St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1889-04-25
Gbe Californian.
AN IDEAL JOURNALIST.

In a very discriminating editorial
on the late Hobart w. Richardson,
editor of the Portland Advertiser,
whose untimely death we chronicled
a few weeks ago, after speaking of
the fact that Mr.. Richardson resign
ed his place as editor of the Portland
Press in 1868 rather than surrender
his convictions and principles at the
demand of the owners of the Press,
the New York Evening Post goes on
to say
Mr. Richardson's death has called
forth tributes to his character and
influence which have been exceedingly
noteworthy. A republican by train
ing. he was often forced to criticise
his party with severity, and the or
gan-grinders then found nothing too
severe to say in the way of ridicule.
But now even the most SubServ1ent
of them bear witness that his words
carried weight and produced an eff
feet, and the recognition of his intiu-
ence is remarkable in view of the re-
lations between him and many of
those who confess his power.
Hobart w. Richardson was, in his
field and to the best of his ability, the
journalist as thejournalist should be-
He was prepared to surrender his
place if asked to surrender his pr1nc1-
pies in order to keep it, and he would
have scorned to seek any public posi-
ton at the cost, which must always
be paid, of losing his independence.
Another style of journalism, how
ever, seems now more popular. The
editor no longer pretends even to be
"a public teacher he is simply in
journalism ''for what he can make
out of it" His daily or monthly
paper is. not conducted in order to
tell the truth and make the world
better, but in order to make money
and secure office He no longer writes
editorial articles in order to convince
people that the principles which he
advocates are sound and ought to
prevail he has no principles. because
principle don't pay" He runs his
paper III such q way as to estab-
lish q claim" for an office by his
services to the party" and vOlunta-
rilv accepts the same low plane as
that of the ward striker, who points
to his work" and demands his re-
ward. The present editor of the
New York Tribune surrenders the pO-
sition which an independent attitude
would enable him to maintain as a
great force in affecting the public
opinion of the United States, and be-
comes a mere place-holder of a pass
ing administration, thus FORGETTING
all right to criticise his official supe-
riOrs, the mere creatures of the hour.
The North American Review, once an
honorable periodical, prostitutes its
pages to the publication Of indecent
assaults upon the most eminent men
of the nation, and the person into
whose hands its noble traditions I'M
happily fell secures an office as the re-
ward for his servility. All over the
land the editors of republican papers
are following the example of the
Whitelaw Reds and the Allen Thorn
dixie Rices, and joining the crowd of
hungry hogs who push and fight for
a chance to get their shouts into the
public trough.
What is to be the future of jOurna-
lism? Are the courageous and con-
scientiOus public teachers, whose
ranks are fast thinning, to have no
successors, and are we to have in
their stead a race of OpiniOnless place
holders?