The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1885-01-10

Sio SsusO Vi AiouluiIIOu. LOU must
rousa Yourself upon this great question,
and give your readers a page of it
weekly. / am not a subscriber of your
paper, but borrow it every week of
my neighbor, and, loan him the Banner
of Light in exchange; so you will OBJ
serve that / have been one of your
faithful readers, and 1 know just where
you fall short of good newspaper.
l will leave you few tracts from which
You should make liberal extracts from
time to time. You will notice that this
one, entitled Dash the Cup Away is
written by myself. You are at liberty
to print it in full. And when / come
across anything particularly good in
the columns of the Banner of Light, I'll
cut it out and send it round to you.
You have grand opportunity to make
your paper grow in circulation and in
tluence, and / hope you will come
boldly to the front on the right course,
and no longer continue to devote your
valuable space to trivial matters. By
the way; have you few exchanges
that you are done with? All, that will
do; good day" aasaw seI saia5
In the door the man in. the shawl
passed person with q merry twinkle
in his eyes.
II like Your paper-it is first rate"
he said, as he dropped into the vacant
chair, s'except that it does not contain
humor enough. Why don't you ell her
full of jokes and bright things by the
funny fellows, and make Your readers
laughP Nobody cares a cent for those
political editorials and those scientific
articles, and that stuff about the tariff
you print That puts me to sleep.
Give us plenty of jokes to shake q
mans liver up 8 and let the tariff take
care of itself, That's all. Be in to see
you again when I've more time; ia, ia"
The next person who took the vacant
chair had . countenahce as solemn as a
secondhand hesrse. He didn't look as
if he had smiled more than once in
forty years, and the village editor took
him for an undertaken who wanted to
advertise q patent embalming process
and pay in trade.
silence that became very painful to the
village editor, II am grieved to notice
the tone of levity that has recently per-
yaded the columns of your paper. and
/ am compelled 10 ask you on that ac-
count to take my name off your book.
You seem to forget that this is world
of calamity and woe, and that spirit
of levity in the press is unseemiy, and
tends to draw attention from the solemn
realities of life and the near proximity
of death. Last week you declined to
print my article entitled Reflections
on the grave alleging that you did not
have room for it, and then gave I'M
nearly column of your paper to frivo-
lous jokes. do not intend to read any,
thing light this year. That is all have
to say; good afternoon.
The door closed behind the solemn
man and softly opened again to admit
q dreamy-eyed man with poetic brow
and general expression that seemed
to indicate that he wanted something
he had never had and never expected
to have. ..se.ti
Il merely came to remark" he be-
gan, as he took the vacant chair, ssthat
you are sadly neglecting the literary
of your paper. not only
have noticed it myself. but several of
my friends have called my attention to
it. You should by all means run con-
tinued story and have two or three good
short stories in each issue. Good sto-
ries is the thing that is wanted to make
. village paper popular. Everybody !
you ask will tell you that. A little
news and some local matter and the |
marriages and deaths should be rinted |
Of course; but you shouldn't let any,
thing crowd out the stories. 1 don't |
lake your paper, but my brother-in-law
toes. and l borrow it of him. l have
Intended for some time to mention this |
matter to you, but could never think of |
I before when was in town. If yoa |
'hink thesesuggestions are of any value
% You, you may send me your paper
yratuitous for year. Allow me to bid |
Tou good day, SIR" ~
The dreamy-eyed man went out as
oftly as sixty days. note falls due, +
md a moment later another STYLE of
person dropped into the vacant chair,
md spoke thusly, in tones that were
harp and quick. n3a go
II don't think want this paper an
'ther year. You are not making as
49, = fesPSA 90 y Ou oA1Oulu Will your
opportunities. You are not giving your
eaders enough local matter. Local
natter should be the chief feature of
'illage paper. Everything else should
70 made to give way to local matter.
! story now and then when YOU have
'lenty OF room, and q bit of poetry to
lease the young folks who are in love.
md little news, are all well enough,
ut II you want 10 make village paper
success, you've got to let yourself out
n local matter. Give the news of your
wn 'community, and let the big dailies Il
AXE care of the rest of the world And. II
y the way; if you are little short on
'cal matter this week. you might saw
nat have invented and patented the
lost common-sense churn that has ever
cen introduced to the people of this J
tate. I'll be in again in the course of
lew weeks. and Twill then pay you {
y subscription for last year; goodday.n
The village editor was just sliding
nder the table. a crushad and n,onfoIly. {