The morning call., 1890-12-26

"ue NIUE tfdShy VI Her ScTeeuS aie Hluciy
copied in the newspapers. while those which
are OF better sort, in both subject and
treatment. are left unnoted.
1.-The fact is" said she, IF should write
as well as can, so that | really could take
pride and pleasure in it. l should very soon
could bring myself to write the perfect
trash which l see is most acceptable, l
could double my income. As it is, l reconcile
my self-respect and my !pocket-book by pur-
suing medium course"
L have talked with many experienced
newspaper women on this topic of late,
continues Jean Kincaid, in the Business
Woman's Journal, and their testimony is
Invariably like that quoted above. Many,
however, unite with her in drawing from
these 1aets an erroneous conclusion to
the effect that the women readers
Of the newspapers do not want
good things, nor even know them
when they see them. The contrary
is proved by the success of really irst-class
designed especially for
Journal, Good Housekeeping, and those
newer claimants of popular favor. the ''Busi-
ness Woman's Journal" the W0man's
Cycle. and the like; while the high-class
monthlies confidently count on three-fourths
OF their readers being women.
The fact is that women have no voice
and no choice as TO what shall be set
Tor their perusal in the newspapers. With
one or two notable exceptions among our
large newspapers the women's departments
are edited by men. The stuff
FURNISHED BY THE sYNDICATEs
Comes next. and the articles to be used are
usually chosen by men who almost invari-
ably select the most fantastic and impr0ba-
Die, the slangest and lcudest. When a
paper has women writers upon its staff even
VINO are expected to furnish original arti-
Giles for the women's column they seldom
NJ oil r1,at 10
ordered, while the final authority which ac-
ceptS or condemns remains a man, who
knows nothing about it,
What can one do. however good inten-
tions, Astounding enthusiasm, or broad an
outlook she may have If the manager of her
paper says: 1.-THE trouble with all you news
paper women is that you shoot over your
readers heads. The average woman never
gets to be more than 10 years old. She
leaves school then and marries and settles
down. After that all she cares fer is her
crochet work and her babies and new cook
ing receipts; and that's what she wants TO
READ about In the newspapers"
ANA yet the man VINO, to my knowledge
made the above remark is an unusually
clever and able editor and manager, who has
achieved an almost phenomenal success.
WIN eyes wide open to every new thing in
his profession, and brain quick to grasp any
idea which might be turned to the advantage
OF his paper. the modern editor yet fails to
read the signs of the times SO far as women
are concerned. He still persists in holding
to his prec0nceived ideas of her, ideas
obtained from goodness knows what source;
Tor the type described above is as surely
extinct as the dodol lie obtains the
services OF high-priced experts to take
charge OF his yachting, baseball, mill
tary, political, labor, secret society and
score Of other columns, but he thinks any
body. especially any man, can manage the
Woman's department. The material which
gees 10 make up that department conse-
quently Is not what a little honest invest-
gatlon would show women to be interested
10 to-day, but what some man thinks women
ike, or should like.
That newspaper will certainly score high
In lame and fortune which shall be the first
TO give TO woman's distinctive activities and
lnterestS-ier clubs and societies. her educa-
ton, her philanthropies,
HER DUTIES, PUBLIC AND PRIVATE,
Her amusements. her thought, progress and
pursults-the same attention now accorded
TO moss oil men; which shall represent
iairly. In short, the young woman's side of
Lille.
This can not be done in column or de-
partment The trouble is that most editors,
wnen they devote any attention to women's
affairs whatever, think they must give lot
OF stun which, in reality. no woman ex-
poets newspaper to print or thanks it for
prlntln g-matter which she can find in bet
tci lelidule 1OIm IN CLASS periodicals on
fashions and household matters. Let a
newspaper keep to its text and print the
news. Much of this Is of equal moment to
both men and women; but let it give news
which Is OF Importance to women alone as
well as that which interests men only. If
prize-fght witnessed by 500 men and con-
vention attended by as many women occur
on The same morning, why is not one worth
a column OF space as well as the other
ANA II man who knows all about
prize-fshis and fighters be sent to the
first, is il too much to ask that the reporter
assigned to the other shall be able to grasp
at least the idea of what it's all about? The
reports made by men reporters of two cnn-
yenti0ns Of women which were held recently
In New York City-cOnventions by many
deleg representing thousands of women
all over the land-were, for the most part,
perfectly exasperating in their laundering
lnaccuracy, their stupid Indifference and
their utter frivolity and f1ippancy. There
are scores OF clever newspaper women in
New York; but only two or three papers
thought 1t worth While to see that they were
set to do this work.
Perhaps the first thing, after all, which
the modern editor needs to learn is that the
modern woman who thinks at all takes her
sell seriously. very seriously indeed.