he went to
England, and while there became cores
pondent of the Boston Herald, and through
| his
ACTIVE EFFORTS AND HARD WORK
the Herald's cables contained news, reliable,
too that no other paper in the country coul d
get hold of. The New York Herald, which
has always made a specially of its foreign
news, was badly left in frst-class intelligence
| from Great Britain so long as Rich
ardson was correspondent Of its Boston
namesake. After his return from England
| in com pany with another newspaper man,
he started the Journalist They made an ex-
cellent paper, but both editors too evidently
had 'axes to grind" and paid off old scores
| in manner that Disguised their subscribers.
| This, coupled with the fact that neither had
any business capacity, forced them to aban-
| don their venture at considerable loss. w.
| A. Croffut had an experience in Minnesota
| journalism, and is quite an extensive prop
erty holder in Minneapolis. Croffut's letters
are always interesting, but so
OVERWHELMED WITH sELP-coycEIT
| that one tires Of him. He was at one time
editor'of the New York Graphic, but was not
a brilliant success. He writes for half
i IL L.