St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1886-06-26
DEAD! DEAD!
Tale of a Rival Newspaper and It's
Mild Editor.

Tale of Rival Newspaper and It's
Mild Editor.
Every body in Hopeville said that
Henry Petit was just the man to be
editor of live. progressive newspaper.
and the every body holding this opinion
included very decidedly Mr.. Henry
Petit himself. Mr. Petit was editor and
proprietor of the Hopeville Millenium.
Why he had chosen this name for his
paper no one knew exactly, though it
was supposed. from the incidental re-
marks of the editor, that it was pro-
things to which he would ultimately
bring Hopeville and such of its popula-
ton as were subscribers for the paper
and paid for it promptly. Mr.. Petit
was small in stature, sharp of features,
and loud of voice. Journalistically. he
was in perpetual rage, a rage varying
in its intensity from the spitefully
sarcastic to the bloodthirstily fero-
cious. There seemed to be fam
tastic connection between his degrees
of aggressiveness and the style of
type used in his journal. Thus, when
treating of subject comparatively un-
important, he contented himself with
the light musketry of solid nonpareil.
the smallest type in his office. A mat
ter for more forcible denunciation re-
quired minion or BREWER to give it
proper weight; from this he sometimes
,,,c.aJ IN h.<tor r. otiya nd tho lorrar
type yclept long primer, and he had
been known, after vainly trying to re-
lieve his outraged feelings through the
medium of double-leaded plea, bristling
) with exclamation points and distorted
by italics, to set all typographical pre-
cedent at defiance. and lombard his
readers with rhetorical and maledictory
cannon-balls, manufactured from the
largest, heaviest and blacklist adver-
Using letters in his possession. He be-
lieved thoroughly in aggressive jour
nalism, and he always had fight on
his hands. He disproved the old adage
that lit takes two to make quarrel,
by maintaining a perpetual dispute
with the world at large, without
even requiring his adversary to say a
word or add a single spark to the fire
of rage that kept the quarrel at boiling
point.
The Milieniun, was power in Hope
vile. and Henry Petit enjoyed the
proud consciousness that he had shoul-
dered himself and his paper into
the front rank by sheer force of
energy and display of that fight
ing temperament which never fails
sooner or later, to win the respect of
= community As a result, he was
reaping both fame and good income
from the Millennium. He could perhaps
have got along more peacefully and
quietly than he did, had he chosen, but
attrition with the world seemed to be
essential to his enjoyment of life. and
he was always denouncing real or inn
aginary evils, and lamenting that there
was not more of them against which
he could couch his lance in deadly as
sault. MIR. Petit was entirely satisfied
with himself. and never took the trouble
to inquire into his neighbor|s business.
1t was said of him that half the popula-
ton of the town might be carried off by
an epidemic. and unless the death
notices were sent to the Millennium for
publication at regular rates. he would
never know that there had been a
funeral. He rather prided himself on
this Instrumentation, and declared
that he despised curiosity save when its
indulgence was necessary for the sue
cessful prosecution of his business. In
that case, he added, it ceased to be
curiosity in the true and offensive sense
of the word.
One day an event took place at Hope
vile. which. for the moment, literally
paralyzed the editor of the Millennium
with astonishment. Then he recovered
his breath and retired to his little Office
t. try andrealize the situation. A man
had actually come to Hopeville to start
another paper! Mr.. Petit at first could
hardly believe that such temerity could
pass unpunished by the supernatural
powers that watch over the interests of
newspapers To think of a man.
stranger an inter,oper Ia fellow
from, no one knew where !-a-a-.
1t was of no use! Mr.. Pettit's breath
had gone again and he could only lean
back in his chair and gasp his amaze
ment at the new mans unparalleled
presumption. Meanwhile the new man
went on quietly with his preparations.
He looked over the ground, satisfied
himself that Hopeville needed his paper,
brought type and press and other ms
terial to the house he had rented. can
vassed the town for subscribers and
advertisers with satisfactory results.
and published the first number of the
Hopeville Independent. taking no more
notice of Henry Petit and the .Millen-
iuns than if neither had existed. Con-
trary to Mr.. Pettit's confident predio-