Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1889-05-17


order in which it is to 20 to the paper
and the compositor scts it up in his COM
posing stick. 1t thus takes much leg
work to get up Japanese newspaper,
and these boys have to run from one end
of the room to the other many times to
get the different ones of the five thou
sand characters which go to make up the
Japanese vocabulary of letters.
Compositors are paid from $40 to $50
month, aud it will be interesting here
to give the salaries of the men employed
on japanese newspaper Tho editor
n-chief receives $3.50 G. month, and the
other men connected with the editorial
room range from that down to $50
month. Reporters receive from $40 to
$50 a month, and foreign correspondents
get about 500 month.
The leading papers of Japan use illus
trations only when the occasion demands
it. They publish pictures of noted men
as they become prominent, and when
the late nominating conventions were
held the American legation here was
besieged with reporters who wanted
photographs of Thurman and Cleveland
and of Harrison and Morton. They
found cut that Mr.. Dunn, one of tho
Secretaries of the Legation, was cousin
of Senator Thurman. and they wanted
ms full report about him as would be
required from gossipy American CORE
spondent. The red bandana handker-
chief puzzled them, aud their versions
OF Senator Thurman's snuff-taking were
ms varied rs their character. / doubt
not that new characters were invented
to express their ideas, for there is no
snuff in Japan, and the handkerchief
the natives use are of paper. have been
interviewed by number of the report
ers, and my talks have furnished several
columns of printed hieroglyphics and
section of q Japanese paper would make
very interesting American newspaper
illustration.
The cheaper papers Of Japan run largely
to wood-cuts and they publish great
pictures of the most narrowing scenes.
In one You may see n murder portrayed
in which an almond eyed girl is killed
by IN Acknowledged villain In another
is q love scene and in third scene of
Japanese sorrow, and death Is told in
pen and ink that seems to weep III all
of these the Japanese dress and features
are carried out and the illustration is
on the whole about as good as that you
lind in American newspapers.
Japanese newspapers are cheap. The
best dailics cost thirty cents n month or
a cent and half copy. The papers do
not make much money, still they havo
great influence. | was told by one of
the men connected with the Government
that the newspaper could make or over
throw public man or minister in Japan,
and public opinion seems to have rs
much weight here as it has i'll America.
| lind the newspaper men Of Japan to DO
very bright men, and in fact there is no
class of subjects which they do not dis.
cuss. Their editorial articles comprise
finance, commerce, Christianity, and the
thousand and one new subjects which
are now interesting old Japan.
The papers are taken by all classes OF
people from the Mikado to the cooiei
and the number of subscribers increases
every day. Toxic has press club
which meets once II month and which
frequently entertains foreign visitors.
There arc three English papers pub
lished in Japan. These are ell issued
at Yokohama and their prices form quite
contrast with those of the Japanese
newspapers. They cost twenty cents
copy, or from SIS to $25 year, and the
news in them is almost entirely Japanese
and of other foreign countries rather
than American.
There is movement going on in
Japan for the throwing away of Chinese
characters and the adoption of the samo
alphabet that We use There are two
societies in Toxic in favor of some reform
in this direction, and one of them wants
to adopt the Japanese alphabet proper.
which consists of forty seven letters.
There will probably be change to one
system or the other, and have heard it