The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1886-11-13
An Eccentric Newspaper Mans Schemes.
..Bustdndsr in Philddelphia NeWs.

An Eccentric Newspaper Mans Schemes.
.Bystand.r in PHILADELPHIA Neps
civilian B. Hazelton, at one time .
prominent journalist in this city, died
on Friday of last week in Baltimore of
softening of the brain" There are many
things in mans life which had best re-
main untold until after six feet of earth
cover him. This is case in point. Poor
Hazelton! What generous, noble
hearted fellow he was to be sure, with
all his chimeras. l first knew him in
the latter part of 1881, when his brain
was teeming with most stupendous
scheme He confided it to me with the
promise that it should not be mentioned
to living soul until after his death, and
it never has been. Hazelton possessed
the remarkable faculty of convincing
people of the plausibility of almost any
scheme that his cratic brain might con-
lure up. When you first heard it you
would laugh at the absurdity of the
thing, but as the schemer went on talk
lug and explaining you would gradually
as he made it, and in the end, if you
happened to be anything of sauguine
temperament. you would be willing To
pitch in heart and soul aud help make a
magnificent success of what at first
seemed most ridculoue project.
To put the whole thing in uutshelI,
Leager and the Record, consolidate them
aud issue newspaper with the title of
the Ledger Record. How this impossi-
bility was to be accomplished was Halle
tons secet, but know that palt of the
scheme involved the kidnapping of Mr.
oingerly and the holding of him uutil
he would consent to sell his property at
reasonable price. Just how Mr. Childs
was to be induced to part with tue Lcdger
4! never found out, but it doubtless CON-
tempated some equally foolish plan.
Hazleton proposed to raise the purchase
money on Third street, and was confident
that he could not only find financial back
erS, out that the consolidation of the two
newspapers would result in annual profit
of three quarters of "a million of dollars
For several weeks Hazleton reported to
me every day that he was making the
most gratifying progress. He had even
determined upon the makeup" of the
new sheet. aud proposed to do what then
looked odd, to say the least, aud that
was to illustrate the paper with small
cuts, the same as we do now. it was his
idea to maintain the advertising features
OF the Ledger in its marriages and deaths
the news columns, and to publish a sum
nary of the doings of the day in
French, German, Spanisl and Ital
ian This. he claimed, would secure the
patronage of every foreigner in Philadel
pha who could read. He propose to have
the editorial columns in verse; and to SO
the plaine st and NEST vigorous English
in speaking of crime. Had his project
been carried out he would have astonish-
ed some of the staid citizens of Phiadel-
phia, by his proposed method of describ
ing crime. He Intended ''to call spade
a spade" ana to use words aud express
slons that would be tabooed even in The
Police Gazette. Hazleton was firmly of
the opinion that the newspapers of the
day were entirely too mealy -mouthed in
dealing with important topics
Somehow or other Mr.. Childs did not
seem disposed to sell and Mr.. Singerly
was not kidnapped and the great CONSOLE
dation never took place. Shortly after
that Hazleton went to Baltimore, where |
heard that he was engaged in another of
his visionary schemes, but paid no at
tention to it, believing that it would
speedily be buried in the same grave with
the Ledger Record corpse out week