Smyrna times., 1890-07-30
Mr.. EDITOR .

What is the matter with the papers
in serving Of weekly news to their
readers ? We look for the substance of
thought, apinion, fact and find little
more than paragraphs and squibs, l
pick up the Call and find its columns
mostly filled with personal mention
such person went to Townsend last
Sunday, or such a young man of Dover
spent that evening in Smyrna, or such
an individual went to see his grand
mOther-half of them persons you
never heard of before. If / were a
young man going to see young lady
and had to have my name paraded
every week or two in the public print
for months in succession, | should
feel like kicking if / didn't kick the
Editor. am not finding fault with
noting the fact that such a per-
son is going on a trip to the noun
tains, seashOre, &c or are visiting
friends when their stay amo UNITS to
this but sensible people do not want
column after column of the personal
mention of no interest to the general
reader and intended only to tickle
their vanity. We want the local news,
but we want something besides trash.
1 observe that there is strong ten
dency in both the daily and local press
latterly to indulge in such journalism,
but hope the TIMES will not allow
itself drawn too far in this current.
A READER.
Our correspondent in the above note
presents a problem that has bothered
more than one editor. In fact just how
to edit a paper to meet the wants of
tsreaders, is one of the hard nuts to
crack, and not few have failed in do
ing it who had conceived it an easy
job. This grows out of the diversities
of tastes, or what is equally true, the
want of taste, or proper appreciation
of local editor.
such are the details of even a little
local paper that the editor who is be-
sides reporter, proof reader, CORES
pondent, business manager, and Office
boy all combined) never has a day
with enough hours in it to finish his
work, for there are always details that
cannot be gathered until the last. He
is like the toy balloon vender at the ag-
ricultural Fair-a hand full of strings
that are ready at the least relief of
pressure to fly away from him.
The local paper, unlike the paper
devoted to a special mission or subject,
has to prepare his mission for all clas-
ses-the saint and sinner, the learned
and unlearned, wise and simple. 1t is
impossible in quality or style to suit
these several classes at the same time.
And then there is a large class who
are not willing to give tho local editor
credit for thing when it is prepared
with thought and discrimination,
whereas, the same article if in a large
daily might elicit their highest praise.
The editor who has pride in in his pro-
fession often finds his best mental ef-
forts wasted because of this fact.
Squibs Squibbs the larger part of
the readers of local paper never got
beyond squibbs. They would rather
read about somebody's dog being kill
led, or COW astray, or Johnny Jumpups
party, or where Tom Jones went to
spend Sunday evening with the girls
than the best editorial reflections on
any vital subject that could be writ
ten.
With all our bOasted advance in our
public schools and intelligence, the
newspaper. as to its intellectual re-
quirments has deteriOrated. Thirty
years ago a paper that was made up of
personal mention for no other reason
than that they were persons (neither
pointing a moral or ordinary tale) and
paragraphs loosely put together as not
to contain a thought worth remember
ing would have been pronounced
trash. The people then demanded
that news containing an intelligent rec
ord of the events of the week, editor
ials, productions in original poems
contributions, essays &c should fu. N
the subject matter Now we find a
large part of the people want to feed
on scraps alone, hashed out Of the
commOnest stuff, hardly containing a
scintilla of reflection or a thought.
The newspaper man like the meI-
chant, or restaurateur, must cater to
the wants or tastes Of the people indi-
cate Enthusiastically that they want
to be served with hash, then hash they
will have. If all the readers of papers
were like like the Reader who fur.
nishes the above note. our local papers
would be characterized by more
thought dignity and character.