The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1891-09-20
COCKERILL'S LETTER
What is Going on in the Gay Me-
tropolis Just Now.
Mr.. CHILDS AS A NEWSPAPER MAN
Good Advice That McAllister Failed to Act On
-Twains $4,000 t?) Nuvel-Astor
Worth More Than Gould
Especial Correspondence the SUNDAY HER.

Especial Correspondence of the SUNDAY HER
ADD
NEW YORK, Sept 15.-The announce
ment of the retirement of Mr.. W. V. Nc
Kean, for quarter of a century the editor
Of the Philadelphia Ledger, has drawn at
tention freshly to Mr.. George W. Childs
and his remarkable newspaper. Mr.. Nc
hean, it appears has given up editorial
drudgery on his own volition. He is to
have hereafter snug berth upon Mr..
Childs' pay roll, with the privilege of doing
Just as little work as he chooses. Mr..
Childs has concluded to behereafter known
the editor in-chief of the Ledger, func-
tion which has really been his since the news
paper passed under his control | happen
to know that the Ledger in every bone and
articulation is of Mr.. Childs' making.
While he has not been working editor he
has directed and shaped his newspaper
from cellar to composing room. 1t is a
deep seated but erroneous IDEA that the
Ledger was profitable newspaper when it
passed into the hands of Messrs. Childs &
Drexel nearly thirty years ago. 1t was
not. 1t had made money during the war,
but when its owner, Swain, became dis
sipsteo and negligent, his property ran
down rapidly. When he sold it to Childs
* DreXel it was actually losing money. A
successful book publisher and a man of
affairs, Mr.. Childs soon placed the paper on
a paving basis and for a quarter of
century it has yielded q princely income
annually. MIR. Childs is shreWd, careful
business man, and no man knows or better
understands the temper of the peculiar
people of Philadelphia. To his tact and
brains the Ledger owes everything.
But what | started out TO say was that
MIR. Childs is about the only wealthy news
paper proprietor in this country who does
not envy the men who achieve distinction
u his service He loves to make every
body in his employ comfortable and happy.
The future of every worthy man in his ser
vice is assured. He pays good salaries in
sures the lives of the faithful men in the
mechanical departments, fits up the work
rooms of his editors with luxurious taste
and as his editors are honored he feels ex-
allied. One story illustrative of his feeling
toward employees he told me not long ago.
Joel Cook financial editor of the Ledger
and who has been for many years-through
Mr.. Childs' kind Observation-Disclosures
can correspondent of the London Times,
has saved a snug little fortune. zone
day. said Mr.. Childs, joel came to me
and said that his wife desired to have a
carriage and a pair of horses. l asked him
if he was able to maintain such lux
ury. He said that he was, but he
thought ii his duty to speak to me about it
because he feared that some mean spirited
brother professional might make invidious
remarks If he saw the family of a salaried
editor enjoying a private turnout. | told
him not only to buy carriage and Vic
toria. too, if he felt able, as it would give
me pleasure to see such evidences of pros
perity upon the part Of men In my service.
] added that | would be glad to see every
man connected with the Ledger riding to
and from business in his own vehicle On
this same occasion Mr. Childs told me of q
compositor who worked on the Ledger and
who was said TO be dying of consumption
twenty wears ago. His physician came to
me, - be said, land insisted that the man
must be sent away. | gave orders that he
was TO be relieved Of all work, but that his
weekly wages were to be paid so long as he
was able to sign the payroll. That's twenty
years ago and the poor fellow was here and
signed the roll last Saturday. He has not
day to this, but L know that he
is alive, though a confirmed
invalid" When the old negro janitor of
the Ledger building died few years ago he
left widow who was much distressed at
the sad outlook. when she came to see
me-" said Mr.. Childs, ITO tell me that she
had no means, / stepped to the safe, took
which ] had been carrying for ten years,
handed it TO her and then gave her all the
towel washing for the Ledger building.
You may well imagine that she went away
In improved spirits"
MIR. Childs says that he has only been
deceived a few times by men who have en-
joyei his confidence and bounty, but that
the pleasure viii, b he has derived from the
GOOD done the truly appreciative and CRATE
fGl ones has counterbs lanced them g
thousand fold. Mr.. Childs' bounty to bis
workmen, his fatherly care for his editors
and reporters, his generous contributions
to every good cause and, above all, his
private charities make him the one Ameri-
can newspaper owner whom | delight to
honor.
Mr.. FREScH's GREAT CHARITY SCHEME.
Andrew R. French's colossal scheme 70,
relieving the poverty and distress OF
Europe by the charity of the American
farmers has occasioned considerable dis
cussion in New York during the past week
Mr. Freuch's scheme lacks nothing in
scope In point of magnitude it covers the
the entire country and it's very immensity
frightens many persons away from it. Mr.
French's proposition is to organize a grand
charity enterprise appealing more partic
ularly to the 4, 500, 900 American farmers
soliciting from each five bushels of wheat
the whole to be shipped to the famine
stricken districts of Europe. He believes
that In this way 10, 600, 600 bushels of wheat
can be procured in few months, and this
with the cash contributions which would
flow along in sympathy with the movement
would swell the fund to gigantic proper
fions, and be sufficient to supply every