Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1893-11-21
|HE's A"JouRNALIsT" NOW


Fermer Moline MAJ Making Hh way o.
Nearly three years ago there blew
into this community young man
who desired to. edit = newspaper. He
began in this city and labored on
paper for an indefinite time-some
two days altogether. He grew 20
humorous. and was 20 full Of wit that
nobody could read through his edi-
torial matter without going into con-
vnlsions. The new editorial writer
was SO abnormally surfeited with the
laughable side of life that he couldn't
refer to a funeral except in the ]ol-
liest way. As the other employees
were always laughing in anticipation
of the good things to come or in re-
membrance of the witty sayings in
the past. all from the brain Of this
same man. il was found necessary to
dispense with his services.
His name was q. n. Potter. He
moved from here to Moline. where
Everybody is supposed to wear con-
tinually broad grin when not laugh
ing outright. He was employed by
Ezra l.. Eastman. who was at that
time conducting the Journal. 1t was
Eastman's idea that the people wanted
La lively paper. and the hest way to
make lively paper. he thought. was
to keep the people laughing. He
succeeded to such an extent that a
good many of the people are laugh
ing vet. This man Potter opened
! wide his humorous valves and eXuded
. fun from every pore. The effect was
such that the people were laughing
even while at church. and some of
the preachers thought of resigning
their charges, As they imagined they
were unconsciouslv drifting into
: levitv. else why should the congre-
CATION laugh. But it was all on ac-
count of that man Potter.
Potter finally drifted to Chicago.
but he happened to strike it at u time
when all the newspaper offices were
furnished with funny men. Then
!, he took to advertising. and he did
that in such 4 funny way that all his
advertisements were inserted with
out charge. They were better than
= the savings of the end man ut min
strel show.
Il Tie took In Puck
ii An idea struck him. He would
write a humorous article and sign
Bob Burdette's name to it and send il
to Puck. He did SO. The article
n was accepted. in due time published
in that comic paper. and shortly af.
forwards Burdette received a checl
=. for the same from the New York pub
fishers. The check he returned say
h ing he had not written the paper any
thing and could not understand how
: the mistake had occurred. until :
+, short time afterwards he received
! letter from Potter in which the lat
70 ter told him Of the liberty he had ia
, ken with him (Burdette's) name. Tn
M latter wrote him characteristic lot
IN ter. saving among other things. tina
he must not do so again: that writer
had better use their own names an,
=, stand or fall by their own merits
4 He also said that those who had oh
tanned any reputation did not lik,
: others to use their names in tina
: wav: that the ..sweet" singer O
4 | MlCulNIH Wouiu iecl HTedtIN oueuV
ed if even Mrs. Browning had writ
No ten anything with the name of tn
.sweet singer" attached. and that
he had received Potter's letter earle
he would not have returned the check
and would have remained silent.
err His Reward After All
Potter got no check for his writing
and expects almost any day to get
roasting in Puck" His card. how
Z ever. shows that he is no longer
u newspaper man. but journalist.
m and any one who has labored on tn
il new spapers will readily discern tn
ne distinction.
L. All these facts were learned by a
ARGUS man from u. n. Potter him sci
~ all except rs TO the admission Q
m his humorous qualities. He was o
), his way from Chicago to his oil
4, home in Iowa. and was laughing I
4. himself at the success he had mad
= in emerging from a mere newspape
man into Journalist"